The Transformation of the Image of the Fallen Woman in 19th-Century Russian Literature

Abstract

Typological study of literary works at the present stage seems to be one of the most productive. In 19th-century Russian literature, alongside the well-known images of the “little man,” the “superfluous man,” the “hero-ideologist,” and others, the image of the fallen woman occupies a prominent place, which determines the relevance of the study. The purpose of this article is to study the transformation of the image of a fallen woman in 19th-century works of different genres depending on the literary era and the ideological views of the author. The objectives are to identify the artistic specificity of the image of a fallen woman in the works of leading classical writers and to examine their functional load. The object of the study was N. V. Gogol's story "Nevsky Prospect", poems by N. A. Nekrasov "When from the darkness of delusion...", "When I drive at night along a dark street...", the novels "What is to be done?" by N. G. Chernyshevsky, "Crime and Punishment" by F. M. Dostoevsky, "Resurrection" by L. N. Tolstoy, stories by V. M. Garshin "Nadezhda Nikolaevna", A. P. Chekhov "Attack". To achieve the goals and objectives, comparative-historical and typological research methods are used. It is determined that in N. V. Gogol's "Nevsky Prospect" the problem of the fallen woman is related to the writer's pressing question of the frequent incompatibility of the ethical and aesthetic in the human world; in addition, the contrast between the ideal and reality is shown. In the works of democratic writers, the image of a fallen woman is associated with social issues, and she herself appears as a victim of an unjust social structure. In F. M. Dostoevsky and L. N. Tolstoy this line continues, acquiring a Christian-humanistic character. In the stories of V. M. Garshin, the theme of prostitution reaches its greatest degree of generalization and is conceived as a global evil, while A. P. Chekhov, unlike his predecessors, deprives the image of the fallen woman of its sacrificial aura, diminishing it.