Crime and Punishment, Part VI - Chapter I quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. How does the narrator describe Raskolnikov's mental state at the beginning of Part VI, Chapter I?

   • He is unusually clear-headed and methodical, planning his next steps with precision
   • Correct answer: He is in a fog-like state, confusing dates and events, alternating between panic and apathy
   • He is consumed by rage toward Svidrigaïlov and spends every moment plotting revenge
   • He is physically ill with fever and confined to his bed for several days straight

   The chapter opens with the narrator saying "it was as though a fog had fallen upon him" and that Raskolnikov had "mixed up incidents" and alternated between "agonies of morbid uneasiness" and "complete apathy."

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2. 2

   Question 2. What has Svidrigaïlov done for Katerina Ivanovna's children?

   • He has arranged for their uncle to take custody of all three orphans
   • Correct answer: He has placed them in suitable institutions and settled money on them for their care
   • He has sent them to live with Sonia at her lodgings with a monthly allowance
   • He has written to their relatives in the provinces to come collect them

   Svidrigaïlov tells Raskolnikov that "through certain connections" he has placed the three orphans in institutions, and that the money he settled on them made this much easier.

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3. 3

   Question 3. What cryptic advice does Svidrigaïlov give Raskolnikov on the stairs?

   • That he should leave St. Petersburg immediately before it is too late for him
   • Correct answer: That what all men need is fresh air, fresh air, more than anything
   • That he should confess his crimes to the police and throw himself on their mercy
   • That Sonia is the only person who can save him from his own destruction

   Svidrigaïlov says: "what all men need is fresh air, fresh air . . . more than anything!" This cryptic remark, coming from someone who knows Raskolnikov's secret, haunts him throughout the chapter.

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4. 4

   Question 4. How does Sonia respond to Raskolnikov after the requiem service?

   • She recoils from him and asks him to leave, unable to look at his face
   • Correct answer: She takes both his hands and lets her head sink on his shoulder without a word
   • She begs him to go to the police and confess before Porfiry comes for him
   • She gives him a cross and tells him to wear it for protection from evil

   After the service, "She took both his hands and let her head sink on his shoulder," and Raskolnikov was bewildered that "there was no trace of repugnance, no trace of disgust, no tremor in her hand."

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5. 5

   Question 5. What does Razumihin primarily come to Raskolnikov's apartment to determine?

   • Whether Raskolnikov has heard about Nikolay's confession to the murders
   • Correct answer: Whether Raskolnikov is truly mad, based on his cruel treatment of his family
   • Whether Raskolnikov is willing to reconcile with Dunya and attend her wedding
   • Whether Raskolnikov needs money and medical attention for his worsening health

   Razumihin says: "I have only come to find out once for all whether it's a fact that you are mad? . . . Only a monster or a madman could treat them as you have; so you must be mad."

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6. 6

   Question 6. What does Raskolnikov tell Razumihin about Dunya's feelings?

   • That Dunya is angry with Razumihin and never wants to see him again
   • That Dunya is engaged to Luzhin and Razumihin should accept it gracefully
   • Correct answer: That Dunya knows Razumihin loves her and perhaps already loves him in return
   • That Dunya plans to enter a convent and has given up on worldly attachments

   Raskolnikov says he told Dunya that Razumihin was "a very good, honest, and industrious man" and adds: "I didn't tell her you love her, because she knows that herself." He then says she "may love you and perhaps does love you already."

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7. 7

   Question 7. What false conclusion does Razumihin reach about Raskolnikov's secret?

   • That Raskolnikov is deeply in debt to dangerous moneylenders in St. Petersburg
   • That Raskolnikov has been recruited by a nihilist group planning an assassination
   • Correct answer: That Raskolnikov is a political conspirator on the eve of some desperate step
   • That Raskolnikov has secretly married Sonia and is ashamed to tell his family

   After leaving, Razumihin thinks: "He's a political conspirator! He must be. And he's on the eve of some desperate step, that's certain. It can only be that! And . . . and Dounia knows."

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8. 8

   Question 8. Who appears at Raskolnikov's door at the very end of the chapter?

   • Svidrigaïlov, demanding the private conversation he had previously promised
   • Sonia, who has come to beg Raskolnikov to turn himself in to the authorities
   • Correct answer: Porfiry Petrovitch, who claims he was passing by and decided to look in
   • Razumihin, who has returned after realizing Raskolnikov is not a political conspirator

   Raskolnikov opens his door and "stumbled upon Porfiry himself in the passage." Porfiry says: "I've been meaning to look in a long time; I was passing by and thought why not go in for five minutes."

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of the following events actually occurs in Part VI, Chapter I?

   • Correct answer: Raskolnikov wakes before daybreak lying on the ground under bushes on Krestovsky Island
   • Raskolnikov visits Porfiry's office to ask about the status of the murder investigation
   • Svidrigaïlov directly confronts Raskolnikov about overhearing his confession to Sonia
   • Razumihin tells Raskolnikov that Dunya has decided to leave St. Petersburg permanently

   The text states: "That night he woke up before morning among some bushes in Krestovsky Island, trembling all over with fever; he walked home, and it was early morning when he arrived." The other events do not occur in this chapter.

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10. 10

    Question 10. Which of the following does NOT happen in this chapter?

    • Raskolnikov attends Katerina Ivanovna's requiem service in Sonia's room
    • Razumihin reports that Pulcheria Alexandrovna has fallen ill with a fever
    • Correct answer: Raskolnikov confesses the murders directly to Razumihin during their conversation
    • Razumihin reveals that the painter Nikolay has confessed to the pawnbroker's murder

    Raskolnikov never confesses to Razumihin. He keeps his secret, and Razumihin even misinterprets Raskolnikov's mysterious behavior as evidence of political conspiracy. All the other events do occur in the chapter.

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11. 11

    Question 11. In the passage "It was the furthest limit of self-abnegation, at least so he interpreted it," what does "self-abnegation" mean?

    • Self-pity and emotional collapse in the face of overwhelming grief
    • Correct answer: The denial or sacrifice of one's own interests; extreme selflessness
    • A deliberate act of deception designed to manipulate another person
    • Religious devotion expressed through prayer and ritualistic behavior

    Self-abnegation means the renunciation of one's own desires and interests. Raskolnikov is amazed that Sonia shows no disgust toward him, interpreting her silent embrace as the ultimate selfless acceptance.

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12. 12

    Question 12. When the narrator says Raskolnikov and Svidrigaïlov were "tacitly agreed not to speak of it," what does "tacitly" mean?

    • Reluctantly and with visible discomfort during their encounters
    • Correct answer: Understood or implied without being directly stated in words
    • Formally and explicitly through a written agreement between them
    • Temporarily and provisionally until a better arrangement could be found

    Tacitly means understood without being openly expressed. They never discussed their agreement to avoid the subject of Raskolnikov's confession—it was simply understood between them.

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13. 13

    Question 13. In "So a man will sometimes go through half an hour of mortal terror with a brigand," what is a "brigand"?

    • A military officer who enforces martial law in times of crisis
    • A judge or magistrate who presides over criminal court proceedings
    • Correct answer: A bandit or robber, especially one operating outside the law
    • A prison guard responsible for transporting dangerous criminals

    A brigand is a bandit or outlaw robber. Dostoevsky uses this metaphor to describe how Raskolnikov, after long dread of Porfiry, paradoxically feels calm when the investigator finally appears at his door.

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