"Steppe" Chekhov: a summary of the story

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

Chekhov, a talented Russian writer, never sought to give answers to the reading public, but believed that the role of the author was to ask questions, not answer them.

About the author

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was born in 1860 in the city of Taganrog, Rostov Region. Chekhov wrote many incredible works: short stories, novellas, plays, and so on. Today, Anton Pavlovich Chekhov is considered one of the greatest writers in the world of "big literature".

It should be noted that the famous Russian writer successfully combined writing with medical work. Almost all his life Chekhov treated people. The author himself liked to say that he considers medicine to be his lawful wife, and literature for him is his mistress, from which he cannot refuse.

Anton Pavlovich can be called an "innovator" in literature: in his works he created unique moves that greatly influenced the works of future writers.

Probably, there is no such person who would not read a single work of this talented writer. One of these works is the story of A. P. Chekhov"Steppe". Analysis of the story allows us to identify some of the innovative "moves" of the writer.

The author loved to let go of his thoughts and write down this "endless stream of consciousness". Chekhov's "Steppe", a summary of which is given in this article, reflects one of Chekhov's well-known tricks - his ability to avoid answering in a work: the author believed that the writer should not answer questions, but should ask them, thereby forcing readers to think about important things in life.

Chekhov's story "Steppe": summary

"Steppe" (Chekhov Anton Pavlovich) is a work that became the writer's debut in literature. It was it that brought the then still young Anton Pavlovich Chekhov the first recognition of his critics as an accomplished author. The author's contemporaries wrote that the breakthrough that he made would be the beginning of a new life for the author, in which everyone would say: "Look! This is the same A. P. Chekhov!" "Steppe", a summary of which is given in this article, touches the reader not by action. The story touches the reader differently. Here is a touching description of Russian nature and Russian man (which was also A. P. Chekhov). The steppe (a summary of the story is presented below) is described by the author with special reverence, with special love. The reader sees this love on the face of the hero of the story Yegorushka, who literally feels every rustle of a twig, every flap of the wing of a flying bird … Everything that Chekhov A. P. felt."Steppe", a summary of the chapters of which today can be easily found if desired, must be read in the original. This is the only way to understand and feel the work.

Chekhov's "Steppe": a brief summary of the story of the journey of the rector of the church, the merchant and his nephew

Ivan Ivanovich Kuzmichev and Fr. Christopher, the rector of the church in this province, who was short in stature with long hair, 80 years old. On the way, they gathered in order to sell wool. Kuzmichev's nephew went on the road with them, his name was Yegorushka. It was a boy of 9 years old, still a child. His mother, Ivan Ivanovich's sister, Olga Ivanovna, the widow of a collegiate secretary, insisted that her son enter a gymnasium in another, larger city and become an educated person. The travelers have a view of the city and the church, where Yegor used to go to church with his mother. The boy is very upset, he does not want to leave. Father Christopher decided to support the child, recalling his youth and learning, he was a fairly educated person with good inclinations, he had an excellent memory, having read the text several times, he already knew it by heart, knew languages, history, arithmetic well. But his parents did not support his desire to study further, so Fr. Christopher refused to continue teaching further. And Yegorushka still has his whole life ahead of him, and learning will do him good. Kuzmichev, on the contrary, considers his sister's whim unreasonable, because he could teach his nephew his business without education.

Visiting the landowner Varlamov

Kuzmichev and Fr. Khristofor is striving to catch up with the richest and most influential landowner Varlamov in the county. For a temporary lodging for the night, the travelers stopped at the modest dwelling of Moses Moiseich, a Jew by nationality. He tries to please the guests as much as possible, even Yegorushka got a gingerbread. In the house of Moisei Moiseich, in addition to his family (wife and children), his brother Solomon lives. A proud person, on whom money and position in society do not have the slightest influence. Father Christopher, in turn, pities the young man, while Kuzmichev treats him contemptuously, and his own brother does not understand him.

Appearance of Countess Dranitskaya

Guests (Ivan Ivanovich and Father Khristofor) decided to count the money during a tea party. At this time, a noble person, Countess Dranitskaya, visited the inn. Ivan Ivanovich considers her a rather stupid person who has only the wind in her head. He does not consider it strange that the Pole Kazimir Mikhailych intends in every possible way to circle her around his finger.

Meeting Yegorushka with new people

After Kuzmichev and father Khristofor set off, deciding to leave Egorushka with other linemen in the hope of catching up with them later.

On the way, Yegorushka meets different people, he gets his own special impression of them. With the old man Pantelei, whose legs often hurt, he has a habit of drinking water from a lamp; Yemelyan, a relatively calm person; by a young guysurnames Dymov, his father often sends him with a convoy so that he would not be too spoiled; Vasya, who once had a beautiful voice, unfortunately, due to a disease of the ligaments, he could no longer sing as before; Kiryuha is a young man who has practically no special features. All these people have one thing in common - they once lived much better, the fear of poverty forced them to go to work in the convoy.

Description of the Russian steppe

The author of the story pays special attention to the picturesque nature of the Russian steppe, describing it quite colorfully. Egorushka, as he travels, seems to recognize the Russian people from a new, completely unfamiliar side. Even he, due to his still young age, understands that Panteley's stories about his alleged life in the north of Russia and the old work of a coachman are more like fiction than the truth. Vasya, a guy with falcon vision, sees the steppe much wider than other people. Nothing escapes him, he observes the behavior of animals in their natural habitat. He has some "animal qualities" and many will find him unlike most people. In addition to Panteley, Yegorushka is afraid of almost all men, and especially Dymov, who suffers unbearably from an excess of strength and kills an innocent snake.

Egorushka's disease

On the road, the travelers were overtaken by heavy rain with a thunderstorm, as a result of which Yegorushka fell ill. Arriving in the city, Christopher shows true concern for the boy, trying to improve his general condition. While nativethe boy's uncle Kuzmichev considers this another problem. His head is filled with others, he regrets that he sold the wool at home not as profitably as he managed to do recently. Father Khristofor, together with Ivan Ivanovich, sold their goods at a rather high price. In turn, about It can be said that Christopher is the most harmonious hero of the story, in which material values are lower than love for God and the desire for knowledge.

Visiting Toskunova

The house of a close friend of the boy's mother, Toskunova Nastasya Petrovna, is his next refuge while studying at the gymnasium. The woman lives there with her granddaughter. The interior of the apartment is quite simple, pleasing to the eye are many fresh flowers, and images are visible everywhere. Kuzmichev Ivan Ivanovich coped with all the tasks assigned to him. The documents for the gymnasium have been submitted, the entrance exams will soon begin, and for the still very young Yegorushka, a new, unfamiliar road to the unknown world will also begin. Each of the adults, Kuzmichev and Fr. Christopher, allocated a dime to their ward and left him henceforth under the care of Toskunova. The boy seems to have a presentiment that the meeting with these people in his life will not happen again. He cannot understand the reason for his sadness: everything that he had to endure in the days of his childhood will now remain in the distant past.

The door to a completely different world, unknown to him, is now opening for him. What it will be, no one knows. boy stronglyburst into tears, sitting on a bench, thus as if "meeting" everything new that lies ahead.

Summarizing the article "Chekhov's "Steppe": a summary of the story", I would like to note that everyone who respects the author's work should read this story in the original. No wonder the author's contemporaries highly appreciated this work. Indeed, Chekhov's "Steppe" in a brief summary in no way conveys all the sensations that the reader receives when immersed in the original version of the story.