Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The first half is definitely a very difficult read and a lot more philosophical than I thought. There's themes on free will, determinism, utopianism, et cetera that's fairly hard to stomach. However, I've greatly enjoyed Dostoevsky's way of building up the underground man's persona. From the get go (and the iconic I'm a sick man opening), you can see all his flaws, all his contradictions, which make him an interesting and a textbook unreliable narrator. His world view is nihilistic and bitter.
The second half was a lot easier to read and frankly more enjoyable. The underground man gets into 3 ridiculous and pathetic scenarios just to degrade himself. The scenario with him trying to insult his 3 companions at the dinner and trying to get their attention is incredibly cringe. I've enjoyed the story of the prostitute the most. Lisa the prostitute feels like a precursor to Sonya in Crime and Punishment, but of course it is more of a parody.
The second half was a lot easier to read and frankly more enjoyable. The underground man gets into 3 ridiculous and pathetic scenarios just to degrade himself. The scenario with him trying to insult his 3 companions at the dinner and trying to get their attention is incredibly cringe. I've enjoyed the story of the prostitute the most. Lisa the prostitute feels like a precursor to Sonya in Crime and Punishment, but of course it is more of a parody.
Ugh! So much to unpack in this short diatribe. Basically it was written as a retort to the literary social consciousness in Russia at the time— the same literary consciousness that informed the views of, for example, Vladimir Lenin. So this book is convoluted and lost me here and there (thank goodness for the foreword), and the character is so annoying and upsetting that I didn’t know if I could finish this. But now I realize that the only way I can truly understand the content is if I go read Chernyshevsky, whose Dostoevsky was dismantling and attacking in this book. It might be simplistic to say that this book is a prescient critique of the ideas that gave rise to socialism— I think it is also in some ways equally a critique of the same ideas giving rise to rampant capitalism: namely, that there is some perfect, rational, fulfilled version of humanity that we can achieve if we just learn and train ourselves to want the right goals/stuff. This critique of that extreme positivity (see positivism of the 1800s across not only Russia, but Europe) places the beauty of the individual and their freely chosen experiences as the only way for humans to truly “be”. So when Lenin comes along, or US reaction (hello, Vietnam) to the “domino effect” or “shining city on a hill” mentality—comes along later in the 20th century, Dostoevsky has already predicted the catastrophic human consequences for millions — through the messed up diary/work of the narrator. It also laughs in the face of our current self-help culture (which of course I love).
Unfortunately, I now have to read Chernyshevsky to actually get what the narrator was attacking…guess that’s the problem with reading (which the narrator embodies)… it never ends.
Unfortunately, I now have to read Chernyshevsky to actually get what the narrator was attacking…guess that’s the problem with reading (which the narrator embodies)… it never ends.
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
slow-paced
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes