Dostoyevsky, The Possessed: From Political Prisoner To Prophet

Fyodor Dostoyevsky's,The Possessed is considered a deeply essential literary contribution to the historical culture of Russia. Although written as a work of fiction, it is largely based on real life people and real events that took place during the tumultuous epoch between 1840 and 1880. Dostoyevsky's seven-hundred page epic is so important to the history of Russia, that it was adapted for the stage in 1913 by The Moscow Art Theatre; however it has also received considerable international acclaim for it's superior storyline and an ability to foretell the Russian revolutions of 1917 which resulted in the fall of Nicholas II and the rise of Lenin-Marxist communism and the Soviet Union. The Possessed was also developed into a play by French writer Albert Camus in 1959; the BBC and PBS also aired the story as a miniseries in 1969 and 1972; Andrzej Wajda released a french film entitled Les Possedes in 1988; and more contemporaneously, Alexandre Marine and Studio Six Theatre Company adapted it into a play called Itsy Bitsy Spider in 2009.

Nearly one hundred and fifty years since its publication, Dostoyevsky's politically charged story of the human condition has proven to be polarizing and it's interpretations vary as widely as there are opinions - even considerable debate has endured regarding the proper translation of its three English titles: The Possessed, Demons, and The Devils. The debate centering on the translation of the original Russian title, Besy. 'Besy' roughly translated, means an individual who - under their own volition - acts in an immoral way, vis-a-vis, 'The Devil'. While both 'Demons' and the 'The Possessed' imply that an individual is not acting of their own volition but is being influenced to act in an immoral way by unknown external forces. Ultimately, the importance of this debate matters not as it is simply representative of the entire book, in that, the characters are often being influenced to participate in criminal behaviour, and it is left to the reader to determine whether they are being motivated by external, incorporeal forces or internal intrinsic desire. No matter how we wish to define them, it is of my belief that these forces are what translator Richard Pevear wrote in the foreword of Demons as being the many isms of western philosophy; and there remains little doubt as to their ability to possess the human mind and cause people to act immorally.

the demons [the possessed] are"that legion of isms that came to Russia from the West: idealism, rationalism, empiricism, materialism, utilitarianism, positivism, socialism, anarchism, nihilism, and underlying them all, atheism."(1)

Published in 1871, The Possessed documents the sordid events that transpire within a small fictional Russian town in the latter third of the 19th century. Dostoyevsky deftly weaves between first person and third person omniscient narrative, detailing the chaotic and tragic events that result when western ideologies and philosophies covertly infiltrate the social milieu of a traditionally eastern orthodox town. Dostoevsky's "frightening view" of a society suffering from the "loss of God, of country, and brotherhood"(2) was published nearly fifty years before these very causes led to the downfall of the Russian Empire. Told through the voice of a minor character named Anton Lavrentyevich, it is an allegorical look at the many political, social, and economic conditions that existed in Russia and how they viciously vied to control the minds of its citizens. In fact, it is precisely the ideas of men which seem to interest Dostoyevsky the most. Throughout the book - as well as throughout a large portion of his life's work - there remains a common thread in the form of a question. How does each man rationally reconcile himself (both ethically and morally) within the dichotomy of good and evil?

"Dostoevsky's most confusing and violent novels, and his most satisfactorily 'tragic' work." Joyce Carol Oates

The story centers around its four main characters; however I have added two so as to emphasize the allegorical dynamic that is at play within the novel:

Nikolai Vsyevolodovich Stavrogin, the main protagonist, is a strong, charismatic character born into a wealthy aristocratic family. He is the son of a wealthy landowner, Varvara Petrovna and a lieutenant-general in the Russian army. As a young boy, Nikolai endures the death of his estranged father and grows up entirely in the care of his mother. Varvara Petrovna commissions Stepan Trofimovich Verkhovensky as a tutor for her son but Nikolai is eventually sent to study classical education at a Lyceum in Petersburg. After completing his studies Nikolai enters the army, receiving a commission in one of the most prestigious Horse Guards. Although Nikolai travels in the highest of social circles and is widely admired by those who meet him, he remains a troubled young man who is prone to sabotaging his social standing with outrageous spectacles and is "guilty of incredible outrages upon various persons and, what was most striking these outrages were utterly unheard of, quite inconceivable, unlike anything commonly done, utterly silly and mischievous, quite unprovoked and objectless".(3) Nikolai is secretly married to an invalid named Marya whom he supports financially yet most of this money is squandered by her alcoholic brother who acts as her caretaker and guardian. Nikolai is the preferred candidate to lead Pyotr Stepanovich Verkhovensky's revolutionary uprising.

Varvara Petrovna Stavrogin is Nikolai's mother, and it is her estate, Skvoreshniki, that serves as the backdrop for the majority of the story. Having attended a high-class boarding school as a young girl she matures into a " woman of the classic type...invariably guided only by the highest considerations".(4) Petrovna is the apotheosis of aristocracy and nobility. She represents allegorically that of the status quo and - upon hearing rumours of 'ideas' and 'movements'- blocks attempts for the dissemination of revolutionary material for fear of an upheaval of the social norm that would threaten her charmed life. She "prohibited publications printed abroad and even the revolutionary manifestoes which were just beginning to appear at the time (she was able to procure them all)".(5) A large portion of the story revolves around her volatile relationship with the tutor, Stepan Trofimovich Verkhovensky and while there is no indication of any romantic involvement, there are allusions to their deep love for each other. Trofimovitch Verkhovensky remains at the Skvoreshniki estate for twenty years. Does he remain as a willing invention of Petrovna's creation? Or perhaps as a companion? Or simply as an object of her charitable generosity? Perhaps a coalescence of all of these. With her husband now dead, and her son studying abroad, Petrovna considered Trofimovitch Verkhovensky "flesh of her flesh, and she kept and supported him not simply from 'envy of his talents'", but because an "inexhaustible love for him lay concealed in her heart in the midst of continual hatred, jealousy, and contempt."(6) Trofimovitch Verkhovensky's character (representing liberal sentimentalism), invokes allegorically the ideology representative of the real-life Russian idealists of 1840 Russia, and it is here that Dostoyevsky seems to be making an important observation; that it is always through the open door of liberal sentimentalism that communism first arrives.

Trofimovich Verkhovensky is prone to writing Pavlovna passionate letters even though they live in the same house and often suffers from bouts of depression; described as 'patriotic grief' in the novel but is more accurately attributed to a physical ailment of the spleen. At fifty years old, he has very much remained a child, relying on the emotional and financial support of Varvara Petrovna Stavrogin. While he was hired by Stavrogin to be the exclusive mentor and tutor to her son, he often acts inappropriately by confiding in the young boy, crying on his shoulder while confessing his many transgressions. Stepan Trofimovich Verkhovensky signifies the progenitor of a degenerative society, a mentor who fails to instill any sense of character and morality into his young protege because he himself was never a possessor of such qualities. This is something we see in our own western society; each successive generation being made of lesser moral and ethical integrity because of a lack of proper parental supervision and nurturing - the end result now clearly visible after two or three generations of latch-key kids. "Stepan is symbolic of a non-productive stewardship - a father who did not father, a teacher who did not teach, an elder who did not will wisdom and tradition to the dependent younger generation".(8) Stepan's failure to instill commendable qualities within Nikolai and his own son Pyotr leads inadvertently but directly to the young men adhering to destructive, naive ideas and the eventual collapse of local society - the central premise of the book

Pyotr Stepanovich Verkhoevensky is the propagandist extraordinaire. He is the degenerate son of Stepan and the head of a revolutionary cadre of atheists who conspire to overthrow the power structure. It is Pyotr Stepanovich Verkhoevensky who plays each character off the other, the puppet master who deftly orchestrates the murder of Nikolai Vysevolodovich Stavrogins invalid wife, her drunkard brother and their assistant. It is Pyotr Stepanovich Verkhoevensky who envisions Nikolai Vsyevolodovich Stavrogin as the face of his revolution and attempts to persuade Nikolai to embrace the role, of which he never does. Verkhoevensky and the other members of the secret club successfully corroborate to kill Shatov (as a traitor to the cause) by luring him away from town, then shooting him in the head and dumping his body into a local pond

Ivan Pavlovich Shatov's mother was the valet for Varvara Petrovna Stavrogina. Following the death of his mother, Shatov and his sister were taken under the care of Varvara Petrovna Stavrogina and tutored by Stepan Trofimovich. While originally a believer in socialism, Shatov would eventually reject western cultural influence, becoming a staunch advocate for applying Russia's traditional eastern orthodoxy as a mechanism from which the advances of western culture could be repudiated. Shatov was a vehement opponent of Pyotr Stepanovich Verkhovensky. The real life nihilistic revolutions of the 1860's is embedded within the contemptuous relationship between Shatov and Verkhovensky; the former representing the Russian orthodox belief in God while the latter personifying the Nietzschian nihilistic belief that God is Dead. Shatov's eventual murder at the hands of Verkhovensky signified - in the mind of Dostoyevsky - the atheist displacement of traditional Russian religious beliefs.

Shigalyev "is a historian and social theorist, the intellectual of Verkhovensky's revolutionary group, who has devised a system for the post-revolution organization of mankind. 'My conclusion' he says. 'stands in direct contradiction to the idea from which I started. Proceeding from unlimited freedom, I end with unlimited despotism." Ninety percent of society is to be enslaved to the remaining ten percent. Equality of the herd is to be enforced by police state tactics, state terrorism, and destruction of intellectual, artistic, and cultural life. It is estimated that about a hundred million people will need to be killed on the way to the goal.'"(9)(10) It is the prophetic words of Shigalyev that cannot be ignored. These words written long before nearly one hundred million people died of starvation and murder as a result of communism world wide and over one hundred years before the police state emerges in America. The accuracy with which Dostoyevsky warns of the rise of cultural Marxist ideals, even detailing the way in which it will manifest through the intellectual, artistic, and cultural aspects of society can only be described as prophetical.

"one of humanity's most impressive achievements - perhaps even its supreme achievement - in the art of prose fiction." Ronald Hingley

It is also relevant to discuss (in limited detail) the life of the author himself for upon this background is leveled another layer of significance that underscores both, Dostoyevsky's value as a writer, and the importance of this particular work. Dostoyevsky, like the character Shatov, was an early admirer of socialism, largely for its support of the destitute and disadvantaged. And Dostoyevsky's relationship with literary critic Vissarion Belinsky ( who helped Dostoyevsky publish his first literary work, Poor Folk), is represented in The Possessed through the relationship between Ivan Pavlovich Shatov and Pyotr Stepanovich Verkhovensky. Belinsky's atheism conflicted with Dostoyevsky's Russian orthodox beliefs to such a degree that they eventually parted ways. It is during this time that Dostoyevsky became associated with a reformation group called The Petrashevsky Circle. Eventually he was arrested for allegedly distributing literature critical of the Russian State. At first, he and his compatriots were sentenced to death; however just prior to being executed by firing squad, the order was stayed by the Tsar. For his part, Dostoyevsky was eventually sentenced to four years hard labour at a prison camp in Omsk, Siberia. He suffered greatly from epileptic seizures nearly his entire life yet was still able to write eleven novels, three novellas, seventeen short stories as well as several other literary works of various types.

It is important also to convey to the reader that the same type of battle between 'isms' that exist in The Possessed are the very same that wage battle on our western society today. And while those members of the public who are of the liberal persuasion generally argue that Dostoyevsky's, The Possessed is merely a fictional tale with no tangible or practical substance we do know that the tragic events that unfolded within the book are based on actual people and events. Which is why Dostoyevsky's novel is so relevant to not only understanding the events that took place in early 20th century Soviet Union but also the parallel plight of present day North America. Even prior the fifties - but most obviously since - a distorted, perverted version of liberalism has emerged in the United States and Canada and it has been inviting subversive cultural Marxist social programs and ideas to take root in academia, the mass communication industry, the art world, Hollywood, and in the political realm. Today most clearly identified in the legislative actions of the Trudeau government as he and his cabinet - acting of their own volition - play the role of submissive, gracious host. With the introduction of legislature like Bill C-16 and Motion 103 in Canada it is so blatantly obvious that it is hard to comprehend how they are getting away with it, then one remembers the liberal bleeding heart - the sentimental open door to tolerance - and any confusion quickly disappears.

We need look no further than to the society from which these socialist terms emerged in order to witness their calamitous results and Dostoyevsky doubles-down on the practical evidence with his 'fictional' work by warning of what ultimately concludes from a war fought strictly on the grounds of 'isms'. The Possessed acts as the canary to the dark, downward-spiraling, acrid tunnel of ideological thinking. As we apathetically submit to fallacious Marxist programs like political correctness, social justice, liberalism, multiculturalism, feminism, environmentalism, tolerance, and sensitivity training we are voluntarily removing our own individuality, our own rights, our own freedoms and the very values that make Western society what it has long been revered for. We are allowing ourselves to be slowly subverted into emotionless automatons by external, incorporeal forces like peer pressure and public opinion in the name of saving peoples precious feelings. Our Right to Freedom of Speech intentionally left room to offend, in fact, without it, we would never be allowed to speak to each other at all and if these post modern ideologues have their way we won't. The Freedom of the Press has intrinsically written into it the right to print that which offends those it investigates yet by turning our backs on responsible investigative journalism we are losing our ability to protect ourselves against a tyrannical society.

Where does this all end? I ask the reader to take a few moments and contemplate as this is an extremely important nexus. If our language gets diminished only to words that can't offend, what will we be left to say? It is ludicrous to think that we can placate everyone. Someone is always going to be offended, it is an inevitability. The ironic thing is that those who preach these ideologies of tolerance like political correctness and social justice will not tolerate any deviation.

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(1) Pevear, Richard (1995). Foreword to Demons (trans. Pevear and Volokhonsky). p xvii

(2) Stepan Trofimovitch Verhovensky The Key to the Possessed, dissertation for a degree of Master of Art, by Marcia Dickson Kinsey, B.A., Texas University, June 1970 pg.3

(3) The Possessed, translated by Constance Garnett, introduction, pg. 36.

(4) Ibid, pg. 7.

(5) Ibid, pg. 14.

(6) Ibid, pg. 8.

(7) The Possessed, translated by Constance Garnett, introduction, pg. 1.

(8) Stepan Trofimovitch Verhovensky The Key to the Possessed, dissertation for a degree of Master of Art, by Marcia Dickson Kinsey, B.A., Texas University, June 1970 , pg. 4

(9) Demons (trans. Maguire) p446

(10) Wikipedia, Demons, Dostoyevsky novel. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demons_(Dostoyevsky_novel)#cite_note-49