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Abstract:

The article analyzes essays written by students at Moscow State Linguistic University about Mikhail Shemyakin’s exhibit in Dostoevsky’s House-Museum in Moscow, presenting a series of graphic illustrations for the novel Crime and Punishment. The exhibit, titled “Raskolnikov’s Delusions,” reflects the dreamlike content of the novel. The aesthetic reactions of contemporary students are considered here as a significant example of receptive polyphony. In their feedback, the students draw connections between the artist’s visual interpretations and their prior encounters with Crime and Punishment during their school studies, admitting that the exhibition revealed the text from a new, unexpected perspective, which confirms the idea that the perception of a classic work deepens through its figurative visualization. Immersed in the inner world of the novel Crime and Punishment, the students paid attention to key paintings, such as the first and last illustrations, which frame the entire exhibition. Here Shemyakin conveyed the main idea of Dostoevsky’s text — resurrection — which was emphasized in many reviews. The association between non-verbal and literary texts undoubtedly affected students’ attention to details. For example, the symbolic light emanating from the pages of the Gospel in the hands of Sonya Marmeladova, along with the figure of Lazarus, was noted as important. A careful contemplation of Shemyakin’s illustrations led the students to a deeper understanding of the meaning of Dostoevsky’s novel. Their essays testify that, despite differences in opinions and assessments, the attitude of modern youth towards Dostoevsky’s work, refracted through the art of Shemyakin, generally corresponds to the “spectrum of adequacy” in contemporary readings of the novel Crime and Punishment in the 21st century.

Keywords: Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Mikhail Shemyakin, illustrations, reception.