Demons

Dostoevsky caught fire with the idea for “The Possessed” after Ivan Snytkin, his wife’s brother, arrived in Dresden. As a result of unrest at Moscow University and the activity of the student movement, Snytkin and Dostoevsky talked a great deal about students’ lives— their morals and moods— and that inspired the author to write the novel. In one of his letters to the poet Apollon Maykov, Dostoevsky wrote: “I sat down with a rich idea; I’m not speaking about execution, but about the idea. One of those ideas that has an unquestionable effect on the public. Like ‘Crime and Punishment,’ but even closer— even more pressing in reality, and it directly concerns the most important modern question. …> Too hot a subject. I have never worked with such pleasure and such ease.”
The plot of “The Possessed,” full of political intrigues, religious drama, and existential tragedy, goes beyond the boundaries of genre and becomes a literary catharsis on eternally relevant themes. To mark the 150th anniversary of the novel’s first publication, we present you its audiobook version, virtuously performed by actor Maksim Sukhanov. Here is what Maksim told us about his desire to voice “The Possessed”: “As an actor, I’m drawn to the characters— and there are many of them. And all of them, to one degree or another, deviate from the norm. I’d even say that all these stories that happen among these people are akin to a big hysteria or a madhouse. And since it’s described seriously and with a great sense of humor— it’s a great pleasure to read.” Listen to the full version of one of Dostoevsky’s most important and scandalous novels, brilliantly performed by Maksim Sukhanov.