Crime and Punishment, Part 4, Chapter 2 summary

What happens

1. On the way to Bakaleyev’s, Raskolnikov asks Razumihin to help protect Dounia from Svidrigaïlov and questions whether his visitor is real.
2. At the meeting, Luzhin recounts accusations against Svidrigaïlov, while Dounia challenges parts of his account.
3. Raskolnikov announces Svidrigaïlov’s visit and Marfa Petrovna’s legacy of three thousand roubles to Dounia, but withholds the visitor’s proposal.
4. Dounia demands reconciliation between her brother and Luzhin, explaining that otherwise she must choose between them.
5. The dispute widens to Luzhin’s letter, his attack on an unfortunate girl, and his expectation that the women obey him.
6. Dounia dismisses Luzhin and ends the engagement; he leaves hating Raskolnikov but still imagines reconciliation is possible.

In this chapter

What to notice

Dounia makes respect the test of her engagement. Luzhin’s response helps turn her attempt at reconciliation into a decisive rejection.

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