Raskol'nikov as romantic hero in Dostoevskii's "Crime and Punishment"

Abstract

OF RASKOL'NIKOV AS ROMANTIC HERO IN DOSTOEVSKII'S CRIME AND PUNISHMENT The problem studied in this thesis was whether Raskol'nikov can be qualified as a Romantic Hero in the tradition of European Romanticism. First, Romanticism was identified as a literary movement which began in the late eighteenth century and died out toward the middle of the nineteenth century and also as a frequent psychological phenomenon. Second, the origins of Romanticism in literature v/ere traced. Then, Romanticism was compared to Classicism. Romanticism as a literary movement in Europe was discussed with particular emphasis on the Romantic Movement in Russia in the early l800's. There followed an outline of the back- ground of F. M. Dostoevskii and the novel Crime and Punishment. Preceding the chapter on Raskol'nikov as a Romantic Hero, there was an outline of Romanticism according to Morse Peckham, an American scholar. Then, with Peckham's framework as a guide, there followed a discussion of Raskol'nikov's character as demonstrated by the action of the novel. Lastly, there was a chapter on Russian and Soviet criticism of Dostoevskii's work.