Appearance
Excerpt
Excerpt from Reminiscences of Tolstoy, by His Son, by graf Ilia Lvovich Tolstoi
The following year he wrote a letter to my father which, it seems to me,
is a key to the understanding of Turgenieff's attitude toward him:
You write that you are very glad you did not follow my advice and become
a pure man of letters. I don't deny it; perhaps you are right. Still,
batter my poor brains as I may, I cannot imagine what else you are if
you are not a man of letters. A soldier? A squire? A philosopher?
The founder of a new religious doctrine? A civil servant? A man of
business?... Please resolve my difficulties, and tell me which of these
suppositions is correct. I am joking, but I really do wish beyond all
things to see you under way at last, with all sails set.
It seems to me that Turgenieff, as an artist, saw nothing in my father
beyond his great literary talent, and was unwilling to allow him the
right to be anything besides an artist and a writer. Any other line of
activity on my father's part offended Turgenieff, as it were, and he was
angry with my father because he did not follow his advice. He was much
older than my father, [18] he did not hesitate to rank his own talent
lower than my father's, and demanded only one thing of him, that he
should devote all the energies of his life to his literary work. And, lo
and behold! my father would have nothing to do with his magnanimity and
humility, would not listen to his advice, but insisted on going the road
which his own tastes and nature pointed out to him. Turgenieff's
tastes and character were diametrically opposed to my father's. While
opposition always inspired my father and lent him strength, it had just
the opposite effect on Turgenieff.
Explanation
This excerpt from Reminiscences of Tolstoy, by His Son by Graf Ilya Lvovich Tolstoy (Leo Tolstoy’s youngest son) offers a fascinating glimpse into the complex relationship between two of Russia’s greatest 19th-century writers: Ivan Turgenev (Turgenieff) and Leo Tolstoy. The passage centers on a letter Turgenev wrote to Tolstoy, revealing his frustration with Tolstoy’s refusal to dedicate himself exclusively to literature. Below is a detailed breakdown of the text, its themes, literary devices, and significance, with a focus on the excerpt itself.
Context of the Excerpt
Historical and Biographical Background:
- Ivan Turgenev (1818–1883) was an established Russian novelist and playwright, known for works like Fathers and Sons (1862). He was a mentor figure to the younger Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910), whose early works (Childhood, Boyhood, Youth; War and Peace; Anna Karenina) he admired.
- By the 1860s–70s, Tolstoy was undergoing a profound spiritual and philosophical crisis, leading him to question the purpose of art and literature. He increasingly turned toward moral philosophy, education reform, and religious anarchism, eventually rejecting his earlier fiction as frivolous.
- Turgenev, a dedicated aesthete, believed in art for art’s sake and saw Tolstoy’s literary genius as his highest calling. He was baffled and irritated by Tolstoy’s shift toward activism and asceticism.
The Letter’s Place in Their Relationship:
- The letter quoted here (likely from the early 1860s) reflects Turgenev’s exasperation with Tolstoy’s indecision about his life’s path. Tolstoy had briefly considered abandoning writing for other pursuits (e.g., farming, teaching, or religious reform), which Turgenev saw as a waste of his talent.
- Their friendship later deteriorated due to ideological clashes, culminating in a famous duel challenge (1861) over perceived slights in Tolstoy’s The Cossacks.
Themes in the Excerpt
The Artist’s Duty vs. Personal Freedom:
- Turgenev’s letter frames Tolstoy’s dilemma as a moral failure: "I cannot imagine what else you are if you are not a man of letters." He lists alternative roles (soldier, philosopher, civil servant) sarcastically, implying none are worthy of Tolstoy’s genius.
- The phrase "with all sails set" suggests Turgenev wants Tolstoy to commit fully to literature, like a ship embarking on its true voyage. The nautical metaphor underscores his view of writing as a destiny, not a choice.
- Tolstoy’s son interprets this as Turgenev denying Tolstoy’s autonomy: he "was unwilling to allow him the right to be anything besides an artist."
Generational and Temperamental Conflict:
- Turgenev, the elder, assumes a patronizing tone ("I don’t hesitate to rank my own talent lower"), positioning himself as a humble mentor. Yet his "humility" is conditional—he demands Tolstoy’s obedience in return.
- The contrast in their natures is stark:
- Turgenev: Thrives on harmony, dislikes opposition ("opposition... had just the opposite effect on Turgenieff").
- Tolstoy: Defiant and contrarian ("opposition always inspired my father"), rejecting Turgenev’s "magnanimity" to follow his own path.
- This mirrors their literary styles: Turgenev’s elegant, restrained prose vs. Tolstoy’s epic, philosophical intensity.
The Burden of Genius:
- Turgenev’s letter implies that great talent carries obligation. His frustration stems from seeing Tolstoy’s potential wasted on non-literary pursuits.
- Tolstoy’s son frames this as a clash of vocations: Turgenev sees writing as an end in itself; Tolstoy sees it as a means to larger truths (later, he would call art a "lie" unless it served moral instruction).
Irony and Misunderstanding:
- Turgenev’s joking tone ("I am joking") masks genuine desperation. His rhetorical questions ("A soldier? A squire?") reveal his inability to comprehend Tolstoy’s restlessness.
- The irony is that Tolstoy did become all the things Turgenev listed: a philosopher (The Kingdom of God Is Within You), a founder of a religious doctrine (Tolstoyan Christianity), and a social reformer (advocating pacifism and peasant education).
Literary Devices
Rhetorical Questions:
- Turgenev’s rapid-fire questions ("A soldier? A squire? A philosopher?") create a mocking, exasperated rhythm, emphasizing his bewilderment at Tolstoy’s indecision.
- The questions also undermine Tolstoy’s alternatives, suggesting none are valid compared to writing.
Metaphor:
- "With all sails set": A nautical metaphor for artistic commitment, implying Tolstoy is a ship adrift without purpose.
- "Batter my poor brains": A violent, almost comic image of Turgenev’s mental struggle to understand Tolstoy.
Contrast:
- The passage juxtaposes Turgenev’s rigidity ("devote all the energies of your life to literary work") with Tolstoy’s fluidity ("the road which his own tastes and nature pointed out").
- The contrast extends to their reactions to opposition: Turgenev is weakened; Tolstoy is strengthened.
Dramatic Irony:
- Turgenev’s letter, meant to guide Tolstoy, instead foreshadows their rift. His demand for artistic purity clashes with Tolstoy’s later rejection of art.
- The reader knows Tolstoy will abandon fiction for philosophy, making Turgenev’s plea seem naïve or shortsighted.
Significance of the Excerpt
Insight into Tolstoy’s Evolution:
- The passage captures Tolstoy at a crossroads, torn between artistic ambition and moral seeking. His defiance of Turgenev foreshadows his later radical rejection of literature in favor of ethical writing (What Is Art?, 1897).
- Turgenev’s letter becomes a symbol of the old guard—the 19th-century belief in art’s supremacy—while Tolstoy embodies the modern crisis of meaning.
The Artist’s Role in Society:
- Turgenev represents the Romantic view of the artist as a dedicated craftsman, while Tolstoy embodies the prophetic view—art must serve a higher purpose.
- This debate echoes broader 19th-century tensions (e.g., Flaubert’s aestheticism vs. Zola’s naturalism as social critique).
Personal vs. Universal Conflict:
- While the letter is personal, it reflects a universal struggle: the tension between individual freedom and external expectations.
- Tolstoy’s son frames it as a generational clash, but it’s also a timeless artistic dilemma: Should one create for beauty or for truth?
Literary Rivalry and Influence:
- The excerpt highlights how great writers shape (and resent) each other. Turgenev’s frustration mirrors Gogol’s influence on Dostoevsky or Hemingway’s rivalry with Fitzgerald.
- Tolstoy’s defiance of Turgenev’s advice liberated him to become a philosopher-writer, paving the way for 20th-century existentialist literature (Camus, Sartre).
Close Reading of Key Lines
"I cannot imagine what else you are if you are not a man of letters."
- Turgenev’s blind spot: He cannot conceive of Tolstoy outside the writer’s identity, revealing his limited worldview.
- The phrase "man of letters" (French: homme de lettres) carries 18th-century connotations of the enlightened intellectual, which Tolstoy would later reject as elitist.
"I am joking, but I really do wish beyond all things to see you under way at last..."
- The shift from levity to desperation shows Turgenev’s deep investment in Tolstoy’s career.
- "Under way" suggests Tolstoy is stagnant, a ship without direction—a provocative accusation given Tolstoy’s later productivity.
"Turgenieff’s tastes and character were diametrically opposed to my father’s."
- The word "diametrically" emphasizes irreconcilable differences, not just in art but in worldview.
- This line foreshadows their ideological break: Turgenev the liberal Westernizer vs. Tolstoy the Slavophile mystic.
Conclusion: Why This Matters
This excerpt is more than a personal anecdote; it’s a microcosm of artistic and philosophical conflict. Turgenev’s letter reveals:
- The pressure placed on genius to conform to expectations.
- The clash between aestheticism and moralism in literature.
- The loneliness of the artist who must choose between fame and truth.
Tolstoy’s defiance of Turgenev’s advice defined his legacy: he became not just a novelist but a prophet, influencing Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and existentialist thought. Turgenev, meanwhile, remains the elegant stylist, his letter a poignant relic of a fading artistic ideal.
Ultimately, the passage asks: What does it mean to be a writer? Is it a vocation (Turgenev’s view) or a vehicle for higher purpose (Tolstoy’s view)? The tension between these two visions continues to resonate in literature today.