"Old genius" summary. "Old genius" Leskov chapter by chapter

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Nikolai Semyonovich Leskov (1831-1895) is a famous Russian writer. Many of his works are held at school. A brief summary will help to study one of the most famous stories of the writer. "The Old Genius" Leskov wrote in 1884, the same year the story was published in the magazine "Shards". It has since been re-released many times.

Chapter One

In it we meet an elderly woman, we learn that she came to St. Petersburg on a "flagrant case". The old woman was kind and somehow took pity on the son of an unfamiliar woman, lending him money.

The young man had a difficult situation - either he lost money in cards, or because of a fleeting hobby he lost his money. He told the old woman that he needed to somehow get to Peter. She took pity on the man and lent him money.

But he was in no hurry to give them away, on the contrary, he pretended not to receive those letters inwhom the woman asked to pay him a debt. At first, the messages were mild, but due to the fact that the debtor did not answer, they became more severe. However, this did not lead to anything.

And in the care of my grandmother was a sick daughter and a young granddaughter. In order to lend then, the old woman mortgaged her house, and now the family, consisting only of women, was in danger of losing their homes and remaining on the street. This is what the summary is about. "Old genius" Leskov wrote in five chapters, then we move on to the second.

Second chapter

From it we learn that the lawyer won the case, and the court decided to return the debt. But the positive news ended there, because the man skillfully hid, and he had powerful relatives. Therefore, no one wanted to mess with him.

Representatives of the law, state people sympathized with my grandmother, saying that they felt sorry for her, but it would be better if she left this empty idea. The woman was genuinely perplexed, she knew that he was not a poor man and could well repay the debt.

She was explained that he took money not only from her, but he was not used to giving them away. Representatives of the law hinted to the petitioner that he could cause trouble for her if she did not calm down. They said that it was better for her to walk quietly along Nevsky Prospekt or go home. But she believed that the debtor was a good person, he was just “wound up.”

The woman was told that she could go with her case to the higher authorities. This is what she did. Prothis will tell the summary too. "Old genius" - Leskov called one smart person. Whom, you'll find out later.

Third chapter

It begins with the fact that an elderly woman went to the top authorities, only this did not lead to a positive result. There she was told that they did not know where the wanted man was. The old woman told what kind of house a man could be in, they objected to her, answering that this was his wife's house, and she was not responsible for her husband's debts, and he did not live there.

The old woman didn't know what to do. Then she began to hint that she would give one or even three thousand rubles as a sign of gratitude when the debtor was found. But that didn't help either.

In this chapter we will learn about one of the main characters of the story, which for the time being remained in the shadows. A brief summary will also tell about it. "Old genius" - Leskov called this particular person, and why - it will soon become clear.

A woman told the interlocutor, on behalf of whom the story is being told, that one person takes up the case. He called himself Ivan Ivanovich and assured that for 500 rubles he would be able to collect the debt. The old woman decided to think, but it was no longer possible to postpone, and why, Leskov writes about this further in his work (“The Old Genius”). The summary will let you know immediately.

Chapter Four

Her narrator begins with an old woman visiting him. She was saddened by the news that Christmas was approaching, and the mortgaged house should soon be sold. Another elderly woman said that she saw a debtor who walked arm in arm with a woman. old ladyhurried after the couple, started screaming that the man owed her. However, no one helped her, on the contrary, she was told not to scream in a crowded place. While they were sorting it out, the man and his companion left.

But the elderly woman managed to find out that tomorrow this dandy with a rich lady is leaving abroad, most likely forever. Therefore, it was necessary to act immediately.

It turns out that she had already met with Ivan Ivanovich, gave him a deposit of 100 rubles and promised to bring another 400. But the old woman did not have the whole amount. She had only 250 rubles, and she asked the narrator for 150, saying that she would definitely return them.

He was also a kind person, he thought that even if a woman could not give this money, he would not get poorer from this. So was Leskov himself. "Old Genius" (the summary of this short story you are currently reading) moves on to the next episode.

This chapter ends with the narrator, having handed over the money, impatiently awaiting the outcome of events. How the case ended, the summary will tell further. The “old genius” Leskov wrote chapter by chapter, the abbreviated presentation follows the same structure.

Chapter 5 Concluding

It was the third day of the Christmas holidays. The old woman, as the author says, "flew in" to him in a traveling dress and immediately gave 150 rubles, and then showed a check for 15 thousand. The narrator realized that everything ended well, but wanted to know the details.

The woman said that she met with Ivan Ivanovich, he said that he needed to go look for"Serbian fighter". So the author speaks of a man who participated in the wars between Serbia and Turkey. Not immediately, but they found this person, then discussed everything.

The next morning, the trio went to the station, from which the debtor was leaving abroad. The old woman pointed out to Ivan Ivanovich who was the cause of her troubles, they hid, and a former military man entered the arena of theatrical action.

He walked slowly past the debtor drinking tea several times, and then asked sternly why he was looking at him like that. Warrior provoked a scandal, hit the dandy. The police approached them. After finding out the identities, the policeman showed a paper, because of which the debtor could not go abroad. It was a court decision. He quickly paid off the debt with interest. That's how well this story ended.

Leskov, "The Old Genius": the characters of the story (positive)

There are several of them. Of course, this is a persistent and courageous old woman who went to St. Petersburg to save herself, her daughter and granddaughter. Otherwise, they would lose their home. The narrator is also the hero of the work, because without his 150 rubles, it would hardly have ended so well. Clever Ivan Ivanovich, whom Leskov gave the nickname "Genius", "Serbian fighter" are also the positive characters of the story.