Critical analysis of the short story 'Her Lover' by Maxim Gorky.

 Her Lover’ is a socialist practical short story penned to critique the growth of industrialization in Russia during the Tsars’ rule. The story is written with the aid of Russian author Maxim Gorky. Alexei Maximovich Peshkov, additionally recognised as Maxim Gorky, was once one of the greatest Russian writers of the early twentieth century. He was the proponent of the literary writing style of Socialist Realism. Socialist realism is a style of idealized realistic art that was developed in the Soviet Union and was the official style in that country between 1932 and 1988, as well as in other socialist countries after World War II.Socialist Realism is characterised by means of the depiction of communist values, such as the emancipation of the proletariat. 

                    ‘Her Lover’ is a story of a prostitute socially isolated via the industrialized urban Muscovites at some stage in the Tsarist regime. To discover comfort, she pretends that she exchanges letters with a lover referred to as Boles. She makes Maxim Gorky’s acquaintance, the narrator of this story, write letters from Boles to her and her to Boles. In this way, she feels much less remote and greater of a human being with a lover who cares for her. 

This short story consists of  three views. The first one is human loneliness, lack of communication, fragmented and misplaced identification in present day industrialized Russian society, which was without a doubt a frequent view in the early a lengthy time of the twentieth century. Secondly, Gorky endows his fictional character Teresa with the Romantic power which approves her to continue her distress and loneliness with the aid of inventing an imaginary lover. Finally, the story tells the views of prejudice and "self sufficiency" which put serious hurdles before real communication and thus cause the spiritual and moral decay in social life and relationships.

 

               Even though Teresa lives in a building which consists of many people, there is no one to communicate with. She feels lonely and misplaced. The narrator of the story describes her as 'one of those ladies whose repute is questionable'. People hate to talk to her due to her job as a prostitute and also beacuse of being a foreinger. The description about Teresa told by the acquaintance of Gorky shows how much he hates her.

  

              Teresa uses 'fake scenarios' or her imaginative power to relieve from the loneliness and stress she suffers. The fictional characters she creates in her mind gives her the feeling that she is loved and there are people who support her. She uses the fictional romantic energy to escape the harsh realities of life.The imaginary lover 'Boles' helps her psychologically to create a space to stay firm and survive the thorns of life.

         Gorky also portrays the hard and marginalised life of social outcasts. The Prejudiced society is shown through the character of the unnamed student. Due to her identity people avoid her and prejudices that she is someone who cannot fit into a well-being society. Maxim Gorky uses this story to portray the prejudice people have and  it leads to a new level of understanding people. 

      

          As a Master of literature, Gorky's work represented the prevalent thinking of struggling people due to the fact of indifference, lack of self-sufficiency, prejudice, callousness, superiority complex and so on. If we look around, we can see below the cruel appearance of a tender, sentimental soul of people like Teresa. This thinking of humanism in accordance with Maxim Gorky leads society to a peaceful and completely satisfied life.The writer not only gives a mere reflection of Teresa's life but also the harsh reality of Russian society during the beginning twentieth century. His messages are universal and reminding as well.