A young man of twenty-six years old is a petty official who has been living for eight years in St. Petersburg in the 1840s, in one of the apartment buildings along the Catherine Canal, in a room with cobwebs and smoky walls. After service, his favorite pastime is walking around the city. He notices passers-by and houses, some of them become his “friends”. However, he has almost no acquaintances among people. He is poor and lonely. With sadness, he watches as the residents of St. Petersburg gather for their dacha. He has nowhere to go. Going out of town, he enjoys the northern spring nature, who looks like a “sick and sick” girl, who for one moment becomes “wonderfully beautiful.”
Returning home at ten in the evening, the hero sees a female figure at the canal grate and hears sobbing. Sympathy prompts him to make an acquaintance, but the girl timidly runs away. A drunk man tries to pester her, and only a “bough stick”, which ends up in the hero’s hand, saves the pretty stranger. They talk to each other. The young man admits that before he knew only “housewives,” but he never spoke to “women” and therefore is very timid. This calms down the fellow traveler. She listens to the story about the “romances” that the guide created in his dreams, about falling in love with ideal fictional images, about the hope of someday meeting in reality a girl worthy of love. But now she’s almost home and wants to say goodbye. The dreamer begs for new meeting. The girl “needs to be here for herself,” and she does not mind the presence of a new acquaintance tomorrow at the same hour in the same place. Her condition is “friendship”, “but you can’t fall in love.” Like the Dreamer, she needs someone to trust, someone to ask for advice.
On their second meeting, they decide to listen to each other's "stories". The hero begins. It turns out that he is a “type”: in the “strange corners of St. Petersburg” live “neuter creatures” like him - “dreamers” - whose “life is a mixture of something purely fantastic, ardently ideal and at the same time dull prosaic and ordinary " They are afraid of the company of living people, as they spend long hours among “magical ghosts”, in “ecstatic dreams”, in imaginary “adventures”. “You speak as if you are reading a book,” Nastenka guesses the source of the plots and images of her interlocutor: the works of Hoffmann, Merimee, V. Scott, Pushkin. After intoxicating, “voluptuous” dreams, it is painful to wake up in “loneliness”, in your “musty, unnecessary life.” The girl feels sorry for her friend, and he himself understands that “such a life is a crime and a sin.” After the “fantastic nights,” he already “has moments of sobering that are terrible.” “Dreams survive,” the soul wants “real life.” Nastenka promises the Dreamer that now they will be together. And here is her confession. She is an orphan. Lives with an old blind grandmother in a small house of her own. Until the age of fifteen I studied with a teacher, and two last year sits, “pinned” with a pin to the dress of her grandmother, who otherwise cannot keep track of her. A year ago they had a tenant, a young man of “pleasant appearance.” He gave his young mistress books by V. Scott, Pushkin and other authors. He invited them and their grandmother to the theater. The opera “The Barber of Seville” was especially memorable. When he announced that he was leaving, the poor recluse decided on a desperate act: she gathered her things in a bundle, came to the tenant’s room, sat down and “cryed in three streams.” Fortunately, he understood everything, and most importantly, he managed to fall in love with Nastenka. But he was poor and without a “decent place,” and therefore could not get married right away. They agreed that exactly a year later, having returned from Moscow, where he hoped to “arrange his affairs,” the young man would wait for his bride on a bench near the canal at ten o’clock in the evening. A year has passed. He has been in St. Petersburg for three days already. He is not at the appointed place... Now the hero understands the reason for the girl’s tears on the evening of their acquaintance. Trying to help, he volunteers to deliver her letter to the groom, which he does the next day.
Because of the rain, the third meeting of the heroes occurs only through the night. Nastenka is afraid that the groom will not come again, and cannot hide her excitement from her friend. She dreams feverishly about the future. The hero is sad because he himself loves the girl. And yet the Dreamer has enough selflessness to console and reassure the despondent Nastenka. Touched, the girl compares the groom with a new friend: “Why is he not you?.. He is worse than you, even though I love him more than you.” And he continues to dream: “Why aren’t we all like brothers and brothers? Why the most best person always seems to be hiding something from the other and is silent from him? everyone looks like that, as if he is harsher than he really is...” Gratefully accepting the Dreamer’s sacrifice, Nastenka also shows concern for him: “you are getting better,” “you will fall in love...” “God grant you happiness with her!” In addition, now her friendship is with the hero forever.
And finally the fourth night. The girl finally felt abandoned “inhumanly” and “cruelly.” The dreamer again offers help: go to the offender and force him to “respect” Nastenka’s feelings. However, pride awakens in her: she no longer loves the deceiver and will try to forget him. The “barbaric” act of the tenant sets off moral beauty friend sitting next to him: “You wouldn’t do that? Wouldn’t you throw someone who would come to you on her own into the eyes of shameless mockery of her weak, stupid heart?” The dreamer no longer has the right to hide the truth that the girl has already guessed: “I love you, Nastenka!” He doesn’t want to “torment” her with his “selfishness” in a bitter moment, but what if his love turns out to be necessary? And indeed, the answer is: “I don’t love him, because I can only love what is generous, what understands me, what is noble...” If the Dreamer waits until the previous feelings completely subside, then the girl’s gratitude and love will go to him alone . Young people joyfully dream of a future together. At the moment of their farewell, the groom suddenly appears. Screaming and trembling, Nastenka breaks free from the hero’s hands and rushes towards him. Already, it would seem, a fulfilling hope for happiness, for true life leaves the Dreamer. He silently looks after the lovers.
The next morning, the hero receives a letter from the happy girl asking for forgiveness for the involuntary deception and with gratitude for his love, which “cured” her “broken heart.” One of these days she is getting married. But her feelings are contradictory: “Oh God! If only I could love you both at once!” And yet the Dreamer must remain “eternally a friend, brother...”. Again he is alone in a suddenly “old” room. But even fifteen years later he remembers his life with tenderness. short-lived love: “May you be blessed for the minute of bliss and happiness that you gave to another, lonely, grateful heart! A whole minute of bliss! Is this really not enough for even a person’s entire life?..”
The novel “White Nights” was written by Dostoevsky at a fairly young age - at 26 years old (in 1848). And it is considered one of the most lyrical, sentimental works of the writer. The volume is quite small, the novel consists of 5 chapters - 4 nights and one morning. The narration is told in the first person, on behalf of the Dreamer - a young man so immersed in the world of his fantasies that he almost completely lives in them. In this article you will find summary books.
So, a summary of the chapters
Chapter "Night One"
In Chapter 1, the Dreamer admires the beautiful white night, and the sky is so “bright and starry” that it seems that there should be no capricious or angry people under it. However, our hero himself objectively notes that sometimes he behaves inappropriately.
Next we learn that he has been living in St. Petersburg for 8 years, but has never made any acquaintances. All his acquaintances are people whom he meets on the streets, but the Dreamer’s relationships with them are fictitious. He “sort of” greets, “sort of” talks to them, but in reality they are still the same strangers. In his imagination, he communicates not only with people, but also with houses.
In the last three days, our hero has been especially lonely, because his “friends,” as he thinks, have gone to their dachas, and while walking along the streets, he hardly met any familiar faces. “The whole of St. Petersburg threatened to turn into a desert” because of this, and the Dreamer did not have any dacha.
And so, he reached the outpost and went beyond it. The city ended, and the Dreamer found himself among meadows and fields. Nature amazed him so much that for a moment it seemed to our hero that he was in Italy.
Next, the author describes the nature of St. Petersburg and compares it with a sickly girl who suddenly blossoms for a moment and becomes filled with life. But this brief moment passes, and here again she is pale and barely alive. You understand that her beauty was deceptive, vain, and “you didn’t have time to love her.”
And closer to night, an adventure happened to the Dreamer. He was returning home after a walk in the countryside and on the bridge in front of the canal he met a girl who was crying, leaning on the railing. The young man wanted to call out to her, but while he was overcoming his shyness, the girl left. He followed her and saved her from the advances of some drunken gentleman. The young man accompanies her, and they begin a conversation. The dreamer tells the stranger about his loneliness and timidity, but the girl does not find this repulsive, and they agree to meet tomorrow.
Chapter "Night Two"
Meeting with yesterday's stranger. She asks the Dreamer about his life, wants to know “all the ins and outs,” because she understands that it is reckless to meet a stranger.
The dreamer is frightened by such a question, says that he lives alone all the time and especially should tell him and nothing.
The girl says that she has a blind grandmother who literally pins her dress to hers so that she doesn’t run away. And the reader finally finds out that the stranger’s name is Nastenka.
Next, the Dreamer talks about himself. What he unusual person that there are such strange creatures- dreamers who prefer to settle in inaccessible places, the walls there must certainly be painted green. They have no friends or acquaintances; those who appear briefly quickly disappear. Because of the eccentricities of dreamers, because of their inability to conduct small talk. In general, due to a complete lack of social skills, as a psychologist would say. But Nastenka likes this strange story. And our hero says that he also has daily chores that he wants to finish as soon as possible. And when they finally end, the Dreamer can plunge into a world of fantasy. This is it for him real life. Coming home, he is so immersed in his dream world that sometimes he does not notice that he has already eaten dinner prepared by his maid, Matryona.
The hero says that he dreams about a variety of things - about how he became a great poet, and about friendship with famous people(Hoffman is mentioned), and about participation in historical events, even introduces Cleopatra and her lovers. Real life seems poor and pitiful to him, so in his fantasies he creates magical worlds and becomes the artist of his own existence. And these dreams are experienced as if in reality. And he also comes up with stories of passionate love with his own participation.
Nastenka listened to him carefully and said that one cannot live only in dreams all the time. Just like she can’t spend her whole life next to her blind grandmother. And the Dreamer agrees with her. Since his soul has been asking for something else for a long time, and his fantasies no longer excite his heart as before: “after all, even dreams survive.” His story touched Nastenka, and she invites them to always be together, never to part. And he tells his story.
Nastenka's story
She is 17 years old, an orphan and is being raised by her grandmother. Her grandmother taught her French and hired her a home teacher. Nastenka completed her studies at the age of 15. And at the same time she committed some kind of offense, for which her grandmother gave her a punishment - to sit, pinned with a pin, next to her.
They live in a small house with a mezzanine. The mezzanine is rented out to tenants because they need money. And a young guest of good appearance settled with them. They communicate a little with the girl, and he and the maid also began to send them books so that Nastenka could read them to her grandmother. And they read Walter Scott, Pushkin, and our heroine fell in love with reading.
And then one day she met a tenant on the stairs, and he invited her to the theater secretly from her grandmother. Nastenka refused. And then the tenant called them and their grandmother to “ Barber of Seville" Nastenka really liked the performance, but for some reason the tenant almost stopped communicating with her, only they went to the theater a couple more times. And this upset the girl very much, she began to feel like she was in prison, pinned to her grandmother’s skirt, she cried a lot, and lost weight. Fell in love with this young man. And after some time, he informed them that he was leaving back to Moscow, having finished all his business in St. Petersburg. And Nastenka decided to go with him, collected her belongings and went to confess her feelings to him. But he replied that he was a poor man and now he would not be able to take her with him to get married. So she should wait a year, and then maybe. But he cannot give her words. And after this conversation he left.
A year passed, the tenant and Nastenka agreed to meet on a bench near the bridge, just where the Dreamer met her. But the groom does not show himself to her, although Nastenka knows that he is in the city. And this upsets her to tears. Therefore, the Dreamer advises writing him a letter and even offers his own text. But it turns out that the girl has already prepared the letter and asks the young man to give it to the tenant. He agrees. Transmits.
Chapter "Night Three"
It rains that night, so the meeting between Nastenka and the Dreamer did not take place. The young man understands that he loves Nastenka, but his feelings are not mutual, her heart is given to someone else. He remembers their previous date. Nastenka is sure that her lover will come, so she is joyful and animated. She does not see the Dreamer’s feelings for her, she says that when she gets married, their friendship will continue and the young man will become like a brother to her. They wait, the girl chats animatedly, but in reality she is desperately afraid that the tenant will not come. He doesn't come. She asks the young man to go again to the address where he sent the letter and find out if there is an answer. The dreamer, wanting to console her, says that maybe this man will come tomorrow. And now tomorrow has come, the young man is waiting alone on the bench and thinks that they are already together. And he is alone again.
Chapter "Night Four"
On the next white night, the Dreamer comes to the appointed place, Nastenka demands a letter from her lover. He reports that there was no letter, the girl bursts into tears. He consoles her and confesses his love to her. Nastenka asks him to wait a little, her feelings for another man should cool down. They begin to make plans, the girl invites the Dreamer to rent their mezzanine in order to be closer to her, they are planning a trip to the theater. And then the one for whom they have already stopped waiting appears, Nastenka’s beloved. She rushes to him and the loving couple leaves. The dreamer is left alone again.
Chapter 5, last, "Morning"
The day was cloudy and raining. The dreamer receives a letter from Nastenka - with an apology, with gratitude for his love and with a message about his wedding with the tenant. She asks him to remain friends. The young man’s eyes dimmed; the world around him seemed to have aged. He suddenly realized that nothing would change in his life - and in 15 years he would still live here, with his stupid maid Matryona. But he feels grateful to Nastenka for those brief bright moments of hope and love that he experienced next to her.
“A whole minute of bliss! Is this really not enough for a person’s entire life?” - these words end the novel “White Nights”.
The summary presented in this article can be used to reader's diary.
"White Nights". Brief summary of the work
First night
The hero of the story is called the Dreamer, but we never learn his real name. He has been living in the city on the Neva for about 8 years, but is still single. The dreamer is the young one educated person with a very romantic state of mind. Wandering around the city one spring night, he accidentally meets a girl bending over the water and crying. Noticing him, she quickly leaves her place, and Dreamer continues to follow her. A summary of “White Nights” will allow you to plunge into the mysterious atmosphere of the work.
Following the girl, the Dreamer begins to rejoice at the approaching acquaintance. He saves her from a drunk man and makes an appointment. For some reason she warns him not to fall in love with her.
Second night
The next day comes. The young man is waiting for the approaching date, and now they are already walking along the alleys, and the Dreamer tells her about himself. Nastenka, that’s the girl’s name, is amazed by his story. She believes that it is impossible to live alone and promises that she will not leave him.
Later, from her story, he learns that a blind grandmother lives with her. One day a young tenant settled in the house of Nastenka and her grandmother. He bothered them interesting novels Voltaire, Pushkin, invited the girl to the theater. And she understood that she was in love, but the tenant began to avoid her and went to Moscow for a year.
It turns out that exactly a year has passed, and the beloved has already been in the city for several days. The dreamer offers to take the letter to the specified address.
Third night
The letter has been sent to the addressee. Nastenka arrived much earlier than the appointed time for the meeting, she waited until last moment, but the young man never came. The girl is confused. She says to Dreamer, "Why isn't he like you?" He reassures the young girl in love and promises to visit this man again. White nights (a summary of the story of the same name is presented above) continue to give happiness to our hero.
Fourth night
Nastenka is again waiting for her tenant, but he is still not there. Having lost all hope, the girl begins to cry. Here the Dreamer confesses his love to her, and she agrees to marriage. The time of parting comes and a young man unexpectedly appears. Our hero watches them both walk away, happy...
In the morning he receives a letter in which he sees a familiar handwriting. The girl asks him for forgiveness, but he does not hold a grudge against her and wishes her great happiness.
The story "White Nights", a brief summary of which helps to learn the features of the plot, was written in a romantic style. The mysterious image of St. Petersburg could not help but bring two people disillusioned with life together, but the white nights end and people run away.
“White Nights”: a summary of Dostoevsky’s story
The hero of "White Nights", on whose behalf the story is told, is a young man, a petty official, whose annual salary of only one thousand two hundred rubles is not enough to afford to get married. This poor service man, who has neither property nor connections in St. Petersburg, is a typical intellectual for Dostoevsky. Dostoevsky himself for some time led the life of a minor employee - when he worked as a draftsman in the St. Petersburg engineering team. During his life, Fyodor Mikhailovich wrote about thirty works of art, in a third of them the main character is an official - probably because this was the type most known to the writer.
Dostoevsky’s “poor officials” are people of low status, their work is uninteresting and boring. None of them like her, they wait for the end of the working day, like schoolchildren. At the same time, these poor officials - like Dostoevsky himself and his friends - are not without a poetic feeling in their souls, they are in the grip of beautiful and unrealistic dreams, and they need understanding friends to whom they could pour out their souls. Starting with the petty official Makar Devushkin, the hero of Dostoevsky’s first work “Poor People,” who dreams of becoming a poet, this paradigm does not change. The hero of "White Nights" is also a "dreamer", he hates service - he sleeps and dreams of how to escape from it. After the service he wanders late into the night all alone and without any visible goal in summer Petersburg, over which white nights stand, he dreams of finding a friend who would listen to his cherished thoughts. At the same time, the houses come to life, from those with whom he is on friendly terms, the hero hears: “Hello; How is your health? and I, thank God, am healthy, and in the month of May they will add a second floor to me”; “How is your health? and I’ll be repaired tomorrow,” etc. These are the “conversations” that a young man has in the depths of his soul.
In this type of lonely dreamer wandering around the city, the readers of that time - young Russian intellectuals - recognized themselves, and he aroused their sympathy.
And then one evening this young man, hungry for a conversation with a “friend,” suddenly accidentally meets Nastenka on the bank of the canal, a seventeen-year-old girl, pure and beautiful, who also needs a “friend.”
In the same place and at the same evening hour they meet the next day and the next. A young dreamer, who has never met someone who would listen to him, enthusiastically and tirelessly talks about his dreams, thoughts and feelings. Nastenka, as if dissolving in this monologue, forgetting about everything in the world, listens sympathetically to his confessions.
In the end, she herself begins to talk about herself. She lives with her blind grandmother. Some time ago, a young tenant rented a room in their house and promised to marry her. However, for some business he had to leave for Moscow for a year. He promised to contact her immediately upon his return. And now a year has passed, she knows for sure that he is in St. Petersburg, but he does not appear in her house and does not even make himself known.
A dreamer, although he is passionately in love with Nastenka, like his elder brother younger sister, agrees to deliver Nastenka’s letter to her lover. However, there is still no answer from him. And then on the fourth evening Nastenka, seemingly breaking up with him, invites the Dreamer to move into their house as a new tenant. The Dreamer's happiness knows no bounds. But at this very moment, this very young man passes next to them, like a black shadow. And then Nastenka immediately rushes into his arms.
At the very end of the story, the Dreamer, being in his room and in the darkest mood, receives a message from Nastenka, in which she calls the Dreamer her friend and brother. The dreamer promises to pray for her happiness and remembers the happy moments spent next to her. "My God! A whole minute of bliss! Is this really not enough for a person’s entire life?” - he exclaims.
“White Nights”: analysis of Dostoevsky’s story
“White Nights” is a narrative full of high lyricism, which one would like to call an urban version of “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka.” This is also a walk around St. Petersburg, this is also a “declaration of love”, characteristic of the young Dostoevsky.
There is no taste of everyday life in “White Nights”; even though this is love story, there is no doubt or jealousy here. It's like a guide to how hot and pure love and selfless friendship. If you look at the dirty love emotions described in The Brothers Karamazov, you will ask the question: is the authorship of these two works owned by the same person?
The love presented in White Nights is the same perfect love, which the young Dostoevsky and his contemporaries - poor educated young men - dreamed of. For the sake of the woman you love, you are ready to be an errand boy, you are ready to sacrifice yourself and pray from afar for her happiness - this is the kind of love, as if copied from novels for girls, and was presented as the ideal of love. Soviet literary critic Komarovich, answering the question of why Dostoevsky worshiped such a sugary ideal, analyzes the ideological background of that time.
In the 40s years XIX V. Russian intelligent youth, including Dostoevsky himself, were captivated by the French utopians, whose core belief was to become excellent sacrificers, ready to give up themselves for the sake of love for other people; they believed that self-sacrifice was highest manifestation love. These ideas sank deeply into Dostoevsky’s soul, they determined the type of love characteristic of him, to which he remained faithful from his youth to the end of his life (see: V. L. Komarovich. “Dostoevsky’s Youth”).
After his Siberian exile, Fyodor Mikhailovich wrote “The Humiliated and Insulted.” In this work he brought out the writer, who is undoubtedly his self-portrait. And here, too, Dostoevsky gave the writer the role of a sacrificer who makes every effort to ensure that a relationship develops between the woman he loves and another man, i.e. his rival. Because he sacrifices himself, the writer experiences a special secret sweetness. It turns out that sacrificing oneself is proof of the purity of love.
In Siberia, Dostoevsky fell in love with Maria Isaeva, who was married. Subsequently, they got married, but for some time their relationship developed within the framework of the specified love paradigm. Fyodor Mikhailovich quite seriously abandoned her in favor of the young teacher Nikolai Vergunov, who courted her.
In "Winter Notes on summer impressions"Dostoevsky writes somewhat boringly about psychological aspects love and emphasizes that sacrifice, not forced by anyone, is the highest manifestation of love, and that not the slightest manifestation of selfishness should be allowed.
It is amazing that, despite the terrible ten-year exile and two marriages, Fyodor Mikhailovich still remained faithful to his youthful ideal of sacrificial love. The reason for this constancy is, in all likelihood, that Dostoevsky’s soul loved suffering, which implies admiration for sacrificial love. As is clear from “A Weak Heart,” he admired the ideal of beautiful love-friendship, but was afraid of its implementation; he suffered from a kind of “phobia” in relation to the realization of his dreams. When the Dreamer stands on the threshold of his happiness, a black shadow appears and Nastenka leaves him. What is this if not fear of implementation? Dostoevsky wanted happiness, but he did not want it to come true.
Dostoevsky was not a practical person who has a definite goal, and under the influence of experience and circumstances remakes himself anew. No, from the very beginning he has a certain dream or idea, he sees the world only through the prism of his dream, and this obsession attracts him.
The dreamer from “White Nights” bows to beautiful friendship-love, and he finds a friend in Nastenka. But this same admiration forces him to sacrifice himself, and he is left alone. He is a prisoner of his ideas about friendship and love, and he cannot get out of this trap.
The story “White Nights” by Dostoevsky was written in 1848 and published in the literary magazine “Otechestvennye zapiski”. The phrase “white nights” indicates a certain unreality, fantastic nature of the plot, and also that the setting of the story is St. Petersburg.
Main characters
Dreamer- a young, poor official, a lonely and sensitive person who is used to leaving real world into your fantasies.
Nastenka- a young, inexperienced girl, a big dreamer, a kindred spirit of the Dreamer.
Other characters
Grandmother- Nastenka’s own grandmother, who raised the girl after the death of her parents.
Guest- Nastenka’s fiancé, a pragmatic and sensible young man.
Night one
The narrator is a young official who has been living in St. Petersburg for eight years, but during this time he has not made “almost a single acquaintance.” IN free time he leisurely walks around the city, looking at passers-by.
With the onset of warm weather, the city became noticeably deserted, and young man it seems that “all of St. Petersburg rose up and suddenly left for the dacha.”
Looking at the endless processions of carts, “loaded with whole mountains of all kinds of furniture,” the young man feels endless loneliness in his soul. He would not mind going out of town with other vacationers, but he “had absolutely nowhere to go and there was no need to go to the dacha.”
He finds joy in walks, admiring the blossoming nature of spring. At such moments, he indulges in romantic dreams with special rapture.
One day, returning home after a long walk in the country, the hero meets a girl who is crying bitterly on the bank of a canal. He is overcome by the desire to reassure the stranger, but self-doubt takes over, and the young man only timidly watches her.
Frightened, the girl quickly leaves, and the young man follows, reproaching himself for his indecision. An incident comes to his aid when a drunk passer-by begins to pester the girl. With a stick in his hands, the hero drives away the impudent man and offers the frightened girl his services as a guide.
Glancing briefly at his companion, the young man notices that “she was pretty and brunette.” He begs for a new meeting, and the girl agrees, only on the condition that he will not consider this a romantic date and will not fall in love with her.
Night two
When they meet, Nastenka—that’s the girl’s name—asks the hero to tell about himself “in the most detailed way.” Fulfilling her wish, the young man shares his secret: he is a Dreamer, who is even “terrified to think about the future.” In reality, the young man is very lonely, and he is oppressed by his own “musty, unnecessary life.” He dreams only of meeting a kindred spirit, and Nastenka reassures him that now he has a friend. Having completely trusted her new acquaintance, the girl tells her life story
Nastenka's story
Seventeen-year-old Nastenka was left an orphan in early childhood, and her grandmother took up her upbringing. Until the age of fifteen, the girl studied with teachers hired by her grandmother, thanks to which she received a very good education.
They lived by renting out the mezzanine of their small two-story house. One day a new tenant settled in, who invited his grandmother to freely use his rich library.
After talking with Nastenka, the guest was very surprised that she spends all her time with her grandmother, and she has no friends at all “to whom she could go to visit.” He invited the housewives to the theater several times, and Nastenka herself did not notice how she fell in love with the young man.
“Exactly a year ago, in the month of May,” the lodger informed his grandmother that he was forced to leave for Moscow for work reasons. Having learned about this, Nastenka gathered all her things into a bundle and invited the young man to go with him.
A touching scene took place between the lovers, and in the end they agreed to meet exactly a year later on the embankment at ten o’clock in the evening.
Found the dreamer on the embankment crying girl just at the moment when she found out that her beloved had returned, “but for the third day now there has been neither a letter nor him.” The young man suggested that Nastenka write a letter and volunteered to give it to the lovers’ mutual acquaintances.
Night three
The next day, the hero, as promised, took Nastenka’s letter to the indicated address. The girl invited the Dreamer to come at ten o'clock in the evening to share her joy with her.
Looking forward to the arrival of the groom, Nastenka “became somehow unusually talkative, cheerful, playful.” She addressed the young man kindly, and was very grateful to him for not falling in love with her and thus not ruining their tender friendship.
In high spirits, Nastenka began enthusiastically making plans for her life, not noticing with what eyes the loving Dreamer was looking at her. However, not a trace remained of the girl’s joy when the chimes struck eleven o’clock - her groom never showed up.
However, the hero managed to calm Nastenka and assure her of a successful outcome of the matter.
Night four
Arriving at the embankment at nine o'clock in the evening, the Dreamer finds a girl there. He admits that he never heard back from her fiancé. Nastenka is immensely upset and offended in her feelings. She sincerely does not understand how the groom could “insult, offend, a poor, defenseless girl, who is to blame for loving him.”
The dreamer tried to console her, but all in vain. The girl says she doesn't like it anymore evil man, who so vilely deceived her.
At this moment the young man feels that he “must finally speak, express” his true feelings for Nastenka. He confesses his love to her, and in response, along with reproaches, he is surprised to hear Nastenka’s reciprocal confession. The girl sees that he is much better than her fiancé, but cannot yet reciprocate his feelings. She invites the Dreamer to move into their empty mezzanine and, perhaps, over time, she will be able to love him as much as he loves her.
Young people, “as if in a daze, in a fog,” begin to dream about a future together. But at that moment a man approached them, and Nastenka recognized him as her fiancé. She quickly “fluttered towards him,” leaving the Dreamer, who had no choice but to watch with bitterness the touching meeting of lovers.
Morning
The next morning was cloudy. It began to rain, knocking sadly on the Dreamer's windows. He was very sick and dizzy - this was “a fever creeping in” on the unlucky lover.
The hero received an enthusiastic letter from Nastenka, in which she asked to forgive her and admitted that his love for her “was imprinted like sweet Dreams, which you remember for a long time after waking up.” She also said that she was getting married in a week and would really like for the Dreamer and her fiance to meet and become friends.
The hero re-read this letter for a long time. The “unwelcoming and sad whole prospect” of his joyless life flashed before his eyes, which even after fifteen years is unlikely to change for the better.
However, the Dreamer does not reproach Nastenka. On the contrary, he is grateful to her “for a moment of bliss and happiness,” the memory of which he will carry throughout his life.
Conclusion
Dostoevsky defined the genre of his work as a sentimental novel, thereby placing emphasis on the emotional experiences of the characters, their emotions and feelings. But, despite the lightness and apparent simplicity of the story, it touches on important philosophical questions about love and happiness.
A brief retelling of “White Nights” will be especially useful for the reader’s diary. After reading it, we recommend reading Dostoevsky’s story in its full version.
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