Book 1, The Short Stories : Chapter 3, Polzunkov Summary

This story is 20 pages long. It was first written or published in 1848 - the text does not specify which. It is all of one piece, without any internal subdivisions. The setting is Russia. Dostoevsky's fiction takes place in the real world, which adds to its realism without making it true. The story begins with one man observing another. The narrative voice describes the other as kind-hearted, highly mobile and somewhat apprehensive about himself: the narrator writes that this last quality, is in the man's favor. Others are laughing at him. The narrator goes on to explain that the man is 'a rag' meaning that he will do anything for someone else and that this quality somehow keeps him down. The narrator makes it clear that his station in life is quite lowly. This...