The best-known work by the 19th century Russian novelist about a man who lacks willpower and self-confidence

Oblomov

Literature & Fiction

Goncharov, Ivan

Literary

Penguin Classics

For fans of Ottessa Moshfegh’s My Year of Rest and Relaxation, the classic Russian novel about an indolent aristocrat who spends most of his days in bed A Penguin Classic Written with sympathetic humor and compassion, this masterful portrait of upper-class decline made Ivan Goncharov famous throughout Russia on its publication in 1859. Ilya Ilyich Oblomov is a member of Russia’s dying aristocracy—a man so lazy that he has given up his job in the Civil Service, neglected his books, insulted his friends, and found himself in debt. Too apathetic to do anything about his problems, he lives in a grubby, crumbling apartment, waited on by Zakhar, his equally idle servant. Terrified by the activity necessary to participate in the real world, Oblomov manages to avoid work, postpones change, and—finally—risks losing the love of his life. This superb translation by David Magarshack captures all the subtle comedy and near-tragedy of the original. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Oblomov (Penguin Classics)

Dramas & Plays

Set at the beginning of the nineteenth century, when idleness was still looked upon by Russia’s serf-owning rural gentry as a plausible and worthy goal, Ivan Goncharov’s Oblomov follows the travails of an unlikely hero, a young aristocrat incapable of making a decision. Indolent, inattentive, incurious, given to daydreaming and procrastination, Oblomov clearly predates the ideal of the industrious modern man, yet he is impossible not to admire through Goncharov’s masterful prose. Translator Marian Schwartz breathes new life into this Russian masterpiece in this, the first translation from the generally recognized definitive edition of the original, as well the first to attempt to replicate in English Goncharov’s wry humor and all-embracing humanity. Replete with ingenious social satire and cutting criticism of nineteenth-century Russian society, this edition of Oblomov will introduce new readers to the novel that Leo Tolstoy praised as “a truly great work, the likes of which one has not seen for a long, long time.”

Yale University Press

Goncharov’s “Oblomov” is a novel on personality weaknesses.

Signet Classics

This is a pre-1923 historical reproduction that was curated for quality. Quality assurance was conducted on each of these books in an attempt to remove books with imperfections introduced by the digitization process. Though we have made best efforts - the books may have occasional errors that do not impede the reading experience. We believe this work is culturally important and have elected to bring the book back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.

The Precipice (Large Print Edition)

BiblioLife

The Precipice

Contemporary

Oblomov by Ivan Goncharov, Fiction

OBLOMOV'S DREAM: In the dining room -- a room at once elegant and simply appointed -- a cheerful fire was glowing, and Zakhar, now promoted to the dignity of a major-domo, and adorned with whiskers turned wholly grey, was laying a large, round table to a pleasant accompanying tinkle of crystal and silver as he arranged, here a decanter and there a fork. Presently the dreamer saw his wife and himself sit down to a bountiful supper. Yes, and with them was Schtoltz, the comrade of his youth, his unchanging friend, with other well-known faces. Lastly, he could see the inmates of the house retiring to rest. . . . Oblomov's features blushed with delight at the vision. So clear, so vivid, so poetical was it all that for a moment he lay with his face buried in the sofa cushions. Suddenly there had come upon him a dim longing for love and quiet happiness; suddenly he had become athirst for the fields and the hills of his native place, for his home, for a wife, for children. . . .

Humor & Satire

Wildside Press

The precipice

Howard Fertig Pub

Advanced notice of the power of what would be the Russian novel was given in 1847 when Goncharov's An Ordinary Story started to come out in a Petersburg journal. It was immediately acclaimed by critics as an answer to what they saw as the unrealistic worlds portrayed in the romantic literature of the period. This novel has kept its place in the literary pantheon of Russian literature due to its modern psychological perceptiveness, especially concerning relations between the sexes, as well as its artistry. All in all, it is a delightful work, providing charming characters and an almost classical balance of scenes and types. Goncharov himself had vast experience in the world of bureaucratic career and disillusionment he describes in the course of telling the story of his hero, Alexander Aduyev, the romantic young man who makes the trip from the provinces to the capital, and searches for love and a career. The young Alexander's foil in the novel is his sophisticated uncle, an unsentimental rational man who is a successful bureaucrat and entrepreneur. The dialogue between these two contrasting types provides much of the novel's energy and humor. No less important, however, is the contribution of Alexander's aunt, who has compassion for her nephew's situation, and understands the problem of relying too much on reason as well as the perils of romanticism. The key to this novel is its humanity and thorough knowledge of both people and the life they lived in this period. Alexander's coming of age is indeed an "ordinary story," but it is told in an extraordinary way.

An Ordinary Story: Including the Stage Adaptation of the Novel

ARDIS

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Goncharov, Ivan. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Goncharov, Ivan

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Goncharov, Ivan. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Oblomov

Oblomov (Penguin Classics)

Oblomov

Oblomov

The Precipice (Large Print Edition)

The Precipice

Oblomov by Ivan Goncharov, Fiction

Oblomov by Ivan Goncharov, Fiction

The Precipice

An Ordinary Story: Including the Stage Adaptation of the Novel