Karl Ove Knausgaard: Ivan’s tale is an indictment of Jesus Christ. He returns to earth, is thrown into a prison cell by the Grand Inquisitor, and is called to account. He could have prevented all want, all suffering, but he chose not to. Instead of bread, he gave humanity freedom. Having to choose between good and evil, in the Grand Inquisitor’s view, is a burden that human beings are too weak to bear. They long for someone to relieve them of it. And that is what the Grand Inquisitor offers them. Jesus is silent; he just sits there listening to this high priest of materialism until he is done. Then he walks over to him and kisses him on the lips, before disappearing into the streets of Seville.