Autorepresentation of Rudin Type Heroin A. P. Chekhov’s Prose in the Middle of 1880 - 1890s (“On a Way”, “Neighbours”, “Visiting Acquaintances”)

Abstract

Purpose. The article examines changes which Rudin-type protagonist, who was initially incorporated into Russian literary characterology by I. S. Turgenev, undergoes in Chekhov’s prose in the middle of 1880 - 1890s. Three Chekhov's short stories, On the Road , Neighbours , and Visiting Acquaintances , differ in mode of representation of this type. Firstly, each of them articulates some essential discourse of general idealism; also, the value of these declarations is being gradually destroyed starting from the first work to the last. In two earlier short stories, the author employs the confessional form of protagonist self-presentation. Results . In On the Road , the plot and the narrative situation are structured to prove that the hero is fully active as a person who calls for searching ideals around. His recipient, the young woman Ilovaiskaya, is willing to follow him wherever he goes. Genre matrix of Christmas story would permit this kind of finale: everybody is expecting a miracle on Christmas night. But when the night passes over, each character chooses their own way of living and their own road to leave the station they stood at. In Neighbours , the Rudin-like hero, Vlasich, does not appear to be gifted enough to catch the real life signals. Thus, he gets an opponent, Ivashin, who feels (but doesn't speak out) inner disagreement with his expressive phraseology. Vlasich is a hero retelling common aspects of liberal ideology. Certainly, he stands for personal freedom, but he is unable to learn the single man’s inner world. His superficial mind is evaluated by his opponent. His social energy is high, but it does not matter in case of neighbour’s girl, Ivashin’s sister, credit. The last short story, Visiting Acquaintances , represents a pseudo-protagonist of Rudin’s type. Losev’s egotism and narcissism make him incredibly dull. His declaration of idealism is rejected by his opponent, Ivashin. Unlike the situation in Neighbours , he accuses Losev loudly. Conclusion . To sum up, these three short stories by Chekhov represent the general degradation of Rudin-type protagonist from the 1880s to late 1890s.