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Part 1, Chapter 4, Section 3
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
Anton goes to see Shatov in the hopes that Shatov will help him see Marya. When Anton arrives, Shatov is with Aleksey and a man named Shigalyov. Aleksey and Shigalyov leave. Shatov and Anton discuss liberal ideas. Shatov then tells Anton about the months that he (Shatov) and Aleksey spent in the United States. They went to see what it was like to work in the most inhospitable labor conditions. They were exploited by their boss and repeatedly beaten. Anton then asks Shatov if he can help him see Marya. Shatov says that they should go to see her now when she’s alone.
Shatov notably identifies the United States, a country with a capitalist economic system, as the country with the most inhospitable labor conditions. That observation occurs in the context of rising support for socialism within Russia. With that in mind, the novel implies that part of the reason for the increased support for socialism in Russia comes from a desire to avoid the inhumane labor conditions of places like the U.S.
Themes
