Terms

Demons In Russian, бесы (besy), "demons" (our translation), is the word in the title and in the Luke passage that Stepan Trofimovich asks Sofya Matveyevna to read and applies to Russia: бесы, вышедши из человека, "the demons, coming out of the man." Before that, the... Idealistic liberal In Russian, либерал-идеалист (liberal-idealist), "idealistic liberal" (our translation), is the label the chronicler takes from a line by Nekrasov and sticks on Stepan Trofimovich: "a living reproach, you stood before the fatherland, idealistic liberal." The... Other people's sins In Russian, чужие грехи (chuzhie grekhi), "other people's sins" (our translation), comes from чужой, "of another, strange." Stepan Trofimovich says he cannot marry «чужих грехах», and Pyotr reads the expression aloud from his father's letter. At the... Man-God In Russian, человекобог (chelovekobog), "man-god" (our translation), joins человек, "man," and бог, "God," in that order. Kirillov corrects Stavrogin, who supposes богочеловек, the "God-man" of tradition: the difference lies in the order of the words, and the... Self-will In Russian, своеволие (svoevolie), "self-will" (our translation), joins своё, "one's own," and воля, "will, freedom." Kirillov says that the fullest point of his self-will is to kill himself, and that killing another would be the lowest point. Days earlier he... Shigalyovism In Russian, шигалевщина (shigalyovshchina), "Shigalyovism" (our translation), is the name Pyotr gives to Shigalyov's system, with the suffix -щина, which turns a surname into a doctrine and, in passing, belittles it. In Virginsky's room he calls it a novel, a... Impostor In Russian, самозванец (samozvanets), "impostor" (our translation), is the pretender who proclaims himself to be someone he is not, from сам, "himself," and звать, "to call." When Pyotr says he will release Ivan Tsarevich, Stavrogin asks, surprised,... Hanger-on In Russian, приживальщик (prizhivalchik), "hanger-on" (our translation), is someone who lives at the expense of another household, from при, "beside," and жить, "to live." Stepan Trofimovich confesses to the chronicler, in secret, that he is a mere hanger-on... Quintet In Russian, пятерка (pyatyorka), "quintet" (our translation), comes from пять, "five," and is the cell of five people with which Pyotr says he organizes the revolution. The five in town believe they are one among hundreds and thousands of пятерок linked to a... Young master In Russian, барич (barich), "young master" (our translation), is the son of a барин, the lord of the land. Chatov tells Stavrogin that he is an atheist because he is a барич, the last of his kind, and that he lost the difference between good and evil when he... Burden In Russian, бремя (bremya), "burden" (our translation), is the load carried on the shoulders. After the duel, Kirillov tells Stavrogin that he thought Stavrogin himself was seeking the бремя, and that without carrying it there is no merit. Karmazinov tells... Right to dishonor In Russian, право на бесчестье (pravo na besschestie), "right to dishonor" (our translation), denies честь, "honor." Karmazinov tells Pyotr that the essence of the Russian revolutionary idea is the denial of honor, and that the Russian lets himself be dragged...