Crime and Punishment
First published 1866 · English · 536 pages
- Novels
- Mystery and crime
A novel set in the crowded, feverish streets of St Petersburg. Raskolnikov is a former student living in poverty, and he forms a troubling theory that some exceptional people may be justified in overstepping moral law. He acts on his idea, and the book follows the mental turmoil that results, as well as his encounters with his family, a kind and suffering young woman named Sonya, and a shrewd investigator. It is a study of conscience, pride and the possibility of renewal, and it remains one of the most gripping psychological novels ever written.
Quotes
Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart.
To go wrong in one's own way is better than to go right in someone else's.
Man grows used to everything, the scoundrel!
All is in a man's hands and he lets it all slip from cowardice, that's an axiom. It would be interesting to know what it is men are most afraid of. Taking a new step, uttering a new word is what they fear most.