Synopsis
This book “Crime and punishment” is the second full-length novels by Dostoyevsky, after his return from ten years of exile in Siberia. Crime and punishment is considered the first great novel of the author who focuses on the mental anguish and moral dilemmas of the protagonist, Rodion Raskolnikov, former impoverished student in St. Petersburg. Rodion Raskolnikov elaborates and executes a plan to kill an unscrupulous loan shark for cash. Raskolnikov, in attempting to defend his actions, claims that with the money of the pawnshop can do good deeds to counter crime. In the novel, Raskolnikov compares himself with Napoleon Bonaparte and shares his belief that murder is permissible in pursuit of a higher purpose. He conceived the idea of Dostoevsky's crime and punishment in the summer of 1865, having lost much of his fortune, since it was not able to pay your bills and debts to creditors.
