Kreutzer Sonata

Leo Tolstoy's The Kreutzer Sonata is a powerful example of the consequences of a strained marriage. In Kreutzer Sonata, Tolstoy explores the importance and relevance of love in relationships as seen through the eyes of an old man named Pozdnyshev living in the mid-nineteenth century. The disturbing experiences that Pozdnyshev goes through in his failed marriage gives him somewhat of a unique, if not warped, view of love. Pozdnyshev relates his tragic story to others …

…cynical realization that true everlasting love can never exist so long as women continue to be unfaithful, relationships continue to be based on physical pleasure and temporary love remains the basis for marriage. Tolstoy portrays Pozdnyshev as the tragic hero who is unable to embrace any emotional aspects of love and is condemned to live a life of solitude and loneliness. He continues to persecute himself for his actions but never really finds a solution.