A very brief retelling of the story “In Bad Society.”
The story is told on behalf of the boy Vasya, who lives in a provincial town. His father recently lost his wife and misses her very much. This grief alienated him from his son. The boy is left to his own devices and wanders around the city all day long. Like all tomboys, Vasya is interested in the old ruins of an abandoned castle on the outskirts. Beggars and homeless people live there. The boy feels sorry for them.
One day he meets Valek and his sister Marusya. They have no money and no home. Despite the fact that life in the dungeon is difficult, the children remain kind and open. The inhabitants of different worlds are getting closer. Vasya brings them apples from his garden.
In the fall, the girl fell ill and could not walk. To entertain her, a friend brings his sister Sonya's doll. Marusya is very happy. The father finds out that his daughter's doll is missing and accuses his son of stealing it. Then Pan Tyburtsy appears, returns the toy and calls Vasya to say goodbye to the dying girl. The boy reconciles with his father. Marusya's grave becomes a favorite meeting place for friends.
Main characters and their characteristics:
- Vasya is a 9 year old boy. After the death of his mother, he grows up as a homeless child, but his sensitive and kind heart prevents him from getting into trouble.
- Valek is a homeless boy living in the dungeon of a destroyed chapel. He loves his sister and is caring.
- Marusya is a quiet, modest, sickly girl. Never complains, loves flowers. Living in a damp basement undermines her health, and she dies.
- Sonya is the sister of the main character Vasya. She's 4 years old. Sonya, like Vasya, was left without a mother. A nanny is looking after the girl.
Minor characters and their characteristics:
- Vasya's father is a widower who is grieving the death of his wife. His attention is attracted only by his daughter Sonya, because she has the features of her mother. He works as a judge. He conducts business fairly and honestly, and for this he is respected in the city.
- Tyburtsy Drab is the adoptive father of Valek and Marusya. He looks like a rude and uncouth man, but he has a good education and knows Latin and Greek. He loves his children and takes care of them as best he can. The beggars consider him their leader and call him Pan Tyburtsy.
- Janusz is a gray-haired old man, a former servant of the count who owned the castle. He considers himself the most important among the homeless and divides them into “good Christians” and strangers.
- Lavrovsky is a poor, retired, drunken official.
- “The Professor” is a quiet old man suffering from dementia. He mutters something to himself all the time. He cannot stand it when people talk about cutting or piercing objects in front of him.
Essay 2
Pan Tyburtsy is not the main character of the work. But still, despite this circumstance, he is quite a bright personality, to whom a lot of space is allocated in the work.
In terms of his financial situation in society, he is completely poor. He lives in the basement of an old chapel with his two children. Based on the description of this character’s appearance, he was tall, slightly stooped at the shoulders, hunched over, with an unpleasant face. Parts of the face are described as expressive and rough. The hair was red and hung in different directions. The forehead is low, the lower jaw moves forward slightly. The muscles moved quite strongly. So his face looked more like a monkey's face. His arms were wiry and muscular, with calluses everywhere.
Almost nothing is said about his age. The author's only mention of age is that he was not quite old yet. That is, we can say that Tyburtsy was no longer a young man, however, he was not yet an old man.
He was a man of approximately middle age. The author describes this character very sparingly. He mostly doesn't talk about many aspects of his character and behavior. For example, Korolenko never mentioned whether his children were related to him. Perhaps they were adopted. But in any case, he loved them very much and took care of them as best he could. The author also tells almost nothing about the past life of Tyburtsy. He knows many sciences, not excluding Latin. He says that once upon a time he was able to get an education. And since at this time he was a simple beggar, he earned his bread by entertaining people in pubs. There was not a tavern in the whole city that Pan Tyburtsy had not visited. He stood on a barrel and spoke texts and quoted famous people. This really confirms that he was a fairly well educated man.
A summary of the story “In Bad Society” in detail by chapter.
Chapter 1. Ruins.
In the small provincial town of Knyazhye-Veno, the main decoration of which is the prison building, a boy named Vasya lives. On the outskirts there is a pond with an island. A dilapidated castle stands in the middle of it. This building is shrouded in old legends and attracts boys with its mystery. Poor people who have no home live there.
Author: Vladimir Galaktionovich Korolenko
They are led by old Janusz, a former count's servant. Once he and his assistants evicted people he disliked from the ruins and left only Catholics who were begging for alms in the city. The rest had to leave the island. The boy felt sorry for the unfortunate people who were driven out into the street in bad weather.
Chapter 2. Problematic natures.
For several days the exiles wandered around the city, disturbing the residents, but soon disappeared somewhere. They were said to have taken refuge near an abandoned chapel. Only sometimes could they be seen on the streets. Among them were famous personalities.
For example, an old man who had lost his mind and was called “professor.” He walked around the city without any sense and muttered something unintelligible under his breath. The drunken official Lavrovsky was an unsightly sight compared to the dandy he had been before.
Bored loafers had fun mocking him. But the “scum of society” stood up for each other like a mountain. The defenders of the poor madman had to fight back with their fists. Pan Turkevich declared himself a general and demanded honor and respect from those around him.
The leader of all dark personalities was the mysterious Tyburtsy Drab. In appearance, he looked like an ordinary peasant, but was distinguished by his deep knowledge of history and Latin. Valek, a nine-year-old boy, and a three-year-old girl, Marusya, lived with him.
Chapter 3. Me and my father.
Vasya lives with his sister Sonya and his father, who is immersed in his grief over his dead wife. While working as a judge, the man was respected for his honesty and integrity.
He pays less attention to his son and therefore the boy wanders around the city with friends all day long. Vasya would like his father to talk to him and caress him, but his severity and gloominess repel him. The son misses his mother very much.
Chapter 4. I make a new acquaintance.
One day, friends went up the mountain to the ruins of a chapel. It was locked, and the boys wanted to look through the window. Vasya, with the help of a friend, climbed inside. But suddenly something moved and the urchins ran away.
And then a tall boy and his blond sister emerged from a hole in the floor. At first the guys looked at each other in disbelief, but then Vasya treated his new acquaintances to apples from the orchard. Evening came and it was time to go home. The children accompanied the boy to the city and agreed to meet again.
Chapter 5. The acquaintance continues.
Now new comrades began to see each other every day. At first, Vasya tried to captivate them with his noisy games, but Valek was too serious, and Marusya was crying. The only thing that could calm her down was flowers, which she loved to quietly sort through.
Vasya brought apples and sweets, which made the girl very happy. The baby was very weak and sick. Valek said that everyone in the city respects Vasya’s father for justice and this made the boy happy.
Chapter 6. Among the “gray stones”.
A few days later, the “dark personalities” left somewhere along with Pan Tyburtsy, and the brother and sister were left alone. Vasya saw Valek in the city, and he invited him to come to the chapel. He himself had to stay late. Then they met on the mountain and went into the dungeon.
Marusya sat against the wall and almost merged with the gray stones. It seemed that they had taken the cheerfulness and health out of the girl. Valek said that he had to steal a loaf of bread from a merchant to feed his hungry sister. They had no money, because they were beggars. Vasya was very upset and went home early.
Chapter 7. Pan Tyburtsy appears on stage.
The next day Vasya appeared in the chapel again. The boy realized that beggars can also be good people, despite the circumstances. The children went down into the dungeon and played blind man's buff. Suddenly Pan Tyburtsy appeared. He was angry, but decided that the judge's son could be trusted and allowed him to come again. Two feelings fought in Vasya’s soul: friendly affection and disgust for theft.
Chapter 8. In autumn.
Summer ended and Marusya began to weaken. Vasya often went to visit the chapel and became friends with all the members of the “bad society”. One day, the evil old Janusz came to his father to complain about Tyburtsy Drab and his fellow tribesmen. The boy heard this and told his new comrades.
Chapter 9. Doll.
Marusya was no longer able to get up due to illness and, to please her, Vasya asked his sister Sonya for a doll that her mother had given her. The girl really liked the surprise, and it gave her strength. But the father suspected something and did not allow his son to leave the house for several days. In the end, the judge sternly asked where Vasya put the gift from his late mother.
The boy was very scared, but could not betray his friends. Suddenly Tyburtius appeared. He returned the doll to the judge and explained that Vasya, although he knew “bad society,” had not done anything wrong. The boy was called to say goodbye to the deceased Marusya. And then the father realized that he was wrong and finally hugged his son with love.
Conclusion.
Soon after these events, the “dark personalities” disappeared somewhere, and so did Valek and Tyburtsy. The chapel had completely collapsed, and in the old cemetery there was a new children's grave. Vasya, his sister Sonya and his father often loved to come there and sat there for a long time, talking or reading books.
In a bad society (Korolenko V.G., 1885)
VII. Pan Tyburtsy appears on stage
- Hello! And I thought you wouldn’t come again, that’s how Valek greeted me when I showed up on the mountain again the next day.
I understood why he said this.
“No, I... I will always come to you,” I answered decisively, in order to put an end to this question once and for all.
Valek noticeably cheered up, and we both felt freer.
- Well? Where are yours? - I asked. - Still not back?
- Not yet. The devil knows where they disappear.
And we cheerfully set about constructing an ingenious trap for sparrows, for which I brought some thread with me. We gave the thread to Marusya's hand, and when a careless sparrow, attracted by the grain, carelessly jumped into the trap, Marusya pulled the thread, and the lid slammed the bird, which we then released.
Meanwhile, around noon, the sky frowned, a dark cloud moved in, and a downpour began to roar under the cheerful peals of thunder. At first I really didn’t want to go down into the dungeon, but then, thinking that Valek and Marusya lived there permanently, I overcame the unpleasant feeling and went there with them. It was dark and quiet in the dungeon, but from above you could hear the echoing roar of a thunderstorm, as if someone was driving there in a huge cart along a giant-folded pavement. After a few minutes I became familiar with the dungeon, and we listened cheerfully as the ground received wide streams of rain; the hum, splashes and frequent peals tuned our nerves and caused a revival that demanded an outcome.
“Let’s play blind man’s buff,” I suggested.
I was blindfolded; Marusya was ringing with the weak tinkles of her pathetic laughter and splashing on the stone floor with her clumsy little feet, and I pretended that I couldn’t catch her, when I suddenly stumbled upon someone’s wet figure and at that very moment I felt that someone grabbed my leg . A strong hand lifted me from the floor, and I hung upside down in the air. The blindfold fell off my eyes.
Tyburtsy, wet and angry, was even more terrible because I was looking at him from below, holding me by the legs and wildly rotating his pupils.
- What else is this, huh? - he asked sternly, looking at Valek. “I see you’re having fun here... You’ve got some nice company.”
- Let me go! “I said, surprised that even in such an unusual position I could still speak, but Pan Tyburtsy’s hand only squeezed my leg even tighter.
- Respond, answer! - He turned menacingly again to Valek, who in this difficult situation stood with two fingers stuffed into his mouth, as if to prove that he had absolutely nothing to answer.
I only noticed that he was watching with a sympathetic eye and with great sympathy my unfortunate figure, swinging like a pendulum in space.
Pan Tyburtsy lifted me up and looked me in the face.
- Hey-hey! Master Judge, if my eyes do not deceive me... Why did you deign to complain?
- Let me go! - I said stubbornly. - Now let go! - and at the same time I made an instinctive movement, as if about to stamp my foot, but this only caused me to flutter in the air.
Tyburtsy laughed.
- Wow! Mr. Judge deigns to be angry... Well, you don’t know me yet. Ego Tyburtsy sum [I am Tyburtsy. (Ed.)]. I'll hang you over the fire and roast you like a pig.
I began to think that this was indeed my inevitable fate, especially since Valek’s desperate figure seemed to confirm the idea of the possibility of such a sad outcome. Fortunately, Marusya came to the rescue.
- Don't be afraid, Vasya, don't be afraid! - she encouraged me, going up to the very feet of Tyburtsy. - He never roasts boys on fire... This is not true!
Tyburtsy quickly turned me around and put me on my feet; At the same time, I almost fell, as I felt dizzy, but he supported me with his hand and then, sitting down on a wooden stump, placed me between his knees.
- How did you get here? - he continued to interrogate. - How long ago?.. You say! - he turned to Valek, since I didn’t answer anything.
“A long time ago,” he answered.
- How long ago?
- Six days.
It seemed that this answer gave Pan Tyburtsy some pleasure.
- Wow, six days! - he spoke, turning me to face him. — Six days is a lot of time. And you still haven’t told anyone where you’re going?
- No one.
- Is it true?
“No one,” I repeated.
- Bene, commendable!.. You can count on not talking and move on. However, I always considered you a decent fellow when I met you on the streets. A real “street criminal”, even though he is a judge... Are you going to judge us, tell me?
He spoke quite good-naturedly, but I still felt deeply offended and therefore answered rather angrily:
- I'm not a judge at all. I am Vasya.
- One does not interfere with the other, and Vasya can also be a judge - not now, but later... This, brother, is how it has been done since ancient times. You see: I am Tyburtsy, and he is Valek. I am a beggar and he is a beggar. To be honest, I steal, and he will steal. And your father judges me - well, someday you will judge... him!
“I won’t judge Valek,” I objected gloomily. - Not true!
“He won’t,” Marusya also intervened, removing the terrible suspicion from me with complete conviction.
The girl trustingly pressed herself against the legs of this freak, and he affectionately stroked her blond hair with a sinewy hand.
“Well, don’t say that in advance,” said the strange man thoughtfully, addressing me in such a tone as if he were talking to an adult. - Don't talk, amice! [Friend. (Ed.)] This story has been told since ancient times, to everyone, suum cuique; everyone goes their own way; and who knows... maybe it’s good that your road ran through ours. It’s good for you, amice, because to have a piece of a human heart in your chest instead of a cold stone, you understand?..
I didn’t understand anything, but still my eyes fixed on the strange man’s face; Pan Tyburtsy's eyes looked intently into mine, and something dimly flickered in them, as if penetrating into my soul.
“You don’t understand, of course, because you’re still a kid... Therefore, I’ll tell you briefly, and someday you’ll remember the words of the philosopher Tyburtius: if you ever have to judge him, then remember that even at the time when you both were fools and played together - that even then you were walking along the road along which people walk in pants and with a good supply of provisions, and he was running along his ragamuffin, pantsless and with an empty belly... However, this will still happen, - he said, abruptly changing his tone, - remember this well: if you tell your judge or even a bird that flies past you in the field about what you saw here, then if I weren’t Tyburtsy Drab, if I didn’t hang you in this fireplace by the legs and I won’t make a smoked ham out of you. I hope you understand this?
- I won’t tell anyone... I... Can I come again?
- Come, I give permission... sub conditionem [Under condition. (Ed.)]... However, you are still stupid and don’t understand Latin. I already told you about the ham. Remember!..
He let me go and stretched out with a tired look on a long bench that stood near the wall.
“Take it over there,” he pointed to Valek at the large basket, which, upon entering, he left at the threshold, “and light a fire.” We will cook lunch today.
Now this was no longer the same man who frightened me for a minute by rotating his pupils, and not the guy who amused the audience because of handouts. He gave orders like the owner and head of the family, returning from work and giving orders to his household.
He seemed very tired. His dress was wet from the rain, and his face too; the hair stuck together on his forehead, and one could see heavy fatigue throughout his entire figure. For the first time I saw this expression on the face of the cheerful speaker of the city taverns, and again this look behind the scenes, at the actor, exhaustively resting after the difficult role that he played on the everyday stage, seemed to pour something eerie into my heart. This was another one of those revelations that the old Uniate “chapel” so generously endowed me with.
Valek and I quickly got to work. Valek lit a torch, and we went with him into the dark corridor adjacent to the dungeon. There, in the corner, pieces of half-decayed wood, fragments of crosses, and old boards were piled up; From this supply we took several pieces and, placing them in the fireplace, lit a fire. Then I had to retreat, and Valek alone, with skillful hands, began to cook. Half an hour later, some brew was already boiling in a pot on the fireplace, and while waiting for it to ripen, Valek placed a frying pan on which pieces of fried meat were smoking on a tripod, roughly put together table.
Tyburtsy stood up.
- Ready? - he said. - So that's great. Sit down, little one, with us - you have earned your lunch... Domine preceptor [Mr. Mentor! (Ed.)]! - he then shouted, turning to the “professor”: “Drop the needle, sit down at the table.”
“Now,” the “professor” said in a quiet voice, surprising me with this conscious answer.
However, the spark of consciousness caused by Tyburtius’ voice did not manifest itself in anything else. The old man stuck a needle into the rags and indifferently, with a dull look, sat down on one of the wooden stumps that replaced chairs in the dungeon.
Tyburtsy held Marusya in his arms. She and Valek ate with greed, which clearly showed that the meat dish was an unprecedented luxury for them; Marusya even licked her greasy fingers. Tyburtsy ate at a leisurely pace and, apparently obeying an irresistible need to talk, every now and then turned to the “professor” with his conversation. The poor scientist showed amazing attention and, bowing his head, listened to everything with such a reasonable look, as if he understood every word. Sometimes even he expressed his agreement by nodding his head and quietly humming.
“Here, domine, how little a person needs,” said Tyburtsy. - Is not it? So we are full, and now we can only thank God and the Klevan chaplain...
- Sure sure! - the “professor” assented.
“You assent to this, domine, but you yourself don’t understand what the Klevan chaplain has to do with it - I know you... And yet, if it weren’t for the Klevan chaplain, we wouldn’t have a roast and something else...”
— Did the Klevan priest give this to you? - I asked, suddenly remembering the round, good-natured face of the Klevan “probosch” who visited my father.
“This fellow, domine, has an inquisitive mind,” continued Tyburtsy, still addressing the “professor.” - Indeed, his priesthood gave us all this, although we did not ask him, and even, perhaps, not only his left hand did not know what his right hand was giving, but both hands did not have the slightest idea about it... Eat, domine! Eat!
From this strange and confusing speech, I only understood that the method of acquisition was not entirely ordinary, and I could not resist inserting the question once again:
“Did you take this... yourself?”
“The fellow is not without insight,” Tyburtius continued again as before, “it’s just a pity that he didn’t see the chaplain; The chaplain has a belly like a real forty barrel, and therefore, overeating is very harmful to him. Meanwhile, all of us who are here suffer rather from excessive thinness, and therefore we cannot consider a certain amount of provisions superfluous for ourselves... Am I saying so, domine?
- Sure sure! — the “professor” hummed thoughtfully again.
- Here you go! This time you expressed your opinion very successfully, otherwise I was already beginning to think that this fellow has a smarter mind than some scientists... Returning, however, to the chaplain, I think that a good lesson is worth the price, and in this case we we can say that we bought provisions from him: if after this he makes stronger doors in the barn, then we’re even... However,” he suddenly turned to me, “you’re still stupid and don’t understand much.” But she understands: tell me, my Marusya, did I do well to bring you the roast?
- Fine! — the girl answered, her turquoise eyes sparkling slightly. — Manya was hungry.
In the evening of that day, with a foggy head, I thoughtfully returned to my room. Tyburtsy’s strange speeches did not for one minute shake my conviction that “stealing is not good.” On the contrary, the painful sensation that I experienced before became even more intense. Beggars... thieves... they have no home!.. From those around me I have long known that contempt is connected with all this. I even felt all the bitterness of contempt rising from the depths of my soul, but I instinctively protected my affection from this bitter admixture, not allowing them to merge. As a result of a vague mental process, regret for Valek and Marusa intensified and became more acute, but the attachment did not disappear. The formula “it’s not good to steal” remains. But when my imagination pictured to me the animated face of my friend, licking her greasy fingers, I rejoiced at her and Valek’s joy.
In a dark alley in the garden, I accidentally bumped into my father. As usual, he walked gloomily back and forth with his usual strange, as if foggy look. When I found myself next to him, he took me by the shoulder.
- Where does it come from?
- I was walking…
He looked at me carefully, wanted to say something, but then his gaze became clouded again, and, waving his hand, he walked along the alley. It seems to me that even then I understood the meaning of this gesture:
- Oh, it doesn’t matter... She’s already gone!..
I lied almost for the first time in my life.
I was always afraid of my father, and now even more so. Now I carried within me a whole world of vague questions and sensations. Could he understand me? Could I confess anything to him without cheating on my friends? I trembled at the thought that he would ever find out about my acquaintance with “bad society,” but I was not able to change this society, change Valek and Marusa. Moreover, there was also something like a “principle” here: if I had betrayed them by breaking my word, I would not have been able to raise my eyes at them when I met them out of shame.
