brothers karamazov
The Brothers Karamazov
by Fyodor Dostoevsky
"You know, dear boy, there was an old sinner in the eighteenth century who declared that, if there were no God, he would have to be invented: S'il n'existait pas Dieu, il faudrait l'inventer. And man has actually invented God. And what's strange, what would be marvellous, is not that God should really exist; the marvel is that such an idea, the idea of the necessity of God, could enter the head of such a savage, vicious beast as man."
"It's not that I don't accept God, you must understand, it's the world created by Him I don't and cannot accept."
Dostoevsky's absolutely brilliant. I admit I was a bit skeptical of how good it would be, considering it seems to take on the same concepts and ideas as Crime and Punishment (and I despise repetition) but it turned out to be far more grand in scope and better than I could have ever hoped. However, there were moments that I had to force myself to continue reading 'cause Dostoevsky, much like Ayn Rand, is a verbose writer and I prefer brevity. Overall, I thought it was intelligently written and constructed.
If you feel like reading the book, here's a summary from the front flap:
The Brothers Karamazov tells the story of Fyodor Karamazov and his four sons: the vacillating rogue Dmitri, the intellectual Ivan, the spiritual Alexey, and the illegitimate and amoral Smerdyakov. Fyodor is a reprehensible, blasphemous, philandering old buffoon whose murder appears to have been at the hands of Dmitri. However, as the novel unfolds, and the characters and their contrasting personalities and approaches to life are drawn together, the matter of who is really the guilty party - by action and by implication - transforms into a consideration of much greater questions: of faith and reason, freedom and responsibility, of suffering and redemption, and of Dostoevsky's vision for the future salvation of the Russian people.
Book 4/24 done. Next up is Life of Pi, which is significantly shorter so I should be finished by tomorrow morning.
by Fyodor Dostoevsky
"You know, dear boy, there was an old sinner in the eighteenth century who declared that, if there were no God, he would have to be invented: S'il n'existait pas Dieu, il faudrait l'inventer. And man has actually invented God. And what's strange, what would be marvellous, is not that God should really exist; the marvel is that such an idea, the idea of the necessity of God, could enter the head of such a savage, vicious beast as man."
"It's not that I don't accept God, you must understand, it's the world created by Him I don't and cannot accept."
Dostoevsky's absolutely brilliant. I admit I was a bit skeptical of how good it would be, considering it seems to take on the same concepts and ideas as Crime and Punishment (and I despise repetition) but it turned out to be far more grand in scope and better than I could have ever hoped. However, there were moments that I had to force myself to continue reading 'cause Dostoevsky, much like Ayn Rand, is a verbose writer and I prefer brevity. Overall, I thought it was intelligently written and constructed.
If you feel like reading the book, here's a summary from the front flap:
The Brothers Karamazov tells the story of Fyodor Karamazov and his four sons: the vacillating rogue Dmitri, the intellectual Ivan, the spiritual Alexey, and the illegitimate and amoral Smerdyakov. Fyodor is a reprehensible, blasphemous, philandering old buffoon whose murder appears to have been at the hands of Dmitri. However, as the novel unfolds, and the characters and their contrasting personalities and approaches to life are drawn together, the matter of who is really the guilty party - by action and by implication - transforms into a consideration of much greater questions: of faith and reason, freedom and responsibility, of suffering and redemption, and of Dostoevsky's vision for the future salvation of the Russian people.
Book 4/24 done. Next up is Life of Pi, which is significantly shorter so I should be finished by tomorrow morning.