Let's begin reading the first book
About the author's note to the novel, and a bookmark for reading the first part
Greetings to all Dostoevsky enthusiasts.
Link to schedule and materials for the novel.
So today we are slowly immersing ourselves in reading The Brothers Karamazov. I've seen that many have already started reading.
Tomorrow (I usually publish articles in the evening Central European Time), an article will be published where I'll share a bit about the history of writing, what Fyodor Mikhailovich's vision was, and how the book was initially received in the Russian literary community.
This Friday, there will be a post explaining everything you need to know about Russian names—why they appear complex, which parts change, and the reasons behind these changes. For our chapter discussions (January 20-24), I will create pages for each character (in Book 1) with Russian pronunciation guides. We're steadily finding our rhythm.
And today - some materials to make reading more comfortable. I'm still getting into the groove and trying to figure out how to make the reading experience better and more comfortable.
Dostoevsky dedicated the novel to his wife, Anna. She was an extraordinary woman, about whom Andrew D. Kaufman recently wrote a book "Gambler's Wife," which I haven't had the chance to read yet, but I have read Anna's Recollections and Memoirs, which have also been published. The novel was actually based on these.
Anna entered Fyodor Mikhailovich's life when he was finishing the novel "Crime and Punishment," but he urgently needed to write another one - "The Gambler," within months to settle a debt with his publisher.
On July 2, 1865, Dostoevsky signed a contract with the publisher Fyodor Stellovsky: Stellovsky undertook to publish a three-volume collection of Dostoevsky's works and required him to write a new novel by November 1, 1866. Otherwise, Stellovsky would have the right to publish his works for nine years without paying the author anything; Dostoevsky would be ruined and threatened with debtor's prison.
The crisis moment comes in June 1866: Stellovsky reminds him that in November he expects a new novel from Dostoevsky, and the writer decides to do an "unprecedented and eccentric thing" — to write two novels simultaneously. Alongside "Crime and Punishment," he composes "The Gambler" — and here one of the main events of his life occurs: for speed, he decides to hire a stenographer, and he is recommended a young girl, Anna Snitkina. Dostoevsky dictates "The Gambler" to her — the novel is completed in less than a month, the writer is saved.
Soon he proposes to Snitkina. In short, they soon got married, and Dostoevsky never wrote texts the old way again - with drafts and corrections. From then on, he would only dictate his texts, and Anna would later transcribe them and give them back for revisions. One could say that all novels after "The Gambler" were dictated by Dostoevsky, not written. This actually resulted in his books having such a unique style - because oral speech differs from purely written text.
Dostoevsky chose this Gospel verse for his novel because of its deep personal significance. The same words are engraved on his tombstone in Saint Petersburg. The verse is central to both Dostoevsky's life and the novel—as we read, we'll see how its meaning unfolds throughout the story.
The novel opens with an Author's Note, but this author is not Dostoevsky himself. Rather, he introduces a narrator who knows the Karamazov family in the fictional world and recounts their story. This fictional author intends to write two novels, though we'll only read the first one this year. The second, sadly, remains forever unwritten.
Please check whether your edition includes this Author's Note. It's absent from Constance Garnett's translation and may be missing from other translations and editions in various languages. For this reason, I've provided a PDF of Ignat Avsey's translation so you can read it.
Download the introduction:
The Author’s Note is quite haphazard and sets a light tone. Thoughts on it? Did your translation include it?
We will talk in more detail about this mysterious narrator, as he is one of the characters in the novel, so pay attention to him as well.
And so begins the novel itself - its first book, which is called "The Story of a Family." (История одной семейки).
In this Book 1, Dostoevsky provides us with the exposition - introducing us to the biographies of the main characters, specifically the Karamazov family and those connected to them. Interestingly, there's an entire chapter about Elder Zosima, which means he is presented as a core family member.
You can think about this while reading - who is actually a member of this little family and who isn't.
The title "The Story of a Family" carries an important nuance in the original Russian. While the neutral word for "family" is семья (semya), Dostoevsky deliberately uses семейка (semeyka) - a diminutive form with dismissive and ironic undertones. Some translations render this as "Nice Family" or "Little Family," each capturing aspects of the original's tone. Through this subtle word choice, Dostoevsky signals from the start that this is no ordinary family, but rather an eccentric one.
In the best traditions of Aristotelian poetics, or even like a theatrical play, the novel follows the rule of three unities: action, place, and time. Of course, it's all more complex here. I will tell you about everything in more detail gradually in the articles.
According to Aristotle, unity of action requires focusing on one main plot. While this principle is present in the novel, the story extends beyond a single narrative thread. The main plot becomes clear as the family gathers around the central conflict—Dmitry's inheritance dispute.
Unity of place unfolds not on a theater stage but within a confined geographical setting. The entire novel takes place in the town of Skotoprigonyevsk and its surroundings—a fictional version of Staraya Russa in Novgorod province, where Dostoevsky owned a house from 1876 and wrote this novel. The house now functions as a Dostoevsky museum. This house held special significance as Dostoevsky's first purchased property, marking a change from his family's history of living in rented apartments. Staraya Russa's connection to the novel extends beyond Dostoevsky's residence—the town also features a separate museum dedicated specifically to "The Brothers Karamazov."
We will gradually explore this town, its surroundings and the Optina Monastery.
Unity of time is maintained almost perfectly. The main plot takes place over just a few days, although it might seem like months pass. Our calendar shows the year 1866, and in the article I will explain in detail how this year is easily calculated.
A note about the money values in the novel
One ruble from 1866 is worth approximately 15 dollars in today's money. While this conversion isn't perfectly accurate—since the prices of goods and real estate have changed at different rates over time—it provides a useful reference point. Real estate, for instance, has become proportionally more expensive compared to everyday items like bread.
This estimate comes from comparing historical Russian pension payments with current ones. For example, Raskolnikov's mother's pension of 10 rubles per month in 1865 would equal about 15,000 rubles today. This means one historical ruble equals roughly 1,500 modern rubles or 15 dollars. Though exchange rates fluctuate, this simple 15x multiplication helps readers understand the characters' financial situations throughout the novel.
Below are materials, specifically a bookmark that you can print and use while reading the book 1. I will make such bookmarks for each book, containing a list of chapters and characters, so they're always at hand.
There's also a second version of the bookmark with dates for our discussion chats.
Love the bookmark idea!
My translation by David McDuff (Penguin Classics) contains the author’s note. Thanks for starting us off by pointing out that this mysterious narrator is one of the characters in the novel. The sentence that peaked my curiosity:
“But strangeness and oddness are sooner a cause of harm to their possessor than any guarantee of attention, particularly in a time when all are striving to unite the details of existence and to discover at least some kind of general meaning in the universal muddle.”
I don’t know anything about this story and look forward to discover meaning in today’s universal muddle! I feel the reading of this story may help my angst at today’s rapidly shifting political situation here in the USA. In the very least it will challenge my reading comprehension. I am already hugely grateful for your work, Dana.