The pages of my second-hand edition of Crime and Punishment are graced with illustrations by Benjamin Kopman. Kopman worked with charcoal, illustrating scenes from the narrative with dark poignancy. This style of illustration doesn’t allow for nuanced facial expressions, but it does convey the psychological darkness of Dostoevsky’s work. Whether set inside or outside, light is minimal as darkness encroaches.

The darkness of the illustrations pair well with the darkness in the heart and mind of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov. Having committed murder in the name of a Hegelian/Nietzschean idea, Crime and Punishment traces Raskolnikov’s long tortured journey toward absolution.

The most poignant scene in the novel comes when Raskolnikov confesses his crime to Sonya, an infinitely compassionate prostitute whose unfailing presence ends up driving Raskolnikov toward the light. The psychological acuity of Dostoevsky’s vision places Crime and Punishment rightfully among the most important novels of all time. I have found no better meditation on the human heart and the psychology of repentance.

Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Crime and Punishment. Translated by Constance Garnett. Random House, 1956.