Raskolnikov's intellectual side is intricately bound up in his theory of the extraordinary man. If Raskolnikov is to be one of the extraordinary, he must be able to stand alone, without needing human companionship or without being influenced by the actions of others. He must rely on no one and must be completely self-sufficient. When he performs charitable acts, he is temporarily violating this intellectual side of his nature.
The other side of Rodya's character is the warm, compassionate side. It operates without an interceding thought process. His first and immediate reaction to any situation represents this aspect of his personality. Consequently, he will often act in a warm, friendly, charitable, or humane manner, and then when he has had a chance to think over his actions intellectually, he regrets them. For instance, when he spontaneously gives Katerina Marmeladov his last money, he regrets that he has given the Marmeladov family the money shortly afterwards. If left to his immediate reactions, Raskolnikov would always act in a charitable and humane manner; he would always sacrifice himself for his fellow man — incidents galore abound in this manner, including the reports of his risking his life to rescue a child from a fire or his concern over a drugged young girl who is being pursued by a "dandy" with immoral intent.
The actions in the novel that seem to be strange and contradictory are rather the result of the two aspects of Raskolnikov's personality. When he refuses to allow Dunya to marry Luzhin and then a moment later tells her to marry whom she pleases, this reversal is an example of the humane side not wanting his sister to sacrifice herself to help him, and then the intellectual side contending that he must not concern himself with insignificant problems of others.
