M. Yu. Lermontov "The Fugitive": a summary of the poem

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

Based on the mountain legend heard in the Caucasus, Lermontov wrote his own poem. “The Fugitive” (a brief summary will be presented in the article) is a work that tells about the coward and traitor Harun, who abandoned his father and brothers on the battlefield, lost his saber and rifle, fled to the mountains away from the battle, saving his worthless life. The poem was supposedly written between 1840 and 1841. The exact date of writing has not been preserved, but it was during this period that Mikhail Yuryevich was in the Caucasus, got acquainted with the customs of the Circassians, saw bloody battles with his own eyes.

Escape from the battlefield

During the battle, all the Circassians were killed, including the father and two brothers of Harun. The young man remained alive and, instead of taking revenge for the spilled blood, he ran away. Relatives died for freedom and honor, but this is not familiar to Harun, his own life is more important for him, he understands that he had to take revenge, but forgets about duty and shame. The highlanders had a tradition - the survivors must pick up and bury the fallen inbattle, and not leave them to be desecrated by enemies, Lermontov also knew about this. The poem "The Fugitive" glorified the coward for centuries, because the Circassians do not forget both brave warriors and traitors.

Contempt for friend and lover

Garun, sneaking between the rocks, reached his native village. He was greeted with peace and silence, because no one but him returned from the battle. The young man decided to find shelter with his old friend Selim, who was lying on the lava, stricken with illness and dying, so he did not recognize the stranger. Harun himself told him about the battle, that everyone had died, and only he survived. Selim hoped to hear good news even before his death, but a conversation with a fugitive awakened the blood of a fighter in him. The dying man treated the coward with contempt and drove him out of his house. This is what Lermontov writes about in his work.

The fugitive (the summary of the poem is not able to convey all his misadventures) went on, then he remembered his beloved. The girl waited for him day and night, the young man hoped that she would accept him, despite her cowardice. As soon as Harun approached the familiar shakla, he heard an old song that his beloved was singing. Folk art was also used in the poem "The Fugitive" by M. Yu. Lermontov. The song was about a young man who was escorted to war by a girl, instructing to be brave, because the one who does not defeat the enemy and betray his own will die without glory, even animals will not bury his bones. Hearing this, Harun went away from the house of his beloved, he only had the hope of forgiveness of his mother.

Inglourious death

Treason to the motherland is not forgiven even by parents - Lermontov wrote his poem about this. The fugitive (a brief summary allows you to familiarize yourself with the work, but it is better to read it in the original) hoped to be accepted by his mother. He knocked on his father's house, begging him to open it. His mother has been waiting for him since the war, but she is not waiting alone. Upon learning that her husband and two sons have died, the woman asks if Haroun has avenged them. The young man says no, but he was in a hurry to console his mother, brighten up her old age. She refuses such a son, because he disgraced the whole family. All night long, prayers were heard under the window, until the dagger stopped the shame of the unfortunate man. Whether Harun killed himself or someone else punished him, Lermontov does not specify. “The Fugitive” (we have now covered a summary of the work) is a poem that has become a reminder of the shameful death of all cowards and traitors to the motherland. Harun's corpse was not even carried to the cemetery, his blood was licked by yard dogs.