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My father only wants a scandal—he’s got his own reasons—he’s always got his own reasons.
I played one of the dirtiest tricks imaginable on him, and the moment I had done so, I suddenly couldn’t stand the sight of him.’
Summoning one's own hell.
I’m not an educated man, Alyosha, but I’ve thought about it a lot. There are so many mysteries! Man is beset by too many mysteries on this earth.
The eternal character of reality... craft's it's animals.
It’s better that I tell you the truth; of course, it’s very bad to listen at doors—I’m wrong and you’re right—but all the same I shall listen.’
"I'm bad and that's good"... abdicating responsibility.
I may not believe in an ordered world, but the tiny, sticky leaf-buds of spring are dear to me, the blue sky is dear to me, one or two people are dear to me—though for the life of me I sometimes really wonder why
You have a nature Ivan.
I want to get closer to you, Alyosha, because I have no friends, so I’d like to try. Now, try to imagine that I too, perhaps, accept God,’
Of course Ivan has no friends (Flowers for Algernon).
Let parallel lines meet and let me see it with my own eyes: I will see it and I will say that they have met, and yet at the same time I will not accept it. There, Alyosha, there you have my thesis, the essence of my being.
Disintegration = immorality?
in every person there lurks a beast, a demon of fury, whose passions are inflamed by the cries of the victim,
Strangely, this comes as such a relief.
‘I don’t want to understand anything. I want to stick to facts. I gave up trying to understand long ago. As soon as I feel I want to understand something I immediately have to renounce facts, whereas I have decided to stay true to facts…’
Infinite facts... infinite, amoral.
the blind man sees Him.
Everything works, close to Jesus.
mankind will proclaim with its voice of wisdom and science that there is no crime and consequently no sin, but only starving people. ‘Feed them, and then ask for virtue!’ That’s what they’ll write on their banner which they will raise against You and with which they will destroy Your temple.
And still we feed.
Without a firm conviction of the purpose of living, man will not consent to live and will destroy himself rather than remain on earth, though he be surrounded by bread.
And what are we building, I can barely make it out, even now.
You did not want to enslave man by a miracle,
The choice is paramount. For everything turns of choice.
we shall require them to work, but in their free time we shall devise for them a life such as a child’s game,
And reap not children.
the giants who will raise the tower will never emerge from petty rebels,
My adolescence summarised. Does your criticism serve good or evil? Do you even form the question? Will you build or only destroy?
‘I’m so unhappy that I feel ill, yet I can’t define what I want.
Yes you can, your ignoring the friend no one else can ignore.
we’re all in paradise, though we don’t want to acknowledge it; but if only we acknowledged it, there’d be paradise on earth tomorrow.’
Because then the fault would be truly and squarely yours.
each one of us is guilty of the sins of all other men.
For why did your wisdom not preclude their mistake.
It is just like a sculpture of the world, of man and of human nature, and in it everything is named and set out for all eternity. And how many mysteries are revealed and resolved?
Beyond Good and Evil.
once having taken that course everything else followed not only easily, but almost cheerfully and joyfully.’
The potential occluded by immorality.
‘I know that as soon as I’ve confessed, it’ll really be paradise. I’ve had fourteen years of hell. I want to suffer. I will accept suffering, and I will begin to live. The more one becomes entangled in a tissue of lies, the harder it is to extricate oneself.
Stop lying. Now.
As soon as I had done what I had to, I immediately felt heaven fill my soul.
Who amongst us know's this? My conscience knew.
what comes of this right to multiply one’s needs? Isolation and spiritual suicide for the rich, envy and murder for the poor,
People want responsibility, meaning, not money.
By interpreting freedom as the propagation and immediate gratification of needs, people distort their own nature,
What is freedom for? Following your heart, perhaps?
We have reached a stage at which we have surrounded ourselves with more things, but have less joy.
Cut to 150 years later.
a non-believing politician will achieve nothing in Russia, even if he is sincere at heart and a man of genius. Remember this. The people will confront the atheist and overcome him, and there will emerge a Russia united in the Orthodox faith.
What to make of this in light of Stalin?
Equality is only to be found in the spiritual dignity of man, and nowhere save in Russia will this be understood. If there are brothers, there will be brotherhood, and there will be no sharing save in brotherhood. We stand guard over the image of Christ, which will shine forth to the whole world like a precious diamond… It shall be, it shall be!
We must play the same game, the game is up to us.
Young man, do not neglect prayer. Each time you say your prayers, provided you are sincere, there will be a new spark of emotion and, along with it, a new idea, previously unknown to you, which will raise your spirits anew, and you will understand that prayer is education.
Here again, choice preceding potential. Are all those who cite reality in defence, simply praying for what they see? Do most of us pray for evil?
Some thoughts are bewildering, especially when one is confronted by the sins of people, and one asks oneself: ‘Is it better to resort to force or to rely on humility and love?’ Always say to yourself: ‘I shall conquer by humility and love.’ Having made such a decision once and for all, you’ll be able to conquer the whole world.
The sins of others summons that beast "whose passions are inflamed by the cries of the victim", at least that's how it happens in me. The solution is to choose something else? It comes down to a choice?
There is but one salvation for you. Take yourself in hand, and be answerable for the sins of all men.
Thus the sins of others will instead sadden and motivate you. The only ward against angry destruction?
see things as they really are and from then on stop raising objections.
And what if abstraction's are more real than things?
No man on this earth can sit in judgement over other men until he realizes that he too is just such a criminal as the man standing before him, and that it is precisely he, more than anyone, who is guilty of that man’s crime.
One who is guilty must repent and work to the good. Condemnation outside of this sentiment is perverse.
If you are surrounded by bad-tempered and insensitive people who do not want to listen to you, fall down before them and ask their forgiveness, for, verily, you too are to blame that they do not want to listen to you.
Take responsibility, take it all, as much as you can bear.
steer clear of the Captain, there’s no future with him.’
Does conscience sniff out the future? Potential? I had this idea of replacing GDP as the ultimate measure of a nations value. Instead use investment discounting rates: the further a culture can look and plan into the future the more valuable it is, securing a future (the future) is our shared purpose.
there may still be treasure in that soul…’
‘All my life I’ve been waiting for someone like you, I knew someone like you would come along and forgive me. I held on to the belief that, despite the fact that I’m a slut, someone would love me, and not just want me for my body!…’
A slut aches for a saint?
if only it were not for these people, if only it were not for these circumstances, if only one could flee from this place—everything would be reborn and begin anew!
It's the environment, not me! Social constructionists.
what is the point of love if it has to be watched so closely,
Don't control them: control you.
The feminist question, which is so topical nowadays, will have been resolved by then, and a new type of woman will have emerged…’
We still don't know where we are, the chaos corked by order is infinite.
My God! Those pistols! Ah, what the hell, am I his nursemaid or what?
Will no one will take responsibility for Mitya?
all he understood, and his heart was ecstatic at the thought, was that she was being kind to him, that she had ‘forgiven’ him and had allowed him to sit next to her.
The favour of the Goddess, more real than anything else.
now was the time to live… but he couldn’t live, he couldn’t, oh, what a curse!
Perhaps living is not up to you. It is you who must be up to living.
Don’t just stand there! Kiss me… harder, that’s better. Love me, love me more! From now on I’m your slave, your slave for life! It’s lovely being a slave!… Kiss me! Hurt me, torture me, do something to me… Oh, I really deserve to be tortured…
The slut now a slave begging for torture... sadism evinces masochism.
All the time I had those fifteen hundred roubles sewn up and hanging round my neck, not a day, not an hour went by but I said to myself: “You’re a thief, a thief!”
Do we all have our fifteen hundred roubles hanging round our necks?
And children playing at war and highwaymen at playtime is also, you could say, a kind of rudimentary art,
Piaget.
You need to get to know such people so that you can learn how to appreciate things, and you’ll find out a whole lot more just by mixing with them,’ Alyosha remarked enthusiastically. ‘That’s the best way for you to change.’
The confrontation with chaos...
people no longer feel the need to judge themselves. Don’t be like that, like everyone; even if you have to stand alone and are the only one who’s different, nevertheless, don’t be like that.’
Yes, I stopped judging myself, don't be like that.
One sensed that she had undergone a spiritual crisis and had emerged full of a new, tranquil, benevolent, and unwavering resolve.
Shamanism...
The main thing is, I mustn’t forget about the main thing.
Do not waver, stay moral.
‘I want to tell you about a craving I have. I want some man to abuse me—marry me and then abuse me, deceive me, go away and desert me. I don’t want to be happy!’
Lise want's some Dimitry in her Alyoshechka? Would the integration of the brothers into one end this masochism? Must we be moral, and sensual and rational to avoid torturing ourselves?
