1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).
Anna Karenina is a tragic love story in which the protagonist (Anna) is trapped in a false, loveless marriage when she is truly in love with another man. She commits adultery and becomes pregnant and the rest of the story is her dealing with the repercussions from social society (in the end she commits suicide). I believe the author fulfills his purpose of the pressures of social society by making Anna the protagonist. It makes us root for her even though she was not being faithful, and also causes the reader to resent society for being so harsh on a woman for trying to stop living a lie and be with the one she loves. Are we not entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?
2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid clichés.
In this novel there is a theme of love – and not just the “mushy” kind. Yes there is Anna’s adulterous love affair with Vronsky, but there is also the love within a family (for example Anna’s love for her son). It is actually these two loves that come in conflict with each other and lead to Anna’s inability to love. In contrast to Anna’s love triangle, there is another example of love within this novel: that of between Kitty and Levin who obtain happiness through a wholesome marriage.
3. Describe the author's tone.
Although the novel centers around a protagonist that commits adultery, we still come to pity and feel
sorry for her. Yet the author drops hints of disapproval and makes his tone seem that of a moralist. He does not approve of all the actions made by Anna Karenina. He also criticizes others for their hypocrisy and judgmental behaviors.
“[Anna] felt herself so criminal and guilty that the only thing left for her was to humble herself and beg forgiveness; but as she had no one else in her life now except [Vronsky], it was also to him that she addressed her plea for forgiveness.”
“Looking at him, she physically felt her humiliation and could say nothing more.”
“And [Vronsky] felt what a murderer must feel when he looks at the body he has deprived of life.”
4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers.
Analysis- Tolstoy was very analytical of how people felt for example he uses about 4 chapters just to describe a single feeling. I found this to be over analyzed, but you really understood what the character was going through.
Imagery- Somewhat going along with analysis, Tolstoy was always very descriptive of everything in the novel including how Anna felt and what was perceived around her.
Contrast- The author contrasts the negative results of Anna’s love (adultery and suicide) with the happy ending that results from the marriage of Kitty and Levin.
Dialect- the author uses different dialects to disyinguish between different classes and emphasiz the pressures in social society. For example the higher classes are more articulate and educated sounding than that of the lower classes.
Elegy- after Anna commits suicide Vronsky reflects on how much he really loved Anna and mourns her suicicde.
Foreshadowing- Anna seeing someone who was ran over by a train in the beginning of the novel foreshadows her committing suicide (by throwing herself in front of a moving train) towards the end of the novel.
Soliloquy- as Anna drives to the train station to commit suicide she talks to herself and contemplates the events that have led to this decision.
Anaphora- there are a lot of repeated phrases throughout the novel such as Anna and her “dark curls” and “light step”
Metaphor- compares transportation like how people are transported by trains with the suicide of Anna and how it transported her away from her family and society.
Motif- adultery is a topic that frequently reoccurs in the novel (most of the plot is based off of Anna’s adultery) and by so doing also brings in the views of social society. It is really odd that when it comes to adultery, it is more of a social issue than that of a moral or religious one.
1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization. Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?
The author mainly uses indirect characterization through the actions of characters and he very rarely uses direct characterization. When describing Vronsky he used direct characterization: “He not only disliked family life, but a family, and especially a husband was, in accordance with the views general in the bachelor world in which he lived, conceived as something alien, repellant, and, above all, ridiculous.” Other types of direct characterization come from characters who voice their own opinions (although their opinions seem to change sometimes throughout the novel) such as Levin and his views on farming, god, and women. By using direct characterization in this way we are able to see the values of each character. Some indirect characterization examples include that of Oblonsky who claims to feel regret for his past sexual actions yet he doesn’t stop. This characterization makes us view his character as hypocritical and unable to keep his own word. Another example of indirect characterization shows Dolly as a loyal friend to Anna who appears to be indifferent to social society with her continued visits with Anna even after she has committed adultery.
2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character? How? Example(s)?
The authors diction changes when there are changes between different social statuses. For example the upper classes use more articulate and advanced diction because they are educated but the lower classes are not as educated and therefore their diction is inferior. I think it’s also important to point out that the subjects that they talk about are different too. For example, the upper classes that are more cautious of social status are enthralled in gossip.
3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic? Flat or round? Explain.
The protagonist, Anna, is a dynamic character. After she commits adultery and is confronted with all the social repercussions she becomes so depressed and these emotions and social pressure eventually lead her to commit suicide. She is also a round character because she experiences numerous emotions for example love (for her son and Vronsky) but is also subject to negative emotions like jealousy. She feels guilty for destroying her marriage and home but she still remains admirable. She is a martyr to social society but is devoted to her son. She experiences so many different emotions that she is characterized as a round character.
4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character? Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction.
Some of Anna’s logic made her seem unreal to me. She is stuck in a situation where if she stays in her marriage she will be unhappy but if she pursues her true love then she feels like she will lose her son and must deal with the repercussions from social society. But if she simply divorced her first husband there would be less repercussions and she could regain some of her pride by remarrying Vronsky – her true love. I felt the adultery aspect of this story could have been avoided but perhaps the author needed it to make his point in the novel and expose hypocrisy and social society.
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