ISBN-13
9781853261756
Publisher
Wordsworth Editions
Publication Date
05 December 1996
Age Range
NA - NA years
Dimensions
19.86 x 12.75 x 3.33 CM
Shipping Weight
0.36 Kg
Pages
592
Language
English
Grade Level
NA - NA
Translated by Constance Garnett, with an Introduction and Notes by Agnes Cardinal, Honorary Senior Lecturer in Comparative Literature at the University of Kent.
Prince Myshkin returns to Russia from an asylum in Switzerland. As he becomes embroiled in the frantic amatory and financial intrigues which centre around a cast of brilliantly realised characters and which ultimately lead to tragedy, he emerges as a unique combination of the Christian ideal of perfection and Dostoevsky's own views, afflictions and manners. His serene selflessness is contrasted with the worldly qualities of every other character in the novel. Dostoevsky supplies a harsh indictment of the Russian ruling class of his day who have created a world which cannot accomodate the goodness of this idiot.
Between 3−4 stars rating, 11 April 2018It's a very long book but definitely worth the time. Reading this made me feel like as if I'm watching Indonesian sinetron, somehow. The main character keeps falling to a trap set up by people around him and he never learns anything because he's an truly idiot. Some poeple will think he's naive, but no, he's just plain stupid.
Between 2−3 stars rating, 08 January 2018The main character was a kind, generous, and naive man of christian faith. However, as we go deeper into the book, we'll find him unlikeable. That's what I found unique of this book. It reflects the world and ourselves of how sometimes we see kindness as stupidity, it also makes us realize that it's okay to have some selfishness in us.
