Tolstoy's flushin' Russian

Cafe Society
1

Tolstoy is a great writer. I’m re-reading Anna Karenina, and am enjoying it. Far be it for me to offer a critique, yet I can’t help but be bemused by the fact that hundreds of times throughout the book he has practically every character “flushing” from embarrassment, passion, joy or other emotions at one time or another.

Blushing was obviously more common in the “old days” than today, but to the degree that it happens in his novels? Is this a characteristic of Russians? I doubt it, as I’m half Russian and to the best of my knowledge, I never blushed in my entire life.

If this was just something more common in the 19th and early 20th Centuries, why did people change?

Perhaps Tolstoy just felt this was a charming feature for his characters. Anybody have any thoughts on blushing (I’d say “flushing” as Tolstay does, but that would let me in for some horrible jokes, I’m sure)? :slight_smile: How many Dopers ever blush?

2

I’ve always blushed easily, and it sucks, especially when it happens at work. Sometimes all it takes is having everyone look at me when I speak up at a meeting.

Once when I was in grade school, I missed the word “flush” on a vocabulary test, because I assumed it meant draining of color–like water out of a toilet–instead of heightening in color.

3

Wha? You mean it doesn’t? I’ve been walking around all these years thinking that flushing was the opposite of blushing.
[checks dictionary]
Damn!