Turgenev fathers and sons analysis of heroes. "Fathers and Sons": the meaning of Turgenev's work

In February 1862, Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev published his novel entitled “Fathers and Sons.” In it, he tried to show the reader of that time the tragic nature of the growing social conflicts.

In this article we will conduct “Fathers and Sons”, find out what problems are addressed in this novel, what is the author’s idea.

We are faced with economic troubles, the disintegration of traditional life, the impoverishment of the people, and the destruction of the peasant's ties with the land. The helplessness and stupidity of all classes threatens every now and then to develop into chaos and confusion. Against this background, a dispute unfolds about how to save Russia, waged by heroes representing the two main groups of the Russian intelligentsia.

Family conflict

Domestic literature has always tested the strength and stability of society through family relationships, which should be noted when analyzing the work “Fathers and Sons.” The novel begins with a depiction of the conflict in the Kirsanov family between son and father. Turgenev goes even further, to a clash of a political and social nature.

The main relationships of the characters are revealed mainly in terms of ideas. This is reflected in the way the novel is constructed, in which the arguments of the main characters, their painful thoughts, and passionate speeches play a large role. Ivan Sergeevich did not turn the characters of the work into exponents of the author's ideas. The achievement of this writer is the ability to organically connect the movement of even the most abstract ideas of the characters with their life positions.

Attitude to modernity of the main characters

The analysis of the work “Fathers and Sons” should also include the attitude of its various characters to modernity. One of the main criteria in determining a human personality for a writer was how she relates to the surrounding life and current events. The first thing that strikes us if we pay attention to the “fathers” - Nikolai Petrovich and Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov, is that, in essence, they are not such old people, but at the same time they do not accept and do not understand what is happening around. Analysis of the novel by I.S. Turgenev's "Fathers and Sons" confirms this idea.

Pavel Petrovich believes that the principles he learned in his youth distinguish him favorably from those who listen to modern times. But Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev shows that in such a stubborn desire to express contempt for modernity, this hero is simply comical. He plays a certain role that looks funny from the outside.

Nikolai Petrovich, unlike his older brother, is not so consistent. He even notes that he likes young people. But, as it turns out, he understands in modernity only that which interferes with his peace. For example, he decided to sell the forest for felling only because it was supposed to go to the peasants in a few months.

The position of a major personality in relation to modernity

Ivan Sergeevich believed that any major personality is always in a natural relationship with his time. This is how Bazarov is. Dependent, petty people live in an eternal feeling of discord with their time. Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov accepts this disharmony as the wrongness of modernity, that is, he denies the very passage of time, thereby freezing in his conservatism, and people of a different type (we will write about them separately below) are trying to catch up with him.

Sitnikov and Kukshina

In his novel, Turgenev brought out several such images that tend to rush with the rapidly changing passage of time, which must certainly be noted when analyzing the work “Fathers and Sons.” These are Sitnikov and Kukshina. In them this trait is expressed unambiguously and very clearly. Bazarov usually speaks to them dismissively. It’s more difficult for him with Arkady.

He is not as petty and stupid as Sitnikov. Talking with his uncle and father, Arkady explained to them quite precisely such a complex concept, how the character is interesting simply because he does not recognize Bazarov as “his brother.” This attitude brought the latter closer to him, forced him to treat him more gently, more condescendingly than towards Sitnikov and Kukshina. Arkady, however, still has a desire to catch something in nihilism, to somehow get closer to it, and he clings only to external signs.

Irony in the work

It should be noted the most important quality of Ivan Sergeevich’s style, which is also present in the novel “Fathers and Sons”. An analysis of the work shows that in it, as from the very beginning of his literary activity, this writer widely used the technique of irony.

In the novel “Fathers and Sons,” he awarded this quality to Bazarov, who uses it in a very diverse way: irony for this hero is a means of separating himself from another whom he does not respect, or serves to “correct” a person who does not yet respect him. indifferent. These are his ironic techniques when communicating with Arkady.

Evgeniy also masters another type of irony - self-irony. He is ironic about both his behavior and his actions. Let us recall, for example, the scene of the duel between Pavel Petrovich and Bazarov. In it, he sneers at his opponent, but no less evilly and bitterly at himself. Analysis of the duel scene in "Fathers and Sons" allows us to better understand Bazarov's character. In moments like these, the charm of this character is fully revealed. No narcissism, no complacency.

Bazarov's Nihilism

Turgenev leads this young man through the circles of difficult life trials, which with real objectivity and completeness reveal the degree of rightness and wrongness of this hero of the novel “Fathers and Sons.” An analysis of the work shows that denial, “complete and merciless,” can be justified as the only possible attempt to change the world, while putting an end to contradictions. But for the creator of the novel, it is also indisputable that the logic present in nihilism inevitably leads to freedom without any obligations, to searches without faith, to action without love. The writer cannot find a creative, creative force in this movement: the changes that the nihilist envisages for really existing people are essentially tantamount to their destruction, as the analysis carried out by the writer shows. "Fathers and Sons" reveals these contradictions by the very nature of the hero representing this movement.

Having experienced love and suffering, Bazarov cannot again be a consistent and integral destroyer, unshakably self-confident, ruthless, simply breaking other people by right of the strong. But this hero is also unable to subordinate his life to self-denial, to humble himself, to seek solace in a sense of duty, in art, in love for a woman - he is too proud, angry, and unbridledly free for this. Death turns out to be the only way out.

Conclusion

Concluding our analysis of “Fathers and Sons,” we note that this novel caused fierce controversy in the literature of the 19th century. Turgenev believed that his creation would contribute to the unity of various social forces, that society would heed the writer’s warnings. But the dream of a friendly and united Russian society never came true.

This concludes our analysis of the work “Fathers and Sons.” It can be continued by noting other points. We will give the reader the opportunity to reflect on this novel for themselves.

Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons” reveals several problems at once. One reflects the conflict of generations and clearly demonstrates a way to get out of it while preserving the main thing - the value of family. The second demonstrates the processes taking place in the society of that time. Through dialogues and skillfully developed images of heroes, a type of public figure that has barely begun to emerge is presented, denying all the foundations of the existing statehood and ridiculing such moral and ethical values ​​as love feelings and sincere affections.

Ivan Sergeevich himself does not take either side in the work. As an author, he condemns both the nobility and representatives of new socio-political movements, clearly showing that the value of life and sincere affections is much higher than rebellion and political passions.

History of creation

Of all Turgenev’s works, the novel “Fathers and Sons” was the only one written in a short time. Only two years passed from the inception of the idea to the first publication of the manuscript.

The writer’s first thoughts regarding the new story came in August 1860 during his stay in England on the Isle of Wight. This was facilitated by Turgenev’s acquaintance with a young provincial doctor. Fate pushed them into bad weather on an iron road and, under the pressure of circumstances, they communicated with Ivan Sergeevich all night. New acquaintances were shown those ideas that the reader could later observe in Bazarov’s speeches. The doctor became the prototype of the main character.

(The Kirsanov estate from the film "Fathers and Sons", filming location Fryanovo estate, 1983)

In the autumn of the same year, upon returning to Paris, Turgenev worked out the plot of the novel and began writing chapters. Within six months, half of the manuscript was ready, and he finished it after arriving in Russia, in the middle of the summer of 1861.

Until the spring of 1862, reading his novel to friends and giving the manuscript to the editor of the Russian Messenger to read, Turgenev made corrections to the work. In March of the same year, the novel was published. This version was slightly different from the edition that was released six months later. In it, Bazarov was presented in a more unsightly light and the image of the main character was a little repulsive.

Analysis of the work

Main plot

The main character of the novel, the nihilist Bazarov, together with the young nobleman Arkady Kirsanov, arrives at the Kirsanov estate, where the main character meets his comrade’s father and uncle.

Pavel Petrovich is a sophisticated aristocrat who does not like Bazarov at all or the ideas and values ​​he displays. Bazarov also does not remain in debt, and no less actively and passionately, he speaks out against the values ​​and morality of the old people.

After this, the young people meet the recently widowed Anna Odintsova. They both fall in love with her, but temporarily hide it not only from the object of their adoration, but also from each other. The main character is ashamed to admit that he, who vehemently opposed romanticism and love affection, now himself suffers from these feelings.

The young nobleman begins to be jealous of the lady of his heart for Bazarov, omissions occur between friends and, as a result, Bazarov tells Anna about his feelings. Odintsova prefers him a quiet life and a marriage of convenience.

Gradually, the relationship between Bazarov and Arkady deteriorates, and Arkady himself becomes interested in Anna's younger sister Ekaterina.

Relations between the older generation of the Kirsanovs and Bazarovs are heating up, it comes to a duel, in which Pavel Petrovich is wounded. This puts an end to it between Arkady and Bazarov, and the main character has to return to his father’s house. There he becomes infected with a fatal disease and dies in the arms of his own parents.

In the finale of the novel, Anna Sergeevna Odintsova gets married by convenience, Arkady and Ekaterina, as well as Fenechka and Nikolai Petrovich get married. They have their weddings on the same day. Uncle Arkady leaves the estate and goes to live abroad.

Heroes of Turgenev's novel

Evgeny Vasilievich Bazarov

Bazarov is a medical student, by social status, a simple man, the son of a military doctor. He is seriously interested in natural sciences, shares the beliefs of nihilists and denies romantic attachments. He is self-confident, proud, ironic and mocking. Bazarov doesn’t like to talk a lot.

In addition to love, the main character does not share admiration for art, and has little faith in medicine, despite the education he receives. Not considering himself a romantic person, Bazarov loves beautiful women and, at the same time, despises them.

The most interesting moment in the novel is when the hero himself begins to experience those feelings whose existence he denied and ridiculed. Turgenev clearly demonstrates intrapersonal conflict, at a moment when a person’s feelings and beliefs diverge.

Arkady Nikolaevich Kirsanov

One of the central characters of Turgenev's novel is a young and educated nobleman. He is only 23 years old and barely graduated from university. Due to his youth and character, he is naive and easily falls under the influence of Bazarov. Outwardly, he shares the beliefs of the nihilists, but in his soul, and this is evident later in the plot, he appears as a generous, gentle and very sentimental young man. Over time, the hero himself understands this.

Unlike Bazarov, Arkady loves to talk a lot and beautifully, he is emotional, cheerful and values ​​affection. He believes in marriage. Despite the conflict between fathers and children demonstrated at the beginning of the novel, Arkady loves both his uncle and his father.

Anna Sergeevna Odintsova is an early widowed rich person who at one time married not out of love, but out of calculation, in order to protect herself from poverty. One of the main heroines of the novel loves peace and her own independence. She never loved anyone or became attached to anyone.

For the main characters, she looks beautiful and inaccessible, since she does not reciprocate anyone. Even after the death of the hero, she marries again, and again for convenience.

The widow Odintsova's younger sister, Katya, is very young. She is only 20 years old. Catherine is one of the sweetest and most pleasant characters in the novel. She is kind, sociable, observant and at the same time demonstrates independence and stubbornness, which only beauty the young lady. She comes from a family of poor nobles. Her parents died when she was only 12 years old. Since then, she was raised by her older sister Anna. Ekaterina is afraid of her and feels awkward under Odintsova’s gaze.

The girl loves nature, thinks a lot, she is direct and not flirtatious.

Father of Arkady (brother of Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov). Widower. He is 44 years old, a completely harmless person and an undemanding owner. He is soft, kind, attached to his son. He is a romantic by nature, he likes music, nature, poetry. Nikolai Petrovich loves a quiet, calm, measured life in the wilderness of the village.

At one time, he married for love and lived happily in marriage until his wife died. For many years he could not come to his senses after the death of his beloved, but over the years he found love again and it became Fenechka, a simple and poor girl.

A sophisticated aristocrat, 45 years old, Arkady's uncle. At one time he served as a guard officer, but because of Princess R. his life changed. A former socialite, a heartthrob who easily won the love of women. All his life he built in the English style, read newspapers in a foreign language, conducted business and everyday life.

Kirsanov is a clear supporter of liberal views and a man of principles. He is self-confident, proud and mocking. Love at one time crippled him, and from a lover of noisy companies, he became an ardent misanthrope who avoided the company of people in every possible way. At heart the hero is unhappy and at the end of the novel he finds himself far from his loved ones.

Analysis of the novel's plot

The main plot of Turgenev's novel, which has become a classic, is Bazarov's conflict with the society in which he found himself by the will of fate. A society that does not support his views and ideals.

The conventional plot of the plot is the appearance of the main character in the Kirsanovs' house. In the course of communication with other characters, conflicts and clashes of views are demonstrated that test Evgeniy’s beliefs for stability. This also happens within the framework of the main love line - in the relationship between Bazarov and Odintsova.

Contrast is the main technique that the author used when writing the novel. It is reflected not only in its title and demonstrated in the conflict, but is also reflected in the repetition of the protagonist’s route. Bazarov twice ends up at the Kirsanovs’ estate, twice visits Odintsova, and also returns twice to his parents’ house.

The denouement of the plot is the death of the main character, with which the writer wanted to demonstrate the collapse of the thoughts expressed by the hero throughout the novel.

In his work, Turgenev clearly showed that in the cycle of all ideologies and political disputes there is a large, complex and diverse life, where traditional values, nature, art, love and sincere, deep affections always win.

In 1862, the fourth novel by the great writer Turgenev was published. The title of the novel is “Fathers and Sons.” It fully reflected Turgenev’s socio-political views and his direct attitude to all events taking place in Russia. Analysis of the novel "Fathers and Sons" will help you to most fully experience all the thoughts and experiences of the author.

Theme of two generations

The novel “Fathers and Sons” reflects the theme of two generations. It was inspired by the author of the fierce ideological struggle between democrats and liberals. This struggle unfolded during the preparation of the peasant reform. Its description was given in most detail by Turgenev. The analysis of the novel “Fathers and Sons” is interesting because when considering certain episodes, one can more acutely sense the dispute between two generations reflected in the novel. It examines such events of socio-political activity as disputes on issues of history and philosophy, as well as polemics on the topic of science and art.

An analysis of the work “Fathers and Sons” can begin with its title. The very title of the novel is very often understood in an extremely simplified way: a conflict between commoners and aristocrats, a change in the social ideology of generations. However, Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons” is not limited to just one social sphere. It also has a psychological sound. To reduce the meaning of the novel solely to ideology is to understand it “in Bazarov’s way.” Since Bazarov himself believes that the whole essence of the new time lies in the need to destroy from the face of the earth absolutely everything that was done by the “fathers,” as well as to discredit them with their morals and principles in the name of a very vague “bright future.” Analysis of the work “Fathers and Sons” makes it clear one of the most important problems in the development of all mankind, revealed in the work. This is a paternity problem. Each person, over time, realizes his spiritual connection with the past, with his roots. Generation change is always a difficult and painful process. “Children” take over from their “fathers” the spiritual experience of humanity. Of course, they should not copy their “fathers”. They need to creatively rethink their life credo. During social upheavals, the reassessment of values ​​by the new generation is much more brutal and harsh than necessary. The results are always extremely tragic: too much is lost in a hurry, and then it is too difficult to make up for these problems.

Analysis of the novel's characters

Of particular interest is the analysis of the characters. "Fathers and Sons" is a work in which we meet such bright characters as Bazarov and Pavel Kirsanov. Both believe that they know the answer to the question of how to bring about change in the country. Each of them is confident that it is his idea that will bring prosperity to Russia. The party affiliation of Bazarov and Kirsanov can be seen not only in their manners, but also in their clothes. The reader can recognize the commoner democrat by his peasant simplicity of speech, by his “naked red hand” and the deliberate negligence of his suit. The peculiarity of the positions of an aristocrat and a democrat is emphasized by symbolic details. For Pavel Kirsanov, such a detail is the smell of cologne. His strong addiction to a good smell reveals a desire to distance himself from everything dirty, low, everyday, everything that occurs in life. Thus, the readers are presented with heroic antagonists. Their worldview is determined by fundamental and irreconcilable contradictions.

Analysis of the duel in the novel “Fathers and Sons”

Let's analyze the duel. "Fathers and Sons" contains an episode in which Bazarov and his friend drive through Maryino, Nikolskoye and their parents' house. On this trip, the “new” Bazarov already abandons intense ideological disputes with Kirsanov. Only sometimes he throws out fairly flat witticisms that no longer resemble the previous fireworks of thoughts. Bazarov is opposed by the “cold politeness” of his uncle. They are opponents for each other, but do not admit it even to themselves. Gradually, hostility changes to mutual interest. During this trip, Bazarov for the first time decided to be curious and find out what his opponent’s arguments were based on. However, a stop at the Kirsanovs' house turns into a duel for Bazarov. Pavel Petrovich demanded a fight. He even took a stick with him in order to make a duel inevitable by any means. By the very fact of being challenged to a duel, Kirsanov departed from his aristocratic principles. After all, a true aristocrat should not condescend to a commoner. In those days, a duel was considered an anachronism. Turgenev depicts many funny and comical details in the novel. The duel begins with the invitation to Peter as a second, who was scared half to death. The duel ends with a tragicomic wound “in the thigh” of Pavel Kirsanov, who seemed to wear “white trousers” on purpose. Strength of spirit is inherent in both heroes. The author noted this earlier. But it was the duel that helped overcome internal limitations. After the duel, Bazarov and Kirsanov seem to change. Thus, Pavel Petrovich becomes attracted to previously alien democracy.

Death of Bazarov

In the novel "Fathers and Sons" the analysis of the episode of Bazarov's death is worth special attention. Although the outcome of the duel ended successfully, Paul had long since died spiritually. His parting with Fenechka severed the last thread with life. His opponent also passes away. In the novel, references to the epidemic seem extremely persistent. She spares no one, and there is no escape from her. Despite this, the hero behaves as if cholera poses no danger to him. Bazarov understood that he was created for the tart and bitter life of a revolutionary agitator. He accepted this title as his calling. But at the end of the novel, he wonders what to do next when previous ideas have been questioned, and science has not provided answers to the questions of interest. Bazarov tries to find the truth in conversations with a man unknown to him, but he never finds it.

Nowadays

Nowadays, the work “Fathers and Sons” is studied in all schools and humanities universities in the country. The problem of confrontation between generations is quite significant; young people insist on their moral values, which the “fathers” refuse to understand. In order to dot all the I's, read this brilliant work by Turgenev.

Aug 12 2010

The problem and idea of ​​I. S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons” are contained in its very title. The inevitable and eternal confrontation between the older and younger generations, due to the changing spirit of the times, can be viewed both in a tragic way (as, for example, F. M. Dostoevsky did in the novel “Demons”), and in a satirical and even humorous way. We can say that there is more humor in the novel than satire. Satire only exposes (satire can be caustic, evil, sharp), while humor not only makes you laugh, but also evokes regret and even sympathy (humor - soft, kind, etc.).

In fact, the question arises, who is Turgenev denouncing - “fathers” or “children”? In terms of age, character, and lifestyle at the time of writing the novel, he was a “father.” And he
I could not help but see that behind the nihilism and egocentrism of young people there is a desire to replace faith with knowledge, and passive hope with active actions, although Turgenev himself did not accept a maximalist approach to life. Out of rejection and misunderstanding, the idea for the novel “Fathers and Sons” was born. But this is not a categorical denial, but a desire to understand. Humor and satire help Turgenev in this.

Turgenev applies this approach to each of his characters, with the possible exception of Odintsova. begins with the scene of Arkady and Bazarov's arrival at Maryino, the Kirsanovs' estate. Suffice it to remember how Arkady, with or without reason, uses the word “father” instead of “dad,” speaks in a deliberately low voice, tries to behave cheekily, clearly imitating Bazarov. But nothing works out for him, everything looks unnatural, because in his soul Arkady remains the same boy he was when he left his native nest.

The estate itself, built in an open place (the result of Nikolai Petrovich’s groundless dreams), and its owners, Nikolai Petrovich and Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov, evoke a smile, but of a different kind: sad, nostalgic. This is sadness for the fading era of old-world landowners and aristocrats.

From Bazarov's point of view, they are eccentrics, they are useless to society. The humanistically minded Nikolai Petrovich gave the peasants free rein and thereby did them a disservice. His cello playing, like Pavel Petrovich’s ankle boots polished to a mirror shine, are not capable of improving the life of the people, and certainly not able to raise their cultural level. All this is as Turgenev says, but without these eccentrics there would be no poetry, art, or music. The brothers, although outwardly so different, are similar in their spiritual integrity. The Kirsanovs love Pushkin, Bazarov does not understand this poet and poetry in general, because... does not accept poetic ideals.

The author rarely jokes about Bazarov. Red hands, tousled hair, clumsy but confident movements give Bazarov’s appearance something animalistic. The beast has the will to act, has physical strength, has instinct, but it does not have “fullness of reason.” After all, calling a person reasonable if he denies the experience of past generations (“we do not recognize authorities”) is still incorrect.

Life played a cruel joke on Bazarov. He, who did not believe in love, suddenly fell in love, but his love was rejected. It is noteworthy that Bazarov died not in battle or on the road, as befitted a seemingly bright representative of the young rebellious generation, but in his home, in the arms of the same “old-world landowners” who were his parents.

In the entire novel, which is generally sad and kind, like everything that Turgenev wrote, there are only two characters worthy of sharp satirical injections: Kukshina and Sitnikov. Turgenev asks the first: “Why are you tense?” What does this creature with a small, red nose lack, why does Kukshina do absolutely nothing to maintain attention and self-respect? Magazines that no one will ever read are pointlessly collecting dust; her very existence is pointless. It is no coincidence that Turgenev places next to her such an empty person as Sitnikov; He also takes up the least space in the novel. The innkeeper's son dreams of making people happy, while taking advantage of the profits from his father's establishments. Such characters can only be considered parodies. Sitnikov under Bazarov, like Grushnitsky under (the same can be said about Kukshina and Odintsova). But if for Lermontov Grushnitsky served as a means of revealing Pechorin, then Turgenev uses the negative to give more weight to the positive.

With the help of humorous and satirical techniques, the author expresses his attitude towards the characters. In the scene of the argument and duel between Bazarov and Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov, humor turns into farce, because “children” should not kill “fathers,” and “fathers” should force “children” to think the same way they think. The problem of “fathers and sons” is eternal, and it is better to treat it with humor, as Turgenev did.

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The sixties of the 19th century went down in Russian history for a long time. Walking among the people, "People's Will", revolutionary democrats - all these are signs of global changes taking place in society. Among the leading social forces, the most prominent were liberals, advocating the transformation of the autocratic-serf system, and democrats, advocating fundamental changes in society.

These opposing forces were identified in the novel by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev "Fathers and Sons", written in 1862. The publication of the novel occurred during a period of intense aggravation of social struggle. There were student unrest and fires in St. Petersburg, which led to mass arrests and increased reaction from the government. The appearance of Turgenev's work caused fierce controversy.

The novel, written a year after the abolition of serfdom, takes readers to a time of crisis of the serfdom system in Russia and the intensification of the struggle between the “fathers” (liberals) and the “children” (democratic revolutionaries). It is no coincidence that Turgenev uses exact dates: the events in the novel begin on May 20, 1859, and the action ends in the winter of 1860. During this period, a new type of public figure appeared - a democrat commoner, striving to fight for a change in the political system of Russia not in words, but in deeds.

The central character of the novel, Evgeny Vasilyevich Bazarov, is just like that. Of the 28 chapters of the novel, he does not appear in only two. He is initially opposed to all the heroes of the novel, because a man of a different environment is the son of a district doctor. Bazarov will later say with pride: “My grandfather plowed the land.” The hero's democratic origins will later appear in his views, words, relationships with his parents, even in his attitude towards the woman he loves.

The very first appearance of the hero emphasizes the sharp difference between Yevgeny Vasilyevich and the noble landowners around him. The author contrasts the heroes with the help of details. Bazarov’s red naked hand and the well-groomed nails of Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov: “Nails, nails, at least send them to the exhibition.” The hand of a man of action and one who is used to flaunting English attire and being proud of “principles”, but sitting with folded hands. Arkady's father, Nikolai Petrovich Kirsanov, is much more delicate than his older brother: he is shocked by the deliberate vulgarity of Bazarov's words and manners, but he pretends not to notice the guest's demonstratively plebeian behavior.

When a dispute arises between Bazarov and Kirsanov Sr., which turns into open confrontation, Nikolai internally agrees with the young opponent, although he has long dubbed him a “retired man” and categorically declared that his song is over. What then caused such hatred in Pavel Petrovich? The fact that Bazarov, in fact, erased the entire life of the elder Kirsanov. Having laid his brilliant career and his future at the feet of the fatal beauty Princess R., he lost all this, having achieved nothing in life. The younger brother, who, against the will of his parents, married a girl of non-noble origin, was happily married for ten years and raised a son.

The elder brother did absolutely nothing that a man should do: he did not build a house, he did not plant a tree, and he did not raise a son. Now he is akin to living in Nikolai Petrovich’s house. Pavel Petrovich believed that he led a noble life and deserved respect in society for his loyalty to his principles. From Bazarov's point of view, this man is an “archaic phenomenon” because his existence is licentiousness and emptiness, and his principles are just an excuse for himself for someone who sits with folded arms.

The hero himself is infinitely lonely. Instead of students, there are pathetic imitators: Viktor Sitnikov and Eudoxie Kukshin are more reminiscent of a parody of the sixties. They appreciated in nihilism only the negation of previous moral norms and enthusiastically pay tribute to the new “fashion”. It would seem that Arkady is a true student, but he also easily goes over to the “fathers” camp. He “has decided to get married,” and therefore is not created for the “bitter, tart, bourgeois life.” Katerina Sergeevna immediately noted this obvious difference. She said that Bazarov is predatory, and he and Arkady are tame. This to some extent hurt the young man, because he also wanted to be strong and energetic. However, life decreed otherwise: soon marrying Katya, he repeats the fate of his father, finding happiness in marriage.

Bazarov is lonely not only in friendship, but also in love. His unrequited feeling for Anna Sergeevna Odintsova reveals the passionate and deep nature of a nihilist. Rejecting love as romantic nonsense, nonsense, he falls in love for real. Before meeting this rich widow, Bazarov accepted love in its physiological sense, almost at the level of the instinct for procreation. His first words about this woman were rude, also at the physiological level: “She’s not like other women.”

Afterwards he was going to find out “to what category of mammals this person belongs.” But this rudeness is caused, rather, by an aversion to “beautiful” words. The feeling instilled in Bazarov by Anna Sergeevna is worthy of respect. She not only became his companion and interlocutor (even in matters of chemistry!), she was able to make him feel in his heart and soul what he so stubbornly rejected with his mind. Bazarov “recognized with indignation the romanticism in himself.” But the ardent materialist was reborn, maintaining this romanticism until his death. It is not without reason that before his death he asks his beloved woman: “Blow on the dying lamp and let it go out.”

A conversation about Evgeniy Vasilyevich’s parents deserves a separate topic. Simple, narrow-minded and naive, they idolize their son with sacred awe. He is quite rude in his conversation with his father, because he is afraid of once again “coming apart,” but he allows his mother not only to hug his “Enyusha,” but is also affectionate with her. Thus, compositionally, the author takes his hero twice through the same circle: Maryino, Nikolskoye, home. And twice the hero experiences disappointment in friendship, love, and his beliefs.

But the hero ends his life’s journey in his parents’ house. The hero's death from an accidental infection with typhus seems absurd and far-fetched: languishing from unrequited love for Odintsova, Bazarov throws himself into work and, while helping his father treat the peasants, wounds himself with a scalpel in the process of autopsying the dead peasant. The death of the hero caused bewilderment among many. Turgenev understood that the time for such people had not yet come. The best way out for him was death, accepted with dignity. This is where the hero really showed his character. However, the novel ends with the thought of reconciliation with eternal nature.