Maya's Final NFTU Post

        In my opinion, this has been the most worthwhile book I have read in an English class. For the last however many years, it has always been the same things over and over again: this symbolizes x, the protagonist is x, and this metaphor foreshadows this. Yes, you could not really do that at all to begin with while reading Notes from The Underground, but I think we get the point. Not only did NFTU force the reader to be mindful and conscious of the society they live in, but it also forced the reader to be introspective. It’s too easy to say, “Oh, that’s not me. This guy is a lunatic” and put the book down. Like we said in class, Dostoyevsky finds a way to put the abstract thoughts about our own existence and place in this infinite universe into words. Reading Dostoyevsky has definitely made me reflect and I now completely see why Shapiro considers it one of the most important books of all time. 

        The discussions were extremely helpful because they helped me understand all of these things that Dostoyevsky put into words. It was also helpful hearing what other people had to say because each person brought up an interesting point that I hadn’t thought about while reading. However, once all of the basic points were understood, the basic ideas expanded into a web of tangents that only further enhanced the class’ discussions. 

        I guess if I were to pick the one thing I’ll remember most, it would be the fact that he neither refuted nor proved science or religion. In fact, he called them the same thing; a wall meant to separate our realm of what we consider to be true, viable, and possible and infinite space so that we don’t drive ourselves insane. This is one of the things that I thought about the most during our discussion. The origin of the universe, even just the origin of the human race, is such an interesting topic. When you tear them both down, you open a door to thousands upon thousands of possibilities. This, in turn, creates the opportunity to start that whole process of attaining, aka “the journey”, all over again. I, for one, was an adamant believer in evolution; I still think religion is not a viable answer for our origins. However, now I realize that we still don’t even have all the answers to evolution (along with other scientific theories). Yet, those who believe it accept it and continue to do so because they have faith that the answer is bound to turn up at some point. Over the summer, I read a book called The Quantum Universe and Why Everything That Can Happen, Does. Initially, I kind of just brushed off what I had read. Now having read NFTU, I now look back at that book thinking I shouldn’t have brushed it off as pseudo-science written by over-imaginative sci-fi fans with too much time on their hands. 

Kaylee NFTU final post

            Now that we have finished NFTU, I can say that is it one of the best books I have read during my high school career. Dostoyevsky is truly an amazing author. Not only did he manage to reveal our most hidden thoughts, desires and tendencies in a limited amount of space, but the fact that he had this kind of understanding of human behavior when the book was written in the 1860’s. I am happy I read this book and I would definitely recommend it to others. The level of depth and significance is undeniable. I can also say that I took more away from this book than any other that I have read in my other English classes.

            My opinion on the novel would no be the same without the discussions held in class. At first, I did not fully understand what Dostoyevsky was trying to convey in all his contradictions and rants. It was confusing looking at the book at a whole. However, when we sat down and began dissecting the different passages of the book, I noticed things and interpreted the information that he presented more clearly. The discussions helped me appreciate what Dostoyevsky was trying to say because instead of rushing through the pages trying to finish, we focused in on certain topics. Then with the topics we had group discussions. I have always particularly liked group discussions because the conversation flows and you hear insight from your other classmates. The discussions we had really resonated within me, as I would find myself still thinking about what we spoke about even after the bell rang. The depth and meaning behind everything was hard to push out of my mind as I moved onto my other classes. And I didn’t mind it either because I like thinking about these sorts of things.

            A few things I will remember in particular about NFTU. The first is the idea of “The Wall” and the constant reconstruction of these boundaries. Before the discussion I had always thought religion was kind of just a way for us to comfort ourselves about why things happen and the afterlife. But after discussing religion and science, I find myself no longer believing in God and not completely embracing evolution, but sitting in the middle of our existence. I also enjoyed the exercise about space because it truly mind-f*cked me after realizing that space is immeasurable and indeed infinite. I can’t say that the Underground man has completely changed my life and from now on I will always see both sides to everything. However, Dostoyevsky has opened my eyes to a new perspective and wrote down some of the things I have always thought about just never had the opportunity to truly discuss. I can say that I will take details from this experience and try to apply and reference it in the future, which hopefully will help me understand myself more and live a happier life in the moment (trying not to obsess over point B). 

Alex's Final Post

     NFTU is unlike any other book I have read. The novel does not follow a traditional plot line, focusing in on characters or themes. Instead, it delves into the consciousness/unconsciousness of the mind. Rather than tediously discussing symbolism, characters or themes like in previous English classes, we went paragraph by paragraph analyzing and discussing different sides of what we believed the author was trying to get at. When NTFU was initially assigned as an independent reading, I found the book to be tedious and confusing. I did not understand the narrator’s contradictions, nor did I think of relating any of the information to my life. In fact, I thought the underground man was a lunatic until I realized he was expressing truths that we tend to oppress and are afraid to admit to ourselves. Like Mr. Shapiro said in class today, Dostoyevsky is a brilliant writer because he is able to say what we cannot. I found NFTU to be very similar to Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment, I feel as though they were somehow influenced by each other, although I enjoyed NTFU more. 

     NFTU was definitely worth reading because it opened me up to a different genre, one that I might consider picking up on in the future. However, I feel like what made the book worth the read were the discussions. The discussions allowed us to relate the narrator’s ideas to our own, something that was difficult, almost impossible to do with Beowulf or The Canterbury Tales last year in English.Without the discussions, I would have probably stuck with my previous assumptions about the book being tedious and confusing. The book provides a fraction of how the human psyche works, however, these ideas (“the wall”, consciousness/impulse vs desire, destination/journey) are ones that I will be consciously aware of in the future and that will stick with me through life. 

Alexa Ferrer Final

Apart from Atlas Shrugged, NFTU is the most valuable book I have read yet. The discussions helped me understand the content and I really appreciate what Dostoyevsky tried to get across. I say tried because it is such a contradicting and complicated topic that I feel it’s impossible to get a solid conclusion because everything is refuted and taken back in the end. If I truly understood everything he is trying to see then everything I have written or am about to write is probably somewhat of a lie or somewhat contradictory (which is awesome)

Unlike some people in class, I find this reading to be the most valuable in terms of applying reading in real life. I think this is more relevant to apply to life than any narrative we’ve read. Everything about NFTU applies to every decision I’m ever going to make in my life. I already see a lot of what Dostoyevsky described in myself and in the decisions I make. If facts happen to offend me, I’ll fight the facts for no reason. I make decisions that don’t benefit me and that I can’t explain. I create walls to justify what I do and to feel safe. I also value the idea of suffering and think it is necessary to truly feel any sort of accomplishment or happiness. I want to learn to embrace to suffering and enjoy it because it’s all part of the “journey” which, when looking back, is always the best part.

I think the most important aspect of the book is the concept of “many sides.” I used to look up to people who believed in something passionately and were able to form a solid opinion about something and defend it. Now after reading this book, I think all those people are ignorant. Even the debate between Bill Nye and the other guy is a perfect example of two very educated people who will never make sense of what they are trying to defend because there are valid aspects in both arguments. If everyone had the ability to accept that most viewpoints have certain aspects of value, that would create an intellectual world. This book has now helped me define what I believe to be what intelligence is. I believe intelligence is being educated enough to see many sides of any argument or idea and accept the fact that there is never one side to anything. Intelligence is knowing as much as you can despite the fact that “the more you know the more you know you don’t know” and accepting it all because life is unexplainable and human behavior is unpredictable and it is what it is that’s it. 

Isa's Tuesday 400 post

In my opinion, Notes from the Underground was worth reading. While I read it alone, I didn't understand his arguments and naturally got frustrated. That frustration led me to label it as way beyond my level of comprehension, and why even bother with it? After our discussions, I can now see just how disturbingly applicable all of Doystoyevsky's arguments are. It's in part scary that such an "underground" man who hates the inferior man and can never belong,  is so accurate about the human psyche. Though I'm assuming pathos was not meant to occur, I did find myself sympathizing for the man. Here he is; a genius, so aware of every decision and the reason behind it. Yet he is unable to act, paralyzed to simply ponder and watch "stupid" men act on every impulse and desire. After reading this novel and discussing it so much, I feel a hint of that isolation.I feel as if I know a secret about the human mind, something that others who haven't read do not know. And yet those who know less will enjoy more, able to make every choice clearly because they do not know better.

The most memorable part of the book for me was the visualization exercise we did in class which related to the idea of infinite space. The idea of the "wall" which I wasn't able to really picture before, became very real in that moment.  I was very much affected by it because I realized just how uncomfortable I am with the concept of endlessness, and how my wall (which I had never acknowledged) was the comfort of knowing a start and a finish. The more infinite and absolute, the more claustrophobic I felt. It was as if infinite space had it's own walls smothering me. It was eye opening, that I was experiencing exactly what the underground man spoke about in the novel.  It was as if the wall, which I assume is to protect one's own self, hindered progress;infinite space should be exciting and unpredictable, but I held myself back.  My own limitations, my own perceptions of where I should begin and end caused a subconscious block. I felt myself putting up a stopper to the infinite space. "Oh, that's where it ends. Don't worry, it will end soon." It's my own fears, not what others have told me,  that causes such a wall.

Keri's final post

The discussions of "Notes from the Underground" by Fyodor Dostoyevsky were insightful. They, ultimately, changed my perspective on people and life in general. Although some of the points were a bit depressing, I believe that many of them were on point. I think that many of the topics brought up were so depressing that I did not believe them at first because I did not want to accept them as the truth. I did not want to view people in such a negative way because I like staying positive.
Unfortunately, I thought about the topics and realized that Mr. Shapiro was right. His points were correct but I cannot say I agree with how negative his points were. This may just be me trying to have a more positive outlook on life since the other perspective is frightening. I guess I will discover which side I agree with as I mature and have more life experiences.
However, I do think that these discussions helped me understand the book. As I was reading it for the first time, I was completely at a loss for what was going on. I understood the language he was writing in but that was about all. There were times when I thought I understood the gist but then he would latch onto a completely different point and then I was just lost. Being in class and hearing what it all meant made it so much clearer to me. I loved how Mr. Shapiro would use real life examples to explain what Dostoyevsky was saying because it all really opened my eyes to how people behave and interact.
For the same reason, I do think that this book was worth reading. The book in itself and the discussions that came along with it made me a little less naive and more in tune with what is really going on. I have never read a book like this. I have also never come out of reading a book so enlightened.
Speaking of these topics, I think the one that resonated with me most was the one about people never being fully able to be selfless. Everyone thinks that in a room full of people, or anywhere for that matter,  they are the most important. All other needs come second to theirs. I never fully realized that I think this way on a daily basis. It was so relevant. It was points like these that made me really get the most out of the discussions.

Raoul's Final NFTU post

        Now that we have finished the discussion of Notes From the Underground, I can say that I enjoyed the novel. I honestly hate books because I believe that in the modern day they are an inefficient way of attaining information. However, I must admit that Notes From the Underground is shockingly efficient in the amount of ideas expressed within 28 pages. Unlike Atlas Shrugged, which took 1069 pages to get one idea across, Notes From the Underground does not baby its audience. Given that the book is so dense it is inevitable that the book is difficult. The fact is that in my first read I probably got only half of the ideas that Dostoyevsky brought up (but that's because I already kind of understood where he was coming from). So the discussions definitely helped. But, I do believe that the discussions took a little too long. I think we started digressing way too much on simple ideas. I think the nightly blog post system was also really cool. I liked reading everyone else's ideas. neither the less, I found it kind of annoying that the blog posts were every night (even on a Saturday). Thankfully the posts were only 200 words; ergo, It was not filled with fluff (I could just state the facts and be done with it), so it did not take long at all.
        There were many good ideas that were brought up by Dostoyevsky in Notes From the Underground. Truthfully, I think about the ideas Dostoyevsky brought up frequently (like every other hour). When I observer people, is when I notice the truth behind what Dostoyevsky brought up. But the idea that I liked the most was mans desire to get slapped in the face. I know that the idea is unappealing especially the name (which Dostoyevsky chose), but is so true that it is sad. This was definitely not a theory that I had before Notes From the Underground; however, it is the theory that I see the most from Notes From the Underground. In the end, I believe that If had to read a book, Notes From the Underground is on my top three next to A Brief History of Time and Outliers. So yes if someone was looking for a book to read I would strongly recommend Notes From the underground!