Anna Karenina: Day the Third

Well, what I at first thought was just going to be a more-than-slightly gritty comedy of manners is turning into something much more powerful.

I haven't finished yet, I have one fairly short part left, but I stopped reading, and felt like a two-by-four had hit me upside of the head.

The story has swung back more completely to Anna and her quasi-husband Vronsky over the past few parts. While Anna is at Vronsky's estate, she seems happy, radiant, and surrounded by people who don't seem to be bothered by her 'situation' as Vronsky's lover and not-quite-wife. However, this false cheer disappears when she goes back to Moscow to live with Vronsky in the city. While in the city, though, everything falls apart. Anna gets jealous of Vronsky for every little thing, and everything starts spinning out of control for her. She goes and sees her best friend, saying goodbye, and then in a haze of non-understanding of what she's doing, goes for a train ride, and throws herself in front of the train.

What? She -had- talked about death before, but this is a bit... out there. Alright, hold on, though. Tolstoy masterfully describes the emotions and feelings of someone going through a mental and emotional breakdown. From the jealousy to the numbness, and the dis-jointed way of thinking about things, and the non-awareness of the effect it would have on anyone else, Tolstoy seems to truly understand what could drive someone to do that. It's really powerful to see it open up, and then just... happen. Usually, at least in modern fiction, someone steps in before something actually happens. In fact, earlier in the book, Anna was certain that she was going to die, and then she took a turn for the better, and everything evened out.

So, it's interesting. I can't really say my final thoughts on the book until I finish it, but for now, as I've been hit by a two-by-four, I think I'll step back from Anna for the day.

'Till then, Comrades!

Days: 361
Books: 100 (frelling still.)

Anna Karenina: Day the Second

Life goes on, reading goes on, and Anna certainly isn't getting any less interesting.

I am, however, going back to my original idea of this being closer to Jane Austen than anything else. People are getting married, breaking up, talking for pages about how they don't know if they're in love with someone anymore, that sort of thing. I don't fault them for it, honestly, but it's getting a bit old.

Now, allow me for a moment, to talk about one of the main themes of the book: Religion. Almost all of the characters in the novel talk incessantly about God and at least go through the trappings of religion. However, most of the characters either don't seem to follow what they're saying or they just plain don't care. For example, Dolly notes that her children haven't taken communion for a year. Anna's husband worries at first, not about her immortal soul, but about how society will see Anna's infidelity. He sees religion not as something to be believed, but something to be known, something to do because society tells him to. This starts to change for him where I currently am in the book, as he seems to turn more to belief and practice, however, there is still an underlying belief that religion is necissary in society.

This is not the place to discuss religion in society, however, I am very intrigued by the contrast between the characters who seem to actually believe and act on those beliefs and those who seem to go through the motions for society's sake. Another stark contrast is at Levin and Kitty's wedding, where Levin is thinking Kitty knows and understands everything the priest says, and her actual thoughts are somewhere closer to 'ooooh, the pretty poetry'. Levin is struggling with his beliefs, trying to actually understand what is going on, and Kitty is more caught up in the emotional moment, and not really understanding anything. Another example is where Kitty's friend Varenka helps people at the spa because she feels that is what she should do. Kitty tries, but fails, mostly because she isn't fully into it. Some of this might change in the last three parts, as I am not really certain where it is going, but it is very interesting to note at the very least.

This time period (contemporary for Tolstoy) was a time where religion was a strong and important part of society. He does seem, however, to be noting distinctly the difference between people who actually practice what they believe and people who just go through the motions.

So, if you'll excuse me for getting slightly controversial, that issue just begged to be spoken about.

Onward and upward! Hopefully next time I'll actually have the book done!

Days: 362
Books 100 (Still!)