A Gentleman in Moscow: Aristocracy in the Soviet Union

A Gentleman in Moscow, by Amor Towles

Soviet Russia has always been that enigma that gives me something new to think about every day and never fails to keep my interest in history piqued! It has been exciting learning so much about Russia, right from the Emancipation of the Peasants by Tsar Alexander II to the Russo-Japanese War, the Russian Revolution, and of course, the rule of Joseph Stalin. However, something that has always evaded my interest in the past has been understanding more about the culture and the day to day lives of those impacted by the policies we learn about. The book A Gentleman in Moscow by renowned author Amor Towles helped me get over my non-understanding of Russian culture and place it alongside my ardent love for the ‘political conscience of the nation.’

The plot of the book is straightforward – the focus was on the details. Having grown up reading those thick books with plot twists every two chapters and imagining my own endings to every arc created, A Gentleman in Moscow was a great step into the world of slow books and meant for comfortable enjoyment. To put it simply, 200 pages in and I still did not know where the author was going with the plot or whether he would have the content ever to cover the 400 odd pages I saw in front of me. Personally, more than once did I think about putting it down, but the writer in me knew that was an injustice to the work done by this author. So I kept on. And yes, the story picks up in the last 20 pages and has a nice ending, one that you could have guessed at the beginning. But that’s the beauty of this writing style, and this was a great book to induct me into the genre of mature fiction!

The book revolves around a Former Person – an aristocrat who has been stripped of his identity in the wake of the Russian Revolution and confined to house arrest in the Metropol Hotel in Kremlin Square. Count Alexander Rostov is a character you will fall in love with – I most certainly did. He wasn’t your typical smooth talker or one with an abrasive personality, but a cultured man whose lectures I would love to sit through. Growing up in high society, armed with esoteric knowledge from the ends of the earth to wine pairings with different meals, he was a man of many talents. But here, he was confined to the attic of the Metropol hotel by a new government that believed his kind of people were the ‘enemies of the state’ (the first of many such enemies). It made me think about the socialistic ideals – equality for all, abandoning a class-based society, and working for the State. Class warfare was central to everything the Party did for the rest of its existence. At points, I could see the Count masking his obvious pain in being confined, but my mind immediately went to the millions deported to Siberia and the Gulags. Lenin’s promised for ‘Bread! Peace! Land!’ flashed in my mind countless times during high-minded conversations, to remind myself why this class was oppressed. As an undecided young adult who leans towards socialism over conservative thoughts, the Revolution was the single biggest movement that proved the power of the people. I want to be one of those people. But the Count’s entrancing behavior made me forget my political standings for the duration of the read, and let me gaze into the beauty of this mind instead.

The story follows the relationships the Count makes with staff at the hotel, guests, and passers-by. Each character is different, stimulates the Count differently, and brings out a different side of him. The outgoing nature of the Count allows him to connect with so many – a young girl of nine, whose daughter he goes on to adopt, an actress who he ultimately spends the rest of his life with, a chef and maitre’d his admirers and confidants, a bellhop, bartender, and concierge who he can talk with for hours. What’s interesting is to note how each of these characters and the count got acquainted with each other, with random meetings in the restaurant and bar, as well as embarrassing scenes in the lobby. Each encounter is so simple, yet so elegant. The minute you read the title ‘Count,’ you would expect extravagance, but you would be pleasantly surprised to read about him spying with the nine-year-old friend on the balcony on the Bolshevik summit below.

My favorite part of the book has to be the allusions, biblical and mythological, from different cultures worldwide. Greek mythology about Olympus was accompanied by stories of David and Goliath, and countless others! I loved these references, having read these stories growing up and learning about this writing style in learning the Merchant of Venice and other work by Shakespeare. It did feel a bit forced in some places, but with the Count’s established knowledge base, I could hear him mention it or think aloud to himself. Few books still allow me to imagine the setting of the place I am reading about, but the writing was paced in a way where I could point out a difference in the Count’s room, having imagined the Ambassador and his secret room chapters before!

The premise and setting of the book are what appealed to me the most. Having to show almost 45 years of the Count’s life in the same setting, the Metropol, would have posed a challenge to the book’s descriptive nature. But the setting of the hotel allowed the author to bring in new characters with little explanation and perfect plausibility! But more than the building, what was going on within the hotel was of much more importance to me, as it did provide context to a lot of things we were learning in school. The author chose not to show meetings with Stalin in the Metropol and instead gave us insights into the rest of the Bolshevik conferences, attended by smaller, aspiring socialists. We saw a young adult, well educated and knowledgeable influenced by the call of the Party to serve their country – we see their journey through issues like collectivization and the role propaganda plays on the human mind – and ultimately see their demise in the Great Terror (not explicitly but in line with historical timelines).

An exciting interaction worth noting was the Count’s acquaintance with a senior Party official and their discussions on Russia and the USA’s cultural divide. Their meetings would include viewing American movies like Casablanca and discussing what they thought of the New World. We see Stalin actively trying to remove all Western influence on his people and establish ‘Socialist Realism’ within the artist community. This art form quickly devolves into using painting and sculpture, plays, and films as one of his propaganda tools to humanize Stalin but still make the people believe him to be their savior. Not just within Russia, but in line with the ‘universal socialist revolution’ envisioned by Lenin and Stalin’s goal to increase the influence of the Soviet Union, the Party promoted a worldwide cultural campaign. The goal of artists was now to be selected to represent their country at their embassy in another country and carry that banner of the USSR with them wherever they went. Nevertheless, Russian composers and pianists, and ballet dancers have made a name for themselves in their fields. It made me think about how Western culture reached India and other Asian countries far east when campaigns such as Stalin’s were never outrightly conducted.

Reading this book made me realize the stereotypes society has established about the Russian culture, communism, and anybody with a different world view. In my opinion, the Russian intellect was suppressed by Stalin. There was incredible potential for the patronage of these artists. Still, their work has either been tainted by the policies and events we associate with Russia or hidden under layers of bureaucratic corruption and nepotism.

A Gentleman in Moscow brings out these unique characteristics while contextualizing Russian history. Informative and straightforward, it has a strong protagonist that genuinely lives up to your first impression of him. Its authentic setting and accurate timeline give a reader the chance to view Soviet Russia through an aristocrat’s eyes, ‘the class which was a threat to the socialist movement,’ and not your typical industrial worker. I recommend it as a light read, one you can fall back on to enjoy with chai and biscuits.