Restoring the Inner Heart

Written close to the end of the great writer’s life, Fyodor Dostoevsky's short story The Dream of a Ridiculous Man tells of a transformation of the heart and a journey from despair to joy: a joy that can be known by all through the experience of God that transcends a simply rational discourse. In this eye opening literary study, the title character and his spiritual metamorphosis are examined in depth in light of the ancient concept of Nous as it developed from the Greek philosophers to the Christian fathers.

By comparing the "Ridiculous Man" to similar characters in Dostoevsky's corpus, the author shows how an Orthodox Christian understanding of the Nous underpins Dostoevsky's own anthropology and how his literary works in turn guide the reader toward a truer vision of humanity.

About the Author

Mary Naumenko has been involved in parish ministry for thirty-five years together with her husband who is a priest of the Russian Orthodox Church. She is the translator of two books of spiritual counsel from Russian into English: Letters to Spiritual Children (Nikodemos Orthodox Publication Society) and Striving Toward God: Spiritual Advice for Daily Living (Holy Trinity Publications) as well as the author of five books in the Lives of Saints for Young People series published by Holy Trinity Monastery.

She earned an M.A. in Humanities through The Great Books Honors College at Faulkner University (Montgomery, AL). Her Master’s thesis on the patristic concept of the nous in the writings of Dostoevsky provided the initial impetus for this book.