Shabby place to live
Describing the look of houses in poor part of the city, the author is generous with words: “it was a stone house. All round the dirty and unpaved courtyard ran a wooden passageway. Out of it rose a number of dirty, slippery outside staircases, reeking of cats and cabbage. On the landings were privies and padlocked storerooms.” The images provoke rather disgusting feelings, and to imagine that people live here is hard. But still it was the Russian true life of the poor, and truth always becomes known.
Thawing
Descriptions of weather are very often used as a background for events, and the given novel is not an exception. The author very often turns to nature for help in developing the plot and adding to it additional coloring. “The weather was on mend. Plop-plop-plop went the water drops on the metal of the drainpipes and the cornices, roof tapping messages to roof as if it were spring. It was thawing.” This serves a background for Lara’s experience of becoming a woman, it happens in the winter. Though the weather reminds the reader of spring, it is not right away this season. And this is mirrored in Lara’s life, because becoming a woman assumes pleasant feelings and emotions for a girl, but not in Lara’s case, as hers was a big mistake. And that’s how a one day of warm weather among the winter is mirrored in Lara’s assumption of a happy moment.
Early spring
After the very hard winter in Moscow spring finally was there. The Zhivagos have decided to leave the capital and set off for the Urals. Tonia was packing and opened the window: “the spring breeze came in through the partly open window, tasting faintly of newly cut white bread. Cocks were crowing and children were playing and shouting in the yard. The more the room was aired the more noticeable became the smell of mothballs from the open trunks in which the winter clothes had been packed”. Though winter seemed to leave, the troubles were all present.
