SOURCE: "'The Enchanted Wanderer': A Parable of National Identity," in Russian Literature, Vol. XXIX, No. 4, 1991, pp. 439-54.

In the following essay, Peace suggests that in the story "The Enchanted Wanderer," Leskov employs the central figure, Ivan, as a foil to reveal elements of the psychology of the narrator and his audience as much as to convey the personality of the wanderer himself In this way, Peace asserts, the story presents a complex analysis of the Russian national character.

Leskov's Očarovannyj strannik' communicates to the reader a strong sense of a statement on the Russian national character. Gor'kij felt this about Leskov's works in general, and Hugh McLean in his monumental study on the author analyses this story as just such a statement.¹

From the outset the 'enchanted wanderer' is described in terms of the legendary figure Il'ja Muromec—a bogatyr' traditionally identified with the Russian 'folk' and...