Pain Is Fun

            The Underground Man in Dostoevsky’s popular novel, Notes from Underground, derives enjoyment and pleasure from self-inflicted emotional suffering and causing emotional suffering in others. He has suffered all his life and has only recently begun to accept and enjoy the pain of suffering. He regrets not causing others to suffer with him when he was a young man, and now gains pure joy when he causes misery in others. He wants his readers to understand his love of human agony by giving a history lesson about how, “It is said that Cleopatra (pardon the example from Roman history) was fond of sticking gold pins into her slave-girls’ breasts and derived enjoyment from their screams and writhing” (Dostoevsky 22). The Underground Man uses historical examples, even rumors which may or may not be true, of ancient leaders to illustrate his point that suffering is enjoyable even to a demi-god. Though the rumor of Cleopatra may or may not be true, he is convinced that he is not abnormal and that suffering is pleasured by many.

            The Underground Man also believes himself powerless, indecisive  and weak when he commands, “Destroy my desires, eradicate my ideals, show me something better, and I will follow you” (Dostoevsky 34). The Underground Man desires to be hurt and wants to suffer through the destruction of the meaning of life itself for the joy of being killed, mentally, slowly. He causes self-inflicted pain to his own mind and to the minds of all around him for his own personal, twisted enjoyment.