Anna Karenina
(Leo Tolstoy)

Changes in Russian Society

The novel presents many instances, often using foreshadowing, to illustrate the changes in Russian society in the last third of the nineteenth century. The old aristocratic order is in flux, as is the peasant class. Serfdom has only recently been abolished. The characters are shown to be either frivolous (Oblansky or Vronsky) or serious and thoughtful (Konstantin and Kitty) and the peasants are both obsequious and faithful in some cases or resentful and rebellious in others.

The Role of Women

One of the overriding themes in Anna Karenina is the role of women in Russian society. Women are generally depicted in traditional roles - wife and mother – which were de rigueur at the time. Tolstoy ignores the actual winds change that was beginning to be expressed in the Western world, even then. While he is sympathetic to the plight of Dolly and Anna, in the end they must live with their lot or not– Dolly the philandering foolish husband and Anna her fall in society. In the end, Dolly accepts and Anna, in despair, chooses to end her life.

The Peasants

The farm workers and servants of Tolstoy’s novels have only recently transitioned from a system of medieval serfdom to that of free individuals. In reality, their lives have not changed entirely – for the most part, they work under brutal conditions and have little economic or political power. The author uses them to show the contrast between the honest but difficult work they do and the often frivolous lives the aristocrats live.

The Upper Class Lifestyle

The lifestyle of the aristocrats, who for most part have inherited their wealth off the backs of the serfs and peasants, is presented as fashionable, frivolous, and having no permanency. The concern with food, clothing, music, theatre, social lives, and making good marriages seems empty in the face of such overwhelming problems that Russia has. Tolstoy shows that the society is rotten at the top and will someday fall.

Family

While Russia is facing huge changes, Tolstoy chooses to make the family the center of the upper class life. The greatest triumphs, worries, loves, and hatreds are played out in the context of the different families of the novel. Some see their salvation in the family unit (the Shtcherbatskys; Konstantin and Kitty) and others their misery (the Karenins; Vronsky and his mother). No one escapes the influence of family and it is from that unit that happiness or unhappiness flows.

Individual Happiness

Individual happiness, or selfishness, is a theme throughout Anna Karenina. From Anna’s adulterous affair, Vronsky’s shallow treatment of Kitty, Stepan’s adultery, the Shtcherbatsky’s wishes for their daughters success at marriage, are all predicated on the wish for happiness in one form or another. When this very human desire becomes selfish to the extreme, heartache follows. Kitty finds her redemption in helping others after Vronsky takes up with Anna, but Anna never finds redemption for her love of Vronsky (the implicit message being that she made her husband and children unhappy), and ends her own life. To Tolstoy, the way to happiness is through unselfishness.

Introspection

Introspection is presented as mainly a force for good in Anna Karenin, although not always a source of happiness for the introspective individual. Konstantin Levin is a very introspective man and spends much of the novel torn between one idea and another, or bothered by his conscience, particularly concerning his farm and his family. In the end he is comforted spiritually and finds some peace and happiness. Anna is also plagued by introspection but hers comes more in the form of guilt and, due to her uncertainty about what she has done, jealousy. Her personality fragments and she takes her own life.

Politics

The theme of politics runs throughout Anna Karenina, accurately reflecting the changes in Russia in the 1870s. There is much discussion of philosophy, power, corruption, communism, socialism, and democracy. The aristocracy, a part of the political system, and the one with power at the time is feeling some anxiety on how long their ascendancy will last. They see Russia falling behind on the world stage and want to prevent this from happening.

Religion

Religion as it is presented in Anna Karenina revolves around the Christian Russian Orthodox Church, the state church. The aristocracy belongs to the church – some of them are true believers, others are sceptics. There is still much superstition and a fairly emotional approach to religion amongst Russians. In the 1870’s they are engaged in a war defending the Servians (Serbians) and Montenegrins against their neighbors the Muslim Turks, who are looking to expand their Empire.

Railway Stations

Tolstoy chose to use the motif of the railway and the railway station at two pivotal points in the book – when Vronsky meets Anna and when Anna takes her own life. The railway station represents movement and change – when Vronsky and Anna embark on their affair, the ripple effect of their actions is stupendous. The death of the railway worker when they meet foreshadows Anna’s death, when she decides she can no longer be part of life’s journey.