Dead Souls

The narrator reasserts his commitment to depicting life in the Russian periphery, outside the capitals, what he calls the “backwoods” (4634). Chichikov is traveling through a hilly and heavily wooded area, approaching the village church. The approaching estate, secluded and accessible from only one side, belongs to a young, unmarried landowner, Andrei Ivanovich Tentetnikov.

Tentetnikov, the narrator reports, is unpopular with his neighbors and inclined to idleness. His morning tea takes several hours, and he spends the rest of his time planning his largely unwritten epic treatise on every aspect of Russian society, history, and life. The narrator considers whether he is the product of circumstance and recounts Tentetnikov’s biography.

When Tentetnikov was very young, his village had had a beloved schoolmaster, who idolized children and was dedicated to supporting their intellectual and personal development. But, unfortunately for Tentetnikov, a stern taskmaster replaced this exemplary man died and the school deteriorated. Tentetnikov’s ambitions died. Though he studied every subject as exhaustively as possible, he found no real clarity in the absence of a real teacher.

Tentetnikov got a civil service post in Saint Petersburg, but was disappointed to find most of his work was copying. He and his perpetually discontented friends hated their cruel superior, eventually being so rude to this authority figure that Tentetnikov had to resign.