Languages for All
Short Courses
Help
Your basket
Your account
Literature and Theatre

Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment: Revealing the Unrevealed (Online)

Course Times & Enrolment

This course is currently unavailable.

Course Summary

The course will give students an opportunity to explore in depth, one of the 19th Century’s greatest Russian novels, Crime and Punishment. We shall explore the novel in the context of the author’s personal circumstances and other historic and socio-political events. The English translation of the text will form the basis of our study, but we shall have an opportunity to compare certain passages of text with their Russian original, revealing hidden omens and symbols as well as illustrating the unique Dostoyevsky style.

Course Details

Pre-requisites for enrolment

No prior knowledge required, however, it is recommended to be familiar with the text prior to the course.

Content of Course

1. Shaping Crime and Punishment: Russia in the 1860s, Dostoyevsky’s family affairs at the time and how the novel was created. Part 1 (Chapters I-VII): Main characters and setting.

2. Part 2 and Part 3 Chapters I-III: Roskolnikov after the crime. Motives of poverty and money. Roskolnikov's theory of crime.

3. Part 3 Chapters IV-VII and Part 4 Chapters I-IV: Biblical elements of the novel. Understanding of power and freedom.

4. Part 4 Chapters V-VI and Part 5: The psychology of crime and punishment. The idea of the superhuman.

5. Part 6 and Epilogue: The title. Conclusion.

Teaching method(s)

Discussion-based sessions will be introduced by mini-lectures containing historical and literature background, brief outline of author’s biography and essential information about the work discussed. The sessions will include audio and video materials.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

  • Explain the importance of the historical and social context regarding the novel;

  • Explain how the writer’s personal life circumstances influenced the novel;

  • Apply techniques of literary analysis to the work;

  • Construct clear and coherent arguments about a variety of aspects regarding the novel in terms of its content and style.

Sources

Core Readings

Essential:

  • Any translation of Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment.

Recommended:

  • A list of recommended literature will be provided to the students upon request.

Class Handouts

Handouts will be provided during the course.

Queries

If you have questions regarding the course or enrolment, please contact COL Reception at Paterson's Land by email or by phone 0131 650 4400.

Student support

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or health condition which may affect your studies, please let us know by ticking the 'specific support needs' box on your course application form. This will allow us to make appropriate adjustments in advance and in accordance with your rights under the Equality Act 2010. For more information please visit the Student Support section of our website.