The poem "General Toptygin" was written by the poet Nekrasov in the period from 1867 to 1873. It was based on a folk joke about how a ranger mistook a bear riding in a sleigh for an important military commander and before that got scared before him that he did not even immediately see that he was dealing with a beast, and not with a person. However, this folk comedy story under the poet's pen was filled with accusatory pathos, however, it was skillfully hidden behind a folk speech and a funny story.
Introduction
The work "General Toptygin" begins with a description of a winter village evening. The author in a few words draws a familiar familiar picture of the village along which the coachman rides in a sleigh.
The poet recreates the picture of the Russian road along which the three horses ride - a traditional image in 19th-century Russian literature. Horses are ruled by a young guy named Fedya. On the way, he meets counselor Tryphon, who leads a bear with him. The coachman sets both of them up, and after a while they decide to go into the tavern. They leave the beast alone, and they themselves go to the drinking establishment.
Adventure
The new composition of the poet “General Toptygin” is distinguished by a subtle good-natured humor, which obscures the accusatory notes that the author put into his lines. In fact, the incident narrated by Nekrasov is too amusing to emphasize on his criticism of the flaws in the social reality of the state when analyzing it.
The beginning of the incident was pure coincidence: the bear made a careless move, barked, the horses got scared and rushed forward at great speed. Nekrasov intentionally emphasizes that before the horse rode quietly and calmly, as they were tired, and the coachman did not drive them much. But now they were so frightened of the roar of their new rider that they raced along the road with all their might, despite the potholes and bumps encountered on the way. People passing by decided that an important person like a boss was riding in a sleigh, and therefore the poem was called General Toptygin. Thus, the bear drove straight to the post station. It was night already, and the caretaker did not make out in the dark who was actually his guest.
The incident at the inn
The comic situation was that the venerable old man was not embarrassed by the fact that the rider howled and growled. The first decided that his visitor was angry and very scared. Despite his fear, he nevertheless began to offer the bear tea and vodka, while the people around him watched with curiosity what they mistook for the boss.
Nekrasov paid much attention to the reaction of ordinary people to the incident. "General Toptygin" is a small verse that presents a small sketch from Russian village life. The poet describes different people: those who were bolder decided to approach the sleigh to look at an important person, those who were afraid were left behind. The comedic situation was aggravated by the fact that the silence of the rider did not seem strange to anyone. He just tossed and turned in a sleigh and growled like a bear. In these lines you can feel the irony of the author over important important people.
Denouement
The poem “General Toptygin”, the summary of which became the subject of this review, ends with the fact that the fleeing coachman and counselor explained the situation to the gathered people and drove the bear out of the sleigh. In the end, the poet again missed a subtle irony over his heroes, in a few words indicating that the keeper called the coachman. This work is traditionally one of the children's poems, but it can be very interesting for adults as well, because, firstly, it is rather funny, and secondly, it depicts in miniature a picture of village life, the Russian hinterland of the second half 19 century.