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Part 2, Chapter 1, Section 6
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
Shatov and Nikolay continue talking. They discuss God, Christianity, and the Russian people. Shatov says that he wrote a letter to Nikolay while in the U.S. about religion. At the same time, Shatov says, Nikolay was leading Aleksey down the path toward suicide. Shatov says that the Russian people are the only “God-bearing” people in the world and that religion gives people a sense of good and evil. Nikolay accuses Shatov of reducing God to an aspect of nationality, but Shatov says that instead he is raising people to become God, and the people are the “body of God.” He asks Nikolay if he is an atheist, and Nikolay says he is. Shatov then recalls when Nikolay once told him that socialism must be tied to atheism because socialism is, by definition, organized around reason and science. And reason alone cannot tell you what is good and what is evil.
Shatov lays out his philosophy about how religion is related to national identity. In Shatov’s view, religion is the basis of morality. Having a religion in common then gives people an agreed-upon moral framework, which provides the foundation for a functioning society. Further, Shatov believes that reason and science are antithetical to religion, and reason alone cannot deliver a comprehensive framework of good and evil. Because of that, socialism and theism, and Christianity in particular, are incompatible. With that in mind, Shatov comes to represent a Christian worldview, while Pyotr and his revolutionary faction represent the impact of atheistic socialism on Russia.
Themes
Shatov asks Nikolay if it’s true, as he heard, that in Petersburg Nikolay belonged to a group that practiced “bestial carnality” and “debauched children.” And he asks Nikolay if it’s true that Nikolay finds equal beauty in carnality and heroic deeds. Nikolay says he spoke those words but that he never harmed children. Shatov accuses Nikolay of marrying Marya out of a desire to inflict pain on others. Shatov says that despite himself, he still cares deeply about what Nikolay thinks. Nikolay asks Shatov to continue to look out for Marya, and Shatov says he will. Shatov then tells Nikolay to go speak to a former bishop named Tikhon, who is retired due to poor health and lives close to a nearby monastery.
This passage clarifies Nikolay’s nihilism and lack of morality. While he denies harming children, he doesn’t deny seeing an equal amount of beauty in “bestial carnality” and heroic deeds. In that sense, it becomes clear that Nikolay sees himself as beyond good and evil. In his mind, good and evil are relics of an outmoded religious conception of the world, and he no longer has to be bound by the strictures of morality. Shatov also clarifies that he thinks that Nikolay’s decision to marry Marya is evidence of Nikolay’s fall from grace, as it shows that Nikolay is intent on treating other people poorly.
Themes
