How Tolstoy fell out with Turgenev over… a sofa!
In late March 1861, Lev Tolstoy once again visited Ivan Turgenev at his Spasskoye Estate, from where the two planned to go hunting.
Turgenev had just finished his novel ‘Fathers and Sons’ and offered his guest a chance to read the manuscript. Tolstoy settled down on the soft Turkish sofa, nicknamed ‘Samson’ for its soporific effect, and began reading. And he inadvertently fell asleep. But, Turgenev harbored a grudge.
Sofa from the Turgenev house
In June of that same year, Tolstoy and Turgenev had breakfast with poet Afanasy Fet at his Stepanovka Estate. During the conversation, the host's wife asked Turgenev about the new governess from England, who was teaching his daughter. He replied that he was very pleased and enthusiastically recounted that she was asking the girl to mend the clothes of the poor. In this way, the teacher wanted to instill in her empathy and compassion for the common people. Tolstoy dismissed this practice as insincere and theatrical.
The manor house on the grounds of the Spasskoye-Lutovinovo Museum-Reserve in the Mtsensk District
"I’ll shut you up with an insult!" shouted Turgenev and ran out of the room.
The conflict escalated to such an extent that Tolstoy eventually challenged Turgenev to a duel. The duel never took place, but the two classic writers remained estranged and did not speak to each other for the next 17 years.
