The Twelve: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Twelve: Analysis of Major Characters" explores the complex interpersonal dynamics among key figures in a revolutionary setting, focusing on a love triangle that highlights themes of betrayal, loyalty, and personal tragedy. Central to the narrative are Vanka, Katka, and Petrukha (Petka), whose relationships reflect the tumult of the revolutionary spirit in Petrograd. Vanka, a revolutionary who betrays his friend Petka by eloping with Katka, embodies both seduction and betrayal, marked by his army coat that symbolizes his defection. Katka is portrayed as a charming and materialistic figure, willingly abandoning Petka for the allure of a better life with Vanka, revealing her lack of fidelity through her past scars and lifestyle choices. Petka, the heartbroken lover, grapples with profound grief that overshadows his commitment to the revolutionary cause, ultimately leading him to a tragic fate.
The text also features an apparition of Jesus Christ, representing a spiritual commentary on the societal upheaval, and various bystanders who symbolize diverse societal segments opposing the revolution. The use of common Russian names for the characters enhances the relatability and universality of their experiences, making the narrative a poignant reflection on the personal amidst the broader historical context. This analysis provides insight into how individual desires and conflicts can intertwine with significant social movements, drawing readers into the emotional landscape of the characters.
The Twelve: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Aleksandr Blok
First published: Dvenadtsat', 1918 (English translation, 1920; collected in A Treasury of Russian Literature, 1943)
Genre: Poetry
Locale: Petrograd, Russia
Plot: Ballad
Time: 1917
Vanka, one of the revolutionaries marching through the streets of Petrograd. At the time the marchers are depicted in the poem, he is seen only in the distance, prancing with Katka, the girlfriend of another revolutionary, Petrukha. By eloping with Katka, he betrays not only his friend but also the revolutionary cause. His former comrades accuse him of defecting to the enemy and becoming a bourgeois, a soldier in the enemy camp, and an enemy to the Red revolutionaries. He clearly possesses, in his speech, qualities of a seducer that others lack. His army coat symbolizes his betrayal in comparison with the ragtag and even prison garb of his former comrades. He has somehow gained superiority over them, as illustrated by his miraculous escape from Petka's avenging bullet.
Katka, or Katya, a pretty girl involved with the only two named revolutionaries, Vanka and Petka. By abandoning Petka in favor of a more dashing and richer Vanka, she shows that she is interested primarily in pleasures and a better life. She dances and frolics in the evening snow and flashes Vanka a pearly smile, indicating that the two of them complement each other. She shows no remorse for betraying Petka because she is not generally faithful, as indicated by the knife scars on her neck and under her breasts received during another, most likely equally faithless, affair. She owns lacy attire and has plenty of money, received for her amorous services (or whoring, as Petka calls it).
Petrukha, or Petka, the aggrieved party in the triangle, stricken by jealousy and by the loss of his love. The extent of his grief is such that he almost forgets the cause for which he is fighting. In this sense, he shows himself to be a credible human being, wallowing in his sorrow rather than pursuing the loftier, abstract goal of his comrades. He shows that he is capable of resolute action when he tries to kill his rival; that he kills his beloved instead only underscores the depth of his personal tragedy. The intensity of his love is measured by his willingness to take back Katka even though he is fully aware of her shoddy character and infidelity. In fact, it is through him that the reader discovers the extent of her promiscuity. He trudges under the burden of his sorrow throughout the poem, despite the admonitions of his comrades that the times are too serious for such trifling personal concerns as unhappiness in love. Petka acts as most people in his position would act. The fact that the author gave all three characters common Russian names underscores the popular nature of both the love triangle and the revolution.
Jesus Christ, who appears at the end of the poem not as a person but as an apparition. For that reason, he cannot be termed a true character despite the important role the poet gives him.
Bystanders, who include an old woman, a bourgeois, a writer, a priest, an aristocratic lady, and a prostitute. They are not presented as individual characters. Like Jesus Christ, they contribute substantially to the overall plot of the poem as types, each symbolizing a segment of the society opposing the revolution.