Page "Anomie" Paragraph 13

Fyodor Dostoyevsky, whose work is often considered a philosophical precursor to existentialism, often expressed a similar concern in his novels.

In The Brothers Karamazov, it is expressed more than once by different characters that in the absence of God and immortal life, everything would be lawful.

That one can do as one likes, but this one cannot.

The novel explores the existence of God, the nature of truth, and the importance of forgiveness through the actions of its characters.

Raskolnikov, the anti-hero of Dostoevsky ’ s novel Crime and Punishment, puts this philosophy into action when he kills an elderly pawnbroker and her sister, later rationalizing this act to himself with the words, "... it wasn ’ t a human being I killed, it was a principle!

" Raskolnikov's inner conflict in the opening section of the novel results in a utilitarian-altruistic justification for the proposed crime: why not kill a wretched and " useless " old moneylender to alleviate the human misery?