The novel Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky is one of the most memorable and important works of literature in history. It deals with the psychological, emotional, mental and physical struggles of several residents of St. Petersburg in the 19th century. Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, on whom the novel centers, commits a heinous double-axe murder in order to justify a theory he has posited, but he later realizes how wrong his actions were and that he must confess and seek redemption for his transgressions. Certain people are also placed in his life – people struggling with different issues, but all share the need to be freed from their lives of sin. Carefully chosen symbols interwoven throughout the novel reflect and magnify the sin and need for redemption in the lives of Raskolnikov and his acquaintances. Dostoyevsky's masterful and generous use of symbolism, particularly with the color yellow, water, and insects, emphasizes the themes of Crime and Punishment and the struggles of its characters. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay Many references are made to the color yellow, a hue that symbolizes the moral, physical, and mental decadence of those in its presence. It is introduced quite early in the work, where it is noted that "...the dusty yellowish wallpaper which was peeling from the walls gave it a miserably dilapidated appearance..." (Dostoyevsky 23). This setting creates a tone that matches Raskolnikov's mood that morning: "...bilious, sullen, and irritable" (23). This also alludes to the decadence that Raskolnikov was already experiencing. His landlady's servant, Nastasya, notices this when she brings him tea and then exclaims that he will waste away if he does not drink it (23). Of course, she is simply attacking a type of physical decadence (at least consciously); however, Raskolnikov's deterioration is much broader in scope. It begins even before he decides to commit the murder of Alyona Ivanovna, the unpleasant pawnbroker, and her sister Lizaveta. The murder itself, however, causes him to descend into a delirium which intensifies his decadence, manifested by his inability to maintain his composure when he is summoned to the police station (for the accusation having nothing to do with the fact that he (he owes rent arrears). His tension rises throughout his stay at the police station and he ends up passing out. When he comes to, someone offers him “a dirty glass filled with yellowish water” (Dostoyevsky, 89). The presence of the color yellow, again, signifies the presence of rot; and Raskolnikov's fainting shows that he is beginning to lose his mind. However, Raskolnikov is not the only character to suffer from decadence. Semyon Zakharovich Marmeladov, an acquaintance Raskolnikov met in a bar, struggles with alcohol addiction. He tells Raskolnikov that he drinks to multiply his suffering (12), which, like many other Russians of his time, will lead him to salvation. His lack of understanding of how true salvation can be found demonstrates moral decadence. Later, when Marmeladov is dying after being accidentally run over by a horse and carriage, a yellow bruise left by the horse's hoof crushing him forms on his heart. This is yet another blatant sign of its moral and spiritual decadence. Additionally, Marmeladov's daughter Sonya suffers from the effects of her father's spiritual decadence. Her drinking habit has left her family destitute, and the only way Sonya can support her consumptive mother-in-lawand her three young half-siblings is through prostitution. At that time, all prostitutes were required to register with the state and carried a yellow card as identification. Sonya's yellow card represents her physical degradation. Decadence also affects Arkady Ivanovich Svidrigaylov, an acquaintance of Raskolnikov who leads a life of debauchery and self-indulgence. When he checks into a hotel - the day before his suicide, unable to bear the reality of his desperate life any longer - he notices that "the wallpaper was dirty and faded... although its original color (yellow) could still be be guessed." , it was quite impossible to distinguish the motive” (Dostoyevsky 426). The yellow wallpaper surrounding Svidrigaylov reflects his spiritual death and even the physical death that will soon surround him. Dostoyevsky also includes many other, more subtle appearances of the color yellow, which show the decadence in the lives of more minor characters. Pyotr Petrovich Luzhin, for example, tries to marry Raskolnikov's younger sister, simply because he knows that she will be grateful to him for sharing his money with her and his impoverished family and that she will thus serve him hand and foot. linked. At the funeral dinner that Marmeladov's wife organizes in honor of her husband, Sonya notices that Luzhin is wearing a "...thick, heavy and very beautiful gold ring with a yellow stone on the middle finger of this [left] hand. ..” (315). The fact that this symbol of death and decay permeates the novel shows that almost every character is trapped in a destructive vice. The characters in Crime and Punishment who refuse redemption also turn away from its symbol, water; however, those who desire to be redeemed are fascinated by it. Water represents the terror of death for the corrupt Svidrigaylov, who confirms his depravity by thinking: "Never in my life could I stand water, not even on a landscape." Water, instead of being an instrument of life, becomes for him a odious and vengeful threat during the last hours of his life (Gibian 529). Svidrigaylov's aversion to water is severe and truly excessive, and in fact he feels cold at the mere thought. of the Neva River (Gibian 529). It is therefore extremely ironic that he chooses a cold and stormy evening as the night on which he commits suicide. As he walks, looking for a good place to shoot himself (and even heads towards the Little Neva), a “thick milky mist” covers the city (Dostoyevsky 432). For Svidrigaylov, water is “...instead of being a positive force...the appropriate setting for committing suicide” (Gibian 530). Raskolnikov, on the other hand, seemed drawn to water == as he was later drawn to confession and redemption. Even before the murder, he has a daydream in which he is in an oasis in Egypt, drinking "...water from a stream that flowed babbling beside him, clear and fresh, flowing wonderfully bright and blue on the colored stones..." (Dostoyevsky 58). This shows that Raskolnikov feels the need for redemption even before committing the transgression (which is also suggested by his categorical renunciation of his plans after a dream in which an old mare was brutally beaten and killed). After the murder, Raskolnikov is tormented by a dream in which Ilya Petrovich (the police chief) beats his landlady. This dream symbolizes his fear of being caught and immediately after waking up he asks Nastasya for a drink. She returns with a white earthenware mug full of water (99). The presence of water immediately after his premonition of being caught signifies his desperate need to confess before he is found. Raskolnikov later contemplates suicide by drowning after seeing a woman attempt to drown herself in the Neva River; however, he decides, 1989, 606-609.