Symbolism and existential meaning of the story
"Sir from San Francisco"
In the last lesson, we got acquainted with the work of Ivan Alekseevich Bunin and began to analyze one of his stories, “The Gentleman from San Francisco”. We talked about the composition of the story, discussed the system of images, talked about the poetics of Bunin's word.Today in the lesson we have to determine the role of details in the story, note the symbolic images, formulate the theme and idea of the work and come to Bunin's understanding of human existence.
Let's talk about the details in the story. What details did you see; which of them seemed symbolic to you.
Let's start with the notion of "detail".
Detail - a particularly significant highlighted element of an artistic image, an expressive detail in a work that carries a semantic and ideological and emotional load.
Already in the first phrase, there is some irony to Mr.: “no one remembered his name either in Naples or in Capri”, thus the author emphasizes that Mr. is just a man.
The gentleman from S-F is himself a symbol - this is a collective image of all the bourgeois of that time.
The absence of a name is a symbol of facelessness, the inner lack of spirituality of the hero.
The image of the ship "Atlantis" is a symbol of society with its hierarchy:the idle aristocracy of which is opposed to the people who control the movement of the ship, working in the sweat of their brow at the "gigantic" firebox, which the author calls the ninth circle of hell.
The images of ordinary residents of Capri are alive and real, and thus the writer emphasizes that the external well-being of the rich strata of society means nothing in the ocean of our life, that their wealth and luxury are not protection from the current of real, real life, that such people are initially doomed to moral baseness and dead life.
The very image of the ship is a shell of idle life, and the ocean isthe rest of the world, raging, changing, but in no way touching our hero.
The name of the ship - "Atlantis" (What is associated with the word "Atlantis"? - a lost civilization), is a premonition of a disappearing civilization.
Does the description of the steamer cause you any other associations? The description is similar to "Titanic", which confirms the idea that a mechanized society is doomed to a sad outcome.
However, there is a bright beginning to the story. The beauty of the sky and mountains, which, as it were, merges with the images of the peasants, nevertheless claims that there is true, real life in life, which is not subject to money.
Siren and music is also a symbol skillfully used by the writer, in this case, the siren is world chaos, and music is harmony and peace.
The image of the captain of the ship, whom the author compares with a pagan god at the beginning and at the end of the story, is symbolic. In appearance, this man really looks like an idol: red, of monstrous size and weight, in a marine uniform with wide gold stripes. He, as befits a god, lives in the captain's cabin - the highest point of the ship, where passengers are forbidden to enter, he is rarely shown in public, but passengers unconditionally believe in his power and knowledge. And the captain himself, being still a man, feels very insecure in the raging ocean and hopes for a telegraph machine, standing in the next cabin-radio room.
The writer ends the story with a symbolic picture. The steamer, in the hold of which the former millionaire lies in a coffin, sails through the darkness and blizzard in the ocean, and from the rocks of Gibraltar the Devil, “huge as a cliff”, watches him. It was he who got the soul of the gentleman from San Francisco, he owns the souls of the rich (pp. 368-369).
San Francisco gentleman's gold fillings
his daughter - with "the most delicate pink pimples near her lips and between her shoulder blades", dressed with innocent frankness
Negro servants "with squirrels like peeled hard-boiled eggs"
color details: Mr. smoked up to crimson redness of the face, stokers - crimson from the flames, red jackets of musicians and a black crowd of lackeys.
crown prince all wooden
the beauty has a tiny bent shabby dog
a pair of dancing "lovers" - a handsome man who looks like a huge leech
20. Luigi's respectfulness is taken to the point of idiocy
21. gong in a hotel in Capri sounds "loud, like in a pagan temple"
22. The old woman in the corridor "stooped, but decollete", hurried forward "like a chicken."
23. Mr. lay on a cheap iron bed, a box of soda water became a coffin for him
24. From the very beginning of the journey, he is surrounded by a mass of details that portend or remind of death. First, he is going to go to Rome to listen to the Catholic prayer of repentance there (which is read before death), then the Atlantis steamboat, which is a dual symbol in the story: on the one hand, the steamboat symbolizes a new civilization, where power is determined by wealth and pride, therefore in the end, the ship, and even with that name, must sink. On the other hand, "Atlantis" is the personification of hell and heaven.
What is the role of numerous details in the story?
How does Bunin draw a portrait of his hero? How does the reader feel and why?
(“Dry, short, oddly tailored, but tightly sewn ... There was something Mongolian in his yellowish face with trimmed silver mustaches, his large teeth shone with gold fillings, his strong bald head was like an old bone ... " This portrait description is lifeless; it evokes a feeling disgust, since we have some kind of physiological description in front of us. The tragedy has not yet come, but it is already felt in these lines).
Ironic, Bunin ridicules all the vices of the bourgeois imagelife through the collective image of the master, numerous details - the emotional characteristics of the characters.
You have probably noticed that time and space stand out in the work. Why do you think the story develops along the journey?
The road is a symbol of life's journey.
How does the hero relate to time? How did the master plan his trip?
when describing the world around from the point of view of a gentleman from San Francisco, time is indicated accurately and clearly; In a word, time is specific. Days on the ship and in the Neapolitan hotel are planned by the hour.
In which fragments of the text does the action develop rapidly, and in which plot time seems to stop?
The counting of time goes unnoticed when the author tells about a real, full life: a panorama of the Gulf of Naples, a sketch of a street market, colorful images of the boatman Lorenzo, two Abruzzo highlanders and, most importantly, a description of a “joyful, beautiful, sunny” country. And time seems to stop when the story begins about the measured, planned life of a gentleman from San Francisco.
When is the first time a writer calls a hero not a master?
(On the way to the island of Capri. When nature overcomes him, he feelsold man : “And the gentleman from San Francisco, feeling himself the way he should, - a very old man, - was already thinking with longing and malice about all these greedy, garlic-smelling little people called Italians ...” Right now, feelings are waking up in him: “longing and anger", "despair". And again there is a detail - "enjoyment of life"!)
What do the New World and the Old World mean (why not America and Europe)?
The phrase "Old World" appears already in the first paragraph, when it tells about the purpose of the gentleman's trip from San Francisco: "solely for fun." And, emphasizing the ring composition of the story, it also appears in the ending - in combination with the "New World". The New World, which gave rise to the type of people who consume culture "only for the sake of entertainment", the "Old World" are living people (Lorenzo, highlanders, etc.). The New World and the Old World are two facets of humanity, where there is a difference between isolation from historical roots and a lively sense of history, between civilization and culture.
Why do events take place in December (Christmas Eve)?
this is the ratio of birth and death, moreover, the birth of the Savior of the old world and the death of one of the representatives of the artificial new world, and the coexistence of two time lines - mechanical and genuine.
Why did death overtake a Mr. from San Francisco in Capri, Italy?
It is not for nothing that the author mentions the story of a man who once lived on the island of Capri, very similar to our master. Through this relationship, the author has shown us that such "masters of life" come and go without a trace.
All people, regardless of their financial situation, are equal in the face of death. The rich man, who decided to get all the pleasures at once,“Just starting to live” at 58 (!) , suddenly dies.
How does the old man's death evoke feelings in those around him? How do others behave towards the wife and daughter of the master?
His death causes not sympathy, but a terrible commotion. The innkeeper apologizes and promises to settle everything quickly. Society is outraged that someone dared to ruin their vacation, to remind them of death. To a recent companion and his wife, they experience disgust and disgust. The corpse in a rough box is quickly sent to the hold of the steamer. The rich man, who considered himself important and significant, turned into a dead body, is not needed by anyone.
So what's the idea behind the story? How does the author express the main idea of the work? Where is the idea found?
The idea can be traced in the details, in the plot and composition, in the antithesis of false and genuine human existence. (fake rich people are contrasted - A couple on a steamboat, the strongest image-symbol of the world of consumption, plays love, these are hired lovers - and real residents of Capri, mostly poor people).
The idea is that human life is fragile, everyone is equal in the face of death. Expresses through a description of the attitude of others to the living Mr. and to him after death. The master thought that money gave him an advantage.“He was sure that he had every right to rest, to pleasure, to travel in every way excellent ... firstly, he was rich, and secondly, he had just begun to live.”
Did our hero live a full life before this trip? What did he devote his whole life to?
Mr. until this moment did not live, but existed, i.e. his whole conscious life was devoted to "making equal to those whom Mr. took as his model." All the mister's beliefs proved to be erroneous.
Pay attention to the ending: it is the hired couple that is highlighted here - why?
After the death of the master, nothing has changed, all the rich also continue to live their mechanized lives, and the “couple in love” also continues to play love for money.
Can we call the story a parable? What is a parable?
Parable - a short edifying story in an allegorical form, containing moral teaching.
So, can we call the story a parable?
We can, because it tells about the insignificance of wealth and power in the face of death and the triumph of nature, love, sincerity (images of Lorenzo, the Abruzzo mountaineers).
Can man resist nature? Can he plan everything like a gentleman from S-F?
A person is mortal (“suddenly mortal” - Woland), therefore a person cannot resist nature. All technological advances do not save a person from death. In this isthe eternal philosophy and tragedy of life: man is born to die.
What does the story tell us?
"Mr. from..." teaches us to enjoy life, and not to be internally soulless, not to succumb to a mechanized society.
Bunin's story has an existential meaning. (Existential - associated with being, the existence of a person.) In the center of the story are questions of life and death.
What is capable of resisting non-existence?
Genuine human existence, which is shown by the writer in the form of Lorenzo and the Abruzzo highlanders(fragment from the words "Only the market traded on a small area ... 367-368").
What conclusions can we draw from this episode? What 2 sides of the coin does the author show us?
Lorenzo is poor, the mountaineers of Abruzzo are poor, singing the glory of the greatest poor in the history of mankind - the Mother of God and the Savior, who was born "inpoor shepherd's home." "Atlantis", the civilization of the rich, which is trying to overcome the darkness, the ocean, the blizzard - an existential delusion of mankind, a diabolical delusion.
Homework:
The main novelist in Russian literature is Ivan Bunin. The work "The Gentleman from San Francisco", the meaning of which is analyzed by high school students at a literature lesson, is a brilliant example of small prose filled with symbols and allusions.
What is this story about? About an American who once died while traveling in the Old World. The philosophical meaning of the work "The Gentleman from San Francisco" is quite deep. The next reading reveals more and more details. The article presents the most complete analysis of the story of the great Russian classic.
When was the work created?
Bunin wrote the short story in 1915. This is very important to mention in artistic analysis. At the end of the 19th century or in the middle of the 20th century, the story would not have caused such a resonance. After all, the meaning of the work "The Gentleman from San Francisco" is fully consistent with the spirit of the times. There is no longer that calm, peaceful Europe. The atmosphere of impending catastrophe reigns in the world.
The mood of the first years of the war can be felt by reading the work "The Gentleman from San Francisco". The meaning of the work is contained somewhere between the lines. But the fact that Bunin wrote a story on a topical topic does not detract from its relevance.
From the history of writing
In the summer of 1915, Ivan Bunin saw Thomas Mann's Death in Venice in a bookstore. He did not know what the novella of the German writer was about, but its title inspired him. Around the same time, from the newspapers, Bunin learned about the sudden death of a wealthy American in the Quisisana Hotel. Then the idea came to the Russian writer to create a short but vivid story about a man who died during a trip to Europe. At first, Bunin wanted to call this work "Death on Capri". But he changed his mind, only writing the first three words - "gentleman from San Francisco."
The meaning of the work of Thomas Mann has nothing to do with the main philosophical idea of Bunin's short story. In the story "Death in Venice" we are talking about a middle-aged man, an adherent of same-sex love. Bunin read Mann's book only at the end of autumn and called it very unpleasant.
The meaning of "The Gentleman from San Francisco" is accessible to a teenager. No wonder the story is included in the school curriculum. Upon careful reading, you can see that it is filled with forebodings of a tragedy on a European scale. The work was created a year after the outbreak of the First World War and two years before the February Revolution in Russia - an event that influenced the course of world history.
Nameless hero
What is the meaning of the title of the work "The Gentleman from San Francisco"? The protagonist is a certain American whose name is not remembered either in Capri or in Naples. And this, perhaps, is the whole characterization of the character that Bunin gives. The billionaire from San Francisco is of no interest to anyone. Nobody remembered his name, because this person is unremarkable. Only his money and position in society are of interest. But these categories are illusory. As soon as an American dies, he is immediately forgotten.
Simplicity, clarity - these are the characteristic features of the story. And perhaps that is why the philosophical meaning of the work "The Gentleman from San Francisco" has been of interest to readers for over a century. The story evoked admiring reviews of the writer's contemporaries. It is still being read today. The essence of the work "The Gentleman from San Francisco" was also interpreted by Soviet critics in their own way. After all, who is the main character of the story? An American capitalist who saved, robbed and exploited the Chinese all his life. For which he was punished by a sudden, ridiculous death.
Lies and pretense
The main character worked hard and finally saved up for a trip to Europe. He travels on a luxury liner with his wife and daughter, designed for people of high society. In this liner, the Titanic is easily guessed. Everything on the ship breathes pretense. It is worth recalling, for example, two characters that few readers pay attention to. A beautiful couple is dancing on the deck. In their eyes - sincere happiness. No one knows that these are just hired actors playing love for a lot of money. They have been floating on one or the other liner for a long time.
"Titanic"
Analyzing the philosophical meaning of "The Gentleman from San Francisco" by Bunin, it is worth remembering the tragic fate of the famous "Titanic". You should also pay attention to the name of the ship on which the main character is sailing. Atlantis is an island-state that has gone under water. Titans are mythical creatures who dared to oppose themselves to the gods. Zeus severely punished them for their insolence and self-confidence.
For Alexander Blok, the liner that sank in 1914 symbolized world vulgarity. In his diary, the poet mentions the catastrophe even with some gloating. Bunin's work is filled with bad forebodings and tells about the tragedy not only of an individual, but of the whole of Europe. However, there is no malice in the story. Rather, pity towards both the main character and the secondary characters.
main character in the story
The steamboat in the work of Ivan Bunin is a symbol of the naive and stupid self-confidence of a man of civilization. The protagonist, being a wealthy man, is convinced that further events in his life depend only on him. The creators of the huge liner - an example of a high technical achievement of the early 20th century - are confident that the giant machine is able to withstand ocean storms.
The gentleman from San Francisco does not have time to realize his mistake. The creators of the "Titanic" - realized, but too late. Western civilization at the beginning of the 20th century was on the edge of the abyss - this, perhaps, is the meaning of the story of the Russian writer. More than a hundred years have passed since the publication of the work, but little has changed. "Mr. from San Francisco" is still relevant today.
Death on Capri
Against the backdrop of the raging ocean, the glitter of the liner is pathetic, the ticket for which costs a fortune. The ship, heavily overcoming the storm and storm, finally arrives in Europe. There, in Italy, a nameless American, before whom all the servants slavishly bowed, suddenly dies.
After death, an American from a respected rich man turns into a burdensome body. He is taken to the farthest and cheapest room as quickly as possible. As for the daughter and wife, they now cause irritation and contempt in those around them - not at all pity and sympathy. The hotel guests paid a lot of money for recreation, entertainment and sudden death annoyed them.
On the ship, meanwhile, life continues, full of falsehood. The author, it would seem, should have felt only hostility towards his hero. Bunin despised wealth and could not feel sorry for the powerful capitalist. But far more unpleasant to him are the people who surrounded the gentleman from San Francisco. Are they better than him? They were and remain slaves, groveling before wealth - and this is the most terrible thing. Bunin feels sorry for the American, who is only to blame for his sudden death. The writer regrets the liner, doomed to death.
Conclusion
Ivan Bunin spoke about an event that took place at the height of the First World War. But people at all times, regardless of nationality, have something in common. In the story in question in today's article, a certain type of people is described. This is a kind of mini-novel about those who, it would seem, have access to all the blessings and joys of the world. However, the life of a society that enjoys all the benefits of civilization, according to the writer, is full of fake, artificial. There is no place in it for manifestations of individuality, since each representative of this false world lives according to the scheme, strives to correspond to his position.
The hero of Ivan Bunin's story never managed to enjoy the beauties of Italian landscapes in his 58 years. Money destroyed in him the ability to see beauty. "Do not accumulate riches on Earth" - this is the quote from the Bible that is the main philosophical idea of the work.
The story "The Gentleman from San Francisco" was written by I.A. Bunin in 1915. The story is based on the author's general impression of his journey and, as it were, hints at the social collapse throughout the world. Bunin specifically does not give a name to the main character, presenting us with a generalized image. Initially, the name of the story was "Death on Capri", but in the process of working on the work, Bunin abandoned the title containing the word "death".
Despite this, the feeling of imminent death appears from the very first words of the epigraph.
The story tells about the last days of the life of a wealthy American gentleman who, at the age of 58, decided to start living. It was to start, because he had been working all this time, trying to secure a decent old age. He believed that life is the rest and pleasure that he deserved, so he carefully planned the route of the trip, which in turn is already a stupid obedience to the schedule.
And almost immediately everything goes wrong, as the main character intended. And besides, there was something artificial in his existence, where not only every movement of passengers was painted, but also their emotions. This is where the dissonance between the opinions of the protagonist and the author is already clearly shown. Such an existence cannot be called a full life. The hero lives only for a moment, and then struggling with death.
What happens next is predictable. If at the beginning the hero himself amuses himself, talking with people of the highest circle and watching false lovers, then even after the death of the master, this same highest circle continues to burn through his life now without the main character, whose body rests deep under them.
"The Gentleman from San Francisco" is full of symbolism. The coffin in the hold is a message to those who are having fun, meaning that all people are equal before death, and their money cannot help them in their last painful minutes. Their happiness is actually not happiness at all, their worldview cannot be compared with the vision of the world of ordinary poor mountaineers.
The idea of the work is not just a story about the death of a rich man. The money he had accumulated, his rank no longer mattered. That's what's important. Bunin reveals in his story his own vision of the meaning of life, and this meaning is clearly not in the acquisition of wealth and fame.
The hero is called the master, because this is his essence. At least he thinks so, and therefore revels in his position. It represents that society that destroys all life in humanity, forcing them to come up with a schedule, blindly follow it and coyly smile in feigned pleasure. There is nothing spiritual in such a society, its goal is to be rich and enjoy this wealth. But this has never made anyone truly happy.
"Atlantis" - the ship that carries this society to new pleasures; the ocean on which the ship is sailing is an element beyond the control of even the richest people, capable of instantly destroying the plans of the "dead society" and sending it to the bottom. And at the bottom of the society a gentleman from San Francisco will be waiting. "Atlantis", in fact, is going nowhere, dragging along a blind society of callous people.
The main problem of the story "The Gentleman from San Francisco" is a dead society that can only boast in front of all its money and live according to the schedule drawn up by the same insensitive inanimate person. In his diary, Bunin wrote the following: "I cried, writing the end."
What was he crying about? Over the sad fate of the gentleman who had just begun to live: Over his family, now left without a breadwinner? After all, now they will have to look for a groom so that the master's daughter continues her boring life, as the schedule dictates. I think that the fate of the "dead" society, their way of life and impartiality to other people's grief saddened the author; their callousness and insensitivity. This is precisely the problem of modern society, as it was many years ago.
Updated: 2014-06-04
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In his works, Bunin often speaks with cold contempt about the meaninglessness of the world and human dreams, about the illusory and deceitfulness of the goals to which a person aspires and to which he dedicates his existence. The writer notes with bitterness that life is separated from death by a too fragile partition. About this story "The Gentleman from San Francisco."
Bunin does not give his hero a name. It is not necessary. He is the same as thousands of other rich and self-satisfied. His image is typical. The hero is fifty-eight years old, but he is just beginning to live, because for many years he "only existed", doing only one thing - increasing his own capital. He worked tirelessly, and this was the only meaning of his life. Now he is firmly convinced of his right to rest, the right to finally begin to enjoy life, look around, reward himself for years of work. The appearance of the Atlantis passenger and his surroundings eloquently speak of his social position: a tuxedo, starched underwear, a bottle of wine, goblets made of the thinnest glass, a bouquet of hyacinths. From morning to evening, the attendants are ready to warn the slightest desires of this respectable, moreover, generous gentleman. They “guarded his cleanliness and peace, dragged his things, called for him butlers, delivered his chests to hotels. It was like that everywhere,” the author notes. When they rushed to the master with an offer of services, he only grinned arrogantly and calmly said through his teeth: “Get out!”. On the island of Capri, a wealthy traveler is welcomed as a very important person. Everyone fusses around him, everything around him comes to life, filled with movement and even delight. Glitter and chic is the atmosphere that surrounds the visitor from San Francisco at this stage of his journey.
But a terrible thing happens: the hero is overtaken by death. Like ordinary mortals, she came to him unexpectedly and suddenly, regardless of his material condition, prospects for the future, dreams and plans. The author again gives a portrait of his hero. But this is not the same person who quite recently amazed those around him with an external gloss. Bunin provides the reader with a merciless picture of death: “his neck sprung up, his eyes bulged, his pince-nez flew offnose ..... the lower jaw fell off, .... the head collapsedon his shoulder and wrapped around, the chest of the shirt protruded like a box - and the whole body, wriggling, pulling up the carpet with his heels, crawled to the floor .. He shook his head, wheezed, as if stabbed, rolled his eyes, like a drunk.
A. T. Tvardovsky remarkably revealed the meaning of this episode: “In the face of love and death, according to Bunin, the social, class, property lines that separate people are erased by themselves - everyone is equal before them ... The nameless gentleman from San Francisco dies, having just gathered to dine well in the restaurant of a first-class hotel on the coast of the warm sea. But death is equally terrible in its inevitability.
Death is cruel to the hero. What about people? Those who not long ago sought to please every whim of the Lord? They take his body "to the smallest, worst, dampest and coldest" room, put it on a cheap iron bed. For them, the guest from San Francisco is no longer interesting, his tragic death is not grief, but a nuisance that they are ready to eliminate by any means for the sake of the same capricious and demanding gentlemen like him recently. And where had their recent courtesy gone, with which they only a few minutes ago looked into the hero's eyes! They try to get rid of the body as quickly as possible and at all costs, and instead of a coffin, large long soda boxes are fitted for it. The gentleman is traveling back not as a first-class passenger, but as a burdensome load, carelessly thrown in a black hold, into which he only got after a week of wandering “from one barn to another”, “having experienced many humiliations, a lot of human inattention”. No one during this time thought that someone's life was cut short, that a person lived for something, loved someone, rejoiced at something, aspired to something. The power of the gentleman from San Francisco, as A. T. Tvardovsky argued, turns out to be ephemeral in the face of the same mortal outcome for everyone.
The work of Ivan Bunin is characterized by small, but poignant short stories on the most "big" philosophical topics. One of his little masterpieces is the story "The Gentleman from San Francisco", which raises such issues as death, the meaning of life, love.
Like most of Bunin's works, "The Man from San Francisco" is a protest cry about the "wrongness" of this world. A person in a capitalist society lives almost like a robot, endlessly earning money and not paying attention to all other aspects of life. And so, when the hero of the short story finally earned a lot of money and was finally exhausted, he goes to travel and relax. And suddenly, absolutely unpredictably, without any prerequisites and apparent reasons, he suddenly dies.
The shrillness of the story is achieved by such a special technique as the depersonalization of the main characters. The main character has no name, appearing in the image of some unremarkable gentleman from San Francisco; even his wife and daughter did not receive names in Bunin's literary work. This, as it were, manifests the indifference not only of the entire surrounding world, but also of the author himself to the personalities of the drawn characters. Against such a background, even the smallest employees of the Italian hotel where the tragic event takes place receive specific names from Bunin, thereby emphasizing the insignificance of the American guests. The impression is enhanced by the contrast between the subservience of servants to the personality of a wealthy American before his death and cynical ridicule against him after.
Missing from the story is a description of the reaction of the wife and daughter of a gentleman from San Francisco to his death. One gets the feeling that they remained generally indifferent to what happened. Thus, the whole world, including the close people of the deceased, perceives his death only as some kind of unfortunate and very untimely incident.
The question involuntarily arises: why did this person live? Who was dear to him and who was dear to him? Did he truly love anyone? What did he leave behind besides money? And the author unequivocally answers all these questions in a negative way, summing up the harsh result of the life of a man from San Francisco - his life was meaningless. In the text, we find many small indications of the pitiful, if not to say miserable, aspirations of the main character: constant gluttony, excessive passion for cigars and alcohol, dreams of buying the venal love of young Italian beauties, etc. And all this against the background of the absence of any live communication with his wife and daughter.
What conclusion should the reader of The Gentleman from San Francisco draw?
In my opinion, Bunin hints to us that the meaning of life does not exist in itself, it is acquired by each individual person independently in the process of his life. Everyone must determine for himself what the meaning of life is for him; one cannot exist thoughtlessly and turn into a faceless cog in the capitalist mechanism. Therefore, the story “The Gentleman from San Francisco” itself serves as a constant reminder of these eternal truths, a call not to repeat the miserable life path of the protagonist of the work.
