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Lectures on Dostoevsky
From the author of the definitive biography of Fyodor Dostoevsky, never-before-published lectures that provide an accessible introduction to the Russian writer's major works
Joseph Frank (1918–2013) was perhaps the most important Dostoevsky biographer, scholar, and critic of his time. His never-before-published Stanford lectures on the Russian novelist's major works provide an unparalleled and accessible introduction to some of literature's greatest masterpieces. Presented here for the first time, these illuminating lectures begin with an introduction to Dostoevsky's life and literary influences and go on to explore the breadth of his career―from Poor Folk , The Double , and The House of the Dead to Notes from Underground , Crime and Punishment , The Idiot , and The Brothers Karamazov . Written in a conversational style that combines literary analysis and cultural history, Lectures on Dostoevsky places the novels and their key characters and scenes in a rich context. Bringing Joseph Frank’s unmatched knowledge and understanding of Dostoevsky's life and writings to a new generation of readers, this remarkable book will appeal to anyone seeking to understand Dostoevsky and his times.
The book also includes Frank's favorite review of his Dostoevsky biography, "Joseph Frank's Dostoevsky" by David Foster Wallace, originally published in the Village Voice .
Joseph Frank (1918–2013) was perhaps the most important Dostoevsky biographer, scholar, and critic of his time. His never-before-published Stanford lectures on the Russian novelist's major works provide an unparalleled and accessible introduction to some of literature's greatest masterpieces. Presented here for the first time, these illuminating lectures begin with an introduction to Dostoevsky's life and literary influences and go on to explore the breadth of his career―from Poor Folk , The Double , and The House of the Dead to Notes from Underground , Crime and Punishment , The Idiot , and The Brothers Karamazov . Written in a conversational style that combines literary analysis and cultural history, Lectures on Dostoevsky places the novels and their key characters and scenes in a rich context. Bringing Joseph Frank’s unmatched knowledge and understanding of Dostoevsky's life and writings to a new generation of readers, this remarkable book will appeal to anyone seeking to understand Dostoevsky and his times.
The book also includes Frank's favorite review of his Dostoevsky biography, "Joseph Frank's Dostoevsky" by David Foster Wallace, originally published in the Village Voice .
256 pages, Paperback
Published April 19, 2022
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About the author
Joseph Frank
88 books142 followersJoseph Frank was professor emeritus of Slavic and comparative literature at Stanford and Princeton. The five volumes of his Dostoevsky biography won a National Book Critics Circle Award, a Los Angeles Times Book Prize, two James Russell Lowell Prizes, and two Christian Gauss Awards, and have been translated into numerous languages.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 11, 2020
This recently published volume collects Joseph Frank's Stanford lectures on Dostoevsky's major works. Aside from an introductory lecture, there are respective chapters on Poor Folk, The Double, The House of the Dead, Notes from Underground, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, and The Brothers Karamazov. Somewhat surprisingly, there is no lecture on Demons/The Devils, although Frank does refer to it every now and then, as well as to The Adolescent/A Raw Youth. Frank develops his ideas about Dostoevsky slowly, subtly, and with great care, showing how the seeds of the great works—and of the very greatest, The Brothers Karamazov—can already be found in Dostoevsky's early attempts, and, importantly, in Dostoevsky's reaction to the ideas floating around at the time and his mock execution (a turning point in his life). He occasionally refers to Dostoevsky's notebooks and his Diary of a Writer, which is nice because, as Frank points out, these have been relatively underused in Dostoevsky scholarship—yet they provide unique insights into Dostoevsky's process as a writer. David Foster Wallace's essay, "Joseph Frank's Dostoevsky," (one of DFW's more perceptive pieces) has also been included as an appendix, as well as a long list of film and TV adaptions of Dostoevsky's works.
June 19, 2020
About 9 years ago I went through a huge Russian literature phase and, over the course of a summer, devoured the works of Tolstoy, Gogol, Pushkin, Chekhov, Turgenev, Bulgakov, Nabokov, Pasternak, and most enjoyably those of Dostoevsky. Though it was War and Peace that most consumed my attention, Pale Fire and The Master and Margarita that most impressed with their linguistic elegance; engaging with the work of Dostoevsky was an experience truly unlike the rest and despite the reverence with which I hold the aforementioned titles, it is Dostoevsky's to which I continue to return.
Joseph Frank, one of the most highly respected Dostoevsky scholars and author of what many consider to be the definitive biography of the subject, has had his lectures condensed into a concentrated format in this book with pairs of lectures forming each chapter, focusing on: Poor Folk, The Double, The House of the Dead, Notes from Underground, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, and The Brothers Karamazov. Thankfully these are very accessible to those of us who are enthusiastic amateurs when it comes to literature and even casual fans of Russian literature will find much to enjoy here. Particularly strong are the chapters on Notes from Underground and The Brothers Karamazov. Here, more so than in any other place, you see Dostoevsky's relationship with the more radical element of Russian society examined biographically and most importantly, examined with a steady eye as to the impact on his output. One such perfectly stated point actually occurs in the chapter on Crime and Punishment:
"But what made Dostoevsky so great a writer is precisely that he did not stay on the level of the ordinary arguments of his time but used them rather as the source of his inspiration. He began with them - but thought these ideas through to their ultimate consequences in moral-psychological terms. And it was on this imaginary level that he was able to dramatize them - always starting from something that existed in the social-cultural arguments and polemics of the time."
This is such an inspiring little volume of - despite its brevity - great depth, and will offer readers of layperson and academic backgrounds much insight into an endlessly fascinating author.
Joseph Frank, one of the most highly respected Dostoevsky scholars and author of what many consider to be the definitive biography of the subject, has had his lectures condensed into a concentrated format in this book with pairs of lectures forming each chapter, focusing on: Poor Folk, The Double, The House of the Dead, Notes from Underground, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, and The Brothers Karamazov. Thankfully these are very accessible to those of us who are enthusiastic amateurs when it comes to literature and even casual fans of Russian literature will find much to enjoy here. Particularly strong are the chapters on Notes from Underground and The Brothers Karamazov. Here, more so than in any other place, you see Dostoevsky's relationship with the more radical element of Russian society examined biographically and most importantly, examined with a steady eye as to the impact on his output. One such perfectly stated point actually occurs in the chapter on Crime and Punishment:
"But what made Dostoevsky so great a writer is precisely that he did not stay on the level of the ordinary arguments of his time but used them rather as the source of his inspiration. He began with them - but thought these ideas through to their ultimate consequences in moral-psychological terms. And it was on this imaginary level that he was able to dramatize them - always starting from something that existed in the social-cultural arguments and polemics of the time."
This is such an inspiring little volume of - despite its brevity - great depth, and will offer readers of layperson and academic backgrounds much insight into an endlessly fascinating author.
March 7, 2023
Brilliance of Dostoevsky brought out on display for all of us.
Incidentally, I didn’t know that Myshkin was related to the mouse , and that Barashkova was of the lamb ( to be ready for sacrifice, I think ) ! She was at the altar so many times !
One particular reason I bought this book for was that Nastasia Philippovna Barashkova had a book borrowed from the library: ‘ Madame Bovary ‘ of Gustave Flaubert . Why was she reading that ? Joseph Frank doesn’t mention it ( his is a small book) . But in the morning of 31/10/2022, brooding about it, I realised it was the self-flagellation of a proud , intelligent, and righteous woman- the one who had to run away from Myshkin as she was always afraid that she didn’t deserve the man she loved , and she hated herself ( and knew her value) . Death is her choice ! Madame Bovary a possible medium to that choice !
Well, it looks like the afterthought to The Idiot. It was , actually! The book enthrals in various ways, though . It does talk about The Brothers Karamazov . And what a talk ! Read it , and you are transported to the soul of the greatest of all novels ever written in any human language ! Period !
Incidentally, I didn’t know that Myshkin was related to the mouse , and that Barashkova was of the lamb ( to be ready for sacrifice, I think ) ! She was at the altar so many times !
One particular reason I bought this book for was that Nastasia Philippovna Barashkova had a book borrowed from the library: ‘ Madame Bovary ‘ of Gustave Flaubert . Why was she reading that ? Joseph Frank doesn’t mention it ( his is a small book) . But in the morning of 31/10/2022, brooding about it, I realised it was the self-flagellation of a proud , intelligent, and righteous woman- the one who had to run away from Myshkin as she was always afraid that she didn’t deserve the man she loved , and she hated herself ( and knew her value) . Death is her choice ! Madame Bovary a possible medium to that choice !
Well, it looks like the afterthought to The Idiot. It was , actually! The book enthrals in various ways, though . It does talk about The Brothers Karamazov . And what a talk ! Read it , and you are transported to the soul of the greatest of all novels ever written in any human language ! Period !
March 3, 2022
First, under no circumstances skip the David Foster Wallace review of Frank's magisterial Dostoevsky biography, appended to this sect of a dozen or so lectures Frank delivered near the end of his life.
Frank's without any close competition the most important American writer about one of the most important writers who ever lived, so it's obviously worth hearing his sum-up thoughts. His strength was placing Dostoevsky squarely in his Russian context, which evolved in important ways between the 1840s and 1870s. Frank emphasizes the Christian center of Dostoevsky's vision and I won't argue with that. But in the process, he pushes the extreme dialogic tensions in the great novels to the background. (For the best articulation of how I think the novels work, see Bakhtin's The Dialogic Imagination.). Makes me want to re-read the major work, which I do periodically. This time through I'll start with The Idiot, which I last read during a very hot and strange summer of 1970 during my first trip to New York (6th Street off 2nd Avenue, which was appropriately dialogic itself).
Frank's without any close competition the most important American writer about one of the most important writers who ever lived, so it's obviously worth hearing his sum-up thoughts. His strength was placing Dostoevsky squarely in his Russian context, which evolved in important ways between the 1840s and 1870s. Frank emphasizes the Christian center of Dostoevsky's vision and I won't argue with that. But in the process, he pushes the extreme dialogic tensions in the great novels to the background. (For the best articulation of how I think the novels work, see Bakhtin's The Dialogic Imagination.). Makes me want to re-read the major work, which I do periodically. This time through I'll start with The Idiot, which I last read during a very hot and strange summer of 1970 during my first trip to New York (6th Street off 2nd Avenue, which was appropriately dialogic itself).
January 2, 2023
oh what i would give to take a class with frank. these lectures are a joy to read
February 2, 2023
I was trying to decide which of Dostoevsky’s novels to read after Crime and Punishment by perusing reviews of his books on Amazon when I stumbled across this book of lectures by Joseph Frank, who wrote an acclaimed five volume biography of the Russian writer. At just under 200 pages, these seven very readable essays cover the salient events in Dostoevsky’s life, such as his life-changing, near execution by firing squad while he was imprisoned in Siberia, and how those events changed him and found their way into his novels. There are excellent, insightful analyses of three of the great ideological masterpieces: Crime and Punishment, The Idiot and the Brothers Karamazov. Frank explains why these novels are among the greatest and still relevant today. I’ll certainly read all three plus Demons, and Frank also convinced me to read House of the Dead, about Dostoevsky’s time in prison. The epilogue-like review of Frank’s huge biography by David Foster Wallace is a nice concluding summary. I’ll keep this exceptional book by me as I read Dostoevsky.
April 5, 2022
Joseph Frank was an American professor of comparative literature at Stanford and Princeton and his name is inextricably linked with the painstaking study of one of the most influential writers of the 19th century, Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. Frank's five-volume biography on the Russian literary giant, an iconic work that exceeds the 2500 pages, deem him the aptest person to analyze Dostoevsky's body of work and these never-before-published collection of Stanford lectures examine one-by-one the most significant novels that marked modern literature and earned the author a place among the greatest European philosophers and intellectuals of the two previous centuries. Dostoyevsky's novels are explored through the lens of the socio-political reality in Russia at the time as well as the peculiar idiosyncrasy of the writer himself that is often projected to some of his most well-known characters. Frank's penetrative gaze leaves no question unresolved and this compilation proves to be an invaluable companion to Dostoevsky's most significant writings.
To read my full review, visit https://tapthelinemag.com/post/lectur...
To read my full review, visit https://tapthelinemag.com/post/lectur...
January 6, 2023
Joseph Frank, who passed away in 2013, was the greatest contemporary expert on Dostoevsky’s life and work. There is no way I would read his massive five-volume biography, and only a vanishingly small chance I would wade through his 1000+ page abridgment. Then I spotted this set of lectures on seven of Dostoevsky’s works, including an introductory lecture, and a reprint of David Foster Wallace’s (thoroughly excellent) review of Frank’s book, all in 227 pages! 😊
This is well worth reading. Frank gives you pertinent aspects of Dostoevsky’s life and Russian culture at the time, describing how these experiences interacted with and influenced the views developed in his novels. He also helps you understand some of the more exclusively ‘Russian’ aspects of the works. The lectures feed into one another, so it is not like reading a series of Penguin introductions; what you learn in one lecture amplifies and clarifies what you read in the others.
Just reading these essays, without re-reading his major novels, increased my understanding and appreciation. He writes in a straightforward, persuasive way; this is a very good book.
This is well worth reading. Frank gives you pertinent aspects of Dostoevsky’s life and Russian culture at the time, describing how these experiences interacted with and influenced the views developed in his novels. He also helps you understand some of the more exclusively ‘Russian’ aspects of the works. The lectures feed into one another, so it is not like reading a series of Penguin introductions; what you learn in one lecture amplifies and clarifies what you read in the others.
Just reading these essays, without re-reading his major novels, increased my understanding and appreciation. He writes in a straightforward, persuasive way; this is a very good book.
November 25, 2022
Before I started using Goodreads I read Frank's 5-volume bio/commentary on Dostoevsky, which I highly recommend. This is not so great. It is focussed of course on only some of Dostoevsky's works, and is more directly concerned with commentary, though it presents some relevant biographical and socio-political background. Unfortunately the final chapter, on Brothers K, which I was most interested in, is the worst. It is poorly edited with repetitions even with its 27 pages. The appendix of David Foster Wallace's review of the first 4 volumes of the bio/commentary is a nice addition--worth reading. It brings a 3-star rating up to 4-star. The other appendix listing TV/Film adaptations of D's works is truly filler.
July 2, 2022
From the masterful five tome biographer of Dostoevsky, a slim volume that gleans just the primordial essence of each of his most acclaimed works. I read this in preparation for tackling Notes from Underground (starting tomorrow) and then Crime and Punishment and Brothers Karamazov. At last I will be filling a major gap in my education. I feel very secure in entering this realm guided by Joseph Frank's erudite lectures and will keep them by my side during my reading. An essay by the late David Foster Wallace is included in this edition and illuminates not just Frank's mastery but also Dostoevsky's immortal relevance.
July 3, 2022
A series of lectures by Joseph Frank, author of the five-volume biography on Dostoevsky, published posthumously. There is also an accompanying introduction, as well as the essay by David Foster Wallace, originally published in The Village Voice in 1996. The chapters are arranged chronologically by published work - some of the minor works and most of the major ones are covered, with Demons being the most glaring omission.
Frank's critical approach in these lecture is more about the intellectual and cultural context of Dostoyevsky's writing - he does not emphasize the formal style as much, and any comments about the characters' psychology is also situated in context.
Frank's critical approach in these lecture is more about the intellectual and cultural context of Dostoyevsky's writing - he does not emphasize the formal style as much, and any comments about the characters' psychology is also situated in context.
May 7, 2020
This was a very good read. It is a posthumous publication of his lectures at Stanford in his annual Dostoevsky seminar.
I have two complaints (1) He completely ignores The Demons, except for three fleeting references. And (2) the chapter on the Brothers K. is a random repetitive walk through his notes. Someone should have edited it better.
Still worth reading the book.
An essay on Frank's previous work on Dostoevsky by David Foster Wallace is included as an appendix:
"Feodor’s Guide: Joseph Frank’s Dostoevsky." It is a must-read. It is also available online (Village Voice, April, 1996).
I have two complaints (1) He completely ignores The Demons, except for three fleeting references. And (2) the chapter on the Brothers K. is a random repetitive walk through his notes. Someone should have edited it better.
Still worth reading the book.
An essay on Frank's previous work on Dostoevsky by David Foster Wallace is included as an appendix:
"Feodor’s Guide: Joseph Frank’s Dostoevsky." It is a must-read. It is also available online (Village Voice, April, 1996).
April 27, 2020
This is a magnificent book by a very talented biographer/lecturer. Frank wears his stature lightly, like a gown. He patiently takes the reader through the salient events in Dostoevsky's life, then describes how those events influenced his philosophy as he went through life and changed his thinking and technique. A really marvelous, succint presentation that allows a reader to more richly enjoy and understand Dostoevsky. I cannot overpraise this book.
December 18, 2021
Brilliant insights and clarifications
I HIGHLY recommend this for all fans and/or students of the great Dostoevsky!
The author is a recognized scholar on Dostoevsky and has written a fabulous five volume biography (approx. 2500 pages), which I also highly recommend!
There is a severely edited version, by the author, available too and it is only about 1000 pages.
I HIGHLY recommend this for all fans and/or students of the great Dostoevsky!
The author is a recognized scholar on Dostoevsky and has written a fabulous five volume biography (approx. 2500 pages), which I also highly recommend!
There is a severely edited version, by the author, available too and it is only about 1000 pages.
October 19, 2024
مهم ترین کاری که در این اثر توسط استاد فرانک انجام شده، نگاه زمینه ای و سرگذشتی در مورد یک اثر از داستایفسکی است.
آثاری چون بیچارگان، همزاد، ابله، خانه مردگان، برادران کارامازوف مورد بررسی ویژه هستند.
آثاری چون بیچارگان، همزاد، ابله، خانه مردگان، برادران کارامازوف مورد بررسی ویژه هستند.
November 17, 2025
In my opinion, this is the best analysis of Dostoyevsky yet. Joseph Frank reads not only the author's works but also the social structures of modernizing and westernizing Russia. However, I would also like to see a review of Dostoyevsky's other great work, "Demons (Бесы)."
April 16, 2020
Great synopsis of a lifelong passion
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews