2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25
Vasil Bykov is a famous Belarusian and Soviet writer. Being a direct participant in the Great Patriotic War, he very clearly described the hardships of that time in his works.
Among his many stories about the war, there are some really bewitching ones. One of them is "Alpine Ballad".
Backstory
The story was published in 1964. According to Bykov's memoirs, during the war years, or rather in 1945, when their regiment occupied some provincial town in the Alps, deep in the rear of the German army, a thin girl walked through the convoy. Stopping at each car, she asked if Ivan was there. Since there were quite a few Ivanovs, but all of them did not arouse a positive response from her, Vasil decided to ask what kind of person she was looking for.
The girl turned out to be an Italian named Julia, a year ago she escaped from a German camp and got lost in the mountains. Fate threw a Russian soldier named Ivan into her fellow travelers, with whom they tried to get out to the Allied troops. He alsofled from one of the nearby German camps. Despite hunger and the lack of warm clothes, they crossed the mountain range, but one foggy morning they ran into a German round-up, and she was again thrown into the camp, and nothing has been known about his fate since then …
At that moment, this Alpine ballad, of course, had not yet formed into something literary meaningful, but 18 years later, Vasil remembered an amazing story and decided to write an incredibly poignant, beautiful and tragic love story, which he called: “Alpine ballad.”
Storyline
The story heard by Bykov led to the creation of a very touching story, the plot of which almost completely coincides with that told by Julia. In the absence of real factual material, only the tragic end of the work became an element of fiction. Which, obviously, was an extremely winning technique, given the context of what was happening. Almost any episode of the war can somehow be called a tragedy.
So, Bykov's "Alpine Ballad" begins with the protagonist's thoughts about the impossibility of continuing life due to captivity, because if a Soviet person is captured, this is tantamount to treason. Then there is an explosion in the camp. The same incident takes the girl, an Italian, by surprise, who, taking advantage of the moment, runs from the camp to the mountains.
Fate brings them together in the mountains. For the main character, this course of events is extremely unpleasant, it reduces his chances of survival andwithout that in difficult conditions. However, it is this turn that allows the author to introduce a love line into the plot, which looks so beautiful against the background of the tragedy that develops in the course of the story. The appearance of a high and pure feeling in such inhuman, bestial conditions is an incredibly effective moment that gives the work a tremendous impact on the reader.
The finale of the story "Alpine Ballad" is beautiful and strikes on the spot. First, the main character sacrifices himself in the name of love and the salvation of a dear person, and then the reader is covered with a heartbreaking epilogue with a letter from the heroine to the main character's native village.
Meaning of the name
A ballad is a lyrical work, usually in poetic form, dedicated to some historical or legendary topic. It is characterized by tragedy, dramatic dialogue, mystery. Why did Vasil Bykov call his story that way? "Alpine Ballad" is a vivid example of historical narrative. Here you can find both tragedy and dramatic moments. So the legitimacy of the name is quite obvious.
On the other hand, the ballad is a romantic genre, apparently, therefore, on the pages of the work we observe such feelings that Shakespeare himself could envy the completeness of their description. After all, this love conquers everything: cold, and hunger, and suffering, and war, and even death.
Staging
A wonderful movie was made based on the book. Bykov's "Alpine Ballad" found a lively response from director Boris Stepanov, who very accurately managed to convey the atmosphere created by the writer. Screen adaptation followedalmost immediately after the publication of the story. Moreover, the Italians tried to buy the right to stage it, but the Soviet cinematographic leadership resolutely refused. As a result, we have a very beautiful film shot at Belarusfilm.
Conclusion
"The Alpine Ballad", a summary of which we have reviewed, is an incredibly penetrating work about human feelings, which are not afraid of either war or the bestial behavior of people who have gone crazy because of it.
This is a pure story about an ordinary Soviet guy from the outback, who has been an ordinary citizen all his life, but in difficult conditions, having become stronger, he shows how a Man with a capital P should act.
Recommended:
"Glove". Schiller. Ballad analysis
The famous German poet Johann Friedrich Schiller mainly wrote ballads based on legendary or mythological plots - they give his works brightness and originality. The poem "Glove" was no exception. Schiller described the era of brave, strong knights and beautiful ladies, and although these times are long gone, the themes of the German writer's works are still relevant and interesting for readers
"Kruglyansky Bridge": a summary of the book by Vasil Bykov
"Kruglyansky Bridge" - a story by Vasil Bykov, telling us about the relationship between people, humanism, as well as the inhuman and human face of war
Vasil Bykov - a crane song for the Belarusian people
The prose of such a great author as Vasil Bykov made a huge impact on all military literature. This is an author about whom it is impossible to say little. This is a man with a capital letter. He was not afraid to show all the dirt and pain that people went through. This is a writer who no longer exists
What is a ballad? Genre ballad and its characteristics
This literary genre is not particularly popular in the modern world and is something very unusual and refined. This is largely because this form of storytelling is very complex and requires skill and real talent from the author. It is very easy for a person familiar with the literary world to explain what a ballad is
"Among the swollen candles and evening prayers" Vladimir Vysotsky, "The Ballad of the Struggle"
"Among the swollen candles and evening prayers…" The lyrics of Vladimir Vysotsky's song "The Ballad of Struggle" begin like this. The amazingly beautiful, emotionally rich song contains a very serious philosophical meaning. What is known about the creation of this song, its author and modern performance?
