United States or Germany ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
They inquired particularly into the circumstance of his having a place of ambush in Marya Kondratyevna’s house at the back of Fyodor Pavlovitch’s garden to keep watch on Grushenka, and of Smerdyakov’s bringing him information. They laid particular stress on this, and noted it down.
“But perhaps it was not a case of active complicity on Smerdyakov’s part, but only of passive acquiescence; perhaps Smerdyakov was intimidated and agreed not to prevent the murder, and foreseeing that he would be blamed for letting his master be murdered, without screaming for help or resisting, he may have obtained permission from Dmitri Karamazov to get out of the way by shamming a fit—‘you may murder him as you like; it’s nothing to me.’ But as this attack of Smerdyakov’s was bound to throw the household into confusion, Dmitri Karamazov could never have agreed to such a plan.
“Yes,” answered Alyosha, who had in truth only eaten a piece of bread and drunk a glass of kvas in the Father Superior’s kitchen. “Though I should be pleased to have some hot coffee.” “Bravo, my darling! He’ll have some coffee. Does it want warming? No, it’s boiling. It’s capital coffee: Smerdyakov’s making. My Smerdyakov’s an artist at coffee and at fish patties, and at fish soup, too.
I can’t endure such questions. Who dare ask me such questions?” “Brother,” interposed Alyosha—his heart sank with terror, but he still seemed to hope to bring Ivan to reason—“how could he have told you of Smerdyakov’s death before I came, when no one knew of it and there was no time for any one to know of it?”
That’s why I threw the glass at him and it broke against his ugly face.” “Brother, calm yourself, stop!” Alyosha entreated him. “Yes, he knows how to torment one. But now Smerdyakov’s dead, he has hanged himself, and who’ll believe you alone? But yet you are going, you are going, you’ll go all the same, you’ve decided to go. What are you going for now?’ That’s awful, Alyosha.
Ivan began listening anxiously and questioned him. “But he begged me not to tell Dmitri that he had told me about him,” added Alyosha. Ivan frowned and pondered. “Are you frowning on Smerdyakov’s account?” asked Alyosha. “Yes, on his account. Damn him, I certainly did want to see Dmitri, but now there’s no need,” said Ivan reluctantly. “But are you really going so soon, brother?” “Yes.”
“And of Smerdyakov’s guilt you have no proof whatever but your brother’s word and the expression of his face?” “No, I have no other proof.” The prosecutor dropped the examination at this point. The impression left by Alyosha’s evidence on the public was most disappointing.
But we know that for the last two months he has completely shared our conviction of his brother’s guilt and did not attempt to combat that idea. But of that later. The younger brother has admitted that he has not the slightest fact to support his notion of Smerdyakov’s guilt, and has only been led to that conclusion from the prisoner’s own words and the expression of his face.
In this condition he suddenly heard of Smerdyakov’s death, and at once reflected, ‘The man is dead, I can throw the blame on him and save my brother. I have money. I will take a roll of notes and say that Smerdyakov gave them me before his death.’ You will say that was dishonorable: it’s dishonorable to slander even the dead, and even to save a brother.
All this struck Ivan instantly; he took it all in and noted it at once—most of all the look in Smerdyakov’s eyes, positively malicious, churlish and haughty. “What do you want to intrude for?” it seemed to say; “we settled everything then; why have you come again?” Ivan could scarcely control himself. “It’s hot here,” he said, still standing, and unbuttoned his overcoat.
Word Of The Day