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4.4
Average rating: 4.4
Total ratings received: 3816.
K. Paustovsky called this story a “fragrant” work about love, and researchers compared it with a Beethoven sonata. We are talking about “Garnet Bracelet” by A. Kuprin. Schoolchildren get to know him in 11th grade. The story captivates the reader with its exciting plot, deep images and original interpretation of the eternal theme of love. We offer an analysis of the work, which will be a good assistant in preparing for the lesson and the Unified State Exam in literature. For convenience, the article provides a brief and complete analysis of the plan.
The material was prepared jointly with a teacher of the highest category, Ilyina Galina Sergeevna.
Experience as a teacher of Russian language and literature - 36 years.
Brief Analysis
Before reading this analysis, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the work itself, Garnet Bracelet.
Year of writing : 1910.
History of creation - A. I. Kuprin was inspired to write the work by a story heard in a family of acquaintances.
Theme - The story reveals the theme of unrequited love, as well as such a sincere feeling that all women dream of.
Composition - The semantic and formal organization of the story has its own peculiarities. The work begins with an epigraph, a reference to Beethoven’s “Sonata No. 2.” The mention of this piece of music ends the story, which becomes symbolic. Into the outline of the main plot about the love of a poor official, the author wove short stories about love told by General Anosov. The story consists of 13 chapters.
Genre – Story. The writer himself considered his work a story.
Direction – Realism.
Main characters
Prince Vasily Lvovich Shein | A well-known person in the province, his affairs are not going very well, he is close to ruin, but is forced to behave according to his situation. A person with a sense of humor, a hospitable and cordial host. He knows about his wife’s secret admirer, but, as a deeply decent and sincere person, he treats his feelings with understanding. |
Vera Nikolaevna Sheina | Wife of Vasily Lvovich. He helps him in every possible way to keep their precarious financial situation afloat. Passionate love for her husband turned into sincere friendships. She does not hide about the telegraph operator’s letters from her husband. She sincerely worries about his death, regretting that true love passed by. |
Georgy Stepanovich Zheltkov | In The Garnet Bracelet, the characters are striking in their sincerity and honesty, but among them there is a hero who evokes admiration. Outwardly, an inconspicuous petty employee once saw Princess Vera and fell in love. This feeling accompanied him all his life, without hoping for reciprocity, he simply idolized his ideal. In order not to cause trouble to the woman he loved, a married lady, he committed suicide, remaining happy. |
General Yakov Mikhailovich Anosov | An analysis of his actions shows that he is a fair, kind and honest person. This is a very wise and sensitive old man. He has lived a long life, experienced a lot, and judges people from an objective point of view. The general condemns the moral decay of society, which has turned everything sacred into an everyday need. He knows people well, all their thoughts and actions. Many of the expressions of this hero were divided into quotes. |
Nikolai Nikolaevich Mirza – Bulat – Tugansky | Serves as an assistant prosecutor. Honest, strict, serious person. A realist to the core, decisive and pragmatic. For him, the subtle nuances of human feelings do not exist, he is far from romance. His description of the consequences that could affect Vera Nikolaevna led Zheltkov to suicide. |
History of creation
The story of the creation of the story is connected with real events. A. Kuprin was a friend of Governor Lyubimov’s family. While viewing the family album, the Lyubimovs told Alexander Ivanovich an interesting love story. A telegraph operator fell in love with the governor's wife. The woman collected his letters and made sketches for them. Once she received a gift from an admirer: a gold-plated chain and a pendant in the shape of an Easter egg.
Work on the work began in September 1910, as evidenced by the author’s letters addressed to his colleagues. At first, Alexander Ivanovich was going to write a story. But he was so inspired by the artistic transformation of the story he heard that the work turned out to be much larger than it was intended. Kuprin created the “Garnet Bracelet” for about three months. He wrote to Batyushkov about the progress of the work. In one of the letters, the writer admitted that he had difficulties associated with his “ignorance in music.” Nevertheless, Alexander Ivanovich valued the “Garnet Bracelet” very much, so he did not want to “crumple” it.
The work was first seen by the world on the pages of the magazine “Earth” in 1911. Criticism of the work focused on its idea and expressive “psychological situations.”
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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 shape of an 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.
Subject
To grasp the ideological sound of the story “Garnet Bracelet,” its analysis should begin with a description of the main problem.
The motif of love has always been common in literature. Masters of the pen have revealed different facets of this feeling, trying to understand how it affects a person. This motif occupies an important place in the work of A. Kuprin. The main theme of “Garnet Bracelet” is unrequited love. The problematics of the work are dictated by the specified topic.
The events of the story unfold at the Sheins' dacha. The author begins the work with landscape sketches. The end of summer was not encouraging with good weather, but at the beginning of September nature compensated for the gloomy August with sunny days. It is not difficult to guess that the landscapes not only help to immerse oneself in the countryside atmosphere, but also symbolize changes in the life of the main character Vera Nikolaevna Sheina: her life was monotonous until the woman received an unusual gift.
At the beginning of the work, the reader observes only two characters - the Sheins. The author focuses on the fact that the love between these people has faded away, or rather, “transformed into a feeling of lasting, faithful, true friendship.” The system of images expands in the episode of the princess's name day celebration.
The reception of guests is remembered by the funny stories of Prince Vasily Lvovich about the unrequited love of a telegraph operator for his wife. The image of General Anosov, who reflects on a sincere and pure feeling, rarely encountered in life, is important. On the same day, Vera Nikolaevna received a garnet bracelet and a letter signed with her initials as a gift. The woman told about the strange gift to her husband, father's friend and brother. They decided to find the author of the letter.
It turned out that the gift was presented by the official Zheltkov, who had long been in love with the princess. Vera Nikolaevna's brother returned the bracelet. After explanations with the Sheins, Zheltkov committed suicide. He left a note to his beloved in which he asked to play Beethoven’s Sonata No. 2 if Vera remembered him. In the evening, the woman fulfilled the request of the deceased and finally felt that Zheltkov had forgiven her.
“Garnet Bracelet” is filled with reflections on love. These thoughts are like keys to a door behind which are hidden answers about the essence of a tender, but sometimes ruthless feeling. However, the author does not try to impose his point of view. The reader must draw his own conclusions. In order to understand what the author teaches, you need to analyze the actions of the heroes, their characters and destinies.
The work of A. Kuprin is filled with symbols. The main role is played by the garnet bracelet, hence the title of the story. The decoration symbolizes true love. The bracelet contains five precious stones. In one of King Solomon's parables, they meant love, passion and anger. The interpretation of the meaning of the title of the story will be incomplete without taking into account the symbolic component. Also, special attention is drawn to Beethoven's sonata, which in this context can be interpreted as a symbol of unhappy but eternal love.
The work develops the idea that true love does not disappear from the heart without a trace. The main idea is that sincere love exists, you just need to be able to appreciate and accept it.
Contents of the story “Garnet Bracelet”
The main character of the story, Princess Sheina, is a beautiful, calm woman who has a real nobility of soul. On her birthday, she receives a gift from a secret admirer - a gold bracelet decorated with a scattering of garnets. Here it is worth noting the symbolism that the author put into his work. Garnet is a stone that is a symbol of love and passion. Her husband gave Sheina pear-shaped earrings with pearls, which symbolize tears and separation. In the note that came with the bracelet, the secret admirer confesses to Vera his sincere love for her, and says that the rare green garnet, which is present in the bracelet, gives women the gift of foreseeing the future.
After the guests have left, the princess shows this note and the gift to her husband. Vera Nikolaevna's brother convinces them that it is necessary to establish the identity of the person who made the gift and return it to him so as not to discredit the honor of the family. The mysterious admirer turned out to be a petty official, Zheltkov, who for many years had the most sincere feelings for the princess. Despite the threats from his brother Sheina, Zheltkov does not lose his self-esteem; his great love for Vera helps him endure all the insults and intimidation. In the end, Zheltkov decides to die so as not to disturb Vera’s peace. The princess felt that the man who truly loved her was about to die. After she learned from the newspaper that he had died, she came to the understanding that the only bright feeling that life had sent her had gone with him.
Composition
The compositional features of the work are manifested both at the formal and semantic levels. First, A. Kuprin turns the reader to Beethoven’s sonata through an epigraph. In the finale, it turns out that the musical masterpiece plays the role of a symbol. With the help of this symbolic image, a frame is created that enhances the ideological sound.
The order of the plot elements is not broken. The exhibition includes landscape sketches, an introduction to the Shein family, and a story about the upcoming holiday. The beginning is Vera Nikolaevna receiving a gift. The development of events - a story about the name day, the search for the sender of the gift, a meeting with Zheltkov. The climax is Zheltkov’s recognition that his feelings will only be killed by his death. The denouement is the death of Zheltkov and the story of how Vera listens to the sonata.
The author wove love stories told by General Anosov into the outline of the main events, which also help the reader understand the meaning of love in human life.
Composition and genre
Compositional features are manifested not only in construction, but also at the level of meaning. Kuprin indicates a Beethoven sonata as an epigraph. In the finale, he again turns to the work of this musician. The sonata symbolizes the eternity of love and the forgiveness granted to Vera . Here are the elements of the story:
When the woman listened to Jenny Reiter play, she seemed to hear Zheltkov addressing her, and his posthumous words made her cry. As soon as the pianist finished playing, the princess realized that the unhappy lover had forgiven her.
So the author showed that true art can touch the deepest strings of the soul. It both makes you cry and heals.
The genre of “The Garnet Bracelet” is a story. This is indicated by the following signs: the presence of several storylines, many images, a solid volume. Literary direction: realism. The author conveyed not only the details, but also the atmosphere of the era, and took as a basis what actually happened. The work is worth reading in its entirety: it will give you strong emotions, make you empathize with Zheltkov and cry with the main character.
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