White Nights

Examine the role of dreams and fantasy in shaping the narrator’s worldview. How does his characterization as a dreamer affect his relationships and perception of reality?

Compare and contrast the narrator and Nastenka as storytellers. In what ways to their narrative styles differ? How do these differences reflect their personalities, social positions, and emotional needs?

Discuss the symbolic role of letters, books, and theater in the story. How do these literary forms enable the characters’ self-expression?

Explore how Dostoyevsky uses setting. How do the time of day, the city of St. Petersburg, and symbolic elements like the cobwebs or personified houses mirror the psychological and emotional conditions of the narrator?

How do gender and power dynamics in 19th-century Russia shape Nastenka’s choices, behavior, and sense of self? In what ways does the story reflect or challenge the gender norms of its historical context?

How does Dostoyevsky represent social, emotional, and physical solitude in the lives of his characters? How do symbols like the narrator’s room or the cobwebs reinforce this theme?

What does the ending indicate about the narrator’s emotional journey? What does his response to Nastenka’s departure reveal about his capacity for love, growth, or despair?

Discuss the ambiguous characterization of the lodger. Why does Dostoevsky choose mostly not to depict him directly?