Fyodor Dostoevsky, Zapiski iz mertvogo doma [Notes from the House of the Dead]

Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error
Notes from the House of the Dead

[

Zapiski iz mertvogo doma

], Dostoevsky’s novelized memoir of Siberian hard labour, caused a sensation on its first publication for its depiction of a part of Russian society that had previously been entirely unexplored, and sparked a national debate about the manifest problems of the Imperial Russian justice system. It kick-started the author’s own mature literary career by providing him with a wealth of material on crime and criminals – and a strong interest in the psychology of criminals – that fed into his subsequent novels, including the “parricide” who turns out to be innocent, and who became the inspiration for the plot of

The Brothers Karamazov

[

Brat’ia Karamazovy

]. It also became the foundational text for the tradition of Russian…

3231 words

Citation: Young, Sarah J.. "Zapiski iz mertvogo doma". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 16 January 2024 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=11265, accessed 13 December 2024.]

11265 Zapiski iz mertvogo doma 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.