thesis statement for the death of ivan ilych

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Literary Analysis of The Death of Ivan Ilyich

• Categories: Literary Criticism The Death of Ivan Ilyich Tolstoy

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Published: Aug 6, 2021

Words: 1365 | Pages: 3 | 7 min read

Works Cited

• Tolstoy, Leo. “The Death of Ivan Ilyich.” The Norton Anthology of World Literature, W. W. Norton & Company, 2019, pp. 769–807.

Should follow an “upside down” triangle format, meaning, the writer should start off broad and introduce the text and author or topic being discussed, and then get more specific to the thesis statement.

Provides a foundational overview, outlining the historical context and introducing key information that will be further explored in the essay, setting the stage for the argument to follow.

Cornerstone of the essay, presenting the central argument that will be elaborated upon and supported with evidence and analysis throughout the rest of the paper.

The topic sentence serves as the main point or focus of a paragraph in an essay, summarizing the key idea that will be discussed in that paragraph.

The body of each paragraph builds an argument in support of the topic sentence, citing information from sources as evidence.

After each piece of evidence is provided, the author should explain HOW and WHY the evidence supports the claim.

Should follow a right side up triangle format, meaning, specifics should be mentioned first such as restating the thesis, and then get more broad about the topic at hand. Lastly, leave the reader with something to think about and ponder once they are done reading.

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• The Death of Ivan Ilyich

Background of the Novella

The Death of Ivan Ilych is the famous Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy’s work, which was published in 1886. In this novella, Tolstoy questions the then widespread orthodox religious beliefs and preaches a more moderate view. This novella was not written much later after Tolstoy’s conversion and mirrors his beliefs. It represents his existential crisis, and here we can clearly see the dilemma that he faced. This novella was written in 1882 but came to press later.

Tolstoy was born to a rich aristocrat family in 1828. He lost his parents in early childhood. He couldn’t complete his university education, later he fought in the Crimean war and then got married. After spending twenty-five years of married life, he had a spiritual awakening and turned from an Orthodox Christian to a Christian anarchist.

He gave up all his violent beliefs and started preaching pacifism, celibacy, and rejection of all material wealth. He was excommunicated by the Russian Orthodox Church, and he started preaching his own beliefs. He turned from the Old Testament to Gospels and found them more reliable and attractive.

This novella has historical and autobiographical traces in it. If seen historically, it can be clearly noted that in this work, the tumultuous transition of Russia from serfdom and liberation of serfs is seen. There is an in-depth analysis of its positive and negative impacts. It shows how this liberation led to the formation of a new middle class. It also portrays the ills brought with this change. 

The loss of the institution of family and the infusion of Western culture were the impacts that Tolstoy abhorred. Tolstoy’s political beliefs are also evident in this work. He was against the Russian government and promoted radical ideas. This novella is a representative work of Russian Realism. 

Complex issues like interpersonal conflict, philosophical dilemmas, and class struggle are realistically portrayed in this work. The Death of Ivan Ilych promotes the idea that life lived by most of the people is shallow, unsatisfying, and shallow. 

He tells in this work that this life is not in accordance to the way shown by God. His later works developed this idea and explicated it more clearly. 

One of the autobiographical traces is Tolstoy’s liberation of his own serfs and their inability to utilize the opportunities of a free life. In 1856, he freed his serfs, but they were doubtful of his intentions and didn’t believe him. We can see this clearly in this novella in character Gerasim. He clearly showed the failure of this abrupt change and was probably of the idea that it should have been gradual.

There are some interesting facts about this novella. Tolstoy presented it as a birthday gift to his wife Sophia as a reassurance of the fact that his literary genius is yet resilient. Another thing is that he wanted the questions posed in this novella to be asked from him at his deathbed, but his wish wasn’t fulfilled. He couldn’t talk, and his relatives forgot to ask the questions. This shows his fascination with the idea of death.

This work is hailed by general readers and critics as a masterpiece in his shorter works. His other masterpieces are Anna Karenina, War, and Peace, which have attracted much readership. He had thirteen children and died in 1910.

The Death of Ivan Ilyich Summary

Chapter i summary.

The novella opens in a Russian law court where a person named Peter Ivanovich brings the news of the death of Ivan Ilych. The people in the court knew that he was ill, but this tiding shocks them. These magistrates, lawyers, and prosecutors have been Ilych’s acquaintances for years. This news is good for those who think that it will open ways for their promotion.

 After this news, they start planning to attend his funeral, whether they feel sad about it or not. To most of them, the attendance of this funeral is an irksome duty. On Friday, people assemble at the Ilych’s house to attend the funeral. Peter Ivanovich enters the room where the corpse is lying and looks at it. Ivan Ilych looks calmer than he used to look during his life. 

There are several of Ilych’s relatives standing around the corpse. Ivanovich feels uncomfortable in this situation, and he doesn’t know what to do. He finds this calm expression on Ilych’s face as a warning to the living. He feels uncomfortable about the insinuations that this dignified and calm expression carries and leaves the room hurriedly. 

He also notes his colleague, Schwartz, and he winks at him. It is an indication of the fact that Schwartz has brought a new pack of cards. He, through this wink, invited him for a pastime.

Ivan’s wife asks him to come outside before the funeral service starts. She is tearful and asks him if he can help them draw extra funds from the government for her family. Peter tells her that he can’t help her because he doesn’t have an approach to the offices. 

After the funeral, he returns to his servant, Gerasim, and exchanges formal comments regarding the death. He is then escorted in a sledge to Fedor Vasilievich’s home to spend the night in pleasantries of cards.

Chapter II Summary

This chapter tells about the life of Ivan Ilych. At the time of death, he was 45 years old and a lawyer at the court of justice. It tells of his early life and then his married life, which is about seventeen or eighteen years. He had spent a terrible life because it was ordinary, and he had to conform to many trivialities. Ivan was a government official’s son. He was the middle of the three, and his life was the happy mean between the two. He exhibited habits which were intermediary between the two brothers’ habits.

He was a calm person, nor too wild nor too serious. His elder brother achieved great success while the younger was a failure. He is a representative picture of a normal person in his society. He was educated in law, and his success was middling between the younger and elder brother. He spent his time with cultivated class people, and this had an impact on his personality.

He tailored his clothes at the best tailor shops in St. Petersburg and, at his youth, was sent as an assistant to the governor to a distant province. He secured a dignified position at the new locale and was proud of being incorruptibly honest. He was an easygoing and good-natured person. He had an affair with a young woman and sought pleasures in women who offered it but didn’t tarnish his name.

In the new town, he found friends of the highest social class and engaged in spending time with them. He then got introduced to the woman, Praskovya Fedorovna, whom he married two years later. He had thought his condition would get better after getting married, but it worsened. The situation reached to divorce after the birth of their first daughter. It worsened with every new birth. He was promoted as Assistant Public Prosecutor and then Public Prosecutor, but he couldn’t manage his family expenses.

Chapter III Summary

He kept continuing his job and thus continued for seventeen years. He was overlooked for a promotion, which he thought was an insult to him. His salary doesn’t match his lifestyle, and this worries him. He took a sabbatical from his job and went to his brother. He intended to stay there and find a solution but instead fell into depression.

He decides to travel to St. Petersburg and comes to know from an acquaintance in his first-class carriage that reforms have been made to the system. He tells Ilych that after reforms, his friends are given authoritative jobs at the ministry of justice.

He contacts Zachar Ivanovich and is given a lavish-paying job at the Department of justice. He tells his wife about this good news, and she is delighted to hear it. Their relationship is reformed because there are no more financial problems. He is eager to leave for his new house and wants to decorate it. Once during the decoration, he bruises himself but doesn’t take it seriously.

His obsession with his thoughts of improving his home and introducing new things to it doesn’t let him focus on his work. He built and decorated his house in the best way he could. Now he was slightly bored because he couldn’t find any occupation for himself. They occasionally had parties at their home and invited people to their homes. His daughter was of marriageable age, and she had many suitors, one of them was Fedor Petrovich.

Chapter IV Summary

Ivan Ilych’s life was changing. He felt ill, and the reason for it was probably the bruise. He often fell in quarrels with his wife. She found him a source of her irritation. He tells her that he has a strange taste in his mouth and feels a queer pain in his left side. She tells him to consult a famous doctor in their area, and he takes an appointment.

He goes to the doctor and finds him haughtier than himself. He doesn’t pay much attention to what Ilych asks and instead focuses on what he says. The doctor asks him to have some more tests, and then he will tell him regarding the issue he is facing. He asks the doctor if his problem is serious, but his answer is ambiguous, which both confirms and denies his fears. 

After the tests, he tells of taking care of certain things and doesn’t tell him about the severity of the illness. He comes home and is in doubt whether he is in a critical situation or this is something normal. His condition deteriorates with every passing day, but he tries to convince himself that he is getting better. 

He visits another doctor, and his diagnosis is completely opposite of the one he had previously visited. His pain grows with every passing day, and he decides not to visit any doctor anymore.

At his workplace, people know that soon his place is going to vacate. He grows irritating with his colleagues and family. He knows that his illness is poisoning others’ lives, but he can’t help it.

Chapter V Summary

Before New Year’s eve, his brother-in-law visits him. He comes home and finds him arrived while his wife is out shopping. He tells Ilych that he has changed, and his health seems deteriorated. They discuss this issue, but he changes the topic. He then goes to see himself in the mirror and is shocked to see the ill figure standing before him in the mirror.

His wife arrives, and his brother-in-law engages in talk with her regarding his health. Ilych tries to eavesdrop their conversation and hears them debating his health. His wife is of the view that he is improving while her brother tells her that he is looking like a dead man. He listens to them and then goes to his friend Peter Ivanovich to take him to the doctor.

The doctor diagnoses that there is some issue with his appendix, and it can be easily fixed. He comes home confident and takes his dinner cheerfully. He wants to work but can’t focus though he tries to encourage himself. He then lies to sleep, and his mind is suddenly taken by the idea of death. He starts thinking about it and can’t accept that all people are condemned to death. He then muses whether he is heading towards death, and this idea enrages him. He hits the table in a rage, and his wife comes to see if everything is alright. He tells her that he knocked it accidentally. He feels hatred for her at that moment.

Chapter VI Summary

He then thinks about the idea of his death and recalls time since his childhood and muses over his uniqueness. He has thought of himself as a unique being who can’t die. He can’t grasp the idea of death on the individual level. He tries to drive out the thoughts of death from his mind because he finds himself unprepared for death. He thinks about the screens that used to block such terrible ideas from his mind, but they are of no help now. He decides to join his work from the next day to distract himself from these ideas.

He thinks about how his job will help him respite from his suffering. His mind is then again haunted by the idea that what if he wasn’t able to concentrate on his work, and this adds to his miseries. He thinks it as a screen that won’t help him get rid of pain and the idea of impending death. He then thinks about other distractions and realizes his interest in arranging his house back when he built it. He starts doing chores at his house though his wife reprimands him and tells him to ask the servants to do it.

He rearranges the setting of furniture at home, and this makes his wife quarrel with him. This is a respite to him because he thinks it will make him forget the difficult situation he is facing.

Chapter VII Summary

It is his third month of illness, and everyone thinks about him to vacate his place. People around him are wary of his unpleasantries, sickness, and death. He is given painkillers, but they instead add to his depression. He is much weaker and now can’t even move from his bed. His servant Gerasim is there to help him. He handles his bedpan and shows pleasantries towards him. He is a cheerful young lad and doesn’t feel disgusted for his pathetic situation like others once he asks apologies for his discomfort.

At this, Gerasim responds that it is due to illness, and he doesn’t need to apologize. He helps him with changing the dress and is responsible for aiding him in the activities that now he can’t carry out. He infuses the joy into Ilych’s misery ridden life. Gerasim is a source of relief to him, and his health helps him soothe. One day he asks Gerasim to lift his legs and keep them on Gerasim’s shoulders, which he does, and in this, he finds relief from his pain. 

He has grown friendly to Gerasim, and they talk for a long when he is in Ilych’s room. He tries to think about his recovery but then considers it a delusion. His mind is haunted by the idea of death and can’t get rid of it. He wants sympathy from others but can’t ask for it. 

Gerasim sympathizes with him and shows pity for his plight. He is comforted by Gerasim’s treatment. He thinks that he would be able to utilize his reservoir of strength if anyone of his colleagues visits him.

Chapter VIII Summary

He is in pain and can see his body is waning. In the morning, breakfast is brought for him, which he sends back and asks to be left alone. He then sends Peter the footman to bring his medicines. He helps him change his clothes and helps him wash. He avoids looking at his frail body while washing. He is in a strange state, he wants someone to accompany him, but if anyone is with him, he is irritated.

In an hour the doctor comes to his house, who tries to be cheerful. He asks him about the weather before asking him about his health. He then tells him that he will get fine to which he responds indifferently. He tells the doctor about incessant pain to which he responds that ill people always talk so. He then examines him; he knows that it is useless and is pure pretense.

His wife comes and tells him that she is going to the ‘celebrated’ doctor to bring him to see Ilych. He comes and examines him and repeats his previous talk. Ilych wants to tell everyone that the problem is not with illness; rather, it is the question of life and death that worries him. 

When the doctor leaves, he again falls into depression. His wife and daughter pretend to show sympathy for him, but in reality, they are going to watch a play in the theatre. He only sees his son Vladimir worried for him, and there are evident circles around his eyes.

Chapter IX Summary

His wife returns from theatre and wants to sit with him intending to send Gerasim away from the room. He refuses to allow her to sit with him and asks her to leave. He takes painkillers to get rid of the pain. As he takes painkillers, he sleeps and sees a vision or a dream. In the dream, he sees himself and his pain being pushed to a narrow black sack. He is very terrified by this vision and tries to escape, and he wakes up. He sees Gerasim sitting in front of him, having Ilych’s legs on his shoulders.

He asks him to leave him alone for some time and weeps for being so helpless. He thinks that God is being cruel to him and complains about his miseries. He even thinks that God is nowhere, and his pain worsens. He then asks himself what he wants, and he comes to conclude that he wants to live pleasantly and cheerfully. He then thinks about pleasant memories in his life. There are few while the rest that he thought pleasant are mere deceptions.

He comes to think about his marriage, his job, and then promotions. He comes to know that during his professional career, his life was driven by greed, acquisitiveness, and disappointment. His life, at this point, became useless, senseless, meaningless, and trivial.

Chapter X Summary

In two weeks, Ilych’s situation has more deteriorated, and now he can’t move on his sofa. He finds himself in a difficult situation and is caught between hope and despair. These conflicting moods constantly show him his death. He is surrounded by his family and visitors from the town who come to know about his health, but he feels alone. His childhood memories come to his mind to which he compares his current misery. He tries to distract himself by thinking about his sofa but in vain.

He finds a relationship between his life and illness. He comes to know that there was more goodness in his life before his illness, and now it has changed. He feels if his pain is pushing him towards death with its best effort. He wants an understanding of what is happening to him. If he could comprehend it, it would ease his pain.

Chapter XI Summary

This chapter covers the time Ilych is rushing towards his death. Two weeks have passed after the events described in the previous chapter. Fedor comes and proposes marriage to his daughter. His wife comes to his room to bring him the good news. But she finds him in a very bad situation; he is lying in his bed on his back. He looks at her with hostility and pleads her to let him die in peace. 

Then his daughter, Lisa, comes to his room and sits down with his mother. He tells the women that he will soon leave them free. They sit there for a few moments and then leave in silence. His wife and husband discuss his illness, and his daughter complains that it is not their fault that made him ill. She complains that he shouldn’t discomfort them.

Then a doctor comes and sees him. Then comes to his wife and daughter and tells them that his case is serious, and the only thing left to do is to administer him opium. Ilych is in terrible condition and looks in pity at Gerasim, whose life has been discomforted by his illness. He thinks that he has not lived as he should have done. He looks at life from a new perspective and clearly notices his family’s artificiality and falseness towards him.

He takes communion at his wife’s suggestion, and his pain seems alleviated at confession, but it returns when the priest leaves.

Chapter XII Summary

He begins screaming from the unbearable pain, and it continues for three days. He has realized that his end has come, and he is lost. He feels that he can’t save himself, and death draws nearer and nearer, this idea terrified him. He struggles desperately against death because he held the belief that his life was good, and he can’t be condemned.

He feels some force striking him on the chest and left side. He then sees the black sack that he had seen back in the vision, and he is moving towards it. He sees that the bottom of the sack is bright. He then feels the sensation like moving in a train backward when in actual it is moving forward. He comes to realize that his time has come. His son is sitting near him and is weeping. He caresses his head with his hand. He wonders what is the bright thing in the sack.

He feels pity for those sitting around him. It is suddenly revealed upon him that death is light, and all his pain seems to be gone. His exclamation at this is ‘What joy!’. To his family, it seems that he is still suffering, but he is light now; at his last breath, he understands that death is no more. 

Characters Analysis

Ivan ilych golovin.

Ivan is the protagonist of the novella and is shown suffering throughout the novella. He spends a petty, unhappy life, and the only significant thing in life that we see him do is to die. His life is mediocre, and we come to know it from the narrator, who assertively tells about the horrible experience he goes through. He spends a hard life and comes to see hope and happiness only when he is face-to-face with death.

He is a lawyer by profession and has been through financial problems in the initial days of his career. This character is representative of the mediocrity of the middle class. He doesn’t like his class and wants to progress. He is able to become part of the upper-middle class and, at the end of the struggle, loses his life. He isn’t happy with what he has because he is in debt, and though he receives a good salary that can’t fulfill his needs.

He comes to know at the time of his death that he has led a conformist and ordinary life and feels regrets for it. He has been following materialistic pursuits and suffers in the end for this mistake. Even his family members except his son have followed the same suit and, for this reason, don’t support him when he is in need. He, like other human beings, has felt as if he is a special person, but this myth is shattered when he suffers.

He, like the rest of human beings, has been deluded by the faulty concept of a happy life, which he realizes when at his deathbed, he comes to know the meaning of happiness. In his illness, he is shown thinking about his past life, and this makes the readers realize the usual human dilemma.

Praskovya Fedorovna Golovina

She is the protagonist’s wife. Throughout the novella, her focus is on outward appearance. She wants to be part of the upper-middle-class of Russia and struggles for it. Her personality is shallow, and she is concerned with acceptance, and her motive is improving her status. Fashion and material things are her obsession. She, like other characters, is a typical materialistic person.

Gerasim is Ivan Ilych’s servant and is an embodiment of goodness. He is a kind person and takes care of his master when there is none left kind to him. He is a true person among deceitful and fake people. He is an example of honesty and kindness. He is the source of support and comfort for Ivan during his illness.

He shows kindness because he is a believer and has a firm belief that he will die one day. We see other characters who even don’t think about death, and when they know about it, they shrug the idea. He, in contrast to others, thinks about the consequences and prefers to be kind and help others.

He is not a self-absorbed person, and this allows him to help others and think about their miseries. He is an example of a perfect peasant. He is a clean, pleasant person. If seen from a critical eye, he is a stereotype. He is an embodiment of goodness and shows no flaws, thus seems a non-human character. He is a one-dimensional character, and from this, we can infer the aristocratic class’s disdain for the working class.

She is Ivan Ilych’s daughter and a fake character like others. She is her parents’ elder daughter and of marriageable age. She is well-educated, fair, and attractive. She, like her mother, is attracted to pomp and money. She doesn’t feel sympathy for her father and complains to her mother about his behavior.

She doesn’t care to show even a scruple of regard for her father and asks her mother to leave for the theater while her father is on the deathbed. She doesn’t feel comfortable with the idea of illness, suffering, and death.

He is the protagonist’s only son. He is about thirteen years old school-going boy and is like his father in his youth. He is an innocent child and loves his father unconditionally. In the end, when there is no one who can stand by Ivan’s side, Vladimir is the one who cares for him. He is sad at his father’s plight and wants to help him recover but can’t. From his appearance, it is evident that sadness is corroding his health.

 He is in his early youth and is not yet corrupted by materialism in society. He is the only person in the family for whom Ivan feels compassion during his illness. In the form of this character, the author has shown innocence in the form of childhood, which is later corrupted by society. He can also be seen as a connection between young and grownup Ivan Ilych. We can also infer from it that he is also headed in the direction in which his father went, showing general misery. 

Peter Ivanovich

He is the protagonist’s fair-weather friend. He leaves his friend when he is in need. He has been Ilych’s friend at law school and later his companion in professional life. They have too many things in common, like their taste for the game of bridge, desires to progress in life, etc. We see that he is too close to Ilych but doesn’t feel anything when he dies.

From Ilych’s death, he sees the prospects of his brother-in-law’s prospects of promotion. He attends Ilych’s funeral because he considers it as an obligation, not because of his personal attachment to him. He, like other characters in the novella, doesn’t want to accept death as a reality and quits the funeral room staying there only for a few moments.

He represents a false world and is unkind. He refuses to help his friend’s widow when she is in need. He fails to grasp the fact that he is mortal and engages in materialistic affairs thoughtlessly. He can also be seen as a foil for Ilych because they are much less different from each other. He is selfish and pays heed to what is pleasant to him.

Fedor Petrovich

Fedor is Lisa’s fiancé and doesn’t appear much in the novella. He represents a typical Russian bourgeoisie. In this novella, we see his character as bland and doesn’t play any significant role. His role is mere as an appendage to Lisa.

Peter the footman

He is Ivan’s servant and, in contrast to Gerasim, is a false, deceitful person.

Schwartz is an employee at court and fond of fun and games. He has a charming personality and doesn’t let any situation make him depressed. He arranges Bridge at his home and invites friends to play there. He is not saddened by the news of Ivan’s death. He is the person who irritates Ivan in his office by his jokes and good-humor during his days of illness.

Ivan Egorovich Shebek

He is Ivan’s friend and colleague at the court of law. He, like Peter, prefers promotion to friends. He is happy in his mind about Ivan’s illness and expects that he will be able to utilize it. He comes to visit Ivan when he is ill but talks about legal cases that disturb him. Ivan thinks that he was the representative of all the falseness in the world.

Fedor Vasilievich

He is Ivan’s colleague and closest acquaintance at court. He is a selfish person, and when he hears about Ivan’s death, he thinks about his promotion. He is the only character who thinks of the direct benefit of the protagonist’s death.

Michael Danilovich

He is the primary doctor whom Ivan visits. He is a haughty person and doesn’t pay any attention to the patients. He doesn’t tell Ivan about the critical illness that he is suffering from and tells him ambiguous things. He doesn’t tell him even when he is on the deathbed. He is like a typical businessman, not a doctor who takes patients as cases, not as human beings.

Themes in the Novella

The main theme in this novella is the inevitability of death. Throughout the story, we are told about the impending death of Ivan Ilych; his thoughts stay focused on this fact. This novella explores the phenomenon of death and tells how people avoid thinking about it. It is a natural phenomenon relevant to life, but people try to avoid it and distract its thoughts. It is evidently shown in the character of Ivan, who tries to get rid of the thoughts of death, which haunt his mind.

People busy themselves with different things in life, and it is done solely to hide from death. But whenever these screens are broken, death is standing in front of them. It is an undeniable reality, and there is nothing to be done to it except acceptance. Fear is the factor that creates a horrible image of death, and if it is changed, death is not that terrible as people think.

In the upper and upper-middle-class, we see that people’s lives are motivated by some shared beliefs. Every person belonging to these classes leads his life to fulfill these expectations. In case he/she fails to do so, he is not considered to be truly belonging to this class. These beliefs make people pretend and erase their original identity. For every situation, there is a mask, and they change it constantly. 

This creates a situation in which people lose their original human identity and become types. In the case of Ivan, he tries to break this web of deceits, which is wounded around the lives of people of these classes. He suffers much, but he discovers himself and comes to know that life isn’t about materialism.

In aristocratic classes, there is less acceptability towards natural human impulses. There is decorum and expected behavior, which determines the lifestyle of people belonging to this class. In this novella, we see that the main character and his family are addicted to materialism and acquisitiveness. This family is upward striving and is careful regarding the etiquette.

This expected behavior makes them almost inhuman, and when Ivan falls ill, there is nobody to sympathize with him except his servant Gerasim. There is no acceptability to many things, and thinking about it, Ivan’s daughter feels shame for his father’s illness. This concept of acceptability creates many problems that make life miserable, and this is the message which the author has tried to convey.

Suffering is a motif which is shown constantly throughout the novella. We see the protagonist going through it all his life. He suffers during his first job and then his second job as well. He is shown suffering in his married life. In the end comes his illness, which is unmatched suffering in his life and takes him with it.

Human life is filled with miseries and suffering, and this is the fact that made Buddha leave his kingdom. Sufferings can only be avoided in life if they are intentionally imposed on oneself. Suffering brings with it fear, hopelessness, sense of meaninglessness, and loneliness. But it is not that bad because it is what brings redemption.

Religion is not given a place in the foreground in The Death of Ivan Ilych; rather, it is present in the background. It was the work that Tolstoy wrote after his religious conversion, and it may be taken as an impact of it. He gave up his belief for a new one, and in it, there was no necessary demonstration required everywhere. In Ilych’s life, we see that he demonstrates this belief.

Most of the scholars see the transformation of Ilych as a result of the vision, and his contentedness with the idea of death reveals the importance of religion. Religion is meant to fulfill the emotional needs of human beings and redeem them, and this is the message which the author implicitly conveys in this novella. It is a critique of those who have made religion a business and run their churches as if it is a marketplace.

Modernization

In this novella, Tolstoy supports the belief that with modernization, human beings lose their human qualities. This is evident in the case of doctors who are arrogant, deceptive, useless, and unsympathetic. We can clearly see that they don’t help Ivan Ilych throughout his disease and instead worsen his situation. 

Tolstoy attacks the modernist field of medicine, which progresses with every passing day. Using Ivan Ilych’s experience, Tolstoy portrays that this field is dehumanizing and attempts falsely to fight against death, deceiving human beings.

We can see isolation as a subtle element that gradually comes to Ilych’s life and completely takes hold of his life when he falls ill. It is the result of growing distances between human beings. We see that Ivan fears death, and due to this fear, he isolates himself from society and his family. 

Initially, he thinks that isolation can help him by making those around him realize his plight, but they don’t understand it. He then comes to realize that this isolation will help him meditate about his life, and as a result, he is blessed with redemption. Thus isolation is both misery and blessing in his life.

Society and Class

This novella is an attack on the class system, especially the middle class in Russian society. To Tolstoy, the class represents greed, selfishness, artificiality, pettiness, and many other evils. He shows all the miseries and ills brought by the class system. This is a suggestion of Tolstoy’s belief in an anarchical and classless society.

Acceptance and Redemption

At the time of his terminal illness, Ivan is not ready to accept that he is dying. He slowly comes to recognize that this illness won’t be remedied and will take his life with it. Though it takes time and is painful to accept that he is dying, ultimately, he is able to think about it. He accepts mortality, and as a result, he is freed from the agony and terror that people usually associate with life.

He comes to know that things around him in his life are like artificial trappings. He clearly sees that there is falseness that covers him from all sides, and he tries to get rid of it. At the end of his life, he is able to experience the vision that he has seen and enjoys death. So from this, we can infer that if we accept miseries and prepare ourselves mentally for it, there will be redemption to protect us from our fears.

Literary Analysis

The Death of Ivan Ilych is an allegorical novella that tells about the ills of modern Russian society. In the character of Ivan Ilych, we see the dilemma of every modern progressive man who wants to make his name. This novella shows all the people in society who are driven by materialistic desires and ruining human relationships. It shows the irony of modern human robots who don’t have any moral principles. 

It can be taken as a mirror to a society that feels proud but doesn’t have any reason for it. With a beautiful realistic representation of incidents happening in life, this novella gives the reader a chance to reconsider his/her life and make amends to it if required.

It covers the collective life of society and the eventual death using an individual reflecting the traits of common people in society. The order of the novella is reverse chronological, and it relates the story when Ilych falls ill till his death with backdrops of his early life. This novella is aimed to show the artificial nature and fragility of the life human beings live, thus circumscribing the ironies in life. His daughter and wife’s callous behavior and stinging questions are intended to show the reality of human relationships. For its portrayal of high-class Russian life, this novel can be named as one of the masterpieces of realist literature.

This novella is a work of realist, satirical fiction in which ironies of the then Russian society are exposed. It parodies the false beliefs and struggles for progress from one class to another. It shows the cost of promotion from one class to another and shows what one has to lose to move from one social class to another.

It also shows the consequences of the efforts made for this purpose. It is a romanticized, ordinary life. In this novel term ‘realism’ presents the life of elite class Russians. These people live an ordinary, unremarkable life and for this reason, essentially die unremarkable. There are rudimentary forms of psychological realism in this novel as the author tries to relate the inner thoughts of the characters. 

It is a satire and despises the pretenses. The author has shown the pettiness and humorousness of the character through their follies. It is intended to be satirical because the characters’ follies are presented throughout the novel.

The tone of the novella is masterly, lucid, all-knowing, and alleviated. The narrator has complete control over his presentation and shows disapproval for the then Russian society.

Point of View

It is told by a third-person omniscient narrator. The narrator’s focus is to present the perspective of Ivan Ilych, and he penetrates his mind to tell all that he thinks. He has the ability to psychoanalyze the characters’ thoughts and motivations.

The narrator is omniscient and describes the events that are happening with complete knowledge. Later this point of view changes to Ilych’s and everything is seen from his perspective. There is a change in perspective from Ivan whenever it is needed. It is evident in the death scene when the events narrated are both from Ivan’s perspective and the people who are around there.    

Black Sack, Phoenix, and doctors are used as symbols in this novella. Black sack primarily represents death, and it carries connotative meanings of the struggle between life and death, rebirth, and spiritual conversion. Ivan is called Phoenix of his family; this term has the denotative meaning of a bird that rises from its ashes. It carries here the denotative meanings of immortality, resurrection, and resilience in this novella. Doctors are used symbolically for the author’s disdain for modern science and technology, which is of no use to human beings.

This novella is spatially set in St. Petersburg, Russia. The main place of action is a middle-class house where the majority of the events take place. It is the place where Ivan suffers and ultimately dies. Other places that are described in this novella are the court of law and the protagonist’s brother’s country house. The spatial setting of the work is 1883-1884; it is the time when the protagonist dies.

Modern Russian society can be taken as this novella’s major setting. Using the different levels of setting show the organization of life at different levels. The major setting shows the conditions of life in Russian society and the general traits of this life are true in the case of many individuals. In the case of the setting on a smaller level, like the lives of individuals at their homes tries to capture individual desires and miseries. The smaller level is a more concrete representation of life.

Using the smaller level setting medical profession and modern science are also criticized because, in the novella, we see that they are of no use to the protagonist.

Significance of Title

The title tells of the death of a person, but before death, it tells the significance of life and shows how to lead life successfully and happily. It redefines the terms happiness and success, makes them get rid of their materialistic nuances. It makes the reader think and reconsider his life and motivations that drive his/her life.

It is a recollection of the past, reconsidering the steps that the protagonist took to lead a happy life. But the major thing which his eye didn’t notice was the death which is inevitable. This title is intended to show the inevitability of death. It is the realization of the huge mistake that the protagonist made.

Significance of Ending

The ending is suggested in his vision when he sees the light at the end of the narrow, black sack. It tells how we should pursue life and what should be the motivations. It tells that death is not an end, rather it’s a beginning of a new life. It tells us that as a result of a death that our sufferings end, and we start a new life that is filled with blessings. We can infer light as a realization of God and the popular belief that all life comes from Him. If this belief is accepted, one can realize that it won’t be painful and miserable if one returns to his/her origin.

It makes the reader realize and reconsider the perception of right and wrong. Thus it is an ending that proves a light of hope for the reader.

Writing Style

The writing style of this novella is flowing, transparent, logical, and informal. It tells the story of a life ruined that was wasted behind materialistic pursuits. Thus to make the reader realize the importance and impacts of it, the narrator has chosen the style that is acceptable and can impact the reader’s decisions. The writing style of the novella is unassuming and simple, short; easy sentences are used. 

An extensive vocabulary is avoided, and there is a deliberate use of everyday words. The divisions are based on logical reasons and different paragraphs; chapters can be easily differentiated on this basis of logical distinction. Several techniques of writing sentences are used. Sometimes there is repetition; other times, there is a description in several short sentences. Tolstoy’s writing in this novel is informal, as in several instances there are conjunctions used to start a sentence.

There are references made to historical facts, and one of them is Emile Zola, this reference is made in chapter five when the protagonist asks Gerasim for Zola’s book. There is also a reference to Johann Gottfried Kiesewetter from Literature in chapter six, paragraph third describing his syllogisms. From pop-culture reference to Sarah Bernhardt is made in chapter eight two times when Ivan’s daughter and wife are going to watch her drama.

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The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy, Essay Example

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A major theme of The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy is the morality and condition of the soul. The author emphasizes the importance of this theme by utilizing the literary elements of plot, symbolism, and tone. The story revolves around an individual who is considered to be high in society, but his death teaches us that despite the status we obtain in life, we are all equal in death. Furthermore, Ilyich’s situation reminds us that we must live through others to truly live at all, as these relationships last longer than life itself. The setting of the story is symbolic of Ilyich’s status, as his house is marked by luxurious curtains and we can expect that aspects of his home that were not described in the tale were grand as well. Thus, the symbolism of the story works well with the tone, because even despite Ilyich’s belief that the curtains mark happiness and success, to the reader it seems that they cast a shadow on his household that lead to his mental degradation. All of these elements are used to demonstrate the transformation of Ilyich’s soul.

The plot of the story demonstrates how Ilyich goes from being a successful and well-revered man in his own mind to one without a grasp on reality. In a sense, this shows that he is finally able to view himself the way that others do. Simply put, his life does not mean much to others, so it doesn’t mean anything at all. When the death of the main character is introduced in the first chapter, it explains that “Ivan Ilych had been a colleague of the gentlemen present and was liked by them all” (Tolstoy 6). However, this description of Ilyich’s relationship with these individuals is superficial, just like his life. As the story continues, we learn that Ilyich wasn’t liked, but was tolerated due to his social status and influence. The plot of the story revolves around clarifying the truth of this statement. Later in the story, when Ilyich begins to learn the truth of the meaning of his life, he begins to slip into insanity because he cannot cope with this new understanding of himself. At the end, Ilyich makes a major transformation, as this mental state teaches him to pity those that he will leave behind in this world. For the first time, it appears that he cares about others. This demonstrates that the condition of the soul can change when faced with death because this is the factor that unites all life.

The curtains in the story appear to be symbolic of Ilyich’s view towards others. From the brief description of the curtains that we are given, it seems that he is overly obsessed with his curtains, just as he is obsessed with the other aspects of vanity that consume his life. An excerpt from the story states “Sometimes he even had moments of absent-mindedness during the court sessions and would consider whether he should have straight or curved cornices for his curtains” (Tolstoy 17). This represents Ilyich’s obsession with material goods. He even believes that items as simple as curtains must be perfectly placed so as to represent his status. Ilyich puts the curtains up in his house because he believes that this will advertise his status in society. At the same time, the curtains are shutting others out both literary and figuratively. This reflects Ilyich’s belief that others are nothing compared to him. It was also at this time that he started suffering from the pain that would lead to his decline. Therefore, these curtains also represent the error in his current way of thinking and prompt him to change. It can also be said that the curtains are a symbol of Ilyich’s lack of morality and a sign that his soul is tarnished. Towards the end of the story, Ilyich exclaims “I lost my life over that curtain as I might have done when storming a fort. Is that possible? How terrible and how stupid. It can’t be true! It can’t, but it is” (Tolstoy 28). This realization marks that in his period of insanity, he has finally recognized the error of his ways.

The tone of the story is used to emphasize the main idea. The way that the story is told provides the reader with an ominous feel as the reader knows that Ilyich is slowly degrading. This helps support the theme of the story because it shows that it is disadvantageous to live life with a dirty soul, because doing so will lead to an equally dirty death. The reader gets the feeling that if Ilyich had behaved morally, none of this would have befallen him. After Ilyich recognizes that the curtains represent all that made him evil, the narrator explains that “He would go to his study, lie down, and again be alone with *It*: face to face with *It*. And nothing could be done with *It* except to look at it and shudder” (Tolstoy 28). The use of the word “it” is a personification of the curtains. This creates an eerie feeling because it makes the reader feel that an inanimate object is somehow alive, and in fact, this may perfectly describe Ilyich’s view of them.

In conclusion, plot, symbolism, and tone was used in The Death of Ivan Ilyich to demonstrate the transformation of Ilyich’s soul from evil to caring. These literary elements help the reader understand that if Ilyich had recognized the values of others sooner, than his death would have been less painful. The plot of the story is meant to tell the story of Ilyich’s transformation from a vain man overly concerned with status to a dying and slightly insane man who recognizes the errors of his ways. This indicates that death is a great equalizer and that we all have the potential to change. The symbolism in the story was used to mark Ilyich’s moral transformation. At the beginning of the story, the curtains were his greatest pride because they represented his place in society. However, as he started degrading, he began to fear and reject them, symbolizing his personality change. Last, the tone of the story was used to emphasize both the plot and the symbolism used because the word choice created an eerie feel that allowed the reader to understand Ilyich’s mental instability more intensely. All of these story elements work together to show us that it is important for us to live good lives, otherwise we may befall the same fate as Ilyich did; lost and alone on a deathbed.

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“The Death of Ivan Ilych” by Tolstoy: Philosophical Paradigm

The novella “The Death of Ivan Ilych” beautifully illustrates Tolstoy’s main philosophical paradigm through the story of Ivan.

Introduction : “The Death of Ivan Ilych”

Table of Contents

The novella “The Death of Ivan Ilych” beautifully illustrates Tolstoy’s main philosophical paradigm through the story of Ivan. The statement that his life has been “most simple, most ordinary, and most terrible” suggests that Ivan led a life perceived as good and straightforward. The narrative follows Ivan, initially portrayed as a straightforward and ambitious child, as he pursues a career in law, marries an ordinary girl, yet ultimately faces a terrible death accompanied by mental anguish. What resonates with readers throughout the story is Ivan’s adaptation to changing circumstances to attain societal status through pretense. However, when he encounters similar pretense in others, it inflicts mental torture upon him. Thus, Ivan Ilych’s life, though seemingly straightforward and ordinary, serves as a metaphor for the human condition, highlighting the complexities and contradictions inherent in societal expectations and personal fulfillment.

Life of Ivan in “The Death of Ivan Ilych”

Ivan’s life is depicted as “most simple and most ordinary” (Tolstoy 11) as he diligently studies law, successfully completes school, and secures a respectable job without encountering significant obstacles. He effortlessly assimilates into the legal profession, adopting the manners of his colleagues and establishing new connections, a common experience for many individuals. Ivan’s career progresses steadily, marked by promotions and a commitment to his work, until he experiences a setback when he is passed over for a promotion unjustly, leading him to relocate to St. Petersburg in search of better opportunities. Despite this setback, Ivan manages to secure another good job and receives further promotions, keeping himself occupied with work. However, his life takes a drastic turn when he suddenly falls ill with an unknown ailment.

Doctor in “The Death of Ivan Ilych”

It happens that he consults one doctor after another, but each doctor arrives at a different conclusion about his disease. He receives loads of medicines but still feels the same sharp pain and unpleasant taste in his mouth, even when playing. He finally concludes that he is going to die shortly, which plunges him into mental anguish, especially when he realizes that even Praskovya, along with his friends, is not loyal to him, and that everyone who approaches him is merely pretending sympathy, except for Gerasim, his nurse, “who understood him and pitied him” (75). This makes his life unbearable until his most torturous death. Therefore, this simple yet tragically torturous death seems to symbolize the journey of mankind.

“The Death of Ivan Ilych” as a Metaphor

It serves as a metaphor for humanity, illustrating how every individual desires a good life, status, and a respectable position in society. However, friendships often prove conditional, lasting only as long as they benefit the other party. When these relationships dissolve, so does the friendship, sometimes even blood ties. On one’s deathbed, their significance diminishes, becoming merely a burden to others before departing from this world. This narrative resonates with the universal experience of mankind; Ivan is not an exception. Each person confronts the harsh reality that everyone navigates life towards their own end, leaving individuals feeling disillusioned and anguished.

Conclusion : “The Death of Ivan Ilych”

Ivan Ilyich’s life encapsulates a universal journey: starting from humble beginnings, achieving success in his career, marrying for convenience, and experiencing contentment with promotions. However, his life takes a dark turn when he confronts his mortality and realizes the superficiality of human interactions. His experience serves as a metaphor for the common path of humanity, where individuals face similar trials and revelations.

Works Cited: “The Death of Ivan Ilych”

Tolstoy, Leo . The Death of Ivan Ilych. The University of Adelaide, Australia. 2014.

Relevant Question about “The Death of Ivan Ilych”

• How does “The Death of Ivan Ilych” explore the themes of existential dread and the search for meaning in the face of mortality?
• In what ways does Tolstoy use Ivan Ilych’s journey towards death to critique societal norms and values, particularly regarding the pursuit of wealth, status, and conformity?
• How does Tolstoy employ narrative structure and symbolism in “The Death of Ivan Ilych” to convey the psychological and emotional turmoil experienced by the protagonist as he confronts his impending death?

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“The Death of Ivan Ilych: A Psychological Study On Death and Dying” as a Lens Essay

The lens essay is a commonly-assigned paper, particularly in Writing Seminars. The prompt for such a paper often asks students to “critique and refine” an argument, to use a source as a lens through which to view another source and in the process gain a better understanding of both sources. This type of essay can be hard to explain and difficult to understand, so it is one of the most common types of essays we see in the Writing Center.

Recently, I read Y.J. Dayananda’s paper “ The Death of Ivan Ilych : A Psychological Study On Death and Dying ” which uses the lens technique. In this paper, Dayananda examines Tolstoy’s famous short story The Death of Ivan Ilych through the lens of Dr. E. K. Ross’s psychological studies of dying, particularly her five-stage theory. Dayananda’s paper features strong source use, shows how structure can be informed by those sources, and serves as a model for an effective and cross-disciplinary lens essay.

Dayananda establishes the paper’s argument clearly at the end of the introduction, setting up the paper’s thesis in light of this lens technique and providing the rationale (part of the motive) behind applying Ross’s study to Tolstoy’s story:

I intend to draw upon the material presented in Dr. Ross’s On Death and Dying and try to show how Tolstoy’s Ivan Ilych in The Death of Ivan Ilych goes through the same five stages. Psychiatry offers one way to a better illumination of literature. Dr. Ross’s discoveries in her consulting room corroborate Tolstoy’s literary insights into the experience of dying. They give us the same picture of man’s terrors of the flesh, despair, loneliness, and depression at the approach of death. The understanding of one will be illuminated by the understanding of the other. The two books, On Death and Dying and The Death of Ivan Ilych , the one with its systematically accumulated certified knowledge, and disciplined and scientific descriptions, and the other with its richly textured commentary, and superbly concrete and realistic perceptions, bring death out of the darkness and remove it from the list of taboo topics. Death, our affluent societies newest forbidden topic, is not regarded as “obscene” but discussed openly and without the euphemisms of the funeral industry.

Dayananda then organizes the paper in order of the five stages of Dr. Ross’s theory: denial, loneliness, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. This gives the paper a clear structure and places the texts into conversation with each other on an organizational level. As the reader moves through each stage, Dayananda combines quotations from Dr. Ross’s study and evidence from The Death of Ivan Ilych to show how Ivan Ilych experiences that stage.

Dayananda’s interdisciplinary close-reading of Tolstoy’s text through the lens of Dr. Ross’s study allows us to better understand what Ivan is experiencing as we learn the psychology behind it. As Dayananda writes, “psychoanalysis offers a rich, dynamic approach to some aspects of literature.” The only way Dayananda’s paper could have been strengthened is if the essay also argued explicitly how reading the literature critiques or refines the psychological text, as the best lens essays run both ways. However, overall, Dayananda sets up and executes an original and effective lens reading of The Death of Ivan Ilych.

–Paige Allen ’21

Dayananda, Y. J. “ The Death of Ivan Ilych: A Psychological Study On Death and Dying .” Tolstoy’s Short Fiction: Revised Translations, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism , by Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoi and Michael R. Katz, Norton, 1991, pp. 423–434.

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The Death of Ivan Ilych

By leo tolstoy, the death of ivan ilych themes.

The reality of Death is a central theme of the novel. Tolstoy's contemplation of death precipitated his intellectual crisis. The truth of death puts all of life in context, and many of the other themes are seen in Death's shadow.

Denial of Death

As real as death is, characters in The Death of Iván Ilych go out of their way to avoid thinking about it. At the funeral, those present try to see death as an odd occurrence, a thing that has happened to the deceased, rather than an end awaiting everyone. To Tolstoy, denial of death is usually linked with an incredibly detached living of life.

Detachment from Life

Everywhere in the novel, Tolstoy speaks of Iván Ilych's desire for propriety, decorous living, and pleasantness. This motivation is a poor substitute for involved, richer living. Occupation with petty social concerns and interior decorating are Iván Ilych's way of escaping from the real world around him. Misplaced priorities are the bane of all the characters of the novel except Gerásim , whose simple goodness makes Iván Ilych question his whole life.

The Gap Between Inner Reality and Outer Appearance

The gap between inner truth and outer appearance becomes apparent nearly every time two characters speak to each other. Hypocrisy is a way of life for the novel's characters, as nearly every statement is made to hide real motivations and feelings. Worse yet, most are at some level aware of the gap, and choose to ignore it. As Iván Ilych grows more ill, the hypocrisy in the world around him hurts him as much as his sickness. In Gerásim, the gap does not exist, and Iván Ilych is struck powerfully by the peasant boy's example.

Iván Ilych's final moments are not depressing or painful, but full of hope. As full as the novel's world is of hypocrisy, as devoid as it is of real love, Tolstoy offers an alternative. Compassion and living fully can both be done even when there is no time left, and the protagonist's acceptance of both compassion and mortality means that his death can be a happy one. Sincerity, pity, and compassion are all marks of a good life, and breaking through to them is possible even on one's deathbed.

The Death of Ivan Ilych Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Death of Ivan Ilych is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

What is the purpose of the scene in Leo Tolstoy s The Death of Ivan llyich thinks about the following logical argument, known as a syllogism?

Check this out:

https://involutedgenealogies.wordpress.com/2014/02/14/the-syllogism-reflection-the-death-of-ivan-ilyich-tolstoy/

Which two parts of this excerpt from Leo Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich reflect the author's opinion that the members of the rising middle class can never throw off their emotional masks? Apart from this lying, or because of it, what most tormented Iv

What specific excerpt are you referring to?

Which sentence in this excerpt from Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilyich shows the human tendency to contemplate one’s past life?

In them he saw himself—all that for which he had lived—and saw clearly that it was not real at all, but a terrible and huge deception which had hidden both life and death. This consciousness intensified his physical suffering tenfold.

Study Guide for The Death of Ivan Ilych

The Death of Ivan Ilych study guide contains a biography of Leo Tolstoy, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Death of Ivan Ilych
• The Death of Ivan Ilych Summary
• Character List
• Chapters 1-2 Summary and Analysis

Essays for The Death of Ivan Ilych

The Death of Ivan Ilych literature essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Death of Ivan Ilych.

• Trapped in an Isolated Present: The First Chapter of Ivan Ilych
• Tedium Extraordinaire
• Separate and Alone: Alienation as a Central Theme in Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Kafka's Metamorphosis
• Ivan Ilych: Redemption in Mere Minutes
• With Clean Hands, In Clean Linen: A Reflection of Nineteenth-Century Russian Society

Lesson Plan for The Death of Ivan Ilych

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to The Death of Ivan Ilych
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• The Death of Ivan Ilych Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for The Death of Ivan Ilych

• Introduction
• Interpretation
• English translations
• Adaptations

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The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy: A Story for All Souls

• Written by  Super User
• SEAN FITZPATRICK

A man lies on his deathbed — screaming; screaming for three days without cessation.

...To die, to sleep, To sleep, perchance to dream; aye, there's the rub, For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come, When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause.

At this dying time of year, human thoughts and liturgies turn toward the departed; and hence, the human obligation to die:

What is the purpose of life? What occurs after death?

Such existential meditations are central in Leo Tolstoy's writings; and perhaps never presented with such emotional, fearful force as in his short work, The Death of Ivan Ilych .  A source of this novella's power lies in the fact that its conflicts and revelations reflect Tolstoy's own in many ways.

One night, at a country inn in Arzamas, Tolstoy had a life-changing experience.  He felt assured that Death was present within the house.  The incident actually drove the writer to mental prostration, spurring him to the study of religion and doctrines of death to overcome his dread of mortality.  Ultimately, he rejected Boethian consolations of philosophy and Biblical fortifications of faith in favor of the simple worldview of the Russian rustic, whose honest acceptance of death bore the wisdom of ages.

Tolstoy upheld that the uneducated, underestimated poor were the preservers of Christianity.  He struggled against the forms of orthodox civilization and the Orthodox Church, following instead the serf's faith and fellowship.  Towards the end of his life, he wore only peasant garb and refused all royalties for his writings.  Despite this shift into simplicity, Tolstoy's passionate radicalism had already driven a wedge between him and his wife, Sofya.  Mutual resentments led to such strife that Tolstoy, aged eighty-two, left her.  He boarded a train for a monastery where he might live out his remaining days, but fell ill in transit and died in a railroad station.

Leo Tolstoy was an artist attracted to extremes, and his work scrutinizes extreme situations — situations of life and death.  The Death of Ivan Ilych is a perfect example.  Ivan Ilych:  a man engulfed in the habits of a class bred by hypocrisy — a sine qua non of cosmopolitan courtesy.  He is as disingenuous as anyone in his social circle:  nurturing shallow yet fashionable friendships, forcing a bad marriage that looked good, and utilizing career to define his worth.  He labors on the judge's bench, claws for seniority, navigates marital altercations, and plays bridge.  It is only when his life unexpectedly dwindles to death (sustaining an injury hanging curtains) that he tries to comfort himself with a life well lived;  and realizes the lie that his life is.

Faced with his end, Ivan Ilych learned the unbearable truth that he was dead long before he was called to die.  He had participated in a vast vanity.  Every detail of his life mocked him with hollow insincerity; from his wife's disdainful assurances that he would recover, to his watch-chain medallion engraved with Respice finem, "be mindful of the end."  Too late, the unmindful Ivan Ilych saw his life as artificial rather than authentic.

Ivan Ilych placed all his chips on the modern, material, rational world and lost his bet.  There was a time when he had no concern for lowly, backward folk like his butler's assistant, Gerasim — until he discovered that Gerasim was the only person who actually treated him like a dying man.  This hearty, healthy country youth admitted that all that live must die — and so administered to his master with patience and sympathy.  For some time, Ivan Ilych found no comfort save for the human touch that Gerasim provided as he good-naturedly and tirelessly held the dying man's legs up to relieve his pain — the pain of malady and the pain of knowledge that he had not lived as he ought to have.

Despite these periods of relief, Ivan Ilych fought to rationalize his way out of the "black sack" that death was thrusting him into with indomitable force.  But there was no way out.  The Judge was coming for the judge.  Ivan Ilych dragged rationality to its limit — and then began screaming like an animal.  He would have screamed all the way into his grave had it not been for a second touch — a touch more intimate than his selfless servant's:  a touch from his son.  A peace that Ivan Ilych had never known was imparted by this touch because he had never known love.  The black sack suddenly became a life-giving womb.  At last, Ivan Ilych was able to surrender to death without screaming.

Ivan Ilych's physical life had been spiritual death.

His physical death was spiritual life.

Tolstoy believed that crisis was necessary to comprehend the essential.  Ivan Ilych is a testament to this belief.  He was by all accounts a successful man — who found that his life was a failure when he had to lose it.  Everything he thought solid and profitable was a sham and a lie when he weighed it as the substance of a good life.  It was only through direct and genuine human contact that Ivan Ilych was saved and grasped that, though death eclipses the concerns of life, love endures.

The irony of Ivan Ilych's death is devastating in itself and as a condemnation of the facades of sophisticated society.  This devastation does not, however, extend to the recognition of the reality of death — only to one poor soul's struggle for compromise.  Ivan Ilych's attitude toward life changed through dying, his psyche running the gambit from terror to triumph.  Ignoring or denying death embodied Ivan Ilych's environment, a delusion devised to ward off unpleasantries; which only breeds superficiality, fear, and frustration.  Acceptance of death and the irregular patterns of life allows for confidence, concord, and content.  As Gerasim put it, "We shall all of us die, so why should I grudge a little trouble?"

The Death of Ivan Ilych is Tolstoy's parable representing the mystery that living well is the best way to die well — and that is a mystery that all souls should grapple with.

Additional Info

• Author: Sean Fitzpatrick

Sean Fitzpatrick.  " The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy: A Story for All Souls."  Crisis Magazine (October 28, 2013).

Reprinted with permission of Crisis Magazine .

Crisis Magazine is an educational apostolate that uses media and technology to bring the genius of Catholicism to business, politics, culture, and family life. Our approach is oriented toward the practical solutions our faith offers — in other words, actionable Catholicism.

• Publisher: Crisis Magazine
• Alternate: http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/arts/al0553.htm

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The death of Ivan Ilych: A blueprint for intervention at the end of life

Affiliation.

• 1 Department of Anesthesiology, Division of Critical Care, Trauma, and Burn, The Ohio State University Medical Center, 410 West 10 Street, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA.
• PMID: 22229136
• PMCID: PMC3249844
• DOI: 10.4103/2229-5151.84798

Medical practice and the field of humanities frequently intersect. It is uncanny how problems presented or described in literature that are several hundred years old still present themselves to us on a regular basis. Often, our answers to these dilemmas are not perfect, but we continue our attempts at providing solutions through an enlightened evolution of our thought and approaches. Leo Tolstoy's novella, The Death of Ivan Ilych, is a classic piece of literature that allows a view of the dying process in an ordinary human being, and presents us with an opportunity to observe, not only the intersection of medicine and humanities, but also that of critical care and palliative medicine. Here Tolstoy, through his keen observation of the human condition at the end of life, allows us an opportunity to view a 19(th) century perspective that has an all too familiar persistence that needs a 21(st) century intervention.

Keywords: Death; intensive care; palliation.

The Death of Ivan Ilyich

Leo tolstoy, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions, ivan ilyich golovin, praskovya fyodorovna golovina, pyotr ivanovich.

Mikhail Danilovich (the Doctor)

Petrishchev, ivan yegorovich shebek, fyodor vasilyevich, ivan’s brother-in-law.