Alright-- It's time to start the discussion, and it's late and I've had some crazy weeks filled with ups and downs that leave discussing heavy Russian Literature not my first priority, so I apologize for the lateness of this post (although, a portion of this lateness is due to many members not finishing the book, so lets not cast stones here.)
Let's start the discussion, so we can get some insights and opinions and then (maybe for many of you) just move on so we can get to whatever Ami has in store for us.
How about for tonight, all I ask is you lend your voice to the discussion by giving an overall impression and let us know how far you got before you gave up trying to figure out for the millionth time who exactly is Mitya again? In a day or two I will try to come up with some other topics, but for tonight, I am just proud I finally got this post posted.
I guess I'll start. I finished the book (I bloody well better have, since I started this whole thing). I finished just a few days late, so the details are starting to fade just a bit. First off- I really enjoyed the book. I really, really loved the writing style. Loved the 3rd person narrative and how warm his voice was. It drew me in immediately. I found the story interesting, loved the back story of the family, and I also really enjoyed the mystery element that cropped up during the last 3rd (1/2?). I also loved the courtroom drama parts. The discussions about God were compelling, yet feel like they warrant studying more closely then I gave it. I have a feeling that many an essay have been devoted to breaking it down. We can get into that later.
ReplyDeleteI read probably around 150 - 200 pages in all - the first 80ish pages, part about Zossima’s death, and selected excerpts throughout. I used online cliff notes for the rest. The book felt so modern in some ways that the old style writing was a strange contrast, even though it is an integral part of the book. It must have been incredibly edgy and modern at the time, because it is still relevant for its explorations of human nature. I think it must have been partly his personal torture by the government that gave him this deep insight into the darker parts of human nature. His writing seemed to improve as he got further into the book. I don't think it was just me acclimating to his style either - Dostoyovsky - in the narrator's voice, apologizes for having to set up the back story in such a dry fashion. Those first few chapters are not very exciting, but I understand it would be very hard to develop the history in a more natural fashion. It would have made the book a whole lot longer. So the intro is clunky but then he relaxes into the meat of the story and the writing became a little closer to what I expected from a classic. I can't imagine writing something this well, let alone in the days before computers when you had to organize thoughts before writing them down. The star of the show for me was his exploration of religion and government intersecting with religion.
ReplyDeleteI read about as much as you Wendy at this point, but only because I'm out of the habit of reading. I'm going to keep going, but got though the first book. So excited to hear that this was the dry parts, because I have been enthralled the past few days reading about this dysfunctional family (I'm a mental health therapist by training). Can't wait to get to the rest of the book now, so I'm sure I'll be reading double with our next assignment. I think what has been most interesting echoes what Wendy said, that it must have been very edgy for the time because the themes that have emerged so far could be stories my clients tell me. I am reminded of the modern film version of Romeo and Juliet that is set in the 90s, featuring Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio, and that this book could easily be picked up and placed in the common era. Dimitri is hilarious, and I wonder if he is going through a manic episode, and if he takes after his dad more than he would like to admit!
ReplyDeleteI like the mental health angle you brought up. I think the father is a really interesting character - the complexity of his aggressive/foolish behavior is so realistic it makes me think he must have known someone who acted this way. Also, Ivan was particularly interesting to me. Since Dostoyevsky was trying to make a grand point about the world, I would tend to think that he is expressing an opinion about the danger of atheism to take away hope, but what do you think? Though he depicts some of the pettier habits of the religious people during Father Zossima’s decaying incident (when the peasants’ faith is shaken by the reality of Father Zossima’s body rotting upon death – they had expected a miracle), and he discusses that religion and politics mixing causes danger, he seems to favor religion as an overall beneficial influence. Do you think he believed that atheism would eventually erode the peace in life for everyone or did you think it was just specifically what happened to Ivan? Does he have other atheists who fare differently in the book? I did not read the excerpts from later in the book during Ivan’s breakdown, so perhaps others can say what they thought the answer might be there. Do you think Dostoyevsky sees atheist beliefs as more or less perilous than hedonism?
ReplyDeleteOkay ladies, I must admit, I have STILL not finished this book. Combine the density that is "Brothers" and my life right now and it was a perfect storm. Anyway, from what I have read, i am simply not sure I can tolerate depressing Russian authors. I really want to get through this one though, as it is my husbands VERY favorite book, and I want to get to the discussions about God.
ReplyDeleteWould it be wrong to have a policy of having ongoing discussions about the books we have already "read" for those of us who need to play a little catch up?
Ami, I like the idea of ongoing discussions. I only got as far as downloading this book onto my tablet but I am determined to read it to the end.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI vote yes, ongoing discussion, and I admire your determination to finish. I hope you both do. I have to admit I will probably not finish it, but I am glad to have read excerpts.
ReplyDelete