Student Projects :: Russian :: Swarthmore College

Dostoevsky Project: Amie Chou '14

Amie Chou
RUSS 21
Johnson
Spring 2010

Creative Capstone Project

Watch the film first! ☺ I hope it is enjoyable (or at least interesting, as it is rather creepy).

Film Abstract

The film is a visual exploration of the frame of Raskolnikov's mind after he committed murder, from the novel Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky. Although he commits the murder in the name of his idea of the "extraordinary man", his mind immediately becomes tainted by wracking guilt after killing the old pawnbroker. The film aims to capture the increasing inner torment he undergoes as he is unable to resolve his convictions of the "extraordinary man" idea with his great guilt. There is a clear disconnect between his rationality (his ideas) and spirituality (his guilt) - which results in a deep moral dilemma. Torn by this "split", his moral dilemma results in a psychological hell that drives him to delirium.

In the beginning of the film, Raskolnikov is walking in a maze of bookshelves, which represents how consumed he is by his ideas. Yet the image in tainted by a hint of red, which increases as the film goes on. This represents his feeling of guilt, which is further emphasized by flashing images of the old woman he killed, an axe, and blood. The decreasing realness of the images, which become warped, shaken, changed in colour, and ultimately, unrecognizable as rows of bookshelves, reflects his fall into delirium as he becomes more and more absorbed in psychological torment. Near the end, an image in which the bookshelves on the two sides seem to keep pushing towards a center darkness while Raskolnikov walks into the darkness also represents how his ideas traps him in his dark psychological hell.

At the end, a voice calls him out of the darkness - Sonya's. Sonya is the source of Raskolnikov's salvation at the end of the novel. Although I originally filmed all of Sonya in the last scene, I decided to cut this part out. Instead, the film fades out when Sonya's bare feet appear. I wanted the bare feet to symbolize humility. After all, Raskolnikov is only able to achieve redemption after he lets go of all his pride, his desires of wanting to be respected or even "worshipped" for his good deed (intentions).

Acknowledgments:

I thank Nicholas Allred, Elliot Weiser, Paul LaFreniere, Elizabeth Keck, and Anna Stitt for volunteering their voices, and Anna Stitt for allowing me to film her.

Image Sources

"Al jaabari massacre frame." N.d. JPG file.
"Blood Spatter." N.d. JPG file.
"Bloody axe." N.d. JPG file.
"Knitting Old Lady." N.d. JPG file.
"Resized luigiznasi wikimedia blood." N.d. JPG file.

Dostoevsky Project: Rachel Lee

Rachel Lee
RUSS 21
Johnson
5-13-10

Analysis of Interpretive Project

I had originally planned to create both Rogozhin's and Myshkin's crosses in the style of Russian icons, but decided to make one large cross instead. This large cross would better illustrate the ways in which Myshkin and Rogozhin combine to form the original ‘perfectly beautiful human being' that Dostoevsky envisioned.

The cross is divided horizontally and vertically, into what could be called Rogozhin and Myshkin territories. The lower half of the cross displays the brickwork of black-and-white bodies with green and red ‘mortars' visible through the cracks. The fragmentation of bodies ties back to Dostoevsky's descriptions of Nastasya. The orderliness of the brickwork pattern refers to Rogozhin's ability to scheme and calculate. Beneath this orderly façade, lies the suggestion of an unquenchable, fiery passion, his physical desire for Nastasya. The small amount of green visible between the bricks alludes to another of Rogozhin's greed, his desire to possess everything he wants.

The upper half of the cross, Myshkin territory, represents the spiritual half of the Dostoevsky's original idea. In this portion of the cross, there is a noticeable lack of artifice and of people. Myshkin cares deeply for the suffering of others. The emotional connections he establishes with those around him, along with the inexplicable attraction that others feel toward him, cast Myshkin as more of a spiritual than a secular being. Movement up the cross shows the transition from the passionate Rogozhin half of the cross, to nature scenes and then finally to the images of the sky that crowd around Christ's head. These images of heaven appear to rest on Christ's shoulders and concentrate around his halo.

This curious portrayal of Christ merits explanation. His head is the head of Michelangelo's David, reportedly the most beautiful man ever to have lived. The positioning of his hands is not the customary placement. They express longing, not suffering, and seem to beckon to something the spectator is unable to see. The richness of Christ's garments connect him to Rogozhin, while his slight build alludes to Myshkin's body, which at first sight indicates that he suffers from falling sickness. The small red toga lying across Christ's chest again refers to Rogozhin's passionate nature. What appears to be a skirt is intended to be the lower half of a robe, much like the robes the figures in religious icons wear. This robe is constructed from human hair, making it all the more expensive and bizarre.

Finally, the stones at the two left bottom corners serve as counterpoints to the direction in which Christ is looking. They demonstrate the opposition between the weight of sin and lightness of God's good graces. Christ looks away from the stones, which resonates with the novel's conclusion. Prince Christ could not endure the world. Thus the world will have lost its savior.