I've often stated that one of the key reasons I'm fond of Dostoyevsky's writing is that he seems to describe my own psyche, inner conflicts, and turmoils: he is a man who seems to have peered into my soul and then went to tell the world.
With this holding true, time and time again, I come across quotes like the following, and yes I can relate to the feelings, but...I'm not proud of that. It almost hurts to see oneself in such dismal, yet perfectly true, descriptions of mind. Again, here are just a couple examples; there are many more like them.
A profound and constant awareness of his own mediocrity, and a concomitant overwhelming desire to convince himself that he was a man of supremely independent mind, had rankled in his soul ever since he was a boy.Indeed, these quotes are just a random sampling from one book, The Idiot. I have right now avoided writing more-- Yes, many I came across even this morning I dare not type here. And that's the amazing aspect to it! Posted by jeremy stock at November 3, 2001 08:34 AMHe was a young man of envious and impulsive desires, apparently born with overwrought nerves.
I am a scoundrel, yes; But I am not a thief!
...but his words were remarkably incoherent. He was obviously shaken and bemused by something utterly beyond his comprehension.
His vanity must be even greater than his greed.
I can see now that you shouldn't be regarded as a wicked man, nor even a very corrupt one. I believe you are the most ordinary man that ever was, except for being very weak and not having a grain of originality.