This is a new interpretation of Dostoevsky's novelThe Brothers Karamazovthat scrutinizes it as a performative event (the polyphony of the novel) revealing its religious, philosophical, and social meanings through the interplay ofmentalit?sor worldviews that constitute an aesthetic whole. This way of discerning the novel's social vision ofsobornost'(a unity between harmony and freedom), its vision of hope, and its more subtle sacramental presuppositions, raises Tilley's interpretation beyond the standard theology and literature treatments of the novel and interpretations that treat the novel as providing solutions to philosophical problems.
Tilley develops Bakhtin's thoughtful analysis of the polyphony of the novel using communication theory and readers/hearer response criticism, and by using Bakhtin's operatic image of polyphony to show the error of taking faith vs. reason , argues that at the end of the novel, the characters learned to carry on, in a quiet shared commitment to memory and hope.
Terrence W. Tilleyis Professor Emeritus of Theology and Chair of the Department at Fordham University, USA.
Reading
The Karamazov Caseis like spending a delightful afternoon discussing what it means to live well with a wise theologian who brings a lifetime of insight and a lively mind to the conversation.
Horizons: Journal of the College Theological SocietyPrologue
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Chapter 1:
Reasoning Faith
Chapter 2:
How to Hear a Polyphonic Novel
Chapter 3:
Six Patterns of Rationality and Irrationality
Chapter 4:
Conversions
Chapter 5:
The Unconverted
Chapter 6:
Returning His Ticket and Refusing Freedom
Chapter 7:
The Social Vision of the Novel: Exegesis
Chapter 8:
Sobornost' inThe Brothers Karamazov: Analysis
Chapter 9:
![The Karamazov Case: Dostoevsky's Argument for His Vision [Paperback]](/itemImage/2/8/1/2/2_7041414.jpg "The Karamazov Case: Dostoevsky's Argument for His Vision [Paperback]")