Remember the classics: the story "Viy", Gogol (summary)

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

Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol is the most famous Russian writer. His works are familiar to us from the school bench. We all remember his "Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka", "Dead Souls" and other famous creations. In 1835, Gogol finished his mystical story Viy. The summary of the work presented in this article will help to refresh the main points of the plot. The story stands apart in the work of the writer. Viy is an ancient Slavic demonic creature. It could kill with just one look. His image was embodied in his story by Gogol. The work "Viy" at one time was not appreciated by critics. Belinsky called the story "fantastic", devoid of useful content. But Nikolai Vasilyevich himself attached great importance to this work. He remade it several times, removing the details of the description of the terrible fairy-tale creatures that killed the main character. The story was published in the Mirgorod collection.

"Viy", Gogol (shortcontent): intro

The most long-awaited event for the students at the Kyiv Seminary is vacancies, when all students go home. They go home in groups, earning money along the way with spiritual chants. Three bursaks: the philosopher Khoma Brut, the theologian Freebie and the rhetorician Tiberius Gorodets - go astray. At night, they go out to an abandoned farm, where they knock on the first hut with a request to be allowed to spend the night. The hostess, the old woman, agrees to let them in on the condition that they lie down in different places. She determines Khoma Brutus to spend the night in an empty sheepshed. Not having time to close his eyes, the student sees an old woman entering him. Her gaze seems sinister to him. He understands that before him is a witch. The old woman comes up to him and quickly jumps on his shoulders. Before the philosopher has time to come to his senses, he is already flying through the night sky with a witch on his back. Khoma tries to whisper prayers and feels that the old woman is weakening at the same time. Having chosen the moment, he slips out from under the cursed witch, sits on her and begins to walk around her with a log. Exhausted, the old woman falls to the ground, and the philosopher continues to beat her. Groans are heard, and Khoma Brut sees that a young beauty is lying in front of him. He runs away in fear.

"Viy", Gogol (summary): development of events

Soon, the rector of the seminary calls Khoma to him and informs him that a rich centurion from a distant farm has sent a wagon and six he althy Cossacks for him to take the seminarian to read prayers over his deceased daughter, who returned withbeaten walks. When the bursak is brought to the farm, the centurion asks him where he could meet his daughter. After all, the lady's last wish is for the seminarian Khoma Brut to read the waste paper on her. Bursak says he does not know his daughter. But when he sees her in a coffin, he notes with fear that this is the same witch whom he was guarding with a log. At dinner, the villagers tell Khoma different stories about the dead lady. Many of them noticed that hell was going on with her. By nightfall, the seminarian is taken to the church where the coffin stands, and they lock him up there. Approaching the kliros, Khoma draws a protective circle around him and begins to recite prayers aloud. By midnight, the witch rises from the coffin and tries to find the bursak. The protective circle prevents her from doing so. Khoma reads prayers with his last breath. Then a rooster crow is heard, and the witch returns to the coffin. Its lid closes. The next day the seminarian asks the centurion to let him go home. When he refuses this request, he tries to escape from the farm. They catch him and by nightfall they again take him to the church and lock him up. There, Khoma, before he had time to draw a circle, sees that the witch has risen from the coffin again and walks around the church - looking for him. She casts spells. But the circle again does not allow her to catch the philosopher. Brutus hears how an uncountable army of evil spirits is breaking into the church. With the last of his strength, he reads prayers. A cock crow is heard, and everything disappears. In the morning, Homa is taken out of the church with a gray hair.

"Viy", Gogol (summary): denouement

It's time for the third night of prayers by the seminarian in the church. Allthe same circle protects Homa. The witch is on a rampage. The evil spirit, breaking into the church, is trying to find and seize the bursak. The latter continues to read prayers, trying not to look at the spirits. Then the witch shouts: "Bring Viy!" Walking heavily, a squat monster with large eyelids covering his eyes enters the church. An inner voice tells Khoma that it is impossible to look at Viy. The monster demands that his eyelids be opened. Evil spirits rush to carry out this order. The seminarian, unable to resist, casts a glance at Viy. He notices him and points at him with an iron finger. All evil spirits rush to Homa, who immediately gives up the spirit. A cock crow is heard. The monsters rush out of the church. But this is the second cry, the first they did not hear. The evil spirit does not have time to leave. The church remains standing with the evil spirit stuck in the cracks. No one else will come here. After all these events, Freebie and Tiberius Gorodets, having learned about the plight of Khoma, commemorate the soul of the departed. They conclude that he died of fear.

The work "Viy" is not included in the compulsory curriculum for the study of literature in secondary schools. But we are very interested in it. This mystical story allows you to immerse yourself in the atmosphere of ancient fairy tale legends (here is a brief retelling of it). "Viy" Gogol wrote more than a century and a half ago. Then the work caused a lot of rumors and conversations. Nowadays, it is read with no less trepidation.