Dostoyevsky shows us that poverty is not just a lack of money. It is a deformation of the soul. The Insancik cannot be generous or noble in the way rich heroes can. Instead, he schemes for a new pair of boots, lies about his address, and dreams of a coat that will finally make him human in the eyes of others. And in those desperate dreams, Dostoyevsky locates the seeds of both madness and grace.
While his contemporary Leo Tolstoy was painting vast canvases of history and aristocracy, Dostoevsky was looking inward. He understood that a "little man" has a universe inside his head just as complex as that of a general or a prince. This focus on the interiority of the marginalized laid the groundwork for modern psychology. Insanciklar - Fyodor Dostoyevski