Character in Conflict

In the novel, Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy, the main character, Anna Karenina, is pitted against the rest of Russian high society, contributing to her path of self-destruction. When Anna, the wife of a prominent and high-ranking government official, begins a scandalous affair with the young and handsome Vronsky, the rest of high society looks down on Anna's impetuous behavior and she is excluded from the people whom she was once so popular among. The rest of Russian society is relatively conservative and rigid- quite the opposite of Anna, who gives into her passionate side by succumbing to her desires for Vronsky. By giving into this imulsiveness, Anna consequently must give up everything she once prided- her family, her son, her social stature. Anna and Vronsky's ill-fated and turbulent relationship expels Anna from the rest of society, which in part serves as the impetus for her committing suicide by throwing herself in front of the train- thus ending the conflict that had arisen from the troubles of her affair with Vronsky.

When the story begins, Anna is the perfect example of the prided Russian woman- she is beautiful, conservative, married to a prominent government official. By the end, however, she has lost it all. Although her marriage to her husband, Karenin, was never filled with overwhelming love or passion, it was bearable, and their son, Seryhoza, was her pride and joy. When she meets Vronsky though, and their scandalous affair becomes serious- Anna herself knows that she will not be able to keep her son and that Karenin will have complete control over what happens with the family. After much struggle, Karenin decides he will keep Seryhoza and Anna is excluded from their family. Therefore, the one thing that Anna loved more than Vronsky- her son- is taken away from her due to the conflict that arises from her affair with Vronsky.

Another result of their doomed relationship is her fall from her previously high social stature. Once is extremely popular and well-liked among conservative high society, once Anna begins to get serious with Vronsky, the people who were once her friends begin to look down on her. Because her scandalous behavior is not acceptable to the rest of society, Anna is excluded from her social circle, and has only few family members and friends who welcome her. Anna continues wanting to go out on the social scene and is devastated to discover that her peers no longer will accept her because of her reputation after Vronsky. The conflict caused by this is partly what leads to Anna's eventual downfall.

Anna's eventual suicide indirectly burgeons from the conflicts that rose from her relationship with Vronsky. The devastating results of their affair, particularly the loss of nearly everything that Anna once found important and her essential loss of identity pit her against the rest of society, who generally do not succumb to the same impulses that Anna had. Her exclusion and loss of her son wear Anna down so thin that she feels compelled to throw herself in front of a train- a symbolic gesture, since this is where Anna and Vronsky met in the beginning of the novel.

When Anna's passionate side overrides her reasonable, conservative side- the side that the rest of society has always accepted socially- Anna is pitted against the people who once looked up to and respected her, and her social conflicts with the rest of society lead directly to her eventual suicide.

22 min