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Product Description
In June 1862, Dostoevsky left Petersburg on his first excursion to Western Europe. Ostensibly making the trip to consult Western specialists about his epilepsy, he also wished to see firsthand the source of the Western ideas he believed were corrupting Russia. Over the course of his journey he visited a number of major cities, including Berlin, Paris, London, Florence, Milan, and Vienna. His impressions on what he saw, "Winter Notes on Summer Impressions," were first published in the February 1863 issue of "Vremya" (Time), the periodical he edited.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book relates the author's vivid impressions during his travels all over Europe in the second half of the 19th century. His main targets are France (Paris) and England (London).
Dostoyevsky gives us a biting and cynical portrait of the French: parvenus and bourgeois who make a mockery of 'liberté, égalité, fraternité'.
In England, he is confronted with child prostitution in London's Haymarket: a most terrible and moving scene of a child of only six, black and blue beaten, barefoot, who tries to lure him to have sex with her. On the other side of the social spectrum, the Anglican clerics preach a religion for the wealthy and don't even hide it. A most pregnant sketch of the fat and the meagre.
Dostoyevsky gives us a biting and cynical portrait of the French: parvenus and bourgeois who make a mockery of 'liberté, égalité, fraternité'.
In England, he is confronted with child prostitution in London's Haymarket: a most terrible and moving scene of a child of only six, black and blue beaten, barefoot, who tries to lure him to have sex with her. On the other side of the social spectrum, the Anglican clerics preach a religion for the wealthy and don't even hide it. A most pregnant sketch of the fat and the meagre.
Highly recommended.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I enjoyed this book, which was written before Dostoyevsky's great masterpieces from 'Crime and Punishment' onwards, and describes a whistlestop European tour which took in Germany, Italy, France and Britain among other countries. The reminiscences presented here are often quite amusing (his description of fellow travellers in his railway carriage), sometimes unintentionally so, when he mistakes Belgium for France and proceeds to criticise the French based on people he has seen and met in Belgium. He also enthusiastically admits to not having seen many of the tourist sights in most of the cities he visited.
The most worthwhile material, though, comes when Dostoyevsky comments on the great Russian debate of te nineteenth century whether to try to be 'European' and westward-looking, or (as he himself believed as a Slavophile) to focus on bringing about Russia's mystical, unique destiny, without slavishly copying Europe, both good and bad. There is plenty on the latter, especially on poverty and despair among 'the masses' in London, as well as well-aimed critiquse of the aloof Anglican church and the French bourgeoisie.
All in all, for anyone who treasures his novels or are curious as to his view of the world, this is a worthwhile read.
The most worthwhile material, though, comes when Dostoyevsky comments on the great Russian debate of te nineteenth century whether to try to be 'European' and westward-looking, or (as he himself believed as a Slavophile) to focus on bringing about Russia's mystical, unique destiny, without slavishly copying Europe, both good and bad. There is plenty on the latter, especially on poverty and despair among 'the masses' in London, as well as well-aimed critiquse of the aloof Anglican church and the French bourgeoisie.
All in all, for anyone who treasures his novels or are curious as to his view of the world, this is a worthwhile read.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4 reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Gripping portrait.
21 Nov 2002
Format:Hardcover
Vivid impressions of the author during his travel all over Europe in the second half of the 19th century. His main targets are France (Paris) and England (London).
He gives us a biting and cynical portrait of the French: parvenus and bourgeois who make a mockery of 'liberté, égalité, fraternité'.
In England, he is confronted with child prostitution in London's Haymarket: a most terrible and moving scene of a child of only six, black and blue beaten, barefoot, who tries to lure him to have sex with her. On the contrary, the Anglican clerics preach a religion for the wealthy and don't even hide it. A most pregnant portrait of the fat and the meagre.
A book to recommend.
He gives us a biting and cynical portrait of the French: parvenus and bourgeois who make a mockery of 'liberté, égalité, fraternité'.
In England, he is confronted with child prostitution in London's Haymarket: a most terrible and moving scene of a child of only six, black and blue beaten, barefoot, who tries to lure him to have sex with her. On the contrary, the Anglican clerics preach a religion for the wealthy and don't even hide it. A most pregnant portrait of the fat and the meagre.
A book to recommend.
9 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Capitalism critcism
5 Dec 2001
Format:Paperback
In this book Dostoevsky seems to take his time to criticize capitalism ( or so I find), takes as an example French society,
criticizes the accumulation of money and the adulation of god money (Baal), the servilism that comes with it, analyzes the way marital relations are, that is in relation with capitalism (Bribri and Ma biche ).
criticizes the accumulation of money and the adulation of god money (Baal), the servilism that comes with it, analyzes the way marital relations are, that is in relation with capitalism (Bribri and Ma biche ).
I found it pretty good, although it requires you to have knowledge of many things of the time it was written, (for instance can you remember who is Guizot?) and be used to the style of Dostoevsky.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Surprisingly funny, and relevant!
6 Jan 2011
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Granted, nineteenth-century Russia was almost a different planet from modern America. But what do you think of these comments about the Frenchified Russians Dostoevsky disliked?
"It may be that reality around us looks none too lovely even yet; but then we are so wonderful ourselves, so civilized, so European that the common people feel sick at the very sight of us. We have now reached the point where the common people regard us as complete foreigners, and do not understand a single word of ours --- and this certainly is progress, whatever you say. We have now reached a point where our contempt for the common people and the basic principles of their being is so profound that even our attitude to them is stamped with a new, unprecedented and kind of supercilious disdain...and this is progress, whatever you say.
"And then how self-confident we now are in our civilizing mission, with what an air of superiority we solve all problems, and what problems! There is no soil, we say, and no people, nationality is nothing but a certain system of taxation, the soul is a tabula rasa, a small piece of wax out of which you can readily mould a real man or a homunculus --- all that must be done is to apply the fruits of European civilization and read two or three books. And then how serene, how majestically serene we are, because we have solved all problems and written them off."
For some strange reason, this passage made me think of the current situation in the United States.
Maybe we need to craft our own solutions to our problems, and not rely on the Wisdom of the French!
"Whatever you say," this is a very interesting book, in which Dostoevsky sometimes sounds just like H. L. Mencken.
By the way, Joseph Frank, who wrote the book on Dostoevsky, thinks that "Winter Notes on Summer Impressions" is, in an important way, a preliminary draft of that strange masterpiece, Notes from the Underground.
Highly recommended for a cold winter night!
"It may be that reality around us looks none too lovely even yet; but then we are so wonderful ourselves, so civilized, so European that the common people feel sick at the very sight of us. We have now reached the point where the common people regard us as complete foreigners, and do not understand a single word of ours --- and this certainly is progress, whatever you say. We have now reached a point where our contempt for the common people and the basic principles of their being is so profound that even our attitude to them is stamped with a new, unprecedented and kind of supercilious disdain...and this is progress, whatever you say.
"And then how self-confident we now are in our civilizing mission, with what an air of superiority we solve all problems, and what problems! There is no soil, we say, and no people, nationality is nothing but a certain system of taxation, the soul is a tabula rasa, a small piece of wax out of which you can readily mould a real man or a homunculus --- all that must be done is to apply the fruits of European civilization and read two or three books. And then how serene, how majestically serene we are, because we have solved all problems and written them off."
For some strange reason, this passage made me think of the current situation in the United States.
Maybe we need to craft our own solutions to our problems, and not rely on the Wisdom of the French!
"Whatever you say," this is a very interesting book, in which Dostoevsky sometimes sounds just like H. L. Mencken.
By the way, Joseph Frank, who wrote the book on Dostoevsky, thinks that "Winter Notes on Summer Impressions" is, in an important way, a preliminary draft of that strange masterpiece, Notes from the Underground.
Highly recommended for a cold winter night!
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