Alyosha decides to enter the monastery

After visiting his mother’s grave, Alyosha tells his father that he wants to enter the monastery as a novice. He asks for his father’s consent, making the decision not merely a private wish but a request for recognition from the family he is leaving behind. The moment begins Alyosha’s movement from the household into monastic life, where Elder Zossima has already made a powerful impression on him.

The decision

Alyosha presents his wish as a strong desire and explains that the monks are willing to receive him. His timing, soon after the visit to his mother’s grave, connects the decision to a moment of reflection on family and loss, though the scene does not specify that the visit alone caused it. He approaches his father solemnly, asking consent rather than simply announcing that he will go.

His father’s response

His father recognizes Elder Zossima’s importance to Alyosha, describing him as the most honest monk and acknowledging the special impression he has made on his gentle son. Though half drunk, he listens thoughtfully and is scarcely surprised; he says he had a presentiment that Alyosha would end up choosing something like this. His manner mixes wry humor with an awareness that the choice is serious.

The prospect of losing Alyosha also brings an unusually direct admission of affection. His father says he has grown fond of him and asks him to pray for the family, which he characterizes as having sinned too much. The response thus joins permission with dependence: he accepts Alyosha’s departure while imagining that his son’s new religious life may still reach back toward those left at home.