N. S. Leskov belongs to the generation of writers of the 60-90s. XIX century, who passionately loved Russia, its talented people and actively opposed the oppression of freedom and the suppression of individual freedom. He created essays, novels, stories about fate ordinary people, about original historical figures, about abuse of power, outright predation. Other of his stories formed cycles. These are yuletide stories, quite rare in Russian XIX literature V. genre. These are “Christ Visiting the Archer”, “The Darner”, “Little Mistake”, etc. These include the story “The Old Genius”, written in 1884.
The action in it takes place in post-reform Russia, in St. Petersburg. The plot of the story is very simple: deceived by a dishonest high-society dandy, an old landowner who lent him money and mortgaged her house for this purpose comes to the capital to seek justice against him. Well, that was not the case. The authorities could not help her, and the poor woman had to use the services of an unknown desperate businessman, who turned out to be a decent person and settled this difficult matter. The narrator calls him a “genius.”
This story is preceded by an epigraph: “Genius has no years - he overcomes everything that stops ordinary minds.” And in this story, the “genius” overcame what she couldn’t do government. And after all, we were not talking about some kind of omnipotent personality, just about a young, flighty man who belonged to one of the best families, who tired of the authorities with his dishonesty. But the judicial authorities could not even hand over the paper to him for execution.
The author narrates this story in a simple, almost fairy-tale manner, without explicitly condemning anyone or ridiculing anyone. And “the lawyer she met was sympathetic and merciful, and in court the decision was favorable for her at the beginning of the dispute,” and no one took payment from her, then suddenly it turns out there was no way, “it was impossible to rein in” this deceiver because of some “powerful connections” . Thus, N.S. Leskov focuses the reader's attention on the complete lack of rights of the individual in Russia.
But the peculiarity of Leskov’s writing talent is that he also saw the positive beginnings of Russian life, depicted the rich talent of the Russian person, his depth and integrity. In the story “The Old Genius,” this light of goodness is carried by the heroine herself, “a woman of wonderful honesty,” “a kind old woman,” and the narrator, who helped her out with the necessary money, and the most important “genius of thought,” Ivan Ivanovich. This mysterious person, it is unknown why, who undertook to help the unfortunate woman and arranged a very clever situation in which the debtor was simply forced to pay.
The favorable outcome of the story falls on Christmas, and this is no coincidence, since the author believes in spirituality man, the righteous of Russian life.
The plot of Nikolai Leskov’s story “The Old Genius” is based on a situation that, unfortunately, is typical both for Russia of the 19th century and for Russia today. A rich dandy deceived an old woman by not paying her debt, and now her house is being taken away from her. Officials do not protect the old woman, the debtor has too many connections. Although the old woman is right according to the law, an “insurmountable obstacle” arises where you just need to find the debtor and serve him with the court paper.
The composition of N. Leskov’s work “Old Genius” is based on the stories of her observer. Artistic techniques are irony and sarcasm, sometimes the effect of tragicomedy is created. The author acts as a narrator in the work, creating his own image of a person who sympathizes with the old woman, gives her some money, but also does not believe that she will achieve the truth.
When the old woman is already completely desperate, a certain Ivan Ivanovich appears, who, for a considerable percentage, undertakes to solve the case in an obviously not very legal way. Which he succeeds in doing.
The idea of N. Leskov’s story “Old Genius” is defenselessness weak person before the people in power in a bureaucratic state. Also the idea of the story is Leskov’s idea that if the Law does not protect citizens, the Law is violated. Citizens have to act on their own, and cunning people like the “old genius” have their share of this.
The themes of N. Leskov’s story “The Old Genius” are the theme of bureaucracy, the theme of “ little man”, the theme of Christian philanthropy and conscience, as well as the lack of such among those in power.
First of all, the image of the old woman is interesting. This is a believing woman, she does not wish harm on anyone, even her debtor. She is simple-minded and spontaneous. The old woman does not understand the laws by which rich dandies and officials live: “How can he not be given a summons if his fortune is much greater than he owes us?” – she is perplexed.
The image of the “old genius”: this is a “dark personality”. One can speak about his genius only with a bit of irony. This is a cunning and experienced man, a former official. He just figured out how to catch swindlers, whom neither the Law nor conscience can influence.
He “pushed the old woman’s offender to the wall” with a public scandal at the station and a report to the police, which prevented the debtor from going abroad with his mistress. The image of Ivan Ivanovich in the story is positive, because only this rascal managed to save the old woman and her family from hunger and cold.
The author creates an ironic aura of mystery over the “mysterious plan of the genius of thought” of Ivan Ivanovich. And the plan turns out to be simple: drag the debtor to the police in any way, put him in an awkward position, so that the police “at the same time” serve a summons.
The image of a dandy is conveyed little by little in small details. He is a complete egoist, who is not touched by tears or pleas. Money and connections have left nothing of morality in him; he only intends to have fun and live at the expense of others. The only way to influence a dandy is to publicly interfere with his plans. So is his rich mistress, who ran away at the beginning of the fight at the station.
The image of the narrator was mentioned above. The image of the “Serbian fighter”, a hooligan and a drinker, also turns out to be positive in the story. After all, he is the “executor of the plan” to save the old woman. This soldier has his own ideas about justice. On his way to start a fight once again, he assures the old woman that everything will be “honest and noble.”
Also in the story there is a composite image of officials without names. Leskov very sharply and ironically showed the typical shortcomings of this class. This is uselessness and reluctance to use existing power, or laziness and cowardice to use it, as well as idle talk.
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Nikolai Semenovich Leskov is one of recognized classics Russian literature. The heroes of his works are ordinary Russian people. The writer admired their skill, ingenuity, and intelligence. He condemned the abuse of power, bribery, and bureaucratic “stupidity and obtuseness.” He has short story"Old genius." A pitiful story of an ordinary old landowner. And all the writer’s thoughts that he wanted to convey to the reader seem to be on the surface. But the question remains: why is the story called “The Old Genius”? Let's figure it out.
Summary
The story begins with the fact that the landowner goes to St. Petersburg with a “blatant matter.” Out of the kindness of her heart, she helped the young dandy with money. To do this, she had to mortgage her small house, where a landowner lived with her crippled daughter and little granddaughter. The young man’s mother once knew him and, out of old memory, helped. It turned out to be bad luck.
The landowner is about to lose her house on a mortgage. At first she wrote letters to the “dandy.” But I didn’t receive an answer. Moreover, evil thoughts did not creep into her head. A person in a high position has no time. I had to go to St. Petersburg.
And everything went well at first. The court decided in favor of the old woman. And the dandy was supposed to repay the entire debt in full. But it turned out to be impossible to fulfill this decision. Some connections or relatives prevented him from reining in young man. No one could hand him a court decision against signature.
From this moment the real ordeals of the landowner begin. And the reader can compare the behavior of then and current officials. They are trying to convince the old woman to leave this matter, to forget about everything. Deceived so deceived. You never know who he has deceived. This fact did not console the landowner.
She tried to “grease up” where necessary. Like, “a dry spoon is tearing up your mouth.” Did not work out. She caught the debtor herself. I tried to reason with them and appealed to the public. They dragged her away. Moreover, they arrested me for disturbing the peace in a crowded place.
It seems that this situation will not be resolved legally and correctly. But then the “genius” appears.
An ingenious solution to a complex problem
A certain man offered his services to the old woman. He promised that he would do everything. And, indeed, he did.
A dandy sits in a cafe with his rich lady. They are waiting for trains and drinking tea. Some person passes by. Once, twice, three times. Suitable for a dandy. “Why are you looking at me like that?” - “I’m not looking, I’m drinking tea.” - “Oh, are you drinking tea? So I’ll make you look at me!”
Hit me in the face. A fight ensued. Both the dandy and the man were arrested. And at the police station the young man was forced to sign a paper and return the money. He didn’t want to be banned from traveling abroad.
All this is described in one chapter. Briefly, succinctly. All other chapters are devoted to the ordeals of the landowner. And the reader understands that only a genius could come up with a solution to the problem.
Only real masters put words into the title of a story. deep meaning. Why is Leskov’s work called “Old Genius”? Is it about a genius? Not really. Why did Turgenev call the story “Mumu”? Is it about the dog Mumu? Not really either. The writer invites the reader to think and analyze. And this is true talent.
Questions to consider:
What does Leskov say about genius? Almost nothing.
What is this person's name? He says to the old woman: “Call me Ivan Ivanovich.”
What position does he hold?"A rank of fourteen sheepskins." And only the landowner explains that this is a “fourteenth-grade official.”
What actions did you take? He just asked the old lady for money. Five hundred rubles. Two hundred for yourself, for the idea. Three hundred to the perpetrator, for execution and agreement to serve three months in prison.
The plot of Nikolai Leskov’s story “The Old Genius” is based on a situation that, unfortunately, is typical both for Russia of the 19th century and for Russia today. A rich dandy deceived an old woman by not paying her debt, and now her house is being taken away from her. Officials do not protect the old woman, the debtor has too many connections. Although the old woman is right according to the law, an “insurmountable obstacle” arises where you just need to find the debtor and serve him with the court paper.
The composition of N. Leskov’s work “Old Genius” is based on the stories of her observer. Artistic techniques include irony and sarcasm, sometimes creating a tragicomedy effect. The author acts as a narrator in the work, creating his own image of a person who sympathizes with the old woman, gives her some money, but also does not believe that she will achieve the truth.
When the old woman is already completely desperate, a certain Ivan Ivanovich appears, who, for a considerable percentage, undertakes to solve the case in an obviously not very legal way. Which he succeeds in doing.
The idea of N. Leskov’s story “Old Genius” is the defenselessness of a weak person before power
Prosperous people in a bureaucratic state. Also the idea of the story is Leskov’s idea that if the Law does not protect citizens, the Law is violated. Citizens have to act on their own, and cunning people like the “old genius” have their share of this.
The themes of N. Leskov’s story “The Old Genius” are the theme of bureaucracy, the theme of the “little man,” the theme of Christian philanthropy and conscience, as well as the lack of such among those in power.
Images from N. Leskov’s story “The Old Genius”:
First of all, the image of the old woman is interesting. This is a believing woman, she does not wish harm on anyone, even her debtor. She is simple-minded and spontaneous. The old woman does not understand the laws by which rich dandies and officials live: “How can he not be given a summons if his fortune is much greater than he owes us?” – she is perplexed.
The image of the “old genius”: this is a “dark personality”. One can speak about his genius only with a bit of irony. This is a cunning and experienced man, a former official. He just figured out how to catch swindlers, whom neither the Law nor conscience can influence.
He “pushed the old woman’s offender to the wall” with a public scandal at the station and a report to the police, which prevented the debtor from going abroad with his mistress. The image of Ivan Ivanovich in the story is positive, because only this rascal managed to save the old woman and her family from hunger and cold.
The author creates an ironic aura of mystery over the “mysterious plan of the genius of thought” of Ivan Ivanovich. And the plan turns out to be simple: drag the debtor to the police in any way, put him in an awkward position, so that the police “at the same time” serve a summons.
The image of a dandy is conveyed little by little in small details. He is a complete egoist, who is not touched by tears or pleas. Money and connections have left nothing of morality in him; he only intends to have fun and live at the expense of others. The only way to influence a dandy is to publicly interfere with his plans. So is his rich mistress, who ran away at the beginning of the fight at the station.
The image of the narrator was mentioned above. The image of the “Serbian fighter”, a hooligan and a drinker, also turns out to be positive in the story. After all, he is the “executor of the plan” to save the old woman. This soldier has his own ideas about justice. On his way to start a fight once again, he assures the old woman that everything will be “honest and noble.”
Also in the story there is a composite image of officials without names. Leskov very sharply and ironically showed the typical shortcomings of this class. This is uselessness and reluctance to use existing power, or laziness and cowardice to use it, as well as idle talk.
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Analysis of N. Leskov’s story “Old Genius”
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N. S. Leskov belongs to the generation of writers of the 60–90s. XIX century, who passionately loved Russia, its talented people and actively opposed the oppression of freedom and the suppression of individual freedom. He created essays, novels, stories about the fate of ordinary people, about original historical figures, about abuses of power, and outright predation. Other of his stories formed cycles. These are Christmas stories, quite rare in Russian literature of the 19th century. genre. These are “Christ Visiting the Archer”, “The Darner”, “A Little Mistake”, etc. These include the story “The Old Genius”, written in 1884. The action in it takes place in post-reform Russia, in St. Petersburg. The plot of the story is very simple: deceived by a dishonest high-society dandy, an old landowner who lent him money and mortgaged her house for this purpose comes to the capital to seek justice against him. But that was not the case. The authorities could not help her, and the poor woman had to use the services of an unknown desperate businessman, who turned out to be a decent person and settled this difficult matter. The narrator calls him a “genius.” This story is preceded by an epigraph: “A genius has no years - he overcomes everything that stops ordinary minds.” And in this story, the “genius” overcame what the government could not do. And after all, we were not talking about some kind of omnipotent personality, just about a young, flighty man who belonged to one of the best families, who bothered the authorities with his dishonesty. But the judicial authorities could not even hand him the paper for execution. The author tells the story about this in a simple, as if fairy-tale manner, without clearly condemning anyone or ridiculing anyone. And “the lawyer she met was sympathetic and merciful, and in court the decision was favorable for her at the beginning of the dispute,” and no one took payment from her, then suddenly it turns out there was no way, “it was impossible to rein in” this deceiver because of some “powerful connections” . Thus, N. S. Leskov focuses the reader’s attention on the complete lack of rights of the individual in Russia. But the peculiarity of Leskov’s writing talent is that he also saw the positive beginnings of Russian life, depicted the rich talent of the Russian person, his depth and integrity. In the story “The Old Genius,” this light of goodness is carried by the heroine herself, “a woman of wonderful honesty,” “a kind old woman,” and the narrator, who helped her with the necessary money, and the most important “genius of thought” ─ Ivan Ivanovich. This is a mysterious person who, for some unknown reason, decided to help the unfortunate woman and arranged a very clever situation in which the debtor was simply forced to pay. The favorable outcome of the story occurs at Christmas, and this is no coincidence, since the author believes in the spiritual nature of man, in the righteous of Russian life.
