It is strange to realize this now, but in pre-revolutionary Russia among the representatives of pedagogy - teachers and governesses - there was not one who would be lucky in his personal life.
And why only in Russia? It seems that all over the world. In almost all the literary works of the century before last, a classy lady is deprived of the joys of life, a closed, and sometimes rather cruel creature, often frustrating the annoyance of its pupils.
How was everything really?
High school students really didn’t really like their teachers. Knicksen, lowered eyes, insincere courtesy. And in my heart - the desire to quickly rid myself of the company of the annoying lady, or even laugh at her, to give some apt nickname.
For students, a classy lady is not an ideal. Between them is a gap in views, in relation to life. Girls who consider themselves to be quite old and belong to far from poor names do not find anything valuable in the teachings of middle-aged, poor and, as a rule, unmarried teachers and listen to them purely formally, out of politeness.
The image that has been preserved since the times of the gymnasiums of the 19th century is really not very attractive: the classy lady looked rather bored, she was constantly dressed in a blue uniform dress, for which the gymnasium students called her a “bruise,” she had no idea what sincerity was, she zealously carried out all orders “from above” and suffered endlessly from her female unfulfillment.
Cool lady and governess
The differences between the two related professions, of course, existed and were due to the age of the students. Governesses hired in wealthy homes, raised children, as they would say now, of preschool and primary school age and gave them primary education.
The classroom lady had a permanent job in the gymnasium, taught certain subjects and strictly monitored the moral appearance of her students. And in the lessons, and during the changes kept them in severity and often did not like for youth, beauty and freshness.
The most famous literary image of the governess is Jane Eyre, hardened by adversity from childhood, sympathizing with orphans, educated and able to love.
And as the kindest of the classy ladies, the readers remembered Feride Khanum - the restless bird-king with a huge heart and wild oriental pride.
Exceptions to the Rules
Thanks to the preserved memoirs of several institutes, today we can have an idea of ​​who she is - a classy lady in the 19th century.
Pupils and teachers spent so much time together that they could not help but get tired of each other. They were constantly in front of each other and managed to study very well all the weaknesses of the “opponents”. This left almost no chance of mutual trust.
However, there have been rare exceptions to the rules. Girls hearts were won by teachers who loved their work and their pupils. A real cool lady is, according to the girls, a teacher who teaches not so much in books as by example.
They adored and idolized classy ladies who manage to look feminine and attractive in their meager salaries and in their uniform dress, who can teach their subject in such a way that they would like to teach and know, capable of sincerity and non-arrogance in communicating with college students.
So many years have passed, and the teachers value the same ...
Punishment from the classroom
Sometimes cool became unpredictable creatures, in a word - a lady. Due to their personal failures or negative emotions, they were frustrated at the institutes. For this, the unloved teacher was “sentenced” to general contempt, and they simply expected a lull period from her beloved. And when emotions calmed down, communication continued in an already familiar mode of trust.
It was considered impermissible impertinence on the part of the gymnasium student to enter into a simple human conversation with a classy lady, for this there was a threat of punishment. Therefore, communicating with their beloved teacher, the girls kept their conversations in the strictest confidence from the directorate and other teachers, otherwise the teacher could lose her place, and the students were severely punished for violation of subordination.
But the cool ladies themselves often became "inquisitors." The most common punishment in gymnasiums was tearing the apron from the girl in front of the whole class and leaving the offender in this form at the blackboard for several hours.
At the same time, elementary school students were forbidden to cry during punishment. Thus, young schoolgirls, unable to cope with emotions, at first did not understand: a cool lady, who is this - a person who must teach, or a person who must constantly punish for the slightest mistake?
As a result, the students locked themselves in, hated the teacher, and began to relate to punishment as something ordinary and natural.
The image of a classy lady in literature
In the works of Russian word masters of the 19th century, a classy lady was never the main character. These women had such a look that, it seems, only suited for the role of the background.
In the famous work of I. Bunin, for example, the image of the teacher was introduced to contrast between the bright, light as spring breath, cheerful young beauty Olya and her teacher, also floating, but not in reality, but in dreams.
The stereotype that a cool lady is austerity, restraint and almost monasticism did not allow this woman to really take off at least once. Therefore, she continues to dream and search for the secret of the main component of the female charm - easy breathing, which the schoolgirl Olya Meshcherskaya, who died at 15, knew.
The other extreme, which often happens in the fates of gymnasium teachers, is a double life. Too small a salary forced teachers to be an example of decency and stiffness, sometimes even excessive ones, and in the evenings to transform into “night butterflies” and still try to keep their “part-time job” secret. Such a story from the life of a young teacher is offered to the audience by “Class Lady” - a film shot based on the story of A. Kuprin “Natalya Davydovna”.
Was there justice?
Now, from the point of view of a person who does not even allow the idea that the class teacher will dare to somehow offend, humiliate, physically punish the student, the question arises: were there teachers in the educational institutions that were called a teacher from God?
Of course, the color of Russian pedagogy was born and already existed in the walls of the gymnasiums of the 19th century, and its main indicators were justice and equality in relation to all students, regardless of the estate.
In the memoirs of one of the graduates of the gymnasium, the name of a certain Mademoiselle Gan, a very strict and pedantic classy lady, is often mentioned. However, its severity only benefits the students and, as a result, their gratitude in the future for proper education. The teacher, as is now customary to say, somewhat exceeded the bar, requiring each gymnasium student to fulfill her duties as accurately as possible. Punished - not without it. But how happy she was for the success of the girls! How kind and motherly loving she was if the student corrected herself and pleased the mentor with excellent knowledge and exemplary behavior.