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Between dream and reality: a study of Nathalie Sarraute and Fedor Dostoevsky

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Between dream and reality: a study of Nathalie Sarraute and Fedor Dostoevsky

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Content This dissertation has been
microfilmed exactly as received 70-8531
LEVINSKY, Buth, 1926-
BETWEEN d r e a m a n d REALITY; A STUDY OF
NATHALIE SARRAUTE AND FEDOR DOSTOEVSKY.
[Portions of Text in French].
University of Southern California, PhJ)., 1969
Language and Literature, modern
University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan
© Copyright by
RUTH LEVINSKY
1970
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BETWEEN DREAM AND REALITY:
A STUDY OF NATHALIE SARRAUTE AND FEDOR DOSTOEVSKY
by
Ruth Levinsky
A D i s s e r t a t i o n P resen ted to the
FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In P a r t i a l F u lfillm e n t of the
Requirements f o r th e Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(Comparative L ite r a tu r e )
June 1969
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UNIVERSITY O F SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY PARK
LOS ANGELES. CALIFORNIA 9 0 0 0 7
This dissertation, written by
..............................Ruth..ke.y.iJCiRky................................
under the direction of hQ X.... Dissertation Com
mittee, and approved by all its members, has
been presented to and accepted by The Gradu
ate School, in partial fulfillment of require
ments for the degree of
D O C T O R OF P H IL O S O P H Y
Dean
Date.___
DISSERTATION COMMITTEE
_ _
Chairman
.........
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. .
Chapter
I . FICTION AND THE NATURE OF REALITY . . .
I I . CONTRADICTION, AMBIGUITY, AND AMBIVALENCE
I I I . LONELINESS ....................................................................
IV. ILLNESS AND NEUROSIS ............................................
V. THE DREAM W ORLD .....................................................
VI. MYTH AND FAIRY TALE ............................................
CONCLUSION .......................................................................................
APPENDIX ............................................................................................
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY ..........................................................
Page
1
22
35
47
57
79
95
112
120
128
11
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INTRODUCTION
The emphasis of t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n is on the work of
N a th a lie S a rra u te as a f f i l i a t e d w ith t h a t of Fedor D ostoev
s k y .1 By t r a c in g an a f f i l i a t i o n w ith Dostoevsky, t h a t is
the a re a h e ld in common, in term s of the d if f e r e n c e s and
s i m i l a r i t i e s between the two a u th o r s , i t would seem p o s
s i b l e to g a in a g r e a te r i n s i g h t in to S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls.
S a rra u te h e r s e l f adm its i m p l i c i t l y in her essay , "Dostoiev-
sk i à Kafka” t h a t she has been in flu e n c e d by D o sto evsky .%
U ndoubtedly, d e s p ite D ostoevsky's t r a d i t i o n a l development
of p l o t and c h a r a c t e r , some im p o rtan t a sp e c ts of h is sub
j e c t m a tte r , c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n , and tech niqu e are found in
S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls . D ostoevsky's concern w ith man's a l i e n a
t io n , in n e r to rm e n ts, am bivalent em otions, and se a rc h fo r
an in n e r r e a l i t y , and h is use of symbol through myth and
^See Appendix fo r b io g r a p h ic a l d a ta and e x p la n a tio n of
R ussian word and name t r a n s l i t e r a t i o n and t r a n s l a t i o n .
Z S a r ra u te 's d e s c r ip tio n of D ostoevsky's work could
have e q u a lly r e f e r r e d to her own w r itin g : ”. . . ces
mouvements s u b t i l s , à peine p e r c e p t i b l e s , f u g i t i f s , c o n tr a
d i c t o i r e s , é v a n e sc e n ts, de f a i b l e s trem blem ents, des^
ébauches d 'a p p e ls tim ides e t de r e c u l s , des ombres lé g è re s
qui g l i s s e n t , e t dont le je u in c e s s a n t c o n s titu e l a trame
i n v i s i b l e de tous le s r a p p o rts humains e t l a substance même
de n o tr e v i e . " "De D osto iev sk i à K a fk a,” L 'Ère du soupçon
( P a r is , 1956), p. 29.
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2
dream have undoubtedly been of g r e a t i n t e r e s t to S a rr a u te .
His appreh en sion about man's anonymity f a i l s to o b l i t e r a t e
h is optim ism , an optimism r e j e c t e d by the New R e a l i s t s w ith
whom S a rra u te i s c lo s e ly a s s o c ia te d , and of whom she is
even c o n sid ere d the fo u n d er. Dostoevsky b e li e v e s , or a t
l e a s t conveys through some of h is novels and s h o r t s t o r i e s ,
t h a t i s o l a t i o n can be overcome through c o n ta c t w ith and
?
love of o th e r s . S a rra u te o f f e r s no s o lu tio n to the p ro b
lem of man's i s o l a t i o n , b u t co n tin u es to p o r tr a y c h a r a c te rs
engaged in c o n sta n t but f r u s t r a t e d e f f o r t s to achiev e a p
p ro v a l from o th e r s .
This stu d y , in d e a lin g w ith th re e major a s p e c ts of the
a f f i l i a t i o n D o sto e v sk y -S arrau te, d isc u sse s t h e i r concepts
of r e a l i t y , t h e i r e la b o r a tio n s of c h a r a c t e r , and t h e i r
te c h n iq u e s. T heir tre a tm e n ts of r e a l i t y a re d is c u s s e d in
the f i r s t c h a p te r, " F i c ti o n and the Nature of R e a l i t y ," and
a d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e i r development of c h a r a c te r r e l a t i v e to
the concept of r e a l i t y fo llo w s in th re e c h a p te r s , "C o n tra
d i c t i o n , Ambiguity, and Am bivalence," " L o n e lin e s s ," and
" I l l n e s s and N e u ro sis." The f i n a l two c h a p te rs d is c u s s the
tec h n iq u e s adopted by th e s e two a u th o rs , tec h n iq u e s which
appear to follow l o g i c a l l y from t h e i r concepts of th e world.
^This i s the theme of h is sh o rt s to r y , "Dream of a
Strange Man," Diary o f a W rite r, t r a n s . B oris B rasol
(London, 1949), I I , 672-690.
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3
These c h a p te rs a re t i t l e d "The Dream World" and "Myth and
F a iry T a le ." The th re e se c tio n s lin k i n t e g r a l l y , i n t e r
r e l a t i n g in much the same way as theme, c h a r a c t e r i z a t io n ,
and techn ique do in a n o v e l. I t is from the in tr o v e r te d
v is io n of r e a l i t y h e ld by Dostoevsky and S a rra u te th a t
t h e i r c h a r a c te r s emerge as ambiguous, am b iv alen t, lo n ely ,
i l l , and n e u r o t i c , j u s t as i t is from th e c o n c e n tra tio n of
th ese a u th o rs on s e lf-e n g ro s s e d c h a r a c te r s t h a t dream and
myth emerge as a p p ro p ria te techniques to d e fin e s t y l i s t i
c a l l y an in n er and even an unconscious r e a l i t y .
In t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n a l l N a th a lie S a r r a u t e ’s novels
were used as w e ll as a number of her e s s a y s . Twelve of
D ostoevsky’s most famous novels are c i t e d because of t h e i r
p e n e tr a tin g i n s i g h t in to the human c o n d itio n , and in a d d i
tio n s e v e r a l of h is s h o rt s t o r i e s which shed f u r t h e r l i g h t
on the s u b je c ts covered by t h i s study.
Since th e approach in t h i s study i s , to the b e st of my
knowledge, o r i g i n a l , the c r i t i c s ’ value has been a u x ilia r y
r a t h e r th a n d e f i n i t i v e . Although the procedure may appear
f o r m a l i s t i c because of i t s d e riv a tio n from the t e x t , n e v e r
th e l e s s , c o n te n t w i l l p la y a f a r g r e a t e r r o l e in t h is c r i t
icism than w i l l form. However, the c o n te x t w i l l not be
o u tlin e d and diagrammed as Claude L é v i-S tra u ss^ or the
^Claude L é v i-S tra u s s , the prom inent French a n th ro p o lo
g i s t , has su g g ested a s t r u c t u r a l approach to l i t e r a t u r e .
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4
s t r u c t u r a l i s t s would probably do. The concern of t h i s
study w i l l be le s s w ith a t o t a l s t r u c t u r a l o u tlin e than
w ith the e s s e n t i a l c o n tr ib u tio n made by each n o v e l, or so
to speak, w ith th e n o v e l i s t i c e sse n c e . G ranting t h a t each
form of l i t e r a r y c r i t i c i s m redeems s p e c i f i c q u a l i t i e s from
the t e x t , n e v e rth e le s s a c r i t i c i s m is proposed h ere which
probes to the crux of a work, and a ttem p ts to fo rm u la te i t s
c o n te n ts no t through mere d e s c r i p t i o n , but r a t h e r through
conceptual and e x te r n a l a s s o c i a t i o n s , which however, a re
i n t r i n s i c components of th e in d iv id u a l work of a r t . In my
opinion , t h i s approach is p a r t i c u l a r l y needed today. Un
f o r t u n a t e l y , t r a d i t i o n a l c r i t i c i s m cannot cope w ith the
tw e n tie th c en tu ry nov el, and i t dem onstrates t h i s i n a b i l i t y
by applying terms lik e a n ti- n o v e l and a n ti - h e r o , and by i t s
worry about th e demise of th e n o v e l. Undoubtedly, the
re a d e r needs a s s i s t a n c e in b rid g in g the d iv is io n between
the t r a d i t i o n a l and th e modern n o v e l. S ch o larsh ip need not
remain on e s o t e r i c h e ig h ts ; in f a c t , the only j u s t i f i c a t i o n
of the most a b s tru s e thought is t h a t i t serves as p io n e e r
to g r e a te r knowledge and i n s i g h t .
C r i t i c s of Dostoevsky g e n e r a lly can be c l a s s i f i e d as
b io g ra p h ic a l and d e s c r i p t i v e , alth o u g h these a s s ig n a tio n s
For an example of t h i s approach, see h is a r t i c l e , " S t r u c
t u r a l Study of Myth," Jo u rn a l of American F o l k l o r e , LXVIII
(1955), 428-443.
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5
tend to o v e rla p , sin c e a l l c r i t i c s co n sid er D ostoevsky's
l i f e a g r e a t in flu e n c e on h is n o v e ls . The o u tstan d in g
biography of Dostoevsky, in my o p in io n , is by S te fan Zweig
(D o sto ïe v sk i , t r a n s . Henri Bloch, P a r i s , 1928), and the
o u ts ta n d in g d e s c r i p t iv e study i s t h a t of Janko Lavrin
(Dostoevsky and h is C re atio n : A P s y c h o -C ritic a l S tu d y ,
London, 1920).
There a re two d e f i n i t i v e works on S a rra u te , which a re
b io g r a p h ic a l and which a ls o d e s c rib e h e r f i c t i o n . They a re
e q u a lly com petent, and b oth t i t l e d N a th a lie S a r r a u t e .
Mimica C ranaki and Yvon B elav al p u b lis h e d t h e i r book in
P a r is in 1965 w hile René Micha p u b lis h e d h is study in P a r is
in 1966. A number of c r i t i c s have p u b lish e d a r t i c l e s ,
which a re d i s c u r s i v e l y d e s c r i p t i v e of N a th alie S a r r a u t e 's
work. O u tstand ing are Léon Roudiez, Ruby Cohn, André
C o n tesse , C h arles Camproux, Gerda Zeltner-Neukomm, A lfre d
Cism aru, and Ludovic J a n v ie r , who was th e most v a lu a b le fo r
t h i s stu d y (Une P aro le e x ig e a n te . Le Nouveau Roman, P a r i s ,
1964).
I am p a r t i c u l a r l y in d eb ted to s e v e ra l o u tstan d in g
p sy c h o a n a ly sts whose depth s t u d ie s have c o n trib u te d g r e a t l y
to an i n te n s i v e comprehension of th e human p e r s o n a l i ty .
S p e c i f i c a l l y , Sigmund Freud, th ro u g h h is r e l a t i n g of con
c e p ts in the f i e l d of p s y c h o a n a ly s is , has in s p ir e d me w ith
the id e a of a conceptual l i t e r a r y c r i t i c i s m based on an
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6
emulation, of h is approach, n o t n e c e s s a r il y of h is id e a s .
F reu d 's study of dreams undoubtedly was a f a c to r in my com
prehension of N a th a lie S a r r a u t e 's technique of t r e a t i n g
dream as r e a l i t y . A lso, Otto Rank's two s tu d ie s o f myth^
have convinced me t h a t myth and f a i r y t a l e derive from r e
p re s se d impulses as w e ll as being im aginative e x p la n atio n s
fo r the unknown. R. D. Laing in The Divided S e lf: A Study
of S an ity and Madness (London, 1960) throws g re a t l i g h t on
the type of n e u r o tic person r e f l e c t e d in the c h a ra c te rs of
S a rrau te and DostoeVsky.
D espite the undeniable a s s is ta n c e o f the p sy c h o an aly sts
to my stu d y , I do n o t c o n sid er m yself merely a p s y c h o a n a ly t
i c a l c r i t i c , as my study is more i n te n s i v e , and u t i l i z e s the
thought of the p sy ch o an aly sts e c l e c t i c a l l y and only when ap
p r o p r i a t e ; I a ls o do not l im i t m yself to a p a r t i c u l a r school
of p sy c h o a n a ly sis. At the same tim e, t h i s comparative study
of S arrau te and Dostoevsky has d is c lo s e d deep p s y c h o lo g ic a l
ro o ts in t h e i r n o v e ls , and t h e r e f o r e , psychology cannot be
ignored. There i s l i t t l e doubt t h a t Dostoevsky and p s y c h o l
ogy as a d ja ce n t s u b je c t and id e a would shock no one, l e a s t of
^Otto Rank, Der Mythus von der Geburt des H elden.
Versuch e in e r p sy cholo gischen Mythendeutung (L eip zig , 1922),
and Das In ze st-M o tiv in Dichtung und Sage.~ Grundzuge e in e r
Psychologie des d i c t e r is c h e n Scnaffens (L eip zig , 19*6).
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a l l N a th alie S a rra u te , who c o n sid e rs h is f i c t i o n p sy cholog
i c a l . ^
N ath alie S a r r a u t e 's essays have illu m in a te d her i n t e n
tio n s fo r the re a d e r and a t the same tim e have confused him
about those of her id eas le s s l o g i c a l l y developed. For
in s ta n c e , S a rra u te in her e ssa y s, remarks both p o s i t i v e l y
and n e g a tiv e ly about psychology, a lth o u g h h e r n e g a tiv e
remarks p e r t a i n to psychology w r i t te n in quotes (which she
c o n sid e rs amateur psychology), i . e . , " 'L e p sy c h o lo g iq u e ',
source de t a n t de d éce p tio n s e t de p e in e s , n ' e x i s t a i t p a s ."
("De D o sto iev sk i à Kafka," L 'Ère du soupçon [ P a r is , 1956],
p. 12.) Then in the same a r t i c l e , S a rrau te , w hile d e s c r i b
ing D ostoevsky's c h a r a c te r s , an alyzes the n e u ro tic person
j u s t as Sigmund Freud or any p sy c h o an a ly st might do:
C 'e s t ce b e so in c o n tin u e l e t presque maniaque de c o n ta c t,
d 'u n e im possible e t a p a is a n te é t r e i n t e , qui t i r e tous
ces personnages comme un v e r t i g e , le s i n c i t e à to u t
moment à e ssa y e r par n 'im p o rte quel moyen de se f r a y e r
un chemin ju s q u 'à a u t r u i , de p é n é tr e r en l u i le p lus
lo in p o s s ib le , . . . Leurs d is s im u la tio n s p a s s a g è re s ,
le u r s bonds f u r t i f s , le u rs c a c h o t t e r i e s , le u r s c o n t r a
d i c t i o n s , e t ces inconséquences dans le u r c o n d u ite , que
p a r f o is i l s semblent m u l t i p l i e r à p l a i s i r e t f a i r e
m ir o ite r aux yeux d 'a u t r u i , ne sont chez eux que des
c o q u e t te r i e s , des a g a c e rie s pour p iq u er sa c u r i o s i t é
e t l 'o b l i g e r à se rap p ro c h er. Leur h u m ilité n ' e s t q u'un
appel tim id e , d é to u rn é , une m anière de se m ontrer to u t
proche, a c c e s s i b le , désarmé, o u v e rt, o f f e r t , t o u t l i v r é ,
. . . Et le u r s brusques s u r s a u ts d 'o r g u e i l ne so n t que
des t e n t a t i v e s d o u lo u reu ses, devant l 'i n t o l é r a b l e r e f u s .
^N ath alie S a rra u te , "De D o sto iev sk i à K afka," L 'Ère
du soupçon ( P a r is , 1956), p . 9 . .
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. . . une a u tre voie d 'a c c è s , p a r l a h a in e , p a r le
m épris, p a r l a so u ffra n c e i n f l i g é e , ou par quelque a c tio n
d 'é c l a t , quelque g e ste p l e i n d'audace e t de g é n é r o s ité ,
qui surprend e t confond, à r é t a b l i r le c o n ta c t, à r e
prendre p o sse ssio n d ’ a u t r u i . (p. 34)
S a rra u te might have been d e sc rib in g her own c h a ra c te rs
in the foregoing p a ssa g e , which also dem onstrates h e r a f
f i n i t y fo r depth study of the human p e r s o n a l i ty . S arrau te
is obviously i n t e r e s t e d in psychology, b u t what kind? Is
she a b e h a v i o r is t, a F reu dian, an e x i s t e n t i a l i s t ? This
q u e stio n is le s s easy to answer. Her i n t e n t a t f i r s t co
in c id e s w ith the e x i s t e n t i a l i s t s , who accept man w ithout
t r a d i t i o n a l commitments; h e r c h a ra c te r a n a ly s is and u t i l i
z atio n of dream techn ique and f a i r y t a l e apply the essence
w ithout the co n te n t of Freudian psychology, and her con
c lu sio n as to man's anonymity seems b e s t to f i t in to the
b e h a v io r is t sc h o o l, although perhaps also back w ith the
e x i s t e n t i a l i s t s . Her s t a t e d procedure of stu dying man
through h is b e h av io r and h is statem ents is c o n s ta n tly aban
doned fo r stre a m -o f-c o n sc io u s th in k in g and f a n t a s i e s . I t
i s tru e t h a t the f a i r y t a l e a lso ignores time and sp ace,
makes m agical leaps and p r o je c ts the im agination to the i n
v i s i b l e , and c e r t a i n l y S a rra u te has dem onstrated h e r fond
ness f o r f a i r y t a l e . However, i f one accepts the etymology
of f a i r y t a l e s as in g ra in e d in the w ish fu l im ag ination and
the dream, and S a r r a u t e 's a s s o c ia tiv e p r o je c tio n of f a i r y
t a l e as obvious, then i t is c e r ta in ly j u s t i f i a b l e to
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9
co n sid er h e r no vels in the l i g h t o f p sy c h o a n a ly tic a l d i s
c o v e rie s . Furtherm ore, u n le ss S a r r a u t e 's novels somehow
had com pletely evaded p s y c h o lo g ic a l re fe re n c e by lea n in g on
f a n t a s i a , i t would be in c r e d ib l e to ignore psychology in
any stud y o f tw e n tie th -c e n tu r y nov els t r e a t i n g o f n e u r o s is ,
a l i e n a t i o n , and dehum anization.
I t may be argued t h a t S a rra u te h e r s e l f would d is a p
prove o f th ese contended p s y c h o lo g ic a l a s s o c ia tio n s . Of
cou rse, i t is f a l l a c i o u s to assume t h a t the autho r o f f i c
tio n i s i t s pre-em in en t c r i t i c . This becomes in c r e a s in g ly
dangerous i f th e f i c t i o n is h i s own. N e v e rth e le ss, hope
f u l l y , N a th a lie S a rra u te w i l l n o t disapprove o f t h i s d i s
s e r t a t i o n , which I b e lie v e adds a new dimension to the d i s
cu ssio n o f h e r n o v els.
Before proceeding w ith th e d is c u s s io n o f the c h a p te r s ,
l e t us r e c a l l t h a t the major i n t e n t i o n has been to i l l u m i
n a te S a r r a u t e 's f i c t i o n w ith o u t p o s t u l a t i n g h e r as a shadow
o f Dostoevsky, bu t in s t e a d , i n d ic a t i n g t h e i r a f f i n i t y .
T h ere fo re , th e a n a ly sis o f S a rra u te i s p re s e n te d f i r s t in
each c h a p te r, follow ed by a d is c u s s io n of Dostoevsky, and
concluding w ith a comparison of the two a u th o rs.
Chapter I in tro d u c e s th e re a d e r to the b a s ic a t t i t u d e s
towards r e a l i t y h e ld by S a rra u te and Dostoevsky. In o rd e r
to dem onstrate S a r r a u t e 's a t t i t u d e toward r e a l i t y , h e r
e ssa y , "Nouveau roman e t r é a l i t é " was used to show t h a t f o r
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10
S a r ra u te , r e a l i t y i s s u b je c tiv e , and a ls o t h a t th e o b je c t
fo r the w r i t e r i s a se a rc h fo r the essence of t h a t r e a l i t y .
In anoth er a r t i c l e , "Le Romancier re c h e rc h e une r é a l i t é
inconnue," S a rra u te i n d ic a te s her awareness t h a t each w r ite r
views the world d i f f e r e n t l y . Her th r e e n o v e ls . P o r t r a i t
d 'u n inconnu, M a rte re a u , and Le P la n e ta riu m , re fe re n c e s in
Chapter I , d e l i n e a t e what can be d e fin e d as S a r r a u t e 's
p r is m a tic view of r e a l i t y , th a t i s , th e view t h a t a d i f f e r
e n t r e a l i t y e x i s t s fo r each p erso n . P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu
r e f l e c t s i t s a u t h o r 's c o n s id e ra tio n of l i t e r a r y c h a ra c te rs
as more r e a l th a n l iv in g people, and a ls o her acknowledg
ment of d e ath as the most p o s i t iv e s o l u t io n to th e problems
of l i f e . S a r r a u t e 's e n t i r e n o v e l i s t i c achievem ent s tu d ie s
h e r p e rc e p tio n of a p a ra ly ze d embryonic s t a t e of the human
p e r s o n a l i t y . D e sp ite h e r a tta c k s on b a n a l i t y and hypocrisy,
S a rra u te concludes t h a t one must a c c e p t th e se e v il s in o r
der to a d ju s t t o l i f e .
For D ostoevsky, L e tte r s from the Underworld and The
I d i o t dem onstrate h is d i s t r u s t o f r a t i o n a l t h i n k i n g .? The
Double and L e t te r s from th e Underworld s i g n i f y D ostoevsky's
awareness of m an's sense of a l i e n a t i o n and dehumanization.®
7The P r o ta g o n is t of L e tte rs from th e Underworld d e
p lo re s h is own h a b i t of th in k in g which he blames fo r
in c re a s in g h is agony.
®Golyadkin I in The Double i s so a l i e n a t e d from s o c i
e ty t h a t he p r o j e c t s another p e r s o n a l i t y who to h is amaze
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11
Chapter I concludes t h a t both Dostoevsky and S arrau te
d i s t r u s t o b je c tiv e r e a l i t y and emphasize in t h e i r works the
s ig n if ic a n c e of i n t e r i o r r e a l i t y . They d i f f e r in t h a t
Dostoevsky i s more o p t im i s t ic than S a rra u te in reg ard to
the development o f the p e r s o n a l i ty and the overcoming of
the sense of dehum anization.
Chapter II a c ts as a brid g e between t h e i r concepts o f
r e a l i t y , which both Dostoevsky and S a rra u te reg a rd as am
biguous, and t h e i r p r e s e n ta tio n o f c h a ra c te r s who are am
biguous, lo n e ly , and n e u r o t i c . T heir ambiguous w orld
breeds d i s o r i e n t e d people w ith am bivalent em otional s t r u c
tu r e s . In t h i s c h a p te r P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu and M artereau
e s t a b l i s h the ambiguous e ro tic is m which S a rra u te expresses
m e ta p h o ric a lly . These novels a ls o p o in t out o th e r asp ects
of the ambivalence o f S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c t e r s , f o r example,
t h e i r s t r u c t u r i n g o f and acquiescence to t h e i r own d e fe a t,
and t h e i r g e n e ra l s t a t e of wavering between love and h a te .
D ostoevsky's a p p lic a tio n o f am biguity to develop s u s
pense i s b e s t dem onstrated in h is n o v e ls . Poor Folk, The
ment appears and has h is same name, b u t who r a t h e r than
h elp in g Golyadkin I , d estro y s a l l remnants o f h is humanity.
The p r o ta g o n is t o f L e tte rs from the UndeiTvorld, alread y
undermined by h is e x c e ssiv e ly c r i t i c a l th in k in g , withdraws
more and more from s o c ie ty , and r e j e c t s a l l p o s s i b i l i t y o f
in c lu s io n in both human b a n a lity and lo v e.
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12
Gambler, and The P o s s e s s e d . ^ Examples of D ostoevsky's d e
velopment of th e lo v e -h a te r e l a ti o n s h i p a re given from The
I d i o t , The B ro th ers Karamazov, and The E te r n a l Husband. 10
The Underground Man is a ls o mentioned f o r h is o v e r a ll am
b iv a le n t a t t i t u d e to s o c ie ty .
The c h a p te r concludes t h a t am biguity i s in n a te in the
c h a ra c te rs of bo th S a rra u te and Dostoevsky, and i t d i s t i n
guishes the purposes of both w r i t e r s . S a rra u te d e sc rib e s
the g e n e ra l co n fu sio n even of i d e n t i t y , and Dostoevsky
c re a te s suspense in h is c h a r a c te r and p l o t development.
They both in c lu d e e ro tic is m in t h e i r tre a tm e n t of ambiguity.
S a r r a u t e 's c o n n o ta tio n s and m etap h o rical d e s c r i p t io n form
p a r t of the e r o t i c dream world of h er c h a r a c t e r s , whereas
D ostoevsky's s u s p e n s e fu l e ro tic is m develops ambivalence in
the em otional r e l a t i o n s h i p s , p a r t i c u l a r l y in the lo v e -h a te
r e l a t i o n s h i p between men, and a ls o between men and s o c ie ty .
^In Poor F o lk , B a rb a ra 's l e t t e r s m a in ta in a c e r t a i n
re s e rv e which c lo a k s her i n te n tio n s in m ystery. The Gam
b l e r i s f u l l of doubt as to P a u lin a 's i n t e n t i o n s . The
Possessed re v o lv e s around the ambiguous p e r s o n a l i t i e s of
P ie rr e Verkhovensky and N ikolai S ta v ro g in .
l^N astasya in The I d i o t , dem onstrates am bivalent f e e l
ings toward b o th Rogozhin and P rin c e Myshkin. A ll the
Karamazov b r o th e r s agonize over t h e i r mixed f e e l in g s toward
t h e i r f a t h e r a lth o u g h Ivan is th e most a m b iv alen t. The
e t e r n a l husband, Pavel T rusotsky, wants to murder V e lt-
chaninov f o r having cuckolded him, but a t the same tim e, i s
fond of him. The Underground Man d e s p is e s p e o p le , b u t a t
the same tim e, longs to be accepted by s o c i e t y .
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13
The lo v e -h a te r e la ti o n s h i p a lso p lay s an im portant ro le in
S a r r a u t e ’s n o v els.
Chapter I I I d isc u sse s c h a r a c te r p o r t r a y a l in the f i c
tio n o f S a rra u te and Dostoevsky, w ith the primary emphasis
on c h a ra c te r s who are i s o l a t e d , anx ious, and f e a r f u l , b u t
who n e v e rth e le s s engage in d e sp e ra te b u t f u t i l e e f f o r t s to
communicate w ith o th e rs . The novel M artereau is an example
of the p r o t a g o n i s t ’s w illin g n e s s to abase h im se lf in order
to be in volv ed w ith o th e r s . M arter e au and Le P lanetarium
dem onstrate the e x te n t of the d e sp e ra tio n of the lo n ely
p e rs o n , who i s capable of the d e s tr u c tio n o f an admired and
loved f r ie n d in ord er to e n te r the group. P o r t r a i t d ’un
inconnu shows S a r r a u t e ’s c o n te n tio n t h a t lo n e lin e s s i s i n
e v it a b l e and can only be a l t e r e d by death.
In Dostoevsky’s n o v e ls . The E te r n a l Husband and L e t
t e r s from the Underworld, h is p r o t a g o n i s t s , as in S a r r a u t e ’s
n o v e ls , experience acute a l i e n a t i o n , but a ls o crave f r i e n d
sh ip even when based on boredom, je a lo u s y , or b e tr a y a l .
However, t h e i r very a li e n a t io n n e g ates the p o s s i b i l i t y o f a
r e l a t i o n s h i p w ith o th e r s .
Both S a rra u te and Dostoevsky recognize man’s l o n e l i
ness as a u n iv e rs a l phenomenon. However, Dostoevsky sees
lo n e lin e s s as a t r a n s i t o r y s t a t e which can be tran scen d ed
through lo v e --a s dem onstrated in The B rothers Karamazov,
whereas S a rra u te views lo n e lin e s s as in h e re n t in the human
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permission.
14
c o n d itio n and in esca p ab le except through death.
Chapter IV proposes to stu d y th e ways in which S a r
r a u te and Dostoevsky lin k p h y s ic a l i l l n e s s and n e u ro sis in
t h e i r works. Both S a rra u te and Dostoevsky t i e the psycho
lo g i c a l to th e p h y s ic a l, th ereb y inducing h y p e rs e n s itiv e
t r a i n s of thought in t h e i r c h a r a c t e r s . This i s most a p
p a re n t in S a r r a u t e 's M artereau and D ostoevsky's The I d i o t .
I use th e term , "n e u ro s is " as a summary of an i n t e r n a l con
f l i c t m a n ife s tin g i t s e l f in a n x i e t i e s , p ho b ias, o b se ss io n s ,
and com pulsions. C onsequently, th e n e u ro tic in d iv id u a l is
anxious and f e a r f u l and no t t o t a l l y re s p o n s ib le fo r a l l
h is a c tio n s ; even though he s t i l l fu n c tio n s in s o c ie ty , h is
e x c e s s iv e ly s e n s i t i v e r e a c tio n s te n d to a l i e n a t e him.^^
In a l l N a th a lie S a r r a u t e 's nov els to d a te , th e h y p e r
s e n s i t i v e s t a t e of the n e u r o tic c h a r a c t e r , w ith h is com
p u ls io n f o r s e l f - a n a l y s i s , makes him p a r t i c u l a r l y v u l n e r
a b le to e x te r n a l as w ell as to i n t e r n a l c r i t i c i s m , and a ls o
p la c e s him in a p o s i t io n of a cu te awareness of the in a u th e n
t i c i t y of o th e r s . Fear and a n x ie ty a re th e major compo
n e n ts of S a r r a u t e 's n e u r o t i c s , who f e a r most a b so rp tio n by
o th e r s and who consequently s e t out to dehumanize bo th
o th e rs and them selves. This is done by reducing man to an
llMy concept of n e u ro s is and th e n e u ro tic in d iv id u a l
i s d e riv e d from passim rea d in g in th e works of Sigmund
Freud, E ric h Fromm, and R. D. Laing.
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15
anim al, i n s e c t , or even to an o b je c t s t a t e . As an a t t a c k ,
th e dehumanized person is s t r i p p e d of h is n o b i l i t y and a ls o
of h is power over o th e r human b e in g s . As a d e fe n se , s e l f -
dehum anization i s a way of re n d e rin g a man in v u ln e ra b le to
a t t a c k . A lso, i f he becomes an in c o n s e q u e n tia l e n t i t y , who
would want to a tt a c k him? Thus, he is a ffo rd ed some s a f e ty
in a w orld which he f e a r s . There i s a ls o an im p o rtan t quo
t a t i o n in C hapter IV from M artin P r i c e ’s a r t i c l e , "Dreams
and Doubts. Some Recent F i c t i o n , " which d isc u sse s M arte
reau and the i l l n e s s of S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c te r s as w e ll as
t h e i r p o t e n t i a l b e tr a y a l of o th e r s .
D o sto ev sk y 's p r o g n o s tic a tio n of decay, madness, and
d e a th through th e media of p h y s ic a l i l l n e s s i s amply demon
s t r a t e d in The I d i o t , The E te r n a l Husband, Crime and Pun-
ishm ent, and The B ro thers Karamazov. The i n t e n s i f i e d p e r
c e p tio n of h is d is tu rb e d c h a r a c te r s in c re a s e s t h e i r a n x ie ty
and f e a r of an unknown menace, and th ey consequ en tly a t
tempt to dehumanize both o th e r s and them selves.
In t h i s c h a p te r, the a f f i l i a t i o n between Dostoevsky
and S a rra u te i s shown to be v ery c lo se in r e fe re n c e to
t h e i r u t i l i z a t i o n of i l l and n e u ro tic p r o t a g o n i s t s , who
conseq u en tly a re u n tru stw o rth y n a r r a t o r s , b u t who h e lp r e
v e a l h y p o c risy in s o c ie ty . Both a u th o rs concern them selves
w ith a n a ly s is of the d is tu r b e d p e rso n , h is sense of v i c t i m
i z a t i o n , and h is consequent f e e lin g o f h o s t i l i t y . They
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16
both p o r tr a y v a rio u s a sp ec ts of m an's dehum anization, and
both f r e q u e n tly employ in s e c t and anim al imagery in order
to emphasize t h i s dehum anization. However, D ostoevsky's
comparison of man to the animal w orld is u s u a lly fo r the
purpose of p o in tin g out man's d e p ra v ity w hile S a r r a u te 's
comparison i s to emphasize man's n o n e n tity . They a lso d i f
f e r in t h e i r a t t i t u d e s towards man, Dostoevsky m ain tain in g
h is optimism in s p i t e of d i s i l l u s i o n w ith the world, and
S a rra u te u t t e r l y p e s s im is tic .
Chapter V d e als w ith the dream w orld in the works of
S a rra u te and Dostoevsky. P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu, M artereau ,
Les F r u i t s d ' o r , and E ntre l a v ie e t l a mort a re given as
examples to show how the b a r r i e r between the dream world
and th e o b je c tiv e world o fte n d i s s o l v e s . Furtherm ore,
S a rra u te p r o j e c t s imagined events as i f they a re a p a r t of
r e a l i t y , a t tim es w ith metaphor and a t o th e r times w ith
bold sta te m e n t of u n c e rta in v e r a c i t y s in c e the p ro ta g o n is t
could no t have been p re s e n t a t th e p a r t i c u l a r event.
O ften, p e rs o n a l i d e n t i t y merges in to a g e n e ra l i d e n t i t y ,
thus repro d u cin g a condensing tech n iq u e t y p ic a l of the
dream d u rin g the sle ep in g s t a t e .
A number of D ostoevsky's n ov els can dem onstrate the
v a r i a t i o n of h is use of dream, which i s i m p lic it a t tim e s,
and a t o th e r tim es an i n te g r a l p a r t of th e p l o t . In Poor
F olk, th e p r o ta g o n is t su rv iv e s due to the i l l u s i o n t h a t he
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17
is loved, and in White N ig h ts, the p r o ta g o n is t emerges from
h is dream world and to h is asto n ish m e n t, fin d s a r e a l world
e q u a lly i n t a n g i b l e . U n c le's Dream i s sugg ested as an e x
ample o f D ostoevsky's te c h n ic a l use of the dream as an i n
t e g r a l p a r t of th e p l o t , and The Gambler does not d eal w ith
dream, but w ith dream -like r e a l i t y which v anishes as i f i t
were a dream. The Underground Man i s mentioned as p r e f e r
rin g dreams to r e a l i t y . The Double dem onstrates D ostoev
s k y 's a c u te p e rc e p tio n of the in n e r p e r s o n a l i ty as w e ll as
h is use of v i s i o n and h a ll u c i n a ti o n which are a ls o seen in
Crime and Punishm ent, The I d i o t , The P o sse sse d , The E te rn a l
Husband, The B ro th ers Karamazov, and "Dream of a Strange
Man." In Crime and Punishm ent, The I d i o t , and The Pos
s e s s e d , dream and r e a l i t y tend to merge a t tim es as i f fo r
the purpose of confusing the two, a lth o u g h sometimes the
dream world illu m in e s l i f e and a t o th e r tim es p r e d i c ts the
f u t u r e .
S a rra u te uses dreams as a p r o j e c t i o n of s u b je c tiv e
r e a l i t y , n o t e x p l i c i t l y during a sle e p in g s t a t e , but as an
e la b o r a tio n of su ggested r e l a t i o n s h i p s and a c t i v i t i e s of
her c h a r a c te r s on both a su rfa c e and a m etap h o rical l e v e l.
Thus, th e dream world i s not sh a rp ly d is tin g u is h e d from the
r e a l w orld. She a ls o condenses many of her c h a r a c te r s as a
dream might do, thus ign oring time and space as she chooses.
Dostoevsky a ls o merges dream and r e a l i t y a t tim e s, w hile a t
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o th e r tim es th e d i s t i n c t i o n appears c l e a r to the re a d e r b u t
n o t to th e c h a r a c t e r s . Dostoevsky employs the dream as a
tec h n iq u e to illu m in a te p e r s o n a l i t y , p ro g n o s tic a te the f u
t u r e , and to tra n s c e n d r e a l i t y . D o stoevsky's c h a ra c te rs
emerge as ta n g i b l e and r e a l , but o f te n submerged in dream
l ik e s i t u a t i o n s ; th ey d i f f e r from S a r r a u t e 's i n d e f i n i t e and
com posite c h a r a c t e r s , who d e s c rib e s i t u a t i o n s in co n crete
d e t a i l .
Chapter VI d isc u sse s the r o l e of myths in the works
of Dostoevsky and S a rra u te . In S a r r a u t e 's P o r t r a i t d 'u n
incon nu, M a rte re a u , and Le P la n é ta riu m , h e r c h a r a c te r s a c t
out p a r t s of m y th ical r o l e s , such as the Odysseus myth and
the Oedipus and E le c tra lo v e -h a te r e l a t i o n s h i p s between
c h ild r e n and p a r e n t s , or p a re n t s u b s t i t u t e s . In her m ythic
s t r u c t u r e , S a rra u te seems to be dependent on o th e r s . Les
F r u i t s d 'o r i s included because of S a r r a u t e 's mention of
th e myth of Theseus. M artereau su g g e sts the m ythical o v e r
throw of th e f a t h e r f i g u r e , and f a i r y t a l e re fe re n c e s a ls o
abound in Le P lanétarium and T ropism es. P o r t r a i t d 'u n
inconnu confirm s S a r r a u t e 's awareness of the deep emotional
r e l a t i o n s h i p of myth and f a i r y t a l e to l i f e .
As can be seen from D ostoevsk y's m ajor n o v els, most of
which have been analyzed as m a t e r i a l f o r t h i s c h a p te r, he
h im s e lf i s a myth maker. From t r a d i t i o n a l myths, a p r o t o
type emerges as an o r i g in a l c r e a t i o n , as f o r example.
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P ie r r e Verkhovensky in The Possessed as a p ro to ty p e f o r the
D e v il. D o sto evsk y's s a i n t s a re P rin c e Myshkin in The I d i o t
and Alyosha Karamazov. His tre a tm e n t of the f a th e r - s o n
c o n f l i c t r e c a l l s mythic h o s t i l i t i e s , and culm inates in The
B rothers Karamazov alth oug h the group murder of th e f a t h e r
i s a lso r e p r e s e n te d e f f e c t i v e l y in The P o sse ssed . R ather
than f a i r y t a l e s Dostoevsky employs B i b li c a l and moral p a r
a l l e l s . Good s tr u g g le s w ith E v il , redem ption i s achieved
through lo v e, th e V irg in is opposed to the D evil; myths and
a l l e g o r i e s form p a r t of D ostoevsky's s u b je c t m a tte r . L i t
e ra ry r e f e r e n c e s a ls o r e f l e c t h is f a s c i n a ti o n w ith myth;
perhaps th e most obvious of th e se i s th e r e l a ti o n s h i p of
The B ro thers Karamazov to H am let.
S a rra u te uses myth i m p l i c i t l y w hile Dostoevsky uses i t
e x p l i c i t l y as w e ll, and more b o ld ly . Where S a rra u te i s
concerned w ith l a t e n t in ce stu o u s r e l a t i o n s h i p s expressed
i n d i r e c t l y , Dostoevsky t r e a t s i n c e s t fra n k ly altho ugh he
d i r e c t s h i s m ajor a t t e n t i o n toward h e te ro se x u a l r e l a t i o n
s h ip s . S a r r a u t e 's f a i r y t a l e imagery is in l i e u of D osto
e v sk y 's B i b l i c a l r e f e r e n c e s . Both S a rra u te and Dostoevsky
w r ite of c h a r a c te r s who a re q u e s te r s a f t e r th e t r u t h ; the
d i f f e r e n c e i s t h a t S a r r a u t e 's most a c u te q u e s te r (in M arte
reau) se arc h es fo r p sy c h o lo g ic a l t r u t h , w hile D ostoevsky's
q u e s te rs pursue a comprehension of the u n iv e rse as w ell as
s e l f - p e r c e p t i o n . S a rra u te and Dostoevsky both d e al w ith
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th e m y th ic a l murder of the f a t h e r , S a rrau te han d lin g th e
m a t e r i a l f i g u r a t i v e l y on a p sy c h o lo g ic a l l e v e l , and D osto
evsky on b oth p h y sic a l and p sy c h o lo g ic a l p la n e s . Both
Dostoevsky and S a rra u te extend l i t e r a r y p o in ts of r e f e re n c e
so t h a t th e s e may assume a m ythic importance in t h e i r works.
This com parative study w i l l , I hope, im part a g r e a t e r
i n s i g h t in to N a th a lie S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls. Dostoevsky a p
p e a rs as a major fo re ru n n e r o f th e tw e n tie th -c e n tu ry novel;
he forms once more a bulwark of comparison as he has done
f o r many tw e n tie th - c e n tu ry a u th o r s . These two a u th o rs a ls o
i m p l i c i t l y in d ic a te th e a f f i l i a t i o n between the n in e te e n th
and tw e n ti e t h c e n tu r ie s , and between R ussia and France.
No id e a s o r forms evolve from th e a i r . They a l l have t h e i r
base somewhere, and in f a c t , p ro bably many r o o t s ; however,
sin c e i t would be a H erculean t a s k to tr a c e a l l th e sou rces
of N a th a lie S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls , t h i s study is lim ite d to
what ap p ears to be the most dynamic a f f i n i t i e s .
The method of comparison w i l l be to deduce Dostoevsky's
and S a r r a u t e 's p h ilo s o p h ic a l approach to l i f e and t o people
from t h e i r n o v e ls, and th en to r e l a t e t h e i r ad v o ca tio n of
s u b j e c t iv e r e a l i t y to t h e i r s u b je c tiv e c h a r a c te r d e v elo p
ment and tec h n iq u e s which e x p lo re the in n er man. While
t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n assumes a p sy c h o lo g ic a l n a tu r e , t h i s n a
t u r e i s n o t imposed; r a t h e r , i t grows in the d i r e c t i o n i n
d i c a te d by the n o v e l i s t i c achievement of the two a u th o rs
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21
d is c u s s e d . N a th a lie S a r r a u t e 's m inim izing of c h a r a c te r and
p l o t i n v a l i d a t e s a t r a d i t i o n a l c r i t i c i s m of h e r work which
can only accuse h er novels of being alitterature. De
s c r i p t i v e c r i t i c i s m rem ains v a lu a b le only to a c e r t a i n
p o in t; but beyond p e rfu n c to ry c l a r i f i c a t i o n , i t seldom
a r r i v e s a t the essence of a n o v e l, c e r t a i n l y n o t of th e
a vant garde n o v e ls. Although the claim o f p r e s e n tin g the
essence of S a r r a u t e 's novels may appear e x tra v a g a n t, i t has
been made only a f t e r c a r e f u l re a d in g of the o u tsta n d in g
c r i t i c s of her work and of the Nouveau Roman in g e n e ra l.
T h e re fo re , I ask of the re a d e r of t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n , an
open mind to t h i s approach.
IZciaude M a u riac's book, L’A l i t t é r a t u r e contemporaine
( P a r i s , 1958), a ttem p ts an e x p la n a tio n of th e Nouveau feoman,
b u t i s hampered by i t s very assum ption.
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CHAPTER I '
FICTION AND THE NATURE OF REALITY
W ithout attem pting i n d i s c r e e t l y to invade the realm of
p h ilo so p h y , some thought and comment seems in p lac e con
c ern ing the n a tu re of r e a l i t y , p a r t i c u l a r l y in re fe re n c e to
the way c re a tiv e w r i t e r s have o f te n claim ed to r e p r e s e n t
r e a l i t y in t h e i r works. Beginning w ith A r i s t o t l e ’s view
t h a t a r t h old s up the m irro r to n a tu r e , each "scho ol" o f
w r i t in g , i .e., th e n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s , the r o m a n tic is ts , the
r e a l i s t s , the n a t u r a l i s t s and th e new r e a l i s t s attem p t to
p o r tr a y r e a l i t y . ^
A c tu a lly , r e a l i t y i t s e l f i s so trem endously v a rie d ,
com prising both the e x te r n a l , o b je c tiv e world and the i n
t e r n a l or s u b je c tiv e r e a c tio n to an e x te rn a l w orld, t h a t
i t appears reaso n ab le to i n t e r p r e t l i f e in d iv e rse ways.
^Although the follow ing comment by C. Day Lewis i s
about p o e try , i t is e q u a lly p e r t i n e n t to the novel:
" ’R e a l i t y ’ i s a p re c a rio u s word; b u t sooner or l a t e r , in
d is c u s s in g the f i e l d and purpose of p o e tr y , one cannot
avoid i t , f o r i f poets are n o t concerned w ith the e x p lo r a
t io n o f ’ l i f e , naked l i v i n g , ’ a t i t s most in te n s e , and w ith
g iv in g us the f e e l of i t , then I do n o t know what they are
up t o . " "The P o e t’s Way of Knowledge," in the c o l l e c t i o n .
The Study o f L i t e r a t u r e : A Handbook of C r i t i c a l Essays and
Terms [Boston and Toronto, I960 ), p. 87.
22
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23
Undoubtedly, each i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , w hether c lo se to an ob
j e c t i v e e v a lu a tio n , or so c o lo red by em otional doubts,
a n x i e t i e s , f e a r s , and d e s ir e s t h a t i t can only comprehend
o b je c tiv e e x p erien ce s u b je c tiv e ly , i s r e a l to th e i n t e r
p r e t e r .
Since modern psychology and p sy c h o an aly sis claim in n er
r e a l i t y as a key element to an u n d e rstan d in g of o b je c tiv e
d a ta , I have co n sid ere d ideas of le a d in g psychoanalysts in
w r itin g t h i s p a p e r, not as the p o i n t- o f - d e p a r t u r e , but as a
working th e o ry o f c o n sid e ra b le e x p la n a to ry power when
t r e a t i n g the r e l a t i o n s h i p between the e x te r n a l world and
the world of l i t e r a t u r e , and i t is my h y p o th esis t h a t th e re
must always be a r e l a t i o n s h i p between th e s e two w orlds.
I t should be understood, of c o u rs e , t h a t a novel a ls o
r e q u ir e s te c h n iq u e , or s t y l e , but i n e v i t a b l y some dynamic
r e l a t i o n s h i p should e x i s t between th e novel and r e a l i t y on
any of i t s l e v e l s , e x te r n a l, i n t e r n a l , and even the f a n t a s
t i c and sym bolic. F antasy, alth o u g h seem ingly a d e p artu re
from e x te r n a l r e a l i t y , must be c o n sid e re d as ro o ted in the
in n er r e a l i t y of the unconscious. F a n ta sy , whether m eta
p h o r ic a l or d ream lik e, expresses e i t h e r c o n v e n tio n a lly or
p e rs o n a lly fo rb id d e n d e s i r e s , which a re norm ally re p re s s e d .
F antasy r e l e a s e s the read er from th e b a n al r e a l i t y of th e
e x te r n a l w orld, and allow s him to p r o j e c t h is own f a n t a s i e s
and myths in to th o se of the no vel.
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24
I t should be recognized t h a t w hile someone of educated
l i t e r a r y t a s t e , aware o f the d e li b e r a t e u t i l i z a t i o n of
f a n ta s y , myth, and symbol, looks f o r th ese in f i c t i o n , the
v a s t m a jo rity o f r e a d e r s , e i t h e r unable to analyze or d i s
i n t e r e s t e d in a n aly zin g the n o v e l, a p p re c ia te f i c t i o n from
an i n t u i t i v e r e c o g n itio n of i t s v a l i d i t y .
For N a th a lie S a r r a u te , the n o v e l i s t ’s r e a l i t y c o n s is ts
o f a w orld which only he sees and s e i z e s , b u t which remains
unknown and i n v i s i b l e to o th e r s , a t l e a s t u n t i l the n o v e l
i s t e n la rg e s th e gen eral aw areness.^ According to S arrau te,
the w r i t e r ’s r e a l i t y i s r e a l i t y p e rc e iv e d (the appearance
o f th in g s ) and r e a l i t y f e l t (the i n t u i t i v e , t r o p i s t i c r e
a c tio n s o f i n d i v i d u a l s ) . This r e a l i t y S a rra u te recognizes
as d i f f e r i n g f o r each w r i t e r , j u s t as each w r i t e r fe e ls
d i f f e r e n t l y about the w orld. S a rra u te fre q u e n tly quotes
Paul K le e ’s w ords, "L ’a r t ne r e s t i t u e pas le v i s i b l e , i l
rend v i s i b l e . T h e f e l t b u t unexpressed r e a l i t y , accord-
^This c o n s t i t u t e s a d i f f i c u l t y fo r S a r r a u t e ’s f i c t i o n ,
f o r a i l too f r e q u e n t ly , th e re a d e r accepts th e t r a d i t i o n a l
novel w ith i t s c l e a r l y d efin ed s to r y and c h a ra c te rs as an
id e a l form, and lac k s i n t e r e s t in new approaches.
^ N ath alie S a r ra u te , "Nouveau Roman e t r é a l i t é , " Revue
de l ’ I n s t i t u t de S o c io lo g ie , II (B r u s s e ls , 1963), 432.
4see S a r r a u t e ’s a r t i c l e , "Le Romancier recherche une
r é a l i t é in co n n u e ," Le Monde, No. 5810 (September 21, 1963)
f o r a more p e rs o n a l ren d erin g o f these id e a s .
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25
ing to S a r r a u te , a r e a l i t y composed of amorphous elements
im prisoned in the well-known and th e u s u a l, ch allenges the
auth or to p e n e tr a te the s u p e r f i c i a l d is g u is e s and d isc o v e r
man's i n t e r i o r n a tu r e . D espite the s tu d ie d b a n a lity of
d a ily l i f e , man's r e a l fe e lin g s emerge, o c c a sio n a lly c la s h
ing w ith the b an al and thereby producing s t a r t l i n g and
c o n tr a d ic to r y b eh av io r.
Due to c u rr e n t mass media, t r a d i t i o n a l concepts o f
man's i n v i s i b l e w orld have become t r i v i a l i z e d through t h e i r
g e n e ra l acceptance among the p o p u la c e , and the modern au
th o r must d isc o v e r and p re s e n t new a sp ec ts of the i n v i s i b l e
r e a l i t y , and can b e s t do so by p e n e t r a t i n g the f a lla c io u s
e x te r n a l w orld o f appearance. S a rra u te considers th e novel
a barom eter of man's most s e n s i t i v e f e e lin g s r a t h e r than a
v e h ic le f o r h is r a t i o n a l id e a s . In a way the fu n c tio n of
th e w r i t e r r e l a t e s to t h a t of th e d e te c tiv e or the psycho-
a n a l y s t - - t o d isc o v e r the m ystery, to so lv e the r id d le of
th e amorphous elem ents in the well-known and the obvious,
to excavate the clues to the m ystery from the obvious, and
thus f in d man's tru e n a tu r e .
S a r r a u t e 's conception o f r e a l i t y as deduced from h e r
own s ta te m e n ts and h e r novels appears to be th a t the only
t r u e r e a l i t y i s t h a t r e a l i t y which c o n s is ts of man's su b
j e c t i v e , i n v i s i b l e f e e l in g s . O b je c tiv e r e a l i t y is f a l l a
c io u s , i n s i g n i f i c a n t , and b a n a l. P a ra d o x ic a lly , the
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26
i n v i s i b l e w orlds o f f e e lin g s are c o n s ta n tly changing in
response to in n e r waverings and u n c e r t a i n t i e s , which in
tu rn r e f l e c t a g g ra v a tin g p re s s u re s from the e x te r n a l w orld.
Each w orld i s p r is m a tic and complex; th e r e f o re r e a l i t y is
p r is m a tic and complex, and conseq uently , s u b j e c t iv e , i n
v i s i b l e , and in c o n s ta n t flu x . Somewhat c o n tra d ic to ry to
h e r profound u n d e rstan d in g o f the n a tu re o f r e a l i t y is
S a r r a u t e 's co n clu sio n t h a t when the n o v e l i s t ( t h a t i s ,
S a rrau te ) probes b en eath the su rfa c e of b anal r e a l i t y to
the essence o f th in g s in a se arc h f o r man's in n e r n a tu r e ,
an anonymous su b te rra n e a n w orld emerges. There are n o t
in d iv id u a l w o rld s, only one anonymous w o rld , a li e n a t e d ,
t o r t u r e d , f u l l o f doubts, a n x i e t i e s , f e a r s , h a te s , and con
f l i c t s . The fundam ental elem ent o f the human p e r s o n a l i ty
reduces to t r o p i s t i c a t t r a c t i o n s and w ithdraw als s i m i l a r to
those o f a lower sp e c ie s o f l i f e or a p l a n t . S a rra u te does
n o t e n v is io n a change or development from t h i s s i t u a t i o n .
Thus, h e r a t t i t u d e , based on h e r search fo r a new r e a l i t y ,
and a lso from h e r con clu sion s as to the n a tu re o f r e a l i t y ,
i s profou ndly p e s s i m i s t i c .
In each o f h e r n o v e ls , S a rra u te p re s e n ts a p r is m a tic
view of the com plexity of th e human p e r s o n a l i ty b ein g g ra d
u a lly reduced to z ero . She does t h i s w ith p a r t i c u l a r s i t u a
tio n s in o rd e r to expose th e i n v i s i b l e w orld o f th e p e r
s o n a l i t y . D espite the v a r i a t i o n o f S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls , h e r
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27
exposure o f man's i n v i s i b l e world u n i f i e s her work. A l
though the re a d e r may d isa g re e w ith h e r t o t a l con clu sion
and her p e s s i m is ti c o u tlo o k , i t cannot be doubted th a t
S a r r a u t e 's r e v e l a t i o n of c e r t a i n extrem ely s u b tle a re a s of
the p e r s o n a l i ty has in tro d u c ed a new f a c e t in to the nov el.
S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls, P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu, ^ M a rtereau ,^
and Le P la n é ta riu m ? b e s t p o r tr a y her p r is m a tic view of a
r e a l i t y in f l u x . In th ese n o v e ls , each c h a r a c te r has only
p a r t i a l v i s i o n of him self and o th e r s . As S a rra u te r e a d
j u s t s the prism , the rea d er sees a d i f f e r e n t a sp e c t of the
c h a r a c te r h ig h lig h te d . The two c h a p te rs of Le P lanétarium
(pp. 202-232) which d e sc rib e the same s i t u a t i o n p e rceiv ed
and r e a c te d to by two d i f f e r e n t p e o p le , P ie r r e and h is s i s
t e r B erth e, ex press an e s s e n t i a l l y p ris m a tic r e a l i t y , which
changes according to the fo cu s, and impedes t h e i r communi
c a tio n . A c o n s ta n tly changing r e a l i t y poses a problem for
a n o v e l i s t d e d ic a te d to t r u t h , as t r u t h seems to have many
f a c e s . B a s ic a lly however, man's r e a l n a tu r e , and thus
r e a l i t y i t s e l f , c o n s is ts of doubt, a n x ie ty , f e a r , a t t r a c
t io n and w ith d raw al.
S a rra u te c l a r i f i e d her a t t i t u d e about the anonymity of
5p o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu ( P a r is , 1948).
^M artereau ( P a r is , 1953).
7Le P la n étariu m ( P a r is , 1959).
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the human p e r s o n a l i ty in an in te rv ie w w ith François Bondy
during which she s t a t e d t h a t one can no lo nger b e lie v e in
t r a d i t i o n a l f i c t i o n a l c h a ra c te rs because today a l l men have
an anonymous q u a li t y :
A llé s , was w ir von den Menschen w issen , h a t j e t z t eine
Q u a lita t des Anonymen. Wir w issen , dass a l l e Menschen,
wenn man s i e in e in e r t i e f e n S c h ich t s i e h t , genau
d ie se lb e n Menschen s in d , d ie s e lb e n Regungen haben.
S a r r a u t e 's c o n v ic tio n of man's e s s e n t i a l l y anonymous
n a tu re su gg ests an assumption t h a t man has no God, although
she ignores the th e o lo g ic a l q u e s tio n , as w e ll as th e q u es
tio n o f good and e v i l . Of c o u rse , i t may be argued t h a t
God can c re a te anonymous p e o p le , to o , bu t S a r r a u te 's accep
tance o f an anonymous nucleus of in n e r t r o p i s t i c a t t r a c
tio n s and re p u ls io n s seems to exclude th e o lo g ic a l a s s o c ia
t io n s . On the o th e r hand, a c o n s id e ra tio n of S arrau te as
a b e h a v i o r is t is negated by h e r profound a n a ly s is o f man's
em otional w orld and also by h e r tra n s fo rm a tio n of h e r own
b a s ic in n e r w orld o f m echanical p u ls a tio n s through the
media o f l i t e r a t u r e , a r t , f a i r y t a l e , and myth. In f a c t ,
S a rra u te seems to c o n sid er f a n ta s y , and p a r t i c u l a r l y l i t
e r a t u r e , as an e s s e n t i a l in g r e d ie n t of r e a l i t y , somewhat
c o n tr a d ic tin g h e r b a s ic a t t i t u d e toward r e a l i t y , and then /
ag a in , perhaps compensating f o r a too bare and lim ite d
in n e r r e a l i t y .
Bgee F rançois Bondy's a r t i c l e , "Vom N ichts an Schaffen"
in Per Monat. No. 183 (December 1963), 28.
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S a rra u te emphasizes her acceptance of l i t e r a t u r e as
r e a l i t y when she r e f e r s to P rince Bolkonsky and h is daugh
t e r Mary, c h a r a c te r s in T o ls to y 's War and Peace as r e a l
and liv in g :
I l s s o n t, ne l 'o u b l i o n s pas des p ersonn ag es. De ces
personnages de roman s i r é u s s i s que nous disons d 'eu x
h a b itu e lle m e n t q u ' i l s so n t ' r é e l s ' , 'v i v a n t s ', p lu s
' r é e l s ' même e t p lu s 'v i v a n t s ' que le s gens v iv a n ts
eux-mêmes. [P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu, p. 67)
I su sp ect t h a t S a rra u te as a n o v e li s t v a r ie s somewhat
from S a r ra u te , the t h e o r i s t , and not t r u l y d e s ir in g to con
s i d e r r e a l i t y as composed of p u re ly t r o p i s t i c r e a c t i o n s ,
she has in clu d ed , even a t th e r i s k of in c o n s is te n c y , l i t
e ra ry and c u l t u r a l o v e rto n e s. N e v e rth e le ss, her p a i n s
tak in g a n a ly s is along t r o p i s t i c lin e s p r e s e n ts d e ath as th e
s o lu tio n to l i f e ' s enigma [P o r t r a i t d 'u n in co n n u ), end ur
ance as a n e c e s s ity d e s p ite l i f e ' s f u t i l i t y [M artereau) ,
and an a n im a l i s t i c and even p l a n t - l i k e s t a t e of th e p e r
s o n a l it y [su ggested in a l l her w o rk ). D espite her a tt a c k
on b a n a l it y and h y p o c risy , a t the co n clu sio n s of her novels,
her c h a r a c te r s f in d t h a t they must adopt s u p e r f i c i a l b e
hav io r in o rd er to a d ju s t to l i f e .
Dostoevsky, to o , i s most i n t e r e s t e d in s u b je c tiv e
r e a l i t y and in the movement between unconscious and con
scio us l e v e l s . However, r e g a r d le s s of h is concern w ith the
in n er world of the mind, in most of h is novels he follow s
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30
the n in e te e n th - c e n tu r y p r a c t i c e of developing a p l o t and
c h a r a c t e r s . I n t e r e s t i n g as h is p l o t s a re , they only serve
as v e h ic le s to p r o j e c t a more profound u n d erstan din g of the
tr u e r e a l i t y , of man's in n e r f e e l i n g s . He p re s e n ts lo g ic
and r a t i o n a l th in k in g as dangerous and f a l l a c i o u s . Too
much th in k in g d e stro y s the Underground Man and in c a p a c i
t a t e s h is em otions, and P rin c e M yshkin's d e s ir e to know a l l
d e s tro y s him.
Dostoevsky is bored by th e s tu p id c lic h e s which people
use in t h e i r d a il y c o n v e rs a tio n , and he dem onstrates t h e i r
a b s u r d ity e i t h e r in a s u s p e n s e fu l c o n te x t as when Golyadkin
invades h is s u p e r io r s ' p a rty i n The D ouble, or in c o n tr a s t
w ith m an's a s p i r a t io n s as in th e p a rty given f o r Zverkov in
L e tte r s from the Underworld.^ Dostoevsky a ls o uses a banal
e x p re ss io n or s i t u a t i o n as an in tr o d u c ti o n to a c o n fe s
s io n a l sta te m e n t which b a res th e s o u l. In the middle of
the most commonplace d is c u s s io n , th e in n e r r e a l i t y ap p ea rs,
w ith i t s doubts and lo n e lin e s s and i t s h a tre d s j u t t i n g u n
com fo rtab ly forw ard. This can be seen v e ry c l e a r l y in the
fam ily d is c u s s io n s in The I n s u l t e d and In ju re d ^ Q a f t e r
^ S tefa n Zweig says t h a t Dostoevsky "oppose le sublime
à l a b a n a l i t é . " S te fan Zweig, D o s to ïe v s k i, tr a n s . Henri
Bloch ( P a r i s , 1928), p. 126.
lODostoevsky, The I n s u lte d and I n j u r e d , t r a n s . Con
sta n c e G arn ett (New York, 1923).
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31
Natasha leav es home to l i v e w ith the P r i n c e 's son. By
i n s e r ti n g the t r u t h w ith in th e b a n a lity of d a ily c o n v e rsa
t i o n , Dostoevsky allow s th e re a d e r to d i s t in g u i s h between
t r u t h and f a l s e appearance (pp. 56-64).
D ostoevsky's c h a r a c te r s a re always human even though
he f r e q u e n tly n e g le c ts t h e i r exact d e s c r i p t io n . They a re
so v iv id t h a t i t is a sim ple m a tte r fo r th e re a d e r to i n f e r
any p e rso n a l d e s c r i p t io n t h a t is la c k in g . Although D osto
evsky as n a r r a t o r a t tim es fra n k ly in te r v e n e s , th e c h a ra c
t e r i z a t i o n s have been developed so po w erfu lly t h a t th ey
seem to move of t h e i r own accord, fo llow ing the d i r e c t i o n
of t h e i r p a s s io n s . At th e same tim e, Dostoevsky i s aware
of the problem of dehum anization and even t r e a t s i t h e a r t -
re n d in g ly in h is f i r s t n o v e l. Poor F o lk . His p r o ta g o n is t
engages in a l i f e and d e a th s tru g g le to m aintain some p e r
sonal i d e n t i t y and re a so n fo r l i v i n g . Dostoevsky p r e s e n ts
th e v a rio u s f o rc e s which c ru sh the in d iv id u a l p e r s o n a l i ty .
The s tru g g le a g a in s t dehum anization, t r e a t e d w ith even more
p sy c h o lo g ic a l p e rc e p tio n in The Double, d e sc rib e s the d e
s t r u c t i o n of G o ly ad k in 's i d e n t i t y by a double, who has both
h is name and a l l th e q u a l i t i e s f o r which he so lo n g s. The
Underground Man, a n o th e r p r o ta g o n is t e x is tin g alm ost w ith
out i d e n t i t y , becomes s e r i o u s l y d is tu rb e d by t h i s la c k .
The f a c t th a t the o f f i c e r sim ply does not see him r a n k le s
in te rm in a b ly . He goes to g r e a t len g th s to fo rce th e o f f i
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permission.
32
c e r to see him, buys a coat he cannot a f f o r d , and f i n a l l y
t r i p s befo re th e o f f i c e r , a l l w ith l i t t l e e f f e c t . At
Zverkov's p a r ty , the men ignore him as i f he were not th e re .
Only L isa g ra n ts him i d e n t i t y , but he cannot a cc ep t her
love as he h im self no longer b e lie v e s in h i s own i d e n t i t y .
Although Dostoevsky focuses p r im a r ily on man's i n t e r
n a l r e a l i t y and s u f f e r in g , he is a ls o moved by th e poverty
and m isery in the e x te rn a l w orld. His work has a broader
scope than S a r r a u t e 's ; he p o rtra y s man's r e l a t i o n to God
and to h is s o c i a l environment as w ell as h is s e n s i t i v e r e
l a t i o n s h i p towards o th er men.
Dostoevsky uses fa n ta s y , dream, and myth po w erfu lly in
o rd e r to enhance the c o n tr a s t w ith o b je c tiv e r e a l i t y , and
to p r e d i c t th e d i r e c t i o n t h a t the novel w i l l ta k e . He a ls o
uses the im ag inative to provide a broader and more dram atic
c o n te x t f o r d a i l y events as w ell as to enhance t h e i r s i g
n i f ic a n c e . However, the im pression rem ains t h a t l i f e , and
an e s s e n t i a l l y o p t im i s t ic view of l i f e a t t h a t , has the
g r e a t e s t s ig n if ic a n c e f o r Dostoevsky; and he plumbs the
depths of man's p e r s o n a l i ty so t h a t man, in un d erstan d in g
h im se lf a t h is most c o rru p t p o in t, may choose ano th er d i
r e c t io n . D ostoevsky 's concept of r e a l i t y , o fte n v i o l e n t
and n ig h tm a rish , n e v e rth e le s s leav es th e re a d e r w ith a mar
g in of hope or a t l e a s t w ith the f e e lin g of having p a r t i c i
p a te d in a dynamic moment of l i f e . D ostoevsk y's r e a l i t y is
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33
composed of p e rp e tu a l c o n f l i c t . Although d eep ly concerned
w ith C h r i s t i a n i t y , he a ls o q u e stio n s i t s v a l i d i t y . Good
and e v i l , c o n s ta n tly opposed, s tr u g g le fo r predominance in
the same i n d iv i d u a l. D espite h is p r e s e n t a ti o n of man's
a l i e n a t i o n and dehum anization, D ostoevsky's c h a r a c te r s are
v i v i d l y l i f e l i k e .
The a f f i l i a t i o n between Dostoevsky and S a rra u te f o l
lows from t h e i r m utual d i s t r u s t o f lo g ic a l r e a l i t y and
t h e i r accep tance of the v a l i d i t y of a s u b je c tiv e r e a l i t y .
The p e rc e iv e d and f e l t r e a l i t y comprises th e only t r u s t
worthy r e a l i t y . The novel i s a v e h ic le which r e v e a ls man's
in n e r f e e l i n g s . Banal r e a l i t y i s v a li d i n s o f a r as i t b e
tr a y s man's in n e r w orld. Both th ese w r i t e r s a ttem p t to
e x t r a c t t r u t h from f a l s e appearance, o fte n u t i l i z i n g f a n
ta s y , myth, dream or dream like s i t u a t i o n s in o rd e r to a r
r i v e a t a more h o n e st view of th e w orld.
Dostoevsky and S a rra u te d i f f e r from one a n o th e r in
t h e i r emphasis r a t h e r than in t h e i r b a s ic p o in t of view,
a lth o u g h some v a r i a t i o n s a ls o appear in t h e i r p h iloso phy ,
th e most im p o rtan t being D ostoevsky's hope and S a r r a u t e 's
h o p e le ssn e ss in reg a rd to man's f u t u r e . A lso , two o th er
b a s ic d i f f e r e n c e s a re D ostoevsky's concern w ith th e u n iq u e
ness o f the p e r s o n a l i ty and S a r r a u t e 's la c k of concern due
to h er view of m an's anonymity, and D osto ev sk y 's i n t e r e s t
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34
in r e l i g i o n , a to p ic com pletely ignored by S a rra u te . These
d if f e r e n c e s s i g n i f i c a n t l y in flu e n c e t h e i r c h a r a c te r s and
cause tec h n iq u e s to vary j u s t as t h e i r m utual concern w ith
s u b je c tiv e r e a l i t y , t h e i r s t r i v i n g to overcome in n er lo n e
l in e s s and a l i e n a t i o n , and t h e i r commitment to expose d u l l
b a n a l it y and b l a t a n t hy p o crisy , a f f i l i a t e th e s e two authors.
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permission.
CHAPTER II
CONTRADICTION, AMBIGUITY, AND AMBIVALENCE
Any d isc u ssio n of c h a ra c te r in l i t e r a t u r e may attem pt
to d isc o v e r c o n sisten c y in human n a tu r e , and q u a l i t i e s
which can be n e a tly d e fin e d , b u t the n a ïv e té of t h i s i n c l i
n a tio n soon becomes a p p a re n t, as thought and study c re a te
an awareness of the extreme com plexity o f c h a r a c te r , i t s
f u n c tio n and i t s development in the n o v e l. In f a c t , in co n
s i s t e n c y and c o n tr a d ic tio n most s u i t a b l y r e f e r to c h a ra c te r
d e f i n i t i o n ; each human b e in g , f i l l e d w ith c o n tr a d ic to ry
thoughts and b e l i e f s and to rn by c o n tr a d ic to ry or ambiva
l e n t em otions, liv e s in a w orld where o f te n n e i t h e r con
f l i c t nor i t s m o tiv a tio n is c le a r . N e v e rth e le s s , he must
cope w ith t h is ambiguous and troublesom e w orld as b e s t he
can. C e rta in ly the outcome o f h is b a t t l e f o r some c o n tro l
of h is d e s tin y l i e s in h is a b i l i t y to s o r t ou t the ambiva
lence and a m b ig u ities of l i f e and those of h is own and
o th e r p e r s o n a l i t i e s .
Undoubtedly, n o t a l l in d iv id u a ls are e q u a lly to rn by
c o n f l i c t i n g id eas and em otions. Some people seem to be
born w ith a p a ssiv e acceptance o f l i f e on i t s own term s.
However, both Dostoevsky and S a rra u te d e p ic t c h a ra c te rs who
35
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36
s u f f e r through t h e i r i n a b i l i t y to a d ju s t to the b a n a lity
of d a i l y l i f e . True to the e v a lu a tio n by th ese au thors of
r e a l i t y as p r im a r ily s u b j e c t iv e , they consequently focus
t h e i r a t t e n t i o n on th e i n tr o v e r te d p e r s o n a l i ty in c o n f l i c t
w ith bo th i t s e l f and s o c ie ty ; and they ignore the s i m p li s
t i c p e r s o n a l i t y , who i s i n d i f f e r e n t to th e p a ra d o x ica l
n a tu re of l i f e .
This c h a p te r d isc u sse s c o n t r a d i c t i o n , am biguity, and
am bivalence in th e works of Dostoevsky and S a rra u te . Con
t r a d i c t i o n i s understood as th e c le a r o p p o sitio n of ideas
or f e e l i n g s in a n o v el, w hile am biguity is seen as a con
fu se d and confusing blend of th o u g h ts , speech and a c tio n .
Ambivalence, a c o n tr a d ic tio n of th e em otions, can be e i t h e r
a c l e a r o p p o s itio n of em otions, such as love and h a te , or
can assume an ambiguous n a tu re in t h a t th e o p p o sitio n of
emotions i s u n c le a r to th e p r o ta g o n is t involved, to the
o th e r c h a r a c t e r s , and perhaps even to th e re a d e r. A d i s
c u ssio n of th e s e concepts shou ld throw g r e a te r l i g h t on the
n o v els of S a rra u te and Dostoevsky as th e s e authors a re both
i n tr i g u e d w ith o p p o sites and a m b ig u itie s on every l e v e l,
i d e a t i o n a l as w ell as em otion al. In f a c t , one of th e most
im p o rtan t a s p e c ts of th e a f f i l i a t i o n o f th ese two n o v e li s t s
i s t h e i r focus on coun ter argument and th e confused p e r
s o n a l i t y .
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37
N a th a lie S a r r a u te , in a l l h e r n o v e ls , p o in ts out the
c o n tr a d ic tio n between the b a n a l it y of the everyday world in
i t s use o f complacent p l a t i t u d e s on the su rfa c e le v e l of
gen eral communication, on the one hand, and on the o th er
hand, the nervous excitem ent o f man's i n t e r n a l world w ith
i t s re p re ss e d h o s t i l i t i e s ; man here i s n o t a t a l l compla
c e n t, b u t on the c o n tra r y , f r ig h te n e d , te n s e , and ag g re s
s iv e . So f a r , S a r r a u t e 's novels are n o t too d i f f i c u l t to
follow . However, h e r w r itin g becomes more involved and also
more i n t r i g u i n g when i t p re s e n ts c o n tra d ic tio n s which can
n o t be c le a r l y d e fin e d , but appear confused and u n c e rta in .
At t h is p o in t th e re a d e r e n te r s S a r r a u t e 's w orld of ambigu
i t y , a world fre q u e n tly resem bling a dream because of i t s
u n c le a r c o n te n t.
S a r r a u t e 's novels c o n ta in a number of am b ig u ities.
One of th ese i s vagueness of c h a r a c te r ; even when a c h arac
t e r is d e fin e d , ambiguity pervades a l l t h a t he does and
sa y s, impeding p o s i t i v e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of h is p e r s o n a lity .
The ambiguous re a c tio n s o f S a r r a u t e 's c h a ra c te rs to o th e rs
o fte n seem too extreme and become d o u b tfu l, thereby re n d e r
ing t h e i r o p in io n s about o th e rs u n tru stw o rth y . A lso, S a r
ra u te 's ambiguous use o f e ro tic is m may be considered by the
rea d er e i t h e r as metaphor or as f a c t . l F i n a ll y , S a r r a u te 's
Ifh e fo llo w in g passage from P o r t r a i t d'un inconnu is
an example o f S a r r a u t e 's ambiguous use o f e ro tic ism :
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b l u r r in g of the d if f e r e n c e between r e a l and imagined s i t u a
tio n s g iv es her novels an o v e r a l l ambiguous to n e, as has
o fte n been observed.
S a rra u te avoids c h a r a c te r i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y
in Les F r u i t s d 'o r and E n tre l a v ie e t la mort where most
of the c h a ra c te r s tend to merge. At c e r t a i n moments th e
d i s t i n c t i v e n e s s of a c h a r a c te r appears e a s ily g rasp ed due
to e i t h e r h is acceptance or h is f e a r of anoth er p e rs o n , but
soon the p ic t u r e changes, and nameless c h a r a c te rs form
dreamy v i g n e t t e s . Even in P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu, a lth o u g h
the p r o ta g o n is t is f a r more sh a rp ly d efin ed th an th e p r o
ta g o n i s t in E ntre l a v ie e t l a m o rt, h is e x te r n a l s t a t e
ments seem to c o n tr a d ic t h is i n t e r n a l f e e lin g s to th e e x
t e n t of confusing the r e a d e r as to h is r e a l p e r s o n a l i t y .
Does th e p r o ta g o n is t r e a l l y love the g i r l on whom he i s con
s t a n t l y spying, or does he a c t u a l l y hate her as he seems to
when he is g ossip in g w ith h i s f r i e n d , or in h is m e ta p h o ri
c a l f l i g h t s of fancy? In t h a t c a se , why do h is th o u g h ts
"L 'ab c ès a cre v é, la c ro û te e s t entièrem ent a r r a c h é e , la
p l a i e s a ig n e , l a d o u leu r, la v o lu p té ont a t t e i n t le u r p o in t
cu lm in an t, i l e s t au bout . . . i l s sont a r r i v é s au fond,
i l s so n t se u ls tous le s deux, i l s sont e n tre eux, t o u t à
f a i t e n tr e eux, i c i i l s so n t n u s, d é p o u illé s , l o i n des
re g a rd s é t r a n g e r s . . . I l se s e n t to u t baigné de c e t t e
douceur, de c e t t e tié d e u r m olle que p ro d u it l ' i n t i m i t é "
(p. 187). P resented out o f c o n te x t, th e above passag e a p
p e ars to be a rom antic i n t e r l u d e . However, i t i s m erely
a q u a r r e l between the f a t h e r and h is daughter.
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39
always tu r n in her d i r e c t i o n , and why i s he so eager to
accompany h er to an a r t e x h ib itio n ? N e ith er S a rrau te nor
the p r o t a g o n i s t ever answers th ese q u e s tio n s , and th e p r o
t a g o n i s t 's thoughts and a c tio n s remain u n c le a r . In f a c t ,
th e theme of the novel i s th e i m p o s s ib ility f o r man to know
o th e rs and even to know h im s e lf.
In M a rte re a u , a ls o , th e a c tu a l i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of the
nephew i s im p ossible even though he i s the n a r r a t o r , and a
p a r t i c u l a r l y verbose n a r r a to r ^ a t t h a t , who is in te n s e ly
concerned w ith h im s e lf. N e v e rth e le ss, S a r r a u t e 's use of
e ro tic is m as m etap h o rical d e s c r i p t io n of n o n - e r o tic s i t u a
tio n s makes i t d i f f i c u l t to determ ine w hether or not the
nephew’s a t t i t u d e toward h is a u n t,^ and a ls o toward h is
u n c le , and M artereau is r e a l l y e r o t i c or m erely m etap h o ri
c a l . 4 The e r o t i c re f e r e n c e s may a llu d e to the p r o t a g o n i s t ’s
^Her verbose n a r r a t o r s dem onstrate N a th a lie S a r r a u t e ’s
e x c e ll e n t h andling of i n t e r i o r monologue or as she c a l l s
i t , "sous c o n v e r s a tio n .”
^His shock is profound when he se e s , or th in k s he
s e e s , M artereau k is s h is a u n t, but the re a d e r i s no t c e r
t a i n i f t h i s is je a lo u s y or j u s t s u r p r is e (p. 215).
^The nephew p re s e n ts h im self in a fem inine sense in
r e l a t i o n to the stro n g m a s c u lin ity of h is u n c le :^ ”La
v ic tim e a s s o if é e de s a c r i f i c e , to u te t i t u b a n t e d é jà de l a
v o lu p té du m arty re, e s t venue d ’elle-même, p a n te la n te e t
nue, se l i v r e r à sa m erci” (p. 38).
At the end of th e n o v e l, when the nephew once more
v i s i t s the now redeemed M artereau, he f e e l s ashamed o f him
s e l f and wants to avoid h u rtin g M artereau as he f e a r s an
e x p lo sio n might take p la c e in M artereau. How does he d e
s c r ib e t h i s p o s s ib le ex plosion? ”.. . une a ffre u s e d ê f la -
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40
extreme a n x ie ty and h is need o f o th e r s , o r they may i n d i
cate a l a t e n t e r o t i c i n c l i n a t i o n pervading the am bivalent
sa d o -m aso c h istic im a g in atio n of the p r o t a g o n i s t , a sado
masochism which d e f i n i t e l y does e x i s t in a r a t h e r c le a r and
non-ambiguous form. This undeterm ined n a tu re o f S a r r a u t e 's
e r o t i c passages c o in c id e s w ith the ambiguity found in her
novels in re g a rd to what a c tu a lly has been seen or heard
and what has merely been imagined or d e s ir e d .^
The use o f am biguity appears to be a d e li b e r a t e
sc reen in g of r e a l i t y on the p a r t o f S a r ra u te , who c h a l
lenges the re a d e r to u n rav el the mystery and to decide who
i s a c tu a lly sp eak ing , who the r e a l person i s , what h is i n
t e n t i s , what has happened and w hether i t is r e a l or imag
in ed . I t may be argued t h a t the re a d e r who aims a t such a
r e s o lu tio n o f the a m b ig u itie s is read in g along t r a d i t i o n a l
p a t t e r n s , b u t undoubtedly, S a rra u te is aware of t h i s t r a d i
t i o n a l tendency on the p a r t o f the r e a d e r, and the p o s s i
b i l i t y e x i s t s t h a t she m ight be u sin g i t .
The em otional ambivalence of S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c te rs is
g r a tio n , nos vêtem ents a rr a c h é s , miasmes, m o rte lle s émana
t i o n s , to u te sa d é tr e s s e s u r moi, son im puissance, son
a b an d o n ... nos deux corps nus r o u la n t ensemble e n l a c é s . . . "
(p. 249).
^ S arrau te has the p r o ta g o n is t of M artereau say: "Mais
je su is en t r a i n , je c r o i s , de pren dre mes d é s ir s pour des
r é a l i t é s , je d i v a g u e . .." (p. 106). The n o v e l i s t thus gives
the re a d e r an im p o rtan t clue to th e n o v el.
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o fte n ambiguous because o f t h e i r concealment of em otion.^
One can assume th e e x is te n c e o f two em otional p o le s , which
also r e a c t on one a n o th e r, the emotions of love and o f hate
on an e r o t i c b a s i s , and these two emotions a lso in o p p o si
tio n on a s o c i a l p la n e . Up to a p o i n t , th ese am bivalent
em otional r e a c tio n s remain ambiguous to the c h a ra c te rs
th em selv es. However, lo v e, i t s e l f an am bivalent i n s t i n c t ,
p a r t i c u l a r l y in i t s e a r l y sta g e s ( a t l e a s t according to
Sigmund F re u d ), ^ i s n ev er outgrown in S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls ,
and p a sse s from the realm of am biguity to a c le a r ambiva
le n c e . Love i s viewed by S a r r a u t e 's c h a ra c te r s as i n e v i t a
b ly e i t h e r a complete p o sse ssio n o f th e o th e r person or as
a complete a b s o rp tio n of o n e 's own i n d i v i d u a l i t y . Thus,
a t t r a c t i o n , soon in v o lv in g f e a r o f b ein g absorbed, lead s to
h a tr e d .
On the s o c i a l p la n e , the em otional ambivalence of
^Andre Contesse p o in ts o ut: "Les a t t i t u d e s du d u r
c isse m e n t, q u 'e l l e s s o i e n t l 'i n d i f f é r e n c e , la haine ou le
dégoût, so n t elles-m êm es ambiguës p u i s q u 'e l l e s v o i le n t le
d é s i r d 'a s s i m i l e r c e lu i devant le q u e l on r e c u l e ." In
"L 'Im a g in a tio n chez N a th a lie S a r r a u te : La d ia le c tiq u e du
f l u id e e t du s o l i d e , " Études de L e t t r e s , S é rie I I , Vol. 6,
No. 3 (July-Septem ber 1Ô63), 2Û1.
^D iscussing the sta g e s of lo v e , Freud says t h a t the
e a r ly sta g e i s th e devouring type o f love "which i s compat
i b l e w ith th e a b o l i t i o n of any s e p a r a te e x is te n c e on the
p a r t o f the o b j e c t, and which may th e r e f o r e be d e sig n ated
a m b iv a le n t." In " I n s t i n c t s and T h eir V i c i s s i t u d e s ," Great
Books o f th e Western World, Vol. LIV, p. 420.
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42
S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c te r s c o n v e rts them in to accomplices to
t h e i r own d e f e a t. In both P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu and
M artereau , the com bination of love and h a te , m an ifestin g
i t s e l f as p a s s i v i t y and h o s t i l e a g g re ss iv e n e s s, pushes the
p ro ta g o n is ts to s t r u c t u r e s i t u a t i o n s where o th e rs w i l l d e
ceiv e and prey on them. A lthough, f o r example, the nephew
in M artereau i s aware of h is tendency toward s e l f - d e s t r u c
tio n , he cannot c o n tr o l th e s i t u a t i o n even when he rec o g
n ize s what is happening, and blames h is p a s s i v i ty :
C 'e s t c e la sans d o u te, c e t t e é tra n g e p a s s i v i t é , c e t te
d o c i l i t é que j e ne s u is encore jam ais parvenu à bien
m 'ex p liq u er qui le s e x c i t e , qui le u r f a i t i r r é s i s t i b l e
ment s é c r é t e r à mon c o n ta c t une substance p a r e i l l e au
l iq u id e que p r o j e t t e n t c e r t a i n s animaux pour aveugler
le u r p r o i e . . . (pp. 5-6)
The nephew does come to u n d e rstan d t h a t when h is fam ily
h u m ilia te s him, t h i s se rv e s to b u ild i t s own confidence.
They achieve s tr e n g th through d e s tr u c tiv e n e s s . The members
of the fam ily a re no t s p i t e f u l to th e nephew alone; they
a ls o love and h a te one a n o th e r. When th e m other, who has
become dependent on h er d a u g h te r 's a f f e c t i o n , f e e ls r e
placed by a g i r l f r i e n d , she im m ediately r e le a s e s her p ent-
up h o s t i l i t y , and m a lic io u s ly t e l l s th e nephew of her
d a u g h te r's d i f f i c u l t y in o b ta in in g a d eg ree. The nephew
d e sc rib e s the mother as she p re p a re s to pass on t h i s gossip:
" E lle se penche v e rs moi, sa voix s 'a m o l l i t , humectée par
la d o uceâtre v o lu p té de l a t r a h i s o n . . . " (p. 54). Although
the nephew appears to be th e most s e l f - d e s t r u c t i v e member
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43
of the fam ily , w hile th e r e s t of the fam ily d i r e c t s i t s
d e s tr u c tiv e urges outw ardly, a more c a re f u l read in g re v e a ls
th e i n c l i n a t i o n of each member of the fam ily toward s e l f -
d e s t r u c t io n , the daughter by her in d if f e r e n c e to her person,
the mother by h e r amours, and th e f a th e r by h is unpopular
b u lly in g . The nephew l a t e r proves h is own w illin g n e s s and
a b i l i t y to d e stro y when he lea d s the fam ily a g a in s t M arte
reau .
Dostoevsky is a ls o concerned w ith o p p o sitio n and con
t r a d i c t i o n , bu t on the i d e o lo g ic a l l e v e l. He has s a i n ts
opposing s in n e r s , b e li e v e r s opposing a t h e i s t s , good a g a in s t
e v i l , s a c r i f i c e and c o rr u p tio n , g e n tle n e ss and v io le n c e ; in
f a c t , h is novels abound w ith c o n tr a s tin g fo rc e s in o p p o si
t io n to one another.® He concerns h im se lf w ith the i n t e r
n a l, s u b je c tiv e l i f e of man in c o n tr a s t to the e x te r n a l,
su rfa c e world w ith i t s s u p e r f i c i a l view of man's e s s e n t i a l
n a tu re .
Dostoevsky uses am biguity p r im a r ily in order to d e
velop suspense in h is c h a r a c te r p o r t r a y a l , as in B a rb a ra ’s
l e t t e r s to th e man who i s s a c r i f i c i n g e v ery th in g fo r her in
The B ro th ers Karamzov c o n ta in s a l l of the o p p o site s .
Alyosha opposes h is e n t i r e fam ily: the d i s b e l i e f of Ivan,
the e v i l genius of h is f a t h e r , the c o rru p tio n of D m itri,
and th e in h e re n t v io le n c e of Smerdyakov.
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permission.
44
Poor F o lk , l e t t e r s which vaguely express her fondness f o r
him, b u t which never t o t a l l y commit h e r. In The Gambler
P a u lin a i s e q u a lly ambiguous in her c o n v e rsa tio n s w ith th e
n a r r a t o r , who f a l l s madly in love w ith h e r. The t o t a l p e r
s o n a l it y as w e ll as th e m otives of th ese two c h a r a c te r s ,
and a ls o of P ie r r e Verkhovensky and S tav ro g in in The P os
s e s s e d , rem ain u n rev ealed u n t i l the end, and even then are
a l i t t l e m y sterio u s.
Many of D ostoevsky’s c h a r a c te r s are trap ped in a love-
h a te r e l a t i o n s h i p w ith an o th e r person or w ith s o c ie ty .
N astasya in The I d i o t i s a t t r a c t e d and a n ta g o n is tic to both
P rin ce Myshkin and R ogozhin. When she longs f o r a n o b le r,
more a e s t h e t i c r e l a t i o n s h i p , she tu rn s to P rince Myshkin,
and then f e e l in g unworthy of him, withdraws and tu rn s to
Rogozhin. I t is th e am bivalent n a tu re of N astasya which
e v e n tu a lly d e stro y s a l l th re e of them. Other c h a r a c te r s of
Dostoevsky a re a ls o caught in a lo v e -h a te r e l a t i o n s h i p ;
K a terin a Ivanovna and D m itri Karamazov a re ano th er p a i r of
lo v e rs to r n between love and h a tr e d , and on a n o n - e r o tic
le v e l the r e l a t i o n s h i p of Pavel T rusotsky to V eltchaninov
in The E te rn a l Husband c o n tin u a lly f l u c t u a t e s , h is h a tr e d
a l t e r n a t i n g w ith r e s p e c t and f r a t e r n a l f e e lin g f o r V e l t
chaninov .
D ostoevsky's p o r t r a y a ls of s o c ia l m i s f i t s add depth
to our u n d e rstan d in g o f am bivalent em otional a t t i t u d e s .
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45
Such c h a r a c te r s as Golyadkin in The Double and the Under
ground Man appear to submit to circum stances on an e x te r n a l
l e v e l , b u t se eth e w ith h o s t i l i t y s u b j e c t iv e l y ; because o f
t h i s they can keen ly p e rc e iv e ambivalence in s o c ie ty w h ile
a t the same time they re v e a l t h e i r own weakness and sa d o
m asochistic. r e l a ti o n s h i p s w ith o th e r men. Despite t h e i r
r o le o f u n tru stw o rth y n a r r a t o r s , the i n t e n s i t y and lo g ic of
t h e i r p e n e tr a tin g a n a ly sis extends our comprehension o f
l i f e , and thus gives these n a r r a t o r s a p r a c t i c a l and v a lu
able f u n c tio n .
Although both Dostoevsky and S a rra u te w rite about the
c o n tr a d ic tio n o f the e x te r n a l w orld w ith the i n t e r n a l
w o rld, n e v e r t h e l e s s , both are more i n t e r e s t e d in th e in n e r
w orld o f the mind and em otions. S a rra u te v a rie s h e r use o f
am biguity, b l u r r in g h er c h a r a c t e r s ' i d e n t i t i e s so t h a t even
when i d e n t i f i e d , t h e i r thoughts and a c tio n s , t h e i r im agina
t io n and o b je c tiv e r e a l i t y rem ain u n c le a r. On the o th e r
hand, Dostoevsky i d e n t i f i e s h is c h a r a c te r s c l e a r l y , u sin g
am biguity of sta te m e n t and a c tio n c h ie f ly fo r su sp e n se fu l
development o f the p l o t and c h a r a c t e r . The moments when
dream and r e a l i t y merge in D ostoevsk y's novels are u s u a lly
d i f f e r e n t i a t e d l a t e r .
Doubt as to the c h a r a c t e r s ' i d e n t i t i e s in S a r r a u t e 's
n o vels i l l u s t r a t e s her view o f man's s i m i l a r i t y ; once the
o u te r s h e l l of b a n a lity i s p e n e t r a t e d , a l l men are mere
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permission.
46
hollow form s. On the c o n tr a r y , D ostoevsky's su sp en sefu l
r e v e l a t i o n of c h a ra c te r proceeds from h is b e l i e f in the
d i s t i n c t i v e n e s s and r ic h n e s s of each in d iv id u a l p e rs o n a lity .
S a rra u te uses e r o tic is m in th e most a p p a re n tly o r d i
nary of sc en es, e i t h e r in o rder to c re a te g r e a t e r i n t e r e s t
f o r the re a d e r through e r o t i c c o n n o ta tio n s, or to h i n t a t
th e e s s e n t i a l l y e r o t i c d e s i r e s of her c h a r a c te r s , or f o r
b o th of th e se re a so n s ; h e r purpose is e q u iv o c al. D ostoev
sky a ls o u ses e ro tic is m am biguously, only g ra d u a lly r e v e a l
ing the r e l a t i o n s h i p s between h is c h a r a c t e r s , r e l a t i o n s h i p s
which are f r e q u e n tly o b sc u re, and o fte n am bivalent. D osto
evsky develops t h i s lo v e -h a te ambivalence beyond th e e r o t i c
s t a t e to in clu d e the d e s i r e fo r acceptance d e s p ite the i n
d i v i d u a l ’s contempt f o r s o c i e t y . This tendency o f D ostoev
s k y ’s c h a r a c te r s to g e n e r a liz e a s p e c i f i c emotion and e x
tend i t to th e world a t l a r g e , a ls o tr u e of S a r r a u t e ’s work,
i s one of th e most d e c is iv e f a c t o r s in the a f f i l i a t i o n of
th e two a u th o rs ; i t is an outward ex te n sio n and attem p ted
r e s o l u t i o n of the c o n tr a d ic tio n s in h e re n t in the human
s i t u a t i o n .
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CHAPTER I I I
LONELINESS
Man's lo n e lin e s s has bo th p s y c h o lo g ic a l and s o c ia l
consequences. The com pletely i s o l a t e d man may r e t r e a t in to
an in n e r w orld and remain i n d i f f e r e n t to the o b je c tiv e
w orld around him, or he may t r y a l l measures p o s s ib le to
e n te r in to s o c ie ty , to e s t a b l i s h a r e l a t i o n s h i p or r e l a
tio n s h ip s which could r e l i e v e him of h is lo n e lin e s s . F a i l
ing a s o l u t io n , he might become e i t h e r defen siv e or p a ssiv e
in r e l a t i o n to every o th e r p e rso n , or t e r r i b l y h o s t i l e and
a g g re s s iv e towards the w orld, th u s p r o je c tin g h is psycho
l o g i c a l weakness in to s o c i a l l i f e .
While lo n e lin e s s is a u n i v e r s a l problem t h a t has ex
i s t e d thro ugh out h i s t o r y , the n in e te e n th - c e n tu r y novel and
to an even g r e a te r e x te n t, th e tw e n tie th -c e n tu r y no v el, has
e s p e c i a l l y c o n c e n tra te d on the a li e n a t e d and lo n ely p e rso n ,
h is in n er c o n f l i c t s , and h is r e l a t i o n s h i p w ith s o c ie ty .^
Examples of the lo n ely p r o ta g o n is t occur in numerous
n in e te e n th - c e n tu r y n o v e ls, i . e . , T o ls to y 's War and P eace;
Lerm ontov's A Hero of Our Time; C h a te au b rian d 's René;
Benjamin C o n s ta n t's Adolphe; and F l a u b e r t 's L 'E ducation
S e n tim e n ta le . T w entieth- c e n tu ry novels focusing on th e
a l i e n a t e d , lo n ely person a r e , f o r example, K afka's The
T r i a l , The C a s t l e , M etam orphosis, and Amerika; Camus'
47
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48
C e rta in ly , t h i s c o n c e n tr a tio n is a s u i t a b l e one fo r f i c
t io n , as the m o tiv a tio n to read books f r e q u e n tly stems from
a yearning fo r c o n ta c t w ith a n o th e r 's th o u g h ts , and in a
p a r a l l e l way, a w r i t e r o fte n has th e same b a s ic m o tiv atio n
for w r itin g . Thus, the need to fac e or m aster lo n e lin e s s
i s a n a tu r a l and a p p ro p r ia te s u b je c t.
The i n t r o v e r t e d p e rso n , indulging in s e l f - a n a l y s i s and
s e l f - p i t y , a lth o u g h f e e lin g haughty and s u p e r io r towards
h is c o n tem p o raries, n e v e rth e le s s yearns fo r t h e i r compan
io n sh ip . However, he has a lre a d y a l i e n a t e d h im self from
s o c ie ty through h is contempt fo r people and can a n ti c i p a te
only r e j e c t i o n and th e p o s s i b i l i t y of i s o l a t i o n from h is
f e llo w s .
Springing from t h e i r view of r e a l i t y as i n t e r n a l , both
Dostoevsky and S a rra u te emphasize th e lo n e ly , i s o l a t e d i n
d iv id u a l who views the world s u b j e c t iv e l y . This chapter
w i l l d isc u ss the ways in which th ese two a u th o rs p re s e n t
man's l o n e l i n e s s , and i t w i l l show t h a t th e a f f i l i a t i o n b e
tween Dostoevsky and S a rra u te to a g r e a t e x te n t d e riv e s
from t h e i r c o n c e n tr a tio n on man's a l i e n a t i o n from h is f e l
low man. As I have p o in te d o ut, S a rra u te cannot e n v isio n
a s o lu tio n to th e problem of lo n e lin e s s w h ile Dostoevsky
L'É tra n g e r ; S a r t r e 's La Nausée; C é lin e 's Voyage au bout de
la n u i t ; and H e ss e 's Steppenw olf. Of c o u rs e ,m a n y of
D ostoevsky's n o v e ls f i t in to t h i s c a te g o ry , as w ell as
th ose of N a th a lie S a r r a u t e .
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49
hoped t h a t a g r e a t change would tran sfo rm the world in to a
P a rad ise of b r o th e r ly love.
S a r r a u t e 's p r o ta g o n is ts , i s o l a t e d and lo n ely in r e l a
tio n to every o th er person, fin d in g th e world d u ll and
h y p o c r i t i c a l , withdraw from i t . However, a f t e r a p e rio d of
tim e, th ey come to abhor t h e i r i s o l a t i o n and to long f o r
c o n ta c t w ith o th er human b e in g s. This u s u a lly proves im
p o s s ib le in s p i t e of a w illin g n e s s to accep t o th e r people
under any c o n d itio n s w hatsoever, as th e nephew in M artereau
is w i l li n g to do: "Je s u is to u jo u rs p r ê t , même quand je
sens comme s'e n fo n c e n t d é lic a te m e n t en moi le u rs dents
. . ." Cp- 72). The nephew goes even f u r t h e r in d e sc rib in g
h is need f o r people: " je c r o i s b ie n que je s e r a i s p l u t ô t
e n c lin à prend re p a r t i pour eux c o n tre moi" (p. 72). A l
though the nephew would w i l li n g l y s a c r i f i c e h is own c o n v ic
tio n s i n o rd er to be a cc ep ted , he never achiev es th e con
t a c t f o r which he longs. The theme of lo n e lin e s s reo ccu rs
in a l l o f S a rrau te * s n o v e ls. Her c h a r a c te r s p e rp e tu a lly
f a i l to a t t a i n acceptance by o th e r s , and d e s p ite t h e i r
numerous c o n c i li a to r y g e s tu r e s , th ey remain trap ped in the
^Ludovic J a n v ie r p o in ts out t h a t th e d e s p e ra tio n of
S a r r a u t e 's c h a ra c te r s " e s t à la f o i s une a g re s s io n g lu a n te
e t une com pliçité un peu ig n o b le ." In Une P a ro le e x ig e a n te :
Le Nouveau Roman, p. 78.
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permission.
50
void of l o n e l i n e s s . 3
S a rra u te * s c h a r a c te r s sometimes r e a c t to t h e i r f a i l u r e
to make c o n ta c t by withdrawing in to th e m isery of is o la tio n ,
and a t o th e r tim e s, goaded by t h e i r s u f f e r i n g , they p lan
and execute h o s t i l e a c tio n s towards o th e r s . This occurs
even when a c h a r a c te r is fond of someone, as A la in is fond
of Germaine Lemaire in Le P la n e ta riu m , and as the nephew is
fond of M artereau in S a r r a u t e 's n o v e l, M a rte re a u . In both
c a s e s , th e fo n d n ess, su b je c te d to a d e s t r u c t i v e a n a ly s is by
th e p r o t a g o n i s t , demands t h a t th e loved p erso n c o n s ta n tly
prove h is w o rth in e s s , and e v e n tu a lly , he i s found wanting
and d e p riv e d of h is s p e c ia l p la c e in th e p r o t a g o n i s t 's
h e a r t . When A la in Gumiez d isc o v e rs G erm aine's ignorance of
3"De Tropismes aux F r u i t s d 'O r , i l n ' e s t q u e stio n que
d ' 'a p a i s e r a u t r u i ' , de 1 ' 'am ad o u er', de 's o u r i r e aim ab le
m e n t', d ''a c q u i e s c e r ' , de 's e r a l l i e r ' . C 'e s t le moment
d i a l e c t iq u e où se f a i t jo u r l 'o b s e s s i o n du c o n ta c t. S o it
q u 'a u t r u i m 'a i t dès l'a b o r d r e f u s é , s o i t q u ' i l m 'a i t d é jà
in té g ré p u is r e j e t é , i l f a u t que j e l e re jo ig n e e t , pour
c e l a , le touche: . . . v o i l à , j e c r o i s que j ' y a r r i v e , j ' a i
s a i s i quelque chose, vous ê te s l à , je vous t o u c h e . . . ' [ Les
F r u i t s d ' o r , p . 153]. Et c ' e s t a i n s i que s 'e x p liq u e n t
to u te s ces images q u i, du sim ple c o n ta c t physique à
l ' h y s t é r i e , i l l u s t r e n t l a s o u s -c o n v e rs a tio n , nous d is e n t
c e t t e s o i f du c o n ta c t humain, comme s i l a d is ta n c e e n tre
a u t r u i e t moi é t a i t pédhê o r i g i n e l . En face des a u tr e s e t
sur le u r r e g a r d , le moi e s t s e u l, en p l e i n e f a u t e , sans
d ieu . . .
"La mimique de l'a p p r o b a t io n , e l l e , e s t éloqu en t:
on se c o n to rs io n n e , on s o u r i t , on grim ace son accord sans
c o n d itio n s . . . " I b i d . , pp. 73-74.
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permission.
51
th e q u a l i t y of a p iec e of s c u lp tu r e , h is image of her
crumbles in an i n s t a n t ; and s i m i l a r l y , when the nephew in
M artereau b e lie v e s th a t M artereau has i n tr i g u e d a g a in s t h is
uncle in the m a tte r of t h e i r co u n try house and has a ls o
been involved w ith h is a u n t, he tu rn s on h is former f r i e n d
as f u r i o u s l y as i f he h im self were the ch eated person and
th e cuckold. In a moment th ese p r o ta g o n is ts d e stro y th e
c o n s tr u c tiv e r e l a t i o n s h i p which they have managed to b u i ld ,
a r e l a t i o n s h i p which seems to have been a r e l u c ta n t i d e a l i
z a tio n based on th e p r o t a g o n i s t s ' co n ception of a b e t t e r
s e l f ; and in th e p ro cess of to p p lin g fo rm erly re s p e c te d
gods, they m om entarily b e lie v e them selves strong enough to
d e stro y t h e i r b e s t f r i e n d s . The e n t i r e fam ily , each in h is
own way, works a t d e stro y in g M artereau, who re p re s e n ts a
f ig u r e o f s e c u r i t y , and who a l l u n w ittin g ly makes the family
a c u te ly aware o f i t s own a n x ie ti e s and i n s e c u r ity .
A lthough th e lo n e ly p r o ta g o n is ts in S a r r a u te 's novels
stoop to any extreme in order to reach o th e r people, they
r a r e l y achieve more th a n a f l e e t i n g c o n ta c t. Having in
e f f e c t f a i l e d , they r e t r e a t in to s e l f - a n a l y s i s and c o n se
q u e n tly develop a sa d o -m a so c h istic r e l a ti o n s h i p w ith a l l
whom th ey know.
P a r a d o x ic a lly , t h i s lo n e ly person becomes a v e h ic le
w ith which to expose an absurd, h y p o c r i t ic a l s o c ie ty , b u t
he h im se lf is always d e fe a te d by t h i s s o c ie ty . Each of
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permission.
52
S a r r a u t e 's nov els concludes w ith th e trium ph of th e normal
and th e b a n a l over s e n s i t i v e a n a l y s i s . I t seems t h a t
S a rra u te a c c e p ts lo n e lin e s s as an i n e v i t a b l e c o n d itio n of
man, a c o n d itio n which cannot be a l t e r e d except by d e a th ,
as s t a t e d on th e l a s t page of P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu.
/
D o sto e v sk y 's c h a r a c te r s a re a ls o alo n e and a ls o s t r i v e
f o r c o n ta c t and communication w ith o th e r s . T heir in te n s e
e f f o r t s o c c a s io n a lly lead to a tr a g i-c o m ic e f f e c t as in th e
case of P av el T ruso tsky in The E te r n a l Husband who, because
of h is d e s p e r a te sense of i s o l a t i o n , makes awkward o v e r
tu r e s of f r i e n d s h i p to Y e ltc h a n in o v , th e man who had c u c k
old ed him. The Underground Man, to o , i n s i s t s on p a r t i c i
p a tin g in Z verkov's f a re w e ll p a r t y even though he d e s p is e s
Zverkov and knows how much Z v erk o v 's f r i e n d s d i s l i k e him.
He is w i l l i n g to abase h im se lf in o rd er to be n o tic e d , and
dreams of "nee n J i a ^ y T k u e jiy iO T m o h h . « *" 4 " th e whole
w orld weeping and embracing me."^ However, d e s p ite th e
Underground Man's apparen t ago nized h o nesty in re c o g n iz in g
h i s dilemma, he re v e a ls h is la c k of complete s e l f - u n d e r
sta n d in g when L is a , the p r o s t i t u t e , a c c e p ts him uncondi-
^D ostoevsky, Z apiski iz p o d p o ly a , in Sobranie S o c h i-
neny ( S t . P e te rs b u rg , 1888J, I I I , 444.
^Dostoevsky, L e tte r s from th e Underworld, t r a n s . C. J .
Hogarth (London, 1919), p. 66.
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53
t i o n a l l y . Only a t t h i s moment, does he r e a l i z e t h a t h is
i s o l a t i o n makes him in a c c e s s ib le to as w ell as in c a p a b le of
l o v e .
A lthough Dostoevsky c o n sid e rs human i s o l a t i o n u n i v e r
s a l , n e v e r th e le s s he d i s t in g u is h e s between h is d is tu r b e d
c h a r a c te r s and those l iv in g n orm ally . However, the normal
world appears so d u ll t h a t even th e lo n e ly Underground Man
r e t r e a t s from i t to h is s o l i t u d e .
D o stoevsk y's d e s c r ip tio n of m an's a l i e n a t i o n lea d s him
to i n v e s t i g a t e man's in n er w orld, c o n c e n tra tin g on the
agonized w orld of the a li e n a t e d p erso n . His p sy c h o lo g ic a l
e x p lo r a tio n re v e a ls t h a t extreme lo n e lin e s s and i s o l a t i o n
c r e a te a d i s t o r t e d , angry p erson who is both m a so c h istic
and s a d i s t i c , and who fo r purposes of g e n e ra l d e s c r i p t i o n ,
can be c a l le d n e u r o t i c . & L e t te r s from th e Underworld can
"Both the m aso ch istic and s a d i s t i c s t r i v i n g s ten d to
help th e in d iv id u a l to escape h is u n bearab le f e e l in g of
alon en ess and p c .v e rle ssn e ss. P sy ch o a n aly tic and o th e r em
p i r i c a l o b se rv a tio n s of m a s o c h istic persons give ample e v i
dence (which I cannot quote here w ithou t tran sce n d in g the
scope of t h i s book) t h a t they a re f i l l e d w ith a t e r r o r of
alo n e n ess and in s i g n if i c a n c e . F re q u e n tly t h is f e e l in g is
n o t co nscio u s; o fte n i t i s covered by compensatory f e e l in g s
of eminence and p e r f e c t i o n . However, i f one only p e n e
t r a t e s deeply enough in to th e unconscious dynamics of such
a p e rso n , one f in d s th ese f e e l in g s w itho ut f a i l . The i n d i
v id u a l f in d s h im self ' f r e e ' in the n e g ativ e se n se , t h a t i s ,
alone w ith h is s e l f and c o n fro n tin g an a l i e n a t e d , h o s t i l e
w o rld ." E ric h Fromm, Escape from Freedom (New York, 1941),
p. 151.
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5/
be viewed as a study of a n e u r o t i c p e rso n who w ishes to
w ithdraw from a hated w orld, b u t cannot, and co n seq u en tly
becomes p o t e n t i a l l y i f not a c t u a l l y d e s t r u c t i v e bo th to
o th e rs and to h im s e lf.
D o sto ev sk y 's p e rc e p tio n o f man’s i s o l a t i o n i s amply
d em o nstrated in The B ro thers Karamazov d u rin g th e in te rv ie w
Zossima has w ith a m y sterious v i s i t o r :
H 6 o B c e - T O B Ham b c k p a a ^ e ^ H . i H c s n a e O T H n q s i, b c a k h h
y e O T H H e T C fl b o b o k ) H o p y , b c h k h 'w o t apyroro O T zraJiH eT C H ,
n p fi-ie T C H H MTO H M eO T , n p H H C T , H H O H M a e r TOM, HTO
c a M OT JiiofleM o T T a y iK H B a e T C fl h caM a K # e # o t c e 6 a
OTTaJiKKEaeT. « • • ’ .(B ratya Karamazovy, p. 380)
A l l mankind in our age have s p l i t up in to u n i t s , th ey
a l l keep a p a r t , each in h is own groove; each one h o ld s
a lo o f , h id e s h im se lf and h id e s what he h a s, from th e
r-est, and he ends by being r e p e l l e d by o th e rs and r e
p e l l i n g them . . . (The B ro th ers Karamazov, p. 158)
Follow ing t h i s g e n e ra l view of m an's i s o l a t i o n , comes
D o sto e v sk y 's i r r e p r e s s i b l e optimism in th e face of a l l ob
s t a c l e s :
Ho H e n p e M e H H C Q y a o T T a x , h t o n p H f l e r c p o K h c s M y C T p a m n o M y
y e O T H e E H K m noMMVT B c e p a s o M , K aK n e e c T e c T B e H H O oTRejimjivich
o g M H OT A p y r o r c . TaxoBo y me 6 y # e T B e a H w e B p e M e i m .
[B ratya Karamazovy. p. 38Ô)
But t h i s t e r r i b l e in d iv id u a lis m must in e v i t a b l y have an
end, and a l l w i l l suddenly u n d e rs ta n d how u n n a tu r a lly
th e y a re se p a ra te d from one a n o th e r . I t w i l l be th e
s p i r i t of the tim e . . . (The B ro th ers Karamazov,
p. 159)
*
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55
Although l o n e lin e s s can be co n sid ere d a u n iv e r s a l
phenomenon and has o fte n been p re s e n te d in f i c t i o n , i t has
not always been employed as Dostoevsky and S a rra u te use i t ,
t h a t i s , as a p o in t o f d e p a rtu re through c h a r a c te r p o r
t r a y a l to th e a n a ly s is and s u b tle c r i t i c i s m of s o c ie ty .
Dostoevsky and S a rra u te dem onstrate th e d is re g a r d of the
i s o l a t e d p e rso n by a d u l l and a t the same tim e, ex acting
s o c i e t y , which demands conform ity. The i s o l a t e d p erson , by
h is n a tu re un ab le to conform, becomes a n e g a tiv e and h o s
t i l e fo rc e in h i s s o c ie ty , s t r a i n i n g to p re s e rv e a sem
blan ce of in d iv id u a l i d e n t i t y . However, S a rrau te* s people
r a r e l y achieve i n d i v i d u a l i t y even though they detach them
s e lv e s from s o c ie ty and from the p r e s s u r e s o f conform ity,
whereas D o sto evsky 's people do manage to achieve i n d iv i d
u a l i t y . S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c te r s a re c au g h t, as i t were, in
th e t r a p of t h e i r own i s o l a t i o n . Dostoevsky and S a rrau te
both analyze s o c ie ty through the eyes of an a lie n a te d p r o
t a g o n i s t , a p r o ta g o n is t in o p p o s itio n to the b a n a lity and
h y po crisy of s o c i e t y , and a t the same time a v ic tim of s o
c i e t y , and dependent on i t . R e p elle d by s o c ie ty and by
in d iv id u a ls who seem to a d ju s t to s o c i e t y , t h e i r c h a r a c te r s
c o n tin u a lly t r y to communicate w ith the same people they
d e s p is e . This paradox is e v id e n t thro ugh out the f i c t i o n of
Dostoevsky and S a r r a u te . T h eir c h a r a c t e r s , w illin g to su b
m it to p e rs o n a l a t t a c k , s a c r i f i c e t h e i r i n t e g r i t y g la d ly .
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even to the p o in t o f h u m ilia tin g them selves, in o rder to
be in c lu d e d . The le n g th s to which t h e i r c h a ra c te rs go,
t h e i r extreme a n x ie ty , a g i t a t i o n , and c o n c e n tra tio n on
d e t a i l , t h e i r h o s t i l i t i e s , sometimes re p re s s e d and o th e r
tim es p r o tru d in g ab su rd ly , t h e i r s e l f - d e s t r u c t i v e n e s s and
zealous undermining of o th e r people even i f only v e rb a lly ,
dem onstrate a c lo se a f f i l i a t i o n between Dostoevsky and
S a r r a u te . They d i f f e r in the development o f t h e i r c h a ra c
t e r s ' i n d i v i d u a l i t y and in t h e i r c o n c lu sio n , a conclusion
s i m i l a r in each of the p o in ts o f comparison o f th ese two
a u th o rs : Dostoevsky hop eful t h a t a p o s i t i v e change w i l l
occur in the f u t u r e , and S a rra u te r e t a i n i n g h e r pessimism.
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CHAPTER IV
ILLNESS AND NEUROSIS
The p o in t of tra n s fo rm a tio n of l o n e lin e s s to i l l n e s s
or n e u ro s is i s p e r p l e x in g .1 Man’s endurance in i s o l a t i o n
v a r ie s w ith d i f f e r e n t i n d iv id u a ls , and whereas one man can
t o l e r a t e g r e a t s t r a i n , another succumbs under p re s su re and
becomes i l l or d epressed e m o tio n ally .^ I l l n e s s can serve
as a j u s t i f i a b l e r e le a s e from the r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s and
demands of s o c i e t y , and although i t has i t s u n p lea sa n t mo
m ents, i f not too se v e re , i l l n e s s can f r e e people from
e x te r n a l s t r a i n and allow them to c o n c e n tra te on an in ner
world of s e l f - p i t y and fa n ta s y . C h ild re n le a r n t h i s quickly
^E rich Fromm is most emphatic in h is warning about the
danger of i s o l a t i o n , which he q u a l i f i e s as not belonging in
o n e’s s o c ie ty : ” To f e e l com pletely alo n e and i s o l a t e d
leads to m ental d i s i n t e g r a t i o n j u s t as p h y s ic a l s ta r v a t io n
lead s to d e a t h . ” Escape from Freedom, p . 19.
^”The in d iv id u a l has perhaps always the choice of e n
d o rsin g h is p o s i t i o n of detachm ent, or of a ttem p tin g to
p a r t i c i p a t e in l i f e . The sc h iz o id d efense a g a in s t ’r e a l i t y ’
h a s, however, th e grave disadvantage t h a t i t ten d s to p e r
p e tu a te and p o t e n t i a t e the o r i g in a l th r e a te n in g q u a lity of
r e a l i t y . P a r t i c i p a t i o n of the s e l f in l i f e is p o s s ib le ,
b u t only in the fa c e of in te n se a n x i e t y .” R. D. Laing,
The D ivided S e lf: A Study of S a n ity and Madness (Chicago,
1960), p. 95.
57
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58
and apply i l l n e s s as escape from d u tie s and as a weapon
e i t h e r a g a in s t t h e i r p a re n ts or to win t h e i r p a r e n t s ' a f
f e c tio n . A dults m anipulate i l l n e s s in the same way, some
times i n t e n t i o n a l l y and sometimes u n c o n scio u sly . The i n
ducement to p rolong an i l l n e s s , w ith th e r e s u l t i n g s o l i c i
tude from o t h e r s , i s obvious, e s p e c ia lly fo r a n e u ro tic
in d iv id u a l who longs f o r love and r e c o g n itio n .
Both p h y s ic a l i l l n e s s and em otional i n s t a b i l i t y occa
s io n a lly p la y v i t a l ro le s in f i c t i o n . ^ The w orld seen
through s ic k eyes can sometimes be b e t t e r m agnified or d e
t a i l e d . Dostoevsky and S a rrau te both c a p i t a l i z e on the
i l l n e s s o r n e u ro s is o f t h e i r p r o ta g o n is ts in o rd e r to p r e
s e n t unusual id eas g e n e ra lly r e j e c t e d by s o c i e t y . The
acute a n a ly s is by a n e u r o tic p r o ta g o n is t can serve as a
sp rin g b o ard f o r the a u th o r 's views. Since th ese views p r o
ceed from a s ic k c h a r a c te r , the au th o r is a t l e a s t somewhat
p r o te c te d from a cc u satio n s th a t he m ight be preachin g a mad
The follo w in g are examples from bo th n in e te e n th -c e n
tu ry and tw e n tie th - c e n tu r y f i c t i o n where th e p ro ta g o n is ts
are i l l , e i t h e r p h y s ic a lly or m e n ta lly , o r both: Gogol's
The O v e rco a t; P u sh k in 's Queen of S pades; T o ls to y 's Anna
K arenina; M e l v i l l e 's Moby D ick; C h a rlo tte B ro n te 's Jane
Eyre ; D. H. Law rence's Sons and Lovers ; Goncharov's Oblomov;
The Sound and "the F u ry ; Sologub's The P e tty Demon; Valery
T a r s i s ' Ward Seven; S o ly e n itz e n 's Cancer Ward; FÎôbbe-
G r i l l e t ' s Le Voyeur and a lso La J a l o u s i e ; and a l l B e c k e tt's
n o v e ls .
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59
v e rs io n of r e a l i t y , and he can deny any p e rs o n a l in v o lv e
ment in h is n o v e l. At the same tim e, he i s ab le to a v a il
h im se lf of th e s e n s i t i v i t y of h is n e u r o tic or i l l p ro ta g o
n i s t in o rd er to analyze and/or c r i t i c i z e the s o c ia l s t r u c
t u r e , or any thin g he p le a s e s . The r e a d e r , as w e ll, makes
allow ances fo r th e poor m ental or p h y s ic a l s t a t e of the
p r o t a g o n i s t , and consequently is more p re p a re d to accept
extreme moods, f a n t a s i e s , and unusual id e a s .
N a th a lie S a r r a u t e 's p r o ta g o n is ts a re a l l extrem ely
s e n s i t i v e , to the p o in t of n e u ro s is , and in M a rtereau , th e
p r o t a g o n i s t i s a lso p h y s ic a lly i l l . S a r r a u te , extrem ely
conscious of th e clo sen ess of th e p h y s ic a l and m ental a s
p e c ts of l i f e , has developed a t r o p i s t i c th eo ry of human
r e l a t i o n s h i p s which suggests a p h y s ic a l r e a c t i o n to every
c o n ta c t w ith anoth er person . This r e a c t i o n can be p o s itiv e
or n e g a tiv e , althou gh th e re seem to be more n e g ativ e r e a c
tio n s th an p o s i t i v e ones in her n o v e ls . Her c h a r a c te r s ,
aware of t h i s p h y sic a l r e a c t i o n a l l i e d so c lo s e ly to t h e i r
m ental s t a t e , are a l e r t fo r sig n s in d ic a tin g the r e a c tio n
of o th e rs towards them. Each of her n e u r o tic c h a ra c te rs is
ready to d e te c t any sig n of h o s t i l i t y or r e j e c t i o n , be i t a
r a i s e d eyebrow or a pursed l i p , and s u f f e r s t e r r i b l y when he
en co u n ters such a sig n . His s u f f e r i n g , u s u a lly e n t i r e l y
ou t of p r o p o rtio n to the s i t u a t i o n , i s p a r t l y what c l a s s i -
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60
f i e s him as n e u r o t i c . Even a disagreem ent about a l i t e r a r y
o r a r t i s t i c i n t e r p r e t a t i o n overwhelms such n e u r o t i c c h arac
t e r s . ^ Any ch allen ge c o n s t it u t e s a c h allen g e to t h e i r ego,
and they r e a c t v i o le n t ly .
Although S a r r a u t e 's main emphasis is on the w averings,
f lo u n d e r in g s , and consequent s u f f e r in g s o f p i t i f u l n e u r o t
i c s , she gives an e x tr a purpose to h e r work by using h e r
i l l or n e u r o tic c h a r a c te rs to expose s o c i e t y 's i l l n e s s ,
n e u ro s is , and h y p o c risy . In my o p in io n , h e r work can be
c a l le d a study of manners as w e ll as o f s u b je c tiv e r e a l i t y .
D iscu ssin g S a r r a u t e 's n o v e l, M a rte re a u , M artin P rice
says :
The c e n t r a l c h a ra c te r has become a 'p r e c i s i o n in stru m e n t'
fo r d e te c tin g i n a u t h e n t i c i t y , sham, bad f a i t h . And the
c h a r a c t e r i s t i c images of the novel a r e , as in some of
S a r t r e 's works, those which induce nausea: effluv ium
t h a t is exuded from people and t h e i r words, 't h e sa cc h a
r in e d e li g h t o f b e t r a y a l , ' the 'sw eet ste n ch of c a r r i o n , '
the 'nauseous l i q u i d t h a t s q u i r t s from u s . '5
Perhaps the irony of S a r r a u t e 's work i s th a t h e r " p r e
c is io n in s tru m e n t," which presum ably w i l l r e v e a l the i l l
ness o f s o c i e t y , i s a ls o i l l . As w e ll as doubting o th e r s ,
S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c te r s lack s e l f - a s s u r a n c e , and doubt them
s e lv e s . I t can, o f course be q u e stio n e d w hether th e neu
r o t i c person is a b e t t e r c r i t i c o f s o c i e t y because o f h is
4gee page 34 of Les F r u i t s d 'o r as an example.
^M artin P r ic e , "Dreams and Doubts: Some Recent F ic
t i o n , " The Yale Review, XLIX (W inter 1960), p. 282.
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61
own h y p e r s e n s i t i v i t y , o r w hether h is i n t e r p r e t a t i o n may be
d i s t o r t e d . Since the n e u r o t i c in d iv id u a l tends to be un
r e l i a b l e , the re a d e r h im s e lf must determ ine the t r u t h and
the e x a g g e ra tio n .
This u n tru stw o rth y n a r r a t o r - p r o t a g o n i s t i s s u b j e c t to
and c o n tr o l le d by the very id ea s and a t t i t u d e s he a t t a c k s .
For example, in Le P la n e ta riu m , A lain Gumiez c r i t i c i z e s
snobbery, y e t longs to belong to the u l t r a - c r i t i c a l , e l i t e
l i t e r a r y c i r c l e le d by the a u th o r, Germaine Lemaire. F i
n a ll y a cc e p te d in to t h i s c i r c l e , he begins to c r i t i c i z e i t ,
and to doubt Madame L em aire’s s u p e r i o r i t y , com pletely w ith
drawing confidence and a f f e c t i o n when h is id o l proves h e r
s e l f human by commenting on the a t t r a c t i v e n e s s of h i s la u n
dry bag. A lain m is tr u s ts h e r a e s t h e t i c judgment, and f e e ls
s u p e r io r; he is the r e a l snob.
A la in Gumiez and Germaine Lemaire are two o u tsta n d in g
examples of n e u r o tic s e lf -c o n s c io u s n e s s . They n o t only
c o n s ta n tly watch f o r changes in the f a c i a l e x p re ss io n s of
o th e r s ; th ey c o n s ta n tly analyze t h e i r own e x p re s s io n s .
A lso, because of t h e i r extreme s e lf -c o n s c io u s n e s s , they
f r e q u e n tly o v e re stim a te th e s ig n if ic a n c e of i n c i d e n t s .
S a r r a u t e ’s c h a r a c te r s re p re ss t h e i r o v e r s e n s itiv e
f e e l i n g s . In c o n v e rsa tio n w ith o th e rs they are c a r e f u l to
u t t e r only the most b a n al c l i c h e s . They cannot confess
t h e i r f e a r s , and reg a rd every o th e r p e rso n , w ith few and
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62
u s u a lly tem porary e x c e p tio n s, as enem ies, f a i l i n g to see
t h a t o th e rs are o f te n in the same p o s i t io n . T h eir in te n s e ,
dram atic thou ghts are r a r e l y v o c a l, nor are t h e i r f a n t a
s i e s ; they rem ain i n t e r n a l i z e d , and co n seq u e n tly , only
th ese thoughts c o n ta in any p o e tic o r con cep tual v a lu e ,
sin c e t h e i r c o n v e rs a tio n is boring and b a n a l.
S a r r a u t e 's p r o ta g o n is ts dem onstrate an u n y ie ld in g h o s
t i l i t y to the w orld. While y earnin g fo r u n d e rstan d in g and
lo v e, when any p o s s i b i l i t y of communion o c c u rs, th e n eu
r o t i c s e lf - d e b a s in g a c t i v i t y p r o h i b it s the p r o ta g o n is t from
jo in in g h is fe llo w man, and impels him toward d e s tr u c tiv e
fe e lin g s and a c t io n s . The p r o ta g o n is t o f M a rte re a u , i n
v i te d by h is aunt and uncle to s ta y a t t h e i r home because
o f h is i l l n e s s , shows h is i n g r a t it u d e by d e s c r ib in g h is
aunt and h e r d aug h ter c ru e lly : " le u r s yeux b r i l l a n t s e t
durs d 'o is e a u x " (p. 26). His f e a r o f people m an ifests
i t s e l f through h is use o f m etaphorical d e s c r ip tio n :
I I f a l l a i t . . . le s désamorcer comme des engins
dangereux, le s o u v r ir pour en e x t r a i r e une m atière
tro u b le e t louche à l'o d e u r écoeurante . . . (p. 22)
This h o s t i l e p r o t a g o n i s t , aware of h is n e u r o t i c c o n d itio n ,
blames h is p h y s ic a l i l l n e s s :
C^est l a d e m i-in a c tio n à la q u e lle je s u is condamné, ' l a
mere de to u s le s v i c e s ', qui e n t r e t i e n t en moi ces
rum inations o is e u s e s , qui me donne c e t te s e n s i b i l i t é - -
l a f a i b l e s s e physique a id a n t--d e femme h y s té r iq u e , ces
sentim ents morbides de c u l p a b i l i t é . (p. 80)
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63
A lthough the p r o ta g o n is t admires M artereau fo r h is
n o rm ality and h is s o l i d i t y , he e a g e rly a ccep ts the reaso ns
f o r d e s tro y in g M artereau , and l ik e A la in Gumiez, a fterw ard s
can r e t i r e to h is s u p e rio r solitude,...having found h is id o l
v u ln e ra b le and human. This id e a , developed s k e tc h ily in
P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu, where th e p r o ta g o n is t chooses to r e
gard the woman and her f a t h e r as n e u ro tic s to o , and l im i ts
h is d e s tr u c tiv e n e s s to spying and slan d ero u s g o ss ip , b e
comes more s o l i d in M artereau where th e d e s tr u c tiv e n e s s
becomes an a c t i v i t y , and ag ain more s u b t l e , but a ls o more
g e n e ra l in Le P la n é ta riu m , where A l a in 's n e u ro tic p e r s o n a l
i t y wounds in one way or an o th er a l l th e people who care
fo r him.
U s u a lly , S a r r a u t e 's p r o ta g o n is ts blame them selves f o r
t h e i r u n s ta b le p o s i t i o n s , b u t o c c a s io n a lly th ey become ag
g re s s iv e and blame s o c ie ty . The n a r r a t o r of M arterea u , f o r
i n s ta n c e , in a moment of s e l f d e fe n se , a tta c k s the man's
world in to which a e s th e te s cannot f i t (p. 35), one of th e
r a r e moments when r a t h e r than accuse h im self as he u s u a lly
does, he defends h im self and accuses th e w orld. However,
S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c t e r s , alth oug h a li e n a t e d from the world by
t h e i r n e u r o tic b e h a v io r, have been so damaged t h a t t h e i r
keen a n a ly s is of r e l a t i o n s h i p s , of h y p o c risy , of t h e i r own
behav io r never q u ite serv es to f r e e them from s o c i e t y 's
dom ination; t h e i r a n a ly s is only causes them g r e a te r s u f f e r
in g .
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64
The p r o t a g o n i s t admires and r e s p e c ts M artereau f o r h is
ap p aren t s t r e n g t h and h is a b i l i t y to w ith sta n d s o c i a l and
p e rs o n a l p r e s s u r e s . In th e fo llo w in g q u o ta tio n , the p r o
t a g o n is t d e s c r ib e s M artereau*s a b i l i t y to p r o t e c t h im self:
M artereau dont se d é g ag e ait un f l u i d e m ystérieux qui
t e n a i t à d is ta n c e le u rs mots e t le s f a i s a i t re b o n d ir
lo in de l u i , p a r e i l s à ces b a l l e s lé g è re s qui dansent
à la cime des j e t s d 'e a u , (p. 74)
The p r o t a g o n i s t a ls o would l i k e to achieve immunity from
o th e r s , b u t too weak, too e a s i l y d e stro y e d by a word or
even a g la n c e , he cannot l i b e r a t e h im self from dom ination
by o th e r s . He i s crushed when people so much as look a t
him, as th e fo llo w in g q u o ta tio n dem onstrates in i t s de
s c r i p t i o n o f h is f e e lin g s when h is aunt and co u sin look a t
him:
. . . un d e m i-so u rire su r le u r v is a g e , un re g a rd m a li
c ie u x , un soudain é c l a t de r i r e , e t vous savez que vous
ê te s condamné sans a p p e l . . . (p. 45)
In S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls, the m a jo rity of her c h a r a c te r s
have r e p re s s e d w ishes fo r power and lo v e, or i f n o t fo r
love, a t l e a s t f o r acceptance by s o c ie ty . Since th ese
wishes rem ain u n f u l f i l l e d and r e p r e s s e d , the consequent d i s
t o r t i o n of p e r s o n a l i t y f o r th e most p a r t follow s q u ite
l o g i c a l l y . Her c h a ra c te r s become anxious and f e a r f u l to an
extrem e. S a rr a u te tends to d e s c rib e a n x ie ty m e ta p h o ric a lly ,
as in the fo llo w in g q u o ta tio n from P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu
showing th e need h is young d a u g h te r has f o r her f a t h e r 's
lo v e, which need i n t e n s i f i e s h i s n e g a tiv e r e a c t i o n to h e r:
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65
. . . e l l e a d h é r a it à l u i comme une compresse chaude,
humide, qu i f a i t a f f l e u r e r à la peau le pus, m ûrir
l 'a b c è s . (p. 166)
The young g i r l , sensing her f a t h e r ' s h o s t i l i t y , becomes
extrem ely anxio us, l a t e r le a rn in g to curb her need f o r f i l
i a l a f f e c t i o n . G
S a rra u te d e t a i l s the p h y s ic a l r e a c tio n s to an anxious
em otional s t a t e . Two examples d e s c rib in g the p r o t a g o n i s t 's
a n x ie ty fo llo w from P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu:
J 'a v a i s . . . c e t t e s e n s a tio n de mal de coeur l é g e r ,
de lé g e r v e r t i g e qu'on éprouve dans l 'a s c e n s e u r quand
i l se d étache du p a l i e r e t g l i s s e doucement dans le
v i d e .7 (p. 75).
Comme l é sang g o n fle le s a r t è r e s , b a t aux tempes e t
pèse sur le tympan quand la p r e s s io n de l ' a i r ambiant
d e v ie n t moins grande, a i n s i l a n u i t , dans c e t t e atmo
sphère r a r i f i é e que f a i t l a s o l i t u d e , le s i l e n c e - -
1 ' a n g o is s e , contenue en nous dans l a jo u rn é e , e n fle e t
nous o p presse: c ' e s t une masse p e san te qui e m p lit la
t ê t e , l a p o i t r i n e , d i l a t e l e s poumons, appuie comme une
b a rre su r l'e s to m a c , ferme l a gorge comme un tam pon...
(p. 120)
A il of S a r r a u t e 's novels c o n ta in anxio us, f r ig h te n e d , and
e a s i l y in tim id a te d c h a r a c t e r s . In f a c t , th e e x te n t of
Gpreud says about a n x ie ty , t h a t i t i s "one o f th e ways
in which the ego r e l i e v e s i t s e l f o f r e p re s s e d w ishes which
have become too s tr o n g ." In The O rig in and Development of
P sy ch o-A n alysis, in G reat Books of tne Western World
(Cnicago, 1952), Vol. LlV, p. l2 .
?This agrees w ith F re u d 's account of p h y s ic a l r e a c
tio n s to a n x ie ty . Freud speaks of d iz z in e s s and v e r tig o as
im p o rtan t symptoms of a n x ie ty n e u ro s is : "The v e r t i g o a t
tac k i s f r e q u e n tly accompanied by th e w o rst kind of a n x ie ty
and i s o f te n combined w ith c a r d ia c and r e s p i r a t o r y d i s t u r
b a n c e s." Freud, S e le c te d Papers on H y s te r i a , in G reat
Books of th e Western World, p. SÔ.
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66
t h e i r f r i g h t and t h e i r methods of coping w ith i t d i f f e r e n
t i a t e s her c h a r a c t e r s . However, d e s p ite t h e i r f e a r s and
a n x i e t i e s , S a r r a u t e 's c h a r a c te r s c o n tin u a lly s t r i v e to
achieve some c o n ta c t w ith o th e rs even when th a t c o n ta c t may
menace th e ego.
S a r r a u t e 's n e u r o tic p r o ta g o n is ts fe a r a b so rp tio n by
stro n g e r p e r s o n a l i t i e s , and th e r e f o re lo ss of t h e i r own
i d e n t i t i t i e s . They attem p t to i s o l a t e them selves or d e
humanize them selves and o th e rs by r e p r e s e n ta t io n as o b jects,
or as anim als and i n s e c t s . They can thus ren d er them selves
immune to a t t a c k and reduce the menace of a b s o rp tio n by
anoth er p e r s o n a l i t y . This dehum anization i s a c e n t r a l f e a
tu r e in S a rra u te * s n o v e ls. I submit some examples from
P o r t r a i t d 'u n in co n n u . The n a r r a t o r - p r o t a g o n i s t , d e s c r i b
ing the woman in whom he i s i n t e r e s t e d and co n seq u en tly , by
whom he f e e l s th r e a te n e d , says: " E lle e s t b ie n p ro te g e e ,
in a tta q u a b le , ferm ée, gardée de to u te s p a r t s . . . Personne ne
peut l'e n ta m e r " (p. 40). Continuing, the n a r r a t o r then d e
s c r ib e s the woman's manner as "son a i r t ê t u e t sû r d ' i n
se c te " (p. 40). He u ses a b e e t le comparison in d e s c rib in g
th e woman and her f a t h e r as they a re q u a rre lin g : "La l u t t e
aveugle e t im placable de deux in s e c te s g é a n te s , de deux
énormes b o u s i e r s . . . " (p. 47). L a te r, as the n a r r a t o r g o s
sip s w ith h is boyhood f r i e n d about th e woman, he d e s c rib e s
t h e i r g o ss ip as "nos jeux de c h a ts " (p. 50) and r e l e g a t e s
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permission.
67
the woman to a dead mouse: . . e l l e g i t e n tre nous deux
m a in te n a n t, d é ch iq u etée , i n e r t e e t g r i s e , une s o u ris morte"
Cp. 50). Then, w ith a m ixture o£ m etaphor, S a rra u te t r a n s
forms the woman from a mouse back to an i n s e c t . As the
woman s u r p r i s e s the two men g o ssip in g in the c a fe , the p r o
t a g o n i s t compares her to th e i n s e c t world:
. . . un de ces coups a d r o i t s e t s u r s , comme i l s savent
en donner, sem blable aux coups de dard m erveilleusem ent
p r é c i s p ar le s q u e ls c e r t a i n s i n s e c te s p a r a l y s e n t, d i t- o n ,
l e u r s a d v e r s a ire s en le s fra p p a n t exactement dans le u rs
c e n tr e s nerveux. (pp. 5 0 -SI)
T his v a r i a t i o n of animal and i n s e c t metaphor seems to be
r a t h e r ex ag g erated in S a r r a u t e 's work.B However, i t could
be argued t h a t such use of the metaphor ex em p lifies the
n e u r o t i c im ag in atio n of th e n a r r a t o r in the n o v e l, who has
8ln i l l u s t r a t i n g S a rra u te * s vo cabulary in P o r t r a i t
d 'u n inconnu, M a rterea u , and Le P la n e ta riu m , Léon Roudiez
enum erates S a r r a u t e 's anim al a ll u s i o n s :
" I n in s ta n c e s t h a t number in the hundreds c h a r a c te r s are
lik e n e d t o , or i d e n t i f i e d w ith , a n im a ls . Some t h i r t y
r e f e r e n c e s a re to anim als in g e n e ra l (bête or anim al w ith
an a p p ro p ria te q u a lif y in g p h r a s e ); I have encountered, in
a d d itio n (and I have p o s s ib ly m issed a number of c r e a
t u r e s lu rk in g in dark c o r n e r s ) , one lamb, one b o a r, two
to a d s , two h o rs e s , fo u r t i g e r s and hyenas, fo ur mice,
fo u r b u l l s , f i v e p ig s or p i g l e t s , s ix fo x es, s i x monkeys,
seven c a t s , seven wolves (w ith o u t the American co nn o ta
t i o n ) , e lev en snakes, and fo rty -tw o dogs or packs o f dogs.
There a re a ls o h a lf a dozen la r v a e , a dozen more d e v e l
oped u nd er-w ater c r e a t u r e s , f o r t y b i r d s , and f o r t y - f i v e
i n s e c t s of v a rio u s d e s c r i p t i o n t h a t have been d r a f te d to
a s s i s t in N a th a lie S a r r a u t e 's m etaphoric t r a n s c r i p t i o n s . "
In "A Glance a t the V ocabulary of N a th a lie S a r r a u te ," Yale
French S tu d ie s , XXVII (Spring-Summer 1961), 95.
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68
no o b lig a tio n to be e i t h e r l o g ic a l or a r t i s t i c and can
f r e e l y p r o j e c t h is h o s t i l i t y a g a in s t the world by u t i l i z i n g
any comparison he w ish e s.^
D ostoevsky's p r o t a g o n i s t s , a ls o extrem ely s e n s i t i v e ,
o fte n i l l , as the Underground Man, or j u s t recovered from
an i l l n e s s as P rin ce Myshkin, become s e n s i t i v e barom eters
of th e r e l a t i o n s between p e o p le . P h y sic a l i l l n e s s i s used
by Dostoevsky to i n t e n s i f y th e im pression of t o t a l i l l n e s s .
J u s t as P rin ce Myshkin’s e p ile p s y in The I d i o t foreshadows
f u tu r e e v e n ts , so Smerdyakov's e p ile p s y in The B rothers
Karamazov se rv es as a symbol of the g e n e ra l decay of the
Karamazov fam ily . H ip p o ly te ’s slow d eath by consumption
adds to th e g e n eral e f f e c t of i l l n e s s everywhere in The
I d i o t , and a ls o a ffo rd s H ippolyte an o p p o rtu n ity to a tt a c k
s o c ie ty . In The E te rn a l Husband, V e ltc h a n in o v ’s bad l i v e r
seems to foreshadow some of th e d eath s t h a t take p la c e .
Dostoevsky a ls o uses i l l n e s s t e c h n ic a l l y ; f o r example.
^ S a r r a u te 's anim al imagery can a ls o be r e l a t e d to th e
f a i r y t a l e symbolism which perm eates her n o v e ls. V. Propp,
Morphology of the F o lk ta le (Bloomington, 1958), p. 40,
l i s t s m agical agents:
” 1) anim als (a h o rs e , an e a g le , e t c . ) ; 2) o b je c ts out of
which h e lp e rs appear (a f i r e k in d le r c o n ta in in g a s te e d ,
a r in g c o n ta in in g young men, e t c . ) ; 3) o b je c ts p o sse ssin g
a m agical p ro p e rty such a s, c u d g e ls, swords, g u s la , b a ll s ,
and so f o r t h ; 4) q u a l i t i e s or c a p a c i ti e s which a re d i
r e c t l y g iv en , such a s , th e power o f tra n s fo rm a tio n in to
anim al form s, e t c . " i
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69
V e ltc h a n in o v 's l i v e r a tt a c k b rin g s out both the kindness o f
Pavel T rusotsky and a ls o h is murderous i n t e n t , and Smerdya
k o v 's e p ile p s y serv es as a conv en ien t ru se fo r evading the
a c c u s a tio n of m urder. However, D ostoevsky's i n t e n t has
wider im p lic a tio n s than t h i s ; he employs i l l n e s s in a sym
b o lic way as w e ll, and i n t e g r a t e s w ith i n f i n i t e s k i l l i l l
ness as a tech n iq u e and i l l n e s s in a p sy c h o lo g ic a l and even
p h ilo s o p h ic a l c o n te x t. W itness Raskolnikov in Crime and
Punishm ent: beyond s u s p ic io n , a t l e a s t a t the b eginning,
due to h is i l l n e s s , l a t e r , th e very d i r e c t i o n h is i l l n e s s
tak es im p lies h is g u i l t .
D ostoevsky's genius d e riv e s in p a r t from h is a b i l i t y
to tra n s m it an idea from one le v e l to a n o th er as in t r a n s
fere n ce of p h y s ic a l i l l n e s s to an anguished s t a t e of mind.
Dostoevsky lin k s th e p sy c h o lo g ic a l to the p h y s io lo g ic a l in
vary ing ways: the p h y s io lo g ic a l s t a t e may prophesy a
tra u m a tic c o n c lu sio n due to p sy c h o lo g ic a l s t r e s s as in The
I d i o t ; i t may in d ic a te c o rru p tio n of th e sou l as in the
cases of two o f D ostoevsky's e p i l e p t i c s , Smerdyakov and
S v id r ig a ilo v , or i t may in d ic a te a p sy c h o lo g ic a l d i s t u r
bance as in th e cases of L isa in The B roth ers Karamazov and
V eltchaninov in The E te rn a l Husband. Undoubtedly, th e phys
i c a l lin k e d to th e m ental c o n d itio n g iv es g r e a te r power and
g r e a te r lo g ic to th e c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n s . L e tte rs from th e
Underworld begin s w ith the p r o t a g o n i s t 's announcing: "I am
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permission.
70
i l l , I am f u l l o f sp le en and r e p e l l e n t " (p. 5).^® D ostoev
s k y 's Underground Man, a s ic k man, a ls o finds l i f e te d io u s
and u n p le a s a n t, which seems re a so n a b le co n sid erin g h is
p h y s ic a l c o n d itio n . However, " r e p e l l e n t " does n o t n e c e s
s a r i l y have to follow ; the tra n s m is s io n from the p h y s ic a l
to the m ental s t a t e becomes most e v id e n t at t h i s p o i n t , and
Dostoevsky proceeds to develop th e d is tu rb e d m ental s t a t e
o f the p r o t a g o n i s t , almost f o r g e t t i n g th e c a t a l y s t o f phys
i c a l i l l n e s s . The Underground Man p e rtu rb e d by the behav
io r o f o th e r people whom he re g a rd s as b o rin g , i n s i n c e r e ,
and f r e q u e n tly i n t e n t i o n a l l y c r u e l , consequently behaves
in the same way; however, he always becomes u p se t when he
is t r e a t e d w ith in d if f e r e n c e o r co ld n e ss.
Dostoevsky uses the d is tu r b e d p h y s ic a l and psycho
l o g ic a l s t a t e o f h is p r o ta g o n is ts f o r the purpose o f a t
tack in g the b la s é and h y p o c r i t i c a l r o le s adopted by many
p eo p le. Dostoevsky is more than " 1 ' anatom iste le p lu s
grand de l'âm e i r r i t a b l e e t m a l a d e . He i s a lso th e
anatom ist o f a d reary and f a l s e s o c i e t y . He employs h i s
i r r i t a b l e c h a r a c t e r s , unable to fu n c tio n s a t i s f a c t o r i l y
w ith in the humdrum s o c ie ty , as a weapon w ith which to
a tta c k s o c i e t y . Dostoevsky avoids d id a c tic is m by h is
lOpor comparison w ith th e R ussian , see Z apiski i z
po d p o ly a, p. 401.
l^ S te fa n Zweig, D o sto ïe v sk i, t r a n s . Henri Bloch
( P a r is , 1928) , p. 118.
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71
t r u t h f u l re n d e rin g of th e d is tu r b e d p e r s o n a l i t y , who lacks
awareness of h is own trap p e d r o l e . The u n r e l i a b l e n a rra to r,
h im self a v ic tim , n e v e r th e le s s h i g h li g h t s the s e n s i t i v e
a re as of th e human p e r s o n a l i t y , and a tte m p ts to grap ple
w ith h im se lf w hile s tr u g g lin g towards a w o rth ie r r e l a t i o n
ship w ith o t h e r s .
However they s t r i v e , D ostoevsk y's c h a ra c te r s f e e l
them selves v ic tim s surrounded by th e h o s t i l e w orld, and
they c o n fess t h e i r f e a r s p a s s io n a te ly in th e hope of l i b e r -
12
a tin g them selves. This f e e lin g of a n x ie ty , and even more
than a n x ie ty , p h y s ic a l and m ental an g uish and menace, is
found in n e a rly a l l of D ostoevsky's work, c e r t a i n l y in The
P o sse sse d ; Crime and Punishm ent; The I d i o t ; L e tte r s from
th e Underworld; Poor F o lk ; The Gambler; The Double; and i t
i s dem onstrated p a r t i c u l a r l y v i v i d l y in h is s h o rt s to r y ,
"The L andlady." The e x t e r n a l i z a t i o n of a n x ie ty and f e a r in
the fa c e of an unknown menace o f te n develops in to extreme
h o s t i l i t y towards o th e r s . F re q u e n tly in D ostoevsky's work,
and ex em p lified by th e works j u s t m entioned, f e a r and h o s
t i l i t y p r o j e c t a c h a r a c te r toward a s i t u a t i o n where he w i l l
e v e n tu a lly be harmed or d e stro y e d . R askolnikov in Crime
IZ s te fa n Zweig says t h a t Dostoevsky c o n sid ers a man a
hero only i f he i s f u l l of s e l f - c o n f l i c t : " i l n'aim e ses
personnages que dans l a mesure où i l s s o u f f r e n t , où i l s ont
l a d u a l i t é , l a s u r te n s io n de sa p ro p re v ie . . . " in
D ostoievsky ( P a r is , 1928), p. 118.
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72
and Punishment was alre ad y in an anxious and h o s t i l e s t a t e
of mind b e fo re he murdered the o ld pawnbroker and h er s i s
t e r , and th u s s t a r t e d the chain of events t h a t re a c te d
a g a i n s t him; in The I d i o t , Rogozhin, a lre a d y a n ta g o n is tic
toward s o c i e t y , in v ite d f o l l y , as d id th e n e u ro tic Under
ground Man. D ostoevsky's s i t u a t i o n s appear to stem i n e v i
ta b ly from th e n a tu re s of h is c h a r a c t e r s , and they a t t a i n
g r e a t e r e f f e c t i v e n e s s as a r e s u l t of t h i s apparent depen
dence. He a ls o c a r e f u l l y t i e s th e development of h is c h a r
a c t e r s to t h e i r r e l a t i o n s h i p s in s o c ie ty and t h e i r acc ep
tan c e by i t . His c h a r a c te r s long f o r love and a p p re c ia tio n ,
b u t a re always r e j e c t e d or ig n o red , and t h i s d is d a in f u l
tre a tm e n t by o th e rs gives them t e r r i b l e complexes.
D o sto ev sk y 's c h a ra c te rs f e a r a b s o rp tio n by s tro n g e r
p e r s o n a l i t i e s . Although some of th e c h a ra c te rs in The
I d i o t r e g a rd P rin c e Myshkin w ith tremendous awe, o th e rs
c o n sid er h is h onesty dangerous.
D o sto evsky 's c h a ra c te rs f r e q u e n tly use animal and i n
s e c t imagery in order to d e f l a t e t h e i r enemies. Dostoevsky
a ls o a p p lie s a n im a l- in s e c t imagery d i r e c t l y to s tim u la te
comparisons between i n s t i n c t i v e beh av io r and t h a t of lower
c r e a t u r e s . Ralph E. Matlaw, w r itin g about The B rothers
Karamazov, c i t e s numerous re f e r e n c e s to s p id e r s , i n s e c t s ,
bugs, co ck ro aches, and r e p t i l e s in the novel:
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73
A ll the Karamazovs are sooner or l a t e r c a lle d i n s e c t s
or bugs, w ith much of the c o n n o ta tio n of M i t j a 's ' i n
s e c t l u s t . ' Ivan, M itja , Fedor P a v lo v ic, K atherina
Ivanovna and G rusen'ka a re a f f i l i a t e d w ith something
r e p t i l i a n , as a p e c u l ia r l y loathsome form of human
d e p ra v ity . M i t j a 's and Fedor P a v lo v iS 's sex u al p e r
v e rs io n s and F e ra p o n t's r e l i g i o u s v a g a rie s a re h e ra ld e d
by the s p id e r image. Fedor P a v lo v ic 's t h r e a t to crush
M itja l i k e a b e e t le , and Sm erdjakov's f e a r s of being
s i m i l a r l y t r e a t e d , f in d t h e i r cu lm in ation in Sm erdjakov's
cockroach in f e s te d room. The in c e s s a n t r u s t l e i s an
a u d ib le rem inder t h a t th e i n s e c t imagery, th e symbol of
human c o rr u p tio n , now c o n s ta n tly accompanies th e p a r
r i c i d e . 13
In L e t te r s from the Underworld, Dostoevsky compares
h is h o s t i l e p r o ta g o n is t to an offended mouse who augments
an i n s u l t through i t s own doubts and q u e stio n s u n t i l f i
n a ll y an i n f e s t e d swamp of m isunderstandings and m alignant
b i t t e r n e s s e n g u lfs i t :
There, in i t s d i r t y , s tin k in g underw orld, our poor i n
s u l t e d , brow -beaten mouse w i l l soon have immersed
i t s e l f in a s t a t e of c o ld , m alig n an t, p e rp e tu a l ran c o u r,
(p. 14)14
The "mouse" se rv e s as imagery to dem onstrate the dehuman
iz e d , a n i m a l i s t i c , m ental and em otional s t a t e of th e p r o
t a g o n is t.
The c lo s e a f f i l i a t i o n o f Dostoevsky and S a rra u te is
e x em p lified by t h e i r use of p h y s ic a lly i l l or weak p ro ta g -
l^R alph E. Matlaw, The B roth ers Karamazov: N o v e lis tic
Technique (The Hague, 1957), p. 30,
14por the Russian text, see Zapiski iz podpolya,
p. 408.
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74
o n is ts who a re a ls o m en tally d is tu r b e d , n e u r o tic , or a t the
very l e a s t , extrem ely s e n s i t i v e . These p r o ta g o n is ts , o fte n
u n tru stw o rth y n a r r a t o r s , or a t l e a s t e x c e ssiv e ly s e n s i t i v e
view ers of the r e l a t i o n s h i p s between men in s o c ie ty , u n
cover th e h y p o c r i t i c a l masks which men wear, and attem pt to
d isc o v e r a t r u e r view of l i f e . However, a p ro ta g o n is t in
c o n f l i c t w ith h im self o fte n p r e s e n ts an exaggerated and
d i s p r o p o r tio n a te view of e v e n ts . T heir u n r e lia b le n a r r a
t o r s add am biguity to the w r itin g s of Dostoevsky and S a r
r a u t e , and throw the problem of o b je c tiv e e v a lu a tio n to the
r e a d e r .
U n r e lia b le as the n a r r a t o r s may be, they n e v e rth e le s s
a re a b le to focus on n e g a tiv e o r absurd a sp e c ts of s o c ie ty ,
such as the com plexity of even elem entary communication,
which hampers r e c o g n itio n and lo v e. Dostoevsky and S a r
r a u te b o th p o in t out s o c i e t y 's r e s p o n s i b i l i t y fo r the d i s
t o r t i o n of p e r s o n a l i t y . A man r e j e c t e d by s o c ie ty , w ith
draws from i t , s u f f e r s i n t e n s e l y , and sooner or l a t e r ,
makes awkward and f r e q u e n tly , d e s p e ra te attem pts towards a
rapprochem ent w ith s o c ie ty . These attem pts a t r e c o n c i l i a
t i o n w ith s o c ie ty o fte n a t t a i n p re p o ste ro u s p ro p o rtio n s and
a re b e s t dem onstrated in S a r r a u t e 's P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu
and D o stoevsk y's L e tte r s from th e Underworld. The t r a g i
com ical r e s u l t s of the e f f o r t s of th e a lie n a te d in d iv id u a l
to conform, s tig m a tiz e s o c ie ty .
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75
Both Dostoevsky and S a rra u te use th e i l l and e x c e s
s iv e ly s e n s i t i v e or n e u ro tic p erso n in approxim ately th e
same way, b u t Dostoevsky a lso f r e q u e n tly employs i l l n e s s as
p a r t o f h is p l o t as w e ll as sy m b o lic a lly . Both auth o rs
c o n c e n tra te on u nderstan d in g man’s m o tiv a tio n s and p r e s e n t
ing a study o f s o c i a l b e h a v io r, and both are i n t e r e s t e d in
the i n t e r r e l a t i o n s h i p of the p h y s ic a l and the m ental. Dos
to ev sk y ’ s t r a n s p o s i t i o n of the two s t a t e s gives h is novels
g r e a t e r f o r c e , l o g ic , and a f e e l in g o f symbolic prophecy.
On the o th e r hand, S a rrau te has developed h er t r o p i s t i c
th eo ry o f a p h y s ic a l r e a c t i o n to every s i t u a t i o n , which she
c a r e f u l l y analyzes and c a te g o r iz e s , and then uses h e r nov
e ls as d em onstrations o f t h i s th e o ry .
Dostoevsky and S a rra u te b oth give d e ta il e d d e s c r i p
tio n s o f th e n e u r o tic p e rs o n ’s s e lf -c o n s c io u s n e s s , h is
f e a r s , th e way he ponders every g e stu re and every s t a t e
ment, h is tendency to overem phasize an a p p a re n tly t r i v i a l
e v e n t, and h i s viewing almost everyone as an enemy. Both
n o v e l i s t s a ls o c r i t i c i z e the c lic h e s t h a t serve as masks
of the t r u t h . S a r r a u t e ’s c h a r a c t e r s , f e a r f u l of r e v e a lin g
t h e i r w eakness, c lin g to the most commonplace of c li c h e s .
However, D ostoevsky’s c h a r a c te r s o c c a s io n a lly break through
the s i l e n t agreement among men to speak in courteous p l a t i
tu d e s , and in g r e a t spasms of c o n fe s s io n , they bare t h e i r
so u ls and d i r e c t l y a tta c k the f a l s e and h y p o c r i t i c a l in
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76
s o c ie ty .
Although th e c h a r a c te r s of Dostoevsky and S a rrau te
s t r i v e to p e n e tr a te th e anxious and h o s t i l e und erto nes in
s o c ie ty , they a re a ls o v ic tim s of s o c ie ty , and d e f i n i t e l y
f e e l t h a t they are v ic tim s ; in tu rn they r e a c t w ith a n x ie ty
and h o s t i l i t y even towards th ose who a cc ep t them. T heir
n e u r o tic s e l f - d i s l i k e p r o j e c ts to those around them, and
t h e i r longing f o r acceptance and love can only be achieved
on th e most tem porary b a s i s , as they c o n sid e r them selves
unworthy, and a re d i s t r u s t f u l of o th e rs ; th ey stan d p e rp e
t u a l l y on a p r e c i p ic e . When S a rra u te allow s love to e x is t
a t a l l , as in Le P la n e ta riu m , she p e rm its only a tenuous
u n c e r ta in lo v e , inundated by r e s e r v a t i o n s , some exp ressed ,
and o th e rs re p re s s e d . In f a c t . Le P la n étariu m tr a c e s the
lo v e -h a te r e l a t i o n s w ith in a fam ily , r e l a t i o n s d e l i b e r a t e l y
n e u tr a li z e d so t h a t th e fam ily may c o n tin u e to su rv iv e .
Dostoevsky p r e s e n ts lo v e .a s heaven, p u rg a to ry , h e l l , and
s a l v a t io n in n e a r ly a l l h is n o v e ls . For b o th a u th o rs , love
as an a ch iev e d , c o n te n te d way of l i f e i s r a r e . The p u r s u it
of lo v e, seldom rew arded, i s d iv e r te d to an acceptance of
the most o rd in a ry p erso n as lo v e r, j u s t as when the daugh
t e r in S a r r a u t e ’s P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu s e l e c t s an average,
un im ag in ativ e m id d le -c la s s man. In s e v e r a l novels by
Dostoevsky, i . e . . The B rothers Karamazov and Crime and
Punishment, a penance must be served b e fo re love can be
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permission.
77
a t t a i n e d . This id ea of penance i s why the p r o ta g o n is t in
The Possessed o f f e r s to go in to e x il e in S w itzerland w ith
th e two women he has wronged, f i r s t w ith Marya Timofeevna,
who i s mad and whom he m arried to t e s t h is p e rv e rse a t t i
tude towards lo v e, and l a t e r w ith Darya, whom he does no t
love. Only a few of D ostoevsky's c h a ra c te rs r e a l i z e l o v e 's
p o t e n t i a l ; th e m a jo rity are h aunted by the t a n t a l i z i n g but
u n a tta in a b le dream of love.
Both Dostoevsky and S a rra u te p re s e n t v iv id ly the n e u
r o t i c p e r s o n 's f e a r of a b s o r p tio n by a stro n g e r p e rs o n a lity ,
and h is consequent e f f o r t s to reduce o th er people to an
opprobrious s t a t e , o fte n by comparing them to anim als or
i n s e c t s . The n e u ro tic in d iv id u a l a ls o o ften dehumanizes
h im self in o rd e r to dim inish h is own v u l n e r a b i l i t y to a t
ta c k . His lo g ic : Who would want to a tta c k something l e s s
than human? Dostoevsky u se s th e same in s e c t imagery to
d e s c rib e s e v e r a l perso n s, b u t ten d s to lim it th e image to
one c o n n o ta tio n ; fo r in s ta n c e , th e b e e tle denotes c o rru p
t i o n . On the o th e r hand, S a rra u te l i b e r a l l y d i s t r i b u t e s
her in s e c t and animal com parison, o fte n to th e same p erso n
and w ith changing c o n n o ta tio n s . The same in s e c t and anim al
imagery re o c c u rs in her v a rio u s novels w ith th e ex ce p tio n
of th e most r e c e n t . E ntre l a v ie e t la mort where i n s e c t
and anim al imagery is alm ost e n t i r e l y a b sen t, and dehuman
i z a t i o n is achieved through th e g lo s s in g over of c h a r a c te r
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78
i d e n t i f i c a t i o n r a t h e r than by anim al or in s e c t images.
Since D osto ev sky 's re fe re n c e s g e n e ra lly have one co n n o ta
tio n , and S a r r a u t e 's i n s e c t re fe re n c e s a re e x te n siv e ly and
p o ss ib ly i n c o n s is te n t ly d i s t r i b u t e d , D ostoevsky's novels
gain power through t h i s tech n iq u e w hile S a r r a u te 's novels
perhaps tend to be weakened.
Another d if fe r e n c e between Dostoevsky and S a rra u te in
t h e i r use of in s e c t and anim al comparisons is t h e i r empha
s i s . Dostoevsky compares in o rd er to emphasize man's d e
p r a v ity , w hile S a rra u te p r im a r ily r e p re s e n ts man's dehuman
iz a ti o n . Since d e p ra v ity i s more a human co n d itio n than
the anonymity to which S a rra u te r e l e g a t e s man, u s u a lly Dos
toevsky, d e s p ite h is g r e a t un d erstan d in g of man's f a i l i n g s ,
holds out some hope fo r redem ption through love, as i n d i
cated in Crime and Punishment and The B rothers Karamzov.
In t h is re s p e c t perhaps Dostoevsky r e f l e c t s the n in e te e n th -
century view which s t i l l hoped fo r man's g rea tn ess d e s p ite
an awareness of h is f r a i l t y , and S a rrau te the tw e n tie th -
century view which more and more sees man as p la n t or
b e a s t, or even an o b je c t, and g r a n ts him l i t t l e , i f any,
human d i g n it y .
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CHAPTER V
THE DREAM W ORLD
In an i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of r e a l i t y as s u b je c tiv e and of
man as lo n e ly and n e u r o tic , i t seems n a t u r a l t h a t techniques
should be used in th e novel which m ight re v e a l th e t r u e ,
in n e r man. Hence th e use of the dream w orld, which ex
p re s s e s th e most p e rs o n a l of man's d e s ir e s by v i r t u e of i t s
removal from th e powers of i n t e l l e c t u a l r a t i o n a l i z a t i o n . ^
However, c u l t u r a l taboos a p p a re n tly p la y a r o l e in man's
uncon scious; and r e p r e s s io n , e v id e n t even in dreams, o fte n
e x p re sses the c o n te n t of taboos o b tu se ly in a f i c t i o n a l i z e d
form in o rd er to escape cen so rsh ip . I t can be co n sid ered a
p a r t of dream lo g ic t h a t time and space are ignored, t r a n
scended, or merged, and t h a t c h a r a c te r s condense in to one
composite c h a r a c te r or co n v erse ly , one p e r s o n a l i ty r a m ifie s
iThe id eas p re s e n te d on th e dream w orld in t h i s chap
t e r a re my s y n th e s is mainly of F re u d 's id eas as p resen te d
in The I n t e r p r e t a t i o n of Dreams, in clu d ed in Great Books of
th e W estern W orld, VôT~. LIV (Chicago, 1952) . This sy n th e
s i s a ls o in c lu d e s ideas from o th e r a u th o rs , s e v e ra l of whom
a re fo o tn o te d in t h i s c h a p te r. Also im portant to my i n t e r
p r e t a t i o n of the dream as used in f i c t i o n , a re Dostoevsky
and S a rra u te a t p r e s e n t, and the t r a c in g back through my
memory of the dream 's r o le in the n o v e l.
79
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80
in to d iv e rs e c h a r a c t e r s . The dream world com prises a world
of i l l u s i o n s , in c lu d in g the a c tu a l th o u g h ts of the sle e p in g
in d iv id u a l, and a ls o i l l u s i o n s which occur during the con
d i t i o n of sem i-w akefulness when s u s c e p t i b i l i t y to fancy is
h eighten ed and images d r i f t through the mind a p p a re n tly
w ith o u t p u rp o se. The daydream, more d e l i b e r a t e , u s u a lly
r e l a t e s d i r e c t l y to wish f u l f i l l m e n t d e s i r e s . The n i g h t
mare i s a v i o l e n t dream o ccu rrin g w h ile a s l e e p , and the
h a l l u c i n a t i o n t r a n s p i r e s w hile awake and e i t h e r p e rc e iv e s
n o n - e x is te n t o b j e c ts , or f a i l s to see a u th e n tic phenomena.
The im a g in atio n can a ls o f a b r i c a t e i l l u s i o n s during the
waking s t a t e , and i f th ese rove f a r a f i e l d of the u su a l r e
l a t i o n of t h i n g s , they e n te r th e world of f a n ta s y . A r e f
erence to the dream world in clu d es th e v a rio u s forms of
i l l u s i o n f a b r i c a t e d by th e mind e i t h e r in i t s sle ep in g or
wakened s t a t e , and a re fe re n c e to dream lo g ic r e f e r s to the
p a t t e r n th e dream ta k e s of breaking up or adding to time
and space, ev en t and p e r s o n a l i ty . S i t u a t i o n s resem bling
i l l u s i o n s a re c a l l e d dream like even though they e x i s t f a c
t u a l l y o u ts id e of the im ag in atio n .
L i t e r a t u r e d i f f e r s from the dream w orld in t h a t i t i s
c o n s tr u c te d d e l i b e r a t e l y . However, a work of im agination
as w e ll, l i t e r a t u r e f r e e l y a p p lie s th e v a rio u s techniques
of the dream w orld in an extrem ely m obile way, and j u s t as
i t chooses. I t can u t i l i z e the d is p la c e d in c id e n ts and
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permission.
81
time o f th e dream world to i t s own advantage, and a cc ep t or
r e j e c t p a s t p reced en t and knowledge of dreams. The n o v e l
i s t may use th e dream as the a n c ie n ts d id , to prophesy th e
f u t u r e , or he may l im i t h im s e lf to c h a r a c te r r e v e l a t i o n
through th e dream. He a ls o may f r e e l y extend the dream
w orld in to th e waking world and merge the two i f he w ish e s.
He may use the dream as a te c h n iq u e , as b a s ic s t r u c t u r e of
h is n o v e l, or in clude i t because i t forms an i n t e g r a l p a r t
of l i f e .
The n o v e l i s t has the advantage over l i f e in th e f l e x i
b i l i t y w ith which he handles dreams. He can ignore space
and c h ro n o lo g ic a l time j u s t as th e dream o fte n does, and
he can tra n sp o se t h i s concept of displacem ent to h is w r i t
ing s t y l e to form a more f l e x i b l e sy n ta x , thus u t i l i z i n g
th e im a g in a tiv e approach of th e dream as a re so u rc e in h is
own c r e a t i v e e f f o r t s .
The in c lu s io n of dreams extends the scope of l i t e r a
tu r e beyond e x te r n a l e x p erien ce and allows i t to p e n e tr a te
m an's p e r s o n a l i t y in order to r e v e a l h is unconscious d e
s i r e s . Dreams r e c a l l t h a t p a r t of th e p a s t which has a
v a l i d , s u b je c tiv e c o n n o ta tio n f o r the p r e s e n t. The i n t e r
p r e t a t i o n o f dreams p ro v id es the re a d e r w ith a f a s c i n a t i n g
t a s k , and f u r t h e r involves him in th e suspense of th e nov
e l ' s developm ent. Dreams in tro d u c e a v a r i a t i o n of th e co n
c e p t o f c h ro n o lo g ic a l tim e as they tend to e i t h e r condense.
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82
ex ten d , or ju x ta p o se time in much th e same way as they
in c o rp o ra te and d iv id e p e r s o n a l i t i e s . The u n i v e r s a l i t y of
dream c o n te n t, in clu d in g tec h n iq u e s or "dream lo g ic " such
as a n t i t h e t i c a l r e p r e s e n ta t io n and a c tu a l s u b s t i t u t i o n of
i n d iv id u a ls as a p a r t of th e dream 's concealment of t r u t h ,
dem onstrate t h a t the c r e a t i o n of f i c t i o n i s an in h e re n t
p a r t of m an's n a tu r e . The c re a t i o n of myth a c t u a l l y begins
in man's unconscious as he a tte m p ts to a s s im ila te , r e p r e s s ,
or c o n tr o l h is e x p e r ie n c e s .%
The dream world conceived as a g e n e ra l c a te g o ry , cov
e rs a l l dreams and i l l u s i o n s , f a n t a s i e s and h a ll u c i n a ti o n s .
N e v e rth e le s s , a d e f i n i t e d if f e r e n c e e x is ts between the
dream world used i m p l i c i t l y to ex press the im agin ative p r o
j e c ti o n s of c h a r a c te r s as S a rra u te e x p lo its i t , and th e
dream p re s e n te d as i t occurs e i t h e r in sleep or in h a l l u c i
n a tio n as d e sc rib e d e x p l i c i t l y by Dostoevsky.
The dream is used i m p l i c i t l y by S a rrau te in t h a t many
events d e sc rib e d by her h ig h ly d is tu rb e d p r o ta g o n is t a re
im po ssib le f o r him to have seen, and co nsequently, can be
co n sid ere d h is dream of a p a r t i c u l a r moment, even though
t h i s moment i s not s p e c i f i c a l l y d e fin e d as a dream. For
2p. D. Reeve says t h a t " l i t e r a t u r e is the m eeting
ground of th e dream and a c t u a l i t y , i s the r e a l i t y and the
p o s s i b i l i t i e s as w e l l ." In " In the S tink ing C ity: Dosto-
e v s k i j 's Crime and Punishm ent," The S lav ic and E ast Euro-
ean J o u r n a l, New S e r ie s , Vol. IV (XVI11), Mo. 2 (Summer pean
19% TTT,
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83
example, in P o r t r a i t d 'u n inco n n u , S a rra u te r e s t r i c t s h e r
s e l f by h e r p r e s e n ta tio n of a n a r r a t o r who i s a lso the p r o
t a g o n i s t . This p r o ta g o n is t must divulge c e r ta in th in g s
about th e f a t h e r and daughter on whom he is spying, and y e t
ob v io u sly , he cannot have been everywhere or have h eard a l l
the g o ss ip . C onsequently, c e r t a i n scenes appear a u th e n tic
although the p r o ta g o n is t has m erely imagined or dreamed
them, and has p r o je c te d h is im a g in a tio n based on g ossip and
h is own d e s ir e or whim, to p ie c e the events to g e th e r. For
in s ta n c e , h is d e s c r ip tio n o f th e n eighb oring women's i n t e r
feren ce in the u pbringing of the young g i r l alread y r e
se n te d by h e r f a t h e r , and t h e i r c o n sta n t reminders to the
f a t h e r o f h is duty, must have been a p r o je c tio n of th e n a r
r a t o r ' s im aginatio n as th ese th in g s could n o t p o s s ib ly be
known in such d e t a i l by anyone b u t the p a r t i c i p a n t s . The
same p r e s e n t a ti o n of dream as f a c t occurs in the major i n
c id e n t o f the novel when the p r o t a g o n i s t - n a r r a t o r , who was
n o t t h e r e , d e sc rib e s th e fam ily q u a r r e l over money. This
in c id e n t achieves even g r e a t e r momentum by the incestu o u s
re fe re n c e s used to d e sc rib e the m utual h a tr e d and d i s t r u s t
of the f a t h e r and daugh ter. I t i s e i t h e r the r e p o rt o f a
p r o ta g o n is t who sees through w a l l s , o r o f one who p r o j e c ts
h is own dream of the s i t u a t i o n , a dream which of c o u rse,
may be based on r e p o r t s , g o s s ip , and h is own w ish fu l
th in k in g .
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permission.
84
In M a rte re a u , a ls o , the nephew, who is th e n a r r a t o r -
p r o ta g o n is t, d e s c rib e s a number of s i t u a t i o n s which can
only be an e x te n s io n of the th in g s he a lre a d y knows. He
t e l l s of a p a r t i c u l a r l y p r iv a te moment in the liv e s of h is
aunt and u n c le , and a t ê t e - à - t ê t e between h is aunt and
M artereau in a t e a shop. G ranting th e p o s s i b i l i t y of h is
seeing M artereau and h is aunt having t e a t o g e th e r , n e v e r
th e le s s he c e r t a i n l y could not have h eard t h e i r co n v ersa
t io n w ith a l l i t s nuances; however, h is dream e ag e rly f i l l s
in th e c o n v e rs a tio n .
The g r e a t e s t scope fo r the p r o t a g o n i s t 's dream world
i s in th e r e l a t i o n s h i p between M a rte re a u 's w ife and M arte
re a u . P re se n te d as r e a l i t y , i t p r o j e c t s the p r o t a g o n i s t 's
in fe re n c e of th e lim i ta t io n s of M a rte re a u 's m arriag e, an
in fe re n c e p a r t l y based on j u d i c i a l o b se rv a tio n and p a r t l y
based on th e p r o t a g o n i s t 's d e s ir e to see M artereau as i n
s i g n i f i c a n t . This "dream" throws l i g h t on man's s u b je c tiv e
development, b u t i t is u n c e rta in whether or n o t i t r e l a t e s
to M artereau.
S a rra u te a ls o uses myth and f a i r y t a l e as p a r t of the
dream like atm osphere, and enhances h e r techn ique by her
m etap h o rical use of e ro tic is m to d e s c r ib e n o n -e ro tic i n c i
d e n ts . The fo llo w in g q u o ta tio n dem o nstrates both S arrau te's
a p p lic a tio n of the f a i r y t a l e and of e r o t i c metaphor to a
scene imagined by th e p r o ta g o n is t, one he could not have
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85
p o s s ib ly w itn e s se d , th e argument over money between the
f a t h e r and h is daughter in P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu:
Comme A lic e au Pays des M e rv e ille s , quand e l l e a bu le
contenu du f la c o n enchanté, s e n t q u ’e l l e change de forme,
r a p e t i s s e , s 'a l l o n g e , i l le u r semble que le u r s contours
se d é fo n t, s ' é t i r e n t dans tous le s se n s , le s c arap a c es,
le s armures cra q u en t de to u te s p a r t s , i l s so n t nus, sans
p r o t e c t i o n , i l s g l i s s e n t , en la cé s l 'u n à l ' a u t r e , i l s
descendent comme au fond d 'u n p u i t s . . . (p. 175)
S a rra u te uses an o th er i n t e r e s t i n g te c h n iq u e when she
in v e s ts h er c h a r a c te r s w ith a d rea m lik e , condensed q u a l i t y ,
th ere b y a b s t r a c ti n g t h e i r i n d i v i d u a l i t y , and c r e a tin g a
kind of a b s t r a c t , composite p e r s o n a l i t y . For in s ta n c e , she
r e f e r s to a l l of the fem inine neighbors in P o r t r a i t d 'u n
inconnu as "they " and extends t h i s im personal re fe re n c e to
the o u ts id e world in h er n o v e ls. "They" a re th e normal
people who use p l a t i t u d e s and t r y to reduce the world to a
s i m p l i s t i c c o n s t r u c t .
In a l l of her n o v e ls , but p a r t i c u l a r l y in Les F r u i t s
d 'o r and E ntre la v ie e t l a m o rt, S a rra u te so d e creases
p e rs o n a l i d e n t i t y and combines p e r s o n a l i t i e s t h a t the
re a d e r only vaguely p e rc e iv e s a sp e a k e r, and tends to fuse
the v a rio u s p e r s o n a l i t i e s in to one or two c h a r a c t e r s , who
a ls o a re neb ulou s. This composite p e r s o n a l i t y d e riv e s from
dream l o g i c ,^ and forms a c e n t r i f u g a l p a r t of S a r r a u t e 's
^Freud, in r e f e r r i n g to h is th e o ry of co n d en satio n of
dreams, says: "We p e rc e iv e , as p e c u l i a r i t i e s of the con
densing p r o c e s s , a s e l e c t i o n of those elem ents which occur
s e v e r a l tim es over in the d ream -co n ten t, th e form ation of
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86
n o v e l i s t i c tec h n iq u e . P a r t i c u l a r l y , in E n tre l a vie e t l a
m o rt, the main emphasis i s on t h i s merging o f p e r s o n a l i ty .
From the c h a r a c te r s drawn so vaguely and from the b lu r re d
c o n v e rs a tio n s , i t appears t h a t S a rra u te wishes to demon
s t r a t e the nebulous q u a li t y o f man's l i f e .
Dostoevsky uses the dream on a v a s t s c a l e , both im
p l i c i t l y and e x p l i c i t l y . He im p lies a t tim es t h a t l i f e has
a hazy and even n ig h tm a rish q u a l i t y , b u t a t o th e r tim es, he
uses dreams in a s p e c i f i c way, as a n o v e l i s t i c technique.
As w e ll as fo r e x p o sitio n and d e f i n i t i o n , Dostoevsky uses
dreams in o rd e r to p e n e tr a te the re c e s s e s o f the uncon
scio u s mind and a lso to prophesy f u tu r e e v e n ts. In g e n eral,
D ostoevsky's use o f dream and dream techniq ue gives the im
p r e s s io n t h a t the power o f unconscious fo rc e s a c tu a lly con
t r o l s human d e s tin y , and th a t dreams can foreshadow e v e n ts.
There is tremendous v a r i a t i o n in D ostoevsky's use o f
dream te c h n iq u e . For example, in Poor F o lk , the dream t h a t
the p r o t a g o n i s t has o f the b e a u t i f u l so u l of h is untouch
able h e ro in e makes l i f e worthwhile to him. His dream, a c
t u a l l y f a r from the t r u t h , n e v e r th e le s s se rv es as an a c tiv e
new u n i t i e s (com posite p e rs o n s, mixed images) . .." In
The I n t e r p r e t a t i o n of Dreams in G reat Books o f the Western
World, Vol. XLIV, p. 2S91
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87
f o r c e , s u s ta in in g h is hope and b e l i e f in the w orld. How
e v er, in White N ig h ts , the p r o ta g o n is t has been l iv i n g in a
dream w orld, and when an event in the o u tsid e world touches
him and then suddenly ev an esces, r e a l i t y becomes dream lik e,
and he cann ot escape from h is s u b je c tiv e world to any o th e r
kind of e x is te n c e but the dream. In U n c le 's Dream, th e
r i c h , o ld u n c le has promised to marry a young g i r l , b u t h is
c r a f t y nephew convinces him t h a t h is p ro p o sa l of m arriage
was j u s t a dream. In t h i s c a se , the sim u lated dream forms
an i n t e g r a l p a r t of the p l o t . In The Gambler, two t o t a l l y
unexpected and seemingly m iraculous e v e n ts , the n a r r a t o r ' s
winning of b oth 100,000 gulden and P a u lin a on th e same
n ig h t has a f e v e r i s h , dream like tone due to the u n e x p ec te d
ness of e i t h e r p o s s i b i l i t y , and h is tra g e d y c o n s is ts of h is
f a i l i n g t o i n t e r p r e t the a c t u a l i t y as a dream; th u s , he i s
stunned when P a u lin a lea v es him, and c e r t a i n t h a t he can
make a n o th e r f o rtu n e i f he c o n tin u es to gamble; and f o llo w
ing h is f a l s e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , he proceeds to r u in h im s e lf .
The Underground Man, c o n v e rse ly , f l i e s from the e x te r n a l
world t o h is in n e r world o f dream s,^ and cannot cope w ith
^ F re d e ric k J . Hoffman, d e s c rib in g D ostoevsky's " u n d e r
g ro u n d lin g ," meaning n o t only th e Underground Man, bu t num
erous D osto ev skian c h a r a c t e r s , says: "The unfiergroundling's
reaso n i s d i s t a s t e f u l to him, f o r i t u n c easin g ly p o in ts to
th e f u t i l i t y of h is w ish es. Hence, he f i g h t s the rea so n
and p r e f e r s to i t the le th e of dreams and w i s h - f u l f i l l -
m ents." InuFreudianism and th e L it e r a r y Mind (Baton Rouge,
L o u isia n a, 1945), p. iZÔ.
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88
love when i t is in r e a l i t y o f f e r e d to him.
Dostoevsky also uses the dream, as Temira Pachmuss
i n d i c a t e s , "to c a st l i g h t on the s p i r i t u a l essence o f h is
h e ro e s, t h e i r in n er l i f e , and t h e i r subco nscio us."^
G oly adkin 's dream in The Double o f a double who has a l l the
s o c i a l refinem ents t h a t he l a c k s , exposes h is longing to
belong, to tran sce n d h im s e lf. When the double becomes a
r e a l i t y , an oth er Golyadkin accep ted and p ra is e d by everyone,
b u t then proceeds to b e tra y the o r i g i n a l Golyadkin who has
dreamed him in to e x is te n c e , the trag ed y of the o r i g i n a l
Golyadkin becomes even more a p p a re n t. He has power only to
dream, and i s otherw ise com pletely i n e f f e c t u a l .
In novel a f t e r novel of D o sto e v sk y 's, an im aginary
w orld i s c re a te d through the agency of v is io n a ry and h a l
lu c in a to r y moments. This is t r u e o f The Double, Crime and
Punishm ent, The I d i o t , The P o s s e s s e d , The E te rn a l Husband,
The B ro th ers Karamazov, and a ls o D ostoevsky's s h o r t s t o r y ,
"Dream o f a Strange Man"; a l l c o n ta in a m u ltitude of
dream like moments which seem to tra n s c e n d r e a l i t y . &
^Temira Pachmuss, "The Technique of Dream-Logic in the
Works o f D o s to e v sk i]," The S la v ic and E ast European J o u rn a l,
New S e r i e s , Vol. IV (X V III), No. 3 ( F a l l , 1960J, 220.
^Temira Pachmuss comments on D ostoevsky's purpose in
using dreams: "The author focuses h is a tt e n t i o n on th e
innerm ost re c e s se s of man's subconscious and by means of
h is dream -lo gic technique shows th e in n e r r e a l i t y o f man,
and the fundam ental in co n g ru ity between o b je c tiv e r e a l i t y
and man's s u b je c tiv e e x p e rie n c e ." I b i d . , p. 239.
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permission.
89
The numerous dreams and nightm ares of Raskolnikov in Crime
and Punishment confuse h is judgment about dream and r e a l i t y ;
f o r in s ta n c e , when he awakens a f t e r a nightm are and sees
S v id r ig a ilo v se ate d by h is b e d sid e , Raskolnikov th in k s t h a t
*7
S v id r ig a ilo v is p a r t of h is dream. One of the most f a n
t a s t i c scenes in The I d i o t d e s c rib e s R ogozhin's appearance
b e fo re H ippolyte in a nightm are. When H ippolyte fin d s the
door open th e n ext morning, he su s p e c ts t h a t he had not
a c t u a l l y been dream ing. The I d i o t , as w e ll as Crime and
Punishment has a dream like q u a li t y throughout.® Many
scenes in The P ossessed which a re n o t a c t u a l l y dream scenes
n e v e r th e le s s have a dream like q u a l i t y , as in S ta v ro g in ’s
n o c tu r n a l v i s i t s to Shatov and K ir ilo v , and h is meeting
w ith the c o n v ic t Fedka who o f f e r s to murder S ta v ro g in 's
w ife , and a f t e r t h i s , h is v i s i t w ith h is w ife who has a c
t u a l l y dreamed t h a t S tav ro g in had th r e a te n e d to k i l l h e r.
^Donald Fanger says of Crime and Punishment t h a t " t h i s
whole novel i s l ik e a bad dream . . . " I n Dostoevsky and
Romantic Realism : A Study of Dostoevsky in R e la tio n to
B alzac. Dickens and Gogol [Cambridge, M ass., 1968), p. 206.
®Temira Pachmuss d isc u sse s th e dream like n a tu re of The
I d i o t : "The c h a r a c te rs are seldom s u r p r is e d by any unex
p e c te d e v e n t, f o r th ey appear to have a p resen tim en t of a l l
th e s e happenings. . . . N a sta s ja F ilip p o v n a , Rogozin and
P rin c e Myskin a l l have a foreboding t h a t N a ta sja F ilip p o v n a
w i l l be murdered by Rogozin long b e fo re i t a c t u a l l y happens.
In a s i m il a r way. P rin ce MySkih knows t h a t Rogozin contem
p l a t e s m urdering him ." In "The Technique of Dream-Logic
in th e Works o f D o s to e v s k ij," p. 233.
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90
I t would appear t h a t Dostoevsky ju x ta p o se s dream and
r e a l i t y in The E te rn a l Husband m ostly f o r dram atic e f f e c t .
V eltchaninov n o t ic e s t h a t some one i s follow ing him. He
r e tu r n s home and goes to s le e p . Awakened from an obscure,
torm enting dream by h is door b e l l , he opens the door, b u t
seeing no one, th in k s th e sound p a r t of h is dream, and then
Pavel T ruso tsky suddenly a p p e a rs. L ater in th e n o v e l,
V eltchanino v awakens from a dream to f in d T rusotsky about
to murder him w ith a k n i f e . A t e r r i f y i n g r e a l i t y d is s o lv e s
the dream, and V eltchaninov f i g h t s f o r h is l i f e . In both
cases the dream has added suspense, and has p rep a red th e
re a d e r f o r the subsequent f a n t a s t i c e v e n ts.
The s p l i t t i n g of c h a r a c te r as i f in a dream can be
seen in the Karamazov b r o th e r s and t h e i r f a t h e r ; c o n tin u ally
drawn to g e th e r as i f composing one c h a r a c te r , they p u l l
a p a r t a t d e f i n i t i v e moments in the n o v e l, and e s t a b l i s h
t h e i r in d iv id u a l i d e n t i t i e s . The major dream, or r a t h e r ,
h a l l u c i n a t i o n , of The B ro th ers Karamazov, is t h a t of Ivan
and h is demon, or d oub le. The q u a rr e l between th e s e two
dem onstrates I v a n 's s e l f - c o n f l i c t and a ls o h is approaching
madness.^ T his d i v i s i o n of a c h a r a c t e r , t h a t i s of Ivan,
^Speaking of D ostoevsk y's use of dream, Janko L avrin
says: "Long b e fo re F r e u d 's and J u n g 's d is c o v e r ie s , D osto
evsky endeavored to a r r i v e a t the fundam ental n a tu re of
dreams and to show t h e i r s ig n if ic a n c e in a new l i g h t as
symbolic p r o j e c ti o n s of our unconscious in to our conscious
Ego." In Dostoevsky and h is C re a tio n , p. 46.
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91
in to two opposing f o r c e s , i s th e o p p o site of th e e x te n sio n
of c h a r a c te r in The Double when G olyadkin I c r e a t e s a
G olyadkin I I who p a r t i c i p a t e s in s o c ie ty s e p a r a te ly from
Golyadkin I. I v a n 's double i s a tta c h e d to him, and can be
seen by him a lo n e . R a th e r th a n th e p r o j e c t i o n of wish f u l
f i l l m e n t dreams to the p o in t of a b s u r d ity as in The Double,
I v a n 's double r e p r e s e n ts th e d u a l i t y of man's n a tu re and
th e i n f i n i t e agony of t h a t d u a l i t y .
In "The Dream of a S tran g e Man," th e p r o t a g o n i s t 's
dream view of a harm onious e x is te n c e p la y s a d e cid in g r o l e
in h is l i f e , tu r n in g him away from d e s p a ir and s u ic id e and
towards love of h i s f e llo w man. However, he must have had
an in n e r love o f l i f e even b e fo re th e dream, f o r as he him
s e l f says:
C hîjT, K am eT O A , c rp e M M T H e p a a y a o x , a m e z a n n e , h r r o J tO E a .
a cepAUe . ' . .10
( I t would seem t h a t dreams a re g e n e ra te d not by th e i n
t e l l e c t b u t by d e s i r e s , n o t by the b r a i n b u t by th e
h e a r t .) 11
I f we can assume t h a t th e p r o t a g o n i s t 's b e l i e f is a ls o
D o sto ev sk y 's view , t h i s s u b s t a n t i a t e s D o sto ev sk y 's a t t a c h
ment to th e n o n - r a t i o n a l , and a ls o h i s e x te n s io n of m an's
l^D ostoevsky, "Sonj smishnogo c h e lo v k a ," i n Dnevnik
p i s a t e l y a za 1877 god ( B e rlin , 1922), p . 167.
l^D ostoevsky, "Dream of a S trang e Man," in D iary of a
W rite r , V ol. I I , t r a n s . B oris B raso l (London, 1949), p. 678.
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s u b je c tiv e w orld to the drüam w orld understood as tru e
r e a l i t y evoked by emotions in s te a d of by m ental p ro c e s s e s .
The d if f e re n c e between Dostoevsky and S a rrau te in
t h e i r tre a tm e n t o f the dream v a r ie s c o n sid era b ly . This
d iff e r e n c e emerges in t h e i r re s p e c tiv e trea tm e n t o f c h a ra c
t e r , p l o t , and a lso in the o v e r a l l e f f e c t of t h e i r n o v e ls.
S a rra u te uses the dream as a tech n iq u e; her c h a ra c te rs
blend in to one anoth er as they might in a dream, b u t t h e i r
a c t i v i t y remains m inim al, t h e i r c o n v ersatio n b a n a l, and
t h e i r e x is te n c e confined to the s u rfa c e . S a r r a u t e 's a t
tempt to i n f e r the unconscious from the su rfa ce b a n a l it y of
a group m eltin g to form one s i n g u l a r , s u p e r f i c i a l n o n e n tity ,
m ight have had only dubious su c c e s s , i f i t were n o t f o r one
n o n e n tity who c o n tin u a lly r e s i s t s t h i s p ro c e ss , and t r i e s
to communicate w ith an o th e r vague form, who may be a son as
in E ntre l a v ie e t l a mort or a n o th er read er o f the same
books, as in Les F r u its d ' o r . On the o th e r hand, Dostoev
s k y 's g e n e r a lly w e ll- d e f in e d c h a ra c te rs evoke a pow erful
dream like mood. D ostoevsky's emphasis on d ark n ess, v io le n t
p a s s io n , i l l n e s s , and g o th ic drama, produces an e f f e c t o f
t e r r i f y i n g , n ig h tm a rish u n r e a l i t y . Although Dostoevsky
o c c a s io n a lly u t i l i z e s dreams, v i s i o n s , n ig htm ares, and h a l
l u c i n a t i o n s alm ost as i f they were r e a l , such as in
S v i d r i g a i l o v 's nightm are j u s t b e fo re h is s u ic id e in Crime
and Punishm ent, n e v e r t h e l e s s , th e g r e a t e s t p o r tio n of h is
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permission.
93
dream world adds mood and i n s i g h t in to t o t a l or cosmic r e
a l i t y . Thus, fo r Dostoevsky, the dream a m p lifie s r e a l i t y
by p e n e tr a tin g th e in n er re c e s s e s of th e h e a r t . Dostoevsky
shows t h a t the dream forms an im portant p a r t of l i f e , and
f r e q u e n tly i t has more in h e r e n t v alu e th an r e a l i t y i t s e l f .
J u s t as th e dream world adds scope to r e a l i t y , co nv ersely,
a t tim es D o stoevsk y's e x te r n a l world resem bles a dream.
S a r r a u t e 's r e a l w orld, on the c o n tr a ry , f a r from
dream like in n a tu r e , i s s p e c i f i c and d e t a i l e d . Her use of
dream te c h n iq u e , however, p r o je c ts events which a re u n c e r
t a i n or perhaps n o n - e x is te n t except in th e p r o t a g o n i s t 's
im a g in a tio n , in to the o b je c tiv e world. T his kind of day
dreaming assumes a p o s i t i v e form in S a r r a u t e 's n o v e ls, and
p la y s a d e f i n i t i v e r o l e in composing her o r i g i n a l technique.
While S a rra u te rem ains unconcerned w ith th e dream per se,
and perhaps unaware of dream lo g ic , she n e v e r th e le s s uses
i t s nebulous q u a l i t i e s as a technique by m erging p e r s o n a l i
t i e s so t h a t th ey lo se alm ost a l l in d iv id u a l i d e n t i t y .
This i s p a r t i c u l a r l y e v id e n t in Les F r u i t s d 'o r and Entre
l a v ie e t la m o r t.
For Dostoevsky the dream a ls o p ro v id es s t r u c t u r a l
a s s i s t a n c e , altho ugh not fo r the merging o f c h a r a c te r s , but
r a t h e r as a d is c e rn in g of c h a ra c te r or a m o tiv a tin g fo rce
fo r a c t i v i t y , or as an i n t r i n s i c p a r t of th e p l o t as in
"Dream of a S trang e Man" and U n cle's Dream.
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94
Although S a rra u te views inner r e a l i t y as the r e a l i t y ,
she does not d i r e c t l y p o s t u l a t e the dream as re p re se n tin g
in n e r r e a l i t y . However, f o r Dostoevsky th e dream r e p r e
s e n ts r e a l i t y to th e e x te n t t h a t the two worlds merge, and
r e a l i t y a ls o seems l ik e a dream.
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CHAPTER VI
MYTH AND FAIRY TALE
A myth i s a s to r y which r e p r e s e n ts an i n t u i t i o n of
unconscious r e a l i t y , t h a t i s , t h a t r e a l i t y which i s b a s ic
to th e human b e in g , bu t which i s n o t imm ediately s e e n .^
The myth, by v i r t u e of i t s s t o r y , touches on t h i s unseen
r e a l i t y and exposes i t , b u t i t does so s u b tly r a t h e r than
in open d is c u s s io n . Myth d e a ls w ith c u l t u r a l l y or p e rs o n
a l l y r e p re s s e d m a t e r i a l, and even p r o t e c ts t h i s m a te r ia l
from d i r e c t exposure by p re s e n tin g arc h ety p e s which serv e
as r e f r a c t i v e agents in o rd er to evoke the deeper im pulses
of th e psyche. As a myth evolves through th e c e n t u r i e s , i t
becomes more dynamic and in c re a s e s i t s symbolic a s s o c i a
t i o n s , becoming an even more g rap h ic r e p r e s e n ta t io n of
% y i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of myth b a s i c a l l y c o in c id e s w ith
th e views of Ignaz G old ziher, Per Mythos b ei den H ebraern
und se in e g e s c h ic h tlic h e Entwickelung [L eipzig, 1S76J[, O tto
Rank, Das In z e st-M o tiv in Dichtung und Sage. Grundzüge
e in e r Psychologie des d ic h te r is c h e n Schaffens [L eip zig ,
19261. and a ls o h is e a r l i e r book. Per Mythus von d er Geburt
des Helden. Versuch g in e r psycho log iscnen M ythendeutung,
(L eip zig . 19221. and E rich Fromm. The F o rg o tte n Language:
An I n tr o d u c tio n to th e U nderstanding of Dreams. F a ir y
T ales and Myths (London, 1952). In g e n e ra l, throughout
t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n , except where fo otnoted, th e sta te m e n ts
r e p r e s e n t my view s.
95
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96
s u b je c tiv e r e a l i t y .
Myth, th e n , c o n s t i t u t e s a technique which would ob
v io u sly i n t e r e s t two w r i t e r s lik e Dostoevsky and S a rrau te
in t h e i r e x p lo r a tio n of s u b je c tiv e r e a l i t y . A d is c u s s io n
of the way in which th ese two authors use myth and fa n ta sy
should f u r t h e r c l a r i f y t h e i r d i s t i n c t i v e f e a tu r e s and also
t h e i r a f f i l i a t i o n , although i t is in the use of myth and
f a i r y t a l e , and p a r t i c u l a r l y in D ostoevsky's a s s o c ia tio n
w ith B i b l i c a l myth as c o n tr a s te d w ith S a r r a u t e 's m agical
fa n ta sy of the f a i r y t a l e , t h a t the two autho rs d iv e rg e .
Because o f the o r i g in o f myths in the r e p r e s s io n of
tabooed d e s i r e s , they fr e q u e n tly r e f e r to fo rb id d en sexual
r e l a t i o n s h i p s , p r im a r ily in ce stu o u s r e l a t i o n s h i p s , and also
to the r e s u l t i n g e x p re ss io n of h o s t i l i t y which may le a d to
murder o f e i t h e r th e m atern a l or p a te r n a l f i g u r e , whoever
sta n d s in th e way o f the in ce stu o u s d e s i r e . % Because they
deal w ith tabooed s u b je c ts such as i n c e s t and m urder, myths
u s u a lly d is g u is e the m a te r ia l by s p l i t t i n g or doubling
t r a i t s o f th e c h a r a c te r s and by condensing or e n la r g in g a
given a c tio n in much th e same way as dreams. In myths, a l l
g u i lt y a c tio n s may be i d e n t i f i e d w ith one c h a r a c t e r , j u s t
as a l l the p ra ise w o rth y a c tio n s may be a ssig n ed to an o th e r.
2". . . Aelternmorde oder K indestodtungen, Brudermorde
und G eschw isterkam pfe, g e s c h le c h tlic h e Liebe und Vereinigung
zwischen Kindern und A e lte rn , zwischen dem Bruder und der
Schw ester, die die Hauptmotive a l l é s Mythos ausmachen . . ."
Ignaz G o ld z ih e r, Der Mythos b e i den Hebraern und s e in e
g e s c h ic h tlic h e Entw ickelung (L eip zig , 1876), pp. 10 7-108.
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97
thus c re a t i n g an a rch ety p e.
F a iry t a l e i s s i m il a r in k in d to myth, b ut i t can be
d i f f e r e n t i a t e d in t h a t i t employs more magic and f a n ta s y ,
and o f te n p r e s e n ts i t s t o p i c s , a t l e a s t a p p a re n tly , in a
l i g h t e r v e in . The f a i r y t a l e a ls o i n t u i t s the unconscious
mind, and f r e q u e n tly i t p ro v id es a r e le a s e o f em otion, or
even th e p o s s i b i l i t y o f escape from d is tu r b in g em otions.
F a iry t a l e s d e riv e from b o th l i f e and myths and a p o s
s i b l e need o r d e s ire to e m b ellish m an's e x is te n c e by adding
m agical q u a l i t i e s . These q u a l i t i e s o fte n dem onstrate man's
weakness and in e f f e c t iv e n e s s . The f a i r y world has g r e a t e r
power than man and can p e rs o n ify moral p r in c ip a ls such as
good and e v i l , and a t times seems to dare men to g r e a t e r
achievem ent. However, a t the same tim e, f a ir y t a l e s u s u
a l l y f u n c tio n as e i t h e r d e l i g h t f u l d i s t r a c t i o n o r m o r a l is
t i c e d u c a tio n f o r c h ild re n .
I n s o f a r as f a i r y t a l e s e n t e r the ad u lt w orld, they a s
sume a more s o p h i s t i c a t e d n a t u r e , and can be more c lo s e ly
r e l a t e d to m y th s,3 and o fte n i n f i c t i o n , c e r t a i n l y in the
case o f N a th a lie S a r r a u te , f a i r y t a l e s shed l i g h t on the
unknown, which i s the b a s ic fu n c tio n o f myths. F a iry t a l e s
ten d to re c a p tu re a s p e c ia l s l y , e l f i s h q u a li t y and a ls o
3Svatava P irk o v a -Jakobson, in h e r in tr o d u c tio n to
V. P ro p p 's Morphology o f the F o lk ta le (Bloomington, 1958),
p. v i i , says t h a t P ro p p 's fo rm u la tio n o f the com po sitio n al
laws o f the f a i r y t a l e by s t r u c t u r a l signs in flu e n c e d
Claude L é v i-S tra u ss in h is i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f myth, b u t in
a n o th e r work, I s t o r i c e s k i j e k o rn i volsebnoj s k a z k i, Propp
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permission.
98
the elem ents of t e r r o r r e l a t e d to y o u th fu l f e a rs o f the
unknown. As used in modern p o st-F re u d ia n l i t e r a t u r e , the
f a i r y t a l e appears to be an a ttem p t to in clu d e the c h i l d ’s
w orld i n t o the a d u lt e x p e rie n c e . I b e lie v e t h a t t h is e l e
ment e x i s t s in S a r r a u t e ’s work. In t h is case, th e epochs
in which they wrote se p a ra te Dostoevsky and S a rra u te .
Dostoevsky wrote during a p e rio d when r e lig io u s a t t i t u d e s
s tr o n g ly in flu e n c e d in n e r man. S a rr a u te , who can be consid
e re d av an t garde in h e r own e r a , and th e re fo re unconcerned
w ith r e l i g i o n ’s e f f e c t on man’s s u b je c tiv e n a tu r e , gives
f u l l p la y only to the e a r l y f i c t i o n a l experiences which i n
v e s t l i f e w ith m agical p e r s o n a l i t i e s and e x p la n a tio n s .
L i t e r a t u r e , o f c o u rse, c re a te s new myths and symbols.
However, sin c e the b a s ic taboos s t i l l e x i s t , n o v e li s t s can
only add to and vary the r i c h m ythic-sym bolic a s s o c ia tio n s
a lre a d y i n e x is te n c e , hoping t h a t the more contemporary
a s s o c ia tio n s w i l l p rov ide a g r e a t e r u n derstan din g o f man’s
unconscious mind.
The novels o f N a th a lie S a rra u te d e al w ith myth and
f a i r y t a l e in s e v e ra l ways. The s t r u c tu r e of myth is con
t r a s t e d n o t only w ith the o v e r a l l s t r u c tu r e of the n o v e l.
"abandons the s t r i c t study o f form and s t r u c tu r e and d eals
in s t e a d w ith the a f f i n i t i e s t h a t e x i s t between the f a i r y
t a l e and r e l i g io n (myth and r i t u a l ) and s o c ia l i n s t i t u t i o n s
a t d i f f e r e n t le v e ls o f t h e i r e v o lu t i o n .”
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99
bu t a ls o f u n c tio n s in a c o u n te rp o in t r e l a t i o n s h i p w ith
modern l i f e , thu s en ric h in g th e n o v e l.
The in h e r e n t r e a l i t y of the myth a ls o re v e a ls d i s
g uised in c e stu o u s d e s ire s and re p re s s e d h o s t i l i t i e s . When
myth p r o j e c t s in ce stu o u s taboos in S a r r a u t e 's th re e novels
in v o lv in g s p e c i f i c c h a r a c te r s . P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu.
M artereau , and Le P la n etariu m , i t d e a ls w ith l a t e n t d e s ir e s
which are never a c t u a l l y o v e rtly e x p re ssed , although some
tim es su g g e ste d . For example, in P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu,
the s u s p ic io u s , p a ssiv e p r o ta g o n is t, b i t t e r l y h o s t i l e t o
wards the woman whom he cannot admit he d e s i r e s , conceives
of an in c e s tu o u s , lo v e -h a te r e l a t i o n s h i p between the woman
and her f a t h e r , and c o n s ta n tly s p ie s on them in an e f f o r t
to s u b s t a n t i a t e h i s s u s p ic io n s; t h i s is r e l a t e d by S arrau te
to Mary Bolkonsky and her f a th e r in War and P eace.^
In M a rte re a u , in c e s t and h o s t i l i t y extend to in clu de
b o th f a t h e r and mother s u b s t i t u t e f i g u r e s . The nephew's
Oedipal f e e l i n g s fo r h is aunt d i r e c t l y d e s c rib e h is a t t a c h
ment and a ls o h i s awe of h is a u n t 's m agical powers; she is
^ S a rra u te in tro d u c es l i t e r a t u r e and h i s t o r y as a p a r t
of m y th ical a s s o c ia tio n and compares the fa th e r -d a u g h te r
r e l a t i o n s h i p of P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu to T o ls to y 's c h a ra c
t e r s , P rin c e Bolkonsky and h is d aug hter in War and Peace,
and f u r t h e r compares the Bolkonsky r e l a t i o n s h i p with Jona-
th an S w if t 's G u lliv e r (p. 66). This analogy assumes
B olkonsky's h e lp le s s n e s s a g a in s t the a tt a c k of love j u s t as
G u lliv e r was h e lp le s s when a tta c k e d by the L i l l i p u t i a n s .
The V irg in Mary i s added as a n o th er f o rc e ty in g the P rin ce
to h is d a u g h te r.
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100
" l a p e t i t e p r in c e s s e l o i n t a i n e ^ . . . l a bonne fée " (p. 230)
who has m erely to wave h e r magic wand i f she wishes to
change th e em otional atm osphere. She i s a ls o a femme
f a t a l e , a s i r e n who a t t r a c t s and then devours men. Her
husband i s her s la v e , and even the s t a b l e , s o l i d M artereau
comes under her s p e l l .
In Le P la n e ta riu m , A l a in 's f a s c i n a t i o n w ith the o ld e r
woman-author, Germaine Lemaire, e x e m p lifie s ano th er Oedipal
s i t u a t i o n . This i s somewhat j u s t i f i e d by A l a in 's h i s t o r y ;
h is aunt had r a i s e d him w ith a good d e a l of pampering, and
s t i l l co n tin u es h e r s u b s t i t u t e mother r o l e . Germaine a ls o
r e p r e s e n ts a d e s i r a b l e woman, an i n t e l l e c t u a l goddess, who
has achieved some success as an a u th o r. A la in goes to
Germaine a f t e r he q u a r r e ls w ith h is w if e , G i s e l l e , whom he
has begun to i d e n t i f y w ith h is h a te d m o th e r-in -la w . Even
t u a l l y , however, both h is m o th e r-in -la w and w ife do c o rr u p t
him and persuade him to f o rc e h is aunt in to g iv in g A lain
and G is e lle h e r la rg e ap artm ent. At th e end of th e novel
A la in has succeeded in g e tt i n g h is a u n t 's apartm ent, and he
a ls o decides t h a t he no lo n g er i s so im pressed by Germaine.
Although the O edipal r e l a t i o n s h i p begin s to d is s o lv e as
A la in is e n tic e d by d a il y n o rm a lity , t h e r e rem ains a f a i n t
judgment of A l a i n - - t h a t he has b e tra y e d h i s a u n t, Germaine,
^The aunt i s beyond p o s s i b i l i t y of h is p o s s e s s io n .
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101
and h im self as w e ll, and th e r e is a lso an ambiguous h in t
t h a t the m ythical r e l a t i o n s h i p had g r e a t e r v a l i d i t y than
th e b a n a l, normal one.
G erm aine's e v o lu tio n i s converse to t h a t of A la in .
Her e a r ly m ythic a s s o c i a t i o n is t h a t of an o gre, or o g re s s,
f o r two re a so n s , b o th because of th e power of h e r c r e a t i v
i t y and h er own s e lf-im a g e . One d e s c r i p t io n of Germaine
speaks of her o g r e - l i k e t e e t h which w i l l devour e v ery th in g :
Vous avez remarqué ses dents? Large, p u i s s a n t e s , e l l e
c r o q u e r a it n 'im p o rte q u o i. Ha, ha, h a . . . Des dents
d 'o g r e . Un a p p é t i t de v i v r e . . . E lle dévore t o u t .
I n s a t i a b l e . (p. 151)
G erm aine's c r e a t i v i t y is d e scrib e d w ith th e same touch of
fa n ta s y :
La m a tiè re la p lu s m olle e t la p lu s in g r a te d e v ie n t
ferm e, dense, modelée p ar ses mains. Tout e s t bon
pour son immense a p p é t i t d 'o g r e , (p. 159)
F i n a ll y , G erm aine's co n cep tio n of h e r s e l f is of an a l l -
pow erful g ia n t:
E lle a c e t t e s e n s a tio n é tra n g e qui la prend p a r moments,
q u 'e l l e é p ro u v a it d é jà quand e l l e é t a i t e n fa n t,
l 'i m p r e s s io n de p e rd re l e sens h a b itu e l des dim ensions,
des p ro p o rtio n s e t de d e v e n ir immense--un g éan t chausée
de b o tte s de s e p t lie u e s qui l u i p e rm e tte n t d'enjam ber
l e f le u v e , le s p o n ts , le s m a is o n s ... e l l e p eu t so u le v er
c e t t e infim e e x i s t e n c e . . . i n f l é c h i r le cours d 'u n
d e s t i n , tra n s fo rm e r l 'u l t i m e m isère en l a p lu s haute
f é l i c i t é . . . (p. 166)
However, th e c o n c lu sio n to Germaine's development i s an
a tta in m e n t of warmth and humanity, th ese p o s i t i v e q u a l i t i e s
trium phing over Germaine, the o g re ss. While A l a in 's lo ss
of m ythic a s s o c i a t i o n appears n e g a tiv e , p a ra d o x ic a lly .
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G erm aine's m ythic lo ss emerges as p o s i t i v e .
S a r r a u t e 's ogre images in clude men as w e ll as women.
In M a rterea u , an a l l u s i o n is made to M a rte re a u 's te e th :
"se s d en ts d 'o g re l u i s e n t " (p. 237). In P o r t r a i t d 'u n
inconnu, th e f a t h e r denies t h a t he i s an ogre who has p r e
vented s u i t o r s from c a l li n g on h is d a u g h te r.
The clue to ano th er m ythical r e f e r e n c e in S a r r a u te 's
nov els is th e word, " q u ê ta n t," p a r t i c u l a r l y in M artereau ,
where th e nephew, p re s e n te d as a s e a r c h e r , a q u e s te r, a
voyager, a Telemachus journeying i n to the uncharted realms
o f th e mind and s o u l, f e a r f u l l y and h e s i t a t i n g l y searches
f o r a f a t h e r f i g u r e whom he can r e s p e c t .
Les F r u i t s d 'o r r e f e r s to the Theseus myth when com
p a rin g th e s e a rc h f o r a tr u e e s tim a te of a novel:
. . . vous ne pouvez pas im aginer ju sq 'o ù , ju s q u 'à quels
t r é s o r s cachés on e s t con duit quand on ose s 'a v e n tu r e r
a i n s i te n a n t ce f i l d 'A rian e dans sa main. (p. 97)
Among p r i m i t iv e t r i b e s , and l a t e r in myth, the group
accom plishes i t s i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w ith th e f a t h e r by devour
ing him. This a c t of s a n c t i f i c a t i o n a l l a y s the g u i l t of
in d iv id u a ls because the e n t i r e group p a r t i c i p a t e s . In
M a rte re a u . th e d e s t r u c t io n of the f a t h e r image is f i g u r a
t i v e , M artereau re p re s e n tin g the m y th ic al f a th e r - k in g whom
th e e n t i r e fam ily attem pts to d e s tro y .
The f a i r y t a l e a t tim es e x p re sses c u l t u r a l taboos as
myths do, bu t i t ten ds to c o n c e n tra te on m agical means of
wish f u l f i l l m e n t . In the f a i r y t a l e th e fo rc e s of good
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103
overwhelm th o se of e v i l . S a rra u te is fond of f a i r y t a l e ,
dream like com parisons, and a ls o of magic, such as the magic
wand which can subdue opponents. This magic wand appears
in S a r r a u t e 's e a r l i e s t work, Tropismes, as th e " b a g e tte "
" q u 'i l a g i t a i t doucement pour le s f a i r e o b é ir ." In M arte
r e a u , to o . Madame Récamier can c o n tro l th e em otional s i t u
a ti o n by m erely waving h er magic wand. J u s t as th e magic
wand c r e a te s a new w orld of fa n ta s y , magic words evoke a
d e l i g h t f u l atm osphere f a r removed from everyday b a n a l i t y .
P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu d e s c rib e s the e f f e c t o f magic words:
Le monde s 'é t e n d a i t devant moi comme ces p r a i r i e s des
c o n tes de f é e s , où, g râce à une in c a n ta tio n magique,
le voyageur v o i t se d ép lo y er devant l u i su r l 'h e r b e
é c l a t a n t e , p rè s des s o u rc e s , au bord des r u is s e a u x .
. . . (p. 87)
Once we have magic wands and magic words, i t i s only
n a tu r a l t h a t good f a i r i e s and bad f a i r i e s should fo llo w .
S a rra u te sometimes r e f e r s to s p e c i f i c f a i r y t a l e s as she
does in Le P la n é ta riu m , in her comparison of A lain and
G is e lle to P rince Charming and the Sleeping Beauty:
Leur f i l l e c h é rie e t son p rin c e charm ant, h é r i t i e r d'une
p u is s a n te m aison, chargé de p r é s e n t s . . . (p. 105)
G i s e l le , r e c a l l i n g her wedding to A lain (P rince Charming),
comments:
Les fé e s m aléfiq u es elles-mêm es se t a i s a i e n t , ta n d is
q u 'ils se t e n a ie n t to u s le s deux a in s i . . . (p. 57)
However, l a t e r , a f u r io u s and d i s i l l u s i o n e d G i s e l le changes
h er mind:
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104
. . . c ' e s t faux A lain e t e l l e . Du t o c , du trompe-
l ' o e i l , des images pour r e p r é s e n te r l e bonheur, e t
d e r r i è r e i l y a quelque c h o s e ... ces r i r e s des v i e l l e s
s o r c i è r e s . . . (p. 64)
S a rra u te dem onstrates h er awareness o f the s u b s t i t u
tio n of myth and fa n ta sy f o r h o s t i l i t y i n the follow ing
passage from P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu as the p ro ta g o n is t de
s c r ib e s h is f e e lin g s about the woman:
. . . je v o u d rais l a v o i r , comme l e s s o r c i è r e s de contes
de f é e s , v o le r par dessus le s chem inées, p oussan t des
c r i s a ig u s , t r i c o t a n t l ' a i r de ses jambes cro chues, les
pans de son manteau n o i r déployés au v e n t. Mais nous
ne sommes p a s , m alheureusement, dans un conte de fé e s .
Je dois m a i t r i s e r en moi le dégoût, l a haine qui monte,
(pp. 55-56)
Dostoevsky uses myth as a c o n v en ien t device to p o rtra y
re p re s s e d d e s ir e s and h o s t i l i t i e s . The i n c e s t i s s u b tle in
The B roth ers Karamazov, and i s seen p r im a r ily in D m itri's
p a ssio n f o r Grushenka who may be h i s stepm other; more ex
p l i c i t in the s h o r t s t o r y , "The L i t t l e H ero," which t e l l s
of the love o f an e le v e n -y e a r-o ld boy f o r a m arried woman,
and in Netochka Nezvanova which d e s c rib e s the p a ssio n o f a
young g i r l f o r h e r s t e p f a t h e r .
D ostoevsky's c h ie f o g re s, who can also be equated w ith
the d e v il , are the P rince in D espised and R e je c te d , the old
man in h is s h o r t s t o r y , "The L andlad y," and P ie r r e Verkhov-
ensky in The P o s s e s s e d . These men are d e s t r u c t iv e and
c ru e l to a degree unusual in most o f D ostoevsky's w r i t in g .
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105
sin c e he u s u a lly f in d s a redeeming f e a t u r e in even h is most
wicked c h a r a c t e r s , as f o r in sta n c e Fedor Karamazov, and
S v id rig a ilo v in Crime and Punishm ent, as w e ll as in h is
d e s tr u c tiv e fem inine c h a ra c te r s such as K a terin a in The
B rothers Karamazov and N astasya in The I d i o t , whose s u f f e r
ing e s t a b lis h e s t h e i r humanity d e s p ite t h e i r v io le n t tem
peram ents. The P rin c e , the old man, and Verkhovensky, how
e v er, a re u t t e r l y d i a b o l i c a l and r u t h l e s s l y i n t e l l i g e n t ;
they even have a sense of humor, b u t a re determ ined to win
t h e i r way a t a l l c o s t s , and they u t i l i z e the weakness of
o th e rs to t h e i r own advantage.
A number of D ostoevsky's c h a r a c te r s a re q u e ste rs a f t e r
the t r u t h and th e meaning of l i f e . Alyosha Karamazov and
a ls o P rin ce Myshkin in The I d i o t a re th e most s a i n t l y
q u e s te r s , w hile S ta v ro g in in The P o s se ss e d , a d ia b o l i c a l
experim enter, s t r i v e s to a r r i v e a t t r u t h by t e s t i n g a l l the
e x tre m e s.
Dostoevsky i s extrem ely concerned w ith the f a th e r - s o n
r e l a t i o n s h i p , one of the most common m y th ic a l themes w ith
i t s tre a tm e n t of th e c o n sta n t r i v a l r y between the son and
h is f a t h e r or w ith a s u b s t i t u t e f a t h e r who may be a t y r a n t .
In r e a c tio n to t h i s r i v a l r y , the son may become a s o c ia l
refo rm er, r id d in g th e e a r th of t y r a n t s and m onsters who
fu n c tio n as s u b s t i t u t e f a t h e r s . Such were the g r e a t m ythi
c a l s o c ia l refo rm ers as H e ra c le s, P e rse u s, Theseus, B e lle r-
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106
ophon, and Oedipus. In D ostoevsky’s n o v e ls , however, two
t o t a l l y d i f f e r e n t types of refo rm ers a re found; on the one
hand, th e v i n d ic t iv e P ie r r e Verkhovensky of The P o sse ssed ,
and on th e o th e r hand, the hum anist, Alyosha Karamazov.
Both th e s e c h a ra c te rs can be c o n sid e re d in o p p o sitio n to
t h e i r f a t h e r s , w ith the o p p o s itio n an i n t e g r a l p a r t of
t h e i r development as refo rm ers; however, they tak e o p p o site
d i r e c t i o n s , and th e re i s no resem blance in t h e i r c h a ra c te r
developm ent.
Each of Fedor Karamazov's sons h a te s him, w ith th e
p o s s ib l e ex ce p tio n of Alyosha, and each i s in a sense,
g u i l t y o f p a r r i c i d e , or a t l e a s t g u i l t y of d e s ir in g the
f a t h e r ' s d e a th . However, the murder of Fedor Karamazov
la c k s th e r i t u a l i s t i c q u a l i t y of th e murder of Shatov in
The P o s s e s s e d . Verkhovensky p la n s S h a to v 's murder by the
r e v o lu tio n a r y group which Shatov has l e f t , in o rder to
e lim in a te th e d i s s e n t e r and a t th e same tim e to u n ify the
group under h is dom ination through t h e i r common g u i l t fo r
th e m urder. However, once the murder i s done, m ythic p a r
a l l e l s crum ble, and the murder proves to have been a d i s
a s t e r which a n t i c i p a t e s the d i s s o l u t i o n of Verkhovensky's
o r g a n iz a tio n .
Dostoevsky does not use the f a i r y t a l e per se; he
comes c l o s e s t to the magic world in h is m ythic re fe re n c e s
to th e problem of good and e v i l . The sh e e r power of good
overcoming e v i l i s dem onstrated numerous tim es throughout
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107
The B ro th ers Karamazov; i . e . , Zossima p ersuades a murderer
to co n fe ss h is crim e and Grushenka is redeemed when her
love becomes s i n c e r e . Sonya in Crime and Punishm ent, a ls o
redeemed through lo v e, a c t s as a r e g e n e r a tiv e fo rc e ; and
the v i r g i n a l f ig u r e of Dounia d e fe a ts th e d e v il p e rs o n ifie d
by S v id r ig a ilo v .
The d e v il , as an im perso nation of e v i l , comprises a
m ythic s u b je c t which g r e a t l y i n t r i g u e s Dostoevsky. P ie r r e
Verkhovensky in The Possessed and the P rin c e in Despised
and R e jected a re human forms of th e d e v il. The P rin c e,
whose m otives rem ain c o n s i s t e n t - - h e wants money and pow er--
i s th e most d i a b o l i c , as he d e stro y s the romance of Natasha
and h is son in o rd er to marry h is son to a w ealthy g i r l .
Verkhovensky, a t l e a s t , has some s o c i a l id ea s which he
wishes to implement, b u t both h i s id eas and h is implemen
t a t i o n a re d i a b o l i c a l . His use of people to serve h is p u r
poses follo w s th e d e v i l ’s b e g u ilin g ways. Any path which
a ssu re s him of success i s j u s t i f i e d r e g a r d le s s whether i t
lead s to the dow nfall of o th e rs or n o t; i n f a c t , the down
f a l l of o th e rs seems to add to h is enjoyment. S v id rig a ilo v
in Crime and Punishment r e p r e s e n ts d e v i l i s h e v i l , and y e t
he has some c o n scien ce.
In c o n t r a s t , Dostoevsky w r ite s of a number of a n g e lic
s o u ls , even though some of them a re f a l l e n a n g e ls . Sonya,
the p r o s t i t u t e in Crime and Punishm ent, never r e lin q u is h e s
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108
her f a i t h and e s s e n t i a l goodness, and sta n d s ready to s a c
r i f i c e e v e ry th in g f o r a f r i e n d . An anonymous angel has
the p r o t a g o n i s t r e le a s e d from j a i l in The G am bler. Alyosha
Karamazov spends h is time ru sh in g about doing s e r v ic e s fo r
p e o p le . D m itri, on sending Alyosha as a m essenger to h is
f a t h e r and to K a te rin a , t e l l s him:
fl Mor 6m nocjraTi BCHKoro, ho mhc naflo 6biJio nocjtaxB
a a r e a a . (p. 135)
(I m ight have s e n t anyone, b u t I wanted to send an
a n g e l” p. 103.)
However, in s p i t e of the good an g els l ik e Alyosha and
P rin c e Myshkin, e v i l u s u a lly trium phs.
L it e r a r y r e f e r e n c e s abound in D o sto ev sk y 's n o v e ls .
Three a u th o rs who im m ediately come to mind a re D ante,
S c h i l l e r , and Shakespeare, p a r t i c u l a r l y S h a k e sp e a re 's Ham
l e t , an alm ost i n e v i t a b l e re f e re n c e in The B ro th ers Karama
zov, D o sto e v sk y 's novel about p a r r i c i d e . Ivan Karamazov,
th e t h e o r i s t who cannot a c t , i s th e most c lo s e ly r e l a t e d
c h a r a c t e r to Hamlet. E v en tu ally h is h o s t i l i t y lead s to h is
f a t h e r 's d e a th , and a lth o u g h he has n o t murdered him, he
f e e l s t h a t he i s r e s p o n s ib le .
Both S a r r a u te and Dostoevsky employ myth; S a rr a u te im
p l i c i t l y and Dostoevsky both i m p l i c i t l y , and a ls o e x p l i c
i t l y in o rd e r to i l l u s t r a t e id eas and to compare c h a r a c te r s
and s i t u a t i o n s to th ose in th e p a s t . D o sto ev sk y 's use of
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109
myth is b o ld where S a r r a u te 's is s u b t l e , v e il i n g the a s s o
c ia ti o n between s to r y and myth, and aiming a t the r e a d e r 's
i n t u i t i o n r a t h e r than a t h is d i r e c t p e rc e p tio n .
S a rra u te i s more concerned than Dostoevsky w ith in c e s
tuous o r p o t e n t i a l l y in cestuo us r e l a ti o n s h i p s handled in a
m ythical way. A Freudian c r i t i c would assume t h a t S arrau te
i l l u s t r a t e s a l a t e n t Oedipal r e l a t i o n s h i p in M artereau and
Le P la n e ta riu m ; a suspected E le c t r a , fa th e r -d a u g h te r r e l a
tio n s h ip in P o r t r a i t d 'un inconn u; and l a t e n t hom osexuality
in M a rterea u . Although Dostoevsky touches on the to p ic of
i n c e s t s e v e r a l tim es w ith g re a t fra n k n e s s , he emphasizes
h e te ro s e x u a l p a s s io n , and e le v a te s i t to a G od-like s t a t u s .
Where S a rra u te uses o g re-o g ress imagery in a th r e a te n
ing way, Dostoevsky in c a rn a te s the d e v il as e v i l in some of
h is c h a r a c te r s . Dostoevsky acknowledges e v i l as an a c tu a l
f o r c e , w h ile S a rra u te im plies e v i l as an und efin ed menace
lu rk in g in th e background.
Both S a rra u te and Dostoevsky have c h a r a c te r s who
q u e st; the nephew in M artereau t r i e s to p e n e tr a te the mind
and men's m o tiv a tio n s in a search fo r t t u t h and s t a b i l i t y ,
bu t h is scope is extrem ely lim ite d in comparison to the
q u e st of Alyosha Karamazov, or P rin ce Myshkin in The I d i o t ,
who se arc h f o r beauty and t r u th in a cosmic se n se , and
lim ite d in comparison to S ta v ro g in 's t r a g i c q u e st in The
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110
P ossessed to know a l l th e re i s to know in l i f e . ^
There is an absence of r e l i g i o u s re fe re n c e s in S a r
r a u t e ; fo r her the f a i r y t a l e c r e a te s a m agical world in
c o n t r a s t to the banal w orld. This i s more o r i g i n a l , b u t
perhaps lacks the s t r e n g th t h a t Dostoevsky gains from
C h r i s t ia n themes w ith t h e i r g r e a t e r em otional c o n n o ta tio n s .
In Dostoevsky, the p o s s i b i l i t y of redem ption seems a r e a l
p o s s i b i l i t y to the re a d e r whereas th e f a i r y t a l e f a n ta s y
of S a rra u te does n o t su ggest more th an comparison or w ish
f u l th in k in g .
The m yth ical d e s t r u c t i o n of th e f a t h e r i s re p re s e n te d
by S a rra u te in M a rterea u . In D ostoevsky's The B ro th ers
Karamazov, the f a t h e r is k i l l e d , and in The P o s se ss e d , t h i s
m y th ic a l theme reo ccu rs w ith S h a to v 's r i t u a l i s t i c m urder.
S h a to v 's w ife has r e tu r n e d s h o r t l y b e fo re the murder and
b e a rs S ta v ro g in 's c h ild whom Shatov u n h e s t i t a t i n g l y d ecid es
to a d o p t, th u s acc ep tin g h is f a t h e r r o l e . While th e d e
s t r u c t i o n of the f a t h e r in b o th of D ostoevsky's nov els i s
p h y s i c a l , in M artereau th e d e s t r u c t i o n is p s y c h o lo g ic a l,
aim ing a t d e stro y in g M a rte re a u 's r e p u ta tio n and s e l f - c o n f i
dence. This p sy c h o lo g ic a l d e s t r u c t i o n is a ls o accom plished
3ln th e novels of S a rra u te and Dostoevsky th e c h a r a c
t e r who search es fo r th e t r u t h i s p lay in g the same r o l e as
th e w r i t e r . This i s in a sense s a n c tify in g the r o l e of th e
w r i t e r , g iv in g him the h ig h e s t fu n c tio n of a l l , or a t l e a s t
tu r n in g him in to a p h i l o s o p h e r - a r t i s t .
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I l l
by th e group, in t h i s case th e fa m ily , each proceeding in
h is own way.
Both S a rra u te and Dostoevsky use l i t e r a r y re fe re n c e s
as p a r t of the c o n te x t of t h e i r novels and a ls o fo r mythic
p u rp o ses, as f o r in s ta n c e S a r r a u t e ’s use of the Bolkonsky
f a th e r -d a u g h te r r e l a t i o n s h i p in War and Peace as a m ythic-
l i t e r a r y p o in t of comparison w ith h e r n o v e l. P o r t r a i t d 'u n
inconnu, and D ostoevsky’s r e fe r e n c e to Ham let, a lso as a
b a s is f o r comparison w ith The B ro th ers Karamazov.
The a f f i l i a t i o n between S a rra u te and Dostoevsky in
t h e i r use of myth i s no t an e x act b u t r a t h e r a p a r a l l e l one.
Where Dostoevsky is c o n crete and b o ld , S a rrau te is i n d e f i
n i t e and h an d les her w r itin g more d e l i c a t e l y . What is
o fte n e x p l i c i t in Dostoevsky i s i m p l i c i t in S a rra u te . The
g r e a t e s t v a r i a t i o n i s S a r r a u t e ’s seeming a d a p ta tio n of
D ostoevsky’s d e v il- a n g e l f ig u r e s to an o g re-o g re ss and good
f a i r y - s o r c e r e r c o n s t r u c t . In t h i s , S a rra u te q u ite c l e a r l y
avoids g iv in g C h r i s t ia n or r e l i g i o u s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s , bu t
a t the same time attem p ts to d e a l w ith good and e v il by
using f a n t a s y .
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CONCLUSION
This d i s s e r t a t i o n has explored th e d if f e r e n c e s and
a f f i n i t i e s between N a th a lie S a rra u te and Fedor Dostoevsky
in reg a rd to t h e i r b a s ic concepts of r e a l i t y , t h e i r c h a ra c
t e r p o r t r a y a l, and t h e i r use of dream and myth as n o v e lis -
t i c te c h n iq u e s. I t has approached th e s e s u b je c ts from the
assum ption t h a t an a u t h o r 's concept of r e a l i t y is a d e t e r
minant of h is p o r t r a y a l of c h a r a c te r and of h is tec h n iq u e s.
This is not a r e t u r n to S a in te-B eu v e' s b io g r a p h ic a l ap
proach, bu t r a t h e r a d ed u ctio n of th e w r i t e r ' s concept of
r e a l i t y from h i s own s ta te m e n ts, and from h is works. F u r
therm ore, t h i s stu dy does f in d a c o r r e l a t i o n in an a u th o r 's
w orld concept and h is works. This c o r r e l a t i o n appears
v a l i d , a t l e a s t in re g a rd to the works o f S a rra u te and
Dostoevsky, and perhaps m e rits f u r t h e r e x p lo r a tio n .
Both S a rra u te and Dostoevsky d i s t r u s t o b je c tiv e r e a l i t y
and c o n sid er th e most s i g n i f i c a n t r e a l i t y a s u b je c tiv e ,
p e rso n a l one. They b o th attem pt t o expose th e boredom of a
p u re ly e x t e r i o r w orld in which banal p l a t i t u d e s a re r e
p e ated i n d i f f e r e n t l y . While S a r r a u t e 's n e u r o tic c h a r a c te rs
t r y to break throug h the w all of i n d if f e r e n c e to e s t a b l i s h
a r e a l c o n ta c t w ith o th e r s , they p e r p e t u a l l y f a i l , and
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113
d is c o n s o l a t e l y r e t u r n to t h e i r commonplace, d u ll e x is te n c e .
D ostoevsky, on th e c o n tra ry , allow s f o r an exten sio n of h is
concept of r e a l i t y to include a f u t u r e where men w i l l wish
to e x p ress them selves and share thoug hts and f e e lin g s w ith
t h e i r fe llo w man.
In an approach to r e a l i t y as s u b j e c t iv e , i t seems only
n a t u r a l t h a t S a rra u te and Dostoevsky should have c h a ra c te rs
who a re f u l l of in n er torm ent, caught in c o n f l i c t i n g , am
biguous r e l a t i o n s w ith o th e r s . They d e s c rib e c h a ra c te rs
sundered by th e am bivalent emotions of love and hate on
bo th th e e r o t i c and s o c ia l le v e ls of l i f e . T heir c h a ra c
t e r s , v ic tim s and oppressors c o n c u r r e n tly , when given an
o p p o rtu n ity , v en t t h e i r rage on o t h e r s . Dostoevsky and
S a rra u te d iv e rg e in t h e i r p r e s e n t a ti o n of c h a ra c te r in t h a t
D ostoevsky's c h a ra c te r s a re u s u a lly c l e a r and d i s t i n c t ,
w hile S a r r a u te tends to merge p e r s o n a l i t i e s and i d e n t i t i e s ,
forming one or a few c h a ra c te rs from a la rg e group in order
to r e v e a l th e s i m i l a r i t y of a l l men.
Both S a rra u te and Dostoevsky employ c o n tr a d ic tio n , am
b i g u it y and ambivalence f r e q u e n tly . They view man as a
b a ttle g ro u n d of id e a s , em otions, and s tr u g g le fo r i d e n t i t y .
I n tr ig u e d by the s u ff e r in g of th e in tr o v e r te d p erso n, they
c h a r a c t e r i z e him as exemplary of th e g e n e ra l paradox and
c o n t r a d i c t i o n , a fig u r e who m irro rs b o th the weakness of
s o c ie ty and th e com plexity of l i f e . While Dostoevsky a t
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114
tim es su g g ests e r o t i c s i t u a t i o n s , S a r r a u t e 's usage of e r o t
icism is f a r more ambiguous. The re a d e r rem ains u n c e rta in
whether S a rra u te is suggesting a c t u a l e r o t i c a s s o c ia tio n s
and r e l a t i o n s h i p s , or whether her use of e ro tic is m is
m erely l i n g u i s t i c , a m etap horical device to extend th e gen
e r a l tone of am biguity in her n o v e ls.
D o stoevsky's and S a r r a u t e 's e x p lo ra tio n s of man's
lo n ely s t a t e a ls o r e l a t e to t h e i r concepts of r e a l i t y as
s u b je c tiv e . T h is , of cou rse, a ls o r e f l e c t s t h e i r concepts
of s o c ie ty as so h y p o c r i t ic a l t h a t an h o n e st man has no
choice b u t to r e t r e a t from i t in to a s o l i t a r y l i f e . How
e v er, sin c e s o c ie ty can more e a s i l y o s t r a c i z e one man than
one man can ign o re s o c ie ty , e v e n tu a lly t h e i r lo n ely p r o ta g
o n is ts a ttem p t a r e c o n c i l i a t i o n w ith s o c i e t y . The process
of r e t r e a t from and a ls o of e f f o r t to r e - e n t e r a h o s t i l e
world a f f o r d s S a rra u te and Dostoevsky a means of both i n d i
v id u a l and s o c i a l a n a l y s i s . They show t h a t the lo n ely man
w i l l go to any extreme in order to e s t a b l i s h a r e l a ti o n s h i p
w ith o th e rs , b u t sin c e he has a lre a d y i s o l a t e d h im s e lf, he
can only s u p e r f i c i a l l y communicate. Although h is i s o l a t i o n
is unrew arding, he has become committed to a p e rp e tu a l
s t a t e of l o n e l i n e s s , a s t a t e f r e q u e n tly culm inating in
p h y sic a l i l l n e s s or n e u ro s is . Many of D ostoevsky's and a l l
of S a r r a u t e 's p r o ta g o n is ts are what might be termed i l l or
n e u r o tic , and a number of D ostoevsky's c h a r a c te r s a re
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115
c o rp o re a lly i l l as w e ll. A lso, th e i l l n e s s o f S a r r a u t e 's
p r o ta g o n is t in M artereau is p rob ab ly psychogeneric. Both
Dostoevsky and S a rrau te are cog nizant o f the close r e l a t i o n
ship o f th e p h y sic a l and em o tio nal. C e rta in ly N a th a lie
S a r r a u t e 's p o in t of d e p a rtu re , h e r b i o lo g i c a l or t r o p i s t i c
th eo ry t h a t minute p h y sic a l r e a c tio n s accompany every emo
t i o n a l re sp o n se , c le a r ly shows th e im portance she a tta c h e s
to the b e h a v io ra l a s s o c ia tio n of the two s t a t e s , w hile
Dostoevsky dem onstrates h is awareness by combining the
p h y s ic a l and the mental re p e a te d ly in h is works.
Although S arrau te and Dostoevsky use the n e u r o tic p e r
son as th ey use the lo n ely p e rs o n , t h a t i s , to c r i t i c i z e
s o c i e t y , they q u ite h o n e stly p r e s e n t the n e u ro tic i n d i v i d
u a l 's penchant fo r e x ag g e ra tio n and d i s t o r t i o n . The use
o f such an u n r e lia b le n a r r a t o r does n o t negate t h e i r s o c i a l
c r i t i c i s m , b u t i t does throw upon the re a d e r the d e te rm in a
tio n o f i t s v a l i d i t y .
D ostoevsky's and S a r r a u t e 's a n x ie ty -rid d e n c h a ra c te r s
f r e q u e n tly reduce e i t h e r them selves or o th e rs to a n im a lis
t i c o r i n s e c t s t a t e s . Through t h i s p ro cess of dehumaniza
t i o n , they hope to r e t a i n t h e i r own sense o f i d e n t i t y and
to avoid a b so rp tio n by o th e r s . These c h a ra c te rs a ls o demon
s t r a t e t h e i r f e a r and h o s t i l i t y towards o th e r s , thus su b
s t a n t i a t i n g the conclusions o f b o th a u th o rs: f e a r f u l
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116
people a re th e p ro d u ct of an i l l s o c ie ty .
These u n r e l i a b l e n a r r a t o r s c o n tin u a lly r e c r e a t e s o c i
e ty in t h e i r own image, confusing p o p u la r ity w ith love.
S a rra u te redu ces love to the b a n a l, or p r e s e n ts i t decep
t i v e l y throu gh m etaphor. D ostoevsky's lo v e -h a te r e l a t i o n
sh ip s o fte n p e r v e r t the concept of lo v e, p e rm ittin g i t s
e x is te n c e only i f c le an sed by s a c r i f i c e and penance as in
th e c o n c lu sio n s of Crime and Punishment and The B rothers
Karamazov.
The m ajor d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n between th e two a u th o rs in
t h e i r e s tim a tio n s of c h a r a c te r i s t h a t Dostoevsky views men
as depraved in d iv id u a ls w hile S a rra u te c o n sid e rs men c o l
l e c t i v e n o n e n t i t i e s . C onsequently, Dostoevsky f e e l s t h a t
th e r e is a p o s s i b i l i t y f o r r e g e n e r a tio n , whereas S a rra u te
i s convinced of th e v a l i d i t y of her pessim ism .
In t h e i r dream tec h n iq u e , S a rra u te and Dostoevsky a p
p e ar to d iv e rg e . S a rra u te uses dream or im ag in ativ e s e
quences as i f they had r e a l l y o c c u rre d , p re s e n tin g them as
f a c t even though, as in the cases of P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu
and M artereau w ith t h e i r f i r s t - p e r s o n n a r r a t o r s , th e se s i t
u a tio n s cannot have been known to th e n a r r a t o r s and must be
p r o j e c ti o n s o f th e im a g in atio n , t h a t i s , dreams. S a rra u te
a ls o condenses her c h a ra c te rs as th e dream does, merging
t h e i r i n d i v i d u a l i t y in to a composite p e r s o n a l i t y , which
th en r e p r e s e n ts an e n t i r e group. This f u s io n of c h a r a c te r
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117
is a b a s ic q u a li t y in S a r r a u t e 's w r itin g . Dostoevsky a ls o
a p p lie s dream technique in th e body of some of h is n o v e ls,
fu sin g and s p l i t t i n g c h a r a c te r s a t w i l l . However, he does
not merge h is people in to one "they" as S a rrau te does.
This fu s io n of c h a ra c te r s can be considered an o r i g i n a l
c o n tr ib u tio n of S a r r a u t e 's to th e n o v e l. While S a r r a u t e 's
dream tech n iq u e merges her c h a r a c t e r s , Dostoevsky a p p ro
p r i a t e s the dream to add depth to h is c h a ra c te r p o r t r a i t s .
S a rra u te never a s s e r t s d i s t i n c t l y t h a t her daydreams d e f i
n i t e l y comprise the in n er r e a l i t y , even though t h i s may be-
assumed by th e re a d e r. On the o th e r hand, the dream in
D o stoevsky 's work blends w ith r e a l i t y and tends to c o a le sc e
the two w o rlds.
A number of mythic a s s o c i a t io n s in the novels of
Dostoevsky and S a rra u te g ive t h e i r work g r e a te r d e p th , e x
p lo re the in n e r r e a l i t y , and i n c i d e n t a ll y add scope to a
comparison of t h e i r n o v e ls. These myths d eal w ith r e
p re s se d d e s i r e s such as i n c e s t and th e wish to d e s tro y th e
f a t h e r image; moral c o n s tr u c ts such as good v e rsu s e v i l ,
th e an gel opposed to the d e v i l , good f a i r i e s and bad
f a i r i e s ; and thoughts and dreams p ro je c te d through myth as
in th e e x p re ss io n of doubt and in th e v ariou s q u e s ts . A l
though S a rra u te and Dostoevsky d i f f e r in t h e i r use of
myths, they bo th in clude th e s e th r e e asp ects of myth. They
a ls o b o th in c lu d e l i t e r a t u r e as m ythic a ll u s i o n . S a rra u te
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118
o fte n uses m etap h o rical p r o j e c ti o n s of mythic a s s o c ia tio n s
to give more power to a p a r t i c u l a r thought. This m eta
p h o r ic a l technique is i n t r i n s i c in her work and is n o t
found in Dostoevsky’s n o v e ls.
Although S a r r a u t e ’s novels r e f l e c t concepts found in
D ostoevsky's work, they vary c o n sid era b ly from h is n o v e ls ,
n o t so much because they were w r i t t e n in two d i f f e r e n t cen
t u r i e s o r in d i f f e r e n t lan g u ag es, although th ese components
cannot be overlooked, b u t p r i n c i p a l l y because of S a r r a u t e 's
r e s t r i c t i o n to one a sp e c t of D ostoevsky's w r i t in g . S a r
ra u te c o n c e n tra te s on one m ajor problem d e a lt w ith by
Dostoevsky; t h a t problem i s the aggravated p o s i t io n o f
a l i e n a t e d man liv in g in a h o s t i l e s o c ie ty , a s o c ie ty p r o
foundly c r i t i c i z e d f o r i t s complacent h y p o crisy . Dostoev
sky f u r t h e r exp lores p o l i t i c a l , r e l i g i o u s , and p h ilo s o p h i
c a l problem s. His scope i s b ro a d e r than S a r r a u t e 's , but
undoubtedly h is l i t e r a r y p e n e t r a t i o n of man's s u b je c tiv e
w orld has in s p ir e d S a r ra u te .
The major d if f e r e n c e s s e p a r a tin g these two autho rs
are D ostoevsky's optimism and S a r r a u t e 's pessimism about
man's f u t u r e . These d i f f e r i n g views do not a l t e r the p re d
i c a t i o n o f t h is d i s s e r t a t i o n : t h a t N a th alie S a rra u te and
Fedor Dostoevsky are c lo s e ly a f f i l i a t e d in t h e i r p u r s u i t of
th e t r u t h t h a t l i e s between dream and r e a l i t y .
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A P P E N D I X
119
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BIOGRAPHICAL DATA
N a th a lie S a rra u te
N a th a lie S a rra u te was born on Ju ly 18, 1902, of Rus
sia n Jewish p a re n ts in Ivanovo-Voznessensk in the reg io n of
V ladim ir, th re e hundred k ilo m e te rs n o r th e a s t of Moscow.
Her p a re n ts div o rced when N a th a lie was two y ears o ld , and
both rem arried . Her mother moved to P a r i s . At times
N ath alie liv e d w ith h e r mother in P a r i s ; a t times she liv e d
w ith h e r f a t h e r in R ussia. Then h e r mother moved back to
R ussia, to S t. P e te rs b u rg , and h e r f a t h e r moved to P a r i s .
N a th a lie s tu d ie d f o r a w hile p r i v a t e l y in P a ris w ith
the Misses B rébant, then a t a p u b lic school on rue d 'A le s ia ,
then a t the Lycée Fenelon. She re c e iv e d a License in Eng
l i s h a t the Sorbonne. She s tu d ie d h is t o r y a t Oxford from
1920 to 1921, so c io lo g y i n B e rlin from 1921 to 1922, and
law from 1922 to 1925 a t the Law F aculty in P a r i s . In 1925
she m arried Raymond S a rr a u te . They have th ree d a u g h te rs,
Claude, Anne, and Dominique.
In h e r adolescence she read th e Russian and French
c la s s ic s in the o r i g i n a l languages, and Thomas Mann's Tonio
K roger, which made h e r want to w r i t e .
In Salzburg in 1964, N a th a lie S a rra u te re c e iv e d the
120
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121
P rix I n t e r n a t i o n a l de L i t t é r a t u r e f o r her book. Les F r u its
d ' o r .
P u b lish e d Works
B r ie f Texts:
Tropismes (W ritten in 1932)
1939 Denoël.
1957 Ç e -e d itio n ( r e v is in g one t e x t ; adding 6 t e x t s )
E d itio n s de M inuit.
Novels :
P o r t r a i t d 'u n inconnu (W ritten in 1946)
1948 P reface by S a r t r e . Robert Marin.
1956 R e -e d itio n w ith p r e f a c e . G allim ard.
1964 Pocket book e d i t i o n . Union Générale d 'E d itio n .
M artereau
1953 G allim ard.
1964 Pocket book e d i t i o n . G allim ard.
Le P lan etariu m
1959 G allim ard.
1965 Pocket book. G allim ard.
Les F r u i t s d 'o r
1963 G allim ard.
E n tre l a v ie e t la mort
1968 G allim ard.
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122
Radio Plays:
Le S ile n c e
1964 [February) P ublished in French in Le Mercure de
F ra n c e .
1964 [A pril) P re se n ted in a German t r a n s l a t i o n by
Suddeutscher Rundfunk. Played in
S t u t t g a r t , Bremen, Munich, S w itz erlan d ,
and the Scandinavian c o u n t r i e s .
Le Mensonge
1966 [March) P re se n ted in P a ris and B ru ss e ls.
C r i t i c a l Work
"C on versation e t s o u s -c o n v e rs a tio n ," NRF [January 1956),
pp. 50-63; [February 1956), pp. 233-244.
"De D ostoievsky à K afka," Les Temps Modernes [October 1947),
pp. 664-685.
"Les deux r é a l i t é s , " E s p r it [Ju ly 1964), pp. 72-75.
"L 'È re du soupçon," Les Temps Modernes [February 1950),
pp. 1417-1428.
L 'Ère du soupçon. E ssa is su r le roman. P a r is : G allim ard,
i ô s ï ï : — ----------- -----------------------------------------
" F la u b e rt le p r é c u r s e u r ," Preuves [February 1965).
L e tte r to the E d ito r about the a r t i c l e , "The A nti-N ovel in
F ra n c e ," Times L ite r a ry Supplement [March 13, 1959),
p. 145.
"L im its of C o n tro l," in The W r i t e r 's Dilemma [The Times
L it e r a r y S u p p l e m e n t London: Oxford U n iv e rs ity
P re s s , 1961. Pp. x x -x x i.
"New Movements in French L i t e r a t u r e , " The L i s t e n e r , LXV,
No. 1667 [March 9, 1961), 428-429.
"Nouveau Roman e t r é a l i t é , " Revue de l ' I n s t i t u t de S o c io lo
g i e , I I [1963), 431-441.
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123
"Paul V alery e t l 'e n f a n t d 'é l é p h a n t ," Les Temps Modernes
(January 1947), pp. 610-637.
"Rebels in a World of P l a t i t u d e s , " in The W r i t e r ' s Dilemma.
London: Oxford U n iv e rs ity P re s s , 196^1. Pp~i 35-41.
"Le Romancier rec h erc h e une r é a l i t é inconnue," Le Monde,
No. 5810 (September 21, 1963), p. 11.
" T o ls to ï devant l e s é c riv a in s d 'a u j o u r d 'h u i ," Les L e ttr e s
F r a n ç a is e s , No. 842 (September 22-28, 1960), pp. 1, 5.
"La V is io n n a ire du 'm a i n t e n a n t '," Les L e ttre s F r a n ç a i s e s ,
No. 882 (June 29 -Ju ly 5, 1961), p p . 1, 3.
Fedor Dostoevsky
Fedor Dostoevsky was born in Moscow in 1821. His
mother d ie d when he was se v en te en , and h is f a t h e r was mur
dered by h is own s e r f s w hile Fedor was a c ad e t in m i l i t a r y
sch o o l. A f te r having grad u ated in 1843 from cad et sch o o l,
Dostoevsky worked in c i v i l s e rv ic e fo r a year befo re d e c id
ing to become a w r i t e r .
A group of s o c i a l i s t s c a l l e d the P e trash ev sk i C i r c l e ,
whose m eetings Dostoevsky a tte n d e d , was a r r e s te d in A p r il,
1849, and th ey b e lie v e d they were condemned to d e ath . At
the l a s t minute the sen tence was changed to imprisonment.
A fte r fo u r y e a rs in p r is o n a t Omsk, S ib e r ia , Dostoevsky
s t i l l was n o t allow ed to r e t u r n to R u ssia, and served as a
s o l d i e r in S e m ip a latin sk . During t h i s time he could no t
p u b lis h . In 1857 he m arried Marya D m itrievna Isayeva, and
two y e a rs l a t e r he and h is w ife were allow ed to r e t u r n to
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permission.
124
R ussia. A lso, a t t h a t tim e, he o b ta in e d perm issio n to pub
l i s h , and w ith h i s b r o th e r M ik h a il, Dostoevsky e d ite d s e v
e r a l jo u r n a l s .
When h is w if e , and then h is b r o th e r d ied , Dostoevsky
accepted h is b r o t h e r ’s d e b ts , b u t was unable to pay th e s e ;
he l e f t the cou ntry and sp e n t the n e x t fiv e y ears in Ger
many and S w itz e rla n d . He began gambling h e a v ily during
t h i s p e rio d o f h is l i f e , and a ls o w rote some o f h is b e s t
novels in o rd e r to pay the c r e d i t o r s in R ussia and h is l o
cal gambling d e b ts . E v e n tu a lly , he s e t t l e d w ith h is c re d
i t o r s , and r e tu r n e d to R ussia in 1871, resuming h is j o u r
n a l i s t i c c a r e e r th e r e . His speech a t the d e d ic a tio n o f a
monument to Pushkin in Moscow in 1880 re c e iv e d a g re a t
o v a tio n and dem onstrated t h a t Dostoevsky had achieved the
acceptance he so d e s ir e d among th e Russian p eople. When he
died the fo llo w in g y e a r, thousands follow ed h is c o ffin .
Follow ing i s a l i s t of D ostoevsky's works which I read
f o r t h i s p a p e r. There have been so many p u b lic a tio n s t h a t
I give only th e f i r s t p u b lic a tio n d a te . Of course th e re
have been numerous t r a n s l a t i o n s throughout the w orld. I
w i l l f i r s t i n d ic a t e the p u b l ic a t i o n d a te , then the Russian
t i t l e and the E n g lish t r a n s l a t i o n (sometimes th ere are two
t r a n s l a t i o n s ) .
1846 Bednye ly u d i Poor Folks Poor People
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125
1846
1847
1847
1848
1849
1857
1859
1861
1862
Dvoynik The Double
Khozyaika The Landlady
’’Roman v d e v y a ti pismah” ”A Novel in Nine L e t
t e r s ”
Belye Nochi White N ights
Netochka Nezvanova Netochka Nezvanova
’’Malenky gerowy” ’’The L i t t l e Hero”
Dyadyushkin son U ncle’s Dream
Unizhennve i oskorblennye Despised and R ejected
I i mm u II I . ■ 4 _ J_N I 1 - 1 f----------------------
The I n s u l t e d and
Injured
Notes from th e House of
the Pea?
Memoirs from the Death
House
Z apiski i z mertvogo doma
1864
1864
1866
1866-67
1868-69
1870
1871-72
1375
1876
1876
1877
Igrok The Gambler
Z apiski i z podpolya Notes from Underground
L e tte r s from the Underworld
P re s tu p le n ie i nakazanie Crime and Punishment
Dnevnik p i s a t e l y a , I - I I Diary of a W rite r
I d i o t The I d i o t
Vechny muzh The E te r n a l Husband
Besy The P ossessed
Podrostok Raw Youth The A dolescent
’’P rig o v o r’l
’’Krotkaya”
’’The V e r d ic t”
’’The Meek One” ’’The G entle Maiden”
”Sonj smishnogo chelovka” ’’Dream o f a Strange '
Man”
’’Dream o f a R idiculous i
Man”
1879-80 B ratya Karamazovy The B rothers Karamazov
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126
* * *
R ussian words and names cause some d i f f i c u l t y when
C y r i l l i c i s changed in to th e L a tin a lp h a b e t. As I have
used the C y r i l l i c only fo r d i r e c t q u o ta tio n s and th e L a tin
a lp h a b e t f o r t i t l e s , a u th o rs , and the names o f c h a r a c t e r s ,
I wish to in d ic a t e t h a t g e n e ra lly I have used the t r a n s
l i t e r a t i o n adopted by The S la v ic and E ast European Jo u rn a l
w ith the fo llo w in g e x c e p tio n s: i n s t e a d o f s p e l li n g D osto
evsky as "D o sto ev sk ij" I end th e name w ith a "y" except
where q u o tin g auth ors who s p e l l h i s name d i f f e r e n t l y . De
s p i t e the numerous s p e llin g s o f D ostoevsky's name, I th in k
i t w i l l be c le a r enough and w i l l n o t w a rran t an i d e n t i f i c a
tio n each tim e. Where The S la v ic and E ast European Jo u rn a l
uses a " j " fo r a "y" sound, I use a " y ." They use the Rus
s ia n mark (''] over the "c" and " s " and "z" in ord er to i n
d ic a te t h a t they are pronounced as i f follow ed by an " h ."
I sim ply omit the mark and add th e " h ," i . e . , I w rite
"Rogozhin" in s te a d o f the J o u r n a l ' s "Rogozin." I a lso
e lim in a te the pause marks. I n s te a d of the J o u r n a l 's
"G rusen'ka," I w r i t e what I b e lie v e is c le a r e r and j u s t as
a c c u ra te , "G rushenka." A ll q u o ta tio n s are p re s e n te d w ith
th e o r i g i n a l s p e l l i n g , which i s c lo s e enough to mine to be
re c o g n iz a b le . Where I have used the C y r i l l i c f o r d i r e c t
q u o t a t i o n s , I have a lso used an E n g lish t r a n s l a t i o n , in
o rd e r to c l a r i f y the passage f o r the re a d e r.
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SELECTED
B I B L I O G R A P H Y
127
Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
The fo llow ing b ib lio g ra p h y i s a l i s t of the most h e lp
f u l books and a r t i c l e s which I rea d f o r t h is paper.
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128
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129
A ren dt, Hannah. " N a th a lie S a r r a u te ," Merkur, XVIII,
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130
Berdyaev, N ic o la s. Dostoevsky: An I n t e r p r e t a t i o n . Trans.
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Camproux, C h a rle s. "La Langue e t le s t y l e des é c r i v a i n s ,"
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135
Dostoevsky, Fedor. Dyadyushkin s o n . (Sobranie Sochineny,
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____________________ . The I n s u l t e d and I n ju r e d . T r a n s .
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________________ . K hozyaika. (Sobranie Sochineny, Vol. I.)
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________ _____ . "K ro tk ay a ." (Sobranie Sochineny,
Vol. X.) Moscow: Hudozhestvennoy L it e r a t u r y , 1958.
Pp. 378-419.
. Dostoevsky: L e tte rs and R em in iscen ces.
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Creator Levinsky, Ruth (author)

Core Title Between dream and reality: a study of Nathalie Sarraute and Fedor Dostoevsky

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Degree Program Comparative Literature

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Literature, Modern,literature, romance,Literature, Slavic and East European,OAI-PMH Harvest

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