I. S. Turgenev’s Story “Asya” in the Light of J. W. Goethe’s Tragedy “Faust”

Abstract

Purpose. The article presents a comparative analysis of I. S. Turgenev’s story “Asya” and J. W. Goethe’s tragedy “Faust”. As part of the comparative study, the significance of all the discovered quotations, references, and plot and imaginative interchanges is established in close connection with the themes of the work.

Results. In dialogue with the Goethean tradition, the Russian writer achieves a subtle and precise design of the lyrical and philosophical elements of the work. Firstly, Turgenev creates a harmonious blend of urban and natural landscapes within a German setting. This serves as an embodiment of modest provincial life and reflects the protagonists’. Secondly, the writer presents a situation of a fateful meeting between two young people, whose mutual feelings will subsequently become a source of real drama. As in the case of Faust and Gretchen, for N.N. and Asya, love serves as  a grand test of the sensual and psychological world of humanity, prompting an ethical assessment of their actions. Conclusion. By bringing his hero closer to Goethe’s hero in his apostasy from mutual feeling, Turgenev embodies the pernicious power of Faustian egoism. The betrayal of his first love, which is connected with the fear of revelation, reveals N.N.’s moral failure as a “figure” of the time.