Résumé
Résumé de Eugène Onéguine
À qui s’adresse-t-il ?
Readers who love a love story told with wit, anyone curious about Russian life in the age of Napoleon, and lovers of poems that sound good aloud and speak straight to the heart.
De quoi parle ce livre ?
What happens when a man who has everything cannot want anything? Eugene Onegin is a verse novel by Aleksandr Pushkin, told in lively fourteen-line stanzas by a narrator who jokes, confides and digresses. It follows a bored St. Petersburg dandy, a poet who believes in perfect love, and a shy country girl who dares to write the first letter. Start with the young man at the mirror, readying himself for another ball.
Dans ce résumé
- 1A bored young dandy in St. PetersburgFree
- 2An inheritance sends him to the countryside
- 3A dreamy poet becomes his friend
- 4A shy girl falls in love and writes first
- 5Onegin answers her letter with a kind sermon
- 6A name day party sets old friends against each other
- 7What the poem is about and how Pushkin tells it
Point clé 1 sur 7
A bored young dandy in St. Petersburg
The poem opens with a young man dreading the duty of tending his sick uncle. Eugene Onegin is a young nobleman with a light education from French tutors. He speaks French well, dances gracefully, knows a little Latin and reads about economics.
Pushkin follows his day. Three invitations arrive in the morning, he strolls the boulevard, dines on roast beef, truffles and champagne, looks over the audience and yawns at the ballet, then spends hours dressing for a ball. He has learned to seem hopeful, jealous or heartbroken as the moment needs, and women fall for the act. Yet the poet notes that all this glitter leaves him empty. The sickness has a name, spleen, an English gloom brought to Russia.
This is the starting point of the story: a hero with charm, wit and nothing to want. Notice how gently the narrator laughs at him, because that mix of fondness and mockery runs through the whole poem.
That’s 1 of 7 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Eugene Onegin
- A bored young nobleman who inherits a country estate, befriends Lensky, and attracts Tatyana's love.
- Tatyana Larina
- Olga's quiet, thoughtful elder sister, whose imagination is shaped by fiction and whose heart turns toward Onegin.
- Vladimir Lensky
- A romantic young poet educated in Germany, he becomes Onegin's friend and is engaged to Olga.
- Olga Larina
- Tatyana's cheerful younger sister is Lensky's fiancée, enjoying company and attention more readily than her reserved sister.
- The Narrator
- A witty poet and self-described friend of Onegin, he interrupts the narrative with memories, opinions, and affectionate observations.
- Filipyevna
- Tatyana's trusted nurse shares folk tales with her and helps her send her letter to Onegin.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 40,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 2 h 40 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about Eugène Onéguine
What is Eugene Onegin about?
It follows a bored nobleman, Eugene Onegin, who receives a love letter from a country girl, Tatiana. Along the way it shows friendship, jealousy and Russian society.
Why is Eugene Onegin called a novel in verse?
Pushkin tells a full story with characters, scenes and dialogue, but writes it in rhymed fourteen-line stanzas. The narrator speaks to the reader as a friend and often steps out of the plot.
Who is Tatiana in Eugene Onegin?
Tatiana Larina is a shy, bookish country girl who falls in love with Onegin at first sight. She writes him a frank letter, and her honesty and strength of character make her the heart of the poem.
Is Eugene Onegin a true story?
The characters are invented, though Pushkin drew on his own world, the balls, country estates and customs of his day. He works on the poem over several years.
What is the main message of Eugene Onegin?
Feelings ignored or mocked in youth cannot always be recovered later. The poem shows how pride, boredom and fear of looking foolish can cost people the love and friendship they most need.