The Brothers Karamazov Part 1, Prologue - Book I

From the Author

The Brother’s Karamazov begins with a note from the fictitious narrator of the tale. The narrator tells us that Alexei Fyodorovich is the hero of this two-part novel, but he also worries that the reader may be discouraged to read the tale because Alyosha is “no great man.”

Book I - A Nice little Family

The narrator begins writing his novel thirteen years after the dark and tragic death of Fyodor Pavlovich Karamazov, a local landowner and the father of Alyosha. Fyodor Pavlovich was often described as a buffoon, who spent most of his life sponging off. He was an astute businessman and made a significant amount of money for himself. His reputation in the region suffered greatly because of his debauchery and overall terrible demeanor. Upon his death, Fyodor Pavlovich left behind 100 thousand roubles amassed in cash, which came as quite a shock for most townsfolk. His first wife came from a wealthy family, and it is speculated that she eloped with him to rebel against her parents. Eventually, she managed to re-establish contact with her family, and she received her dowry, but Fyodor took over it from her almost immediately. They had a disastrous domestic life, and it was speculated that she often beat him for his deplorable behavior. Eventually, she ran away with a Seminarian, and soon died in Petersburg leaving behind their only son, Dmitri, with Fyodor. He went around town complaining to anyone who would listen about how he had been betrayed and wronged. Fyodor’s debauchery reined unchecked in his house after his first wife’s departure, and he soon forgot about his son, Dmitri.

He stayed with the servant for a year until one of his mother’s cousins, Pyotr Musiov learned came over and took custody of him. He could not care for Dmitri himself and so the little boy moved from one house to another throughout his young life. He had always believed that he would have an inheritance from his father, and so did not truly apply himself to his education or in his career as an officer in the military. By adulthood, he had amassed large debts and he came to see his father for the first time. He had arrived with the express purpose of learning about his inheritance, and the shrewd Fyodor realized that Dmitri could be put off by small payments. Dmitri eventually grew frustrated and returned to seek the whole amount only to discover that he had been purposefully misled about the size of his inheritance by Fyodor who now claimed that Dmitri had already received all of it. This event created deep animosity between the two of them.

Fyodor’s second marriage was to a young orphan girl of 16 who was being raised by a torturous and controlling old woman. The girl was desperate to leave her benefactress and so she eloped with him when she was introduced to him. Fyodor was known to say that he had been moved by her look of innocence. However, he mistreated her severely, and even held orgies with loose women in his house. She developed a nervous temperament that led to fits and she eventually passed. Fyodor had two children with her; Ivan and Alexei, with Ivan being nearly 3 years older than Alexei. These two children had the same fate as Dmitri, in that they were ignored by their father after their mother’s death, and mostly cared for by his manservant, Grigory. Eventually, they were rescued by their mother’s old benefactress and they were raised by her heir upon her passing. Ivan was a melancholic child since the initial days, he was troubled by the knowledge of his father’s failure in providing for him. He was embarrassed to be living off the charity of his beneficent caregiver. Ivan was a very intelligent student from the start and he was given the very finest education that could be received at the time. Ivan never turned to his father for any monetary help even during the most difficult times of his university. He made his living by writing articles and he had just written an article about “ecclesiastical courts” that had been appreciated by both atheists and religious men right before he turned up in the region and began to live with his father. Surprisingly they seemed to get along quite well, and it was heard that he had arrived at the behest of Dmitri, as the two of them had established contact a little earlier.

Ivan was believed to be acting as a mediator between his father and eldest brother, who was supposedly pursuing legal action against his father for denying him his inheritance. Alexei had turned up in the region long before any of his other brothers. He had taken up the Cassock and was serving in the monastery when his brothers began to arrive in his father’s town. It was often remarked by those that knew him that Alyosha was one of the kindest and most compassionate people that they had ever met. He remembered his mother with great ardor, even though she had passed away when he was very young. Alyosha endeared himself to his benefactors with ease, and without subterfuge, unlike his brother, Alyosha did not care about who was supporting him, and why. He treated everyone with kindness, and generosity, and never held any grudges. He did not finish his education but suddenly decided to find his father and consequently arrived at his paternal home. It was later revealed that he had in all likelihood come in search of his mother’s grave. He stayed with his father and witnessed his debauchery but cast no looks of judgment or contempt. Fyodor Pavlovich was deeply moved by his youngest son’s unyielding respect and soon came to love him very deeply. After staying with his father for a few days, Alyosha revealed he desire to take the cassock. Alyosha had been particularly moved by the Elder Zossima of the local monastery. The Elder was a position in the Orthodox Russian church, and it was said that devotees bestowed their soul and will to the elder that they followed. The Elder Zossima was a benevolent elder, who healed shriekers, the ill, and blessed children. He continued to remain genial even as his health began to worsen. During this time, Alexei began to develop his relationship with his siblings. He got on quite well with Dmitri, who revered Ivan, but Ivan seemed to be too preoccupied with some inner dialogue to ever connect with Alexei. The conflict between Dmitri and Fyodor finally came to a head, and the idea to have the Elder intercede in their dispute gained popularity within the family. Alexei was worried about introducing his family to the elder as he didn’t wish for them to offend the elder.

Analysis

Post-revolutionary Russian novels like Crime and Punishment and Brother’s Karamazov were characterized by narrative innovations. The Brothers Karamazov begins with a note from the narrator of the book, which is not Dostoevsky. The narrator breaks convention by telling us that Alyosha, an endearing diminutive of his name, is the hero of this two-part novel. This reference to the two novels has led some literary scholars to conclude that Dostoevsky had intended to write a sequel to this novel. The narrative seems to use an omniscient third-person perspective but the narrator eventually confesses that he doesn’t know what he is doing and that he may have some details of the story wrong.

The Brothers Karamazov is not merely a murder mystery, but a deep and nuanced exploration of subjects like Christianity, religion, and spirituality. The author attempts to discover the purpose of Christianity and spirituality in the developing world of science and logic. Book I serves as the introduction to the core of the Karamazov family, and it is evident from this section that the male family members all possess the distinctive Karamazov sensuality, a lust for life. In Ivan and Alexei, this sensuality appears to find expression in their spiritual and intellectual pursuits, while Dmitri’s lust for life seems to mimic that of his fathers. The three Karamazov brothers can also be seen to represent the three modes of life, Mind, Body, and Spirit. Ivan represents the mind with his intellectual pursuits, Alexei represents the spirit through his pursuit of monkshood, while Dmitri represents the body.

The first book also establishes the hostile dynamic between Dmitri and Fyodor, which is one of the main plot lines of this lengthy novel.