Analysis of Tolstoy's "Death of Ivan Ilyich"
Analysis of Tolstoy's "Death of Ivan Ilyich"
In Leo Tolstoy’s novel, The Death of Ivan Ilyich, Ivan’s life is not one of authenticity. Ivan’s “false” life is the product of his desire to collect social accolades. Ivan’s marriage was based on the fact “that he married because the people in his circle approved of the match” (P.56). Of Ivan’s marriage he “demanded only the conveniences it could provide” (P.58). When Ivan superior’s “treated[ed] him with disdain and during the next round of appointments again passed him by” (P.61), he thought it was “the most difficult year in [his]…life” (P.61). Ivan’s objective in his conceded life was to have “all his enemies…disgraced and [fawn]…him now and [envy] his position” (Pgs.63, 64). Ivan derived no genuine pleasure, but “pleasure from giving small dinner parties to which he invited men and women of good social standing” (P.69).
Control, Objectification, and lack of empathy are the unauthentic values that Ivan uses to create his life. Throughout Ivan’s entire life he was in control, especially as a judge. As a judge, his enjoyment came through the feeling of knowing that “he [was the one] who had the power to crush them” (P.53) and “the chance to ruin whomever he chose” (P.59). Ivan dreaded marriage because it was “something new, unexpected, and disagreeable…and [he] could do nothing to avoid [it]” (P.56) and that challenged his control over his life. Ivan’s marriage is described as a “difficult business” (P.58), which in term describes how Ivan objectifies his marriage and wife. What displeased Ivan the most was when he was not in control, like when “he could not make ends meet on his salary” (P.61). Along with being a control freak, Ivan is a neat freak and is very petulant about things he has put work into:
“Every spot on the tablecloth or the upholstery, even loose cord on the draperies irritated him; he had gone to such pains with decorating that any damage to it upset him” (P.68).
Ivan bases his existence around selfishness, insincerity, and nonchalance. During Ivan’s life, there are happy moments like his marriage and the birth of a child, but all it says is “And so Ivan Ilyich got married” (P.56) and “Other children were born” (P.58). There is no emphasis on these “joyous” moments. Ivan is a man who refuses to make the sacrifices required for marriage and continues...