Late XIX V. Countryside in Russia. The village of Mironositskoye. Veterinarian Ivan Ivanovich Chimsha-Gimalaysky and the Burkin gymnasium teacher, after hunting all day, settle down for the night in the headman’s barn. Burkin tells Ivan Ivanovich the story of the Greek teacher Belikov, with whom he taught in the same gymnasium.
Belikov was known for the fact that “even in good weather he went out in galoshes and with an umbrella and certainly in a warm coat with cotton wool.” Belikov's watch, umbrella, and penknife were put in cases. He wore dark glasses and kept all the locks at home. Belikov sought to create a “case” for himself that would protect him from “ external influences" The only things that were clear to him were the circulars in which something was prohibited. Any deviation from the norm caused him confusion. With his “case” considerations, he oppressed not only the gymnasium, but the entire city. But one day it happened to Belikov strange story: He almost got married.
It happened that a new history and geography teacher, Mikhail Savvich Kovalenko, a young, cheerful man, from the crests, was appointed to the gymnasium. His sister Varenka, about thirty, came with him. She was pretty, tall, rosy-cheeked, cheerful, and sang and danced endlessly. Varenka charmed everyone at the gymnasium, and even Belikov. It was then that the teachers came up with the idea of marrying Belikov and Varenka. Belikov began to be convinced of the need to get married. Varenka began to show him “obvious favor,” and he went for walks with her and kept repeating that “marriage is a serious thing.”
Belikov often visited Kovalenka and would eventually have proposed to Varenka, if not for one incident. Some mischievous person drew a caricature of Belikov, where he was depicted with an umbrella on the arm of Varenka. Copies of the picture were sent to all teachers. This made a very difficult impression on Belikov.
Soon Belikov met Kovalenok riding bicycles on the street. He was extremely indignant at this spectacle, since, in his opinion, it was not proper for a high school teacher and a woman to ride a bicycle. The next day Belikov went to Kovalenki to “ease his soul.” Varenka was not at home. Her brother, being a freedom-loving man, disliked Belikov from the first day. Unable to tolerate his teachings about riding bicycles, Kovalenko simply lowered Belikov down the stairs. At that moment, Varenka and two acquaintances were just entering the entrance. Seeing Belikov rolling down the stairs, she laughed loudly. The thought that the whole city would know about what had happened horrified Belikov so much that he went home, went to bed and died a month later.
When he was lying in the coffin, he had a happy expression on his face. It seemed that he had achieved his ideal, “he was put in a case from which he would never come out. Belikov was buried with a pleasant feeling of liberation. But a week later, life went on as before - “a tedious, stupid life, not prohibited by the circular, but not completely permitted either.”
Burkin finishes the story. Reflecting on what he heard, Ivan Ivanovich says: “Isn’t the fact that we live in a city in a stuffy, cramped environment, writing unnecessary papers, playing vint - isn’t this a case?”
Heroes of Chekhov's story "" help to reveal the problems and the topic that the author wanted to convey to the reader.
"Man in a Case" main characters
Heroes of the "Little Trilogy":
- Ivan Ivanovich Chimsha-Himalayan- veterinarian, nobleman. A tall, thin old man with a long mustache.
- Burkina - gymnasium teacher and friend of I. I. Chimshi-Himalayansky. Tells a story about Belikov. “...Short, fat, completely bald, with a black beard almost waist-length.”
Heroes of Burkina's story:
- Belikov- Greek teacher. He worked together with Burkin at the gymnasium. His favorite phrase: “If only something didn’t work out”
- Cook Afanasy- old man 60 years old. Belikov's drunken and crazy servant.
- Mikhail Savvich Kovalenko- teacher of history and geography. A young, dark, tall man.
- Varenka- Belikov’s beloved, 30 years old. Sister Kovalenko. A tall, slender, black-browed, red-cheeked girl.
The main character of "The Man in the Case"- Belikov seems pleased with his position little man. And why should this person not like his position? He himself created his own world, from which he no longer wants to leave. Little happiness for these little people in this inner world and concludes. They don't care what others think about them. And maybe they are right about this? Belikov spends his entire life in a case. A sweatshirt, dark glasses, and ears stuffed with cotton wool - everything is hidden from people. But the case also contains an umbrella, a watch, and a knife. And Belikov’s house looks like one big case. He dreamed about it - he created it for himself. The whole city is in fear of this man’s strangeness, but he doesn’t understand it at all.
Who are they case people? They surround us everywhere, but few people realize that they can be characterized by such an interesting term. Because not everyone has read the famous story by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, which was called “The Man in a Case.” It was this Russian prose writer-playwright who first in history proposed this type of personality. However, first things first.
Visual image
Anyone who is familiar with knows how rich the world of his works is on human types. Who doesn’t appear in his stories! And conscientious individuals, not satisfied with social laws and with themselves, and narrow-minded ordinary people, and noble dreamers, and opportunistic officials. And images of “case” people also appear. In particular, in the story mentioned above.
The plot of “The Man in a Case” centers on a high school teacher named Belikov. Teaching Greek has long ceased to be needed by anyone. He's very strange. Even if it’s sunny outside, he puts on galoshes, a warm cotton coat with a high collar and takes an umbrella. A mandatory “accessory” is dark glasses. He always stuffs his ears with cotton. He drives a cab, with the top always up. Belikov also keeps everything in cases - an umbrella, a watch, and even a penknife.
But this is just an image. It would seem that the description only says that the person is neat and prudent, maybe even a little pedantic. But it is not without reason that they say that the external manifestation reflects the internal state of a person. And indeed it is.
Personal characteristics
Examples of “case” people encountered in life are reflected in Belikov. He is a mixture of sociopath, paranoid and introvert. He is afraid of all living things. His is: “No matter what happens.” He treats everything that surrounds him with caution and fear. Belikov is not able to think freely, since each of his ideas is in a “case”.
And it would be fine if he were like that in society. But even at home he behaves the same way! He dresses in a long robe and cap, closes the shutters on the windows tightly, snapping the latches. His bed has a canopy, and when Belikov lies down in it, he covers his head with a blanket.
Naturally, he observes all fasts and does not have female servants - fearing that others will suspect him of having relationships with them. Belikov is a real hermit. Which, in literally words, afraid to live.
Consequences
Naturally, such a lifestyle that Belikov leads cannot but affect anything. Who are the case people? These are real hermits who believe that they live quite normally, unlike others. This is also manifested in Chekhov's hero.
At one point he meets Varenka, a girl who is the sister of a new geography and history teacher. She shows an unexpected interest in Belikov. Whom society begins to persuade to marry her. He agrees, despite the fact that thoughts of marriage depress and worry him. Belikov loses weight, turns pale, becomes even more nervous and fearful. And the first thing that worries him the most is the lifestyle of the “bride”.
Who are the case people? Those who cannot understand others due to their detachment. Varenka loves to ride a bike with her brother. And Belikov is sure that this quite common hobby is not normal! Because it is not appropriate for someone who teaches history to young people to ride a bicycle. And the woman on this vehicle looks completely indecent. Belikov did not hesitate to express his thoughts to Varenka’s brother, who cannot stand him. And he threatened to report his hobby to the director of the gymnasium. In response, Varenka’s brother pulled Belikov down the stairs. What's the result? Belikov falls ill - from stress, he is haunted by the thought that someone will find out about his shame. And a month later he dies. This is the end.
Main thought
Well, who these case people are - you can understand from Belikov’s example. And, in principle, Chekhov wanted to convey a simple idea. The prose writer tried to convey to readers that a life “closed” from society only cripples human soul. You can't be outside the rest. We are all members of a single society. Everything that a person has messed up for himself, set up, only fences him off from life. From a reality filled with colors. And indeed it is. Spiritual wretchedness only limits human existence. This is what Chekhov is thinking about in this story.
Modernity
A person of the 21st century who has read Chekhov knows what kind of people are called case people. And he is able to recognize them among the rest. Nowadays they are called introverts. These are people whose mental makeup is characterized by contemplation, isolation and concentration on their own inner world. They are not inclined to communicate with other people - it is difficult for them to establish contact with anyone.
However, to understand the essence of this term, it is enough to turn to etymology. "Introvert" is a word derived from the German introvertiert. Which literally translates as “turned inward.”
I want to describe the main character, Belikov, in Anton Pavlovich Chekhov's story "The Man in a Case". Belikov occupies the main place in the story, since it is about his life, appearance, and how others treat him.
The most ordinary teacher of Greek at the gymnasium, unmarried, lives in a small room. His room is as small as a bear's den, a table and a canopy crib. He also has a cook named Afanasy, about sixty years old. When going to bed, Belikov always covered his head, was afraid of extraneous noises, heard the ominous sighs of Afanasy... He constantly thought that the cook, for no apparent reason, might suddenly kill him... Every night, because of these thoughts, he could not calmly sleep. And in the morning, when I had to go to the gymnasium, I was bored and pale. This is what it means to live a “case life”! Belikov looked very gloomy and monotonous: “he wore dark glasses, a sweatshirt, stuffed his ears with cotton wool, and when he got into the cab, he ordered the top to be raised. In a word, this man had a constant and irresistible desire to surround himself with a shell, to create for himself, so to speak, a case , which would seclude him, protect him from external influences. Reality irritated him, frightened him, kept him in constant anxiety, and, perhaps, in order to justify this timidity, his aversion to the present, he always praised the past, and even then, which never happened; and the ancient languages that he taught were for him, in essence, the same galoshes and an umbrella where he hid from real life."
From these signs one can understand that Belikov is an uncommunicative, suspicious, and modest person.
- Oh, how sonorous, how beautiful the Greek language is! - he said with a sweet expression; and, as if to prove his words, squinting his eye and raising his finger, said:
- Anthropos!
But Belikov’s favorite phrase was: “No matter what happens!” And also, when entering the gymnasium, he constantly repeated to his colleagues: “They are very noisy in our classes.”
Because of his character, Belikov kept the entire gymnasium in fear, and what about the gymnasium, the whole city!!! Imagine, because of him, students were not allowed to go out after nine, and they were forbidden to write about carnal love in articles. People stopped getting to know each other, sending letters... That's how much he influenced the reality around him.
He absolutely loved the language he taught. I devoted my whole life to it! Once, when his future bride Varenka was singing Little Russian romances, he sat down next to her and said, admiringly:
- The Little Russian language, with its tenderness and pleasant sonority, resembles ancient Greek.
As mentioned earlier, he kept the entire city in fear. But not only students, but also teachers, and even the director were afraid of him! The ladies didn’t put on performances on Saturdays, they were afraid, what if he found out! They were afraid to eat or play cards in his presence. Because of people like Belikov, over the last ten to fifteen years the city became like a dead village - no one went out into the street, talked, read books, didn’t help the poor, didn’t teach literacy... Everyone knew that seeing this, Belikov will definitely say: “All this is good, but no matter what happens!” These words of his upset everyone very much. And when he died, everyone breathed a sigh of relief!
With this story, Anton Pavlovich Chekhov wanted to show that people like Belikov are not worth being. What joy is there in the fact that everyone is afraid of you, you are not friends with anyone, you don’t talk? And when you leave for the next world, no one feels sorry for you, no one misses you, but everyone just rejoices and rejoices!
So get to know each other more often, communicate, and your soul will feel better.
"Man in a Case." Greek teacher, lonely elderly man, closed from outside world, cowardly and timid.
History of creation
Anton Chekhov wrote the story “The Man in a Case” in 1898, and in the same year the text was published in the literary and political magazine “Russian Thought”. The story became the first part of the “Little Trilogy” series, which also included Chekhov’s texts “Gooseberry” and “About Love”.
The author conceived the series in the spring and summer of 1898, when he lived in the village of Melikhovo, Moscow region. Chekhov wrote his first story in a month, and at the beginning of June it was already being prepared for publication. Chekhov did not intend to close the series with the story “About Love,” but he fell ill with tuberculosis, the writer’s creative activity fell, and the series was never continued.
Illustration for the story "The Man in the Case" It is not known whether Belikov had a prototype, but some of Chekhov’s contemporaries believed that the prototype of the hero was a certain Alexander Dyakonov, an inspector at a Taganrog gymnasium. According to another version, in the image of Belikov, Chekhov described the then famous conservative publicist Mikhail Menshikov. However, researchers note that the similarities between Belikov and Menshikov are exclusively external. Most likely, Belikov is a collective image.
In 1939, the Belarusfilm studio released the film “The Man in a Case,” directed by Isidor Annensky. The role of Belikov was played by actor Nikolai Khmelev.
The story "The Man in the Case"
Belikov is an elderly Greek teacher whose full name unknown. The hero is well over forty, he has a pale small face, similar to the muzzle of a ferret. Belikov wears dark glasses and hides his face behind a raised collar, and plugs his ears with cotton wool. At times, a faint crooked smile appears on the hero’s face, and Belikov’s figure looks crooked and small, as if he was “pulled out with pincers” from somewhere. Even in warm and clear weather, the hero wears a coat with cotton wool, galoshes and an umbrella and strives to dress warmly even in summer.
The hero prefers loneliness and strives to isolate himself from the world around him, to create a protective shell around himself, a kind of “case”, inside which the hero will be protected from external influences. The writer also calls Belikov’s thoughts “case-like” - narrow. The hero’s “case considerations” make a depressing impression on those around him.
Things belonging to Belikov are also stored in cases. The hero keeps everything in a case - an umbrella, a watch, which is kept in a gray suede case, and the hero even takes out a penknife for sharpening pencils from its case.
Belikov has a suspicious character. What is happening around causes anxiety in the hero, frightens and irritates him. Belikov's favorite phrase; “No matter what happens,” sounds in the hero’s speech on any occasion. To take a break from the disgusting and disturbing reality, the hero studies ancient languages, loves to remember the past and praise morals and customs that never really existed.
According to Belikov, “something can come of it” from any innocent undertaking. The hero is upset when a new drama club or teahouse opens in the city, because any innovation can end badly. Belikov was depressed by deviations from the rules, even if what was happening had nothing to do with him direct relationship. The hero began to worry when he heard about the mischief of schoolchildren or the love affairs of an outside class lady.
Belikov worked at the gymnasium for fifteen years, and all this time he oppressed those around him with his own presence. The hero creates an atmosphere of increased anxiety at teachers' meetings, worrying that information that, for example, students are making noise in the classrooms will not reach the authorities. Belikov treats his superiors with great respect and demands the same from those around him. Belikov is feared and listened to by his colleagues and even the director of the gymnasium. A suffocating atmosphere is formed around the hero, “like in a police box.” Some colleagues consider Belikov an informer.
Still from the film adaptation of "The Man in a Case" Outside of work, Belikov behaves no better. The hero goes out into society and visits acquaintances, but these visits are difficult for him and Belikov makes them only for the sake of decency. In the city they are afraid of Belikov, ladies are afraid to organize home performances on Saturdays, people are afraid to even send letters or raise their voices. And the hero himself is afraid public opinion and therefore he does not keep female servants at home and even in food he is guided not by his own tastes, but by what people will think if they see him at a meal.
Belikov is constantly afraid of everything and even in own apartment cannot sleep peacefully: he fears for his own fate, because he thinks that either the servant will stab him in his sleep, or thieves will break into the house. The hero's apartment itself looks like a box. Small bedroom, four-poster bed, latches and shutters everywhere. The hero is afraid of people to such an extent that it is difficult for him to walk next to someone, and the crowded gymnasium where Belikov works also causes fear in him.
One day Belikov happened to fall in love. This happened after meeting Varya, the sister of one of Belikov’s young colleagues. However, this relationship ends in nothing. The hero is afraid to get married because “something might not happen,” and the girl’s brother one day kicks Belikov out of the apartment and lowers him down the stairs. This humiliating scene takes place in front of Varya. The humiliated Belikov returns home, goes to bed and never gets up again, and a month later he dies, thus completing his sad biography. According to modern experts, Chekhov's Belikov is a classic psychasthenic.
Quotes
“It is a great pleasure to bury people like Belikov.”
“It’s all wonderful, but no matter what happens.”
“You get married, and then what good will you end up in some kind of story.”
“The Little Russian language, with its tenderness and pleasant sonority, is reminiscent of ancient Greek.”
