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4.31 AVERAGE
4.31 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really liked this book and can see why it is a classic. It was hard to get into at first and I was intimidated by the length but once I was into it I couldn’t stop. I found I enjoyed the passages where things were happening much more than when the characters were having long dialogues. This book really made an impression on me and things about it still ring true today in the legal arena. This book takes place in Russia between three brothers and their father. The relationship between these characters is complex and twisted. One brother is accused of killing his father of whom he has a known rivalry over money and a shared love interest. He has even said repeatedly that he wants to kill his father. The brother and father are both scoundrels who are always drunk, crude, dirty and aggressive. But do these characteristics and saying aloud that you want to kill someone mean you are guilty of being a murderer? This story has you guessing to the very end. Upon completion I read the afterword by the translator I was a little disappointed to learn just how much can be lost in translation. I immediately wished I knew Russian so I could’ve read the original version.
Um, okay, so I'm going to start off by saying, if you are, like me, in love with the brothers, love them from afar. Because as wonderful as they seem, being in a relationship with them would be awful, and you would cry a lot. Yes, even Alyosha, unless you are of course as noble and as kind as him yourself, which I just don’t see happening. On the other hand, if you just want to have some fun with them, by all means, I think it would be…awesome.
I found this cute picture on deviantArt that summarizes the book's plot in a rather hilarious fashion:
For those who have read the book, or any other books set in that time period, doesn't everything feel so intense? Everybody just has SO many feelings. And nobody lies, like ever. Even white lies. It's so creepy. There is just too much morality for me to deal with.
There is a lot of brilliance in this book, heaps of it. I can understand where Vonnegut is coming from when he said:
"Everything you need to know about life can be found in The Brothers Karamazov."
I don't completely agree with it, because I don't agree with Dosteovsky's views on relationships, and on women. But then I think that also has a lot to do with the time. Not his female characters, because, my God, the female characters in C&P were so strong whereas those in this just annoyed the hell out of me, and I hated them all. But the romantic love in this book is too strong, enough to destroy a person, and I don't agree with that kind of love at all. If you're losing yourself in love, then it's not healthy, and it's gone beyond love to obsession. I also feel that Dmitri's love at times was all about wanting what he could not have. And yes, he still loves Grushenka but we haven't seen enough to see how long that love would survive. It's all well and good that Grushenka enjoys Mitya being jealous so often and she thinks it's cute, but if somebody tried that with me, he'd be out on his ass.
I did, however, love the exploration of relations with your parents, and whether or not you should love them, that was just...wow. Can you not love your parents and still be a good person? Are you a better person because you don't love your parents (who are awful people) and aren't under their spell? Why should you honor them, when they didn't do the duty that is required of a parent (i.e bring you up)? Why are they required to do that duty?
I'm also not a Christian, and at times, I felt a bit alienated and found myself referring to the notes at the back because I don't understand all aspects of Christianity, (the notes did not help) but when Dostoevsky talks about God, I can understand, and I can relate because the Christian God and the Muslim God are similar in a lot of ways. And as I am always questioning religion, I loved Ivan's talks on religion. I especially loved him talk about children and their suffering and how that makes God come across as a tyrant. And of course, how most of mankind is not strong enough for the test put to them, and they will suffer on Earth, and after Earth.
"They are slaves though they were created rebels."
The Grand Inquisitor is a beautiful chapter, and although it is not as enjoyable as the chapter before it, you come to appreciate it a lot when looking back on it.
Ivan doesn't understand God, and he understands that he will never understand God. He also understands man's cruelty, something I was introduced to in Arundathi's [b:The God of Small Things|9777|The God of Small Things|Arundhati Roy|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1385160508s/9777.jpg|810135], but has of course, been there for much longer:
"..no animal could ever be so cruel as man, so artfully, so artistically cruel"
This particular talk is between the religious, firm in his beliefs: Alyosha, and the brother who is always questioning himself, and everything around him (brilliant, intelligent, and consumed with doubt): Vanya.
Vanya argues, he provides examples, facts, logic, and Alyosha just makes it all disappear with one kiss.
Love could never refute logic, but it doesn't need to because logic fails before love. And ultimately, all Ivan wants is to love God.
This book was also a happy book.I haven't read his other works, but I have read Crime and Punishment, so I can compare the two. C&P has a general mood of seriousness and melancholy. This one has some hilarious moments, and the characters, though they suffer, seem...spirited. It's interesting because we don't come across any particularly poor characters, whereas in C&P almost everybody is poor. So it would seem the well-off handle their miseries a lot more differently than those who live in poverty.
Speaking of the poor, Smerdyakov. I hate the guy just so you know, and I don't want to discuss him because he sucks and ruins everything for everyone. But I want to know if he is Fyodor Karamazov's illegitimate son or if that's just speculation. Is it stated anywhere that he is the fourth son? (Even if he is, you're getting no sympathy for him out of me. I hate him.)
Although Dostoevsky prefers to choose love and faith in the face of doubt and skepticism, and he's made pretty clear what his opinions are, I feel he leaves room for you to pick up ideas that he doesn't necessarily agree with and I love him for that.
Still, I'm kind of super mad at Dostoevsky for basically convincing me that he was going to continue the story and then instead of doing so, he just died. Thanks a lot, dude.
Update: I've given my copy to my boyfriend. I think this is the best book ever written, and I have given my copy to my boyfriend. Before opening his present he was complaining about how I love a dead guy more than him.
Heh.
I know people say that novels changed their lives, or had a huge impact on them. I've never had that happen to me. I'm not sure what that means. There have been books that have reshaped my outlook on life, and helped firmly establish some of my opinions, but I've never been so affected. Maybe I'm just not meant to be a srsfangirl?
I love you Kubrick, and I love you, Dostoevsky, but I don't see any piece of art, or any person having such a huge impact on me unless it happens to me.
I found this cute picture on deviantArt that summarizes the book's plot in a rather hilarious fashion:
For those who have read the book, or any other books set in that time period, doesn't everything feel so intense? Everybody just has SO many feelings. And nobody lies, like ever. Even white lies. It's so creepy. There is just too much morality for me to deal with.
Spoiler
And then the one character I can identify with ends up with BRAIN FEVER because he suddenly starts questioning his beliefs.There is a lot of brilliance in this book, heaps of it. I can understand where Vonnegut is coming from when he said:
"Everything you need to know about life can be found in The Brothers Karamazov."
I don't completely agree with it, because I don't agree with Dosteovsky's views on relationships, and on women. But then I think that also has a lot to do with the time. Not his female characters, because, my God, the female characters in C&P were so strong whereas those in this just annoyed the hell out of me, and I hated them all. But the romantic love in this book is too strong, enough to destroy a person, and I don't agree with that kind of love at all. If you're losing yourself in love, then it's not healthy, and it's gone beyond love to obsession. I also feel that Dmitri's love at times was all about wanting what he could not have. And yes, he still loves Grushenka but we haven't seen enough to see how long that love would survive. It's all well and good that Grushenka enjoys Mitya being jealous so often and she thinks it's cute, but if somebody tried that with me, he'd be out on his ass.
I did, however, love the exploration of relations with your parents, and whether or not you should love them, that was just...wow. Can you not love your parents and still be a good person? Are you a better person because you don't love your parents (who are awful people) and aren't under their spell? Why should you honor them, when they didn't do the duty that is required of a parent (i.e bring you up)? Why are they required to do that duty?
I'm also not a Christian, and at times, I felt a bit alienated and found myself referring to the notes at the back because I don't understand all aspects of Christianity, (the notes did not help) but when Dostoevsky talks about God, I can understand, and I can relate because the Christian God and the Muslim God are similar in a lot of ways. And as I am always questioning religion, I loved Ivan's talks on religion. I especially loved him talk about children and their suffering and how that makes God come across as a tyrant. And of course, how most of mankind is not strong enough for the test put to them, and they will suffer on Earth, and after Earth.
"They are slaves though they were created rebels."
The Grand Inquisitor is a beautiful chapter, and although it is not as enjoyable as the chapter before it, you come to appreciate it a lot when looking back on it.
Ivan doesn't understand God, and he understands that he will never understand God. He also understands man's cruelty, something I was introduced to in Arundathi's [b:The God of Small Things|9777|The God of Small Things|Arundhati Roy|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1385160508s/9777.jpg|810135], but has of course, been there for much longer:
"..no animal could ever be so cruel as man, so artfully, so artistically cruel"
This particular talk is between the religious, firm in his beliefs: Alyosha, and the brother who is always questioning himself, and everything around him (brilliant, intelligent, and consumed with doubt): Vanya.
Vanya argues, he provides examples, facts, logic, and Alyosha just makes it all disappear with one kiss.
Love could never refute logic, but it doesn't need to because logic fails before love. And ultimately, all Ivan wants is to love God.
This book was also a happy book.I haven't read his other works, but I have read Crime and Punishment, so I can compare the two. C&P has a general mood of seriousness and melancholy. This one has some hilarious moments, and the characters, though they suffer, seem...spirited. It's interesting because we don't come across any particularly poor characters, whereas in C&P almost everybody is poor. So it would seem the well-off handle their miseries a lot more differently than those who live in poverty.
Speaking of the poor, Smerdyakov. I hate the guy just so you know, and I don't want to discuss him because he sucks and ruins everything for everyone. But I want to know if he is Fyodor Karamazov's illegitimate son or if that's just speculation. Is it stated anywhere that he is the fourth son? (Even if he is, you're getting no sympathy for him out of me. I hate him.)
Although Dostoevsky prefers to choose love and faith in the face of doubt and skepticism, and he's made pretty clear what his opinions are, I feel he leaves room for you to pick up ideas that he doesn't necessarily agree with and I love him for that.
Still, I'm kind of super mad at Dostoevsky for basically convincing me that he was going to continue the story and then instead of doing so, he just died. Thanks a lot, dude.
Update: I've given my copy to my boyfriend. I think this is the best book ever written, and I have given my copy to my boyfriend. Before opening his present he was complaining about how I love a dead guy more than him.
"Ali, my head hurts."
"Why don't you ask Dostoevsky to do something about it?"
Heh.
I know people say that novels changed their lives, or had a huge impact on them. I've never had that happen to me. I'm not sure what that means. There have been books that have reshaped my outlook on life, and helped firmly establish some of my opinions, but I've never been so affected. Maybe I'm just not meant to be a srsfangirl?
I love you Kubrick, and I love you, Dostoevsky, but I don't see any piece of art, or any person having such a huge impact on me unless it happens to me.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was prejudiced against Dostoevsky at the time of reading, having read all his other major works prior to this one (and founding most of them wanting). Nevertheless, I quite enjoyed reading this and was able to make better sense of it than his others... which isn't to say that I appreciated it in the same way its acolytes do.
What disappoints me about The Brothers Karamazov is the degree of seriousness and weight its evangelical fans (Peterson et al.) give to it. They read Ivan's Nightmare and The Grand Inquisitor as some capstone statements made by the author himself on religion and society, rather than one perspective in a fiction. Personally, I think there's much more to grapple with ethically and philosophically in Tolstoy's work than in Dostoevsky, who is most popular among right-leaning single young men.
What disappoints me about The Brothers Karamazov is the degree of seriousness and weight its evangelical fans (Peterson et al.) give to it. They read Ivan's Nightmare and The Grand Inquisitor as some capstone statements made by the author himself on religion and society, rather than one perspective in a fiction. Personally, I think there's much more to grapple with ethically and philosophically in Tolstoy's work than in Dostoevsky, who is most popular among right-leaning single young men.
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Easily one of if not the best book I have ever read. Dostoyevsky the man that you were. While it was certainly a challenging, slow read (esp in the beginning) the pay off throughout the book especially in the latter half is so so worth it. Seeing the flaws of each character and how Dostoyevsky connects them with each other *chef’s kiss*. I also thoroughly enjoyed how he wrote about themes such as passion, suffering, and morality.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes