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A Disgraceful Affair: Stories (1901)

by Fyodor Dostoyevsky(Favorite Author)

3.98 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0061773743 (ISBN13: 9780061773747)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Harper Perennial

review 1: I've always felt somewhat miffed that Dostoyevsky never really explains how characters such as his Dreamer (White Nights), Underground Man, or Golyadkin from the Double end up in such terrible isolation. There are perhaps hints in these stories, but nothing definitive. (Btw I'm not saying that's an oversight in any way. I'm simply miffed because I feel like if anyone knew how a man ended up a recluse it would be Dostoyevsky, so I want to hear his answer to the question.) Well, a Disgraceful Affair provides an answer, with the indefinite article of course. Our protagonist is a man who's almost young yet still holds onto ideals of fraternity and such. He's also a man with an esteem position, which I, at least, haven't seen in Dostoyevsky's works before. He's a General in the... more Civil Service. I highlight this because it shows that he must be somewhat sociable. Plus he starts the story off at a birthday party, so he has some semblance of friends. Well, he tries to live by these ideals and Dostoyevsky immerses us in the supreme humiliation he experiences because of it. We feel that same hot shame burning our cheeks. By the end he's contemplating moving to a monastery. It's a fine story, nothing brilliant, but worth reading if you love, love, love Dostoyevsky, are Dostoyevsky, or have had the same question yourself. Cheers.
review 2: After drinking a bit too much with two fellow civil servants, the protagonist, Ivan Ilyich Pralinsky, expounds on his desire to embrace a philosophy based on kindness to those in lower status social positions. After leaving the initial gathering, Ivan happens upon the wedding celebration of one of his subordinates. He decides to put his philosophy into action, and so crashes the party. Many more drinks ensue, and Ivan embarrasses himself terribly while failing to gain the admiration of his "lessers", which he so desperately desires.From Wikipedia less

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