“Who is guilty?” Herzen in brief
The action begins in the Russian province, in the estate of the rich landowner Alexei Abramovich Negro. The family gets acquainted with the teacher of the son of Negro – Misha, Dmitry Yakovlevich Krucifersky, who graduated from Moscow University as a candidate. The Negro is tactless, the teacher is shy.
Negroes were promoted to colonels no longer young, after the campaign of 1812, soon retired in the rank of major general; in retirement he was bored, hosted stupidly, took in his mistress the young daughter of his peasant, from whom his daughter Lubonka was born, and finally married an exalted lady in Moscow. The three-year-old daughter of Negro, together with her mother, was exiled to the people; but Negro soon after the wedding, says her husband that he wants to raise Lyubonka as her own daughter.
Krutsifersky is the son of honest parents: a district doctor and a German woman, who loved her husband all her life as much as in her youth. The opportunity to get an education
The vulgar and rough life of the Negroes weighs upon Krucifersky, but not only his one: the ambiguous, difficult situation of Negro’s daughter contributed to the early development of a richly gifted girl. The morals of the Negroes’ house are equally alien to both young people, they involuntarily reach out to each other and soon fall in love with each other, and Krutsifersky discovers his feelings, reading Lubonke aloud Zhukovsky’s ballad Alina and Alsim.
Meanwhile, the bored Glafira Lvovna Negro also begins to be attracted to the young man; the old tutor-Frenchwoman
Having learned about the engagement, the misanthrope Dr. Krupov warns Krucitsersky: “Do not betray your fiancee… she’s a tiger cub who does not yet know her strength.”
A happy wedding, however, this story does not end.
Four years later, a new person comes to NN – the owner of White Field estate Vladimir Beltov. There is a description of the city, sustained in the Gogolian spirit.
Beltov is young and rich, although not at all; for the inhabitants of NN he is a mystery; told that he graduated from the university, fell into mercy to the minister, then quarreled with him and retired to spite his patron, then went abroad, entered the Masonic lodge, etc. The very appearance of Beltov produces a complex and contradictory impression: “in the face it somehow strangely joined the good-natured look with mocking lips, the expression of a decent man with the expression of a dowager, the traces of long and sorrowful doom with traces of passions… “
Beltov’s eccentricities blame his upbringing. His father died early, and his mother, an extraordinary woman, was born serf, accidentally received an education and experienced a lot of suffering and humiliation in her youth; the terrible experience, which she had endured before her marriage, affected the morbid nervousness and convulsive love for her son. In the teachers of her son she took a wife, a “cold dreamer” and a fan of Rousseau; themselves unwillingly, the teacher and mother did everything that Beltov “did not understand reality.” After graduating from the Moscow University in ethics and politics, Beltov, with dreams of civic activity, went to Petersburg; by acquaintance he was given a good place; but the clerical work bored him very soon, and he retired only in the rank of provincial secretary. Ten years have passed since then; Beltov unsuccessfully tried to engage in medicine,
The city made a difficult impression on Beltov: “everything was so greasy not from poverty, but from uncleanliness, and all this went with such a claim, it’s so difficult…”; society of the city presented itself to him as “the fantastic face of some colossal official”, and he was frightened to see that “he could not cope with this Goliath.” Here the author tries to explain the reasons for Beltov’s constant failures and justifies him: “There are guilt for people better than any rightness.”
The society also disliked the stranger and the person incomprehensible to him.
Meanwhile, the family of the Krucifersky lives very peacefully, they have a son. True, sometimes Krutsiferskiy is seized by an unreasonable anxiety: “My happiness becomes terrible, I, as the owner of great wealth, begin to tremble before the future.” A friend of the house, a sober materialist, Doctor Krupov, makes a fool of Krutsifersky for these fears, and generally for his penchant for “fantasies” and “mysticism.” Once Krupov enters the house of Krucifer Beltov.
At this time, the wife of the county leader, Marya Stepanovna, a woman stupid and rude, makes an unsuccessful attempt to get Beltov in the grooms for the daughter – a girl who is developed and charming, quite unlike her parents. Called into the house, Beltov neglects the invitation, which leads the hosts into a rage; here the gossip of the town tells the prince about the too close and dubious friendship of Beltov. with Kruciferskaya. Pleased with the opportunity to take revenge, Marya Stepanovna spreads gossip.
Beltov and in fact fell in love with Kruciferskaya: so far, he did not have to meet such a strong nature. Krutsiferskaya sees in Beltov a great man. The enthusiastic love of her husband, a naive romantic, could not satisfy her. Finally, Beltov confesses to Kruciferskaya in love, says that she knows about her love for him; Kruciferskaya says she belongs to her husband and loves her husband. Beltov is incredulous and mocking; Kruciferskaya suffers: “What did this proud man want from her? He wanted a celebration…” Unable to withstand, Kruciferskaya rushes into his arms; The meeting was interrupted by the appearance of Krupov.
The shocked Kruciferskaya gets sick; her husband is almost sick of fear for her. Then follows the diary of Kruciferskaya, where the events of the following month are described – a serious illness of a young son, suffering and Kruciiferskaya, and her husband. Resolution of the question: who is to blame? – the author provides the reader.
Love for his wife has always been for Krucifersky the only content of his life; first he tries to hide his grief from his wife, sacrificing himself for her peace; but such an “anti-natural virtue is not at all by human nature.” One day at a party he learns from drunken colleagues that his family drama has become urban gossip; Krutsifersky for the first time in his life gets drunk and, coming home, almost riotous. The next day he explained with his wife, and “she rose in his eyes again so high, so inaccessibly high,” he believes that she still loves him, but the happier of this Krucifersky does not become sure that prevents a beloved woman from living.
Angry Krupov accuses Beltov of destroying the family and demands to leave the city; Beltov states that he “does not recognize a trial over himself”, except for the court of his own conscience, that the incident was inevitable and that he himself is going to leave immediately.
On the same day, Beltov beat on the street with a cane of an official who hinted at him harshly about his relationship with Krucitserskaya.
Having visited her mother in her estate, in two weeks Beltov leaves, where – it is not said.
Kruciferskaya lies in consumption; her husband drinks. Beltov’s mother moved to the city to go after the sick, who loved her son, and talk with her about him.
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