“The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either – but right through every human heart.”
Alexander Solzhenitsyn
Solzhenitsyn knew the human heart well. This insight explains why the bad guy who sees himself as the good guy makes a more believable antagonist. The mustache-twirling villain seeking world domination because that’s what villains do makes boring reading. When both the protagonist and antagonist have to deal with internal and external conflict, the reader feels like a miner panning for gold. We want to discover characters with depth, characters who are capable of surprise and even winning our sympathy.
His quote or your commentary? Equally strong!
That’s Solzhenitsyn’s quote and my commentary. Guess I need to make that clear. Thanks.
Oh, you were clear; I was not. I thought YOUR commentary was great, and equally as strong as the quote from Solzhenitzen. Sorry ’bout that! 🙂
Clear in context.
Very insightful: Do you think that’s the appeal of perhaps a more extreme example of this like The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?
Good example. Another would be the Wolfman, who’s both monster and victim.
yes indeed…
As noted in other comments, your commentary was excellent.
As an aside, I picked up King’s On Writing today. Thanks for the suggestion.
Alie,
It’s a classic that actually delivers. I refer to it often.
Great post and I’ve never heard of
Alexander Solzhenitsyn before ha I need to do some research.
I’d start with August 1914 and A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovitch. Solzhenitsyn is a powerful writer.
Thanks, i will take a look at that.
Funnily enough, I have read Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky this year, and I think they are going to belong with some of my favourite writers.
Excellent quotation, Mike. Thank you!
You’re most welcome!
How apropos given the state of Russian/Western World relationships. I just picked up his Gulag Archipelago from a local library throw-away bin. I haven’t started reading it, but it’s on my list.
So relevant. So beautifully written. Who can truly know the heart is a concept I have strongly considered in recent days. Wrote a bit about it yesterday. Happy to find and follow this excellent site.
Shirley,
Solzhenitsyn was indeed a master stylist. His observations on the beauty and power of the Russian language make enjoyable reading — something to savor.
First, thank you for “the follow.” I believe by little consideration of a word’s nuance and subtlety we may fail to know both the beauty and the power of said word. In deeply considering the incident mentioned in my blog post, I concluded I may have introduced a smear of sarcasm. I continue to learn.
Amazing quote! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you, Kally!