Fathers and Sons

This is the story of two young men Arkady and Bazarov as they travel between the ciy, the houses of their parents, and the house of the beautiful widow Odintsova. During their journeythey quarrel with parents, fall in love and explore ideas of nihilism, feudalism and impending revolution.

What makes the novel great are the characters, real recognisable human types. Nikolai Petrovich, the good but incomptetent man, Pavel Petrovich embittered by lost youth, Odintsova, the intelligent woman trapped in a patriarchal society, Barazov the tortured but charismatic "angry young man". The real character of genius is however Arkady. Here we have a totally convincing portrait of a follower. He is enthralled by Barazov, imagines himself in love with Odintsova, and seeks to rebel against his parents, but all the time it is clear he will marry the more homely Katya and go into business with his father. As a portrait of inaccessible dreams and mundane reality it is both heart breaking and life affirming.

So all in allthoroughly recommended. That recommendation must however be for the novel. I found the transaltion, and particular the self conscious use of modern English terminology grating. It is a translation which will date more quickly that the novel.

Competition where there should only be love... (2/3 people found this helpful)

Ivan Turgenev is one of those dusty old masters of Russian literature, crowded out by Chekhov, Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. I found reading "Fathers and Sons" rewarding, although many of the references have gone astray in the almost 150 years since the book was written. At that time the educated classes in Russia looked towards the rest of Europe for direction - although some of this is certainly pretension and some escapism from the real and surrounding problems. The 'Explanatory Notes' do not really add a great deal, and perhaps only distract further from the true aims of the book.

Contained is a snapshot of Russian society in all its diversity, with the Russian landscape and politics in the background, but it is in the main characters and their interaction which are most satisfying. The 'Fathers' - past their prime, beyond experimentation or great endevours, but still clinging to their dignity as best they can and seeking comfort where they can. The 'Sons' - arrogantly striding towards a brighter future, so unwilling to compromise, so sure of their views and beliefs, even when they hold that nothing is worth believing in anyway! Fathers clinging to what is dear to them, and sons willing to throw everything familiar away in order to obtain something new and better. Thus there is competition where there should only be love. And so it has been down the centuries and always will be.

I fear Turgenev was writing for a Russian audience of his time, and neither he nor the translator has managed to wholly transport me back there. But some things do come through strongly......

very good read (2/2 people found this helpful)

I thought this book would be a boring dull russian saga but I was mistaken, I was hooked into this story from the begining, I found the idea easy to follow and could picture the travels in my kind, only a good book can do this without causing misinterpretation and misunderstaning let alone confusion. Highly recommended read from a story based in another country.

The generation gap! (8/9 people found this helpful)

One of the many delights of reading fiction from any literary period is the sense of timeless authority fashioned by the rich imaginations of talented writers. Although the historical settings may seem distant the characters behave pretty much as they do today, for example, they feel pain, fall in love, philosophise, act benevolently, contradict themselves, are conceited and pretentious. And these traits of human nature are compassionately handled by Turgenev in a novel that skilfully captures the ageless dilemma of youthful idealism (the sons) versus contented maturity (the fathers) thrust against the socio-political conservatism and burgeoning radicalism of mid 19th century Russia. The principle protagonist, Bazarov, is the archetypal angry young man, an Epicurean nihilist with romantic tendencies! Such are the contradictory dimensions belonging to this strain of Russian reactionaries, who want to destroy society's institutions whilst not caring about what to put in their place. In dismissing the existing social order and its moral obligations Bazarov is forced to confront his own despair and loss. In a telling passage Bazarov details, to his friend Arkady, his sense of `spiritual' insignificance in an indifferent universe, "I feel nothing but depression and rancour." Bazarov, however, is only human, and when he encounters the independent, educated, beautiful widow, Madame Odintsov, his self-imposed emotional detachment is tested to breaking point with catastrophic consequences. The story is an extraordinary examination of the cost of moral principles even if you think, as Bazarov does, you don't have any. This edition contains an excellent lecture and introduction detailing Turgenev's literary life, contemporary reaction to Fathers and Sons and the political climate of the period.

19th Century Russian Classic (2/2 people found this helpful)

'Fathers and Sons' is arguably Turgenev's greatest work. It is very accessible to the reader, and excellently written. Turgenev is renowned for his masterful ability to construct realistic dialogues and this novel does not disappoint in this respect. But 'Fathers and Sons' is also a novel of ideas and Turgenev analyses some of the ideas and sentiments which were later to have such an important influence on Russian society.

This novel follows Bazarov, a self-proclaimed nihilist, and his friend and pupil Arkady Nikolayevich Kirsanov as they return from their studies in Petersburg to the province in which their fathers reside. The tale is tangled with arguments and discussions about politics and philosophy, and of course it is also complicated by a heavy dose of love. As another reviewer has mentioned, the author's treatment of nihilism as a philosophy is particularly interesting and enlightening.

Turgenev is adept, as other reviewers have noted, at accurately describing different emotions and even at evoking those emotions in his readers; something of which precious few writers are capable. The subject of love, both romantic and mat/paternal, is dealt with extremely skilfully by the author and betrays the understanding of someone who has undoubtedly been exposed to those feelings himself.

'Fathers and Sons' then, leaves the reader with the sense that he/she has participated as a quiet observer in Bazarov and Arkady's journeys, and that Turgenev has enabled one to better appreciate love and the relationship between father and son, amongst other things. This is a book that deserves to be read, appreciated, and pondered over long after it has been closed. It's core relevance has not been diminished by the century-and-a-half since it was written.

Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev

Reader Reviews:

Timeless classic - shame about the translation (0/0 people found this helpful)

Competition where there should only be love... (2/3 people found this helpful)

very good read (2/2 people found this helpful)

The generation gap! (8/9 people found this helpful)

19th Century Russian Classic (2/2 people found this helpful)

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