도스또예프스끼 후기 소설 속의 수도원 공간

This article aims at examining the kinship of the characteristics of the monastery spaces in the late novels of F. M. Dostoevsky and historical Russian monasticism. In those novels the semantics of a monastery space undergo a kind of evolution. From Crime and Punishment to The Devils monastery space is depicted somewhat negatively. A monastery is understood as a place of seclusion, where one may hide his own crime or flee from the blame or challenge of society. A monastery represents the space which is cut off from this world and fulfills only negative or passive functions. In The Devils is embodied for the first time the true nature of a monastery, as embracing the world with love and influencing it in a positive way thanks to the presence of Tikhon in the monastery. In The Adolescence a wilderness, an equivalent for a monastery, is also a place, totally cut off from the world. But this time seclusion is not itself an end, but rather an optimal condition for retreating from temptation and the chaos of this world, and seeking only God. In The Brothers Karamazov monastery space is closely connected with the Orthodox Church tradition and fully discloses its true nature. The monastery in this novel is modelled after Optina Pustin', which Dostoevsky himself visited and studied about. The most important characteristics common to both the monasteries is the presence of an elder, whom the common people love and revere ardently. Thanks to the presence of an elder who is venerated by the people as a saint, the monastery turns into a space which brings the world into itself, comforting and healing those souls who are exhausted and hurt by the world. Even though the monastery is a place, distinguished from the world in essence, it copies the world in some way; for example, jealousy and conflict in the monastery as only exposed openly after Zosima's death. It turns out that the physical space of a monastery itself does not guarantee any kind of holiness. Nevertheless, living in a community under the supervision of a spiritual leader. monks can more easily purify themselves from sins through confession and the Sacraments, Monastery has purifying power not only for those monks living in it but also for the world outside its walls. The power flows from prayer, practiced in silence and seclusion for the salvation of the world. The hero of the novel, Alesha, embodies the dynamic relationship between the monastery and the world. The monastery space, recognized by him as light by contrast with the world-darkness, loses its distinctive characteristics after Zosima's death. According to Zosima's order, he leaves the monastery to live in the world as a monk, realizing that the world is God's creation waiting in expectation of transformation, He is called to communicate with the world and to serve it, creating in his soul monastery-like space and thereby keeping himself from the influence of the world. He represents the so called “inner monks”, personifying one aspect of the modern monastery movement.