Eugene Onegin · Chapter
XLV explained
Onegin plans to travel abroad with the narrator, but his father dies, leaving him with debts.
What happens
Onegin plans to travel abroad with the narrator, but his father dies, leaving him with debts. Eugene avoids litigation and surrenders to the creditors, hoping for an inheritance from his uncle.
Themes in this chapter
Social Class and Convention
Onegin's handling of his father's debts reflects the social expectations and financial realities of the landed gentry.
Characters to notice
- Eugene Onegin
Onegin plans to travel but is delayed by his father's death and subsequent financial troubles.
- Alexander Pushkin
The narrator mentions his own plan to travel with Onegin.
Key passages
“Eugene designed with me to start And visit many a foreign clime, But Fortune cast our lots apart For a protracted space of time.”
Onegin and the narrator planned to travel abroad together, but fate separated them for a long period.
The narrator explains how their travel plans were disrupted.
“Just at that time his father died, And soon Onegin’s door beside Of creditors a hungry rout Their claims and explanations shout.”
At that moment, Onegin's father passed away, and soon a crowd of creditors gathered at his door demanding payment.
The father's death brings immediate financial pressure from creditors.
“But Eugene, hating litigation And with his lot in life content, To a surrender gave consent, Seeing in this no deprivation, Or counting on his uncle’s death And what the old man might bequeath.”
Onegin, who disliked legal disputes and was satisfied with his situation, agreed to surrender his inheritance, seeing no loss in it, or perhaps relying on his uncle's death and potential inheritance.
Onegin chooses to avoid legal battles and hopes for his uncle's estate.