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Part 1, Chapter 3, Section 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Demons, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Politics and Self-Interest
Ideology and Extremism
Morality and Nihilism
Herd Mentality
Atheism vs. Belief in God
Summary
Analysis
When Anton arrives at Stepan’s house, he finds Stepan distracted. He has received three notes from Varvara, each one attesting to her mounting anxiety that Karmazinov has failed to pay her a visit. Stepan is frustrated that Varvara is bothering him with trifles while she still hasn’t responded to his letters about the upcoming marriage. Stepan tells Anton that he’s prepared to give it all up and quit his life as a tutor and as Varvara’s friend. He’s tired of her despotism. Anton is skeptical that anything will change. Then, Liputin arrives.
Stepan’s unwillingness to take action to resolve his issues seems to be common knowledge among his friends, including Anton. Notably, Stepan blames the issue on Varvara’s “despotism” (her absolute power) rather than looking at himself and determining what he has done to contribute to those issues, and how he might be able to resolve them. Again, Stepan wants to find external reasons to excuse his inaction rather than find internal motivations that might drive him to action.
Themes
