THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV: - is a novel written by Fyodor Dostoyevsky and
published in 1879-80. This book is generally considered to be his
masterpiece and probably greatest novel. Although it is the story of
Fyodor Karamazov and his sons Alyosha, Dmitry, and Ivan, it is also a
story of patricide and Dostoyevsky introduces a love-hate struggle with
psychological and spiritual implications. There persists a search for
faith, for God, throughout the novel which is the central idea of the
work. Ivan's repudiation of God's world is elucidated in the famous
"Legend of the Grand Inquisitor." There is a response to Ivan that is
contained in the preaching of the monk Zosima. It clearly states that
the secret of universal harmony is achieved not by the mind but by the
heart. Alyosha, Dostoyevsky's attempts to create a realistic Christ
figure.
The focuses on Dostoyevsky's theological and philosophical themes: the
origin of evil, the nature of freedom, and the craving for faith. While
tracing the dynamics of Ivan's guilt, the author provides a
psychological justification for Christian teaching.