Description

Dostoyevsky (1821-81) was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist and philosopher whose literary works explore human psychology in the troubled political, social and spiritual atmospheres of 19th century Russia. This was his last novel, published first as a serial in The Russian Messenger from January 1879 to November 1880 prior to appearing in book form. A passionate philosophical novel, it enters deeply into the ethical debates surrounding God, free will and morality with a plot that revolves around patricide, encompassing moral struggles concerning faith, doubt, judgment and reason, all set against a modernizing Russia. Since its publication it has been hailed as one of the supreme achievements in world literature.