No Accidents In Romanticism

Susan Vasserman

Vasserman I

Prof. Kliger Intro. To Russian Literature I 18, September 2007 Gospodin Sluchai Derived from the ageless stories of folklore, “Gospodin Sluchai” or Mister Accident is a motif found in much of Russian literature. In Romantic Russian literature, Mister Accident presents himself in an ironic turn of events that puts the protagonist at a crossroad of opportunity, from which (s)he chooses his/her path to either prosperity or condemnation. These accidents are often thought to be caused by a supernatural force: luck or vengeful spirits, sent in order to guide the forlorn protagonist to some exciting escape. However in romanticism, a focus on individualism and passion transforms the event of the accident to the product of the subconscious and zeal of the character him/herself, and in such, a step towards their self-chosen fate. The accident in Pushkin’s “The Queen of Spades” is an example of how this fervor and the loss of it led to the protagonist’s end, bankrupt and insane. The accident in “The Queen of Spades” consists of two parts: Herman’s coming up to the countess’s house, and later, his drawing of the queen of spades instead of an ace. The source of the first accident dictates the events of the rest of the story. Pushkin writes that Hermann’s arrival at the countess’s house is brought about by, “some unknown force,” which is seemingly, “drawing him towards it,” (81). This force is responsible for his coming, and therefore it is likewise responsible for all that follows; namely, Hermann defying Lizaveta in order to approach the countess, and the countess visiting Hermann as a ghost to reveal the secret set of cards. The force is also responsible for the second accident, which finally causes Hermann to lose everything. A legitimate argument can be made that this “force” is truly an outside presence set out to dictate Hermann’s life, since at her approach of Hermann, the ghost of the countess declares that she had, “…come to [him] you against [her] my will…But I am commanded to gratify your request,” (94-95). The ghost emphasizes that her action is involuntary; indicating that a third party, who is interested in Hermann’s discovery of the magical formula of cards, is driving her. This outside force theoretically leads Hermann through all the steps to acquire the secret, and brings about the second accident. However, ascribing the turn of events to a higher power is ignorant of Hermann’s significance to the story as a romantic hero, burdened by the plight of desire, imagination, and the tools to seek his idealized fortune. Rather, a more rational view of the accident accredits Hermann’s turning up at the countess’s abode to the weight of the subject on his mind. He is so concentrated on the countess and on his plans to retrieve her secret, that his wish is manifested in reality as an opportunity to pursue them. In fact, Pushkin repeatedly shows us that every time that Hermann obsesses over something, the object of his passion

Vasserman II

presents itself to him. Before showing up by the countess’s house the second time, Hermann, “dreamed of cards, a green table, heaps of banknotes, and piles of cold coins,” (81). He can’t get the countess or the fortune that she represents to him off of his mind. Bearing these thoughts night and day, he winds up coming up to the countess’s windows and spots a young woman – a glimpse of opportunity for his scheming mind. The accident of this event is thereby the product of a tool that Hermann is given, as a romantic protagonist, to pursue his goals. The same tool is seen in his correspondence with Lizaveta Ivanova. Although Lizaveta clearly aims to reject him from the beginning, Hermann becomes both passionate and obsessive towards her. He writes her daily, and his letters, “expressed both the inexorable nature of his desires and the turmoil of his unfettered imagination,” (84). Not surprisingly, Lizaveta soon begins to answer, and Hermann acquires instructions to enter the house unnoticed, thus being presented with the opportunity to confront the countess. After causing the death of the countess, Hermann’s soul is passionately distressed. Though he grieves only the lost opportunity to discover the secret to enrichment, he is, “…unable to stifle the voice of conscience altogether…” (93) Stricken with thoughts of what had occurred, Herman is unable to sleep the night after the countess’s funeral. In his drunken, inconsolable state, he is approached by what he takes to be countess’s spirit giving him the secret of the cards, and instructions to achieve forgiveness; another example of his subconscious fixation as a tool for Hermann to achieve his ends. Following the confrontation, Hermann obsesses over the identity of the three cards as never before. Pushkin writes, “Three, seven, ace never quitted his head, and constantly moved on his lips,” (96). Consequentially, when Hermann excitedly places his tremendous bets on three and seven in a society of rich gamblers, the cards are justly manifested on the card table. However, Hermann becomes so sure that everything is happening as it should by default, that when he wins the second time, he, “accepted it [the money] phlegmatically and departed at once,” (98). From here, Pushkin indicates that Hermann loses his zeal, for mention of his thoughts and emotions are entirely omitted, and upon this, Hermann loses the bet. Since the previous ‘accidents’ had been manifestations of Hermann’s passion, when Hermann becomes insouciant, there is nothing to be manifested, and so he draws the wrong card. Thus it was the protagonist’s will that caused this accident as well, and with it, the consequential insanity that besieged him. Russian romanticism carries on the traditional motif of Gospodin Sluchai, but it does so in a more eloquent way than folklore does. Rather than leaving Mister Accident’s events to unpredictable and uncontrollable supremacies, it assigns their creation to the vivacious imaginative capabilities of the protagonist. As in the case of Hermann, these “personally-homeless” characters generate these situations in their zealous quest for anywhere-but-here, and in such pave the road to their own misfortune. At least the readers of these stories could take a break from cursing the heavens, and take away some lesson in morality.

Works Cited Pushkin, Alexander. “The Queen of Spades”. Trans. Alan Myers. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.