Culture >> Literature

“Partner” No. 6 (225) 2016

Alexander Kuprin is my favorite writer

My Kuprin

Grigory Kalikhman (Dortmund)

Love is not chosen - it comes on its own. My love for Kuprin, like my love for Chekhov, arose with teenage years. These writers have always been much closer to me than, say, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Turgenev. This in no way means that the mentioned giants are in any way inferior to Kuprin - he is simply closer and more understandable to me in his themes, way of thinking and style of presentation.

Dry facts of a stormy biography

Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin was born on August 26 (September 7), 1870 in the district town of Narovchat, Penza province. His father was a hereditary nobleman, his mother was from a family of Tatar princes. The father died when the boy was only one year old. The mother and children moved to Moscow, where the future writer spent his childhood and adolescence. At the age of six, the boy was sent to the Moscow Razumovsky boarding school, created for orphans. Then in 1880 he entered the Second Moscow cadet corps, after which in 1887 he was admitted to Aleksandrovskoe military school. In 1889, Kuprin’s first story, “The Last Debut,” was published, for which the author, in addition to a fee and a great sense of pride for the first publication, received two days in a punishment cell - the cadets were forbidden to appear in print. In 1890, with the rank of second lieutenant, he entered service in an infantry regiment, which was stationed in the town of Proskurov, Podolsk province. Army life gave him rich material for many works. Officer Kuprin was seriously preparing for military career, but he was not accepted into the General Staff Academy.

Having retired in 1894 with the rank of lieutenant, Kuprin moved to Kyiv without any civilian profession. He settled in Podol, in a run-down Kiev Port hotel. Life in Kyiv was reflected in his stories “Kyiv Types”, “River of Life” and in the famous story “The Pit”. In subsequent years, Kuprin traveled a lot around Russia, tried many professions: he was a loader and fisherman, a hunter and diver, he flew an airplane, he was an estate manager, a psalm-reader, an accountant at a steel mill, and even a dentist. In 1901 he moved to Moscow and at the beginning of 1902 he married Maria Karlovna Davydova. A year later, the Kuprins had a daughter, Lydia. This marriage lasted five years. The writer's second wife in 1907 was Elizaveta Moritsovna Heinrich, with whom he lived until the end of his life. In this marriage, a daughter, Ksenia, was born.

When did the first one begin? World War, Kuprin and his wife opened a military hospital in their house. In November 1914, he was drafted into the army and sent to Finland as commander of an infantry company, but was soon demobilized for health reasons. The writer received the abdication of Nicholas II with enthusiasm. He sympathized with the Social Revolutionaries and edited several liberal newspapers. Kuprin did not accept proletarian dictatorship as a form of power. He condemned the policy of war communism and the terror associated with it, for which he was arrested, spent three days in prison, but at the request of Gorky, he was released, but included in the list of hostages. With the beginning Civil War Lieutenant Kuprin volunteered for white army Yudenich and became the editor of the army newspaper. After the defeat of the North-Western Army, the writer, who had already been in prison and as a hostage, left Russia. He went to Revel, from there to Helsinki, and in July 1920 he moved to Paris, where he lived for 17 long years.

The emigrant period of his life was quite fruitful, but meager literary fees did not allow him to conduct decent life. The family became impoverished and mired in debt, Kuprin was overcome by illness, especially since in exile he suffered from chronic alcoholism. The return to the USSR became the only way solve material and psychological problems. Kuprin applied for a visa at the Soviet embassy in Paris. On October 23, 1936, the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks decided to “allow the entry into the USSR of the writer A.I. Kuprin.” In 1937, the terminally ill writer arrived in Moscow, where he received an unusually warm welcome, but he was already having difficulty perceiving his surroundings. Kuprin died on August 25, 1938. He was buried in Leningrad on the Literary Bridge of the Volkovsky Cemetery next to Turgenev’s grave.

Creation

All of Kuprin's works are written powerfully, with passion - he does not have a single indifferent page. I will focus only on those that seem to me the most interesting. The first was published in 1896 major work- the story “Moloch”. This is the writer’s only address to “production” topics. As you know, Moloch is an ancient pagan deity who demanded human sacrifices. In Kuprin's story, Moloch is a steel mill, which also requires human sacrifices and receives them in full. Soviet critics reproached the writer for not showing all the ills of capitalism in sufficient relief and focusing not on social, but on psychological problems. Two years later, the next major work appeared - the story “Olesya”, which I will talk about below.

In 1904 it was written short story"Measles". In this story, a rich landowner who calls himself a “truly Russian man” says: “ I am proud that I am Russian, and I tell everyone to their face: it’s enough for us to stand on our hind legs in front of Europe. Let them feel that the great, glorious, healthy Russian people, and not them, the cockroach relics, have the final say. This disgrace will soon end. The Russian people will wake up and kick old Europe in the ass" These words sound so fresh, as if they were written today, and not a hundred years ago.

In 1905, the story “The Duel” was published, which brought Kuprin all-Russian fame. Before him army life was interpreted exclusively in a sublimely patriotic tone, for example, “Borodino” by M.Yu. Lermontov or “Sevastopol Stories” by L.N. Tolstoy. Kuprin, who served for four years in a run-down garrison, knew firsthand the everyday life of the army. He showed daily drills, corporal punishment, humiliation of soldiers and widespread drunkenness of officers. And in this stagnant swamp a beautiful flower grows - the soulful love of Second Lieutenant Romashov for Shurochka, one of the married ladies of the local garrison. “The Duel” is one of Kuprin’s best stories, full of subtle psychologism.

Perhaps the most controversial work of the writer is the story “The Pit,” which was published in parts from 1909 to 1915. In world literature, this is the only work that describes the life of brothel and its inhabitants. While collecting material for this story, the writer lived for several months in a similar institution, where he gave lessons to the owner’s daughter. Aware of the ambiguity of his work, the author prefaced it with the following epigraph: “ I know that many will find this story immoral and indecent, however, with all my heart I dedicate it to mothers and youth" In my library, the fifth volume of Kuprin’s collected works, in which “Yama” is published, is the most shabby. Korney Ivanovich Chukovsky, who was friends with Kuprin in his youth, wrote: “ How similar he is to his writings! Kuprin fully reflects himself in them. Each of his works is himself».

Love in the works of Kuprin

Love, its power over the human heart, its torments and joys are one of the main themes in Kuprin’s work. The heroes of many of his works are illuminated by this feeling. However, their love is almost always a hopeless platonic feeling. We were all once shocked by the film “The Witch” with Marina Vladi in leading role, based on the story “Olesya”. Two people met and fell in love, but this love does not bring them happiness. Olesya grew up in the middle of the forest; she cannot read or write, but she is characterized by simplicity, naturalness and inner freedom. Ivan Timofeevich, who came to hunt in the Polesie forests, is a typical gentleman. He is educated, but not decisive, and his kindness is more like cowardice. These two are so different that even love cannot bridge the gap between them. And yet, despite the sad ending, after reading the story, a feeling of something bright remains in my soul.

"Garnet bracelet" - Touching story love, which is based on real case. A minor official fell in love with a noble married lady - which is not such a rarity - and regularly writes letters to her in which he talks about his love, without trying to meet her. On his deity's birthday, he sends her a bracelet with a rare green garnet. He cannot kill love in himself and at the same time does not want to bother the lady with his feelings, and soon commits suicide. But his love did not die, it continued to live even after his death. She was preserved in the memories of this woman, lived next to her, but not as a reproach, but as her gentle guardian angel. Through the mouth of one of the heroes, the author says that true love must be forgiving, modest, selfless, heroic, she gives herself all and does not require anything in return. In this story, Kuprin talks about eternal grace and eternal beauty inherent in a woman. His faith in the poetry of women and female love. Countless female images, starting with the “witch” Olesya and ending with Lyubka from a dirty den (“The Pit”), are depicted in his works soulfully and thoughtfully. We see Raisa and Shurochka from “The Duel” or twelve-year-old Tinochka from the story “Taper” alive. And what knowledge female psychology, women's preferences and tastes! It seems that nature overheard the desire he expressed: “I want to be a woman for at least a few days” and fulfilled his strange whim. It is worth mentioning another wonderful story about love called “Blue Star”.

Standing apart from all the writer’s works is the story “Shulamith,” which tells the story of the happy carnal love of the Israeli king Solomon and a simple girl from the vineyards. However, this love also ends tragically. The story is based on the biblical book “Song of Songs”. Some of Kuprin's contemporaries spoke very disapprovingly of this remake.

Jewish theme in Kuprin's works

Neither of Russian classics did not write so much and with such sympathy about the Jews, who among many nations Tsarist Russia were the most powerless and most humiliated nation. They were limited in everything: in the choice of places of residence (the so-called Pale of Settlement), in the ban on engaging in certain professions, in particular agriculture, in obtaining education, and also could not hold government positions... Jews were used by the government in order to in order at the right moment to direct popular discontent, caused by his own mediocrity, against the Jews, which resulted in Jewish pogroms.

Speaking about the images of Jews in Kuprin’s works, one can recall the story “Moloch”, where the only purely positive character is a Jew, Doctor Goldberg, the guardian angel of the main character, engineer Bobrov. Next I would like to cite a little-known story “The Jew,” written in 1904. Military doctor Kashintsev travels to his place of duty and on the way stops at a run-down inn, owned by a Jew. The owner's wife, who was extremely beautiful, brought the food to the guest. Kashintsev looked at her, and some invisible force pushed him in the chest. What is happiness? - Kashintsev asked himself. To be next to such a woman and know that this divine beauty is yours? And what does everything else in life compare to this: career, ambition, philosophy, fame?.. Amazing, incomprehensible Jewish people! Look at this woman. This is the guarantee of the immortality of the Jewish people. The Jewish woman protects the spirit and type of the race, carefully carries it through the streams of blood under the yoke of violence sacred fire national genius and will never let it be extinguished. What words! They could not have been written by a person who hated Jews or was even indifferent to them.

The story “The Wedding,” written in 1908, is filled with hatred of the environment that nurtured the anti-Semitic pogromists. Here it is summary. Ensign Slezkine, who served in one of the garrisons in the Southwestern Territory, is invited to a Jewish wedding. Now a word from the author: “ He had already drunk and eaten a fair amount, but blind rage was boiling in Slezkine’s brain. With some kind of envious hostile instinct, he sensed around him a centuries-old bond, sanctified by custom and religion, hated by his... petty nature of a loser priest. He was angry at the inaccessible, incomprehensible bright beauty of Jewish women and the independent, this time, manner of men to behave - those men whom he was accustomed to seeing... humiliated and ingratiating. And, as he got drunk, his nostrils flared, his teeth clenched tightly and his fists clenched." The reason for the scandal was found when they began to collect money for the dowry of the young people. A red hot fog poured into the ensign's head. I won’t cite everything that Slezkine said in his drunken delirium - everyone can figure it out for themselves and won’t make a mistake.

After the terrible Jewish pogrom that occurred in Odessa in October 1905, Kuprin wrote in 1907 one of his most famous stories, “Gambrinus.” That was the name of the pub, located in the city center, on Deribasovskaya Street. The story talks about the fearlessness and strength of the human spirit, which are embodied by the Jewish violinist Sashka, who played in this pub for many years and was a favorite of the entire public there. Here is a tiny excerpt from this story: “ And darkness fell over the whole city. There were dark, alarming, disgusting rumors... And on the outskirts, in stinking closets and leaky attics, the chosen people of God trembled, prayed and cried in horror, long abandoned by the angry biblical god, but still believing that the measure of their ordeals was still not fulfilled... In the morning the pogrom began. People were now going to kill, and they were going not because they were ordered, and not because they harbored enmity against the Jews, with whom they often had close friendships... But because the dirty, cunning devil living in every person whispered in their ear: “Go. Everything will be unpunished: the voluptuousness of violence, the forbidden curiosity of murder and power over someone else’s life.”.

While in exile, Kuprin wrote an autobiographical essay “The House”, in which he talks about his acquaintance with Sholom Aleichem: “ We were introduced to the great Jewish writer, the incomparable humorist Sholom Aleichem. This short man with a sharp and good-naturedly sly look willingly read to us several of his short stories. How expressive was his every word! How clear and rich were his intonations!” Note that this is written by a Russian writer about a Jewish writer.

Unfortunately, the length of the magazine article does not allow me to dwell on other works that I also really like. I shared with my readers my love for Kuprin and timidly hope that my article will encourage someone to return to the works of this writer.

The theme of love is the main theme in the works of A. I. Kuprin. It is love that makes it possible to realize the most secret principles human personality. Especially dear to the writer are strong natures who know how to sacrifice themselves for the sake of feeling. But A. Kuprin sees that man in his contemporary world has become shallow, vulgar, and entangled in everyday problems. The writer dreams of a personality who is not subject to the corrupting influence of the environment, and realizes his dream in the image of the Polesie witch Olesya, the heroine of the story of the same name.
Olesya does not know what civilization is; time seems to have stopped in the thickets of Polesie. The girl sincerely believes in legends and conspiracies and believes that her family is connected with the devil. The norms of behavior accepted in society are completely alien to her; she is natural and romantic. But it is not only the exotic image of the heroine and the situation described in the story that attract the writer’s attention. The work becomes an attempt to analyze that eternal thing that should underlie any high feeling.
A.I. Kuprin pays especially close attention to how feelings develop in the characters of the story. The moment of their meeting is wonderful, the growth of sincere affection in their hearts is amazing. A.I. Kuprin admires the purity of their intimacy, but does not do this romantic love serene, leads the heroes to difficult trials.
Love for Olesya becomes turning point in the life of Ivan Timofeevich, a city resident. His initial focus exclusively on his own world is gradually overcome; the need becomes the fulfillment of the desire to “be together” with another person. His feeling is probably based on “vague attractions,” but very soon it is reinforced by spiritual intimacy. Kuprin accurately conveys the internal transformation of the hero’s personality, the source of which is nature itself.
One of the most important phenomena of love for Kuprin is that even a premonition of happiness is always overshadowed by the fear of losing it. What stands on the way to the happiness of the heroes is the difference in their social status and upbringing, the weakness of the hero and the tragic prediction of Olesya. The thirst for a harmonious union is generated by deep emotions.
At the beginning of the story, Ivan Timofeevich seems soft, sympathetic and sincere. But Olesya immediately detects weakness in him, saying: “Your kindness is not good, not heartfelt.” And the hero of the story really causes a lot of harm to his beloved. His whim is the reason why Olesya goes to church, although she understands the destructiveness of this act. The lethargy of the hero’s feelings brings trouble to the sincere girl. But Ivan Timofeevich himself quickly calms down. At the moment when he talks about the most seemingly exciting episode of his life, he does not experience guilt or remorse, which speaks of his relative poverty inner world.
Olesya is the complete opposite of Ivan Timofeevich. In her image, Kuprin embodies his ideas about the ideal woman. She has absorbed the laws by which nature lives, her soul is not spoiled by civilization. The writer creates an exclusively romantic image of the “daughter of the forests”. Olesya’s life passes in isolation from people, and therefore she does not care about what many devote their lives to modern people: fame, wealth, power, rumor. Emotions become the main motives for her actions. Moreover, Olesya is a witch, she knows the secrets of the human subconscious. Her sincerity and lack of falsehood are emphasized both in her appearance and in her gestures, movements, and smile.
Olesya's love becomes the greatest gift that can give life to the hero of the story. In this love there is dedication and courage, on the one hand, and contradiction, on the other. Olesya initially understands the tragic outcome of their relationship, but is ready to give herself to her lover. Even leaving her native place, beaten and dishonored, Olesya does not curse the one who destroyed her, but blesses those brief moments of happiness that she experienced.
The writer sees the true meaning of love in the desire to selflessly give to his chosen one all the fullness of feelings that he is capable of. loving person. Man is imperfect, but the power of love can, at least for a short time, return to him the sharpness of sensations and naturalness that only people like Olesya have retained. The strength of the soul of the heroine of the story is capable of bringing harmony even to such contradictory relationships as those described in the story. Love is contempt for suffering and even death. It’s a pity, but only a select few are capable of such a feeling.

The theme of love is the main theme in the works of A. I. Kuprin. It is love that makes it possible to realize the most intimate principles of the human personality. Especially dear to the writer are strong natures who know how to sacrifice themselves for the sake of feeling. But A. Kuprin sees that man in his contemporary world has become shallow, vulgar, and entangled in everyday problems. The writer dreams of a personality who is not subject to the corrupting influence of the environment, and realizes his dream in the image of the Polesie witch Olesya, the heroine of the story of the same name.
Olesya does not know what civilization is; time seems to have stopped in the thickets of Polesie. The girl sincerely believes in legends and conspiracies and believes that her family is connected with the devil. The norms of behavior accepted in society are completely alien to her; she is natural and romantic. But it is not only the exotic image of the heroine and the situation described in the story that attract the writer’s attention. The work becomes an attempt to analyze that eternal thing that should underlie any high feeling.
A.I. Kuprin pays especially close attention to how feelings develop in the characters of the story. The moment of their meeting is wonderful, the growth of sincere affection in their hearts is amazing. A.I. Kuprin admires the purity of their intimacy, but does not make this romantic love serene, leading the heroes to difficult trials.
Love for Olesya becomes a turning point in the life of Ivan Timofeevich, a city resident. His initial focus exclusively on his own world is gradually overcome; the need becomes the fulfillment of the desire to “be together” with another person. His feeling is probably based on “vague attractions,” but very soon it is reinforced by spiritual intimacy. Kuprin accurately conveys the internal transformation of the hero’s personality, the source of which is nature itself.
One of the most important phenomena of love for Kuprin is that even a premonition of happiness is always overshadowed by the fear of losing it. On the way to the happiness of the heroes, there are differences in their social status and upbringing, the hero’s weakness and Olesya’s tragic prediction. The thirst for a harmonious union is generated by deep emotions.
At the beginning of the story, Ivan Timofeevich seems soft, sympathetic and sincere. But Olesya immediately detects weakness in him, saying: “Your kindness is not good, not heartfelt.” And the hero of the story really causes a lot of harm to his beloved. His whim is the reason why Olesya goes to church, although she understands the destructiveness of this act. The lethargy of the hero’s feelings brings trouble to the sincere girl. But Ivan Timofeevich himself quickly calms down. At the moment when he talks about the most seemingly exciting episode of his life, he does not experience guilt or remorse, which speaks of the relative poverty of his inner world.
Olesya is the complete opposite of Ivan Timofeevich. In her image, Kuprin embodies his ideas about the ideal woman. She has absorbed the laws by which nature lives, her soul is not spoiled by civilization. The writer creates an exclusively romantic image of the “daughter of the forests”. Olesya’s life passes in isolation from people, and therefore she does not care about what many modern people devote their lives to: fame, wealth, power, rumor. Emotions become the main motives for her actions. Moreover, Olesya is a witch, she knows the secrets of the human subconscious. Her sincerity and lack of falsehood are emphasized both in her appearance and in her gestures, movements, and smile.
Olesya's love becomes the greatest gift that can give life to the hero of the story. In this love there is dedication and courage, on the one hand, and contradiction, on the other. Olesya initially understands the tragic outcome of their relationship, but is ready to give herself to her lover. Even leaving her native place, beaten and dishonored, Olesya does not curse the one who destroyed her, but blesses those brief moments of happiness that she experienced.
The writer sees the true meaning of love in the desire to selflessly give to his chosen one all the fullness of feelings that a loving person is capable of. Man is imperfect, but the power of love can, at least for a short time, return to him the sharpness of sensations and naturalness that only people like Olesya have retained. The strength of the soul of the heroine of the story is capable of bringing harmony even to such contradictory relationships as those described in the story. Love is contempt for suffering and even death. It’s a pity, but only a select few are capable of such a feeling.

Autumn... dark and quiet in my room. Outside the window the rain rustles faintly, and I am surrounded by an atmosphere of dampness, boredom and almost palpable despondency that bad weather sometimes brings with it. Scary and sad. And there is nothing bright, warm, joyful anymore. Autumn melancholy circles around and slowly envelops me.

What am I?! Why am I standing here in the dark and alone? I decisively step away from the black window, flip the switch, and my room is flooded with electric light. It disperses the autumn storm, and I open the book... A book that will take me to the amazing, light and vibrant world of Belarusian Polesie. Into a world where a magical creature lives - a girl with the gentle and affectionate name Olesya.

The story “Olesya” is one of my favorite works by Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin. Against the backdrop of a mysterious, magical forest, a love story unfolds - selfless, selfless love, not expecting a reward, the kind about which it is said - “stronger than death”, for the sake of which you will accomplish any feat, you will gladly go to torment. It was this kind of love that touched the Polesie “witch” Olesya with its wing.

Imagine a delightful girl, like a flower grown in the wild steppe, free and free, like the wind. She lives in the forest, surrounded by virgin nature. She listens to sounds and rustles, “understands” the voices of animals, and is quite happy with her life and freedom. Olesya not only knows and understands the forest around her, but also loves her with a naive, enthusiastic and almost childlike love. She reads nature as a mysterious and interesting book. “With both hands she carefully supported a striped apron, from which three tiny bird heads with red necks and shiny black eyes looked out. “Look, grandma, the finches are following me again,” she exclaimed, laughing loudly, “look how funny they are... absolutely hungry. And as luck would have it, I didn’t have any bread with me.”

But the collision with the human world brings Olesya only hardships and experiences.
They are ready to blame these women for all the troubles. Once, human anger had already driven them away from their homes, and now Olesya’s only desire is to be left alone:

It would be better if they left grandma and I alone completely, otherwise...

But the cruel world of people knows no mercy. Olesya knows very well what her meeting with city resident Ivan Timofeevich brings. Love - a beautiful and sublime feeling - turns into death for this “daughter of nature.” She does not fit into the surrounding world of anger and envy, self-interest and hypocrisy.

The heroine's unusual nature, her beauty and independence inspire hatred, fear, and anger in the people around her. The peasants are ready to take out all their misfortunes and troubles on Oles and Manuilikha. Their fear of “witches,” which they consider poor women, is fueled by impunity for reprisals against them. Olesya’s coming to church is not a challenge to the village, but a desire to reconcile with the people around her, to understand those among whom her beloved lives. The crowd's hatred gave birth to a response. Olesya threatens the villagers who beat and insulted her:

Okay!..

It’s good!.. You’ll remember this from me! You will all cry your fill!

But, despite the tragic ending, Olesya was still happy, because love illuminated her life and gave it meaning. The girl's only regret is that she does not have a child with her loved one. Human malice has ruined the beautiful - love. But I want to believe that Olesya’s natural strength and resilience will not allow her soul to burn, that in the new place this beautiful forest flower will continue to bloom.

I close the book and return to my cold, autumn world. This is how Kuprin describes love. You read and think: this probably doesn’t happen in life. But Olesya’s little sun of love is already warming the heart, dispersing the autumn darkness. And even though this love is bookish, it brings joy. And it seems to me that this is the highest assessment of writing.