Leonid Andreyev is considered the founder of Russian expressionism of the writer of the late 19th - early 20th century. “Angel” is a writer’s software product, which is a small Christmas story.
About the work
The work was dedicated to the wife of the writer Alexandra Mikhailovna Veligorskaya and has an autobiographical basis. As a child, L. N. Andreev saw how a similar Christmas angel melted, which was described in the story. Using the fragility of a wax angel, the writer shows how fleeting the happiness of disadvantaged and humiliated people is. You can also correlate the toy with the image of a guardian angel.
Blok praised Andreev’s work and in 1909 wrote based on his poem “The Leaf Angel”. In addition, the poet compared Andreev's work with the story "Dostoevsky's Boy at Christ at the Christmas Tree" and wrote that Sasha was forcibly brought to a festive paradise. And everything was there, as is customary in decent houses - peacefully, simply and badly.
Summary: "Angel" Andreeva
The protagonist of the story is the boy Sashka, who has a bold and rebellious soul. He cannot calmly look at the evil around him and takes revenge on life. He expresses his protest in the following: he beat his comrades, tore textbooks, rude his superiors and deceived his mother and parents.
Before Christmas, the boy is kicked out of the gymnasium. However, despite this, Sasha is invited to a rich house at the Christmas tree.
Ivan Savvich, Sasha’s father, a drunk and long-gone man, however, in his heart he remained a good fellow. He asks his son, before he leaves to visit, to bring something from the Christmas tree.
It was very uncomfortable to be in a big beautiful house. This “angry boy”, as they called him, looked at beautiful, clean and well-fed children, and it seemed to him as if “iron hands” squeezed his heart in a vice and squeezed blood to the last drop.
Angel
Describes the moment of the rebirth of the protagonist a brief summary ("Angel" by Andreev). The reader sees how suddenly Sashkin's “narrow eyes” begin to gleam in amazement. What was the reason? The fact was that on one side of the tree, which was considered its wrong side, it was lit weaker and turned to the boy, he saw a wax angel. He was casually hung among the thick dark branches, and it seemed as if he was floating in the air. This is exactly what the surrounding landscape lacked.
Sasha saw that the face of the angel was by no means full of joy or sadness, it testified to a completely different feeling. This feeling could not be expressed in words or to define a thought, it could be understood "only to the same feeling." The boy did not know what power attracted him to the toy, but he was sure that he always knew this angel and loved.
Denouement
Our summary is coming to an end. Andreev's “Angel” is a very soulful, but at the same time sad story. The protagonist, mesmerized by the appearance of an angel, begins to beg a toy from the hostess. At first he does it rudely, but then kneels down. The hostess finally agrees. Sasha is rejoicing. And in this world, everyone notices the similarity of the face of the angel and this awkward schoolboy, long grown out of his clothes.
The boy brings home a toy. His father is also shocked. They begin to experience similar feelings when they look at the angel. Soon both fall asleep. A wax angel remains hanging by a melted stove. The toy begins to melt, and now it falls to the floor "with a soft knock." It is not clear whether this meeting with a wonderful toy will be the beginning of a miracle or its end. This concludes the story - we have outlined its summary. Andreev's "Angel" made a great impression on the contemporaries of the writer. However, the story managed to remain relevant today.