Dostoevsky Material Database

Dostoevskyism

T.G. Masaryk, "Russia and Europe I," a valuable discussion of Russia by the philosophical president of the Czech Republic!

Russian Dostoevsky by Masaryk, who was born to a serf father and a cook mother, from whom he struggled to become a philosophy professor and even the first president of the Czech Republic.

To begin with, he is a top-notch philosopher. Masaryk was also a politician with experience in world affairs, politics, and economics. He was also a great personality who was respected not only by the Czech people but also by people all over the world.

The Russian history and Dostoevsky theory told by such a grown-up was extremely stimulating.
Portrait of DostoevskyDostoevsky's works

An episode in the making of Perov's "Portrait of Dostoevsky! The true face of the artist as seen by the painter.

I have been studying "Shinran and Dostoevsky" since the summer of 2019, and the more I learn, the more I become attached to it, to the point that I finally bought a framed portrait of it to hang in my room.

And the artist who painted this Dostoevsky is Perloff, who is introduced here.

In this article we will look at the episode that led to this portrait. We learn about Dostoevsky's unique love of children.
DostoevskyDostoevsky's works

Four recommended works of Dostoevsky! A selection of gems and masterpieces of interesting Russian literature!

Dostoevsky is a Russian literary master along with Tolstoy.

Dostoevsky is an overwhelming giant who left behind such literary masterpieces as "Crime and Punishment" and "The Brothers Karamazov. Dostoevsky plumbed the depths of the human psyche, opening up to us a profound and chaotic world. His stories, woven with his unique narrative style and strong personalities, have an indescribable black magic charm. I was one of those who were fascinated by his black magic.

In this article, we will introduce some of Dostoevsky's recommended works and reference books. We will also discuss useful information such as which translations are recommended and where to start reading.
Dostoevskyism

Tatsuko Hoshino, "Shakespeare and Russian Writers and Dramatists" - Recommended work to learn about the connection with Dostoevsky and Tolstoy!

As the title suggests, this book is about Shakespeare's connection to Russian writers and theater artists.

The book features Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Stanislavsky, Pasternak, and a host of other great names in Russian literature.

This book is very valuable because it allows us to take a closer look at the connections between Shakespeare and Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, and other heavyweights that are absolutely unavoidable when considering Russian literature.
Dostoevskyism

Fusatoshi Fujisawa, "The Story of the Birth of 'Italy'" - A book I read to understand why Dostoevsky did not go to Rome with his wife!

Mr. and Mrs. Dostoevsky also stayed in Italy for an extended period of time. However, I have always wondered why Dostoevsky did not go to Rome. Why didn't Dostoevsky go to Rome?

It is strange if you think about it, coming all the way to Italy and not going to Rome.

Thanks to this book, I learned a lot about the political situation around Rome, which Dostoevsky avoided. It was a very gratifying book for me.

I found this book to be full of very interesting information about the country of Italy. I highly recommend this book.
Dostoevsky and Christianity

Yasuyuki Takahashi, The Russian Church under Persecution: 70 Years of Orthodoxy in an Atheistic State - What was the state of Christianity in the Soviet era?

The Soviet era may be difficult for those of us living in the modern world to imagine. Even for those who lived in the Soviet Union during the same period, information was limited, so they were able to learn about the actual situation only to a limited extent.

In such a situation, religion, which was a taboo subject under the Soviet regime, was a particularly secretive matter.

The relationship between the Soviet Union and the Russian Orthodox Church can be known only now that the Soviet Union has collapsed.

This book is a very valuable book to learn about this.

I think this book is a very significant work in terms of knowing Dostoevsky.
Dostoevskyism

G. Lukács, "Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky" - "Dostoyevsky is a writer who gives questions, not answers."

The task of the literary writer is not to give answers, but to ask questions," said Lukács. He cited Dostoevsky as one of the most successful in this regard.

Indeed, Dostoevsky does not give us answers. He drags us into a complex and bizarre world, as if he were knocking the reader into chaos.

But that is also Dostoevsky's greatest appeal.

As mentioned in the translator's afterword, there may be some problems with the work, but I think that what is being discussed in this work provides a good opportunity to look at Dostoevsky from a different point of view.
Dostoevsky and Christianity

Evdokimov, "Christ in Russian Thought" - Who is St. Tikhon of Zadonsk, the model for Bishop Tikhon of "Evil Spirit"?

As mentioned in the title, this work provides an overview of the history and thought of Christianity in Russia.

And what I appreciated most about the book was the presence of the commentary on St. Tikhon of Zadounsk.

This man is known as a major influence on the modeling of Bishop Tikhon in Dostoevsky's "Evil Spirits" and Elder Zosima in "The Brothers Karamazov.

The work also discusses Dostoevsky and the relationship of Christianity to Tolstoy, Gogol, and other leading figures in Russian literature.
Dostoevsky and Christianity

Roter, "The Unknown Pilgrim: The Memoirs of a Russian Pilgrim" - A recommended work to understand the spirit of pilgrimage that greatly influenced Dostoevsky.

This book is an excellent way to learn about the "Russian Pilgrimage," which had a great influence on Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. The book first appeared a few years after Dostoevsky's death in 1881, so he did not read it directly, but it does give us an idea of what the pilgrims in Russia at the time were taught to live under.

I was amazed many times when I read this piece.

I found a number of aspects of the methods of prayer and meditation discussed in this book to be very similar to what is taught in Buddhism. This is a wonderful work to learn about faith and prayer. I highly recommend this book.