Demons

by Fyodor Dostoevsky

The town was as familiar to him as the back of his hand; but Bogoyavlenskaya Street was still quite a distance away.

He's going to Shatov oh em gee

the child screaming ‘Ba, ba’. Kirillov caught the ‘ba’ and handed it to the child, who now threw it with its own clumsy hands, and Kirillov ran to pick it up again. Finally, the ‘ba’ rolled under the wardrobe. ‘Ba, ba,’ the child shrieked. Kirillov lay flat on the floor, and stretched his hand in an attempt to retrieve the ‘ba’ from beneath the wardrobe.

Awwww :3

the child, on catching sight of him, clutched at the old woman and burst into a prolonged, baby’s wail; she carried him out immediately.

The kid saw a demon lol

‘Stavrogin?’ Kirillov said, half-raising himself from the floor, the ball in his hands, without the slightest surprise at the unexpected visit. ‘You want some tea?’

Kirillov and Stavrogin are familiar, remember.

I’ve come in hopes that you won’t refuse to be my second.’

Oh shit he asked Kirillov to be his second in the duel against Gaganov the son. It took me a second to remember 'a second' means someone who assists the gun man during a duel.

‘That’s not up to me, as you know. It’ll be when they tell me,’ he mumbled, as if somewhat burdened by the question,

Remember Kirillov's response when he's asked when he'll kill himself.

‘No, not in a future eternal life, but in eternal life right here. There are moments, you reach moments, and time suddenly stops and it will become eternal.’

So… gnostic mangodism

‘Old philosophical commonplaces, one and the same from the beginning of time,’ Stavrogin muttered with a kind of contemptuous compassion. ‘One and the same! One and the same from the beginning of time, and never any others!’

True (said by a 21st century philosophy nerd)

Man is unhappy because he doesn’t know he’s happy; that’s the only reason.

Good quote

Everything is good, everything. It’s good for all those who know that everything is good.

AH he's not having some moment of rapture. It's subjective morality bullshit

‘Anyone who teaches that all are good, he will bring about the end of the world.’ ‘The one who taught that was crucified.’ ‘He will come, and his name will be Man-God.’ ‘God-Man?’ 20 ‘Man-God, there’s a difference.’

Stavrogin is thinking of Christ. Man-god is the reverse of Christ. Kirillov isn't referring to the end-times where all the earth will be renewed - he's thinking of death.

‘If you should find out that you believe in God, then you would certainly believe; but since you don’t yet know that you believe in God, then you certainly don’t believe,’ Nikolay Vsevolodovich grinned.

HAHAHAHA very good of Stavrogin to point out his logical incoherence. Stavrogin's a tue nihilist but Kirillov is not. Kirillov is an enthusiast for chaos and nothingness which makes him absurd; he's a filibuster and revolutionist but he's not a nihilist

I bought a revolver from that no good Lyamshin with all the money I had left.

Ooh Stepan bought his gun from Lyamshin too. You know, in this part of Demons we're back in the Underground that we haven't dealt in since CNP. This Underground was also deliberately danced around and omitted in Part One

First of all, explain to me: you didn’t hit me because of my connection with your wife?’

Ok so that did happen

‘I did it because of your degradation… because of your lie. I didn’t come up to you to punish you. As I was approaching you, I didn’t know that I would hit you… I did it because you meant so much to me in my life… I…’

Awwww :( I know what Staavrogin means to Shatov. He got him back in Europe and lended him money when he most needed it. Stavrogin probably saved his life once. Nikolay's 'degradation' was him marrying Marya, which Shatov guessed, and the 'lie' was giving Lebyadkin the money which he uses to drink instead of giving it to his sister Dasha like he promised (we know from Liputin). And also probably for boinking Dasha, which ruined her chances at the stable marriage she might have gotten.

‘In America you changed your way of thinking, and after you returned to Switzerland, you wanted to disavow them. They gave you no answer, but entrusted you with taking over a printing press from someone here in Russia until it could be turned over to a person who would come to you from them.

Plot I should prolly remember

‘This Verkhovensky is the sort of little man who perhaps even now is eavesdropping on us, using his own ears or someone else’s, right here in your own entryway, perhaps.

Pyotr Verkhovensky, incidentally, has come here in order to settle their business with you once and for all, and he has full authorization to do so,

Idk if I hear respect in his tone or contempt lol. But I like how powerful Pyotr seems

for some reason they are fully convinced that you are a spy and that if you haven’t yet informed on them, then you will inform on them. Is that true?’

Aside from the printing press business this is why they wanna kill him. Makes sense.

you seem to look on me as some shining sun, and on yourself as some tiny insect by comparison.

WHAT THE SHIT 'You are the sun and I am your worm!' (Pyotr's words). Are Shatov and Pyotr somehow parallels? I would consider it. But because two of our main cast thinks of Stavrogin as some lofty creature and we the readers are even lead to see him like that, his confession at Tikhon's is made ever the more shocking.

Pyotr Verkhovensky is the only real member, and it’s very kind of him to regard himself as a mere agent of his society.

Aww so he does respect him <3 they're such cute besties

‘Verkhovensky an enthusiast?’ ‘Oh, yes. There is a point at which he stops being a buffoon and turns into… a man who’s half-demented.

Stavrogin, that point is you

the only two witnesses to the marriage, Kirillov and Pyotr Verkhovensky,

Interesting that these two know off their marriage

yes, I do almost know why I got married then, and why I’m deciding on such a “punishment”

Matryosha?

You’re the only man who could have… While I was still in America I wrote to you about this.’ ‘I remember your long letter very well.’

Remember there's a lot of business conerning Shatov and Stavrogin about America that we still don't know

you should forgive me for hitting you in the face if only because in that way I gave you the opportunity to become aware of your boundless power…

Ofc, that was the catalyst that released the initial chaos and let the reader know that almost every or every affair in the book is connected somehow to Stavrogin

destined to renew and save the world in the name of a new God, and to whom alone have been given the keys to life and the new word…

‘God-bearing' is too similar to the Greek 'Theotokos,' meaning 'God-bearer,' a title used for Mary the Mother of God. In this way, they are highly implying that they are to give birth to a new God, maybe because the old one is dead or that the old one needs to be dead and replaced, and they will renew the world and humanity will new life and the new ‘word’ - this refers to Christ: ‘In the beginning, there was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.’ It’s Kirillov’s philosophy as well. It makes sense that Shatov and Kirillov have similar ideologies, since they spent America together.

even the expression “God-bearing” people, is merely the conclusion of the conversation we had abroad more than two years ago,

Stavrogin has great influence over the most important men to the ‘society’ and of the ‘society’ - Pyotr Verkhobensky, Shatov, and Kirillov. So he is a headman even if he says he only incidentally helps them out over what is essentially boredom. And we know later that Pyotr wants to replace the ‘Russian God’ with Ivan Tsarevich, who he identifies to be Stavrogin.

Yes, I couldn’t immediately tear myself away from everything to which I had become attached since childhood — it would have been too bloody — and on which I had lavished all the ecstasies of my hopes and all the tears of my hatred… It’s hard to change gods.

GREAT QUOTE BRO

at the very same time you were trying to implant God and the motherland in my heart — at that very same time, and perhaps on the very same days, you were poisoning the heart of this unfortunate man, this maniac, Kirillov… You were validating lies and slander in him, you drove his rational faculties to the point of frenzy… Go and have a look at him now, he’s your creation…

How double-hearted these serpents are. I like the connection between Stavrogin being Kirillov's creator and Pyotr's relationship with Kirillov. Also saying that Kirillov is Stavrogin's creation makes Stavrogin sound godly because it gives him the status of being a creator of a person. But anyway, look at how ruined that creation is.

you believed that Roman Catholicism was no longer Christianity.

Every time Dostoyevsky writes about Roman Catholicsm I take a breath (he converted me back to Roman Catholicism despite hating it himself lmaooo)

‘I reduce God to an attribute of nationality?’ Shatov shouted. ‘On the contrary, I raise the people up to God.

Yes okay so this is their fundamental revolution. Shatov's whole speech - which is repeating Stavrogin's philosophies - is Man-Godism. Which, in theory and practice, will always be wrong because surprise: God is GOD and man can never be that. All attempts have lead to chaos and death: socialism, for a wide-sweeping example. The ancient Hebrews were often in grave sin waiting for their Messiah (just read the Old Testament lol), the Greeks were in constant war and in love with hedonism, and te Romans were quite similar. Not to reduce the great accomplishments these peoples achieved, but it's just to serve the point.

‘And in God? In God?’ ‘I… I will believe in God.’

Is it true that the Marquis de Sade29 could have taken lessons from you? Is it true that you seduced and debauched children?

That is true to an extent but think it's exaggerated. He debauched children but idk if there was a sex club

‘Is it true that you stated you didn’t make a distinction between the beauty of any instance of bestial carnality and a heroic deed of any kind, even the sacrifice of one’s life for humanity?

This is true; Stavrogin finds equal pleasure in both extremes. This hedonistic nihilism is what Stavrogin came to after abandoning his old ideology (the man-godism Shatov talked about and Stavrogin admitted to have held two years ago.

You got married out of a passion for inflicting torment, out of a passion for feeling the pangs of conscience, out of moral carnality.

Very important quote, and true about Stavrogin. Lmao Shatov knows him so well. Stavrogin’s ‘moral carnality’ is a gratitiuous passion for inflicting pain on the helpless - Matryosha was his victim before Marya. Honestly, I think this moral carnality is something our two serpents have in common: Pyotr’s determination for dominance in his revolution is probably also driven by this same passionate drive to inflict pain on the helpless - the desire for utopia is much more superficial than they make it seem.

‘although you are partly mistaken about the reasons for my marriage…

Partly, but he got half of it right. The other half is maybe Matryosha

‘Was it Kirillov? But he didn’t take part in…’

PARTAKE IN WHAT???? (plot - remember)

Stavrogin, why am I condemned to believe in you for all eternity? Could I really have spoken as I did with anyone else? I am a chaste man, but I was not afraid of my nakedness, because I was speaking with Stavrogin. I was not afraid to caricature a great idea with my touch, because Stavrogin was listening to me. Do you think I won’t kiss your footprints when you’ve left? I can’t tear you out of my heart, Nikolay Stavrogin!’

WHAT THHE FUCKKKK HE'S SYMBOLICALLY BOUND TO PYOTR IN HIS LOVE FOR STAVROGIN (toe-curling quote)

‘I’m sorry that I can’t love you, Shatov,’ Nikolay Vsevolodovich said coldly.

MY GOODNESS

Listen, I can put everything right: I’ll get the hare for you!’

WHat the fuck does he mean. How's he gonna get Stavrogin to have beliefs? Or does he have an incentive for Stavrogin's 'moral carnality'? (remember the hare shit)

Ah! You’re laughing, you’re afraid it might turn out to be a trick?’ But Stavrogin wasn’t laughing.

He even does that thing Verkhovensky does lol

Listen, go and see Tikhon.’

Probably remember that Nikolay told Shatov to go to Tikhon

the riverbank,

…he's visiting Marya Timofeyevna

like Martin gobblin’ up the soap,

Lol the Siberian prison lingo revived memories of Notes from a Dead House

So maybe Your Worship will be real generous-like.

He's watching Nikolay on Pyotr's orders and he's calling Nikolay 'Your Worship.' I'm gonnna assume he calls him that because of Pyotr.

Here I’m standin’ before you, sir, like before the One True One,

More reverent language

I am standin’ before you, sir, like before the One True One, waitin’ four nights already for Your Worship on this here bridge, just to show I don’t need him to find my own way with my own quiet steps.

Fedka works for Pyotr but he really just wants to delegate himself to Nikolay and is stragely keeping this from Pyotr.

he was acting strictly on his own in pushing his services on him, and was really keeping it secret from Pyotr Stepanovich.

About Fedka - remember

despite everything, Nikolay Vsevolodovich, despite everything, I’m still an independent spirit! Don’t you take away this last remaining possession from me!’

Just that Nikolay holds this family in a knot. Also Lebyadkin is alluding to Nikolay being the paterfamilias through his marriage to his sister