What Is The Difference Between Svidrigailov And Raskolnikov

In the book Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Rodion Raskolnikov is a complex character who often has conflicting tendencies, personalities, and choices. Raskolnikov’s internal conflict between good and evil is displayed in the contrast between two of the supporting characters in the story, Razumihin and Svidrigaïlov. Razumihin is a loyal and kind friend, while Svidrigaïlov is a twisted and wicked man. Razumihin and Svidrigailov are character foils for Raskolnikov that highlight the struggle he has between the two possibilities of the man that he could become, and eventually the man that he does transform into at the end of the book.
Raskolnikov’s caring friend, Razumihin, portrays Raskolnikov’s kinder and lighter side of himself.

They are both very similar in their perspectives that they are innocent and had a right to commit crimes, indicated when Svidrigailov asks, “Am I a monster, or am I myself a victim?” (Dostoyevsky 223). Earlier, Raskolnikov had committed the horrible crime of murder, but he thought that he was doing it to benefit other people and the society, similar to the way that Svidrigailov believes that he is not guilty even with the evil things that he has done. It is also revealed that Svidrigailov shares Raskolnikov’s viewpoint on other people when he haughtily claims, “I am not particularly interested in anyone’s opinion” (225). Raskolnikov implies that he believes that he is superior to other people in his article about extraordinary and ordinary people, where he truly thinks that he is extraordinary, and Svidrigailov’s bold assertions of not caring about what other people think discloses that he too believes that others are inferior to him. This dangerous perspective that Raskolnikov shares with Svidrigailov has influenced his actions and caused him to commit horrendous crimes, conveying that Raskolnikov’s darker actions can be attributed to this disturbing mindset that both of these troubled characters have. Svidrigailov himself realizes the similarities between him and Raskolnikov, telling him that “there [is] something in common between the two of us” (227). Both of

There were many events that made it appear like Raskolnikov was becoming more like Svidrigailov than Razumihin, as evidenced by the murders that he committed and his evil thoughts; however, by the end of the book Raskolnikov has a drastic transformation that leads him down a better path to being more like Razumihin and away from Svidrigailov. Suicide was an important idea that ultimately separated Raskolnikov from Svidrigailov, as Svidrigailov eventually “pulled the trigger,” but Raskolnikov decided against killing himself (402). While Svidrigailov was completely filled with wickedness and believed that there was no reason to continue living, Raskolnikov, although rather subconsciously, decided that there was some hope and a purpose to life. Raskolnikov also realized that he was not superior to other people, as proven by when he “knelt down in the middle of the square” and “bowed to the earth” in front of other people, symbolizing his humbling of himself (413). While Raskolnikov did feel guilty and dejected that he was not any better than everyone else, he faced the fact and truly recognized it, something that Svidrigailov never did, as he continued to believe that he was superior to others until he died. While Raskolnikov transitioned and changed to become less like Svidrigailov, he