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Notes from the Underground was adapted as an English-language film by director Gary Walkow (1995). Henry Czerny stars as the Underground Man, and Sheryl Lee appears as Liza. The cast also includes Jon Favreau and Seth Green.

I am a Sick Man. I am a Smart Man.

“Tell me this: why does it happen that at the very, yes, at the very moments when I am most capable of feeling every refinement of all that is "sublime and beautiful," as they used to say at one time, it would, as though of design, happen to me not only to feel but to do such ugly things, such that ... Well, in short, actions that all, perhaps, commit; but which, as though purposely, occurred to me at the very time when I was most conscious that they ought not to be committed. The more conscious I was of goodness and of all that was "sublime and beautiful," the more deeply I sank into my mire and the more ready I was to sink in it altogether.”

I like this quote. It reminds me of two books I read exploring several faucets of neuroscience including the relationship between the creative and the conscious, and the psychological disorders often found in geniuses. It has always intrigued me how fine the line is between being considered a genius and being considered a lunatic. Are those deemed “crazy” really crazy, or is their madness merely the outward appearance of the “illness” of a very alert, very consciously-aware genius?

Purposeless Purpose

“And the worst of it was, and the root of it all, that it was all in accord with the normal fundamental laws of over-acute consciousness, and with the inertia that was the direct result of those laws, and that consequently one was not only unable to change but could do absolutely nothing.”

This book reminds me of the theme of the absurd as seen in The Stranger. It doesn’t surprise me to find similarities between the two, as I discovered Notes from the Underground by researching existentialist novels like The Stranger.

The Vice of Good Sight

“I swear, gentlemen, that to be too conscious is an illness – a real thorough-going illness. For man's everyday needs, it would have been quite enough to have the ordinary human consciousness, that is, half or a quarter of the amount which falls to the lot of a cultivated man of our unhappy nineteenth century, especially one who has the fatal ill-luck to inhabit Petersburg, the most theoretical and intentional town on the whole terrestrial globe. It would have been quite enough, for instance, to have the consciousness by which all so-called direct persons and men of action live.”

 

 

To most it would seem that the Underground Man is flip-flopping on his perspective of consciousness. He insinuates that his way of life is “superior”, and then states that it is an illness. I do not see the Underground Man as being volatile in this aspect, however. I understand how he feels; whether or not I can put it into words is a different story.

The Underground Man sees his sensitivity as superior in the sense that he is consciously more aware than others. He has a better grasp of the universe, himself, existence, and –more importantly- their intertwining relationships. For use of an analogy, he has better eyesight than others. In this sense, he is superior. What this heightened vision allows him to see, however, makes it a curse, especially because nobody else can see it too.

The Law of Comparitive Advantage

“Two plus two equals five is not without its attractions.”

A bit off topic, but this reminded me of an Economics joke I heard. The Law of Comparative Advantage in Economics explains how, through use of specialization and international trade, two plus two can equal five. The joke took this principle and made a funny pun:

A mathematician, an accountant and an economist apply for the same job. The interviewer calls in the mathematician and asks "What does two plus two equal?" The mathematician replies "Four." The interviewer asks "Four, exactly?" The mathematician looks at the interviewer incredulously and says, yes, four exactly. Then the interviewer calls in the accountant and asks the same question "What does two plus two equal?" The accountant says "On average, four - give or take ten percent, but on average, four." Then the interviewer calls in the economist and poses the same question "What does two plus two equal?" The economist gets up, locks the door, closes the shade, sits down next to the interviewer and says "What do you want it to equal?"

Masochism

"'Ha, ha, ha! Next you’ll be finding pleasure in a toothache!' you will exclaim, laughing. 'And why not? There is also pleasure in a toothache,' I will answer."

The Underground Man enjoys self denial. In the last chapter, he described in length how he takes pleasure in his own humiliation, enjoying a sense of powerlessness. The “you” represents the “rational” man, who would most certainly find the idea of enjoying one’s one pain, masochism (I learned a new word!), absurd. This book is sometimes hard to follow, but I like it so far- it's very insightful.