Vladimir Nabokov’s "The Feat," a summary Automatic translate

This 1932 novel by Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov tells the story of a young émigré, Martyn Edelweiss, whose thirst for unprecedented romantic adventure leads to a disastrous secret crossing of the Soviet border. The narrative masterfully conveys the psychological dissonance between the bourgeois reality of everyday life and the heroic inner world of the character. The young man constantly seeks ways to prove his natural courage, transforming everyday life into a series of aesthetic challenges.

Childhood and youthful searches

Martyn Edelweiss grows up in a wealthy St. Petersburg family. His grandfather, Edelweiss, was Swiss, and his father successfully treated skin diseases. Martyn’s mother, Sofia Dmitrievna, raises her son on strict English fairy tales. She tries to shield her son from excessive Russian sentimentality. The boy has an incredibly rich imagination. In his bedroom hangs a watercolor painting of a dense forest and a winding forest path. Young Martyn often feels as if he could step right into this painted forest.

His parents gradually drifted apart, and his father moved into a separate apartment in St. Petersburg. Soon, in 1918, he died suddenly of an asthma attack. Meanwhile, Martyn and his mother were living at a dacha near Yalta. His father’s death evoked complex emotions of guilt and mystical anticipation in the teenager. The young man strolled alone through the park, trying to comprehend his loss. In Crimea, he encountered his own panic for the first time. Meeting a drunken man with a revolver on a dark night, Martyn experienced a nervous tremor, but forced himself to face the terrifying danger.

The path to emigration

In the spring of 1919, a broken family leaves Russia forever on a Canadian cargo ship. The Crimean coast quickly dissolves in the rain’s murky mist. On board, the young man is introduced to the harsh aesthetics of the sea. He meets the poet Alla Chernosvitova, who is traveling with her sullen husband. Alla attracts the young man with her bohemian freedom. In Athens, walking along the uneven sands of Phalera, Martyn kisses an adult woman for the first time.

Their brief, passionate romance culminates in a hotel room when Alla’s husband leaves on business. Martyn feels immense pride in his adulthood. Soon, the families’ paths diverge completely, and Martyn and Sofia Dmitrievna arrive in Switzerland. There, Uncle Heinrich Edelweiss meets them at the train station. He takes the family to his mountain home, surrounded by dense, centuries-old spruce trees. In the fall, his mother sends her son to study at Cambridge.

The Cambridge years

In England, Martyn delights in the spirit of the ancient university. He settles into a cozy room with an open fireplace. The student meets Darwin, a phlegmatic Englishman, a war hero, and an aspiring writer. Darwin becomes his closest friend. Martyn is deeply fascinated by Archibald Moon’s lectures. The British professor brilliantly recites Russian poetry. However, Martyn soon becomes repelled by Moon’s academic attitude toward Russia, as if it were a dead museum exhibit.

During his studies, the student becomes close to the Zilanov family, who live in London. Mikhail Platonovich Zilanov is an active political activist. His youngest daughter, Sonya, strikes Martyn with her abruptness and dull, slanted eyes. The student falls unrequitedly in love with the brash girl. Darwin also begins to actively court Sonya. This arouses a deep, hidden jealousy in Martyn. At the final football match, Martyn selflessly defends his team’s goal, hoping to impress Sonya with his athletic prowess, but she remains indifferent until the final.

Darwin formally proposes to Sonya. She firmly rejects him, calling the sensible Englishman too superficial. Martin feels a surge of happiness and rushes to kiss Sonya. Their relationship, however, remains cold and uncertain. Later, while boating in a river, Martin and Darwin engage in a brutal fistfight. Boxing in a green forest clearing, they smash each other’s faces until they bleed. The sporting bout ends peacefully. The loyal comrades wash their wounds with cold water.

Berlin life

After graduating from Cambridge, Martyn, with a degree, moved to Berlin. The Zilanovs now live permanently in Germany. The young man stubbornly conceals from his stepfather his complete reluctance to engage in business. He earns his living through hard physical labor, serving tennis balls. Sonya works as a simple stenographer. Martyn gradually becomes immersed in Berlin’s émigré community. He frequently converses with the authoritarian writer Bubnov, listening to endless conversations about high politics and literature.

Martyn and Sonya invent a fictional exotic country — "Zoolandia." It’s a harsh, wild place where science is strictly forbidden and all residents are required to shave their heads. For Martyn, this fiction becomes a secret way to express his hidden thoughts about danger and heroism. Sonya soon loses interest in the cruel, fictional laws. She distances herself even further from Martyn. She readily surrounds herself with new socialites and avoids any intimate conversations.

Life in France

Tormented by unrequited love, the young man suddenly leaves for the south of France. He labors on other people’s farms, picks peaches in orchards, and tills the soil in vineyards. The hard labor of farming noticeably strengthens his muscular body. At night, Martin contemplates a daring plan to illegally cross the Soviet border. He writes Sonya a long letter, hoping for reciprocation. She coldly asks him to leave her alone. Martin decides to break with his comfortable, peaceful existence and buys a direct ticket to Riga.

Return and preparation

Before carrying out his secret plan, the wanderer returns to Switzerland. Sofia Dmitrievna is overjoyed at her son’s arrival. Uncle Genrikh, now her legal husband, is extremely irritated by the young man’s careless behavior. Martyn rudely asks his stepfather for a loan, promising to soon leave forever. In the hotel garden, he accidentally encounters Yuri Timofeevich Gruzinov. This former officer is famous for his secret raids into Soviet territory. Martyn cautiously tries to extract from him the necessary safe routes.

Gruzinov is acting suspiciously evasive. He openly mocks Martyn, aimlessly moving a safety pin across an unfolded topographic map. The young man realizes with hurt that the experienced saboteur considers him a fantasist and a frivolous boy. The secret conversation yields no results. Martyn packs his suitcase and bids a warm farewell to his mother. Sofia Dmitrievna walks him to the gate, tearfully asking him to write more often. Martyn goes to Berlin to completely cover his tracks.

The Disappearance of a Hero

In the German capital, the wanderer accidentally discovers that Bubnov has published a fantasy story, "Zoolandia." The famous writer has unceremoniously exploited Martyn and Sonya’s private fantasies for his fiction. Martyn goes to visit the Zilanovs. Sonya greets him with demonstrative coldness. The young man tells her a fictitious story about a future job at a German factory. He refuses to stay for the family evening, kisses the indifferent Sonya on the cheek, and leaves forever. On the evening street, he experiences nervous road jitters.

Martyn meets Darwin in a hotel room. The Englishman boasts of his brilliant journalistic career and his impending marriage. Martyn reveals his true, deadly plan to his British friend. He insists that Darwin send pre-written postcards to Sofia Dmitrievna every week. Darwin stubbornly believes his friend is just joking. Martyn leaves completely unnoticed, while his friend lazily turns to the wall. Turning around, the Englishman finds only a scrap of wrapping paper in the empty room.

After several tense days, Darwin receives a hefty package of Berlin cards from Latvia. He carefully sends the first reassuring message. Then panic sets in. The journalist rushes to Riga and contacts the British consulate and local police. No trace of Martin Edelweiss can be found. The brave young man had illegally crossed the border and disappeared into the northern forests. Returning to Berlin, Darwin tells the Zilanovs everything. Sonya is in violent hysterics, realizing for the first time that Martin is dead. A stunned Zilanov promises to make confidential inquiries.

In the autumn, the faithful Darwin arrives in Switzerland. He is obliged to personally deliver the terrible, irreversible news to Sofia Dmitrievna. The Edelweiss mountain house greets him with wet, prickly snow and oppressive silence. Darwin emerges from the deserted garden, the gate half-closed. The Englishman strides heavily back through the spruce forest. The forest air is dim, the dark path winds between black trunks. Invisible water flows quietly under the damp snow. Darwin stops, lights his pipe, shakes his head, and slowly walks away down the forest road.