Pe bun¿ dreptate la o prim¿ vedere romanul Iluziile unui secol apare a fi unul biografic. Scheletul s¿u narativ se axeaz¿ pe întâmpl¿rile tr¿ite de doü familii pe parcursul a patru generäii, respectiv timp de 120 de ani.
Dar, datorit¿ faptului c¿ cele doü familii sunt una ruseasc¿ de origine nobil¿ ¿i una german¿ de simpli meseriäi ¿i, mai ales, datorit¿ faptului c¿ cei 120 de ani cuprind întregul secol XX, ¿desenul¿ dramaturgic al acestui roman ¿ adev¿ratul s¿u schelet! ¿ ca ¿i câmpul semnificäiilor ce se desprind la lectur¿ se îmbog¿¿esc substan¿ial. Cu alte cuvinte: destinul celor doü familii este doar un pretext pentru o privire critic¿ asupra destinului secolului XX.
At first sight, quite rightly, the novel Illusions of a Century seems to be a biographical novel. Its narrative kernel focuses on events experienced by two families over four generations, covering a time span of 120 years.
However, as one of the two families consists of Russians of noble birth, while the other one of German tradesmen of modest origin, and as the time span covers the 20th century from beginning to end, the dramatic framework, i.e., the genuine narrative kernel, as well as the field of significances, benefit from a substantial increase in historical connotations. In other words, the destiny of the two families is just a pretext for a critical overview of the destiny of the 20th century.
