Which two sentences in this excerpt from Leo Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich show Ivan Ilyich's struggle with his life and his inability to let go of his past? For three whole days, during which time did not exist for him, he struggled in that black sack into which he was being thrust by an invisible, resistless force. He struggled as a man condemned to death struggles in the hands of the executioner, knowing that he cannot save himself. And every moment he felt that despite all his efforts he was drawing nearer and nearer to what terrified him. He felt that his agony was due to his being thrust into that black hole and still more to his not being able to get right into it. He was hindered from getting into it by his conviction that his life had been a good one. That very justification of his life held him fast and prevented his moving forward, and it caused him most torment of all. Suddenly some force struck him in the chest and side, making it still harder to breathe, and he fell through the hole and there at the bottom was a light. What had happened to him was like the sensation one sometimes experiences in a railway carriage when one thinks one is going backwards while one is really going forwards and suddenly becomes aware of the real direction. "Yes, it was not the right thing," he said to himself, "but that's no matter. It can be done. But what is the right thing? he asked himself, and suddenly grew quiet.
Answers
The two sentences in the above excerpt from Leo Tolstoy's “The Death of Ivan Ilyich” which shows Ivan Ilyich's struggle with his life and his inability to let go of his past are:
“He struggled as a man condemned to death struggles in the hands of the executioner, knowing that he cannot save himself.”
“He felt that his agony was due to his being thrust into that black hole and still more to his not being able to get right into it. He was hindered from getting into it by his conviction that his life had been a good one.”
Tolstoy gives his remark on the materialistic nature of people in the society. Throughout the novel, the characters are seen jumbled up in the web of materialism as it provides status and pleasure to them. At the end of the novella “The Death of Ivan IIyich,” written by Leo Tolstoy speaks about the materiality of the physical world. At the time of his death, Ivan says “ Death is finished, he said to himself. It is no more!” This line gives an insight into his perspective about life and death. It shows that Ivan continues to fight for his life and gives the plot an open ending. For Ivan death has caused an end of his life in this physical world but this has rewarded him a path towards spiritual world. His death not just gives an end to the story but also a beginning of a new life and story of Ivan.