The Bronze Horseman Analytical Essay

The image of the bronze horseman pointing eastward is one that marks the identity of Petersburg the city, as well as Petersburg the novel by Andrei Bely. This symbol not only represents Russia’s persistence in overcoming adversity but it also represents its tendency to adopt eastern values and influences. In the novel, the symbol of the Bronze Horseman as well as the reoccurring motifs of Dudkin’s nightmares and shadows enlightens readers about how Russian’s perceived the country’s Eastern identity. One character that I feel is central to uncovering the novel’s sentiments about the east, is Alexandr Ivanovich Dudkin. Because he acts as Bely’s narrator for a decent part of the book, his viewpoint represents the voice of Petersburg. Dudkin’s coffin like, yellow, room and his desperation to escape lead

He manifests these fears through his dreams, which are thought to be a manifestation of a person’s subconscious and raw desires. The easy control of Lippanchenko over Dudkin represents the fear of Eastern domination that was pervasive in Russia at the beginning of the century. Russian’s valued order and control in their country and if we take Dudkin’s perspective into consideration, the influence of the east was causing chaos. For Bely, Petersburg appears as an “invisible world, the world of shadows” that could disappear at any point (207). Even earlier in the novel, Bely had stated that “Petersburg streets possess one indubitable quality: they transform passers-by into shadows” (22). The word “shadow” is applied in the novel to characters like Dudkin and Lippanchenko that lead unfulfilled lives in the visible or phenomenal world. Dudkin creates shadows of his own through the Bronze Horseman, who in his mind threatens to destroy the city of Petersburg and take him to a higher “invisible” or numenal