MIDTERM ESSAYS D
#1
In the very beginning of The Brother?s Karamazov by Dostoevsky, the claim is made that Alyosha is the hero of the novel. While he is certainly not a hero in the conventional sense according to our expectations, he is a hero in the same sense that Christ was the messiah; both are totally different than expectation demands but both function in their role better in their unconventional capacity than anyone could have expected. Alyosha is the hero of the novel because God works through him to offer salvation to the other characters. Alyosha is a vessel of hope and faith in the world and basically facilitates good things coming to pass. While there are numerous examples of this, three particularly stand out: Alyosha?s impact on Greshenka, on Ivan, and on the schoolboys.
Perhaps Greshenka?s transformative experience with Alyosha is the perfect place to begin the explanation of why he is the hero of the novel. In book VII chapter 3, we find Alyosha on the way to visit Greshenka with Rakatin; Alyosha is doing this because he has given in to temptation in his grief over the terrible embarrassment befalling Zosima posthumously. His giving in to temptation is admirable in the sense that Alyosha is still a typical human being and he does not set the standard impossibly high for us. Greshenka and Rakitin conspire to corrupt Alyosha; Greshenka being a shrewd harlot and Rakatin a terribly cynical, Goddless man, the situation is completely a trap for the distraught Alyosha. Yet, what happens? In a very brief time, Greshenka?s eyes are opened to Alyosha?s grief and she quickly comes to commiserate with him. Her newfound empathy contrasts with her terrible plot to seduce him, and she quickly is enveloped in a crisis in which she realizes she is a terrible sinner and confesses such to Alyosha. What?s more, the transformation in the conversation does not end with realization of sin. It develops further so that by the end there is trust and good rapport between the two characters, and both have had their faith restored by the encounter. Although Grushenka does not instantly change her ways at all, this encounter with Alyosha begins a process by which she realizes her sinfulness and embraces suffering to purge herself of her sins. This encounter which began with the worst possible intentions was made in to a redemptive experience by the power of God working through Alyosha.
Although it is somewhat of a more complicated situation with Ivan, Alyosha serves the same function in his life. Ivan is a far more sophisticated sinner than Greshenka. She is merely consumed by sins of the flesh, but Ivan is plagued by profound doubt and cynicism. Although the epilogue of the book leaves some uncertainty as to whether or not Ivan will recover from his stress induced illness, since Alyosha seems to think he will recover, it seems plausible he will. When Ivan finally does come to realize the error of his ways after the hallucination/dream involving the devil, it is Alyosha who is there to care for him and support him as he lapses in to near insanity. Ivan?s downfall comes because he realizes his own role in the murder of his father; the realization of his sin is far too much for his conscience to bear. If he lives, which it seems likely he will, it will only be because Alyosha conveys to him that he is forgiven and that his suffering has purged him of his sin. Somewhere between Dmitry and Ivan we have a symbol of all of mankind; the fact that Alyosha is there for Ivan at his time of greatest weakness, and that he provides the means for his recovery is evidence that Alyosha is the hero of the novel, and what he stands for is the hero for humanity in general.
This broader link between Alyosha being a hero in the novel and what he stands for being the means of salvation for all mankind is driven home in the very final chapter; Alyosha is undeniably a hero to the schoolboys, who represent the future. The speech by the stone after Ilyusha?s funeral is a final invocation to that great opposite of original sin, original goodness. Alyosha explains that despite all the bad things that will of course continue to happen in all of their lives, they will always be able to look back at this one moment where they were all united by a single good cause; they are brought together in mourning for their departed friend, a mourning that is motivated by their love for him. Earlier chapters show how it is through Alyosha that the petty differences between the boys are resolved and they come together to support Ilyusha while he is sick. His transformative power is again evident; Alyosha arrives in a situation where there is disharmony between the boys and a hopeless illness. Instead of wallow in despair though, Alyosha uses the illness as a means to resolve the differences, and ultimately uses the death of Ilyusha to serve as an example to the other boys of how, despite all of the terrible things people do, people have the capacity for good. As Alyosha suggests, the boys will be able to look back on that one beautiful moment, and it very well may prevent them from losing faith in their own ability to do good someday. Alyosha is a hero in this situation because he provides the boys with the hope and faith that will last their entire lives, and uses terrible evil to show ultimate good.
Clearly, Alyosha is the hero of the novel. Not only is he vital to the plot (after all, Dmitry?s escape would be impossible without Alyosha, too) but he is in all ways a moral hero. He shows us how, despite all the evil and doubt, there really is good in the world. At the end of the book the boys chant ?Karamazov? because Alyosha has used his wonderful transformative powers to alter the world not to the benefit of himself, but to the benefit of his brothers and all his fellow human beings. Alyosha is the instrument through which God works to bring salvation to those who hardly deserve it, but thankfully, are offered it.
#2
Dostoevsky makes it pretty clear that individuals are born with a certain personality that he or she must either suffer or enjoy, and eventually their upbringing adds further to their psyche. Ivan, for example, seems to have a naturally questioning attitude toward what he experiences in his life, and when that personality combines with his rigorous humanistic (i.e., Western) education, he becomes a cynical atheist. Alyosha, on the other hand, appears to be predisposed to a simpler, religious life. Such is his inborn personality. By nature, he is gentle, honest, and pious; and, considering his childhood, it seems hard to believe that such an admirable human being could exist at all. It is for this reason, however, that Alyosha cannot be this novel?s hero. True, he may be Dostoevsky?s personal hero; Alyosha is doubtless an outstanding example of how to live one?s life. However, with all the novel?s fraternal and paternal conflict, Alyosha is disconnected by his own innocence. Alyosha is an angel; his friends and family readily admit it. But no one who is not a saint can entirely understand him or perfectly emulate him. Dmitry therefore, with all his human faults, must be the hero of this novel.
At least on face value, Dostoevsky paints a rather negative picture of the eldest Karamazov brother. The only child of Fyodor?s unspectacular first wife, Dmitry mirrors his father the most. Infamous for his drinking, debauchery, and spending, Dmitry establishes a very poor reputation for himself, and is feared as being reckless and ?sensual?. This ironically is precisely why Dmitry is so heroic. He is the prodigal son in this novel, renouncing his life of sin, fully worthy of the elder?s bow. Any virtue coming from Alyosha is expected; the conversion of Dmitry after the murder of his father comes as a shock. It is true that Alyosha goes through a number of difficult trials, but Dostoevsky gives almost nothing in this book prior to the murder to suggest that anyone but Dmitry will kill his father. Dmitry has the motive, the ability, and the wild personality that is perfect for the murder. With all his virtues, Alyosha wrestles with no internal demons. There is so little evil in him, his self-control seems unimpressive.
Dmitry is the hero because he overcomes his own careless disposition to not only avoid killing his father, but also to accept an unjust punishment as a martyr. Given his personality, Dostoevsky makes it a miracle that Dmitry never killed his father (a miracle so incredible in which twelve jurors refused to believe). But Dostoevsky chooses to go much further with his hero. With the help of an enigmatic dream, Dmitry stumbles upon the core message of the novel: we are all responsible for all others? sins. Alyosha is taught this by Zosima; Dmitry comes upon it independently. Moreover, Dmitry does not merely accept this, but he is fully willing to sacrifice his own life for this ethos. The ending does not entirely clarify Dmitry?s final fate, but it suggests that he will willfully go as a prisoner to Siberia after making a repentant woman his wife.
#3
In Dostoevsky?s preface to The Brothers Karamazov, he explains to the reader that the hero of his novel is the character Alyosha, but that he cannot guarantee he is entirely convincing of this by the end of the novel. However, Dostoevsky defines Alyosha as the hero of the novel more convincingly that he suggests because through the characterization of Alyosha and the different roles he plays throughout the novel, he clearly exhibits heroic qualities above the other characters. More importantly, the closing scene reveals Alyosha to be the redeemer of the Karamazov family, and so the hero of the novel.
From the beginning of the novel, Alyosha emerges as the moral and innately good Karamazov who is somewhat of an anomaly among his two brothers and his outrageous and godless father. As the pupil of the elder Zosima in his youth, Alyosha is rooted in faith and the teachings of ascetic life and lacks many of the negative characteristics of his family members, such as moral looseness, intellectualism, and deep concern for money. However, he does not isolate himself from his family but rather delves into the concerns of his family and their quarrels. Moreover Alyosha serves as the quiet yet strong defense of faith in response to Ivan?s rational doubts and condemnation of God. The only moment when Alyosha?s faith wavers is after Zosima?s death when his body began to decay rather than produce a miracle. Yet Alyosha rose from this anger and doubt with even stronger faith, and in the process, provided understanding and enlightenment for Grushenka. Also, toward the end of the novel, he defends the truth of Dimitri?s innocence and acts a mediator for Katerina, Grushenka, and Dimitri.
Another key component of his heroic character is his role as teacher. His interaction and devotion to the Ilyusha and the boys shows that Alyosha?s life is a beacon of truth and good example not only for his family and peers but for future generations as well. The pupil of Zosima becomes a teacher, which emphasizes that truth and goodness are victorious over the intellectual critiques of Christianity that appear throughout the novel. This is also clear in Alyosha?s influence over Kolya, the young rationalist and doubter. Although this young boy has clear potential to become an intellectual atheist like Rakitin or rational doubter like Ivan, his attraction to and admiration for Alyosha is a clear victory for faith.
Finally, the key aspect of the novel through which Dostoevsky convinces the reader that Alyosha is the hero of his novel is the final scene of the Epilogue. During Ilyusha?s funeral, Alyosha serves as the teacher and mentor to the boys, and he feels compelled to imprint in their memories the significance of their love for Ilyusha and the lessons they learned in growing to love a boy at whom they once threw stones. He urges them to remember the goodness, love, and forgiveness they have learned from this experience to prevent them from being wicked in the future. At the end of this morally and religiously motivated speech by Alyosha, Kolya yells, ?Three cheers for Karamazov!? and the boys all cheer for him (1045). The use of Alyosha?s family name ?Karamazov? is significant because it shows that Alyosha has redefined the character of his family and redeemed the once negative ?Karamazov legacy? that was defined in the beginning of the novel in terms of Fyodor Pavlovich?s godlessness, moral depravity, and rudeness. Dostoevsky shows Alyosha to be the redeemer of his family name by the end of the novel and so reveals him to be the true hero of The Brothers Karamazov.
