Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

28 reviews

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

 

Review:

As much as I tried not to, I entered Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment with a few preconceived notions based on people’s recommendation of the book. First, that this book is about a man who commits murder and his subsequent psychological unraveling—and while this description is not wrong, exactly, it’s a bit like describing Moby-Dick as a book about a man who hunts a whale for revenge. Crime and Punishment encompasses a lot more than the main character’s inner turmoil, with a wide cast of characters and complex plot. Second, I was told that this book would profoundly affect me emotionally and/or send me into an existential crisis, which it didn’t. Misconceptions aside, I loved Crime and Punishment. The characters are strong and well-realized, the plot is engrossing, and the book raises intriguing points about morality. My only complaints are that the first and second section are too long (I got sick of reading about the main protagonist’s unstable mental state) and that at times the plot relied on some rather convenient coincidences. 

 

The Run-Down: 

You will probably like Crime and Punishment . . . 

·      If you like classic literature, particular nineteenth-century literature

·      You enjoy books that delve into questions of morality and philosophy

 

You might not like Crime and Punishment . . . 

·      If you dislike long stretches of dialogue/rumination

·      If you are expecting a thriller or mystery

 

A Similar Book: Père Goriot by Honoré de Balzac (according to the footnotes in my edition, Crime and Punishment is actually partially inspired by Père Goriot, so the similarities are not coincidence! Similarities include . . .

·       An impoverished law student who moves to the big city away from his devoted mother and sister, who sacrifice a lot to send him to school

·       A protagonist who acts immorally in the face of poverty

·       A wide cast of characters navigating complex and unforgiving social systems

·       Themes exploring urban social ills, destitution, familial bonds, and morality

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Violence, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, and Child abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, and Suicide

Minor: Forced institutionalization, Sexism, and Sexual assault

kathyovalle01's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Death, Gun violence, Classism, Blood, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, and Sexism

nakednames's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

i love you rodion romanovich raskolnikov

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Addiction, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Chronic illness, Classism, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Cursing, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Stalking, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Misogyny, and Infidelity

Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic, Fire/Fire injury, and Forced institutionalization

the grief is never ending but so is the love

lucekl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness and Murder

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Abandonment, Suicide, Death, Child death, Violence, Sexism, Pedophilia, and Animal cruelty

mlewis's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, and Violence

Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Terminal illness, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, and Xenophobia

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

glass123banan's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Grief, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Suicide, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence

naiu_cs's review

challenging dark reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

It was just too slow paced for my taste. Some chapters kept on going for ages and felt filled with unnecessary information and dialogue. But it had it's moments. The characters were intriguing, if some of them insufferable. The exploration of human emotion and behavior was very interesting as well and could have taken up more of the book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Death

Moderate: Alcoholism and Alcohol

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexism

poubelleboi's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

classico russo preferito finora

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Body horror, Confinement, Grief, Gun violence, Religious bigotry, and Suicide

Minor: Antisemitism, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Police brutality

emilyjulia's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I had to fight to finish the novel because the characters (especially the protagonist) were lowkey unbearable and there were way too many long winded (and sometimes non-sensical) rants.
I like the premise of the book but it's just so. dragged. out.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, and Antisemitism

ru_th's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

„Die Ewigkeit erscheint uns immer als ein Begriff, den man gar nicht fassen kann, als etwas Riesenhaftes, ungeheuer Großes! Aber warum soll sie denn absolut ungeheuer groß sein? Auf einmal (stellen Sie sich das mal vor) kommt es so heraus, dass da statt all dessen nur ein einziges kleines Zimmerchen ist, so in der Art wie eine Badestube auf dem Lande, ganz verräuchert, und in allen Ecken Spinnen, und das ist dann die ganze Ewigkeit. […]”

„Stellen Sie sich wirklich, wirklich nichts Tröstlicheres und Gerechteres unter der Ewigkeit vor als dies?” […]

„Etwas Gerechteres? Woher soll man’s wissen, vielleicht ist das so, wie ich mir das ausmale, ganz gerecht; und wissen Sie, wenn’s von mir abhinge, ich würde die Ewigkeit jedenfalls absichtlich so einrichten.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Murder

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide

Minor: Alcoholism, Death, Antisemitism, Sexism, and Xenophobia