Dostoevsky’s The Idiot in the Interpretation of Catholic Theologians

Abstract

The article analyses different readings of Dostoevsky’s novel The Idiot by four prominent Catholic theologians: Romano Guardini, Henri De Lubac, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Divo Barsotti. The works by De Lubac, Balthasar, and Barsotti are considered in a chronological order, while Guardini’s text is analyzed at the end of the paper, as it raises the question on the nature of the artistic word in The Idiot more directly. The history of the Catholic reception of Dostoevsky’s The Idiot attests that in this novel the Russian writer managed to create a literary work that is perceived by the reader as highly ambivalent. The connection between the main character, Prince Myshkin, and Christ is evident, however, it can be interpreted in very different ways. This ambivalence becomes for Guardini a key to a deeper understanding of the novel and its theological content.