In 1865, Dostoevsky was heavily in debt, having taken on his brother Mikhail's debts after he died and amassing his own through gambling. Desperate, he signed an agreement with bookseller F. T. Stellovsky, promising that if he did not hand Stellovsky a manuscript by November 1, 1866, Stellovsky would be given the rights to all Dostoevsky's past and future works. Having done this, he fled abroad to escape his creditors in July of 1865. At this point, Dostoevsky had two works planned: "The Drunkards," which was to be a long novel concerning what he called "the current problem of drunkenness." The other sprang from an idea that had come to him in prison: an exploration of what he called "the psychological account of a crime." Dostoevsky had expected to complete "The Drunkards" quickly but instead became immersed in the second work. In September of 1865 he sent a detailed outline of it to Mikhail Katkov, the editor of the Russian Herald. His original conception of the work was as a short novel told in the first person by the criminal, who commits murder "under the influence of some of those strange, Œincomplete' ideas which go floating about in the air," as Dostoevsky put it. These "ideas" would be the radical social ideologies that gripped Russia in the 1860's, particularly Nihilism, which was emerging around the time Dostoevsky was beginning work on what would be Crime and Punishment. (The Nihilists advocated the complete destruction of the social order, without giving any theory of what would replace it.) Dostoevsky's own experimentation with social radicalism and his consequent imprisonment and suffering had a great impact on his voice and on the development of Crime and Punishment. Much of the book's message revolves around his argument that the Western-influenced theories and emphasis on rationalism were not only incompatible with Russian society and history but even dangerous to them. The character of Raskolnikov is the vehicle through which Dostoevsky makes this point. In December of 1865, Dostoevsky wrote to his friend Baron Vrangel that this work had grown into "a big novel, in six parts. I had much of it written and ready by the end of November. I burned it all. Now I can confess it. I wasn't pleased with it myself. A new form, a new plan captivated me and so I began over again." The new version maintained much of the hero's original characteristics, but it was not told in the first person and the plot was thickened to include the sub-stories of Dunya and Sonya. In January 1866 the first part of the novel appeared in the Russian Herald, but Dostoevsky still had some unresolved issues to work out. His extensive notes show him still trying to develop Sonya's character (she was at one point rigorous and outspoken) and Raskolnikov's motive for committing the crime. He continued to be busy with Crime and Punishment until the fall, when he had to rush to complete The Gambler for Stellovsky and, to the great benefit of mankind and world literature, save for himself the rights to his own work. Crime and Punishment was completed in November and published to prodigious success.

One July day in St. Petersburg, a poor young man slips out of his apartment and goes out. He is Rodion Romanych Raskolnikov, a former student, and he is preoccupied with something. He arrives at the apartment of Alyona Ivanovna, a pawnbroker, where he is attempting a trial of the unknown deed obsessing him. He has pawned something to this woman a month before, and now pawns an old watch for much less than he had hoped to get. As the woman gets her money, he watches and listens very carefully, storing up details in his memory. He leaves after vaguely mentioning that he may come back soon with another pledge. Tormented, he wanders down the street, mentally at war with himself. He happens upon a tavern, where he stops to eat and drink something, and feels better after doing so. There, he meets Semyon Zakharovich Marmeladov, a retired official and a drunkard. Marmeladov pours out his life story to Raskolnikov, telling about his consumptive wife Katerina Ivanovna, his three small children, and his oldest daughter Sofya (Sonya), who has had to prostitute herself to earn money for the family. Marmeladov himself had recently acquired a position, but almost immediately lost it through his alcoholism. He has been away from home for five days, having stolen his salary money and spent it all on drink. Marmeladov asks Raskolnikov to take him home. Rodion does so, and witnesses how Katerina Ivanovna falls on her husband and drags him about by his hair. She kicks Raskolnikov out, assuming him to be a drinking partner of her husband's. As he leaves, he places a handful of change on their windowsill unnoticed. Outside, he regrets this action, but knows he cannot go back to get the money. The next day, he awakens feeling unrested. Nastasya, the landlady's servant, comes in with some tea for him, as well as leftovers from the previous day's meal (since he is behind on his rent, the landlady has stopped sending his dinner up to him). She also tells him that he has received a letter. Agitated, he sends her to get it, and orders her out of the room so he can read it. The letter is from his mother, Pulcheria Alexandrovna, and mostly concerns his sister Avdotya Romanovna, or Dunya. Dunya had been working as a governess in the house of the Svidrigailov family, but the husband's unfortunate attraction to her led the wife to kick Dunya out on the assumption that the girl had initiated the attraction. Marfa Petrovna, the wife, then proceeded to sully Dunya's reputation about town, until Svidrigailov himself came forward with evidence of Dunya's purity and innocence. At that point, Marfa Petrovna had completely reversed herself, and gone about restoring Dunya's honor with comic zeal. She had also arranged for a relation of hers, one Pyotr Petrovich Luzhin, to meet Dunya, and this gentleman had become engaged to Dunya. Following Luzhin, Pulcheria Alexandrovna and Dunya would be coming to Petersburg shortly, and are very much looking forward to seeing Rodion. Rodya goes out to walk around and think. Though his mother puts a positive spin on everything, it is clear that Luzhin does not love Dunya and is not worthy of her, and that Dunya knows this but has resolved to marry him to materially benefit her family. Rodya, disgusted and angered, refuses to accept this self-sacrifice; but after resolving to stop the engagement, he immediately questions his own "right" to get involved. Raskolnikov realizes that he had been automatically on his way to see Dmitri Prokofych Razumikhin, his only friend from university. He decides he will see Razumikhin the day after "that," i.e. the unknown deed. He wanders about and ends up falling asleep by the side of the road. He dreams about watching a group of peasants beating an old nag viciously until the poor horse collapses and dies. He awakens in a sweat, profoundly thankful that it was only a dream. He rethinks "that," and suddenly concludes that he could never do it. Feeling better, renewed, he heads for home. However, he takes a detour through the Haymarket. There, he overhears a conversation between Lizaveta Ivanovna, the pawnbroker's half-sister, and a couple of tradespeople. It turns out that Lizaveta will be out on business the following evening. Raskolnikov is suddenly possessed with the fact that Alyona Ivanovna will definitely be alone at a time he knows of‹that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He goes home and falls into a long, strange, troubled sleep. He wakes up in the evening, and fears he may have missed his chance. He immediately bustles about, making his preparations: the deed that has been obsessing him is the murder and robbery of the pawnbroker. He plans to retain complete control over his reason and will, and thereby commit the perfect crime, and perhaps use the fruits of it (i.e. the stolen goods) to help others. Raskolnikov makes his way to Alyona Ivanovna's. He enters on the pretext of having a new pledge for her. As she struggles with the deliberately difficult knots, he takes out his axe and hits her on the head with it until she dies. Nerve-wracked, he fumbles about before finally unlocking a trunk full of goods. As he is stuffing his pockets, he hears a footstep. Frozen, he realizes in panic that someone has come in. Grabbing the axe, he rushes out into the room. There stands Lizaveta, staring at the body of her half-sister. Rodya rushes at her and kills her with the axe as well. Hearing people outside, Raskolnikov hooks the door-latch and crouches behind it, listening. The visitors, suspecting something wrong, run to get help. Quietly Rodya slips out of the apartment and manages to leave the building and return home unnoticed, though he is practically collapsing. After a fitful sleep punctuated by moments of frenzied activity, Rodya is awakened by Nastasya coming in with the caretaker, who hands him a summons to go to the police station. Panicked, he wonders why he has been summoned, and despite his clear illness, he gets up to go. His nerves are frayed, but when he gets to the station he finds that he has been called to make a payment on a promissory note he had written long ago for his landlady. Relieved, he writes a statement of his promise to pay, directed by the clerk. However, the chief of police Nikodim Fomich and his assistant Ilya Petrovich are talking about the murders, and Raskolnikov faints. He recovers to find them all looking at him strangely. Ilya Petrovich starts to ask him where he was the previous night. Nikodim Fomich reproaches Ilya Petrovich and Raskolnikov is dismissed. Rodya returns home, where he makes sure his apartment has not been searched, and gathers up all the stolen goods from where he had hidden them. He goes out and ends up hiding them beneath a stone in a deserted courtyard. He drops in on Razumikhin, who is utterly astonished to see him. However, Raskolnikov leaves almost as soon as he has arrived, throwing Razumikhin into indignant frustration. Rodya returns home and goes to bed. The next morning he falls unconscious, at last succumbing to an illness that had been coming on for quite some time. When he at last comes to, Razumikhin is there, having tended him through his illness, and Rodya receives 35 roubles from his mother, who has borrowed it on the security of her pension. Razumikhin, who has befriended practically everyone in Rodya's life by this point, has recovered Rodya's promissory note and takes some of the money to buy him new (actually second-hand) clothes. Dr. Zossimov checks on Rodya, and while he is there he and Razumikhin start talking about the murders. Razumikhin has gotten to know Zamyotov, the clerk at the police station, and they are hoping to absolve the current suspect, Nikolai Dementiev, who had been working as a painter in the house at the time of the crime. Raskolnikov is tortured by all this. Amidst the discussion, Pyotr Petrovich Luzhin, Dunya's fiancé, enters. He has come to call on Rodion, but the visit ends disastrously in a quarrel, with Rodya kicking him out. Rodya orders everyone else to leave, and after he is alone he gets up and goes out. After wandering aimlessly, he enters the Crystal Palace tavern, where he encounters Zamyotov. He engages in a mind-game with the clerk, taunting him and leading him to believe that he was the murderer‹before pulling him up short and accusing him of believing it. He exits, leaving Zamyotov convinced that Rodya cannot possibly be the murderer. On his way out, Rodya runs into Razumikhin, who is enraged at his irresponsible disappearance, especially as he is ill. They argue, but in the end Razumikhin invites him to a party he is having that evening. Rodya walks off. Razumikhin, frustrated, goes in to talk to Zamyotov. Rodya wanders about, considers jumping into the river, then turns to go to the police station. On his way, however, he passes Alyona Ivanovna's house. Inexplicably impelled, he goes in to the apartment, where workmen are renovating the place. He scares them by asking about the blood and ringing the doorbell incessantly just to hear the sound. They all go downstairs, and there is much discussion about taking this madman to the police, which he agrees with. But in the end he is ordered off the premises. In doubt as to whether he should go, he hesitates in the street. He spots a commotion and approaches it. It turns out that Marmeladov, drunk, has been run over by a carriage. Rodya takes charge and conveys Marmeladov to his apartment. They send for a doctor and a priest. Sonya is also sent for, and Marmeladov, after begging forgiveness, dies in her arms. Rodya gives Katerina Ivanovna all of his money, everything he has left from what his mother had sent him, for the funeral, and leaves. He feels renewed. On his way home, he stops at Razumikhin's. Razumikhin, who has had a lot to drink, walks him home. They open the door to find Rodya's sister and mother there. Overcome, Rodya passes out. He recovers to demand that Dunya break off her engagement with Luzhin, and is generally rude and sullen. Razumikhin is indignant, and takes the ladies under his wing. He escorts them home and, having been immediately smitten with the beautiful Dunya, promises to return twice to report on Rodya's state. Despite the ladies' doubts about his abilities, he carries out his promises to the full. The next day he is embarrassed as he recalls his drunken behavior, but when he goes to see the women they are not only kind but grateful. They ask him all sorts of questions about Rodya. They also show him a letter they had received from Luzhin that morning, requesting a meeting at 8:00 pm, and demanding that Rodya not be present. They go to see Rodya and find him with Zossimov. Rodya is strange and somehow distant, and the meeting is tense. Rodya tells Dunya that she must choose between him and Luzhin. She asks him and Razumikhin to be present at the meeting at 8:00. Sonya, who has been mentioned disparagingly in Luzhin's letter, enters the room. She and Rodya are both somehow embarrassed, but he seats her next to his mother and sister, introducing them. His family leaves shortly thereafter. Rodya bids Sonya wait, takes Razumikhin aside to ask him about going to see Porfiry Petrovich (a relation of Razumikhin's and the investigator assigned to the murder case), and they all walk out together. Rodya promises to call on Sonya later, and asks her address. They part on the street. A stranger who has heard Sonya address Rodya by name follows her home, and is surprised to find that he lives next door to her. Rodya enters Porfiry Petrovich's apartment in high humor, but is startled to see Zamyotov there as well. The conversation does not go very well; Rodya quickly loses his grip on his composure in the face of Porfiry's inscrutability. Porfiry, who is very interested in psychology, mentions an article Rodya had written entitled "On Crime," in which he explores the criminal psychology and introduces his own theory. This theory states that humanity is divided into the masses and the leaders, the "extraordinary" men who have great ideas and something new to say. Rodya argues that if such men find it necessary to commit crimes in the pursuit of their ideas, they have the right to do so in their own consciences. Porfiry invites him to his office the next day. Rodya and Razumikhin leave to go meet with Dunya and her mother. As they approach, Rodya suddenly tells Razumikhin that he has something to do, but will catch up with them later. He hastens back to his flat, checks to see if he has left any evidence in his room, then wanders out. Outside, the caretaker points out a tradesman who had been asking after Rodya. The tradesman, still there, looks at Rodya and walks away without a word. Rodya catches up with him and asks his business. The man calls him a murderer, and disappears without explanation. Weak, Rodya returns to his room and lies down. His thoughts swirl around this unknown man who seems to know everything. He reflects on his failure in committing the crime‹he has proved not to be an "extraordinary" man but a "louse." He falls asleep and has tormented dreams. He awakens to find a stranger in his room. The man introduces himself as Arkady Ivanovich Svidrigailov. After some strange conversation, Rodya demands to know the man's business. He replies that he has come to offer Dunya 10,000 roubles to break off her engagement with Luzhin. Indignant at first, Rodya at last consents to pass on the message to her. On his way out, Svidrigailov informs Rodya that Marfa Petrovna, who had died recently, has left Dunya 3,000 roubles in her will. Razumikhin comes to get Rodya, and they head for their meeting. On the way Rodya entrusts his family to Razumikhin's care. At the meeting, Dunya announces that she wishes Luzhin and Rodya to reconcile. Luzhin, however, refuses, and it is not long before another quarrel erupts and Dunya, angered and insulted, breaks off the engagement and kicks him out. Luzhin departs, seething with hatred for Rodya and nourishing the hope that he may be able to reconcile yet with Dunya and her mother. Everyone is joyful, especially at Marfa Petrovna's bequest to Dunya, and they start planning for the future. Rodya, however, abruptly leaves, requesting to be left alone. Razumikhin chases after him. Rodya once more entrusts his family to Razumikhin's care, and they exchange a long look in the hallway, through which Rodya seems to transmit his horrible secret to Razumikhin. Rodya immediately goes to Sonya. He torments her, yet also kisses her foot. He wonders how she has managed to keep her soul untainted, and learns that her unshakeable faith in God has preserved her. Suspecting that she is a "holy fool," he asks her to read him the story of Lazarus from the Bible. After she does so, he promises to tell her who killed Lizaveta if he comes back the next day, and departs. On the other side of the door sits Svidrigailov, who has been listening with great interest to the entire conversation. The next morning, Rodya goes to Porfiry Petrovich's office. Again, the conversation goes badly, as Rodya is unable to read Porfiry. It is a game of psychological cat and mouse, and Porfiry uses thinly-veiled references to Rodya's own behavior to point out that human nature is on the investigator's side, because it will eventually lead the criminal to break down. Frustrated by Porfiry's repeated attempts to catch him up with lies, Rodya erupts in fear and indignation. As he is leaving, Nikolai Dementiev, the house-painter who has been under suspicion in the murder case, bursts in, falls on his knees, and intones a confession, throwing Porfiry off in a way that cheers Raskolnikov. Rodya goes home for a little while, then gets up to go to Marmeladov's memorial meal. At his door, he encounters the tradesman who had accused him of being a murderer. The man asks forgiveness for his suspicion. He leaves Rodya a new man, refreshed by the fact that Porfiry now has not a single thing to make his suspicions stick. Luzhin, upset at losing Dunya, concocts a plan to discredit Raskolnikov to his family by framing and slandering Sonya, and thereby return into Dunya's good graces. Before Marmeladov's memorial meal, Luzhin calls Sonya in, and gives her 10 roubles out of a large stack of money he has been counting, in the presence of his roommate, Andrei Semyonovich Lebezyatnikov. Sonya then goes to the meal, where Rodya sits with Katerina Ivanovna and a host of other rather unpleasant guests. The meal goes badly, and is on the point of breaking out into a fight when Luzhin enters. He accuses Sonya of having stolen 100 roubles from him. She denies it, but a search turns up the money in her pocket. Before the police can be called, however, Lebezyatnikov, who has been watching, announces that Luzhin had planted the money on Sonya without her knowing. Rodya steps forward to explain Luzhin's probable motivation. Luzhin escapes before he suffers at the hands of the company. Chaos ensues: Sonya runs home hysterically, the landlady kicks the Marmeladovs out, and Katerina Ivanovna goes out to seek justice. Rodya goes to Sonya's place and confesses his crime to her. She is horrified, incredulous at first, but in the end she hears his explanations and sees his torment. She tells him that he must confess his crime to the world. He resists this idea, though he knows he will eventually be imprisoned. Lebezyatnikov comes in to tell them that Katerina Ivanovna has gone mad and is making her children sing in the streets for money. Sonya runs out. Rodya goes home. Unexpectedly, Dunya comes in. She tells him that Razumikhin had told her that Rodya is under suspicion for murder, and that she is there for him if he needs her. After she leaves, he goes out again, and encounters Lebezyatnikov, who takes him to where Katerina Ivanovna and her children are. Katerina Ivanovna is nearly raving, and her children are terrified. She refuses to go back to the apartment. The children try to run away, and in chasing them she collapses. In the final stages of her consumption, she is taken to Sonya's apartment, where she dies. Svidrigailov tells Rodya that he will provide for her children, and then drops a few quotes to show Rodya that he had been eavesdropping on Rodya's confession to Sonya. Terrified, Rodya plunges into a time of vagueness, wandering about aimlessly. One day Razumikhin comes into his room to vent his indignation at Rodya's treatment of his family. As he leaves, Rodya commends the ladies to Razumikhin's care, and even mentions that Dunya may love him already. Razumikhin leaves, elated, but pokes his head back in to tell Rodya that the painter Nikolai confessed to the murders; Porfiry himself told Razumikhin all about it. Rodya, unburdened by this unexpected news, is about to go out and find Svidrigailov when Porfiry comes in. They sit down. Porfiry tells Rodya that he knows he is guilty, and that he should turn himself in. He exhorts Rodya not to give up on life, because he has his whole life before him. After telling him that he will probably arrest him within two days, Porfiry takes his leave of Rodion, wishing him well. Rodya leaves in search of Svidrigailov. He finds him in a tavern. He tells Svidrigailov point-blank that if he plans to blackmail Dunya with his knowledge of Rodya's secret, Rodya will kill him. Svidrigailov, rather drunk, talks about Marfa Petrovna and his attempted seduction of Dunya. He also tells Rodion about his new 16-year-old fiancée. Rodya, disgusted by him, gets up to go. They both leave at about the same time. Rodya follows Svidrigailov for a little while before he is convinced that Svidrigailov has no plans to meet Dunya that day. He leaves him. Almost immediately, Dunya enters the picture, indeed to meet with Svidrigailov, who has sent her a letter mentioning Rodya's secret and promising to provide proof. He takes her to his apartment, ostensibly to provide proof but really to blackmail her. Too late, she finds herself locked in the room with him. She has brought a gun, however, and threatens to shoot him if he comes near her. In the end, she drops the gun and he, touched by this, drops his threatening demeanor. When he establishes that she can never love him, he tells her to leave quickly. He leaves his apartment, spends the remainder of the day wandering about and settling his affairs, and shoots himself the next morning. Later that day, Rodya goes to see his mother for the last time before turning himself in. He then hurries home, where he finds Dunya waiting for him. He takes leave of her and goes to Sonya. She gives him a cross. He rushes out rudely, not even saying goodbye to her, impatient to get it over with, even though he can't understand why he should go, because he still does not see his act as a crime. He goes to the station, with Sonya following him. He finds out that Svidrigailov is dead, and, stunned, leaves without confessing; but Sonya is waiting for him, and he goes back upstairs and confesses. Rodya is exiled to Siberia, where Sonya follows him. Dunya marries Razumikhin. Pulcheria Alexandrovna dies. Sonya writes to the Razumikhins about Rodya. He is unsociable and hated by his fellow prisoners. He falls ill. At the end of his illness, Sonya herself is ill, and he misses her. When she recovers, she goes to him, and he at last repents truly, falling at her feet and weeping. Having finally recognized his sin, he is resurrected‹able to love Sonya and look forward to his life with her.

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In Crime and Punishment, the inner conflict is introduced when Raskolnikov murders a decrepit pawnbroker and her daughter. Raskolnikov, who rationalized since the world disliked the pawnbroker her death would be a blessing, makes several errors in killing the woman. These errors, which included half closing the door to the victim's room, nearly getting caught twice, and shoddy concealment of his tracks, are in strict contrast to Raskolnikov's grand idea of himself being a superman, Raskolnikov felt that the police were incompetent and the only reason criminals got caught was because they were stupid, having regressed mentally during their actions. Raskolnikov, with his purported superior intellect, should therefore have no trouble eluding the police. Therefore, Raskolnikov felt torn between his guilty conscious and his determination to prove himself superior to other men.

The struggle within Raskolnikov resulted in severe inner turmoil. Owning only one pair of socks, Raskolnikov was mortified by the sight of the blood on them. Raskolnikov became delusional, imagining the beating of his landlady. His anxiety and fear became so great that he went into seclusion for a period of four days. This reaction of "laying low" was countered by an emotional visit to the police station on an unrelated matter. Raskolnikov becomes weary of everyone, and longs to tell of his deeds, repeatedly starting to say something, but never quite able to finish. Spiraling towards insanity, Raskolnikov must also deal with the guilt of having his mother and sister know of his dastardly actions. The relief Raskolnikov feels is evident in the books tone after he confesses. He is much more relaxed and appreciative of what he has. This change shows Raskolnikov was experiencing great strife.

Raskolnikov suffered immensely, as described above. In his mind he relived his actions over and over again. The aforementioned change in the book's tone reflects Raskolnikov's redemption through the suffering. Cast away to Siberia for eight years, he maintains a high optimism for the good and clothing his given. Having long contemplated whether or not to turn himself in, the relief he felt when finally doing so was great. Symbolically, when Raskolnikov takes up religion while in exile, he becomes Christ in that through his suffering, redemption was achieved; not for the world, but for himself.

Raskolnikov's redemption and salvation through Christ are clearly evident in the novel. Raskolnikov acknowledged his mortal status (he was not a superman) and was able to come to grips with the evils he had done. The crime, his punishment, and all the anguish in between, surely show how through suffering, personal salvation can occur.

Rodion Romanych Raskolnikov (Rodya): the protagonist, a poor former student living in Petersburg. When we are first introduced to Raskolnikov, he is obsessed with the idea of committing a murder, to the point of physical and mental illness. Profoundly bifurcated, he appears almost obsessive-compulsive: he counts his footsteps, and cannot control his thoughts, which keep swirling about. He has formulated a theory that there are "extraordinary" people, set apart from the masses, who in the interest of a great idea can find a right within themselves to kill others in pursuit of that idea. Unable to stand it any longer, and given an unusually fortuitous opportunity, he kills the pawnbroker Alyona Ivanovna and, unexpectedly, her half-sister, then robs the pawnbroker and escapes. From then on, he is beset with paranoia, though not guilt. He lurches through the world, flirting with capture, sometimes trying to get his confession spoken for him by others, sometimes trying to avoid suspicion altogether. He abandons his mother and sister, who have come to town, after helping to break his sister's unsuitable engagement and placing her and her mother in the care of his friend Razumikhin. Thrown in with the Marmeladov family, he falls into a strange relationship with Sonya, the oldest daughter, who has had to prostitute herself to provide for her family. Though Sonya loves him, he cannot accept her love for a long while, because he despises himself for not having been able to "step over" those he has killed; his petty crime and his failure to remain in control of his fate have proven to him that he is not a great man as he had hoped. At the end, he finally turns himself in, but still does not believe that his crime was inherently sinful. Sentenced to hard labor, whence he is followed by the faithful Sonya, he works sullenly and cuts himself off from his fellow-convicts until first he, then Sonya fall ill. When they meet again after their respective recoveries, something has changed in him, and he at last truly repents of his sin. His struggle, profoundly metaphorical, culminates in his resurrection from death and sin into love and life.

Sonya (Sofya Semyonovna) Marmeladov: the daughter of Marmeladov, and a prostitute. Sonya is the personification of purity and innocence, despite the fact that she has had to defile herself physically by becoming a prostitute to support her destitute family. We hear about her through her father long before we see her, at his deathbed. When Raskolnikov gives the family money for the funeral, she goes to his apartment to invite him, and there begins their strange relationship. They are clearly attracted to one another, perhaps because they are so different: Rodion's soul is in turmoil, while Sonya is anchored in her religious faith. Sonya is clearly a Christ-figure: she represents the only way to salvation, which is through faith and suffering (taking responsibility for the consequences of one's actions). Indeed, her attraction to Rodion seems at least partly grounded in her compassion for his suffering and unhappiness. She alone is able to elicit in him a desire to confess to her, as well as some softer, more human feelings than he has felt in a very long time. Sonya's devotion is remarkable; she follows Rodya to Siberia for his hard labor. Something of a mute witness to faith, she waits for Rodya to come to his own repentance, which he finally does at the end. With this revelation he is at last able to love her without fear or constraint.

Dmitri Prokofych Razumikhin: Raskolnikov's fellow student and only friend from university. Kind, huge, somewhat clumsy but goldenhearted, Razumikhin takes care of Raskolnikov while he is ill and then takes care of Raskolnikov's family when Raskolnikov abandons them. He is in many ways the foil to Raskolnikov: friendly, sociable, and humble. Both are intelligent, but Razumikhin does not fall into the trap of hyperrationalism as Raskolnikov does; he maintains his perspective and can see the dangers of the new ideas that have corrupted Raskolnikov. Razumikhin falls in love with Dunya, Raskolnikov's beautiful sister, and pledges himself to take care of her and her mother forever. In the end, his marriage to Dunya makes this possible.

Dunya (Avdotya Romanovna): Raskolnikov's sister. Beautiful, proud, virtuous, and somewhat arrogant, Dunya is in many ways similar to her brother. However, she has a faith that he lacks, which preserves her from the confusion which clouds his views on morality and sin. Dunya had been a governess in the Svidrigailov household, but was kicked out when the master of the house made advances on her. Like Sonya, Dunya is ready to sacrifice herself for the sake of her family, though she denies it, and therefore engages herself to the unworthy Luzhin, whom she follows to Petersburg. Finding herself caught between her brother and her fiancé, each of whom demands that she give up the other for his sake, she calls them together to reconcile and ends by breaking with Luzhin. Fortunately for her, word has just come that she has been left money in someone's will, so she has some security. She and her mother remain in Petersburg, but Rodya cuts himself off from them, after committing them to the care of Razumikhin, who has fallen in love with Dunya at first sight. Despite Rodya's desire to be left alone, Dunya resurfaces to tell him that he can rely on her if he ever needs anything. Not long after this, she receives a letter from Svidrigailov in which he promises to prove that Raskolnikov committed the murders of Alyona and Lizaveta Ivanovna. Their meeting reveals a more intimate past relationship than the reader has been led to expect. It is not entirely clear whether Dunya had feelings for the man mixed up in her desire to save him, or whether her interest in him was purely platonic. Svidrigailov attempts to blackmail Dunya into marrying him, and even threatens to take her by force, but she has come prepared to shoot him. The situation ends strangely but with Dunya still chaste and unharmed. By the end of the book she marries Razumikhin.

Pulcheria Alexandrovna: Raskolnikov's mother. She writes to Rodya early on in the book, telling him about Dunya's experience with the Svidrigailovs and her subsequent engagement to Luzhin. Though she tends to romanticize things and perhaps get carried away, Pulcheria Alexandrovna sees a good deal, which comes out in the end especially, when she falls ill and in her delirium betrays her suspicion of her son's fate, which till then has been kept from her.

Svidrigailov: Dunya's former employer and a scoundrel. Tainted by scandal and sin, Svidrigailov had conceived a passion for the pure and upright Dunya while she was working as a governess in his household. She rejected his advances. Once his wife dies, Svidrigailov heads to Petersburg to find Dunya and perhaps marry her. Svidrigailov ends up living next door to Sonya, where he eavesdrops and hears Raskolnikov's confession of his crime to her. A strangely complex character, Svidrigailov formulates a plan to blackmail Dunya with this knowledge at the same time as he provides materially for Sonya's orphaned half-siblings and pays for their mother's funeral. He meets with Dunya towards the end of the book, in an encounter that reveals a greater depth to their relationship than had previously been let on, but upon realizing that she cannot love him, he leaves her alone, makes various provisions for disposing of his money, and kills himself.

Marfa Petrovna Svidrigailov: the wife of Svidrigailov. She had rescued him from debtor's prison and then married him on the understanding that, though he had a wandering eye, he should remain faithful to her emotionally. However, Marfa Petrovna came upon Dunya and Svidrigailov in the garden, where he was apparently begging Dunya to run away with him to Petersburg. In a rage, and assuming Dunya was at fault, Marfa Petrovna kicked Dunya out and went about methodically sullying her reputation. When the truth came out that Svidrigailov had been the one making advances, Marfa Petrovna reversed herself and set about just as energetically restoring Dunya's reputation, and even set her up with Luzhin, a relation of hers. Marfa Petrovna dies under mysterious circumstances, possibly murdered by her husband, and bequeaths Dunya 3,000 roubles in her will.

Pyotr Petrovich Luzhin: a distant relation of Marfa Petrovna, and Dunya's fiancé at the start of the book. Luzhin, who had worked himself up from nothing, is vain and worships his money. He feels that Dunya, in her poverty, would make the ideal humble and grateful wife, and is astonished when he loses her to his own folly (namely, refusing to reconcile with Raskolnikov, with whom he had quarreled, and then proceeding to insult Dunya herself). He attempts to win her back and discredit her brother by framing and slandering Sonya, but it does not work.

Alyona Ivanovna: the pawnbroker whom Raskolnikov sets out to murder and rob. Usually referred to as "the old crone," she is notoriously hateful and quite rich, though she hoards up her money like a miser. After his first business encounter with her, Raskolnikov becomes obsessed with the question of whether it is more just to let her live or to kill her and use her money for the benefit of the many who could use it.

Lizaveta Ivanovna: the half-sister of Alyona Ivanovna. Dim-witted, kind and uncomplaining, Lizaveta is virtually enslaved by her half-sister. Because of her honesty and fairness, she acts frequently as a middleman or dealer for poor families which need to sell their things and make a profit. Lizaveta walks in when Raskolnikov is busy robbing Alyona Ivanovna, having murdered her. Desperate, he kills Lizaveta as well. Later he finds out that she had been a friend of Sonya's.

Semyon Zakharovich Marmeladov: a titular councillor and a drunkard. He appears early in the novel to drunkenly bemoan his life and extol his suffering to Raskolnikov in a tavern. Through this discussion, Raskolnikov learns much about the Marmeladov family, including the horrible fact that Marmeladov's daughter Sonya has had to prostitute herself in order to support the family in the face of her father's incompetence. Marmeladov represents the grotesque sinner in Dostoevsky's panoply of characters, expecting his wife and daughter to martyr themselves in order to save him (which they do). Unexpectedly, Raskolnikov is drawn into something approaching intimacy with the family after Marmeladov, drunk as usual, falls under the horses of an approaching carriage. Raskolnikov happens to be present and gets Marmeladov home, where he dies.

Katerina Ivanovna Marmeladov: the unfortunate wife of Marmeladov. She had been born into something of a more upper-class family, married a first abusive husband, had three children by him, and then was rescued from widowhood by the pathetic Marmeladov. Quick-tempered and dying of consumption, Katerina Ivanovna nevertheless slaves over her family and loves them all, including her irresponsible husband, and her stepdaughter Sonya, whom she had effectively berated into prostituting herself to bring some money into the household. Katerina Ivanovna is extreme in her loves and hates, mocks those whom she considers inferior by birth, places great emphasis on breeding and lineage, and tends to exaggerate the importance of herself and her friends. On the day of her husband's funeral and memorial meal, chaos erupts and, having been kicked out of the apartment by the landlady once again, Katerina Ivanovna (whose mental capabilities have been in doubt due to her illness) rushes out and drags her children onto the street to sing for money. She collapses, and is rushed to Sonya's apartment, where she dies.

Andrei Semyonych Lebezyatnikov: a clerk in the ministry and a former ward of Luzhin. Lebezyatnikov is something of a pseudo-intellectual, subscribing on the surface to all sorts of "progressivist" ideas of free love and communal living, while underneath being not quite so committed to his convictions. For instance, despite his theoretical stance on free love, he is (at least according to rumor) the one responsible for getting Sonya thrown out of the Lippewechsel house once her prostitution became known. He is a comic figure, through whom Dostoevsky mocks the radical ideas of social restructuring that were then in vogue. However, Lebezyatnikov, despite his "convictions," is kind-hearted and appreciates acts of nobility. When Luzhin attempts to besmirch Sonya's reputation by framing her for theft, Lebezyatnikov is the one who comes forward with his testimony that Luzhin had in fact planted the stolen money on Sonya without her knowing it. Shortly thereafter, Lebezyatnikov also seeks out Sonya and Rodion to apprise them of Katerina Ivanovna's madness and imminent death.

Amalia Ivanovna Lippewechsel: Marmeladov's landlady. A woman of German origin (sometimes mockingly called Amalia Ludwigovna by Katerina Ivanovna) who kicks the Marmeladovs out, or threatens to, because they are behind in their rent and she and Katerina Ivanovna do not get along. Amalia Ivanovna helps with Marmeladov's memorial meal, but she and Katerina Ivanovna get into such a spat that she kicks them out for good.

Nastasya: servant and cook in the house where Raskolnikov stays. Nastasya is harshly critical of Raskolnikov's indolence and claustrophobic lifestyle, but she is kind-hearted and brings him tea and leftovers even though the landlady had stopped sending dinner up to his room. Easily amused, she is charmed by Razumikhin and has a tendency to listen in on every conversation she can.

Praskovya Pavlovna Zarnitsyn: Raskolnikov's landlady. Shy and retiring, Praskovya Pavlovna does not figure prominently in the course of events. Raskolnikov had been engaged to her daughter, a sickly girl who had died, and Praskovya Pavlovna had granted him extensive credit on the basis of this engagement and a promissory note for 115 roubles. She had then handed this note to a court councillor named Chebarov, who had claimed the note, causing Raskolnikov to be summoned to the police station the day after his crime.

Koch: a fat, imperious gentleman. He knocks on Alyona Ivanovna's door just after Raskolnikov has murdered the two women. Though he is supposed to watch the door while Pestryakov runs to get the caretaker, he leaves after a short while, allowing Raskolnikov the opportunity to escape.

Pestryakov: the student studying to be a public investigator who discovers the murders with Koch. He joins Koch on the stairs and senses that something is not right, so he runs to get the caretaker, leaving Koch in charge.

Louisa (Laviza) Ivanovna: a madam, of German origin (hence the two formations of her first name). She is present at the police station when Raskolnikov goes in the day after the murders. She is also mentioned in passing by Razumikhin once or twice.

Ilya Petrovich "Gunpowder": a lieutenant, the assistant to the police chief. A highstrung, easily offended man, he exchanges some words with Raskolnikov when the latter comes in to the station regarding his summons. Ilya Petrovich is speaking with his chief about the murders when Raskolnikov faints. Suspicious, Ilya Petrovich starts to interrogate Raskolnikov once he recovers, but is stopped.

Nikodim Fomich: chief of police. He appears the day after the murders, when Raskolnikov is summoned to the police station to address a claim on a promissory note. Nikodim Fomich, a kindly man, is talking with his assistant about the murder cases as Raskolnikov is leaving, causing Raskolnikov to faint (which is viewed suspiciously by Ilya Petrovich and Porfiry Petrovich).

Alexander Grigorievich Zamyotov: the clerk at the police station. He explains to Raskolnikov the matter for which he has been summoned to the station, and witnesses Raskolnikov's ill-timed swoon. While Raskolnikov lies ill, Zamyotov befriends Razumikhin. He encounters Raskolnikov when the latter, still ill, leaves his room and stumbles into a tavern. There Raskolnikov, half-crazed, leads Zamyotov through a half-mocking conversation where he confesses‹then turns around and accuses Zamyotov of believing him. At first Zamyotov abandons his suspicion of Rodion, but then he changes his mind once again and goes to Porfiry Petrovich with this strange "psychological evidence."

Zossimov: the doctor who tends Rodya through his illness. Despite his portliness and languid demeanor, he is a good doctor and an intelligent man. He suspects that Raskolnikov is mad, and that he has developed an obsession with the murders because he had been "falsely suspected." A friend of Razumikhin's, Zossimov speaks with him frequently about Raskolnikov's case.

Gertrude Karlovna Resslich: Svidrigailov's friend and landlady in Petersburg. There is a hint of a scandal involving Svidrigailov and her teenage niece, of whom he apparently took advantage, and who consequently killed herself.

Nikolai (Mikolka) Dementiev: a young painter who was working in the house when Raskolnikov committed the murders. Chased by the police, he tried to hang himself, then confessed to the crime, even though he did not commit it.

Polina (Polenka, Polechka), Kolya and Lenya Marmeladov: Katerina Ivanovna's three children by her previous marriage. Polina, the oldest, takes care of Kolya, her brother, and Lenya, her sister. Polina also is the one sent after Rodion to ask him his name and where he lives after the death of her stepfather.

Chebarov: a court councillor. Praskovya Pavlovna had turned over Raskolnikov's promissory note to Chebarov, supposedly as payment for something. Chebarov had put in a claim for the note, causing Raskolnikov to be summoned to the police station the day after the murders.

Afanasy Ivanovich Vakhrushin: merchant from whom Pulcheria Raskolnikov borrowed money, on the security of her pension, to send to her son.