It is impossible to summarise Dostoevsky’s magnum opus, The
Karamazov Brothers, in a few paragraphs. As the title indicates, it is
the story of the three Karamazov brothers: Dmitry, Ivan and Alyosha, in
descending order of seniority, though Ivan plays the major role. Their father,
Fyodor, is a lustful hedonist who loves only himself. He has one more son born
out of the wedlock, Smerdyakov, a malicious character who ends up killing
himself after killing his father. However, it is Dmitry who is accused of
parricide and Ivan walks into the court and claims to be the murderer.
Dmitry is a man of the flesh, Ivan of the mind, and Alyosha of the
spirit, in short. The novel is about the conflict among these. The body loves
the world’s indulgences. The mind wants logic and reason. The spirit craves to
transcend all these. Fyodor Karamazov’s murder brings out the dominant traits
of his sons.
Evil is one of the dominant themes of the novel. Evil is a theme that
has baffled philosophers and theologians for long. Ivan rejects God because of
evil. If God is good, how come there is so much evil in his creation? If God is
omnipotent, why doesn’t he eradicate evil from His world? Logically God is an
impossibility. And if there is no God, everything is permitted and morality
makes no sense. Smerdyakov takes that argument of Ivan literally and ends up
killing his father who was his rival in the pursuit of the hottest woman
around. But it is Dmitry who is accused of the crime because of circumstantial evidences.
Ivan is noble to take up the responsibility for making his step-brother a
murderer. He realises that his kind of thinking can lead people to commit all
sorts of atrocities. Most people won’t take logic and reason far enough to
realise that good is a rational choice over evil. That is why people need food
for their souls – religion, for instance.
Alyosha and his spiritual mentor at the monastery, Father Zosima, show
what spirituality should mean to people. Their religion is a respect for all
creatures irrespective of whether they are good or bad. The really spiritual
person knows to accept both the good and the evil of God’s creation. Love is
acceptance of the whole, warts and deformities included. To believe in God is
to put your trust in love, kindness, forgiveness and a devotion to goodness.
Evil is caused by people who are not able to discover love and goodness
in themselves and others. There are amoral evils like earthquakes and tsunamis.
They are natural processes and even Ivan is willing to accept them. It is man’s
evil that haunts Ivan’s thoughts like a vindictive demon. Why did God make
human beings so evil?
There is no logical answer, Father Zosima would say. But there is a
solution. The solution is faith. Believe in whatever goodness is there. Say
‘Yes’ to that goodness. The moment you say ‘Yes’ to something without having to
look for logical props, you are beginning to put your trust in that reality. Trust
leads to love. Trust is love. Hell is the absence of love. In the words of
Father Zosima, hell is “the suffering of being unable to love”.
Suffering is good, Father Zosima teaches us. Suffering can be a purifying
process. Suffering can be the crucible in which the soul melts and sheds its
impurities. The pure soul can kneel down at the public crossroads, bend down
and kiss the soil of the earth and say, ‘I accept.’ That acknowledgement of the
given reality is the pure soul’s mantra. It accepts the earth with its brambles
and briars too. The pure soul accepts its own insignificance. And then a whole
new cosmos unfolds before you.
Ivan’s heart is as good as his logical brain. That is precisely the
problem. The conflict within him between the heart that yearns for goodness and
the brain that analyses the evil around is overwhelming. It leads him to
delirium in the end. He can save himself either by accepting his little brother
Alyosha’s religious faith as taught by Father Zosima or by coming to terms intellectually
with his own responsibility to be good even if there is no God.
PS. This is part of a series being written for the #BlogchatterA2Z
Challenge. The previous parts are:
10. Jude the
Obscure
Tomorrow: Lord of the Flies
My father owned a copy of The Idiot but somehow I never got around to reading that book. Thank you for this recommendation. I think I must visit Dostoevsky. I've delayed it for long.
ReplyDeleteDostoevsky is one of the best novelists that the world ever saw. I'd say the Karamazov Brothers is his best work.
DeleteWow, I really love your book recommendations. I must admit I need to gear up on my reading list. So many new on the wishlist now!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear this, Jyoti. These are all world classics - with just a couple of exceptions like 'Illusions'.
DeleteI too have a copy of The Idiot, but I never finished reading it. I've heard much about Dostoevsky's work. I'll get to reading it soon. It's an interesting question about the need for god if we can have a conscience even without Him.
ReplyDeleteRead Dostoevsky and then Camus. You'll find a whole intellectual iceberg stopping your ship.
DeleteAlbert Camus? Any particular recommendation?
DeleteI'm presenting Plague in this series. But Outsider, and Rebel are equally good.
DeleteSir, Now this is a must read for mr
ReplyDeleteAll the best.
DeleteReminded me of the movie, The Good, the Bad, the Ugly. Ofcourse, The Karmazov Brothers is far more layered and intricate than the movie. I fell in love with Dostoevsky for his detailed study of nature of people and their portrayal in the plot.
ReplyDeleteNever read any book by Dostoevsky but believe now is time to lay my hand on one.
Thanks for sharing this gem with us.
An extremely complex novelist, Dostoevsky can enchant any intelligent reader.
DeleteA beautiful write up about one of the all time great works of literature.
ReplyDeleteThere's so much to say about this novel. I resisted the temptation to go on.
DeleteA classic that I read many many years ago. Maybe I should read it once again.
ReplyDeleteAll the best for another stint.
DeleteI really should read this book.... These lines make me wonder too "If God is good, how come there is so much evil in his creation? If God is omnipotent, why doesn’t he eradicate evil from His world? Logically God is an impossibility. And if there is no God, everything is permitted and morality makes no sense."
ReplyDeleteIt's a highly thought-provoking and disturbing novel.
Delete