[Note: Though entitled 'The Possessed' in early English translations, Dostoyevsky scholars and later translators have preferred to translate the title of this book as 'The Devils' or 'Demons'].
An explicitly political book, Demons is a depiction of life in Imperial Russia in the late 19th century. As revolutionary democrats begin to rise in Russia, different ideologies begin to collide.
Dostoyevsky casts a critical eye on both left-wing idealists (portraying their ideas and ideological foundation as 'demonic'), and the ineptitude of the conservative Tsarist establishment in dealing with those ideas and their social consequences. Dostoyevsky's novel focusses on the idea that utopias and progressive ideals were unrealistic and unrealizable. Further, he sees them as running contrary to deep aspects of the Russian national character.
The book has five primary ideological characters: Verkhovensky, Shatov, Stavrogin, Stepan Trofimovich, and Kirilov. Through their philosophies, Dostoyevsky describes the political chaos emerging in 19th century Russia.
