The moral implications of a crime are Dostoevsky's starting point in this book, which is regarded as one of his masterpieces, (along with "THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV"). The student Raskolnikov, poor and lonely, is the ideal field for the blossoming of evil ideas. All of a sudden, he starts feeling the urge to murder an old woman, a rich and wicked money-lender... he asks himself wether it would be wrong to kill a "useless old woman."
But this is just the starting point for my favorite novel: after killing the old woman, we have a mix, between a detective story, and a psychological drama. Dostoevsky describes us singular dreams Raskolnikov has, thus achieving incredible psychological dept, like no writer of his time ever had. Not just the character of Raskolnikov, but minor characters also are so beautifully defined! From the torments of Svidrigailov, the libertine, to the grief of Katerina Marmeladova, the tuberculous wife of a drunk, Dostoevsky creates a panel of humanity: the picture of a suffering humanity, who has nothing to expect from this life, not even compassion. The picture of people, who lead the life of animals, but never cease to be people. The picture of beings, who have lost all but one hope: their faith in God, and in his eternal love.
This novel is beautiful without falling into stupid mellodrama; it is touching without being boring. If we are touched, it happens not only because of tragical situations, but mainly because of the skill used in creating each character. They are dear to us, because we know them, because they seem real. They have their failures, they are often more evil than good... but they do not deserve our reproval, but only our compassion, for they are sufferers.
This novel starts as a "psychological account on crime", to become one of the finest productions of humanist art. It's message, represented by the sinner prostitute Sonya, is the core of Christianity: forgiveness, compassion,love.