Art in Doubt: Tolstoy, Nabokov, and the Problem of Other Minds

Leo Tolstoy and Vladimir Nabokov's opposing aesthetic worldviews stem from a common intuition that it is easy to approach a text skeptically but difficult to trust it. Tatyana Gershkovich's book "Art in Doubt: Tolstoy, Nabokov, and the Problem of Other Minds" reconceives their celebrated fiction and contentious theorizing as coherent, lifelong efforts to reckon with the problem of other peoples minds. She shows how their shared yearning for an impossibly intimate knowledge of others shaped and deformed their fiction and led them to their rival late styles. Tolstoy and Nabokov both hold out hope that skepticism can be overcome through the right kind of text, one designed to withstand our impulse to doubt it.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 15 October 2022
Publisher: Northwestern University Press

Two towering figures of Russian literature, Leo Tolstoy and Vladimir Nabokov, held contrasting aesthetic worldviews that stemmed from a shared intuition. While it may seem easy to approach a text with skepticism, it is challenging to trust its contents wholeheartedly. Tatyana Gershkovich challenges this conventional opposition by uncovering a common fear underlying their seemingly antithetical aesthetics: the fear that one's perception of the world may be entirely subjective, private, and impossible to convey through art.

Art in Doubt: Tolstoy, Nabokov, and the Problem of Other Minds reimagines the celebrated works of fiction and contentious theorizing of these two authors as interconnected, lifelong endeavors to grapple with the complex issue of other people's minds. Gershkovich adeptly demonstrates how the authors' shared desire for an impossibly intimate understanding of others shaped and influenced their fiction, leading them down parallel logical paths to their distinct late styles. Tolstoy's rustic simplicity and Nabokov's baroque complexity emerge as the culmination of this exploration.

In contrast to those authors who find themselves trapped in the skeptical predicament, leading to absurdity or despair, Tolstoy and Nabokov hold onto the belief that skepticism can be overcome. They do not rely on sheer willpower but on the power of the right kind of text, one that can withstand our innate urge to doubt. Through meticulous close readings of key canonical works such as "Anna Karenina," "The Kreutzer Sonata," "Hadji Murat," "The Gift," and "Pale Fire," this book brings the twin titans of Russian fiction to bear on contemporary debates about how we read and interpret literature today.

In conclusion, Leo Tolstoy and Vladimir Nabokov's radically opposed aesthetic worldviews arise from a profound shared intuition—the fear that our experience of the world may be entirely our own, private, and inaccessible to others through art. Gershkovich's insightful analysis reveals how these two authors, despite their apparent differences, were driven by a common quest for an impossibly intimate knowledge of others. Through their fiction and theoretical writings, Tolstoy and Nabokov explored the boundaries of skepticism and sought ways to overcome it. By examining their canonical works closely, we can gain valuable insights into the complexities of reading and interpreting literature, and how it can help us bridge the gap between our individual perspectives and the broader world around us.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780810145535