Most of the literary heritage of the writer Ivan Shamyakin is devoted to the events of the Great Patriotic War. In his novels, short stories and short stories, the author describes the fate of people who have experienced terrible hard times, forcing the reader to reflect on moral and ethical issues that are relevant both in years of difficult trials and in peacetime. One of the iconic works of I.P. Shamyakin is the story "Gandlyarka and the poet", a summary of which is presented in this publication.
Landing of Being
The main character, Olga Lenovich, is a young woman, a merry, lively merchant in the Komarovsky market of Minsk, known throughout the district. The first part of the story describes in detail Olga's youth, the order that reigned in the family of her parents, where the main value was material well-being.
The girl’s father, shortly before the start of the war, dies under the wheels of a tram. Soon, Olga's mother also died, on whose shoulders the whole house was held. Old Lenovichicha worked tirelessly from morning till night, accustomed her children to work from childhood, and was known as a successful and cunning trader. This “talent”, together with the nickname, as if by inheritance passed to Olga.
Elevation of feelings
What is the meaning of the title of the work “Gandlyarka and the poet”? The summary could be conveyed with just one phrase “a feat in the name of love”. Without reading the book yourself, understanding the intricacies of the plot will be very difficult. Everything is here: love and hate, friendship and betrayal, selflessness and misunderstanding.
In the framework of a short article, we will try to recreate the chronology of events developing in the novel by Ivan Shamyakin "Gandlyarka and the poet."
Chapter Summary
I. In the early days of the war, when German invaders entered Minsk, the heroine lives in her parents' house with her little daughter Svetochka. Olga’s husband and younger brother went to the front, she herself is not discouraged, believing that the war will definitely end before the onset of frost.
Taking advantage of the general chaos, a woman actively takes part in the looting of shops, warehouses, and a bakery destroyed by shells, and stocks up products not only for her own food, but also for the purpose of future trade. Olgina's commercialism causes outrage among her school friend Lena Borovskaya, because of this the girls are seriously quarreled.
II. Olga successfully trades in the market, is in trust in the fascists and policemen who buy her products. Lena Borovskaya asks Olga to help buy some important person from the prisoner of war camp. The trader’s attention is attracted by a feeble, seriously ill young man, whom Olga takes to her house and nurses him as a close relative. His name is Alexander (Ales), he is fond of poetry and writes poetry himself.
III. Olga likes Alesia's intelligence and education. It is these qualities that the woman herself lacks. The poet, however, reproaches the bargain for philistinism and the inability to empathize with the fate of millions of people caught in the flames of military events.
IV. At night, the Germans rushed into the house with a search of the woman, a woman gives them valuables, and then admits to Ales that she has a lot of other good, which is carefully hidden. There is a quarrel between the young people, the poet again accuses Olga of thinking only about material wealth. No longer able to hide her feelings, a woman confesses love to Alexander.
V. Olga continues to develop her trading business. Ales, at first afraid to answer Olga in return, becomes her lover. He learns that the merchant, among other things, has a radio and a gun in the house. About this Alexander tells Lena Borovskaya, suggesting that the girl has a connection with the partisan underground. Lena instructs Ales to somehow lure Olga into a receiver. The poet, having completed this task, expects to be accepted into the ranks of the underground.
VI. Alexander begins to go for a walk in the city. He carries with him a pistol, which he took from Olga. One day, the poet kills a German officer, whom he himself sentenced to death.
VII. Finally, the poet is invited to meet with the leaders of the underground. In order not to risk the safety of Olga and her little daughter, Ales leaves the trading house. One of the commanders offers to take Olga to the squad as a messenger and asks Alexander if he can vouch for her. The poet answers negatively, doubting the moral and patriotic characteristics of the woman who saved his life by purchasing from a concentration camp.
Viii. Olga is worried about the absence of Ales, she is looking for him throughout the city, she even goes to the square where the Germans hanged several partisans. Underground commander Eusei arrives at Olga’s house and invites her to join the underground. The merchant refused, but the commander believes that "spontaneously she can do any most desperate act, but she will not be able to consciously go on a feat." Soon Alexander returns, and Olga asks him to transfer to the commander that she agrees to become a messenger.
IX. A woman joins the underground, without causing suspicion among the occupation authorities. Unbeknownst to herself, Olga becomes one of the most active members of the group. In the story "Gandlyarka and the poet", the brief content of which cannot contain all the nuances of the plot, it is clearly shown that a person's ability to exploit does not depend on education or living conditions. Of decisive importance are not external factors, but the integrity of nature and the strength of character with which the author endowed his heroine.
X. Occasionally Olga meets with Ales. In one of these meetings, the poet tells his beloved that the underground members sentenced the police officer Fedor Drutko to death, and he will have to carry out the sentence. Alexander admits that he has already killed several Germans with his own hands, but it will be difficult for him to shoot at his “own” man, albeit a notorious bastard.
Xi. Olga decides to help Ales. Without saying a word to anyone, she agrees with the policeman to travel around the neighboring villages in order to exchange things for groceries. Fyodor Drutko is glad of such an offer, he has long had views of a woman, even offered himself to her as a husband. Olga intends to hand him over to the partisans in order to save Alexander from the need for murder.
What ends the story "Gandlyarka and the poet"? The summary of the last part is tragic. The heroine dies, taking the life of a traitor, a policeman and two other fascist minions.