Brian’s Comments (group member since Mar 02, 2009)

Brian’s comments from the fiction files redux group.

Hello Robyn... the cartoon reader has made a long overdue appearance. FF's always rock!!

Oro and others... great discussion! Sorry for my absence. I've been researching and writing about the ancient Greeks circa 500 bc to the Roman invasion... study book, worksheets and PowerPoint presentations for our school curriculum. The kids love it! Did a full course on natural disasters and trying to finish the 9 parts of speech... each part focuses on a specific country. They learn English. They learn about the world. Typical textbooks suck. They're loving this.

We teach English with a theme... project based. Hope to work something like this discussion into the curriculum.

On to HJ... and my favourite... Borges. Loved his 6 essays. I reviewed it sometime back...

A quote from João's Q&A link... 'It is a style reflecting a cultural clash between two civilizations with different sets of beliefs, without shared underlying values. What is seen as reality according to one set of beliefs is seen as fantastic, or magical, according to another mentality.'... This tells me that much of what I call world literature can be included in magic realism. Toer's books on early Indonesian life and the Thai writer's (forgot his name) books on Issan life introduces beliefs that to them are commonplace but seem unreal to me. What I would call true magic is an everyday belief and practice in Issan... I live with it. It reminds me of the Voodoo/Hoodoo environment I lived in which was completely at odds with my Southern Baptist upbringing. But I ramble....

A short piece about Kipling... http://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/rg_fi...

Interesting link at the bottom of the page... Mary Hamer's essays... http://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/rg_dr...

Time to start Henry James now.

I finally have a holiday so will read these two stories too... I'm in on this.

Bike suffered more than me. I'm fine and back at school and into C&P.

Motorbike accident. Back soon. I'm still keeping up with the discussions. Right now in pain. Bleeding has stopped. That's good. Now more time to read although I start teaching again Monday.

João... I love that story...

Sorry I haven't been more active. The school holidays interfered with my reading (read... drunk). Back real soon.

I'm loving the 'sidetracks'... thanks buds!!!

Welcome Nikita!!! I expect we'll be asking you a lot of questions. Glad you joined us!

Ok Hugh... about your first point from about 5 days ago. I don't think Raskolnikov could have ever lived a happy life whether he killed or not. He was an internally miserable being torturing himself with oft times conflicting thoughts (the schism). I wish Mr Dost would have written more about his early life. What caused his mental breakdown?... and yes, I do believe he was in the midst of not only depression, but a complete meltdown. Where was the trigger? I would have thought he'd at least think of taking his own life... there's always forgiveness, for anything, right?

Fate... I think he truly wants to believe this but isn't capable. He is looking for excuses. And finding many in the process. This was a premeditated and well calculated crime. He was rational at times he needed to be. He's not stupid. He did think this through carefully and adjusted his plans when necessary.

Nietzsche was obsessed with Mr Dost and it seems C&P in particular. But whereas Nietzsche proclaimed there was no God, Dostoevsky believed in God and Christ but seemed very troubled by doubts. The horse incident is one of my all time unforgettable literary scenes. It appears to have been one of Nietzsche's too.

I walk Petersburg's streets with sympathy for Raskolnikov. I feel he is a troubled man. I still would like to know if there was a trigger to his madness. And since this is my second reading of the book, I remember holding his bloodied hand throughout the book wishing I could give him comfort.

About the ladies in the book... with maybe the exception of the pawnbroker, they all seem to sacrifice their life for the sake of the men. Is Dostoevsky thinking about his wife who stuck by him despite all of his vices and of course illness? I see the women in this book as being strong-willed, tough, and willing to do what they perceive is right for their own well-being... but to me sadly, more for the incompetent men in their lives.

The crime has been committed. Now comes the punishment... a punishment I believe he's been battling long before the crime.

This passage puzzles me... 'At which point he suddenly became interested in precisely why the people of all big cities are somehow especially inclined, not really out of necessity alone, to live and settle in precisely those parts of the city where there are neither gardens nor fountains, where there is filth and stench and all sorts of squalor. At which point he recalled his own walks through the Haymarket and came to himself for a moment. "What nonsense," he thought. "No, better not to think anything at all.' (Part 1, chapter VI)... Is it true? Why this sudden thought? It is the thought he had before thinking about what men being led to execution might think. Any thoughts?

(Later I'll try to post pictures of the places Raskolnikov walked around in his mental drunken state. This is one of the books that inspired my trip to Russia)

PS: posted after drinking half a liter of vodka. Sorry for the rambling structure. Just trying to get in the spirit. Forgive any grammatical errors... I love the Russians.

Ahhhh.... responsibility. That cursed persuader, weight on our thoughts, and most times, decider of our actions. We all feel the pressure of responsibility. Do we need to listen to responsibility? Don't certain circumstances mute responsibility? What if we make the wrong decision even if we think at the time it's right? Being responsible can be tainted.

Don't worry. I'm not killing anyone... I think. Thanks Kerry for making me think before bedtime.

Come on people... Crime AND Punishment. Pour a vodka and let's get existential.

Make me decide otherwise....

WARNING: drunken post. Vodka!!!!

How far would you go to secure what you think might be the ideal life? What if someone really didn't deserve to live? How would you know if this person really didn't deserve to live? If there were no religions, would our morals make us decide? Would we give a shit? Should we give a shit? Does religion and moral teachings influence our decisions? Why? Damn it, WHY???? If there is nothing after this life should we care???? If we had no money, no food, and was drunk? WTF. Should we care. Let's do 'that'.

After Raskolnikov receives the letter from his mother he again wanders the streets in a drunken state of confusion and anger then decides to visit his university friend Razumikhin... But then decides that maybe it's best to visit him after 'that' is done. The name Razumikhin means 'reason'. Dostoevsky chose his names carefully. Should he visit 'reason' before... or wait until after. Reasoning is a tricky friend.

A dilemma... related to C&P... if you were asked to contribute a small amount of money that would go towards 'knocking' someone off, would you? If that person was despicable, hated you and showed you as much respect as they would a cockroach? Is it justified? Would you be a killer? Would you feel guilt? Is all life equal? This unfortunately is a real dilemma. If you don't contribute and say nothing are you still guilty? Where is the line? I'm not seeing a line...

Now time for more reading... 'That' is about to happen...

Kerry... it IS absurd in modern novels especially when some countries have raised the retirement age to 70. We live longer now. In C&P you'll soon read where some people are lucky to live to the age of 20. Petersburg was a hard and mean city to the poor and destitute. Life was a struggle for many and it took it's toll.

Hugh, that scene would work as a standalone... the bar is located a few steps below the street. It is dark, stuffy, and smelly. A lonely place. A place to find suffering in drink, not solace. I enjoyed Marmeladov's distinction between poverty and destitution. Considering his circumstance and the locale in Petersburg where all of this takes place, I too may see a glimmer of honor in poverty and view destitution as a vice.

About the name Raskolnikov, I found this interesting little piece... 'Raskolnikov really loves people, or, maybe, Raskolnikov really hates people. Oh the confusion! The very root of his name is "raskol," which means "schism" or "split." Razumihin tells Dounia and Pulcheria, "It's as though he were alternating between two characters" (3.2.32). In fact the number two is closely associated with Raskolnikov. When we first meet Raskolnikov, he hasn't eaten in "two days." At the pawnbroker's house there are "two gates" and "two courtyards." He last wrote his mom "two months" ago. He meets the abused drunk girl in the park at "two" in the afternoon.'...... and the twos go on. Look out for them.

Now for an interesting essay that starts with the first sentence of the book and examines the importance of the last word of that sentence... "At the beginning of July, during an extremely hot spell, towards evening, a young man left the closet he rented from tenants in S------y Lane, walked out to the street, and slowly, as if indecisively, headed for the K-------n Bridge"... check out this essay... http://www.utoronto.ca/tsq/DS/03/145....

Now back to Petersburg...

(I really want a vodka or 5, but have been troubled with a sinus infection. It's more fun reading C&P with a drink!)

Hugh, you stole my thoughts. I waded through the evening streets planning the dirty deed and ended up in a tavern with a drunk. I have much to think about. Everyone might consider keeping a New Testament KJV next to their C&P...

Crime and Punishment and (hopefully) Drunken Conversation. Let's rip one for Mr Dost.... Come on Lara!!