Previous
Similes
Part 1, Chapter 2
Explanation and Analysis—Stiva's Horse Collar:
When one of the Oblonsky servants Matvei helps Stiva dress himself, the story uses an ironic simile to comment on the behavior of privileged Russian society:
‘Well, all right, go now,’ said Stepan Arkadyich, suddenly blushing. ‘Let’s get me dressed.’ He turned to Matvei and resolutely threw off his dressing gown. Matvei was already holding the shirt like a horse collar, blowing away something invisible, and with obvious pleasure he clothed the pampered body of his master in it.
The servant Matvei compares the shirt he clothes his master in to a horse collar, which is situationally ironic. Usually, it is the master holding out the collar, but when it is a servant who dresses Stiva, the roles appear reversed. This role reversal introduces the topic of Russian feudalism and reminds the reader that these characters, integral members of Russian society, are rich and powerful beyond belief. Yet somehow, their riches make them vulnerable—in this instance, Matvei implies that Stiva would not be able to dress himself without Matvei. Through his wealthy helplessness, Stiva becomes the horse who needs to be collared.
This representation of a collared horse also relates to Stiva's proclivity for adultery and his inability to stay faithful to Dolly. As someone who cannot stay loyal to his wife, Stiva needs to be collared and held on a tight leash. Matvei feels sympathy for Dolly and understands how much she is suffering. He even suggests that his master Stiva apologize again to his wife. Despite being only a servant, Matvei seems to hold influence over Stiva's behavior and appearance. There is a mutual respect between the two, despite their different social classes. This alone proves the story's point that Stiva, apart from his unfaithfulness, is not an evil man, just as the adulterous Anna is not an evil woman.
Related Themes:
Part 2, Chapter 11
Explanation and Analysis—The Nightmare:
After Anna sleeps with Vronsky for the first time, she feels an unparalleled wash of shame. Soon, nightmares begin to accompany her torment, and the narrative uses situational irony to paint her guilt within these dreams:
She dreamed that they were both her husbands, that they both lavished their caresses on her. Alexei Alexandrovich wept, kissing her hands and saying: ‘It’s so good now!’ And Alexei Vronsky was right there, and he, too, was her husband. And, marvelling that it had once seemed impossible to her, she laughingly explained to them that this was much simpler and that now they were both content and happy. But this dream weighed on her like a nightmare, and she would wake up in horror.
Anna's feeling about the dream upends what readers might expect her to feel. She dreams what seems to be a situation that is too good to be true, where both Karenin and Vronsky are her husbands and all three of them are happy. Yet upon waking, Anna compares this dream to a nightmare and admits that it absolutely horrifies her. The comparison of her ideal dream to a nightmare is an example of situational irony, for her dream of all-around happiness causes her to "wake up in horror." Perhaps Anna is so horrified by this false reality because she knows that it is an impossibility and that all three of them cannot be happy. The horror is a representation of the guilt that she feels towards her treacherous feelings and actions.
Related Themes:
Part 5, Chapter 7
Explanation and Analysis—Understanding Happiness:
When Anna and Vronsky travel to a small town in Italy, they meet Vronsky's former comrade, Golenishchev, who comments on the couple's beauty and cheerfulness. Golenishchev's perception of Anna is an example of situational irony:
But he especially liked that she at once, as if on purpose, called Vronsky simply Alexei, so that there could be no misunderstandings in the presence of a stranger, and said that they were moving together to a newly rented house, known locally as a palazzo. Golenishchev liked this direct and simple attitude to her position. Observing Anna’s good-naturedly cheerful, energetic manner, and knowing both Alexei Alexandrovich and Vronsky, Golenishchev felt that he fully understood her. It seemed to him that he understood what she was quite unable to - namely, how it was that she, having caused the unhappiness of her husband, having abandoned him and their son, and having lost her own good name, could still feel energetically cheerful and happy.
Golenishchev is enamored by Anna’s apparent happiness and the boldness of her decisions despite the unhappiness she has brought upon her family. It is unexpected and therefore situationally ironic for Anna to seem or be happy given the “unhappiness of her husband,” the abandonment of her son, and the loss of her good name. In another way, it is ironic that Golenishchev perceives Anna as “energetically cheerful and happy” because Anna remains generally unhappy in her life. Whether Anna is being stifled by Karenin or roaming free with Vronsky, she continues to be plagued by her own anxieties.
This ironic passage establishes a theme wherein people outside of Anna’s life are amazed with her bravery and ability to claim her desires. They all believe that Anna is happy and free. However, in reality, pursuing her desires has only furthered her demise.
Related Themes:
Part 7, Chapter 16
Explanation and Analysis—A Fearful Joy:
Upon the birth of Kitty and Levin's child, Levin feels conflicting and unexpected emotions, demonstrating situational irony:
What he felt for this small being was not at all what he had expected. There was nothing happy or joyful in this feeling; on the contrary, there was a new tormenting fear. There was an awareness of a new region of vulnerability. And this awareness was so tormenting at first, the fear lest this helpless being should suffer was so strong, that because of it he scarcely noticed the strange feeling of senseless joy and even pride he had experienced when the baby sneezed.
When Kitty and Levin have a baby together, Levin does not react with the expected emotions of a new parent. He expects nothing but joy, pride, and happiness; instead, he realizes the extent of his naivety. Levin, who is used to his extensive farmland and who is quite happy when he's alone, does not expect the addition of family members to cause torment. What he discovers in this moment is that the more people he loves, the more he has to lose and the more vulnerable he becomes. The irony is how Levin only becomes more fearful with each additional layer of happiness in his life.
Related Themes:
Part 7, Chapter 30
Explanation and Analysis—The Search for Happiness:
While on her way to the train station, Anna's mental state deteriorates even further, demonstrated by the irony of her thoughts and situation:
‘Well, I’ll get the divorce and be Vronsky’s wife. What, then? Will Kitty stop looking at me as she did today? No. And will Seryozha stop asking or thinking about my two husbands? And between me and Vronsky what new feeling will I think up? Is anything—not even happiness but just not torment—possible? No, nothing!’ she answered herself now without the least hesitation. ‘Impossible! Our lives are parting ways, and I have become his unhappiness and he mine, and it’s impossible to remake either him or me. All efforts have been made; the screw is stripped. Ah, a beggar woman with a child. She thinks she’s to be pitied. Aren’t we all thrown into the world only in order to hate each other and so to torment ourselves and others.’
At the start of the novel, Anna is unsatisfied with her life and attempts to find happiness. However, her search for happiness through an affair with Vronsky only results in her further depression and eventual death. Such is the irony of her life that her pursuit of happiness causes her such unhappiness.
The tragedy of Anna’s story is the moment she realizes that nothing will make her happy, not even a divorce from Karenin. She fears that her relationship with Seryozha is forever ruined, that her stature in society is forever tainted, and that Vronsky will never love her as much as she loves him.
Vronsky, the person who once brought her joy and excitement, has now become the root of all of her unhappiness. Anna believes that Vronsky's love for her is fading, so he has become the cause of her madness and unhappiness. On the other hand, Vronsky stays and loves Anna now only out of duty to their child, so she has become the cause of his unhappiness. The two will never be able to find peace together if they cause each other such torment.
Even more ironic is how many people, though they scorn her choices, believe that Anna is happy with her new lover and that she has taken control of her life by chasing her desires. In reality, Anna has never been more miserable.
Related Themes:
