"In Anna Karenina is expressed a view of human guilt and criminality. People are portrayed in abnormal circumstances. Evil existed before them. Caught"In Anna Karenina is expressed a view of human guilt and criminality. People are portrayed in abnormal circumstances. Evil existed before them. Caught in the whirl of deceit, people commit crime and fatally perish." This small excerpt from Dostoevsky's long review (can it be called a review?) in the Diary of a Writer, summarises the essence of the novel. Though the novel is named after its female protagonist, this is equally a story of Levin, the other major character whose story runs in parallel with Anna's. I absolutely appreciated this subtle parallelism of two stories, wherein Anna plays a more active and external role while Levin is the inner voice. Perhaps that's why it is named only after Anna and not Levin, for the active essence of one's life is more viable from a society's point of view. Levin leads a normal life with hardly any extraordinary events that might be interesting and scandalous in contrast with Anna's extra-marital affair. All through the book, we witness an inner battle that goes in, a story within a story, which highlights the essential questions of life and God. An inner transition goes through his soul which loops in the reader in his world. Levin also represents Tolstoy's own fictional representation and channels the very question that bothered the author himself. "There's less charm in life when one thinks of death but there is more peace." He is the soul of the book.
On the other hand, we have Anna, the human aspect of the book. Married at a very young age with a man for whom duty is above everything else, she finds herself in a loveless marriage. She is perhaps not consciously aware of it initially, but all changes for her when she meets Count Vronsky. She finds herself trapped in a scandalous affair when her heart overtakes her senses. It is not a love story, it is a story about life and the various consequences human beings have to face due to their impulsive decisions. It proves how love is not enough and the societal norms that structure the human life plays a pivotal role in every aspect of these choices. Anna Karenina is a woman in the nineteenth century, and that in itself is a prison. She lives in a time when all a woman can be is what her man makes her. From a respectable society woman to an immoral woman, Anna's story is tragically human and challenges the very pillars of society in the most unconventional sense ever. “But to fall in love does not mean to love. One can fall in love and still hate.� Dostoevsky wrote this in The Brother Karamazov and somehow this goes well with Anna and Vronsky's story in the second half of the book. As mentioned, this is not a story of love but life, hence even though there was no questioning the love between Vronsky and Anna, the guilt and criminal implications of such a love were too hostile for both of them to ignore, and the result of such a love is only misery and torment....more
"The hare of history once more overtakes the tortoise of art." A wonderful book."The hare of history once more overtakes the tortoise of art." A wonderful book....more
Camus belongs to one of the very few writers who can bring forth the very destructive and immoral aspects of the human soul yet lead to an end which eCamus belongs to one of the very few writers who can bring forth the very destructive and immoral aspects of the human soul yet lead to an end which eventually adds up to the beauty of that very soul. In short, through negation, he affirms the human soul. The gist of his works can also be summarised with his famous quote- “In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer." But unless you are aware of this winter, you can never appreciate the beauty of this undeniable existence of your soul.
Caligula deals with a tyrannical ruler who, through the absurd, justifies his tyranny. Well, he doesn't really justify it since the absurd draws away all the meaning. Cross Purpose goes further into the very nihilistic approach of the existential self. It approaches the normal life and how murders and suicides parallel and haunt these philosophical notions. The Just follows a terrorist group and their revolutionary ideas battling with the moral fabric of their souls. Is the murder of children justified even if it means the liberation of millions of children dying every day with hunger? Or tyranny revolting against tyranny is just another way of an unavoidable meaningless rubble, where the only certainty is the fall to abyss? Lastly, we have The Possessed, which undoubtedly was the play I was most looking forward to. Camus' favourite Dostoevsky work found an adaptation where he voices the very essence of his own essay, The Rebel. Personally, when I read The Rebel, I could see it as a philosophical interpretation of this very prophetic Dostoevsky novel; where the former deals with the idea of murder in a revolution, the latter was created because of a similar murder that happened in Russia in 1869. Dostoevsky, challenged by this idea of murder and the nihilistic drowning of youth, wrote an absolutely phenomenal novel, which definitely is his most prophetic work. Camus, himself, another absolutely brilliant philosophical writer, justified the essence of the novel in this theatrical masterpiece. I loved the adaptation, more so because it helped me meet two of the most intriguing (and my absolute favourite) men in a single work, condensed and integrated with sublime thoughts and an undenying warmth of the human essence, even in the most tragic and destructive circumstances. All in all, it is an amazing book to explore the playwright aspect of Camus....more
A beautiful beautiful book for the The Stranger shaped hole in my heart. Camus is brilliant in this, his philosophy shaping up to what it would eventuA beautiful beautiful book for the The Stranger shaped hole in my heart. Camus is brilliant in this, his philosophy shaping up to what it would eventually become. I would have finished this book in one sitting if not for the tedious real life tasks....more
I cannot begin to describe just how amazing this book is, perhaps a detailed review later, but even if you like Camus the tiniest bit, this book cannoI cannot begin to describe just how amazing this book is, perhaps a detailed review later, but even if you like Camus the tiniest bit, this book cannot be missed....more
It was a lazy Sunday afternoon, the reading slump looming, created a sluggish environment. The danger was quite apparent but then came the dog's heartIt was a lazy Sunday afternoon, the reading slump looming, created a sluggish environment. The danger was quite apparent but then came the dog's heart, which in its satirical deep way engraved a path and counter-revolutionised (pun intended) the laziness with the added flavour of the streets of Soviet Russia. And as I walked along Bulgakov and his pen, this 128 pages novella transcended into existence, a journey covered in mere hours, which then evaporated off only to leave an imprint forever. Hence a feeling of triumph ruled over me for two obvious reasons, 1. I was finally able to defeat my reading slump, and 2. Well, it is always a victory to be able to brush through the minds of the greatest humans who ever lived.
And about the book, Bulgakov is simply the best and obviously the most underrated satirist of all times. I love how deep and nuanced his characters are, and how deeply they are rooted with the existing structure of the society. This particular novella was a satire on the Bolsheviks, challenging the very revolution which established them as the rulers of the state, it awkwardly taunts both the depravity as well as the excesses when bestowed upon the dreadful creatures, which can be neither humans nor animals, but a scientifically new breed of creatures. But here the monster that Frankenstein has created tells a very different tale, a tale of horror and dread so awful and unique that the only solution is comedy!
“The whole horror of the situation is that he now has a human heart, not a dog's heart. And about the rottenest heart in all creation!�...more
I was once discussing Dostoevsky with a fellow reader and he mentioned how one can truly appreciate Dostoevsky only when they are at their lowest. ReaI was once discussing Dostoevsky with a fellow reader and he mentioned how one can truly appreciate Dostoevsky only when they are at their lowest. Reading his works feel like a warm embrace when you are lost in your own land of a devious reality. This Dostoevsky's masterpiece is indeed one of the finest books ever written, but much more than its literary greatness is its greatness of being. It is when you read it, you realise this uniqueness of its own existence, its own person. On my second reread, I found myself again in a world intricately weaved by the genius of the author, narrating a tale that hits closer to home as my soul resonates with the warmth thus provided. Raskolnikov, a student, finds himself in a psychological mayhem when he strives to become Napoleon. Great men make law and common men follow, that is the difference that distinguishes the two, Raskolnikov sees himself to be a part of the former and commits a crime which his ideology approves but his conscience doesn't and thus plays the perfect psychological thriller. Svidrigailov is another fascinating character who parallels Raskolnikov in a strange sense. He is a depraved man whose climax presents a food for thought for the readers to ponder over. Sonya is probably one of the finest women characters ever written by a man; even Dunya is fearless and a woman of substance which echoes throughout the novel. All in all, if one wants to start reading Dostoevsky, this should be the book to go with....more
"But the sword is not fearful. Everything passes away - suffering, pain, blood, hunger and pestilence. The sword will pass away too, but the stars wil"But the sword is not fearful. Everything passes away - suffering, pain, blood, hunger and pestilence. The sword will pass away too, but the stars will still remain when the shadows of our presence and our deeds have vanished from the earth. There is no man who does not know that. Why, then, will we not turn our eyes toward the stars? Why?"...more
"When the imagination sleeps, words are emptied of their meaning: a deaf population absent-mindedly registers the condemnation of a man""When the imagination sleeps, words are emptied of their meaning: a deaf population absent-mindedly registers the condemnation of a man"...more
Even this unfinished work slaps hard on the pathetic state of being human in a robotic rat race. It stands tall amidst the so-called best sellers, whicEven this unfinished work slaps hard on the pathetic state of being human in a robotic rat race. It stands tall amidst the so-called best sellers, which aren't even worth a dime in contrast to the kafkaesque beauty of this castle.
Edit- The Castle is Kafka's last novel, which was left incomplete (it literally ends mid-sentence), but that's never the point of his work. If you think about getting a plot and some definitive sad/happy ending, Kafka might disappoint you. However, if you are acquainted with the Kafkaesque nature of his world, you'll be submerged in a uniquely familiar surrounding where nothing makes sense and, quite similar to real life, abruptly ends midway. Do we get answers to anything that happens in reality? Perhaps no, but looking for answers in itself is an ironical aspect for a world where we are shunned and doomed as robotic slaves. Throughout the course of the book, I could recognise the very daily aspects of real life in an empty and shallow world, where The Castle represents everything and everyone else is mere pawns circling around the mighty and powerful; but always in vain, for no matter how high you rise up, The Castle always zooms out of your reach. K., the stranger, finds himself appointed as a Land Surveyor and visits the village. Initially, he is enthusiastic and optimistic about his job, but as everything bundles down, reality seems to fade like illusion; whatever appeared was never true, even the villagers were weirdly occupied in their strange roles. K, an outsider, could have provided a new insight into their lives, but this unintentional help was too strange and problematic for everyone around. In the end, it is better to shun the strangeness than appreciate its being. When K interacts with the superintendent about his weird situation, he is pointed out to be just an error. Frankly it isn't their function to hunt out errors in the vulgar sense, for errors don't happen, and even when once in a while an error does happen, as in your case, who can say finally that it's an error?' "This is news indeed!' cried K. Isn't that what a human life is reduced to be in today's world? We are merely errors, tactical failures, or mechanic successes meant to fuel in the already powerful Castle, unable to recognise the shredding of our souls in the process. It is just hauntingly beautiful how Kafka manages to symbolise all of this in this strange artistic format. Manier times, I was left with a hollow laugh, helplessly staring at the pathetic clownery of a world so doomed. Is it dystopian to pessimistically wonder about such a doom or merely a tale of a similar K, who can see but not see the helpless absurdity he finds himself in? Poetically enough, in the end, even when coincidentally help finds him, he is too tired to reach for it. Isn't that a conclusion in itself? Was he too sleepy to not heed it or extremely awake to avoid this rat race once and for all. Is resigning to one's circumstances a valid conclusion or a cowardly approach? Kafka leaves us with these questions to haunt us; an incomplete novel for our incomplete lives, our incomplete souls.
Note- Yes, it's a heavy book, and if you are not already acquainted with Kafka, then definitely this is not the one to start with....more
She enjoyed her own pain by this egoism of suffering, if I may so express it. This aggravation of suffering and this rebelling in it I could understanShe enjoyed her own pain by this egoism of suffering, if I may so express it. This aggravation of suffering and this rebelling in it I could understand; it is the enjoyment of man, of the insulted and injured, oppressed by destiny, and smarting under the sense of its injustice.
All through this work, a social element envelopes the characters, but it is not merely a social novel. There is a psychological element which deepens the characters, suiting the narration to the more dostoevskian shade.
The autobiographical essence through the narrator is also quite evident, for instance, “You'll simply write yourself out, Vanya,� she said to me. “You're overstraining yourself, and you'll write yourself out; and what's more, you're ruining your health. S. now only writes a novel a year, and N. has only written one novel in ten years. See how polished, how finished, their work is. You won't find one oversight.� “Yes, but they are prosperous and don't write up to time; while I'm a hack."
The villain in this story is one of the best villains I've ever read, the fact that he knows his wrongdoings yet attribute the very morality of the human fabric to be at fault, is what makes him so hauntingly evil. He is every bit an atrocious vile human yet one cannot help but agree with some of his reasonings. In one of the best chapters of the book, he proudly proclaims all of it as the narrator sat dumbfounded, much like the reader, and to quote one such instance,
"If it were possible for every one of us to describe all his secret thoughts, without hesitating to disclose what he afraid to tell and would not on any account tell other people, what he is afraid to tell his best friends, what, indeed, he is even at times afraid to confess to himself, the world would be filled with such a stench that we should all be suffocated. That's why, I may observe in parenthesis, our social proprieties and conventions are so good. They have a profound value, I won't say for morality, but simply for self-preservation, for comfort, which, of course, is even more, since morality is really that same comfort, that is, it's invented simply for the sake of comfort."
With Dostoevsky, you know the tale is not going to be a straight one, even though there might be a possibility for the villain to be defeated in the earthly terms, it isn't worth the philosophy Dostoevsky tries to so convey. It is kept open for the reader to take away the winning or the losing in their own aspect, and perhaps to see this conflict beyond a win or a lose, is what he expects most of all. As the heroine of the tale proclaims, Everything is purified by suffering.
The concluding page of the novel only amplifies this conflict through the vileness of humans, both in their own suffering and their beastly cruelty for other's suffering, where Nellie, the sweet perfect (and my favourite character of the book) poetically embraces her mother's footsteps but never forgives, which takes me back to a somewhat similar interpretation in Ivan Karamazov's rebellion from The Brothers Karamazov, where he complains how the tears of a child can never be justified, and even if a mother can forgive the abusers of the child, the child never could.
This also makes me conclude, that the comprehension of this work would had been incomplete without being aware of Dostoevsky's philosophy through his later works. Undoubtedly, the story is poignant and carries some very emotional and profound moments but, personally, I was able to completely comprehend the characters, specially their psychological aspects, because of my prior acquaintance with his later works....more
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