Studying the work of the famous classic "Fathers and Sons", you can see that the author does not immediately reveal the nature of the characters and their true nature. Describing his heroes, Turgenev prefers to use portrait and dialogue. The author attaches great importance to the latter, so it is difficult to call him just an ordinary device. With the help of dialogue, problems that are relevant to people, and most importantly, the character of the heroes, are revealed.
Dialogues as a way of revealing the character of characters
When reading the book, you can see that in the dialogs there are passionate discussions on the themes of philosophy and politics. It is with their help that Turgenev reveals the meaning of the title of the novel. “Fathers and Sons” is a work in which the main character is Bazarov, represented by a fairly intelligent person. Most often, he remains the winner in disputes, citing deep and abstruse phrases as arguments . The author makes Eugene often use proverbs and sayings. It should be noted that in discussions he never goes into long philosophical considerations. Bazarov defeats all opponents with the help of lapidary. All these factors enable the reader to understand that this character belongs to the Democrats.
Portrait art of Turgenev
Drawing portraits of heroes, Turgenev used the method of mysterious languor, never giving out all the details at once. The characters of the novel "Fathers and Sons" are described using satirical, phraseological and lexical means. Only after the desired background is drawn, the reader can learn more about the character. In this, the mastery of Ivan Sergeyevich is more like Gogol's style.
The title of the novel
The meaning of the title of the novel “Fathers and Sons” lies in the main conflict of the work, which is expressed in the fact that the author shows not the disagreement of people over different ages and not their relationship, but the clash of the new with the old, Bazarov’s struggle with Kirsanov. Turgenev believed that the outgoing Russia never gives up without a fight, and the incoming one not only does not refuse it, but also ultimately remains the winner.
The idea and dedication of the novel
It so happened that the idea of the novel appeared at a time when the author was breaking off his collaboration with Sovremennik. The main prototype of Bazarov was the doctor Nikolai Dobrolyubov, who struck him with his personality. The doctor worked out a revolutionary plan that Turgenev did not like, and Ivan Sergeyevich decided to write a novel that became an opportunity to understand the thoughts and causes of certain actions of new people in Russian society. The idea to write this work arose in the summer of 1860, the next year Ivan Sergeyevich completed it completely, and by 1862 a book was reissued, according to which it was clear that the novel Fathers and Sons was dedicated to Vissarion Grigorievich Belinsky. He was a literary critic and theorist. After his first article, people immediately noticed a distinctive feature in him. The fact is that Belinsky wanted a laid-back and simplest attitude to human life from literature, which interested Turgenev. Putting this name on the title page, the author makes it clear to all readers what the originality of the novel is. “Fathers and Sons” is a completely new work at the time that accurately describes the life of the modern estate using the example of Bazarov.
The image of Bazarov
Eugene was a discovery both for Turgenev himself and for the whole of Russia. This is a powerful, solid and consistent figure. Basically, the character's character is revealed precisely in his discussions with the main ideological enemies - Nikolai and Pavel Kirsanov. Thanks to all the disputes, one can understand what the nobility really was and that the intelligentsia had come to replace it for a long time. It is in these conflicts that the general meaning of the title of the novel “Fathers and Sons” is clarified, which for some remains a mystery. Bazarov does not accept everything related to the foundations of Russian life and serfdom. He wants a democratic and new society that finally will not form in the old style in Russia. Turgenev explained that if this character is called a nihilist, then he should be accepted as a revolutionary, and not just as a person who denies the meaning of human existence and the value of all values. The author considered that the main problem of Eugene was that he was born at the wrong time and wanted to change society when it was not yet ready for this.
Turgenevsky novel became something new for Russian society, causing great interest from readers. It shows the struggle of the ideologies of generations, which was relevant in the 1860s, which can be understood even before reading, just thinking about the meaning of the title of the novel. “Fathers and Sons” is a book that, having acquired great importance in Russian literature, is currently one of the most famous classical works, and most importantly, to this day does not lose its relevance.