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Imagery
Definition of Irony
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this seems like a loose definition... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how... read full definition
Part 1, Chapter 5
Explanation and Analysis—Condemned to Death:
The narrator uses a simile that compares Raskolnikov to a man who has been condemned to death at the end of an important scene in which he decides to murder an elderly pawnbroker. The fact that he feels condemned to death even though he has decided to kill someone else is situationally ironic:
It was only a few more steps to his place. He walked in like a man condemned to death. He was not reasoning about anything, and was totally unable to reason; but he suddenly felt with his whole being that he no longer had any freedom either of mind or of will, and that everything had been suddenly and definitively decided. Of course, even if he had waited years on end for a good opportunity, having his design in mind, he could not have counted with certainty on a more obvious step towards the success of this design than the one that had suddenly presented itself now.
Although he had previously concluded, based on a dream, that he lacked the emotional fortitude to carry out his plan to kill the old woman, a surprising and coincidental encounter on the street reveals to him that the woman’s sister, Lizaveta, will be out of the house in the early evening the following day. He regards this good timing as an act of fate and decides that he must go through with this scheme. At this moment, the narrator describes him, in a simile, as being “like a man condemned to death.” This simile suggests that Raskolnikov is, in some sense, being pulled towards his fate like a prisoner. However, there is also a pointed irony in this choice of simile, as Raskolnikov has not in fact been condemned to death, but rather, has decided to kill another person.
Related Themes:
Part 4, Chapter 6
Explanation and Analysis—Wicked Thoughts:
In a scene that exemplifies dramatic irony, the Man From Under the Ground appears at Raskolnikov’s apartment to apologize for accusing him of murder, a crime that Raskolnikov is in fact guilty of. Having previously arrived at the apartment in order to confirm his suspicions, the Man from Under the Ground feels deeply ashamed when another man confesses to the crime:
“I am guilty,” the man said softly.
“Of what?”
“Of wicked thoughts.”
The two stood looking at each other.
“I felt bad. When you came that time, maybe under the influence, and told the caretakers to go to the precinct, and asked about blood, I felt bad because it all came to nothing, and you were taken for drunk. And I felt so bad that I lost my sleep. And, remembering the address, we came here yesterday and asked…”
“Who came?” Raskolnikov interrupted, instantly beginning to recall.
“Me, I came, I wronged you.”
Ironically, the man identifies himself as “guilty” to the Raskolnikov, who himself is genuinely guilty. He apologizes profusely for having “wicked thoughts” or, more specifically, for having identified Raskolnikov as the murderer to the police after spotting him at the scene of the crime. Unable to sleep due to his feelings of guilt, the man has come to apologize. Unknown to him, of course, is the fact that Raskolnikov is the murderer and therefore the true guilty party. Nikolai, a painter who confessed to the crime, did so falsely as a result of his religious beliefs. This undeserved apology contributes to Raskolnikov’s volatile emotional state, further pushing him towards a confession.
Part 6, Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Political Conspirator :
In a scene saturated with dramatic irony, Razumikhin reaches the false conclusion that Raskolnikov is a political agitator or revolutionary who has gotten into trouble and possibly implicated Dunya. After speaking with Raskolnikov in his apartment, Razumikhin reflects upon the source of his friend’s agitation:
“He’s a political conspirator, he is, for sure, for sure!” Razumikhin decided to himself finally, as he slowly went down the stairs. “And he’s drawn his sister into it; that’s very, very likely, given Avdotya Romanovna’s character. They’ve started meeting together…And she, too, dropped me a hint. It all comes out precisely that way, from many of her words…and phrases…and hints! And how else can all this tangle be explained? Hm! And I almost thought [...] Pah! What a nasty, crude, mean thought on my part! Good boy, Mikolka, for confessing…And all the earlier things are explained now!
The reader knows that Raskolnikov has no political connections whatsoever, but rather, is the culprit of a yet-unsolved double homicide. Razumikhin’s faith in his friend is touching but mistaken, as is his shame that he ever suspected Raskolnikov of anything truly dishonorable. This ironic scene, then, attests to the good-spirited and faithful nature of Razumikhin and to Raskolnikov’s ongoing deception of those closest to him.
