The House of the Dead

Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821 - 1881)

The House of the Dead is a novel published in 1861 by Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky, which portrays the life of convicts in a Siberian prison camp. Dostoyevsky himself spent four years in exile in such a camp following his conviction for involvement in the Petrashevsky Circle. This experience allowed him to describe with great authenticity the conditions of prison life and the characters of the convicts. The narrator, Aleksandr Petrovich Goryanchikov, has been sentenced to penalty deportation to Siberia and ten years of hard labour. Life in prison is particularly hard for Aleksandr Petrovich, since he is a "gentleman" and suffers the malice of the other prisoners, nearly all of whom belong to the peasantry. Gradually Goryanchikov overcomes his revulsion at his situation and his fellow convicts, undergoing a spiritual re-awakening that culminates with his release from the camp. It is a work of great humanity; Dostoyevsky portrays the inmates of the prison with sympathy for their plight, and also expresses admiration for their energy, ingenuity and talent. He concludes that the existence of the prison, with its absurd practices and savage corporal punishments is a tragic fact, both for the prisoners and for Russia itself. - Summary by Wikipedia

Genre(s): Literary Fiction

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 Pt. 1, Ch. 01 Expatriate
00:12:31
Play 02 Pt. 1, Ch. 02 Expatriate
00:34:06
Play 03 Pt. 1, Ch. 03 Expatriate
00:35:43
Play 04 Pt. 1, Ch. 04 Expatriate
00:33:56
Play 05 Pt. 1, Ch. 05 Expatriate
00:38:14
Play 06 Pt. 1, Ch. 06 Expatriate
00:28:50
Play 07 Pt. 1, Ch. 07 Expatriate
00:27:14
Play 08 Pt. 1, Ch. 08 Expatriate
00:28:34
Play 09 Pt. 1, Ch. 09 Expatriate
00:14:13
Play 10 Pt. 1, Ch. 10 Expatriate
00:36:19
Play 11 Pt. 1, Ch. 11 Expatriate
00:34:43
Play 12 Pt. 1, Ch. 12 Expatriate
00:44:05
Play 13 Pt. 2, Ch. 01 Expatriate
00:29:45
Play 14 Pt. 2, Ch. 02 Expatriate
00:29:45
Play 15 Pt. 2, Ch. 03 Expatriate
00:41:30
Play 16 Pt. 2, Ch. 04 Expatriate
00:26:22
Play 17 Pt. 2, Ch. 05 Expatriate
00:41:43
Play 18 Pt. 2, Ch. 06 Expatriate
00:28:56
Play 19 Pt. 2, Ch. 07 Expatriate
00:42:02
Play 20 Pt. 2, Ch. 08 Expatriate
00:35:47
Play 21 Pt. 2, Ch. 09 Expatriate
00:34:21
Play 22 Pt. 2, Ch. 10 Expatriate
00:11:56