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Ivan Turgenev (1818–1883)

Author of Fathers and Sons

543+ Works 21,153 Members 401 Reviews 85 Favorited
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About the Author

Ivan Turgenev, 1818 - 1883 Novelist, poet and playwright, Ivan Turgenev, was born to a wealthy family in Oryol in the Ukraine region of Russia. He attended St. Petersburg University (1834-37) and Berlin University (1838-41), completing his master's exam at St. Petersburg. His career at the Russian show more Civil Service began in 1841. He worded for the Ministry of Interior from 1843-1845. In the 1840's, Turgenev began writing poetry, criticism, and short stories under Nikolay Gogol's influence. "A Sportsman's Sketches" (1852) were short pieces written from the point of view of a nobleman who learns to appreciate the wisdom of the peasants who live on his family's estate. This brought him a month of detention and eighteen months of house arrest. From 1853-62, he wrote stories and novellas, which include the titles "Rudin" (1856), "Dvorianskoe Gnedo" (1859), "Nakanune" (1860) and "Ottsy I Deti" (1862). Turgenev left Russia, in 1856, because of the hostile reaction to his work titled "Fathers and Sons" (1862). Turgenev finally settled in Paris. He became a corresponding member of the Imperial Academy of Sciences in 1860 and Doctor of Civil Law at Oxford University in 1879. His last published work, "Poems in Prose," was a collection of meditations and anecdotes. On September 3, 1883, Turgenev died in Bougival, near Paris. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Includes the names: TURGENIEV, I Turenev, Turgénev,, Turgenjev,, I Turgenyev, Turgenev I., I. Turgenev, I S Turgenev, I. TURGUENEV, Ivan Turenev, I. Toergenjev, Iwan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turvenev, Ivan Turgenev, I.S. Turgenev, IVA TURGUENEV, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Turgeneu, Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Tourgenev, Ivan Turgeneve, Ivan Turgenjew, Iwan Turgenjew, Iwan Turgenjev, Ivan Turgennev, Ivan Turgenjev, Ivan Turguenev, Ivan Turgenjef, Ivan Toergenef, Iwan Turgeniew, Ivan Turgenyev, Iwan Turgenjew, Ivan Turgenjev, Ivan Turgeniev, Ivan Turgenyev, I.S. Toergenew, Iván Turguenev, Iwan Toergenjev, Ivan Turgenieff, Iwan Toergenjef, Ivan Turguénev, I. S. Turgeniev, Ivan Turguénev, Iwan Turgenieff, Jvan Turgheniev, Ivan Turgueniev, I. S. Turguenev, Iwan Turgenjeff, Iwan Toergenjew, I.S. Turgheniev, IVAN TURGUENIEV, Ivan Turghenjev, I.S. Toergenjev, Ivan Toergenjev, Ivan Turgénjev, Turgenjeff Iwan, Iwan Turgieniew, I.S. Toergenjew, Ivan Turgieniev, Ivan Turgueneff, Ivan Tourgueniev, Iván Turgueniev, Ivan Turgénieff, Iván Turguénev, Ivan Tourgueniev, Ivan S. Turgenev, Ivan Tourgueneff, Ivan Tourguénef, Iwán Turgênjew, I. S. Turgueniev, Iván Turgueniev, Ivan Turguêniev, Iwan S. Turgenew, Iwan S. Toergenew, Iván Turgénieff, Ivan Tourguéneff, Тургенев., Turgénjev,, Iwán Toergénjew, Ivan S. Turguenev, Iwan S. Turgenjew, Tourghenieff Ivan, Ivan S. Toergenjev, Iván S. Turguenev, Ivan S. Turgueniev, Iwan S. Toergenjew, Ivn S. TURGUIENIEV, Ivan S. Turguénev, Ivan S. Toergenjew, Iván S. Turgueniev, Iván S. Turguénev, Ivan Serge Turgenev, Turguénev. Iván S., Ivan Turgenév, IVAN SERGEI TURGUENEV, И.С. Тургенев, Ivan Tourguéniev, Тургенев И.С., Ivan Sergeviĉ Turgenev, Ivan Sergevich Turgenev, Ivan Sergejevic Turgenev, И. С. Тургенев, Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev, Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev, И. С. Тургенев, Ivan Sergeevich Turguenev, Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev, Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev, Ivan Sergejevic Turgénev, Ivan Segejevič Turgenjev, Iván Sergievich Turgenev, Иван Тургенев, TURGUENEV IVAN SERGUEEVICH, Ivan Sergejevic Turguénev, Ivan Serguievich Turguenev, Ivan Sergueevich Turguenev, Ivan Sergejevič Turgeněv, Ivan Sergejevics Turgenyev, Ivan Sergejevič Turgenjev, Iwan Sergejewitsch Turgenew, Ivan Szergejevics Turgenyev, Ivan Sergueievitx Turguenev, Iwan Sergejewitsj Toergenew, IVAN SERGUEYEVICH TURGUENEV, Ivan Sergejevitsj Turgenjev, Ivan Sergueevich Turguénev, Iwan Sergejewitsch Turgenjew, Iwan Sergejewitsj Toergenjew, Iván Sergueevich Turguénev, Ivan Sergueievitx Turguénev, Iván Sergeevich Turgénieff, Ivan Sergejevitsj Toergenjev, Iván Turguénev, Iván Turguéniev, Ivan Sergueï Tourgueniev, Ivan Serguéievitx Turguénev, Иван С. Тургенев, Iván Serguéyevich Turguénev, Ivan S Turgenyev {as Turgenev], Iwan: Autor / Titel: Turgenjew, Ivan Serguëievitch Tourguéniev, TOURGUENIEV (MAUROIS André), Ivan (I. S. ) (Turguenieff) Turgenev, Richard Hare (Trans. ) Ivan Turgenev, איבן סרגיביץ טורגניב, איון סרגיביץ' טורגניב, ইভান তুর্গেনেভ, Illustrated by MARY KESSEL IVAN TURGENEV, Ivan Serguéievitx Turguénev, Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev; Michael R. Katz, Иван Сергеевич Тургенев, איון סרגיביץ' טורגניב, Тургенев Иван Сергеевич, Иван Сергеевич Тургенев, Ivan Turgenev; translated by; Richard Freeborn, Иван Сергеевич Тургенев, 1818

Image credit: Portrait by Ilya Repin (1874)

Series

Works by Ivan Turgenev

Fathers and Sons (1862) 8,741 copies
Sketches from a Hunter's Album (1852) 1,784 copies
First Love (1860) 1,465 copies
Torrents of Spring (1872) 856 copies
Home of the Gentry (1859) 795 copies
On the Eve (1860) 759 copies
Virgin Soil (1877) 528 copies
Rudin (1856) 480 copies
Smoke (1867) 354 copies
First Love and Other Stories (1989) 346 copies
A Month in the Country (1855) 268 copies
Mumu (1852) 149 copies
First Love and Other Stories (2001) 136 copies
A Lear of the Steppes (1870) 111 copies
Asya (1959) 98 copies
Faust (1855) 94 copies
First Love and Other Tales (1960) 80 copies
Four Great Russian Short Novels (1959) — Contributor — 74 copies
Fathers and Sons; Liza (1968) 53 copies
The Borzoi Turgenev (1950) 46 copies
Clara Mílich (1883) 45 copies
Turgenev's letters (1983) 39 copies
Faust en andere verhalen (1984) 37 copies
The essential Turgenev (1994) 36 copies
Dream Tales and Prose Poems (1750) 32 copies
Herinneringen (1974) 31 copies
Gedichte in Prosa (1887) 30 copies
Five Short Novels (1961) 28 copies
Senilia : prosapoem (1972) 26 copies
Love and Death (1983) 25 copies
Great Russian Short Novels (1951) — Contributor — 24 copies
De romans (2020) 23 copies
Rudin, A Nest of the Gentry (1975) 20 copies
Selected Stories (1960) 19 copies
The Jew and Other Stories (1977) 19 copies
First Love & A Fire at Sea (1883) 16 copies
Stories and Poems in Prose (1982) 16 copies
Fortune's Fool (2002) 15 copies
La reliquia viviente (2007) 14 copies
Klop klop klop een studie (2013) 14 copies
Primer amor ; Humo (1981) 13 copies
The Duel (1922) 13 copies
Meistererzählungen (1973) 13 copies
Novelas cortas (2009) 12 copies
Hamlet y Don Quijote (1975) 12 copies
En jegers dagbok. 2 (1895) 11 copies
Verhalen 11 copies
Erste Liebe (1977) 11 copies
Dos amics (2010) 10 copies
Turgenev: Plays (1999) 10 copies
The portrait game (1973) 10 copies
5 Russian Masters (2003) 9 copies
Six Russian Short Novels (1963) 9 copies
First Love and Rudin (1950) 9 copies
Cuentos extraños (1984) 8 copies
The District Doctor (2011) 8 copies
Punin y Baburin (2013) 8 copies
Unheimliche Geschichten (1990) 7 copies
The Rendezvous (2010) 7 copies
Anuchka (2010) 7 copies
Un sueño (1948) 6 copies
Virgin Soil Volume 1 (1970) 5 copies
A Quiet Spot (1970) 5 copies
Racconti fantastici (1983) 5 copies
Spring Freshets / Smoke (1915) 5 copies
Rudin ja savua (1853) 5 copies
Turgenev Ivan 4 copies
Virgin Soil Volume 2 (1970) 4 copies
Jutustused 4 copies
Elena 4 copies
De verhalen (2024) 4 copies
Three Short Stories (1950) 4 copies
O cão fantasma (2009) 4 copies
The Watch (2005) 4 copies
Posle smerti (2013) 4 copies
Romane (1974) 4 copies
Valitut kertomukset 1 (1961) 4 copies
The Jew, etc. (1913) 4 copies
Erste Liebe Erzählungen (1994) 4 copies
Asja : 3 Erzählungen (1975) 3 copies
Fantastische Erzählungen (2010) 3 copies
Obras escogidas 3 copies
Ensaigs 3 copies
In ajun Fum (2003) 3 copies
Mumù e altri racconti (1997) 3 copies
Short Novels 3 copies
Le célibataire (1997) 2 copies
Nahlebnik (2013) 2 copies
Holostjak (2013) 2 copies
Asya/First Love (2013) 2 copies
Werke. (1957) — Author — 2 copies
Opowieści tajemnicze (1988) 2 copies
Faust : zwei Novellen (2007) 2 copies
Erzählungen (2001) — Author — 2 copies
Meer in Sicht. (2003) 2 copies
Old Portraits - Stories (2010) 2 copies
The Brigadier (2016) 2 copies
Nov (2013) 2 copies
2: Romanzi e racconti (1988) 2 copies
Romany (1996) 2 copies
HIKAYELER 2 — Author — 2 copies
HIKAYELER 1 — Author — 2 copies
HIKAYELER 3 — Author — 2 copies
Jutustusi ; Proosaluulet (1980) 2 copies
Phantoms 2 copies
Tri susreta 1 copy
El Quijote desde Rusia (2005) 1 copy
Rätsel-Spiele (2001) 1 copy
Önce (2006) 1 copy
Noveller 3-4 1 copy
Noveller 1-2 1 copy
Romanzi 1 copy
OPERA OMNIA 1 copy
Köyde Bir Ay (2021) 1 copy
Přízraky 1 copy
Pripovetke 1 copy
Opowiadania 1 copy
Poezje prozą (1985) 1 copy
Vida nova 1 copy
Rasskazy 1 copy
Milostný kvartet (2000) 1 copy
Mumu. Zapiski ohotnika (2005) 1 copy
Acque tranquille (2016) 1 copy
Pervaya liubov (2018) 1 copy
Романы 1 copy
I grandi romanzi russi: Nuove traduzioni (2015) — Author — 1 copy
Senilia 1 copy
The living mummy (1997) 1 copy
Rudin, Veshnie vody (1992) 1 copy
The Tryst 1 copy
The Jew 1 copy
Letters Volume I (1983) 1 copy
Correspondance (1989) 1 copy
Sinaida 2 1 copy
Bela 1 copy
On the novel 1 copy
Sinaida 1 1 copy
Skrifter 1 copy

Associated Works

The Art of the Personal Essay (1994) — Contributor — 1,371 copies
The Dark Descent (1987) — Contributor — 719 copies
Fantastic Tales: Visionary and Everyday (1983) — Contributor — 431 copies
Best Russian Short Stories (1917) — Contributor — 314 copies
A Treasury of Short Stories (1947) — Contributor — 291 copies
Russian Short Stories from Pushkin to Buida (2005) — Contributor — 223 copies
The Portable Nineteenth-Century Russian Reader (1993) — Author, some editions — 203 copies
Great Russian Short Stories (1958) 180 copies
Vampires, Wine, and Roses (1997) — Contributor — 155 copies
Randall Jarrell's Book of Stories (1958) — Contributor — 142 copies
Vampire Stories (1996) — Contributor — 142 copies
Great Russian Short Stories (Dover Thrift Editions) (2003) — Contributor — 136 copies
Great Russian Plays (1960) — Contributor — 96 copies
World's Great Adventure Stories (1929) — Contributor — 75 copies
A Fabulous Formless Darkness (1991) — Contributor — 64 copies
Love Stories (1983) — Contributor — 60 copies
Seven Short Novel Masterpieces (1961) — Contributor — 60 copies
Treasury of the Theatre: From Aeschylus to Ostrovsky (1967) — Contributor — 48 copies
The Eighth Fontana Book of Great Ghost Stories (1972) — Contributor — 37 copies
Twenty best European plays on the American stage (1957) — Contributor — 28 copies
Angels of Darkness: Tales of Troubled and Troubling Women (1995) — Contributor — 27 copies
The Book Lovers (1976) — Contributor — 26 copies
The World's Greatest Books Volume 08 Fiction (1910) — Contributor — 24 copies
19th Century Russian Drama (1963) — Contributor — 23 copies
Studies in Fiction (1965) — Contributor — 22 copies
Fiends and Creatures (1975) — Contributor — 21 copies
Meesters der Russische vertelkunst (1948) — Contributor — 17 copies
All verdens fortellere (1990) — Contributor, some editions — 15 copies
Great Short Novels of the World (1927) — Contributor — 15 copies
Selected Russian Short Stories (1928) — Contributor — 13 copies
Trees: A Celebration (1989) — Contributor — 13 copies
Russische verhalen (1965) — Contributor — 11 copies
Russische misdaadverhalen (1969) — Contributor — 9 copies
Omnibus der Russische groten (1965) — Contributor — 9 copies
A Treasury of Doctor Stories (1946) — Contributor — 9 copies
Laatunovelleja (1998) 8 copies
Bachelor's Quarters: Stories from Two Worlds (1944) — Contributor — 7 copies
The Story Survey (1953) — Contributor — 6 copies
Great Love Scenes from Famous Novels (1943) — Contributor — 5 copies
Other Nations: Animals in Modern Literature (2010) — Contributor — 3 copies
Russische Käuze (1968) — Contributor — 2 copies
Die schönsten Hunde-Geschichten (1978) — Contributor — 2 copies
A Book of Narratives (1917) — Contributor — 2 copies
Representative Modern Short Stories (1929) — Contributor — 2 copies
Mumu [1959 film] — Original story — 1 copy

Tagged

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Common Knowledge

Members

Discussions

Turgenev in George Macy devotees (May 2023)
Turgenev in Fans of Russian authors (January 2021)
Group Read, May 2017: Spring Torrents in 1001 Books to read before you die (May 2017)
Fathers and Sons (by Ivan Turgenev) Group Read - May in 75 Books Challenge for 2013 (May 2013)

Reviews

Every intellectually curious young man tends toward either Arkady or Bazarov. Whichever you are, following upon the key idea of Turgenev’s book, it would be best to seek out your counterpart. Turgenev knows that what makes Bazarov a charismatic and compelling character is that he actually is a lot more coherent than the people and the ideologies he sets himself against. There is a simple satisfaction easily acquired by the just-intelligent-enough, in negating any of the imperfect and absurd reasons that “normal “ people give themselves for existing. Nietzsche said that these negators were like lions set apart from the sheep, and like lions they can inspire awe, fear, and admiration. Nietzsche, like Turgenev before him, saw the dead end that one inevitably reached if one lived as a lion for too long. The true genius is one who can become like a child again, playfully engaging with the complexity of life, without animus or judgement.
Ironically, it is easier to become like a child as one grows older, when the passions of youth cool and experience reveals each and every dogma as the shadow that it is. Bazarov, in his extreme lion-ness, could never have grown old, and indeed he didn’t.
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hdeanfreemanjr | 128 other reviews | Mar 17, 2024 |
This is the first Turgenev I've read. But it wasn't until page 60, when Insarov entered, that I was hooked. I'm wondering about the various references to the spirit of the black earth?
 
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simonpockley | 22 other reviews | Feb 25, 2024 |
I'm always excited when I begin to read a title from Russian literature to read, because despite initially looking daunting and portentous, all of them (but particularly Tolstoy and Dostoevsky) prove to be deep and layered, cultured and weighty and yet surprisingly easy to read. Ivan Turgenev's Fathers and Sons was much the same way, particularly in being easy to read, and yet having finished it I find myself with less to say about it than I expected I would.

Whereas Tolstoy and Dostoevsky would root powerful themes deep within their stories, and their characters and structure would successfully embody these themes, Turgenev's attempts to do so here are more mixed. My English translation by Rosemary Edmonds, first published (perhaps not coincidentally) in the mid-1960s, emphasises the generational gap between Bazarov and Arkady and their fathers, the obvious 'fathers and sons' of the book's title. The youthful dissidence of Bazarov and Arkady latches on to the trendy ideology of nihilism, which stands at odds with the less exciting conservatism of their fathers' generation.

This is the obvious interpretation, but the society Turgenev paints – he does some fine character work – swirls so that one could also see it as the difficulty for anyone to understand another person: their emotions, feelings, ambitions and fears, particularly when they come into conflict with other people. "Possibly every human being is an enigma," Bazarov says on page 174, while in discussion with Madame Odintsov, and the frustrating romantic relationship the two share could be seen as another complement to the 'fathers and sons' generational narrative; that is, two people failing to understand another. "I did not understand you – you did not understand me," Madame Odintsov says a few pages later, before continuing: "I did not understand myself either" (pg. 183). This seems to recognise what drives Turgenev's novel: a cast of well-drawn characters who both clash and complement one another, all under the lens of the writer's microscope.

It leads to a lot of perfectly able writing, much of which is also narratively satisfying, but it denies the book a sharpness found in, for example, Tolstoy or Dostoevsky. Tolstoy would bring out the characters as a reflection of their time and his themes with more vivacity, whereas in Turgenev's novel the fact that events play out against the backdrop of the emancipation of the serfs (the peasant 'sons' becoming free of their patriarchal 'fathers') often seems incidental. And whereas Dostoevsky would strengthen the conflicting viewpoints of the characters so that their resulting clash was more profound, Turgenev, in contrast, doesn't seem to hold much respect for the nihilist viewpoint held by some of his younger characters, and waters it down. Some of his writing decisions seem almost satirical, such as Bazarov falling in love (an irony for a nihilist) or Arkady saying he accepts no authority in the same breath he names Bazarov as his mentor (pg. 138), though the book shies away from anything as pointed as satire.

The frustration Turgenev's characters feel in one another, then, is a frustration I also found myself in reading about them. Bazarov in particular is a wretched being, though Turgenev does bring a liveliness to both him and the other characters which justifies the book's continued status as a classic. This novel was the first major piece of Russian literature which found success in the West, and paved the way not only for his storied countrymen but also proved an influence in how later authors, such as Hemingway, explored their characters' emotions and reserve as an end in itself, rather than as subservient to a plot or adventure. But for all that I enjoyed its readability and its drawing of character, I couldn't help feeling that the novel hit limiters that greater literature would have burst through. Whereas Tolstoy and Dostoevsky still seem fresh and dynamic, even timeless, Fathers and Sons feels very much like 19th-century literature.
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MikeFutcher | 128 other reviews | Jan 28, 2024 |
Ivan Turgenev's book is a classic. Many Russian classics can be gloomy, and this one is no exception. The story deals with inter-generational conflict and the conflict between the differing ideologies of the young and old.
The narrative is simple. Arkady returns home with his friend, Bazarov. Bazarov's nihilistic philosophy upsets Arkady's uncle. In time, a gap grows between Arkady and his father. Towards the end, Arkady and his father find love and marital bliss. Arkady takes over the farm, which then prospers. I won't tell you what happens to Bazarov.
In true classic style, Ivan Turgenev creates unforgettable characters and scenes. You can feel the atmosphere and almost smell the Russian countryside. But you have to read slowly. We are used to shorter sentences these days, and the old style takes some getting used to.
However, please read the book and savour it.
I recommend a print edition over a digital one.
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RajivC | 128 other reviews | Jan 17, 2024 |

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Associated Authors

Leo Tolstoy Contributor, Author
Anton Chekhov Contributor
Fyodor Dostoyevsky Contributor
Rebecca Ebeling Translator
Carl Ebeling Translator
Eugene F. Bliss Translator
Alexandra Mexin Translator
Harry Stevens Translator
Isaiah Berlin Translator
David Magarshack Translator
VS Prichett Introduction
Leonard Schapiro Translator
Dunya Breur Translator
N. Oblonsky Translator
Eppo Doeve Cover designer
J.N. Hagg Translator
Jozina Israël Translator
Else Bukowsky Translator, Preface
Richard Freeborn Translator, Introduction
Bernard Isaacs Translator
John Bayley Introduction
Avril Pyman Translator
Alexandra Tolstoy Introduction
Alan Hodge Foreword
Alf B. Glad Translator
Angelo Pankow Einleitung
Peter Thiergen Afterword
Arn Saalborn Translator
Rosemary Edmonds Translator
Kazimierz Bein Translator
George Reavy Translator
Annelore Nitschke Übersetzer
Juhani Konkka Translator
Herbert J. Muller Introduction
Matthias Beckmann Illustrator
Aleida G. Schot Translator
W.G. Weststeijn Foreword, Afterword
Kurt Löb Illustrator
Charles Hepburn Translator
Henri Mongault Translator
Hilja Riipinen Translator
Natasha Hepburn Translator
Pierre Moinot Foreword
Herbert Wotte Translator
V. S. Pritchett Introduction
Anna Balbusso Illustrator
Elena Balbusso Illustrator
Martti Anhava Translator
Adolf Gerstmann Translator
Robin Jacques Foreword
Konstantin Rudakov Illustrator
I. Repin Painter of author's picture
W. R. S. Ralston Translator
Yakov Yegorov Designer
Stepan Apresyan Translator
Charlotte Hobson Introduction
Maya Slater Translator
Jan van der Eng Translator
Richard Pevear Translator
Agata Orzeszek Translator
Max Bollinger Narrator
Edward Wilson Introduction
Hugh Aplin Translator
Eva Moldenhauer Translator
Wils Huisman Translator
Marja Wiebes Translator
David Garnett Introduction
Aleida G. Schot Translator
Yolanda Bloemen Translator
Biblia Narrator
Konrad Fuhrmann Afterword
Ena von Baer Translator
Jessie Coulson Translator

Statistics

Works
543
Also by
57
Members
21,153
Popularity
#1,022
Rating
3.9
Reviews
401
ISBNs
1,711
Languages
35
Favorited
85

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