The Grand Inquisitor (dramatic reading)


Read by LibriVox Volunteers

(3 stars; 17 reviews)

The Grand Inquisitor is a parable told by Ivan to Alyosha in Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel The Brothers Karamazov (1879–1880). Ivan and Alyosha are brothers; Ivan questions the possibility of a personal, benevolent God and Alyosha is a novice monk. The Grand Inquisitor is an important part of the novel and one of the best-known passages in modern literature because of its ideas about human nature and freedom, and because of its fundamental ambiguity. In the tale, Christ comes back to earth in Seville at the time of the Inquisition. He performs a number of miracles (echoing miracles from the Gospels). The people recognize him and adore him, but he is arrested by Inquisition leaders and sentenced to be burnt to death the next day. The Grand Inquisitor visits him in his cell to tell him that the Church no longer needs him. The main portion of the text is the Inquisitor explaining to Jesus why his return would interfere with the mission of the church. (Summary by Wikipedia)

Cast
Narrator: Ruth Golding
Ivan Karamazov: om123
Aloysha Karamazov: Martin Geeson
The Grand Inquisitor: Denny Sayers

Audio edited by Todd (1 hr 17 min)

Chapters

Part 1 18:03 Read by LibriVox Volunteers
Part 2 29:52 Read by LibriVox Volunteers
Part 3 29:12 Read by LibriVox Volunteers

Reviews

Tedious to listen to.


(2 stars)

I love Russian literature and this is a great read. Unfortunately, the recording is not. The one who reads the part of the Grand Inquisitor drones on with such a drab and lifeless voice that after a few moments it becomes background noise. Another reader sounds like he's holding his nose while he reads aloud. Granted, they are volunteering their time and effort which is a benefit to all, however this is not one of the finer ones. Others may enjoy this, I don't.


(1 stars)

Impossibly wretched reading of one of the all time great literary works. Listen to Notes from the Underground instead. That’s an amazing reading.

Now we know


(1 stars)

Excellent reading Vile message