# VIII explained — Yama

> Chapter companion for Yama by Aleksandr Kuprin.

## What happens

The chapter follows the women of the brothel as they attend Jennka's funeral at the anatomical theatre and morgue. Tamara takes charge, arranging wreaths and a requiem. After the burial, Liubka encounters Soloviev, who offers marriage, but she slaps him in rage and rejection.

## Themes in this chapter

### Dehumanization and Commodification

Jennka's corpse is handled like meat, numbered 217, and the watchman treats the dead with indifference, reflecting the commodification of even the most vulnerable.

### Female Friendship and Solidarity

Tamara organizes Jennka's funeral, buys a wreath, and comforts the other women, showing solidarity among the brothel's inmates.

### Fate and Inevitability

Tamara's reflection that 'soon we will be scattered' and her acceptance of death as a release underscore the fatalistic outlook of the women.

## Character check-ins

### Tamara

Leads the group to the morgue, arranges Jennka's funeral, and delivers a poignant eulogy.

### Liubka

Attends the funeral and violently rejects Soloviev's marriage proposal.

### Soloviev

Approaches Liubka after the funeral, offering marriage, but is slapped and rejected.

### Little Manka

Accompanies Tamara into the morgue, terrified and crying.

### Jennka

Deceased; her corpse is identified and prepared for burial.

### Emma Edwardovna Titzner

Now runs the brothel; decides not to send Pashka to clients due to her mental decline.

## Key lines

> A heavy odour of carrion—thick, cloying, and so viscid that to Tamara it seemed as though it was covering all the living pores of her body just like glue—stood in the chapel.

The stench of decaying flesh was so thick and sticky that Tamara felt it coating her skin like glue.

_Highlights the visceral horror of the morgue._

> Through suffering shall we be purified.

Suffering will cleanse us.

_Inscription on Ryazanov's wreath, reflecting a theme of redemption through pain._

> And we won't be long together without her: soon we will be scattered, by the wind far and wide. Life is good! … Look: there's the sun, the blue sky … How pure the air is … Cobwebs are floating—it's Indian summer … How good it is in this world! … Only we alone—we wenches—are wayside rubbish.

Tamara says they will soon be dispersed like dust, and despite the beauty of the world, they are treated as worthless refuse.

_Captures the contrast between the beauty of life and the women's devalued existence._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/yama_se/chapters/part-iii-viii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/yama_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/yama_se/chapters