r own recent history think of the Communist witch-hunt or the obsession with rooting out child abusers and racists) and what could be more destructive than Ivan's assertion, here restated by his brother Dmitry, "'Evil-doing must not only be lawful, but even recognized as the most necessary and most intelligent way out of the situation in which every atheist finds himself!'" (76) Well, the reasons for this sympathy are several and complex at that, but first and foremost it is because of the great detail in which his character is presented.True, there are other characters who act upon the idea that 'all things are lawful' and, doing so, bring guilt and suffering upon themselves: Ratikin, who is embarrassed to receive 25 roubles for 'delivering' Alyosha to Grushenka (406), merdyakov, who kills himself when he realizes that Ivan didn't intend for him to kill their father, and even the elder Karamazov himself, who rationalizes away his shame by playing the fool and then taking a stand of righteous indignance when he is insulted (as is demonstrated in the scene at the monastery, on 78 to 81). However, we do not see the torments of these other characters as clearly presented as Ivan's and, furthermore, none of them seems to conceive of their torment as deeply and fully as Ivan does.Right from the first Ivan we see Ivan as being torn between complete atheistic relativism and the acceptance of God and thus morality. Recall, for example, the scene at the monastery when Elder Zosima sees right to the core of his self-torment:"Do you really hold such a conviction regarding the consequences of the decline of men's faith in the immortality of their souls?" the elder suddenly inquired of Ivan Fyodorovich. "Yes, that was what I said in my article. Without immortality there can be no virtue.""Blessd must you be, if thus you do believe-either that or thoroughly unhappy.""Why unhappy?" Ivan Fyodorovich smiled."Because in all probability you yourself beli...
