Set in 1820s Russia, Pushkin's verse novel follows the emotions and destiny of three men—Onegin the bored fop, Lensky the minor elegiast and a stylized Pushkin himself— and the fates and affections of three women—Tatyana the provincial beauty, her sister Olga, and Pushkin's mercurual muse. Engaging, full of suspense, and varied in tone, it also portrays a large cast of other characters and offers the reader many literary, philosophical, and autobiographical digressions, often in a highly satrical vein.