Themes

1. Alienation from society - Raskolnikov’s pride seperates him from society. He believes he is superior to everyone and so cannot relate to anyone.  Through the story his seperation increases the guilt of his murders, which leads him to push away the people trying to help him.
2. Crime and Punishment - Raskolnikov’s Crime happened early in the book, and the punishment did not come until the end of the book. The story focuses on how the murder forces Raskolnikov to deal with the tormenting guilt and mental torment.. But through the story he talks little on the imprisonment. The author suggests that the actual punishment is much less terrible than the stress and anxiety of trying to avoid the punishment.  Dostoevsky spent the big part of the book telling of how Raskolnikov was affected by the result of murder. He was tormented by guilt and it isolated him from people trying to help him.  
3. Loneliness - Rasolnikov through the whole book is alone. He does not realize it at first but he needs people for support. He pushes away the one thing that he needs, which puts him into a lonely position.
4. Hardships - Rasolnikov   is in a time of deep poverty and troubles. A place filled with violence and abuse. Evryone has to share it and deal with it and most people get over it by going to the tavern and drinking.   
5. Guilt -   Rasolnikov had the problem through out the whole story of dealing with the guilt of his crime. His actions just tore him apart and changed him as a person.           

                

Allusion

1. "Why am I to be pitied, you say? Yes! There's nothing to pity me for! I ought to be crucified, crucified on a cross, not pitied! Crucify me, oh judge, crucify me but pity me?" (Part 1, Chapter 2). Refers to Jesus Christ, for he was crucified.
2. “I wanted to make myself a Napoleon,” states Raskolnikov, “and that is why I killed her.” His is murder of the pawnbroker serves for him two purposes: to prove he is above the law, and to establish the truth of his superiority.  Napoleon was the Emperor of France and one of the greatest military commanders ever.
3. "Bitter is the ascent to Golgotha" (Part 1, Chapter 4). Golgotha is the biblical place where christ was crucified.
4.  "I did not bow down to you, I bowed down to all the suffering of humanity" (Part 4, Chapter 4). Exodus 20:5
5. Allusion to Lazarus: "And he that was dead came forth" (Part 4, Chapter 4). compares the death and rebirth of Raskalnikov's psyche to the story of the resurrection of Lazarus.

Archetypes

• protagonist-Raskolnikov, he saved some kids from a burning building. He also has compassion toward people like Marmeladov and Katerina. The very root of Raskolnikov is "raskol," which means "schism" or "split."
• antagonists-Raskolnikov, he antagonizes Svidrigaïlov and Luzhin. He certainly acts as antagonist toward Alyona the pawnbroker and Lizaveta, though, in the case of Lizaveta, he wants to help her, but ends up hurting her. He's mean and scary. He's trying too hard to do the right thing, in a very misguided way, and is nice to many people. In that way, he's rather weak as an antagonist. Razumihin tells Dounia and Pulcheria, "It's as though he were alternating between two characters" (Part 3, Chapter 2)
• The ax, which Raskolnikov uses to commit the murders, symbolizes the two halves of Raskolnikov's nature. "I want to attempt a thing like that and am ... frightened by these trifles," Raskolnikov thought, with an odd smile. (part 1, Chapter 5) This one of the first things we hear about the idea of his crime.
• The homes that they live in symbolize violence, abuse, and imprisonment. "Raskolnikov was hopelessly in debt to his landlady, and was afraid of meeting her." (Part 1, Chapter 1) He has a fear for his landlady.
• Drugs and alcohol, It is a big problem through this book. A lot of people spend there time at the tavern as a past time. Spending time there and getting drunk is an easy way to forget things like poverty and your life. "I drink so that I may suffer twice as much!" (Part 1, Chapter 2) He realizes that drinking only helps for a short time until you wake up from it.

About

The story of Crime and Punishment follows Raskolnikov and how he commited the crime of murder.  He over hears some people talking about how better off they would be if the pawn broker was gone, and he also heard how she would be alone the next night so Raskolnikov decided to murder her, and when he did her sister walked in while looking for money and he ended up killing her to. It goes on to telling of how the guilt got to him and the regret. Another result was isolation from his family, who were trying to help him. The big question through the book is what is the greater punishment, the anticipation of your imprisonment or the constant regret and mental torment you get just when the murder is mentioned.

Figurative language

• "He stopped short and was still as death. But all was quiet, so it must have been his fancy."  (Part 1, Chapter 7).
• "All at once he heard distinctly a faint cry, as though some one had uttered a low broken moan"  (Part 1, Chapter 7).
• "it is as if he had two separate personalities, each dominating him alternately" (Part 3, Chapter 2).
• "while the direction of the actions is deranged and dependent on various morbid impressions--it's like a dream" (Part 3, Chapter 3).
• "I did not care a damn whether I would spend the rest of my life like a spider catching them all in my web and sucking the living juices out of them" (Part 5, Chapter 4)
• "Which all men shed," he put in almost frantically, "which flows and has always flowed in streams, which is spilt like champagne" (Part 6, Chapter 7).
• "His legs felt suddenly weak, a cold shiver ran down his spine, and his heart seemed to stand still for a moment, then suddenly began throbbing as though it were set free" (Part 3, Chapter 6).
• "Raskolnikov’s burning and intent eyes grew more penetrating every moment, piercing into his soul, into his consciousness" (Part 4, Chapter 3).
• "Seven years, only seven years...seven years as though they were seven days" (Epilogue 2).
• "tears stood in their eyes" (Epilogue 2).
• "What you need now is fresh air, fresh air, fresh air!" (Part 6, Chapter 2).
• "...everlasting darkness, everlasting solitude, everlasting tempest around him...Only to live, to live and live! Life, whatever it may be!...vile creature!...And vile is he who calls him vile for that" (Part 2, Chapter 6).
• "At one minute she is worrying like a child" (Part 4, Chapter 4)
• "His garret was inder the roof of a high, five storied house, and was more like a cupboard than a room." (Part 1, Chapter 1)
• "And it seemed to him all at once that he was turned to stone, that it was like a dream in which one is being pursued" (Part 1, Chapter 7)