The Jew: Turgenev's heartbreaking story gives us a rare insight into anti-semitism in Russian society.

Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was born on 9th November 1818 in Oryol, Russia to parents from the nobility. He and his two brothers were raised by their mother on the family estate. Surrounded by foreign governesses he became fluent in French, German, and English. Their father spent little time with them and this undoubtedly had an effect on him and his brothers. When he was nine the family moved to Moscow to give their children a better education.

Turgenev studied for a year at the University of...