Story perspectives

Viral New York Times Essay Revives Matt Dinan’s Teaching

By Drooid · Sep 24, 2026, 6:07 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

Professor Matt Dinan taught The Brothers Karamazov to third-year students at St. Thomas University.
He read the novel for the first time during the winter semester.
The Faith and Reason class held nonstop existential debates while students read covertly on Teams.
Dinan’s reflections appeared in a viral New York Times essay reviving his undergraduate vigor.

History

Historical Context

In 1880 Dostoevsky released The Brothers Karamazov, a novel serialised 1879-1880 that examined faith, free will and patricide. Its ideas shaped leading minds—Einstein called it his “supreme summit” in 1919, Freud analysed its Oedipal themes in a 1928 paper. Translations such as Garnett’s 1912 edition and the award-winning Pevear-Volokhonsky 1990 version keep the work central to university curricula worldwide.

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Story summary

Professor Matt Dinan taught The Brothers Karamazov to third-year students at St. Thomas University.
He read the novel for the first time during the winter semester.
The Faith and Reason class held nonstop existential debates while students read covertly on Teams.
Dinan’s reflections appeared in a viral New York Times essay reviving his undergraduate vigor.

1 / 2