With the emphasis in Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment on the path to redemption and the search for hope, a connection can be made with the religious influences throughout the novel. . Such religious influences through the Christian faith are most visibly manifested in the way characters such as Raskolnikov develop. Needing a vessel to communicate and push these religious influences onto a struggling and tormented Raskolnikov, Dostoyevsky uses the character of Sonia to contrast religious perspectives and offer a glimmer of hope to Raskolnikov. By understanding religious symbolism, relationships with other characters, and a character's journey to seek redemption, one can gain insight into Raskolnikov's development and the path of his personal growth in Crime and Punishment. Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment goes beyond simply deriving his religious influences from his interactions. with other characters, but instead it begins with a dive into religious symbolism that plays a prominent role in its interactions throughout. The most simplistic religious symbol of Crime and Punishment is the confession or redemption of one's sins. Raskolnikov mainly develops his character on the ideology of the sinner. Although when asked if he believes in God and Raskolnikov admits that he does, he seems to live his life without the usual construct of a religious man (304). Raskolnikov traps himself in a life with mortal sin that governs his internal conflict for most of the novel. Struck by the discomfort of this sin, Raskolnikov ends up seeking, without knowing it, redemption from this mortal sin. The very action of committing a sin has a different meaning for Raskolnikov as the novel progresses. Before committing...... middle of paper ......g. Sonia, being the second major character who acts as Raskolnikov's religious mentor, brings together the religious ideas of a Christian who is seeking his own form of hope and contrasts them with Raskolnikov, a struggling character and fellow sinner. These religious elements throughout Crime and Punishment intertwine, letting the reader see Raskolnikov's path to redemption not only as a hero's journey, but also as a religious rebirth. Overall, the religious impact throughout the novel brought perspective to how Raskolnikov's character developed as well as how Dostoevsky intertwined religious meaning into his theme of a lost man trying to find meaning in a life of solitude but finding it in the midst of love.Works CitedDostoyevsky, Fyodor. Crime and punishment. Trans. Constance Garnett. Modern Library Edition, 1994. Print.