# Petrov — The House of the Dead character guide

> Petrov in The House of the Dead by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** this Petrov

**First appearance:** 0007-part-i-vii-new-acquaintances-petrov

## Snapshot

A convict of volatile temper and stubborn vitality, he becomes one of the narrator's closest and most unpredictable acquaintances behind bars.

## Who they are

Petrov belongs to the class of men who cling to life ferociously into old age, and his restless energy makes him both companionable and dangerous. He forms intense, shifting attachments — the narrator counts him among his few sincere friends by the last year, yet his moods turn without warning. His hunger for something beyond the prison routine keeps the question of escape, and of what men will risk for freedom, alive in the middle stretch of the book.

## In the story

### [II: First Impressions](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-i-ii-first-impressions)

Mentioned as a convict who borrows money from the narrator on the first day.

### [VII: New Acquaintances. Petrov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-i-vii-new-acquaintances-petrov)

A convict of impulsive and contradictory nature; devoted to the narrator yet steals from him; represents a type of man who can be both affectionate and criminal without conflict.

### [VIII: Determined Characters. Lutchka](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-i-viii-determined-characters-lutchka)

Mentioned as someone the narrator initially took lightly compared to the storyteller Luka Kuzmitch.

### [IX: Isay Fomitch—The Bathhouse—Baklushin’s Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-i-ix-isay-fomitch-the-bathhouse-baklushin-s-story)

Assists the narrator in undressing, washing, and dressing at the bathhouse, treating him with a nurse-like care. He refuses payment but accepts tea and vodka.

### [X: Christmas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-i-x-christmas)

Runs up to greet the narrator on Christmas, appearing already drunk, but says little before hurrying back to the kitchen.

### [The Theatricals](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-i-xi-the-theatricals)

Accompanies the narrator to the front of the audience, explaining the seating arrangement based on contributions.

### [VII: The Complaint](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-ii-vii-the-complaint)

A convict whom the narrator questions about the complaint; his simple-hearted perplexity at the idea of the narrator being a comrade crystallizes the narrator's understanding of his isolation.

### [X: How I Left Prison](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/chapters/part-ii-x-how-i-left-prison)

Often meets the narrator during walks in the prison yard, silently accompanying him.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/characters/petrov
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_the_dead_se/characters