The two main interpretative trends regarding Dostoevsky’s work are reviewed in this paper. One appreciates him as a psychologist, and the other celebrates him because of the wealth of ideas in his characters. It is held that the novelist is mainly a great artist. Together with describing the qualities of his themes, characters and the originality of his dramatic scenes, comments are made on the importance of the study by M. Bakhtin of the narrative techniques of Dostoevsky.