Colonel at the ball and after the ball essay Grade 8
Plan
1.L.N. Tolstoy - a psychologist of the human soul
2. Acquaintance with the main characters of the story "After the ball"
3.Peter Vladislavovich - a two-faced person:.
a) a loving and caring father, ready to go to great lengths for his daughter
B) a cruel tyrant, incapable of sympathy
4. The act of the colonel, which changed the life of Ivan Vasilyevich
LN Tolstoy is not only a talented writer, but also an expert in psychology and philosophy. In each of his works, the author seeks to reveal the characters as much as possible, to “convey” a certain problem to the reader. The story “After the Ball” was no exception, despite the fact that it is small in size, it contains deep thoughts.
Main characters: Ivan Vasilievich - the person from whom the story is told and Colonel Peter Vladislavovich. To build the story, the author uses contrasting episodes - a secular ball and the punishment of a soldier. And only thanks to these episodes one can understand what idea underlies the work.
The first acquaintance with Colonel Pyotr Vladislavovich, Varenka's father, takes place at a ball. Tolstoy describes him as a handsome and courageous man who has secular manners and knows how to win over people. He has the same "... affectionate, joyful smile, like his daughter ...", it is reflected in his eyes and on his lips. The colonel is not at all like a campaigner of the Nikolaev era. At the ball he behaves so flawlessly and easily, in his behavior, gestures and words there is no such rudeness and harshness, which, as a rule, is characteristic of military personnel. The fact that he is a soldier says his dress uniform, sparsely decorated with orders.
The Colonel is a loving and caring father. In order for his daughter to have the opportunity to attend balls and buy outfits, Pyotr Vladislavovich himself wears shoes that have long gone out of fashion and are homemade. Here his power of love and readiness to give everything for the sake of her well-being are revealed. His dance with his daughter Varenka shows how he respects and appreciates her, he is even ready to dance mazurkas with her, although he has long forgotten how. And after the dance, he gently and lovingly grabbed his daughter and kissed her forehead.
The next morning, Varenka's father appears before the readers in a completely different form. As it turned out, Peter Vladislavovich is not a soft and good-natured man. He turns into a cruel dictator who not only obeys military laws, but also experiences some kind of wild sense of superiority over employees. One could try to justify the colonel, to say in his defense that he followed the law, served the Motherland. But how can one remove the blame from a person who is not just controlling the execution of an order, but also being a warden, making sure that the poor Turk is properly hit harder. When one of the soldiers did not hit hard, took pity on the poor fellow, the colonel instantly reacted, he hit him in the face and exclaimed that he should not smear. This act cannot justify the girl's father, because you can be a good military man and always remain a man. The terrible thing is that this man has absolutely no compassion for the Tatar, who, with a martyr look and a plea in his voice, asks his comrades to show mercy: "Brothers, have mercy!" The poor fellow is terrible to look at, his back has turned into something unnatural, red and wet with blood. His back no longer looked like a human body! But the Colonel still showed no pity.
Leo Tolstoy was concerned about the problem of the influence of circumstances on a person. In his story, the insensitivity and duplicity of Pyotr Vladislavovich is striking. Who revels in his power and knows that no matter what he does to the soldiers, punishment will not follow. At home, he is a loving father and a caring husband, but among his subordinates he turns into a despot. The writer drew attention to the fact that society and its structure influence the personality. If not for the cruelty of the colonel, then Ivan Vasilyevich could also become a military man and link his fate with Varenka. It happens in life, one episode can change the whole life.
A distinctive feature of the life and work of the great Russian writer and thinker Leo Tolstoy is his constant moral quest. What is the true purpose of a person, how to relate to other people and generally accepted "truths" - all these issues are addressed to one degree or another in his works. The writer speaks about them especially sharply and uncompromisingly in novels, stories and short stories created by him after the spiritual crisis experienced in the late 70s of the 19th century. These include the story "After the Ball."
History of creation
In early April 1903, a major Jewish pogrom took place in the city of Chisinau, Bessarabian province of the Russian Empire. L. N. Tolstoy spoke out with a sharp condemnation of the rioters and the inactive authorities. The Pogrom Relief Committee organized a fundraiser. At the end of April, the well-known Jewish writer Sholom Aleichem asked Leo Tolstoy to "give something" for a literary collection he was preparing for the same purpose. In a response letter, Lev Nikolaevich promised to fulfill his request.
On June 9, Tolstoy decided to write a story about an incident in the life of his brother Sergei Nikolayevich, which evokes certain associations with the Kishinev pogrom. The 75-year-old Lev Nikolaevich remembered this story from his student days, spent together with his brothers in Kazan.
The plan for the future story was outlined in a diary entry dated June 18, 1903. The first version of the story, entitled "Daughter and Father", was written on August 5-6. Then Tolstoy changed the title to "And you say". The final version of the story entitled “After the Ball” was completed on August 20, 1903. The work was published after the death of the writer in the “Posthumous Artistic Works of Leo Tolstoy” in 1911.
Description of the artwork
The narration is conducted on behalf of the main character - Ivan Vasilyevich. In familiar surroundings, he told two incidents from his life when he was a student at a provincial university. They were supposed to illustrate his assertion that the determining factor in the fate of a person is not the environment, but the case.
Most of the story is occupied by the experiences of the hero, who visited on the last day of Maslenitsa at the ball of the provincial leader. All the cream of the provincial society gathered there, including Varenka B., with whom the student was madly in love. She became the queen of the ball, and she was admired not only by men, but also by women, whom she pushed into the background. So, at least, it seemed to the student Vanya. A beautiful girl favored him and presented most of the dances with her.
Varenka was the daughter of Colonel Pyotr Vladislavovich, who was also at the ball with his wife. At the end, those present persuaded the colonel to dance with his daughter. The couple was in the spotlight. Pyotr Vladislavovich remembered his former prowess and danced dashingly in a young way. Vanya watched the couple with increased attention. The old-fashioned colonel's boots especially touched his soul. They guessed savings on themselves in order not to refuse anything to their beloved daughter.
After the dance, the colonel said that he had to get up early tomorrow, and did not stay for dinner. And Ivan danced with Varenka for a long time. An unearthly feeling of happiness and absolute harmony of being seized the protagonist. He loved not only Varenka and her father, but the whole world, in which, as it seemed to him at that moment, there was nothing bad.
Finally, the ball is over. Returning home in the morning, Ivan realized that he would not be able to fall asleep from an excess of feelings. He went out into the street and his feet themselves carried him to Varenka's house, located on the outskirts of the city. As they approached the field adjacent to the house, drum rolls and unpleasant, screeching sounds of a flute sounded, drowning out the dance melodies that still sounded in Ivan's soul. There they let a runaway Tatar soldier through the ranks. Other soldiers from both sides beat the unfortunate man on his bare back, and he only muttered exhaustedly: “Brothers, have mercy.” His back has long turned into a bloody mess.
And Varenka's father led the execution, and he did it as diligently as he had danced with his daughter the day before. When one undersized soldier hit the Tatar not hard enough, the colonel, his face twisted with anger, began to beat him in the face for this. Ivan was shocked to the point of nausea by what he saw. His love for Varenka began to wane. The bloody back of the soldier tortured by her father stood between them.
Main characters
The hero of the story, Ivan Vasilyevich, is endowed with a sense of compassion and the ability to put himself in the place of another person. Human misfortunes did not become for him simple life scenery, as for the vast majority of representatives of the privileged classes. Ivan Vasilyevich's conscience is not drowned out by false expediency in life. These qualities were highly characteristic of Tolstoy himself.
Colonel Pyotr Vladislavovich is a caring father and a good family man. Most likely, he considers himself a true Christian, serving God, the sovereign and the fatherland. But he, like most people at all times, is absolutely deaf to the main thing in Christianity - the great moral law of Christ. According to this law, you should treat people the way you would like them to treat you. Regardless of class and property partitions.
It is difficult to make a psychological portrait of the beautiful Varenka. Most likely, it is unlikely that her external attractiveness was combined with the same soul. After all, she was brought up by her father, who turned out to be a real fanatic in the public service.
Story analysis
The compositional dominant of the story is the opposition of its two parts, describing the events at the ball and after it. First, a ball sparkling with light colors is a celebration of youth, love and beauty. It takes place on the last day of Maslenitsa - Forgiveness Sunday, when believers must forgive each other mutual sins. Then - dark colors, "bad music" hitting the nerves, and a brutal reprisal against the unfortunate soldiers, among whom the main victim is a non-believer (like the Jews of Chisinau).
There are several main ideas in the story. First of all, it is an absolute rejection of any violence, including those justified by state necessity. Secondly, contrary to the will of God, the division of people into those worthy of respect and likened to cattle.
Other motives are less obvious. In torturing a non-believer on Forgiveness Sunday, Tolstoy allegorically continues to reproach the official church, which justifies state violence, from which he was excommunicated two years before.
The image of the enamored and careless Ivan Vasilievich reminds Tolstoy of his own youth, to which the writer was critical. Oddly enough, but the young Tolstoy had common features with the colonel. In his other work (“Youth”), the writer writes about his own division of people into worthy and despised.
>Compositions based on the work After the ball
Colonel at the ball and after the ball
The story that formed the basis of the story “After the Ball”, L. N. Tolstoy heard from his brother. She impressed him so much that he wanted to write a story about it without fail. In his student years, the elder brother of the writer, Sergei Nikolaevich, was in love with the daughter of a military commander. When he found out about her father's mistreatment of runaway soldiers, his feelings vanished in an instant. Moreover, he changed his mind about joining the army. So one event radically changed the fate of the young man.
The main problem addressed in the story is human duplicity, which the hero has not previously encountered. The story is told in the first person. Despite the fact that the events actually happened, the names of the characters are fictitious. So, the main character Ivan Vasilyevich, talks about what happened to him in his youth. He was then deeply in love with Varenka B., the daughter of a local colonel. Once at a ball, he managed to win her attention for the whole day, and therefore was infinitely happy. There he met the girl's father, who seemed to him a worthy man.
Colonel Pyotr Vladislavich showed himself at the ball not only as a caring father, but also as a gallant person. He was polite and courteous, gracefully danced the circle of the mazurka with his daughter, and smiled kindly and sweetly at everyone. The narrator was involuntarily imbued with sympathy for this cheerful man beyond his years and was happy to meet him. Ivan Vasilievich returned in the morning and could not sleep at all. Then he decided to walk a little around the city. His feet themselves led him to Varenka's house, and there an extraordinary picture awaited him.
Soldiers in black urged on and beat the fugitive Tatar under the direction of Varenka's father. And he calmly walked along and controlled that they did not miss. Those who were badly beaten themselves received in the face from the colonel. What he saw shocked Ivan Vasilyevich so much that his feelings for Varenka quickly cooled off. For himself, he decided never to go to the service. So the event of one morning forever changed the life of a young student.
Ivan Vasilyevich was disturbed by one circumstance, how a person could be so two-faced. He did not even fully understand whether this was good or bad. After all, at the ball, the colonel almost crumbled in courtesies and tried to appear so kind-hearted. And after the ball, the narrator saw his real essence, which greatly disappointed him. Therefore, when his interlocutors talked about what could change a person's life, he confidently answered - a case.
The hero of a short story by Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy "After the Ball" Ivan Vasilievich shares his impressions of the meeting with the colonel and describes his portrait.
Pyotr Vladislavich was a colonel and the father of the beautiful girl Varya, with whom the narrator was in love.
In the first half of the story, Ivan Vasilyevich describes him at the ball.
The old colonel was a handsome and handsome man. He had a ruddy face, a white mustache and sideburns. The Colonel had an excellent physique, he was a tall man with a broad chest and strong shoulders. It was evident from his figure and bearing that he was a military man.
Ivan Vasilievich admired and respected his behavior. The Colonel's demeanor was courteous, he was affable and nice to those around him.
The colonel treated his daughter with trepidation and tenderness, he had the same affectionate smile as hers.
Ivan Vasilyevich was especially struck by his boots. They were old and not fashionable, it was clear that the boots were homemade. This indicated that the old man limits himself in order to take him to balls and dress his beloved daughter beautifully.
In the morning, Ivan Vasilievich again sees the colonel in the field near his house. The behavior of the old man is radically different from what he saw in the evening. He appears as a stern and tough boss who does not have the slightest compassion and mercy for people.
The colonel supervised the beating of a Tatar who tried to escape. There was no trace left of the nice person seen the day before. He had a firm gait, an overcoat covered his strong shoulders, and a cap was on his head.
Ivan Vasilyevich watched as the old colonel scolded the soldier in an angry voice for not beating the punished Tatar so much. Without the slightest remorse, the colonel struck him in the face with his strong gloved hand.
The Colonel's demeanor was formidable, his face reflecting anger. It was hard for Ivan Vasilyevich to believe that until quite recently the colonel seemed to be a completely different person. He danced, rejoiced at the ball, was nice to the people around him and infinitely tender towards his daughter Varvara.
When the colonel saw Ivan Vasilyevich, he quickly turned away, pretending not to recognize him. Perhaps the behavior of the colonel was connected with the service and he was only a hostage of obligations and did his duty.
However, Ivan Vasilyevich, no matter how he tried, could not justify him in his own eyes.
Composition The image of the Colonel's father Varenka and his characteristics
One of the main characters of the work is the Colonel, named after Pyotr Vladislavovich, presented by the writer in the form of Father Varenka, the main character of the story.
The Colonel is described as a tall, stately, elderly man with a ruddy face, which flaunts a curled mustache and neatly trimmed sideburns. His appearance, conducive to communication and commanding respect, is characterized by a firm, confident gait, an affectionate smile wandering on his face and an open look of sparkling eyes. Despite his military rank, in everyday life the colonel prefers to dress in an army uniform in the form of an impeccable uniform, black suede gloves and pointy boots with knocked down heels that have long gone out of fashion.
The Colonel is an exemplary family man and a father who doted on his own daughter, for whom he spares neither money nor time, ready to deny himself everything for Varenka's pleasure.
The hero, despite his venerable age, loves to dance and tries not to miss any of the balls, where he prefers to waltz with his beautiful daughter, with whom he has developed a trusting relationship.
At the next ball, where the narrator in the form of Ivan Vasilyevich meets with a gallant and amiable colonel, he falls under the spell of Peter Vladislavovich, presenting him as a cheerful and peaceful person.
However, at the end of the ball, Ivan Vasilievich becomes a witness to an unsightly event, the main participant of which is the supposedly intelligent colonel, who revealed himself to the narrator from the other, impartial side.
The Colonel directs the cruel punishment of a guilty soldier who tried to escape. At the same time, the hero changes not only from the outside, but also internally. The colonel shouts angrily, humiliates not only the unfortunate man who was punished, but also the subordinates who are executing the execution. He is adamant in his cruelty, does not hear the pleas for mercy, forcing his colleagues to inflict even more pain on the offender.
Revealing the image of the colonel in the novel, the writer tells about real events that occurred at a time when the cruelty of social existence cripples the spiritual qualities of a person, making him a moral monster, carefully hiding his true appearance and callous essence behind a mask of positive characteristics.
Option 3
The story "After the Ball" was written by L.N. Tolstoy. It tells a story from the life of the writer himself, which impressed him very much. He decided to write about it several decades later.
The story is told from the perspective of the protagonist, Ivan Vasilyevich, who is in love with the girl Varenka B. This girl was the most beautiful at the ball, even Tolstoy himself cannot describe her beauty. She always had a lot of fans. This love of the protagonist was the strongest in his entire life. Dancing, young people could not stop looking at each other. The first part of this story shows a ball where people relax, dance, communicate. At this ball, Ivan Vasilievich meets Varenka's father, Pyotr Vladislavovich B.
Peter Vladislavovich - nobleman, colonel. He has a family: a wife and eighteen-year-old daughter Varenka. They live in Kazan. The colonel is a handsome, stately man in years. He had sideburns and a mustache on his face. He spends most of his money on his daughter, limiting himself even in new boots. Peter Vladislavovich deftly and skillfully dances. He likes to dance with his daughter. He treats her kindly and gently. His gaze is kind and gentle, like hers. The colonel treated everyone at the ball politely and gallantly, which speaks of his good manners. Everyone who interacted with him was fascinated by him at first sight, felt respect. The main character felt the same way. In addition, Ivan Vasilievich really wanted to become an officer. And the colonel told him about the service: how much it means to him, and how he loves his soldiers.
After the ball he went home. But after such pleasant impressions, I could not sleep. The young man was so inspired that he packed up and went to Varenka's house. There he saw a strange movement and heard screams: the colonel, who had recently been at the ball, danced with his daughter and spoke warmly about his soldiers, beat one of them in anger (they punished the runaway Tatar). The back of this Tatar did not look like a back, rather, like bloody meat. He begged the colonel for mercy, but the colonel got even angrier. The man who tenderly hugged his daughter also slapped another soldier in the face.
This case impressed Ivan Vasilyevich very much. He could no longer love Varenka (the young man always recalled that story with her) and later his love completely disappeared. Ivan Vasilyevich also abandoned thoughts of military service, because he no longer saw anything noble in this.
At the heart of the storyline of the story L.N. Tolstoy's "After the Ball" is a life story that happened to an eyewitness to the events. The image and characterization of the Colonel at the ball and after the ball will reveal the duplicity of the main character, revealing his true essence. The characterization of Colonel B occurs through the prism of his perception by Ivan Vasilyevich. He focuses on how strikingly different the appearance and actions of the colonel at the ball and after it.
Colonel B - Peter Vladislavovich B. The central character of the story. Varenka's father.
Family
His family is wife and daughter Varenka. They lived in a provincial town, in a good house. The colonel did not have a soul in his daughter. All the money went to her. Balls, expensive clothes required considerable financial investments. Denying himself everything, he tried to ensure that his daughter did not need anything. An exemplary father and family man. He seemed to be a role model, causing involuntary envy.
Appearance
Tall, aged man. Ruddy face with curled mustache. Neat sideburns. There was always a kind smile on his face. Glittering eyes are open. The gait is firm and confident. He disposed to himself, causing involuntary respect and reverence.
Cloth
Peter Vladislavovich always wore a uniform. It is very rare to see him in civilian clothes. The colonel's uniform is impeccable. Boots are good, but out of fashion a long time ago. Knocked down, no heels. With pointed, square toes. On her hands are black suede gloves.
At the ball
At the next ball, where the colonel brought his daughter, he, as always, was gallant and courteous. It was clear what kind of trusting relationship they had with their daughter. He seemed sincere, with all his behavior and appearance showing love for Varenka. As they circled the hall, their eyes were fixed on them. It was a pleasure to watch this couple.
The Colonel liked to dance. Despite his advanced age, he tried not to miss such events. Ivan Vasilyevich, the narrator, at the first meeting with the brave military man, was fascinated by him, like others. Everything changed when he had to see the colonel during the service. This meeting took place after the ball.
After the ball
The holiday is over. The guests dispersed. There was no sleep after the ball. Emotions overwhelmed Ivan Vasilyevich. He went to Varenka's house and involuntarily became a witness to an unsightly spectacle in which the main role was assigned to the colonel. This time, already without a dress uniform, he performed his immediate duties.
The changes were dramatic. He has changed not only externally, but also internally. There was nothing human left in him. A soldier who tried to escape was punished. The Colonel remained deaf and dumb to his pleas for mercy. He felt like he wasn't punished enough. His anger turned to his subordinates. He yelled at them, humiliated them, forcing them to inflict even more pain on the guilty soldier.
Seeing Ivan Vasilyevich, the colonel pretended not to recognize him. He turned away and continued his dirty work. It is hard to imagine that not long ago he gently chirped with his daughter, was gallant with the ladies, joked and laughed, enjoying life. Removing the mask from his face, he took on the true form, which he carefully concealed.
Who is to blame for what happened
What kind of person is a colonel really? Sadist or victim of circumstances? Pyotr Vladislavovich did not consider himself guilty. He did his job. At that time cane discipline for the army was the norm. So it was accepted. The character of this man was shaped by the society that surrounded him. The cruel age with its morals crippled the souls of people, turning them into moral invalids.
