Skip to content

The Idiot
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot Paperback - 2004

by Fyodor Dostoyevsky; David McDuff (Translator); Introduction by William Mills Todd

Inspired by an image of Christ's suffering, Fyodor Dostoyevsky set out to portray "a truly beautiful soul" colliding with the brutal reality of contemporary society. Returning to St. Petersburg from a Swiss sanatorium, the gentle and naive Prince Myshkin-known as "the idiot"-pays a visit to his distant relative General Yepanchin and proceeds to charm the General and his circle. But after becoming infatuated with the beautiful Nastasya Filippovna, Myshkin finds himself caught up in a love triangle and drawn into a web of blackmail, betrayal, and, ultimately, murder. This new translation by David McDuff is sensitive to the shifting registers of the original Russian, capturing the nervous, elliptic flow of the narrative for a new generation of readers.


Summary

Inspired by an image of Christ's suffering, Fyodor Dostoyevsky set out to portray "a truly beautiful soul" colliding with the brutal reality of contemporary society. Returning to St. Petersburg from a Swiss sanatorium, the gentle and naive Prince Myshkin—known as "the idiot"—pays a visit to his distant relative General Yepanchin and proceeds to charm the General and his circle. But after becoming infatuated with the beautiful Nastasya Filippovna, Myshkin finds himself caught up in a love triangle and drawn into a web of blackmail, betrayal, and, ultimately, murder. This new translation by David McDuff is sensitive to the shifting registers of the original Russian, capturing the nervous, elliptic flow of the narrative for a new generation of readers.
 

From the publisher

The most autobiographical novel by the author of Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov--and the namesake of Elif Batuman's debut novel, The Idiot Returning to St Petersburg from a Swiss sanatorium, the gentle and nave epileptic Prince Myshkin-- known as the "idiot"--pays a visit to his distant relative General Yepanchin and proceeds to charm the General and his family. But his life is thrown into turmoil when he chances on a photograph of the beautiful Nastasya Filippovna. Utterly infatuated, he soon finds himself caught up in a love triangle and drawn into a web of blackmail, betrayal, and finally, murder. In Prince Myshkin, Dostoyevsky portrays the purity of "a truly beautiful soul" and explores the perils that innocence and goodness face in a corrupt world. David McDuff's translation brilliantly captures the novel's idiosyncratic and dream-like language and the nervous, elliptic flow of the narrative. This edition also contains an introduction by William Mills Todd III, which is a fascinating examination of the pressures on Dostoyevsky as he wrote the story of his Christ-like hero.

Details

  • Title The Idiot
  • Author Fyodor Dostoyevsky; David McDuff (Translator); Introduction by William Mills Todd
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition International Ed
  • Pages 732
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Penguin Group, London
  • Date 2004-08-31
  • Features Bibliography, Table of Contents
  • ISBN 9780140447927 / 014044792X
  • Weight 1.22 lbs (0.55 kg)
  • Dimensions 7.78 x 5.08 x 1.4 in (19.76 x 12.90 x 3.56 cm)
  • Ages 18 to UP years
  • Grade levels 13 - UP
  • Reading level 1040
  • Themes
    • Cultural Region: Russian
    • Cultural Region: Western U.S.
    • Topical: Country/Cowboy
  • Library of Congress subjects Triangles (Interpersonal relations), Good and evil
  • Dewey Decimal Code FIC

About the author

Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) was a Russian novelist, journalist, and short-story writer whose novels Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov rank among the greatest of the nineteenth century. David McDuff (translator) has translated many works of nineteenth-century Russian literature, including works by Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, and Leskov for Penguin Classics. William Mills Todd III (introducer) is a professor of Slavic languages at Harvard.
Back to Top

More Copies for Sale

The Idiot: Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Penguin Classics)

The Idiot: Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Penguin Classics)

by Dostoyevsky, Fyodor

  • Used
  • very good
  • Paperback
Condition
Used - Very Good
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792X
Quantity Available
1
Seller
GORING BY SEA, West Sussex, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$4.22
$10.86 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Paperback. Very Good.
Item Price
$4.22
$10.86 shipping to USA
The Idiot: Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Penguin Classics)

The Idiot: Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Penguin Classics)

by Dostoyevsky, Fyodor

  • Used
  • Acceptable
  • Paperback
Condition
Used - Acceptable
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792X
Quantity Available
1
Seller
GORING BY SEA, West Sussex, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$4.22
$10.86 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Paperback. Acceptable.
Item Price
$4.22
$10.86 shipping to USA
IDIOT
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

IDIOT

by DOSTOYEVSKY,FYODOR

  • Used
  • Paperback
Condition
Used - Good+
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792x
Quantity Available
1
Seller
NEW YORK, New York, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$9.00
$4.49 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
pb. Good+. All pages and cover are intact. Possible minor highlighting and marginalia. Ships from an indie bookstore in NYC.
Item Price
$9.00
$4.49 shipping to USA
The Idiot (Penguin Classics)
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot (Penguin Classics)

by Dostoyevsky, Fyodor

  • New
Condition
New
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792x
Quantity Available
17
Seller
Benton Harbor, Michigan, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$9.78
$3.99 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Penguin Classics. New. BRAND NEW, GIFT QUALITY! NOT OVERSTOCKS OR MARKED UP REMAINDERS! DIRECT FROM THE PUBLISHER!
Item Price
$9.78
$3.99 shipping to USA
The Idiot
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot

by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

  • New
Condition
New
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792X
Quantity Available
4
Seller
Woodside, New York, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$12.36
$3.99 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Penguin Books , pp. xli + 732 . Papeback. New.
Item Price
$12.36
$3.99 shipping to USA
The Idiot (Penguin Classics)
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot (Penguin Classics)

by Dostoyevsky, Fyodor

  • Used
  • good
Condition
Used - Good
Edition
New Ed
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792x
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$13.08
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Penguin Classics. New Ed. Good. Good. Ship within 24hrs. Satisfaction 100% guaranteed. APO/FPO addresses supported
Item Price
$13.08
FREE shipping to USA
The Idiot (Penguin Classics)
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot (Penguin Classics)

by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, David McDuff (Translator), William Mills Todd (Introduction)

  • Used
  • Paperback
Condition
Used:Good
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792X
Quantity Available
1
Seller
HOUSTON, Texas, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$18.46
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Penguin Classics, 2004-08-31. Paperback. Used:Good.
Item Price
$18.46
FREE shipping to USA
The Idiot (Penguin Classics)
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot (Penguin Classics)

by Dostoyevsky, Fyodor

  • Used
Condition
UsedVeryGood
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792X
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Bensalem, Pennsylvania, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$18.54
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
UsedVeryGood. Minor shelf wear
Item Price
$18.54
FREE shipping to USA
The Idiot (Penguin Classics)
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot (Penguin Classics)

by Dostoyevsky, Fyodor

  • Used
Condition
UsedVeryGood
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792X
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$18.54
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
UsedVeryGood. signs of little wear on the cover.
Item Price
$18.54
FREE shipping to USA
The Idiot (Penguin Classics)
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Idiot (Penguin Classics)

by Dostoyevsky, Fyodor

  • Used
Condition
UsedVeryGood
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780140447927 / 014044792X
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Bensalem, Pennsylvania, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$18.54
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
UsedVeryGood. signs of little wear on the cover.
Item Price
$18.54
FREE shipping to USA