Victor Terras

The title is an ironic reference to the central character of the novel, Prince Lev Nikolayevich Myshkin, a young man whose goodness, open-hearted simplicity and guilelessness lead many of the more worldly characters he encounters to mistakenly assume that he lacks intelligence and insight. In the character of Prince Myshkin, Dostoevsky set himself the task of depicting "the positively good and beautiful man." The novel examines the consequences of placing such a singular individual at the centre of the conflicts, desires, passions and egoism of worldly society, both for the man himself and for those with whom he becomes involved.

The Idiot, an Interpretation

Life, Work, and Criticism

F.M. Dostoevsky

Admirers have praised Fedor Dostoevsky as the Russian Shakespeare, while his critics have slighted his novels as merely cheap amusements. In this critical introduction to Dostoevsky's fiction, Victor Terras asks readers to draw their own conclusions about the 19th-century Russian writer. Discussing psychological, political, mythical and philosophical approaches, Terras deftly guides readers through the range of diverse and even contradictory interpretations of Dostoevsky's rich novels.

Reading Dostoevsky

The text of "The Brothers Karamazov" is removed from English-speaking readers today not only by time but also by linguistic and cultural boundaries. Victor Terras' s companion work provides readers with a richer understanding of the Dostoevsky novel as the expression of a philosophy and a work of art. In his introduction, Terras outlines the genesis, main ideas, and structural peculiarities of the novel as well as Dostoevsky' s political, philosophical, and aesthetic stance. The detailed commentary takes the reader through the novel, clarifying aspects of Russian life, the novel' s sociopolitical background, and a number of polemic issues. Terras identifies and explains hundreds of literary and biblical quotations and allusions. He discusses symbols, recurrent images, and structural stylistic patterns, including those lost in English translation.

Commentary on the Genesis, Language, and Style of Dostoevsky's Novel

A Karamazov Companion

Provides in-depth analysis of the life, works, career, and critical importance of Vladimir Mayakovsky.

Vladimir Mayakovsky

Ladislav Matejka

Anna M. Cienciala

American Contributions: Literature and folklore, edited by Victor Terras

Henrik Birnbaum

Zagreb and Ljubljana, September 3-9, 1978. Literature

American Contributions to the Eighth International Congress of Slavists

Profiles the careers of Russian authors, scholars, and critics and discusses the history of the Russian treatment of literary genres such as drama, fiction, and essays

Handbook of Russian Literature

Surveys Russian literature from the eleventh century to the present, set within the context of political, social, religious, and philisophical developments

A History of Russian Literature

The text of The Brothers Karamazov is removed from English-speaking readers today not only by time but also by linguistic and cultural boundaries. Victor Terras’s companion work provides readers with a richer understanding of the Dostoevsky novel as the expression of a philosophy and a work of art. In his introduction, Terras outlines the genesis, main ideas, and structural peculiarities of the novel as well as Dostoevsky’s political, philosophical, and aesthetic stance. The detailed commentary takes the reader through the novel, clarifying aspects of Russian life, the novel’s sociopolitical background, and a number of polemic issues. Terras identifies and explains hundreds of literary and biblical quotations and allusions. He discusses symbols, recurrent images, and structural stylistic patterns, including those lost in English translation.

Victor Terras

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