Perhaps the most crucial years of Dostoevsky's melodramatic life occurred soon after the publication of Poor Folk. These years included some of the most active, changing phases in all of Russian history, and Dostoevsky had an unusually active role in this era of change. Using influences acquired with his literary achievements, he became involved in political intrigues of a questionable nature. He was, for example, deeply influenced by new and radical ideas that were entering Russia from the West, and he soon became affiliated with those who hoped to revolutionize Russia with all sorts of Western reforms. Dostoevsky published many articles concerning various political questions knowing full well that they were illegal and that all printing was controlled and censored by the government.
The rebellious writer and his friends were, of course, soon deemed treasonous revolutionaries and placed in prison. After nine months, a number of them, including Dostoevsky, were tried, found guilty, and condemned to be shot by a firing squad.
The entire group was accordingly assembled, all preparations were completed, and the victims were tied and blindfolded. Then, seconds before the shots were to be fired, a messenger from the Tsar arrived. A reprieve had been granted. Actually the Tsar had never intended that the men were to be shot; he merely used this cruel method to teach Dostoevsky and his friends a lesson. This harrowing encounter with death, however, haunted him for the rest of his life.
After the commutation of the death sentence, Dostoevsky was sent to Siberia and during the four years in prison there, he changed his entire outlook on life. During this time, in horrible living conditions, he began to re-examine his values. A total change occurred within the man. He experienced his first epileptic seizure and began to reject a heretofore blind acceptance of the new ideas that Russia was absorbing. He underwent a spiritual regeneration so profound that he emerged with a prophetic belief in the sacred mission of the Russian people. He believed that the salvation of the world was in the hands of the Russian people and that eventually Russia would rise to dominate the world. It was also in prison that Dostoevsky formulated his well-known theories about the necessity of suffering. Suffering became man's chief means of salvation.
