Satan, Kurtz, the Brothers Karamazov and their Revolting Abodes

Abstract

There is not any doubt that the Miltonian Satan’s “Evil, by thou my Good (PL IV.110), the Conradian Kurtz’s “‘Exterminate all the brutes!’” (YS 118), and Dostoevsky’s assertion that they all, the Karamazovs, “pretend they detest evil, but secretly they all love it” (BK 779) open the road of interpretation that leads to the conclusion that the reality of iniquity is composed of a wealth of threads that unite as a spider’s web the literary personae, incarnations of the archetype of evil genius. They are perceived as utterly entangled in wickedness that manifests its force by means of the despicable attributes of their personalities, such as an insatiable pride or hatred. Yet, so as to expand the expertise upon the archetype of evil genius, there is the suggestion to enclose a fresh approach that shall offer a broader viewpoint by embracing the analysis of spatial entities where the wicked masterminds reside. It shall appear a genuine source of information on account of the fact that, in line with Emrys Jones, space and spatial relations sway a formative influence upon those who exist there shaping in that way their subjectivity. As Shakespearean scholar in Scenic Forms in Shakespeare proposes that setting elements on a stage are assessed as exerting sway upon actors, in the similar manner the elements of the presented world reveal potential to shape the literary figures’ personalities.