person
Petrusha
also: the halfwit
A simple-minded young man who sits alone in a boat by the ice, tormented by chronic sciatic leg pain; his quiet wish to drown and escape his suffering runs as a second tragedy beneath the main story.
Reading notes
- On Christmas Night §21 the halfwit Petrusha
A simple-minded young man sitting alone in a boat by the ice, tormented by sciatic leg pain; his suffering becomes the story's second, quieter tragedy.