Images of the main characters in the story of Olesya Kuprin. A.I. Kuprin "Olesya": description, characters, analysis of the work

History of creation

A. Kuprin's story "Olesya" was first published in 1898 in the newspaper "Kievlyanin" and was accompanied by a subtitle. "From memories of Volyn". It is curious that the writer first sent the manuscript to the Russian Wealth magazine, since before that the Kuprin story “Forest Wilderness”, also dedicated to Polesie, had already been published in this magazine. Thus, the author counted on creating the effect of continuation. However, "Russian wealth" for some reason refused to release "Olesya" (perhaps the publishers were not satisfied with the size of the story, because by that time it was the author's largest work), and the cycle planned by the author did not work out. But later, in 1905, "Olesya" came out in an independent edition, accompanied by an introduction from the author, which told the story of the creation of the work. Later, a full-fledged "Polesye cycle" was released, the apex and decoration of which was "Olesya".

The author's introduction has been preserved only in the archives. In it, Kuprin said that he was a guest in Polissya with a friend of the landowner Poroshin, he heard from him many legends and tales related to local beliefs. Among other things, Poroshin said that he himself was in love with a local witch. Kuprin will later tell this story in the story, at the same time including in it all the mysticism of local legends, the mysterious mystical atmosphere and the poignant realism of the situation surrounding him, difficult fate Polish inhabitants.

Analysis of the work

The plot of the story

Compositionally, "Olesya" is a retrospective story, that is, the author-narrator returns in his memories to the events that took place in his life many years ago.

The basis of the plot and the leading theme of the story is the love between the city nobleman (panych) Ivan Timofeevich and a young resident of Polissya, Olesya. Love is bright, but tragic, since its death is inevitable due to a number of circumstances - social inequality, the abyss between the characters.

According to the plot, the hero of the story, Ivan Timofeevich, spends several months in a remote village, on the edge of Volyn Polissya (the territory called Little Russia in tsarist times, today - the west of the Pripyat lowland, in northern Ukraine). A city dweller, he first tries to instill culture in the local peasants, heals them, teaches them to read, but the classes are unsuccessful, as people are overwhelmed by worries and they are not interested in either education or development. Ivan Timofeevich increasingly goes hunting in the forest, admires the local landscapes, sometimes listens to the stories of his servant Yarmola, who talks about witches and sorcerers.

Lost one day while hunting, Ivan finds himself in a forest hut - the same witch from Yarmola's stories - Manuilikha and her granddaughter Olesya - lives here.

The second time the hero comes to the inhabitants of the hut in the spring. Olesya tells fortunes to him, predicting an early unhappy love and adversity, up to a suicide attempt. The girl also shows mystical abilities - she can influence a person, inspiring her will or fear, stop the blood. Panych falls in love with Olesya, but she herself remains emphatically cold with him. He is especially angry that the panych stands up for her with her grandmother before the local police officer, who threatened to disperse the inhabitants of the forest hut for their supposed divination and harm to people.

Ivan falls ill and does not appear in the forest hut for a week, but when he arrives, it is noticeable that Olesya is happy to see him, and the feelings of both flare up. A month of secret dates and quiet, bright happiness passes. Despite the obvious and perceived inequality of lovers, Ivan makes an offer to Olesya. She refuses, arguing that she, a servant of the devil, should not go to church, and therefore, get married, entering into a marriage union. Nevertheless, the girl decides to go to church to make a pleasant panycha. Local residents, however, did not appreciate Olesya's impulse and attacked her, beating her badly.

Ivan hurries to the forest house, where the beaten, defeated and morally crushed Olesya tells him that her fears about the impossibility of their union have been confirmed - they cannot be together, so she and her grandmother will leave her house. Now the village is even more hostile to Olesya and Ivan - any whim of nature will be associated with her sabotage and sooner or later they will be killed.

Before leaving for the city, Ivan again goes to the forest, but in the hut he finds only red beads of woods.

Heroes of the story

Olesya

The main character of the story is the forest sorceress Olesya (her real name Alena is reported by her grandmother Manuilikha, and Olesya is the local version of the name). A beautiful, tall brunette with intelligent dark eyes immediately attracts Ivan's attention. Natural beauty in a girl it is combined with a natural mind - despite the fact that the girl cannot even read, there is perhaps more tact and depth in her than in the city.

Olesya is sure that she is “not like everyone else” and soberly understands that for this dissimilarity she can suffer from the people. Ivan does not believe too much in Olesya's unusual abilities, believing that there is more centuries-old superstition here. However, he cannot deny the mysticism of the image of Olesya.

Olesya is well aware of the impossibility of her happiness with Ivan, even if he makes a strong-willed decision and marries her, therefore it is she who boldly and simply manages their relationship: firstly, she takes self-control, trying not to be imposed on the panych, and secondly, she decides to part seeing that they are not a couple. Secular life would be unacceptable for Olesya, her husband would inevitably become burdened by her after it became clear that there were no common interests. Olesya does not want to be a burden, to tie Ivan hand and foot, and leaves on her own - this is the heroism and strength of the girl.

Ivan Timofeevich

Ivan is a poor, educated nobleman. City boredom leads him to Polissya, where at first he tries to do some business, but in the end, only hunting remains from his occupation. He treats the legends about witches like fairy tales - a healthy skepticism is justified by his education.

(Ivan and Olesya)

Ivan Timofeevich - sincere and a kind person, he is able to feel the beauty of nature, and therefore Olesya at first interests him not as beautiful girl, but as interesting person. He wonders how it turned out that nature itself brought her up, and she came out so tender and delicate, unlike rude, uncouth peasants. How did it happen that they, religious, although superstitious, are ruder and tougher than Olesya, although it is she who should be the embodiment of evil. For Ivan, a meeting with Olesya is not a lordly fun and a difficult summer love adventure, although he understands that they are not a couple - in any case, society will be stronger than their love, will destroy their happiness. The personification of society in this case is unimportant - be it a blind and stupid peasant force, be it urban residents, Ivan's colleagues. When he thinks of Oles as his future wife, in a city dress, trying to keep up a small talk with his colleagues, he simply comes to a standstill. The loss of Olesya for Ivan is the same tragedy as finding her as a wife. This remains outside the scope of the story, but most likely Olesya's prediction came true in full - after her departure, he felt bad, even thinking about intentionally leaving life.

Final conclusion

The culmination of events in the story falls on a big holiday - the Trinity. This is not an accidental coincidence, it emphasizes and enhances the tragedy with which Olesya's bright fairy tale is trampled by people who hate her. There is a sarcastic paradox in this: the servant of the devil, Olesya, the sorceress, turns out to be more open to love than the crowd of people whose religion fits into the thesis "God is Love."

The author's conclusions sound tragic - the joint happiness of two people is impossible, when happiness for each of them individually is different. For Ivan, happiness is impossible apart from civilization. For Olesya - in isolation from nature. But at the same time, the author argues, civilization is cruel, society can poison relations between people, morally and physically destroy them, but nature cannot.

The image of Olesya makes the reader remember the amazing fairy-tale beauties who, in addition to their beauty, had many talents. The girl grew up in unity with nature and is close to it. It is no coincidence that already at the moment of acquaintance in the first place the protagonist draws attention to the birds that the girl brings into the house. She herself calls them “tame”, although they are ordinary wild forest birds.
Olesya compares favorably with local village girls. Here is how the author says about this: “There was nothing in it like local “girls”, whose faces, under ugly bandages covering their foreheads from above, and from below their mouths and chins, wear such a monotonous, frightened expression. My stranger, a tall brunette about twenty or twenty-five years old, carried herself lightly and slenderly. A spacious white shirt freely and beautifully wrapped around her young, healthy breasts. original beauty her face, once seen, it was impossible to forget ... ".
It is no wonder that the main character admires the girl, cannot take his eyes off her. Olesya is considered a witch. She really has skills that are not common to most ordinary people. Secret knowledge was passed down from generation to generation only among the elite. Olesya's grandmother and mother are just the bearers of such knowledge, so the girl herself is considered a sorceress.
Olesya grew up away from society, so lies, hypocrisy, hypocrisy are alien to her. Local residents consider Olesya a witch, but how ignoble, cruel and heartless they themselves are against her background! The protagonist of the story, upon closer acquaintance with Olesya, becomes convinced of how pure, sublime, and kind the girl is. She has an amazing gift, but she would never use it for evil. There is gossip about Oles and her grandmother, they are blamed for all the troubles that only happen to local residents. The ignorance, stupidity and malice of the latter contrast sharply with the moral beauty of Olesya. The girl is as pure as the nature around her,
Olesya says that she and her grandmother do not maintain relations with the people around them at all: “Do we really touch anyone! We don't need people. Once a year, I only go to the town to buy soap and salt ... Yes, here's another tea for my grandmother - she loves tea with me. And even if you don’t see anyone at all.” Thus, the girl, as it were, draws a line between herself and others. The hostile wariness of others towards the “Witchers” leads to such a removal. Olesya and her grandmother agree not to maintain relations with anyone at all, if only to remain free and independent from someone else's will.
Olesya is very smart. Despite the fact that she received almost no education, she is very well versed in life. She is very inquisitive, she is interested in everything that a new acquaintance can tell her. The love that arose between Ivan Timofeevich and Olesya is a sincere, pure and beautiful phenomenon. The girl really deserves love. She is a very special being, full of life, tenderness, compassion. Olesya gives all of herself to her beloved, demanding nothing in return.
Olesya teaches Ivan Timofeevich a magnificent lesson in moral purity. The master falls in love with a beautiful witch and even offers her
become his wife. Olesya refuses, because she understands perfectly well that she does not belong next to an educated and respected person in society. She understands that later Ivan Timofeevich may regret his rash act. And then he will involuntarily begin to blame the girl for the fact that she does not correspond to the idea familiar to his society.
She willingly sacrifices herself in order to fulfill his ridiculous, in general, requirement - to attend church. Olesya commits this act, which entails such tragic consequences. The locals were hostile to the “witch” for daring to appear in the holy place. Olesya's occasional threat is taken too seriously by the locals. And now, if something bad happens, Olesya and her grandmother will be to blame.
The girl sacrifices herself even when she decides to leave suddenly, without telling her beloved anything. This also shows the nobility of her character.
The whole image of Olesya testifies to her purity, kindness and nobility. That is why it becomes so hard when you find out about the separation of a girl from her beloved. Nevertheless, it is precisely such an ending that is a pattern. The love of Olesya and the young master has no future, the girl understands this very well and does not want to be an obstacle to the well-being of her loved one.

The image of Olesya makes the reader remember the amazing fairy-tale beauties who, in addition to their beauty, had many talents. This amazing character combines intelligence, beauty, responsiveness, disinterestedness and willpower. The image of the forest sorceress is shrouded in mystery. Her fate is unusual, life away from people in an abandoned forest hut. The poetic nature of Polissya has a beneficial effect on the girl. Isolation from civilization allows it to preserve the integrity and purity of nature. On the one hand, she is naive, because she does not know elementary things, yielding in this to the intelligent and educated Ivan Timofeevich. But on the other hand, Olesya has some kind of higher knowledge that is inaccessible to an ordinary person . .Olesya compares favorably with local village girls. Here is how the author says about this: “There was nothing in it like local “girls”, whose faces, under ugly bandages covering their foreheads from above, and from below their mouths and chins, wear such a monotonous, frightened expression. My stranger, a tall brunette about twenty or twenty-five years old, carried herself lightly and slenderly. A spacious white shirt freely and beautifully wrapped around her young, healthy breasts. The original beauty of her face, once seen, could not be forgotten...”. Olesya grew up away from society, so lies, hypocrisy, hypocrisy are alien to her. Local residents consider Olesya a witch, but how ignoble, cruel and heartless they themselves are against her background! The protagonist of the story, upon closer acquaintance with Olesya, becomes convinced of how pure, sublime, and kind the girl is. She has an amazing gift, but she would never use it for evil. The girl is as pure as the nature around her, Olesya says that she and her grandmother do not maintain relations with people around her at all. Thus, the girl, as it were, draws a line between themselves and others. The hostile wariness of others towards the “Witchers” leads to such a removal. Olesya and her grandmother agree not to maintain relations with anyone at all, if only to remain free and independent from someone else's will. Olesya is very smart. Despite the fact that she received almost no education, she is very well versed in life. She is very inquisitive, she is interested in everything that a new acquaintance can tell her. The love that arose between Ivan Timofeevich and Olesya is a sincere, pure and beautiful phenomenon. The girl really deserves love. She is a very special being, full of life, tenderness, compassion. Olesya gives all of herself to her beloved, without demanding anything in return. In the love of the "savage" and the civilized hero, from the very beginning one feels doom, which permeates the narrative with sadness and hopelessness. The ideas and views of lovers turn out to be too different, which lead to separation, despite the strength and sincerity of their feelings. When the urban intellectual Ivan Timofeevich, who got lost in the forest while hunting, saw Olesya for the first time, he was struck not only by the bright and original beauty of the girl. He unconsciously felt her unusualness, her dissimilarity to the rest of the village girls. In Olesya's appearance, her speech, her behavior, there is something witchcraft, which is not subject to logical explanation. She readily sacrifices herself in order to fulfill his ridiculous, in general, demand - to attend church. Olesya commits this act, which entails such tragic consequences. The locals were hostile to the “witch” for daring to appear in the holy place. Olesya's occasional threat is taken too seriously by the locals. And now, if something bad happens, Olesya and her grandmother will be to blame.
The girl sacrifices herself even when she decides to leave suddenly, without telling her beloved anything. This also shows the nobility of her character. The whole image of Olesya testifies to her purity, kindness and nobility. That is why it becomes so hard when you find out about the separation of a girl from her beloved. Nevertheless, it is precisely such an ending that is a pattern. The love of Olesya and the young master has no future, the girl understands this very well and does not want to be an obstacle to the well-being of her loved one.

The writing

The theme of love is the main theme in the work of A. I. Kuprin. It is love that makes it possible to realize the most intimate beginnings. human personality. Especially dear to the writer are strong natures who know how to sacrifice themselves for the sake of feeling. But A. Kuprin sees that a person in the modern world has become trivialized, vulgarized, entangled in everyday problems. The writer dreams of a person who is not subject to the harmful influence of the environment, and embodies his dream in the image of the Polissya sorceress Olesya, the heroine of the story of the same name.

Olesya does not know what civilization is, time in the thickets of Polesie seems to have stopped. The girl sincerely believes in legends and conspiracies, believes that her family is connected with the devil. The norms of behavior accepted in society are absolutely alien to her, she is natural and romantic. But not only the exotic image of the heroine and the situation described in the story attract the attention of the writer. The work becomes an attempt to analyze the eternal that should underlie any high feeling.

AI Kuprin pays especially close attention to how feeling develops in the characters of the story. The moment of their meeting is wonderful, the growth of sincere affection in their hearts is amazing. AI Kuprin admires the purity of their intimacy, but does not make this romantic love serene, leads the heroes to severe trials.

Love for Olesya becomes a turning point in the life of Ivan Timofeevich, a city dweller. His original focus exclusively on his world is gradually overcome, the need becomes the fulfillment of the desire to “be together” with another person. His feeling is probably based on "vague inclinations", but very soon it is reinforced by spiritual intimacy. Kuprin accurately conveys the inner transformation of the hero's personality, the source of which is nature itself.

One of the most important phenomena of love for Kuprin is that even a premonition of happiness is always overshadowed by the fear of losing it. On the way to the happiness of the heroes are the difference in their public position and upbringing, the weakness of the hero and the tragic prediction of Olesya. The thirst for harmonious union is generated by deep experiences.

At the beginning of the story, Ivan Timofeevich seems soft, sympathetic and sincere. But Olesya immediately catches a weakness in him, saying: "Your kindness is not good, not cordial." And the hero of the story really does a lot of harm to his beloved. His whim is the reason that Olesya goes to church, although he understands the destructiveness of this act. The lethargy of the hero's feelings brings trouble to the sincere girl. But Ivan Timofeevich himself quickly calms down. At the moment when he talks about the most seemingly exciting episode of his life, he does not feel guilt and remorse, which speaks of the relative poverty of his inner peace.

Olesya is the complete opposite of Ivan Timofeevich. In her image, Kuprin embodies his ideas about the ideal of a woman. She absorbed the laws by which nature lives, her soul is not corrupted by civilization. The writer creates an exclusively romantic image of the "daughter of the forests". Olesya's life passes in isolation from people, and therefore she does not care about what many devote their lives to modern people: fame, wealth, power, rumor. Emotions are the main motives for her actions. Moreover- Olesya is a sorceress, she knows the secrets of the human subconscious. Her sincerity, the absence of falsehood, are also emphasized in her appearance, and in gestures, movements, a smile.

Olesya's love becomes the greatest gift that can give life to the hero of the story. In this love there is both selflessness and courage, on the one hand, and contradiction, on the other. Olesya initially understands the tragedy of the outcome of their relationship, but is ready to give herself to her lover. Even leaving her native places, beaten and dishonored, Olesya does not curse the one who killed her, but blesses those brief moments of happiness that she experienced.

genuine meaning love, the writer sees in the desire to disinterestedly give his chosen one the fullness of feelings that he is capable of loving person. A person is imperfect, but the power of love can, at least for a short time, restore to him the sharpness of sensations and naturalness, which only people like Olesya have preserved in themselves. The strength of the soul of the heroine of the story is able to bring harmony even in such contradictory relationships as those described in the story. Love is contempt for suffering and even death. It's a pity, but only a select few are capable of such a feeling.

The theme of love is the main theme in the work of A.I. Kuprin. It is love that makes it possible to realize the most intimate principles of the human personality. Especially dear to the writer are strong natures who know how to sacrifice themselves for the sake of feeling. But A. Kuprin saw that a person in the world of his day was shredded, vulgarized, entangled in everyday problems. The writer dreamed of a person who is not subject to the harmful influence of the environment, and embodied his dream in the form of the Polissya sorceress Olesya, the heroine of the story of the same name.

Olesya does not know what civilization is, time in the thickets of Polesie seems to have stopped. The girl sincerely believes in legends and conspiracies, believes that her family is connected with the devil. The norms of behavior accepted in society are absolutely alien to her, she is natural and romantic.

AI Kuprin paid especially close attention to how feeling develops in the characters of the story. The moment of their meeting is wonderful, the growth of sincere affection in their hearts is amazing. The author admires the purity of their feelings, but does not make this romantic love serene, leading the heroes to severe trials.

Love for Olesya becomes a turning point in the life of Ivan Timofeevich, a city dweller. Kuprin accurately conveys the inner transformation of the hero's personality, the source of which is nature itself.

One of the most important phenomena of love for Kuprin is that even a premonition of happiness is always overshadowed by the fear of losing it. On the way to the happiness of the heroes are the difference in their social status and upbringing, the weakness of the hero and the tragic prediction of Olesya.

At the beginning of the story, Ivan Timofeevich seems soft, sympathetic and sincere. But Olesya immediately catches a weakness in him, saying: "Your kindness is not good, not cordial." And the hero of the story really does a lot of harm to his beloved. The lethargy of the hero's feelings brings trouble to the sincere girl. But he quickly calms down.

Olesya is the complete opposite of Ivan Timofeevich. In her image, Kuprin embodied his ideas about the ideal of a woman. She absorbed the laws by which nature lives, her soul is not corrupted by civilization.

Olesya's life passes in isolation from people, and therefore she does not care about what many modern people devote their lives to: fame, wealth, power, rumor. The main motives of her actions are emotions.

Olesya's love becomes the greatest gift that can give life to the hero of the story. In this love there is selflessness and courage and contradiction. Olesya initially understands the tragedy of the outcome of their relationship, but is ready to give herself to her lover. Even leaving her native places, beaten and dishonored, Olesya does not curse the one who killed her, but blesses those brief moments of happiness that she experienced.

The writer sees the true meaning of love in the desire to disinterestedly give his chosen one the fullness of feelings that a loving person is capable of. A person is imperfect, but the power of love can, at least for a short time, restore to him the sharpness of sensations and naturalness, which only people like Olesya have preserved in themselves. Love is contempt for suffering and even death. It's a pity, but only the Chosen are capable of such a feeling.

Other writings on this work

At the end of the nineteenth century, A.I. Kuprin was the manager of the estate in the Volyn province. Impressed by the beautiful landscapes of that region and from dramatic fate of its inhabitants, he wrote a cycle of stories. The decoration of this collection was the story "Olesya", which tells about nature and true love.

The story "Olesya" is one of the first works of Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin. It impresses with its depth of images and unusual plot twist. This story takes the reader to the end of the nineteenth century, when the old way of Russian life collided with extraordinary technological progress.

The work begins with a description of the nature of the region, where the protagonist Ivan Timofeevich arrived on business of the estate. It's winter outside: blizzards are replaced by thaws. The way of life of the inhabitants of Polissya seems to Ivan, accustomed to the bustle of the city, unusual: the atmosphere of superstitious fears and fear of innovation still reigns in the villages. Time seems to have stopped in this village. It is not surprising that it was here that the main character met the sorceress Olesya. Their love is initially doomed: too different characters appear before the reader. Olesya is a Polissya beauty, proud and determined. In the name of love, she is ready to go to great lengths. Olesya is devoid of cunning and self-interest, selfishness is alien to her. Ivan Timofeevich, on the contrary, is incapable of making fateful decisions, in the story he appears as a timid person, unsure of his actions. He does not fully imagine his life with Olesya, as with his wife.

From the very beginning, Olesya, who has the gift of foresight, feels the inevitability tragic end their love. But she is ready to take the brunt of the circumstances. Love gives her confidence in her own strength, helps her to withstand all the hardships and hardships. It is worth noting that in the image of the forest sorceress Olesya, A.I. Kuprin embodied his ideal of a woman: decisive and courageous, fearless and sincerely loving.

The background of the relationship between the two main characters of the story was nature: it mirrors the feelings of Olesya and Ivan Timofeevich. Their life turns into a fairy tale for a moment, but only for a moment. The culmination of the story is the arrival of Olesya to the village church, from where locals chase her away. On the night of the same day, a terrible thunderstorm flares up: heavy hail destroyed half of the crop. Against the backdrop of these events, Olesya and her grandmother understand that the superstitious villagers will certainly blame them for this. So they decide to leave.

Olesya's last conversation with Ivan takes place in a hut in the forest. Olesya does not tell him where she is going and asks him not to look for her. In memory of herself, the girl gives Ivan a string of red corals.

The story makes you think about what love is in the understanding of people, what a person is capable of in the name of it. Olesya's love is self-sacrifice, it is her love, it seems to me, that is worthy of admiration and respect. As for Ivan Timofeevich, the cowardice of this hero amuses one to doubt the sincerity of his feelings. After all, if you really love someone, then you will not allow your loved one to suffer.

Brief analysis of Olesya Kuprin's story for grade 11

The work "Olesya" was written by Kuprin, when people involved in herbal treatment were treated with caution. And although many came to them for treatment, they did not particularly let Orthodox peasants into their circle, considering them sorcerers, blaming them for all their troubles. So it happened with the girl Olesya and her grandmother Manuilikha.

Olesya grew up in the middle of the forest, learned many secrets associated with herbs, learned to tell fortunes, speak illnesses. The girl grew up disinterested, open, reasonable. She simply could not help but like Ivan. Everything contributed to the establishment of their relationship, which grew into love. Nature itself helped to develop love events, the sun shone, the breeze played with foliage, birds chirped around.

Ivan Timofeevich, a naive young man, having met the direct Olesya, decided to subjugate her. This is seen in the way he persuades her to attend church. To which the girl agrees, knowing that this cannot be done. Persuades her to leave with him and marry him. He even thought about his grandmother, if she does not want to live with us, there are almshouses in the city. For Olesya, this state of affairs is completely unacceptable, this betrayal in relation to close person. She grew up in harmony with nature and for her many things of civilization are incomprehensible. Despite the fact that young people meet and at first glance they are doing well, Olesya does not trust her feelings. Fortune telling on the cards, she sees that there will be no continuation of their relationship. Ivan will never be able to understand and accept her for who she is, and the society in which he lives even more so. People like Ivan Timofeevich love to subjugate themselves, but not everyone succeeds in this, and rather they themselves go on about the circumstances.

Olesya and her grandmother make a wise decision so as not to break their lives and Ivan Timofeevich secretly leave their homes. People from different social groups it is difficult to find a common language and even more difficult to integrate into a new environment. Throughout the work, the author shows how different these two lovers are. The only thing that connects them is love. In Olesya she is pure and disinterested, in Ivan she is selfish. On the opposition of two personalities, the whole work is built.

Analysis of the story for grade 11

The painting “Goalkeeper” depicts a scene familiar to our yards: boys play football. The artist did not show us the whole field, but focused on only one character - the goalkeeper of one of the teams.