untry,
the most ethereal of fairy-tales would escape the reproach of attempting
offensive personalities.

Pechorin, gentlemen, is in fact a portrait, but not of one man only:
he is a composite portrait, made up of all the vices which flourish,
fullgrown, amongst the present generation. You will tell me, as you have
told me before, that no man can be so bad as this; and my reply will be:
"If you believe that such persons as the villains of tragedy and romance
could exist in real life, why can you not believe in the reality of
Pechorin? If you admire fictions much more terrible and monstrous, why
is it that this character, even if regarded merely as a creature of
the imagination, cannot obtain quarter at your hands? Is it not because
there is more truth in it than may be altogether palatable to you?"

You will say that the cause of morality gains nothing by this book. I
beg your pardon. People have been surfeited with sweetmeats and their
digestion has been ruined: bitter medicines, sharp truths, are therefore
necessary. This must not, however, be taken to mean that the author has
ever proudly dreamed of becoming a reformer of human vices. Heaven
keep him from such impertinence! He has simply found it entertaining to
depict a man, such as he considers to be typical of the present day and
such as he has often met in real life--too often, indeed, unfortunately
both for the author himself and for you. Suffice it that the disease has
been pointed out: how it is to be cured--God alone knows!

FOOTNOTE:

[Footnote 1: A retail shop and tavern combined.]

[Footnote 2: A verst is a measure of length, about 3500 English feet.]

[Footnote 3: Ermolov, i.e. General Ermolov. Russians have three
names--Christian name, patronymic and surname. They are addressed by
the first two only. The surname of Maksim Maksimych (colloquial for
Maksimovich) is not mentioned.]

[Footnote 4: The bell on the duga, a wooden arch joining the shafts of a
Russian conveyance over the horse's neck.]

[Footnote 5: Rocky Ford.]

[Footnote 6: A kind of beer made from millet.]

[Footnote 7: i.e. acknowledging Russian supremacy.]

[Footnote 8: A kind of two-stringed or three-stringed guitar.]

[Footnote 9: "Good--very good."]

[Footnote 10: Turkish for "Black-eye."]

[Footnote 11: "No!"]

[Footnote 12: A particular kind of ancient and valued sabre.]

[Footnote 13: King--a title of the Sultan of Turkey.]

[Footnote 14: I beg my readers