A strange story (Turgenev)

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Ivan Turgenev in 1859

A strange story ( Russian Странная история , Strannaja istorija ) is a fantastic novella by the Russian writer Ivan Turgenev , which was written in Baden-Baden in 1869 and appeared in the January issue of St. Petersburg's Westnik Evropy in 1870 . The translation into German was brought out by E. Behre in Hamburg in 1884 in Vol. 12 of Turgenews Selected Works .

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It was fifteen years ago, says the aristocratic Mr. Ch., When he had official business in the provincial capital T.

He's staying in a hotel there. When he is off duty, he seeks an old acquaintance of his family - likewise aristocratic and wealthy - to diversify. Mr. Ch. Finds Sofja, the 17-year-old daughter of the house, attractive right from the first visit.

Back at the hotel, the local hotel attendant notices the guest's boredom. Mr. Ch. Responds to a strange suggestion made by the servant. The guest is introduced to an original, which, if desired, can show a deceased relative or acquaintance. That original is a young man called Vasily Nikititsch and suffers from epilepsy . Wassili makes himself rare at first. Meanwhile, the waiting Mr. Ch. Has to keep introducing himself to the desired person - he has chosen his deceased French tutor Dessort.

Wassili actually influences his medium: Mr. Ch. Sees the old Dessort with his own eyes. The first-person narrator, Mr. Ch., Who has suddenly become fearful and tired, can only explain it this way: Vasily has special magnetic powers. Probably this magnetizer Vasily was handling metastases; switch sensitivities.

The next day, Mr Ch. Reports to Sofja about the miracle and asks whether she thinks this is possible. Sofja replies: “You just have to have faith - and miracles will happen!” Sofja also knows the remedy. Faith begins with self-denial ; with humility . The girl interprets Wassili's success. There are no dead, because souls are immortal.

Two years later, Mr. Ch. Is back in T. on business. Sofja has meanwhile turned all applicants off and ran away from her father a few months ago. Soon afterwards, Mr. Ch. Has to go on a business trip again; this time in the neighboring Gouvernement S. There he meets the epileptic Vasily, who has meanwhile become finally possessed . In Wassili's company there is a noble lady - Sofja. She takes care of the insane.

Mr. Ch. Does not understand why such a young, well-educated, wealthy girl left her father's house and became the maid of a “half-crazy vagabond”.

Much later, Mr. Ch. Learns that the father was able to bring the daughter home. From then on Sofja remained silent at home and later died without a word. Vasily, the foolish creature of iron health, lives on.

German-language editions

Output used:

  • A strange story , pp. 333–362 in: Iwan Turgenew: Gesammelte Werke. Vol. 5. Novellas. Edited and translated from the Russian by Johannes von Guenther. 365 pages. Aufbau-Verlag, Berlin 1952

Web links

Remarks

  1. ↑ Turgenev writes, first, that the story takes place in southern Russia (edition used, p. 353, 14. Zvo) and secondly, the T. governorate borders on the S. (edition used, p. 354, 8. Zvo). If Turenev means the governorates of Tambov and Saratov , then the place of the action is the city of Tambov .
  2. ↑ Mr. Ch. Does not mean the oncological term.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Russian Вестник Европы / 1870
  2. ↑ Entry in WorldCat
  3. ↑ A strange story in the Internet Archive
  4. ↑ Edition used, p. 348 below
  5. ↑ Edition used, p. 351, 3rd Zvo