“ Love rarely stays away from a Russian novel, even if it bespeaks of nihilism. I found this work from Turgenev to be essentially a love story too, though it played a wider canvas by slighting that romanticism, often being ashamed of it, but eventually surrendering to emotion.
It is a riveting work, ever engaging and spreading out the futility of a complete rejection and also a thoughtless liberalism for that matter. Amazingly, Turgenev is able to mock an allegiance to either school, however, it appears that his sympathy lies with the old order, because he gives it a more human color as compared to the almost ridiculous shade granted to the new order in form of Bazarov and a half hearted Arkady.
Though I hate to put a gender color to any work, I did feel that this work was almost exclusively a male work. The women were all in plain shades - either timid and superstitious devotees like Bazarov's mother, or calculating and capricious like Anna Odintsov. Turgenev refused to give them any hues which he awarded the men who were allowed to experience different emotions - feel strong or foolish, get bored or fight ridiculous duels. But then, the work is called "Fathers and Sons" - nothing feminine about that!”
Madhuri wrote this review Tuesday, March 4 2008.
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