I am quoting one of my favourite paragraphs from Notes from Underground. The narrator’s point of view, which he calls “underground”, is extreme philosophical scepticism. This has undermined all justification or motivation, so he doubts the value of his own actions. At the same time, he feels himself superior to normal “men of action” and consequently, he has the expectation of achieving something profound. But his scepticism makes this achievement impossible to define, let alone attain. The narrator also tries to state why “underground” is superior, by argument to the consequences. This is a classic argument when defending the “truth” of a belief but is technically a logical fallacy. Just try to search for “what does atheism have to offer” and “what does Christianity” have to offer, on the Internet. Of course, the narrator can’t sustain his argument from his sceptical point of view. He is caught forever between seeking for “truth” and of questioning if “truth” has any value. Anyway, over to Dostoyevsky:

The long and the short of it is, gentlemen, that it is better to do nothing! Better conscious inertia! And so hurrah for underground! Though I have said that I envy the normal man to the last drop of my bile, yet I should not care to be in his place such as he is now (though I shall not cease envying him). No, no; anyway the underground life is more advantageous. There, at any rate, one can … Oh, but even now I am lying! I am lying because I know myself that it is not underground that is better, but something different, quite different, for which I am thirsting, but which I cannot find! Damn underground!

BTW, you can get the audiobook on librivox.

AC1