The remarkable work "Little Soldier", a brief summary of which will acquaint the reader with its plot, was written by Russian prose writer Andrei Platonov. The original name of the author is Klimentov. He was born in a working village near Voronezh in 1899.
History of the work
Andrei Platonov himself knew all the hardships of wartime, and, of course, could not help but touch upon this topic in his works. It was in the 1940s that the author begins to completely devote his work to children who survived the events of the war. Platonov is becoming popular not only with his stories, but also with a collection of fairy tales called The Magic Ring.
The writer was very kind to those children who were called "little soldiers." These are the guys who know firsthand the war. They fought alongside adult fighters and also contributed to the long-awaited victory over the German invaders. Often hearing about such exploits, and possibly becoming an eyewitness, Andrei Platonovich wanted to express in his works how this time was reflected in the souls of children.
How did the little soldiers survive the war? What did these guys who sometimes were close enough to the battle line had to experience? In 1943, the story “Little Soldier” appeared, a brief summary of which will describe a small fragment from the life of a child who, from his own experience, learned what war is.
The first pages of the work, or Meet Seryozha
A small station building, which miraculously survived after an air raid of German aircraft. Tired soldiers lie right on the floor. Who put a duffel bag under his head, who just a warm hand. Everyone is sleeping, using such rare hours to relax. Somewhere else, there was an alarmed whisper of people trying to calm each other. But soon they calmed down. Only on the tracks did the steam engine hiss from time to time, breaking peaceful silence.
And in another part of the surviving station there were two officers who were holding the hands of a little boy. The child was about ten years old. The boy squeezed the palm of one of the majors especially tightly, and even from time to time pressed his cheek to her. It was a little soldier. The summary of the story describes several fragments from his difficult life.
The main character of the work
The boy was dressed like a real Red Army man. A worn overcoat, which was already snug against the child’s body, had a cap on his head and boots that were clearly stitched to order, since they were not big for the child, but just right. His baby face was weathered, but nonetheless did not look exhausted or exhausted. It seems to have become adapted to all hardships of life.
The bright eyes of the child, which looked at the officer holding his small palm, were full of supplication. As if with all his heart he wanted to ask him for something. But the little soldier could not put it in words. An analysis of the first lines of the work shows that the boy says goodbye to this man, who is either his father or a very close friend.
Farewell to Major and Tears of a Boy
Another man in uniform was trying as he could to comfort the child, but he did not even notice his caresses. The kid listened to that officer from whom he did not take his eyes. The major promised him that they would part for a short time, and soon they would meet, and then they would forever remain together, and would never be separated. But the boy knew what war was. Many, parting, promised each other to return. But this cruel time often prevented people from fulfilling these promises, no matter how hard they tried.
The children's heart of the impending separation could not stand it. The baby cried. The major took him in his arms, kissed his tear-stained face and carried it onto the platform. Some time passed, the boy returned to the station building already in the arms of another man dressed in military uniform. He still tried to calm and caress little Seryozha, but the child became isolated.
Platonov's story "Little Soldier". Description of the fate of the boy
The train on which they were supposed to go to their destination arrived only the next day. Therefore, the man went with the child to the hostel to spend the night. There he fed Seryozha and put him to bed. And then the major, whose last name was Bakhichev, told his random companion about the fate of this baby. As it turned out, Sergei’s father was a military doctor, and he served in the same regiment with his boy’s mother. In order not to be separated from his only child, his parents took him with them.
So a small soldier appeared in the regiment. The summary will describe several of his exploits. Once Seryozha heard his father talk about the fact that the Germans must definitely blow up a warehouse with ammunition belonging to the regiment in which the boy was growing up before retreating. And then the smart child sneaked into this room at night and cut the wire, which was supposed to actuate the explosive mechanism. Moreover, he remained in the warehouse for another whole day, fearing that the Nazis would return and fix everything.
Another feat of little Seryozha
After some time, the boy made his way far behind the Germans and quite accurately remembered where the Nazi command post and enemy batteries were located. Returning to his father in the regiment, Sergey described everything very accurately. The boy's memory was beautiful.
The man gave the child under constant supervision to the orderly and decided to open fire on all those positions of the enemy, indicated by his little son. The information found by Sergey turned out to be correct. The boy really was able to remember everything correctly and helped adult fighters.
The first misfortunes that war brought to the baby
Seryozha’s mother, having seen her son’s attitude to the war, watching his brave temper, understood that it could not last so long. The woman was worried about her son. She decided to send the child to the rear. But the little soldier was stubborn. He is already used to the hardships of military life. Moreover, the child became involved and could no longer imagine his life without battles and help to the fighters.
Unfortunately, the mother did not keep her promise. Father Seryozha was very seriously injured in the next battle, and he, not recovering, died in the hospital. And then the boy’s mother got sick. Before these events, she was already repeatedly injured. Apparently, nervous experiences and pain for the deceased spouse affected. The woman came down. Only a month passed, and she went after her husband. Seryozha was left without a mother and father.
The fate of the little soldier
Now, instead of Sergei’s father, the regiment was commanded by his deputy Savelyev. This was the major with whom the boy said goodbye on the platform. After the death of Sergei’s parents, the man took him into his care. Saveliev so sincerely cared for the child, that the little soldier also reciprocated and became attached to him with his whole childish heart.
After some time, an order came to send Savelyev to military retraining courses. Then he asked his acquaintance officer to take care of the boy until he returned. And when Savelyev returned and where he would be sent after that, it was not yet known. So how much longer the boy was forced to stay with a stranger, no one knew. And Seryozha himself, apparently, understood this very well.
Asleep interlocutors, or Where did the boy go
So the narrative of the story “Little Soldier” continues, the main characters of which go through the difficult trials of World War II, participating in battles and defending their homeland. Having described to his random interlocutor the fate of the ward, the major fell asleep. And after a while, the listener himself dozed off. Waking up at the end of the day, the men found that they were left alone.
At first, Bakhichev was not particularly worried, deciding that the boy was absent for a short time. But time passed, and the little soldier still did not return. Then the man went to the station and began to question the military commandant if he had seen the child. But with such a crowd of people at this alarming time, of course, no one noticed Seryozha, a small and nimble boy who had great experience as a skilled intelligence officer.
The baby did not return the next day. Even a thorough analysis of the work "The Little Soldier" will not be able to answer the question of where Serezha went. Maybe he returned to his native regiment, or perhaps went to search for Savelyev, who became no less close to him than his mother and father. Thus ends the work "Little Soldier".
Platonov (schoolchildren write an essay on the described story in the fifth grade) created many works on the difficult fate of children who went through wartime. And not one can leave either the adult or the small reader indifferent.