The Brothers Karamazov · Character

Lise Hohlakov

Madame Hohlakov's impulsive, excitable daughter, who loves Alyosha with a fervor that frightens and fascinates her.

supporting

Also known as Lise, Alexey Fyodorovitch, Lise

As a supporting figure in The Brothers Karamazov, Lise Hohlakov is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Madame Hohlakov's fourteen-year-old daughter, partially paralyzed and unable to walk for six months, brought in a reclining chair to see the elder.

In the storyIII: Peasant Women Who Have FaithOpen this moment free

Lise Hohlakov is the young invalid daughter of the wealthy, meddlesome Madame Hohlakov, and she has fixed her affections on Alyosha with an intensity that is both childlike and unsettling. She writes him a letter, laughs at her own cruelty, and swings between adoration and a strange desire to torment. Her engagement to Alyosha is proposed and then complicated by her own volatility, and her fate becomes one of the novel's sharpest illustrations of how love can curdle when it is not grounded in humility.

See Lise Hohlakov in III: Peasant Women Who Have Faith Book page

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Character Web

15 connections

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

Relationship types

Romantic
Other

Character groups

Hohlakov Household
Trial and Investigation Core
Minor and Background Characters
Protagonist

+10 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

This scene is the dramatic climax because it centers on Katerina Ivanovna’s hysterical, guilt-ridden declarati…

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Relationships

Alyosha Karamazov
romantic · ambivalent
Lise is a capricious young woman who flirts with Alyosha and proposes marriage, though… How this plays out →
Alyosha Karamazov
romantic · ambivalent
Lise is a capricious young woman who flirts with Alyosha and proposes marriage, though… How this plays out →
Alyosha Karamazov
romantic · ambivalent
Lise is a capricious young woman who flirts with Alyosha and proposes marriage, though… How this plays out →

Alyosha Karamazov
Lise is a capricious young woman who flirts with Alyosha and proposes marriage, though her feelings are unstable and childish.
Alyosha Karamazov
Lise is a capricious young woman who flirts with Alyosha and proposes marriage, though her feelings are unstable and childish.
Alyosha Karamazov
Lise is a capricious young woman who flirts with Alyosha and proposes marriage, though her feelings are unstable and childish.

Relationship notes

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

See Lise Hohlakov in IV: At the Hohlakovs’

In the story

Lise Hohlakov appears across 9 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

III: Peasant Women Who Have Faith
Madame Hohlakov's fourteen-year-old daughter, partially paralyzed and unable to walk for six months, brought in a reclining chair to see the elder.
IV: A Lady of Little Faith
Appears healed from her illness; laughs and interacts playfully with Alyosha, showing affection and teasing him.
Another Reputation Ruined
Writes a love letter to Alyosha, confessing her feelings and asking him to leave the monastery.
IV: At the Hohlakovs’
Hysterical and demanding, she insists on the return of her letter and questions Alyosha about the schoolboys.
I: The Engagement
Expresses her love for Alyosha, declares they will be together always, and listens intently to his story about Snegiryov.
II: The Injured Foot
Has been having hysterical fits, slapped a servant, and expressed hatred for Ivan.
III: A Little Demon
In a feverish state, expresses a longing for disorder and crime, gives Alyosha a letter for Ivan, and later pinches her finger.
V: Not You, Not You!
Her letter to Ivan is torn up by him; Alyosha defends her as a sick child.
X: “It Was He Who Said That”
Ivan mentions Lise, saying he likes her and retracting a previous nasty comment, but fears she too will begin to despise him.

Chapter companion notes

Spoil-light check-ins for Lise Hohlakov unlock in the free preview.

See Lise Hohlakov in IV: At the Hohlakovs’

See Lise Hohlakov in III: Peasant Women Who Have Faith