Ivan saw her as a ".well connected, and was a sweet, pretty, and thoroughly correct young woman." The view that she was so within the lines of propriety was the most attractive feature which this young woman possessed in Ivan's view. At first the marriage which Ivan thought couldn't hurt his pleasure-seeking life didn't, then according to Ivan she began to disturb the pleasure and propriety of his life. This ordeal only worsened when his wife became pregnant. She became unbearable to him, overly jealous and coarse, becoming an obstacle to his pursuit of happiness and properness. When the child was born, Ivan realized that a life totally separate his family life would be necessary to fulfill the goals he set for himself. He also came to the realization that to keep his marriage in order that he was going to have to adopt the same attitude to his family that he has to his official duties. Ivan developed an attitude towards his family of complete indifference as stated in the story, "He only required of it those conveniences---dinner at home, housewife, and bed---which it could give him." (p. 1092) More children arrived and his wife's attitude only worsened. .
After three years and becoming a highly looked upon official he received a promotion to the position of Assistant Public Prosecutor. This new promotion made Ivan like his job even more. Meanwhile, more children were born which made Ivan's life even more difficult. After getting another promotion and moving to another province, the marriage was getting increasingly difficult. To try and overcome this Ivan decided to spend some time in the country with his wife. This move turns out to be a very bad one. Ivan falls into deep depression and decides that some drastic measures are needed. He returns from the country heading towards St. Petersburg with the objective of obtaining a salary of 5,000 rubles a year. Things worked out very much in his favor.
