# Nikolay Dmitrievitch Levin — Anna Karenina character guide

> Nikolay Dmitrievitch Levin in Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.

**Role:** minor

**Also known as:** Nikolay Levin, brother Nikolay, Nikolay

**First appearance:** 0005-part-i-vi

## Who they are

Konstantin Levin's consumptive, nihilist brother, whose tragic life deeply affects Levin.

## In the story

### [VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-i-viii)

His presence in Moscow is revealed via a note begging his brothers to leave him in peace, indicating his continued estrangement and ruin.

### [Levin Confides in Oblonsky](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-i-x)

Mentioned in passing; Levin had forgotten about his brother due to his own overwhelming happiness.

### [Chapter XI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-i-xi)

Mentioned briefly by Levin, who feels a pang of guilt for having forgotten his ailing brother amidst his own romantic preoccupations.

### [Levin Visits His Brother Nikolay](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-i-xxiv)

Living in squalor with his companion Marya Nikolaevna. Emaciated, ill, and initially angry at the visit. Defiantly introduces his life partner and radical friend, showing a mix of vulnerability, pride, and a desire for respect.

### [Chapter XXV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-i-xxv)

Consumptive, volatile, and drinking heavily. Passionately advocates for his socialist locksmiths' association, rails against capitalism and his brother Sergey Ivanovitch, and expresses fear of death and regret for his wasted life.

### [Levin's Return Home](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-i-xxvi)

Remembered by Levin; he resolves to follow up and help his brother soon.

### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-ii-xii)

His failing health prompts Levin's trip to Moscow; he is persuaded to seek medical treatment abroad.

### [The Crystallization of Society](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-ii-xxx)

Appears at the spa with Marya Nikolaevna; his twitching and 'terrible eyes' arouse intense disgust and an 'irrepressible feeling of disgust' in Kitty after she learns his identity.

### [The Arrival of Nikolay](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-iii-xxxi)

Arrives at Levin's estate in an advanced state of consumption, appearing as a skeleton covered in skin. He claims to be better and speaks of starting a new life in Moscow, but his physical state and intermittent coughing betray the truth. He displays a strange, pitiful, and sometimes irritable demeanor.

### [Part 3, Chapter XXXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-iii-xxxii)

His initial gentleness gives way to irritability. He attacks Levin's ideas as borrowed and vain, revealing his own past as a communist. His final, sincere farewell suggests he knows he is dying and they may not meet again.

### [A Letter and a Quarrel](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-v-xvi)

Is reported to be at death's door in a provincial town, having quarreled with a superior and fallen gravely ill on his way back to Moscow.

### [Chapter XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-v-xvii)

Desperately ill and emaciated. His eyes hold a stern, reproachful look for the living. He shows a flicker of pleasure at seeing Kitty and is concerned about frightening her with his condition.

### [Chapter XVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-v-xviii)

The dying brother; initially exasperated, he becomes abashed then hopeful under Kitty's care; expresses gratitude and affection for 'Katya' and for Levin.

### [Chapter XIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-v-xix)

The dying brother, whose youth and lost potential are mourned by Levin and Kitty.

### [The Agony of Nikolay Levin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-v-xx)

Endures immense physical pain and psychological torment. He briefly clings to faith and hope during the sacrament, but ultimately faces death with sarcastic wrath and a sense of finality, pushing others away.

### [A Walk and a Conversation](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-vi-iii)

Briefly remembered by Levin and Kitty with tenderness and sorrow ('how terrible and dear he was'), highlighting the depth of Levin's past care for his brother in contrast to his current relationship with Sergey.

### [Chapter XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/chapters/part-viii-xii)

Mentioned in Levin's memory as the catalyst for his earlier existential crisis, when seeing his brother hopelessly ill forced him to confront suffering and death.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/characters/nikolay_dmitrievitch_levin
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/anna_karenina_se/characters