The title of the novel can be understood in a number of ways – as being about the inevitable ‘generation gap’ between parents and children, certainly, but also as pointing to the implacable ties of inheritance and upbringing that bind them together, and determine their outlook and perhaps their fate in life. Even though Bazarov’s bid for ‘liberation’ is admirable in many ways, it also has an element of delusion in it too, in the face of the power of the natural and instinctual forces that he represses and denies.

In the end, we are faced with two alternative fates: Arkady’s comic reconciliation with his father and his willing occupation of the ‘nest’ that his life with Katya creates; or Bazarov’s tragic determination not to compromise with his ideals, reinforced by his ill-fated encounter with Anne Sergeevna. Which would we rather have if it were us, I wonder? Or is there a ‘middle way’ …?