Dostoyevsky’s The Underground Man Essay

In Notes from secret, Dostoyevsky describes a character burdened with significant inner conflict over love which interferes with his ability to think rationally, prevents him from developing haunting friendships, and cause him to believe he has found true love following a sexual encounter. After being bumped by an police officer in a tavern, the Underground populace became obsessed with revenge against the officer and planned a subsequent encounter where he could bump him with his shoulder and not yield an inch, (133, 135). The Underground Man wants the officer to treat him with dignity and respect and as his equal. However, the Underground Mans inability to develop an actual relationship with the officer or even engage in a conversation with him is indicative of the Underground Mans inability to think rationally.This passage shows that the Underground Mans desperate desire for human interaction irrationally causes him to seek a negative human encounter. Instead of confronting th e officer directly, the Underground Man spends months obsessing about the officer before he finally engages in pitiful revenge that leaves him feeling like a failure. The Underground Man learns he is an unwanted guest when whiz of his former college acquaintances tells him that he has only been invited to a dinner party because he insisted on joining them and the Underground Man feels crushed and humiliated that his supposed friends tangle witht really want him at the party (153).This is another example of the Underground Man seeking friendship but his base and rude genius interferes with his objective. He becomes so concerned that his college friends are ridiculing him that he insults one of them. As a result, his friends are disgusted with him and clearly wish he would leave. Although the Underground Man believes he has fallen in love with liza and wishes to save her from a flavour of prostitution, he concludes loving means bullying and dominating which causes him to insult Li za by paying her for sex thereby treating her like a lowly prostitute (199). The Underground Mans attempt to save Liza is misguided. He does not have a better life to offer Liza.He whitethorn have additional monetary security but he lives in misery without any close human connections and his life experience is less fulfilling than most prostitutes. The Underground Man has lofty goals of saving Liza from a life of prostitution but he ends up insulting her by thrusting money into her hand as he leaves his apartment. Dostoyevskys created a desperate and lonely(prenominal) man torn apart by inner turmoil and conflict. The Underground Man sought love and friendship but ended up with tragedy, dislike and loneliness because he was unable to think rationally, he allowed his ego to interfere with his ability to create and maintain friendships and he insulted and alienated a woman who may have loved him.