The Eternal Husband: And Other Stories

This collection of five stories brings together a range of Dostoevsky's `mad men' stories. That is, stories focused on the middle-aged male narrator, invariably a spiteful, erratic hypochondriac who alternates between philosophical musings and having extremely unsatisfactory relationships with other people. This might not sound particularly appealing, but the sheer intensity with which Dostoevsky carries them off and the psychological insight they contain makes them a lot more fun to read than they should be. Such stories could get old, and sooner or later, you realize that the psychological insight is more limited than it at first appears -- if we were all like Dostoevsky's characters, no one would have children -- but the selection of stories is well-measured and pulls up short of when it would wear out its welcome. I'm not fond of descriptions of short stories because they rely so much on novelty to work that accurate descriptions ruin some of their effects. This is especially the case with the novella `The Eternal Husband', which has plenty of surprises if you don't read too many reviews. Instead, it should suffice to give a sense of these wicked stories to say that they involve life in Russia (mainly Petersburg) in the middle of the nineteenth century, largely from the point of view of permanently soused, alienated bureaucrats. They're basically _Office Space_ played for keeps. These stories, especially `The Eternal Husband', are widely praised for their economy, meaning that in contrast to Dostoevsky's big novels, they have the philosophical and religious rambling very much under control (or with 'The Dream of a Ridiculous Man' can make it more fictional). This is accurate: here, you get the good stuff of Dostoevsky, what could potentially appeal to anyone, without the digressions that could put a lot of people off. The stories have a very modern feel to them and can hold their own in terms of current tastes in plot, characterization, etc. Another review complained about the choppiness of the prose and someone else defended it by saying that this is a faithful rendition of Dostoevsky's prose. I only found a couple of places choppy, most notably the beginning of the fantastical story `Bobok', where it's hard to understand the set up. (But you quickly discover that that doesn't matter, the main conceit of the story is completely unrelated to who the narrator is. In that case, the madness is spread to an entire group of odd memorable characters.) My main concern with the Pevear and Volokhonsky translations is that they almost seem too easy to read. I love the idea of having a translation team that has a native speaker of both languages (and think it's cool that here they're actually married). It seems to work well in practice. Indeed, I wonder if it might make the final translation deceptively smooth. (Maybe I'd make a good Dostoevsky character: never happy no matter what.) This translation has less of problem than I've seen with oth

The book contains five stories translated by Pevear and Volokhonsky and an introduction by Richard Pevear. The Eternal Husband is 150 pages. The other four stories are short. They are good examples of the writings and the literary techniques of Dostoevsky including the use of dreams. I have read most of Dostoevsky's major novels. There are about 10 or so available in English, and the present collection is not a substitute for reading the other works. I still like The Gambler and The Brothers Karamazov as his two most interesting works, followed by The Idiot, Crime and Punishment, and Demons. Perhaps The Gambler is not his best work, but it was the first one that I had read. He wrote it with his second wife in 30 days. The Gambler is a short but entertaining - and reflects Dostoevsky`s addiction to gambling. The present works are similar to Notes From the Underground, but less intense, less creative, and more varied in subject matter. The Eternal Husband involves an extra-marital affair by the male protagonist with a married woman and the subsequent relationship between the man, Velchaninov, and the husband, Pavel Pavlovich. The story is set years later after the death of the wife and uses a dream sequence near the beginning. It reflects a love triangle situation found in his other writings and is loosely related to the circumstances of Dostoevsky`s first marriage, although not identical. Another story is The Dream of a ridiculous Man. Dostoevsky uses the dream sequences as a vehicle to tell a utopian story about an ideal society. Again, the dream is a literary mechanism used by Dostoevsky. This is related to the short but unusual story Bobok. It is set in a cemetery where the dead are holding conversations. The characters use flights of fancy, dreams, and communicate with the dead. The dead characters lack morals, even dead. The other two stories, A Nasty Anecdote and The Meek One, are more conventional stories. The first involves an official who accidentally attends the wedding of a poor government worker, a man who works in his department. The official drinks too much and causes much commotion and embarrasses the groom and the wedding party. In short, he makes a fool of himself. Dostoevsky touches on his themes of the disintegration of human life and the use of the "unexpected" gathering to expose false ideas and situations. The Meek One is about a man who is trying to deal with the suicide of his wife. Again, the story is short. But, he uses the "stream of consciousness" technique - possibly one of the first uses of the technique in the modern literature according to Pevear - years before Joyce. 5 stars and a surprisingly good selection of short stories.

This is a fabulous collection. "The Eternal Husband" is quite interesting and features the trademark Doestoevsian psychological interplay (along the lines of that found between _Crime and Punishment_'s Raskolnikov and Porfiry Petrovich, or _The Idiot_'s Rogozhin and Prince Nikolaevich). However, the short stories included are, imho, superior to "The Eternal Husband." "A Nasty Anecdote" is a very funny satire, especially if the reader is privileged to know a bit about post-"emancipation" Russia. "The Meek One" studies the fascinating, yet highly unhealthy relationship between a husband and wife. At the same time, it meditates on the uses of love in much the manner of _King Lear_. "The Dream of a Ridiculous Man" features the sort of Christ figure found in _The Idiot_ or _The Brothers Karamazov_'s Alyosha. Warning: this story may make you cry. However wonderful the stories, Richard Pevear's introductory essay alone is worth the price of admission-- with a caveat. If you are familiar with most of Dostoevsky's novels, then you will understand and appreciate Pevear's analysis of Dostoevskian philosophy-- the stories in this collection are even arranged in an order that supports Pevear's theories. However, those unfamiliar with Dostoevsky's work will be very lost. P.S. These stories are enjoyable for everyone, but those familiar with Dostoevsky will appreciate them even more. I would suggest that Dostoevsky first-timers start with _Crime and Punishment_ or _Notes from Underground_.

I started reading The Eternal Husband, a taut novella by Dostoevsky, after I read the literary critic James Wood praise it. By all accounts it is his masterpiece. It even as a style of its own, a compression and economy that Doestoevsky isn't known for. Premise: A cuckolded widow visits the lover of his recently deceased wife to torment him. He never lets his betrayer know that he knows or doesn't know about the affair. Much of the torment is rooted in the betrayer's uncertainty. For pyschological drama, if you like this kind of discomfiting intensity, where the main character seems an inch away from descending into complete madness, you might also like The Horned Man by James Lasdun and Contempt by Alberto Moravia.