Summary: Raskolnikov is the main character of Crime & Punishment and feels special and different from everybody else. He has the characteristics of a nihilist and considers himself above society. His belief that God gave him the power to be special and to be superhuman made him believe that he did society a favor by killing the extortionist pawnbroker, Alyona Ivanovna. In the beginning of the novel, Raskolnikov feels a sense of alienation because of his pride but as the novel unravels and develops, his sense of guilt and delusional sickness caused by the guilt causes him to feel even more isolated from society. His inability to connect with others such as Sonya is an important factor in the novel.
Raskolnikov's existentialistic views: Aside from his nihilistic views, Raskolnikov believes that he does society a favor when he eliminates Alyona. At first, he is alienated from society. Much like superman, he believes that he has the right to murder Alyona. However, after he commits the crime, his insanity unravels and he starts to drift away more and more from reality and society. Even as he has an opportunity to intimately connect with Sonya, he is unable to due to the guilt from the murder.
Elements of existentialism/alienation in Crime & Punishment: The theme of alienation is presented in Crime and Punishment through the main character – Raskolnikov - who feels that he is different from society. As he sees himself in a way superior toward the rest of the world and that everyone are just mere ponds and tools to use as he may. After he commits the murder his own guilt and conscious causes him to retreat to himself even more than before as he starts to reject everyone that is trying to help him. He soon realizes that he has completely alienated himself from society and is now regretting it as he realizes how much he loves Sonya. In the end he breaks through his alienation and is able to consider himself a normal human being for Sonya.
