It’s all in the name. Raskolnikov is from the Russian raskol’nik ,which I’ve seen glossed as meaning “divided” or “separated.” It’s the word for schismatic or heretic.
And it is Raskolnikov: A double personality who is alienated and split off from everyone, including the church, and whose crime is to split open the heads of two innocent women.
But raskol’nik is also “Old Believer,” and thus the name is a sign of Raskolnikov’s eventual return to his old Christian roots.
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