Gambler

Although Dostoevsky dictated the novel to a secretary and finished it in less than a month, it came alive and received an acceptance that surpassed most of what Dostoevsky had published before. Especially since it contains something of what he lived and experienced himself. In this novel, we see the torn soul of the hero Alexei Ivanovich, who is captivated by two wild loves, the first being his intense love for the stern, eccentric Paulina, and the second the overwhelming passion for roulette. His love for Paulina is a mixture of desire to surrender and desire to escape; it is love and hatred together. Alexei confesses to Paulina that he finds great pleasure in his slavery to her, telling her that humiliation and downfall bring immense joy. And when she accepts his love and reciprocates his feelings, he flees. As for the passion for gambling, Dostoevsky depicts it as a kind of fascination, magic, delirium, even a challenge to fate. But Dostoevsky’s hero ultimately considers that this wildness has corrupted his soul, and he abandons it in the end. The translation offered by Dr. Sami Al-Daroubi of this exquisite novel grants us the ability to enjoy this great work, and it was an incomparable translation.