Introduction
“Garnet bracelet” is one of the most famous stories Russian prose writer Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin. It was published in 1910, but for the domestic reader it still remains a symbol of unselfish, sincere love, the kind that girls dream about, and the one that we so often miss. We previously published this wonderful work. In this same publication we will tell you about the main characters, analyze the work and talk about its problems.
The events of the story begin to unfold on the birthday of Princess Vera Nikolaevna Sheina. They celebrate at the dacha with their closest people. At the height of the fun, the hero of the occasion receives a gift - a garnet bracelet. The sender decided to remain anonymous and signed a short note only the initials GSG. However, everyone immediately guesses that this is Vera’s long-time admirer, a certain petty official who has been inundating her with love letters for many years. The princess's husband and brother quickly figure out the identity of the annoying suitor and the next day they go to his home.
In a wretched apartment they are met by a timid official named Zheltkov, he meekly agrees to take the gift and promises never to appear in front of the respectable family again, provided that he makes a final farewell call to Vera and makes sure that she does not want to know him. Vera Nikolaevna, of course, asks Zheltkov to leave her. The next morning the newspapers will write that a certain official took his own life. In his farewell note, he wrote that he had squandered government property.
Main characters: characteristics of key images
Kuprin is a master of portraiture, and through appearance he draws the character of the characters. The author pays a lot of attention to each character, devoting a good half of the story to portrait characteristics and memories, which are also revealed by the characters. The main characters of the story are:
- – princess, central female image;
- - her husband, the prince, the provincial leader of the nobility;
- - a minor official of the control chamber, passionately in love with Vera Nikolaevna;
- Anna Nikolaevna Friesse– Vera’s younger sister;
- Nikolai Nikolaevich Mirza-Bulat-Tuganovsky– brother of Vera and Anna;
- Yakov Mikhailovich Anosov- general, military comrade of Vera’s father, close friend of the family.
Vera is the ideal representative high society both in appearance, and in manners, and in character.
“Vera took after her mother, a beautiful Englishwoman, with her tall, flexible figure, gentle but cold and proud face, beautiful, albeit rather large hands and that charming sloping shoulders that can be seen in ancient miniatures.”
Princess Vera was married to Vasily Nikolaevich Shein. Their love had long ceased to be passionate and moved into that calm stage of mutual respect and tender friendship. Their union was happy. The couple did not have children, although Vera Nikolaevna passionately wanted a baby, and therefore gave all her unspent feelings to the children of her younger sister.
Vera was royally calm, coldly kind to everyone, but at the same time very funny, open and sincere with close people. She was not characterized by such feminine tricks as affectation and coquetry. Despite his high status Vera was very prudent, and knowing how poorly things were going for her husband, she sometimes tried to deprive herself so as not to put him in an uncomfortable position.
Vera Nikolaevna’s husband is a talented, pleasant, gallant, noble man. He has an amazing sense of humor and is a brilliant storyteller. Shein keeps a home journal, which contains true stories with pictures about the life of the family and those close to them.
Vasily Lvovich loves his wife, perhaps not as passionately as in the first years of marriage, but who knows how long passion actually lasts? The husband deeply respects her opinion, feelings, and personality. He is compassionate and merciful to others, even those who are much lower in status than him (this is evidenced by his meeting with Zheltkov). Shein is noble and endowed with the courage to admit mistakes and his own wrongness.
We first meet Official Zheltkov towards the end of the story. Until this moment, he is present in the work invisibly in the grotesque image of a klutz, an eccentric, a fool in love. When the long-awaited meeting finally takes place, we see before us a meek and shy person, it is customary to not notice such people and call them “little”:
“He was tall, thin, with long, fluffy, soft hair.”
His speeches, however, are devoid of the chaotic whims of a madman. He is fully aware of his words and actions. Despite his apparent cowardice, this man is very courageous; he boldly tells the prince, Vera Nikolaevna’s legal husband, that he is in love with her and cannot do anything about it. Zheltkov does not fawn over the rank and position in society of his guests. He submits, but not to fate, but only to his beloved. And he also knows how to love – selflessly and sincerely.
“It so happened that I am not interested in anything in life: neither politics, nor science, nor philosophy, nor concern for the future happiness of people - for me life lies only in you. I now feel that I have crashed into your life like some kind of uncomfortable wedge. If you can, forgive me for this"
Analysis of the work
Kuprin got the idea for his story from real life. In reality, the story was more of an anecdotal nature. A certain poor telegraph operator named Zheltikov was in love with the wife of one of the Russian generals. One day this eccentric was so brave that he sent his beloved a simple gold chain with a pendant in the form easter egg. It's hilarious and that's it! Everyone laughed at the stupid telegraph operator, but the inquisitive writer’s mind decided to look beyond the anecdote, because real drama can always be hidden behind the apparent curiosity.
Also in “The Pomegranate Bracelet,” the Sheins and their guests first make fun of Zheltkov. Vasily Lvovich even has a funny story about this in his home magazine called “Princess Vera and the telegraph operator in love.” People tend not to think about other people's feelings. The Sheins were not bad, callous, soulless (this is proven by the metamorphosis in them after meeting Zheltkov), they just did not believe that the love that the official admitted could exist..
There are many symbolic elements in the work. For example, a garnet bracelet. Garnet is a stone of love, anger and blood. If a feverish person picks it up (a parallel with the expression “love fever”), the stone will take on a more saturated hue. According to Zheltkov himself, this special type of pomegranate (green pomegranate) gives women the gift of foresight, and protects men from violent death. Zheltkov, having parted with his amulet bracelet, dies, and Vera unexpectedly predicts his death.
Another symbolic stone - pearls - also appears in the work. Vera receives pearl earrings as a gift from her husband on the morning of her name day. Pearls, despite their beauty and nobility, are an omen of bad news.
The weather also tried to predict something bad. On the eve of the fateful day, a terrible storm broke out, but on the birthday everything calmed down, the sun came out and the weather was calm, like a calm before a deafening clap of thunder and an even stronger storm.
Problems of the story
The key problem of the work is the question “What is real love? In order for the “experiment” to be pure, the author provides different types“love.” This is the tender love-friendship of the Sheins, and the calculating, convenient love of Anna Friesse for her indecently rich old man-husband, who blindly adores her soul mate, and the long-forgotten ancient love of General Amosov, and the all-consuming love-worship of Zheltkov for Vera.
The main character herself cannot understand for a long time whether it is love or madness, but looking into his face, albeit hidden by the mask of death, she is convinced that it was love. Vasily Lvovich draws the same conclusions after meeting his wife’s admirer. And if at first he was somewhat belligerent, then later he could not be angry with the unfortunate man, because, it seems, a secret was revealed to him, which neither he, nor Vera, nor their friends could comprehend.
People are selfish by nature and even in love, they think first of all about their feelings, masking their own egocentrism from their other half and even themselves. True love, which occurs between a man and a woman once every hundred years, puts the beloved first. So Zheltkov calmly lets Vera go, because that’s the only way she will be happy. The only problem is that he doesn’t need life without her. In his world, suicide is a completely natural step.
Princess Sheina understands this. She sincerely mourns Zheltkov, a man whom she practically did not know, but, oh my God, perhaps true love, which occurs once every hundred years, passed her by.
“I am eternally grateful to you just for the fact that you exist. I checked myself - this is not a disease, not a manic idea - this is love with which God was pleased to reward me for something... Leaving, I say in delight: “Hallowed be Thy name.”
Place in literature: Literature of the 20th century → Russian literature of the 20th century → Works of Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin → The story “Garnet Bracelet” (1910)
As a true patriot, passionately and devotedly loving Russia, A.I. Kuprin touches on pressing social issues in his works. Along with the problems of a “little” humiliated person, the theme of the hard work of artisans, the description of the situation of fallen women caused a wide resonance in society.
But there is one topic that the author addresses with care and reverence. For him, “love is the greatest happiness and the greatest tragedy.” The story “The Garnet Bracelet,” a brief summary of which follows below, is one of the most touching and lyrical works of the Russian writer about love.
“Garnet Bracelet” was written by Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin in 1910.
Note! The plot of the story about love is not far-fetched; it is based on real events.
“The Pomegranate Bracelet” was based on the unrequited love of a simple official for a girl from high society, with whose family the writer was on friendly terms.
Kuprin was presented with an anecdotal story involving letters from a young man in love. And after a daring trick young man With the gift of a garnet bracelet to the object of love, an explanation of the secret admirer took place with the girl’s brother and fiancé. After this, the young man disappeared from the family’s sight forever.
This plot of the story with a bracelet, but with a rethought ending, formed the basis of “Garnet Bracelet”. The summary of the story is capaciously and vividly contained in the words of K. Paustovsky: “One of the most fragrant and languid stories about love ... is Kuprin’s “Garnet Bracelet”
Heroes of the work
The plot of the story about love is a description of the relationship between the two main characters of “The Garnet Bracelet”: Princess Vera Nikolaevna Sheina and a small employee - telegraph operator Mr. Zheltkov. The premise is that the princess receives a garnet bracelet as a gift from Zheltkov on her birthday. An equally important role in revealing the author’s plan is played by secondary (extra-plot) characters, recreating the environment against which the events unfold, as well as introducing various manifestations of love.
The main characters of "Garnet Bracelet":
- Princess Vera Sheina – sophisticated and educated (graduate Smolny Institute) a young woman who has been married to Prince Vasily Shein for several years. The couple is childless, although the wife dreams of offspring. Princess Vera Nikolaevna is an example of a homely, faithful, loving wife. She inherited her appearance from her English mother, loves to play music, and enjoys card games.
- G.S. Zheltkov is a poor young man who serves as a telegraph operator. Age no more than 35 years. He rents a modest apartment from an old Polish woman who became attached to him like a son. Sincerely and unrequitedly loves Princess Vera Sheina for 8 years. He began writing passionate letters to her when the girl was not yet married. What were the messages about? About love - sometimes tenderly begging, sometimes frighteningly threatening.
- Prince Vasily Shein is the husband of Vera Nikolaevna. A calm, balanced man, sensitive, he values his wife. The prince is charming, knows a lot funny stories, amuses guests with friendly cartoons.
- Nikolai Mirza-Bulat Tuganovsky is the brother of Princess Vera Sheina. A serious, emotionally cold young man. Serves as an assistant prosecutor. Not married.
Minor but important characters:
- Anna Nikolaevna (by her husband Friessa) is the sister of Princess Vera, who resembles her Tatar father in appearance. The woman is flirtatious, cheerful, but completely indifferent to her rich, stupid husband. She adores her older sister Vera.
- Yakov Mikhailovich Anosov is a general and a longtime friend of the Tuganovsky family. He took part in military campaigns, was wounded in battle, and almost lost his hearing. He adores Vera and Anna as if they were his own daughters. They also treat him with tenderness and love, affectionately calling Anosov “our grandfather.”
The story "The Garnet Bracelet" contains more than twenty characters, despite the limited scope of the short story genre. But every actor helps convey the idea of the work to the author.
Love conquers death - that’s what Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet” is about.
Useful video: summary - Garnet bracelet
Storyline briefly by chapters
To familiarize yourself with the motives and characters of the story about love, the reader is offered a brief summary of “The Garnet Bracelet.” It would be worth noting that in order to feel all the charm of a work written in the beautiful Russian literary language, it is better to read “The Garnet Bracelet” in the original.
Chapter 1
Unexpectedly for this time of year (mid-August), life on Black Sea coast marred by the chilly cold weather. Princess Vera Sheina could not move, following the example of her neighbors, into a city apartment because of the renovations going on there. But, fortunately, in September clear, fine days set in, and the princess began to prepare for her name day.
Princess Vera Sheina
Chapter 2
On September 17, the princess awaited the arrival of guests, rejoicing that she had to spend her birthday at the dacha - this significantly reduced expenses for festive table. They had to save on everything, because the family estate had fallen into complete disrepair, and the husband’s position in society forced him to live beyond his means.
Vera received pear-shaped pearl earrings as a gift from her husband in the morning and was in high spirits. Her younger sister Anna came to the princess's aid. It was difficult to recognize them as sisters at first glance - how dissimilar the women were in appearance.
Princess Vera, who inherited her mother’s proud, cold Anglo-Saxon beauty, was exquisitely “strictly simple,...slightly patronizingly kind and royally cold-blooded with everyone.”
Squat Anna, in whose veins the Mongolian blood of her father's ancestors predominated, with a high-cheeked but pretty face, was frivolously funny, flirtatious, perky, cheerful, which pleased many men. Anna was married to a rich but narrow-minded man, whom she despised and ridiculed, although, despite her love of flirting, she was faithful to him. She gave birth to two children in marriage, who became the object of adoration and love for her sister Vera, who was childless at that time.
Such striking differences in the appearance and character of the sisters did not affect the sincere affection of the women for each other.
Chapter 3
Having interrupted the efforts of preparing for the dinner party, the sisters decided to take a break by the seashore. Anna continually admired and admired the vast blue expanses of water. Vera was bored with the repeated sights day after day, the princess yearned for pine trees, mosses, the coolness of the forests - everything that was so dear to the hearts of the northerners.
As a gift, Anna presented Vera with an elegant antique charming little thing - a notebook in a blue velvet cover with ivory leaves and a filigree pattern on the cover.
Chapter 4
By evening, the Sheins began to receive the arriving guests. Among the guests were the prince’s widowed sister, the hostess’s brother Nikolai Nikolaevich, Vera Sheina’s college friend, musician Jenny Reiter, Anna’s husband and a friend, and several other people accepted in society.
The most long-awaited guest was military general Yakov Mikhailovich Anosov. Almost the entire chapter, even in summary“The Pomegranate Bracelet” is dedicated to the description of the colorful figure of a gray-haired warrior.
The “large” rough-hewn face of the old man was enlivened by the “good-natured, majestic,” even slightly arrogantly calm expression in his eyes, characteristic of people who had seen death closely on the battlefields. An invariable attribute in the general’s hands was a hearing horn, since Anosov was almost deaf as a result of a wound to the head.
The general was a fellow soldier and friend of the late father of the Tuganovsky sisters. Having settled in the town of K., he sincerely became attached to his friend’s family. Anosov knew the girls from childhood (Anna was even his goddaughter), and since his own family broke up in his youth, the man transferred all the unspent tenderness and love to these creatures. The sisters paid him in the same coin and began to get bored if they did not see “their grandfather” for a long time without his stories about military campaigns and battles.
Anosov Yakov Mikhailovich
Chapter 5
The festive dinner was in full swing. The host of the evening, Prince Vasily Shein, who was reputed to be an excellent storyteller with a subtle sense of humor, entertained the guests with regular tales in which reality alternated with fiction. The hero of the story that evening was the princess's brother Nikolai Mirza-Bulat-Tuganovsky, who made an unsuccessful attempt to get married. The guests, along with the main character, roared with laughter.
Princess Vera, refusing to take part in poker, noted with displeasure the number of those present - there were 13 of them (the woman was superstitious). The maid called the princess into the office, where she handed the hostess a package tied with a ribbon and a note. Out of feminine curiosity, Vera opened the package. It contained a decoration in the form of a garnet bracelet.
The outside of the gold blown solid bracelet was covered with poorly polished garnets. In the center of the bracelet, a green grossular stood out wonderfully, surrounded by five red peas, which, when turned and refracted by light, flashed with “lovely lights.” The princess's heart sank in alarm: these living lights on the bracelet reminded her of drops of blood.
Having unfolded the letter, the princess noted with annoyance that she had received the gifted bracelet and note from an old secret admirer who had once bombarded the young lady with letters expressing his love. In the message, the gentleman, in the most polite and respectful terms, congratulated the woman on Angel Day, wished her happiness, apologized for the long-standing “wild and stupid” letters of love, asked to accept a bracelet from him as a gift - an exact copy of their family heirloom - therefore the stones are clean . She will be the first owner of the bracelet.
Such a detailed description of the garnet bracelet in the novel is not accidental. According to legend, pomegranate favors lovers, protects the family hearth, bringing peace, love and harmony to the home. G.S.Zh explains this in his note: “Green pomegranate is able to impart the blessing of foresight to women, drive away bad thoughts, and protect men from attacks on life.”
Princess Vera, having read the letter, is in doubt: whether to show her husband the bracelet given by the stranger.
Chapter 6
The evening continued. Some of the guests moved to play vint, some listened to the singing of the invited ball regular to the accompaniment of Jenny, some huddled around Prince Shein, who entertained those around him with humorous stories.
Today, despite Vera’s protest, the story was about a poor telegraph operator who had long been unrequitedly in love with the princess. The story was supplemented by humorous drawings in which the young man appeared in different images. The story ended comically with the death of a poor employee from unrequited love and a broken heart.
Chapter 7
After tea, the guests began to leave. The rest sat on the terrace. The sisters, as in childhood, listened to the stories of old man Anosov. He told them the story of his fleeting love with a Bulgarian girl during a military campaign. Everything was chaste - the young people did not cross the cherished line, but the memories, like a sweet aftertaste, left a mark on the heart. “Was it love or another feeling” - no one will answer.
Having gone to see off her “grandfather,” the princess asked her husband to read the letter he had received from the young man.
Chapter 8
Seeing off the old general, Princess Vera continued to ask him about the vicissitudes of love. Anosov told the sad and at the same time tragicomic story of his marriage. After six months of marriage, a pure and innocent girl turned into a quarrelsome, unkempt, shrill woman - a desperate coquette and simpering woman.
Having run away with a handsome actor, she subsequently tried to return to her husband, but Anosov did not accept her, although he did not refuse to support her until the death of his ex-wife.
In his time the general has seen edge cases manifestations of painful love. The first was dictated by stupidity and ended in tragedy, the second by softness and inappropriate pity.
Most likely, Anosov noted, he failed to meet true love. In the general’s view, “love is tragic - this is the greatest secret in the world.”
Having asked the princess about the mysterious admirer, the noble elder said that it was likely vital Vera’s path was crossed with a golden thread by “that all-consuming, self-sacrificing love that requires nothing,” which every woman longs to meet.
Chapter 9
At home, Princess Vera joined in the discussion of the action of the unknown admirer. The brother sharply insisted on the immediate suppression of the “nonsense” of his secret admirer. And he considered the bracelet to be an inappropriate insolence that could affect the family’s reputation. It was decided to go to Mr. Zh. the next day, return the donated bracelet and demand that he keep married woman at rest.
Chapter 10
A day later, Nikolai Nikolaevich and Vasily Lvovich visited the anonymous lover. Mr. Zheltkov was hiding under the initials G.S.Zh. He looked no more than 35 years old. The face, framed by long fluffy hair, seemed childish and artless. Thin fingers nervously fiddled with the sides of his short jacket; he himself was tall and awkward. The room's furnishings were simple and sparse, indicating the guest's low income.
Nicholas, without long prefaces, announced the purpose of the arrival - with his gift in the form of a bracelet, the young man insulted the lady, showing disrespect not only to the princess, but to the entire family. Zheltkov, for the most part turning to Shein, agreed with all the claims made, but asked to keep in mind that he did not have anything bad in his thoughts.
The man explained that he loved Vera Nikolaevna, that this love was stronger than him, and he was unable to forget the woman. He sees only one way out - to accept death in any form. Then Zheltkov asked permission to leave for a while to talk on the phone with the princess.
During the explanation of the poor admirer, Vasily Shein continuously watched the face of the young man, in whose eyes there was not a shadow of guile. “He is completely incapable of lies and deceit... Can you really blame him for love, because love is uncontrollable..." The prince was imbued with sympathy for the young man, unlike Nikolai, who behaved arrogantly and arrogantly towards Zheltkov.
Upon his return, the young man promised to disappear from the Sheins’ lives forever, especially since Princess Vera Nikolaevna herself asked to “quickly stop this story” with the bracelet.
At home, all the details of the visit were conveyed to the princess. “This man will kill himself,” Vera realized.
Chapter 11
The next morning, the princess, tormented by bad forebodings, read in the newspapers about the mysterious death of Mr. Zheltkov. The reason for the suicide was allegedly embezzlement of government money. Vera was pierced by the thought that that true love that General Anosov had previously told about had happened in her life.
Later, the postman handed Princess Vera Nikolaevna a farewell letter from a fan. In the message, Zheltkov thanked Princess Vera “for the great happiness - love” for her and repented for having burst into her destiny with an “inconvenient wedge.” The refrain in the letter was the phrase “Hallowed be Thy name.” The letter ended with a modest request: in memory of the poor lover, listen to Beethoven's Sonata No. 2.
Princess Vera, with the permission of her husband, decided to say goodbye to the man who loved her so devotedly.
Chapter 12
Having easily found Mr. Zheltkov’s apartment, the princess listened to words of regret from the landlady. The elderly woman became very attached to “Mr. Jerzy” and considered him almost her son. She spoke about the man’s last hours, about his request to hang a garnet bracelet on the icon of the Mother of God.
Then the hostess left the princess alone with the deceased. Vera was amazed at the calm, peaceful, almost happy expression on the man’s face, as if before his death “some sweet secret was revealed to him, which immediately resolved his life.” Vera could not hold back her tears - bitter, and at the same time cleansing.
The princess next to the deceased
Chapter 13
Finding only Jenny Reuter returning home late in the evening, Princess Vera immediately asked her to play something, without any doubt that her friend would choose that very melody on a whim. And indeed: the sounds of Beethoven’s second sonata poured into my soul like a balm.
Vera cried, regretting at the same time that she had missed Great love and calming down from the immortal melody. And in the woman’s head the phrase “Hallowed be Thy name” sounded. With the last chords, peace came to her.
To her friend’s question about the reasons for her tears, Princess Vera answered with a phrase incomprehensible to Jenny: “Everything is fine. Now he has forgiven me."
Useful video: “Garnet bracelet” – in 8 minutes!
Conclusion
Familiarity with the narrative of “The Garnet Bracelet” even in summary will encourage the reader to plunge into the sweet world of unrequited, but sinless and selfless love. And then, to receive true pleasure from the pen of the great master, you will want to read the story about love in full - without cuts or abbreviations.
Kuprin himself admitted in a letter to Batyushkov: “It seems that I have never written anything more chaste than The Pomegranate Bracelet.” After the work was published in 1911, critics greeted the story with rave reviews. “The Garnet Bracelet is a gift to a new generation, it is a call to true great love.”– wrote literary critic V.L. Rogachevsky. “I’m glad,” M. Gorky echoes him, “It’s starting good literature».
In contact with
Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin is a Russian writer who, without a doubt, can be classified as a classic. His books are still recognizable and loved by the reader, not only under the compulsion of a school teacher, but at a conscious age. Distinctive feature his work is documentary, his stories were based on real events or real events became the impetus for their creation - among them the story “Garnet Bracelet”.
"Garnet bracelet" - real story, heard by Kuprin from friends while looking at family albums. The governor's wife made sketches for letters sent to her by a certain telegraph official who was unrequitedly in love with her. One day she received a gift from him: a gold-plated chain with a pendant in the shape of an Easter egg. Alexander Ivanovich took this story as the basis for his work, turning these meager, uninteresting data into a touching story. The writer replaced the chain with the pendant with a bracelet with five garnets, which, according to what King Solomon said in one story, mean anger, passion and love.
Plot
“The Pomegranate Bracelet” begins with preparations for the celebration, when Vera Nikolaevna Sheina suddenly receives a gift from an unknown person: a bracelet with five garnets flecked in green. On the paper note that came with the gift, it is indicated that the gem is capable of endowing the owner with foresight. The princess shares the news with her husband and shows a bracelet from an unknown person. As the action progresses, it turns out that this person is a petty official named Zheltkov. He first saw Vera Nikolaevna at the circus many years ago, and since then the suddenly flared up feelings have not faded away: even her brother’s threats do not stop him. However, Zheltkov does not want to torment his beloved, and he decides to commit suicide so as not to bring shame on her.
The story ends with the realization of the strength of the stranger’s sincere feelings, which comes to Vera Nikolaevna.
Love theme
The main theme of the work “Garnet Bracelet” is undoubtedly the theme of unrequited love. Moreover, Zheltkov is a shining example of selfless, sincere, sacrificial feelings that he does not betray, even when his loyalty cost his life. Princess Sheina also fully feels the power of these emotions: years later she realizes that she wants to be loved and love again - and the jewelry donated by Zheltkov marks the imminent appearance of passion. Indeed, she soon falls in love with life again and feels it in a new way.
The theme of love in the story is frontal and permeates the entire text: this love is high and pure, a manifestation of God. Vera Nikolaevna feels internal changes even after Zheltkov’s suicide - she learned the sincerity of a noble feeling and willingness to sacrifice herself for the sake of someone who will give nothing in return. Love changes the character of the entire story: the princess’s feelings die, fade, fall asleep, having once been passionate and ardent, and turned into a strong friendship with her husband. But Vera Nikolaevna still continues to strive for love in her soul, even if this has become dulled over time: she needed time to let passion and sensuality come out, but before that her calmness could seem indifferent and cold - this puts a high wall for Zheltkov.
Main characters (characteristics)
- Zheltkov worked as a minor official in the control chamber (the author placed him there to emphasize that main character was a small man). Kuprin does not even indicate his name in the work: only the letters are signed with initials. Zheltkov is exactly how the reader imagines a man of low position: thin, pale-skinned, straightening his jacket with nervous fingers. He has delicate facial features and eyes blue color. According to the story, Zheltkov is about thirty years old, he is not rich, modest, decent and noble - even Vera Nikolaevna’s husband notes this. The elderly owner of his room says that during the eight years that he lived with her, he became like family to her, and he was a very nice person to talk to. “...Eight years ago I saw you in a box at the circus, and then in the first second I said to myself: I love her because there is nothing like her in the world, there is nothing better...” - this is how the modern fairy tale about Zheltkov’s feelings for Vera Nikolaevna, although he never cherished hopes that they would be mutual: “...seven years of hopeless and polite love...”. He knows the address of his beloved, what she does, where she spends her time, what she wears - he admits that he is not interested in anything but her and is not happy.
- you can also find it on our website.
- Vera Nikolaevna has a younger sister, Anna Nikolaevna Friesse, who, unlike her, inherited her father’s features and his Mongolian blood: narrow eyes, femininity of features, flirtatious facial expressions. Her character is frivolous, perky, cheerful, but contradictory. Her husband, Gustav Ivanovich, is rich and stupid, but he idolizes her and is constantly nearby: his feelings seem to have not changed from the first day, he looked after her and still adored her just as much. Anna Nikolaevna cannot stand her husband, but they have a son and a daughter, she is faithful to him, although she treats him quite contemptuously.
- General Anosov is Anna's godfather, his full name- Yakov Mikhailovich Anosov. He is fat and tall, good-natured, patient, hard of hearing, he has a large, red face with clear eyes, he is very respected for the years of his service, fair and courageous, has a clear conscience, always wears a frock coat and cap, uses a hearing horn and a stick.
- Prince Vasily Lvovich Shein is the husband of Vera Nikolaevna. Little is said about his appearance, only that he has blonde hair, and the head is big. He is very soft, compassionate, sensitive - he treats Zheltkov’s feelings with understanding, and is unshakably calm. He has a sister, a widow, whom he invites to the celebration.
Features of Kuprin's creativity
Kuprin was close to the theme of the character’s awareness of life’s truth. He saw the world around him in a special way and sought to learn something new; his works are characterized by drama, a certain anxiety, and excitement. “Educational pathos” is called the hallmark of his work.
In many ways, Kuprin’s work was influenced by Dostoevsky, especially in the early stages, when he writes about fatal and significant moments, the role of chance, the psychology of characters’ passions - often the writer makes it clear that not everything can be understood.
It can be said that one of the features of Kuprin’s work is a dialogue with readers, in which the plot is traced and reality is depicted - this is especially noticeable in his essays, which in turn were influenced by G. Uspensky.
Some of his works are famous for their lightness and spontaneity, poeticization of reality, naturalness and authenticity. Others are the theme of inhumanity and protest, the struggle for feelings. At some point, he begins to be interested in history, antiquity, legends, and thus fantastic stories are born with motives of the inevitability of chance and fate.
Genre and composition
Kuprin is characterized by a love of plots within plots. “The Garnet Bracelet” is further proof: Zheltkov’s note about the qualities of the jewelry is the plot within the plot.
The author shows love from different points of view - love according to general concepts and Zheltkov’s unrequited feelings. These feelings have no future: Family status Vera Nikolaevna, the difference in social status, circumstances - everything is against them. This doom reveals the subtle romanticism invested by the writer in the text of the story.
The entire work is ringed by references to the same thing. piece of music- Beethoven sonatas. Thus, the music that “sounds” throughout the story shows the power of love and is the key to understanding the text, heard in the final lines. Music communicates the unsaid. Moreover, it is Beethoven’s sonata at the climax that symbolizes the awakening of Vera Nikolaevna’s soul and the awareness that comes to her. Such attention to melody is also a manifestation of romanticism.
The composition of the story implies the presence of symbols and hidden meanings. So the fading garden implies the fading passion of Vera Nikolaevna. General Anosov tells short stories about love - these are also small plots within the main narrative.
It is difficult to determine the genre of “Garnet Bracelet”. In fact, the work is called a story largely due to its composition: it consists of thirteen short chapters. However, the writer himself called “The Garnet Bracelet” a story.
Interesting? Save it on your wall!A sad love story forms the basis of the story “The Garnet Bracelet”. Real, selfless, true love- this deep and sincere feeling is the main theme of the story of the great writer.
The history of the creation of the story “Garnet Bracelet”
Mine new story, which famous writer Kuprin conceived it as a story; Alexander Ivanovich began writing it in the autumn of 1910 in the Ukrainian city of Odessa. He thought that he could write it in a few days, and even reports this in one of his letters to a friend, literary critic Klestov. He wrote to him that very soon he would send his new manuscript to a familiar book publisher. But the writer was wrong.
The story went beyond the required plot, and therefore took the writer not several days, as he planned, but several months. It is also known that the work is based on a story that actually happened. Alexander Ivanovich reports this in a letter to the philologist and friend Fyodor Batyushkov, when, describing to him how the work on the manuscript is going, they remind him of the history itself, which formed the basis of the work:
“This - remember? - the sad story of a small telegraph official P.P. Zheltikov, who was so hopelessly, touchingly and selflessly in love with Lyubimov’s wife (D.N. is now the governor in Vilna).”
He admitted in a letter to his friend Batyushkov, dated November 21, 1910, that work on a new work was going hard. He wrote:
“Now I’m writing “Bracelet,” but it’s not going well. main reason- my ignorance of music... And the secular tone!
It is known that in December the manuscript was not yet ready, but work was intensively going on on it, and in one of the letters Kuprin himself gives an assessment of his manuscript, saying that the result is a rather “cute” thing that you don’t even want to crumple up .
The manuscript was published in 1911, when it was published in the magazine “Earth”. At that time, it also contained a dedication to Kuprin’s friend, the writer Klestov, who took an active part in its creation. The story “The Garnet Bracelet” also had an epigraph - the first line of music from one of Beethoven’s sonnets.
Plot of the story
The composition of the story consists of thirteen chapters. At the beginning of the story it is told how difficult it was for Princess Vera Nikolaevna Shein. After all, at the beginning of autumn she was still living at the dacha, when all the neighbors had long since moved to the city due to bad weather. The young woman could not do this, since her city house was being renovated. But soon the weather calmed down, and the sun even came out. With the warmth, the mood of the main character also improved.
In the second chapter, the reader learns that the princess’s birthday had to be celebrated with pomp, because this was required by her husband’s position. A celebration was scheduled for September 17, which was clearly beyond the family’s means. The thing is that her husband had been bankrupt for a long time, but still did not show it to others, although this affected the family: Vera Nikolaevna not only could not afford anything extra, she even saved on everything. On this day, her sister, with whom the princess was on good terms, came to help the young woman. Anna Nikolaevna Friesse was not at all like her sister, but her relatives were very attached to each other.
In the third chapter, the writer talks about the meeting of the sisters and about a walk by the sea, where Anna gave her sister her valuable gift - a notebook with an antique cover. The fourth chapter takes the reader to that evening when guests began to arrive for the celebration. Among the other invitees was General Anosov, who was a friend of the girls’ father and had known the sisters since childhood. The girls called him grandfather, but they did it sweetly and with great respect and love.
The fifth chapter talks about how fun the evening was in the Sheins’ house. Prince Vasily Shein, Vera’s husband, constantly told stories that happened to his relatives and friends, but he did it so cleverly that the guests no longer even understood where the truth was and where it was fiction. Vera Nikolaevna was about to give the order to serve tea, but after counting the guests, she became very frightened. The princess was a superstitious woman, and there were thirteen guests at the table.
Going out to the maid, she learned that the messenger had brought a gift and a note. Vera Nikolaevna started with a note and immediately, from the first lines, realized that it was from her secret admirer. But she felt a little uneasy. The woman also looked at the bracelet, it was beautiful! But the princess faced an important question about whether she should show this gift to her husband.
The sixth chapter is the story of the princess and the telegraph operator. Vera’s husband showed his album with funny pictures and one of them was the story of his wife and a minor official. But it was not finished yet, so Prince Vasily began to simply tell it, not paying attention to the fact that his wife was against it.
In the seventh chapter, the princess says goodbye to the guests: some of them went home, while others settled on the summer terrace. Taking a moment, the young woman shows the letter from her secret admirer to her husband.
General Anosov, leaving in the eighth chapter, listens to the story of Vera Nikolaevna about the letters that the secret sender has been writing for a long time, and then tells the woman that true love is quite rare, but she was lucky. After all, this “madman” loves her with the selfless love that every woman can dream of.
In the ninth chapter, the princess's husband and her brother discuss the bracelet case and come to the conclusion that this story has not only dragged on, but can also negatively affect the family's reputation. Before going to bed, they decide tomorrow to find this secret admirer of Vera Nikolaevna, return the bracelet to him and put an end to this story forever.
In the tenth chapter, Prince Vasily and the girl’s brother Nikolai find Zheltkov and ask to end this story forever. Vera Nikolaevna's husband felt the tragedy of his soul in this man, so he allows him to write a last letter to his wife. After reading this message, the princess immediately realized that this man would definitely do something to himself, for example, kill himself.
In the eleventh chapter, the princess learns about Zheltkov’s death and reads his last letter, where she remembers the following lines: “I tested myself - this is not a disease, not a manic idea - this is love with which God wanted to reward me for something. As I leave, I say in delight: “Hallowed be Thy name.” The princess decides to go to his funeral and look at this man. My husband doesn't mind.
The twelfth and thirteenth chapters are a visit to the deceased Zheltkov, reading his last message and the woman’s disappointment that true love has passed her by.
Characteristics of the characters
There are few characters in the work. But it’s worth dwelling in more detail on the main characters:
Vera Nikolaevna Sheina.
Mr. Zheltkov.
The main character of the story is Vera Nikolaevna Sheina. It comes from ancient noble family. Vera is liked by everyone around her, as she is very beautiful and sweet: a gentle face, an aristocratic figure. She has been married for six years. The husband occupies an important place in secular society, although he has financial problems. Vera Nikolaevna has a good education. She also has a brother Nikolai and a sister Anna. She lives with her husband somewhere on the Black Sea coast. Despite the fact that Vera is a superstitious woman and does not read newspapers at all, gambling she loves.
Another main and important hero The story is Mr. Zheltkov. The thin and tall man with nervous fingers was not a rich man. He looked about thirty-five years old. He serves in the control chamber, but holds a low position - a minor official. Kuprin characterizes him as modest, well-mannered and noble man. Kuprin copied this image from real person. The prototype of the main character was the petty telegraph official P.P. Zheltikov.
There are other characters in this story:
✔ Anna.
✔ Nikolay
✔ The husband of the main character, Vasily Shein.
✔ General Anosov.
✔ Others.
Each of the characters played a role in the content of the story.
Details in the novel
The story “The Garnet Bracelet” contains many important details that allow us to more deeply reveal the content of the work. But especially among all these details, the garnet bracelet stands out. According to the plot main character Vera receives it as a gift from a secret admirer. But first Zheltkov, who is a secret admirer, puts it in a bright red case.
Kuprin gives a detailed description of the bracelet, making one admire its beauty and sophistication: “It was gold, low-grade, very thick, but inflated and on the outside completely covered with small old, poorly polished garnets.” But the further description of the precious bracelet attracts special attention: “In the middle of the bracelet rose, surrounding some strange small green stone, five beautiful cabochon garnets, each the size of a pea.”
The writer also talks about the history of this bracelet, thus emphasizing how important it was for the petty official Zheltkov. The writer writes that this expensive jewelry belonged to the great-grandmother of the protagonist, and the last person to wear it was his late mother, whom he loved very much and kept the warmest memories of her. The green garnet in the middle of the bracelet, according to a minor official, had its own ancient legend, which was passed down in the Zheltkov family from generation to generation. According to this legend, a person is freed from difficult thoughts, a woman also receives the gift of providence as a reward, and a man will be protected from any violent death.
Criticism of the story “The Garnet Bracelet”
Writers highly appreciated Kuprin's skill.
The first review of the work was given by Maxim Gorky in one of his letters in 1911. He was delighted with this story and constantly repeated that it was wonderfully written and that good literature was finally beginning. Reading “The Garnet Bracelet” for the famous revolutionary writer Maxim Gorky became a real holiday. He wrote:
“And what an excellent thing “Garnet Bracelet” by Kuprin... Wonderful!”
Composition
“This is a stone of love, anger and blood. On the hand of a person languishing in a fever or intoxicated with desire, it becomes warmer and burns with a red flame... If crushed into powder and taken with water, it gives a glow to the face, calms the stomach and cheers the soul. The one who wears it gains power over people. He heals the heart, brain and memory” - this is how in the story “Sulamith” King Solomon, giving his beloved jewelry, talks about “the inner nature of stones, their magical properties and mysterious meanings.”
So, the main character of the story, Princess Vera Nikolaevna Sheina, received another piece of jewelry - earrings made of pear-shaped pearls - from her husband. Pearls have long been a symbol, on the one hand, of spiritual frequency, and on the other, an evil omen. It is the foreboding of bad omens that pervades the story.
Let's remember where it all begins. From the landscape, from the description of the “disgusting weather” that brought cold, hurricane winds, which were replaced by lovely sunny days. The returning summer is short-lived, just as the calm joy of Vera is short. Her expectation of “something happily and wonderfully” from her name day is now and then overshadowed by seemingly insignificant incidents. Here Anna, her beloved sister, “quickly approached the very edge of the cliff, which fell like a sheer wall into the sea, looked down and suddenly screamed in horror and recoiled back with a pale face.” So they remembered the sea rooster that the fisherman brought in the morning: “Just some kind of monster. It’s even scary.” Here Vera “mechanically counted the guests. It turned out to be thirty.” In the midst of a card game, the maid brings a letter and a bracelet with five grenades. “It’s like blood,” Vera thinks with unexpected alarm. This is how the author gradually prepares his readers for the main theme of the story.
The events of the story unfold slowly: preparations are underway for the birthday dinner, guests are gradually arriving. Gradually, its main theme enters the pages of the story - the theme of love. “The rarest gift of high and unrequited love became “enormous happiness,” the only content, the poetry of Zheltkov’s life. The phenomenality of his experiences raises the image of the young man above all other characters in the story. Not only the rude, narrow-minded Tuganovsky, the frivolous coquette Anna, but also the smart, conscientious Shein, who considers love the “greatest secret” Anosov, the beautiful and pure Vera Nikolaevna herself are in a clearly reduced everyday environment” (L. Smirnova). However, the meaning of the story is not at all in the opposition of the heroes - Princess Sheina and the official Zheltkov. The story gets deeper and more subtle.
The theme of love gives significance to the work. With her appearance, the entire narrative takes on a different emotional coloring. Here is the first mention of the word “love” on the pages of the story: “Princess Vera, whose former passionate love for her husband had long since turned into a feeling of lasting, faithful, true friendship, tried with all her might to help the prince refrain from complete ruin.” From the first lines, there is a feeling of fading: similar to autumn nature, the monotonous, seemingly drowsy existence of the Shein family, where strong relationships have strengthened, and feelings seem to have fallen asleep. However, love was not at all alien to Vera, the desire for it was simply dulled. She “was strictly simple, cold with everyone and a little patronizingly kind, independent and royally calm.” This calmness is what kills the Yolks.
Zheltkov’s portrait seems to be anticipated by the general’s words: “... very pale, with a gentle girlish face, blue eyes and a stubborn childish chin with a dimple in the middle.” How deceptive this impression turns out to be! Even Prince Shein is able to appreciate the nobility of the soul and the power of love of this thin telegraph operator: “... but I feel that I am present at some enormous tragedy of the soul, and I cannot clown around here.” That is why he will allow Zheltkov to write the last letter to Vera, a letter that will turn out to be akin to poems about love, in it the words that have become a refrain will be spoken for the first time final chapter: “Hallowed be Thy name.” A few years earlier, in one of the poems in the cycle about the Beautiful Lady, the poet Alexander Blok used them. The gift of foresight that gave her the garnet bracelet. According to an old legend that has been preserved in our family, he has the ability to impart the gift of foresight to women and drive away heavy thoughts from them, while protecting men from violent death.
Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin as a person and a writer was shaped by the stormy time of the first Russian revolution. It was this that conveyed to Kuprin’s paintings - no matter how gloomy their truth was - a dream of the future, a passionate expectation of a storm that would cleanse and transform the world. The cherished thought of Kuprin the humanist about the tragic contradiction of existence: initially wonderful person among the good and generous nature and - a cruel, unnatural possessive system that brings him torment and death.
One of the remarkable creations of A.I. Kuprin is the love story “Garnet Bracelet”. The writer himself called her “sweet” and admitted that “... he has never written anything more chaste.” The plot of the story is simple: a young telegraph operator from Tsavno is hopelessly in love with Princess Vera Nikolaevna Sheina. The young man cannot withstand the torments of love and voluntarily leaves his life, and Vera Nikolaevna understands what great love she has passed by. From a simple, even primitive plot, Kuprin was able to create a beautiful flower that has not faded for many decades.
Princess Vera is loved and loves her husband, “the former passionate love for her husband has long turned into a feeling of strong, faithful, true friendship, she helps the prince with all her might...” They occupy a prominent position in society: he is the leader of the nobility. The princess is surrounded by brilliant society, but where does this painful melancholy come from that does not leave her? Listening to her grandfather's stories about love, Vera Nikolaevna understands that she knew a man who was capable of true love - “selfless, selfless, not expecting a reward. About which it is said “strong as death”... the kind of love for which to accomplish any feat, to give one’s life, to go to torment is not work at all, but even joy... Love must be a tragedy...”
Isn’t this the kind of love experienced by the “little telegraph operator” Zheltkov? Kuprin brilliantly shows that high moral qualities from a person's class. This is given by God - a soul capable of love can live in a poor shack and in a palace. For her there are no boundaries, no distances, no prohibitions. Zheltkov admits that he is unable to stop loving Princess Vera. Only death can end this beautiful and tragic feeling. How consonant are the thoughts of the poor man Zheltkov and the aristocrat Anosov. The telegraph operator's "seven years of hopeless and polite love" give him the right to respect. Vera's husband, Vasily Lvovich, understood Zheltkov, perhaps envied this man's talent.
After Zheltkov’s death, Princess Vera is executed for not preventing his suicide, although she felt and foresaw such an end. She asks herself the question: “What was it: love or madness?” Vasily Lvovich admits to his wife that Zheltkov was not crazy. He was a great lover who could not imagine his life without love for Princess Vera, and when his last hope was gone, he died. An inexplicable melancholy covers Princess Vera when she sees the dead Zheltkov and understands “that the love that every woman dreams of has passed her by...”
Kuprin does not give any assessments or moralizing. The writer only conveys a beautiful and sad story about love. The souls of the heroes woke up in response to great love, and this is the main thing.