Lizaveta Ivanovna: Suddenly, upon learning that the fox had attained, by marriage, such an exalted rank, the wolf becomes very polite indeed: whereas he called her merely "fox" when he first saw her, now he addresses her very formally as "Lizaveta Ivanovna," i.e. by her first-name-and-patronymic. Note the play on the sound of lisa (fox) and Liza (the name), which is short for Lizaveta (the Russian equivalent of Elizabeth).

Close this window.