95:
two words to him, who will not repulse him or ridicule him as he approached. He says that he thinks of talking to a random girl timidly, respectfully, passionately – telling her that he is dying in solitude and that he has no chance of success with her. He tells her that it is a girl's duty not to rudely reject or mock a man as timid and luckless as he. As they reach
Nastenka's door, he asks if he will ever see her again. Before she can answer, he adds that he will be at the spot they met tomorrow anyway just so he can relive this one happy moment in his lonely life. She agrees, stating she can't forbid him not to come, and she has to be there anyway. The girl would tell him her story and be with him, provided that talking does not lead to romance. She is as lonely as the narrator.
20:
179:"But that I should feel any resentment against you, Nastenka! That I should cast a dark shadow over your bright, serene happiness! ...That I should crush a single one of those delicate blooms which you will wear in your dark hair when you walk up the aisle to the altar with him! Oh no — never, never! May your sky be always clear, may your dear smile be always bright and happy, and may you be for ever blessed for that moment of bliss and happiness which you gave to another lonely and grateful heart ... Good Lord, only a moment of bliss? Isn't such a moment sufficient for the whole of a man's life?"
164:
they can no longer continue to be friends in the same manner, insists on never seeing her again. She urges him to stay, and suggests that their relationship might become romantic some day, but that she wants his friendship in her life. The narrator becomes hopeful at this prospect. As they are walking, they pass by a young man who stops and calls after them. He turns out to be
Nastenka's lover, and she jumps into his arms. She returns briefly to kiss the narrator but journeys into the night, leaving him alone and broken-hearted.
427:
128:
too small, they rent a room in their house. When their first lodger dies, the grandmother rents to a younger man. Despite embarrassing herself in front of him by revealing that she is literally and figuratively pinned to her grandmother, the young man begins a silent courtship with
Nastenka, giving her books so that she may develop a reading habit. She takes a liking to the novels of
153:
appearance, but
Nastenka grows restless at the other man's absence and takes comfort in the narrator's friendship. Unaware of the depth of the narrator's feelings for her, she tells him that she loves him because he hasn't fallen in love with her. The narrator, despairing of his unrequited love, notes that he has now begun to feel alienation from her as well.
142:. On the night that the young lodger is about to leave Petersburg for Moscow, Nastenka urges him to marry her. He refuses immediate marriage and claims that he does not have money to support them but assures her that he will return for her a year later. Nastenka finishes her story and notes that a year has gone, and he has not sent her a single letter.
175:
narrator breaks into tears. Matryona, his maid, interrupts his thoughts by telling him she has finished cleaning the cobwebs. The narrator notes that though he had never considered
Matryona to be old, she looked far older than she ever had, and wonders if his own future is to be without companionship and love. He refuses to despair:
91:). He first sees her standing against a railing and crying. He becomes concerned and considers asking her what is wrong, but eventually, he continues walking. There is something special about her, and he is very curious. When he hears her scream, he intervenes and saves her from a man who is harassing her.
82:
The narrator describes his experience walking in the streets of St. Petersburg. He loves the city at night, and feels comfortable in it. Because all the people he is used to seeing are not there, he no longer feels comfortable during the day. He drew his emotions from them: if they were happy, he was
127:
Nastenka tells the narrator her story. She grew up with a strict and blind grandmother, who gave
Nastenka a largely sheltered upbringing. Nastenka’s grandmother uses a safety pin to keep the two joined at the hip, as she fears her granddaughter will get into mischief. Her grandmother's pension being
163:
Nastenka despairs because she knows that her lover is in
Petersburg but hasn't contacted her. The narrator continues to comfort her, for which she is extremely grateful, leading him to break his resolve and confess his love for her. Nastenka is disoriented at first, and the narrator, realizing that
94:
The young woman holds his hand, and he explains that he is alone, that he has never known a woman, and that he feels timid with her. Nastenka reassures him that ladies like timidity and that she likes it, too. He tells her that he spends every minute of every day dreaming about a girl who would say
152:
The narrator gradually realizes that despite his assurance that their friendship will remain platonic, he has inevitably fallen in love with her. He nevertheless helps her by writing and posting a letter to her lover, and he conceals his feelings for her. They await his reply to the letter or his
116:
and mentions "The
Goddess of Fancy". He dreams of everything, from befriending poets to having a place in the winter with a girl by his side. He says that the dreariness of everyday life kills people, while in his dreams he can make his life as he wishes it to be. At the end of his moving speech,
174:
The final section is a brief afterword about a letter he receives from
Nastenka, in which she apologizes for hurting him and insists that she will always be thankful for his companionship. She says that she will be married within a week and hopes that he will come. While reading the letter, the
105:
On their second meeting, Nastenka seeks to find out more about him. He tells her that he has no history because he has spent his life utterly alone. When she presses him to continue, he suggests that he is of the type of the "dreamer". "'The dreamer'", he explains, "is not a human being, but a
112:), about his longing for companionship, leading Nastenka to comment "...you talk as if you were reading from a book". He begins to tell his story in the third person, calling himself "the hero". This "hero" is happy at the hour when all work ends and people walk about. He references
430:
86:
He lives alone in a small apartment in Saint
Petersburg with only his old and unsociable maid Matryona to keep him company. He tells the story of his relationship with a young woman, Nastenka (a diminutive of the name
83:
happy; if they were despondent, he was despondent. New faces made him feel alone. As he walked, the houses would talk to him and tell him how they were being renovated or painted a new color or torn down.
66:
who suffers from loneliness. He gets to know and falls in love with a young woman, but the love remains unrequited as the woman misses her lover, with whom she is finally reunited.
307:
250:
318:
667:
1040:
1030:
874:
716:
463:
1035:
493:
352:
909:
488:
356:
887:
755:
106:
creature of an intermediate sort." He gives a long speech (in a style that anticipates that of the Underground Man in
399:
456:
852:
681:
483:
737:
550:
518:
19:
534:
1025:
702:
902:
526:
449:
986:
590:
284:
970:
962:
946:
938:
865:
235:
224:
201:
542:
1002:
641:
625:
606:
331:
108:
55:
895:
301:
138:
846:
558:
8:
822:
780:
762:
582:
566:
420:
917:
828:
800:
244:
918:
857:
840:
816:
785:
730:
723:
472:
395:
360:
133:
48:
790:
633:
270:
240:
206:
195:
190:
129:
113:
63:
32:
674:
660:
834:
795:
598:
312:
259:
229:
1019:
695:
391:
323:
279:
415:
290:
210:
136:. The young man invites Nastenka and her grandmother to a performance of
44:
994:
574:
510:
296:
88:
441:
436:
59:
117:
Nastenka sympathetically assures him that she will be his friend.
978:
954:
265:
216:
54:
Like many of Dostoevsky's stories, "White Nights" is told in the
51:, originally published in 1848, early in the writer's career.
709:
23:
The Russian writer Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (1821–1881)
335:, though not an adaptation, was inspired by "White Nights".
255:
1017:
668:Another Man's Wife and a Husband Under the Bed
74:The short story is divided into six sections:
903:
457:
416:Audio recording of "Belye Nochi" (In Russian)
875:Twenty Six Days from the Life of Dostoyevsky
910:
896:
464:
450:
717:The Beggar Boy at Christ's Christmas Tree
62:. The narrator is a young man living in
18:
1018:
1041:Short stories set in Saint Petersburg
891:
471:
445:
388:The Best Stories of Fyodor Dostoevsky
16:1848 short story by Fyodor Dostoevsky
1031:Short stories by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
183:
13:
756:Winter Notes on Summer Impressions
390:. Translated by David Magarshack.
353:"Two Lovers: James Gray Interview"
14:
1052:
409:
1036:Short stories adapted into films
682:The Christmas Tree and a Wedding
425:
359:. June 3, 2009. Archived from
345:
1:
738:The Dream of a Ridiculous Man
394:: The Modern Library. 2005 .
379:
535:The Village of Stepanchikovo
7:
435:public domain audiobook at
322:, a 2015 Malayalam film by
308:Nuits blanches sur la jetée
69:
10:
1057:
278:, a 2005 American film by
930:
809:
773:
747:
652:
617:
502:
479:
194:, a 1957 Italian film by
36:
963:Four Nights of a Dreamer
338:
311:, a 2014 French film by
300:, a 2007 Indian film by
289:, a 2006 Indian film by
269:, a 2003 Indian film by
228:, a 1971 French film by
225:Four Nights of a Dreamer
543:Humiliated and Insulted
329:The 2008 American film
642:Notes from Underground
607:The Brothers Karamazov
181:
109:Notes from Underground
24:
551:The House of the Dead
302:Sanjay Leela Bhansali
177:
139:The Barber of Seville
22:
847:The Grand Inquisitor
559:Crime and Punishment
220:, a 1960 Hindi Film.
823:Lyubov Dostoevskaya
583:The Eternal Husband
1026:1848 short stories
829:Mikhail Dostoevsky
801:Rodion Raskolnikov
781:Nastasya Filipovna
527:Netochka Nezvanova
363:on August 23, 2009
258:film, Directed by
245:Leonid Kvinikhidze
121:Nastenka's History
25:
1013:
1012:
919:Fyodor Dostoevsky
885:
884:
841:Dostoevsky Museum
817:Anna Dostoevskaya
786:Alyosha Karamazov
731:The Peasant Marey
473:Fyodor Dostoevsky
319:Velutha Rathrikal
134:Aleksandr Pushkin
49:Fyodor Dostoevsky
1048:
912:
905:
898:
889:
888:
791:Fyodor Karamazov
763:A Writer's Diary
696:A Nasty Anecdote
675:The Honest Thief
466:
459:
452:
443:
442:
429:
428:
405:
386:"White Nights".
373:
372:
370:
368:
349:
271:S. P. Jananathan
196:Luchino Visconti
191:Le notti bianche
184:Film adaptations
130:Sir Walter Scott
114:Vasily Zhukovsky
64:Saint Petersburg
38:
1056:
1055:
1051:
1050:
1049:
1047:
1046:
1045:
1016:
1015:
1014:
1009:
926:
916:
886:
881:
805:
769:
743:
661:Mr. Prokharchin
648:
613:
498:
475:
470:
426:
421:Text in English
412:
402:
385:
382:
377:
376:
366:
364:
351:
350:
346:
341:
186:
72:
17:
12:
11:
5:
1054:
1044:
1043:
1038:
1033:
1028:
1011:
1010:
1008:
1007:
999:
991:
983:
975:
967:
959:
951:
943:
934:
932:
928:
927:
915:
914:
907:
900:
892:
883:
882:
880:
879:
871:
863:
855:
853:Pushkin Speech
850:
843:
838:
835:Polina Suslova
832:
826:
820:
813:
811:
807:
806:
804:
803:
798:
796:Prince Myshkin
793:
788:
783:
777:
775:
771:
770:
768:
767:
759:
751:
749:
745:
744:
742:
741:
734:
727:
720:
713:
706:
699:
692:
685:
678:
671:
664:
656:
654:
650:
649:
647:
646:
638:
630:
621:
619:
615:
614:
612:
611:
603:
599:The Adolescent
595:
587:
579:
571:
563:
555:
547:
539:
531:
523:
515:
506:
504:
500:
499:
497:
496:
491:
486:
480:
477:
476:
469:
468:
461:
454:
446:
440:
439:
423:
418:
411:
410:External links
408:
407:
406:
400:
381:
378:
375:
374:
343:
342:
340:
337:
327:
326:
315:
313:Paul Vecchiali
304:
293:
282:
273:
262:
260:Farzad Motamen
247:
232:
230:Robert Bresson
221:
213:
198:
185:
182:
172:
171:
169:
161:
160:
158:
150:
149:
147:
125:
124:
122:
103:
102:
100:
80:
79:
71:
68:
58:by a nameless
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
1053:
1042:
1039:
1037:
1034:
1032:
1029:
1027:
1024:
1023:
1021:
1005:
1004:
1000:
997:
996:
992:
989:
988:
987:Ahista Ahista
984:
981:
980:
976:
973:
972:
968:
965:
964:
960:
957:
956:
952:
949:
948:
944:
941:
940:
936:
935:
933:
929:
924:
920:
913:
908:
906:
901:
899:
894:
893:
890:
877:
876:
872:
870:
868:
864:
862:
860:
856:
854:
851:
848:
844:
842:
839:
836:
833:
830:
827:
824:
821:
819:(second wife)
818:
815:
814:
812:
808:
802:
799:
797:
794:
792:
789:
787:
784:
782:
779:
778:
776:
772:
765:
764:
760:
757:
753:
752:
750:
746:
739:
735:
732:
728:
725:
721:
718:
714:
711:
707:
704:
703:The Crocodile
700:
697:
693:
690:
686:
683:
679:
676:
672:
669:
665:
662:
658:
657:
655:
653:Short stories
651:
644:
643:
639:
636:
635:
634:Uncle's Dream
631:
628:
627:
623:
622:
620:
616:
609:
608:
604:
601:
600:
596:
593:
592:
588:
585:
584:
580:
577:
576:
572:
569:
568:
564:
561:
560:
556:
553:
552:
548:
545:
544:
540:
537:
536:
532:
529:
528:
524:
521:
520:
516:
513:
512:
508:
507:
505:
501:
495:
492:
490:
487:
485:
482:
481:
478:
474:
467:
462:
460:
455:
453:
448:
447:
444:
438:
434:
433:
424:
422:
419:
417:
414:
413:
403:
401:9780345481269
397:
393:
392:New York City
389:
384:
383:
362:
358:
357:At the Movies
354:
348:
344:
336:
334:
333:
325:
324:Razi Muhammed
321:
320:
316:
314:
310:
309:
305:
303:
299:
298:
294:
292:
288:
287:
286:Ahista Ahista
283:
281:
277:
274:
272:
268:
267:
263:
261:
257:
253:
252:
248:
246:
242:
238:
237:
233:
231:
227:
226:
222:
219:
218:
214:
212:
208:
204:
203:
199:
197:
193:
192:
188:
187:
180:
176:
170:
167:
166:
165:
159:
156:
155:
154:
148:
145:
144:
143:
141:
140:
135:
131:
123:
120:
119:
118:
115:
111:
110:
101:
98:
97:
96:
92:
90:
84:
77:
76:
75:
67:
65:
61:
57:
52:
50:
46:
42:
34:
30:
21:
1001:
993:
985:
977:
971:White Nights
969:
961:
953:
947:White Nights
945:
939:White Nights
937:
923:White Nights
922:
873:
866:
858:
761:
724:The Meek One
689:White Nights
688:
640:
632:
626:The Landlady
624:
605:
597:
589:
581:
573:
565:
557:
549:
541:
533:
525:
517:
509:
484:Bibliography
432:White Nights
431:
387:
365:. Retrieved
361:the original
347:
330:
328:
317:
306:
295:
285:
280:Alain Silver
276:White Nights
275:
264:
251:White Nights
249:
236:White Nights
234:
223:
215:
202:White Nights
200:
189:
178:
173:
162:
157:Fourth Night
151:
137:
126:
107:
104:
99:Second Night
93:
85:
81:
73:
56:first person
53:
40:
29:White Nights
28:
26:
878:(1981 film)
766:(1873–1881)
748:Non-fiction
567:The Gambler
291:Shivam Nair
211:Ivan Pyryev
146:Third Night
78:First Night
45:short story
41:Belye nochi
1020:Categories
1003:Two Lovers
837:(mistress)
825:(daughter)
774:Characters
519:The Double
380:References
367:August 10,
332:Two Lovers
37:Белые ночи
995:Saawariya
831:(brother)
575:The Idiot
511:Poor Folk
297:Saawariya
254:, a 2003
239:, a 1992
205:, a 1959
89:Anastasia
925:" (1848)
869:magazine
861:magazine
758:" (1863)
740:" (1877)
733:" (1876)
726:" (1876)
719:" (1876)
712:" (1873)
705:" (1865)
698:" (1862)
691:" (1848)
684:" (1848)
677:" (1848)
670:" (1848)
663:" (1846)
618:Novellas
437:LibriVox
243:film by
209:film by
70:Synopsis
60:narrator
979:Iyarkai
955:Chhalia
810:Related
489:Letters
266:Iyarkai
256:Iranian
241:Russian
217:Chhalia
207:Russian
168:Morning
43:) is a
33:Russian
1006:(2008)
998:(2007)
990:(2006)
982:(2003)
974:(1992)
966:(1971)
958:(1960)
950:(1959)
942:(1957)
859:Vremya
645:(1864)
637:(1859)
629:(1847)
610:(1880)
602:(1875)
594:(1872)
591:Demons
586:(1870)
578:(1869)
570:(1867)
562:(1866)
554:(1862)
546:(1861)
538:(1859)
530:(1849)
522:(1846)
514:(1846)
503:Novels
494:Themes
398:
867:Epoch
710:Bobok
339:Notes
931:Film
921:'s "
396:ISBN
369:2009
132:and
47:by
31:" (
1022::
355:.
39:,
35::
911:e
904:t
897:v
849:"
845:"
754:"
736:"
729:"
722:"
715:"
708:"
701:"
694:"
687:"
680:"
673:"
666:"
659:"
465:e
458:t
451:v
404:.
371:.
27:"
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
