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The Idiot (Penguin Classics)
 
 
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The Idiot (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

by Dostoyevsky (Author), Ron Arad (Designer), David McDuff (Translator) "At about nine o'clock one morning, at the end of November, during a thaw, a train of the St Petersburg-Warsaw line was approaching St Petersburg..." (more)
4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
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Product details

  • Paperback: 768 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Classics; New Ed edition (27 May 2004)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 014044792X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140447927
  • Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 13 x 4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 10,613 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Product Description
Inspired by an image of Christ's suffering, Dostoyevsky set out to create a protagonist with "a truly beautiful soul" and to trace the fate of such an individual as he comes into contact with the brutal reality of contemporary society. The novel begins when the innocent epileptic Prince Myshkin - the 'idiot' - arrives in St Petersburg and finds himself drawn into a web of violent and passionate relationships that leads to blackmail, betrayal and eventually murder.

About the Author
Moscow-born Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) served time in a convict prison for his political alliances, and in his later years his passion for gambling led him deeply into debt. His novels include The Devils and The Brothers Karamazov. David McDuff has translated widely from the Russian, including for Penguin Classics, Crime and Punishment and Tolstoy's Kreutzer Sonata. Introducer William Mills Todd III is Professor of Slavic Languages at Harvard.
Inside This Book (Learn More)
First Sentence
At about nine o'clock one morning, at the end of November, during a thaw, a train of the St Petersburg-Warsaw line was approaching St Petersburg at full steam. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

7 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The Saint and the sinners!!!, 5 Jul 2006
Reading about Prince Myshkin (the `idiot') and the characters orbiting his life felt like being imprisoned in some surreal reality game show, where the participants were infused with varying degrees of personality disorder, paranoid delusions, and fits of manic euphoria. Consequently the substance of the narrative is immersed in an oily sea of wilful gossip, self-interest and brinkmanship. For instance the birthday scene, culminating in a wrapped bundle of bank notes, nonchalantly discarded into a fire by the manipulative and power crazed Nastasya, is witnessed by a seething mass of guests itching and sweating in anxious excitement as the flames eat into the precious fortune. Along with the spectators I wanted to thrust my hand into the burning grate before all was lost. This example is one of many in the novel and Dostoevsky exhibits supreme control of the emotional forces that are thrust upon the Christ-like Prince. Indeed Myshkin often seems to be the victim yet it is his presence that dictates the destructive actions of the people around him. In this game there are no winners! An epileptic masterpiece that displays the cost of greed, uncontrollable passion and misdirected ambition.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A revealing classic, 14 Sep 2006
By Sancho Mahle (Charlotte, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

The Idiot is one of the finest novels in history, perhaps the finest. In this novel, the enigma that is often referred to as "THE RUSSIAN SOUL" is variously dissected through the different characters and more so by the hero of the story Prince Myshkin. In its simplest explanation, it is a soul with good intentions but faulty in executing the intentions. It is a soul in conflict, driven by the zest for life and a search of its meaning. Certainly the most Christian of Dostoyevsky's novels, THE IDIOT portrays how disastrous a good life can be. Rich in characters, this classic centers mostly on the good Prince Myshkin, a recovering epileptic with a rich soul who is easily perceived as an 'idiot' by the casual observer who focuses on his childlike manners especially in expressing himself and his naivety in dealing with people. But then a closer look reveals that his manners are the reflections of his honest soul, the wealth of his big heart and the broadness of his mind.
And only in deeper engagements does it become evident that Myshkin however has superior understanding and expression, which makes him modest and intelligent rather than stupid. His simple, honest and decent life is succinctly conveyed in his interactions, generating both love and resentment. The saintly Myshkin however struggles to deal with a materialistic world which has no place for the virtuous, and to reconcile his passionate and compassionate love for two women. But the love of the women corrupt and drives men out of their minds. Nastasia Filipovna whom Myshkin has compassionate love for is a tormented soul that can only love Christ and in Myshkin she found that Christ-like figure. Her rival Aglia has Myshkin's heart but failed to understand Myshkin's serene love for her and abandons him to the destructive love of Nastasia.

This is great intellectual work that we should to take seriously in general, a book to read with a serious mindset. Then you will understand the unique nature of Russia which our western minds have difficulties to comprehend. This strange land called Russia that has a bigger soul than any other is explored here in this story in a way that only Dostoyevsky unveils. Read it and you will finish it enriched. The Idiot is a thoroughly enjoyable novel of ideas that explores the nature of man and society and gives you a better idea of man and his actions. You shouldn't find it strange that the characters are philosophical, impulsive, introspective, energetic, colorful, and extreme in their passions. That is Russia, a land of extremes. This book is likely to impact you. It is one of the few of our times. I highly recommend it along with THE UNION MOUJIK.Also recommended: THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV,THE USURPER AND OTHER STORIES, CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
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9 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Confused, 31 Jan 2007
By K. Tune "mustard57" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)      
I've read this twice now. Once when I was around 15 and once at the age of thirty something ( yes, I'm being coy ). At the age of 15 I didn't so much read it as count the pages to the end. I hoped that maturity and wisdom of the years woudl mean I would uncover insights that had escaped my youthful self.

Sadly not. This book seems to attract mixed views - leading me to suspect that it is at best flawed. My take on it is that it's really just not that good.

OK - here's my reasons. Firstly D's use of 'patronymics'( basically alternative names for characters ) makes life very confusing. It is initially very difficult to figure out who is who. Secondly, the characters are not well realized. Much of the book is dialogue - so they are what they speak, making it hard to mentally turn them into solid objects. The reason this is important is that there are lots of characters and the result of the failings is a multitude of cipher like protagonists you care little about. Furthermore - if you don't care about them it's a long and wearing journey to the end of the book.

The behaviour of the characters is so jagged that that their actions lose coherence. They are outraged/turn white hot with anger/ecstatic in the blink of an eye, with no just cause. It's all intense, but without cause, fevered emotion for no apparent reason. You will get lines like 'suddenly the news was all over town' following a limited conversation between two people in a street. Hard to express but it's just not the way people act so I wind up not caring.

The plot is not great. If you read the intro to this edition you discover that at the end of Part One ( of four ) D. himself had no idea where the book was going. That's not a good omen, and to my mind without a target the book is directionless and without purpose. The behaviour of Nastasya is not really explained, and the ending ( involving a death ) serves only to end the book - I do not think it is a logical inevitability.

There are bad books you should read just to make up your own mind. This isn't one of them - just save your time. By the way I'm no philistine, and wholeheartedly recommend 'Crime and Punishment' - but this one - just walk on by.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
I had just read Crime and Punishment and really enjoyed it, although I felt Dostoyevsky is not so good with characterisation. Read more
Published 2 months ago by I. Pozsonyi

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun In St Petersburg - 1860's Style
Dostoyevsky's talent is unique in that he manages to convey all the subtleties and complexities of ordinary human behaviour and social interaction in stories that are peopled... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Miracle

5.0 out of 5 stars You won't read this in an afternoon
This is a superb book. Yes, it's repetitive, obsessive and claustrophobic, and it's certainly not easy going. Read more
Published 14 months ago by molondas

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring
Perhaps the only criticism I have for the book is the ending. Indeed, Dostoevsky himself seems to have been under pressure when completing the novel. Read more
Published on 6 Mar 2007 by Ipchuk

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