Mary: Analysis of Major Characters
The exploration of major characters in the narrative revolves around Lev Glebovich Ganin, a young Russian émigré living in Berlin, who is caught in a web of nostalgia and unfulfilled love. As he grapples with a lackluster affair with Lyudmila, he learns that Mary, his first love, is about to arrive in the city. This revelation reignites his memories of their youthful romance and the circumstances that led to their separation. Ganin, motivated by these recollections, plans to reconnect with Mary but ultimately realizes that the idealized version of her he cherishes in his mind holds more significance than their potential reunion.
Other key figures include Aleksey Ivanovich Alfyorov, Mary's husband, whose self-absorbed nature and drunkenness provide comic relief and contribute to Ganin's scheme. Anton Sergeevich Podtyagin, an elderly poet living in the same pension, embodies the struggles of displacement and artistic aspiration, while Klara, a woman facing her own romantic disappointments, adds depth to the interpersonal dynamics. Throughout the narrative, Mary remains a poignant and unattainable symbol of love, influencing the actions and emotional journeys of those around her. This intricate character tapestry invites readers to reflect on themes of memory, desire, and the often-idealized nature of past relationships.
Mary: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Vladimir Nabokov
First published: Mashenka, 1926 (English translation, 1970)
Genre: Novel
Locale: Berlin, Germany
Plot: Ironic
Time: 1924
Lev Glebovich Ganin (GLEH-boh-vihch GAH-nihn), the alias of a twenty-four-year-old Russian émigré who lives in a Berlin pension with several other émigrés. Bored with a dreary love affair with a woman named Lyudmila, Ganin discovers that a fellow boarder's wife, a woman named Mary who is due to arrive in Berlin from Russia in just a few days' time, is actually his own first love. Breaking off his current affair, he spends the next few days dreaming about the romance he shared with Mary as a youth and about the difficult conditions of their separation. Stimulated by these memories, he decides to intercept Mary at the station and to resume his romance with her. He succeeds in getting Mary's husband, Alfyorov, hopelessly drunk on the eve of Mary's arrival, but as he sets out to meet her train, he realizes that there is no need to renew their acquaintance, because the image of Mary that he had been reviving in his mind is the only Mary that truly matters. As the novel ends, he boards a train and leaves Berlin for the south.
Aleksey Ivanovich Alfyorov (ah-lehk-SAY ee-VAH-nohvihch alf-YOH-rov), Ganin's garrulous neighbor in the pension. Smug and self-absorbed, Alfyorov waxes eloquently about his admiration for German efficiency and his love for his wife. His essential boorishness emerges when he becomes drunk on the eve of his wife's arrival. He is easily duped when Ganin resets his alarm clock so that he will sleep through Mary's arrival.
Anton Sergeevich Podtyagin (sehr-GEH-yeh-vihch podTYA-gihn), an elderly Russian poet who lives in the pension with Ganin. A sympathetic figure, Podtyagin wrote a poem that linked Ganin and Mary. He now seeks in desperation to leave Berlin for a new life in Paris, but after a series of mishaps prevents him from making his scheduled departure, he falls ill. At the end of the novel, it appears that he may die.
Klara, a twenty-six-year-old Russian woman who also lives in Ganin's pension. Troubled over the fact that she is getting older and has not found a romantic attachment in her life, she focuses her thoughts on the mysterious Ganin, but he does not let her become closely acquainted with his true nature and even allows her to suspect that he may be capable of thievery. His relationship with her friend Lyudmila is also an early source of discomfort for her. He remains an enigma to her until he leaves the pension at the end of the novel.
Lyudmila Rubanski (lyuhd-MIH-lah rew-BAHN-skee), Ganin's lover at the outset of the novel, a twenty-five-year-old woman who has become repugnant to him because of the thorough triteness of her opinions and the artificiality of her behavior with him.
Kolin (KOH-lihn) and Gornotsvetov (gohr-noh-TSVEHtov), two ballet dancers who live together in a room in Ganin's pension. They hold the party at which Alfyorov becomes drunk on the eve of his wife's arrival.
Mary, the enchanting woman whom Ganin loved as a teenager. Although she lives a rich life in Ganin's recollections, she never appears in the present-day setting of the novel.
Lydia Nikolaevna Dorn (nih-koh-LA-yehv-nah), the widow of a German businessman and the landlady of Ganin's pension.