The Death Of Ivan Ilych - Essay Example

The Death of Ivan Ilych Insert Here Insert Insert Activity The Death of Ivan Ilych Leo Tolstoy’s story en d The Death of Ivan Ilynchpresents a rather in depth look at the concept of death. The very first chapter in the twelve chapter tale showcases the aftermath of the main character’s, Ivan Ilych, death. The subsequent eleven chapters delve into the Ivan’s life, the development of his illness, and his painful death. Along the way, the reader is shown Ivan’s complex feelings towards his wife, children, friends, and his job.

These feelings are made all the more difficult because of the fact that for most of the story Ivan is staring death in the face.It appears that Tolstoy’s main point in writing this story was to illustrate the concept of death. Death is usually portrayed as a very mysterious and frightening aspect of life. However within The Death of Ivan Ilynch, Tolstoy shows death in a different light. In the first chapter, Tolstoy really captures how utterly mundane death is, especially for those left behind.

This is shown in the reaction of Ivan’s coworkers. For example, as soon as Fedor Vasilievich hears about Ivan’s death, he starts to think about the possibility of being promoted as Ivan’s spot in the court has now opened up(Tolstoy, 1886). Additionally, many of the men, particularly Peter Ivanovich feel a bit irritated or put out at the thought that they are now obligated to go pay their condolences to Ivan’s wife and family(Tolstoy, 1886). At the house, a man named Schwartz even communicates with Peter about an upcoming game of bridge at Fedor Vasilievich’s house(Tolstoy, 1886).

This entire chapter illustrates how death can become a rather mundane event, and, even if someone is no longer living, the lives of other people continue on. In addition to addressing the mundane aspects of death, Tolstoy also looks at how drawn out illness and death can be. For much of the story, Ivan is battling a mysterious illness, and every doctor he visits appears to have a different opinion as to what it could be(Tolstoy, 1886). Eventually the illness becomes so severe and painful that Ivan is unable to live his life in a normal fashion and must be given powerful drugs like morphine in order to stave off the pain(Tolstoy, 1886).

The medication does little to help him; however and Ivan becomes unable to care for himself at all. This period lasts quite a while in the story. At the end of his life, he screams for three days as the pain becomes too great(Tolstoy, 1886). Finally, he is able to die. Ivan’s death presents a more accurate take on the expiration of a human. Sometimes in stories, death is shown as peaceful and quick, but in Tolstoy’s story, Ivan’s death takes a very long time as the illness develops, and the death itself is extremely painful and without any element of peace, at least until the very end.

Tolstoy is presenting a more realistic portrayal of death within this story, which contrasts greatly with every other perspective on this specific subject. Finally, Tolstoy presents the complex emotions that often come with illness and death. Ivan’s wife, Praskovya, appears to be quite upset about Ivan’s death in the beginning of the story, but the reader comes to see the reality of Ivan and Praskovya’s relationship, which is shown to be rather unpleasant and unloving(Tolstoy, 1886). Therefore, Tolstoy presents the idea that death, even the death of a person that one has felt indifferent or angry towards, can bring up complex and difficult emotions.

Additionally, Ivan’s relationship with Praskovya throughout his illness and death is one of anger and hatred because Ivan feels that his wife is fake and inauthentic. It is only right before his death that Ivan suddenly feels something positive toward his wife, and he has a strong desire to set things right, which he does by attempting to ask for her forgiveness(Tolstoy, 1886). In this way, Tolstoy presents the strange changes that can occur in people’s emotions due to death or the idea of death.

In considering what Tolstoy was attempting to do within this story, I believe that I have learned something new about death. I have not had a great deal of experience with death, so I have bought into the storybook version of this concept with a person being surrounded by love and slipping away peacefully. However, after reading this story, I have learned that death is not this way at all. Instead, death can be an absolute nightmare. It can last a long time, and there can be a lot of anger and resentment involved.

Additionally, this story helped me to see that one person does not make the slightest dent in the world. Life goes on after a person dies, and they are soon forgotten by those left behind. This story is an extremely open and honest look at death, which stands in stark contrast to many of the books and movies that I have viewed on the subject. In reading this story, there does not appear to be a specific moral lesson within it. Perhaps, if anything, Tolstoy’s portrayal of Ivan at the very end of his life and his desire to set things right with his wife and family, could be construed as a moral.

It might be fair to infer that Tolstoy is telling the audience that they should not wait until the last moment to seek forgiveness or to tell a person that they are loved. An additional moral that can be seen in this story is that of living life to the fullest and in a way that will make a person the happiest. Ivan lived his life doing what he believed he should be doing rather than what made him happy. He ends up becoming quite dissatisfied and angry with his life, and perhaps, his life could have been happier and more fulfilling if he had followed his heart rather than what society was asking of him.

To me, The Death of Ivan Ilych is Tolstoy’s portrait of death. As mentioned previously, this story is about the mundane aspects of death, the real pain and length of death, and the complex emotions which accompany death. In the end, this is what the story conveyed to me: a realistic representation of death and all that it entails. This story does not romanticize death in any way, which, although frightening, is important to be aware of. As a relatively young person, I feel that this story really opened my eyes to the reality of death.

This is extremely important because it prepares me for what the future holds as I will no doubt experience death more and more frequently. Perhaps Tolstoy wrote this story with the intention of imparting his own personal experiences with death in order to reveal the truth of both the bad and good that comes when a person takes their final breath. References Tolstoy, L. (1886). The Death of Ivan Ilyich. Classical Library . Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.classicallibrary.org/tolstoy/ivan/1.htm