Why should you read “Crime and Punishment”? - Alex Gendler

譯者: Regina Chu 審譯者: Marssi Draw

What drives someone to kill in cold blood?

什麼讓人變成冷血殺手？

What goes through the murderer’s mind?

殺人兇手的頭腦在想什麼？

And what kind of a society breeds such people?

什麼樣的社會養出這種人？

Over 150 years ago

150 年前

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky took these questions up

費奧多爾·米哈伊洛維奇· 杜斯妥也夫斯基將這些問題

in what would become one of the best-known works of Russian literature:

寫進後來著名的俄羅斯文學巨作

"Crime and Punishment."

《罪與罰》

First serialized in a literary magazine in 1866,

這本書原本是刊在 1866 年 某文學雜誌上的連載小說

the novel tells the story of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov,

講述著拉斯柯尼科夫

a young law student in Saint Petersburg.

這位在聖彼得堡年輕法學生的故事

Raskolnikov lives in abject poverty,

拉斯柯尼科夫活在赤貧下

and at the start of the story has run out of funds to continue his studies.

故事一開始就花光了所有的錢

無法繼續念書

Letters from his rural home only add to his distress

從鄉下來的家書只有增加他的痛苦

when he realizes how much his mother and sister have sacrificed for his success.

因為他發現他的母親及妹妹 為了讓他成功做出多少犧牲

Increasingly desperate

絕望感愈來愈大

after selling the last of his valuables to an elderly pawnbroker,

在把最後一筆值錢的東西 賣給當舖的老婦人後

he resolves on a plan to murder and rob her.

他鐵了心要謀財害命

But the impact of carrying out this unthinkable act

但是執行這項難以置信的行動

proves to be more than he was prepared for.

影響之大，證明超乎預料

Though the novel is sometimes cited as one of the first psychological thrillers,

雖然這本書有時被引為 第一部懸疑心理小說

its scope reaches far beyond Raskolnikov’s inner turmoil.

它牽扯的範疇遠遠超出 拉斯柯尼科夫內心的混亂

From dank taverns to dilapidated apartments

陰冷的小酒館、破爛的公寓

and claustrophobic police stations,

還有幽閉的警察局

the underbelly of 19th century Saint Petersburg is brought to life

19 世紀聖彼得堡的不堪之處

在杜斯妥也夫斯基 尖刻的散文下栩栩如生

by Dostoyevsky’s searing prose.

We’re introduced to characters such as Marmeladov,

我們認識了幾位角色 像是馬美拉多夫

a miserable former official who has drank his family into ruin,

他是位悲慘的前官員 因酗酒而使全家沉淪

and Svidrigailov, an unhinged and lecherous nobleman.

還有斯維里加洛夫 一個不太正常又好色的貴族

As Raskolnikov’s own family arrives in town,

拉斯科尼科夫自己的家人進城後

their moral innocence stands in stark contrast

他們的道德純真立場

to the depravity of those around them,

與周遭人物的墮落形成鮮明的對比

even as their fates grow increasingly intertwined.

即使他們的命運愈來愈緊密交織

This bleak portrait of Russian society

俄國社會毫無修飾的呈現

reflects the author’s own complex life experiences and evolving ideas.

反映出作者本身複雜的人生經驗

及逐步成形的想法

As a young writer who left behind a promising military career,

身為一位年輕作家 將大好的軍事前途拋諸腦後

Fyodor had been attracted to ideas of socialism and reform,

費奧多爾被社會主義 及改革的想法吸引

and joined a circle of intellectuals to discuss radical texts

並加入了一個知識分子圈

探討被沙皇政府禁止的激進文章

banned by the Imperial government.

Upon exposure,

事蹟暴露之後

members of this group, including Dostoyevsky, were arrested.

這個圈子的成員都被逮捕 包括杜斯妥也夫斯基

Many were sentenced to death,

許多人被判處死刑

only to be subjected to a mock execution and last-minute pardon from the Tsar.

卻只受到模擬處決 及臨刑前來自沙皇的赦免

Dostoyevsky spent the next four years in a Siberian labor camp

接下來四年，杜斯妥也夫斯基 在西伯利亞的勞改營度過

before being released in 1854.

於 1854 年被釋放

The experience left him with a far more pessimistic view of social reform,

這場經歷使他對社會改革 抱持極悲觀的看法

and his focus shifted toward spiritual concerns.

他的焦點因而轉變成靈命問題

In the 1864 novella "Notes from Underground,"

他在 1864 年出版的 中篇小說《地下室手記》

he expounded on his belief that utopian Western philosophies

闡述了他的信念，即烏托邦西方哲學

could never satisfy the contradictory yearnings of the human soul.

永遠不可能滿足人類靈魂 與之對立的渴望

"Crime and Punishment" was conceived and completed the following year,

《罪與罰》於次年孕育並完成

picking up on many of the same themes.

書中重拾了許多相同的主題

In many ways,

從很多方面看

the novel follows a common narrative thread

這部小說順著一條普通的敘事線

where a promising youth is seduced and corrupted by the dangers of urban life.

即前途有為的年輕人

被城市生活的危險引誘及腐蝕

But its social critique cuts far deeper.

但是它對社會的批評更加深刻

Raskolnikov rationalizes that his own advancement

拉斯柯尼科夫將自己的行為合理化

at the cost of the exploitative pawnbroker’s death

認為把壓榨人的當舖老闆之死 當作自己晉升的代價

would be a net benefit to society.

對社會是有淨利的

In doing so,

這麼做

he echoes the doctrines of egoism and utilitarianism

他回應了利己主義及功利主義的教義

embraced by many of Dostoyevsky’s contemporary intellectuals.

這些教義廣為與杜斯妥也夫斯基 同時代的知識分子所信奉

And in believing that his intelligence allows him to transcend moral taboos,

而且他相信他的智慧 允許他超越道德禁忌

Raskolnikov cuts himself off from his own humanity.

拉斯柯尼科夫將自己 從自己的人性中抽身

Yet although the book is deeply concerned with morality,

儘管這本書深入探討道德問題

"Crime and Punishment" never comes across as merely moralizing,

《罪與罰》從來沒有被認為 是部說教的作品

with each character given their own distinctive and convincing voice.

因為書中的每個角色 都有自己獨特且具說服力的見解

One of the most remarkable things about "Crime and Punishment"

《罪與罰》最出色的部分

is its ability to thrill

就是其張力

despite the details of the central murder being revealed in the first act.

儘管早在第一部就已經告訴讀者 故事中心謀殺的細節

Raskolnikov’s crime is clear.

拉斯柯尼科夫罪證確鑿

But it’s only through Dostoyevsky’s gripping account

但唯有透過杜斯妥也夫斯基

對隨之而來的社會和心理混亂 絲絲入扣的描述

of the ensuing social and psychological turmoil

that we learn the true nature of his punishment–

我們才能了解他的罰為何物

and the possibility of redemption.

及贖罪的可能性