Summary of the story left-hander Leskov chapter by chapter. Brief biography of Leskov the most important thing
Nikolai Leskov is a Russian writer, publicist and memoirist. In his works, he paid great attention to the Russian people.
AT late period Of his work, Leskov wrote a number of satirical stories, many of which were not censored. Nikolai Leskov was a deep psychologist, thanks to which he masterfully described the characters of his heroes.
He is best known for famous work"Lefty", which surprisingly conveys the features of the Russian character.
So in front of you short biography of Leskov.
Leskov's biography
Nikolai Semenovich Leskov was born on February 4, 1831 in the village of Gorokhovo, Oryol province. His father, Semyon Dmitrievich, was the son of a priest. He also graduated from the seminary, but preferred to work in the Oryol Criminal Chamber.
In the future, the stories of the father-seminarian and the grandfather-priest will seriously affect the formation of the views of the writer.
Leskov's father was a very gifted investigator, able to unravel the most difficult case. Due to his merits, he was awarded the title of nobility.
The writer's mother, Maria Petrovna, was from a noble family.
In addition to Nikolai, four more children were born in the Leskov family.
Childhood and youth
When the future writer was barely 8 years old, his father had a serious quarrel with his management. This led to the fact that their family moved to the village of Panino. There they bought a house and began to live a simple life.
Having reached a certain age, Leskov went to study at the Oryol gymnasium. An interesting fact is that in almost all subjects the young man received low marks.
After 5 years of study, he was issued a certificate of completion of only 2 classes. Leskov's biographers suggest that teachers were to blame for this, who treated students harshly and often punished them physically.
After studying, Nikolai had to get a job. His father sent him to the criminal chamber as a clerk.
In 1848, a tragedy occurred in Leskov's biography. His father died of cholera, leaving their family without support and a breadwinner.
The following year, at his own request, Leskov got a job in the state chamber in. At that time, he lived with his own uncle.
Being at a new workplace, Nikolai Leskov became seriously interested in reading books. He soon began attending the university as a volunteer.
Unlike most students, the young man listened attentively to the lecturers, eagerly absorbing new knowledge.
During this period of his biography, he became seriously interested in icon painting, and also made acquaintance with various Old Believers and sectarians.
Then Leskov got a job at the Schcott and Wilkens company, owned by his relative.
He was often sent on business trips, in connection with which he managed to visit different ones. Later, Nikolai Leskov would call this period of time the best in his biography.
Creativity Leskov
For the first time, Nikolai Semenovich Leskov wanted to take up a pen while working at Schcott and Wilkens. Every day he had to meet with different people and be a witness to interesting situations.
Initially, he wrote articles on everyday social topics. For example, he denounced officials for illegal activities, after which criminal cases were opened against some of them.
When Leskov was 32 years old, he wrote the story "The Life of a Woman", which was later published in a St. Petersburg magazine.
He then presented several more short stories, which were positively received by critics.
Inspired by the first success, he continued writing. Soon, very deep and serious essays “The Warrior” and “Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District” came out from Leskov’s pen.
An interesting fact is that Leskov not only masterfully conveyed the images of his heroes, but also decorated the works with intellectual humor. They often contained sarcasm and skilfully disguised parody.
Thanks to these techniques, Nikolai Leskov developed his own and unique literary style.
In 1867 Leskov tried himself as a playwright. He wrote many plays, many of which were staged in theaters. The play "The Spender", which tells about the merchant's life, gained particular popularity.
Then Nikolai Leskov published several serious novels, including Nowhere and On Knives. In them, he criticized various kinds of revolutionaries, as well as nihilists.
Soon his novels caused a wave of discontent from the ruling elite. The editors of many publications refused to publish his works in their journals.
Leskov's next work, which today is included in the compulsory school curriculum, was "Lefty". In it, he described the masters of weapons in paints. Leskov managed to present the plot so well that they began to talk about him as an outstanding writer of our time.
In 1874, by decision of the Ministry of Public Education, Leskov was approved for the position of censor of new books. Thus, he had to determine which of the books was eligible for publication and which was not. For his work, Nikolai Leskov received a very small salary.
During this period of his biography, he wrote the story "The Enchanted Wanderer", which no publisher wanted to publish.
The story was different in that many of its plots deliberately did not have a logical conclusion. Critics did not understand Leskov's idea and were very sarcastic about the story.
After that, Nikolai Leskov released a collection of short stories "The Righteous", in which he described the fate of ordinary people met on his way. However, these works were also negatively received by critics.
In the 80s, signs of religiosity began to clearly appear in his works. In particular, Nikolai Semenovich wrote about early Christianity.
At a later stage of his work, Leskov wrote works in which he denounced officials, military personnel and church leaders.
This period of his creative biography includes such works as "The Beast", "Scarecrow", "Dumb Artist" and others. In addition, Leskov managed to write a number of stories for children.
It is worth noting that he spoke of Leskov as "the most Russian of our writers", and Turgenev (see) considered him one of their main teachers.
He spoke about Nikolai Leskov as follows:
“As an artist of the word, N. S. Leskov is quite worthy to stand next to such creators of Russian as L. Tolstoy,. Leskov's talent, in strength and beauty, is not much inferior to the talent of any of the named creators of the sacred writings about the Russian land, and in the breadth of coverage of the phenomena of life, the depth of understanding of its everyday mysteries, and the subtle knowledge of the Great Russian language, he often exceeds his named predecessors and associates.
Personal life
In the biography of Nikolai Leskov there were 2 official marriages. His first wife was the daughter of a wealthy entrepreneur, Olga Smirnova, whom he married at the age of 22.
Over time, Olga began to have mental disorders. Later, she even had to be sent to a clinic for treatment.
Nikolai Leskov and his first wife Olga Smirnova In this marriage, the writer had a girl, Vera, and a boy, Mitya, who died at an early age.
Left virtually without a wife, Leskov began to cohabit with Ekaterina Bubnova. In 1866 their son Andrei was born. Having lived in a civil marriage for 11 years, they decided to leave.
Nikolai Leskov and his second wife Ekaterina Bubnova An interesting fact is that Nikolai Leskov was a staunch vegetarian for almost his entire biography. He was an ardent opponent of killing for food.
Moreover, in June 1892, Leskov published an appeal in the Novoye Vremya newspaper entitled “On the need to publish in Russian a well-composed detailed kitchen book for vegetarians.”
Death
Throughout his life, Leskov suffered from asthma attacks, which in recent years began to progress.
He was buried in St. Petersburg at the Volkovskoye cemetery.
Shortly before his death, in 1889-1893, Leskov compiled and published the Complete Works of A.S. Suvorin in 12 volumes, which included most of his works of art.
For the first time, a truly complete (30-volume) collected works of the writer began to be published by the Terra publishing house in 1996 and continues to this day.
If you liked Leskov's short biography, share it in in social networks. If you like biographies of great people in general, and in particular, subscribe to the site. It's always interesting with us!
Liked the post? Press any button.
N. Leskov's story "Lefty" is dedicated to a modest gunsmith. He surpassed the educated masters from England with his skill, made one wonder at the subtleties of his work - horseshoe nails on the smallest steel flea. The narrator relates the story of a slanting handyman who dies far from home. Summary"Lefty" chapter by chapter will help to understand the experiences of the author and appreciate the depth of his thoughts.
Chapter 1
The Russian emperor Alexander decided to ride around European countries, to see the wonders of technology and weapons. The Don Cossack Platov traveled with him. The emperor was surprised by overseas masters, but Platov did not admire anything. He was sure that there were curiosities at home and no worse than overseas ones. The British invited the sovereign to the weapons cabinet of curiosities. They wanted to show that the Russians can't do anything and are good for nothing. Frustrated, Platov drank vodka and went to bed, deciding that the morning was wiser than the evening.
Chapter 2
In the Kunstkamera, the Russian Emperor was shown technical and weapons achievements, busts and rooms. The emperor liked everything, he admired and praised foreign masters. Platov answered this by saying that his fellows, without any technical achievements, took languages and fought better than the British. The king was led to the statue of Abolon and shown two weapons: Mortimer's gun, pistol. The sovereign burst into rage, Platov took a screwdriver out of his pocket and spun the pistol. Inside, he showed the king the inscription. It was the name of the Russian gunsmith Ivan Moskvin from Tula. The British were discouraged. The king was upset. Returning for the night, the Cossack could not understand what upset the sovereign.
Chapter 3
Not knowing how else to impress the Russian emperor, the British took him to a sugar factory. But here, too, Platov brought in his fly in the ointment. He invited them to their homeland to taste the rumor. They didn't know what it was. They took the tsar to the last cabinet of curiosities. They gave me an empty tray. Alexander was surprised. The British asked to look at the tray and pointed to the smallest speck. The emperor saw her. It turns out it was a clockwork flea, made of solid steel. A spring was installed inside, which made the flea dance. The flea key could only be seen under a microscope. The amazed king bought a flea for a million, put it in a precious case. The masters of the English called the first. We went to Russia, but on the way we hardly spoke, everyone remained with his own opinion.
Chapter 4
Bloch began to roam: from Alexander to the priest Fedot, Empress Elizabeth, Emperor Nicholas. To solve the mystery of such a special relationship to a small thing, they found Platov. He told me what was special about a flea. The Don Cossack added to the story of the overseas little thing that there is nothing to be surprised about in it. Russian artisans can do better. Nikolai Pavlovich instructed to transfer the crafts to the Tula masters, knowing that they would prove the words of the Cossack.
Chapter 5
Ataman carried out the order. He took the flea to the gunsmiths. They asked to leave the craft for a few days. The Cossack decided to find out what the masters wanted to do, but they did not tell him anything. Ataman left to carry out the will of the king. I left the overseas toy in Tula for 2 weeks.
Chapter 6
Three artisans, without explaining anything to either family or friends, left the city. Some thought they were scared, decided to run away, but it was not so. One of the Tulchans had an interesting appearance:
- cross-eyed;
- with a birthmark on the face;
- the hair at the temples was torn out.
They took the amazing snuffbox with them.
Chapter 7
Gunsmiths from Tula were very religious people. They went to the city of Mtsensk. There stood an ancient icon, carved from stone, of Nicholas the Wonderworker. The masters appealed to the icon with a prayer, asked her for help. Returning to Tula, they closed in the house of the oblique Lefty. The inhabitants of the area tried to find out what the weapon masters were doing, but they did not go out into the air, day or night.
Chapter 8
Ataman Platov was in a hurry. He did not give the coachmen a rest. They missed a hundred jumps. The ataman himself did not go to the artisans. He sent whistlers (couriers) to them. The door was not opened. Ordinary people began to send a formidable Cossack. The result is the same.
Chapter 9
Out of fear, the common people fled. The whistlers began to knock down the doors, but they were closed with an oak bolt, they simply did not succumb. Couriers began to remove logs from the roof and removed everything. The masters in the house had such stale air that I almost knocked everyone off their feet. The gunsmiths explained that they had the last nail to drive in. The whistlers ran to report that the masters had finished the job. They ran with an eye, checking to see if the gunsmiths were running away. In the hands of one of the masters kept the same snuffbox.
Chapter 10
Platov took the snuffbox and opened it. Nothing has changed: the same nut and the same flea. Platov could not take the key with his strong hands. They did not give out the secret of the work, and angered the ataman even more. He decided to take one of the masters with him. The gunsmiths tried to ask how the comrade would go without documents, but Platov answered them with his fist. Arriving in the capital, he put on awards and went to the reception. The bound gunsmith remained at the entrance.
Chapter 11
The Cossack ataman made a report to the king as it should be. And he asks him about an English toy. I had to tell the ataman that the flea was returned to its former state. But Nicholas did not believe. He hoped that the masters had done something beyond their concept, he decided to check it out.
Chapter 12
The steel toy was wound up with a microscopic key. She didn't dance like she used to. Cossack ataman Platov got angry. He decided that the complex equipment was simply damaged. He went to the bound scythe, began to drag him by the hair, beat him, and scolded him for deceit. The left-hander insisted on his own: they did everything, but the work can be seen through a strong microscope (melkoscope).
Chapter 13
The sovereign ordered to bring him a melkoscope. The king began to spin the steel toy, examining and looking for changes, but did not notice anything. He ordered Levsha to be brought to him. He asked why their work was not visible. He explained that every heel of the steel insect should be considered. The king was surprised, it was very small, but the master insisted. The emperor of Russia looked through a microscope and shone. He took an unwashed beaten guy, kissed him. And he told everyone who was in the hall that the Russians had shod the overseas flea.
Chapter 14
The left-hander added that the names of the artisans were engraved on the horseshoes. When asked where his name was, the guy explained that he made nails with which the horseshoes were nailed, and they are small, you can’t put a name there. The king asked where the gunsmiths got such a small scope. The left-hander explained that they did not have any equipment, the eye was aimed so that it could see small details without a microscope. Ataman apologized to the artisans, gave 100 rubles. Nicholas decided to send the flea back to England. The courier was chosen from scholars who knew languages. The left-hander was supposed to be with him to show the work and skill of the Russians. The Tula gunsmith was dressed up and sent abroad.
Chapter 15
The courier took the shod insect to the British, but Lefty did not take it with him. Foreigners wanted to see who the skilled craftsman was. They came to the hotel, began to drink, feed, question. The goal was one - to understand how he learned everything. But the master was illiterate, he had not heard of arithmetic. Science in Russia for the Left-hander was based on two textbooks: "Psalter" and "Dream Book". What kind of books, the British did not know. The English masters offered Lefty to stay, and promised to send money to their parents. No persuasion worked on the Russian guest.
Chapter 16
The left-hander is taken around the factories, trying to persuade him to stay. The Tula boy was not surprised at many things, he said that they could do it too. He praised the old weapons. A Tula resident asked to go home. They put him on a ship going to Russia, gave him money, a gold watch. On the ship, the armourer impressed the half-skipper with his ability to withstand bad weather. They made a bet, drink the same way.
Chapter 17
The two new friends drank in such a way that they imagined the devil from the abyss (to the Russian) and the sea eye (to the Englishman). I almost threw the half-skipper of the Russian artisan overboard. The captain ordered them to be placed downstairs, given food and drink, but not released. So they got to St. Petersburg. But here the paths went in different directions:
- Lefty - in the poor quarter;
- half-skipper - to the embassy's house.
Chapter 18
The Englishman began to be treated by real doctors, quickly put on his feet. The entire embassy tried to help recover. The left-hander was taken to the quarter, thrown on the floor, they began to demand documents. They took off his new clothes, took away his watch and money. The patient was sent to a free hospital. They were taken on a sleigh, without covering anything, cold and undressed. Lefty was not accepted anywhere without documents. He ended up in a people's hospital for all classes. Where they come to die.
The half-skipper recovered and ran to look for his Russian friend.
Chapter 19
Surprisingly, the Englishman found a Russian friend lying on the floor. Lefty wanted to convey two words (the secret of an overseas country) to the sovereign. The Englishman was taken aback. He spoke about his human soul, and they kicked him out. They advised me to contact Platov, maybe he will help the gunsmith. Platov sent a half-skipper to commandant Skobelev, who sent a doctor to the master. The doctor could no longer do anything, Lefty was dying. He asked me to tell the king that in England weapons are not cleaned with bricks. The doctor went to Count Chernyshev, but he did not even listen, not understanding any meaning in the words. He told the doctor to be quiet. The master's advice died with him, and could have changed the course of battles.
Chapter 20
Here the style of the text changes because this chapter is the reflection of the author himself. He regrets that there were no such masters, cars appeared, and the popular imagination dried up. The author is glad that they remember the old days.
The tale of Lefty is the story of the fate of many talented people. The summary helps to see the storyline of the work, but you can only feel the peculiarities of the language of Nikolai Leskov while reading the full text of the story.
This is where it ends brief retelling story "Lefty", which includes only the most important events from full version works!
Having finished with political affairs, Emperor Alexander Pavlovich decided to travel around Europe and see various state miracles. And in different countries they tried to win over the sovereign. Yes, only the Don Cossack Platov was under the tsar. He missed his household very much, and therefore he called the king home all the time. And if Platov noticed that the tsar was very interested in something foreign, he immediately said that, they say, there is no worse in Russia. And so the British invited the sovereign to their soap-saw and weapons factories to look. The British show the sovereign a gun and a pistol. And the king became very interested in the pistol, fine work. The British praised the pistol, but Platov came up, took the weapon, turned it twice with a screwdriver and took out the mechanism, but he showed it to the tsar. And on the mechanism there is a Russian inscription: "Ivan Moskvin in the city of Tula." The British were so embarrassed that Alexander himself felt sorry for them.
The next day the king of the Kunstkamera went to look. And the British present him with a speck on a tray, which turns out to be a steel mechanical flea. In order to put it into action, you need to start it with a key. The king gave the British a million for such a miracle, and even bought a case from them for five thousand. On the way home, Platov and the sovereign hardly spoke, because "they became completely different thoughts." The amazing flea remained with Alexander Pavlovich until his death, and after his widow, Empress Elizaveta Alekseevna, only grinned and did not pay attention to her anymore. Later, Nikolai Pavlovich, the emperor, became interested in her. However, neither he nor anyone else could reveal the secret of the flea until the Cossack Platov, who was still alive by that time, heard about it. With all the orders, he appeared before the sovereign and told how and under what circumstances this nymphosoria was bought. Platov advises the emperor to show the miracle of technology to the Tula masters. This was entrusted to the Cossack himself.
Platov took a flea and went to the Don, and on the way turned to Tula. The Tula craftsmen marveled at the English curiosity and promised to come up with something that could outdo the "English nation". But no matter how cunning Platov, he could not find out what exactly the masters would do. At their request, he left the flea, along with the case, gave them only a period of two weeks and went on. Platov left Tula, and the three most gifted craftsmen gathered their belongings and, after saying goodbye to their comrades, disappeared from the city. There were many rumors about them, but they were far from the truth. Tulyaks, masters in metal work, were also very pious people. And they went to Mtsensk, where the icon of St. Nicholas stood. They served a prayer service at the very icon and returned home at night. We locked ourselves in the house of one of them - left-handers, and worked all two weeks in great secrecy. And no matter how hard they tried to call them outside, not one came out. Platov rode from the Don with great haste. As soon as I arrived in Tula, I didn’t even get out of the carriage, but ordered only to invite the craftsmen, to whom I left the flea. The left-handers ran to the house, and the shutters were torn and the doors pulled, but neither the shutters nor the door yielded. And the masters were just finishing their work and driving in the last carnation. They brought Platov a royal box, in it was a diamond nut, and in the nut was the same flea. Platov got angry, decided that his masters had deceived him. The masters were offended by the Cossack, but they did not tell him the secret of their work, they say, the emperor himself will see "what kind of people he has and whether he is ashamed for us." Platov did not believe, but only grabbed the left-hander by the collar, so that "all the hooks from the Cossack flew off, and threw him into his carriage at his feet." "You will answer me for everyone!"
Platov was never afraid of any enemy, but here he chickened out in front of the sovereign. And he kept hoping that Nikolai would forget about the flea. An no. The Cossack had to confess that the Tula masters could not do anything. The king did not believe: "Give it here. I know that my people cannot deceive me. Something beyond the concept has been done here." The king called his beloved daughter Alexandra Nikolaevna. She started a flea, and she only moves her antennae, but does not dance as before. In a rage, Platov attacked the left-hander. And the left-hander only says that you need to look at a flea through a microscope. But the king did not see anything even through the microscope. Then the left-hander explained that it was necessary to look at her legs. And it turned out that the Tula masters shod a flea. Here the king beamed, hugged the left-hander and kissed him. The flea was again folded into a diamond nut and sent to the masters in England. And the left-hander with the flea was sent together to show what kind of craftsmen there are in Russia.
In England, they persuaded the lefty to stay for a long time, they promised to marry him, but he did not agree. The British found out that the left-hander did not know either arithmetic or at least the rules of addition, but studied only from the "Sleep Book", and from the "Psalter". And if I knew, I would have guessed that horseshoes for fleas are heavy. Because of them, she can't dance. The left-hander stayed in England to stay with the agreement that he would soon be sent home on a steamer.
For a long time the left-hander looked out for all the English production, and was surprised not at how they make new things, but at how they maintain the old ones. And the left-hander yearned for his homeland. The British sent him on a steamer, where he became friends with the half-skipper. And they began to drink on a dare, and so they drank it to the end of the journey. And in Petersburg their fate parted. The Englishman to the messenger's house, and the left-hander to the quarter. Found half-skipper lefty already in the hospital. He ran for help to Count Kleinmichel, and to Platov, and to Skobelev, but he just did not get any sense. And the left-hander was already over. And his last words were: "Tell the sovereign that the British do not clean their guns with bricks: let them not clean ours either, otherwise, God forbid, they are not good for shooting."
But the sovereign was never told.
And if they brought the words of the left-hander to the sovereign in time, then the outcome of the Crimean War could have been different.
Russian writer Nikolai Semenovich Leskov was born in the village of Gorokhovo, Oryol province in 1831. His father was an official and the son of a priest. His mother came from a noble family, and his childhood was an ordinary noble childhood. He was greatly influenced by his aunt Paula, who married an English Quaker and joined this sect. At the age of sixteen, Leskov lost his parents and was left alone in the world, forced to earn his own bread. I had to leave the gymnasium and enter the service. He served in various government provincial institutions. Here real pictures of Russian reality were revealed to him. But he really discovered life when he left public service and began to serve with the Englishman Shkott, like Aunt Paula, a sectarian who managed the huge estates of a wealthy landowner. In this service, Leskov acquired extensive knowledge of Russian life, very different from the typical ideas of young people. educated people that time. Thanks to worldly training, Leskov became one of those Russian writers who know life not like the owners of serf souls, whose views have changed under the influence of French or German university theories, like Turgenev and Tolstoy, but know it from direct practice, regardless of theories. That is why his view of Russian life is so unusual, so free from condescending sentimental pity for the Russian peasant, so characteristic of a liberal and educated feudal lord.
Leskov: a way to literature and out of it. Lecture by Maya Kucherskaya
His literary work began with the writing of business reports for Mr. Schcott, who was not slow to notice the common sense, observation, knowledge of the people contained therein. Nikolai Leskov began writing for newspapers and magazines in 1860 when he was 29 years old. The first articles dealt only with practical, domestic issues. But soon - in 1862 - Leskov left the service, moved to St. Petersburg and became a professional journalist.
It was a time of great social upheaval. Public interests also seized Leskov, but in the highest degree practical mind and worldly experience did not allow him to unconditionally join any of the then parties of hotheads who were not adapted to practical activities. Hence the isolation in which he found himself when an incident occurred that left an indelible mark on his literary destiny. He wrote an article about the big fires that destroyed part of St. Petersburg that year, the culprits of which were rumored to be " nihilists and radical students. Leskov did not support this rumor, but mentioned it in his article and demanded that the police conduct a thorough investigation in order to confirm or refute the city's rumors. This demand acted like a bombshell on the radical press. Leskov was accused of setting the mob on students and "informing" the police. He was boycotted and expelled from progressive magazines.
Portrait of Nikolai Semenovich Leskov. Artist V. Serov, 1894
At this time he began to write fiction. First story ( musk ox) appeared in 1863. It was followed by a great romance nowhere(1864). This novel caused new misunderstandings with radicals who managed to discern in some characters slanderous caricatures of their friends; this was enough to brand Leskov as a vile reactionary slanderer, although the main socialists in the novel are depicted as almost saints. In his next novel, On knives(1870-1871), Leskov went much further in depicting the nihilists: they are presented as a bunch of scoundrels and scoundrels. It was not "political" novels that created real fame for Leskov. This fame is based on his stories. But the novels made Leskov the bogey of all radical literature and deprived the most influential critics of the opportunity to treat him with at least some degree of objectivity. The only one who welcomed, appreciated and encouraged Leskov was the famous Slavophile critic Apollon Grigoriev, a man of genius, although extravagant. But in 1864, Grigoriev died, and Leskov owes all his later popularity only to the good taste of the public that was not directed by anyone.
Popularity began after the publication of the "chronicle" Cathedral in 1872 and a number of stories, mainly from the life of the clergy, which followed the chronicle and were published until the very end of the 1870s. In them, Leskov is a defender of conservative and Orthodox ideals, which attracted the favorable attention of high-ranking persons to him, including the wife of Alexander II, Empress Maria Alexandrovna. Thanks to the attention of the Empress, Leskov received a seat on the committee of the Ministry of Education, practically a sinecure. At the end of the 70s. he joined the campaign for the defense of Orthodoxy against Lord Radstock's pietist propaganda. However, Leskov was never a consistent conservative, and even his support for Orthodoxy against Protestantism relied, as a main argument, on democratic humility, in which it differs from the aristocratic individualism of the “high society split,” as he called the Redstock sect. His attitude towards church institutions was never completely submissive, and his Christianity gradually became less traditional and more critical. The stories of the life of the clergy, written in the early 1880s, were largely satirical, and because of one such story, he lost his place on the committee.
Leskov fell more and more under the influence of Tolstoy and towards the end of his life became a devout Tolstoyan. The betrayal of conservative principles again pushed him to the left wing of journalism, and in recent years he contributed mainly to moderately radical journals. However, those who dictated literary opinions did not speak out about Leskov and treated him very coldly. When he died in 1895 he had many readers throughout Russia, but few friends in literary circles. Shortly before his death, he is said to have said: "Now I am read for the beauty of my inventions, but in fifty years the beauty will fade, and my books will be read only for the ideas they contain." It was an amazingly bad prophecy. Now, more than ever, Leskov is read because of his incomparable form, because of the style and manner of the story - least of all because of his ideas. In fact, few of his fans realize what ideas he had. Not because these ideas are incomprehensible, but because attention is now absorbed in something completely different.
Compatriots recognize Leskov as the most Russian of Russian writers, who knew his people deeper and wider than anyone as they are.
Nikolai Semenovich Leskov
Nikolai Semyonovich Leskov (1831 - 1895) - prose writer, the most popular writer of Russia, playwright. The author of famous novels, short stories and short stories, such as: "Nowhere", "Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District", "On the Knives", "Cathedrals", "Lefty" and many others, the creator of the theatrical play "Spender".
early years
He was born on February 4 (February 16), 1831 in the village of Gorokhovo, Oryol province, in the family of an investigator and the daughter of an impoverished nobleman. They had five children, Nikolai was the eldest child. The writer's childhood passed in the city of Orel. After the father left the position, the family moved from Orel to the village of Panino. Here the study and knowledge of the people by Leskov began.
Education and career
In 1841, at the age of 10, Leskov entered the Oryol Gymnasium. The future writer did not work out with his studies - in 5 years of study he graduated from only 2 classes. In 1847, thanks to the help of his father's friends, Leskov got a job as a clerical clerk in the Oryol Criminal Chamber of the court. When Nikolai was 16 years old, his father died of cholera, and all his property burned down in a fire.
In 1849, with the help of his uncle, a professor, Leskov transferred to Kyiv as an official of the Treasury, where he later received the post of clerk. In Kyiv, Leskov developed an interest in Ukrainian culture and great writers, painting and architecture of the old city.
In 1857, Leskov left his job and entered the commercial service in the large agricultural company of his uncle, an Englishman, on whose business he traveled most of Russia in three years. After the closing of the company, in 1860 he returned to Kyiv.
creative life
1860 is considered the beginning of Leskov's creative path, at this time he writes and publishes articles in various magazines. Six months later, he moves to St. Petersburg, where he plans to engage in literary and journalistic activities.
In 1862, Leskov became a permanent contributor to the Severnaya Pchela newspaper. Working in it as a correspondent, he visited Western Ukraine, the Czech Republic and Poland. He was close and sympathetic to the life of Western twin nations, so he delved into the study of their art and life. In 1863 Leskov returned to Russia.
Having studied and observed the life of the Russian people for a long time, sympathizing with their sorrows and needs, Leskov wrote the stories “Extinguished Business” (1862), the stories “The Life of a Woman”, “Musk Ox” (1863), “Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District” (1865).
In the novels Nowhere (1864), Bypassed (1865), On Knives (1870), the writer revealed the theme of Russia's unpreparedness for revolution.
Having disagreements with the revolutionary democrats, Leskova refused to publish many magazines. The only one who published his work was Mikhail Katkov, editor of the Russky Vestnik magazine. It was incredibly difficult for Leskov to work with him, the editor ruled almost all of the writer's works, and some even refused to print at all.
In 1870 - 1880 he wrote the novels "Cathedrals" (1872), "The seedy family" (1874), where he revealed the national and historical issues. The novel "The Seedy Family" was not completed by Leskov due to disagreements with the publisher Katkov. Also at this time, he wrote several stories: "The Islanders" (1866), "The Sealed Angel" (1873). Fortunately, "The Sealed Angel" was not affected by the editorial revision of Mikhail Katkov.
In 1881, Leskov wrote the story "Lefty (The Tale of the Tula Oblique Lefty and the Steel Flea)" - an old legend about gunsmiths.
The story "Hare Remise" (1894) was the last great work of the writer. In it, he criticized the political system of Russia at that time. The story was published only in 1917 after the Revolution.
Writer's personal life
Leskov's first marriage was unsuccessful. The writer's wife in 1853 was the daughter of a Kyiv merchant Olga Smirnova. They had two children - the firstborn, son Mitya, who died in infancy, and daughter Vera. My wife fell ill with a mental disorder and was treated in St. Petersburg. The marriage broke up.
In 1865 Leskov lived with his widow Ekaterina Bubnova. The couple had a son Andrei (1866-1953). He divorced his second wife in 1877.
The last five years of Leskov's life were tormented by asthma attacks, from which he later died. Nikolai Semenovich died on February 21 (March 5), 1895 in St. Petersburg. The writer was buried at the Volkovo cemetery
The Enchanted Wanderer ( 1873 )
Summary of the story
Read in 7 minutes
4 h
On the way to Valaam on Lake Ladoga, several travelers meet. One of them, dressed in a novice cassock and looking like a "typical hero," says that, having "God's gift" to tame horses, he, according to his parents' promise, died all his life and could not die in any way. At the request of the travelers, the former koneser (“I am a koneser,<…>I am a connoisseur in horses and was with repairmen to guide them, ”the hero himself says about himself) Ivan Severyanych, Mr. Flyagin, tells his life.
Coming from the yard people of Count K. from the Oryol province, Ivan Severyanych has been addicted to horses since childhood and once “for fun” beats a monk to death on a wagon. The monk appears to him at night and reproaches him for taking his life without repentance. He also tells Ivan Severyanych that he is the “promised” son of God, and gives a “sign” that he will die many times and will never die before the real “death” comes and Ivan Severyanych goes to Chernetsy. Soon, Ivan Severyanych, nicknamed Golovan, saves his masters from inevitable death in a terrible abyss and falls into mercy. But he cuts off the tail of the owner's cat, which drags pigeons from him, and as punishment he is severely flogged, and then sent to "an English garden for a path to beat stones with a hammer." The last punishment of Ivan Severyanych "tormented", and he decides to commit suicide. The rope prepared for death is cut off by the gypsies, with whom Ivan Severyanych leaves the count, taking horses with him. Ivan Severyanych breaks up with the gypsy, and, having sold a silver cross to an official, he receives a leave of absence and is hired as a "nanny" to the little daughter of a gentleman. For this work, Ivan Severyanych is very bored, leads the girl and the goat to the river bank and sleeps over the estuary. Here he meets the lady, the mother of the girl, who begs Ivan Severyanych to give her the child, but he is relentless and even fights with the current husband of the lady, an officer-lancer. But when he sees the angry approaching owner, he gives the child to his mother and runs with them. The officer sends the passportless Ivan Severyanych away, and he goes to the steppe, where the Tatars drive horse shoals.
Khan Dzhankar sells his horses, and the Tatars set prices and fight for horses: they sit opposite each other and whip each other with whips. When a new handsome horse is put up for sale, Ivan Severyanych does not hold back and, speaking for one of the repairmen, traps the Tatar to death. According to "Christian custom", he is taken to the police for murder, but he runs away from the gendarmes to the very "Ryn-Sands". The Tatars "bristle" Ivan Severyanych's legs so that he does not run away. Ivan Severyanych moves only by crawling, serves as a doctor among the Tatars, yearns and dreams of returning to his homeland. He has several wives "Natasha" and children "Kolek", whom he regrets, but he admits to the listeners that he could not love them, because they are "unbaptized". Ivan Severyanych completely despairs of getting home, but Russian missionaries come to the steppe "to establish their faith." They preach, but refuse to pay a ransom for Ivan Severyanych, arguing that before God "everyone is equal and it's all the same." Some time later, one of them is killed, Ivan Severyanych buries him according to Orthodox custom. He explains to the listeners that "the Asian must be brought to faith with fear," because they "will never respect a humble god without a threat." The Tatars bring two people from Khiva who come to buy horses in order to "make war." Hoping to intimidate the Tatars, they demonstrate the power of their fiery god Talafy, but Ivan Severyanych discovers a box with fireworks, introduces himself as Talafy, converts the Tatars to Christianity and, having found "caustic earth" in the boxes, heals his legs.
In the steppe, Ivan Severyanych meets a Chuvash, but refuses to go with him, because he simultaneously honors both the Mordovian Keremeti and the Russian Nicholas the Wonderworker. Russians come across on the way, they cross themselves and drink vodka, but drive away the "passportless" Ivan Severyanych. In Astrakhan, the wanderer ends up in prison, from where he is taken to his hometown. Father Ilya excommunicates him for three years from communion, but the count, who has become devout, releases him “for quitrent”, and Ivan Severyanych settles in the horse department. After he helps the peasants to choose a good horse, he is famous as a magician, and everyone demands to tell the "secret". Including one prince, who took Ivan Severyanych to his post as a koneser. Ivan Severyanych buys horses for the prince, but from time to time he has drunken “exits”, before which he gives the prince all the money for the purchases to be safe. When the prince sells a beautiful horse to Dido, Ivan Severyanych is very sad, "makes a way out", but this time he keeps the money to himself. He prays in church and goes to a tavern, where he meets an “over-empty-empty” person who claims that he drinks because he “voluntarily took weakness on himself” so that it would be easier for others, and Christian feelings do not allow him to stop drinking. A new acquaintance imposes magnetism on Ivan Severyanych to free him from "zealous drunkenness", and at the same time gives him extra water. At night, Ivan Severyanych finds himself in another tavern, where he spends all his money on the beautiful gypsy singer Grushenka. Having obeyed the prince, he learns that the owner himself gave fifty thousand for Grushenka, bought her out of the camp and settled in his house. But the prince is a fickle person, he gets bored with the “love word”, he gets sleepy from “yakhont emeralds”, besides, all the money ends.
Having gone to the city, Ivan Severyanych overhears the conversation of the prince with former mistress Evgenia Semyonovna and learns that his master is going to marry, and wants to marry the unfortunate and sincerely fallen in love with him Grushenka to Ivan Severyanych. Returning home, he does not find the gypsy, whom the prince secretly takes to the forest to the bee. But Grusha escapes from her guards and, threatening that she will become a "shameful woman", asks Ivan Severyanych to drown her. Ivan Severyanych fulfills the request, and in search of an imminent death he pretends to be a peasant son and, having given all the money to the monastery as a “contribution for Grushin’s soul”, goes to war. He dreams of dying, but "neither earth nor water wants to accept", and having distinguished himself in business, he tells the colonel about the murder of a gypsy. But these words are not confirmed by the sent request, he is promoted to an officer and dismissed with the Order of St. George. Using the colonel's letter of recommendation, Ivan Severyanych gets a job as a "reference officer" at the address desk, but falls on the insignificant letter "fit", the service does not go well, and he goes to the artists. But rehearsals take place during Holy Week, Ivan Severyanych gets to portray the “difficult role” of the demon, and besides, stand up for the poor “gentlewoman”, he “pulls the whirlwinds” of one of the artists and leaves the theater for the monastery.
According to Ivan Severyanych, monastic life does not burden him, he stays there with horses, but he does not consider it worthy to take senior tonsure and lives in obedience. To the question of one of the travelers, he says that at first the demon appeared to him in "seductive female image”, but after fervent prayers, only small demons, “children”, remained. Once Ivan Severyanych kills a demon with an ax, but he turns out to be a cow. And for another deliverance from demons, he is put in an empty cellar for a whole summer, where Ivan Severyanych discovers the gift of prophecy in himself. Ivan Severyanych ends up on the ship because the monks let him go to pray in Solovki to Zosima and Savvaty. The Stranger admits that he expects an imminent death, because the spirit inspires him to take up arms and go to war, and he “wants to die for the people.” Having finished the story, Ivan Severyanych falls into quiet concentration, once again feeling the influx of a mysterious broadcasting spirit, which is revealed only to babies.