Essay Questions

Why is Louis Krupitzyn worried about the presence of Father Finian?

Krupitzyn represents in this novel communism and when he expresses worry about the presence of Father Finian in the country he is actually representing the views of the Communist regime. Communism is generally believed to be unable to coexist with any form of religion and because of this, communist countries such as Russia did everything they could to suppress religion or eliminate it altogether. Most communist states are atheists and persecute religious groups or urge the general population do to so. At its core, the communist thinkers believed religion was used by the ruling class to control the working people. Because of this, they believed religion had to be eliminated altogether. In more recent times, leaders like Lenin and Stalin wanted to replace religion and the worship of God with the cult of personality and saw religious groups as dangerous to them because of the power they had over the masses. Because of this, they actively sought out to eliminate the groups which they believed could sway the people and diminish their power. In the novel as well, Krupitzyn is scared of religious leaders because they preach ideas which go against the communist ideas. Krupitzyn sees in this a grave danger because it could eventually lead to the people revolting against communism.

Why are so many people in the novel attracted by communism?

The author tries to argue that for some people, communism can be extremely attractive, especially if they live in a country exposed only to certain communist ideas and beliefs. For the characters in the novel, communism is extremely attractive because it represents the only way they can achieve equality. The fictional country where the action takes place is an extremely unequal one from an economic point of view and the discrepancy between the poor and the rich is steep. For the working class, there is almost no hope of escaping poverty and because of this, the idea that the state could impose equality and implement a system where everyone is treated the same is extremely attractive. Some characters recognize this pull and even admit that for some people who accepted the communist ideal, there was no going back because they simply did not see any other way for their lives to get better.

Explain the historic background of the novel.

The novel was written during the Cold War, a time when the United States and Russia were involved in a non-violent conflict. The Cold War takes place after the end of the Second World War and it is an ideological conflict more than a territorial one. After the end of the Second World War, the nations were divided into spheres of influence and as such either became communist states or democratic states. The communist ideals forced in many countries all over Europe and Asia affected millions of people and impacted their lives. This form of ideological conflict is seen in the novel as well, the two countries fighting over control in a fictional country in Asia. The conflict is a non-violent one and at times it is even comical. Still, for other characters the conflict is very real and they suffer harm or are even killed.