The Brothers Karamazov Part 4, Book XII - Epilogue

Book XII - A Judicial Error

Dmitri’s trial begins the following day, and the Public Prosecutor presents various witnesses in front of the chairman, and a jury composed of common citizens, as well as a few bureaucrats. The case against Dmitri seems to be quite strong, as the public prosecutor presents evidence that Dmitri felt he had been cheated in his inheritance. Dmitri hated his father and had publicly declared to several people that he wanted to kill his father. This passionate blood lust for his father had been incited in him through his father’s interference in his love affair with Grushenka. Furthermore, Dmitri had owned Katerina 3000 roubles, and he was desperate to get them. He was aware that Fyodor had the same amount set aside, as he had been informed by Smerdyakov, the lackey who had been scared into co-operation under threat of violence. Lastly, Dmitri had rushed from Grushenka’s house with a pestle and returned there with bloody hands. Dmitri had been seen in the Karamazov compound by Grigory, and he had contended that the door to the house had been open before Dmitri left the compound. He was next seen by the civil servant, who described the large sum of money that Dmitri was holding in his blood-stained hands. The prosecution spends another great deal of time trying to prove that Dmitri had spent 3000 roubles in Mokroye on his first trip, and not 1500 roubles as Dmitri claimed.

Meanwhile, the defense subtly brings to focus how each of the witnesses brought them are in one way or another flawed. He disputes all pieces of evidence as incomplete, and Alyosha vouches for his brother but his only evidence is Dmitri’s expression, as he informs the court. Alyosha, and then Ivan, both blame Smerdyakov for the murder. However, Ivan seems to be suffering severely and seems nearly demented. He presents the three thousand roubles that Smerdyakov had given him at the time of confession, but his testimony is so erratic that no one seems to believe it. Initially, Katerina reveals in the most honorable words how Dmitri had supplied the money in her time of need before their betrothal. She informs the court that she had given him the money because he needed it. After Ivan confesses, she reveals the letter to the court and explains how she had known that Dmitri would use the money for his debauchery with Grushenka. She believes the letter proves that Dmitri had been the murderer, and she does so because she does not wish Ivan to suffer the blame for the murder in his madness. Dmitri weeps at discovering the true intent of Katerina in offering him the three thousand, even though he had certainly assumed it to be the case at the time.

The physicians are brought forward but they give conflicting testimony about the state of the defendant’s mental condition at the time of the crime. The local doctor, Herzenstube, chooses to share an anecdote from the time when Dmitri had been a young child without any shoes and had been thoroughly neglected by his father. Herzenstube had taken pity on the boy and bought him a pound of nuts, and taught him to say The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, in German. Dmitri remembered this small kindness and arrived as an adult to thank the man for his kindness as he had never forgotten that pound of nuts. This makes a great impression on the court and the audience.

The prosecutor makes his final case and emphasizes the jury’s attention on the circumstantial evidence that indicates Dmitri was guilty. He dismisses all arguments against the recently deceased Smerdyakov, as a scapegoat, since the man had been such a coward, and ill. The defense makes a compelling case about how terrible a person Fyodor Pavlovic had been and argues that it is nearly impossible to call such a man a father. He also faults the evidence collected by the police, as all pieces of evidence could not withstand scrutiny. He argues that Dmitri had been maddened by all the injustices that his father had heaped upon him. He believes Dmitri had done it, which cannot be proven concretely, but even if he had done it, he hadn’t been in his right mind.

They Jury still finds Dmitri guilty and doesn’t recommend clemency. 

Epilogue

Alyosha goes to Katerina, who is caring for the sick Ivan, and had taken over the arrangements for Dmitri’s escape. She explains the details of the plan, and she disparages Dmitri, primarily because of Ivan’s near-death state. She believes that Ivan will make a recovery very soon. He confesses that Dmitri has been quite tortured about Katerina, and had asked Alyosha to see her. He begged her to go see Dmitri, and Katerina eventually relents. Alyosha returns to the hospital where Dmitri has been admitted, and they talk of the escape plan. Dmitri has been worried that Alyosha would not approve of the plan, but Alyosha immediately gives his approval. He believes that Dmitri is innocent, and the escape plan would not involve any kind of violence, but merely a few bribes. Dmitri confesses that he wouldn’t have thought about escape if he hadn’t Grushekna to think about. He loves her very much and wished to be with her. Katerina comes into the room, and they both become transfixed. They hold each other’s hands and exchange words of comfort and forgiveness. Neither of them holds any ill feelings towards the other, and just as Katerina leaves, she runs into Grushenka. Katerina and Grushenka make their version of peace as they part.

Alyosha then heads to Ilyusha’s funeral, where Kolya and the other boys are waiting for him. They escort him into the service where Snegirov is maddened with grief, all the attendees are struck with sadness by the mourning father. The funeralgoers comment about the lack of putrid smell from Ilyusha’s decomposing corpse, and the narrator comments about the child’s age, as well as the weather outside. Alyosha leads the boys away from Snegirov and addresses next to the rock where Ilyusha and his father had comforted one another in their time of grief. Alyosha addresses the children, he talks of the importance of childhood memories that stay with us all our lives. He asks them all to remember the goodness of Ilyusha and to remember one another throughout their lives. Kolya and the other boys loudly assent, and with tear-filled eyes promise never to forget Alyosha, each other, and most of all, Ilyusha. 

Analysis

Dostoevsky points out the arbitrary nature of justice that the court is likely to provide through the rapidity with which people can be swayed through the right application of a narrative. The defense and prosecution are both able to influence the Jury with their arguments, but ultimately Dmitri is found to be guilty due to the sheer number of circumstantial evidence that exists against him. The local doctor’s anecdote about the pound of nuts is a powerfully emotional section, that creates a deep impression on the characters in the courtroom as well as the reader. Dostoevsky emphasizes the importance of small acts of kindness and presents it perhaps as the central question about love amongst mankind. 

This section also features the comical and conflicting psychoanalysis of three different physicians about Dmitri’s condition at the time of the murder. The defense rightly points out that the analysis provided by the physicians can be molded to fit another narrative of the patient’s mental state. The defense also points out the expert manipulation of Smerdyakov, who had misled the public prosecutor by pointing out the empty envelope, a clue he had left there on purpose.

In the final scenes, Alyosha addresses the young boys, and the scene is replete with references that compare it to Jesus addressing his disciples. The motif of miracles also returns in the passages about Ilyusha’s death, but the narrator again points out the conditions of the corpse at the time of the funeral. Perhaps, the author suggests that the interpretation of a miracle can vary, and is truly dependent on our subjective perception of the situation. The miracle may lie in the very fact that the weather was conducive to delaying putrefaction.