One evening, a horseman arrives in the village, dragging a prisoner on the lasso. At first glance, the unfortunate seems dead, but at noon he wakes up and recalls the events of recent days. A brief summary tells about the fate of the Russian warrior in the Chechen aul. The captive of the Caucasus has always dreamed of gaining freedom. To do this, he went from his native Russia to the Caucasus, which always attracted him, but as a result he got shackles on his feet. The man understands that from now on he is a slave, and only death can save him.
Peaceful life in the circle of the Circassians
The captive liked the young Circassian woman, a girl comes to him at night, when the aul fell asleep to give him a drink of cool koumiss. She sits next to a man for a long time, crying softly, because she cannot tell him about her feelings. The personal experiences of each of the heroes are narrated by a brief summary. The Caucasian captive remains alive, he is entrusted with a herd in the mountains to graze. Nothing threatens his life, but nevertheless, the man is not pleased with the surrounding landscapes, the amazing view of the snowy Elbrus and the
mountains of the Caucasus, and peaceful life. The hero mentally constantly returns to his homeland.
The Caucasian captive is enthusiastically watching the customs and customs of the highlanders. Pushkin, a brief poem which shows the poet’s attitude to the peoples of the Caucasus, vividly described the hospitality and militancy of the Circassians. Through his main character, the writer showed that he likes the simplicity of their life. The captive could watch for hours the young horseman, who from an early age accustomed himself to war. He admired their fearlessness, formidable raids on the Cossacks, as well as the hospitality of the wanderers who got lost in the mountains at night.
Communication with a young Circassian
The development of relations between the local girl and the main character is also told by a brief summary. The Caucasian captive was accustomed to a dull life, but he was still rejoicing in the storms raging on the mountain slopes, regretting that they did not reach the heights at which he was. Every night a Circassian woman came to him, bringing with them honey, wine, koumiss, millet. The girl sat next to him, shared a meal, sang her songs, taught her native language. Cherkesshenko fell in love with a man with all his heart, but he could not answer her in return.
Freedom is more precious than life
A brief summary is written about the tragic fate of the young Circassian woman. A Caucasian captive once opens his soul to a girl, begging her to forget about him, because no matter how much he wants, he could not reciprocate her love. Cherkesshenko reproaches him for not sparing her feelings, persuading him to forget her homeland and staying with her, but the hero refuses, because in his soul there lives a different image, so sweet to his heart, but unattainable. A man understands the suffering of a girl, because he himself experienced unrequited love.
Once the Circassians gathered on a campaign, leaving only old people, children and women in the aul. A Caucasian captive, a brief description of the actions of which gives an idea of his courage, dreams of escape, but shackles impede the implementation of the plan. At night, the Circassian woman comes and cuts the chain, the hero invites her to escape together, but the girl refuses, knowing about his feelings for another. The captive rushes into the river and swims to the other side, hearing a strange groan and a splash of water behind him. He understands that his savior drowned. With a farewell gaze around the village, the man goes to the Cossack village.