My Disillusionment in Russia · Character

Emma Goldman

An anarchist who came to Russia hoping to join a newborn country's revolutionary reconstruction, only to spend fifteen months fighting a disillusionment she could not finally deny.

major

First appearance: Preface to First Volume of American Edition

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

Author and narrator; explains her personal journey from defending the Bolsheviks to disillusionment, and her decision to write this book.

In the storyPreface to First Volume of American EditionOpen this moment free

Emma Goldman is the narrator and an anarchist activist who arrives in Russia possessed by the hope of finding a people wholly consecrated to revolutionary reconstruction, and who had fervently hoped to become an active part of that inspiring work. Instead she finds reality grotesque and unlike the great ideal that bore her there, and she struggles desperately against the still voice urging her to face the overpowering facts. Her gradual, unwilling reckoning with what the Revolution has become drives the book's early and middle arc, making her private doubt the lens through which every encounter is weighed.

See Emma Goldman in Preface to First Volume of American Edition Book page

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Character Web

4 connections

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Character groups

Diverse Acquaintances and Witnesses
Protagonist
Close Anarchist Associates
Military and Political Opponents

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book.

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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In the story

Emma Goldman appears across 10 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Preface to First Volume of American Edition
Author and narrator; explains her personal journey from defending the Bolsheviks to disillusionment, and her decision to write this book.
Preface to Second Volume of American Edition
Author of the preface, reflecting on her disillusionment and defending her work against critics.
My Disillusionment in Russia
Emma Goldman is the author and central figure experiencing disillusionment.
I: Deportation to Russia
Narrator and deportee, reflecting on her departure from America and arrival in Russia.
Preparing for American Deportees
Narrator and protagonist; takes charge of preparing quarters for American deportees, navigating bureaucracy and using persuasion over coercion.
XI: A Visit from the Ukraine
Implied as one of the recipients of the Ukrainian Anarchists' report, alongside Alexander Berkman.
XXVII: Kronstadt
Co-signs the anarchist letter to the Petrograd Soviet of Defence proposing a peaceful commission to resolve the Kronstadt conflict.
XXXII: The Socialist Republic Resorts to Deportation
Narrator who decides to leave Russia, obtains passport, and departs on December 1, 1921.
Afterword
The author and narrator, presenting her personal reflections and conclusions on the Russian Revolution, emphasizing the need for a libertarian transformation of values.
Endnotes
Referenced in endnote regarding trial and speeches.

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See Emma Goldman in Preface to First Volume of American Edition