Human Behaviour Lesson from reading Dostoevsky (Part 9)
This is the 9th part of this series. Cool, isn’t it?
When people talk about quality over quantity, I always remember Dostoevsky. He didn’t write many books, but what he did write changed the world.
Dostoevsky’s writing delves deep into the human psyche—particularly the inner world of men. However, he somewhat lagged behind in understanding female psychology. Gabriel García Márquez, in my opinion, excelled in that area.
Did you know that Dostoevsky had planned to write a second part to The Brothers Karamazov?
In the first part, there are three brothers: Ivan, Alyosha, and Dmitri, along with an illegitimate fourth, Smerdyakov (the name may vary depending on the English translation from Russian).
At the end of the book, Alyosha seems to triumph—thanks to his purity of soul. (Spoiler!)
However, Dostoevsky intended to show in Part 2 how even Alyosha would eventually face corruption. But before he could write this continuation, he passed away—and we will never know what he might have revealed.
Interestingly, the original working title for The Brothers Karamazov was “The Life of a Great Sinner.”
Cool fact! I’m feeling like the great Shealdon Cooper..
Now come back to the series, here are again 10 human behaviour lessons from Dov ( yes, you read it. I call him Dov, like he is my buddy, surprisingly who has no clue I exist).
1. Poverty dehumanizes, yet reveals dignity.
Story: In Poor Folk, Makar Devushkin feels humiliated by his poverty, yet his letters show deep humanity and tenderness.
Memory Hook: A crushed flower still releasing fragrance.
Example: Homeless people are often treated as “invisible,” yet many show profound kindness in small acts (sharing food, protecting each other).
Mahatma Gandhi said, “Poverty is the worst form of violence,” yet lived with unshakeable dignity, turning humility into strength. Lived in radical simplicity — not to glamorize poverty, but to stand in solidarity with the poor.
In the movie Parasite, the movie explores both the humiliation of poverty and the ingenuity and survival it cultivates — until dignity clashes violently with injustice.
2. Society exploits the weak.
Story: The pawnbroker in Crime and Punishment profits from the desperation of the poor.
Memory Hook: A vulture circling the weakest animals.
Example: Predatory lending & payday loans. Entire industries profit from the inability of the poor to escape debt. Target the most vulnerable communities. (credit card).
Offer short-term help with long-term crippling consequences
In Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, the poor are preyed upon — not by monsters, but by institutions. Orphaned children are used for labor and crime by adults.
In the movie Slumdog Millionaire, Children in poverty are exploited by criminals, society, and even game shows — every system turns their suffering into profit.
3. Pride intensifies in poverty.
Story: Raskolnikov refuses help from others, even when starving, because his pride cannot bear dependence.
Memory Hook: A beggar refusing bread to stand tall.
Example: People living in poverty sometimes reject charity, choosing hunger over humiliation. Elderly people or working poor refuse aid. They may endure silently — because asking feels like surrender. Many people in poverty decline charity or assistance, fearing it signals failure or invites humiliation.
Gregor Samsa in The Metamorphosis, even as an insect, hides under the couch, ashamed of being seen, still clinging to a human sense of pride.
4. Humiliation poisons souls.
Story: Marmeladov, Sonia’s father, drinks himself to ruin, drowning in the humiliation of failure.
Memory Hook: A man sinking in mud while clutching an empty bottle.
Example: Someone losing a job may spiral into alcoholism or addiction — not just from loss, but from shame. Many people fall into addiction or suicide, not from material loss, but from the emotional collapse of being publicly or privately humiliated.
In Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert, Emma’s sense of humiliation over her dull life drives her into affairs, debt, and ultimately suicide. In the movie Leaving Las Vegas, A man drinks himself to death after losing everything — not just because of pain, but because of shame that becomes identity.
5. Corruption seeps into all classes.
Story: Fyodor Karamazov is wealthy but corrupt, while poor characters also fall into vice — no class is immune.
Memory Hook: A poisoned river flowing through rich and poor houses alike.
Example: Scandals across society: Petty theft, domestic abuse, and crime in impoverished communities. Financial fraud (Wall Street, politicians). Abuse scandals in religious or educational institutions.
In Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, Pip is corrupted by his rise in status, while Magwitch — the convict — shows depth and redemption. In the movie The Godfather, Crime and corruption climb the social ladder, not just emerge from poverty. Power and moral rot spread from the streets to the boardrooms.
6. People seek status more than survival.
Story: Many characters cling to rank or title, even if their life are miserable.
Memory Hook: A starving man polishing a useless medal.
Real Life: Someone goes into debt to buy luxury brands just to “look” successful (iPhone in EMI). Status as a Survival of the Soul. Status survival keeps the ego alive. Physical survival keeps the body alive.
Miss Havisham in Great Expectations wears her wedding dress for decades, clinging to her identity as a betrayed bride, rather than moving on with her life. In the novel Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes (Spanish) Lives in utter delusion, convinced he is a noble knight, and would rather be mad with dignity than sane without identity.
7. Compassion bridges class divides.
Story: Sonia, poor and degraded, saves Raskolnikov’s soul; Alyosha reaches both peasants and nobles with love.
Memory Hook: Two hands reaching across a broken wall.
Example: Doctors volunteering in slums or celebrities quietly funding schools — compassion crossing boundaries. Mother Teresa lived among the poorest in Kolkata — not to “serve” from above, but to live with, touch, and honor those whom the world forgets. Her compassion made poverty and status irrelevant — only humanity remained.
In the movie Slumdog Millionaire, Love between characters from radically different backgrounds becomes the only thing that survives the brutality of class systems.
8. Law without mercy is cruelty.
Story: Dmitri’s harsh trial in Brothers Karamazov shows how rigid legalism punishes without understanding.
Memory Hook: Scales of justice crushing a heart.
Example: Zero-tolerance school rules expelling children for trivial mistakes, ignoring context. In The Merchant of Venice by Shakespeare, Portia replies: “The quality of mercy is not strained… it is an attribute to God himself.” Shylock demands the letter of the law: a pound of flesh.
In the movie Just Mercy, A young lawyer fights for death row prisoners condemned not by evidence, but by bias, rage, and a merciless system.
9. Society punishes poverty as much as crime.
Story: Marmeladov’s family starves, Sonia sells herself, and they are condemned by society more than helped.
Memory Hook: A courtroom where hunger is on trial.
example: Modern homelessness and criminalization, Welfare shaming and suspicion. In many cities, being poor is treated like a crime: Fines for sleeping outside, Jail time for loitering.
In Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, Fantine loses her job, becomes a prostitute, and dies — all while society punishes her for the very poverty it helped create.
10. True morality often lives with the poor.
Story: Sonia, despite misery, embodies faith and love more than the wealthy Karamazovs. (However, Dostoevsky does not claim that all poor people are moral. Rather, he says that: Those who suffer with grace often reach moral depths the comfortable never touch. Material wealth can insulate people from responsibility, compassion, and repentance. True virtue is forged in trials, not taught in salons.)
Memory Hook: A candle glowing in a cracked clay pot.
Example: Families in poverty often give more generously (percentage-wise) than the rich — kindness thriving where wealth is scarce. Even under material strain, many marginalized groups demonstrate immense generosity, faith, and interdependence.
In the movie The Pursuit of Happyness, A father with nothing still acts with dignity, sacrifice, and moral clarity — more than those who ignore him.
As we near the end of this 10-part series, take a moment to reflect: where have these ideas touched your own life? Drop your experiences or questions in the comments—we believe learning deepens through dialogue. Your insight might just be the spark someone else needs. Let’s continue building this shared understanding, one story at a time.
