Effects of Guilt in Crime and Punishment Essay

Guilt is a force in all that has the ability to lead people to insanity. When immoralityy conscienceiness becomes great enough, the effects it has on people go much deeper than the surface. Peoples fountainheads and bodys be overpowered by the guilt that consumes them e actually second they know with their load. The devastating effects of guilt are portrayed vividly in Dostoevskys fictional except all to real novel Crime and Punish handst. In the story, the main caliber Raskolnikov commits a murder and suffers with the guilt through come on. Eventually his own guilt destroys himself and he is forced to confess. Through Raskolnikov, Dostoevsky bestows on the reader how guilt destroys Raskolnikovs somatogenic and mental well being, which, in time, leads to complete alienation from parliamentary law.When one suffers with a great deal of guilt, their somatic health quickly deteriorates. Raskolnikovs strong- encircle suffering begins shortly after the murder with delusions an d nonsense ravings while ceaselessly drifting in and out of reality. He often goes into a republic of non completely unconscious but is in a feverish nominate, sometimes delirious, sometimes half conscious(98) while blaming it on his old sickness. Raskolnikov is being destroyed by his guilt. He is unable to physically live in society while he has such a burden constantly looming over him.When in the police station, Raskolnikov hears talk of the murders and with just a reminder of his crime, he quickly becomes weak. When he recovered consciousness(88) the men at the station undoubtedly notice his illness and point out that he throw out barely stand upright.(89) His guilt has driven him to a serious state of sickness. He can no daylong process formly or even keep consciousness when he is reminded of his crime. Raskolnikov can no longer function normally because his guilt has destroyed is physical capabilities so drastically.The mental abilities of a person are stifled when th ey are suffering with a great deal of guilt. Along with his physical health, Raskolnikovs mental health quickly deteriorates following the murder. He is in a constant state of mental delirium and has constant ravings that are very ir keen.However, Raskolnikovs true state is shown when Razumihin tells him You are delirious you know and Raskolnikovs response is a bold No I am not(93) Even though Raskolnikov is in a state of delirium, his problem is so serious because he is totally oblivious to his state and completely denies it when wise, rational men tell him that he is. Raskolnikovs guilt has taken him from a wise, educated, scholar to being incapable of rational thought. As the story progresses, the guilt becomes increasingly heavier on Raskolnikovs mind.Others begin to notice this to including Petrovich who describes Raskolnikov as a moth near a candle who will keep circling about him, circling close to him all the time narrowing the radius more and more, and-whop(352) Petrovich is aware of Raskolnikovs state and he knows that Raskolnikov cannot live with his guilt. He knows like a moth around a candle that it is only a matter of time in the beginning the guilt is unbearable and Raskolnikov will have to confess everything. Raskolnikovs guilt becomes his biggest enemy as it continues to break down his mind and leads him away from normal society.As Raskolnikov becomes torn apart by his guilt, he begins to separate himself from society which leads to complete alienation from everybody. He becomes a man that is so assorted from everyone around him that he no longer belongs. With a sweep of his arm(96), a drastic realization falls on Raskolnikov as he flings the coin into the water. It seemed to him, he had cut himself off from everyone and everything at that moment.(96) Raskolnikov no longer puts value on what his society values the highest. He is terribly piteous and hungry, but throws twenty cockpeckcs into the river and thus destroying any ties he still h ad with society. Because of his alienation, Raskolnikov is no longer able to express his feelings and emotions with anybody. When Raskolnikov claims of hearing things, Natasha tells him that its the blood yell in his ears.(96)Unknowingly, she realizes his disconnection from society as she tells him when there is no exit for it and it gets clotted, he begins fancying things.(96) The blood in his ears is a metaphor for his alienation and how when there is no outlet, meaning he has no one to talk to, it clots and he imagines things, which is his state of delirium. As Raskolnikov becomes detached from society, he begins to make his own world in his head where his ideals arehis deciding genes. He even has reason for murder. He convinces himself that it wasnt a human being he killed but rather he believes it was a principle(223)Raskolnikov believes he has become the worlds pane of glass and truly done a good deed by riding the world of an illness(223) to society. By this point, Rasko lnikov has no ties to society as he has created his own value system and believes he has a license to kill. Raskolnikovs guilt changes him such that he breaks away from society, which snowballs into him being completely anomic with no one who thinks on an equal level.Guilt is the main factor that drives Raskolnikov to insanity which leads to his alienation. Guilt attacks his physical heath making him drift in and out of consciousness, which makes him no longer function normally in society. During this, his mind is being consistently deteriorated by the guilt causing irrational thought. Raskolnikov ultimately becomes alienated from society as he no longer thinks or acts like the people around him. Raskolnikov does not improve until he confesses and takes the consequences does he return to normal. Through Raskolnikov, Dostoevsky brilliantly shows the power that guilt truly has on a person.