Anna Karenina Lesson Plan

Anna repents of her transgression on her deathbed, and her husband forgives her. However, after Anna miraculously recovers, things go back to the way they were. Was Anna genuinely repentant? Did her husband genuinely forgive her?

Some students may see Anna's repentance and Karenin's forgiveness as insincere, and merely gestures made because they were convenient under the circumstances (the assumption that Anna would die). Such students will argue that, when Anna's is no longer dying, the characters' "true" motivation surfaces.

Other students may see he repentance and forgiveness as genuine, since they were made under circumstances that were genuinely emotionally...