Castigo e identidad narrativa en Memorias de la casa muerta, de Dostoievski

Abstract

When an individual commits a crime that goes against social order, they´re subjected to various punishments with reformation as a goal. However, as Dostoevsky demonstrates in Notes from a Dead House, far from leading to positive change, punitive action can bring a person to moral deterioration. The present investigation explores the effects of punishment in the main character of Notes from a Dead House through the concept of narrative identity, as defined by the philosopher Paul Ricoeur (1991). Therefore, this essay follows the character´s evolution from his arrival to his release from prison, identifying, through the idem and ipse identities, the personality traits that remain constant, as well as the ones that he acquires or loses, as consequence of the precarious conditions he faces during his sentence.

Keywords

• punishment
• narrative identity
• idem identity
• ipse identity