What a story
The plot of the story was based on a real story that Kuprin learned. The love of one telegraph official for a married lady led to the fact that he could no longer hide his feelings and decided to give her a gift. So, the main character, whose name is Sheina Vera Nikolaevna, is presented with a very interesting decoration as a gift. Not only does the note suggest that the gift was made by a secret admirer, it also talks about the properties of green pomegranate. And the gift is a garnet bracelet. The giver is sure that the owner of this stone gets the opportunity to foresee.
In the analysis of the story “The Garnet Bracelet”, it is important to note that the green garnet becomes a symbol of passionate love and ardent feelings. Princess Sheina, who received the gift, decides to tell her husband that she received such a gift and even gives him the attached note to read. The reader soon learns that the secret admirer is the hero of the story, Zheltkov. He serves as a minor official and has long been in love with the princess. Although after it becomes known about him, Zheltkov receives threats from Sheina’s brother and other offensive words, thanks to his love he endures everything.
In the end, in order to avert shame from his beloved, Zheltkov takes his own life. Even without making a deep analysis of the story “The Garnet Bracelet,” it is clear that the princess only after these sad events understands how deep and pure the feelings of the poor official Zheltkov were. But she understands not only this, but something else important.
Images of heroes
You can briefly describe the images of the heroes in the analysis of the work “Garnet Bracelet”. The theme of love, chosen by Kuprin, helped him create characters that reflect the social realities not only of his era. Their roles apply to all of humanity. The image of the official Zheltkov is proof of this. He is not rich, he has no special merits. Zheltkov is a completely modest person. He does not demand anything in return for his feelings.
Vera is a woman who is accustomed to obeying the rules of society. Of course, she does not give up love, but she does not consider it a vital necessity. After all, she has a husband who can give her everything she needs, so she doesn’t need feelings. But this happens only until she finds out about Zheltkov’s death. Love in Kuprin's work symbolizes the nobility of the human soul. Neither Prince Shein nor Vera herself can boast of this feeling. Love was the highest manifestation of Zheltkov’s soul. Without demanding anything, he knew how to enjoy the splendor of his experiences.
Kuprin reveals the theme of love
The image of Zheltkov, which runs like a red thread through the entire narrative, shows what selfless and self-sacrificing love can be in a person’s heart. Without betraying his feelings, Zheltkov decides to say goodbye to life. However, changes are also taking place in Princess Sheina, and this is thanks to Zheltkov’s love. Now Vera again wants to feel that she is loved and wants to love herself, and this becomes the central theme of the story “The Garnet Bracelet,” which we are now analyzing. After all, during the time that the main character is married, she practically forgets about feelings and goes with the flow.
What meaning did Kuprin put into the symbol of the garnet bracelet? Firstly, thanks to this bracelet, Princess Vera realized that passion and love can be experienced again, and secondly, having received such a gift, she blossomed and fell in love with life again, again her days were filled with colors and emotions.
Alexander Kuprin attached great importance to the theme of love in his works, and this is clearly visible in “The Garnet Bracelet.” Love, as a pure feeling, should be in a person’s heart. Although the ending of the story is sad, the main character remained happy because she understood what feelings her soul is capable of.
Introduction
“The Garnet Bracelet” is one of the most famous stories by Russian prose writer Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin. It was published in 1910, but for the domestic reader it still remains a symbol of unselfish, sincere love, the kind that girls dream about, and the one that we so often miss. Previously, we published a summary of this wonderful work. In this same publication we will tell you about the main characters, analyze the work and talk about its problems.
The events of the story begin to unfold on the birthday of Princess Vera Nikolaevna Sheina. They celebrate at the dacha with their closest people. At the height of the fun, the hero of the occasion receives a gift - a garnet bracelet. The sender decided to remain unrecognized and signed the short note only with the initials of the HSG. However, everyone immediately guesses that this is Vera’s long-time admirer, a certain petty official who has been inundating her with love letters for many years. The princess's husband and brother quickly figure out the identity of the annoying suitor and the next day they go to his home.
In a wretched apartment they are met by a timid official named Zheltkov, he meekly agrees to take the gift and promises never to appear in front of the respectable family again, provided that he makes a final farewell call to Vera and makes sure that she does not want to know him. Vera Nikolaevna, of course, asks Zheltkov to leave her. The next morning the newspapers will write that a certain official took his own life. In his farewell note, he wrote that he had squandered government property.
Direction and genre of the work
Kuprin, being a true literary artist, loved to reflect real life in his works
. He was the one who wrote many stories and novellas based on real events. “Garnet Bracelet” was no exception. “Garnet Bracelet” genre is a story written in the spirit.
It is based on an incident that happened to the wife of one of the Russian governors. A telegraph official was unrequitedly and passionately in love with her, who once sent her a chain with a small pendant.
If for people from the real world this incident was tantamount to a joke, then for Kuprin’s characters a similar story turns into a strong tragedy.
The genre of the work “The Garnet Bracelet” cannot be a story, due to the insufficient number of characters and one storyline. If we talk about the features of the composition, it is worth highlighting many small details that, as events slowly develop, hint at a catastrophe at the end of the work. To an inattentive reader, it may seem that the text is fairly filled with details. However, they are the ones who help the author create a holistic picture.
“Pomegranate Bracelet,” the composition of which is also framed by inserts about love, ends with a scene explaining the meaning of the epigraph: “L. van Beethoven. 2 Son. (op. 2, no. 2). "Largo Appassionato"
The theme of love, in one form or another, runs through the entire work.
Attention!
There is nothing left unsaid in this masterpiece. Thanks to skillful artistic descriptions, realistic images emerge before the eyes of readers, the verisimilitude of which no one will doubt. Natural, simple people with ordinary desires and needs arouse genuine interest among readers.
Main characters: characteristics of key images
Kuprin is a master of portraiture, and through appearance he draws the character of the characters. The author pays a lot of attention to each character, devoting a good half of the story to portrait characteristics and memories, which are also revealed by the characters. The main characters of the story are:
- – princess, central female image;
- - her husband, the prince, the provincial leader of the nobility;
- - a minor official of the control chamber, passionately in love with Vera Nikolaevna;
- Anna Nikolaevna Friesse
– Vera’s younger sister; - Nikolai Nikolaevich Mirza-Bulat-Tuganovsky
- brother of Vera and Anna; - Yakov Mikhailovich Anosov
is a general, a military comrade of Vera’s father, and a close friend of the family.
Vera is an ideal representative of high society in appearance, manners, and character.
“Vera took after her mother, a beautiful Englishwoman, with her tall, flexible figure, gentle but cold and proud face, beautiful, albeit rather large hands and that charming sloping shoulders that can be seen in ancient miniatures.”
Princess Vera was married to Vasily Nikolaevich Shein. Their love had long ceased to be passionate and moved into that calm stage of mutual respect and tender friendship. Their union was happy. The couple did not have children, although Vera Nikolaevna passionately wanted a baby, and therefore gave all her unspent feelings to the children of her younger sister.
Vera was royally calm, coldly kind to everyone, but at the same time very funny, open and sincere with close people. She was not characterized by such feminine tricks as affectation and coquetry. Despite her high status, Vera was very prudent, and knowing how poorly things were going for her husband, she sometimes tried to deprive herself so as not to put him in an uncomfortable position.
Vera Nikolaevna’s husband is a talented, pleasant, gallant, noble man. He has an amazing sense of humor and is a brilliant storyteller. Shein keeps a home journal, which contains true stories with pictures about the life of the family and those close to them.
Vasily Lvovich loves his wife, perhaps not as passionately as in the first years of marriage, but who knows how long passion actually lasts? The husband deeply respects her opinion, feelings, and personality. He is compassionate and merciful to others, even those who are much lower in status than him (this is evidenced by his meeting with Zheltkov). Shein is noble and endowed with the courage to admit mistakes and his own wrongness.
We first meet Official Zheltkov towards the end of the story. Until this moment, he is present in the work invisibly in the grotesque image of a klutz, an eccentric, a fool in love. When the long-awaited meeting finally takes place, we see before us a meek and shy person, such people are usually not noticed and called “little”:
“He was tall, thin, with long, fluffy, soft hair.”
His speeches, however, are devoid of the chaotic whims of a madman. He is fully aware of his words and actions. Despite his apparent cowardice, this man is very courageous; he boldly tells the prince, Vera Nikolaevna’s legal husband, that he is in love with her and cannot do anything about it. Zheltkov does not fawn over the rank and position in society of his guests. He submits, but not to fate, but only to his beloved. And he also knows how to love – selflessly and sincerely.
“It so happened that I am not interested in anything in life: neither politics, nor science, nor philosophy, nor concern for the future happiness of people - for me life lies only in you. I now feel that I have crashed into your life like some kind of uncomfortable wedge. If you can, forgive me for this.”
Characteristics of the characters
There are few characters in the work. But it’s worth dwelling in more detail on the main characters:
• Vera Nikolaevna Sheina. • Mr. Zheltkov.
The main character of the story is Vera Nikolaevna Sheina. She comes from an old noble family. Vera is liked by everyone around her, as she is very beautiful and sweet: a gentle face, an aristocratic figure. She has been married for six years. The husband occupies an important place in secular society, although he has financial problems. Vera Nikolaevna has a good education. She also has a brother Nikolai and a sister Anna. She lives with her husband somewhere on the Black Sea coast. Despite the fact that Vera is a superstitious woman and does not read newspapers at all, she loves gambling.
Another main and important character of the story is Mr. Zheltkov. The thin and tall man with nervous fingers was not a rich man. He looked about thirty-five years old. He serves in the control chamber, but holds a low position - a minor official. Kuprin characterizes him as a modest, well-mannered and noble person. Kuprin copied this image from a real person. The prototype of the main character was the petty telegraph official P.P. Zheltikov.
There are other characters in this story:
✔ Anna. ✔ Nikolai ✔ Husband of the main character, Vasily Shein. ✔ General Anosov. ✔ Others.
Each of the characters played a role in the content of the story.
Analysis of the work
Kuprin got the idea for his story from real life. In reality, the story was more of an anecdotal nature. A certain poor telegraph operator named Zheltikov was in love with the wife of one of the Russian generals. One day this eccentric was so brave that he sent his beloved a simple gold chain with a pendant in the shape of an Easter egg. It's hilarious and that's it! Everyone laughed at the stupid telegraph operator, but the inquisitive writer’s mind decided to look beyond the anecdote, because real drama can always be hidden behind the apparent curiosity.
Also in “The Pomegranate Bracelet,” the Sheins and their guests first make fun of Zheltkov. Vasily Lvovich even has a funny story about this in his home magazine called “Princess Vera and the telegraph operator in love.” People tend not to think about other people's feelings. The Sheins were not bad, callous, soulless (this is proven by the metamorphosis in them after meeting Zheltkov), they just did not believe that the love that the official admitted could exist..
There are many symbolic elements in the work. For example, a garnet bracelet. Garnet is a stone of love, anger and blood. If a feverish person picks it up (a parallel with the expression “love fever”), the stone will take on a more saturated hue. According to Zheltkov himself, this special type of pomegranate (green pomegranate) gives women the gift of foresight, and protects men from violent death. Zheltkov, having parted with his amulet bracelet, dies, and Vera unexpectedly predicts his death.
Another symbolic stone - pearls - also appears in the work. Vera receives pearl earrings as a gift from her husband on the morning of her name day. Pearls, despite their beauty and nobility, are an omen of bad news. The weather also tried to predict something bad. On the eve of the fateful day, a terrible storm broke out, but on the birthday everything calmed down, the sun came out and the weather was calm, like a calm before a deafening clap of thunder and an even stronger storm.
Problems of the story
The key problem of the work is the question “What is true love?” In order for the “experiment” to be pure, the author gives different types of “love”. This is the tender love-friendship of the Sheins, and the calculating, convenient love of Anna Friesse for her indecently rich old man-husband, who blindly adores her soul mate, and the long-forgotten ancient love of General Amosov, and the all-consuming love-worship of Zheltkov for Vera.
The main character herself cannot understand for a long time whether it is love or madness, but looking into his face, albeit hidden by the mask of death, she is convinced that it was love. Vasily Lvovich draws the same conclusions after meeting his wife’s admirer. And if at first he was somewhat belligerent, then later he could not be angry with the unfortunate man, because, it seems, a secret was revealed to him, which neither he, nor Vera, nor their friends could comprehend.
People are selfish by nature and even in love, they think first of all about their feelings, masking their own egocentrism from their other half and even themselves. True love, which occurs between a man and a woman once every hundred years, puts the beloved first. So Zheltkov calmly lets Vera go, because that’s the only way she will be happy. The only problem is that he doesn’t need life without her. In his world, suicide is a completely natural step.
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"Garnet bracelet"
Story Analysis
This story is a reflection of Kuprin’s nature as a romantic. This is a story of extraordinary tragic love, filled with mysterious symbols and mystical mood.
The action of the story begins at the dacha of the princely Shein family, during preparations for the celebration of the name day of Vera Nikolaevna, the prince’s wife. Already here the writer fills the story with symbols. The variability of weather is like the variability of life. At first it was gray and cloudy, and suddenly it suddenly changed to warm and clear. Like the life of the main character, at first there are gray everyday life, and suddenly an out-of-the-ordinary incident occurs.
During the feast, the guests begin to play poker, and Prince Shein, Vasily Lvovich, begins to entertain the guests with stories in which there is not a penny of truth. And among them is a story about one suitor of Vera Nikolaevna, who allegedly sent her passionate letters every day, and then became a monk; Having died, he bequeathed two buttons and a bottle of perfume with his tears to Vera.
On her name day, her husband gave Vera Nikolaevna earrings with pear-shaped pearls; he placed them early in the morning on his wife’s night table. In the middle of the celebration, the princess received a package from the maid, which contained a gift and a note from an unknown admirer. The gift turned out to be a low-grade gold blown bracelet decorated with a garnet, and in the center of it was a rare green garnet.
In the note, the unknown G.S.Zh. confesses to Vera Nikolaevna his sincere and unrequited love. He says that he asks to accept a gift made from the bottom of his heart, and emphasizes that he is not even trying to win the sympathy of the princess. The fan also draws attention to the bracelet itself, which was worn by his great-grandmother; supposedly the green garnet contained in it gives women the gift of premonition of the future. The princess decides to show the note and bracelet to her husband after the guests have left.
Towards evening, when most of the guests have left, grandfather Anosov (a military comrade of Vera’s father) begins to tell the story of his family life. His wife ran away from him with the actor, and when she tried to return, Anosov did not accept her. He says that true love should be forgiving, modest, selfless, heroic, it always gives itself completely and demands nothing in return. He also inquired about the story that the prince was telling the guests. And I heard from Vera Nikolaevna about a certain petty official who writes her letters of love and always knows what she is doing. Anosov suggests that perhaps this is the same romantic love that all women in the world crave, but which men are not able to give.
Vera Nikolaevna's brother convinces her and the prince that they could find themselves in an awkward position if G.S.Zh. suddenly he begins to brag to his friends and acquaintances that the princess is accepting his gifts. And the men decide to identify the admirer by initials in the lists of city officials.
The mysterious admirer turns out to be a petty official, Zheltkov, who has been living under the roof of one of the poor houses for many years. During a meeting with Zheltkov, Vera Nikolaevna’s brother, Nikolai Nikolaevich, due to his temperament, behaves arrogantly, harshly, he even tries to intimidate Zheltkov with the police. Vasily Lvovich, on the contrary, behaves very calmly and judiciously, and even treats the official’s feelings with some understanding.
On the evening of this day, Vera Nikolaevna said that she had a premonition that this man was going to kill himself. And indeed, a few days later she read in the newspaper about the suicide of a minor official, Zheltkov, allegedly due to embezzlement of government money. In fact, Zheltkov simply did not want to interfere with Vera Nikolaevna’s life with his feelings, and since I cannot kill love in myself, I decided to kill myself.
But his love did not die, it lived on even after his death. She was in Vera’s memories, she lived next to her, but not as a reproach, but as a gentle guardian angel.
And a garnet bracelet, with a rare green garnet, appears here as a symbol of the rarest and most beautiful love, the only one in a lifetime that went unrequited, lost in a cheap frame.
After reading the analysis of the story “Garnet Bracelet”, you will definitely want to read other works:
In 1910, Kuprin created the story “The Garnet Bracelet”. A summary of the chapters of this work is offered to your attention. In addition, we will analyze the story, which will help you understand its meaning.
COMPOSITIONAL MEANS OF EXPRESSING THE AUTHOR'S POSITION IN A.I. KUPRIN'S STORY “GARNET BRACELET”.
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Entrance
COMPOSITIONAL MEANS OF EXPRESSING THE AUTHOR'S POSITION IN A.I. KUPRIN'S STORY “GARNET BRACELET”.
Introduction
Any work of art “embodies the picture of life as the author saw and organized it,”1 therefore it necessarily and diversely reflects the presence of the author in artistic form. According to the precise remark of L.N. Tolstoy, “the cement that binds every work of art into one whole and therefore produces the illusion of a reflection of life is <...> the unity of the original moral attitude of the author to the subject.”
The author’s attitude towards what is depicted is the basis of the ideological meaning of the work, and all artistic means are subordinated to its expression, among which composition occupies a special place. The concept of composition (from the Latin compositio – arrangement, composition) usually combines various aspects of the organization of the text of a work and its construction. Analysis of the composition makes it possible to identify the author’s position if it is not directly expressed or expressed ambiguously, which, in turn, allows us to penetrate deeper into the ideological meaning of the work and understand the uniqueness of the writer’s creative manner.
The work of A. I. Kuprin constantly attracts the attention of readers and researchers not only with the diversity and social relevance of its themes, but also with the subtle lyricism of the description of feelings, and close attention to the life of the individual human soul. In his works, the theme of love occupies a large place (Olesya, Lenochka, Lilac Branch, Shulamith, etc.), which the writer treats reverently and reverently as the highest human value.
The undoubted masterpieces of A. I. Kuprin’s love “lyrics” include the story “The Garnet Bracelet,” which, in our opinion, attracts young readers primarily because it describes the diverse manifestations of love feelings: the main plot is accompanied by several “love stories” ”, told by the heroes. There is no direct author's assessment of these stories in the text, but it is known that in the process of working on the story, Kuprin repeatedly gave his assessment of the depicted in letters to various correspondents. So in a letter to F. Batyushkov he wrote: “Love is always a tragedy, always a struggle and achievement, always joy and fear, resurrection and death”2. In our opinion, analysis of the composition of the work helps to identify the author’s position and, accordingly, understand the depth of the author’s intention.
1Chertov V.F. Word-image-meaning: philological analysis of literary works. 10-1 1st grades: textbook: M.: Bustard, 2006, p. 70
2Bystrov V.N. A.I. Kuprin//Russian writers, XX century. Bibliographic Dictionary.
2 parts. Part 1.-M.: Education, 1998 p. 717
Despite the fact that in literary criticism the work of A. I. Kuprin has been quite well studied (V. N. Afanasyev, P. N. Berkov, A. A. Volkov, F. I. Kuleshov, etc.) and the general principles of its construction have been described works, the composition of the story “Garnet Bracelet”, according to our data, has not been subjected to aspect analysis. This determined the relevance of the choice of topic and determined the scientific novelty of the study. In addition, 2015 marks the 145th anniversary of the writer’s birth, and turning to his work is especially relevant for us, fellow countrymen.
The practical significance of the work is determined by the possibility of using the materials contained in it when studying the work of A.I. Kuprin in literature lessons.
The object of this study is the composition of the story by A.I. Kuprin "Garnet Bracelet".
The subject of the study is compositional means of expressing the author's position.
The purpose of the study is to identify and describe compositional means of expressing the author’s position for a deeper understanding of the ideological meaning of the work.
Research objectives:
1) study theoretical material about the composition of a literary text and its means;
2) identify and describe compositional means of expressing the author’s position in relation to the described manifestations of love, which is not directly expressed in the text.
The main research method is descriptive-analytical.
The studied theoretical material and analysis of the text allowed us to formulate the following hypothesis : the author’s position in relation to the love stories described in the story is not directly expressed, but can be revealed based on the analysis of compositional means, including the epigraph, the system of images-characters, the title image-symbol . True love, according to the author, is sublime, selfless, sacrificial love that can transform a person and become stronger than death.
Research structure:
1) analysis of various literature on the problem in order to determine the degree of knowledge of the selected topic;
2) study of compositional means of identifying the author’s position in A.I. Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet”.
3) generalization and conclusion.
The work consists of an introduction, main part, conclusion, list of references.
1. Composition of a literary text and its means.
1.1. The concept of “composition”.
In S.I. Ozhegov’s dictionary, the concept of “composition” is explained as “the structure, relationship and relative arrangement of parts.”3
In literary criticism, composition is understood as “the mutual correlation and arrangement of units of the depicted and artistic speech means.”4
The division of the text is not accidental - it is determined by how the author presents the structure of the artistic world he created and the construction of a story about it. Compositional techniques serve to place the emphasis needed by the author and in a certain way stimulate and organize the reader’s perception, possessing a “unique energy of aesthetic impact.”5
The construction of a literary work is a multifaceted phenomenon, having various aspects. It includes the arrangement of characters, and the arrangement of recreated events in the text of the work, and the features of the image of the objective world of the work, and the inner world of the characters, and the dynamics of narration methods, and the correlation of the actual speech units. Compositional means in a certain way correct and deepen the meanings and meanings that are carried by the subject and speech layers of the work.
1.2.Types of composition.
It is customary to distinguish between the so-called external and internal composition. The first is called architectonics; it is usually associated with the division of an essentially continuous text into parts. In a work, both the division of the text into parts and chapters and the absence thereof, the presence of epigraphs or dedications, inserted short stories and episodes, and the presence of author’s digressions can be significant.
The internal composition is determined by the structure of the artistic world created in the work; it usually distinguishes the composition of the narrative, the composition of the plot, and the composition of images.
Narrative composition is the organization of the point of view of the depicted world. It may not depend on the architectonics of the work; it may also intersect with it (as signals of a “text within text” composition or signs of a change in the subject of the narrative). By choosing one or another method of organizing the narrative, the author strives to achieve a certain artistic effect and convey to the reader his idea of life. The composition of a narrative usually includes the following components:
- the number of narrators and the patterns of their choice: it is important not only whether one or more narrators are chosen by the author to organize the narrative, but also who these narrators are in relation to the events depicted and their participants, how they are connected to each other (and whether they are connected at all) ;
- stable compositional and speech forms (in what form their story is available to the reader): this can be a story, as if intended for one of the characters and only “overheard” by the reader; it could be a conversation between the hero and himself that was accidentally revealed to the reader (internal monologue, diary, dream, etc.)
The artistic world of a work is, first of all, a system of images that is somehow correlated with the real world. The work usually includes:
- the world of people;
— the natural world (living and nonliving);
- the world of things;
- space and time.
Each of these “worlds,” in turn, has its own composition, “since it represents a set of elements defined for each specific work, placed in certain relationships and included in the artistic world”6. Each image is created using a system of tools and techniques that are used by the author in different combinations and in different sequences. In this sense, we can talk about the composition of each individual image.
Chapter 1 Conclusion
Thus, we see that a literary work of art is a figurative system, each element of which occupies a certain place in it, is connected with other elements, and their totality constitutes an artistic whole. Composition analysis is a multifaceted and voluminous task. It should be borne in mind that “any construction is a choice of one or several existing options.”7 By identifying and examining the compositional features of the work, we understand that they express the originality of the author’s thinking and the essential features of the picture of the world he created
3Ozhegov S.I. and Shvedova N.Yu.1998, p.288
4Khalizev V.E. Theory of literature.-M.: Higher School, 2000, p.262
5Khalizev V.E. Theory of literature.-M.: Higher School, 2000, p.262
6.7 Chertov V. F. Word-image-meaning: philological analysis of literary works. 10-1 1st grades: textbook: M.: Bustard, 2006, p. 108
It is not possible to fully analyze the composition of A.I. Kuprin’s story within the framework of one study, so we focused only on those compositional means that helped us identify the author’s position, his view of the essence of love. Among these means are the epigraph, the character system, and the title image-symbol.
2. Compositional means of identifying the author’s position
in the story by A.I. Kuprin "Garnet Bracelet".
2.1. The role of the epigraph in identifying the ideological meaning of the work.
The epigraph refers to the optional elements of the composition. If it exists, then its main task is to emphasize, highlight the most important thing in the content or form of a literary text.
Among the realist writers, to whom A.I. belonged. Kuprin, critical sentiments towards reality were strong; social issues predominated in their works. Against this background, the love story “The Pomegranate Bracelet” was perceived as a drama of love between a poor official and a high-ranking and rich lady, and this social motive is still perceived by many as one of the main ones.
The story “Garnet Bracelet” by A.I. Kuprin introduced an unusual epigraph: L. Van Bethoven. 2 Son. (op. 2, No. 2). This is an indication of one of the early works of the famous German composer Ludwig van Beethoven, whose works A.I. Kuprin, not being, by his own admission, a connoisseur of music, knew and loved. According to one of the researchers, the influence of Beethoven’s music “affects not only the mood of the story, but also strengthens and deepens the psychologism when describing a feeling of love.”8 We can say that the epigraph indicates the need to correlate the composition of the sonata and the story, and this, in turn, , helps to identify and clarify the author’s intent.
The first part of the sonata - allegro vivace - shows the radiance of social life, which “beckons with its seductions, the heart responds with a dream of happiness, but in counterpoint there is an alarming melody warning about the fragility of the dream.”9 This is the beginning of the story: a finely painted autumn landscape, a coldish secularism Princess Vera Sheina. Just as in a sonata, a side theme is intertwined with the main theme and shades it, so in the story next to Princess Vera is her sister. A short remark from the author that Vera’s former passionate love for her husband has long turned into a feeling of friendship, and a rather lengthy “love story” of Anna, who could not stand her husband. Several musical phrases from the first part of the sonata, according to musicologists, humorously representing the figure of “Father Haydn”, to whom it is dedicated, correlate with the description of the figure of General Anosov, who is somewhat inappropriate for the princess’s social drawing room.
In the second (central) part of the sonata - Largo Arpacio - the theme of fate gradually invades the warm melodious melody, conveyed in measured mournful chords, but the tragedy ready to break through does not receive an outlet or further development. The third movement - a virtuoso scherzo - allegretto - returns to secular splendor: internal drama seems to be hidden under the veil of salon grace. The central part of the story - the “love story” of telegraph operator Zheltkov for Princess Vera, also full of hidden drama, does not develop and does not end with anything: it passes by the princess, who returns to social duties and is most afraid of appearing funny to those around her.
In one of the letters A.I. Kuprin himself admitted: “There is an op. No. 2, Largo Arpaciopato from Beethoven; from there is the whole point of my story.” Music becomes the real “character” at the end of the story, when, after saying goodbye to the deceased Zheltkov, Vera asks pianist Jenny Reiter to play this sonata for her. “She recognized from the very first chords this exceptional, unique work of depth. And her soul seemed to split into two. She simultaneously thought that a great love had passed her by, something that happens only once every thousand years. I remembered the words of General Anosov and asked myself why this man forced her to listen to this particular Beethoven work and even against her wishes? And words formed in her mind. They so coincided in her thoughts with the music that it was like verses that ended with the words “Hallowed be thy name!”...
8 Rasskazova L.V. The semantic and compositional role of Beethoven’s sonata in A.I. Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet” // Literature at school. 2007.№7.S. 8 – 12, p.107
9Rasskazova L.V. The semantic and compositional role of Beethoven’s sonata in A.I. Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet” // Literature at school. 2007. No. 7. pp. 8 – 12, p. l1
The impression from the music transforms Bepa’s soul and makes her rethink everything she has experienced, but the hero himself also experiences a transformation. Deciding to die, he says goodbye to his beloved and, fearing to frighten her with his action, softens the blow by immersing his beloved woman in the world of music, which speaks to her in the language of love. By performing the spiritual feat of self-sacrifice and selflessness, an ordinary poor official with a funny last name becomes the Great Beloved. Thus, turning to Beethoven’s music helps the author to create in the work an image of ideal love - tragic, but lofty love, which transforms the human soul and conquers death.
2.2. The character system and its role in identifying the author’s position.
It is known that the characters of one work represent a system in which, as a rule, there are main and minor characters involved in the plot and so-called extra-plot characters. Despite the fact that the genre of the story involves a limited volume of narration and a small number of characters, A.I. Kuprin’s work includes about two dozen characters, among whom only four are directly involved in the development of the plot: Princess Vera Sheina, her husband Prince Vasily Lvovich, her brother, Prince Nikolai Nikolaevich Bulat-Tuganovsky, on the one hand, and the poor official Zheltkov, on the other. They are opposed primarily on the basis of class, this determines the movement of the plot. Outraged by Zheltkov’s gift, which violates the rules accepted in secular society, the princes, protecting Vera’s reputation, decide to punish him and go to his apartment
A direct clash between the characters occurs when Vasily Lvovich and Nikolai give Zheltkov his inappropriate and scandalous, in their opinion, gift - a garnet bracelet. In a brilliantly written scene, Kuprin shows how Zheltkov, initially timid and embarrassed by the visit, gradually, despite the threats of those who came, gains confidence, realizing that at this moment he is morally and emotionally stronger and higher than these gentlemen.
So in this small room two worldviews collide, and the reader really feels the presence of that love that, according to General Anosov, “all women dream of.” The climactic scene of the explanation reveals the position of the author, who shows that there are no class barriers for love, and the little man turns out to be spiritually superior to high-born gentlemen. It is no coincidence that Prince Vasily remarks at the end of the conversation: “...I feel that I am present at some enormous tragedy of the soul, and I cannot clown around here.”10
An equally important role in revealing the author's intention is played by secondary (extra-plot) characters, the number of which is not typical for the genre of the story (there are more than a dozen of them, including guests in Sheinkh's house). With their help, the author not only creates a life background against which the love story of a poor official for a noble woman unfolds.
lady, but also gives the reader the opportunity to get acquainted with different manifestations of love feelings in order to show their understanding of true love. Let's consider the role of some of them.
Of course, the main role among the extra-plot characters is given to General Anosov. A simple and courageous man who “often and close before his eyes saw danger and death,” he had that unique life experience that made Vera take more seriously the story of the letters and the bracelet given by an unfamiliar telegraph operator. It was General Anosov who owned the prophetic words: “<...> maybe your path in life, Verochka, has been crossed by exactly the kind of love that women dream about and which men are no longer capable of...”11General Anosov expresses a unique formula of love, which is then verified plot and extra-plot stories: “Love should be a tragedy. The greatest secret in the world! No life conveniences, calculations or compromises should concern her.”12
Kuprin puts several inserted short stories about love into Anosov’s mouth. They do not advance the plot in any way, they even slow it down, but they are necessary to reveal the ideological meaning of the work. The first story is about a love story experienced by the general himself in his youth. The second is about a young warrant officer in love with the wife of a regimental commander. And the third story is about a brave and courageous captain who sacrificed his life to save an insignificant man whom his wife loved. These at first glance are rather ordinary stories, told after the reader already knows about
the garnet bracelet given to Vera helps to highlight different facets of a love feeling in order to understand the author’s attitude towards it.
The story of young Anosov tells of his love for a “young Bulgarian girl,” an ardent and passionate feeling that connected two young people for a short time. This is true love, although it is fleeting, it is strong and sincere, so the old general remembers it with pleasure.
10Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.3l2
11Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.306
12Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.307
But such love cannot become the meaning of life, cannot change it, it contains only physical attraction due to youth and temperament.
In the second case, a young ensign is smitten with love, whose feeling is also strong and sincere. But its subject is a seasoned, middle-aged, experienced regimental lady, bored in the wilderness, who wants to have fun and test her feminine charms. This is not true love; although it is strong, it leads a person to self-destruction.
The hero of the third situation is a courageous captain, the favorite of the entire regiment, a man of extraordinary courage, who, however, is not able to give up his love for his wife even when she gets along with another officer - a weak and insignificant person. The captain's love for his wife is so strong that, forgetting about himself, he is ready to defend the lazy and arrogant lieutenant, his rival, in battle, only because his beloved woman asked for it. It would seem that Kuprin describes a very strong, selfless feeling. But they don’t want to admire, since it manifests itself in relation to an unworthy and petty woman, and deprives the lover himself of dignity.
Let us note that the wise Anosov, telling the last two stories, presents women as selfish, unpleasant, and selfish in nature. This is how the general forces Princess Vera to think about her role in the story of “PPZh” (under this pseudonym the unlucky lover is presented in the Sheins’ humorous album). At the same time
the general claims that almost every woman is capable of high heroism in love, and “it’s not her fault that people love
has acquired such vulgar forms.” This anticipates Vera’s further actions and the outcome of the plot: having learned about Zheltkov’s death, Vera, without thinking about conventions, goes to his apartment to say goodbye to the man who idolized her and chose to give up life. And not from love.
In order to understand and find out what kind of huge, tragic feeling she became the heroine of, Princess Vera first had to learn both the completely earthly love stories of General Anosov and the mercantile, self-satisfied reasoning about the “acceptability” of the love of her husband and brother.
A peculiar contrast to the image of the main character is the image of her sister Anna Friesse. Despite the fact that the sisters “from childhood were attached to each other with a warm and caring friendship,” 13 the authors emphasize their external dissimilarity and, what is especially important for us, their different attitudes to love: “She [Anna] couldn’t stand her husband, but gave birth to two children from him - a boy and a girl... She willingly indulged in the most risky flirting in all the capitals and at all the resorts of Europe, but she never cheated on her husband, whom, however, she contemptuously ridiculed both in front and behind the eyes...”14 The author shows a woman in whose apparently prosperous life there was no place for love. Comparing the sisters and their destinies, the reader, according to the author, must choose for himself what is more important to him.
Thus, by showing different understandings of love by the characters in the story, the author not only introduces the reader to different manifestations of love feelings, but builds a unique philosophy of love, comprehending it from a moral, social, and aesthetic point of view. True Love, from the point of view of A.I. Kuprin is not a simple spontaneous feeling that captures a person entirely, it is a feeling that morally transforms a person, elevating him above everyday life, it is a wonderful feeling that evokes not pity, but admiration. The strongest argument in favor of this statement is Zheltkov’s last letter: “I am endlessly grateful to you just for the fact that you exist. I checked myself - this is not a disease, not a manic idea - this is love that God wanted to reward me for something.<...>Think about what I needed to do? Run away to another city? All the same, the heart was always near you, at your feet, every moment of the day was filled with you, thoughts about you, dreams about you <...>”.15
13Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.255
14Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.287
15Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.316
2.3. The role of the title image-symbol in the composition of the work.
Most often, the world of things in a work is not given in isolation, but is shown in interaction with the “big” world of nature and the world of people. At the same time, the world of things is not presented chaotically in the work. It interacts with the image of space (interior details), the world of characters (one of the means of creating an image or organizing a system of characters), and can become an independent character and play a plot-forming role. Repeated many times in the text - accompanying the development of the plot and often varying as it develops, the image of the subject becomes one of
leitmotifs of the work, i.e. enters into the framework of the semantic structure, or turns into a symbol. It is in this way - the symbol around which the plot is built, in the work of A.I. Kuprin's main image is a garnet bracelet.
For Kuprin, both the history of a person’s life and the history of a thing are important. The bracelet “was gold, low-grade, very thick, but inflated and on the outside completely covered with small old, poorly polished garnets, <...> each the size of a pea”16. The bracelet itself was unsightly and unattractive for a person with refined taste. At the same time, this jewelry contains ancient garnets, beautiful blood-colored stones that have mythological significance: red garnets arouse passion in the owner, and the rare green garnet “has the property of imparting the gift of foresight to the women who wear it and drives away heavy thoughts from them.” 17This bracelet was sent as a birthday gift to Princess Vera by an official in love with her.
It is worth remembering that at the beginning of the story we learn about Vera’s husband’s birthday gift: “a case with beautiful earrings.” Kuprin mentions them once and never mentions the jewelry again: there is no story behind the earrings. About the bracelet, the accompanying letter says that it was worn by Zheltkov’s great-grandmother, and the last of the women was his mother. In Vera’s hands, the jewelry seems to come to life: she “with a random movement successfully turned the bracelet in front of the fire, and lovely, rich red living lights sparkled.”
The image of the bracelet is plot-forming: the events of the story are built around it. It interacts with the world of characters, being one of the means of organizing a system of images: each of the characters in one form or another expresses their attitude to the bracelet and thereby determines their attitude to the love story that is associated with it.
Let's determine what a garnet bracelet means for the heroes of the story.
For Nikolai Nikolaevich, this is a “cheap and tasteless thing,” an “idiot bracelet,” as he calls it, which is of no value. He ironically notes that the bracelet honors the taste of the donor, but urgently asks to spare his family such surprises.
For Zheltkov, the garnet bracelet is a family heirloom, a symbol of childhood memories, it is his most valuable thing, his greatest happiness. By giving this only memory of his mother, he gives the most precious thing he has - love.
With amazing skill, Kuprin builds a parallelism between the fate of the main character of the story and the bracelet. At first glance, the idea of a thing, like a person, may be erroneous and incorrect.
So Zheltkov, unremarkable in appearance, concealed within himself huge reserves of love, not available to everyone in this world. So his love, despite the wretchedness and even vulgarity of the initial manifestations, was strong, pure, sincere, real.
Faith’s attitude towards the bracelet changes as the narrative progresses, just as her attitude towards Zheltkov himself and towards the love that has befallen her changes. At first she follows the lead of her husband and brother, not approving of the gift. But then he understands. That behind the bracelet are the sincere feelings that G.S.Zh experiences. She begins to realize the power of Zheltkov’s love, the depth of his tragedy.
Thus, the image of the bracelet gradually develops a symbolic function: it becomes in the story (there are known cases in life, after becoming acquainted with Kuprin’s work) the personification of true love - a pure, noble, selfless feeling that transforms a person.
The end of the history of the garnet bracelet is very symbolic. According to Zheltkov’s will, the landlady brings the bracelet to the Catholic church and decorates the sculptural image of the Mother of God with it. The bracelet becomes part of the image of the Mother of God, a symbol and personification of the highest, divine, selfless, selfless, eternal, sacrificial and all-encompassing love, love that does not require anything, but only gives.
Chapter 2 Conclusion
According to Kuprin, the true power and greatness of love is not in the intensity of the manifestation of feelings or the ability to overcome all conventions, but in its focus - not on oneself, but on a loved one, that is, unselfishness and sacrifice.
16Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.300
17Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984, p.300
Conclusion
The most significant means of composition for identifying the author’s position in the story “The Garnet Bracelet” include the epigraph, the system of character images and the title image-symbol.
The epigraph emphasizes that the love feeling described in the story has its own musical leitmotif, and the unfolding of the narrative itself is comparable to the composition of a sonata. Finding verbal content at the end of the story, music helps to understand the nature of the feeling of love as the author understood it: it sounds like a hymn to selfless, selfless eternal love that conquers even death.
The system of images of characters grouped around plot and extra-plot “love stories” allows the author to consider love as a philosophical, moral, aesthetic category, to create a unique philosophy of love, based on the recognition of love as the greatest mystery and greatest value of humanity.
Love in “The Pomegranate Bracelet” is shown not only as a spontaneous all-consuming passion, but also as a force capable of morally transforming a person and spiritually elevating him. The symbol of such love in the story is the title image - a garnet bracelet. This is confirmed by the natural ending of its history: from a symbol of maternal love and memory of the mother through a gift to a selflessly beloved woman to part of the image of the Mother of God - the personification of divine all-forgiving and all-encompassing love.
Conclusion
Thus, after conducting the study, we confirmed the hypothesis we had put forward and were convinced that the analysis of compositional means helps to identify the author’s position when it is not directly expressed.
Literature
1. Chertov V. F. Word-image-meaning: philological analysis of literary works. 10-1 1st grades: textbook: M.: Bustard, 2006
2. Bystrov V.N. A.I. Kuprin//Russian writers, XX century.
Bibliographic Dictionary. 2 parts. Part 1.-M.: Education, 1998
3. Ozhegov S.I. and Shvedova N.Yu.M., 1998
4.Khalizev V.E. Theory of literature. - M.: Higher School, 2000
5. Rasskazova L.V. The semantic and compositional role of Beethoven’s sonata in A.I. Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet” // Literature at school. 2007
6. Kuprin A.I. Garnet bracelet: Tales and stories.- M.: Khulozh. lit., 1984
Chapter Four
Soon the guests began to arrive. The chapter-by-chapter summary of the story “The Garnet Bracelet,” compiled by us, omits the listing of guests, since it is not essential for the development of the plot. However, it should be noted that among them was General Anosov, whom the sisters loved very much. He was like their own grandfather. The sisters met Anosov near the carriage and escorted him into the house. The general was a friend of the family and became very attached to Anna and Vera, since he did not have any children of his own. He went through several wars, and everyone called him brave. Anosov received many injuries and also developed illnesses. However, he decided not to resign, so he served as commandant of the fortress. Everyone in the city knew and respected him.
Chapter Five (summary)
Analysis of this chapter allows us to highlight the following main events. The dinner went well, it was pleasant and warm. Vasily Lvovich, Vera’s husband, entertained everyone by telling stories he had written. He took real situations as a basis and exaggerated them to the point of impossibility, so it turned out very funny. With his stories he touched both Nikolai Nikolaevich (Sheina’s brother) and Gustav Ivanovich Friesse, Anna Nikolaevna’s husband. In the midst of poker, the maid called Vera. She gave Sheina a gift - a garnet bracelet. Along with it was a note from Vera's secret admirer. For 7 years now this man has signed his name as G.S.Zh. He congratulated his beloved on Angel Day, and also told the story of this bracelet, which was passed down through the female line in his family. The fan changed the silver parts, but left the stones. Now the garnet bracelet has become gold. The chapter summary proceeds to the description of the sixth chapter.
A turning point
In an essay on the work “Garnet Bracelet. Theme of Love" you can indicate what the plot of the story was. The main character, Vera, is the wife of the prince. She constantly receives letters from a secret admirer. However, one day, instead of letters, a rather expensive gift arrives - a garnet bracelet. The theme of love in Kuprin’s work originates here. Vera regarded such a gift as compromising and told everything to her husband and brother, who easily found who sent it.
It turned out to be a modest civil servant Georgy Zheltkov. He accidentally saw Vera and fell in love with her with all his being. At the same time, Zheltkov was quite pleased with the fact that love was unrequited. The prince appears to him, after which the official feels that he has let Vera down, because he compromised her with an expensive garnet bracelet. The theme of tragic love in the work sounds like a leitmotif. Zheltkov asked Vera for forgiveness in a letter, asked her to listen to a Beethoven sonata and committed suicide - he shot himself.
Chapter Six
The evening continues. Colonel Ponomarev has great success in poker. Some of the guests are playing whist. And Prince Vasily Lvovich decides to show the audience a homemade humorous album. It chronicles events in the family in a comic form. The prince shows the guests the last drawing: “Princess Vera and the telegraph operator in love.” This page is dedicated to the story of how Vera received letters from her secret admirer. The woman does not give him any chance, and the admirer even enters the house under the guise of a dishwasher and chimney sweep. After this mysterious man spends some time in a madhouse, he decides to enter a monastery. Before his death, the admirer bequeaths to Vera 2 telegraph buttons and a bottle of his tears.
Plot of the story
The composition of the story consists of thirteen chapters. At the beginning of the story it is told how difficult it was for Princess Vera Nikolaevna Shein. After all, at the beginning of autumn she was still living in the country, when all the neighbors had long since moved to the city due to bad weather. The young woman could not do this, since her city house was being renovated. But soon the weather calmed down, and the sun even came out. With the warmth, the mood of the main character also improved.
In the second chapter, the reader learns that the princess’s birthday had to be celebrated with pomp, because this was required by her husband’s position. A celebration was scheduled for September 17, which was clearly beyond the family’s means. The thing is that her husband had been bankrupt for a long time, but still did not show it to others, although this affected the family: Vera Nikolaevna not only could not afford anything extra, she even saved on everything. On this day, her sister, with whom the princess was on good terms, came to help the young woman. Anna Nikolaevna Friesse was not at all like her sister, but her relatives were very attached to each other.
In the third chapter, the writer talks about the meeting of the sisters and about a walk by the sea, where Anna gave her sister her valuable gift - a notebook with an antique cover. The fourth chapter takes the reader to that evening when guests began to arrive for the celebration. Among the other invitees was General Anosov, who was a friend of the girls’ father and had known the sisters since childhood. The girls called him grandfather, but they did it sweetly and with great respect and love.
The fifth chapter talks about how fun the evening was in the Sheins’ house. Prince Vasily Shein, Vera’s husband, constantly told stories that happened to his relatives and friends, but he did it so cleverly that the guests no longer even understood where the truth was and where it was fiction. Vera Nikolaevna was about to give the order to serve tea, but after counting the guests, she became very frightened. The princess was a superstitious woman, and there were thirteen guests at the table.
Going out to the maid, she learned that the messenger had brought a gift and a note. Vera Nikolaevna started with a note and immediately, from the first lines, realized that it was from her secret admirer. But she felt a little uneasy. The woman also looked at the bracelet, it was beautiful! But the princess faced an important question about whether she should show this gift to her husband.
The sixth chapter is the story of the princess and the telegraph operator. Vera’s husband showed his album with funny pictures and one of them was the story of his wife and a minor official. But it was not finished yet, so Prince Vasily began to simply tell it, not paying attention to the fact that his wife was against it.
In the seventh chapter, the princess says goodbye to the guests: some of them went home, while others settled on the summer terrace. Taking a moment, the young woman shows the letter from her secret admirer to her husband. General Anosov, leaving in the eighth chapter, listens to the story of Vera Nikolaevna about the letters that the secret sender has been writing for a long time, and then tells the woman that true love is quite rare, but she was lucky. After all, this “madman” loves her with the selfless love that every woman can dream of.
In the ninth chapter, the princess's husband and her brother discuss the bracelet case and come to the conclusion that this story has not only dragged on, but can also negatively affect the family's reputation. Before going to bed, they decide tomorrow to find this secret admirer of Vera Nikolaevna, return the bracelet to him and put an end to this story forever.
In the tenth chapter, Prince Vasily and the girl’s brother Nikolai find Zheltkov and ask to end this story forever. Vera Nikolaevna's husband felt the tragedy of his soul in this man, so he allows him to write a last letter to his wife. After reading this message, the princess immediately realized that this man would definitely do something to himself, for example, kill himself.
In the eleventh chapter, the princess learns about Zheltkov’s death and reads his last letter, where she remembers the following lines: “I tested myself - this is not a disease, not a manic idea - this is love with which God wanted to reward me for something. As I leave, I say in delight: “Hallowed be Thy name.” The princess decides to go to his funeral and look at this man. My husband doesn't mind.
The twelfth and thirteenth chapters are a visit to the deceased Zheltkov, reading his last message and the woman’s disappointment that true love has passed her by.
Chapter seven
Let's move on to the seventh chapter, describing the story “Garnet Bracelet” (summary). General Anosov told his sisters stories, just like in childhood. They looked after him, cut cheese, poured wine. Among other things, he spoke about an affair with a Bulgarian woman with whom he had to lodge, and also about the fact that they had to separate when the regiment moved on. Anosov then said that he had probably never truly loved. The evening came to an end, everyone began to say goodbye, and Anna and Vera went to accompany Anosov to his carriage.
Moral that the reader can take away
It also needs to be said that the theme of love in the work “Garnet Bracelet” was not chosen by chance by Kuprin. The reader can conclude this: in a world where comfort and daily obligations come to the fore, under no circumstances should you take your loved one for granted. We need to value him as much as ourselves, which is what the main character of the story Zheltkov teaches us.
The novel “The Garnet Bracelet” by A. Kuprin is rightfully considered one of the best, revealing the theme of love. The storyline is based on real events. The situation in which the main character of the novel found herself was actually experienced by the mother of the writer’s friend, Lyubimov. This work is named so for a reason. Indeed, for the author, “pomegranate” is a symbol of passionate, but very dangerous love.
Chapter Eight
Vera walked arm in arm with the general, and with Bakhtinsky was Anna, Vera’s sister from the story “The Garnet Bracelet.” The chapter summaries do not go into detail about their conversation. We will convey only some of its moments. They said that at this time women and men are not capable of true love. The general told 2 stories about how this feeling still occurs, but sometimes takes strange forms. The first story is about how a young ensign fell in love with an old libertine. This woman got tired of him very quickly. The ensign wanted to commit suicide by throwing himself under a train. However, at the last moment someone grabbed him. The ensign's wrists were cut off, he became a beggar and after a while froze to death. The second story is about how a husband loved his wife, who openly cheated on him and did not care about him, although he was an honest and brave officer. Vera reported about her admirer, to which the general said that perhaps her life had intersected with unselfish true love. Are you wondering how the summary of Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet” will end? We recommend reading it to the end - the ending is very interesting.
Main thought
If you look closely at Kuprin’s work, you can see a whole series of short stories that reflect his search for the ideal of love.
These include:
- "Shulamith";
- "On the road";
- "Helenochka."
The final piece of this love cycle, “Pomegranate Bracelet,” showed, alas, not the deep feeling that the writer was looking for and would like to fully reflect. However, in its strength, Zheltkov’s painful unrequited love is not inferior at all, but on the contrary, surpasses the relationships and feelings of other heroes.
His hot and passionate emotions in the story are contrasted with the calm that reigns between the Sheins. The author emphasizes that only good friendship remains between them, and the spiritual flame has long died out.
Zheltkov is supposed to stir up Vera’s calm state. He does not evoke reciprocal feelings in a woman, but awakens excitement in her. If throughout the book they were expressed as premonitions, then at the end obvious contradictions rage in her soul.
Sheina feels a sense of danger already when she first sees a gift sent to her and a letter from a secret admirer. She involuntarily compares the modest gold bracelet, decorated with five bright red garnets, to blood. This is one of the key symbols
, marking the future suicide of the unhappy lover.
The author admitted that he had never written anything more sensitive and subtle. And the analysis of the work “Garnet Bracelet” confirms this. The bitterness of the story intensifies
autumn landscape, the atmosphere of farewell to summer dachas, cold and clear days. Even Vera’s husband appreciated the nobility of Zheltkov’s soul; he allowed the telegraph operator to write her the last letter. Every line in it is a poem about love, a real ode.
Alexander Kuprin, the author of the story “The Garnet Bracelet,” is considered a recognized master of love prose. “Love is unselfish, selfless, not expecting a reward, the one about which it is said “strong as death.” Love, for which to accomplish any feat, to give one’s life, to undergo torture is not work at all, but one joy,” - this is the kind of love that touched an ordinary official of the middle level, Zheltkov.
He fell in love with Vera once and for all. And not ordinary love, but the kind that happens once in a lifetime, divine. Vera does not attach importance to the feelings of her admirer and lives life to the fullest. She marries a quiet, calm, good man from all sides, Prince Shein. And her quiet, calm life begins, not overshadowed by anything, neither sadness nor joy.
A special role is assigned to Vera’s uncle, General Anosov. Kuprin puts into his mouth the words that are the theme of the story: “...maybe your path in life, Verochka, was crossed by exactly the kind of love that women dream about and that men are no longer capable of.” Thus, Kuprin in his story wants to show the story of love, albeit unrequited, but nevertheless, this unrequitedness did not become less strong and did not turn into hatred. According to General Anosov, every person dreams of such love, but not everyone receives it. But Vera, in her family life, does not have such love. There is another thing - respect, mutual, for each other. Kuprin in his story sought to show readers that such sublime love is already a thing of the past; there are only a few people left, such as the telegraph operator Zheltkov, who are capable of it. But many, the author emphasizes, are not at all able to understand the deep meaning of love.
And Vera herself does not understand that she is destined to be loved. Of course, she is a lady who occupies a certain position in society, a countess. Probably, such love could not have a successful outcome. Kuprin probably himself understands that Vera is not able to connect her life with the “little” man Zheltkov. Although it still leaves her one chance to live the rest of her life in love. Vera missed her chance to be happy.
Chapter Nine
When Vera returned to the house, she heard her husband Vasily Lvovich talking with her brother Nikolai Nikolaevich. Before leaving, Vera asked her husband to look at the fan’s gift, and now they discussed it. Nikolai was very categorical. He wanted to put an end to the notes so that they could not tarnish his sister's reputation. Nikolai Nikolaevich reproached the Sheins for not taking this act seriously, although it could have led to sad consequences. Vasily Lvovich and the princess’s brother decided to find the mysterious admirer the next day, return the gift and ask not to bother Vera Nikolaevna anymore with letters.
Chapter ten
The next day Nikolai Nikolaevich and Shein visited Zheltkov, who was renting an apartment. Going up to him, they found a young man, 30-35 years old, good-looking, blond. This is exactly how Alexander Kuprin described it (“Garnet Bracelet”). A summary will not give you an answer to the question about the meaning of this person’s surname. However, by reading the analysis below, you will learn about this too. They introduced themselves, but no one sat down, despite the fact that Zheltkov offered to do so twice. Nikolai asked Vera’s admirer not to write to her anymore and returned the gift. Zheltkov agreed, but he only wanted to talk with Vasily. He explained to Vera’s wife that he loved his wife, but he was very sorry and would not write to her anymore. Then he asked permission to write a final letter to Vera. The princess's brother was categorically against it, but her husband agreed. Zheltkov promised that he would not be heard or seen again. Shein told his wife about everything, and she had a premonition that the admirer would kill himself.
Impossibility of happiness
Kuprin in his story talks about beautiful and unrequited love - this must be mentioned when analyzing the work “Garnet Bracelet”. The theme of love in the story occupies a central place, because its main character, Zheltkov, experiences unrequited feelings. He loves Vera, but cannot be with her because she is completely indifferent to him. Besides this, all circumstances are against them being together. Firstly, they occupy different positions on the social ladder. Zheltkov is poor, he is a representative of a completely different class. Secondly, Vera is bound by marriage. She would never agree to cheat on her husband, because she is attached to him with all her soul. And these are just two reasons why Zheltkov cannot be with Vera.
Chapter Eleven
Vera did not like newspapers, but she accidentally came across a note that Zheltkov shot himself in his apartment due to embezzlement of government funds. The woman was surprised that she sensed his death in advance. In the evening she was given a letter written by a fan. He apologized for disturbing her and being a nuisance to her for so long. He admitted that he loved her, but promised that he would leave soon and she would never see him again. Zheltkov asked Vera to play a sonata from Beethoven’s orchestra (D major No. 2). The woman told her husband that something terrible had intervened in their lives. He replied that he believed in the feelings of her admirer, that he was not crazy at all. The princess decided to look at him, asking permission from her husband, since she did not want to offend him.
The history of the creation of the story “Garnet Bracelet”
Alexander Ivanovich began writing his new story, which the famous writer Kuprin conceived as a novella, in the autumn of 1910 in the Ukrainian city of Odessa. He thought that he could write it in a few days, and even reports this in one of his letters to his friend, the literary critic Klestov. He wrote to him that very soon he would send his new manuscript to a familiar book publisher. But the writer was wrong.
The story went beyond the required plot, and therefore took the writer not several days, as he planned, but several months. It is also known that the work is based on a story that actually happened. Alexander Ivanovich reports this in a letter to the philologist and friend Fyodor Batyushkov, when, describing to him how the work on the manuscript is going, they remind him of the history itself, which formed the basis of the work:
“Do you remember this? - the sad story of a small telegraph official P.P. Zheltikov, who was so hopelessly, touchingly and selflessly in love with Lyubimov’s wife (D.N. is now the governor in Vilna).”
He admitted in a letter to his friend Batyushkov, dated November 21, 1910, that work on a new work was going hard. He wrote:
“Now I’m writing “Bracelet,” but it’s not going well. The main reason is my ignorance of music... And the secular tone!
It is known that in December the manuscript was not yet ready, but work was intensively going on on it, and in one of the letters Kuprin himself gives an assessment of his manuscript, saying that the result is a rather “cute” thing that you don’t even want to crumple up .
The manuscript was published in 1911, when it was published in the magazine “Earth”. At that time, it also contained a dedication to Kuprin’s friend, the writer Klestov, who took an active part in its creation. The story “The Garnet Bracelet” also had an epigraph - the first line of music from one of Beethoven’s sonnets.
Chapter Twelve
Sheina arrived at his house in a carriage and asked to see Zheltkov. The hostess saw her off. Vera saw him, and then remembered the words of General Anosov about true love. The woman came up and gave her admirer a friendly kiss. When Sheina was about to leave, the hostess suddenly detained her to give her a note from the deceased. Zheltkov told her to give it to her if the lady came. It said that the best was Sonata No. 2 from his orchestra. Sheina suddenly began to cry. Although she told the hostess that she always reacts to death this way, in fact Vera cried for Zheltkov. The story “The Garnet Bracelet” is already approaching its end. The chapter summary ends with the events described in Chapter 13.
Idea of the work
The idea of the story “The Garnet Bracelet” is faith in the power of a true, all-consuming feeling, which is not afraid of death itself. When they try to take away the only thing Zheltkov has - his love, when they want to deprive him of the opportunity to see his beloved, then he decides to voluntarily die. Thus, Kuprin is trying to say that life without love is meaningless. This is a feeling that knows no temporary, social or other barriers. No wonder the main name is Vera. Kuprin believes that his readers will wake up and understand that a person is not only rich in material values, but also rich in his inner world and soul. The red thread running through the entire story is Zheltkov’s words “Hallowed be Thy name” - this is the idea of the work. Every woman dreams of hearing such words, but great love is given only by the Lord and not by everyone.
In the life of every person, love always occupies a special place. Poets and writers glorify this feeling. After all, it is precisely this that makes one feel the joy of being, and elevates a person above circumstances and obstacles, even if love is unrequited. A.I. Kuprin is no exception. His story “The Garnet Bracelet” is a masterpiece of world literary heritage.
Chapter Thirteen
When Sheina returned home, she found pianist Jenny Reiter. The woman was upset. She asked Jenny to play something and went out into the flower garden. Sheina was sure that she would play Beethoven’s sonata. And so it happened. The princess heard words in the music that brought her peace. Vera cried, leaning against the acacia tree. When Reiter came to her, the princess kissed her and said that now he had forgiven her and everything would be fine. This is how music influenced her. Most likely, Zheltkov wanted to achieve exactly this, since he always wanted only the well-being and happiness of his beloved. This concludes Kuprin’s “Garnet Bracelet”. We have outlined a summary of the chapters; let us now move on to the analysis of the story.
An unusual story on an ordinary topic
The theme of love in the work “Garnet Bracelet” occupies the main place. The story reveals the most secret corners of the human soul, which is why it is loved by readers of various age groups. In the work, the author shows what a person is really capable of for the sake of true love. Every reader hopes that he will be able to feel exactly the same as the main character of this story. The theme of love in the work “The Garnet Bracelet” is, first of all, the theme of relationships between the sexes, dangerous and ambiguous for any writer. After all, it is very difficult to avoid banality when describing something that has already been said a thousand times. However, the writer manages to touch even the most experienced reader with his story.
