“Antonov apples” by I.A. Bunin
A lyrical tone, based on the patriarchal depth of national consciousness, is characteristic of I. Bunin’s prose, which is always turned to the past. As if picking up the Turgenev baton, the writer speaks with incomparable melancholy about the ruin, the emptying of the noble nests that were once the stronghold of Russia, its cultural component.
Sometimes there are no words to convey all the pain and joy, sadness and tenderness - all the feelings associated with memories of the past, slipping away at the behest of indomitable time, so memory clings to all aspects of perception (vision, hearing, touch, smell). It is precisely this kind of world, sensual, material, that is woven in Bunin’s story « Antonov apples» , written between 1898 and 1900.
Everything is subject to Bunin’s poetic prose: capturing the variety of shades of color ( black-lilac poneva, gray-iron stallion), and the play of chiaroscuro ( “someone’s black silhouettes, as if carved from wood...while giant shadows walk through the apple trees”), and synesthetic metaphors based on co-sensation ( sundresses smelling of paint, clear, icy, heavy water).
Through this variety of details and signs, we are shown the inner richness, intensity of spiritual life and depth of the narrator’s experiences. The hero himself seems to be hidden from the reader, his story is unknown, only that the men call him barchuk. The emphasis is only on his memories and associations associated with the past, with the taste, smell, and appearance of Antonov apples.
The beginning of the story is based on poetic device — gradations, replete with repetition of words "I remember". It seems as if the hero is afraid that at least one shade of feeling will escape from his memories.
The story has several parts. IN first part- memories of the village, men, the joy and carefreeness of life, accompanied by the crunch of Antonov apples.
Part two- autumn time, associated with the story of ancient old women, decorously preparing a gravestone and a richly decorated shroud for themselves, and about rich men. Here the hero’s memories are transferred to the estate of his aunt, Anna Gerasimovna, who is described with nostalgic longing for the light, spacious and blue sky, the clear distance, the well-trodden road. There, in the lost world, every little thing is imbued with poetry and beauty, even telegraph poles "like silver strings", and the falcons sitting on them - "black icons on music paper» . But the most precious, important autumn memory is the smell of Antonov apples.
The third part — "the fading spirit of the landowners", deepening colors cold autumn, dead and anxious, waiting for the first rays of the winter sun, the proximity of loss. The anxious rhythm of the hunt, the estate of Arseniy Semenovich, hospitality, the bliss of youth and noble life, honoring its ancient roots and Russian culture.
Fourth part- bitter melancholy that there is no longer the smell of Antonov apples, just as there are no old people or landowners.
The four parts of the story are the circle of life, a run from youth to maturity for the hero, from full life to decline for noble Russia.
Leaving, dissolving into cruelty new reality, Russia was imprinted in Bunin’s story in the smell, taste, and appearance of Antonov apples. First snow, dark house windows, gentle sounds guitars and the last lines of the story... “I covered the road with white snow”.
Ivan Alekseevich Bunin deeply and sincerely loved his Motherland. All his works are permeated with a touching feeling of aching sadness, love for nature and the Motherland. One of these bright works The great Russian writer is the story “Antonov Apples”, where the writer regrets the passing past. We invite you to familiarize yourself with the analysis of the work.
Brief Analysis
Year of writing: 1900
History of creation - The idea of writing the story was inspired by the aroma of ripe apples, which he felt when he was visiting his brother’s estate.
Theme - The main theme of the work is regret for the noble class, which is gradually becoming a thing of the past, and the great theme of love for nature.
Composition - The story consists of four parts, which reflect periods of Russia's life, its past, present and future.
Genre - Narrative refers to the genre of a story composed of several parts in the form of a monologue. Direction - Realism.
History of creation
When analyzing the work in “Antonov Apples,” it is necessary to mention its creation story, which gave the main idea to this story.
The writer was visiting his brother's estate, surrounded by orchards. He came from the noble class, whose estates necessarily included gardens as a sign of nobility.
One day the writer left his brother’s house and was overwhelmed by the aroma of Antonov apples. This sweet and fragrant smell evoked in the writer nostalgia for the past and brought back memories of bygone youth. The writer was pierced by sadness for the passing of time, and the idea came to his mind to express his nostalgic feelings about the past on paper. The idea sank firmly into the writer’s soul, but he brought his idea of writing this story to life only nine years later. This is how Bunin’s story “Antonov Apples” was created, and nine years passed from conception to implementation, the year of writing was 1900. The nostalgic work is dedicated to the memories of the passing nobility.
Subject
The writer puts sadness and sadness about the passing time into the meaning of the title of his story. The smell of apples, sweet and at the same time tart, embodies the state of his life in the writer’s plan. poetic soul. His memories have the same shade, sometimes they are sweet and happy when the author remembers the past. About the time when the nobility lived in full bloom, a pure and righteous life. Everything was busy with worries and work, there was no room bad habits and boredom.
The bitterness of the memories is given by the moment when the writer realizes that the nobility has gradually fallen into decline, that calm and measured life is no longer there, and society has begun to wallow in vices.
Memories of people he once knew pass before the narrator’s eyes. The heroes of his memories are as close and dear to the poet as his entire past. The emerging problems of ruin and devastation of noble family nests run through the author’s entire narrative.
With his expressive artistic means, the author masterfully managed to awaken in every reader the memories dear to his heart.
The meaning of the work is to show an even and serene picture of the past, idealizing and embellishing it, bypassing sharp corners reality. To touch the hidden corners of the reader’s soul, so that these memories are only of a constructive nature, cleansing them of filth and malice.
Analysis of the story leads to the conclusion that this work leads to high moral thoughts, allows readers to renounce everything dirty and obscene, leads to true purification of the soul, and generates a desire for high ideals. The problem of the story is not only in regret about the passing of the nobility. The theme of nature is also deeply developed in the work. The author is rightfully considered an unsurpassed poet who glorifies native nature. Bunin not only loves nature, he understands and knows it well. No writer can compare with him in describing nature. This is that emotional and deeply feeling person, so much nature lover that even the smell of apples allows him to create a work of genius.
Composition
Interesting compositional structure story, features of the composition include ellipsis both at the beginning and at the end of the work. Between these dots are four chapters of the story. Such features mean that the story seems to have no beginning and no end. This is just a piece of life, taken from a certain moment, and does not end with anything, but gives food for thought about the coming future.
In the composition of the text there seems to be an absence of plot; there is no dynamic development in it. The entire story takes the form of a monologue.
This story internal monologue writer, is divided into four parts. Each part makes up a certain picture past, and all together they form one whole. All four parts of the work are subordinated to one theme. Using artistic media, features of the composition, in each of these parts, the author outlines the life and way of life of the noble class, its culture. He describes both the rise of the nobility and its decline. With slight sadness, in each of the four chapters, the writer talks about the past, suggesting the inevitability of a new future. In each of these parts, in each line, he calls on the reader not to forget about the past, to remember his homeland and ancestors, to cherish traditions, and only then can a new, happy future be built.
The composition of the work ends with the words of a song, the allegorical meaning of which is expressed by the author in the fact that history inevitably moves forward, sweeping away its past.
Genre
Bunin's work belongs to the short story genre. Bunin, a singer of nature and a poet, used poetic motifs in his narrative, and “Antonov Apples” can confidently be called a poetic story, a lyrical story of a realistic direction.
Criticism was ambiguous in its judgments about the work; its genius is evidenced by the fact that the story has become a classic.
Analysis of I. A. Bunin’s story “Antonov Apples”
I breathed sharply with coolness
The smell of decay hits my face;
But I wasn’t looking for spring decorations,
And memories of past years.
E.A.Baratynsky
I.A. Bunin is often called the last Russian classic, a representative of the outgoing noble culture. His works are imbued with a tragic sense of the doom of the old world, close and dear to the writer, with whom he was connected by origin and upbringing: “The spirit of this environment, romanticized by my imagination, seemed to me all the more beautiful because it disappeared forever before my eyes.” An elegiac motif of longing for the past runs through all of Bunin’s work.
In the story “Antonov Apples” the writer recalls the old, good time, when the nobility was at the ideal time of its existence. “I remember a large room, illuminated by the pre-autumn sun...” - this is how a detailed, slow and unhurried narrative begins. Bunin’s lyrical prose is generally impossible to read quickly: the constant interpenetration from the present to the past is disrupted. This is one of the main problems of the writer’s work - the need to connect times and generations, to preserve the memory of a bygone culture. The author emphasizes the idea of the doom of beauty in the “iron” age, the displacement of everything lost, aesthetic, by a crude thirst for profit. And all that remains from the old world is the subtle smell of Antonov apples. The smell is ethereal, and therefore nothing remains of the previous way of life.
At the beginning of the story we note the technique of anaphora, characteristic of poetic works: “I remember a large, all golden, dried up and thinning garden, I remember maple alleys, the subtle aroma of fallen leaves and the smell of Antonov apples.” A number of nouns attract attention here. Behind each of them is a visible image, colored with bright epithets (“fresh, quiet morning”, “golden garden”, etc.) This makes prose work like a poem. Here you can see an undoubted similarity with “Poems in Prose” by I.S. Turgenev. Not only a love of words and beauty united the two great writers - they were also brought together by a passion for hunting. It is no coincidence that Turgenev called his cycle of stories “Notes of a Hunter,” and Bunin noted that “for last years only one thing supported the fading spirit of the landowners - hunting.” Hunting is an ancient and favorite pastime of Russian nobles. Autumn time Bunin calls it “golden”. Big stage hunting is given against the backdrop of the beginning of October - the farewell holiday of autumn. The writer makes us, as it were, accomplices of this joyful, gambling spectacle, hence the narration in the 2nd person: “You are riding a horse, you feel “sweet fatigue,” “you won’t notice how you will drown... in a sweet, healthy sleep...”.
The landscape sketch of the 1st part (exposition) is replaced by portrait sketches. Bunin lovingly shows an old man, a long-liver, who lived in Vyselki, where “from time immemorial” the peasants were “famous” for their age and “wealth.” Such longevity was considered a sign of a happy, prosperous life; the author describes in detail the
good courtyards, depicts the measured, leisurely existence of wealthy men. It is important for Bunin to compare this familiar way of life with life landed nobility using the example of his aunt Anna Gerasimovna.
The story is based on the author’s impressions of visiting his brother’s estate. Before us, against the background of an open area, a “spacious and deep” sky (a favorite image of Bunin’s prose and poetry), the aunt’s estate appears. The description of the estate is typical, we saw something similar in both Turgenev and L. Tolstoy: white lordly two-storey house with columns, neglected garden with a pond, linden alley, bench. The narrative includes a description of the interior: old “mahogany” furniture, “blue and purple glass windows, dried linden blossom” outside the window frames. We pay special attention to the library - grandfather's books in thick bindings that “smell so nice.” This collection of books highlights the interests and hobbies of the nobles. Sometimes the choice of volumes is random: “satirical and philosophical works Voltaire”, and next to them are your loved ones romantic works Zhukovsky and Pushkin. “And the old, dreamy life rises before you,” and you imagine how “aristocratically beautiful heads,” sadly and tenderly looking from portraits in tarnished gilded frames, thoughtfully froze over the open pages.
The ellipsis that ends Chapter 3 is significant. This is a longing for a bygone life, the symbol of which for Bunin was the smell of Antonov apples: “These days were so recent, and yet it seems that almost a whole century has passed since then.” Therefore, the next chapter is based on contrast: exquisitely aristocratic “ the life of the fathers" and the "beggarly small-scale life" of the "children." But even in this Bunin knows how to find attractive features. Hence the abundance exclamation sentences: “The small-scale life is good too!” (these words sound like a refrain), “It will be a glorious day of hunting!” The usual knock autumn work merges with the sounds of hunting horns in the fields. And although the small estates still come together and disappear for whole days in the snow-covered fields, now they “drink with their last money,” and their song about the wild wind is full of hopeless sadness:
Opened my gates wider,
The path was covered with white snow...
The ending of the story is symbolic. It echoes the beginning. There is the cool silence of the morning, here it is late evening, when they “glow in the dark” winter night outbuilding windows." It's sunrise and sunset noble life, And more and more often, towards the end of the story, ellipses appear. If at the beginning of the work they give the character of memories, now they carry in themselves understatement and sadness for a bygone noble life, for a vanished youth.
Thus, the work reflected the main theme of I.A. Bunin’s work in the 900s - the theme of Russia’s patriarchal past. The writer regrets his passing life, idealizing the noble way of life. His best memories are associated with the smell of Antonov apples. But Bunin hopes that, along with the dying Russia of the past, the roots of the nation will still be preserved in its memory.
/ / / Analysis of Bunin’s story “Antonov Apples”
The story “Antonov Apples” was written in 1900. This work belongs to early period works of the great Russian poet and writer Ivan Bunin. Bunin was a passionate connoisseur and admirer of nature native land, he praised her more than once in his works. So, in the story “Antonov Apples” the writer shows us all the beauty of a wonderful time - Indian summer.
“Antonov Apples” is written in the form of a memoir. They do not have a clearly defined plot and end the same way they begin - with a description of scenes of nature. But in this detailed description of natural scenes one can catch the awe and love that the author feels for that wonderful time.
In addition to colorful paintings of nature, Bunin pays special attention folk wisdom. His story - "Antonov Apples" is simply riddled with folk signs. Here, for example: if on Lawrence it's raining, then the autumn will be long and the winter will be mild.
Bunin can safely be called a patriot of his homeland. All our values and color are dear to him. huge country. All the images of garden fair participants he created amaze with their accuracy and individuality. Just pay attention to the young elder, whom the author compares to a Kholmogory cow, or the burry man who plays the harmonica.
We can feel all the relief of the story (smells, sounds, aromas, rustles) thanks to the widespread use of artistic definitions.
One important detail The scent that runs through the entire piece is the apple scent. Bunin shows us the apple orchard in different time day and night. And it seems that night garden, decorated with shining stars, looks no worse than daytime.
The main theme of the work is the theme of the collapse of the noble way of life, which found its expression in the image of the estate. For the nobility of that time, an estate was not just a place of residence - it was their whole life. Bunin writes with pain in his heart that the apple orchard is fading, the sweet smell of apples is disappearing, that the old foundations are crumbling, everything is becoming a thing of the past. All this brings back nostalgic memories of the time when the nobility was at the zenith of its existence.
The story “Antonov Apples” also has character traits Bunin's works - simple hobbies village life. Thus, the author admired and greatly appreciated the village way of life with work in an open field, a clean white shirt, a slice of fresh bread and a glass of fresh milk.
Also in the story “Antonov Apples” another sensitive topic is raised - the topic of class inequality. Bunin claims that middle class The nobility can to some extent be called peasant. The writer admits that he did not know the foundations of serfdom, but often recalled how the current courtyards bowed to their masters.
“Antonov Apples” teach us to love the nature of our native land, to love our homeland, as much as I.A. Bunin did. They make us remember our history and our roots.
“Antonov Apples” by I. Bunin is a panoramic image of the life of landowners, in which there was also room for a story about peasant life. The peculiarity of the work is rich landscape sketches, from which unique autumn smells emanate. This bright example poetic prose in Russian literature. The story is in the Unified State Examination program, so it is important to remember the basic information about it. Studying “Antonov apples in 11th grade. We offer qualitative analysis works by I. Bunin.
Brief Analysis
Year of writing - 1900.
History of creation- In 1891, I. Bunin visited his brother Evgeniy’s estate. Once, going outside, the writer caught the smell of Antonov apples, which reminded him of the times of the landowners. The story itself was written only 9 years later.
Subject- Two themes can be distinguished in the story: autumn in the village, the free life of landowners, filled with the romance of the countryside.
Composition- The organization of the story is special, since the outline of the events is very poorly represented in it. Main role memories, impressions play, philosophical reflections, based on landscapes.
Genre- Story-epitaph.
Direction- Sentimentalism.
History of creation
The history of the creation of the work is connected with the writer’s trip to his brother Eugene. IN country estate I. Bunin caught the smell of Antonov apples. The aroma reminded Ivan Alekseevich of the life of landowners. This is how the idea for the story arose, which the writer realized only nine years later, in 1900. “Antonov Apples” became part of the cycle of epitaphs.
The story was first seen by the world in the year it was written in the magazine “Life”, published in St. Petersburg. Critics received it positively. But the publication did not mark the end of the work. I. Bunin continued to polish his creation for twenty years, so there are several versions of “Antonov Apples”.
Subject
To capture the essence of the story “Antonov Apples,” its analysis should begin with a description of the main problem.
The entire piece is covered autumn theme . The author reveals the beauty of nature at this time and the changes that autumn brings to human life. A. Bunin proceeds to describe the life of the landowner. The image of Antonov apples plays an important role in revealing both themes. These fruits symbolize childhood, antiquity, and nostalgia. IN symbolic meaning hiding and meaning of the name story.
The peculiarities of the work are related to the fact that the lyrical component plays a leading role in it. It’s not for nothing that the author chooses the first-person narrative form singular. This way the reader can get as close as possible to the narrator, see the world through his eyes, observe his feelings and emotions. The narrator of the work recalls lyrical hero, which we are accustomed to seeing in poems.
At first the narrator describes early autumn, generously “sprinkling” the landscape with folk signs. This technique helps to recreate a rustic atmosphere. The image of Antonov apples appears in the initial landscape. They are collected by peasants in the gardens of bourgeois gardeners. Gradually, the author moves on to a description of a bourgeois hut and a fair near it. This allows you to introduce colorful peasant images. The first part ends with a description of an autumn night.
Second part begins again with landscape and folk signs. In it. I. Bunin talks about long-lived old people, as if hinting at how much weaker his generation is. In this part the reader can find out how rich peasants lived. The narrator describes their life with delight, not hiding the fact that he himself would like to live like that.
Memories take the narrator back to the times when his landowner aunt was alive. He enthusiastically tells how he came to visit Anna Gerasimovna. Her estate was surrounded by a garden in which apples grew. The hero describes in detail the interior of his aunt's house, paying special attention to the smells, the main one being the aroma of apples.
The third part I. Bunin’s work “Antonov Apples” is a story about a hunt, this is the only thing that “sustained the fading spirit of the landowners.”
The narrator describes everything: getting ready for the hunt, the process itself and the evening feast. In this part, another hero appears - the landowner Arseny Semenovich, who pleasantly surprises with his appearance and cheerful disposition.
In the final part the author talks about the death of landowner Anna Gerasimovna, landowner Arseny Semenych and the elderly. The spirit of antiquity seems to have died along with them. All that was left was nostalgia and “small-scale life.” Nevertheless, I. Bunin concludes that she is also good, proving this with a description of small-scale life.
Issues The work is concentrated around the motif of the extinction of the landowner spirit and the death of antiquity.
Story idea- to show that the old days had a special charm, so descendants should preserve it at least in memory.
Main thought– a person cherishes those memories that are cherished in his heart from childhood and youth.
Composition
The compositional features of the work are manifested both at the formal and semantic levels. It is written in the form of memories of a lyrical hero. The main role in the story is played not by events, but by non-plot elements - landscapes, portraits, interiors, philosophical reflections. They are closely intertwined and complementary. The main tool for their creation is artistic means, the set of which includes both original and folklore ones.
It is difficult to single out the elements of the plot - exposition, plot, development of events and denouement, since they are blurred by the indicated non-plot components.
Formally, the text is divided into four parts, each of which is devoted to certain memories of the narrator. All parts are connected main theme and the image of the narrator.
Genre
Analysis plan literary work necessarily includes genre characteristics. “Antonov Apples” is an epitaph story. In the work it is impossible to identify specific storylines, all the characters are connected with the narrator, the system of images is unbranched. Researchers consider the story an epitaph, since it we're talking about about the “dead” landowner spirit.
