The Brothers Karamazov (AmazonClassics Edition) characters

Also known as Fyodor Pavlovich

Appears from the start

The wealthy Karamazov patriarch, a vulgar, theatrical, and neglectful father who built his position through opportunistic marriages and financial dealings. He largely abandoned the upbringing of his sons and treats even serious family conflicts as occasions for performance and provocation.

Also known as Mitya, Dmitri Fyodorovich

First appears in chapter 2

Fyodor's eldest son, born to his first wife and raised by relatives and guardians after both parents abandoned him. Impulsive and financially disorderly, he returns as an adult convinced that his father has withheld money or property due to him.

Also known as Ivan Fyodorovich

First appears in chapter 3

Fyodor's highly educated middle son, raised away from his father after his mother's death. Reserved and intellectually independent, he becomes known for a provocative article about church courts before returning to live near his divided family.

Also known as Alyosha, Alexei Fyodorovich

First appears in chapter 4

The youngest acknowledged Karamazov brother, a gentle and unusually trusted young novice. Drawn to the monastery by love for the elder Zosima rather than hostility toward ordinary life, he moves among his quarrelling relatives with compassion and little interest in judging them.

First appears in chapter 5

A wealthy liberal landowner related to Fyodor's first wife. He once took charge of young Dmitri's affairs and now joins the Karamazovs at the monastery in hopes that Zosima can mediate the dispute between father and son.

Also known as the Elder

First appears in chapter 6

A respected spiritual elder at Alyosha's monastery. Frail and nearing death, he receives visitors seeking guidance and stresses active love, personal responsibility, and honest self-examination. Alyosha is devoted to him.

First appears in chapter 7

A young seminarian familiar with Alyosha and the Karamazov family. Clever, observant, and skeptical, he carries news between households and takes pleasure in identifying worldly motives beneath professions of faith or generosity.

Also known as Madame Khokhlakova

First appears in chapter 9

A wealthy widow visiting Zosima with her daughter. Emotional, talkative, and eager for spiritual reassurance, she moves quickly between sincere concern and social excitement and later welcomes Alyosha into her household.

Also known as Lise

First appears in chapter 9

Madame Khokhlakova's adolescent daughter, who uses a wheelchair and has known Alyosha since childhood. Lively and teasing in public, she slips Alyosha a private letter while visiting Zosima.

First appears in chapter 14

Fyodor's stern, deeply loyal household servant, who helped care for the neglected Karamazov children. Proud of his religious certainty and sense of duty, he lives with his wife in a lodge on Fyodor's property and distrusts the family's disorder.

Also known as Pavel Fyodorovich

First appears in chapter 15

Fyodor's servant and cook, raised in the household by Grigory after his mother died giving birth to him. He is widely believed to be Fyodor's unacknowledged son. Withdrawn, fastidious, and contemptuous, he suffers from epilepsy and takes pride in the skills he acquired while training as a cook.

Also known as Katya, Katerina Ivanovna

First appears in chapter 18

Dmitri's proud and wealthy fiancée. Their bond began when he offered urgently needed money without taking advantage of her vulnerable position; she later repaid the debt and declared her devotion. Dmitri is both moved and burdened by the moral obligation between them.

Also known as Grushenka, Agrafena Alexandrovna

First appears in chapter 18

A young woman under the protection of the merchant Kuzma Samsonov and the object of both Fyodor's and Dmitri's desire. Charming, perceptive, and capable of encouraging their rivalry, she also carries the memory of an earlier lover who abandoned her.

First appears in chapter 27

A proud schoolboy who attacks Alyosha after other boys torment him. His anger is connected to a public humiliation suffered by his impoverished father at Dmitri's hands.

Also known as the Staff Captain

First appears in chapter 30

Ilyusha's impoverished father, a retired army captain supporting a disabled wife and children in a cramped home. Though desperate for money, he remains painfully sensitive to insults and to the loss of dignity he suffered when Dmitri assaulted him in public.

Also known as Kolya

First appears in chapter 63

An intelligent, self-confident schoolboy admired by younger boys. He values independence and likes to display advanced ideas, but his delayed visit to the gravely ill Ilyusha conceals genuine loyalty, remorse, and affection.