“Do Not Blame Anyone...” The Suicide Note as a Trait of the Character’s Image

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Author: Liudmila I. Saraskina
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DSc in Philology, Director of Research, Department of Mass Media Arts, State Institute for Art Studies, Kozitskiy Lane 5, 125009 Moscow, Russia.

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4844-4930

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Saraskina, L.I. “‘Do Not Blame Anyone...’ The Suicide Note as a Trait of the Character’s Image.” Dostoevsky and World Culture. Philological journal, no. 1 (17), 2022, pp. 63–99. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.22455/2619-0311-2022-1-63-99
Received: 31 Jan. 2022
Published: 25 Mar. 2022
Issue: 2022 no. 1 (17)
Department: HERMENEUTICS. SLOW READING
Pages: 63-99
DOI: https://doi.org/10.22455/2619-0311-2022-1-63-99
UDK: 821.16.1.0
BBK: 83.3(2=411.2)
Keywords: Dostoevsky, Korsakova, destiny, suicide, suicide note, life instinct, will to death, farewell formulas, latecomers.
Abstract: The paper analyses the destinies of those characters in Dostoevsky’s novels who resolved to voluntarily part with their lives, committing suicide. The author tries to understand the ideological and practical motives, as well as the concomitant declarations and immediate reasons for these gestures. It is asserted that in every case the decision to annihilate oneself is taken with great effort and that life instinct persists in one’s heart till the very last instants which remain a mystery for those who stay alive. In this respect, the case of Kirillov in The Possessed is unique. The suicide notes, letters, or diaries, which self-destroyers write either in advance or during the last moments of their life, often contain the formula: “Do not blame anybody, I did it myself”. Seems these words can two different purposes. The phrase can serve as a kind of laissezpasser for people, belonging to one’s environment; however, it can be also a way to settle accounts with some of them (as in the case of Smerdyakov). Some characters in the article are categorized as “latecomers”, i.e. those who could have prevented the suicide but missed the opportunity, as did Arkady Dolgoruky with Kraft. Stavrogin could have saved Matryosha, prevented her suicide, but he did not want to and chose to stay aside and watch with curiosity. This tragic experience later made him write his confession. People close to the would-be self-destroyer usually do not perceive signals from the person who comes to bid adieu, and sometimes the preparation for suicide may be camouflaged through cunning and pretenses (Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov). The suicide message may be sent as a gesture or symbol, as it was for Matryosha or the “Meek One”. The paper is dedicated to the artist A.N. Korsakova who illustrated Dostoevsky’s works for many years and, in the end, shared the destiny of those Dostoevsky’s characters who voluntarily parted with their lives.

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