Part VI - Chapter VIII Quiz — Crime and Punishment

Why has Dounia come to Sonia's room at the beginning of Part VI, Chapter VIII?

• Raskolnikov asked her to deliver a letter explaining his plan to flee the country
• She learned from Svidrigailov that Sonia knows about the crime and came to wait for Raskolnikov
• Porfiry sent her to convince Sonia to testify against Raskolnikov in court
• She came to persuade Sonia to abandon Raskolnikov before he brings shame on the family

What does Raskolnikov say when Sonia places the wooden cross around his neck?

• "I accept this burden willingly, as penance for what I have done to the innocent"
• "It's the symbol of my taking up the cross," connecting his confession to Christ's suffering
• "Keep your crosses, Sonia. Where I am going, God does not follow"
• "This is Lizaveta's cross, and I am not worthy to wear what belonged to my victim"

What does Raskolnikov do in the Hay Market square?

• He stands on a crate and publicly declares himself a murderer to the crowd
• He kneels, bows to the earth, and kisses the filthy ground with bliss and rapture
• He gives all his remaining money to beggars as an act of final restitution
• He searches the crowd for Porfiry Petrovitch before going to the police station

Who is already at the police station when Raskolnikov arrives to confess?

• Porfiry Petrovitch, who has been expecting him for days and prepared a formal interrogation
• Zametov, who nervously avoids Raskolnikov's gaze after their earlier confrontation
• Ilya Petrovitch (the Explosive Lieutenant), who happens to be there by chance
• Nikodim Fomitch, who receives Raskolnikov privately in his office

How does Raskolnikov learn about Svidrigailov's death?

• Sonia tells him before he leaves her room, having heard the news earlier that day
• He reads about it in a newspaper posted on a wall as he walks through the Hay Market
• Ilya Petrovitch mentions suicides and someone from the next room names Svidrigailov
• Porfiry sends a message to the police station informing him of the suicide

Why does Raskolnikov leave the police station the first time without confessing?

• Ilya Petrovitch recognizes signs of guilt and dismisses him before he can speak
• He is distracted by Ilya Petrovitch's chatter and shaken by news of Svidrigailov's suicide
• The station is too crowded for a private conversation about such a serious matter
• Porfiry arrives and Raskolnikov decides to confess to him privately another day instead

What sight causes Raskolnikov to go back inside the police station and confess?

• A religious icon of the Madonna hanging above the station entrance
• Sonia standing in the yard, pale and horror-stricken, looking wildly at him
• A policeman reading aloud from a wanted notice matching his description
• Razumikhin arriving with Dounia, both begging him to do the right thing

What are Raskolnikov's exact words when he finally confesses?

• "I have come to surrender myself. I committed a terrible crime and I cannot live with it any longer"
• "It was I killed the old pawnbroker woman and her sister Lizaveta with an axe and robbed them"
• "I am the one Porfiry Petrovitch has been investigating. I am guilty of the murders"
• "I murdered Alyona Ivanovna for her money, and Lizaveta because she saw me do it"

Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

In the passage "Sonia was standing in dejection, looking intently out of the window," what does "dejection" mean?

• Intense physical exhaustion from a sleepless night of worrying
• A state of low spirits, sadness, and depression
• Nervous anticipation and excitement about what is to come
• Deep concentration and focused mental attention

When the beggar chants "God bless you" in a "lachrymose voice," what does "lachrymose" mean?

• Hoarse and raspy from years of calling out to passersby
• Melodic and sing-song in the manner of a church hymn
• Tearful, mournful, or given to weeping
• Loud and demanding in a way that draws public attention

When Ilya Petrovitch uses the Latin phrase "nihil est" about Raskolnikov, what does it mean?

• "It is forbidden"—suggesting intellectual pursuits are restricted by law
• "It is nothing"—implying worldly pleasures mean nothing to an intellectual
• "It is proven"—asserting that Raskolnikov's education has been verified
• "It is eternal"—claiming that literary achievements last forever