"The Death of Ivan Ilych" and Materialism

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses how in "The Death of Ivan Ilych," Leo Tolstoy utilizes characters, Ivan's social status and his illness to demonstrate the terrible fate of living a life of materialism and social climbing. The paper describes how years of social climbing do nothing for Ivan in the area of satisfaction and happiness. The paper looks at Ivan's death where those closest to him are more concerned with their well being than anything else.

From the Paper:

"From the very beginning of the story, we see how Tolstoy uses characters in the story to emphasize materialism and social climbing. For example, after the announcement of Ivan's death, we see different characters going over what the death means to them. We read that those that heard the news "the first thought of each of the gentlemen in that private room the changes and promotions it might occasion among themselves or their acquaintances" (Tolstoy 824). For example, Fedor Vasilievich remembers about a promotion he was promised long ago and thinks, "I shall be sure to get Stabel's place or Vinnikov's" (824)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Tolstoy, Leo. The Death of Ivan Ilych. The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. Shorter Sixth Ed. Eds. Cassill, R. V. and Bausch, Richard. New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 2000.

More papers on "The Death of Ivan Ilych" and Materialism:

• Book Review # 91979 : "Relevance of Ivan Ilych"
• Comparison Essay # 100805 : "Death in Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky"
• Comparison Essay # 96596 : "The Death of Ivan llyitch" and "The Metamorphosis"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: