The slacker

Mitrofan 

• The Minor by Denis Fonvizin, 1782

An exemplar of early classic literature, this comedy play reveals the ills of the Russian nobility, portraying a spoiled 16-year-old nobleman Mitrofan, or Mitrofanushka (the diminutive form), who has no interest in studying or growing up. The plot revolves around his mamma’s attempts to marry her son off to the wealthy orphan Sophia to help him settle in life.

“I don't want to study, I want to marry.”

The broke

Dmitri Razumikhin 

• Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, 1866

As the moral foil of the novel, Dmitri Razumikhin creates a stark contrast to his friend and fellow ex-student Rodion Raskolnikov. While Raskolnikov surrenders to impoverishment and the overall unfairness of life and commits a murder to test his radical hypothesis, Razumikhin responds to the same harsh reality differently; he remains devoted, hardworking, generous, and caring – and gives his all to help a friend in need.

“Another thing striking about Razumikhin, no failure distressed him, and it seemed as though no unfavourable circumstances could crush him. [...] He was very poor, and kept himself entirely on what he could earn by work of one sort or another.”

The eternal student

Peter Trofimov

• The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov, 1904

Peter Trofimov is the so-called eternal student in the play – he’s always a student but never a graduate in his late 20s, who used to teach the family’s deceased son at the estate. He’s proud, intelligent, and kind-hearted. He also has a way with words – but his progressive proclamations about justice, freedom, and the triumph of the immaterial are never treated seriously by older generations.

“I'm not thirty yet, I'm young, I'm still a student, but I have undergone a great deal! I'm as hungry as the winter, I'm ill, I'm shaken. I'm as poor as a beggar, and where haven't I been – fate has tossed me everywhere!’

The outsider

Yevgeny Bazarov

• Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev, 1862

Yevgeny Bazarov is one of the most complex and controversial characters in classic Russian lit. On the one hand, he’s educated, honest, and ambitious (he studies and practices natural sciences), but on the other – headstrong, sharp-tongued, and extremely full of himself. As a self-proclaimed nihilist, he questions anything: from authorities and set-in-stone principles to art, love, and even religion.

– “A Nihilist?" [...] a man who declines to accept anything.” 

– “[...] a man who treats things solely from the critical point of view.”

The “When I was in …” student

Vladimir Lensky

• Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin, 1825-1832

Initially introduced as Eugene Onegin’s friend, Vladimir Lensky appears as his complete foil. Both are young and prosperous. But unlike the titular character, Lensky proudly wears his heart on his sleeve and sees the world through an extremely idealistic and romantic lens. He’s full of ideas and dreams, many of which are inspired by his time studying in Germany.

“He brought from mystic Germany // The fruits of learning and combined // A fiery and eccentric mind, // Idolatry of liberty, // A wild enthusiastic tongue…”