- 01Fyodor Pavlovitch Karamazov's character and marriage
- 01Mitya’s neglected childhood and Miüsov’s guardianship
- 02Dmitri’s inheritance, military career, and quarrel with his father
- 01Fyodor Pavlovitch's second marriage to Sofya Ivanovna
- 02The orphaned sons and their guardians
- 03Ivan Fyodorovitch's education and public notice
- 04Ivan's return and the family reunion
- 01Alyosha’s character and early life
- 02Fyodor Pavlovitch’s decline and Alyosha’s mother’s grave
- 03Alyosha asks to enter the monastery
- 04Fyodor Pavlovitch’s drunken farewell and hopes for Alyosha
- 01Alyosha’s character and spiritual realism
- 02The institution of elders in Russian monasteries
- 01Authority of the elders in monasteries
- 02Father Zossima and Alyosha at the monastery
- 01Alyosha's faith in Father Zossima
- 01Family tensions and the planned meeting in Father Zossima’s cell
The Brothers Karamazov
by Fyodor Dostoevsky · 1880 · 12 chapters · 24/7 tutor
Faith, doubt, family, and moral responsibility.
12Chapters
146Lessons
520Topics
Certificate of completion included
This course was produced by Cavua from a public-domain text.
Skills this course leaves you with.
- Analyze the major themes of faith, doubt, and moral responsibility in The Brothers Karamazov
- Explain the roles of key characters including Alyosha, Ivan, Dmitri, and Fyodor Pavlovitch
- Interpret major scenes such as the elder’s cell, the Grand Inquisitor, and Ivan’s nightmare
- Discuss Dostoevsky’s treatment of family conflict, guilt, and redemption
- Trace the narrative significance of the monastery, schoolboys, and Smerdyakov in the novel
Curriculum
The full table of contents.
Every chapter, every lesson, every topic — laid out before you enroll. Click any chapter to expand it.
- Chapters
- 12
- Lessons
- 146
- Topics
- 520
- 01Arrival at the monastery gates
- 02Maximov guides the visitors to the hermitage
- 03Miüsov’s irritation and the hermitage grounds
- 04Approach to Father Zossima’s cell
- 01Arrival in Father Zossima’s cell
- 02Fyodor Pavlovitch’s buffoonery
- 03Zossima’s moral rebuke
- 04Fyodor Pavlovitch’s confession of lying
- 05The saint’s severed head story
- 06Miüsov’s denial and the elder’s departure
- 01Peasant women awaiting the elder
- 02Healing the possessed woman
- 03The grieving mother for her dead child
- 04The widow seeking news of her son
- 05Widow's confession and repentance
- 06Peasant mother's visit and alms
- 01Lise’s healing and Katerina Ivanovna’s message
- 02Fear of the future life and the path of active love
- 03The elder’s counsel on active love
- 04Lise’s teasing and sudden tears
- 01Ivan's article on church and state jurisdiction
- 02Crime, excommunication, and the Church's moral authority
- 03Church judgment and the criminal
- 04Orthodox Church and the State
- 05Miüsov’s anecdote about Christian socialists
- 01Dmitri Fyodorovitch’s appearance and arrival
- 02Ivan’s argument on immortality and morality
- 03Fyodor Pavlovitch’s family scandal and accusations
- 04Dmitri’s accusation against Fyodor Pavlovitch
- 05The elder’s prostration and the guests’ departure
- 06Reluctant walk to the Father Superior’s dinner
- 01Father Zossima’s farewell and blessing
- 02Rakitin’s theory of the Karamazov family conflict
- 03Rakitin’s theory of Ivan’s ideas
- 04The Karamazov scandal at the monastery
- 01Miüsov’s apology and the monastery dinner
- 02Fyodor Pavlovitch’s return and provocation
- 03Fyodor’s tirade against confession
- 04Fyodor Pavlovitch’s attack on the monks
- 05Departure from the monastery and Maximov’s intrusion
- 01Fyodor Pavlovitch’s house and servants
- 02Grigory and Marfa’s marriage and household duty
- 03Grigory’s religious turn and Lizaveta’s childbirth
- 01Lizaveta’s appearance and life in town
- 02Fyodor Pavlovitch and the rumor of Lizaveta’s pregnancy
- 03Lizaveta’s death and Smerdyakov’s upbringing
- 01Alyosha’s unease and detour to Katerina Ivanovna
- 02Dmitri’s secret meeting in the garden
- 03Dmitri begins his confession
- 04Mitya's hymn to degraded humanity
- 05Beauty, sensual lust, and the battle for the heart
- 01Mitya’s confession of sensual excess
- 02Katerina Ivanovna and the colonel’s family
- 03The blackmail scheme and the lieutenant-colonel’s collapse
- 04Katerina Ivanovna's humiliation and Dmitri's revenge
- 01Katerina Ivanovna’s letter and engagement
- 02Grushenka, the back-alley, and the missing three thousand
- 03Dmitri’s plea for three thousand roubles
- 04Grushenka, Smerdyakov, and the hidden money
- 05Alyosha sent to ask Father
- 01Fyodor Pavlovitch's drawing-room dinner
- 02Smerdyakov's childhood and epilepsy
- 03Training as cook and Moscow return
- 04Smerdyakov's honesty and contemplative nature
- 01Smerdyakov’s argument about renouncing faith under torture
- 01Fyodor Pavlovitch's drunken attack on religion and peasants
- 02Ivan and Alyosha on God, immortality, and civilization
- 03Fyodor Pavlovitch's sensualist creed and memories of Alyosha's mother
- 04Alyosha’s hysterical collapse
- 05Dmitri bursts into the room
- 01Dmitri’s violent search for Grushenka
- 02Alyosha’s bedside reassurance
- 03Ivan’s unsettling moral challenge
- 01Alyosha’s troubled arrival at Katerina Ivanovna’s house
- 02Katerina Ivanovna’s plea to save Dmitri
- 03Grushenka’s entrance and appearance
- 04Grushenka’s arrival and Katerina’s welcome
- 05Katerina’s account of Grushenka’s past and promise
- 06Grushenka’s reversal and the hand-kissing trap
- 07The outburst, departure, and aftermath
- 01Alyosha meets Dmitri at the crossroads
- 02Grushenka's visit and Katerina Ivanovna's humiliation
- 03Alyosha returns to Father Zossima's cell
- 04Lise's love letter to Alyosha
- 05Alyosha's response and prayer
- 01Part II
- 01Father Zossima’s final exhortation
- 02The reported miracle of Vassenka’s letter
- 03Father Ferapont and the Obdorsk monk
- 04Father Ferapont’s visions of fasting and demons
- 05Zossima’s summons and Païssy’s farewell counsel
- 01Alyosha visits his father alone
- 02Suspicion of Ivan and Grushenka
- 03Talk of Mitya, money, and marriage
- 01Alyosha notices the schoolboys' quarrel
- 02Alyosha confronts the solitary boy
- 01Madame Hohlakov’s excitement over the miracle and the brothers
- 02Lise’s wound care and teasing conversation
- 03Alyosha’s departure and Madame Hohlakov’s warning about Lise
- 01Alyosha’s doubts about Katerina Ivanovna’s feelings
- 02Katerina Ivanovna’s decision to remain loyal to Dmitri
- 03Alyosha confronts Katerina Ivanovna and Ivan
- 04Katerina Ivanovna’s request for Snegiryov
- 05Madame Hohlakov and Lise react to the quarrel
- 01Alyosha’s remorse and search for Dmitri
- 02The Snegiryov cottage and its inhabitants
- 03Captain Snegiryov’s account of the schoolboy’s bite
- 04Captain Snegiryov's family introductions
- 05The mother's lament and the captain's consolation
- 06Leaving the cottage for a private talk
- 01Captain Snegiryov’s account of the beard insult
- 02Ilusha’s wounded pride and schoolboy revenge
- 03The evening walk, tears, and Alyosha’s offer of help
- 01The captain’s plea for the money
- 01Captain Snegiryov's hopes for relief
- 02Alyosha's encouragement and shared rescue plan
- 03Sudden rejection of the money
- 01Refusal of the money and defense of honor
- 01Madame Hohlakov’s alarm and Lise’s remorse
- 02Alyosha’s explanation of the ruined money offer
- 03Lise and Alyosha’s confession of affection
- 04Lise and Alyosha’s engagement
- 05Madame Hohlakov’s objections and the letter
- 01Alyosha’s search for Dmitri
- 02Smerdyakov’s conversation with Marya Kondratyevna
- 03Ivan summons Alyosha to the tavern
- 01Ivan and Alyosha's reunion at the tavern
- 02Ivan's confession of youthful thirst for life
- 03Katerina Ivanovna and Ivan's release
- 04Ivan and Alyosha's talk of the eternal questions
- 01Ivan’s confession of belief and rejection
- 02Alyosha questions Ivan’s despair
- 01Love of neighbors and the problem of suffering
- 02Turkish atrocities and the creation of the devil
- 03Richard’s execution and Christian philanthropy
- 04Cruelty to children and animals
- 05Ivan's protest against innocent suffering
- 01Ivan's prose poem, "The Grand Inquisitor"
- 01Ivan’s literary preface and the legend of heavenly visitations
- 02The Grand Inquisitor’s arrest of Christ in Seville
- 03The Inquisitor’s defense of authority and freedom
- 01The first temptation: bread and freedom
- 01Freedom of conscience and the burden of choice
- 02Miracle, mystery, and authority as means of control
- 01Critique of human weakness and freedom
- 02The Church’s alliance with Cæsar and universal unity
- 03Promise of obedient happiness under authority
- 01Alyosha’s objections to the Inquisitor
- 02Ivan’s defense of the Inquisitor and the Church
- 03The poem’s ending and the kiss
- 04“Everything is lawful” and the brothers’ parting
- 05Alyosha’s return to the monastery
- 01Ivan's unexplained depression on the way home
- 02Smerdyakov as the source of Ivan's loathing
- 01Ivan’s growing aversion to Smerdyakov
- 02The bench conversation and Tchermashnya
- 03Smerdyakov’s fear of Dmitri and the coming fit
- 01Smerdyakov’s secret signals and night watch
- 02Ivan’s suspicion of a planned murder
- 03Tchermashnya, Moscow, and Ivan’s departure
- 01Ivan’s restless night and inner turmoil
- 02Morning packing and departure for Moscow
- 01Fyodor Pavlovitch's request to bargain with Gorstkin
- 01Ivan's farewell at Fyodor Pavlovitch's house
- 02Journey to Volovya and sudden change of plan
- 01Smerdyakov’s epileptic fit
- 02Fyodor Pavlovitch’s suspense over Grushenka
- 01Zossima’s visitors in the cell
- 02Alyosha’s arrival and blessing
- 03Prophecy about Dmitri and Alyosha
- 04Zossima’s brother and final recollections
- 01Markel’s skepticism and illness
- 02Markel’s spiritual transformation
- 01Childhood memory of the Bible and Job
- 02Reading Scripture to the people
- 03Bible stories for peasants
- 04The Word of God and the people
- 05The river-night conversation with the peasant lad
- 01Cadet-school corruption and worldly habits
- 02Love for the noble young woman
- 03The duel and Zossima’s repentance
- 04Aftermath of the duel and resignation
- 05Public reaction and Zossima’s defense of sincerity
- 01The visitor’s first call and confession of interest
- 02Brotherhood, isolation, and the kingdom of heaven
- 03The murder of the landowner’s widow
- 01The servant’s arrest and death
- 02Years of concealment and public service
- 03The struggle to confess
- 04Public confession and proof of the crime
- 05Illness, insanity, and final visit
- 06Deathbed repentance and hidden murder attempt
- 01The monk as Russia’s spiritual hope
- 02Worldly freedom and desire
- 01Monastic freedom through obedience and prayer
- 02Russia’s salvation through the people
- 03Masters, servants, and spiritual brotherhood
- 01Prayer as spiritual education
- 02Universal love for all creation
- 03Humility, self-watchfulness, and responsibility for all
- 01Human blindness to earthly reality
- 02Judging fellow creatures through self-blame
- 03Faithful service and perseverance to the end
- 01Mystic teaching on love, suffering, and spiritual joy
- 02Hell as the suffering of inability to love
- 03Suicides and the proud in hell
- 01The elder's sudden death
- 02News of the death spreads
- 01Preparation of Father Zossima’s body and the first expectations
- 02The odor of decomposition and the scandal at the coffin
- 03Corruption of the elder's body and the monks' reaction
- 04Father Ferapont's exorcism and denunciation
- 05Alyosha’s sudden departure from the hermitage
- 01Alyosha’s wounded faith and demand for justice
- 02Rakitin finds Alyosha and leads him away
- 01Grushenka’s background and reputation
- 02Alyosha and Rakitin visit Grushenka
- 03Grushenka's changed mood and teasing welcome
- 04Alyosha's grief and new feeling of fearlessness
- 05Champagne invitation and dissipation
- 01Grushenka’s confession of love and shame
- 02Father Zossima’s death and Alyosha’s gratitude
- 01Grushenka’s onion parable
- 02Confession of spite and longing
- 03Alyosha’s plea for mercy
- 01Grushenka's farewell and summons to Mokroe
- 02Rakitin's bitter parting and Alyosha's return to the monastery
- 01Alyosha's return to the hermitage and prayer before the coffin
- 02Reading of the Gospel at Cana of Galilee
- 03Alyosha's drifting thoughts and reflections
- 01The miracle at Cana and the meaning of gladness
- 02Alyosha’s vision of Father Zossima at the wedding feast
- 01The elder's vision of the wedding feast
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01How many chapters are in the Brothers Karamazov course?
The Brothers Karamazov course has 12 chapters, each with its own lessons and topics.
02How many lessons are in the Brothers Karamazov course?
There are 146 lessons across the course, and you can ask your 24/7 tutor about any of them.
03Can I see what the Brothers Karamazov course covers before I start?
Yes. The full curriculum is listed on this page, beginning with "Book I. The History Of A Family".
04Do I get a certificate for the Brothers Karamazov course?
Yes. Finishing the course earns a personal Cavua certificate of completion.
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