In August our Great Crimes series continued with a lecture by Louis Smit on Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. While this book definitely fits in with the Great Crimes, it is not a typical whodunnit: from the start, we know who killed whom and why.
The young main character, Rodion Raskolnikov, an impoverished former law student, decides to kill an old woman who is an unscrupulous pawn-broker. Raskolnikov intends to use her money to get himself out of poverty and to perform great deeds.
In a packed Mayflower bookshop, Smit captivated a spell-bound audience with the struggles of Raskolnikov, his crime, his remorse and guilt, and his ultimate punishment. Dostoevsky sets this story against a vivid background of the difficult circumstances in 19th century Russia, and Smit did an excellent job bringing that period to life.
The lecture ended with a viewing of a few scenes from the 1969 film adaptation by Lev Khulidzhanov which was much appreciated. So much, in fact, that when Smit suggested ending the viewing at five o’clock sharp, everyone clamoured for more. “We want to see the murder!” was the bloodthirsty cry of an audience that felt truly immersed in one of the all time great crimes in literature.