The compelling works presented in this volume were written at distinct periods in Dostoyevsky's life, at decisive moments in his groping for a poli...
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Jan 27, 2012
karen
rated it: 
oh, dear. this is not a character that it is healthy to relate to, is it?? he is a scootch more pathetic than me, and more articulate, but his pettinesses are mine; his misanthropy is mine, his contradictions and weaknesses... i have to go hide now, i feel dirty and exposed...
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(71 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Ben
rated it: 
More than anything, this book should make you think. And not about trivial shit either, but about big, important conditions of life and how best to view and react to them. I have "should" italicized in that first sentence for a reason: If you don't give yourself time to think -- if just skim through the book quickly -- then you won't get anything out of it.
It's narrated by a guy living underground, in poverty. You are reading his notes. The first half, his ramblings, t More...
It's narrated by a guy living underground, in poverty. You are reading his notes. The first half, his ramblings, t More...
14 comments
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(36 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Alex
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Dostoevsky's Underground Man promises to be the life of any party.
Over the course of this thin little book, the unnamed protagonist swirls through self-conscious agonies and flights of egotism, never afraid to contradict himself or lay bare his own self-loathing. One part book-bound Don Quixote, and one part George Costanza, this insecure little bureaucrat rages against his lot as one of the rabblement, but is completely impotent to meaningfully exercise his will. Through the intelle More...
Over the course of this thin little book, the unnamed protagonist swirls through self-conscious agonies and flights of egotism, never afraid to contradict himself or lay bare his own self-loathing. One part book-bound Don Quixote, and one part George Costanza, this insecure little bureaucrat rages against his lot as one of the rabblement, but is completely impotent to meaningfully exercise his will. Through the intelle More...
4 comments
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(11 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
MJ
rated it:
Man on a Bench: A Roman Anecdote. i) The littlest things can drastically alter a person’s mood. ii) For example, seeing a squirrel scurry across the road and shimmy up a tree. That would improve one’s mood. Seeing a squirrel flattened by an HGV hauler—that wouldn’t improve one’s mood. iii) But I knew this man. iv) He sat on benches all day long. Sometimes he’d feed the ducks, sometimes he’d sit and observe passersby. v) I spotted him on various benches across Edinburgh. He sat with a neutral exp
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3 comments
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(8 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Jim
rated it:
"I am a sick man... I am a wicked man. An unattractive man. I think my liver hurts."
I first read Notes from Underground as a very serious college student; then in my 30s in my merry flaneur stage. Reading it a third time in Pevear and Volokhonsky's excellent translation has been a bit of a shock. What I first read as a profound existential tract now strikes me as a cartoon. Still, Dostoevsky's parody of an impoverished resentful intellectual ("a foul, obscene fly – mor More...
I first read Notes from Underground as a very serious college student; then in my 30s in my merry flaneur stage. Reading it a third time in Pevear and Volokhonsky's excellent translation has been a bit of a shock. What I first read as a profound existential tract now strikes me as a cartoon. Still, Dostoevsky's parody of an impoverished resentful intellectual ("a foul, obscene fly – mor More...
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(7 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Jonathan
rated it:
I first read this novel in college during a period of especially intense teenage intellectual angst. I don't remember why I picked it up; it was a whim. Immediately I recognized the narrator.
Dostoevsky's unnamed narrator/protagonist is intelligent, sensitive, idealistic -- and morally paralyzed. His intellect and pride, rather than freeing him from the grubbiness of society, have trapped him inside himself. He is unwilling to share his life with less thoughtful people, but this h More...
Dostoevsky's unnamed narrator/protagonist is intelligent, sensitive, idealistic -- and morally paralyzed. His intellect and pride, rather than freeing him from the grubbiness of society, have trapped him inside himself. He is unwilling to share his life with less thoughtful people, but this h More...
3 comments
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(6 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Nels
rated it:
I read this book back as a Freshman and I really enjoyed it, but I don't think I understood it much at all. For example, the second part of the book is titled "Apropos of Wet Snow" and I had no idea what "apropos of" meant, much less what the importance of the wet snow was. This time through the book I looked up apropos and learned that it's an adverb, adjective and a preposition (when used with "of"). In this case it means "concerning". As for the wet
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(5 people liked it)
Dec 30, 2009
Nate
rated it: 
1. Irritated by Underground Man.
2. Amused by Underground Man.
3. Sick of Underground Man.
4. Want to fly to Moscow, travel back in time, and punch Underground Man right in the face.
5. Pity for Underground Man.
6. Horrified by Underground Man.
7. Further reading of Underground Man's monologue almost physically painful. I almost wanted to cover my eyes, but this would have posed problems for reading.
8. Glad to be free of the Underground Man, but glad to have k
2. Amused by Underground Man.
3. Sick of Underground Man.
4. Want to fly to Moscow, travel back in time, and punch Underground Man right in the face.
5. Pity for Underground Man.
6. Horrified by Underground Man.
7. Further reading of Underground Man's monologue almost physically painful. I almost wanted to cover my eyes, but this would have posed problems for reading.
8. Glad to be free of the Underground Man, but glad to have k
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(43 people liked it)
Jan 29, 2008
Tom
rated it:
Notes from Underground is one of the most challenging little books I've read since my stint with Faulkner a few years ago. Dostoyevsky demands your complete attention. This book is no typical fun, summer read. However, if you stick with it, some of Dostoyevsky's insights into the human condition will not only make you say "that's me!" (though you probably won't admit it), they might even make you laugh.
One of the reasons this book is so difficult is due to the narrator. He More...
One of the reasons this book is so difficult is due to the narrator. He More...
16 comments
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(12 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Ingrid
rated it: 
"I am a bored girl. I am a tired girl." If you preceive that this is mockery of the way Notes from Underground opens, you are absolutely right. If Dostoevsky was trying to attain unto "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," by Dickens, he comes immeasurable short. I realize I can't appreciate living in Russia as an artist (writer) during the 19th century. But, in my opinion Dostoevsky, comes across as arrogant and trite despite his environ. NOW I'll read
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4 comments
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(4 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Nate
rated it:
August 4th 2010 - Today I wore my pockety pair of pants, the better to smuggle this book into the bathroom stall at work and read. I don't care who knows it! I'm sure Underground Man would identify.
2 comments
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(5 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Dante
rated it:
This is a novel about a man who lives in an "underground." It's a metaphorical "underground." The character is using it to describe his psychological, or existential, condition.
The book basically consists of the character's monologue. It's divided into two parts. Part one is called "Underground" and part two is called "On the occasion of wet snow."
Frankly, I didn't understand part one. I didn't understand what the character was sayi More...
The book basically consists of the character's monologue. It's divided into two parts. Part one is called "Underground" and part two is called "On the occasion of wet snow."
Frankly, I didn't understand part one. I didn't understand what the character was sayi More...
2 comments
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(4 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
محمود
rated it:
الانسان الصرصار - فيودور دستويفسكي -
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يحدث هذا الاستمتاع بسبب افراطك في إدراك انحطاطك، وشعورك بأنك قد وصلت إلى آخر الحدود وأن ذلك
رهيب، إلا أنه لا يمكن أن يكون غير ذلك، وأنه ليس في استطاعتك أن تنجو منه، وأنه ليس في استطاعتك أيضاً
أن تكون إنساناً مختلفاً، وأنه حتى إذا كان لديك شيء من الإيمان ومتسع من الوقت لتصبح إنساناً آخر، فإنك لا
تريد ذلك، وحتى إذا رغبت في ذلك، فإنك لن تفعل شيئاً منه، لأنه ربما لا يوجد في الواقع ذلك الشكل الذي تريد
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يحدث هذا الاستمتاع بسبب افراطك في إدراك انحطاطك، وشعورك بأنك قد وصلت إلى آخر الحدود وأن ذلك
رهيب، إلا أنه لا يمكن أن يكون غير ذلك، وأنه ليس في استطاعتك أن تنجو منه، وأنه ليس في استطاعتك أيضاً
أن تكون إنساناً مختلفاً، وأنه حتى إذا كان لديك شيء من الإيمان ومتسع من الوقت لتصبح إنساناً آخر، فإنك لا
تريد ذلك، وحتى إذا رغبت في ذلك، فإنك لن تفعل شيئاً منه، لأنه ربما لا يوجد في الواقع ذلك الشكل الذي تريد
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(3 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Knarik
rated it:
The first part fascinated me. Each sentance was a new and honest explanation of human feelings and behavior. Each sentance showed what a brilliant writer Dostoevsky is. The second part was a look into the brain of the madman-hero. It was dark and suffocating. Although this book is short-90 pages- it is not an easy read. This book must be read slowly, to be able to comprehend its meaning and feel its depth.
"...By the way of the most inevitable, logical combinations to reach the most r More...
"...By the way of the most inevitable, logical combinations to reach the most r More...
Jan 27, 2012
Shane
rated it:
A chilling story that managed to terrify at certain points. Dostoevsky's narrator develops a startling contempt for the world, which leads him to withdraw to the Underground. The narrator has come to believe that "to be overly conscious is a sickness, a real, thorough sickness. For man's everyday use, ordinary human consciousness would be more than enough; that is, a half, a quarter of the portion that falls to the lot of a developed man in our unfortunate nineteenth century..." As
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(3 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Knowledge Lost
rated it:
As most of you know, I really enjoy Russian literature and Notes from Underground is my first attempt at reading Fyodor Dostoyevsky. I found it a great place to start; it wasn’t very long, it was fairly easy to read and it was still as beautifully written as all the other Russian novels I’ve read. Notes from Underground is the story of a bitter isolated man (known to the world as the underground man) and his monolog about life and the problems with western philosophy. Considered by many as the f
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Aug 08, 2007
Seth
rated it:
Possibly my favorite book ever. Bitter, depressing, cynically hopefull and hopelessly ignorant, the Underground Man is every part of myself that I wish wasn't there. The first part is a dizzying philosophical meandering; the second a train wreck of a life captured in one devastating story. A must-read.
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(13 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Δx Δp ≥ ½ ħ
rated it:
dapet dg harga 2000 emas... seperti nemu harta karun ;)
Sekilas ceritanya mengingatkan saya pada The Catcher In The Rye yang sama-sama menceritakan individu yang menarik diri lingkungan sosial setelah ditolak oleh sistem sosial yang dia anggap penuh dengan kemunafikan, kepura-puraan, imitasi, dan tidak memiliki empati. Tapi ada perbedaan mendasar sih.
Dalam The Catcher In The Rye diceritakan tokohnya berupa pemuda canggung yang sedang 'menemukan jati' diri namun kemudian k More...
Sekilas ceritanya mengingatkan saya pada The Catcher In The Rye yang sama-sama menceritakan individu yang menarik diri lingkungan sosial setelah ditolak oleh sistem sosial yang dia anggap penuh dengan kemunafikan, kepura-puraan, imitasi, dan tidak memiliki empati. Tapi ada perbedaan mendasar sih.
Dalam The Catcher In The Rye diceritakan tokohnya berupa pemuda canggung yang sedang 'menemukan jati' diri namun kemudian k More...
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(2 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Elaine
rated it:
A wonderful read! And, a Russian novel that's only 130 pages long! The Pevear and Volokhonsky translation captures Dostoevsky's original marvelously (see the Intro for their comparisons with other translations and how they preserve the humour and punch of Dostoevky's Russian.
What is marvelous is that this is the first stream of consciousness novel, the clear predecessor of The Catcher in the Rye as well as the early 20th century novelists like Woolf and Joyce, who themselves acknow More...
What is marvelous is that this is the first stream of consciousness novel, the clear predecessor of The Catcher in the Rye as well as the early 20th century novelists like Woolf and Joyce, who themselves acknow More...
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Nov 30, 2008
Mike
rated it:
Before this the only Dostoevsky I had read was The Idiot, which was quite good but was also quite a bit more distanced from the reader than this. Here I can see why many consider him to be the godfather of the existentialists, as well as one of the first truly psychological authors. Apparently, Walter Kaufmann (the great translator and interpreter of Nietzsche) even described this as "the best overture for existentialism ever written." The book's narrator is an educated but poor man wh
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(5 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Tyler
rated it:
What would a bottle of vodka say if it could talk?
In this, my favorite book, the volcanic surge of a man's heart takes readers on a roller-coaster ride that yanks from one rant to the next with blinding speed and intense prose over the course of a brief 165 pages.
In it, Dostoyevsky explores the ideas and problems facing people of his day, hence all humanity. The way he does it is exceptional. The book is divided, the first part spinning the common thread of the issues at More...
In this, my favorite book, the volcanic surge of a man's heart takes readers on a roller-coaster ride that yanks from one rant to the next with blinding speed and intense prose over the course of a brief 165 pages.
In it, Dostoyevsky explores the ideas and problems facing people of his day, hence all humanity. The way he does it is exceptional. The book is divided, the first part spinning the common thread of the issues at More...
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(2 people liked it)
Feb 22, 2009
Erin
rated it:
Torments and Tormenticules: A Review of Notes from Underground
“The sauce here consisted of contradiction and suffering, of tormenting inner analysis, and all of these torments and tormenticules…”
All of Dostoevsky’s books are uncomfortable. Entering the thoughts of one of his antiheroes is like donning a hair shirt. Or perhaps that assessment is too harsh, because in spite of the discomfort there is something enjoyable about reading Dostoevsky that comes from the quick a More...
“The sauce here consisted of contradiction and suffering, of tormenting inner analysis, and all of these torments and tormenticules…”
All of Dostoevsky’s books are uncomfortable. Entering the thoughts of one of his antiheroes is like donning a hair shirt. Or perhaps that assessment is too harsh, because in spite of the discomfort there is something enjoyable about reading Dostoevsky that comes from the quick a More...
Nov 20, 2007
Scott
rated it:
I am a sick man. . . .I am a spiteful man. An unattractive man. I think that my liver hurts.
So it begins as many people know. Some might say this is a serious book, or that the main character is seriously screwed up. Some may say this book is a sad book. Some might say this is the first modernist existential book to hit the shelves. Some might think it is thin and spiteful. While I won't disagree, I will add that this book cracks me up, as in double over while chuckling. It's like a More...
So it begins as many people know. Some might say this is a serious book, or that the main character is seriously screwed up. Some may say this book is a sad book. Some might say this is the first modernist existential book to hit the shelves. Some might think it is thin and spiteful. While I won't disagree, I will add that this book cracks me up, as in double over while chuckling. It's like a More...
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(5 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Cormac
rated it:
This is THE book. It is not really a novel but a look in to the troubled mind of the genius who was Dostoevsky. The imagery is powerful and not for the faint of heart. It is a book which unnerves you psychologically. Just presses the right buttons in the places you thought were secure, bringing up deep seated emotions and insecurities which make you question your being and place in this society. In other words, scary shit. I had a bit of an anxiety attack shortly after reading this book, in comb
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Jan 22, 2008
Fred
rated it:
An amazing amount of depth packed into such a short book. It was an interesting look into the twisted mind of the Underground Man, whom at times I felt pity for, and other times related to. He was a painful social outcast, who couldn't even seem to do bad things well.
I especially enjoyed his discussions of freedom and how man could never be totally satisfied with a 'perfect life'. Even if we were to get to the point where we could determine exactly what is the most beneficial wa More...
I especially enjoyed his discussions of freedom and how man could never be totally satisfied with a 'perfect life'. Even if we were to get to the point where we could determine exactly what is the most beneficial wa More...
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(3 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Rebecca
rated it:
As a philosophy turned psychology major, I must say that when I first encountered this book in a class on Existentialism (by far my favourite branch of philosophy) it changed my life, in a million ways. I totally related to the book, in almost every way, and felt like I was reading out of my own journals. In fact, for my final paper, I DID go back through my journals almost 10 years, matching ideas, takes on life, concepts, and ways of thinking/feeling that were almost identical to those present
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Jan 27, 2012
Alex
rated it:
I read this for my Comparative Lit. class and it was my favorite book after page 2. Thanks U of I.
Dostoevsky wrote more in-depth novels after this one (his 4 "Masterpieces". But this one was the most concise and just plain ballsy. Notes from the Underground was his necessary extreme work. It created the "underground man" archetype which Dostoevsky would later use to balance out other characters in his more fleshed out novels.
If I could have a pint with an More...
Dostoevsky wrote more in-depth novels after this one (his 4 "Masterpieces". But this one was the most concise and just plain ballsy. Notes from the Underground was his necessary extreme work. It created the "underground man" archetype which Dostoevsky would later use to balance out other characters in his more fleshed out novels.
If I could have a pint with an More...
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(2 people liked it)
Jan 27, 2012
Nemesis
rated it:
“Sono un uomo malato... Sono un uomo cattivo. Un uomo sgradevole".
"“Sono un uomo malato... Sono un uomo cattivo. Un uomo sgradevole. Credo di avere mal di fegato. Del resto, non capisco un accidente del mio male e probabilmente non so di cosa soffro. Non mi curo e non mi sono mai curato, anche se rispetto la medicina e i dottori. Oltretutto sono anche estremamente superstizioso; be', almeno abbastanza da rispettare la medicina. (Sono abbastanza colto per non essere superstizi More...
"“Sono un uomo malato... Sono un uomo cattivo. Un uomo sgradevole. Credo di avere mal di fegato. Del resto, non capisco un accidente del mio male e probabilmente non so di cosa soffro. Non mi curo e non mi sono mai curato, anche se rispetto la medicina e i dottori. Oltretutto sono anche estremamente superstizioso; be', almeno abbastanza da rispettare la medicina. (Sono abbastanza colto per non essere superstizi More...
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Jan 27, 2012
"Sono un uomo malato... Sono un uomo cattivo. Un uomo sgradevole. Credo di avere mal di fegato. Del resto, non capisco un accidente del mio male e probabilmente non so di cosa soffro.[...]"
Avrò iniziato un milione di lettere così. Date un anno al sognatore delle "Notti bianche", e diventerà l'uomo del sottosuolo: perché non si sopravvive con "un intero attimo di beatitudine" come non si sopravvive con l'ultimo sorso d'acqua bevuto chissà quando. Qui c'è tutta la mal More...
Avrò iniziato un milione di lettere così. Date un anno al sognatore delle "Notti bianche", e diventerà l'uomo del sottosuolo: perché non si sopravvive con "un intero attimo di beatitudine" come non si sopravvive con l'ultimo sorso d'acqua bevuto chissà quando. Qui c'è tutta la mal More...
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