One of the best literary works of I. S. Turgenev is the cycle of stories or essays (experts have not yet decided on the genre of the works included in it) “Notes of a Hunter.” In them, the writer touches on important issues relating to the life of peasants and serfdom. Ivan Sergeevich was known for his liberal views, so it is not surprising that he decided to make ordinary people the main characters of his works. Below is an analysis of “Khor and Kalinich”.
Publication history
The analysis of the story “Khor and Kalinich” should begin with the fact that it is the most famous of the entire cycle. This story opens “Notes of a Hunter”; it was published in 1847 in the magazine “Contemporary”. “Khor and Kalinich” was posted on a page with advertisements for the sale of agricultural items.
The writer compared the life of peasants in the Oryol and Kaluga provinces. The author paid great attention not only to how ordinary people live, but he was interested in the personality of these people. The writer's favorable attitude towards the peasants, a detailed examination of their habits, life beliefs - all this was new to the reader.
In the analysis of “Khor and Kalinich”, it should be noted that Turgenev’s decision to make peasants the central characters was perceived by readers as a progressive view of life, as a new direction in literature. Therefore, the story became the most famous in the “Notes of a Hunter” series.
Option 2
Turgenev wrote a huge number of different works. But the most popular of all is the collection “Notes of a Hunter.” Among these works is “Khor and Kalinich”.
The main characters here are two men. One man's name is Khor, and the second man's name is Kalinich. They both loved to work in the fields. Each of them tries to make his best friend feel good and comfortable. And even if one of them gets into trouble, the other will definitely help him and help him out of even the most difficult situation. Although they have different characters.
Khor is a rich peasant, unlike other peasants. And all because it helps him to earn more than he needs with the help of his mind. Besides this, he could have long ago become a free man and not depend on anyone, but he still continues to pay his master. He will never tell the truth, and catching him in the truth can be very difficult or almost impossible. That is why many consider him the man on their minds.
But Kalinich is the complete opposite of his friend. He leaves less attention to himself, and devotes all the rest to his owner, who both wants and commands him. He almost never takes off his sandals and even puts them on on holidays, although he also has other shoes. In his entire life, he has never deceived anyone and he is very proud of this.
After they both returned home, the author decided to find out what or who they had seen in different countries. And how their opinion was divided. Kalinich began to describe nature, customs that other people honor and always observe. But Khor is interested in something completely different. More than anything else, he is interested in how they managed to achieve all this and who helped them get back on their feet and how the state helped them.
In addition, Khor has a huge number of children and he doesn’t even know what each of his children is interested in, and what’s interesting to his wife is that the man is also of little interest. Also, he doesn’t even try to teach all his children to read and write, he’s quite happy with everything and he’s not going to change anything.
But Kalinich, throughout his entire life, was so-so and could not find anyone, but he himself managed to learn to read and write very well and know everything inside and out. Each time he tries to expand his horizons more and more and learn something new and interesting in the world. But there are a lot of different interesting things in the world that almost no one knows anything about. And although he has no rights at all, he considers himself a happy person who has everything he needs to live happily in this world. He understands ordinary people better and tries to help everyone in everything and will never pass by such people.
6th grade
Main characters
The analysis of “Khor and Kalinich” should be continued with a brief description of the characters in the story.
- Hunter - the story is told on his behalf. He loves not only hunting, but also studying the habits and way of life of other people. Sympathizes with the common people.
- Khor is a wealthy peasant. A practical and rational person, hardworking.
- Kalinich is a peasant, trained to read and write. Idealist, romantic. Loves nature, animals, responds to everything beautiful.
- Mr. Polutykin is the owner of Khor and Kalinich. He is a good man, but his idle lifestyle spoils him.
Characteristics of the story
The author's thoughts about the “difference between the breed of people” in Russian provinces are narrated. The work is complemented by a detailed depiction of their life, activities and external disagreements.
Image of the main characters
From general judgments of a short story, the writer approaches a detailed description of the human “breed”.
The main characters: Khor and Kalinich are simple peasants, real people, through whom Turgenev gives the reader the opportunity to better understand not only the appearance, but also the character of a person of those times.
The narrator wrote the story “Khor and Kalinich” in the genre of realism. The first hero from the common people is Khor - an old man of small stature, broad-shouldered and dense. External resemblances and facial features resemble the portrait characteristics of Socrates: a high forehead, small, beady eyes and a snub nose.
The described quitrent peasant, who was nicknamed by this name, is not eager for freedom, everything suits him. It seems that he has his own mind. He answers questions reluctantly, but expresses interest in his interlocutors. In life he is a positive person, a rationalist by nature.
Khor lives in the Zhizdra district of the Kaluga province and is a serf peasant of the landowner Polutykin. The hero’s true name is not indicated: “So he settled in the swamp. From then on he was nicknamed Khorem.” Because 25 years ago, the main character’s house burned down, and he asked to settle in a swamp in the forest, in return promising to pay the landowner a good rent. The head of the family has a wife and ten sons, nine of whom are married.
Activities of Khorya:
- Trades in oil and tar.
- He does housework.
He has enough money, but he is in no hurry to separate to an independent life without rent. According to the master, he is an intelligent but illiterate man, he respects himself for turning from a poor peasant into a wealthy merchant.
Kalinich is a forty-year-old man , lean and tall in build. In life, he is an idealist and romantic, often dreams and “flies in the clouds.” According to the story, he had a personal apiary, and he helped the master in the hunt. The latter acts as a narrator and narrates the work.
The reader is confronted with the image of a Russian gentleman - the small landowner Polutykin. This character evokes direct sympathy, but does not have the qualities that attract a researcher of human souls. The author does not directly characterize the responsibility and spontaneity of the landowner, but the text contains examples that confirm this.
With a few strokes, the author of a single chapter captured the nature and landscape surrounding the main characters, noting “what kind of game attracts an avid hunter.”
Comparison of two peasants
The creation of the work is also aimed at comparing the two heroes, their morals and outlook on life.
The description of the appearance, as well as the character of Turgenev’s heroes Khor and Kalinich, are revealed in quotes from the text.
Comparison table
| Polecat | Kalinich |
| An active, hardworking person, takes care of his own household, and can understand reality. | Very kind and flexible |
| Seen a lot of life, knows a lot | Lives in seclusion |
| Taciturn, silent, only “strong-tongued” when it comes to business | He doesn't like to reason and believes everything. |
| Located closer to nature. | He spoke blood, fear, rabies, drove out worms, kept an apiary and was not afraid of bees. |
| Doesn't care about cleanliness | Hardworking, neat |
| Finds contact with both the master and the “rest of the authorities” | He worships the master, walks in bast shoes, is content with small crumbs |
| Disdainful of women | Afraid of his wife |
| Couldn't read | Was literate |
Khor is friends with Kalinich. Being complete opposites, friends appreciate each other, value their friendship and spend time together.
When the gentleman strives for pretentiousness and originality, his serf Khor strives to be closer to nature. The peasant's estate is located in the middle of the forest; in the house, “not a single Suzdal painting” disfigures the untouched beauty of the log walls. Guests eat simple and hearty food, washed down with drinks.
The sons of Khor are presented in the images of “young giants”, reminiscent of Russian heroes. Polutykin talks about his subordinate as a “sensible man.”
Natural intelligence, business acumen, quick wit, ability to understand people—these character traits attract the narrator.
Initially, it seems that Kalinich is another serf of the landowner; he does not look like a wealthy peasant. The difference between the two friends lies not only in their appearance, but also in their everyday life, occupation and manner of behavior.
Khorya's temperament:
- Rationalist.
- Philosopher.
The smart and perspicacious Khor makes fun of his friend, reproaching him for his blind obedience to the landowner, but does not put himself above Kalinich.
Their friendship is based on deep inner kinship and mutual sympathy. They complement each other so harmoniously that their inseparable and indestructible connection arises.
The spiritual unity of two people merges by singing together to the balalaika.
Kalinich's character:
- An enthusiastic romantic.
- Materialist.
The living and open soul of the Russian person is sensitive to musical notes; the simple words of a folk song can touch the romantic Kalinich and the rationalist of his friend.
Differences and disagreements are provoked by human individuality, the convergence of the Russian spirit.
The comparative characteristics of Khor and Kalinich in the table confirm that, despite the differences in the characters of each hero, they are still friends and have a great time.
Description of the peasants
In the analysis of “Khor and Kalinich” it is necessary to describe the main characters in more detail. The hunter informs the reader that he noticed that the standard of living of the peasants in the Kaluga province is higher than that of the Oryol ones. And as an example, the author cites two peasant friends, Khor and Kalinich. Despite the difference in character and their outlook on life, they are friendly.
Khor is a wealthy peasant. Thanks to his pragmatic and rational mindset, he was able to separate himself from all the other peasants and live apart from them. He could become free, but he deliberately does not do this, so he pays a large rent to his master on time. During conversations, he avoids answering the hunter’s questions, so the hunter decides that Khor is a man on his own.
Kalinich is the complete opposite of his friend. He pays much more attention to his master than Khor. Because of this, he does not have time for other things. Even Kalinich’s appearance shows some sloppiness; he wears bast shoes all year round, even on holidays. He is a simple and honest person with a keen sense of human nature and the beauty of nature.
Analysis of the images of Khor and Kalinich
An analysis of the story “Khor and Kalinich” would be incomplete without considering the main characters. In two peasant characters, Turgenev managed to show the fundamental foundations of the nation, which determine its identity, its resilience, its character.
Khor and Kalinich are two peasants whom the narrator met while hunting in the forests of the Kaluga province. Despite their friendship, they are completely opposite to each other. The differences are noticeable already in the description of the portraits of the heroes. The polecat is a dense, large, broad-shouldered, squat, calm and silent person, reminiscent of Socrates. The comparison is indicative: it points to the wisdom and life experience of the hero. Kalinich is tall, thin, with a good-natured face and light blue eyes. Turgenev notes that his face was “meek and clear, like the evening sky.” This description emphasizes a certain romanticism of the hero, which will be further revealed in the story, and the analysis of “Khor and Kalinich” emphasizes this well.
Khor has a good-quality hut, where he lives with a large family: his wife, sons, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren. In the family he is the head who is respected and obeyed. Khor is a practical person, “on his own mind,” his farm is strong, bringing in a good income. Khor’s entire appearance emphasizes a calm dignity that commands respect. Once upon a time, about 25 years ago, his house burned down, so in the settlements he built a new hut, took up farming, and paid the landowner a quitrent. He ran the household in such a way that over the years he became a wealthy man and could easily buy himself back from the master.
Kalinich is a lonely, childless man; he once had a wife, who, judging by the story, died long ago. He also did not have a household, “he walked around in bast shoes and managed to get by somehow.” At the same time, Kalinich is a man of the most cheerful and kind disposition, a poetic nature: he understands the language of birds, understands herbs, knows every path in the forest, knows how to say “blood, fear, rage,” “he has a light hand.” “Kalinich stood closer to nature; The ferret is for people, for society.”
conclusions
In the analysis of “Khor and Kalinich” by Turgenev I.S., it is necessary to briefly note the conclusions drawn by the main character from observations of two peasants. During a conversation about what the hunter has seen, Kalinich is interested in details related to the description of nature and the customs of other people. Khorya is more interested in questions of a practical nature: how people’s lives work, the peculiarities of the political system.
Khor has a large family, but only one child is literate. Kalinich is lonely, but he has learned to read and write. And this helps him better perceive some life phenomena and expand his horizons. Before us are people who do not have the same rights and freedom as Mr. Polutykin. However, they find themselves closer to the world around them and understand simple things more deeply. And an idle lifestyle is the reason for Polutykin’s quirks. Work allows a person to train not only the body, but also the mind.
In the analysis of the work “Khor and Kalinich”, it is worth noting that the story also contains a certain amount of romanticization of the common people. But this does not contradict the real image of the peasants. The author I. S. Turgenev for the first time made serfs the central characters, showing that they feel and perceive the world in the same way as rich people. Work and closeness to nature helped them better and more subtly understand the world around them and human character.
The meaning of the story “Khor and Kalinich” by Ivan Turgenev
The story “Khor and Kalinich” opens the collection “Notes of a Hunter,” which the Russian realist writer I.S. Turgenev created over five years, starting in 1847. The works of this cycle are united by a common idea: to show the fundamental foundations of a nation that determine its identity. To characterize the deep and versatile personality of the Russian peasant, the inexhaustibility and wealth of mental strength, not broken by centuries of serfdom.
The essay “Khor and Kalinich” was written after the narrator visited the estate of Mr. Polutykin, in the Zhezdrinsky district of the Kaluga province. It was here that the gentleman who came to hunt met two serfs of a small landowner - Khorem and Kalinich.
- A strong, stocky man nicknamed Khor, with a bald head, a curly beard and a long mustache, impressed the author with his seriousness, thrift and thriftiness. It seems that in the entire district there was no more active, practical and reasonable person. He gave intelligent speeches and had extensive knowledge, although he did not know how to read and write. He lived with a large family, firmly and independently, and paid the master a considerable rent. It seemed that Khor saw right through the limited and frivolous Mr. Polutykin. But the old man always said “on his own”: “We have a good master.”
- Tall and lean Kalinich was younger than Khor. He worked diligently and obligingly at his corvée, in reverence for his master. He organized the master's hunt, kept bees in the apiary, used forest herbs, and knew how to heal. He lived alone and did not keep the farm in particularly good order. Kalinich's disposition was cheerful and meek. There was always a smile on his good-natured face, with a wedge-shaped beard and light blue eyes. He knew how to read, played the balalaika and sang well.
The characters' characters are partly revealed in the conversations that the narrator had with them. Having learned that the visiting gentleman had been to distant countries, the peasants asked him about his travels abroad. Khor inquired more and more about the arrangement of life there, finding out what he could learn from them. Kalinich was more moved by the descriptions of unprecedented places and the diversity of nature. Everyone spoke differently. Khor was a man of few words, listened attentively and asked sensible questions. Kalinich took everything at his word, explained himself passionately, hastily and enthusiastically.
The men were completely different in nature, but nevertheless they were strong friends. Khor patronized his friend and treated him condescendingly and kindly. Kalinich loved and respected Khor, showing him signs of attention: he would either cut out wooden spoons, or bring a bunch of fragrant strawberries from the forest, or treat him with fresh honey. And there was one thing when they seemed to merge into a single whole. As soon as Kalinich began to sing a drawn-out folk song, Khor became thoughtful and sensitive and pitifully chanted, “You are my share, your share!”
As Turgenev notes, Khor was more earthly, rational, drawn to society and people; Kalinich’s nature is closer to nature and romantic and spiritual spheres. The author, admiring and proud of his heroes, leads the reader to the idea that a simple person from the people combines sincerity and intelligence, poetic nature and sobriety of judgment, sublimity and down-to-earthness.
Two simple peasants of the Kaluga province from the story of I.S. Turgenev embodies the main qualities of the Russian people: their hard work, practical intelligence, talent, poetry and breadth of soul. The main idea of the work: the Russian peasant is a deep and versatile personality.
Emperor Alexander II once noted that reading the story “Khor and Kalinich” was among the motivations for his abolition of serfdom in Rus'.
