Books by Yuri Vasilievich Bondarev have always been particularly serious. The writer has always been interested in complex issues of a moral and philosophical nature. Today we turn to one of the most interesting works of the author, which can be safely called a novel, a biography. In particular, we consider its summary. The “Choice” of Bondarev, as you will see, is a serious philosophical work about human life and deeds.
About the book
The novel was published in 1981. The main theme of the work, as well as the entire work of the writer, was war. It is about what a person experiences during the difficult war years, how his soul and moral guidelines change, Bondarev writes. However, the main problem of the work was the problem of choice in the life of each person. It is this complex part of human life that the writer decided to cover.
Summary: “The Choice” of Bondarev
The main character of the story is Ilya Ramzin. This is a man who strives for freedom, wants to not depend on anyone, educates in himself the willpower. He goes in for sports, goes for wrestling. His greatest fear is to be humiliated by those around him.
War
In fact, from this moment the summary begins. Bondarev's “Choice” (in chapters this can be even more clearly traced) is a work not at all about peaceful life. The main goal of the author is to portray a person in a situation where life is at stake, and not ephemeral ideas about lofty ideals.
So, the Great Patriotic War begins. Ilya is still very young. Our hero finds himself in an artillery school, from where he is sent to the front. The outbreak of war for our country was unsuccessful, the troops had to retreat on all fronts.
And Ramzin, together with his battery, is surrounded. He makes desperate attempts to save at least part of the guns that the gunners had. However, a stupid and short-sighted man who commits not only weapons, but also his subordinates, commands the soldiers. The Nazis take the gunners in a tight ring. Ramzin decides to shoot the commander that he succeeds. But does not have time to end his life.
The seriousness of the danger in which the protagonist is located can be recognized only by reading a brief summary. Bondarev's “Choice” talks about how a good and smart person, in essence, is captured due to the fault of a negligent commander.
In the prisoner of war camp, Ramzin is not prepared for the fact that other prisoners can so calmly inform each other, lie and betray. In addition, the Nazis took his act (killing the commander) as a feat.
Thirty years later
We continue to retell the novel "Choice". A summary of the chapters describes the events occurring thirty years after the end of the war. Ilya lives in Venice, where he accidentally meets his former classmate - artist Vasiliev. It turns out that everyone considered Ramzin to be missing. Ilya did not write to anyone all this time and tried to avoid places where one could meet Russians. Even the mother, who had been looking for him for a long time, he did not disclose anything about himself.
Over the years, Ilya married and even widowed, he has a son who now lives in Munich.
Denouement
The summary is coming to an end. Bondarev's “Choice” is a novel that describes the fate of a person who finds himself in a difficult situation. The writer himself does not give an act of his hero any assessment. However, it is difficult for the reader to condemn Ramzin.
Ilya decides to see his mother and returns to the USSR. However, the old woman did not accept him, calling him a traitor. Ramzin cannot recover from these words for a long time, he is deprived of peace of mind, his conscience begins to torment him. The result of this is the decision on suicide.