Anna Karenina - LimpidSoft

PART FOUR CHAPTER 10
Sergey Ivanovitch would have said something, but Pestsov interrupted him in his
rich bass. He began warmly contesting the justice of this view. Sergey Ivanovitch
waited serenely to speak, obviously with a convincing reply ready.
“But,” said Sergey Ivanovitch, smiling subtly, and addressing Karenin, “One must
allow that to weigh all the advantages and disadvantages of classical and scientific
studies is a difficult task, and the question which form of education was to be preferred
would not have been so quickly and conclusively decided if there had not
been in favor of classical education, as you expressed it just now, its moral–disons le
mot–anti-nihilist influence.”
“Undoubtedly.”
“If it had not been for the distinctive property of anti-nihilistic influence on the
side of classical studies, we should have considered the subject more, have weighed
the arguments on both sides,” said Sergey Ivanovitch with a subtle smile, “we should
have given elbow-room to both tendencies. But now we know that these little pills
of classical learning possess the medicinal property of anti-nihilism, and we boldly
prescribe them to our patients.... But what if they had no such medicinal property?”
he wound up humorously.
At Sergey Ivanovitch’s little pills, everyone laughed; Turovtsin in especial roared
loudly and jovially, glad at last to have found something to laugh at, all he ever
looked for in listening to conversation.
Stepan Arkadyevitch had not made a mistake in inviting Pestsov. With Pestsov
intellectual conversation never flagged for an instant. Directly Sergey Ivanovitch
had concluded the conversation with his jest, Pestsov promptly started a new one.
“I can’t agree even,” said he, “that the government had that aim. The government
obviously is guided by abstract considerations, and remains indifferent to the
influence its measures may exercise. The education of women, for instance, would
naturally be regarded as likely to be harmful, but the government opens schools and
universities for women.”
And the conversation at once passed to the new subject of the education of women.
Alexey Alexandrovitch expressed the idea that the education of women is apt to
be confounded with the emancipation of women, and that it is only so that it can be
considered dangerous.
“I consider, on the contrary, that the two questions are inseparably connected together,”
said Pestsov; “it is a vicious circle. Woman is deprived of rights from lack of
education, and the lack of education results from the absence of rights. We must not
forget that the subjection of women is so complete, and dates from such ages back
that we are often unwilling to recognize the gulf that separates them from us,” said
he.
“You said rights,” said Sergey Ivanovitch, waiting till Pestsov had finished,
“meaning the right of sitting on juries, of voting, of presiding at official meetings,
the right of entering the civil service, of sitting in parliament...”
“Undoubtedly.”
“But if women, as a rare exception, can occupy such positions, it seems to me you
are wrong in using the expression ‘rights.’ It would be more correct to say duties.
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