Torrents of Spring
Encyclopedia
Torrents of Spring, also known as Spring Torrents , is a novel written by Ivan Turgenev
during 1870 and 1871 when he was in his fifties. The story is about a young 22-year-old Russian landowner named Dimitry Sanin who falls deliriously in love for the first time while visiting the German
city of Frankfurt
. After fighting an abortive duel
with a rude soldier and winning the heart of the local girl who was the main object of his infatuation, the love-sick protagonist
decides to sell off his estate in Russia
in order to work at the girl's family's pastry shop and be close to his newfound love. Before he can be happily married, however, he goes away to attend to a business matter and falls prey to the allures of an older and more sophisticated woman.
This literary work, as an unhappy love story, is often understood by readers as a description of Turgenev's own failure in finding romantic love. The story is partly autobiographical
with the main character Sanin representing Turgenev himself during his younger days when the author visited Frankfurt
and other Europe
an cities outside his native Russia
.
Turgenev's most famous novel is Fathers and Sons
but Torrents of Spring is significant in its revealing of the author's thoughts and intimate emotions.
based on this novel was released in 1989 and stars Timothy Hutton
, Nastassja Kinski
and Valeria Golino
.
Ivan Turgenev
Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was a Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright. His first major publication, a short story collection entitled A Sportsman's Sketches, is a milestone of Russian Realism, and his novel Fathers and Sons is regarded as one of the major works of 19th-century...
during 1870 and 1871 when he was in his fifties. The story is about a young 22-year-old Russian landowner named Dimitry Sanin who falls deliriously in love for the first time while visiting the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
city of Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
. After fighting an abortive duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
with a rude soldier and winning the heart of the local girl who was the main object of his infatuation, the love-sick protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
decides to sell off his estate in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
in order to work at the girl's family's pastry shop and be close to his newfound love. Before he can be happily married, however, he goes away to attend to a business matter and falls prey to the allures of an older and more sophisticated woman.
This literary work, as an unhappy love story, is often understood by readers as a description of Turgenev's own failure in finding romantic love. The story is partly autobiographical
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
with the main character Sanin representing Turgenev himself during his younger days when the author visited Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
and other Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an cities outside his native Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
Turgenev's most famous novel is Fathers and Sons
Fathers and Sons
Fathers and Sons is an 1862 novel by Ivan Turgenev, his best known work. The title of this work in Russian is Отцы и дети , which literally means "Fathers and Children"; the work is often translated to Fathers and Sons in English for reasons of euphony.- Historical context and notes :The fathers...
but Torrents of Spring is significant in its revealing of the author's thoughts and intimate emotions.
Adaptation
A 101 minute movieTorrents of Spring (film)
Torrents of Spring is a 1989 film directed by Jerzy Skolimowski and starring Timothy Hutton and Nastassja Kinski. It is based on the novel of the same title....
based on this novel was released in 1989 and stars Timothy Hutton
Timothy Hutton
Timothy Tarquin Hutton is an American actor. He is the youngest actor to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, which he won at the age of 20 for his performance as Conrad Jarrett in Ordinary People . He currently stars as Nathan "Nate" Ford on the TNT series Leverage.-Early life:Timothy...
, Nastassja Kinski
Nastassja Kinski
Nastassja Kinski is a German-born American-based actress who has appeared in more than 60 films. Her starring roles include her Golden Globe Award-winning portrayal of the title character in Tess and her roles in two erotic films , as well as parts in Wim Wenders' films The Wrong Move; Paris,...
and Valeria Golino
Valeria Golino
Valeria Golino is an Italian-Greek film and television actress. She is best known to English language audiences for the 1988 film Rain Man, and the Hot Shots! films...
.