Alexander Pushkin's novel, Eugene Onegin, gives the reader an excellent insight into his thoughts and beliefs regarding different types of human behavior. Throughout the novel, Pushkin illustrates many of his own characteristics through the two main male figures, Eugene Onegin and Vladimir Lensky, although they are very different from each other. However, an interesting distinction can be made between the way he approaches the two characters by comparing two stanzas from the novel. Stanza 45 of Chapter 1 describes the hero of the novel, Eugene Onegin, and depicts his disenchantment with life and with humans in general. This is also a great example of Pushkin showing parallels between himself and Onegin, who Pushkin seems to take very seriously throughout the novel. On the other hand, in stanza 10 of chapter 2, we meet the young Vladimir Lensky, described in a much more sarcastic manner. Lensky's appreciation for poetry and nature is evident here, although Pushkin's tone clearly mocks the young poet. Although they draw characteristics of both characters from himself, they are extremely different and the narrator approaches them both with extremely distinctive tones. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The first stanza comes near the end of the first chapter, and at this point the reader has only recently been introduced to Eugene Onegin, to whom this stanza refers. This stanza illustrates some of the main concepts of the previous stanzas, primarily Onegin's lifestyle and character traits. He definitely lives a fashionable and comfortable life, but that doesn't leave Onegin satisfied. Eugene can be described as a Byronic hero, exhausted and dissatisfied with life. This stanza clearly shows similarities between Onegin and Pushkin, although the author denies throughout the novel that Onegin is a representation of himself. The resemblance between the two can be seen in the following lines: “The cold, keen mind he possessed; I was bitter, he was depressed; » (1.45.7-8). Of course, there is one glaring difference between the two, which is that Onegin doesn't like poetry. Throughout the first chapter and much of the novel, Onegin is portrayed as self-centered, indifferent, and superficial, and this is most often done in a serious tone. The second stanza describes Lensky in an entirely different manner than in which Onegin was shown. Lensky is not introduced to the reader until the sixth stanza, and he seems to be another aspect of the narrator. He is portrayed as a stereotypical young poet; just like Pushkin was before being betrayed by his friends. He remains ambitious and optimistic about the future, which is very different from Onegin's worldview. Lensky is genuinely interested in poetry, but the narrator makes this seem immature and humorous. This is clear in the last two lines. "He sang of the flowering of life becoming pale and serene ---/ He had almost reached his eighteenth year." (2.10.13-14) In these two lines, the narrator's idea of ​​Lensky seems more sarcastic and lighter; it’s almost as if he’s mocking the young poet. There is a difference in the tone with which the author considers these characters, much more serious towards Onegin and more mocking towards Lensky. Pushkin seems to look back on his younger years with a sense of nostalgia and, through Lensky, remembers them fondly. An intriguing aspect of these two stanzas is how the author is so similar to each of these characters, yet he tries to keep his distance.