52 pages • 1 hour read
Leo TolstoyThe Kreutzer Sonata
Fiction | Novella | Adult | Published in 1889A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Character Voice
Although the framing narrative uses the first-person voice of an unnamed “primary narrator,” the actual plot of The Kreutzer Sonata is written in the voice of the novella’s protagonist, Pozdnychev. Pozdnychev is speaking to the “primary narrator” and telling his life story from his own recollection. He is therefore acting as an unreliable secondary narrator, one whose account of events is filtered through his own biased perspective.
This literary device allows Tolstoy to exhibit the protagonist’s personality more expediently and explore his characterization in more depth because the reader must pay attention to his voice as well as his actions. Additionally, the character voice allows Tolstoy to use Pozdnychev as a mouthpiece for his own beliefs and to include in-depth discussions on the themes of the novella without disrupting the flow of the story.
Framing Narrative
The Kreutzer Sonata is structured so that the main narrative (Pozdnychev’s life story and the events leading to his wife’s murder) is ensconced within a framing narrative wherein he is relating the story to an unnamed “primary narrator” over the course of a train journey. The first three chapters establish the framing narrative, where the setting of the train car functions as a microcosm of society, and the debates held between characters representing different demographics foreshadow the conflicts and themes explored in the main narrative. In this way, the frame story functions similarly to an introduction in an essay, orientating the reader in advance of the main body of the work and providing clarity to its messages.
Tolstoy reveals the structure of the plot and its ultimate conclusion before Pozdnychev even begins to recount his narrative. The reader hence has foreknowledge of the narrative’s trajectory which makes the journey of discovery one of moral argument rather than plot. Additionally, the format of the framing narrative initiates an interaction between Pozdnychev and the primary narrator whereby Tolstoy anticipates and addresses readers’ potential reactions to Pozdnychev’s story. The narrator in the framing narrative is a proxy for the reader.
Related Titles
By Leo Tolstoy
