Turgenev and Dostoyevsky Upon first meeting Turgenev in 1845, Dostoyevsky wrote to his elder brother Michael saying that "A few days ago the poet Turgenev returned from Paris and right away showed me such friendship and affection that Belinsky is persuaded he is in love with me. But what a man he is, brother! I almost fell in love with him myself. He is a poet, a man of talent, an aristocrat, handsome, wealthy, intelligent, cultured, twenty-five years old; I doubt that nature has refused him
In the 19th century novel Fathers and Sons, author Ivan Turgenev compliments the theme of the generation gap by portraying two divergent paradigms of nihilism and the author’s personal ideology, romanticism. Yevgeny Bazarov’s is used as a representative of nihilism thus epitomizing one side of the spectrum; meanwhile Nikolai Kirsanov serves as a token for romanticism. Both characters experience key tests through character interaction in the novel and thus strive to test their own perspective. Through
Turgenev The Great Reforms of the 1860's generated an era of social and economic turmoil in Russia. These unstable times spawned the growth of a radical intellectual group known as, the intellegencia. These new reformers or radicals were the sons and daughters of the heads of Russia. They wished to sweep away the assumptions of the romantic generation of the 1840's that "refused to accept the supremacy of reason over emotion" (Kishlanksy, Geary and O'Brien: 755) and any other non-scientifically
Turgenev and Nihilism Nihilism comes from the Latin “nihil,” meaning nothing. Its definitions include the “rejection of all distinctions in moral value, constituting a willingness to refute all previous theories of morality,” and “a doctrine among the Russian intelligentsia of the 1860s and 1870s, denying all authority in favor of individualism” (The American Heritage Dictionary, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1973). Turgenev introduces Bazarov as a nihilist and mentor to his young friend,
Dangerous Ground of Illusion Relations between fathers and the younger generation have been and continue to be an important theme for various literary genres (King Lear, Shakespeare; Fathers and Sons, Turgenev). For many famous writers the significance of fathers’ influence on their children forms a subject of particular interest. . In the play, Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller shows in a very striking manner that the father's influence can be either positive or fatal. The dispiriting story of
societal norms. This trend can be witnessed through many examples such as Alexander Pushkin’s “Eugene Onegin” and “Diary of a Superfluous Man” by Ivan Turgenev. The characters described by these authors reflects the lifestyles of such a man, and seems to imitate the lives of the men who wrote these stories, as the real life Pushkin and Turgenev were both to be described as superfluous men. Alexander Pushkin can best be described as an idle aristocrat, a man whom excelled at being superfluous. As
A sportsman sketches, by Ivan Turgenev, tells several short stories about himself traveling around Russia. In some of these short stories, he writes about the treatment of the serfs. In the short story called The Agent, Turgenev tells us about an acquaintance of his named Arkady Pavlitch Pyenotchkin. A landowner and retired officer of the Guards, Arkady like many nobles of the time spends his life looking after his estate. In the treatment of his peasants he considers himself harsh but just, believing
In the novel Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev, Arcady plays a major role both in his own life and the lives of others. Arcady, despite the shield he surrounds himself with, is not a true Nihilist like his friend Bazarov through his thoughts and actions we see his change. To begin, Arcady shows signs of Romanticism Early on in the novel despite the announcement of his Nihilist beliefs. For example, Bazarov and Arcady were walking one afternoon in the garden and overheard Nicholas playing his cello
and olfactory elements from the text. Both Ivan Turgenev and Nikolai Gogol make use of language that is richly descriptive of the story’s surroundings. This type of language is used to describe characters, landscapes, as well as structures and places. As a result of this, another level of complexity is added to the plot and the author has the ability to reveal certain aspects of the plot. An example of this is found in The Knocking when Turgenev describes a part of the rising in action, where the
progress, they delineate from each other in the characters’ relative successes as well as divergent societal implications. The formal cause of these differences is ultimately societal mores as well as contrasting aims: Ibsen deals with feminism, whereas Turgenev discusses nihilism. However, both novels were written in the 19th century and dealt with local issues, where the implications beyond their respective societies were disregarded. Hence, these two texts both play an important role in their respective
It is important to keep in mind that Turgenev was an outsider belonging to the Romanticism age, he was not a nihilist. He was attempting to capture their value, their philosophy, and to depict who they are. The hero of the novel, Bazarov was the son of a poor doctor, he worked and put himself
Russia is in an unstable political situation with a desire to move towards a free-market economy and away from the feudalistic economy. Turgenev uses the multiple opposing views embodied by various characters to portray the political unrest in Russia after the Crimean War. Through the use of figurative language, natural symbolism and transitional setting, Turgenev indirectly suggests a moderate and open-minded view will eventually prevail within the new Russian political system. Yevgeny Vassilyich
Ivan Turgenev is one of the greatest Russian writers of the nineteenth century. In his pieces, Turgenev shows deep concern for the tangible problems of Russia at that particular time, such as the evolution of peasants and intellectuals, the women question and the hierarchy of Russian population. In his masterpiece Fathers and Sons, Turgenev emphasizes the enormous difference between subsequent generations by describing their distinctive philosophical views and life ideologies. The protagonists of
Sons is a novel written by Russian author Ivan Turgenev and originally published in 1862. Emerging in tsarist Russia during the realism period of literature, Turgenev examines the subject of changing generations in his novel. In Fathers and Sons the new generation is represented by the characters Arkady Nikolaevich Kirsanov and Evgeny Vasilich Bazarov, recent university graduates and self-proclaimed nihilists. Nihilism, a term popularized by Turgenev himself, is a broad philosophical school of thought
Petrovich, comes to accept Raskolnikov’s approach. This parallel epiphany is ironic, indeed, because throughout the novel, Rodya and Porfiry are cast as foils. Even this revelation, though... ... middle of paper ... ...ian author, Dostoevsky, Turgenev, and Zamyatin, alienates true visionaries from their natural place at the head of society and implies a theme of the perils of idealism. Raskolnikov discovers a rationale for committing crimes in the name of a greater good, only to also discover
told that he has the ability to do whatever he wants. As he grows older, however, he will realize this is not true. Though one may exert all, he is still bound to fail at reaching certain aims. Fyodor Dostoevsky, in Crime and Punishment, Ivan Turgenev, in Fathers and Sons, and Yevgeny Zamyatin, in WE, tap into this universal theme. Each of the aforementioned authors uses the motto represented in a quote from Crime and Punishment, "...the destruction of the present for the sake of the better,"
The comparison between Pechorin and Bazarov Fathers and Children, a very intelligent novel written by Ivan Turgenev, presents the conflicts between the generations. Generation gap is common in our daily life, for different growing up environment generates distinctive cognitions. However, when Turgenev adds in the specific social background of the times, when old romantic idealists meet with a young nihilist, the conflict sublimates and becomes more intense. Among all of the characters in the story
Anton Chekhov’s short story The Lady with the Dog focuses on a temporary affair between two married lovers. This short story illustrates the abnormal things that normal people will do when they get put in certain environments. This short story was written in the late 1890’s, but demonstrates deep insight into how people behave and react when they are exposed to different social dynamics and different social environments. The field of social psychology didn’t formally start until the 1950’s, but
The Russian novelist Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky stands at the very summit of Russian literature. No 19th-century writer had greater psychological insight or philosophical depth. None speaks more immediately and passionately to the mood and tone of the present century. This essay will discuss how Dostoyevsky's intent to portray a 'truly beautiful soul' manifests itself in the novel The Idiot, and access Dostoyevsky's success or failure in achieving his intention. Dostoyevsky confesses in
the novel Fathers and Sons, Russian author, Turgenev, enshrines this human “goal” to become “great” and “powerful” symbolically in one character; Bazarov. He also characterizes the polar opposite of this goal in an ordinary, but respected individual; Arkady. In this tabloid society, it comes as no surprise that humans all want to have power, and that most anyone would go to nearly any heights to achieve such success. In the novel Fathers and Sons, Turgenev uses characterization to contrast fates between