They desire to burn and negate, ostensibly on the theory that universal destruction will clear the ground for a better future-but clearly, in the case of the frightening sociopath Pyotr Stepanovich above all, their nihilism is undertaken for its sake and its own pleasure, as an end in itself, since they are a lost generation with literally nothing to live for. But the novel instead emphasizes the emptiness of its radical conspirators. Dostoevsky does send up the intellectual left in terms that remain amusingly relevant, from its notorious circular-firing-squad social dynamics to the feckless radical chic of social elites. While this story of nihilist-socialist radicals run amok in provincial Russia is touted as Dostoevsky’s political novel, his pamphlet novel, there’s surprisingly little substantial ideological discussion or debate.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |