Crime and Punishment, Part 3, Chapter 6 summary

What happens

1. Raskolnikov explains Porfiry’s possible trap about the painters, while Razumihin protests against the suspicions and promises to confront him.
2. Raskolnikov leaves Razumihin and searches the hiding place beneath his wallpaper, fearing that some incriminating scrap remains.
3. An unknown man asks about Raskolnikov, calls him a murderer, and walks away without explaining his accusation.
4. Back home, Raskolnikov pretends to sleep, then bitterly examines his crime, his weakness, and his feelings toward his family.
5. He dreams that the old pawnbroker laughs despite his axe blows while silent crowds block his escape.
6. He wakes to find a stranger waiting beside him, who introduces himself as Arkady Ivanovitch Svidrigaïlov.

In this chapter

What to notice

Raskolnikov frames the murder as a test of his ability to cross a moral boundary. His surrounding thoughts expose his distress at failing that test.

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