Travels in Germany] (9) To Berlin, the first place Mr. and Mrs. Dostoevsky stayed - Their first quarrel and reconciliation
The Dostoevskys left Petersburg for Europe on April 14.
The route was Berlin, Dresden, Baden-Baden, Basel, Geneva, Milan, Florence, Bologna, Venice, Prague, and Dresden (*excluding transit points).
Their journey, which was originally planned to last only three months, turned out to be four years long. They could not return home even if they wanted to, so they had to wander around Europe. We will take a closer look at the details of their journey in the future, but first, let's hear what Mrs. Anna had to say upon their arrival in Berlin, their first stop.
From this point on, Mrs. Anna began to refer to Dostoevsky as Feja. Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky is his official name. She calls him Feja as a term of endearment. Incidentally, Mrs. Anna is often read by Dostoevsky as Anya. This may indicate that their relationship became much closer at the beginning of this journey.
Today (April 18) it is raining lightly, but it is not going to stop all day. People in Berlin are opening their windows. The lime tree is in full bloom under the window of our room. It was still raining, but we decided to go for a tour of the city. We went to Unter den Linden and visited the palace, the architecture academy, the weapons museum, the opera house, the university, and Ludwig's church. Along the way, Fergus told me that I was wearing a winter outfit (white wool hat) and ugly gloves. I felt terribly insulted and told her that if she thought I was dressed shabbily, she should not walk with me, and scrambled away. Faja called out a couple of times and tried to follow him, but he changed his mind and went back the way he had come. I felt that his manner of speaking was extremely rude, and I was completely offended. I ran past many streets and found myself near the Brandenburg Gate. It was still raining lightly. The Germans looked on in amazement as a young woman walked along without an umbrella, letting herself get wet. But as they gradually calmed down, Féja realized that she had not meant to insult them at all, but had taken offense on her own. The fight had made her feel very uneasy, and she did not know what to do. I decided to leave as soon as possible, thinking that Faja might be back at the hotel by now and we would try to make peace. But when I returned to the hotel and found out that Faja had returned once, stayed in the room for a while, and then left again, I felt so sad. Oh, I could only imagine and worry about various things. I thought that my husband must have felt sorry for himself when he saw me being so foolish and selfish, and must have thrown himself into the Spree. I also thought that he must have gone to the embassy with the intention of divorcing me, getting another passport, and sending me back to Russia. I was even more certain when I noticed that Faja had opened her trunk (it was in a different place than before, and her belt was off). Faja must have taken out his papers to go to the embassy. I began to cry aloud, but I could not help feeling sorry for my selfishness and stupidity. I promised myself that even if Fyodor Mikhailovich abandoned me, I would never return to Russia, and that I would hide myself away in some foreign countryside to live forever mourning my pain. Two hours passed like this. I would get up and look out the window to see if I could see Ferguson. Finally, when he had reached the extreme point of despair, he saw Féja outside the window. He was walking down the street with his hands in his over pockets as if nothing had happened. How happy he must have been when he came into the room. I clung to his neck, crying aloud. When he saw my tear-stained face, he was horrified and asked me what was wrong. When I told him how worried I was, he started laughing and said, "No one with even a modicum of self-respect would throw himself into a tiny, unappealing river like the Spree to die. Once he returned and opened the trunk to take out the money to order my overcoat. I was so happy to have found out everything and made peace with him.
Misuzu Shobo, Anna Dostoevskaya, translated by Hiroshi MatsushitaDostoevsky in Recollection."p159-160
I was honestly relieved to read this. Mrs. Anna's childish side is glimpsed in this first fight scene. Mrs. Anna, whom I introduced in my previous article, was too firm, but she is only 20 years old. But she is only 20 years old and has this side of her too.
But Mrs. Anna's fears were not entirely unfounded. At that time, Dostoevsky was still worried about whether his marriage to a young woman 25 years younger than him would work out. It would be strange if he did not have any doubts, but even those two who later became so deeply committed to each other did not have everything going well from the beginning.
This is the Brandenburg Gate as seen from Unter den Linden, Berlin's main boulevard. I wonder if Lady Anna walked to this area while soaking in the rain.
With the Brandenburg Gate in the background, walk down Unter den Linden. As you can see, there is a park-like promenade in the center of the street, with roadways running along both sides of the promenade.
This is the Humboldt University of Berlin, where eminent figures such as Turgenev, Marx, Kierkegaard, and Bakunin attended.
And to my horror, they were all at this university at almost the same time. Incidentally, Marx and Turgenev were the same age. Kierkegaard and Bakunin were studying in the same classroom, and Engels was also there by accident. One can only be amazed at this university, which has produced in one fell swoop so many huge figures who have left their mark on history.
If you are interested, please read the following articles(9) Engels used his volunteer military service to go to the University of Berlin to study Hegel and meet Bakunin and Kierkegaard."Please refer to the following page. I think you will be able to feel the tremendous power of this university.
The Dostoevskys stayed in Berlin for two days and soon left for the next city. Their destination was Dresden, an ancient city located south of Berlin. Dresden has long been famous as a resort for travelers from all over Europe, and many Russians used to come here as well.
It was here in Dresden that he spent the most time during his four years of wandering abroad.
In the next article, we will look at the Dostoevsky couple in Dresden.
be unbroken
Next Article.
Click here to read the previous article.
Click here for a list of Dostoevsky's recommended books.
List of recommended Dostoevsky biographies."
List of recommended Dostoevsky commentaries.
A list of recommended commentaries on "Dostoevsky and Christianity."
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