I would like to present one of the works of L.N. Tolstoy, his summary. « Prisoner of the Caucasus"- this is a work that the writer undertook at the request of the editors of two magazines: "Dawn" and "Conversation". At that time, these magazines were not widely distributed. Tolstoy completed his story in 1872 on March 25th. The publication of the work did not have to wait long: in the same year, the Prisoner of the Caucasus appeared on the pages of the Zarya magazine.

The basis of the story was an incident that actually happened to the author. On June 13, 1853, five Russian officers were attacked by Chechens in the Caucasus, among them was Tolstoy.

Summary. "Prisoner of the Caucasus": the beginning of the story

Officer Zhilin served in the Caucasus. One day he received a letter from his mother, after reading it, he decided to visit his home. On the way there, he and Kostylin (another Russian officer) were attacked by mountaineers. Everything happened through the fault of Kostylin, instead of covering Zhilin, he started to run. So the officers instead of their home were captured by the highlanders. The prisoners were shackled and locked in a barn.

Next, we present the story "Prisoner of the Caucasus" (summary). Then the following events take place. The officers, under the onslaught of the highlanders, were forced to send letters to their relatives with a request to ransom them. Kostylin wrote, but Zhilin deliberately indicated an unreliable address, because he knew that the poor old mother would not have money. They lived like this in a barn for a month. During this time, Zhilin endeared himself to the master's daughter Dina. A thirteen-year-old child was surprised by a Russian officer homemade dolls, the girl thanked him for this, secretly brought cakes, milk. Zhilin did not leave the thought of escaping, and he decided to dig.

Long awaited escape

One night they decided to run away: they crawled into a tunnel and planned to get to the fortress through the forest. In the dark, they went in the wrong direction and ended up near a strange village. It was necessary to change direction quickly before the highlanders missed them. All the way Kostylin complained, constantly lagging behind and groaning. Zhilin could not leave his comrade and decided to carry him on himself. Because of the heavy burden (fat and awkward Kostylin), he quickly got tired. The movement of the officers was very slow, so they were quickly overtaken, brought back, severely beaten with whips and put not in a barn, but in a pit 5 arshins deep.

Dean's savior

Zhilin is not used to giving up. He constantly thought about how to escape. His savior was the owner's daughter Dina, whom we mentioned earlier. At night, the girl brought the officer a long stick, with which he was able to climb up.

Having got out of the pit, Zhilin ran downhill, tried to remove the blocks, but the lock was so strong that he could not do it. Dina helped the officer with all her might, but the support of the child was in vain. The prisoner decided to run straight away. Zhilin said goodbye to the girl, thanked her for the cakes she had brought, and went off in the stocks.

Freedom at last

The unshakable Russian officer at dawn nevertheless reached the end of the forest, the Cossacks appeared on the horizon. However, on the other side of Zhilin, the mountaineers were catching up, it seemed that the heart was about to stop. The officer got ready and shouted with all his might so that the Cossacks could hear him. The mountaineers got scared and stopped. This is how Zhilin escaped.

After this incident, the officer decided to live in the Caucasus. Kostylin remained in captivity for another month, and only then was he, barely alive, finally redeemed.

This is where the summary ends. "Prisoner of the Caucasus" is one of the most poetic and perfect works in Russian Books for Reading.

We told you about the story "Prisoner of the Caucasus" (summary) by Leo Tolstoy. It is essentially a miniature novel aimed at children.

Title of the work: Prisoner of the Caucasus
Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy
Year of writing: 1872
Genre: story
Main characters: Zhilin and Kostylin- Russian officers Dina- Circassian girl - teenager.

Plot

Zhilin and Kostylin served in the Caucasus during the hostilities. One day they decided to go on vacation, and were taken prisoner by the Tatars. Their owner demanded that they write a ransom letter to their relatives. Zhilin knew that his mother had absolutely no money, not only for ransom, but also for life, and did not write, but he himself lied that he had written, and began to look for ways to escape. Living in a Tatar village, Zhilin tried to make friends with people: he made clay dolls for children, played with them, made something, repaired something, even treated people. People treated him well. And after a while, when the men went on a raid, both officers escaped from captivity. But Kostylin was fat, clumsy and lazy, he could not run for a long time, and although Zhilin helped him and supported him in every possible way, he could not escape from the chase, and they were put in a pit as punishment and forced to write a ransom letter again. Dina became very attached to Zhilin, brought him milk and cakes, dried meat and tried to help him in every possible way. She saved the officer from the pit and gave him the opportunity to escape from captivity, and Kostylin was in captivity for several more months until the ransom from the house came.

Conclusion (my opinion)

The great Tolstoy, by means of antithesis, shows the fate of two young officers, one did not put up with difficulties and fought fate in any way, and the second only went with the flow. And besides, Zhilin and Dina, people of different nationalities and cultures, became true friends, supporting each other in everything, while Kostylin was ready for anything, even betrayal, to save his life.

Prisoner of the Caucasus

Officer Zhilin served in the Caucasus. He received a letter from his mother and he decided to go home on vacation. But on the way, he and another Russian officer Kostylin were captured by the Tatars (through the fault of Kostylin, since Kostylin was supposed to cover Zhilin, but when he saw the Tatars, he began to run away from them. Kostylin betrayed Zhilin). The Tatar who took Russian officers prisoner sold them to another Tatar. They were kept in shackles in one barn.

The Tatars forced the officers to write a letter home demanding a ransom. Kostylin wrote, and Zhilin specifically wrote a different address, because he knew that there was no one to buy it out (old mother already lived poorly). They lived like this for a whole month. The owner's daughter Dina became attached to Zhilin, she secretly brought him cakes and milk, and he made pupae for her. Zhilin began to think how he and Kostylin could escape from captivity, began to dig a tunnel in the barn.

And one night they ran away. They fled into the forest, but Kostylin began to lag behind and whine, as his feet were rubbed with boots. And so, because of Kostylin, they were far from being found, they were noticed by one Tatar who was driving through the forest. He told the owners of the hostages and they were quickly caught up with the dogs. The captives were put on shackles and were no longer removed even at night, and they were also put in another place in a pit about five feet deep. But Zhilin still did not despair. Everyone thought about how to escape. And Dina saved him, she brought a long stick at night and lowered it into the pit, and Zhilin climbed up on it. But Kostylin remained, did not want to run away: he was frightened, and there was no strength.

Zhilin moved away from the village and wanted to remove the block, but he did not succeed. Dina gave him cakes for the journey, and then she began to cry, saying goodbye to Zhilin: she became very attached to him, since he was very kind to her. And Zhilin began to go farther and farther, even though the block really interfered, when his strength ran out he crawled, so he crawled to the field, behind which there were already his Russians. But Zhilin was afraid that the Tatars would notice him when he crossed the field. Just thought, look: to the left, on a hillock, there are three Tatars, two tithes. They saw him and ran towards him. So his heart broke. He waved his arms and shouted at the top of his lungs: Brothers! Help out! Brothers! The Cossacks (15 people) heard Zhilin and rushed to cut across the Tatars. The Tatars were frightened before they reached it and began to stop. So the Cossacks saved Zhilin. Zhilin told them how everything was with him, and said: So he went home, got married! No, it's not my destiny. And he remained to serve in the Caucasus. And Kostylin was redeemed for five thousand only a month later. Barely brought alive.

Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy

"Prisoner of the Caucasus"

Officer Zhilin served in the Caucasus. He received a letter from his mother, and he decided to go home on vacation. But on the way, he and another Russian officer Kostylin were captured by the Tatars. It happened through the fault of Kostylin. He was supposed to cover Zhilin, but he saw the Tatars, got scared and ran away from them. Kostylin turned out to be a traitor. The Tatar who took Russian officers prisoner sold them to another Tatar. The captives were shackled and kept in the same barn.

The Tatars forced the officers to write ransom letters to their relatives. Kostylin obeyed, and Zhilin specifically wrote a different address, because he knew that there was no one to buy him out, Zhilina's old mother lived very poorly. Zhilin and Kostylin sat in the barn for a whole month. The master's daughter Dina became attached to Zhilin. She secretly brought him cakes and milk, and he made dolls for her. Zhilin began to think about how he and Kostylin could escape from captivity. Soon he began to dig in the barn.

One night they ran away. When they entered the forest, Kostylin began to lag behind and whine - his feet were rubbed with boots. Because of Kostylin, they did not go far, they were noticed by a Tatar who was driving through the forest. He told the hostage owners that they took the dogs and quickly caught up with the captives. They were again put on shackles and did not take them off even at night. Instead of a barn, the hostages were put into a five-arshin-deep pit. Zhilin still did not despair. He kept thinking about how to escape. Dina saved him. At night, she brought a long stick, lowered it into the pit, and Zhilin climbed up on it. But Kostylin remained, did not want to run away: he was frightened, and there was no strength.

Zhilin moved away from the village and tried to remove the block, but he did not succeed. Dina gave him cakes for the journey, and cried, saying goodbye to Zhilin. He was kind to the girl, and she became very attached to him. Zhilin went farther and farther, although the block was very disturbing. When the forces ran out, he crawled, and crawled to the field, behind which there were already his own, Russians. Zhilin was afraid that the Tatars would notice him when he crossed the field. I just thought about it, looking: to the left, on a hillock, two acres from it, there are three Tatars. They saw Zhilin and rushed to him. So his heart broke. Zhilin waved his hands, shouted to his heart’s content: “Brothers! Help out! Brothers! The Cossacks heard Zhilin and rushed to cut across the Tatars. The Tatars were frightened, before reaching Zhilin they began to stop. So the Cossacks saved Zhilin. Zhilin told them about his adventures, and then he says: “So I went home, got married! No, it’s not my destiny.” Zhilin remained to serve in the Caucasus. And Kostylin was redeemed for five thousand only a month later. Barely brought alive.

After the news came from his mother, a Caucasian officer named Zhilin wanted to visit her, and he went home. However, due to the cowardice of another officer, Kostylin, with whom he went on this long journey, they were taken prisoner by the Tatars. After that, they were sold to other Tatars, who hid both in a barn, chained.

In order to get a ransom, the captives were forced to write letters to their loved ones. Zhilin remembered that his mother was very poor and she definitely wouldn’t have enough to ransom, so he entered someone else’s address, unlike the submissive Kostylin. It's been a month since they've been in captivity. Dina, the daughter of a Tatar who bought officers, began to secretly look after Zhilin. He reciprocated her. Zhilin began to plot their escape with Kostylin.

Having made a tunnel in the barn, they managed to escape from captivity. Kostylin fails again. Before he had gone very far, his legs ached due to tight shoes, and he began to hesitate, Zhilin had to wait for him. There they were noticed by a Tatar passing nearby, who informed the owners about their loss. Catching the fugitives was not difficult. But Zhilin's hope for salvation did not fade away, despite the fact that now they were thrown into a deep hole. This time, the brave and kind Dina came to the rescue: she found a stick of sufficient size and brought it to them. Kostylin did not want to get out, because he was very exhausted, although to a greater extent, he simply chickened out.

Dina had to say goodbye to Zhilin and, sobbing, she handed him a few cakes on the way. And the officer left. It was quite inconvenient to go, as it was not possible to get rid of the shackles. The fugitive could no longer walk, he was terribly tired, but he did not give up and began to crawl. When he crawled across the field, he was noticed by three Tatars standing on a hill and ran after him. Zhilin, who knew that the Cossacks were already behind the field, got up with the last of his strength, began waving his arms and shouting. And then ours appeared and ran to the Tatars, who rushed back out of fright, leaving the former prisoner alone. Later, he told his rescuers about his story.

Almost every classical writer of the 19th century wrote about the Caucasus. This region, engulfed in almost endless war (1817-1864), attracted authors with its beauty, rebelliousness and exoticism. L.N. Tolstoy was no exception and wrote a simple and vital story "Prisoner of the Caucasus".

L. N. Tolstoy, who became famous all over the world after the novels "War and Peace", "Anna Karenina" and others, in the 70s of the 19th century renounced his past work, because his worldview had changed. The writer developed his neo-Christian teaching, according to which he decided to remake himself by "simplifying" life and his future works. And earlier literary works were written incomprehensibly for the people, who were the measure of morality and the producer of all blessings.

Deciding to write in a new way, Tolstoy created the "ABC" (1871-1872) and "New ABC" (1874-1875), distinguished by simplicity, clarity and power of language. The first book also included The Prisoner of the Caucasus, based on the impressions of the author himself, who was almost captured by the highlanders in 1853. In 1872, the story was published in the Zarya magazine. The writer highly appreciated his work, ranking the "Prisoner of the Caucasus" as "an art that conveys the simplest everyday feelings, such that are accessible to all people of the whole world - the art of the world."

Essence of the story

A poor officer Zhilin, who serves in the Caucasus, is going home to see his mother and, possibly, get married. The road was dangerous, because the hero went along with the convoy, slowly dragging under the protection of the soldiers. Unable to bear the heat, stuffiness and slow movement, the rider rode forward. Directly towards the highlanders, who captured him together with his colleague Kostylin, who met him.

The heroes live in a barn, chained in stocks during the day. Zhilin makes toys for local children, which especially attracts Dina, the daughter of their "master". The girl takes pity on the craftsman, brings him cakes. Zhilin cannot hope for a ransom, he decides to escape through a tunnel. Taking Kostylin with him, he heads for freedom, but his comrade, clumsy and obese, ruined the whole plan, the prisoners were returned. Conditions became worse, they were transferred to the pit and the blocks were no longer removed for the night. With the help of Dina, Zhilin runs again, but his friend categorically refuses. The fugitive, in spite of his legs shackled with blocks, got to his own, and his friend was later ransomed.

Characteristics of the main characters

1. Zhilin is an officer from poor nobles, in life he is used to relying only on himself, he knows how to do everything with his own hands. The hero understands that no one will save him from captivity: his mother is too poor, he himself has not saved anything for his service. But he does not lose heart, but is seized with activity: he digs a tunnel, makes toys. He is observant, resourceful, persistent and patient - these are the qualities that helped him to free himself. The man is not devoid of nobility: he cannot leave his fellow worker, Kostylin. Although the latter abandoned him during the attack of the highlanders, because of him the first escape failed, Zhilin does not hold a grudge against his “cellmate”.
2. Kostylin is a noble and wealthy officer, he hopes for money and influence, therefore, in an extreme situation, he turns out to be incapable of anything. He is a pampered, weak in spirit and body, an inert person. Meanness is inherent in this hero, he left Zhilin to the mercy of fate both during the attack, and when he could not run because of his worn legs (the wound was not at all big), and when he did not run a second time (probably thinking about the hopelessness of the enterprise). That is why this coward rotted for a long time in a pit in a mountain village and was bought out barely alive.

the main idea

The work is really written simply and even its meaning lies on the surface. The main idea of ​​the story “The Prisoner of the Caucasus” is that one should never give up in the face of difficulties, one must overcome them, and not wait for help from others, and no matter what conditions, a way out can always be found. At least try.

It would seem, who is more likely to escape from captivity: poor Zhilin or rich Kostylin? Of course, the latter. However, the first one has courage and willpower, so he does not wait for mercy, ransom, divine intervention, but simply acts as best he can. At the same time, he does not go over the heads, believing that the end justifies the means, he remains a person even in a difficult situation. Main character close to the people, which, according to the author, still have decency and nobility in the soul, and not in the pedigree. That is why he conquered all hostile circumstances.

Subject

• Many questions are raised in the story. The theme of friendship, sincere and real on the part of Zhilin and "friendship on occasion" from Kostylin. If the first defended the second as himself, then the latter threw his comrade to death.
• The theme of the feat is also revealed in the story. The language and description of events are natural and everyday, because the work is for children, so Zhilin's exploits are described in a completely ordinary way, but in reality, who will protect his comrade in any situation? Who will be ready to give everything to be free? Who voluntarily refuses to disturb the old mother with a ransom that is too much for her? Of course, a real Hero. For him, a feat is a natural state, therefore he is not proud of it, but simply lives like that.
• The theme of mercy and sympathy is revealed in the image of Dina. Unlike the "Prisoner of the Caucasus" A.S. Pushkin, heroine L.N. Tolstoy saved the prisoner not out of love, she was guided by higher feelings, she took pity on such a kind and skillful person, she was imbued with purely friendly sympathy and respect for him.

Issues

• The Caucasian war lasted for almost half a century, many Russians died in it. And for what? L.N. Tolstoy raises the problem of a senseless and cruel war. It is beneficial only to the highest circles, ordinary people completely unnecessary and alien. Zhilin, a native of the people, feels like a stranger in the mountain village, but does not feel hostility, because the mountaineers simply lived quietly until they were conquered and began to try to subjugate them. The author shows in positive character"master" Zhilin Abdullah, who likes the main character, and his compassionate and kind daughter Dina. They are not beasts, not monsters, they are the same as their opponents.
• The problem of betrayal fully confronts Zhilin. Comrade Kostylin betrays him, because of him they are in captivity, because of him they did not immediately escape. The hero is a man with a broad soul, he generously forgives his colleague, realizing that not every person is capable of being strong.

What does the story teach?

The main lesson that the reader can take away from the "Prisoner of the Caucasus" is that you should never give up. Even if everyone is against you, even if it seems that there is no hope, then someday everything will change in better side if you put all your effort into achieving your goal. And although, fortunately, few are familiar with such an extreme situation as Zhilin's, he should learn stamina from him.

Another important thing that the story teaches is that war and national strife are meaningless. These phenomena can be beneficial to immoral people in power, but a normal person should try not to allow this for himself, not to be a chauvinist and a nationalist, because, despite some differences in values ​​and lifestyles, each of us always and everywhere strives for one - Tranquility, happiness and peace.

The story of L.N. Tolstoy, after almost 150 years, has not lost its relevance. It is written simply and clearly, but this does not at all affect its deep meaning. Therefore, this book is a must-read.

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