Crime and Punishment & Other Great Novels of Dostoevsky
by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Contents
Chapter 8 The Third and Last Interview with Smerdyakov
Overview
Ivan confronts the ailing Smerdyakov and learns the truth: Smerdyakov murdered Fyodor, staged evidence to implicate Dmitri, and hid the money, now returned to Ivan. He insists Ivan is the real moral author, inspired by “everything is lawful.”
Shaken yet resolute, Ivan vows to confess at the trial, briefly rescues a frozen peasant, but returns home ill and tormented.
Summary
In a rising snowstorm, Ivan hurries to Smerdyakov’s lodging, seething and unwell. He violently shoves a drunken peasant who collapses in the road, then proceeds inside, where Marya Kondratyevna warns that Smerdyakov is very ill. Ivan presses Smerdyakov about Katerina Ivanovna’s visit and the coming trial.
Smerdyakov, contemptuous and oddly calm, tells Ivan he has nothing to fear and hints Ivan knows the truth. Provoked, Ivan demands answers. Smerdyakov declares Ivan the real murderer in spirit and himself merely the instrument. He produces the hidden 3,000 roubles from his stocking, shocking Ivan into realizing Dmitri is innocent.
Smerdyakov details the crime: he feigned a fit, waited for Dmitri’s intrusion and Grigory’s collapse, lured Fyodor to open the door by imitating the agreed taps and invoking Grushenka, then struck Fyodor with the iron paper-weight. He left the torn envelope as bait, hid the cash in a hollow apple tree, and relied on Grigory’s testimony to incriminate Dmitri. He dismisses Grigory’s claim of the open door as stubborn fancy.
Pressed on motive and consent, Smerdyakov cites Ivan’s “everything is lawful” talk and the Tchermashnya departure as tacit sanction, arguing Ivan craved freedom from his father and would shield him after. Ivan, horrified yet galvanized, vows to confess everything in court tomorrow and forces Smerdyakov to come too; Smerdyakov predicts Ivan’s pride and comfort will stop him.
Smerdyakov returns the money, refusing it despite atheism, while needling Ivan’s vanity and sensuality. Ivan pockets the notes to present at trial and leaves. Outside, he rescues the senseless peasant he earlier felled, arranging care at the police station, then nearly goes to the prosecutor before deciding to reveal all tomorrow. Back home, illness and dread close in as he sits, fixated and tormented.
Who Appears
- Ivan Fyodorovich KaramazovConfronts Smerdyakov, hears the full confession, receives the 3,000 roubles, vows to confess at trial, rescues a frozen peasant, returns home ill.
- Pavel SmerdyakovIll and defiant; confesses murdering Fyodor, explains his scheme to frame Dmitri, returns the money, accuses Ivan as moral instigator.
- Fyodor Pavlovich KaramazovMurder victim; his killing is reconstructed in detail by Smerdyakov’s confession.
- Marya KondratyevnaHouseholder who admits Ivan and notes Smerdyakov’s illness; hovers nearby during the visit.
- Grigory VassilyevichServant wounded during Dmitri’s intrusion; his expected testimony factors into Smerdyakov’s framing plan.
- Drunken peasantAccidentally knocked down by Ivan; later rescued and taken to the police station at Ivan’s insistence.
- Marfa IgnatyevnaServant whose alarm helps set the discovery in motion after the murder, per Smerdyakov’s account.