Alyosha among the Tombs (Book VII: Alyosha, facing p.252) 1949

Fritz Eichenberg’s print of Alyosha among the tombs shows us two figures enveloped in grief. I imagine Eichenberg working the plate, coaxing out the blacks and grays with his tools. You can see a real sympathy in the way he renders these shapes. The hunched figure of Alyosha sits with his face buried in his hands. The tombstone looms like a dark wave about to crash. Beside him, a monk places his hand on Alyosha's head. I think that this gesture of the monk is so important. It is full of kindness, but the monk himself is ghostly. Alyosha is alone with his grief even though he is being comforted. I think Eichenberg is showing us how compassion can be present without solving anything. It is in these moments of uncertainty that art can hold space for the complexities of the human experience. It doesn't offer simple answers. It just says, "I see you."