An excellent question. You got me wondering how I knew who the suicide was, so I checked. My Hayward/Harari translation names Zhivago. My P&V does not, and nor does the original text.
H&H - Misha's father had told him that the suicide had been a well-known millionaire, Zhivago, a good-natured profligate, by then half out of his mind.
P&V - The father said that this was a well-known rich man, kindly and wayward, already half out of his mind.
Original text - Отец говорил, что это известный богач, добряк и шелапут, уже наполовину невменяемый.
This surprised me too, that it was Zhivago. when I read your guide. Also, I appreciated the breakdown on Russian names. I feel like I generally understood them from a year of reading War and Peace but your explanation really made it click. Thank you Cams!
yes, I've just started reading Dr Zhivago (P & V trans) and this confused me too. I'm really beginning to become interested in differences between translations
That’s really helpful, Cams. I watched the video and also plan to read the essay in the next day or two.
I was struck by both the novel’s early reference to Tolstoy and the early appearance of a train fatality. A nod to Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina which also starts with a train death? Or just a coincidence?
That's an interesting comment about the train theme. I hadn't made the connection. I wonder if it was an intentional tip of the hat. I shan't give any more away, but your observation may be more astute than you thought!
Thanks for the link to the podcast. I've added it to my Resources and will listen later today.
Thanks for this. Your very helpful comments about names got me wondering about why Pasternak chooses to name every character, even the less important ones. Each time someone new appears I'm flicking back to the character list to check whether this is someone I need to remember or just passing through. But I like the way it makes you focus on the details.
As a fan of revolution, nature as imagery/ metaphor, and trains, this novel is really hitting for me and I’m so pleased; I remember the movie only peripherally, but it was definitely marketed as an epic story, and I am indeed finding the writing to be much more lyrical with the political events as a framework – something quite useful and interesting that you pointed out - this tension between the lyrical and the epic. I’ll definitely keep my eye on it.
In terms of my own writing (which is currently the framework in which I read everything these days, the specific descriptions of nature, and this very interesting dichotomy between being a part of the aristocracy, but also being poor and perhaps a left a little bit on one’s own as a child is incredibly useful and interesting to dig into). Casual and persistent religious references weave in with philosophical discussion about the nature of time infinity and God is particularly prescient and appreciated in 2026!
Thanks Cams, this helps! I had to re-read some paragraphs because I was getting confused with the names.
In the PV translation, it was not explicitly stated who the suicide was, was it different in the other translation?
An excellent question. You got me wondering how I knew who the suicide was, so I checked. My Hayward/Harari translation names Zhivago. My P&V does not, and nor does the original text.
H&H - Misha's father had told him that the suicide had been a well-known millionaire, Zhivago, a good-natured profligate, by then half out of his mind.
P&V - The father said that this was a well-known rich man, kindly and wayward, already half out of his mind.
Original text - Отец говорил, что это известный богач, добряк и шелапут, уже наполовину невменяемый.
I wonder why H&H added it in.
This surprised me too, that it was Zhivago. when I read your guide. Also, I appreciated the breakdown on Russian names. I feel like I generally understood them from a year of reading War and Peace but your explanation really made it click. Thank you Cams!
yes, I've just started reading Dr Zhivago (P & V trans) and this confused me too. I'm really beginning to become interested in differences between translations
Really helpful guide on the journey of discovery. Appreciated.
I love the PDF. I’ve never seen it done in any other slow read. I usually take notes, so you’ve just saved me an hour or two 😊
I’m so glad it was useful. Thanks for the positive feedback!
That’s really helpful, Cams. I watched the video and also plan to read the essay in the next day or two.
I was struck by both the novel’s early reference to Tolstoy and the early appearance of a train fatality. A nod to Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina which also starts with a train death? Or just a coincidence?
I also found an old BBC radio episode about Boris Pasternak. It’s from 1990 which slightly disconcertingly is closer to the book’s publication than it is to now! An interesting listen….. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0376js4?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile
Glad it was useful, Tom!
That's an interesting comment about the train theme. I hadn't made the connection. I wonder if it was an intentional tip of the hat. I shan't give any more away, but your observation may be more astute than you thought!
Thanks for the link to the podcast. I've added it to my Resources and will listen later today.
I’ll have to take another look at the character list to make sure I can sort out all the names. Thanks, Cam.
Yeah, Russian names can be tricky!
This is fantastic and greatly enriched my reading of the first chapter. Can’t wait to continue following your thoughts on this book!
Thanks for this. Your very helpful comments about names got me wondering about why Pasternak chooses to name every character, even the less important ones. Each time someone new appears I'm flicking back to the character list to check whether this is someone I need to remember or just passing through. But I like the way it makes you focus on the details.
Yeah Russian names, haha. Easy for them to say. 😂
Super helpful Cams! Loved the essay and podcast -- appreciate it!
As a fan of revolution, nature as imagery/ metaphor, and trains, this novel is really hitting for me and I’m so pleased; I remember the movie only peripherally, but it was definitely marketed as an epic story, and I am indeed finding the writing to be much more lyrical with the political events as a framework – something quite useful and interesting that you pointed out - this tension between the lyrical and the epic. I’ll definitely keep my eye on it.
In terms of my own writing (which is currently the framework in which I read everything these days, the specific descriptions of nature, and this very interesting dichotomy between being a part of the aristocracy, but also being poor and perhaps a left a little bit on one’s own as a child is incredibly useful and interesting to dig into). Casual and persistent religious references weave in with philosophical discussion about the nature of time infinity and God is particularly prescient and appreciated in 2026!
Glad it's hitting for you, Maggie. Keep writing your excellent comments. I love reading them.
Thanks for doing the audio
You're welcome. And thank you for the feedback. It's good to know that my efforts are useful.