Check out our updated Community
Brice Cantrell
Professional Teacher
Tolstoy or Dostoevsky?
Which of these two great authors do you prefer? This is a very open-ended question for sure, but I'd be curious nonetheless to read your opinions. In general I prefer Dostoevsky because of his deep psychological insights into human nature. I'd be curious too to read what native Russian speakers think. Are there particular stylistic differences that distinguish them, for example? Thanks.
Aug 26, 2016 5:50 PM
Comments · 14
As for me the whole point of literature is in "reading someone's experience". Raskolnikov may seem real, but it doesn't mean that if, for example, there was someone who killed a person, this someone would feel the same as him.
October 22, 2016
I have never seen English translations of Tolstoi or Dostoyevski, but I think the stylistic differences are really blurred in them. In the original, the difference is great: Tolstoi is "light" and "life-asserting" while Dostoyevski is more "gloomy" and difficult to read. "Anna Karenina" is one of the best books I've ever read (not only in the Russian literature).
As for Dostoyevski, I once liked a phrase of a critic: "He uses a really specific way of narration. He doesn't use as many vivid expressions as Tolstoy does, and his language is not so beautiful, but he creates the atmosphere with slight speed-ups and slow-downs, alternation of aggressive and calm speechs etc, which is not so noticeable at first". Try to read "Crime and Punishment" in English once more keeping it in mind - and it should be interesting if you notice it.
As for Dostoyevski, I once liked a phrase of a critic: "He uses a really specific way of narration. He doesn't use as many vivid expressions as Tolstoy does, and his language is not so beautiful, but he creates the atmosphere with slight speed-ups and slow-downs, alternation of aggressive and calm speechs etc, which is not so noticeable at first". Try to read "Crime and Punishment" in English once more keeping it in mind - and it should be interesting if you notice it.
August 26, 2016
BDCANTRE HELLO
I prefer Lev Tolstoy. His poems are very interesting and thoughtful. Especially I like a book about his biography which he wrote himself. But Dostoevsky wrote boring poems.Anyway I like both of them.
August 26, 2016
Why do you think that Raskolnikov's feelings described in "Crime and punishment" have a relation to the reality? I mean it's not proved that he would have the same feelings and thoughts if he was a real person.
October 20, 2016
Dostoevsky.
I still can't forget his "Crime and punishment", I think he is genius and the idea of this novel is brilliant! :)
October 20, 2016
Show More
