Khvylovy's View Towards Women

Mykola Khvylovy’s views toward women, though dated, provide an elaborate framework for A Sentimental Tale. This short story exemplifies the Madonna-whore complex, particularly in regards to Bianca and her relationship with Charhar. Early in the story, Bianca offers herself as a model for Charhar. “Charhar sat facing his easel looking attentively at the canvas. I asked if he would like to paint my body. I would willingly pose for him. He said that that was quite unnecessary, it was not his line” (Khvylovy, 78). Bianca has not yet offered herself as something sexual for Charhar and he blatantly refuses to see her naked body. One can assume that this is due to his view of Bianca as something pure, untouchable, and chaste. This does not change when Bianca asks Charhar to take her virginity. “‘Well, I want you to be my first man. I want to give myself to you.’ ‘I know
This falsification is what ultimately changes Charhar’s view of Bianca. He and Bianca retire to his rooms where, after a few moments of silence, the artist confesses his love for her. Charhar is finally willing to sleep with Bianca, only under the pretense of her being married: “It was only now that he felt how much he loved me… When Tatiana was free, he thrust her away from him. When she was married. …Well, it is quite clear” (Khvylovy, 110). Now Charhar sees Bianca as the debased ‘whore’, the opposite of the chaste Madonna, and he is willing to have sex with her. Bianca’s willingness to commit (false) adultery pushes Charhar’s pure image of her away, leaving behind a new ideal for Bianca: the corrupt adulteress. The evidence of Khvylovy’s antiquated view of women and Charhar’s Madonna-whore complex toward Bianca is clear, but these two things do not diminish the value of the story. Rather, they provide an accurate view of the time period and in0depth interpersonal relationships between the