Demons

by Fyodor Dostoevsky

honour and the great principle of independence?

“If you want to conquer the entire world, conquer yourself” —

all of nature at every moment cries out to its creator: “Why?” And for seven thousand years now it has received no answer.

But anyway, what does that mean: “you did your very best”? Why, that’s a reproach.

The poor lady immediately became the plaything of all sorts of different kinds of influences, while at the same time imagining herself to be entirely original.

Such a complete and utter ignorance of everyday reality was both moving and somehow disgusting.

It always seemed to me that you would carry me off to some place where a huge evil spider as big as a man lives, and we would spend our entire lives looking at him and being afraid of him.

Of course, the struggle for existence1 goes on everywhere, and there is no other principle, everyone knows that, but still and all…

‘Listen to a great idea. There was a certain day on earth, and in the centre of the earth stood three crosses. One man on a cross believed to such an extent that he said to another: “Today you will be with me in paradise.” 3 The day ended, both died, they went and they found nothing — neither paradise nor resurrection. What had been said proved unjustified. Listen: this man was the highest on the entire earth, he comprised that which allowed it to live. The entire planet, with everything on it, is nothing but madness without that man. There has never been one like Him, either before or after, even by virtue of a miracle. The miracle is that there never has been nor will there be another such man, ever. And if that’s so, if the laws of nature didn’t spare even This One, didn’t even spare his miracle, but compelled even Him to live amidst a lie and to die for a lie, then it follows that the entire planet is a lie and rests on a lie and on a stupid joke. It follows that the very laws of the planet are a lie and a farce put on by the Devil. What’s there to live for, answer me, if you are a man?’