Virgin Soil

By Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev, Ivan Tourgueniev, et al.

Book Overview

Virgin Soil is a novel written by the renowned Russian author, Ivan Turgenev. The story is set in mid-19th century Russia and revolves around a group of young intellectuals who are attempting to bring about social and political change in their country. The main character, Nezhdanov, is a young man who is drawn into this group and becomes a key figure in their movement.As the story progresses, Nezhdanov becomes increasingly disillusioned with the group's tactics and begins to question their ability to effect real change. He also falls in love with a young woman named Marianna, who is the daughter of a wealthy landowner. Marianna is torn between her love for Nezhdanov and her loyalty to her family and their way of life.The novel explores themes of social and political change, the role of intellectuals in society, and the tension between tradition and progress. Turgenev's writing is known for its sensitivity and psychological depth, and Virgin Soil is no exception. The characters are complex and nuanced, and their struggles and conflicts feel both timeless and deeply rooted in their historical context.Overall, Virgin Soil is a powerful and thought-provoking novel that offers a rich and nuanced portrait of a pivotal moment in Russian history. It is a must-read for anyone interested in the history and literature of this fascinating country.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1162715944
• ISBN13: 9781162715940
• Release Date: September 2010
• Publisher: Kessinger Publishing
• Length: 286 Pages
• Weight: 1.09 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 7.5" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Quintessential Turgenev

Encompassing social commentary, a (albeit fairly simplistic) love story, and a homage to Russia's beauty, this work does not fail the lover of Turgenev. Certainly this might not necessarily be the best work with which to begin one's odyssey through Turgenev, but this very effectively pulls together all the familiar elements of his writing. Turgenev is not known for his plot development, and this is again the case here: very little actually occurs. The absence of plot and of action, however, is not to say that this dry, boring drivel. Rather, Turgenev's material, this work in particular, becomes a pleasant marriage of the classic novel with the novel of ideas. His commentary, both political and human, is both trapped in the amber of history and universally relevant (a lovely dichotomy) to the human condition. "Virgin Soil" is a very fine story, and the translation is flowing and literate (having no Russian, I cannot speak to how accurately this might reflect the original).

Do not start your Turgenev tour with this

Having read all of Turgenev's major works, this would be the best one to close one's odyseesy of Turgenev works as it provides his finally achieved view of the desparate situation of then Russia and the skepticism toward the revolutionary movements aiming at social re-engineering. Story is very simple, and no significant action was involved, but a minimum knowlwedge of Russian literature, changing revolutionary movements and intelligentsia situation is required to grasp the width of the topics and issues covered.