'She enjoyed her own pain by this egoism of suffering, if I may so express it. This aggravation of suffering and this rebelling in it I could understand; it is the enjoyment of man, of the insulted and injured, oppressed by destiny, and smarting under the sense of its injustice.'
One of Dostoyevsky's lesser-known works, and yet a popular novel for film adaptations across the globe, Humiliated and Insulted is powerful exploration of trauma, love and endurance.
Narrated by a struggling young writer, Ivan Petrovich, who bears a resemblance to Dostoyevsky himself, Humiliated and Insulted centres on two families whose lives have been thrown into chaos by pride and manipulation. When the innocent yet naïve Natasha defies her parents' wishes for the sake of love, she is left vulnerable to the ruthless scheming of her new lover's father, Prince Valkovsky. Alyosha, Natasha's beau, is well-intentioned yet dim-witted, and is easily swayed by his father's influence – leading to a devastating sequence of events that leaves Natasha emotionally crushed. But it is only when she crosses paths with the extraordinary yet deeply troubled Nellie, that Natasha discovers the full picture of Valkovsky's malicious character. Gripping, profoundly moving and meticulously crafted, Humiliated and Insulted is an affecting tale of cruelty, corruption as well as compassion against all odds.
Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821 – 1881) was a Russian novelist, journalist and philosopher. Famed for his masterpieces Crime and Punishment, The Idiot and The Adolescent, his works are characterised by profound psychological insight and existentialist exploration. Today, he is regarded as one of the greatest novelists of all time.
