Dostoevsky's "Memoirs of a Basement" Summary and Synopsis
Memoirs of a Basement was serialized in the March/April issue of The Century in 1864.
I read "Memoirs of a Basement," translated by Taku Egawa, published by Shinchosha Publishing Co.
We will look at the synopsis on the back cover.
I have never been loved by anyone. I have never loved anyone.
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The trail of a black soul in a dark room isolated from society.
Without this work, later great works such as "Crime and Punishment," "The Idiot," and "The Brothers Karamazov" would not have been possible.
Through the monologue of a small official who, due to extreme self-consciousness, has severed relations with the general public and confined himself to a small underground world, he denies the possibility of social reform through reason and asserts that human nature is irrational. This book, which looks at the black existential currents that define human behavior and inaction, marks the turning point from the humanitarian works of his early period to the major works of his later period, and was described by Zid as "the key to unlocking Dostoevsky's entire oeuvre.
It was described by French Nobel Prize-winning author André Gide as "the key to unlocking Dostoevsky's entire oeuvre." Ziid'sDostoevskyismis a reference book that I personally highly recommend because it is very easy to understand and also very stimulating.
Now, in this work, as the title says, the main character is a small official locked in his own basement.
He is extremely self-conscious and incredibly twisted.
The story begins with his monologue, which is suddenly followed by a series of strange words that take the reader by surprise.
I am a sick man. ...... I am a mean man. I'm not a very nice person. In my opinion, this is due to a bad liver. But I don't know the first thing about diseases, and I don't know exactly what is wrong with me. I respect medicine and doctors, but I don't actually see a doctor and have never done so. To top it off, I am extremely superstitious. I am superstitious to the extent that I respect medicine. (I am sure I was educated enough not to be superstitious, but I still can't shake off my superstition.) No, no, no, the reason I don't see a doctor is because I hate them. I know this is a point you probably don't understand. I know what I am talking about. Of course, even I would be at a loss to explain to whom I am speaking out of hatred in this case. I know too well that my not seeing a doctor does not "trouble" doctors in the slightest, and I also know that I am the only one who will be hurt by this kind of thing, and no one else. However, the reason I don't see a doctor is because I hate it. If he has a bad liver, let's give him a bad liver!
Shinchosha, Translation by Taku Egawa, "Memoirs of a Basement," p. 6.
The basement man suddenly confesses to himself, "I am a sick person. I'm a sick person, a mean person, an unlikable person," he suddenly confesses to undermining himself. (Actually, even this is only a masked confession to protect himself...)
Then, as if to defend themselves, they say it is the liver's fault.
Furthermore, "most likely," the story proceeds on its own as if to anticipate the reader's thoughts.
He is self-conscious and incredibly twisted. He defends himself by anticipating the other person's thoughts and saying, "No, no, I understand that you think so, but...," and from there he gives a list of strange reasons to sway the reader, to which he responds, "I understand that you are in trouble," and says even stranger things. I understand that you are in trouble.
Basement people always talk in this tone. It is so strange! First-time readers of this novel will probably be amused.
However, we are strangely drawn into his monologues, which are full of incomprehensible arguments. It was like a spell or black magic spun out of his mouth.
From there, the basement man rejects the possibility of social modification through reason and asserts that human nature is irrational.
This point is explained in the following article, which we hope you will read.
At any rate, he denies the rational, rational mind and speaks of who he is.
And later in the novel, he will unveil to the reader a certain event that happened to him.
It also conveys his nature to the fullest and shows how twisted he is, but this is another episode that somehow drew me in....
impressions
It is very difficult to summarize the synopsis and important points of this work in a concise manner. I feel it deeply.
I could give you a synopsis, but the first half of the story is a monologue by a basement man, and the second half tells the episode of how he came to be, but this story is also very strange.
What we have there, if not a completely sick person, is a chaos that has plunged into a very dark place mentally.
His actions and thoughts are so far removed from rational and reasonable thinking.
Can we say that it is the cry of an absurd soul deep within the human psyche?
Humans are not mathematical and rational beings like the 22 is 4. If human beings were like that, they would be no different from machines. Can we really call them human beings?
Dostoevsky asks it through the basement man.
This work is a little less than 200 pages in paperback, which is a small amount for Dostoevsky's works. It is a small book for Dostoevsky's works, with only about 200 pages.
The book also stands out in that it allows the reader to enjoy the full range of Dostoevsky's character.
The slumbering depths of the human heart and the chaos of not knowing what will come out of it emerge through the self-conscious and twisted words of the basement dwellers.
Indeed, if you read this work for the first time, you may be taken aback by its unique and strange narrative style. But somehow you are drawn into his art.
The basement man is by no means a winner in the world. He is a bad person who does not like people in the world. He is a lonely person who retreats into his shell and cannot fit in with those around him.
But so what? It is as if the basement people are saying, "I have something to shout about too.
I believe that this work contains such an appeal that could be called the philosophy of the underdog, or the rebellion of the oppressed.
This may sound like a difficult book, but this novel is not an esoteric philosophical book. It is just that the basement people are incredibly twisted, but don't worry, it is not difficult to understand.
As mentioned in the synopsis, this work is so close to Dostoevsky's roots that it has been called "the key to unlocking all of Dostoevsky's works.
It is the perfect work to experience Dostoevsky's character.
Although Dostoevsky is famous for many large works, "Memoirs in a Basement" is highly recommended because it is easy to read in terms of quantity. It is a work that should be read by all.
I feel that this work has stood the test of time and is still a groundbreaking work that breaks through the blockages of modern society.
The above is a synopsis of "Memoirs in the Basement" - a work in full Dostoevskyian style - the cry of a very twisted man's soul.
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