"The present study offers new insights into the utilization of belletristic laughter not only in Crime and Punishment but also in the rest of Dostoevsky's major works. Additionally, it seeks to demonstrate that Dostoevsky's use of laughter bears a certain resemblance to the technique of other authors who employ laughter for artistic purposes - Leo Tolstoy, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Umberto Eco among them."--BOOK JACKET.