What Is to Be Done? · Chapter
Part IV: Second Marriage explained
Vera Pavlovna marries Kirsanov after Lopukhov's apparent suicide, and they establish a new household based on equality and mutual respect.
What happens
Vera Pavlovna marries Kirsanov after Lopukhov's apparent suicide, and they establish a new household based on equality and mutual respect. The chapter explores their domestic life, the continuation of Vera's sewing cooperative, and the development of their relationship as a model of rational love and partnership.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Marriage
Vera's second marriage to Kirsanov is portrayed as a union based on rational love, equality, and mutual respect, contrasting with traditional bourgeois marriage.
The New People
Vera and Kirsanov exemplify the 'new people'—progressive individuals who reject societal conventions and strive for personal and social transformation.
Characters to notice
- Viéra Pavlovna
Marries Kirsanov and continues her work with the sewing cooperative, embodying the ideals of the new woman.
- Aleksandr Matvéitch Kirsánof
Marries Vera and supports her independence, representing the rational and progressive man.
- Dmitri Sergéitch Lopukhóf
His apparent suicide sets the stage for Vera's second marriage, though he later returns as Beaumont.
- Rakhmétof
The extraordinary man who appears to guide and influence the characters' revolutionary ideals.
Key passages
“Vera Pavlovna's second marriage was not a mere repetition of the first; it was a new stage in her development.”
Vera's marriage to Kirsanov represents her continued growth and evolution as an individual, not just a rehash of her past.
Highlights the progressive nature of Vera's personal journey.