Gelasimov’s story “Tender Age”, which will be discussed in this article, was published in the 12th issue of the October magazine, which was published back in 2001. Further, as a continuation, the author will write a novel entitled “Year of Deception”. This literary work will tell readers about an already grown hero. The novel, as well as the story, is very fascinating, although at first glance it seems that it was written not about that person at all.
A bit about the author
Gelasimov Andrey Valerievich was born in the city of Irkutsk in 1966. In 1987 he received a diploma from the State University of Yakutia, having graduated from the faculty of foreign languages at this educational institution. After Andrei Gelasimov continued his studies at the directing department of GITIS. There he was a student in the workshop of Anatoly Vasiliev. Between 1996 and 1997 Andrei Valerievich had an internship in the UK, at the University of Hall. After that, he defended his thesis, the theme of which concerned the work of Oscar Wilde. For some time Gelasimov taught at Yakutsk State University, being an assistant professor of the department of English Philology. Since 2002 he lives in Moscow.
After the first story by Gelasimov “Tender Age” was published in 2001, he became a regular contributor to the journal October. A little later, readers of this publication were able to familiarize themselves with many of his stories, as well as the novel “Thirst” and the novel “Rachel”. Some works of the author came out in separate editions. Among them are “Rachel,” “One Year,” “Thirst.”
Gelasimov’s books have been translated into Estonian and Hungarian, Italian, German and French. The author’s works are studied during special courses in contemporary Russian literature at Moscow State University and the Literary Institute.
Many readers note that A. V. Gelasimov is an amazing storyteller. He is able to captivate with his stories as well as Scheherazade. Moreover, throughout the whole story, the author does not let his reader’s interest cool down, keeping him in constant desire to find out what will happen next.
Andrei Gelasimov's prose is characterized by a kind attitude to the reality that is unusual for modern literature. In his works, it is impossible to find neither complaints of fate, nor pathos of exposure. Life is shown as it is in reality. At the same time, the reader is attracted to the author’s witty plots, as well as his artistic and free manner of presentation.
About the first story
Gelasimov's literary debut is "Tender Age." This rather interesting story is being studied today by high school students while completing the school curriculum. It was written in 1995. However, despite its prescription, it is quite worthy of a textual and conceptual understanding.
The story unfolds in the same 1995. The author presents it in the form of a diary of a teenager, which he kept from March 14 to May 14. Thus, the plot of the story "Tender Age" sets out the events that occurred over the course of only two months. But even such an insignificant period managed to practically turn the inner world of the young man and his life. And these words are not at all an exaggeration. After all, 14 years is the age when a person begins to become aware of himself as a person. He grows up, acquiring basic ideals, changing the mentality and moral postulates. Moreover, in "tender age" this can happen very quickly. That is why it becomes very important who at this moment will meet a person on his life path. After all, such a person will become a teacher for a teenager who will highlight future ideals for him.
Sometimes it happens that a teenager is ready to join the "good and eternal." But life simply will not send a teacher to him at the right time, meeting his spiritual needs. This is what will lead in the future to the eternal wandering between evil and good.
The hero of the story "Tender Age" Gelasimov was lucky. A good woman met on his way. This is the heroine of the story - Oktyabrina Mikhailovna.
Character system
Despite the fact that the story only takes place in one year, the problems of Gelasimov in “Tender Age” raise three generations at once. The author represents the hero himself, his peers, parents and an old neighbor who gives music lessons.
Reviews of the story "Tender Age" suggest that for many readers the plot of the story evokes a sense of hopelessness. After all, each of these three generations can be considered lost. The main character has big problems in the family. However, in his diary, the boy devotes very little space to this. It turns out that for him constant abuse of parents is commonplace. A large role in his thoughts was given to the image of Audrey Hepburn, the actress whom the hero saw in the Roman Holiday movie, which he accidentally watched. For a boy, she became a symbol of some other, better world.
Hero and his peers
We will get acquainted with the generation included in the first level of the characters of Gelasimov’s short story “Tender Age”. The heroes of the story, representing this group, are the boy himself, as well as his peers who either study with him in the same class, or live in the same yard as him. The diary teenager speaks of all children as “morons” who, along with the teachers, “got” him. The protagonist made such a record on March 17, 1995.
From the summary of Gelasimov's “Tender Age”, we learn the names of the representatives of the first level of characters. It:
- Semenov, claiming friendship with the main character, having a vulnerable deviation called homosexuality;
- Anton Strelnikov - a boy who constantly falls in love with different teachers;
- “tall Andrei” is an honest and fair kid, who at the same time does not suffer from a fine mental organization.
Adult generation
At the second level of the characters of Gelasimov’s short story “Tender Age” are parents and school teachers. The boy reflects his opinion about the teachers in a note made on March 30, 1995. He believes that teachers should be dispersed with a stick and forced to work in vegetable gardens. After all, they just "got" him. At the same generational level are the parents of the hero of the story Gelasimov. This includes the father of his classmate Semenov.
Older generation
At the third level of characters are “parents of parents”. Here the author introduces us to the only hero who is Oktyabrina Mikhailovna, in the past - the director of a music school. The diary entry in the boy explains that she was either kicked out of work, or she left herself.
Relations with peers
From the analysis of “Tender Age” Gelasimov makes it clear that the main character of the story does not like reading. He prefers a computer to books. Judging by his peers expressed in his diary, the boy does not need friends either. All this speaks of adolescent maximalism. The hero combines cynical manifestations, rudeness and desire for something beautiful, higher.
Getting acquainted with the brief content of Gelasimov's “Tender Age”, we learn that in his first entry in the diary, the boy tells how he woke up from the sound of the piano. Existing contradictions in the views of a teenager reflects his phrase. He claims the game was “crap”, but he liked it all the same.
As for relations with peers, our hero does not share their views or their hobbies. He wants to gain respect among the "real boys", but at the same time he likes talking about real femininity, magic and Wilde's work more than the eternal clarification of who is right and who is to blame, in which the fists are the main argument.
However, the boy is achieving his goal. Yard guys begin to respect him, appreciating that he is not a sneak, not a coward and does not harbor grievances. The hero of the story understands that his vision of life is much more complicated than that of yard children. That is why among them he will not be able to be who he really is.
A difficult relationship with our hero develops with a classmate Semenov. This unfortunate child, whose father, as it turns out later, is a real sadist, at first causes only disgust. However, our hero never gave anyone the secret of his classmate. At the same time, he demanded 50 bucks of moral “payback” for the fact that Semenov himself exists in his life.
The author shows his hero as a "superhero." After all, he was able to earn the respect of these "cool" guys from his yard, without committing anything beyond. He simply did not begin to tell the policeman about the unlawful acts committed by “high Andrei”. However, the boy did this not for fear of losing authority. It’s just that his moral principles in this matter did not diverge from those that exist with the “real boys”. After all, the fight that happened, in his opinion, was honest. This fact indicates the rich inner world of the hero, who has a love for the beautiful, and at the same time understands all the difficulties of life.
Relationship with parents
With a father and mother, the boy is very difficult. They are not able to bestow him with their love and serve as advisers in those issues that especially torment him. Nevertheless, the boy seeks to understand his parents. And this despite the fact that making it very difficult for him.
Parents believe that they give their son everything that he needs. This is an elite school and an expensive tennis coach, overseas items and a subscription to the pool. Not all dads and mothers can afford this. However, the boy’s parents are outraged that their son does not appreciate this. He wants to go to school in a regular school, quits tennis. At the same time, he shows a desire to learn how to play the piano. Parents do not understand him. The father even advises his son to understand himself first. The boy does not dare to object and argue with these words.
A few days later, an entry dated April 1 appears in the diary. The hero joked unsuccessfully, telling his parents that he was being expelled from school. Adults immediately began to shout at each other. After, having calmed down somewhat, they decided to ask: "For what?" Hearing in response: “For homosexuality”, the father immediately “hit” his son in the ear.
The violence that applies to the protagonist in the story of A. Gelasimov is a typical way of communicating with children. So is Semenov’s father. He is either a deputy or a bandit. The only method of his family upbringing is beatings. And after the hero of the story learns from one of his classmate Anton Strelnikov about one of the terrible stories of beating, the impression made on him even materializes in a dream.
Reconciliation with reality
The duration of the story "Tender Age" is a dashing nineties. Maybe that's why the children and their parents are represented by the author as a lost generation. And that diary, which was started by the main character, is nothing more than an attempt to break the web of unsolvable problems.
What is the story "Tender Age" about? On the reconciliation of the boy with reality. And in this he had invaluable help from Oktyabrina Mikhailovna, to whom the teenager came to learn how to play the piano. He gave Semenov the “lenient” to the old woman and set about practicing, despite the fact that the woman was “nondescript” and “stank of shit” in her apartment.
Imperceptibly, Oktyabrina Mikhailovna became a part of the life of her pupil. At the same time, its influence on the teenager can be assessed as decisive. At first glance, this may seem strange, but it was because of the old teacher that the hero of the story was first recognized as a yard company. The boy undertook to walk her cats, and this received bonuses. After all, Oktyabrina, while she was not too sick, was saving stray animals in the courtyard, setting an example to all the children. From her small pension, the old woman gave the boys money. It was her reward for stopping hunting for homeless cats. And then I gave them ice cream just like that.
After meeting Oktyabrina Mikhailovna, the hero of the story fell into the circle of trust of those guys who beat him no more than two years ago for a new bicycle brought by their father from the United Arab Emirates. Scars on the body continued to remind the boy of this case. Then for yard children he was a stranger. After all, a native of a wealthy family could not cause them neither pity nor respect.
What is the reason that Oktyabrina Mikhailovna allowed her pupil to watch the film “Roman Vacations”? Maybe her teacher’s intuition worked here, which suggested that this grain would certainly fall into fertile soil? And she was not mistaken. A young guy who did not find the ideal in everyday life, found him in the image of Audrey Hepburn. It became for him a kind of breath of air. And he realized that in the future it was worth looking in his life, abandoning the "stupid fools" or "aunts" that Strelnikov sought.
A congenial person can be met very rarely. But the most unusual thing in Gelasimov’s story is that a similar opportunity to achieve mutual understanding appeared between a representative of the generation that was just entering into life and an old woman ending her journey. However, this is not at all a matter of years. Oktyabrina Mikhailovna explained to her pupil that the main reason for the problems that arise between generations is that children simply do not catch their parents in their youthful years. She said that the boy’s father was previously capable of reckless actions, and then began to strive to obtain a certain status, which destroyed his ability to understand his son.
The boy was talking with Oktyabrina about Semenov. An elderly woman gave advice on how to relate to such people. She explained that everyone is equal already because, in the end, everyone will surely die. The one who believes that he is the best, and the one who is considered the worst, will not be on earth. And since everyone is mortal, and in this world they linger relatively briefly, each of people deserves pity. This is precisely the main reason that a person, whatever he may be, should be respected and loved.
From the analysis of the story “Tender Age”, it becomes clear that the boy is quite ready for such a paradox of conversation. The teacher, most likely not finding understanding among her peers, is close in spirit to the teenager. And her words, apparently, are consonant with how he understands this life.
The last record made by the boy in his diary reports that his mentor is dead. For him, this is another tragedy. The hero of the story decides not to keep a diary anymore.
Yes, Oktyabrina Mikhailovna died. However, thanks to his acquaintance with this woman, the boy clarified his existence and moved on to the next stage of life, which consisted for him in search of the meaning of life.
Instructive lessons
From the analysis of the story “Tender Age”, we see that the hero, who belongs to the older generation, discovered a completely different world for the young man. In it, human relations are based on good feelings.
The time that is depicted in the story can be divided into two periods. The first of them - before meeting with the old music teacher Oktyabrina Mikhailovna, and the second - after this meeting. A similar technique allowed the author to give an accurate description of his hero. So, the first three weeks of keeping a diary, and this from 14.03.95 to 2.04.95, tell the reader about the aggression and scandals that occur in the boy’s relationship with peers, teachers and parents. However, after meeting with an old woman, everything changes dramatically. Over the next six weeks, that is, from 2.04.95 to 05/14/95, he began to return to understanding in communication with those around him and to a world of tolerance,
The relationship of the boy with peers is not easy. However, they still add up. At the same time, sarcastic, impudent and rude assessments that he had previously given to adults cease to appear in the recordings. The hero’s soul seemed to thaw, although not all the contradictions in his life were eliminated. Thanks to such a development of events, the writer convincingly showed us the evolution of the character of a dramatically growing young man.
Despite the fact that the diary entries were interrupted, and Oktyabrina Mikhailovna passed away, the story leaves the reader with the hope that the teenager will be able to withstand life strikes in the future, will not be lost in the adult world and will not break, preserving her tender soul .