In the book Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, women at that time in Russia were not equal to men in terms of education and power. In Crime and Punishment, the women in the story were self-sacrificing in their actions, which in return paid off. The majority of women in Crime and Punishment, like Sonya, were selfless in their actions. The women in this story play a maternal role towards the men. The women in this story may have lived in a male-dominated society, but it seems that the words spoken by the women in this story had a very strong influence on the men. Sonya plays a major role in Raskolnikov's life, being the person Raskolnikov relies on during his time in and out of prison. Raskolnikov felt a close connection to Sonya because she was a prostitute and he was a murderer, which made him feel like they had both committed sins. Due to Sonya's self-sacrificing acts, Raskolnikov began to depend on Sonya and quickly grew to love her. Sonya's behavior was beneficial for her and for Raskolnikov. Sonya gave Raskolnikov a purpose by continuing to live using the power of Christ and religion. In return, Sonya's selfless behavior towards Raskolnikov gave her a fresh start in life in Siberia. Dunya also plays a role in Raskolnikov's life as she was willing to sacrifice herself to give him a better future, giving her hand in marriage to Pyotr Petrovich. Sonya is a support system for Raskolnikov because she allows him to see the evil in crimes. he did. Sonya heavily uses God as her support system and urges Raskolnikov to do the same, as she wants him to atone for his murderous actions. Sonya says to Raskolnikov "Come on, now this minute, stand at the crossroads, bow down and first kiss the land you have...... middle of paper ...... a more confident character than Sonya was able to hold her ground against women, but she still relied on men to succeed herself. She was ready to marry Petrovich in order to become rich and for her brother to succeed. Svidrigailov and Petrovich did not consider women to be successful. equal, but they admired them. They felt like as long as the women obeyed them, they would give them pretty much anything they wanted. To their disadvantage, it didn't work, even though Dunya was desperate. she did not sacrifice herself for the money and happiness they were openly willing to give her. She did not take the form of a weak woman in the story and took on a stronger role as one. that woman capable of standing up to men Sonya and Dunya's love is what helped Raskolnikov redeem himself. With their role as mother who advised and watched over Raskolnikov until the end.