Caucasian military stories (“Raid”, “Cutting Wood” and others as a source and material for “Sevastopol Stories”)
“To this Rome, Tolstoy depicted the road of exceptional simplicity and truth” (Yu. Aikhenvald). Tolstoy acted as an eyewitness and participant in the events of the war. In the Caucasus, he meets the Decembrists and comes to the conclusion that among them there is a division into ordinary soldiers and officers and false ones who fight for the sake of a ribbon. The soldiers here do not fight, but work. Tolstoy explores war and human psychology during it. He appears in the Caucasus in 1851 with his brother Nikolai, serves as a private, then as a fireworksman. Subsequently, for Tolstoy, this period was a school for comprehending the true face of war.
Early war stories:
"Raid". In the center is Captain Khlopov, on whose behalf the story is told. Everyone likes him, he has a simple Russian face. This character is a clear predecessor of Captain Tushin. The theme of courage is revealed, here the one who behaves properly, showing fortitude and fortitude is brave. There is a clear antithesis between the images of Khlopov and Lieutenant Rosenkranz.
"Cutting Wood": reflections on the spirit of the Russian soldier, showing his traits such as modesty and simplicity.
"How Russian soldiers die"(“Anxiety”) - unfinished, published for the first time only in 1928. This is more of a documentary essay, because it precisely indicates the place and time of action. Tolstoy's attention to details characterizing human behavior in an emergency situation is noteworthy. At the center of the story is the episode when soldier Bondarchuk catches up with the company and falls, fearing that a bad omen will come true. The author acts as an expert folk speech, explores the human transition to the state of death. Tolstoy's conclusion is a confident statement of the truth that “great is the glory of the Russian people,” ordinary Russian soldiers symbolize the strength of the soul, the great simplicity and unconsciousness of force.
“Sevastopol Stories”: problematics, thematic and genre-structural originality, philosophy of “war and peace.”
In 1853-56. broke out Crimean War, it was marked by the battle in the harbor of Sinop. On November 30, 1853, under the command of Nakhimov, eight ships defeated the entire Turkish fleet with huge losses on the part of the Turkish army. After this victory, England and France enter into an alliance with Turkey, the number of troops reaches 120 thousand people, and their main goal is the destruction of the Black Sea Fleet and the separation of Crimea from Russia. Prince Menshikov is dismissed, Prince Gorchakov also retreats, and then Sevastopol remains in the care of one garrison for 349 days. The organizers of the defense were Nakhimov, as well as generals Istomin, Kornilov, Totlebek. Despite the fact that the French managed to take Sevastopol, for Tolstoy the defense of this city was an indicator of the greatness of the spirit of the Russian people.
The author reflects on war, what it is and why it is needed. In general, Tolstoy does not accept war as a phenomenon, showing pacifism, and some researchers argue that in these stories there is a de-heroization of the war and its participants. But this is a big stretch, since Tolstoy only debunks false heroism, showing that war is a test of man under extreme conditions. Three stories, each of which is absolutely independent work with your genre characteristics. The first story is a lyrical monologue in which the image of the hero city is created, the second one exposes trends, built on the antithesis of the masses of soldiers and the officer environment, the third is a broad epic canvas in which the fate of the hero city is given. In general, this is a kind of trilogy in which we can talk about posing the problems of the history and fate of Russia. The main theme of all the stories is the heroism and patriotism of the Russian people, but in each story this theme is resolved in its own way. Tolstoy's realism in depicting war lies in the fact that it is depicted not in a correct and beautiful order with music, but in its real manifestations - blood, suffering, death.
The first story is called “Sevastopol in December,” originally “Sevastopol Day and Night.” It is based on true facts and events. There is a rather complex narrative system here. We meet the image of a man who came to Sevastopol for the first time, seeing only “everyday” people, while the narrator invites him on a “trip” around the city. Created a whole series paintings that build the image of the hero city. The first picture is a hospital, episodic characters: a wounded hero eager to fight; dying person; a sailor's suit with a severed leg; operating room - one soldier is being operated on without painkillers, the other is waiting his turn. This is a naturalism that does not evoke disgust, but, on the contrary, compassion and surprise. Description of the fourth bastion, where death hovers. Tolstoy creates collective image mass of soldiers, people. The main thing, as the author believes, is the spirit of the defenders of Sevastopol. All the images shown lead to the conclusion that national character, about the essence of patriotism, main character works - Russian people.
The second story is “Sevastopol in May”, originally “Night in the spring of 55 in Sevastopol”, written within a week. The officer environment is mainly depicted here. Tolstoy strengthens the critical, satirical notes, the story is subject to many censorship changes. In the center is a large group of officers: infantry Mikhailov, cadet Baron Pest, aristocrat Kalugin, Prince Galtsin, captain Proskukhin. Another reason for war is mass vanity. Composition: in the center is an episode with Prince Galtsin and a crowd of wounded, the problem of true and false heroism is touched upon. In the episode with the death of Proskukhin, a few seconds before the explosion, the hero’s internal monologue occurs.
Philosophy of war according to Tolstoy:
1) pacifism. 2) realism in the image 3) features of the image of heroes and the heroic, attention to human psychology in war.
The last story is interesting from the point of view of the episodes of the war. A happy moment in the life of Mikhail Kozeltsov when he dies. Here the author’s artistic method is established, he develops the dialectic of soul and character, and a historical and philosophical concept. The artist's skill is also demonstrated in battle scenes ah, present symbolic images- description of the battlefield, a ten-year-old boy picking blue flowers - an unnamed character conveying the author’s thoughts and feelings in figurative form; the perception of war through the “mouth of a baby” - and the reflection of its terrible appearance (a similar image in “War and Peace” - advice in Fili through the eyes of Malasha).
Related materials:
The truth of war in Tolstoy's Sevastopol Stories
Work: Sevastopol stories
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While on military service, Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy thought painfully about the war. What is war, does humanity need it? These questions confronted the writer at the very beginning of his literary career and occupied him throughout his life. Tolstoy uncompromisingly condemns the war. “Is it really cramped for people to live in this beautiful world, under this immeasurable starry sky?” In the fall of 1853, the war between Russia and Turkey began, Tolstoy was allowed to transfer to Sevastopol. Finding himself in a besieged city, Tolstoy was shocked by the heroic spirit of the army and the population. “The spirit in the troops is beyond any description,” he wrote to his brother Sergei. “In the days of Ancient Greece there was not so much heroism.” Under the roar of the guns of the fourth bastion, shrouded in gunpowder smoke, L. N. Tolstoy began to write his first story about the heroic defense of the city, “Sevastopol in December,” followed by two others: “Sevastopol in May” and “Sevastopol in August 1855.”
In his stories about the three stages of the Crimean epic, Tolstoy showed the war “not in the correct, beautiful and brilliant order, with music and drumming, with waving banners and prancing generals... but in its real expression - in blood, in suffering, in death...” . Under his brilliant pen, the heroic defense of Sevastopol is resurrected. Only three moments were taken, only three pictures were snatched from the desperate, unequal struggle, which for almost a whole year did not subside and was not silent near Sevastopol. But how much these pictures give! This is not only a great work of art, but also a true historical document, a precious testimony of a participant for the historian.
The first story speaks of Sevastopol in December 1854. This was a moment of some weakening and slowing down of military operations, the interval between the bloody battle of Inkerman and Evpatoria. But if the Russian field army stationed in the vicinity of Sevastopol could rest a little and get better, the city and its garrison did not know respite and forgot what the word “peace” means. Soldiers and sailors worked in the snow and pouring rain, half-starved and tormented.
Tolstoy talks about a sailor with a severed leg, who is being carried on a stretcher, and he asks to stop to look at the volley of our battery. “Nothing, there are two hundred of us here on the bastion, we’ll have enough for two more days!” Such answers were given by soldiers and sailors, and none of them even suspected what a courageous person, despising death, one must be in order to talk so simply, calmly, businesslikely about his own inevitable death tomorrow or the day after tomorrow! The women, these friends worthy of their husbands, endured terrible injuries and death without complaint. The second story dates back to May 1855, and this story was dated June 26, 1855. In May, a bloody battle took place between the garrison and almost the entire army besieging the city, which wanted to capture the three advanced fortifications at all costs. Tolstoy does not describe these bloody May and June meetings, but it is clear to the reader of the story that quite recently, very large events have just taken place near the besieged city.
Tolstoy shows how soldiers use a short truce to remove and bury the dead. Can enemies, who have just cut and stabbed each other in a fierce hand-to-hand fight, speak so friendly, with such affection, treat each other so kindly and considerately? But here, as elsewhere, Tolstoy is extremely sincere and truthful, he is an eyewitness, he does not need to invent, speculate, reality is much richer than fantasy.
The third story tells about Sevastopol in August 1855. This is the last, most terrible month of a long siege, continuous, brutal, day and night bombing, the month of the fall of Sevastopol. “During lunch, a bomb fell near the house where the officers were sitting. The floor and walls shook as if from an earthquake, and the windows were covered with gunpowder smoke. “I don’t think you saw this in St. Petersburg; and here there are often such surprises,” said the battery commander. “Look, Vlang, where it burst.” The writer shows the heroism of people accustomed to everyday shelling. Living a normal life. They do not recognize themselves as heroes, but perform their duty. Without loud phrases, casually, these wonderful people make history, sometimes “going away” into oblivion. Tolstoy shows that only the superiority of Turkey's allies in military equipment and material resources physically broke the fearless Russian heroes. By exposing the war, the writer affirms the moral greatness and strength of the Russian people, who courageously accepted the retreat of the Russian army from Sevastopol.
L. Tolstoy's innovation in depicting war, realism, and artistic merits of “Sevastopol Stories” earned high praise from his contemporaries.
Nekrasov wrote: “The merits of the story are first-class: accurate, original observation, deep penetration into the essence of things and characters, strict truth that retreats to nothing...” Isn’t this the secret of the unabating popularity of Tolstoy’s stories, full of patriotic pathos and, despite everything? that, a great call for peace, a denial of war as murder.
In July 1855, at the very height of the Crimean War, when the eyes of all Russia were focused on the heroic defense of Sevastopol, Sevastopol stories by L.N. began to appear in the Sovremennik magazine. Tolstoy, which were met with particular interest. According to A.V. Druzhinin, “all reading Russia admired “Sevastopol in December”, “Sevastopol in May”, “Sevastopol in August”.
It was not only the poetic merits of the stories that attracted keen attention and ardent interest to them. These stories expressed very important political truths and raised troubling social questions. Tolstoy reflected deep social sentiments, and this, along with their high artistic skill, was the secret of the great impression that Tolstoy’s stories made on the advanced strata of Russian society.
The truth, the deep, sober truth- this is what readers first of all saw and appreciated in the Sevastopol stories. The truth about the patriotic uplift and heroism of the defenders of Sevastopol, about the courage of Russian soldiers, about those feelings and moods that were close to the entire Russian society, and, on the other hand, the truth about the insolvency of tsarism in the war, about the backwardness of the Nicholas army, about the deep gulf between the simple a man in an overcoat and a noble officer elite.
Tolstoy shows Sevastopol and its courageous defenders not in ceremonial, not in their traditional literary attire, but in their true form - “in blood, in suffering, in death.” He tore off its romantic veils from the war and showed it realistically, truthfully, without embellishment.
It cannot be said that before Tolstoy no one showed the war like this. For all Tolstoy's innovation, he had a predecessor in his depiction of war, Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov. In a poem from 1840, which begins with the words: “I am writing to you by chance; really...” - Lermontov describes the battle of the Valerik River:
The convoy had barely gotten out
Into the clearing, things have begun.
Chu! The rearguard is asking for guns;
They're taking guns out of the bushes,
They drag people by the legs
And they call loudly for the doctors;
And here on the left, from the edge of the forest,
Suddenly they rushed to the guns with a boom;
And a hail of bullets from the treetops
The squad is showered. Ahead
Everything is quiet - there between the bushes
The stream was running. Let's get closer
They launched several grenades;
We moved some more; are silent;
But over the logs of the rubble
The gun seemed to sparkle,
Then two hats flashed;
And again everything was hidden in the grass.
It was a terrible silence
It didn't last long,
But in this strange expectation
More than one heart began to beat.
Suddenly a volley... we look: they are lying in rows...
Lermontov's description of the war is not directly similar, but it is in the spirit of Tolstoy's later descriptions. Lermontov made an important statement in a literary sense, which was fully realized after him by Tolstoy.
The innovation of Tolstoy’s war stories lies in the fact that, depicting the war truthfully, without embellishment, the writer placed a living person at the center of his battle scenes, revealing his inner world, motivated his actions and deeds with his innermost, deeply hidden thoughts and feelings. At the same time, at the center of Tolstoy’s military narratives is always a man from the people, who decides the fate of the fatherland with his military labor, his inconspicuous feat, and all other characters are illuminated from the position of the great goal by which the people are inspired.
In Tolstoy's stories, for the first time in Russian and world literature, traditional battle painting was "humanized", that is, deepened and enriched with truthful descriptions of the subtlest feelings and experiences of a person participating in the battle, given through the prism of his consciousness. The war with all its horrors and greatness was shown “from the inside”, by revealing the internal attitude of its ordinary participants towards it, and the participants themselves were characterized depending on their place in the national struggle - this was the step forward that Tolstoy in his war stories did compared to its predecessors.
In Tolstoy’s descriptions of human behavior in war, what is most striking is his exceptionally accurate and keen observation. Scattered throughout the Sevastopol stories are dozens of apt psychological observations on the general properties of soldiers in battle. But Tolstoy is not limited to these observations. He seeks to penetrate inner world each of his characters, to capture his individual, unique experiences in a combat situation. And through this individualization we comprehend the general features of human behavior and experiences in war.
Exceptionally varied psychologization techniques, used by Tolstoy. Revealing "dialectics of the soul" of his heroes, he shows, as Chernyshevsky noted, not only the final results of mental movements, but also the process of inner life itself.
In the foreground of Tolstoy’s rich arsenal of techniques for psychological characterization of heroes accurate reproduction of inner speech. The author seems to “hear” the secret conversations that people have with themselves, as if he “sees” the whole process of the movement of thought and accurately reproduces it in the story. And precisely because the writer penetrates deeply into the souls of his characters, their “inaudible” conversations become their most truthful and convincing characteristic.
But special artistic power reaches Tolstoy in the image dying thoughts their heroes. In the face of mortal danger, a person’s feelings are especially acute. With lightning speed, images and memories flash before his mental gaze, sensations arise and disappear, strings of thoughts arise and are replaced. You must have the genius gift of a psychologist, the supreme ability to penetrate into the inner world of people in order to truthfully portray these unique, intimate moments.
Revealing to us the inner world of his heroes, Tolstoy does not limit himself to the role of an objective observer of this world. He actively intervenes in the introspection of the heroes, in their thoughts, reminds us of what they have forgotten, and corrects all deviations from the truth that they allow in their thoughts and actions. This author's intervention helps a more in-depth perception of the characters’ inner experiences and reveals their true character. Most often, the method of authorial intervention serves Tolstoy to directly expose the character, to "tearing off masks"
Features of innovation are also noted composition of Tolstoy's stories. It is characterized, on the one hand, by a strict selection of life material, limiting the narrative within a certain time and space, and on the other hand, by a tendency towards a broad, multifaceted depiction of reality, towards the formulation of current social problems. The first Sevastopol story, for example, covers events that fall between dawn and evening sunset, that is, the events of one day. And what enormous life content this story contains!
Peculiar, new and principles of image construction, used by the author in Sevastopol stories. Along with the subtlety and truthfulness of psychological characteristics, the writer always strives for a truthful depiction of the actions of his heroes, as well as for a concrete, visual depiction of the environment in which they act. Tolstoy's heroes, even minor ones, have their own individual personality, clear social characteristics, and a unique manner of speaking and acting. Despite all the apparent similarity of the characters, each of them is an individual, a living, unique personality.
Much important comes from “Sevastopol Stories” in the work of Leo Tolstoy. From them there is a direct path to "War and Peace". B.M. Eikhenbaum called the essays about Sevastopol a kind of “studies” for “War and Peace”: “Individual details, some faces, various “tonals”, and even the interweaving of the battle genre with the family genre are prepared here.”
Much comes from “Sevastopol Stories” in Russian literature, and most of all, of course, this Tolstoy, this obligatory after Tolstoy need for truth when depicting war. All big Russians and foreign writers, authors of works about the war, experienced this need for truth. After Tolstoy, it became an indispensable duty of the artist, the law of artistic creativity.
Year of writing:
1855
Reading time:
Description of the work:
The Sevastopol stories (there are three stories in total in the cycle), which Leo Tolstoy wrote in 1855, well depict how Sevastopol defended itself. Leo Tolstoy describes the heroism of the soldiers who defended the city, showing the inhumanity and senselessness of the war.
It is noteworthy that this is the first time that such famous writer, like Tolstoy, was personally present at the events taking place and immediately wrote about it, thus reporting everything in a reliable form to his readers. It turns out that we can confidently say about Tolstoy that he is the first Russian war correspondent.
Read below for a summary of the Sevastopol Stories series.
Sevastopol in December
“The morning dawn is just beginning to color the sky above Sapun Mountain; the dark blue surface of the sea has already thrown off the darkness of the night and is waiting for the first ray to sparkle with a cheerful shine; It blows cold and fog from the bay; there is no snow - everything is black, but the morning sharp frost grabs your face and crackles under your feet, and the distant, incessant roar of the sea, occasionally interrupted by rolling shots in Sevastopol, alone breaks the silence of the morning... It cannot be that at the thought that you are in Sevastopol, a feeling of some kind of courage, pride has not penetrated into your soul and so that the blood does not begin to circulate faster in your veins...” Despite the fact that fighting is going on in the city, life goes on as usual: traders sell hot rolls, and men - sbiten. It seems that there is a strange mixture of camp and peaceful life, everyone is fussing and frightened, but this is a deceptive impression: most people no longer pay attention to shots or explosions, they are busy with “everyday business.” Only on the bastions “you will see... the defenders of Sevastopol, you will see there terrible and sad, great and funny, but amazing, soul-elevating spectacles.”
In the hospital, wounded soldiers talk about their impressions: the one who lost his leg does not remember the pain because he did not think about it; A woman, who was taking lunch to her husband at the bastion, was hit by a shell, and her leg was cut off above the knee. Dressings and operations are performed in a separate room. The wounded, waiting their turn for surgery, are horrified to see how doctors amputate their comrades' arms and legs, and the paramedic indifferently throws the severed body parts into the corner. Here you can see “terrible, soul-shattering spectacles... war not in the correct, beautiful and brilliant order, with music and drumming, with fluttering banners and prancing generals, but... war in its true expression - in blood, in suffering , in death..." A young officer who fought on the fourth, most dangerous bastion, complains not about the abundance of bombs and shells falling on the heads of the bastion’s defenders, but about the dirt. This is his defensive reaction to danger; he behaves too boldly, cheekily and at ease.
On the way to the fourth bastion, non-military people are encountered less and less often, and stretchers with the wounded are increasingly encountered. Actually, on the bastion, the artillery officer behaves calmly (he is accustomed to both the whistle of bullets and the roar of explosions). He tells how during the assault on the fifth there was only one working gun left in his battery and very few servants, but still the next morning he was firing all the guns again.
The officer recalls how a bomb hit the sailor's dugout and killed eleven people. In the faces, posture, and movements of the defenders of the bastion, one can see “the main features that make up the strength of the Russian - simplicity and stubbornness; but here on every face it seems to you that the danger, malice and suffering of war, in addition to these main signs, have laid traces of consciousness of one’s dignity and high thoughts and feelings... The feeling of malice, vengeance on the enemy... lurks in the soul of everyone.” When the cannonball flies directly at a person, he is not left with a feeling of pleasure and at the same time fear, and then he himself waits for the bomb to explode closer, because “there is a special charm” in such a game with death. “The main, gratifying conviction that you have made is the conviction that it is impossible to take Sevastopol, and not only to take Sevastopol, but to shake the power of the Russian people anywhere... Because of the cross, because of the name, because of the threat can people accept these terrible conditions: there must be another high motivating reason - this reason is a feeling that is rarely manifested, shameful in a Russian, but lies in the depths of the soul of everyone - love for the homeland... This epic of Sevastopol will leave great traces in Russia for a long time, of which the Russian people were the hero..."
Sevastopol in May
Six months have passed since the start of hostilities in Sevastopol. “Thousands of human pride have managed to be offended, thousands have managed to be satisfied, pout, thousands have managed to calm down in the arms of death.” The most fair solution to the conflict seems to be in an original way; if two soldiers fought (one from each army), and victory would remain with the side whose soldier emerges victorious. This decision is logical, because it is better to fight one on one than one hundred and thirty thousand against one hundred and thirty thousand. In general, war is illogical, from Tolstoy’s point of view: “one of two things: either war is madness, or if people do this madness, then they are not at all rational creatures, as for some reason we tend to think.”
In besieged Sevastopol, military personnel walk along the boulevards. Among them is the infantry officer (staff captain) Mikhailov, a tall, long-legged, stooped and awkward man. He recently received a letter from a friend, a retired ulan, in which he writes how his wife Natasha (a close friend of Mikhailov) enthusiastically follows in the newspapers the movements of his regiment and the exploits of Mikhailov himself. Mikhailov recalls with bitterness his former circle, which was “so much higher than the current one that when, in moments of frankness, he happened to tell his infantry comrades how he had his own droshky, how he danced at the governor’s balls and played cards with a civilian general.” , they listened to him indifferently and distrustfully, as if not wanting to contradict and prove the opposite
Mikhailov dreams of a promotion. He meets Captain Obzhogov and Ensign Suslikov, employees of his regiment, on the boulevard, and they shake his hand, but he wants to deal not with them, but with “aristocrats” - that’s why he walks along the boulevard. “And since there are a lot of people in the besieged city of Sevastopol, therefore, there is a lot of vanity, that is, aristocrats, despite the fact that every minute death hangs over the head of every aristocrat and non-aristocrat... Vanity! It must be a characteristic feature and a special disease of our age... Why in our age there are only three kinds of people: some - those who accept the principle of vanity as a fact that necessarily exists, therefore just, and freely submit to it; others - accepting it as an unfortunate but insurmountable condition, and others - unconsciously, slavishly acting under its influence...”
Mikhailov twice hesitantly walks past the circle of “aristocrats” and finally dares to approach and say hello (previously he was afraid to approach them because they might not deign to answer his greeting at all and thereby prick his sick pride). The “aristocrats” are Adjutant Kalugin, Prince Galtsin, Lieutenant Colonel Neferdov and Captain Praskukhin. In relation to Mikhailov, who has approached, they behave quite arrogantly; for example, Galtsin takes him by the arm and walks back and forth a little just because he knows that this sign of attention should bring pleasure to the staff captain. But soon the “aristocrats” begin to demonstratively talk only to each other, thereby making it clear to Mikhailov that they no longer need his company.
Returning home, Mikhailov remembers that he volunteered to go to the bastion the next morning in place of the sick officer. He feels that he will be killed, and if he is not killed, then he will certainly be rewarded. Mikhailov consoles himself that he acted honestly, that going to the bastion is his duty. On the way, he wonders where he might be wounded - in the leg, stomach or head.
Meanwhile, the “aristocrats” are drinking tea at Kalugin’s in a beautifully furnished apartment, playing the piano, and reminiscing about their St. Petersburg acquaintances. At the same time, they do not behave at all as unnaturally, importantly and pompously as they did on the boulevard, demonstrating to others their “aristocratism”. An infantry officer enters with an important assignment to the general, but the “aristocrats” immediately take on their former “pouty” appearance and pretend that they do not notice the newcomer at all. Only after escorting the courier to the general, Kalugin is imbued with the responsibility of the moment and announces to his comrades that a “hot” matter lies ahead.
Galtsin asks if he should go on a sortie, knowing that he won’t go anywhere because he’s afraid, and Kalugin begins to dissuade Galtsin, also knowing that he won’t go anywhere. Galtsin goes out into the street and begins to walk aimlessly back and forth, not forgetting to ask the wounded passing by how the battle is going and scolding them for retreating. Kalugin, having gone to the bastion, does not forget to demonstrate his courage to everyone along the way: he does not bend down when bullets whistle, he takes a dashing pose on horseback. He is unpleasantly struck by the “cowardice” of the battery commander, whose bravery is legendary.
Not wanting to take unnecessary risks, the battery commander, who spent six months on the bastion, in response to Kalugin’s demand to inspect the bastion, sends Kalugin to the guns along with a young officer. The general gives the order to Praskukhin to notify Mikhailov’s battalion about the relocation. He successfully delivers the order. In the dark, under enemy fire, the battalion begins to move. At the same time, Mikhailov and Praskukhin, walking side by side, think only about the impression they make on each other. They meet Kalugin, who, not wanting to “expose himself” again, learns about the situation on the bastion from Mikhailov and turns back. A bomb explodes next to them, Praskukhin is killed, and Mikhailov is wounded in the head. He refuses to go to the dressing station, because his duty is to be with the company, and besides, he is entitled to a reward for his wound. He also believes that his duty is to take the wounded Praskukhin or make sure that he is dead. Mikhailov crawls back under fire, becomes convinced of Praskukhin’s death and returns with a clear conscience.
“Hundreds of fresh bloody bodies of people, two hours ago full of various high and small hopes and desires, with numb limbs, lay on the dewy flowering valley separating the bastion from the trench, and on the flat floor of the Chapel of the Dead in Sevastopol; hundreds of people - with curses and prayers on parched lips - crawled, tossed and groaned, some between the corpses in the flowering valley, others on stretchers, on cots and on the bloody floor of the dressing station; and all the same as in the previous days, the lightning lit up over Sapun Mountain, the twinkling stars turned pale, a white fog pulled in from the noisy dark sea, a scarlet dawn lit up in the east, long crimson clouds scattered across the light azure horizon, and everything was the same , as in previous days, promising joy, love and happiness to the whole revived world, a powerful, beautiful luminary floated out.”
The next day, “aristocrats” and other military men walk along the boulevard and vying with each other to talk about yesterday’s “case,” but in such a way that they mainly state “the participation that he took and the courage that the speaker showed in the case.” “Each of them is a little Napoleon, a little monster, and now he’s ready to start a battle, kill a hundred people just to get an extra star or a third of his salary.”
A truce has been declared between the Russians and the French, ordinary soldiers communicate freely with each other and do not seem to feel any hostility towards the enemy. The young cavalry officer is simply delighted to have the chance to chat in French, thinking he is incredibly smart. He discusses with the French how inhumane they have started together, meaning war. At this time, the boy walks around the battlefield, collects blue wildflowers and looks sideways in surprise at the corpses. White flags are displayed everywhere.
“Thousands of people crowd, look, talk and smile at each other. And these people - Christians, professing one great law of love and self-sacrifice, looking at what they have done, will not suddenly fall on their knees with repentance before the one who, having given them life, put into the soul of each, along with the fear of death, love for good and beautiful, and with tears of joy and happiness will they not embrace as brothers? No! The white rags are hidden - and again the instruments of death and suffering whistle, pure innocent blood flows again and groans and curses are heard... Where is the expression of the evil that should be avoided? Where is the expression of goodness that should be imitated in this story? Who is the villain, who is the hero? Everyone is good and everyone is bad... The hero of my story, whom I love with all the strength of my soul, whom I tried to reproduce in all his beauty and who has always been, is and will be beautiful, is true.”
Sevastopol in August 1855
Lieutenant Mikhail Kozeltsov, a respected officer, independent in his judgments and actions, intelligent, talented in many ways, a skillful compiler of government papers and a capable storyteller, returns from the hospital to his position. “He had one of those prides that merged with life to such an extent and which most often develops in some men’s, and especially military circles, that he did not understand any other choice but to excel or be destroyed, and that pride was the engine of even his inner motives."
There were a lot of people passing through the station: there were no horses. Some officers heading to Sevastopol do not even have allowance money, and they do not know how to continue their journey. Among those waiting is Kozeltsov’s brother, Volodya. Contrary to family plans, Volodya did not join the guard for minor offenses, but was sent (at his own request) to the active army. He, like any young officer, really wants to “fight for the Fatherland,” and at the same time serve in the same place as his older brother.
Volodya is a handsome young man, he is both shy in front of his brother and proud of him. The elder Kozeltsov invites his brother to immediately go with him to Sevastopol. Volodya seems embarrassed; he no longer really wants to go to war, and besides, he managed to lose eight rubles while sitting at the station. Kozeltsov uses his last money to pay off his brother’s debt, and they set off. On the way, Volodya dreams of the heroic deeds that he will certainly accomplish in the war together with his brother, of his beautiful death and dying reproaches to everyone else for not being able to appreciate during their lifetime “those who truly loved the Fatherland,” etc.
Upon arrival, the brothers go to the baggage officer’s booth, who is counting a lot of money for the new regimental commander, who is acquiring a “household.” No one understands what made Volodya leave his quiet home in the distant rear and come to warring Sevastopol without any benefit for himself. The battery to which Volodya is assigned is located on Korabelnaya, and both brothers go to spend the night with Mikhail on the fifth bastion. Before this, they visit Comrade Kozeltsov in the hospital. He is so bad that he does not immediately recognize Mikhail, and is waiting for an imminent death as a release from suffering.
After leaving the hospital, the brothers decide to go their separate ways, and, accompanied by the orderly Mikhail, Volodya goes to his battery. The battery commander invites Volodya to spend the night in the staff captain’s bunk, who is located on the bastion itself. However, Junker Vlang is already sleeping on the bed; he has to give way to the arriving warrant officer (Volodya). At first Volodya cannot sleep; he is either frightened by the darkness or by a premonition near death. He fervently prays for deliverance from fear, calms down and falls asleep to the sound of falling shells.
Meanwhile, Kozeltsov Sr. arrives at the disposal of a new regimental commander - his recent comrade, now separated from him by a wall of chain of command. The commander is unhappy that Kozeltsov is returning to duty prematurely, but instructs him to take command of his former company. In the company, Kozeltsov is greeted joyfully; it is noticeable that he is highly respected among the soldiers. Among the officers, he also expects a warm welcome and sympathetic attitude towards the injury.
The next day the bombing continues with renewed vigor. Volodya begins to join the circle of artillery officers; their mutual sympathy for each other is visible. Volodya is especially liked by Junker Vlang, who in every possible way anticipates any desires of the new ensign. The kind staff captain Kraut, a German who speaks Russian very correctly and too beautifully, returns from his position. There is talk about abuses and legalized theft in senior positions. Volodya, blushing, assures those gathered that such an “ignoble” deed will never happen to him.
At the battery commander's dinner, everyone is interested, the conversations do not stop despite the fact that the menu is very modest. An envelope arrives from the chief of artillery; An officer and servants are required for a mortar battery on Malakhov Kurgan. This is a dangerous place; no one volunteers to go. One of the officers points to Volodya and, after a short discussion, he agrees to go “under fire.” Vlang is sent along with Volodya. Volodya begins to study the “Manual” on artillery shooting. However, upon arrival at the battery, all “rear” knowledge turns out to be unnecessary: the shooting is carried out randomly, not a single cannonball even resembles those mentioned in the “Manual” in weight, there are no workers to repair the broken guns. In addition, two soldiers of his team are wounded, and Volodya himself is repeatedly on the verge of death.
Vlang is very scared; he is no longer able to hide it and thinks exclusively about salvation own life at any cost. Volodya is “a little creepy and cheerful.” His soldiers are also holed up in Volodya’s dugout. He communicates with interest with Melnikov, who is not afraid of bombs, being sure that he will die a different death. Having become accustomed to the new commander, the soldiers begin to discuss under Volodya how the allies under the command of Prince Constantine will come to their aid, how both warring sides will be given rest for two weeks, and then they will be fined for each shot, how in war a month of service will be counted as year, etc.
Despite Vlang's pleas, Volodya leaves the dugout to fresh air and sits on the threshold with Melnikov until the morning, while bombs fall around and bullets whistle. But in the morning the battery and guns are already in order, and Volodya completely forgets about the danger; he is only glad that he fulfills his duties well, that he does not show cowardice, but, on the contrary, is considered brave.
The French assault begins. Half-asleep, Kozeltsov rushes out to the company, half-asleep, most concerned about not being considered a coward. He grabs his small saber and runs at the enemy ahead of everyone, inspiring the soldiers with a shout. He is wounded in the chest. Having woken up, Kozeltsov sees the doctor examining his wound, wiping his fingers on his coat and sending a priest to him. Kozeltsov asks if the French have been knocked out; the priest, not wanting to upset the dying man, says that victory remained with the Russians. Kozeltsov is happy; “He thought with an extremely gratifying feeling of self-satisfaction that he had done his duty well, that for the first time in his entire service he had acted as well as he could, and could not reproach himself for anything.” He dies with the last thought of his brother, and Kozeltsov wishes him the same happiness.
The news of the assault finds Volodya in the dugout. “It was not so much the sight of the soldiers’ calmness as the cadet’s pitiful, undisguised cowardice that excited him.” Not wanting to be like Vlang, Volodya commands easily, even cheerfully, but soon hears that the French are bypassing them. He sees enemy soldiers very close, it amazes him so much that he freezes in place and misses the moment when he can still escape. Next to him from bullet wound Melnikov dies. Vlang tries to shoot back, calls Volodya to run after him, but, jumping into the trench, he sees that Volodya is already dead, and in the place where he just stood, the French are and are shooting at the Russians. The French banner flutters over the Malakhov Kurgan.
Vlang with the battery arrives by boat in a safer part of the city. He bitterly mourns the fallen Volodya; which I became truly attached to. The retreating soldiers, talking among themselves, notice that the French will not be staying in the city for long. “It was a feeling that seemed like remorse, shame and anger. Almost every soldier, looking from the northern side at abandoned Sevastopol, sighed with inexpressible bitterness in his heart and threatened his enemies.”
You have read a summary of the Sevastopol Stories series. We also invite you to visit the section of our website Summary to familiarize yourself with other summaries of popular writers.
STATE BUDGET
EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION GYMNASIUM No. 271 named after P.I. Fedulov
ST. PETERSBURG
Development of a multimedia lesson
on the topic:
"SEVASTOPOL STORIES"
L.N. TOLSTOY –
ANOTHER TRUTH ABOUT WAR.
Completed by a teacher of Russian language and literature
Mandalyan Naira Mgerovna
Lesson topic: “Sevastopol Stories” by L.N. Tolstoy - another truth about war .
Lesson objectives: 1. Educational – familiarization with works that reflected the military experience of L.N. Tolstoy; studying artistic originality
stories of the battle genre.
2. Educational – show the true inhuman essence of any war; through consideration of realistic literary paintings, awaken a sense of patriotism and a humane attitude towards people.
3. Aesthetic – reveal close relationships different types arts (literature, painting, music), their general orientation against war and in defense of man.
Interdisciplinary connections: Using the topic “Crimean War” from the Russian history course (end XVII - XIX century), topics “Types and genres of art from the course “Business Culture”, subtopics “Plastuns in the Crimean War” from the course “Cuban Studies».
Types of control: 1. Preliminary tasks – independent work students with materials on literature, history, and Kuban studies.
2. Individual homework creative nature on cards.
Equipment: 1. Decoration IV bastion.
2. Stand “L.N. Tolstoy is a battle painter."
3. Chronological table"Crimean War".
4. Portrait of L.N. Tolstoy.
5. Cards with terms.
6. Cards with story titles.
7. Costumes for performances.
8. Flags.
9. Photos of Tolstoy and participants in the defense of Sevastopol.
10. Musical arrangement:
“Sevastopol Waltz”, phonogram “Shine, Shine, My Star”, performance of the original song “I Came Home”.
11. Illustrations by artists Aivazovsky, Timm, Serov.
12. Multimedia design, slide show.
Basic concepts and terms: Truth
realism
naturalism
antithesis
"trench truth"
battle
bastion
Plastuns
Epigraph for the lesson:
Who is the villain, who is the hero..? All are good and all are bad...
The hero of my story, whom I love with all the strength of my soul, whom I tried to reproduce in all his beauty and who was, is and will be beautiful, is true...
"Sevastopol in May."
War is not about a correct, beautiful and brilliant system, with music and drumming, waving banners and prancing generals, but... in blood, in suffering, in death...
"Sevastopol in December."
PLAN - LESSON OUTLINE
Org moment.
Lesson progress:
Org moment.
I . Teacher's introductory speech (topic and purpose of the lesson).
Today in class we will conduct a study that will help determine the degree of humanity, patriotism and truthfulness in each of us. The main teacher will be Truth itself. What is truth? In Vladimir Dahl's dictionary in 1866 it was written:
Truth is truth in deed, truth in image, in goodness; justice, fairness.
It is the truth in the image, i.e. In literature, many Russian writers served faithfully, including Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy. Here are the words of N.A. Nekrasov about Tolstoy’s truth, let’s read them:
This is exactly what Russian society needs now: truth, of which, after Gogol’s death, there is so little left in Russian literature.
(reading quotes from cards on the tables).
Truth is exactly what we need today. Today we will remember the truth about the war. Main idea our theme sounds in the epigraphs.
(reading epigraphs)
What is the truth about the war, of which Tolstoy was an eyewitness and participant? Let's turn to history.
II . Learning new material.
1. Analysis of the historical situation in the middle XIX century.
I half XIXmarked by serious military events. Russia's victory over Napoleonic France V Patriotic War 1812 is brilliantly depicted by Tolstoy in the epic novel War and Peace. According to Lev Nikolaevich, a thinking person needs to know not only about victories and glorious exploits, but also about defeats and the tragedy of what is happening on the battlefields.
Crimean War . In 1853, another Russian-Turkish war began. Turkey now has powerful allies - England and France. The Russian army suffered from a lack of weapons and ammunition. The infantry was armed with smoothbore rifles, which were loaded in 12 steps and fired at 200 steps. The Anglo-French-Turkish army was equipped with long-range rifles with rifled barrels that hit 300 steps. Navy Russia was also inferior to the enemy fleet: 115 Russian ships against 500 enemy ones.
Since the autumn of 1854, Turkey's allies began to take decisive action on the shores of the Crimea. Within five days, a 62,000-strong army landed near Yevpatoria and then moved towards Sevastopol, Russia's main point in Crimea.
The heroic defense of Sevastopol began on September 13, 1854 and lasted 349 days. The organizers of the defense were Admiral Kornilov, his assistants Admiral Nakhimov and Rear Admiral Istomin.
Sevastopol, impregnable from the sea, was easily vulnerable from land. It was necessary to build a system of fortifications (bastions) to repel the enemy attack. The siege began.
Many people took part in the defense of Sevastopol wonderful people. The artist Timm depicted the sailor heroes (illustration shown). These are Pyotr Koshka, Fyodor Zaika, Alexey Rybakov, soldiers Afanasy Eliseev and Ivan Demchenko. The world's first sister of mercy, Daria Sevastopolskaya, was also there.
The garrison held out for 11 months. The number of defenders was dwindling. Kornilov, Istomin, Nakhimov died.
On August 27, 1855, the French took Malakhov Kurgan. The unjust Crimean War ended in military defeat, but in the moral victory of the Russian people, who showed miracles of heroism.
This is a brief historical background about this war.
Let's listen to an eyewitness account of those terrible events.
(Reading an excerpt from a letter from surgeon N.I. Pirogov to his wife, written
The weather here is good... There is fog... an acacia tree has blossomed in front of our windows, but the trees are blooming incomparably slower than in St. Petersburg.
Now I live in three different places. My things lie safe in the Nikolaevskaya battery, where one casemate has also been prepared for me, if it is too dangerous to stay at the dressing station; I go to my old apartment to douse myself with cold sea water and have lunch, and sleep and spend the whole day at the dressing station, in the Assembly of the Nobility, the parquet floor of which is covered with a bark of dried blood; there are hundreds of amputees lying in the dance hall. Ten doctors and eight nurses are working tirelessly day and night, operating on and bandaging the wounded. Instead of dance music, the groans of the wounded are heard in the huge meeting hall...
Teacher's comment :
1. The doctor speaks about the horrors of war calmly and casually - courage and self-control.
2. Contrast: amputees in the dance hall, instead of music - the groans of the wounded; acacia flowering - suffering and death.
2. L.N. Tolstoy - participant in the defense of Sevastopol.
“Writing the truth about war is very dangerous. When man walking to the front to seek the truth, he may find death instead. But if 12 go and two return, the truth they bring will really be the truth.”
These are the words of a wonderful American writer Ernest Hemingway.
In besieged Sevastopol in the winter, spring and summer of 1855, at the most distant points of the defensive line, a short, lean officer with deeply sunken, piercing eyes, greedily peering into everything, was repeatedly noticed. He appeared in the most dangerous trenches and bastions. This was the still little-known young lieutenant and writer L.N. Tolstoy. Eyewitnesses subsequently wondered how he managed to survive, this“a brave artillery officer, without the slightest affectation, capable of remaining calm under any circumstances, even threatening painful death, not fussy, but persistent” .
Not long before this, Tolstoy was eager to join the active army. In 1854 he was transferred to the Danube Army and promoted to ensign. He is happy - fate has finally entrusted him with a historical matter, worthy of the great-great-grandson of the ambassador in Constantinople, Peter Tolstoy.
When Austria renounces neutrality, and France and England enter the war on the side of Turkey and land troops on Crimean peninsula and inflict a crushing defeat on the Russians in the Battle of Inkerman, Tolstoy goes to besieged Sevastopol, right onIV bastion.
(A student in military uniform reads a monologue aboutIV bastion)
IV Bastion
When someone says he was on IV bastion, he says this with special pleasure and pride; when someone says: “I’m going to IV bastion” - a little excitement or too much indifference is certainly noticeable in him; when they want to make fun of someone, they say: “I should put you on IV bastion”, when they meet a stretcher and ask: “Where from?” - Mostly they answer: “ C IV bastion." In general, there are two completely different opinions about this terrible bastion: those who have never been to it and who are convinced that IV the bastion is a sure grave for everyone who goes to it, and for those who live on it and will tell you whether it is dry or dirty there, warm or cold in the dugout.
So here he is IV Bastion, this is truly a terrible place. There you will see the plastuns of the Black Sea battalions who live here, smoke pipes... Look closely at the faces: in every wrinkle, in every movement you can see the main features that make up the strength of the Russian - simplicity and stubbornness..., traces of consciousness of one’s dignity and high thought and feelings .
Teacher's comment:
« When speaks, When they want to play a joke” - lexical repetition.
Two looks at IVbastion: those who were not there and those who live there.
Determine who the Plastuns are.
What's happened bastion?
Information about plastuns.
Student: Dahl’s dictionary says this: “Plastun is a Zaporozhye foot skirmisher, now that’s what they call Black Sea Cossacks. The plastuns lie in layers in the slums, floodplains, reeds, waiting for the enemy...”
Teacher:
Two Plastun foot battalions took part in the defense of Sevastopol. The appearance of the plastuns made an unfavorable impression - they were “in worn-out half-Asian costumes, i.e. checkmen, hats, trousers of various colors and patterns; they were on average from 30 to 50 years old and were short in stature. But soon the ridicule gave way to sincere respect - the Plastuns were unusually hardy, accurate in shooting, and skillful in reconnaissance.” They were transferred to the most dangerousIVbastion. After the Sevastopol events, everyone knew about them. They were immortalized by the artist V. Serov in the painting “Plastuns near Sevastopol”. They also remained in verse.
Please read.
Student : Invisible shadow, silent step
And bated breath.
Let the sensitive enemy not sleep,
But his eyes and ears will deceive him.
Merged with the grass for hours
A creeping layer arose,
And death whistles overhead,
Like a relentless guide
And there is no fear in his eyes,
He sees only his goal.
When a thunderstorm comes like a wall,
Opposing her is Yesaul.
Bayoneted hand
He will touch after the order
And the coldness of the checker is golden.
Then, when the war is over.
Student : From century to century in long rows
The undefeated are coming.
They don't hide behind their backs
And they don’t expect leniency.
Always beautiful and strong
Taking a heavy load on their shoulders
They go laughing blue eyes,
Twisting his dark mustache.
And every time with the early dawn
To the terrible altar of war,
They leave as if to be slaughtered,
Plastuns with the Cossack song.
3. “Sevastopol Stories” - structural analysis.
Teacher : Now we will try to understand the chronology and description of the events that underlie the “Sevastopol Stories”. In front of you are sheets with plans for each of the three stories. As the discussion progresses, follow and participate by reviewing key points in the narrative.
So, the first story in the series:
I . Sevastopol in December.
(Student message)
This story shows the moment of some weakening and slowing down of military operations between the bloody battle of Inkerman on November 5, 1854 and the battle of Yevpatoria on February 17, 1855.
Main episodes of the story:
Description of a Furshtat soldier.
Visit to the hospital and operating room.
Description IV bastion.
In December, Sevastopol and its garrison knew no respite and forgot what the word “peace” means. The bombing of the city by French and English artillery did not stop. Soldiers, sailors and workers toiled in the snow and rain without winter clothing, half-starved. They worked so hard that 40 years later, the enemy General Canrobert could not remember their dedication and fearlessness without delight. 16 thousand sailors almost all died along with their admirals Kornilov, Nakhimov and Istomin, but did not yield to the enemy!
Everything that Tolstoy writes can be confirmed by dozens of documentary evidence.
The wives of soldiers and sailors brought lunch to their husbands every day in their bastions, and often one bomb destroyed the whole family. These worthy women endured terrible injuries and death without complaint. Even at the height of the assault, they carried water and kvass to the bastions, and how many of them lay down on the spot!
The story sounds a firm “conviction in the impossibility of shaking the strength of the Russian people anywhere.”
II . Sevastopol in May.
(Student message)
In May 1855, a bloody battle took place between the garrison and the entire enemy army.
Main points of the story:
Tolstoy's discussion of infantry officers.
The scene when the officer reproaches the soldier.
Description of the wounded.
Truce scene.
An image of a ten-year-old boy on a field among the dead.
In the story, Tolstoy describes a brief truce declared after the battle on May 26 - June 7, in order to have time to remove and bury the many corpses that covered the ground. As always, the author is strictly truthful in his description of everything that happens.
Main idea – about the horror of war, about its unnatural essence. Tolstoy's goal is an extremely truthful depiction of war in blood and suffering.
Teacher: The most terrible episode in the story is a child on the battlefield. Look at how we imagined this excerpt from the story “Sevastopol in May.”
A dramatization of an episode from the story “Sevastopol in May.”
(A young man in black and a girl in a white dress with a bouquet of blue flowers come out to meet each other. They conduct a dialogue against the background of the scenery of a dilapidated bastion with a white flag).
Young woman: (dreamy) How beautiful the valley is in bloom, how wonderful these delicate flowers are, look... (shows flowers).
Young man: Look better at this ten-year-old boy, who, in what must be his father’s old cap, with boots on his bare feet... from the very beginning of the truce, went out onto the rampart and kept walking along the ravine, looking with a dull expression at the French and at the corpses lying on the ground.
Young woman: He picked the blue wildflowers with which this valley was strewn.
Young man: Yes... Returning home with a large bouquet, he, covering his nose from the smell carried by the wind, stopped near a pile of bodies and looked for a long time at the terrible headless corpse. After standing for quite a long time, he moved and touched the corpse’s numb hand with his foot. The hand swayed...
Young woman: (with fear in his voice) He screamed, hid his face in the flowers and ran away with all his might, towards the fortress!
Young man: (with bitterness) White flags are displayed on the bastion and on the trench, the flowering valley is filled with stinking bodies...
Young woman: (without listening to him) The beautiful sun descends to the blue sea, and the blue sea, swaying, glitters in the golden rays of the sun. These people are Christians, professing one great law of love and self-sacrifice, looking at what they have done, will they not fall on their knees with repentance before the one who gave them life and put in the soul of each, along with the fear of death, love for the good and the beautiful ? Will they really not embrace each other like brothers with tears of joy and happiness?
Young man: No! The white rags are hidden (the white flag is torn off). Again the instruments of death and suffering whistle, again innocent blood is shed and groans and curses are heard. Forward to the bastion! (runs away screaming).
Young woman: (in deep sadness) One of two things: either war is madness, or, if people do this madness, then they are not at all reasonable creatures, as for some reason you tend to think. (hides his face in the flowers and leaves).
III . Sevastopol in August 1855
(Student message)
This is the most terrible month of the siege, ending with the fall of Sevastopol on August 27, 1855. Sevastopol fought heroically for 349 days.
Main episodes of the story:
Description of the soldiers.
Image of the battle site.
Discussion about the nature of feat.
The story of the Kozeltsev brothers.
People's behavior.
Storm.
In the story “Sevastopol in August 1855” sound the following words: “Almost every soldier, looking from the northern side at the abandoned Sevastopol, sighed with inexpressible bitterness in his heart and threatened his enemies.” “At the bottom of everyone’s soul lies that noble spark that will make him a hero.”
Despite the scene of defeat, the entire story is permeated with Tolstoy's conviction in the heroism of the Russian people.
True heroes The Sevastopol epic is made up of soldiers, officers close to them, residents of the city - in a word, the Russian people.
Teacher: The heroic defense of Sevastopol in 1854-55, and the no less majestic defense of the same city in 1941-42. proved once again that the Russian people always knew how to love and defend their Fatherland, and carried the heroic traditions of Russian weapons throughout history.
Tolstoy in his works glorified two Russian national epics: heroism in the defense of Sevastopol and later, in the epic novel War and Peace, the victory over Napoleon in the Patriotic War of 1812.
4. Working with terms and new concepts.
a) Repetition and generalization of concepts such as"the truth about war" L.N. Tolstoy - a parallel with"trench truth" XXcenturies in literature about the Great Patriotic War.
b) Working with terminology cards.
Realism – (critical) – an artistic method that explores life, based on the comprehension and reconstruction of the underlying patterns (typical in it).
Naturalism – depiction of individual episodes in a work, when scenes of cruelty, violence, etc. are depicted openly and in detail.
Antithesis – stylistic device, based on a sharp contrast between images and concepts (examples from passages aboutIVbastion and letters from Pirogov).
Anaphora - a stylistic device that consists of repeating the same elements at the beginning of each parallel row.
(“when” in the passage “IV bastion").
Battle – [French – battle, battle] – depicting military scenes. A battle painter is an artist who creates works on military themes.
Bastion – a five-sided defensive fortification, consisting of two faces (front sides), two flanks (sides) and a gorge (rear part)
III . Generalization, explanation of creative homework.
(students are given cards with questions and photographs of Tolstoy and participants in the defense of Sevastopol).
Sevastopol stories by L. Tolstoy.
Sevastopol in December
The story begins at dawn on Sapun Mountain. It’s winter outside, there’s no snow, but in the morning the frost stings your skin. The dead silence is broken only by the sound of the sea and rare shots. Thinking about Sevastopol, everyone felt courage and pride, their heart began to beat faster.
The city is occupied, there is a war going on, but this does not disturb the peaceful progress of the townspeople. Women sell fragrant rolls, men sell sbiten. How amazingly war and peace are mixed here! People still flinch when they hear another shot or explosion, but in essence no one pays attention to them, and life goes on as usual.
It’s only spectacular on the bastion. There, the defenders of Sevastopol show a variety of feelings - horror, fear, sadness, surprise, etc. In the hospital, the wounded share their impressions and talk about their feelings. So a soldier who has lost his leg does not feel pain because he does not pay attention to it. Here lies a woman whose leg was amputated because she was wounded by a shell while bringing her husband lunch to the bastion.
The victims wait in horror for their turn for surgery, but in the meantime they watch the doctors and comrades whose damaged limbs are removed. Amputated body parts are thrown indifferently into the corner. Usually war is seen as something beautiful and brilliant, with magnificent marches. In fact, this is not true. Real war- this is pain, blood, suffering, death...
All this could be seen in the bastions. The most dangerous bastion was the fourth. The young officer who served there complained not about danger or fear of death, but about the dirt. His overly bold and cheeky behavior is easily explained - a defensive reaction to everything that is happening around him. The closer to the fourth bastion, the fewer people peaceful. More often they pass by you with a stretcher.
The officer in the bastion is already accustomed to war, so he is calm. He told how during the assault there was only one operational gun and few men left, but the next day he used all the guns again. One day a bomb flew into a dugout, where eleven sailors were killed. The defenders of the bastion revealed all the traits that together made up the strength of the Russian soldier - simplicity and perseverance.
The war gave their faces new expressions - anger and thirst for revenge for the suffering and pain caused to them. People begin to play with death, as it were - a bomb flying nearby no longer frightens you, on the contrary, you want it to fall closer to you. It is clear to all Russians that it is impossible to take Sevastopol and shake the spirit of the Russian people. People fight not because of threats, but because of a feeling that almost every Russian experiences, but for some reason is embarrassed by it - love for the Motherland.
Sevastopol in May
The fighting in Sevastopol has been going on for six months. It seems that all the bloodshed is completely pointless, the conflict could have been resolved in a more original and simpler way - a soldier would be sent from each warring side, and the side whose soldier wins wins. In general, war is full of illogic, such as this one - why pit armies of one hundred and thirty thousand people against each other when you can arrange a battle between two representatives of opposing countries.
Military personnel are walking around Sevastopol. One of them is Staff Captain Mikhailov. He is tall, somewhat stooped, and there is awkwardness in his movements. A few days ago, Mikhailov received a letter from a retired military comrade who told how his wife Natasha was enthusiastically reading in the newspapers about the actions of Mikhailov’s regiment and his own exploits.
It is bitter for Mikhailov to remember his former environment, because the current one categorically did not suit him. Mikhailov talked about balls in the governor's house, about playing cards with a civilian general, but his stories did not arouse either interest or trust in his listeners. They didn't show any reaction, as if they just didn't want to get into an argument. Mikhailov's Duma is occupied by the dream of promotion. On the boulevard he meets colleagues and reluctantly greets them.
Mikhailov wants to spend time with the “aristocrats,” which is why he walks along the boulevard. Vanity takes over these people, even though the life of each of them hangs in the balance, regardless of origin. Mikhailov doubted for a long time whether he should come up and say hello to people from the circle of “aristocrats,” because ignoring his greeting would hurt his pride. The “aristocrats” behave arrogantly towards the staff captain. Soon they stop paying any attention to Mikhailov and begin to talk exclusively among themselves.
At home, Mikhailov recalls that he offered to replace one sick officer on the bastion. It seems to him that the next day he will either be killed or rewarded. Mikhailov is alarmed - he tries to calm himself down with thoughts that he is going to do his duty, but at the same time he thinks about where he is most likely to get hurt. The “aristocrats” whom Mikhailov greeted were drinking tea at Kalugin’s, playing the piano and discussing their acquaintances in the capital. They no longer behaved unnaturally “inflated”, because there was no one to demonstratively show their “aristocratism”.
Galtsin asks for advice on whether to go on a sortie, but he himself understands that fear will not allow him to go. Kalugin realizes the same thing, so he dissuades his comrade. Going out into the street, Galtsin, without much interest, asks the wounded passing by about the progress of the battle, at the same time scolding them for allegedly cowardly leaving the battlefield. Kalugin, having returned to the bastion, does not try to hide from the bullets, takes a pathetic pose on horseback, in general, does everything so that those around him decide that he is a brave man.
The general orders Praskukhin to inform Mikhailov about the upcoming deployment of his battalion. Having successfully completed the assignment, Mikhailov and Praskukhin walk under the whistle of bullets, but they only worry about what they think about each other. On the way, they meet Kalugin, who decided not to risk it and return. A bomb fell not far from them, as a result of which Praskukhin was killed and Mikhailov was wounded in the head.
The staff captain refuses to leave the battlefield because there is a reward for being wounded. The next day, the “aristocrats” again walk along the boulevard and discuss the past battle. Tolstoy says that they are driven by vanity. Each of them is a little Napoleon, capable of ruining a hundred lives for the sake of an extra star and a salary increase. A truce has been declared. Russians and French communicate freely with each other, as if they were not enemies. There are conversations about the inhumanity and senselessness of war, which will subside as soon as the white flags are hidden.
Sevastopol in August 1855
Lieutenant Mikhail Kozeltsov leaves the hospital. He was quite intelligent, talented in several areas and skilled in his storytelling. Kozeltsov was quite vain; pride was often the reason for his actions. At the station, Mikhail Kozeltsov meets his younger brother Volodya. The latter was supposed to serve in the guard, but for minor offenses and of his own free will he went into the active army. He was glad that he would defend his homeland, moreover, together with his brother. Volodya experiences mixed feelings - both pride and timidity towards his brother. A certain fear of war began to overwhelm him, moreover, at the station he had already managed to get into debt.
Mikhail paid, and he and his brother set off. Volodya dreams of exploits and a heroic, beautiful death. Arriving at the booth, the brothers receive a lot of money. Everyone is amazed that Volodya left a quiet life for the sake of the warring Sevastopol. In the evening, the Kozeltsovs visited comrade Mikhail, who was seriously wounded and hoped only for death and quick relief from torment. Volodya and Mikhail went to their batteries.
Volodya was invited to spend the night in the staff captain’s bunk, which had already been occupied by cadet Vlang. The latter still had to give up the bed. Volodya cannot fall asleep for a long time, because he is frightened by the premonition of imminent death and darkness. Having prayed fervently, the young man calms down and falls asleep. Mikhail took command of the company he commanded before being wounded, which brings joy to his subordinates. The officers also warmly received the newly arrived Kozeltsov.
In the morning Volodya began to get closer to his new colleagues. Junker Vlang and Staff Captain Kraut seemed especially friendly to him. When the conversation turned to the topic of embezzlement and theft in high positions, Volodya, somewhat embarrassed, claims that he would never do that. At lunch, the commander has heated discussions. Suddenly an envelope arrives saying that an officer and servants are needed at Malakhov Kurgan (an incredibly dangerous place).
No one calls himself until someone points to Volodya. Kozeltsov and Vlang set off to carry out the assignment. Volodya tries to act in accordance with the “Manual” for artillery service, but once on the battlefield, he realizes that this is impossible, since the instructions and instructions are not correlated with reality. Vlang is incredibly scared, so he can no longer keep his cool. Volodya is both creepy and a little funny at the same time.
Volodya meets the soldiers in the bunker. They hope that they will soon receive help and be given a two-week vacation. Volodya and Melnikov are sitting on the threshold, and shells are falling in front of them. Soon Volodya finally gets rid of the feeling of fear, everyone considers him very brave, and the young man himself is happy that he is fulfilling his duties impeccably.
During the French assault, Kozeltsov jumps onto the battlefield so that no one would think that he is a coward. Volodya is wounded in the chest. The doctor examines the wound, which turned out to be fatal, and calls the priest. Volodya wonders if the Russians were able to repel the French assault. He was told that victory remained with the Russians, although this was not the case. Kozeltsov is happy that he is dying for the Fatherland and wishes his brother the same death.