Break+it+down+now!

Robyn and Kathy.

A summary of Brothers Karamazov in four parts + epilouge.

__**PART I**__ The [|Karamazov] family is introduced in book 1. Fyodor Pavlovich is the drunken father whose firstborn son, Dmitri is given away when his first wife leaves. He is raised by the servant Grigory and then his mother’s relatives. Fyodor marries again to an orphan child who he neglects but she still gives him two sons, Ivan and Alexi. After their mother dies, the boys are taking by her benefactress who leaves them with money. They are eventually separated. When they meet later, each brother shows his individuality: Dmitri is a gambler, Ivan is reserved buy smart, and Alexi was pure and unusually likeable, soon to become a monk. The four men are brought together at the monastery by the elder Zosima. When the family visits in book 2, Fyodor is his usual brazen and brash self, which embarrasses Alyosha. However, Zosima simply tells Fyodor to stop lying to himself before leaving. Father Zosima meets some women who he tells them that redemption is love and love is God. He tells Mrs. Khokhlakov and her crippled daughter Lise to love actively and be truthful. He agrees to send Alyosha, who Lise is fond of, to visit. Zosima returns to his cell to join the crime and punishment argument with Ivan to say that conscience is the only true deterrent to crime. Dmitri finally arrives and eventually he and Fyodor argue about their debaucher, scandal, and Grushenka. Zosima ends the argument by bowing to Dmitri unexpectedly. Alyosha leaves the monastery at the bidding of Zosima. He meets Ratkin, who predicts violence in the Karamazov family. Fyodor has dinner in the monastery where he blames all his problems on the monastery and demands Alyosha to leave. Book 3 explains the servant Grigory, who desperately wanted a child. When his mutated only child dies shortly after birth, Grigory adopts Smerdyakov, who is rumored to be Fyodor’s son. Dmitri admits his love for Grushenka and how he conned Katerina into and engagement for money. He admits that he is despised with himself for his horrible treatment of her to Alyosha. We learn Smerdyakov has no likeable traits. Dmitri and Fyodor get into a fight over Grushenka, in which Fyodor is beaten. Claiming he is still afraid of Ivan the most and only trusts Alyosha, Fyodor is bandaged up. Katerina urges Grushenka to go back to a former lover, but Grushenka humiliated a fuming Katerina by returning to Dmitri. Alyosha returns to Zosima, who is about to die, where he reads a letter from Lise proclaiming her love.

  Zosima approaches death in book 4, while many wait for a miracle. At his encouraging, Alyosha returns home where Fyodor admits his fear of all of his sons, especially distrusting Ivan. Alyosha leaves for Mrs. Khoklakov’s, where he tells Lise they will marry when she is older. Katerina, who Ivan loves, declares her love for Dmitri, which causes Ivan to leave for Moscow. Alyosha leaves for the Snegiryov’s where he meets the impoverished captain and his son who bit Alyosha for trying to help him. When Alyosha attempts to give the captain money from Katerina for Dmitri’s public humiliation of him, the captain refuses. Alyosha leaves to return to the money.   Katerina is ill when Alyosha returns in book 5. He and Lise profess their love, but Mrs. Khokhlakov worries that the marriage is a bad idea. Alyosha and Ivan have dinner where they discuss [|love and God]. While both of them are willing to accept God, they do not believe he created a “perfect world” because of the rampant suffering and mistreatment of children. Ivan reads Alyosha his poem, “The Grand Inquisitor,” in which Christ merely watches the Church restricts people’s freedoms. After arguing they part with Ivan promising to never lose the will to live. Ivan meets Smerdyakov on his way home, who tells him Dmitri and Fyodor are waiting to Grushenka and her money. Ivan leaves for Moscow, leaving the past behind him.   When Father Zosima is on his deathbed in book 6 and he explains to Alyosha his conversion to Christianity due to a duel where he learned to love all creatures. He says truth is power and to love everything unconditionally. Finally Zosima dies.
 * __PART II__**

__**PART III**__ In book 7, as Zosima had died, he is prepared for his burial. Everyone continues to think some sort of miracle will take place (as Zosima was expected to be near sainthood), but he just decays in his cell. People believe there may be satanic involvement, so an exorcism is performed, but it just leads to Father Ferapont denouncing the practice of elders, all of which crushes Alyosha and his usual faith. In the next part (as much as we can decipher without reading ahead) Grushenka and Alyosha interact in a way that leaves Alyosha realizing what Zosima preached to him and that he must put it to practical use. After the last scene with Grushenka and her rejecting Dmitri’s love, now in book 8 he is searching for her because he wants to marry her. Before he can however, he must repay 3,000 roubles of debt. While desperately searching for the money, he winds up at Fyodor’s house, only to have to knock out Grigory. He then finds Grushenka and they spend the night together, but as morning rolls around, he is charged with theft and [|Fyodor’s murder]. Dmitiri contemplates suicide. As book 9 unfolds, Dmitri is taken into custody and it seems that he is quite guilty. We know he is not, but Dmitri takes blame for his past sins still. Grushenka tries to take blame for the events, as she is following Zosima’s teachings.

__**PART** **IV ** __ Book 10 is not entirely integral to the story line. It basically uses another story line to comment on how Alyosha can influence people with his faith. In book 11, Grushenka is sick, and uses Alyosha as a confidant and liason. Alyosha goes to visit Dmitri in prison, who continues to stay there as he prefers to be punished for his father's murder due to his past sinning. Ivan offers to help break Dmitri out of prison. Later, Ivan is ill, and is having meetings with Smerdyakov, who basically blames Ivan for the murder. Ivan then sees the devil and Smerdyakov kills himself. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">[|Dmitri's trial] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> is at a deadlock until Alyosha testifies on his behalf, and everyone in the room believes Dmitri should be given a chance for redemption. However, at the end of book 12, he is found guilty on all charges. <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">  **__ EPILOUGE __**  <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Katerina begs for Dmitri’s [|forgiveness] as he attempts to escape to America with Ivan’s help. Alyosha is expected to follow in Zosima’s footsteps.