Anna Karenina Themes Flashcards
Describe the theme of authentic vs inauthentic work and provide an example
Authentic work is what’s done when a person is able to focus on their work without considering the other factors and processes of life, it’s considered “pure” work. Inauthentic work considers the other processes and influences of life. Consider Vronsky commenting on the painter Mikhailov. The artist Mikhailove is able to observe and channel into the art, what he does embodies his being. Vronsky on the other hand sets aside time from making art and divorces the process from real life.
Describe the theme of free indirect discourse and provide an example to support this
Free indirect discourse is the idea that the character describes the narrator’s thoughts so we can empathize with the character. An example is when the narrator is describing how “Stiva is an honest man” but in reality, he’s not only dishonest but passively so.
Describe the theme of authentic vs inauthentic thinking and provide an example to support this
Similar to authentic and inauthentic work, authentic thinking is the idea that someone is committed to their thoughts. Inauthentic thinking is when someone is not being themselves and follows others blindly. An example is when Kitty meets Madam Stahl at the spa in Germany. Madam Stahl comes across to Kitty at first as deeply devoted and religious. Turns out, she is deeply devoted out of dogma (implicit rules) and follows the ideas of pietist, so Kitty automatically changes her view of Madam Stahl. However, at this time, Kitty also realizes that she was living and thinking inauthentically because it did not come from her heart.
Describe the theme of honestly (lack thereof) and provide an example to support
Essentially, the idea here is that honesty stems from one being aware that they are being honest. The biggest lack of dishonesty is Stiva since he never checks whether what he believes is true or not, he assumes it as true. Tolstoy believes that honesty is active - in other words, passive honesty is the same as no honesty - true honesty is taking the effort to check if something you think is true is actually true,
Describe the theme of evil from neglect
Essentially, evil is present in those who neglect others. In this cases, it also is usually paired with Honesty (or lack thereof) since the character is usually not aware that what they’re doing is wrong. For example, Stiva demonstrates this by grabbing his coat as if he was finishing an affair when he’s in his home with Dolly not even knowing he’s messed up by cheating. This is paralleled with Fyodor and neglecting his children in Brothers Karamazov.
Describe the theme of looking as an action
This is best explained by the horse racing scene: Anna is out looking towards Vronsky while he is on his horse Frou Frou, while Karenin is looking at Anna. Many literary critics believe that this looking is a symbol of action and symbolism. Notably, they believe that Vronsky breaks Anna’s back and tips off Karenin’s frustration with Anna. However, it’s not believed to be true and often too literary.
Describe the theme of things hidden in plain view
Tolstoy uses the literary technique of “open camouflage” to achieve this. Essentially this is the idea of hiding the big information into tiny moments as opposed to the main focus. For example, Dolly’s role as a good mother takin care of Levin’s brother is never mentioned because we’re so focused on the drama between Anna and Vronsky. Tolstoy does this so once the reader is able to notice these smaller symbols, they will stop focusing so much on the larger grander events and expect everything to be dramatic.
Describe the theme where Body has a mind of its own (habits)
The body has its own habits and a mind of its own. We cannot directly control our habits as they have been developed over periods of time and repetition. For example, the second time Anna tries to jump in front of the train to commit suicide, she curls up reminding herself of how she used to bathe. This in turn triggers her memories about her childhood which she once blocked. Tolstoy uses this as commentary that many events in the world are not committed by our direct actions but rather inactions. Our submission to our habits contribute to the elemental force (in nature) and brutal force (in society) which drives the chaos of our world.
Describe the theme of different types of love: prosaic vs romantic
Prosaic love is having something that can last, it means having empathy and caring for each other. It means looking at the smaller things and enjoying life as much as one can. You can think about this as Levin and Kitty’s relationship - despite the road bumps and mishaps at first, Levin and Kitty enjoy a great relationship with great stability at the end. On the other hand, you have romantic love, which has to have an obstacle which the user has to overcome time after time, not to mention they cannot be with the other person. Think about this as Anna and Karenin
Describe the theme of small joys
It’s ultimately the small joys in life that matter and make things possible. Life consists of many struggles, and it often seems like they bear no fruit. If you look closely, however, it’s the small fruit along the way that makes it matter. An example is when Dolly is in the countryside while Stiva is in St. Petersburg reminding the ministry of his existence. One of the children is not given pie after dinner for bad behavior, but Tanya, another child secretly sneaks to share her pie with him. This is also symbolized by the gold in the sand.
Describe the theme of omens (events as a foreshadow of good and evil)
Anna is haunted by terrible dreams - notably, one of a railway worker who is killed when she first gets off the train right before she meets Vronsky (notably, this is an omen of how Anna will eventually die as she gets hit by the train). Omens in this cases are a literary tactic used by the author to illustrate backwards causation. Technically, believing an omen just seems to suggest that you are believing the future in order to cause something. A similar example is romantic love and believing that a person is destined for you
Describe the theme of brutal force vs elemental force
Brutal force represents the elemental force of society. In other words, there are forces that keep society the way it is and one human individual man’s attempt to change his own life is impossible within the context of society. A bottom up transformation is prevented by the force of habit and that the body has a mind of its own. Elemental force is the idea that any order you impose on the world is bound to run into obstacles. In other words, if you attempt to change the world, the World and the elements will prevent you from changing it. Think about Levin when he tries to go through his agricultural monologue of why ideas in England can be applied to Russia when he’s visiting Sviyazhsky. Levin agrees that his attempts to introduce farming innovations have been disastrous. Sviyazhky says that education is the future and what’s missing and that paid labor is something Russia will have to accept.
Describe the theme of simple and natural
Simple and natural is a phrase used repetitively over the novel, and represents when one tries to appear simple and natural on the outside when it’s in reality calculated. An example is referred to with Anna’s hair at the ball, where the tendrils of Anna’s hair are super simple and natural, when in reality it took a lot of effort to reach that state. It’s hard to determine what is considered and what is considered natural.
Describe the difference between theoretical and practical knowledge
Theoretical is applying knowledges from template and practical knowledge is applying knowledge from practical experience. For example, Levin tries to apply the reforms from England and theoretically it should work, but it doesn’t work because this is Russia specifically. Sviyazhky has the disagreement with Levin over elemental forces and brutal forces of society, since Sviyazhky believes that serfdom will no longer succeed and that you need to treat peasants as Russian peasants.
Describe the theme of extremism and totalism
The main example of this extreme believe is the idea of romantic love and how it is all or nothing. Anna becomes really suspicious of Vronsky at the end and she believes that if he’s silent for one moment or is gone that he hates her. In other words, Vronsky either wants to spend time with Anna or he doesn’t like me and wants me to die. Anna also sees Karenin as a monster who is incapable of love but this is because she wants to find a reason to dislike him so she doesn’t feel guilty about the affair.
What does the symbol of ears mean
Ears is mentioned when Anna gets off the train at St. Petersburg to meet Karenin and symbolizes the start of Anna’s self deceit. The ears are referring to Karenin’s ears, which she starts to feel dissatisfied towards. Karenin’s ears have always stuck out the same way and nothing has changed
What does the symbol of the red bag mean
The red bag is a theme of narcissism and materialism. When Anna first jumps in front of the train in an attempt to commit suicide, Anna is reminded of her red bag on her side. This illustrates how narcisstic and self centered Anna is as a character: she has portraits of herself everywhere, she names her daughter Annie, and helps an English girl named Hannah. In other words, everywhere we go, we see Anna.
