Death and Freedom in Sorrows of a Young Werther and Crime...

Death and Freedom in Sorrows of a Young Werther and Crime and Punishment The relationship between death and freedom is a common thread throughout Sorrows of a Young Werther by Goethe and Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky. The relationship illustrated in both works is that one cannot achieve true freedom until they are dead. Until death, Werther and Raskolnikov will always feel the restrictions that society places upon them. Werther feels restricted due to the unrequited love of Lotte and Raskolnikov feels restricted by the moral code that society establishes. In Sorrows of a Young Werther by Goethe and Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky both characters’ exhibit their freedom through death. In Sorrows of a Young Werther, Werther†¦show more content†¦Both Raskolnikov and Werther view themselves as superior to society. Raskolnikov views himself as the Napoleonic great man and Werther views himself as the romantic egoistic. Raskolnikov believes that laws, restrictions, and a moral code only apply to the ignorant and naà ¯ve common man. Raskolnikov is very confident that the police will never be able to convict him of murder because he can outwit the common policeman. Raskolnikov also thinks that he will feel no guilt in committing the murder because he is so powerful and so important that he has the right to decide who is worthy of life. Due to these beliefs he feels that murdering the pawnbroker will confirm his power. Not only will the murder confirm his power but Raskolnikov thinks that if he murders her and feels no guilt, then he will prove that he is truly free from morals. Werther represents the romantic egoists because he thinks that love can conquer all. The fact that Werther is romantic egoist causes him to become obsessed with Lotte. This obsession causes sever suffering because his love is not a returned. It is not the fact that Werther cannot be with Lotte, but the fact that she does not love him and refuses to see him, that causes Werther to feel like he has no freedom. Werther views himself as a God like person and it is Lotte’s rejection that kills him. Weather’s suicide represents the ultimate expression of freedom because it