The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910 discussion

I hope you're still enjoying the book!

1. Why did Tatiana write in French instead of Russian?

2. Why did she run away when she saw Eugene in the garden?

3. How do you feel about Eugene's reaction to Tatiana's letter?

4. Novels often spend a lot of time on the physical effects of a broken heart. Do you think it is realistic?

The upper classes, and not so upper, spoke French as the language used in social situations-also in front of the servants. The same was true in other European countries. I guess French was considered "posh". My guess is that the French they spoke would have been less than perfect. Tatyana was weak in Russian because it wasn't considered a good enough language, even though they were Russian.

It was apparent that Olga and Lensky were suited for each other. That left Tatiana, the dark one, who likes reading and dreaming. She seems to be a good match for Onegin, but he is so apathetic that he hardly seems to be aware of her existence. On the other hand, this is the first time that Tatiana has shown interest in a young man. The prospect of a relationship between the two looks highly unlikely to occur.