Showing results by narrator "Amelia Reese" in All Categories

Turgenev wrote Fathers and Sons as a response to the growing cultural schism between liberals of the 1830s-1840s and the growing nihilist movement. Both the nihilists (the "sons") and the 1830s liberals (the "fathers") sought Western-based social change in Russia. These two modes of thought were contrasted with the Slavophiles, who believed that Russia's path lay in its traditional spirituality. Fathers and Sons, which might be considered as the first really modern novel in Russian literature, enraged everyone when it was published.

Melinda was depressed, having just received a rejection note for the manuscript of her historical novel from a publisher. Then, she got the idea of writing a satirical piece about the town where she lived, as a way of escaping the blues. To her dismay, it was accepted by a magazine, and she dreaded the reception from her friends and family. However, when it was published, everyone loved it, including her Uncle Joe, Aunt Lucy, and John Graham whom she referred to as “the preacher” in the story.