<p>If I read this, would it give me a good sense of Russian culture at that time? By culture, I meant social, religious, and political states of things...</p>
<p>I don't think you should read it for the sole purpose of learning about Russian culture, but you should read it because it's quite a good book :)</p>
<p>ditto ibprocrastinator. crime and punishment is good stuff...</p>
<p>yeah, it gives u a great idea of those aspects of Russian life</p>
<p>so... it won't give me much on russian culture and society?</p>
<p>...or it is too enjoyable for school.</p>
<p>Don't think it'll be much of an insight into Russian culture. Too enjoyable for school? If you read it for school you won't enjoy it as much, because school is an evil monster, but it is an amazing book regardless.</p>
<p>You have the effects reversed here: it takes a basic knowledge of 19th century Russian Culture to appreciate the subtler philosophical messages in Crime and Punishment (the stuff that has nothing to do with Christianity). Pushkin and Tolstoy would give more nuanced insights into Russian culture than Dostoyevsky (although I love Dostoyevsky more than either of them).</p>
<p>What's with CCers and Russian authors?</p>
<p>^What do you mean by that, proletariat?</p>