Tutor profile: Nia C.

How does Nikolai Leskov use water as a motif in Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District?

Water is emblematic of passion and death in Nikolai Leskov’s Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District. Leskov utilizes water’s heterogenous characteristics to display the complexity of the fervent, yet vicious adulteress, Katerina. Katerina’s paradoxical desires create an ambiguous mood. On the one hand, Katerina’s love and commitment to her paramour, Sergei, seems tenacious. The couple overcomes various barriers in their adulterous relationship, which brings them closer. Yet, on the other hand, Katerina and Sergei’s violent acts against anyone who opposes their relationship resemble evil more than love. Leskov pays equal attention to the positive and negative aspects of Katerina and Sergei’s relationship without revering one over the other. He utilizes water as a motif for both Katerina’s passion and violence to reveal their amorality. While framing Katerina’s desires in terms of water, Leskov suggests how passionate love could guide violent actions. Yet, Leskov’s Russian folkloristic allegory throughout Lady Macbeth suggests that a water demon, Vodyanoy, could be the cause of both Katerina’s love for Sergei, and violence towards the world.

Demand for oil decreases. If nothing else changes, what will happen to the price of the machines used to extract oil and the quantity of machines bought and sold?

Price and quantity will decrease. The demand for the machines is derived from the demand for oil. As the demand for oil falls, the demand for the machines will fall, leading to a lower equilibrium price and quantity.

Solve for x: -5x (7-4) + |7-2x|= 17- (3/4x +(4))

x = -24/65