Summary
Night Terrors
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
The night after Dunya's rejection, Svidrigailov wanders Petersburg in a surreal, nightmarish sequence. He encounters various people and situations that feel dreamlike and symbolic. He gives away his money - to his young fiancée's family, to the Marmeladovs, to random strangers. It's as if he's settling accounts before a final journey. He spends his last night in a cheap hotel room where he's tormented by visions and dreams. The dreams are disturbing - he sees a young girl who transforms into something corrupt, reflecting his own corruption of innocence. In the morning, he walks to a public place and shoots himself. His suicide is matter-of-fact, almost bureaucratic. A watchman witnesses it, confused by the calm deliberation of the act. Svidrigailov's death raises profound questions: Is suicide an escape or a final act of moral responsibility? He couldn't live with himself after Dunya's rejection forced him to see himself clearly. Unlike the protagonist, who's moving toward confession and redemption, Svidrigailov chooses obliteration. The chapter suggests that for some, the weight of their actions is simply unbearable.
Coming Up in Chapter 32
Having confessed to Sonia, Raskolnikov must now face what comes next - and Sonia has very specific ideas about what he needs to do to find peace. But first, an unexpected visitor arrives with news that will shake both of them.
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
Lebeziatnikov looked perturbed. “I’ve come to you, Sofya Semyonovna,” he began. “Excuse me... I thought I should find you,” he said, addressing Raskolnikov suddenly, “that is, I didn’t mean anything... of that sort... But I just thought... Katerina Ivanovna has gone out of her mind,” he blurted out suddenly, turning from Raskolnikov to Sonia. Sonia screamed. “At least it seems so. But... we don’t know what to do, you see! She came back--she seems to have been turned out somewhere, perhaps beaten.... So it seems at least.... She had run to your father’s former chief, she didn’t find him at home: he was dining at some other general’s.... Only fancy, she rushed off there, to the other general’s, and, imagine, she was so persistent that she managed to get the chief to see her, had him fetched out from dinner, it seems. You can imagine what happened. She was turned out, of course; but, according to her own story, she abused him and threw something at him. One may well believe it.... How it is she wasn’t taken up, I can’t understand! Now she is telling everyone, including Amalia Ivanovna; but it’s difficult to understand her, she is screaming and flinging herself about.... Oh yes, she shouts that since everyone has abandoned her, she will take the children and go into the street with a barrel-organ, and the children will sing and dance, and she too, and collect money, and will go every day under the general’s window... ‘to let everyone see well-born children, whose father was an official, begging in the street.’ She keeps beating the children and they are all crying. She is teaching Lida to sing ‘My Village,’ the boy to dance, Polenka the same. She is tearing up all the clothes, and making them little caps like actors; she means to carry a tin basin and make it tinkle, instead of music.... She won’t listen to anything.... Imagine the state of things! It’s beyond anything!” Lebeziatnikov would have gone on, but Sonia, who had heard him almost breathless, snatched up her cloak and hat, and ran out of the room, putting on her things as she went. Raskolnikov followed her and Lebeziatnikov came after him. “She has certainly gone mad!” he said to Raskolnikov, as they went out into the street. “I didn’t want to frighten Sofya Semyonovna, so I said ‘it seemed like it,’ but there isn’t a doubt of it. They say that in consumption the tubercles sometimes occur in the brain; it’s a pity I know nothing of medicine. I did try to persuade her, but she wouldn’t listen.” “Did you talk to her about the tubercles?” “Not precisely of the tubercles. Besides, she wouldn’t have understood! But what I say is, that if you convince a person logically that he has nothing to cry about, he’ll stop crying. That’s clear. Is it your conviction that he won’t?” “Life would be too easy if it were so,” answered Raskolnikov. “Excuse me, excuse me;...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to distinguish between healthy privacy and destructive secrecy by showing how guilt-driven isolation creates a feedback loop that poisons all relationships.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Confession
The act of admitting guilt or wrongdoing, often carrying both legal and spiritual weight. In 19th-century Russia, confession was deeply tied to Orthodox Christian beliefs about redemption through suffering and acknowledgment of sin.
Rationalization
Creating logical-sounding reasons to justify actions we know are wrong. Raskolnikov has spent the entire novel building elaborate theories to explain why his murders were necessary or even noble.
Moral isolation
The psychological state of being cut off from human connection due to guilt or shame. When we do something that violates our deepest values, we often feel unable to relate to others normally.
Redemption through suffering
A core Russian Orthodox belief that spiritual healing comes through accepting and working through pain rather than avoiding it. Dostoevsky explores whether true change requires facing consequences.
Extraordinary man theory
Raskolnikov's belief that some people are above ordinary moral laws and can commit crimes for the greater good. This reflects real 19th-century debates about whether genius or purpose justifies breaking social rules.
Psychological realism
A literary technique that shows the complex, often contradictory thoughts and emotions inside characters' minds. Dostoevsky was pioneering in showing how guilt actually works psychologically.
Characters in This Chapter
Raskolnikov
Tortured protagonist
Finally breaks down and confesses his double murder to Sonia. His elaborate philosophical justifications crumble as he faces another human being with the truth of what he's done.
Sonia
Moral compass
Receives Raskolnikov's confession with horror but also compassion. Her reaction shows him that his crime hasn't made him powerful but has trapped him in isolation and self-hatred.
Key Quotes & Analysis
"I killed not an old woman, but myself!"
Context: During his anguished confession to Sonia
This reveals that Raskolnikov finally understands the true cost of his crime. He thought murder would liberate him, but instead it destroyed his ability to connect with life and other people.
"What have you done to yourself?"
Context: Her immediate response upon hearing his confession
Sonia instinctively grasps that the murder has been as devastating to Raskolnikov as to his victims. Her question shows she sees his suffering, not just his guilt.
"We will go together... we will bear the cross together!"
Context: Promising to support Raskolnikov through whatever comes next
This represents the novel's central message about redemption requiring both suffering and human connection. Sonia offers him what his theories never could: genuine love and shared burden.
Thematic Threads
Isolation
In This Chapter
Raskolnikov's secret has completely cut him off from authentic human connection until this moment of confession
Development
Evolved from his initial philosophical superiority to complete psychological imprisonment
Class
In This Chapter
Both characters are trapped by poverty, but Sonia chose compassion while Raskolnikov chose violence
Development
Deepened to show how economic desperation can lead to different moral choices
Identity
In This Chapter
Raskolnikov's carefully constructed self-image as extraordinary crumbles under Sonia's simple humanity
Development
Reached crisis point where false identity can no longer be maintained
Human Relationships
In This Chapter
First genuine connection Raskolnikov has made since the murders, showing the healing power of authentic relationship
Development
Transformed from his manipulative interactions to this moment of vulnerable truth
Personal Growth
In This Chapter
Confession marks the beginning of Raskolnikov's potential redemption and return to humanity
Development
Shifted from intellectual justification toward emotional and spiritual reckoning
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
What finally pushes Raskolnikov to tell Sonia the truth about the murders, and how does she react?
- 2
Why does Raskolnikov's confession feel like both relief and torture? What does this tell us about the psychology of carrying secrets?
- 3
Where do you see this pattern of 'toxic secrets creating isolation' in modern workplaces, families, or communities?
- 4
If you had a friend carrying a heavy secret that was clearly eating them alive, how would you create a safe space for them to share it?
- 5
What does Sonia's response teach us about the difference between judgment and accountability when someone confesses wrongdoing?
Critical Thinking Exercise
Map Your Secret's Ripple Effects
Think of a time when you kept a secret that felt heavy (doesn't have to be criminal - could be a mistake, a struggle, or something you were ashamed of). Draw or write out how that secret affected different areas of your life: your relationships, your sleep, your work performance, your ability to be present with others. Then trace what happened when you finally shared it with someone trustworthy.
Consider:
- •Notice how secrets don't stay contained - they leak into areas that seem unrelated
- •Pay attention to the difference between sharing with someone who can handle the truth versus someone who might judge or abandon you
- •Consider how the fear of consequences often turns out worse than the actual consequences
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 32: Svidrigailov's End
The coming pages reveal happens when nihilism meets its logical end, and teach us the difference between philosophy and psychology. These discoveries help us navigate similar situations in our own lives.