Fathers and Sons characters

Appears from the start

A warmhearted widowed landowner waiting for his son to return from university. He values poetry, music, and family affection, while trying with mixed success to modernize his estate. He is anxious that age and convention have placed him behind the younger generation.

Appears from the start

Nikolai's recently graduated son, returning to the family estate at Maryino. He admires his friend Bazarov and eagerly repeats his rejection of traditional authority, although his temperament remains affectionate and receptive to beauty.

First appears in chapter 2

Arkady's friend and mentor, training as a doctor. The son of a country physician, he calls himself a nihilist and accepts no principle merely because society reveres it. Abrupt, scientifically minded, and scornful of romantic language, he unsettles the Kirsanov household from the moment he arrives.

First appears in chapter 4

Nikolai's elder brother, a former guards officer whose elegant habits and aristocratic pride survive in rural retirement. He distrusts Bazarov's manners and ideas, defending principle, dignity, and social order against the younger man's contempt.

First appears in chapter 5

A quiet young woman living at Maryino with Nikolai and their infant son. The daughter of his former housekeeper, she is loved by Nikolai but feels awkward before Arkady and Pavel because she and Nikolai are not married.

First appears in chapter 12

A young acquaintance of Bazarov who imitates radical opinions and treats association with a strong personality as proof of his own importance. He guides Bazarov and Arkady through provincial society.

First appears in chapter 13

A self-declared emancipated woman in the provincial town. Surrounded by cigarettes, papers, and unfinished enthusiasms, she talks rapidly about advanced causes but does not impress Bazarov as a serious thinker.

First appears in chapter 14

A wealthy young widow who manages her estate at Nikolskoye with calm intelligence and strict order. Independent and curious about unusual people, she invites Bazarov and Arkady to visit after meeting them at a provincial ball.

Also known as Katya

First appears in chapter 16

Anna Odintsova's younger sister. Shy and overshadowed at first, she is thoughtful, musical, and more at ease in ordinary companionship than Anna. Arkady gradually finds that conversation with her does not require him to perform Bazarov's severity.

First appears in chapter 20

Bazarov's father, a retired army surgeon living on a small property. Talkative, hospitable, and proud of his medical knowledge, he adores his son and tries not to burden him with visible emotion.

First appears in chapter 20

Bazarov's deeply religious mother, tender and traditional in every habit. She has waited years for his visit and receives him with an intensity of love that he finds difficult to answer.