Page 1010 - the-brothers-karamazov

doctor told me so. Go, run after him...’
Alyosha jumped up and ran after Ivan, who was not fifty
paces ahead of him.
‘What do you want?’ He turned quickly on Alyosha, see-
ing that he was running after him. ‘She told you to catch
me up, because I’m mad. I know it all by heart,’ he added
irritably.
‘She is mistaken, of course; but she is right that you are
ill,’ said Alyosha. ‘I was looking at your face just now. You
look very ill, Ivan.’
Ivan walked on without stopping. Alyosha followed
him.
‘And do you know, Alexey Fyodorovitch, how people do
go out of their minds?’ Ivan asked in a a voice suddenly qui-
et, without a trace of irritation, with a note of the simplest
curiosity.
‘No, I don’t. I suppose there are all kinds of insanity.’
‘And can one observe that one’s going mad oneself?’
‘I imagine one can’t see oneself clearly in such circum-
stances,’ Alyosha answered with surprise.
Ivan paused for half a minute.
‘If you want to talk to me, please change the subject,’ he
said suddenly.
‘Oh, while I think of it, I have a letter for you,’ said Aly-
osha timidly, and he took Lise’s note from his pocket and
held it out to Ivan. They were just under a lamp-post. Ivan
recognised the handwriting at once.
‘Ah, from that little demon!’ he laughed maliciously, and,
without opening the envelope, he tore it into bits and threw

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