15
ALTHOUGH Novodvorov was very much respected by all the revolutionaries, and though he was very learned and passed for being very clever, Nekhlyudov counted him among those revolutionaries who, falling below the average moral level, were very far below it. The mental ability of the man – his numerator – was high; but his opinion of himself – his denominator – was incommensurably enormous and had long outgrown his mental powers.
His spiritual disposition was diametrically the opposite of Simonson’s. Simonson belonged to the predominantly masculine type whose actions follow the dictates of their reason and are determined by it. Novodvorov, on the other hand, pertained to the feminine category where mental activity is directed partly to the realization of aims inspired by feelings.
The whole of Novodvorov’s revolutionary activity, though he could explain it so eloquently and convincingly, appeared to Nekhlyudov to be founded on nothing more than vanity, on a desire to be a leader among men. To begin with, his talent for assimilating and expressing clearly the thoughts of others had brought him to the top – at school and at the university, where this sort of ability is highly prized – and he was well pleased with himself. But when he had received his diploma and finished his studies and his period of supremacy was over he suddenly completely altered his views, in order to gain power in another sphere (so Kryltsov, who did not like him, told Nekhlyudov), and from being a moderate liberal he became a rabid adherent of the People’s Freedom party. Being devoid of aesthetic and moral principles (so frequently the cause of doubt and hesitation), he very soon acquired a position in the revolutionary world – that of leader of a party – which satisfied his ambition. His course once chosen, he never again doubted or wavered, and was therefore certain that he never made a mistake. Everything seemed to him extraordinarily simple, clear, incontrovertible. And indeed, given the narrowness and one-sidedness of his views, every-thing was quite simple and clear, and all that was necessary, as he said, was to be logical. His self-confidence was so great that it could only repel people or bring them to heel. And as his activity was displayed among very young people, who mistook his boundless self-assurance for depth and wisdom, the majority fell under his influence and he had great success in revolutionary circles. He was engaged at that time in preparing an insurrection during which he proposed to seize the reins of government and call a popular parliament, to consider the programme he had composed. And he was perfectly certain that this programme went into every problem and that there could be no question of not carrying it out.
His boldness and determination won the respect of his comrades, but not their love. Nor was he fond of anyone. He looked upon all talented men as rivals; if he could, he would have liked to treat them as male-monkeys treat the young ones. He would have snatched away all their powers and all their ability, to avoid being eclipsed by them. He only liked those who bowed before him. Thus now on the journey he was gracious to Kondratyev, who had swallowed his propaganda and become his disciple, to Vera Bogodoukhovskaya and to pretty little Grabetz, both of whom were in love with him. Though in theory he believed in equality for women, at the bottom of his heart he considered all women stupid and insignificant, with the exception of those with whom he happened to be sentimentally in love (as he was at present with Grabetz), and then he thought them exceptional women, whose worth he alone was capable of appreciating.
The question of relations between the sexes, like all other questions, seemed very simple and clear to him, the recognition of free love being the complete answer.
He had one woman who was known as his wife, and one real wife, from whom he had parted, having come to the conclusion that there was no true love between them, and now he was thinking of contracting another free marriage with Grabetz.
Nekhlyudov he despised for ‘acting a part’, as he called it, with Maslova, and particularly for daring to think about the defects of the existing system and ways of correcting those defects, not only not word for word as he, Novodvorov, did, but in a special fashion of his own, as a prince – that is, as a fool. Nekhlyudov was aware of Novodvorov’s attitude towards him, and to his chagrin felt that, despite his general state on this journey of goodwill to all men, he could not help returning dislike for dislike and was quite unable to overcome his strong antipathy for the man.