The Widowers

The protagonist of a novel acclaimed by all critics is tormented by himself and tortures the only love he has in life. He is very talented, and therefore successful. Once, in a fit of passion, he wrote a brilliant novel which, soon after its release to a wide audience, began to compete for a prestigious literary prize and for the title of bestseller. It would seem that’s all one could want from life—yet the young man has fallen captive to his own passions and hot desires. More than anything, he longs for fame and worldwide recognition, but a terrible, paralyzing fear of betrayal prevents him from living well. It is precisely this fear that drives him to a great and dramatic foolishness, as a result of which his beloved woman dies. The hero suffers from remorse and from being exposed himself—because it was his jealousy that practically killed the person for whom he had been living… «The Widowers» is an intricate intertwining of psychological motives that presents the main character in two guises at once: as an unhappy victim of circumstances and his own fears, and as an unrelenting criminal whom his own ambitions push to the most terrible wrongdoing. The novel makes readers experience very contradictory feelings toward the characters, feeling sympathy and contempt for them at the same time.