Rereading Brother’s Karamazov, I can’t help but think of the three brothers as one man contemplating patricide, where Dostoyevsky is making a comment on the direction of the soul of the Russian, both the individual, but perhaps more so the nation more broadly.

Fydor’s 3 sons of 2 mothers. The first born, Dimitri, the most like himself, and the overall protagonist. Ivan and Aloysha, both born of the second wife, representing 2 paths for Russia, the way of the West or the way of the East, where the west is a combination of Roman Catholicism, Jesuits, and atheistic thoughts, which for him are all related, and the East the way of the Russian orthodox christianity.

Then, there is Smerdyakov. Ambiguously set up as possibly the bastard child of Fydor, or perhaps a criminal rogue. He represents the true atheist. No father, no god, no morals beyond self-preservation.

Dimitiri and Alyosha are like the traditional image of the man with the devil on one shoulder and the angel on the other. Dimitri aspires to be good, but willingly gives into his pleasure seeking while knowing what is good for him he does it anyway. Alyosha is contrasted as the moral striver first, acknowledging his inner Karamazov, yet striving first to serve others in active love.

Ivan is the intellectual. Publishing against separation of church and state, stating the church should absorb the state, and should look after the souls of the incapable with his publications on justice for the criminal and more famously the grand inquisitor. Yet, his intellect, though he denies god 3 times, like Peter, after the telling of the Grand Inquisitor and also after his dialogue with Fydor and Smerdakov, despite his denial of God’s existence, his intellect is perhaps largely based on a lie and his heart is one that can be converted.

Smerdyakov as Ivan’s shadow, striped of all the reasoning, and the true atheist just as likely to burn down the city as he is to go to Jerusalem to save his soul, contemplating and not thinking about anything, worried only about his self, and perhaps not of the same origin, but of a criminal origin. One who’s been caught multiple times torturing animals. All characters being capable of evil, but Smerdyakov having both a lack of morals, and also a lack of motivation. When he is first introduced, it is that he does not steal, not motivated by money, and returning crumpled notes he never would have been caught for keeping, and also not at all interested in marriage, rather getting upset at the idea of marriage. He is a cook, trained in Moscow.

It is Smerdyakov who suggest Ivan leave town after revealing all the details necessary to result in the murder of the Fydor. Ivan still has some morals, despite talking about dashing the cup to the ground, and not believing in God, he still thinks about justice for the criminal, and is truly full of hatred for Smerdyakov. Ivan has an inner hatred and does not want to talk with him, but finds himself surprised listening to Smerdyakov as he begins to unfold his plan for having a fit of epilepsy so as not to be harmed. An who does Smerdyakov hate the most, Fydor. Perhaps his father, perhaps not. Allowed to exist.

I think what we see is a man whose passions steer him away from active love, the traditional story of man, but we also see that same man use the intellect of the West, in Dostoy’s point of view, to rationalize abandoning God, though truly unable to because he is still moral at heart, and because this intellect is built on the lie that the Church and be also The State, this man is in for a world of suffering and continued conflict. Peter denies Christ and yet becomes a most honored disciple. Judas denies Christ and hangs himself. I’m not sure here is Dimiti is the Peter and Ivan the Judas, or if Dimitri Ivan and Alyosha are the Peter and Smerdyakov the Judas. Or if the Judas, betraying Christ with a kiss, can still be converted whereas Smerdyakov is the Devil himself and also a non real person who is the Ivan striped of all his intellect founded upon the third temptation of the Devil.