DDR: Netochka Nezvanova by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

 

Day 1 (but still DDRD 2,238) December 17, 2023

I only had 19 pages of "The Landlady" left to read for today, so I thought I'd take a little nibble at the next (chronologically speaking) piece, Netochka Nezvanova ...Dostoyevsky's abandoned novel. I put the title into Google translate (Russian to English) and it just gave me the same two words back. But Oh!, hold de door; when I went to another Wikipedia page (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netochka_Nezvanova_(author) it said that "The name [of A writer] itself is adopted from the main character of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's first novel Netochka Nezvanova (1849) and translates as 'nameless nobody.'" Don't know where they came up with that, but I'm sure they know more about it than I do.

 

At any rate....

Oh, breaking news. I ran across an article on this nove/l by Elizabeth Cheresh Allen (courtesy of JSTOR), and check this out:  "Dostoyevsky's arrest in St. Petersburg for political subversion in late 1849, followed by his imprisonment in Siberia, interrupted work on the novel, which he had begun in 1846. ...he did correct proofs of the second installment of the novel while still incarcerated in St. Petersburg—it was being published serially in Notes of the Fatherland [Отечественные запискиu] during 1848 and 1849—...." (115-116)

So several interesting things there. First, that this is the work which immediately preceded his arrest. And second that this is considered his first novel. I didn't know either of those things before now.

Read to page 485. And it was pretty captivating right from the get go. Thus far (the first 11 pages) the story is focused on Netochka's stepfather, who was a musician. Ultimately a violinist / fiddler, which is always close to my heart since my #1🌞 is a fiddler. So there's that.

And as for that JSTOR article...I went back and read more of it. Quite interesting. I think ill come back to this again right soonish.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1zxsjmd.11?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=au%3A&searchText=%22Elizabeth%22&searchUri=%2Fopen%2Fsearch%2F%3FQuery%3Dau%253A%2522Elizabeth%2522%26amp%3Btheme%3Dopen%26amp%3Bsi%3D1&seq=5

Currently on page 5 of 36.

Day 2 (DDRD 2,239) December 18, 2023

Read to page 526.

"Like a regular dreamer, she broke down at the first step into hostile reality...." Welcome to my 🌎.

I know more than a few people like this: "...there are natures who are very fond of thinking themselves injured and oppressed, complaining aloud of it, or consoling themselves by gloating in secret over their unrecognised greatness." (496-497) As A matter of fact, if I'm not careful, I can slip into this mode of thinking, I'm chagrined to say.

On page 525, B., speaking to Prince X about Yefimov, says that if Yefimov were ever to discover that his violin playing was inferior to someone else, like S., that "he would recover at once; his madness is stronger than the truth, and he would at once invent some evasion.” Which makes me think of the many Trump supporters who are not swayed by facts or logic. Their support for Trump is so strong because it has been tangled up with their identity, and there might not be anything to be done about that. Which makes you wonder why. I can only think if two reasons: racism or love of money, since Trump has helped some rich people to get richer.

As for that JSTOR article...I'm currently on page 12 of 36, and it continues to hold my interest. In fact, more than that: it reminds me of the joy I felt when researching papers back in my first Bellarmine days...A joy comparable to that an archeologist must feel when s/he makes a fund and begins to scrape away the earth that clings to and obscures it, the thrill of discovery.

Thought this was an interesting comment on Netochka's mom: "The burdens of reality weigh on Netochka's mother too heavily to allow her to narrate or even to imagine a tale in which she and Netochka might live happily ever after." (126)

It made me think of how hard it is to be creative when your Real Life depletes your energies. Some people can do it. Maybe I'm one of the ones who can't. Maybe I am lacking the grit...the strength...the courage...the whatever...to keep on pushing.

Well, THAT'S not a happy thought.

😮

P. S. On page 127, Allen makes reference to "the version of 1849" of Netochka Nezvanova. Hmmm. I'm guessing that that means there are two versions of this "novel." You're killing me, Smalls. Read to page 17 of 36.

Day 3 (DDRD 2,240) December 19, 2023

Read to page 565.

What a difference a three letter word makes:

Constance: "Get it me to-day...."

Ann Dunigan*: "Get it for me to-day...."

* Translation I found at Internet Archive.

As I was reading today, I started thunkung, You know, this "novel" 's (at least so far) really revolving around the father's violin. And then I read this:

"...suddenly he snatched up the violin, brandished it above me, and... another minute and he would perhaps have killed me on the spot." (538)

How's that for intense? That should be the cover image, I think. If I had any talent whatsoever, I'd paint this.

At the end of Chapter 3, Efimov has a Road to Damascus Experience which doesn't turn out as well as Paul's did: "the truth was more than his eyes could endure when he gazed upon what had been, what was, and what awaited him; it blinded and burnt up his reason. It had struck him down at once inexorably like lightning." (545)

Day 4 (DDRD 2,241) December 20, 2023

Read to page 602.

After reading a section of Stephen King's Gerald's Game-- the part where the handcuffed Jessie tries to get a glass of eater from a shelf above her head--I thought, If I were ever to teach a class on writing, I'd use this to show how to create tension in your reader, how to blow up a moment into something that pulls the reader into the world you're creating. Dostoevsky does the sane thing here with Karta and the bulldog. Its such good writing that I wad no longer reading: I was watching the events unfold, seeing the details. It's amazing that he was able to do this in what is actually his first novel. 🎩🎩📴 to FD.

It occurs to me that (1) this novel is quite good, superior to the earlier Dostoyevsky pieces I've read, and (2) the tone of this is quite different from the late works of Dostoyevsky; it seems lighter, almost prone to joyfullness or humor. Of course, this writing precedes his arrest, near execution, and imprisonment. At any rate, it's an interesting look into Fed's character, perhaps more revealing than autobiography. 

Day 5 (DDRD 2,242) December 21, 2023

Read to page 640. So tomorrow will do it. I had some trepidations about this one, given my previous experience with unfinished works (Kafka, Dickens), but I have to say that this has been a pleasant reading experience, for sure. Unless something goes seriously awry in the last 30 pages, I'm giving this one two snaps up with a twist.

"Her gentle character seemed created for seclusion." (603)

Day 6 (DDRD 2,243) December 22, 2023

Read to page 669. -ish. For some reasons the page numbers in this Kindle version shift a bit, so what was 669 A few days back us now 668. In any event, its The End . And a pretty fine read it was, too. I wish that FD had finished it off, as I would have liked to see where he took Netochka next. 

Oh well. Onward.

DDR Day 1 to 1,000: 13,449 pages read, 13.45 Average Pages Per Day

A History of Philosophy Volumes I - XI

History of Civilization in England Volumes I - III

Miscellaneous and Posthumous Works of Henry Thomas Buckle Volumes I - III

Civilization and Capitalism, 16th - 18th Century Volumes I - III

The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip IIl Volumes I - III

This Happened In My Presence: Moriscos, Old Christians, and the Spanish Inquisition in the Town of Deza, 1569-1611

The Stolen Village: Baltimore and the Barbary Pirates

Peat and Peat Cutting

+

DDR Day 1,001 to Day 2,000:
(1) Leviathan 63 days, 729 pages
(2) Stalingrad 27 days, 982 pages
(3) Life and Fate 26 days, 880 pages
(4) The Second World War 34 + 32 + 40 + 43 + 31 + 32 days = 212 days, 4,379 pages
(5) Baron Wenckheim's Homecoming 10 days, 572 pages
(6) The Great Bridge 25 days, 636 pages
(7) The Path Between the Seas 29 days, 698 pages
(8) Blake: Prophet Against Empire, 23 days, 523 pages
(9) Jerusalem 61 days, 1,266 pages
(10) Voice of the Fire 9 days, 320 pages
(11) The Fountainhead 15 days, 720 pages

(12) The Pacific Trilogy: Pacific Crucible 23 days, 640 pages
(13) The Pacific Trilogy: The Conquering Tide 28 days, 656 pages
(14) The Pacific Trilogy: Twilight of the Gods 31 days, 944 pages

(15) Jazz: Its Evolution and Essence 13 days, 304 pages
(16) Toward Jazz 18 days, 224 pages
(17) The Worlds of Jazz 13 days, 279 pages
(18) To Be or Not...to Bop 14 days, 571 pages
(19) Kind of Blue 4 days, 224 pages
(20) Kind of Blue: Miles Davis and his Masterpiece: 5 days, 256 pages
(21) Miles: The Autobiography 16 days, 445 pages
(21) A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album: 8 days, 287 pages
(22) Ascension: John Coltrane and His Quest 8 days, 304 pages
(23) Living With Music: Ralph Ellison's Jazz Writings 11 days 325 pages

(24) The Pickwick Papers 28 days, 983 pages
(25) Oliver Twist 16 days, 542 pages
(26) Nicholas Nickleby 27 days, 1,045 pages
(27) The Old Curiosity Shop 22 days, 753 pages
(28) Barnaby Rudge 24 days, 866 pages

(29) Master Humprhey's Clock 4 days, 145 pages
(30) Martin Chuzzlewit 32 days, 1,045 pages
(31) American Notes 10 days, 324 pages
(32) Pictures From Italy 7 days, 211 pages
(33) Christmas Stories Volume I 10 days, 456 pages
(34) Christmas Stories Volume II 15 days, 472 pages

(35) Christmas Books 17 days, 525 pages

(36) The Annotated Christmas Carol  7 days, 380 pages

(37) Dombey and Son 30 days, 1,089 pages

(38) Sketches by Boz 22 days, 834 pages

2nd 1K Total: 26,834 pages (to SBBII) = 28.76 Average Pages Per Day

Grand Total: 40,273 pages, 20.83 Average Pages Per Day

(39) David Copperfield 21 days, 1,092 pages

(40) The Uncommercial Traveller 12 days, 440 pages

(41) A Child's History of England 10 days, 491 pages

(42) Reprinted Pieces 14 days, 368 pages

(43) Miscellaneous Papers Volume I 18 days, 542 pages

        + 25 pages Bleak Hose and 9 pages Miscellaneous Papers II = 2,000 days' worth.

2nd 1K Total: 29,801pages = 29.8 Average Pages Per Day

Grand Total: 43,250 pages, 21.625 Average Pages Per Day

DDR Day 2,001 to Day 3,000:

(1) Miscellaneous Papers Volume II 28 days (don't count, while reading BH), 494 pages
(2) Bleak House 37 days, 1,098 pages

494 - 9 = 485 + 1098 - 25 = 1073 = 1,558 pages towards 3K...in 37 days, for a daily rate of 42+ pages (!).

(3) Hard Times 11 days, 459 pages

(4) Little Dorrit 29 days, 1,606 pages

(5) A Tale of Two Cities 9 days, 460 pages

(6) Great Expectations 16 days, 580 pages

(7) Our Mutual Friend 29 days, 1,057 pages

(8) The Mystery of Edwin Drood 6 days, 314 pages 

FTR vis-a-vis Dickens: 18,671 pages in 468 days

(9) Dickens and Kafka, 7 days, 315 pages

(10) Franz Kafka: A Biography 8 days, 267 pages

(11) The Frozen Sea: A Study of Franz Kafka 5 days, 198 pages

(12) Franz Kafka, A Writer's Life 12 days, 385 pages

(13) The Lost Writings 2 days, 138 pages

(14) Amerika: The Missing Person 11 days, 333 pages

(15) The Brothers Karamazov  24 days, 816 pages

(16) The Eternal Husband & Other Stories 8 days, 375 pages

(17) Poor Folk 5 days, 164 pages

(18) The Double 4 days, 190 pages

(19) The Landlady 3 days, 90 pages

(20) Netochka Nezvanova 6 days, 196 pages