Three Levs Nikolaevich: Tolstoy, Myshkin, Odoevtsev: Dostoevsky’s The Idiot in Light of Andrei Bitov’s Pushkin House

Abstract Exploring the connection between Dostoevsky’s Lev Nikolaevich Myshkin, Bitov’s Lev Nikolaevich Odoevtsev, and Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, this article interprets The Idiot through the prism of Pushkin House. The overarching claim is that Bitov’s novel and hero provide deep insight into Dostoevsky’s. Specifically, Pushkin House illuminates a dynamic left cryptic in The Idiot: how sentimental scripting (narratology) interrelates with humanism (theology), and how sentimental humanism, despite the good intentions of its practitioners, is counterproductive. In brief, sensitivity, a positive trait, unchecked by the sobering notion of sin, easily tips into sentimentality, prone to idolize the other. Idolatry of other, paradoxically, turns out to be idolatry of self. Apparently innocuous and sympathetic, sentimental scripting nevertheless contains the seeds of tragedy and tyranny, as Bitov’s novel makes explicit, linking this dynamic ultimately with Stalinism. The antidote to endless fear and manipulation of others, Pushkin House suggests, is a personal relationship with God.