Nihilism in Literature

Nihilism has seeped into the pages of literature for centuries, often as a shadow lurking beneath the narrative. From the great Russian novelists to modern dystopian fiction, authors have used nihilism to question whether life holds any inherent meaning, whether morality is anything more than a human construct, and whether the search for truth is doomed from the start.

The Russian Titans: Dostoevsky and Turgenev

Few writers explored nihilism with as much raw force as Fyodor Dostoevsky. In Notes from Underground, his narrator spits venom at the idea of rational self-interest and the promise of progress, exposing the irrational chaos at the heart of human nature. In The Brothers Karamazov, Ivan’s famous line — “If God does not exist, everything is permitted” — crystallizes the terrifying moral implications of a godless world.

Ivan Turgenev introduced the very term “nihilist” into literature with Fathers and Sons, using the character Bazarov to embody the rejection of tradition, authority, and sentimentality. His portrayal sparked debates in Russia about whether such radical skepticism was a sign of intellectual liberation or a cultural death wish.

Nihilism in the Modern Novel

Fast forward to the 20th and 21st centuries, and nihilism still stalks the page. Albert Camus’ The Stranger paints a protagonist so detached from social norms that even murder barely registers as morally significant. Bret Easton Ellis’ American Psycho turns nihilism into a blood-slick satire, depicting a world where human life is stripped of all value beyond consumption and status.

Dystopian works like George Orwell’s 1984 or Cormac McCarthy’s The Road may not preach pure nihilism, but they confront the reader with worlds where morality, freedom, and meaning are reduced to ash — forcing us to ask whether there’s anything left to fight for.

Why It Endures

Nihilism remains an enduring literary theme because it speaks to a primal human fear: that the universe doesn’t care. Authors return to it again and again, not necessarily to endorse it, but to wrestle with it — to ask if there’s any way to build meaning atop a foundation of nothing.

If This Shook You, Read This

If you want to go deeper into the philosophy behind these themes, check out You Are Not Alive — a brutal, mind-bending philosophy book that tears down your illusions, starting with you.