Character Motivation Chart

This comparative analysis worksheet is designed for Grades 10-12 and guides students in examining the contrasting motivations of Raskolnikov, Sonia, and Svidrigailov-three characters Dostoevsky uses to explore morality, suffering, and redemption. Using a structured chart, students compare each character across five major dimensions: morality, purpose behind actions, relationship to suffering, capacity for compassion, and attitude toward redemption. This side-by-side analysis helps learners see how opposing worldviews illuminate the novel’s central questions about human nature.

After completing the chart, students write a short reflective paragraph arguing which character seems the most “human” and why, requiring them to synthesize their comparisons into a text-based judgment.

Learning Goals

• Literary Character Analysis (Upper Secondary ELA) – Compare complex characters across shared criteria
• Thematic Interpretation – Understand how differing motivations reveal themes of guilt, faith, nihilism, and redemption
• Critical Thinking – Evaluate moral and psychological contrasts within a literary framework
• Reflective Writing – Articulate a reasoned, evidence-based personal interpretation

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource – Aligned with high school literature and analysis standards
• Clear Comparative Structure – Chart format supports organized, nuanced thinking
• Psychological Depth – Encourages students to grapple with moral ambiguity and internal conflict
• Builds Toward Essay Writing – Prepares students for character comparison and thematic essays
• Discussion-Ready Reflection – Reflection prompt supports meaningful class conversation
• Low Prep – Print-and-use worksheet with clearly defined categories and response space

This character motivation chart helps students move beyond plot summary to deep psychological analysis in Crime and Punishment. By comparing Raskolnikov, Sonia, and Svidrigailov, learners gain insight into how Dostoevsky stages philosophical debates through character-and how different responses to suffering and morality define what it means to be human.

This worksheet is part of our Crime and Punishment Worksheets collection.