Under Western Eyes

A gripping tale of espionage that influenced Graham Greene, Somerset Maugham and John le Carré, Under Western Eyes follows the story of Kyrilo Sidorovitch Razumov, an apolitical student who becomes a Czarist spy. Following a political assassination, he returns to his room to discover the culprit, Victor Haldin, who asks for help in making his escape. Fearing the authorities, Razumov betrays Haldin to the police, who then dispatch Razumov to Switzerland to spy on a group of Russian revolutionaries. While there, he meets Haldin’s sister, Natalia, with whom he falls in love, leading to feelings of loss and torment. Considered to be one of Conrad’s major works, Under Western Eyes is a cynical take on revolutionary movements and ideals that explores similar territory to The Secret Agent. Its feelings of menace and guilt are reminiscent of Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment, to which Under Western Eyes is widely seen as a response.