# II explained — The Village

> Chapter companion for The Village by Ivan Bunin.

## What happens

This chapter details Tikhon Ilitch's life as he approaches forty, his shrewd and ruthless business dealings, his marriage to Nastasya Petrovna, and his acquisition of the Durnovo estate. It portrays his harsh interactions with peasants, his obsession with accumulating wealth and grain, and the bustling commercial activity around his home and shop.

## Themes in this chapter

### Class and Social Hierarchy

Tikhon's rise to wealth and his condescending, authoritarian treatment of peasants illustrate the rigid class divisions and the power dynamics between landowners and the rural poor.

### Cruelty and Moral Degradation

Tikhon's ruthless business practices, his contempt for peasants, and his callous attitude toward his wife's pregnancies and dead children reflect a moral coarseness.

### Rural Poverty and Decline

The chapter depicts the economic struggles of peasants, who are subject to forced sales and exploitation, while Tikhon's wealth grows, highlighting the decline of the rural poor.

## Character check-ins

### Tikhon Ilitch

Described as aging but still imposing, he is deeply engaged in business, buying land and grain, and ruling over the peasants with a mix of justice and cruelty.

### Nastasya Petrovna

Tikhon's wife, who waddles due to frequent pregnancies, supports his harsh treatment of peasants and manages the dram-shop.

### Kuzma

Mentioned as Tikhon's brother, a rascal and toper, whom Tikhon claims he would help if asked but refuses to coddle.

## Key lines

> By the time Tikhon Hitch was about forty years of age his beard resembled silver with patterns of black enamel.

At around forty, Tikhon's beard had turned silver with streaks of black.

_Describes Tikhon's aging appearance._

> He lived for a long time with his dumb cook⁠—'A dumb woman can’t betray anything with her chatter!'⁠—and had by her one child, whom she overlay and crushed in her sleep, after which he married an elderly waiting-maid of old Princess Schakhovoy.

He had a child with his mute cook, who accidentally smothered the baby, and then he married an older maid from Princess Schakhovoy's household.

_Highlights Tikhon's pragmatic and unfeeling approach to family._

> And on marrying and receiving the dowry he 'finished off' the last scion of the impoverished Durnovo family, a fat, affable young nobleman, bald at twenty-five, but possessed of a magnificent chestnut beard.

With his wife's dowry, he bought out the last heir of the Durnovo family, a young nobleman who was already balding.

_Shows Tikhon's opportunistic acquisition of the Durnovo estate._

> When he was in an amiable mood he read them their lesson thus: 'It’s all right to live⁠—but not to squander. I shall pluck you if I get the chance! I shall bring you back. But I shall be just. I’m a Russian man, brother.'

In a good mood, he lectured the peasants, saying that life is fine but one must not waste, and that he would take from them if he could but would be fair.

_Illustrates Tikhon's paternalistic and threatening attitude toward peasants._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_village_se/chapters/part-i-ii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_village_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_village_se/chapters