How did Fathers and Sons portray conflict between aristocrats and the revolutionary intelligentsia?

In Fathers and Sons (1862), Ivan Turgenev portrays the conflict between generations as a sociopolitical struggle between the traditionalist aristocracy and the emerging revolutionary intelligentsia.12

The novel centers on the protagonist, Yevgeny Bazarov, a young physician who identifies as a nihilist. Bazarov rejects all traditional institutions, authority, and laws, acknowledging only the validity of the natural sciences. In the context of the era, he represents the victory of the nongentry revolutionary intelligentsia over the gentry intelligentsia to which Turgenev himself belonged.132

The conflict is depicted through:
* Ideological Clashes: Bazarov’s forthright, often uncouth rejection of established values directly challenges the sensibilities of the older, liberal generation.12
* Sociopolitical Tension: The novel illustrates the rupture between Turgenev’s generation—who favored gradual change—and the younger radicals who sought more aggressive social transformation.2
* Reception: The work’s balanced portrayal was met with hostility from both sides: radicals viewed it as a slander against their movement, while conservatives criticized it for being too lenient toward nihilism.12