Guilty Conscience In Crime And Punishment

A guilty conscience will suffer the consequences of the crime committed. This is illustrated in Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment. The main character, Rodya Raskolnikov, commits murder and then falls apart because of his actions. Not only does he begin to have mental problems, but he falls physically ill as well. However, once Rodya tells a friend what he has done and he gives himself up to the police, he feels much better. Therefore, Dostoevsky wrote this novel to say that actual punishment is far less terrible than the torment one gives themselves when they try to avoid it. The author, Dostoyevsky, wrote this novel to prove a point. The point being that hardships may bring a person down, but that their actions can bring them through. That even though a person has hit a rough patch in life, they can still make it better. However, not everyone chooses to do the right thing in order to improve their life. Throughout Crime and Punishment, all of the characters are attempting to do what is best for their respective families, friends, and themselves. Rodya believes that he is doing the right thing by killing the old pawn broker, Alyona, …show more content…
However, one does not have to make it to that crossroads if they decide to do the right thing at the beginning. Sonya and Dmitri figured out how to help their friends, families, and themselves without going to drastic measures. However, Rodya could not deal with his hardships and felt that the best course of action was to kill the old pawn broker. This action brought him to an all-time low in his life and he became mentally and physically ill. However, once he confessed his crime to his friend and the police, he felt much better. Therefore, the worst punishment one can give themselves is not admitting to committing their crime. Once a confession is made, a weight will be lifted off of one’s