3.3: Dostoevsky's "Notes from the Underground"
As you read, pay close attention to the Underground Man's opinion of himself. As you progress, consider whether the Underground Man is as maladjusted as he makes himself out to be. Could he simply be insane? Also consider Dostoevsky's anti-rationalism throughout the work and his suspicion of others who tout human reason as superior to human will. Finally, consider the following question as you near the end of the novel: Why is Underground Man unable to make those decisions that are so easy for the rest of us to make? Given what the Underground Man says about himself at the start of the book, how is Underground Man in revolt against himself? In his critique of (according to him) narrow-minded people and the masses, Underground Man seems to be in revolt against nature - how is this so? Ultimately, Dostoevsky's Underground Man feels as if he is in a revolt against nature's laws. Pay close attention to how this and other types of revolt are illustrated by Dostoevsky in this work.