Full resolution (JPEG) - On this page / på denna sida - The Russian Drama - Leo Tolstoy - The Power of Darkness
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
Below is the raw OCR text
from the above scanned image.
Do you see an error? Proofread the page now!
Här nedan syns maskintolkade texten från faksimilbilden ovan.
Ser du något fel? Korrekturläs sidan nu!
This page has never been proofread. / Denna sida har aldrig korrekturlästs.
282 Tolstoy
Nikifa. I killed your father, and I, dog, have ruined
his daughter. I had the power over her, and I killed
also her baby. . . . Father dear! Forgive me, sinful
man! You told me, when I first started on this life of
debauch :
"
When the claw is caught, the whole bird is
lost."
But, I, dog, did not pay any attention to you, and
so everything turned out as you said. Forgive me, for
Christ s sake.
The "
Power of Darkness "
is a terrible picture
of poverty, ignorance and superstition. To write
such a work it is not sufficient to be a creative art
ist: it requires a deeply sympathetic human soul.
Tolstoy possessed both. He understood that the
tragedy of the peasants life is due not to any in
herent viciousness but to the power of darkness
which permeates their existence from the cradle
to the grave. Something heavy is oppressing
them in the words of Anlsya weighing them
down, something that saps all humanity out of
them and drives them into the depths.
"
The Power of Darkness
"
is a social picture
at once appalling and gripping.
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
