“What of it? If I die, I die. It will be no great loss to the world, and I am thoroughly bored with life. I am like a man yawning at a ball; the only reason he does not go home to bed is that his carriage has not arrived yet.”
He was born with the already formed power to create literary masterpieces that paved the way for many authors after him - that's the only way to explain the gift of Mikhail Lermontov, who produced such a mature and high-quality literary opus at the age of just 26, the age at which he lost his life in a tragic duel.
The Hero (or more precisely, anti-hero) of our time is a collection of five stories that are not directly connected but have a common thread - the main character, Officer Pechorin. He embodies the very essence of the author (although the author will try to refute this to negate the critics), haunted by the same nightmares and with a similar fate predetermined for them.
The author uses several different perspectives to narrate the adventures of the main character - this allows us to see him from multiple angles, through the eyes of others and through personal diaries. Pechorin is the embodiment of discord and disquiet. He is handsome, young, wealthy, adored by beautiful women, and the object of envy for other men. But that doesn't help him feel happy and fulfilled.
Now that I’m stuck here in this fort I often think back and wonder why I didn’t choose to follow the path that fate had opened to me, where there were quiet joys and peace of mind in store for me. I could never have settled to it, though. I’m like a sailor, born and bred on the deck of a privateer. Storm and battle are a part of his life, and if he’s cast ashore he pines in boredom, indifferent to the pleasures of shady woods and peaceful sunshine. All day long he walks the beach listening to the steady murmur of the incoming waves and gazing for the sight of a ship in the distant haze. He looks longingly at the pale strip between the ocean blue and the grey clouds, in hopes of seeing a sail, first like a seagull’s wing, that then gradually stands out against the foaming breakers and runs in steadily towards the desolate haven.”
Five interconnected non-chronological stories, each like an episode from the life of the main character, delve into the questions of love and the meaning of life. The action is set in the Caucasus in the early 19th century, during the war between Russia and the indigenous tribes.
Through Pechorin's relationships with women, we see all the shortcomings of his character - he is a misanthrope who cannot connect with other people, so he sees women only as objects of fleeting desire. He is a skilled seducer who uses manipulation to provoke reactions from others. He sees relationships with others as a chess game because emotionally he is unable to connect. Some games you win, some you lose, that's his attitude in life, cold and indifferent, he hardly cares about his own life. He perpetually pursues excitement to suppress the boredom that is his constant state of mind. He is not held by interest, nor by place for long. Intellectual superiority has made him a cynic at the cost of cultivating nobility and love. So little in life touches him, only those moments when his life is on the edge or his self-loving spirit is provoked.
Young Lermontov, who was educated and well-read, absorbed the poetry of Lord Byron (not surprising given that his family roots lead from Scotland), so he created a Byronic character in his novel. Along with his contemporary Pushkin, he was responsible for the flourishing of Russian Romanticism, and his poems and novels inspired "War and Peace" and other classics not only of Russian literature.
The novel is written in a beautiful, poetic style, every sentence is skillfully crafted, with wonderful descriptions of nature, misty mountains, and rugged landscapes. The author's poetry comes to the forefront even in this prose work, the lines are adorned with rich, ornate words that allow readers to immerse themselves in this picturesque, tumultuous landscape.
We can only imagine what we would have received as an inheritance if the life of Mikhail Lermontov had not suddenly ended, in the same way that his idol, whose death he wrote a poem about, ended. If we got to see the development of a blooming personality and the development of literature style to its full potential. But like his hero, the writer only knew how to live on the edge of a knife, and that often leads to a tragic poetic end.
It looks like a good book. It's a creative way to divide story into parts, that are non chronical and only share protagonist.
I'm also reading "arms and men" and I think it goes a little bit against the romantic notions of love and war.
Well you're blog was a good read, keep it up💫
Wow! a nice coincidence - it was just 3 days ago, that I had a massive photoshoot for a series of books, including this novel. According to the assignment, it was necessary to create "an artsy portrait in a historical interior", and this is where I ended up: using a top hat and ostrich feathers :)))) This is a wonderful, essential example of the 19th century Russian literature. Classic!
I am interested reading this kind of book, mix with emotions, romantic stories and it is full of philosophies context that can make everybody interesting to read.