The works of V. M. Garshin are known to the modern reader from school years. His fairy tales for children are considered a model of world fiction.
Writer's childhood
V. M. Garshin was born in 1855 into a noble family. The place of birth was the estate of parents in the Yekaterinoslav province. Father and mother come from military families. Father himself was an officer who participated in the Crimean War. Mother conducted active social and political activities, being a member of the revolutionary democratic movement.
In childhood, the future writer had to endure a difficult psychological drama. She was the result of a difficult relationship between the parents of the boy. Family life ended with their divorce and mother's departure.
Until the age of nine, the child lived with his father on the family estate, and then moved to his mother in St. Petersburg, where he began his studies at the gymnasium. It is believed that it was she who instilled in the child a love of literature. She herself was fluent in French and German. The mother’s natural desire was to give her son a good education. Communication with her contributed to the early development of the child’s consciousness. The formation of such character traits as a high sense of duty, citizenship, the ability to subtle sense of the world, is also the merit of the mother.
Student years. The beginning of literary activity
After successfully completing his studies at the gymnasium, the young man enters the Mining Institute, where his literary career begins. The list of works by Garshin opens a satirical essay on the life of the provincials. The essay was based on real events that the young writer could personally observe at the time when he lived in the estate of his parents.
In his student years, Garshin was keenly interested in the work of the Wanderers. It is for this reason that he publishes many articles on their work.
Military service
The events taking place in the country could not leave aside the young man. Considering himself a hereditary military, Garshin takes part in the war, which was declared by Russia against Turkey. In one of the battles, a young man was wounded in the leg and sent to the hospital for treatment.
Even here, the list of works by Garshin continues to grow. The story "Four Days", which was printed in the "Domestic Notes", was written while undergoing treatment in a military hospital. After this publication, the name of the young writer became known in literary circles, he became widely known.
After the wound, Garshin was given a one-year leave, and then resignation from military service. Despite this, the distinguished soldier was promoted to officer.
Literary activity
After the events described, V. M. Garshin had the opportunity to return to St. Petersburg, where he was very warmly received in intellectual circles. He was patronized by such famous writers as M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, G.I. Uspensky and others.
As a volunteer, the young writer continued his education at St. Petersburg University. The list of works by Garshin from that moment continued to grow steadily, which indicated his undoubted literary gift.
Feature of the literary work of the writer
The works of V. M. Garshin amazed readers with the nakedness of feelings that the writer so skillfully described in his stories and essays. No one had any doubts that the hero of this or that work and its author is one and the same person.
This idea was reinforced in the minds of readers also because the list of Garshin’s works was replenished with essays that had the form of diary entries. In them, the narration was conducted in the first person, the feelings of the hero, his innermost spiritual secrets and experiences were completely exposed. All this, of course, indicated the subtle spiritual qualities of the author himself. Proof of everything said can be found in such works as "Coward", "Occurrence", "Artists", and many other stories.
The past events, the complexity of the character, the peculiarities of mental organization led to the fact that V. M. Garshin developed a disease that needed to be treated. To do this, he was repeatedly placed in psychiatric hospitals, where only a relative recovery was achieved. In connection with these events, the literary activity of the writer was suspended for some time. In the difficult period of life, Garshin continued to support friends and close people.
Garshin's works for children
A list of works, which today are called diamonds of children's literature, began to appear when the writer decided to simplify the language of the story. A model was the stories of L. N. Tolstoy, written specifically for young readers.
Garshin’s works for children, the list of which is not so great, are distinguished by simplicity of presentation, a clear
structure of the text, fascination, novelty of the characters of the characters and their actions. After reading fairy tales, the reader always has the opportunity to reason, argue, draw certain conclusions. All this helps a person to move forward in his development.
It should be noted that Garshin's tales are interesting not only to small readers, but also to their parents. The adult is surprised to find that the fairy tale captured him, opening up some new aspects of human relations, a different outlook on life. In total, five works of the writer are known that are intended for children's reading: "The Legend of Proud Haggai", "On the Toad and the Rose", "Attalea princeps", "That which Was Not". Tale - "The Frog-traveler" - this is the last work of the writer. It has rightfully become a favorite children's work among many generations of readers.
Garshin's tales are studied in literature classes in primary and high school. They are included in all current school curricula and textbooks.
Books with the works of Vsevolod Mikhailovich Garshin are reprinted in numerous editions, issued in the form of audio recordings. Based on his creations, animated films, filmstrips, and plays were created.