He is Konstantin Levin's half-brother, an intellectual and famous writer with a different father. His entire life revolves around the intellectual circles of Moscow and St. Petersburg, focusing on literary debates and lofty social concepts. He visits rural life only for mental respite or to conduct abstract research on the condition of the peasantry. He symbolizes the exact opposite of Levin's active and realistic devotion to the land. He feels a naive love for young Varenka and is on the verge of falling for her in accordance with his ideals, but ultimately decides against the proposal at the very last moment, finding the vulnerability and sacrifice he seeks—and the worldly ordinariness of the marriage decision—to be beneath his own sublime philosophy. He lacks the courage for love, action, or deep emotional risk.
Born to Levin's mother but by a different noble father, he played an active role in the intellectual leadership of Russia within committees of thought, art, and politics after successfully completing his university education. He used the memory of Mariya, whom he loved in his youth, as a sort of moral sanctuary, never again engaging in real love or practical life.
A tall, handsome, very stylish, and vigorous nobleman with a clean, gentlemanly manner always appropriate to the setting. Despite approaching forty, his well-groomed appearance, refined demeanor, and use of glasses or elite accessories reflect the aura of a noble intellectual.
Varenka
The girl he idealized, whom he attempted to return to life through marriage for a moment by shedding his mental perfection, but lost at the last minute for the sake of his own bookish cowardice.
Aleksey Karenin
An intellectual figure of respectable bureaucratic rank whom he occasionally clashed with and sometimes agreed with in state mechanisms and enlightenment discussions.
Konstantin Levin
His brother who needs to get wiser in his own way, whom he secretly envies not for his intellect but for his energy, and whom he treats with philosophical condescension.
Stepan Oblonski (Stiva)
A friend whose careless noise for life he finds both simple and secretly disparages with philosophy as an art of living in that simplicity.