Redemption versus Fate

Through our discussions in class, we decided that Crime and Punishment is a novel largely about redemption. I agree with this, but it made for a hard time of translating ideas from the novel into my big question for the year. However, I came to a couple of conclusions and found that Raskalnikov's journey does come into contact with fate. Raskalnikov embodies the character who takes pride in having control over his actions and ultimately his life. When this privedlige fades, he gets scared: “A terrible word was trembling on his lips, like the hook on that door: another moment and it would jump out; another moment and it would let go; another moment and it would be spoken!” (165). After the murder, he feels a profound, incessant need to talk to someone, and not only to talk, but to reveal his true identity: the murderer. Luck played very well in Raskalnikov's favor on the day of the murder. From both people leaving Alonya's door, (for easy escape) and a luckily-ajar door for quick, convenient concealment, luck was his at every corner. However, how much of this, if any, is fate and how much is personal choice? I believe fate was at work that day for the pure fact that he got away virtually completely unscathed that day. This luck plays a role not only of that particular day, but also throughout the remainder of the novel and helps bring about redemption. As we discussed in class, redemption may be two-fold: man must forgive himself and then be forgiven by others. While Raskalnikov never formally seems to "forgive" himself, because he constantly tries to deny his guilt, he does so in other ways and eventually seems a form of redemption adequate for his case. If there is no other place in which the reader chooses to acknowledge fate in Crime and Punishment, the meeting and relationship between Raskalnikov and Sonya will support the case for faith. Although she is introduced as a fairly minor character, Sonya evolves into the plot through her prolonged interaction with Raskalnikov. Throughout their relationship, Sonya communicates that his actions were not just, but he must grow from them. He was fated to murder, fated to suffer, and eventually fated to understand the nature of man and forgiveness.