My Disillusionment in Russia · Character

Angelica Balabanova

Secretary of the Third International with sad, luminous eyes, the first Communist who answered the narrator's questions without the usual excuses.

supporting

Also known as Balabanova, Angelica

First appearance: ii petrograd

As a supporting figure in My Disillusionment in Russia, Angelica Balabanova is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Secretary of the Third International, living in a small cheerless room, she is compassionate and selfless, often giving away her own rations to help others.

In the storyMoscow: First ImpressionsOpen this moment free

The narrator finds her huddled on a sofa in a small, cheerless room, gracious as an old friend, ordering the inevitable samovar. Where others recite the old refrain, Balabanova admits that life itself is mean and limited, a rock on which the highest hopes are shattered. She gives away her own rations to the stranded Italians and anyone else in need, and her comrades call her a sentimentalist who wastes her time in philanthropy.

See Angelica Balabanova in Moscow: First Impressions Book page

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Character Web

13 connections

A slice of how Angelica Balabanova sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Friendship
Other

Character groups

Key Ideological Figures
Protagonist
Military and Political Opponents
American Journalist Companions
Diverse Acquaintances and Witnesses

+8 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

The emotional and psychological peak occurs as the narrator confronts the full, brutal reality of Russia’s col…

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Relationships

Unknown Narrator
friendship · positive
Angelica Balabanova is a close ally and fellow socialist who shares ideological… How this plays out →
Unknown Narrator
friendship · positive
Angelica Balabanova is a close ally and fellow socialist who shares ideological… How this plays out →
Unknown Narrator
friendship · positive
Angelica Balabanova is a close ally and fellow socialist who shares ideological… How this plays out →

Unknown Narrator
Angelica Balabanova is a close ally and fellow socialist who shares ideological camaraderie and personal support with the narrator.
Unknown Narrator
Angelica Balabanova is a close ally and fellow socialist who shares ideological camaraderie and personal support with the narrator.
Unknown Narrator
Angelica Balabanova is a close ally and fellow socialist who shares ideological camaraderie and personal support with the narrator.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

See Angelica Balabanova in ii petrograd

In the story

Angelica Balabanova appears across 8 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Moscow: First Impressions
Secretary of the Third International, living in a small cheerless room, she is compassionate and selfless, often giving away her own rations to help others.
V: Meeting People
Balabanova arranges the narrator's meeting with Lenin and is described as one of the most simple and unassuming leading Communists.
VII: Rest Homes for Workers
Referenced as a symbol of the ideals the narrator still holds onto despite her doubts.
X: The British Labour Mission
Arrives in Petrograd to prepare quarters for the British Labour Mission, shows care for the narrator when ill, and is visibly distressed by the disparity between revolutionary ideals and reality.
XIII: Joining the Museum of the Revolution
Arrives in Petrograd with the Italian Mission, expresses distress over the plight of the former princess Narishkin, and is bound by party discipline.
XIV: Petropavlovsk and Schlüsselburg
Encountered in the enclosure of the Peter-and-Paul Fortress, walking with the Italians, absorbed in her own thoughts.
Kiev
Mentioned as accompanying the Italian Mission; the narrator wonders what she would think of the soldiers' discontent.
XXIX: Travelling Salesmen of the Revolution
Resented superficial visitors; rebuffed Mrs. Clare Sheridan's request to sculpt her, stating Lenin did not make the Revolution—the Russian people did.

Chapter companion notes

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See Angelica Balabanova in ii petrograd

See Angelica Balabanova in Moscow: First Impressions