Vasily Semenovich Grossman - the writer, the mosttalented and truthful work which saw the light only in the period of thaw. As a war correspondent, he went through the entire Great Patriotic War and witnessed the Stalingrad battles. These events are reflected in his work Grossman. “Life and Fate” (a brief summary of it will be our theme) is a novel that culminated in the depiction of Soviet reality.
From 1950 to 1959, wrote this epic novelVasily Semenovich Grossman. “Life and Fate” (a brief summary of the work will be presented below) completes the dilogy, which began with the work “For a Just Cause”, completed in 1952. And if the first part absolutely fit into the canons of socialist realism, then the second acquired a different tone — it sounded clearly and distinctly a criticism of Stalinism.
The novel was published in the USSR in 1988.This was due to the fact that the creation, which was composed by Grossman, did not at all correspond to the line of the party. “Life and Fate” (the novel initially received not just terrible, but terrible reviews) was recognized as “anti-Soviet”. After all the copies were confiscated by the KGB.
After the manuscript was withdrawn, Grossmanaddressed in a letter to Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev with a request to explain what was waiting for his book. Instead of answering, the writer was invited to the Central Committee, where they announced that they would not print the book.
Only Semyon Lipkin (Soviet poet) kept the only copy of the work, which was exported abroad in the 70s and published there in 1980 in Switzerland.
Old man Mikhail Mostovsky, a communist, captured incaptivity near Stalingrad. He goes to a concentration camp in West Germany. Being among compatriots, the man does not feel support: the Menshevik Chernetsov hates him, a dispute arises with Ikonnikov-Tolstoyan, he puts too much pressure on those around him Major Ershov.
Krymov arrives in Stalingrad.He is a political worker and must judge a dispute between the commissioner and the commander of the rifle regiment. Upon arrival, it turns out that both debaters were killed, and at night Krymov himself was forced to participate in the battle.
The action is transferred to Kazan.Here, in the evacuation is a scientist Victor Strum with his family. His wife, Lyudmila, is worried about her son from his first marriage, Tol, who is now at war. She is also saddened by the difficult character of her daughter, Nadi. Strum's mother, a Jew, was in a ghetto where it was almost impossible to survive.
After a while, a letter comes from the motherscientist, Anna Semenovna. In it, she is horrified by the change of people whom she had known for so long: many stopped communicating with her, were quietly driven out of the room. And the next day the action of the extermination of the Jews was to take place, and she says goodbye to her son in a letter.
Not at all beautiful and heroic.Reality depicts Grossman. “Life and Fate” (a brief summary, disassembled in parts, in particular) conveys all the cruelty and horror of the war years, and not just the ones coming from the Germans.
Lyudmila learns that Tolya was injured and is in the hospital. She urgently goes there, but is late - the young man dies.
Commissioner of the tank corps appointed by the formerSecretary of the Hetman Regional Committee, who lived all his life in flattery, denunciations, falsehoods. He now diligently transfers these principles into his front-line activity. With him is the corps commander Novikov, who is trying in every way to reduce the number of victims. So, he postpones the attack for eight minutes, as the Hetmans immediately convey.
Novikov falls in love with Evgeny Shaposhnikova, Krymov's former wife. The girl responds to him in return, but warns that he will leave if her husband is imprisoned.
Sofya Osipovna Levinton gets into German captivitymilitary surgeon. Together with other Jews, it is loaded into a freight car and sent to a concentration camp. On the way, she sees how little a person needs to turn into nameless cattle. Here she meets the boy David. A woman comforts the child to the last, but there is no salvation — in front of them, death in gas chambers awaits them.
Many complex and tragic fate depictedVasily Grossman. “Life and Fate” (the brief content of the work makes it possible to once again be convinced of this) - a novel in which there is no cheerfulness of social realism and an obligatory happy ending. Therefore, characterizing the genre of this work, it is necessary to remove part of the "social", leaving only the word realism.
Krymov receives an order to go to Stalingrad.There he must bring order to the camp of the Allies, the head of which, the Greeks, conducts anti-Stalinist talks with the soldiers. If necessary, Krymov can eliminate Grekov’s command.
Krymov absorbed one idea - to catch the commander inanti-Soviet. In the end, he goes to write a denunciation. But not in time - the Greeks with their fighters are dying. However, the paper manages to do its dirty deed: the commander is not assigned the posthumous title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
The narration returns to the description of the concentration camp,where Masty is. Here they are trying to create an underground organization, but there is no unity between the prisoners, many do not trust each other. So, Commissioner Osipov suspects of dishonest thoughts Ershov, a native of the dispossessed family, fears that he can get more power in the group. Kotikov, a supporter of Stalinist methods, also comes out against Yershov. As a result, the decision is made to put the Ershov card in the box where the data of the candidates for sending to Buchenwald lay. Mosty does not like this idea, but he agrees with the majority. At the same time, the unknown person tells about the organization to the Germans, who immediately destroy all its participants.
Штрум возвращается в Москву вместе с институтом, where it works Finishes and publishes work on nuclear physics, which immediately causes interest and high marks. As a result, it is nominated for a Stalin Prize. Meanwhile, the attitude towards Jews in the institute is deteriorating. Attempts Sturm to stand up for them lead to the fact that his position is very fragile.
At times, Strum is seen with Maria Sokolova.Gradually, he realizes that he loves a woman, and she reciprocates his love. But Maria Ivanovna is married, and her husband will soon find out about her feelings. Sokolov takes the promise from his wife no longer to meet with Strum. At the same time, persecution of physics begins.
Just before the Stalingrad offensive of Krymovarrested and sent to Moscow. He finds himself in the Lubyanka, where, through torture, they are trying to get him to confess that during the battle for Stalingrad, he betrayed his homeland. Krymov can not recover for a long time after such accusations.
Sharply poses the problem of the Jewish question Grossman."Life and Fate" (a summary of the chapters) - more proof of this. Very realistic and colorfully described the persecution of Strum. The institute newspaper publishes a devastating article, physicists are persuaded to speak at the academic council and admit their mistakes. Shtrum refuses and does not come to the meeting. The family supports him and, understanding the political situation in the country, prepares for arrest. That day Strum calls Marya Ivanovna, she is proud of him and very sad.
Physics dismissed from work, but not arrested. Former friends and acquaintances stop all relations with him. He and his family are in isolation.
But the work of Strum is interested in Stalin. The scientist is immediately reinstated and given the laboratory to him for personal use.
Krymov lies after torture in his office in Lubyanka,hears talk of taking Stalingrad. He sees the Greeks coming to meet him. The interrogation continues, but Krymov refuses to sign a confession. He is taken to a cell, where he finds a program from his wife, Evgenia, who has returned to him.
Winter is over, in the spring forest one can hear crying about the departed and the joy of a new life.
Many philosophical problems embraced in hisproduct Grossman. “Life and Fate” is an essay where questions of violence and freedom, military and peaceful life were raised. War is not just a confrontation between the armies of two states, but a struggle of different worlds, different life views. She exposed the most acute problems of the present writer, revealed the main contradictions of the Soviet era.
Red thread permeate the work of the themefate and life. At the same time, fate is perceived as a necessity, non-freedom, pressure from the authorities, and life as freedom, individuality, following one’s spiritual impulses.
Having studied the summary of Grossman's novel “Lifeand fate ”, the reader understands that the main conflict of the work is the conflict of violence and freedom, the state and the person. These contradictions are especially vividly manifested in the reflections of the heroes on the consequences of Stalinist repression, collectivization, and the fate of the “special settlers”.
The author realistically depicts the people's suffering.under the yoke of the fascists and the Soviet authorities, finding a lot in common: people are dying, morally degrading, those who are steadfast surrender, the brave ones are afraid, the good are embittered. Fear, no matter who it comes from, equally affects people. It is no coincidence that constant comparisons of Stalin and Hitler appear in the text. The two leaders had one method of influence - terror.
The final of the novel remains open, the unanswered question is whether freedom or slave nature will triumph in a person.
Set of characters placed in his novelGrossman (“Life and Fate”, we recall, is being discussed today). But the main few, among them the commissioner and the Bolshevik Krymov. He faithfully served all his life the cause of the revolution. In his understanding of the "good" - this is what benefits the state. The duty to the Soviet Union is above all for him. Even in wartime, when people are dying around and you need to think about saving yourself and the Motherland, he comes to Stalingrad to trace Grekov, who is rumored to be scolding the Stalin regime.
Once in the dungeons of the Lubyanka, Krymov looks at his life in a new way, realizes his mistakes. He is tormented by remorse for reporting on Grekov.
In connection with this hero raises the problemrelationship to the Jews during the war years Grossman. “Life and Fate”, a brief content, analysis of the work and the life of the author himself help to understand how close this topic was to the writer. Strum is an outstanding physicist whose discovery can help the state to strengthen his power, but he almost never enters the Stalinist camp because of his background.
Образ интересен тем, что Гроссман дает герою the right to choose: betray yourself without signing a loyal paper, or remain true to your own convictions, but again put your life in danger. Strum acts cowardly, and this act costs him considerable torments of conscience.
We continue to disassemble the images of the heroes of the novel,who wrote Grossman ("Life and Fate"). Against the background of the two previous heroes, Getman stands out. He does not have a choice, he decided long ago that the main thing is to act expediently. At first glance, this is a very charming and intelligent character. He is completely sincere in his delusions and does not suspect that he has a “second bottom”. The moment when he was worried about the collective-farm workers, underestimated their wages is indicative.
Very rare and interesting description of Stalintime introduced to the reader Grossman. “Life and Fate”, a brief summary of which we reviewed, is a novel aimed at combating totalitarianism. And it does not matter whether it is embodied in the Nazi or Soviet regime.
