There Are No Small Parts

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while she remains passive and in control.

Arkady is another male character in the novel who falls victim to the influence of a stronger woman. Like Bazarov, Arkady’s ideological crusade meets its demise after meeting and squeezing into the mold of the desires of another female character. In this case, that character is Katya, Odintsova’s younger sister, with whom Arkady falls in love. Katya brings out a more dynamic version of Arkady, “Katya adored nature, and Arkady liked nature too although he didn’t dare admit it” (89). As Arkady changes, Katya remains the same, beginning as a romantic and remaining that way. He faces difficulty in finding a concrete mindset until he comes to fully accept his romantic upbringing through his relationship with Katya. Upon first meeting her, Arkady is still emulating Bazarov and his ideologies, practicing nihilism, but as he becomes closer to Katya he slowly begins to conform to her ways. He abandons nihilism and becomes more and more of a romantic, until he falls in love with her. Not only this, but he and acknowledges and accepts this love, possibly the most romantic thing he could do. According to Harold Schefski2, “[Arkady’s] alliance with Katya ushers in a domestic period of acceptance”(91 Schefski), validating that Arkady’s self-acceptance, essentially the heart of his change, is brought about by her influence. Katya is not blind to this. She noticed that Arkady “was already beginning to submit to her, and [she] sensed that and was not surprised” (180), revealing a more manipulative side to her. This suggests that not only is Katya aware of her effect upon her lover, but also that his conformation to her ideals was her intention all along. The dialogue of the text indicates that Katya is in a superior position than Arkady and intended for him to yield to her. She both wanted and expected Arkady to abandon nihilism and accept her romantic ideals. Arkady does exactly that, reversing his ideological perspective to match that of his unchanging Katya.

The use of irony continues with Sitnikov, a friend of Bazarov and Arkady, who perhaps defames women the most, yet, eventually succumbs to one due to his inferiority because of his lower class. Initially, Sitnikov is “given to attacking women in particular”(67), saying that “one should despise them, and [he does] despise them, utterly and completely!”(67). Sitnikov’s response to Kukshina’s statement about how women should have a better education, to which he replies, “[y]ou won’t be able to do anything with them”(67), showing his self-defined superiority. Furthermore, Sitnikov says these things in conversation with a woman, Kukshina who is unusually well educated and a feminist herself. However this does not stop Sitnikov from ranting about his disgust of women. Although Kukshina is an active participant in their discussion, Sitnikov says “there is not one [woman] who would be capable of understanding our conversation”(67), blatantly disregarding her presence. Additionally, he claims that there is “not one [woman] worthy of being subject of discussion by serious men like us!”(67). He discredits women entirely. In fact, Sitnikov enjoys scorning women in general and saying things to deepen the divide between himself and women, increasing, at least in his own mind, his superiority. However, a rare interjection from the narrator allows the reader to learn that Sitnikov does not continue to live independently from female influence. In fact, not long after this discussion, the narrator says, “his fate would be to crawl before his wife just because she had been born a Princess Durdolesova.”(67), illustrating how Sitnikov would succumb to this imperial woman, abandoning his superiority. This princess is of higher class than he, and it takes but a few months for him to crawl to her feet. This development further emphasizes the extent of Sitnikov’s submission and highlights the irony of how someone who had just been boasting about the inconsequentiality of women himself is choosing to submit to a woman.

In the novel, Turgenev’s use of irony between the men’s dismissive attitude towards women and the women’s certain significance demonstrates how the men succumb to the women’s undervalued influence, despite how little credit is given to the women. The female characters prove that although they play smaller roles in the novel, it is their influence that drives the development of the other characters, and are very necessary instruments in the progression of society. The women are passive and possess a manipulative nature, both allowing and encouraging the men to submit to them. The power of the female characters is subtle, and they as characters seem small, yet the skillfully control and influence the men. This highlights that they are not as limited as the men perceive them to be, rather they are cunning and calculative. In the end, the ironic contrast reveals insight into Turgenev’s dour view of the manipulative, scheming side of the female characters.

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