《罪与罚》系19世纪俄国大文豪陀思妥耶夫斯基的代表作之一。小说描写一心想成为拿破仑式的人物、认定自己是个超人的穷大学生拉斯柯尔尼科夫,受无政府主义思想毒害,为生活所迫,杀死放高利贷的房东老太婆和她的无辜的妹妹,制造了一起震惊全俄的凶杀案。经历了一场内心痛苦的忏悔后,他最终在基督教徒索尼雅姑娘的规劝下,投案自首,被判流放西伯利亚。作品着重表现主人公行凶后良心受到谴责,内心深感孤独、恐惧的精神状态,刻画他犯罪前后的心理变化。小说一方面描绘了俄国下层人民的悲惨生活,揭露贵族社会的罪恶;一方面也宣扬逆来顺受,从宗教中求解脱的思想。
David McDuff的生动翻译一直被誉为陀思妥耶夫斯基这部伟大小说最易懂的版本,为对话赋予了一种独特的力量和自然主义。本版还包括一个新的陀思妥耶夫斯基生活和工作年表。
A thrilling study of guilt and power, the Penguin Classics edition of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment is translated with an introduction and notes by David McDuff.
Raskolnikov, a destitute and desperate former student, wanders through the slums of St Petersburg and commits a random murder without remorse or regret. He imagines himself to be a great man, a Napoleon: acting for a higher purpose beyond conventional moral law. But as he embarks on a dangerous game of cat and mouse with Porfiry, a suspicious detective, Raskolnikov is pursued by the growing voice of his conscience and finds the noose of his own guilt tightening around his neck. Only Sonya, a downtrodden prostitute, can offer the chance of redemption. As the ensuing investigation and trial reveal the true identity of the murderer, Dostoyevsky's dark masterpiece evokes a world where the lines between innocence and corruption, good and evil, blur and everyone's faith in humanity is tested.
This vivid translation by David McDuff has been acclaimed as the most accessible version of Dostoyevsky's great novel, rendering its dialogue with a unique force and naturalism. This edition also contains a new chronology of Dostoyevsky's life and work.
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) was born in Moscow. From 1849-54 he lived in a convict prison, and in later years his passion for gambling led him deeply into debt. His other works available in Penguin Classics include The Brothers Karamazov, The Idiot and Demons.
If you enjoyed Crime and Punishment, you might like Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina, also available in Penguin Classics.
'McDuff's language is rich and alive'
The New York Times Book Review