‘A Christian on a Throne’. Religiousness and Patriotism in ‘the Red Wheel’ by Alexander Solzhenitsyn on the Example of the Character of Nicholas II

Abstract

The article deals with the issue of the religious position of individuals in ‘the Red Wheel’ by A. Solzhenitsyn. The main attention is focused on features of tsar Nicholas II. Analyzing an example of the last Russians Emperor proves that Solzhenitsyn presents the religious theme from patriotic point of view.

Despite individual devotion, honesty and even officially admitted holiness of Nicholas II Solzhenitsyn shows rather negative sides of the tsar. According to the writer the Emperor takes responsibility for spreading the revolution and the catastrophe of Russia. The Solzhenitsyn attitude is revealed in the narrative technique, particularly the usage of irony in characterizing of figures. Even tsar’s martyrdom, which is shown in the last part of ‘March 1917’, doesn’t change the specific critical picture of him in the Solzhenitsyn’s epic.