Study Guide for Final Exam

Rus 223/WL 223

Section I.

1) Compare and contrast Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina and Chekhov’s “Anna on the Neck.”

2) Compare and contrast Dostoevsky’s method of writing with Tolstoy’s. Be sure to discuss at least three different aspects of their fiction and use lots of examples from the works we have read. Also consider who is the better writer.

3) Compare and contrast Bazarov with Raskolnikov.

4) Compare and contrast Razumikhin and Levin.

5) What roles do peasants play as symbols in Russian literature? Be sure to compare and contrast Raskolnikov’s dream with Anna Karenina’s.

Section II.

1) Who is the most interesting character in 19^th-century Russian literature and why?

2) What is the best work of 19^th-century Russian literature and why?

3) Who is the best character (in terms of being “good”) in 19^th-century Russian literature? Who is the worst?

Section III.

1) The early period of 19^th-century Russian literature is populated by male characters that are often labeled “superfluous men.” Trace the development of the “superfluous man” in Russian literature. When does this type of character cease to predominate and why? In your answer, be sure to discuss the “isms” of the time and to cite examples from at least five different works.

2) Is there a distinctly Russian character to Russian literature? That is, does Russian literature portray a culture, philosophy, religious sensibility, etc., very different from American life or does it demonstrate that, except for superficial matters such as names, people are pretty much the same all over the world?

3) The Golden Age of Russian Literature (roughly the 2^nd half of the 19^th Century) is considered by many to be the best period of literature ever produced. Is this opinion valid? If so, why? If not, why? Be sure to include lots of examples from the works we have read.