FREE ESSAY ON CRIME AND PUNISHMENT AND INVISIBLE MAN

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT AND INVISIBLE MAN

Why Do I Exist?
Existentialism in Crime and Punishment and Invisible Man
The works of Dostoevsky and Ellison are both obvious existential novels, but they exist
on two different levels of existentialism. In Invisible Man the invisible narrator has to
deal with the enemy of a chaotic and prejudice world around him. In contrast Roskolnokov
in Crime And Punishment is his own enemy, and struggles with his two separate identities.
One which feels he is superior to ordinary men and the other which is kind, caring and
sensitive to those around him. The movie, "Erin Brockovich" also deals with
existentialism, and still on another level. She has to overcome a doomed life of being
white trash and does so by conquering a cruel and evil outside force. Existentialists are
responsible for their own actions and their own fates. While the outside world affects
their lives, these characters inevitably choose their own fates; which are all quite
different.
Invisible Man is a novel, which takes the reader through a whirlwind of surrealism. The
narrator goes on a torturous roller coaster of events, all of which confuse his opinion
of himself even more. Like Crime and Punishment, Invisible Man is a novel that takes the
main character through events that define the shape of the character's being. The
narrator gets swept away into many different identities and by making each one of those
false he comes closer to his true self. He becomes a preacher and has an affair with a
married woman almost at the same time. Falsifying these identities brings him one step
closer to finding himself. The reaction that the narrator has to different events also
establishes his position in life, his fate. Many times in Invisible Man the narrator
takes an undeserved punishment and goes about his life. When Dr. Bledsoe finds out about
him and Mr. Norton's little trip, though the narrator doesn't know it yet, he is
corrected by being kicked out of the college. When the narrator does find out about the
banishment from the college he is furious. But because of the color of his skin he can't
do much about it. Through the rest of his life he strives to find a way he can repay Dr.
Bledsoe for his great kindness, but never truly finds the right gift for him. Unlike
Roskolnikov, the narrator of Invisible Man defines himself by his fight against the
racism and cruelty of those around him. Roskolnikov, on the other hand, fights himself,
his own thoughts and theories. He has an internal enemy to defeat. The invisible narrator
is totally free and responsible for his acts of, in my opinion, cowardice and plain
laziness not to do something about the world around him. Jonathon Baumback sees the
narrator "admitting defeat by withdrawing into the mad world of the underground." As most
existentialists do, the narrator resolves to depression and despair because he feels he
is responsible for every aspect of his life. He wants no part of the outside world. The
only way he will ever resolve his hopelessness is to leave his dark, underground hole and
return to the light. "The light is the truth." And that truth is that the world can be a
cruel and heartless place, but we all have to deal with it.
Crime and Punishment is a much more obvious existential novel. Dostoevsky gives
Roskolnikov an extreme thought process. Roskolnikov's thought and ideals are what lead
him to the predicaments he gets into. As I stated earlier Roskolnikov has two separate
personalities. He struggles with them throughout the novel. His extraordinary man
theories lead him to believe that he has the right to kill some one because he is
superior to them and those he is superior to are just a nuisance to the world. Because he
is an existentialist he doesn't care about the consequences the world will give him. He
is responsible for himself. Unlike Invisible Man, the main character in Crime and
Punishment has a much more developed thought process, which makes the book a little more
interesting. He strongly believes that he has all control over his life and nothing any
one else does is going to matter to him. "He had given up attending to matters of
practical importance; he had lost all desire to do so. Nothing that any landlady could do
had real terror for him." This statement partly suggests that he is in a deep depression.
It also reinforces that he has no care of the power of those around him. He is
responsible for every aspect of his life. The other side of Roskolnikov is revealed
through his relationship with Sonia and with his mother. Roskolnikov, through these
relationships, is shown to be sensitive and loving. It is this side of his personality he
chooses to permanently convey to others. In meeting Sonia this extraordinary man is
introduced to Christian love. And through that love he finds himself. He defines himself
by the value he has through Sonia's love and the love of Christ. By confessing his crime
and serving his sentence he is ultimately redeemed. 
Though in a different time period and on a different level, "Erin Brockovich" is another
example of a much less obvious existentialist. Unlike the invisible man and Roskolnikov
she creates her own enemy to defeat, PG&E. They're a suitable opponent. They're cruel,
thoughtless and careless to poor innocent victims. Brockovich was labeled as poor white
trash and assumed that she would never be anything more. Though she had no skills for a
job she didn't let the world's rules stop her from being successful. She is an
existentialist because she goes by her own rules and is responsible for her own acts and
her own consequences. She is different from the invisible man and Rokolnikov because she
does have some idea of who she is before she starts the trial. By creating and defeating
her monster she is able to reaffirm her own strength and abilities. In doing so she
reestablishes herself in society. She finds herself by being confident and blocking those
around her from tearing her down.
Existentialism is evident in the lives of the three characters. They each go through
trials and struggle to find their true selves. The Invisible Man didn't like what he
found and decided to become a hermit. Roskolnikov found himself through Christianity and
another person's love. And in doing so became a better person. Erin Brockovich was able
to find herself through proving to others her own capabilities. Each of these works deals
with existentialism in different aspects, and each is a search for true self.