White Nights discussion
Anna Karenin(a) and Russian Character Development
date
newest »





Tolstoy agrees with you. He was sick with the same things that have made you sick about the book.

I too did not really sympathise with Anna's character and found the Officer's character even more annoying. I did not get a sense however that Tolstoy was trying to make her a sympathetic person and perhaps even shows some contempt for her by almost relishing in her anguish. The parallel with Levin however is nicely (if again too drawn out) played out and his story is one I enjoyed the most.
I also agree with Nena that perhaps because this plotline is so prevalant in our society today and even though Tolstoy was well before this time, it is hard to be warm to the story or become emotionally attached to selfish characters who bring about their own destruction out of boredom and vanity.
The experince has left me somewhat weary of engaging War and Peace because if it anything like Anna K, it is sure to be filled with too many pages which could be skipped.
I had an interesting response to my recent incusion of Anna Karenin and thought I would post it here. Please feel free to discuss any questions it raises or chords it strikes with you!
***
Sarah's Response:
Give me Crime and Punishment. Give me The Brothers Karamazov, give me Ivan Ilych. I love the Russian lit. Except for [Anna Karenina]. Hated it, hated it. It's sort of a secret shame. I know I'm not supposed to say it, but it's true. I thought she was annoying and Vronsky was a dope :) What caught you?
Michael's Retort:
Haha. Well, I don't blame you - it is probably my least favorite* of the Russian novels I have had the opportunity to read. :)
[*NB: The irony here is that I gave it five stars, and this is what caught Sarah's attention in the first place.]
However, sometimes people notice important things about me and one of them was that I apparently think often like a Russian. Thus, it makes sense that what I really appreciated about this was:
-the calculated "random" tragedy
-the firmness of character development (Notice how good Tolstoy is at making you feel so strongly, almost despairing about the characters themselves, no matter what way that plays out in how you feel; this is the true mark of a Russian!)
-the mentality and reasoning that I can discern behind its authorship
I try not to give too much away in my reviews, either, so we might just have to talk about it later. :)
***
So, what say ye? Disagreements? Resonances? Enjoy!
-msh