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Written close to the end of the great writer’s life, Fyodor Dostoevsky’s short story The Dream of a Ridiculous Man tells of a transformation of the heart and a journey from despair to joy: a joy that can be known by all through the experience of God that transcends a simply rational discourse. In this eye opening literary study, the title character and his spiritual metamorphosis are examined in depth in light of the ancient concept of Nous as it developed from the Greek philosophers to the Christian fathers. By comparing the “Ridiculous Man” to similar characters in Dostoevsky’s corpus, the author shows how an Orthodox Christian understanding of the Nous underpins Dostoevsky’s own anthropology and how his literary works in turn guide the reader toward a truer vision of humanity.
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
PART 1: THE HISTORY OF THE CONCEPT OF NOUS FROM PRE-SOCRATIC PHILOSOPHY TO THE CHRISTIAN ERA
Chapter 1: The Nous in Hellenic Philosophy: Anaxagoras to Plato
Chapter 2: The Nous in Hellenic Philosophy; Aristotle to Plotinus
Chapter 3: A Transition from Hellenic Philosophy to Christianity
Chapter 4: The Incarnation and Deification in Early Patristic Thought
Chapter 5: The Heart and the Nous in Patristic Thought
Chapter 6: Purification of the Nous
Chapter 7: A Move Away from Noetic Perception
PART 2: THE NOUS AND DOSTOEVSKY
Chapter 8: Some Biographical Details
Chapter 9: The Dream of a Ridiculous Man: A Synopsis and Analysis of the Story
Chapter 10: Examples of Other “Ridiculous Men” in Dostoevsky's Novels
PART 3: THE NOUS IN CONTEMPORARY THOUGHT
Chapter 11: References to the Unnamed Nous
Chapter 12: A Renewed Interest in Deification
Chapter 13: Contemporary Orthodox Writers on the Nous
CONCLUSION
Acknowledgments
APPENDIX: The Dream of a Ridiculous Man by F.M. Dostoevsky, David Magershack, Translator
BIBLIOGRAPHY
END NOTES
Index
