On my previous blog post on The death of Ivan Ilyich I touched on how Leo Tolstoy criticized the nature of those from higher class and how Ivan Ilyichs life has changed for the worse in his pursuit of conforming with those of higher social class. The later chapters Leo Tolstoy condemns the choices Ivan has made symbolically after he’s conformed by showing the difference between how Ivan reacts to his servant (who represents what Ivan once was) and his wife (who represents what Ivan became) while on his “death bed”.
While Ivan was on his “death bed” Ivan looked at his own reflection and could not recognize the man he was seeing . This was because Ivan was dying and also symbolic because Ivan is not the same man he once was. And even though it was visually apparent that Ivan was dying , his peers still refused to acknowledge him (even his own wife). Gerasim his servant was the only person in Ivans life that came in terms with the fact that Ivan was going to die and the they later on grew a positive relationship . While Ivan was suffering in despair , Gerasim would provide him with comfort especially when Gerasim would hold his legs but when Gerasim would let go he’d go back to being in pain. This is because Gerasim was a good man , and he represents the goodness that Ivan Ilyich once had. So when Ivan came into contact with Gerasim he was coming into contact with his former self and it reminded him of the “capable, cheerful, good-nature, and sociable man”(746) he once was.
Tolstoy also mentions the difference in how Ivan viewed Gerasim compared to his peers and his wife. “Health, strength, and vitality in other people were offensive to him, but Gerasims strength and vitality did not mortify but soothed him” (766). Ivan was offended by the “other people” because they represent what Ivan became. Ivan decieved his former self countless times bending his own morals just to conform with the “other people” he now despises. The greatest symbol of his deception to his former self is his own wife, who represents the man he became and everything that went wrong in his life. All the morally wrong choices Ivan has made in his life holds presence in his wife and this makes him more irritable and brings him even more pain . He “hates her with his whole soul. And the thrill of hatred he feels for her makes him suffer from her touch”(769). Ivan hates his wife because he is his wife, she is a reflection of the person he became so at any moment she comes into contact with him, he is constantly reminded of the man he is now and this constant reminder puts him closer and closer to his death.