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Vronsky is described (by Kitty\'s father) as \"a perfect
specimen of Saint Petersburg gilded youth.\" He is an aristocrat,
a soldier, a horseman, and a womanizer. He has charm to burn,
polish to spare, and looks that comrades envy. In his time and
place, he is far from unusual. As Kitty\'s father puts it, men
like Vronsky \"are a dime a dozen.\"
But Vronsky\'s affair with Anna Karenina sets him apart from
his peers. Many readers feel that Vronsky is the worst villain
in this story. Others feel that he is more limited than
corrupt, more baffled than cunning, more desperate than cruel.
As you read, you will have to come up with your own
assessment.
At the beginning of Anna Karenina, Vronsky leads Kitty on
with little thought for her feelings. He also gives the
stationmaster\'s wife 200 rubles just to impress Anna Karenina.
Neither of these incidents makes you think that Vronsky is very
deep. Perhaps the most damning event of all is the
steeplechase: Vronsky, distracted by the praise of the crowd,
makes a mistake that costs his horse her life.
On the other hand, Vronsky is not satisfied with a secretive
liaison with Anna. He wants to marry her and have a family
life. He gives up his dreams of being a career soldier in order
to be with Anna. He is more mature than Anna in terms of their
relationship.
Many readers criticize Vronsky for not insisting that Anna\'s
former friends include her in their activities--after all,
they\'re his friends, too. It may be that his sympathies are
limited. Society doesn\'t punish Vronsky the way it does Anna
for living with him. He is unable--because he doesn\'t
experience it himself--to appreciate Anna\'s pain. It may also
be that Vronsky needs some time to socialize by himself--Anna,
by this point, is extremely hard to live with. Yet in spite of
her jealousy, her temper, and her tears, Vronsky continues to
love Anna, is faithful to her, and does not consider leaving
her.
Vronsky is devastated by Anna\'s suicide. At the end, you see
him going off to fight the Turks on behalf of the Slavs. Some
readers say that he wants to do something with his life; others
that he is backing into an \"honorable\" suicide.
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