What is hell? I maintain that it is the suffering of being unable to love.

Regarded as Fyodor Dostoevsky’s magnum opus, The Brothers Karamazov tells the tale of the three Karamazov brothers, set against the backdrop of a murder mystery. While the murder serves as the narrative’s engine to keep the story moving, the true essence of the novel lies in its exploration of the profound questions that preoccupied 19th-century Russian society.

The novel strikes a balance in giving each brother a distinct personality. As Professor Michael Sugrue points out, the three brothers reflect Plato’s myth of the medals from The Republic. Ivan, analytical and rational, embodies the gold. Alexei, mystical and spiritual, represents the silver. Dmitri, driven by his primal desires, showcases the bronze. At times, the brothers feel more like personifications of ideas than fully fleshed-out people, despite their vibrant and often captivating dialogues. Dmitri’s chaotic motives and interactions, in particular, felt like an extended cut of Uncut Gems—constantly teetering on the edge of disaster.

While there is virtually no plot for a good chunk of the book, every interaction opens the door to philosophical debates from the brothers and theological discussions between opposing beliefs. While the messiness of this book got to me at numerous points, there are passages that I would regard as some of the greatest I’ve ever read. There’s a passage where the elder Zossima shares his life philosophy of love on his deathbed. There’s an incredible poem from Ivan called the Grand Inquisitor where the pope interacts with the reincarnated Christ. In a later section, Ivan has a conversation with the devil. In many of these instances, Dostoevsky pushes disturbing religious ideas that took apart my theist beliefs and jumbled them, in a way that indicates that Dostoevsky himself had to clean these dark corners of his mind.

While my initial reaction of this book was bleak, the epilogue leaves a trail of hope. In its closing moments, Dostoevsky presents a lesson in resilience and love, suggesting that even amid misery and torment, there is always a path to redemption.

Overall Rating: 8/10