The Anna Karenina of Leo Tolstoy’s classic novel is an intriguing, complex character. Despite her adultery and death, she often draws more sympathy from readers than Anna’s lover-husband Vronsky does. But Anna’s lover Constantine Dmitrich Levin also ranks among one of the most interesting characters in literature.
The reason for Anna being drawn more sympathetically than Vronsky is that Anna’s background and motivations are more comprehensive, realistic and human. Anna Karenina is a complex character study of Anna.
Anna was born into Russian high society, where she quickly gained status as one of the most beautiful women in St. Petersburg. Tolstoy describes her as having “the taint of some physical impurity.” Anna herself felt this taint deeply. She feared that she could never find happiness with any man because every time they touched she would think to herself: “This man may be fatally attracted to me now; but the first thing he will desire in me is something not present in my nature—my physical purity.” Anna also suffered from an inferiority complex due to her lack of education and sophistication compared to other women in society. Anna Karenina is a complex character study of Anna’s inferiority complex.
Anna was married at seventeen to a much older man, Karenin, who represented everything Anna was not: stable, secure, educated and sophisticated. Anna quickly realized that she had followed her mother’s advice by marrying a rich nobleman instead of someone she loved. Anna later regretted not having the courage to follow her heart and marry the one she truly loved—Vronsky. Anna Karenina is a complex character study of Anna’s regret over not following her heart when choosing her husband.
In contrast to Anna, Levin acts on impulse more often than he thinks things through from angles before acting. However, Anna and Levin both share insecurities stemming from childhood: Anna is insecure in her physical purity and Levin is insecure in his lack of education and sophistication. Anna Karenina is a complex character study of Anna’s insecurity in her physical purity and Levin’s insecurity in his lack of education and sophistication.
Anna loved Vronsky, but the one thing she loved more was having children with him. When Anna found out that she could not bear children, Anna feared losing Vronsky because he would be able to replace her with a woman who was physically pure like he desired. Anna then made up her mind that Vronsky must never find out about this matter or else he would leave her without fail: “He doesn’t love me,” Anna thought, “but he’s a man, and he does love life. He wouldn’t want to remain without children. And I would not be able to give them to him.” Anna Karenina is a complex character study of Anna fearing losing Vronsky due to her infertility.
Anna then decided that she must have an child by someone else in order for Vronsky not to leave her. Anna also worried that if she told Vronsky about this problem directly, it might have been more likely that he would have stayed with her out of pity rather than from love: “For him the one important thing was his respect before other people; and for this our supposed position and public opinion were decisive…if I had told him myself of my resolve to have a child, he would certainly have been upset and displeased with me for my recklessness, and he would have been ashamed to face other people afterwards.” Anna Karenina is a complex character study of Anna deciding on her own course of action.
In Anna Karenina , Anna decides to commit adultery with the one man who could understand her situation: Constantine Dmitrich Levin. Levin appears first as a caricature of a man among all those around Anna: “a long-legged fellow in high boots, tucked his shirt into them” and “with a stony gaze fixed on an object that no one else could see.” Anna fell in love with this unique man who understood the complexity of Anna’s problems.
He has an older brother named Sergei, a sister Anna who is married to Karenin, Levin’s wife Kitty. Anna Karenina , Anna Sergeyevna Karenina, Anna Arkadyevna (also called Dolly) Karenina are the other protagonists in Anna Karenina. Anna was born into a high society rich family but falls in love with Count Vronsky and leaves her child and husband for him. Anna eventually falls out of love with Vronsky and becomes unhappy. She returns home to her husband and son after everyone except Kitty thinks she is dead from suicide. Near the beginning of Anna Karenina Tolstoy introduces Constantine Dmitrich Levin as he is going about his daily life.
He is thinking about a peasant whose cow is not doing well and how he would like to lend him money. When Anna Karenina, Anna Sergeyevna Karenina, Anna Arkadyevna (also called Dolly) Karenina comes into his life, Levin changes completely. Anna is a socialite who left her previous lifestyle and home for the love of Vronsky. Anna’s character traits are often negative; she loves Vronsky but also developed hatred towards him in her last meeting with him before she died. Levin on the other hand takes Anna under his wing when they first meet at a party followed by an opera performance.
He views this friendship as beneficial to Anna because Levin does not see her in terms of her former title and society based values; he sees Anna as a simple, compassionate, caring individual. Anna gains Levin’s trust when she tells him about the hardships of her family life before Anna left them to be with Vronsky. The dialogue between Anna and Constantine Dmitrich is mostly conversations through letters because Anna was married to Karenin who forbade Anna from seeing or writing to anyone besides close friends or relatives.
After Anna leaves Karenin he forbids Anna this privilege as well. Levin hid Anna’s letters in his drawer and wrote back to Anna without signing his own name; only “a friend” signed the letter. It was not until Anna saw Constantine Dmitrich at their townhouse that she recognized Levin and knew why he had been writing to her. This friendship depicted by Tolstoy is one of Anna’s few connections to reality in her life. Anna was too caught up herself in her own world, thanks to Vronsky, that Anna could not see how Levin cared for Anna and their relationship became a solace for Anna.
This made Anna’s happiness during this period of time even more intense. Levin personifies the principles Tolstoy advocates most strongly throughout his works—a sense of family being greatly valued, non-violence towards animals is also advocated very strongly by Levin who is distressed when people eat animals or ignore them. He hunts simply because it is what he has always done but he would prefer not to do so if he can help it.
