Woe from Wit in the Novel “The Adolescent”

Abstract

The significant role of the images and the situations of the play by Griboyedov in the novel “The Adolescent” are often noted by Dostoevsky scholars. The novel and the play are connected by the common conflict of reason and feeling. The image of a misanthrope represented by the figure of Chatsky is very important for the novel “The Adolescent.”

In the plots of the compared works rumors of madness play an important role. This gossip is combined with a motive of discovering a secret (or “rumor”). Fear of the discovery of a secret is amplified by the theme of espionage, eavesdropping in the novel by Dostoevsky. The importance of the situation of revealing something intimate for “Woe from Wit” and “The Adolescent” indicates the complexity and duality of depicted reality. A theme of illusions initially enthralling characters unifies the play and the novel. It is the theme of “happy ignorance.”

The idea of non-inclusiveness and irrationality of life is common for both the play “Woe from Wit” and the novel by Dostoevsky.

The theme of woe from wit is global, and it is in line with ancient and influential sentimental tradition not only for Russian but also for world literature