The Idiot The Idiot The Idiot (pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform ) is a novel by the 19th-century Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published serially in the journal "The Russian Messenger" in 1868–9. The title is an ironic reference to the central character of the novel, Prince (Knyaz) Lev Nikolayevich Myshkin, a young man whose goodness, open-hearted simplicity and guilelessness lead many of the more worldly characters he encounters to mistakenly assume that he lacks intelligence and insight. In the character of Prince Myshkin, Dostoevsky set himself the task of depicting "the positively good and beautiful man." The novel examines the
Myshkin (town) Myshkin (town) Myshkin () is a town and the administrative center of Myshkinsky District in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located on the steep left bank of the Volga. Population: A settlement at this location has existed since at least the 15th century. Town status was granted to it in 1777. It was demoted in status to that of an urban-type settlement in Soviet times, but was granted town status again in 1991. Within the framework of administrative divisions, Myshkin serves as the administrative center of Myshkinsky District. As an administrative division, it is incorporated within Myshkinsky District as the town of