The writing
I. S. Turgenev was one of the foremost people of his time. He realized that in order to win the right to be called a folk writer, talent alone is not enough, you need "sympathy for the people, a kindred disposition" and "the ability to penetrate the essence of your people, their language and way of life." The collection of short stories "Notes of a Hunter" describes the peasant world in a very vivid and multifaceted way.
In all the stories there is one and the same hero - the nobleman Pyotr Petrovich. He loves hunting very much, travels a lot and talks about the cases that happened to him. We also meet Pyotr Petrovich in "Biryuk", which describes his acquaintance with a mysterious and gloomy forester, nicknamed Biryuk, "whom all the surrounding peasants were afraid of like fire." The meeting takes place in the forest during a thunderstorm, and the forester invites the gentleman to his house to hide from the weather. Pyotr Petrovich accepts the invitation and finds himself in an old hut "from one room, smoky, low and empty." He notices the minutiae of the gloomy existence of the forester's family. His wife "ran away with a passer-by." And Foma Kuzmich was left alone with two small children. The eldest daughter Ulita, herself still a child, nurses the baby, cradling him in the cradle. Poverty and family grief have already left their mark on the girl. She has a downcast "sad face", timid movements. The description of the hut makes a depressing impression. Everything here breathes sadness and wretchedness: “a torn sheepskin coat hung on the wall”, “a torch burned on the table, sadly flashing and dying out”, “a pile of rags lay in the corner”, “the bitter smell of cooled smoke” hovered everywhere and made it difficult to breathe. The heart in Pyotr Petrovich’s chest “wounded: it’s not fun to enter a peasant’s hut at night.” When the rain passed, the forester heard the sound of an ax and decided to catch the intruder. Barin went with him.
The thief turned out to be “a wet man, in rags, with a long disheveled beard,” who, apparently, did not go to theft from a good life. He has a "drunk, wrinkled face, hanging yellow eyebrows, restless eyes, thin limbs." He begs Biryuk to let him go with the horse, justifying himself that "from hunger ... the children squeak." The tragedy of a hungry peasant life, a difficult life, appears before us in the image of this miserable, desperate man who exclaims: “Knock down - one end; that from hunger, that so - everything is one.
The realism of the depiction of everyday pictures of the life of peasants in the story of I. S. Turgenev is impressive to the core. And at the same time we face social problems of that time: the poverty of the peasants, hunger, cold, forcing people to steal.
Other writings on this work
Analysis of the essay by I.S. Turgenev "Biruk" Composition-miniature based on the story of I.S. Turgenev "Biryuk"The story "Biryuk" by I. S. Turgenev was written in 1847 and entered the cycle of the writer's works about the life, traditions and way of life of the Russian people "Notes of a Hunter". The story belongs to the literary direction of realism. In Biryuk, the author described his memories of the life of peasants in the Oryol province.
main characters
Biryuk (Foma Kuzmich)- a forester, a stern outwardly man.
The narrator- the master, from his face the story is told.
Other characters
man- a poor man who cut down trees in the forest and was caught by Biryuk.
Ulita- Biryuk's twelve-year-old daughter.
In the evening, the narrator rode alone from hunting, on treadmills. It was about eight versts from his house, but in the forest he suddenly finds heavy thunderstorm. The narrator decides to wait out the bad weather under a wide bush, and soon, with a flash of lightning, he sees a tall figure - as it turned out, it was the local forester. He took the narrator to his house - "a small hut in the middle of a vast yard, surrounded by wattle." The doors were opened for them by “a girl of about twelve, in a shirt, belted with a hem” - the daughter of the forester Julitta.
The forester's hut "consisted of one room", a torn sheepskin coat hung on the wall, a torch burned on the table, and a cradle hung "in the very middle" of the house.
The forester himself was tall, broad-shouldered and well-built ”, with a black curly beard, wide fused eyebrows and brown eyes. His name was Foma, nicknamed Biryuk. The narrator was surprised to meet the forester, as he heard from acquaintances that "all the surrounding peasants were afraid of him like fire." He regularly guarded the forest goods, not allowing even bundles of brushwood to be taken out of the forest. It was impossible to bribe Biryuk.
Foma said that his wife ran away with a passerby tradesman, leaving the forester alone with two children. There was nothing to treat Biryuk to the guest - there was only bread in the house.
When the rain stopped, Biryuk said that he was seeing the narrator off. Coming out of the house, Foma heard the distant clatter of an axe. The forester was afraid that he would miss the thief, so the narrator agreed to walk to the place where they were cutting down the forest, although he did not hear anything. At the end of the journey, Biryuk asked to wait, while he himself went on. Through the noise of the wind, the narrator heard the cry of Thomas and the sounds of a struggle. The narrator rushed there and saw Biryuk by a fallen tree, who was tying a peasant with a sash.
The narrator asked to let the thief go, promising to pay for the tree, but Biryuk, without answering, took the peasant to his hut. It began to rain again, and they had to sit out the bad weather. The narrator decided "at all costs to free the poor man" - by the light of a lantern he could see "his drunken, wrinkled face, hanging yellow eyebrows, restless eyes, thin members".
The man began to ask Biryuk to release him. The forester sullenly objected that in their settlement everything was a “thief on a thief” and, not paying attention to the plaintive requests of the thief, ordered him to sit still. Suddenly the peasant straightened up, blushed and began to scold Foma, calling him "an Asian, a bloodsucker, a beast, a murderer." Biryuk grabbed the peasant by the shoulder. The narrator already wanted to protect the poor man, but Foma, to his amazement, "with one turn pulled off the sash from the peasant's elbows, grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, put his hat over his eyes, opened the door and pushed him out" , shouting after him to go to hell .
The narrator realizes that Biryuk is actually a "nice fellow". Half an hour later they said goodbye at the edge of the forest.
Conclusion
In the story "Biryuk" Turgenev portrayed an ambiguous character - the forester Foma Kuzmich, whose personality is fully revealed only towards the end of the work. It is with this hero that the main conflict of the story is connected - the conflict between public duty and humanity, which takes place inside Biryuk himself. Despite the external severity and adherence to principles of Foma Kuzmich, who closely protects the forest entrusted to him, in his heart he is a kind, sympathetic person - a “glorious fellow”.
A brief retelling of "Biryuk" will be useful for getting acquainted with the plot of the story, for a better understanding of the work, we recommend reading it in full.
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Writers old era they rarely wrote about the peasants, and if they did, they portrayed them as a common gray mass. Despite this, Turgenev undertook to note the features of peasant life, thanks to which the collection “Notes of a Hunter” presented a vivid and multifaceted composition of the life of peasants. The stories immediately attracted readers and allowed them to win special fame.
Features of the stories "Notes of a hunter"
Each story features one main character, whose name is Peter Petrovich. He is a nobleman from the village of Spassky and is actively engaged in hunting and hiking. Ivan Turgenev talks about various stories that occurred during hunting trips. The protagonist acquired such valuable character traits as observation and attention, thanks to which the narrator better understands various life situations and successfully conveys them to the reader.
"Biryuk" is a story included in the collection "Notes of a Hunter". The work was written in 1848 and corresponds to the general literary composition. The main character is back in interesting story about which he narrates in the form of a monologue.
The plot of the story "Biryuk"
One evening, Pyotr Petrovich was returning from a hunt and got caught in a downpour. Further trip was impossible: bad weather had to wait out. Fortunately, Peter saw the forester, who invited the master to his house. An important conversation took place in Biryuk's hut. As it turned out, the forester was nicknamed Biryuk because he has a gloomy and unsociable character. Despite such severe character traits, Biryuk decided to tell a lot about his life. interesting facts.
After the downpour ended, the hospitable owner of the forest hut heard the sound of an ax and decided to catch the intruder. Petr Petrovich supported the idea, so the two of them went in search of the intruder. The thief turned out to be a beggar man, dressed in rags and with a disheveled beard. Most likely, the violation was due to a difficult life situation. Pyotr Petrovich took pity on the beggar and asked Biryuk for an important favor, or rather, to let the poor peasant go. However, the forester did not agree and led the peasant into his hut. The violator was released only after repeated requests for mercy from the master.
Biryuk as a person
Biryuk is an interesting and whole person, but, unfortunately, tragic. The main tragedy lies in the presence of special views on life, which sometimes have to be sacrificed. The story noted that many peasants in the middle of the 19th century considered stealing a common thing. This was precisely the main tragedy of Biryuk.
It is important to note that the outlook of the peasants was explained by serious social problems:
Insecurity of the peasant people;
Lack of good education;
Immorality of behavior due to insufficient education.
The forester Biryuk was different from ordinary peasants. He is ready to live as a beggar even if such a situation turns out to be difficult. Any life circumstances could not induce to theft.
It is important to note that Biryuk's impoverished position was confirmed by the description of his house in the forest:
One room;
Smoky;
Low and empty hut;
Lack of decks and partitions.
One can understand how difficult Biryuk's life is. It can be assumed that if the poor would sacrifice his principles, he, being in the forest lands, could build a beautiful hut for himself.
Biryuk understands that if every peasant steals, the general situation will only worsen. The forester is confident that he is right, so it is difficult for him to deviate from the existing principles. Despite such character traits and the desire to walk firmly through life, sometimes you have to face trials. The situation described in the story clearly demonstrates the struggle of a feeling of pity and compassion with clear principles, a desire to improve the world. The essay shows how difficult it is to vacillate between feelings and existing principles, not knowing what to choose.
"Biryuk" is a fascinating story that reveals the characters of each participant in the story. Ivan Turgenev understood the peculiarities of peasant life in the 19th century, therefore he successfully reflected them in his works. The logic of life is a worthy foundation, without which it is impossible to change the realities.
"Biryuk" is a story that reflected the unfair situation of many serfs. Each reader has the right to independently place accents on the feelings that arise when comparing heroes from the same peasant environment, but differing in life principles and traits of their characters.
The plot of the story is based on a direct conflict between the forester Biryuk, who is considered lonely and gloomy, and a poor peasant. Biryuk honestly fulfills his duties and tries to protect the forest. The peasant is in trouble life situation so he steals firewood. The hunter-master, Pyotr Petrovich, stopped in a forest hut due to a sudden downpour, so he becomes a bystander conflict situation. He sees how, during bad weather, Biryuk decides to go into the forest and tries to catch the unfortunate thief.
Biryuk lives in poverty and raises children by himself. His wife went to a passing tradesman, leaving her family behind. Despite such life circumstances, theft still remains the last thing, so Biryuk tries to identify violators and punish them ... But you need to understand how fair such behavior is. Growing children are starving and eating bad bread... Biryuk shows distrust and sullenness, speaks little and behaves insincerely. Biryuk, of course, invites the hunter to his place and is ready to take him home, but still shows a merciless judicial attitude towards the beggar.
Biryuk is ready to justify his actions with the following moment: he is a forced laborer, so he can be charged ... At the same time, during the plaintive explanations of the poor peasant, the forester is silent. Such moments reflect a serious internal struggle. The forester wants to justify the unfortunate thief, realizing that in bad weather he steals wood from the master to fire the stove and cook food for a hungry family, but still leaves the offender locked up. The attitude changes only after the unfortunate man at the very end of the story calls Biryuk a "beast", "a cursed murderer." The violator is ready to accept any punishment, because even death does not frighten him. However, accusing the forester of inhumanity immediately leads to another effect, because Biryuk lets him go. Unexpectedly, a serious internal conflict was resolved:
Cruelty and duty of service;
Clear life principles;
Sincere sympathy and understanding of the misfortune of an outsider.
At the same time, the master, Pyotr Petrovich, contributed successful solution situation, as he was immediately imbued with the explanations of the unfortunate thief. The situation is better revealed thanks to the detailed descriptions of the landscape. Throughout the story, a thunderstorm rages, personifying Biryuk's state of mind. In addition, many serfs consider the forester to be a manifestation of a thunderstorm. But still, Biryuk is freed from a sense of duty, as he performs a human act and goes towards an unfortunate person. According to the law that was in force at that sinister time, the forester. who did not catch the thief had to repay the entire cost of illegally felled trees. If this could not be done, there was a risk of a lawsuit with a further exile to Siberia, but the fear of punishment loses ... Biryuk still releases the thief and gives him his horse.
The meaning of the story "Biryuk"
Biryuk is a special hero in the story of Ivan Turgenev, because he has unique life principles and is sometimes ready to give them up. The mental struggle allows you to understand how difficult it is sometimes to accept correct solution. Detailed description bad weather and thunderstorms contributes to a better understanding of the life principles and feelings, emotions of the forester. It is important to understand that a person who is in need and cannot find the right path is forced to venture into hopelessness. The wavering between feelings and principles is the best reflection of humanity.
The story has numerous artistic merits, which are confirmed by critics:
Real and picturesque descriptions of nature;
Special style of narration;
Unusual heroes.
"Biryuk" is a worthy representative of the legendary collection "Notes of a Hunter", which made it possible to strengthen the position of Ivan Turgenev in Russian literature.
The work was done by a student of 7 "B" class Alexander Balashov
The main character of the story I.S. Turgenev "Biryuk" is the forester Foma. Thomas is a very interesting and unusual person. With what admiration and pride the author describes his hero: “He was tall, broad-shouldered and well-built. His mighty muscles bulged out from under the wet sash of his shirt. Biryuk had a "masculine face" and "small brown eyes" that "looked boldly from under wide unibrows."
The author is struck by the wretchedness of the forester’s hut, which consisted of “one room, smoky, low and empty, without curtains ...”, everything here speaks of a beggarly existence - and “a torn sheepskin coat on the wall”, and “a pile of rags in the corner; two large pot who stood near the stove ... ". Turgenev himself sums up the description: “I looked around - my heart ached in me: it’s not fun to enter a peasant’s hut at night.”
The forester's wife ran away with a passing tradesman and abandoned her two children; maybe that's why the forester was so stern and silent. Biryuk, that is, a gloomy and lonely man, Foma was nicknamed by the surrounding peasants, who were afraid of him like fire. They said that he was “strong and dexterous like a demon…”, “he won’t let a bunch of brushwood be dragged away” from the forest, “at whatever time… he will come like snow on his head” and do not expect mercy. Biryuk is “a master of his craft”, whom you can’t take with anything, “neither wine nor money.” However, for all his sorrows and troubles, Biryuk retained kindness and mercy in his heart. He secretly sympathized with his “wards”, but work is work, and the demand for stolen goods will first of all be from himself. But this does not prevent him from doing good deeds, releasing the most desperate without punishment, but only pretty scaring.
The tragedy of Biryuk was based on the understanding that it is not at all from a good life that peasants go to steal wood. Often a feeling of pity and compassion prevails over his principles. So, in the story, Biryuk caught a peasant cutting down a forest. He was dressed in torn rags, all wet, with a disheveled beard. The man asked to be released, or at least to give the horse back, because the children were at home, they had nothing to feed them. To all persuasions, the forester kept repeating one thing: "Don't go stealing." In the end, Foma Kuzmich grabbed the thief by the scruff of the neck and pushed him out the door, saying: "Go to hell with your horse." With these rude words, he seems to cover up his generous act. Thus the forester constantly oscillates between principles and a sense of compassion. The author wants to show that this gloomy, unsociable person actually has a kind, generous heart.
Describing a forced people, destitute and oppressed, Turgenev especially emphasizes that even in such conditions he was able to maintain his living soul, the ability to empathize and respond with your whole being to kindness and affection. Even this life does not kill humanity in people - that's what is most important.
Characteristics of the hero
Biryuk is a whole person, but tragic. His tragedy lies in the fact that he has his own views on life, but sometimes he has to give them up. The work shows that most peasants of the middle of the 19th century treated theft as something ordinary: “Knitted brushwood will not be dragged out of the forest,” the peasant said, as if he had every right to steal brushwood from the forest. Of course, some social problems played a major role in the formation of such a worldview: the insecurity of the peasants, lack of education and immorality. Biryuk is not like them. He himself lives in deep poverty: “Biryuk’s hut consisted of one room, smoky, low and empty, without shelves and partitions,” but he does not steal (if he stole the forest, he could afford a white hut) and tries to wean him from this others: "But you still don't go to steal." He is clearly aware that if everyone steals, it will only get worse. Confident in his rightness, he firmly strides towards his own goal.
However, his confidence is sometimes undermined. For example, in the case described in the essay, when human feelings of pity and compassion compete in it with life principles. After all, if a person really needs and he has no other way, he often goes to theft out of hopelessness. Foma Kuzmich (the forester) had the hardest lot of fluctuating between feelings and principles all his life.
The essay "Biryuk" has many artistic merit. These are picturesque pictures of nature, and an inimitable style of narration, and the originality of heroes, and much, much more. Ivan Sergeevich's contribution to Russian literature is invaluable. His collection "Notes of a Hunter" is among the masterpieces of Russian literature. And the problems raised in the work are relevant to this day.
