A Society By Fyodor Dostoyevsky - 1075 Words

The 19th Century Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky once wrote that a society can be judged by the conditions within its prisons. In that same vein, you can determine the strength of a society by how it treats those living on the outskirts of society, the most vulnerable and stigmatized citizens. Prostitutes are nearly at the bottom of the American social hierarchy, just above pedophiles, rapists, and violent criminals. Prostitutes are vilified in a way suggesting that they’re somehow victimizing other people. In fact, that stigma has enabled some of the most sinister serial killers and rapists to target prostitutes because their victims have been deemed by our culture as unworthy of their most basic human rights. Throughout history, many nations have changed their prostitution laws back and forth according to the ebb and flow of social movements as this is a very symbolic and polarizing issue. In the end, these changes have had little to do with implementing the most cost-effective and practical policies. It may be surprising to learn that nearly every state in the U.S. lacked prostitution laws until WWI. Before then, prostitution laws had been enforced at the local level and most every major city had a red-light district where this activity was decriminalized. In fact, in 1894 one infamous New York Police Captain, Alexander â€Å"Clubber† Williams, defiantly testified to a corruption committee that he permitted rampant prostitution in his precinct because it was â€Å"fashionable.†Show MoreRelatedEssay about Fyodor Dostoyevsky636 Words   |  3 PagesFyodor Dostoyevsky       Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) was one of the greatest Russian novelists to ever live. There are so few authors, as Dostoyevsky was, who have had such a great impact on 20th century western literature. His works analyze social, moral, political, and psychological aspects of mankind.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Dostoyevsky was born in Moscow in 1821. Much of Dostoyevskys life experiences, especially early on, provided much influence for his writings. Dostoyevskys determinationRead MoreNotes from the Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky1616 Words   |  7 PagesFyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) was a Russian novelist, journalist, and short story writer that discussed the psychological state of the human soul in many of his works, one in particular is Notes from the Underground; which was published in 1864. 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ThroughRead MoreThe Philosophy Of Crime And Punishment1182 Words   |  5 PagesJavert’s suicide when he says, â€Å"To owe life to a criminal...to betray society in order to remain true...these absurdities should come about and be heaped on top of him...it was this that defeated him† (Hugo 1181). Javert’s adherence to his internal conflict imploded and eventually influenced his suicide; a reader might see Javert’s decision and confirm that an inner conflict of motives prompted his unanticipated action. Fyodor Dostoyevsky, a 19th Century existentialist Russian author, portrays a similarRead MoreReligion as Societal Conformity in Crime and Punishment Essay1038 Words   |  5 PagesThe central theme of Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky deals with conformity’s role in society. Dostoyevsky uses conformity to make Raskolnikov mentally ill and eventually turn himself in to face the punishment for his crimes. 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To better understand the events that led up to radical and Slavophile movements in Russia, and to better understandRead MoreEssay about The Problem of God in Devils and The Brothers Karamazov3570 Words   |  15 PagesThe Problem of God in Devils and The Brothers Karamazov  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      In contemplating the creation of the novel The Idiot, Dostoyevsky wrote in a letter to A.N. Maikov that he hoped to focus the work around a question with which I have been tormented, consciously or unconsciously all my life--that is, the existence of God.1 Dostoyevskys personal struggle with the question of faith, and also his own experience with trying doubts as a believer, are manifested in the characters he writes. A largeRead More Humanities’ Irrational and its Effects on a Utopian Society1690 Words   |  7 Pageshuman psyche is divided into rational and irrational drives. Courtesy of Sigmund Freud, it is divided into the id, ego, and super-ego. 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