Brief summary (more detailed than summary)
A young gypsy woman, Zemfira, brought a young man to a gypsy camp wandering around Bessarabia at night. She met him in the steppe, learned that “he was being persecuted by the law” and he wanted to roam with the gypsies. His name is Aleko. Zemfira told all this to her old father.
The old man said that he was ready to share shelter and bread with the young man, that he could roam with the camp and choose any trade for himself: becoming a blacksmith or walking around the villages with a tame bear and singing songs.
In the morning the camp set off. The girl asked Aleko if he regretted leaving “the people of his homeland, the city.” Aleko spoke with disdain about the cities where people live who trade their will for money and are ashamed of true love. He said that he only wanted to share “love, leisure and voluntary exile” with Zemfira.
The old man said that people accustomed to bliss do not always love freedom. He remembered a legend about a man whom the king expelled to these lands (the legend reflected the fate of the Roman poet Ovid). This old exile was homesick for his homeland.
Aleko traveled with the gypsies for 2 years, he fell in love with the wandering life, took a tame bear around the villages and sang songs. He and Zemfira already had a daughter. One day Zemfira, rocking her baby in the cradle, sang a song about hatred of her husband and love for another and then said that she sang it for Aleko.
When Aleko fell asleep, he began to moan, sob and call for Zemfira in his sleep. The old man told his daughter that her husband was looking for her in his dreams, since she was dearer to him than anything in the world.
Zemfira admitted to her father that she no longer loved her husband, that her heart was asking for freedom.
Aleko woke up and said that in his sleep he saw “terrible dreams.” Zemfira advised him not to believe the dream. Aleko bitterly admitted that he didn’t even believe her heart.
The old man noticed that Aleko became sad and asked about the reason for his sadness. The young man replied that he was sad because Zemfira did not love him and was unfaithful to him.
The old man said that a woman’s heart loves not sadly, like Aleko, but jokingly. He said that Zemfira’s mother, Mariula, also loved him for only a year, and then left with a gypsy from another camp, leaving her husband and little daughter.
Aleko asked why he didn’t kill them, the old man replied that no one could hold back love.
Zemfira made an appointment behind the mound above the grave of a young gypsy. Aleko, waking up, saw that his wife was not in the tent, and followed her trail to the distant mounds. He saw 2 shadows there and heard a whisper. The gypsy tried to persuade Zemfira to stay at least a minute longer, but she said that her husband might wake up.
Aleko said: “I woke up.” He stuck a knife into the gypsy, and then into Zemfira. Her last words were: “I will die loving.”
When the murdered lovers were buried, Zemfira’s father told Aleko to leave the camp, since the gypsies do not torture or execute, because they have no laws. They will be scared to live with Aleko - he is brave and angry, and they are timid and kind.
When the camp set off, only one cart remained, covered with an old carpet, but no one spent the night in it.
Epilogue
The poet recalls that he met peaceful gypsies in the south of the country and often wandered with them, listening to their songs. He understands that there is no happiness among these free people, since “fatal passions are everywhere, and there is no protection from fate.”
Summary of Pushkin Gypsies
The endless steppes of Bessarabia stretch before the reader. A camp of gypsies roams these steppes. Evening. The fire is burning. Horses are grazing. Behind the tent lies a tame bear. Night is approaching. Almost everyone falls asleep. Only the old man is not sleeping: he is waiting for his daughter Zemfira, who is walking in the field. Finally, Zemfira returns, but not alone, but with a young man. Zemfira explains to her father that she met this young man on a walk, that he wants to live according to the laws of the gypsies. The old father is hospitable and invites the young man to live in the camp for as long as he wants.
Morning comes. Everyone wakes up and hits the road. For some reason the young man feels sad. He cannot understand the reason for sadness. Zemfira is trying to understand the reason for her companion's depressed state. She's talking. Zemfira thinks that her companion is yearning for the life he left behind. But Aleko calms the girl down. He says that the main thing in his life is her, Zemfira.
The old father hears the conversation of the young people and tells them a legend about a poet who was expelled from his homeland, but constantly yearned for it. Aleko involuntarily recognizes himself in the poet.
Two years pass. Aleko wanders with a gypsy camp. He feels the will, feels unity with the camp. One day he hears Zemfira singing a song that talks about a very unpleasant event for Aleko. It turns out that the girl stopped loving him. Aleko tries to interrupt his beloved's singing, but she stubbornly continues singing. Aleko realizes that a third person has appeared in their relationship. Zemfira openly confirms this.
The night is coming. Zemfira wakes up her father and tells him that Aleko is raving about her in his sleep. Aleko woke up, and Zemfira goes to him. Aleko suspects Zemfira of treason. To which Zemfira says that she talked with her father. Then Aleko tells the girl his dreams and emphasizes that in the land of dreams Zemfira cheated on him. Zemfira tries to convince Aleko that there is no point in believing in dreams.
Zemfira's father talks to Aleko. Convinces him not to be sad, because sadness can lead to death. He also talks about Zemfira’s flighty feminine nature. Aleko is adamant: he remembers the “moments of love” spent with Zemfira and torments his heart more and more.
To console Aleko, the old gypsy tells a story about himself and the beautiful Mariula. That this love story is unhappy. And the fruit of this passion is Zemfira. From then on, women “died” for the old man. Aleko does not understand how the old man could forgive his beloved for betraying him. He himself says that he would definitely take revenge in such a situation.
At this time, Zemfira goes on a date.
Night. Aleko wakes up and doesn’t find Zemfira nearby. Then he goes outside and in the light of the stars guesses Zemfira’s trail. He follows the trail. Suddenly he sees two silhouettes - this is Zemfira and her new lover. Aleko is overwhelmed by jealousy and kills a young gypsy with a knife. Zemfira curses Aleko, and he kills her too.
Dawn. Aleko sits behind the mound and in front of “two cold bodies.” In his hands is a bloody knife. The gypsies say goodbye to the murdered and bury them. After the funeral, Zemfira’s father asks Aleko to leave their camp. The gypsies don't want to be near the killer.
The ending of the poem: the camp has left. There was only one cart left in the field. No one laid her out for the night or lit a fire in front of her.
The work shows the depravity of selfishness.
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Read summary Gypsies. Brief retelling. For a reader's diary, take 5-6 sentences
Brief summary of the poem “Gypsies” by Pushkin
A gypsy camp roams the steppe. Their cheerful life is described, peaceful sleep by the wheels of carts, simple life - torn tents, dinner at the stake.
The old gypsy man is waiting for his daughter Zemfira, but she does not return alone. The girl brings with her a young guy named Aleko. She says that the young man broke the law, is hiding from the authorities, and wants to live in a gypsy camp.
The old man, without hesitation, agrees to accept Aleko into his family and is ready to share food and shelter with him. Zemfira's father tells him that he can take up any gypsy craft - forge iron, entertain the public, sing.
A guy and a girl are in love with each other. Aleko grew up in a rich family, in a society that he considers vicious and deceitful. The young man likes the gypsy life. Zemfira is surprised that he doesn’t need big houses, women in beautiful dresses. The young man answers her that there is no love in that life, that Zemfira in her simple clothes is dearer to him.
Several years have passed, the gypsies are still nomadic, Aleko still likes their free life. He leads the bear in front of an appreciative audience, the old man beats a tambourine, and his wife collects tribute. A young couple gives birth to a child. Zemfira hums a song with strange words. The song tells about cooled feelings for her husband, about love for another. The girl hints that her feelings for Aleko have already passed. The guy can't stand it and asks his wife to shut up. Feeling the infidelity of his beloved, Aleko suffers and sleeps restlessly. He scares Zemfira with his nightly delirium, and then she reveals to her father that she is sick of Aleko.
The guy woke up from a heavy sleep. The old man asks what is bothering him? He replies that Zemfira no longer loves him. The old gypsy explains to him that gypsies grew up in the clear sky, in the wild, that they should not take love too seriously. He urges the guy not to worry about the variability of female nature, which is impossible to force oneself to love. Aleko recalls Zemfira’s previous attitude with feeling.
The old man advises the guy to console himself and tells him the story of his life. The gypsy woman he was in love with was named Mariula. She gave birth to a daughter, Zemfira, but fell in love with someone else and ran away, leaving her daughter. Zemfira's father did not search for the fugitives or take revenge on them. He forgave his flighty wife and let her go in peace. He believes that love and joy cannot be kept on a leash, and also that the past cannot be restored.
Aleko is perplexed as to how the old man could do such a thing and says that he would not be able to forgive the betrayal. He would try to reclaim what he is entitled to. If this had not worked out, he would have killed the defenseless enemy, enjoying revenge.
Zemfira goes on a date with another gypsy whom she fell in love with. They indulge in passionate passion, saying tender words to each other. Zemfira returns to the family, promising to meet the gypsy again. For the first time, Aleko does not notice Zemfira’s disappearance, but the next night turns out to be fatal for the lovers. Aleko wakes up and does not find Zemfira nearby. He is excited, he is thrown into both heat and cold. He leaves the tent, but everything around is quiet, everyone is sleeping.
He goes to the grave, which is visible nearby. Approaching her, he sees shadows and hears whispers. One voice says it's time to leave. Another voice asks to wait a little longer, but hears in response that the husband might wake up.
Aleko intervenes in the lovers’ conversation and replies that her husband has already woken up. He stabs his wife's lover with a knife and then kills her too. In the morning, the gypsies bury the dead, and Zemfira’s father demands that the killer leave the camp. The gypsies leave Aleko, who remains alone in the field.
Epilogue
The author talks about how, fed up with the political situation in the country and city life, he wandered around in a gypsy camp. He burned with passion for a gypsy named Mariula. The author liked their free life, but he did not find happiness among the gypsies either. The author saw in her the same disappointments and troubles as in any other life.
Summary
“Gypsies roam in a noisy crowd across Bessarabia.”
Tabor stopped for the night near the river. Behind the tent, “a tame bear lies free.” Gypsy Zemfira brings with her a young man Aleko, who wants to be a gypsy. The young man is “pursued by the law,” but Zemfira decides to be “his friend.” Zemfira’s father allows Aleko to stay, he is ready to share “both bread and shelter” with the newcomer.
***
In the morning the gypsies move on. Zemfira asked Aleko if he regrets the past. The young man replies that he has nothing to regret, because he left “the bondage of stuffy cities.”
Hearing their conversation, Zemfira’s old father told a legend about how a poet (Ovid), who was “already old in years,” was exiled to them by the Tsar (Augustus). And although everyone fell in love with him, the poet was never able to get used to the “cares of a poor life,” considering it a punishment, and until his last day he yearned for his homeland (Rome).
***
Two summers have passed. Aleko “leads his nomadic days without worries or regrets,” showing people in the villages performances with a trained bear.
***
Once Aleko heard Zemfira singing the song “Old husband, terrible husband, Cut me, burn me...” about how she hates and despises her husband because she loves another. Aleko tried to stop the girl from singing. However, Zemfira said that this song was about him and left.
***
At night Zemfira woke up her father:
“Oh my father! Aleko is scary. Listen: through a heavy sleep And he groans and sobs.”
Zemfira shared with her father that Aleko’s love disgusted her, “her heart asks for will.” Zemfira went to wake Aleko. He said that he dreamed that she cheated on him. Zemfira told him “not to believe evil dreams.”
***
Seeing that Aleko was sad, the old father said to him:
“Take comfort, friend: she is a child. Your despondency is reckless: You love sadly and difficultly, But a woman’s heart is a joke.”
The old man told Aleko that long ago, when he was still young, Mariula, Zemfira’s mother, loved him. But one day they met a camp and the woman, leaving her daughter with him, left with the camp.
Aleko was surprised that the old man did not take revenge “on both the predators and the insidious one.” The old man replied:
"For what? freer than the birds of youth; Who can hold on to love?
Aleko said with confidence that he would not give up his rights or at least take revenge.
***
At night, Aleko goes out into the field. He sees a “slightly noticeable trace in the dew” and “two close shadows”: Zemfira and a young gypsy. Noticing her husband, the girl tells her lover to run away, but Aleko kills him with a knife, and then Zemfira herself. In the morning the gypsies buried the “young couple.”
After the funeral, the old man approached Aleko, who was watching everything from afar, and said:
“Leave us, proud man! We are wild; We have no laws, We don’t torment, we don’t execute - We don’t need blood or groans - But we don’t want to live with a murderer... You were not born for a wild lot, You only want freedom for yourself.”
“He said, and in a noisy crowd a nomadic camp rose from the valley of the terrible overnight stay.”
There was only one cart left in the steppe, in which at night “no one lit a fire” and “didn’t go to sleep until the morning.”
Epilogue
The narrator recalls how he met “carts of peaceful gypsies,” how he shared food with them, loved their songs.
“And for a long time I repeated dear Mariula’s tender name.”
“But there is no happiness between you, poor sons of Nature!.. And under tattered tents, painful dreams live.”
