The Insulted and Humiliated

Interesting Facts

• The novel was first published in 1861 in the magazine «Time», which was published by the Dostoevsky brothers.
• One of the central themes of the work is social inequality and moral humiliation, which was relevant for 19th-century Russia.
• The main character of the novel, Ivan Petrovich, is a writer, making him a kind of alter ego of Dostoevsky himself.
• The novel contains autobiographical elements: Dostoevsky himself experienced humiliation and insult in his life, which is reflected in his work.
• The book is considered one of Dostoevsky's early works where he began to develop his characteristic themes, such as the psychology of the insulted and humiliated.
• The character Natasha, one of the main heroines, embodies the idea of sacrifice and self-denial, which is an important theme in Dostoevsky's work.
• The novel was written during a period when Dostoevsky was just beginning to return to literary activity after his exile in Siberia.