Crime And Punishment Symbolism Essay

Fyodor Dostoevsky incorporated a lot of symbolism, such as the city of Saint Petersburg, colors, bridges, and the church, into the novel Crime and Punishment. Color was, perhaps, the most used symbol. They set the moods for certain parts of the novel. The city represented Razkolnikov’s, the protagonist, state of mind as he suffered through poverty and, later on, the guilt of the murder. The bridges were presented as Razkolnikov made, or had to make, decisions. They were the representation of the paths that he chose to take, both literally and figuratively. As the novel focused on the theme of Razkolnikov’s psychological and physical struggles through impoverished situations, Dostoevsky’s usage of objects, figures, and colors as symbols helped

They are often associated to a particular mood depends on their hue. The color yellow, for example, is the lightest hue of the spectrum. It is most commonly viewed as happy, inspiring, and cheerful. Throughout the novel Crime and Punishment, Dostoevsky’s usage of colors helped to explain the characters’ rationale. He assigned yellow to represent death and corruption, and green to symbolize life, hope, and harmony. The use of colors as symbols was presented quite early in the story. “ … [A] fur trimmed jacket, completely worn out and yellow with age...” (6) Yellow was used to describe many objects. In fact, not only the description of Alyona Ivanovna, an old pawnbroker, but also her surrounding environment was filled with the color yellow. “The small room … with yellow wall paper, geraniums and muslin curtains in the windows… The furniture, all very old and of yellow wood… and two or three halfpenny prints in yellow frames…” (7) Dostoevsky intended to relate yellow to death and decay since the very beginning of Crime and Punishment. Further in the novel, he expanded the meaning of yellow from describing physical changes to sexual immorality using Sonya’s yellow prostitution

While yellow is used in scenes that are gloomy, passages that are more lively and joyful utilized the color green. Descriptions that contain green were rare, however. One notable item that appeared many times throughout the course of the story was the green shawl that Katerina Ivanovna deemed her only reminder of her old, happy days with Marmeladov. Another appearance of the color green was when Razkolnikov was thinking of his childhood church, whose description involved a green ceiling. He was comforted by the memory. Additionally, when Razkolnikov almost got hit by a carriage on the bridge, “an elderly merchant’s wife in a kerchief and goatskin shoes, with a girl beside her in a little hat and holding a green parasol” (114) gave him twenty-kopeck. Green represented hope in the midst of distress and