Mary

Main Ideas

• Theme of nostalgia and loss: The protagonist, Lev Ganin, experiences profound nostalgia for his homeland and past, which becomes a central theme of the novel.
• Search for identity: Ganin attempts to understand who he is in the new world he finds himself in after emigrating from Russia.
• Love and memories: Memories of his first love, Mary, play a crucial role in Ganin's life and influence his actions and decisions.
• Emigration and alienation: The novel explores the feelings of alienation and loneliness experienced by émigrés in a foreign land.
• Past and present: The conflict between the past and the present, where the past is idealized and the present appears dull and disappointing.