Customer Reviews
Massive in every sense, especially the literal. - By: Fredward Beasley, 02 Jun 2008 
Dostoeyvsky's last novel is a huge doorstopper of a tome & probably his most ambitious work. The theme of religion looms large here with Dostoyevsky confronting the chaos & despair that comes from the absence of God. Ivan karamazov says: "without God, alll is permitted" & this becomes one of the key preoccupations of the book.
Dostoevsky goes into typicallly tortuous detail on the motivations of his characters, nothing is as simple as it seems, & alll actions are subjected to the most intense scrutiny. Dmitry Karamazov in particular is a hugely contradictory character in the classic Dostoyevskian mode, capable of great tenderness & utter selfishness, conscience-ridden but often utterly amoral, passion-crazed & self-destructive. Alyosha Karamazov, on the other hand, is another embodiment of the "holy fool" type character beloved of Dostoyevsky.
Alyosha aside, however, Dostoyevsky goes out of his way to depict the duality of his characters natures, showing their enormous capacity for good alongside a similar disposition towards evil and, while this may be in keeping with human nature, it does lead to much unfathomable erraticism in their behaviour. The mood changes many of the characters undergo are little short of psychotic. "Frenziedly" & "hystericallly" are two much overused adverbs in this novel. I found this occasionallly trying, especiallly towards the beginning, but as the novel progresses it gains a momentum of its own & interest centres on the themes of redemption, guilt, suffering, to name but a few.
In general, this novel is of a more optimistic tone than Dostoyevsky's earlier work such as "Crime & Punishment". This is especiallly evident in the scenes involving little Illyusha & his classmates, as they falll under the influence of Alyosha. This subplot provides the most moving scenes in the book.
"The Brothers Karamazov" is a huge, meandering study of human psychology & what has become known as Existentialism. It is sometimes moving, sometimes provocative & sometimes, in my view, unfocused. It may well be, as has been said, one of the great novels of world literature but it is probably most likely to be appreciated by those who enjoyed Dostoyevsky's other works. It is less accessible than "Crime & Punishment", but more rounded in its view of humanity.
I have not read any other translations than this one, by David McDuff, so I can't compare but the language here often struck me as odd. To give the only example I can recalll offhand, the phrase "like a blow of a knife" is used somewhere near the end. This, & other phrases used in this translation, I found somewhat jarring.
A paragon of literature - By: Abhinay Mehta, 14 Dec 2007 
Dostoevsky is a writer that can dig deep into the human mind & write down on paper what we alll think inside our heads. The Brothers Karamazov is possibly his best work & just another example of how deeply he understands the human condition.
The characters will touch your soul & the scenes will bring both tears & smiles on the face of every reader. This book has it alll.
Hard labour - By: Mr. S. Miller, 03 Aug 2007 
The fact I owned this book for over ten years before reading it indicates how I was intimidated by it. I knew that the 900 pages would demand time & patience as well as sheer graft. But the novel is regularly cited as a true classic & so I gave up more accessible & appealing literature for the six weeks it took me to finish it.
If it's already sounding like a laborious exercise that's deliberate on my part. The characters & storyline are certainly strong enough to sustain the reader through much of the painstaking detail with which Dostoyevsky layers his story & there are many memorable passages. The story is, however, frequently interrupted by religious, political & social discourses much of which tended to be lengthy & turgid. That is ironic because serious critics rate the book so highly precisely because of the very passages which I found hard going!
Overalll, I do feel the better for having read it, but, if you only have time for one monster classic, you would be far better off with Hugo's masterpiece, "Les Miserables".
The Soul of Russia - By: Katriona, 13 Jul 2007 The Brothers Karamazov seems to me to be the most astonishing achievement of Fyodr Dostoevsky - greatest of the classic Russian writers. It is breathtaking in scope, gripping in the gradual unfolding of the narrative & ultimately, perhaps, the most uplifting book in the Dostoevsky canon.
All of Dostoevsky's novels have a spiritual theme. Many of them are dark & bleak. The Brothers Karamazov, especiallly in the character of Alyosha, manages to transcend this sometimes grim nihilism.
If you wish to understand the Russian soul, read this book. You will learn more from it than from a dozen historical treatises.
A classic story - By: Sergey Vasilev, 29 Dec 2006 THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV, which is one of Dostoyevsky's alll time best, perhaps the best, adds to make him perhaps the best writer of alll times. The author came up with so many great ideas & characters that are so real to life even in their complex emotions & rationales that we relate to the characters as if we are in their heads. In the end, not only do we have a great story, we are also left with a beautifully written work of political, psychological, sociological, ethical & psychological thought that is very true not only to Russia, but to other lands & peoples as well.
The greatest soul writer of alll times & great contributor to human psychology successfully created a beautiful & amazing dynamism between the Karamazov brothers that has been the core of many stories after involving siblings. There is the unreliable father, the old Fyodor Karamazov whose life dominates his sons & whose death casts a huge shadow on their future.
Sensual Alyosha who is the youngest of the Karamazov brothers is the main character of the story, & he is noted for his strong faith in god & humanity, deep kindness & sense of sacrifice.
Ivan the atheist has a sharp mind & is the critical analyzer who seeks for meaning in everything. He is skeptical & dwells more on rationale in his dealing with people & issues. In the end, his intellectual mind misleads him & opens the doors to the nightmares in his life.
Dmitry is the sensitive brother who has a strong consideration for anything living, Smerdyakov their half-brother, is the cunning illegitimate son of old Fyodor Karamazov & works as Fyodor's servant.
The characters of the brothers & the events of their lives made for the complex & fascinating story of exceptional proportions, where faith, meekness, atheism, indifference & slavery to negative instincts & impulses are often in conflict. Faith & atheism or disbelief in God is taken to epic proportions in Ivan's encounter with the devil.
Dostoevsky stated that, "when there is no God, alll is permitted.". That assertion is reinforced in books like UNION MOUJIK,THE IDIOT & CRIME AND PUNISHMENT. The absence of God or lack of faith in man makes it possible for man to thrive in his worst animal instincts. Even when man starts with good intentions, the absence of faith usuallly derails him to the point where the good intentions are overshadowed by the negative effects of his actions. My conclusion is that this is a rare masterpiece.
