Halleluiah!
I will officially be studying abroad this summer, taking a creative writing course and either a modern British literature or Victorian literature class! So with that being set, I am now enrolled in a Senior Seminar course discussing current issues in English, and also a "Masterpieces in European Literature" course.

For "Masterpieces,"  we are currently reading the Russian novel, "Fathers and Sons," by Ivan Turgenev. 
My professor pointed out that while we were reading, we should be asking questions in regards to some fundamental literary elements such as:

Plot - Character - Narrative Perspective -Theme - Symbolism

The questions include:

What is the order of events? What is the significance of them being described in that order?

What is the Central Conflict? What is the nature or basis of the conflict?

What are the Characters' patterns of choice? What are their motivations?

Are they static or dynamic? How do their patterns of choice change and why?

Is the narrator a participant in the plot? Why is it important that the narrator knows what it knows?

What are the themes? What does the author want readers to know about the subject?

Is there any symbolism that is apparent throughout the narrative?

Now for some History and Background!

"Fathers and Sons" is deliberately set before the liberation of the serf's in Russia, which occurred in 1861. Peter the Great, who died in 1725, had a lot of influence over Russian culture. Russia was, and still is, struggling to be categorized as either European or Asian because of its geographical location, kind of like how its debatable whether Michigan is part of the Mid-West or not (where do we belong?).   Peter the Great traveled through Europe and acknowledged that other countries flourished because of their modernization. He loved the sophisticated culture and modern luxuries. He took this idea back to Russia and tried to "Europe-inize" the country by updating the technologies used and making French the language of the elite nobles. In doing this, Russia associated itself with Europe rather than Asia, but it seems that many Europeans questioned Russia's continental status.

The Emancipation Manifesto took place in 1861 which allowed serfs to marry without their landowner's consent, own land and businesses, and purchase land. "Fathers and Sons," was written one year after the Emancipation Manifesto but the setting takes place before the manifesto.

 In class, we discussed how during the Enlightenment Period, all of the advancements in science actually caused a, "disenchantment" of people's world views. Newton's Laws of Physics explained phenomenons that people previously took as magic, fairies, ghosts, or God. The realization that everyday events could be explained mathematically caused a disenchantment in people. The young readily cast aside their innocent views of the world, while older generations voraciously held onto their classic beliefs. We can see this in the contrast between the naive Nikolai Kirsanov, and the young Arkady and Bazarov who have returned from college and have presumably been "disenchanted" by their modern education. 

I can already tell that some of the conflict seen will be Russia's struggle to identify itself as "European", between the revolting serfs and their landowners, but most predominately, the central conflict will be the clash between modern and classic beliefs, young and old generations: The struggle between Father and Son in an age of political strife.