An Analysis of Fathers and Sons and Russian Society in 19th Century

An analysis of Fathers and Sons and Russian society in 19th century

Russian society drastically changing in 19th century due to the “abolishment of the serfdom’’. In the middle of the 19th century Alexander II came to power and he thoroughly abolished serfdom in Russia which “ending the monopoly of landed aristocracy’’. The abolishment of the serfdom had a huge impact towards changing of the Russian society in 19th century because it “pushes the free labor to the cities’’ as well as “stimulating the development of industry’’ and finally “contributing to a growing middle class. (History of Russia, Wikipedia).

While the abolishment of the serfdom is one of the major factors causing changed in Russian society in 19th century, nihilism, on the other hand, is the other factors results in society changed. Nihilism initially named by “Turgenev’s novel Fathers and Sons”, means ‘nothing’, nihilism is a faith that discusses that the world is “lack of truth, value, comprehensive meaning and purpose”. Nihilism is significant because nihilist has the courage to “questioned all old values’’ and they are the first pioneers to query these old values and ideas. No human beings were ever questioned old values and traditions. This political movement “shocked the Russian establishment” and that quickly promote changed of Russian society in 19th century.

In Turgenev’s novel Fathers and Sons, Turgenev focusing on the conflict between serfs and lords, men and women, parents and children and demonstrated how the changes in Russian society affected the way in which people interact with each other. Due to the abolishment of the serfdom, serfs have higher status and power. The relationship between serfs and lords substantially changing compared with the past. Beforetime lords often “squeezing more surpluses from their serfs’’ (Resnick and Wolff, 134). But now the government allowed serfs “buy land”, “allotted to them’’ and get aid from the landlords (History of Russia, Wikipedia), which greatly benefits serfs. On the other hand, the relationship between men and women, parents and children also plays a catalyst in terms of Russian society changed in 19th century, which will be discussed next.

Throughout the novel Fathers and Sons, serfs and lords’ relationship changed drastically which greatly affects Russian society in 19th century. Because of the repeal of serfdom, serfs begin can own land as well as live with lords. Most crucially, serfs don’t need to follow the order made by lords. This phenomenon can trace in Fathers and Sons when Nikolai is complaining the serfs for “being set against him, and there is no proper effort make yet’’, also they “ruin the tools’’ (Turgenev 80). This portrays that serfs were not slave anymore; they don’t need to follow the rules by lord. Furthermore, surfs don’t care about