Part IV - Chapter III Practice Quiz — Crime and Punishment
by Fyodor Dostoevsky — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: Part IV - Chapter III
What does Luzhin fantasize about at the opening of Part IV, Chapter III?
Marrying a poor, beautiful, helpless girl who would worship him as her savior and be slavishly grateful all her life for his condescension.
How does Luzhin plan to respond to the broken engagement?
He resolves that "the next day, the very next day, it must all be set right, smoothed over, settled," and he plans to crush Raskolnikov, whom he blames for the rupture.
What is Dounia's reaction to the broken engagement with Luzhin?
She is relieved and admits she was tempted by his money but had no idea he was "such a base man." She says nothing would have tempted her if she had seen through him earlier.
What message does Raskolnikov deliver from Svidrigailov?
Svidrigailov offers Dounia ten thousand roubles and wants to see her once in Raskolnikov's presence. He claims his passion for Dounia is a "passing infatuation."
What is Razumikhin's business proposal?
He proposes borrowing a thousand roubles from his uncle and combining it with a thousand from Dounia's inheritance to start a translation and publishing business, arguing that most publishers are bad because they "know nothing at all of what they are selling."
What does Raskolnikov announce before leaving the family?
He says "it would be better for us to part for a time" because he feels ill and "not at peace," adding ominously that "perhaps it is the last time we shall see each other."
What happens between Raskolnikov and Razumikhin in the corridor?
They stare at each other in silence in the dark corridor, and "something awful, hideous" is "suddenly understood on both sides." Razumikhin turns pale, sensing the truth about Raskolnikov's crime.
What does Luzhin value "above all" in life?
The money he had amassed by his labor and "by all sorts of devices"—money that made him "the equal of all who had been his superiors."
How does Razumikhin's role in the novel change in this chapter?
He transitions from Raskolnikov's friend to the family's protector. "From that evening Razumikhin took his place with them as a son and a brother."
How does Pulcheria Alexandrovna react to the broken engagement?
She is surprised to find she is glad, despite having thought the rupture "a terrible misfortune" that very morning. She mutters, "God has delivered us!"
What does Dounia sense about Svidrigailov after hearing Raskolnikov's report?
She whispers, almost shuddering, "He has got some terrible plan"—sensing danger that the others do not fully grasp.
Who does Luzhin identify as his most serious rival and threat?
Svidrigailov. While Luzhin dismisses Razumikhin as beneath him, "the man he really dreaded in earnest was Svidrigailov."
How does Raskolnikov's departure illustrate the theme of alienation through crime?
His crime has made normal human connection unbearable. He tells his family he must be alone and warns that if they do not let him go, "I shall begin to hate you"—showing how guilt isolates the criminal from loved ones.
What does Luzhin's character reveal about the theme of power and possession?
Luzhin treats marriage as a transaction of power. He wants a wife who is poor and helpless so she will be "completely humbled before him" with "absolute, unbounded power over her"—exposing the connection between wealth, control, and exploitation.
How does money function as a moral symbol in this chapter?
Luzhin uses money to dominate; Svidrigailov uses it to manipulate (offering ten thousand roubles); Pulcheria is calmed by having three thousand roubles; and Razumikhin proposes using money productively through honest work—each character's relationship to money reflects their moral character.
What does Raskolnikov's concern for his family's welfare before leaving suggest about his moral state?
He only departs after ensuring Razumikhin will care for his mother and sister, showing that despite his crime, his capacity for love and responsibility has not been extinguished—a sign of potential redemption.
What narrative technique does Dostoevsky use to open the chapter?
Free indirect discourse—the narrator enters Luzhin's consciousness, presenting his private thoughts about marriage, money, and social ambition as if from inside his mind, exposing his vanity without direct authorial commentary.
How does Dostoevsky use dramatic irony in this chapter?
The family discusses future plans—publishing, new lodgings, staying together—while the reader knows Raskolnikov's crime makes all of this impossible. His farewell speech, which the family interprets as illness, is loaded with the hidden meaning of his guilt.
What is the significance of the dark corridor at the chapter's end?
The physical darkness mirrors the psychological darkness being communicated. Dostoevsky uses setting as an externalization of inner states—the truth passes between Raskolnikov and Razumikhin in shadow, not in light.
What does "fatuity" mean as used to describe Luzhin's conceit?
Pointless foolishness or complacent stupidity. Dostoevsky writes that Luzhin had "a conceit to the point of fatuity," meaning his self-admiration was so extreme it bordered on idiotic delusion.
What does "aureole" mean in the context of Luzhin's social ambitions?
A golden halo or radiance surrounding a person. Luzhin imagines a charming wife "throwing an aureole round him"—casting a glow of respectability that would help his career.
What does "milksop" mean when Luzhin thinks of Raskolnikov?
A weak, ineffectual person. Luzhin dismisses Raskolnikov as a "conceited milksop" who caused the rupture, underestimating the man who orchestrated his humiliation.
Who says: "God has delivered us! God has delivered us!"?
Pulcheria Alexandrovna, Raskolnikov's mother, after the engagement with Luzhin is broken. She mutters it "half consciously, as though scarcely able to realise what had happened."
Who says: "He is insane, but not heartless. He is mad! Don't you see it? You're heartless after that!"?
Razumikhin, defending Raskolnikov to Dounia after she calls her brother a "wicked, heartless egoist" for leaving. Razumikhin insists Raskolnikov is ill, not cruel.