The Brother's Karamazov - Fyodor Dostoevsky

Started: 2023-07-15

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1. Book One - Chapter One
• Fyodor Pvalovich Karamazov is the father of the three brother's.
• Fyodor's first wife Adelaida is from wealthy background.
• Fyodor's and Adelaida have a child named Dmitri the eldest of the three brother's.
• Adelaida disdains Fyodor for he is a sponge of a human.
• Adelaida deserts Fyodor and Dmitri and finds a poor seminary student to run away with.
• Adelaida dies of starvation and Fyodor rejoices with his new freedom.
2. Book One - Chapter Two
• Fyodor abandons Dmitri at first chance.
• Dmitri is raised by a servant and his mother's relatives.
• Dmitri later in life confronts his father about his mother's wealth and asks of inheritance.
• Fyodor pays off Dmitri and lies to him about the sum of the money indicating he has spent the fortune.
3. Book One - Chapter Three
• Fyodor re-marries after abandoning 4-year old Dmitri, the marriage lasts for 8 years.
• His wife Sofia is a 16 year old orphan from another province.
• Sofia births 2 sons Ivan and Alexei (Alyosha), when Alyosh is 4 Sofia dies.
• Ivan becomes a brilliant student and eventually moves back in with his estranged father.
• Ivan requests Dmitri join him and their father hoping to remedy the past.
4. Book One - Chapter Four
• Alyosha has become religious in the sense that he cares deeply about humanity.
• Despite his tendency to remain detached from others, he exudes blissful serenity.
• He is acutely embarassed of the topics of sex and women.
5. Book One - Chapter Five
• Alyosha is moved by the arrival of his brothers.
• Alyosha is able to become close with Dmitri but has difficulty reaching the same levels with Ivan noting that it is as though Ivan is battling some great internal battle.
6. Book Two - Chapter One
• Fyodor and Ivan meet at the monastery for a meeting with Zosima.
• Miusov, Dmitri's adopted father also arrives at the monastery to meet the family.
• Miusov is an atheist and hasn't been to church for decades, and feels great disdain for Fyodor.
7. Book Two - Chapter Two
• Zosima, Alyosha and a small group of monks enter the cell.
• Fyodor asks Zosima how to attain an enternal life and spiritual freedoms, in response Zosima tells him to stop telling lies especially to himself.
• Zosima understands Fyodor's behavior to come from shame and embarrassment.
8. Book Two - Chapter Three
• Waiting on Dmitri's arrival Zosima meets with a group of women who are seeking spiritual advice and blessing.
• The women have endured great hardships.
• One of the women whispers in Zosima's ear and tells him she murdered her husband. Zosima responds saying god forgives all as long as they live in perpetual repentance and loves god.
9. Book Two - Chapter Four
• Zosima speaks to Madame Khokhlakov, a wealthy landowner who has met him before, and her daughter Lise.
• Lise is filled with religious doubt - she not only has trouble believing in immortality, but also finds it impossible to perform charitable works without expecting returns.
• Lise indicates Alyosha and she are childhood friends and wishes to visit with him.
10. Book Two - Chapter Five
• Zosima and Alyosha return to the cell finding a live debate amongst the monks.
• Ivan does not believe in the separation of church and state and believes religious authorities should administer law.
• Ivan suggests that by allowing the church to administer law, the people would abstain from comitting crimes as they would be committing in defiance of god.
11. Book Two - Chapter Six
• Dmitri arrives at the monastery and asks forgiveness from Zosima.
• Fyodor Pavlovich begins to criticize and insult Dmitri, accusing his son of infidelity with his fiancee Katerina.
• The two men break out into argument which devolves to the point of shouting.
12. Book Two - Chapter Seven
• Zosima informs Alyosha to leave the monastery and find a wife.
• After the long discussion Zosima feels as though the Karamazov dynasty is coming to a violent end. Indicating the members of the family are all sensualists, caring for only money and women.
13. Book Two - Chapter Eight
• Fyodor Pavlovich goes on a tirade during the luncheon, about the hypocrisy of monastic life.
• The family unhappily leaves the monastery together in a carriage.
14. Book Three - Chapter One
• The chapter is a story of Fyodor's servants Grigory.
• Grigory has a tragedy occur to one of his children, who is born with six fingers and dies after two weeks.
• When Grigory goes to bury his child, he discovers a newborn child lying next to a young girl who has just given birth.
15. Book Three - Chapter Two
• The girl found dead is named Lizaveta, she is a mute and challenged young girl.
• The townspeople are appalled that someone had seduced the young sweet girl.
• Rumor spreads that it was Fyodor who seduced and violated the young girl.
16. Book Three - Chapter Three
• Alyosha leaves the monastery. He heads to Katerina Ivanova's home.
• Alyosha and Dmitri meet in between the monastery and Katerina's home.
17. Book Three - Chapter Four
• Dmitri explains his history with Katerina, to Alyosha.
• Katerina and Dmitri, fell in love as a result of Dmitri offering to pay off her father's debt.
• Katerina offered to marry Dmitri after she inherited a large sum from her father.
18. Book Three - Chapter Five
• Dmitri wants Alyosha to cancel the engagement with Katerina for him.
• He also asks of Alyosha to procure a sum of money from their father totaling 3000 roubles.