>Characteristics of heroes Scarlet Sails
Characteristics of the hero Assol
Assol is the main character of Alexander Green's story " Scarlet Sails", a girl whose dream came true. Assol lost her mother early, and she was raised by her father, the stern and reserved Longren, who, however, dearly loved his daughter. Their fellow villagers avoided them, since according to the tavern owner, Longren was a cruel and heartless person. He did not lend a helping hand to him when he was in trouble and could have drowned. And the tavern owner kept silent about the fact that it was his fault that Mary, Assol’s mother and Longren’s lover, died. Since then, Assol and her father were disliked in the village. Moreover, Assol became known as crazy after her story about her meeting with Egle, a collector of fairy tales, who predicted to her that in due time a brave prince would come for her on a white ship with scarlet sails. For this, she was called nothing less than “ship’s Assol.”
By nature this was a girl with a sensitive imagination and kind hearted. She could speak to trees and bushes as if they were alive, take care of her little brothers, and sincerely dream. When she grew up, she became a real beauty. Everything Assol put on seemed new and charming. Her face was childishly naive and radiant, and she never for a moment forgot about her dream, vividly imagining it. Although Longren hoped that time will pass, and she will forget the words of the storyteller Egle.
The ability to dream selflessly and ignore the evil ridicule of others did the girl good. In fact, someone special came into her life and put a ring on her finger while she slept. After this, she became even more confident that “he” would soon appear in her life. And indeed, soon the same ship with scarlet sails appeared in the village of Kaperna, and with it Arthur Gray - the captain of the ship, a brave sailor and simply a noble man, who, having heard the story about Assol and her dream, decided to make it come true. This happened because he accidentally saw her sleeping and fell in love with her at first sight. Having put the ring on her finger, he began to find out everything about Assol, and thus learned about her dream.
After she saw him too, she also immediately fell in love with him. She accepted Gray's offer to leave the village with him on a ship, not forgetting to take her father with her.
Alexander Green created Scarlet Sails in those years when the world order around him was collapsing. He wrote a fairy tale about a poor, offended and seemingly homeless girl, when he himself was almost poor and hungry.
The writer took the notebook with the manuscript of this book with him to the front when he, a thirty-nine-year-old, sick, exhausted man, was called up to fight the White Poles (1919). He carried the treasured notebook with him to hospitals and typhoid barracks. And despite everything, he believed that “Scarlet Sails” would take place. The story itself is permeated with this faith.
Her idea was born back in 1916, seemingly by accident. From a childhood dream (the sea) and a random impression (a toy boat with a sail, seen in a store window), Greene gave birth to the main images of the story, which he called “an extravaganza.” This is what they usually call theatrical performance fabulous content. But “Scarlet Sails” is not a play or a fairy tale, but the real truth. After all, villages like Kaperna are not at all uncommon. The heroes of the story are not like those in fairy tales, even those like Egle, only little Assol could mistake him for a wizard. And yet, despite the realism of the characters and paintings, “Scarlet Sails” is an extravaganza.
The image of Assol in the story “Scarlet Sails”
The main characters are Assol and Gray. First, the author introduces Assol. The unusual nature of the girl is indicated by her name - Assol. It has no "literal meaning". But “it’s good that it’s so strange,” Egle will say.
Assol’s “strangeness” is not only in his name, but also in his words and behavior. This is especially noticeable against the background of the inhabitants of Kaperna. They lived ordinary life- traded, fished, delivered coal, slandered, drank. But, as Egle noted, they “tell no tales... do not sing songs.” “Scarlet Sails” were mentioned by them only as a “mockery” of the one who believed in them. And when they saw real scarlet sails, they looked at them “with nervous and gloomy anxiety, with evil fear,” “the dumbfounded women flared up with a snake hiss,” and “poison crept into their heads.” It is noteworthy that not only adults became embittered, but also children... This means that anger and cruelty are not traits of individual people, but a disease that affects everyone, regardless of age.
Assol was completely different... She is a stranger in Kapern. The girl could go at night to the seashore, “where... she looked out for a ship with scarlet sails.” In nature she felt like she belonged.
And it was also filled with love. “I would love him,” said little Assol to Eglu, who predicted scarlet sails and a prince for her. She loves her father and consoles him with her feelings. Love separated her from the inhabitants of Kaperna, united by anger and poverty of soul.
The image of Gray in the story “Scarlet Sails”
Gray's story also begins in childhood. His surroundings are his parents and ancestors, who are present, however, only in portraits. Gray was supposed to live according to a “pre-drawn plan.” The logic and course of his life were predetermined by his family. Actually, like Assol’s life. The only difference was that he was ordered to flourish, and she was to vegetate in an atmosphere of rejection and even hatred of the people around her. But the life program drawn up for Gray failed very early. It did not take into account his lively and independent character.
It all started with the fact that Gray wanted to choose the role of “knight”, “seeker” and “miracle worker” in life. In childhood, this role manifested itself in a childish way. Gray covered up the nails in the painting of the crucified Christ. Then, in order to feel the pain of the maid who scalded her hand, he scalded his own hand. He slipped her his piggy bank, supposedly from Robin Hood, so that she could get married. The picture on the library wall and his rich imagination helped Gray decide on his future. He decided that he should become a captain. Green gave Gray his dream.
Thus, both Assol and Gray saw their future in childhood. Only Assol simply waited patiently, and Gray immediately began to act. At the age of fifteen, he secretly leaves home and enters the unknown life of a sailor. The contrast between home and sea life striking. There is a mother’s love, indulgence in all his whims, and here there is rudeness, physical activity. But Gray “silently endured ridicule, mockery and inevitable abuse until he became captain.”
This hero is a subtle nature. He is able to understand the signs of fate. When he first saw sleeping Assol, “everything moved, everything smiled in him.” And he put the ring on the finger of the sleeping Assol.
After hearing her story, Gray already knew what he would do. Green in more detail describes how he selects silk for sails to show how important what he is about to do is to him.
Why did Assol and Gray, so distant from each other both by distance and position, still manage to meet? Fate? Yes, definitely. And Gray admits this: “How closely fate, will and character traits are intertwined here.” He put “Fate” first. But there are patterns in their history. All Gray’s actions after he learned about the prediction for Assol are absolutely in character: “I understood one simple truth. It’s about doing so-called miracles with your own hands.”
Of course, A. Green embellished life. He showed what he would like to see in her, and not what is. But his tale supports our faith in miracles that happen in life. And already for many people.
Scarlet sails are a symbol of hope, with which it all began...
Main features of the story “Scarlet Sails”:
- genre: extravaganza story;
- plot: prediction and its fulfillment;
- contrast of “worlds”: the “brilliant world” of Assol and Gray and the everyday world of Kaperna and the sailors;
- perfect hero at the center of the story;
- presence of symbols;
- the concept of a “miracle” created with one’s own hands;
- the meeting of two spiritually close people as the semantic center of the extravaganza.
The romantic story "Scarlet Sails" became business card its author. The heroine of this work is a girl who lost her mother. She lives with her father, who is honest and kind. Her whole world is fantasies and dreams, once inspired by the prediction of a song collector. Such a romantic image as Assol became the embodiment of a dream that will come true if you just believe in it. The characterization of the heroine is the topic of this article.
Extravaganza
Authors of literary works sometimes use various elements of a fairy tale in their work. This technique allows you to reveal the plot, characters, give the work a lyrical or philosophical meaning. He called his story an extravaganza. In this work, realism is combined with magic, and fantasy with reality. And perhaps thanks to the use of such artistic means became the most touching and sublime image of a girl named Assol in Russian literature.
The characteristics of this heroine once seemed consonant with the adherents of the socialist idea with their main postulates. That is why Green’s work was widely popular in the Soviet Union. Today the passions for “Scarlet Sails” have subsided. And the image main character This story took its rightful place in literature. But what inspired the author to write such a romantic story?
Creating the image of Assol
The characteristics of this character include traits that were also characteristic of its author. Since childhood, Alexander Grinevsky dreamed of the seas and distant countries. But the romantic personality was increasingly faced with harsh reality. In his dreams he saw beautiful things in reality - a coaster. Grinevsky strove for sublime friendship, but experienced only contempt and ridicule from professional sailors. The desire to defeat rudeness and skepticism arose in the soul of a romantic man, but outwardly reminiscent of the hero of his main book - Longren, Assol's father.
The characteristics of an unlucky sailor, but a talented writer, according to the memoirs of contemporaries, are as follows: rather gloomy, ugly person, unable to win over the interlocutor at the first meeting. The writer's fate was also unlike a fairy tale. But it is known that it was precisely in the years when he had nowhere to lay his head that he created one of the most famous literary heroines- girl Assol.
“Scarlet Sails” was written by Green at a time when all the foundations of life were collapsing around him. The writer sometimes even went hungry, since his creativity did not bring him any income. But he carried a manuscript with him everywhere, which later became one of the greatest works V Russian literature. He put all his aspirations and hopes into the plot of this story and believed, like Assol: “Scarlet Sails” would one day be seen by Petrograd. This was during the period of revolutionary events, but the color of the banner on the treasured ship had nothing to do with the red rebel banner. These were only his “Scarlet Sails”. Assol’s characterization echoed the characteristics of the author’s own mental make-up. And it was extremely difficult to exist with them in the world of ordinary people and skeptics.
Do scarlet sails exist?
The characterization of Assol is used by the author only to the extent necessary. The main topic in the story is hope. The character of the main character is not decisive. It is known that she is a reserved, modest and dreamy girl. She lost her mother very early, and since her father lost his job, the only source of food for their family was the sale of wooden toys.
The girl was lonely, although her father loved her dearly. One day she met the storyteller Egle, who predicted the arrival of a magical ship with sails. There would be a prince on board, and he would certainly take Assol with him.
The girl believed in the fairy tale, but those around her laughed at her and thought she was crazy. And yet the dream came true. One day Assol saw scarlet sails.
Characteristics of the heroine from a romantic fairy tale
Exists artistic direction in literature, which is characterized by the affirmation of spiritual and almost unattainable values. It's called romanticism. The works of this direction contain fairy-tale and mythological motifs. And their heroes are in a constant search for some ideal. German romantics dreamed of blue flower. Scarlet sails became a similar ideal for Assol. The characterization of Alexander Greene's heroine in this regard includes typical
Arthur Gray image
The prince, whose appearance the storyteller predicted, was an ordinary young man, although from a wealthy family. Since childhood, like the author of the story, he dreamed of becoming a captain. An irresistible desire to comprehend the wisdom of marine science pushed him to leave home. At first he was a simple sailor, but years later his dream came true. Gray acquired his own ship and became captain. And one day he heard stories about the crazy dreams of a girl who couldn’t wait for a prince on a fairy-tale ship. He was touched by Assol's dream, and he decided to make it come true.
Dreams come true...
The captain ordered the scarlet sails to be raised. The ship entered the port, and a girl was waiting for him on the shore. Everything happened exactly as good Egle prophesied. And it doesn’t matter that Assol Gray learned about the dream in advance. The main thing is faith and hope. After all, they can save a person even in the most hard times. The characterization of Assol and Gray was compiled by the author on the basis of his personal worldview and life experience. The main feature of these characters is the ability to believe in a dream. And this is precisely what, perhaps, saved the writer when he was in exile. A. Green's life was quite difficult, but he always found a place for miracles in his heart. Even when those around him did not understand and condemned him.
The appearance of the heroine
The appearance and character of a girl with beautiful name Assol. The characterization of the heroine, as already mentioned, is less significant than her ability to believe in a dream. But still, a little should be said about the appearance of this character.
Assol is presented in the story as the owner of a thick head of hair, tied up in a headscarf. Her smile was gentle, and her gaze seemed to contain some sad question. The figure of the heroine is depicted by A. Green as fragile and thin. The girl worked diligently, helping her father create miniature ships from wood.
Assol is the personification of gentle beauty, spiritual meekness and hard work. And this is not surprising, because this is exactly what the typical heroine of many well-known romantic fairy tales, who has been waiting for a long time for the handsome prince. As it should be according to the laws of the genre, at the end of the magical story all Assol’s dreams come true.
The story for true romantics “Scarlet Sails” was originally called “Extravaganza”. Sketches for literary work began to do so back in 1916, working on “Running on the Waves.” The book was published in 1923 with a dedication to the writer’s wife. At the center of the story is the story of a young girl, Assol, whose life is filled with dreams and fantasies. Living in real world, the heroine dreams of a fairy tale that is destined to come true one day.
Young Assol is a lyrical and poetic image. This is a sophisticated girl, persistent and strong in spirit, like the main characters of Russian dramatic works. When working on any work, the author puts a part of himself into the characters he describes. The image of Assol is woven from features characteristic of Green. Grinevsky ( real name writer) dreamed of becoming a sailor and going on a long voyage. The romanticism in his soul collided with the harsh everyday life, so instead of getting on a ship, Alexander became a coaster worker.
Faced with the rudeness of professional sailors, Green gained skepticism, which connects him with the sailor Longren, Assol’s father. The talented writer was not handsome, his naval career did not work out, and fate was not kind. “Scarlet Sails” combines the symbolism of Alexander Green’s life’s ups and downs, his hopes and dreams, coupled with the hardships of reality.
History of creation
Assol's characterization echoes the worldview and ideals of the author. It was difficult for him, like the lovely girl, to exist in a world where there is no place for a fairy tale. Grinevsky describes the main character of the story just enough to give the reader an idea of her. Hope is main feature, symbolizing her mental structure. The character is described vaguely, and readers tend to independently ennoble the girl through imagination.
The heroine lives in the coastal city of Kaperna. As a child, Assol was not the life of the party; her peers did not accept her because of her father’s bad reputation. Having survived this, she learned to be self-sufficient and not pay attention to grievances. Having invented his own world, where dreams can be fulfilled, Assol waits for instructions from fate in order to enjoy life and love someone other than his father and the surrounding nature.
The characterization of the heroine's appearance has become a secondary nuance of the story, but the description is present in the narrative. The heroine wears her thick dark brown hair in a headscarf and wears a simple dress with a pink flower. The girl has a pleasant, gentle smile and a sad gaze. A thin, fragile figure does not stop Assol from working.
The modest dreamer was left without a mother early. She lives with her father, a former sailor, and they sell wooden toys to feed yourself. Despite the crazy love of her parent, Assol is lonely. One day she learns about a prediction that says that a prince will come to her on a beautiful ship and take the girl with him. The stranger’s words were enough for gullible Assol to believe in the legend. Her faith was not based on frivolity, but on the desire to change her life. Steadfastly enduring the ridicule of others, the dreamer was true to her dream, and it came true.
Plot
The main line in the work is the story of Assol. She lives in a small village with an unsociable and withdrawn father. Fellow villagers do not like their family because of the accident in which Longren was involved. During the storm, he witnessed the death of the innkeeper Menners, but did not save his fellow countryman, remembering that in a similar situation no one came to the aid of his wife.
Assol - illustration for the book "Scarlet Sails" In fact, the wife of the former sailor died because of his callousness and stinginess, which became the reason for hatred of the family on the part of ill-wishers. One day a girl went to the city to sell crafts, among which was a boat with scarlet sails. Assol let him go along the stream, and the toy got lost. The ship was found by the storyteller Egle. He predicted to the girl that when she grew up, with native land Assol will be taken by the prince, who has sailed on a ship with scarlet sails.
Arthur Gray, from a wealthy family, had a passion for adventure and sailing. One day, after setting off on a ship, he went out on a boat to go fishing. After spending the night on the shore, in the morning Gray saw Assol sleeping. Amazed by her beauty, he left his ring on the girl’s hand. In a nearby tavern, Arthur learned the girl’s story, embellished by local legends. Without listening to gossip, convinced of the nobility of Assol’s dreams, Gray bought scarlet silk in a shop and ordered sails to be sewn. The next day, the ship that Assol saw in her dreams approached the Kaperna pier. Gray took her to a distant country, as the storyteller predicted.
- Alexander Grinevsky, dreaming of the sea, made a symbol of hope and the realization of dreams not of the girl’s faith in the prince’s arrival, but of the ship. An allusion to the author's unfulfilled hopes, the scarlet sails became a sign that if dreams did not come true, this does not mean that they were impossible. Assol was not waiting for Gray. She was waiting for the ship, in which she invested faith, accumulated over years of loneliness and misunderstanding.
- Perhaps the hidden symbolism of the work made it a favorite book of communists who firmly believe in the dream and are confident in its achievement. The romantic background in the perception of readers and the author’s presentation fades into the background.
- It is noteworthy that even the magical name Assol appeared by chance. According to rumors, Green bought at the store tomato juice and in the question: “What about salt?” – I heard a combination of sounds that inspired the writer to create a name for the main character of the work.
- Musicals and plays based on the story have been staged more than once. It was filmed by director Alexander Ptushko in 1961. The actress became the creator of the main female image. The young man embodied Arthur Gray in the frame.
- Pictures from the book “Scarlet Sails” still inspire artists to create graphic images, mosaics, sculptures and other objects in various techniques execution. The main character embodied by the artists is the girl Assol, and the subject is a ship with scarlet sails.
Quotes
Alexander Green's work is full of morality contained in the monologues and remarks of the main characters. Notable quotes from the story “Scarlet Sails” have become catchphrases.
“Now children do not play, but study. They all study and study and will never begin to live.”
These words remain relevant today. They characterize not children, but adults who begin to live as is typical for their age and forget about their dreams.
"Miracles are made with your own hands."
The remark hints that it is not worth living in anticipation, while decisive actions will lead to faster desired result. Perhaps Green was guided by these words when he hired himself to work on the ship and dreamed of steering the ship.
“We love fairy tales, but we don’t believe in them.”
Assol was a dreamer, and her fantasies came true. This happened thanks to unwavering faith and fortitude. Sometimes faith allows circumstances to develop as desired.
“The sea and love do not like pedants”
This is what the romantic Green wrote, comparing two wayward elements. When dealing with them, the little things that pedants value are not important. Dreamers and people who feel the ability to create their destiny according to their dreams get what they are looking for.
“Scarlet Sails” by Alexander Greene captivates the reader not only with its romantic and fairy tale plot, but also the main characters. The image of Assol in the story embodies a bright faith in dreams and fairy tales, kindness and tenderness, meekness and love.
Childhood Assol
Assol was born into the family of a sailor Longren. The girl's mother died when she was not even a year old. Assol was raised by his father. The girl helped him in everything, was obedient and kind, and learned everything quickly. A characterization of Assol from the work “Scarlet Sails” is impossible without mentioning some moments of her life in Kapern.
In his early childhood The heroine suffered because other children, on the instructions of their parents, were afraid of her and did not play with her, because they considered the girl’s father a murderer. Soon, having cried a sea of tears and overcome resentment, the girl learned to play herself, living in her own mysterious world fantasies and dreams. In her own world, completely different from reality, Assol did not lose the ability to rejoice and love. Her love and kindness extend to nature and the only person, besides her father, who understands her in Caperne - the coal miner Philip.
The girl is kind, she does not remember the insults and malice with which the inhabitants of Kaperna shower her, she is smart and hardworking, never despairs, and also knows how to truly dream - this is the characteristic of Assol from “Scarlet Sails”.
Meeting with a storyteller
Assol often helped her father; she took toys to the city for sale and bought the necessary products. One day, while walking through the forest, the girl met an old collector of legends, Egl, who told her about how a ship with scarlet sails would sail to Kaperna and take her away from here forever.
"One morning in sea distance the scarlet sail will sparkle... Then you will see a brave and handsome prince; he will stand and stretch out his hands to you.” So said the old storyteller, and Assol began to wait for the scarlet sails, believing the prediction with all her heart. Old Longren decided not to deprive the girl of such a gift, thinking that she would grow up and forget about this strange meeting in the forest.
Dream and Kaperna
Unfortunately, Assol lives in a very mundane place. It is very difficult for her here, because both she and those around her are aware of her alienation and peculiarity.
“But you don’t tell fairy tales... don’t sing songs. And if they tell and sing, then these are stories about cunning men and soldiers, dirty as unwashed feet... quatrains.” - this is what Aigle says about Caperne.
It would seem that in such a place it is impossible for Assol’s fragile dream to survive, but the girl carefully carries it through dirty ridicule and insults. And it doesn’t matter that she is considered crazy and is evilly called “the ship’s Assol”; Gray only needs one look at her to understand that all the stories are vile fiction.
The characteristics of Assol and Gray are completely different from the characteristics of the inhabitants of the town, both of them are from a completely different world. There is no place for them in Kaperna.
Scarlet Sails
Little Assol, it’s crazy expensive toy, keeps the prediction of the old legend collector. And even though they laugh at her and consider her crazy, the girl does not despair.
When Assol wakes up one day with Gray's ring on her finger, she realizes that her Scarlet Sails are already on their way.
The main idea of the work is that you need to be able to dream, not forget and not betray your dream, and then it will definitely come true. The description of Assol from the story “Scarlet Sails” confirms this.
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