Summary
The Garret
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Raskolnikov, a former law student living in crushing poverty in St. Petersburg, emerges from his cramped, coffin-like room after days of brooding isolation. He's been consumed by a terrible idea that he can't shake - something he's been planning but hasn't yet admitted to himself. As he walks through the sweltering summer streets, we see his internal torment: he's intelligent and educated, yet reduced to pawning his father's watch just to survive. His landlady demands rent he can't pay, and his pride won't let him accept help. The chapter reveals a man at a breaking point, caught between his circumstances and his conscience. Dostoevsky shows us how poverty doesn't just empty your wallet - it can twist your thinking until desperate solutions start seeming reasonable. Raskolnikov represents anyone who's ever felt trapped by their situation, when the gap between who you are and where you've ended up feels impossible to bridge. His fevered mental state reflects the dangerous territory we enter when desperation meets intellect without moral grounding. The 'idea' haunting him isn't just a thought - it's becoming an obsession that's reshaping his entire worldview. This opening establishes the psychological pressure cooker that will drive the entire novel: what happens when a good person convinces themselves that terrible actions might be justified by terrible circumstances? Raskolnikov's struggle between his conscience and his rationalization will resonate with anyone who's ever faced impossible choices or felt society has failed them.
Coming Up in Chapter 2
Raskolnikov's mysterious 'rehearsal' takes him to a pawnbroker's apartment, where he studies the old woman's routine with disturbing intensity. The terrible idea that's been consuming him starts to take concrete shape.
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
On an exceptionally hot evening early in July a young man came out of the garret in which he lodged in S. Place and walked slowly, as though in hesitation, towards K. bridge. He had successfully avoided meeting his landlady on the staircase. His garret was under the roof of a high, five-storied house and was more like a cupboard than a room. The landlady who provided him with garret, dinners, and attendance, lived on the floor below, and every time he went out he was obliged to pass her kitchen, the door of which invariably stood open. And each time he passed, the young man had a sick, frightened feeling, which made him scowl and feel ashamed. He was hopelessly in debt to his landlady, and was afraid of meeting her. This was not because he was cowardly and abject, quite the contrary; but for some time past he had been in an overstrained irritable condition, verging on hypochondria. He had become so completely absorbed in himself, and isolated from his fellows that he dreaded meeting, not only his landlady, but anyone at all. He was crushed by poverty, but the anxieties of his position had of late ceased to weigh upon him. He had given up attending to matters of practical importance; he had lost all desire to do so. Nothing that any landlady could do had a real terror for him. But to be stopped on the stairs, to be forced to listen to her trivial, irrelevant gossip, to pestering demands for payment, threats and complaints, and to rack his brains for excuses, to prevaricate, to lie--no, rather than that, he would creep down the stairs like a cat and slip out unseen. This evening, however, on coming out into the street, he became acutely aware of his fears. “I want to attempt a thing _like that_ and am frightened by these trifles,” he thought, with an odd smile. “Hm... yes, all is in a man’s hands and he lets it all slip from cowardice, that’s an axiom. It would be interesting to know what it is men are most afraid of. Taking a new step, uttering a new word is what they fear most.... But I am talking too much. It’s because I chatter that I do nothing. Or perhaps it is that I chatter because I do nothing. I’ve learned to chatter this last month, lying for days together in my den thinking... of Jack the Giant-killer. Why am I going there now? Am I capable of _that_? Is _that_ serious? It is not serious at all. It’s simply a fantasy to amuse myself; a plaything! Yes, maybe it is a plaything.” The heat in the street was terrible: and the airlessness, the bustle and the plaster, scaffolding, bricks, and dust all about him, and that special Petersburg stench, so familiar to all who are unable to get out of town in summer--all worked painfully upon the young man’s already overwrought nerves. The insufferable stench...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to recognize when desperation starts making wrong choices seem reasonable—before you cross lines you can't uncross.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
St. Petersburg
Russia's imperial capital, built on swampland by Peter the Great. A city of extreme contrasts - glittering palaces next to squalid tenements. The setting reflects Raskolnikov's mental state: beautiful but unstable, grand but suffocating.
Garret
A tiny room in the top floor of a building, usually under the roof. Raskolnikov's coffin-like space represents how poverty literally boxes people in. These cramped quarters were where many poor students and intellectuals lived in 19th century cities.
Psychological realism
A literary style that digs deep into characters' minds, showing their thoughts and feelings in detail. Dostoevsky pioneered this approach, letting us experience Raskolnikov's mental breakdown from the inside. It's like having access to someone's private thoughts.
Nihilism
A philosophy popular among young Russian intellectuals that rejected traditional values and moral authorities. It's the belief that nothing really matters, so you can make your own rules. This dangerous thinking influences Raskolnikov's 'idea.'
Social stratification
The rigid class system that kept people locked in their social positions. In 19th century Russia, your birth determined your life. Raskolnikov feels trapped between his education and his poverty - he knows better but can't do better.
Rationalization
The mental process of creating logical-sounding reasons for things you want to do anyway. Raskolnikov uses his intelligence to justify his terrible 'idea,' showing how smart people can think themselves into moral danger.
Characters in This Chapter
Raskolnikov
Protagonist
A brilliant former law student living in crushing poverty who's been consumed by a mysterious and terrible idea. His emergence from days of isolation shows a man at his breaking point, torn between his conscience and desperation.
The landlady
Minor character
Represents the practical pressures crushing Raskolnikov - she demands rent he cannot pay. Though barely present, she symbolizes how poverty creates a web of obligations that can drive people to desperate measures.
Key Quotes & Analysis
"I want to attempt a thing like that and am frightened by these trifles!"
Context: He's walking through the streets, amazed that he fears small social interactions when he's planning something much worse.
This reveals the disconnect between his grand, terrible plan and his inability to handle everyday life. It shows how isolation and obsession can warp someone's sense of proportion and reality.
"Am I capable of that? Is that serious? It is not serious at all."
Context: His internal debate about whether he can actually carry out his mysterious plan.
The repetition shows his mind going in circles, trying to convince himself. This self-questioning reveals he still has a conscience fighting against his rationalization - he's not yet completely lost.
"On an exceptionally hot evening early in July a young man came out of the garret in which he lodged in S. Place and walked slowly, as though in hesitation, towards K. bridge."
Context: The opening lines of the novel, setting the scene.
The hesitation in his walk mirrors his mental state - he's moving toward something but unsure. The oppressive heat reflects his fevered mental condition and the pressure building inside him.
Thematic Threads
Pride
In This Chapter
Raskolnikov's refusal to accept help or acknowledge his desperate circumstances, preferring dangerous isolation to wounded dignity
Development
Introduced here
Class
In This Chapter
The crushing weight of poverty forcing an educated man to pawn family heirlooms while his landlady demands rent he cannot pay
Development
Introduced here
Isolation
In This Chapter
Raskolnikov's self-imposed confinement in his coffin-like room, cutting himself off from human connection when he needs it most
Development
Introduced here
Rationalization
In This Chapter
The 'terrible idea' that haunts him—his mind working to justify something his conscience rejects
Development
Introduced here
Identity
In This Chapter
The gap between who he was (law student) and who he's become (desperate pauper), creating internal conflict about his worth and options
Development
Introduced here
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
What specific circumstances have trapped Raskolnikov in his tiny room, and what 'terrible idea' is consuming his thoughts?
- 2
How does Raskolnikov's pride prevent him from accepting help or finding legitimate solutions to his poverty?
- 3
Where do you see people today convincing themselves that desperate circumstances justify questionable actions?
- 4
If you had a friend like Raskolnikov, spiraling into dangerous thinking due to desperation, how would you intervene?
- 5
What does this chapter reveal about how isolation and pride can transform good people into potential wrongdoers?
Critical Thinking Exercise
Map Your Rationalization Red Flags
Think of a time when you were under serious pressure—financial, work, family, or personal. Write down the thoughts that went through your head about 'bending the rules' or doing something you normally wouldn't consider. Then identify what warning signs could have helped you recognize when desperation was affecting your judgment.
Consider:
- •Notice how isolation made questionable options seem more reasonable
- •Identify which emotions (pride, anger, fear) were driving your thinking
- •Consider what support or perspective could have helped you navigate differently
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 2: Marmeladov's Confession
The coming pages reveal addiction destroys families even when love is present, and teach us the brutal reality of survival prostitution in desperate poverty. These discoveries help us navigate similar situations in our own lives.