Notes from Underground

Who it's for

The Underground Man describes, from inside and with brutal honesty, the paralysis of a mind that watches and judges every feeling until action becomes impossible, and many readers are startled to recognise their own spirals.

Feelings it meets

• Shame
• Self-Worth
• Resentment
• Fear of Intimacy
• Rejection Sensitivity
• Loneliness
• Overthinking

What it is

Fyodor Dostoevsky's 1864 novella is narrated by an unnamed, bitter retired civil servant in St. Petersburg. Part One, 'Underground', is his philosophical monologue against determinism and rationalism, constantly arguing with imagined readers.

Where to find it

Public domain in the US in Constance Garnett's 1918 translation; free on Project Gutenberg. Modern translations are in print, in libraries and as audiobooks.

Before you start

Heads up: Emotional cruelty and humiliation.

Age: Ages 16+

Where there is sorrow there is holy ground.Oscar Wilde, De Profundis