Psychoanalysis in Dostoevskys Crime and Punishment Essay...

Analyzing the mind of a sociopath has been one of the most important tasks that psychoanalysts face today. The more they know and understand the complexities of the disturbed, the more they hope to find treatments and eventually a cure for the illness that they believe can cause the ultimate violent criminal. Perhaps Dostoevsky himself wanted to weigh in on the mind of the sociopath and the journey toward their violent lives. Due to his vivid description of Raskolnikov, Dostoevsky shows his readers first hand what a sociopath is like. First one must understand that there is no such affliction as sociopath. The technical name is antisocial personality disorder and there are certain criteria a person must meet in order to receive†¦show more content†¦is impulsive, holding a succession of jobs or residences 4. is irritable or aggressive, engaging in physical fights 5. exhibits reckless disregard for safety of self or others, misusing motor vehicles or playing with fire 6. is constantly irresponsible, failing to find or sustain work or to pay bills and debts 7. demonstrates lack of remorse for the harm his or her behavior causes others With this disorder comes an inflated sense of self worth and superficial charm. The Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment Volume III goes on to list the profile of a mass murderer. Many known sociopaths have gone onto to be mass murderers. Timothy McVeigh is an example of this. There are three underlying causes that can lead to the actions of the antisocial personality. 1. predisposers- long-term and stable preconditions that become incorporated into the personality of the murderer. There is often frustration and an externalization of blame â€Å"it’s not my fault.† This can be caused by child abuse, illnesses, accidents, poverty, and/or isolation. 2. precipitants- are short-term and acute triggers, catalysts. This could be a sudden loss or threat of loss of a relationship or employment, which can trigger their rage. 3. facilitators- are conditions that are usually situational and increase the likelihood of a violent outburst, but are not necessary to produce that outburst. This usually increasesShow MoreRelatedCrime and Punishment, Fathers and Sons, We1601 Words   |  7 PagesBrilliance surely comes with a price. Often a protagonist is, in his own right, an absolute genius, but for this gift of vision, he must remain isolated for eternity. Crime and Punishment (1886), by Fyodor Dostoevsky, depicts a poverty stricken young man who discovers a revolutionary theory of the mind of a criminal. Despite his psychological insight, Raskolnikov is alienated from society, and eventually forced to test his theory upon himself. Ivan Turgenevs Bazarov, in Fathers and Sons (1862)Read More Crime and Punishment, Fathers and Sons, We Essay1555 Words   |  7 Pages nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Brilliance surely comes with a price. Often a protagonist is, in his own right, an absolute genius, but for this gift of vision, he must remain isolated for eternity. Crime and Punishment (1886), by Fyodor Dostoevsky, depicts a poverty stricken young man who discovers a revolutionary theory of the mind of a criminal. Despite his psychological insight, Raskolnikov is alienated from society, and eventually forced to test his theory upon himself. Ivan Turgenev’s BazarovRead MoreWhy Do We Dream?2460 Words   |  10 Pagesserve no function at all and are simply our imaginations running wild. In the words of Sigmund Freud, the founding father of psychoanalysis, â€Å"The dream is the liberation of the spirit from the pressure of external nature, a detachment of the soul from the fetters of matter.† (The Interpretation of Dreams) For Raskolnikov, the protagonist of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, his dreams symbolize his journey towards salvation after committing a gruesome murder. Dostoevsky uses dreams as a toolRead MoreExistentialism vs Essentialism23287 Words   |  94 Pages------------------------------------------------- The gods had condemned  Sisyphus  to ceaselessly rolling a rock to the top of a mountain, whence the stone would fall back of its own weight. They had thought with some reason that there is no more dreadful punishment than futile and hopeless labor. If one believes  Homer, Sisyphus was the wisest and most prudent of mortals. According to another tradition, however, he was disposed to practice the profession of highwayman. I see no contradiction in this. Opinions