/lit/ - Literature

Literally in his great novels there is always a prostitute who is the moral compass and the trigger for redemption for the protagonist.

Should I read Demons or The Idiot?

>"Desperate for more money to avoid debtors' prison and to support his brother's family, Dostoevsky gambled one more time: this time with a predatory publisher named Fyodor Stellovsky. In return for Stellovsky settling his debts of 3,000 rubles (approx. $80,000), Dostoevsky would produce a new novel within the year. If he did not meet the deadline of November 1, 1866, Dostoyevsky would lose all publishing rights to his past and future works for nine years."

>"As a friend suggested, Dostoevsky hired a stenographer named Anna Grigoryevna Snitkina, and dictated the book for her to type. Anna, despite her great admiration for his writing, had mixed feelings about him personally: “I didn't like him; he made me feel depressed.” He would often tell her that he should simply abscond to Constantinople or Jerusalem, or go all-in on roulette instead of writing. But they made it.The Gambler was completed in just 26 days and ready for submission - but the unscrupulous Stellovsky had since closed his offices and fled to the provinces. At Anna's suggestion, Dostoevsky ran to a local notary to submit his manuscript - just two hours before the deadline. The courts would later find in Dostoevsky's favor - and also win him the wager."

>"Dostoevsky married Anna a few weeks later at Trinity Cathedral in Saint Petersburg. During their honeymoon, they spent five weeks at Baden-Baden, where Dostoevsky lost all his money once again at the roulette tables. They were forced to pawn Anna's wedding ring, earrings, brooch and then finally, Dostoevsky's overcoat and Anna's lace shawl and spare frock. Not for the last time, Dostoevsky swore to Anna that he would never gamble again. They could not return to Russia for fear that Dostoevsky would be arrested at the border and sent to debtors' prison. So the two continued their tour across Europe, with almost daily trips to pawnbrokers to fund Dostoevsky's gambling."

What the fuck was his problem?

I fucking hate this guy for depicting Russia as depressing and bleak
even if he's the greatest writer that came out of here, I sincerely wished he never existed
he irresistible damage the image of Russia more than any Russians that ever existed

I broke up with my fiance a couple of days ago, right after she tried to kill herself and is in the psych ward now.

What Dostoevsky do I start with?

I read Notes from The Underground and his other short stories first in High School, never read more verbose prose with so few insights. I had searing hate for having spent the little money I had on that collection and that probably colored my opinion of Crime and Punishment.

I don't get literature culture in general. I love art. In my view art is aesthetics denouncing intention and information through symbology.

What I don't get is why something like In Search of Lost Time from Proust, which I love, is THAT much better than Diary of a Wimpy Kid, when it sometimes explores a lot of similar ideas except using a different aesthetic.

Is the value in art to be judged by how prestigious the aesthetics imply said art to be? Some SpongeBob SquarePants episodes have the same depth as a great Azimov short story except that's really far from how they're categorized.