Julie Gray answers “Am I the only one who thought that Levin...”

Thoughtdome225 asked this question about Anna Karenina:

Am I the only one who thought that Levin was a boring, overly righteous sexist?

Julie Gray I found him to be insufferable at times, especially as the book wore on. I think his sexism was just a product of his times though. But he became, as …moreI found him to be insufferable at times, especially as the book wore on. I think his sexism was just a product of his times though. But he became, as the book wore on, more and more introspective and neurotic, and subsequently snappish toward Kitty - who had NO idea of all of Levin's internal questions - and so I got my fill of him too, for sure! I wasn't convinced by his end-of-the-book clarity of the purpose of life being about god. He definitely reflects Tolstoy's own journey, but one of the things I loved about the characters in this book is how they have great moments of clarity and then sometimes even moments later, abandon them, so I wasn't convinced that Levin is now going to be satisfied with his life. He definitely seemed a depressive, moody type to me. Poor Kitty. (less)

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