In Fyodor Dostoyevsky's biting short story Notes from Underground, recurring themes involving consciousness versus unconsciousness, suffering, and stagnant philosophical ignorance are used to portray man underground as a fantastic representation of an alienated and anti-society being; overall demonstrating the impractical nature of any attempt at utopian communist civilization. Dostoyevsky presents his protagonist, the "underground man", as an unrealistic, cynical and pessimistic man, who is mean to society just for the sake of being mean. By not giving his character a name, Dostoyevsky implies that although the Underground Man is a man of fiction and fantasy, it is inevitable that people of this stature exist in a society that continues to support the spread of communism . Furthermore, when asked about the nature of the underground man, Dostoyevsky replied that similar characters “not only can, but must exist in our society” (580). Although this statement, along with the Underground Man's constant belittling of his audience, leads one to believe that the Underground Man is a non-conformist and a global outsider, it is widely used as a symbol highlighting the problems of absolute conformity and utopianism. As long as people act out of pure malice towards the system, absolute communism and the theory of utopia will be unattainable. The recurring theme of consciousness versus unconsciousness demonstrates the paralyzing virus of government and cultural conformity that is overly analytical thinking. The underground man is prey to hyperconscious thinking. He describes his thought process as "in accordance with the normal fundamental laws of superacute consciousness... and that, therefore, [he] was not only incapable of change,... middle of article... argument." Communism asserts that in a competitive society, citizens of a higher class and rank end up having more freedoms than citizens of a lower class. The underground man declares that he “may degrade and defile himself, but [he is] no one's slave. [he] comes and goes, and that’s it…but [Liza is] a slave from the beginning. Yes, a slave! [She] abandons everything, [her] all freedom” (631). The Underground Man suggests that poverty in itself does not force us to be in debt and slaves to society, it is each person's choice to fall into the conformity of their class. He admits that he himself is subject to misery and unhappiness; However, he does not allow himself to accept the predetermined role of a lazy common beggar, but instead insists on being an individual. Even though he is mean and unhappy, he remains true to his vindictive character..