Short Fiction · Chapter
VIII: “Iván, Aged Thirty-Eight Years” explained
During a midnight inquest, the officials interrogate a vagrant named Iván, aged thirty-eight, who confesses to the murder of the driver Iván Mikháïlof.
What happens
During a midnight inquest, the officials interrogate a vagrant named Iván, aged thirty-eight, who confesses to the murder of the driver Iván Mikháïlof. Initially claiming sole responsibility, he later reveals that Kostiúshka (Kostínkin) was the one who mutilated the body, and he provides a detailed account of the attack. Despite pressure from the examiner Proskuróf, Iván refuses to disclose further accomplices or the merchant involved, and is removed from the room.
Themes in this chapter
Suffering and Compassion
The victim Mikháïlof forgives his attacker, saying 'May God forgive thee… as I do,' highlighting compassion amidst violence.
Social Injustice and Class Division
The vagrant's life of homelessness and crime, contrasted with the officials' authority, underscores class divisions.
Characters to notice
- Iván
The prisoner, a vagrant aged thirty-eight, who confesses to the murder but later implicates Kostiúshka for the mutilation.
- Proskuróf
The examiner conducting the inquest, initially comical but now serious and dignified.
- Bezrúky
An official present at the inquest, condescending and admiring the prisoner's prison training.
- Yevséyitch
The servant who rushes out to bring the prisoner in.
- Kostiúshka
Referred to as Kostínkin with the torn nostril; the vagrant accuses him of mutilating the victim.
Key passages
“Set this down, Your Excellency. Kostiúshka did it. … Kostínkin with the torn nostril! It must have been he!”
Record that Kostiúshka, the one with the torn nostril, is responsible.
The vagrant shifts blame for the mutilation to Kostiúshka.
“I did it out of my own head; that's all there is to it. … Myself, the dark night, and the forest … three of us!”
I acted alone, with only the night and the forest as accomplices.
The vagrant initially claims sole responsibility for the murder.