A Russian novel written in 1866, Crime & Punishmentt tells the story of Raskolnikov, an impoverished arrogant Russian student, who plans and executes a murder.
Confessing his despicable act to a prostitute, Raskolnikov rationalises his crime by calling his victim a ‘louse’ because she was a pawnbroker, believing he has rid the world of a parasite.
Raskolnikov spends the first half of the book in a delirium, absolutely terrified that he will be found out. He begins to act irrationally going to the police and telling them that he knows that they know he is guilty of the murder. The police laugh at him, blaming his behaviour on his recent delirium. Believing this to be a trap, Raskolnikov waits for them to tighten the net…...
Crime & Punishment was originally serialised in 12 monthly instalments, which does make the full novel a little long winded. However, despite struggling with the Russian names, I must admit that I enjoyed reading this much more than I expected.
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