Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov on the brink of suicide. Ф.М. Достоевский, Преступление и наказание

Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov: on the brink of suicide. In Dostoyevsky’s novel “Crime and Punishment”, the main character, Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov goes through a long series of events, which compare and contrast him with the people around him. One of the most significant characters crucial to understanding Raskolnikov’s personality is Arkady Ivanovich Svidrigailov. Overall, the enigma of Rodion’s persona is expanded and illuminated by two characters: Svidrigailov as the dark, calculative, and repulsive side; and Sonya Marmeladova as the compassionate, humane, and spiritual half of Raskolnikov. What makes Svidrigailov such an important element in the novel is the fact that by his lack of morals and superiors, he becomes the epitome of Raskolnikov’ theory of

the Ubermensch, a thought Rodion conceived out of desperation and mental fatigue. It is the comparison of Svidrigailov and Raskolnikov that eventually reveals each of them stands on the theory of the Super-human. Despite all hopes of being among history’s great people such as Napoleon, Julius Caesar et al, Raskolnikov fails the self-test of belongingness to the superior class. Perhaps, Raskolnikov even hoped that the murder, if committed without remorse or doubt, would propel him into superiority. He definitely had the reasons to believe in his greatness because it is evident that Raskolnikov clearly displays some of the qualities of a Super-human, based on his own standards: he is intelligent, quite arrogant, and his pride is very vividly apparent in his behavior with his only

friend, Razumikhin, and several occasions, on which he had refused to accept other people’s assistance or support. But unfortunately, contrary to what Rodion had anticipated, the murder delivers crippling inward blow to his conscience and self-image, and Raskolnikov finally realizes that he is, in fact, nothing but a “trembling creature.” Svidrigailov, however, fits the qualifications of an Ubermensch perfectly. There is nothing sacred in the world for Arkady Ivanovich. The sole purpose of his life is the hedonistic pursuit of his own selfish goals and practice of his self-made rights. The list of examples that attest to Svidrigailov’s inhumanity is quite long, ranging from lies and debt evasion to rape and, possibly, murder. For instance, when he learns about the suicide

of a fifteen-year old girl, whom he raped, Svidrigailov shrugs without any remorse. The sadistic torment, which led his servant Philip to suicide, also seems to have not given Arkady Ivanovich any feelings of guilt. Svidrigailov is fully aware of his own vicious nature. Shortly after his marriage to Marfa Petrovna, he announces to her that “he will not be able to be a fully loyal husband.” Clearly, Svidrigailov is a person of great vice and malice. With such a clear distinction between the characters, a distinction that decisively favors Svidrigailov as a superior being, why does it so happen that Raskolnikov, a failed theorist, a confirmed “louse”, finds a new life at the end of the novel, while Arkady Ivanovich finally resorts to suicide? Is it not strange that

Svidrigailov, having become completely free from his marital duties (which he never honored, anyway), endowed with substantial income from his deceased wife’s estate, not burdened by any family obligations, would take his own life, while Raskolnikov, a man who has betrayed himself and many people around him, with a murder on his hands, and severe prosecution impending, would embrace his misery instead of liberating himself in the waters of Neva? Raskolnikov contemplates suicide on many occasions throughout the novel. His first encounter with this thought occurs at a canal bridge, where an ostensibly drunken woman jumps into the dirty water in a suicidal attempt, but is rescued by the passersby. At this point, Raskolnikov dismisses the idea of self-violence because it seems to