Abstract
In this article, the author continues his research on the topic of an «unnecessary person» (superfluous man) in world literature. The extra man was born at the junction of two epochs – pre-Petrine and post-Petrine, on the border of the «era of action» and the « era of thought». The opposition to the political and Patriarchal power created a sense of alienation among some of the educated nobles, who, thanks to their knowledge, opened up new prospects for further development, but were not able to implement them in Russian reality.
The first paragraphs of the article present the features of superfluous people in the works of the 1820s-1840s, such as «Woe from wit», Eugene Onegin», «Hero of our time», «Who is to blame», as well as in the early works of Ivan Turgenev. This list was completed by the title character of Ivan Goncharov's in novel «Oblomov». It was revealed that these people were characterized by social passivity and lack of self-confidence, despite their education and ability to reason. These characters always have an ideal or dream that leads to a conflict between the world of the ideal and the real. Such people very rarely make friends and families, as they are very self-centered, and sometimes even selfish. They often wander around the country, can not find themselves and the meaning of their lives, and die at an early age, leaving nothing of themselves but empty words.
I. S. Turgenev's story «Yakov Pasynkov» is analyzed in more detail. The article not only describes the story of this work creation, notes that this story was written within twenty days, but also emphasizes that Turgenev developed an early unfulfilled plot idea of the play «Party» in it. Further, the author pays attention to Yakov Pasynkov’s detailed description, reveals particularly the features of an extra person inherent in him. They are thoughtfulness, impracticality, tendency to abstract reasoning and an idealistic view of the world, his eloquence and erudition. At the same time, the author specifically notes that Yakov, despite the features of an extra person, causes rather positive emotions, thanks to his benevolence and willingness to help a friend, he seems devoid of self-love and selfishness. The fact that Yakov is different from other Turgenev's extra people makes him an original and positive hero.
Key words
Literary types, Turgenev romance studies, Europeanization of the Russian «superfluous man», the problem of the hero, romanticism, existentialism, Russian realism, lost generation, the ideological representation, theme of unrequited love.