The more I read of Anna Karenina, the more I notice how the male characters are referenced compared to the female characters. Like the title suggest the female characters are all mentioned using their first name only, usually after being first introduced by their full name. When you compare this to their male counterparts, the men of this book are rarely referenced by their first name, usually only in dialogue by a brother, wife or close friend. Instead, they carry their family name when mentioned.

This reminded me of a book I read (and a play inspired by it that i watched) called Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Class by Hannah Moscovitch. I had to watch this play and write an essay on it as part of an English class in cegep*. The play is from the POV of a university professor, Jon Macklem, who has a sexual relationship with his 19-year-olf student. In the play, the woman he sleeps with is only referred to as 'Annie', only using her first name. In my essay, I pointed out how this dehumanizes, infantilizes and objectifies her because it flattens this woman to this fantasy of her that fits exactly what this man needs her to be. He doesn't need to think about how she carries a family name, a legacy, has a family, and ultimately a life outside of him. Her being named as 'Annie' is similar to how a doll only has a first name. Usually short, cute and easy to pronounce or write. Annie. Kitty. Dolly. Anna. While their male counterparts have a legacy with a last name, usually used also as a form of respect to their individuals and their 'name'. Jon Macklem. Karenin. Levin. Oblonsky.

Obviously, in this play, it is exaggerated to highlight the hypocrisy, but while reading Anna Karenina I couldn't help but notice this little detail that Tolstoy chose to incorporate. I simply think it interesting that he uses first names for woman versus last names for men. I wonder if Tolstoy intentionally uses only their first name as a method of showing how stripped they are of their autonomy and how devalued they are as their own individuals with complex stories. If it's more of a literary tradition of the time that needs to devalue and belittle women, or if it's Tolstoy own subconscious (or conscious) misogyny and bias that encouraged him to refer to them as such.

*what is a cegep? post secondary school (high school) for pre-uni programs or workforce certifications that don't require you to go to uni like nursing, plumbing, etc. so you can enter the workforce faster with hands-on experience - this is very specific to where i live