Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821-1881) was a Russian novelist, journalist and short story writer who discussed the psychological state of the human soul in many of his works, one in particular being Notes from the subway; which was published in 1864. Notes from Underground, had a great influence in the 20th century; the novel takes one man's inability to communicate with society and uses it to teach readers about the importance of other human beings in our daily lives and how this affects the way we think, live, and learn. Although the narrator has become alienated from society, Dostoevsky uses his knowledge of diction, style, grammar, and many other literary devices to show the reader that the narrator lacks the knowledge to communicate with another human being, thus giving a tortured man the possibility of defining what the meaning of life is for someone who does not feel love, happiness, sympathy and has no characteristics that make up the human soul but has everything that is materialistic. Many critics say that "Underground Man" is lost to society, but Ian Johnston has a lecture in which he describes 'Underground Man' as a choice maker "And he lives there by choice, a voluntary refusal or inability to engage with other people significantly (Ian Johnston, paragraph 5)." Johnston in his introduction defines the word hero as “Cultural heroes – of history or fiction – as we have encountered them thus far, have virtually all had some qualities in common. First there is their ability to act in the world, to make decisions, to implement them and to face the consequences (Ian Johnston, paragraph 3).” 'Underground Man' has none of these skills, he overanalyzes the decision and then chooses the naive choice of the two because he is afraid of society gi...... middle of paper ....../>.Cummings, EE" Poetry magazine." Foundation for Poetry. Foundation for Poetry. Network. 11 April 2014. .Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Notes from the underground. New York: Dover Thrift Editions, 1864. Print.Gale, Thomson “Notes from Underground.” Thomson Corporation. 2005-2006. Network. April 11, 2014.Johnston, Ian. "Dostoevsky: Notes from the Underground." Dostoevsky: Notes from the Underground. Jonstonia. April 11, 2014 .Stephanova, Victoria. “A Question of Credibility: The Subjective Narrator of Notes from the Underground.” Brigham Young University, Provo: UT, 2008. Web. 11 April 2014.