Man and God

There are many discussions in the novel about God's law and how it should be administered in the governmental court system. Ivan wrote an article that becomes a treatise for the religious community, and he is an atheist.

In the closing speeches of the defense and prosecuting attorneys, God's will and God's law is mentioned frequently, as the soul of Russia.

In the middle of the novel, all action and plot is suspended wile the author devotes three chapters to homilies and talks of Zosima the Elder.

Everyone in the novel is preoccupied with their place in the world, whether it be local society or their chances of going to heaven or hell. God's law is heavy on their minds, and when Ivan the atheist begins losing his mind, it is Satan who visits with him and has long conversations.

The author's message is clear, that...