Read abbreviated in bad company. Brief retelling In bad company (Korolenko V
Chapter 1. Ruins.
The first chapter tells the story of the ruins of an old castle and chapel on an island near Prince Town, in which the main character, a boy named Vasya, lived. His mother died when the boy was only six years old. The grief-stricken father did not pay any attention to his son. He only occasionally caressed Vasya’s younger sister, because she looked like her mother. And Vasya was left to his own devices. He spent almost all his time outside. The ruins of the old castle attracted him with its mystery, as terrible stories were told about it.
This castle belonged to a wealthy Polish landowner. But the family became poor, and the castle fell into disrepair. Time has destroyed him. They said about the castle that it stood on the bones of the captured Turks who built it. Not far from the castle there was an abandoned Uniate chapel. Townspeople and residents of neighboring villages once gathered there for prayer. Now the chapel was falling apart just like the castle. For a long time, the ruins of the castle served as a refuge for poor people who came there in search of a roof over their heads, because they could live here for free. The phrase “Lives in a castle!” denoted the extreme need of an impoverished person.
But the time has come, and changes began in the castle. Janusz, who long ago served the old count, the owner of the castle, somehow managed to obtain a so-called sovereign charter for himself. He began to manage the ruins and made changes there. That is, old men and women, Catholics, remained living in the castle; they expelled everyone who was not a “good Christian.” Screams and screams of people being driven away echoed across the island. Vasya, who observed these changes, was deeply struck by human cruelty. Since then, the ruins have lost their appeal to him. One day Janusz led him by the hand to the ruins. But Vasya broke free and, bursting into tears, ran away.
Chapter 2. Problematic natures.
For several nights after the expulsion of the beggars from the castle, the city was very restless. Homeless people wandered the city streets in the rain. And when spring fully came into its own, these people disappeared somewhere. At night there were no more dogs barking, and there was no knocking on fences. Life has returned to its normal course. The inhabitants of the castle again began to go door to door for alms, as the locals believed that someone should receive alms on Saturdays.
But the beggars expelled from the castle did not find sympathy among the townspeople. They stopped wandering around the city at night. In the evening these dark figures disappeared near the ruins of the chapel, and in the morning they crawled out from the same side. People in the city said that there were dungeons in the chapel. It was there that the exiles settled. Appearing in the city, they caused indignation and hostility among local residents, as their behavior differed from the inhabitants of the castle. They did not ask for alms, but preferred to take what they needed themselves. For this they were subjected to severe persecution if they were weak, or they themselves made the townspeople suffer if they were strong. They treated ordinary people with contempt and wariness.
Among these people there were remarkable personalities. For example, "professor". He suffered from idiocy. He was nicknamed “Professor” because, as they said, he was once a tutor. He was harmless and quiet, walking along the streets and constantly muttering something. The townsfolk took advantage of this habit of his for entertainment. Having stopped the “professor” with some question, they were amused by the fact that he could talk for hours without a break. The average person could fall asleep to this muttering, wake up, and the “professor” would still be standing over him. And for some unknown reason, the “professor” was terribly afraid of any piercing or cutting objects. When the average person got tired of muttering, he shouted: “Knives, scissors, needles, pins!” The “professor” grabbed the chest, scratched it and said that they had hooked it to the heart, to the very heart. And he left hastily.
The beggars expelled from the castle always stood for each other. When the bullying of the “professor” began, Pan Turkevich or the bayonet cadet Zausailov flew into the crowd of ordinary people. The latter was huge with a blue-purple nose and bulging eyes. Zausailov had been openly fighting with the inhabitants of the town for a long time. If he found himself next to the pursued “professor,” then his screams could be heard through the streets for a long time, because he rushed around the town, destroying everything that came to hand. It was especially hard on the Jews. The bayonet cadet carried out pogroms against Jews.
The townsfolk also often had fun with the drunken former official Lavrovsky. Everyone still remembers the time when Lavrovsky was addressed as “Mr. Clerk.” Now he was a rather pathetic sight. Lavrovsky's downfall began after the innkeeper's daughter Anna, with whom the official was in love, fled with a dragoon officer. Gradually he drank himself to death, and he could often be seen somewhere under a fence or in a puddle. He made himself comfortable, stretched out his legs and poured out his grief to the old fence or birch tree, that is, he talked about his youth, which was completely ruined.
Vasya and his comrades often witnessed the revelations of Lavrovsky, who accused himself of various crimes. He said that he killed his father, killed his mother and sisters and brothers. The children believed his words, and were only surprised that Lavrovsky had several fathers, since he pierced the heart of one with a sword, poisoned another, and drowned a third in the abyss. Adults refuted these words, saying that the official’s parents died of hunger and disease.
So, mumbling, Lavrovsky fell asleep. Very often it was wet with rain and covered with dust. Several times he almost froze to death under the snow. But he was always pulled out by the cheerful Pan Turkevich, who took care of the drunken official as best he could. Unlike the “professor” and Lavrovsky, Turkevich was not an unrequited victim of the townspeople. On the contrary, he called himself a general, and forced everyone around him to call himself that with his fists. Therefore, he always walked importantly, his eyebrows were sternly frowned, and his fists were ready for a fight. The general was always drunk.
If there was no money for vodka, then Turkevich was sent to local officials. He would first go to the house of the secretary of the district court and, in front of a crowd of onlookers, would perform a whole performance on some well-known case in the town, portraying both the plaintiff and the defendant. He knew court proceedings very well, so soon the cook came out of the house and gave the general money. This happened at every house where Turkevich came with his retinue. He ended his hike at the house of the city governor Kots, whom he often called father and benefactor. Here he was presented with a gift or the butler was called Mikita, who quickly dealt with the general, carrying him on his shoulder to the prison.
In addition to these people, the chapel was home to many different dark personalities who traded in petty theft. They were united, and they were led by a certain Tyburtsy Drab. No one knew who he was or where he came from. He was a tall man, stooped, with large and expressive facial features. With a low forehead and protruding lower jaw, he resembled a monkey. But Tyburtsy’s eyes were extraordinary: they sparkled from under his overhanging eyebrows, glowing with extraordinary intelligence and insight.
Everyone was amazed by the erudition of Pan Tyburtsy. He could recite Cicero, Xenophon, and Virgil by heart for hours. There were different rumors about the origin of Tyburtsy and his education. But this remained a secret. Another mystery was the appearance of Drab’s children, a boy about seven years old and a girl three years old. Valek (that was the boy’s name) sometimes wandered around the city idle, and the girl was seen only once, and no one knew where she was.
Chapter 3. Me and my father.
This chapter talks about the relationship between father and son. Old Janusz often told Vasya that he was in bad company, since he could be seen either in the retinue of General Turkevich or among Drab's listeners. Since Vasya’s mother died and his father stopped paying attention to him, the boy was almost never at home. He avoided meeting his father because his face was always stern. Therefore, early in the morning he went into the city, climbing out of the window, and returned late in the evening, again through the window. If little sister Sonya was not yet asleep, then the boy would sneak into her room and play with her.
Early in the morning Vasya went out of town. He loved to watch the awakening of nature, wandered in a country grove, near the city prison. When the sun rose, he went home, as hunger made itself felt. Everyone called the boy a tramp, a worthless boy. My father believed this too. He tried to raise his son, but all his attempts ended in failure. Seeing his father’s stern face with traces of enormous grief from loss, Vasya became timid, lowered his eyes and closed himself off. If the father had caressed the boy, then everything would have been completely different. But the man looked at him with eyes clouded with grief.
Sometimes his father asked if Vasya remembered his mother. Yes, he remembered her. How he snuggled into her arms at night, how she sat sick. And now he often woke up at night with a smile of happiness on his lips from the love that was crowded in his child’s chest. He stretched out his hands to receive his mother’s caresses, but remembered that she was no longer there, and cried bitterly from pain and grief. But the boy could not tell his father all this because of his constant gloominess. And he only shrank even more.
The gap between father and son grew wider. The father decided that Vasya was completely spoiled and had a selfish heart. One day the boy saw his father in the garden. He walked along the alleys, and there was such anguish on his face that Vasya wanted to throw himself on his neck. But the father met his son sternly and coldly, asking only what he needed. From the age of six, Vasya learned all the “horror of loneliness.” He loved his sister very much, and she responded in kind. But as soon as they started playing, the old nanny took Sonya and took her to her room. And Vasya began to play less often with his sister. He became a tramp.
All day long he wandered around the city, observing the life of the townspeople. Sometimes certain pictures of life made him stop with painful fear. Impressions filled his soul like bright spots. When there were no unexplored places left in the city, and the ruins of the castle lost their attractiveness for Vasya after the beggars were expelled from there, he began to often walk around the chapel, trying to detect a human presence there. The idea occurred to him to examine the chapel from the inside.
Chapter 4. I make a new acquaintance.
This chapter tells how Vasya met the children of Tyburtsiy Drab. Gathering a team of three tomboys, he went to the chapel. The sun was setting. There was no one around. Silence. The boys were scared. The chapel door was boarded up. Vasya hoped to climb with the help of his comrades through a window that was high above the ground. First he looked inside, hanging on the window frame. It seemed to him that there was a deep hole in front of him. There was no sign of human presence. The second boy, who was tired of standing below, also hung on the window frame and looked into the chapel. Vasya invited him to go down to the room on his belt. But he refused. Then Vasya went down there himself, tying two belts together and hooking them onto the window frame.
He was terrified. When there was a rumble of collapsing plaster and the sound of the wings of an awakening owl, and in a dark corner some object disappeared under the throne, Vasya’s friends ran away headlong, leaving him alone. Vasya’s feelings cannot be described; he felt as if he had entered the next world. Until he heard a quiet conversation between two children: one very young and the other Vasya’s age. Soon a figure appeared from under the throne.
He was a dark-haired boy of about nine, thin in a dirty shirt, with dark curly hair. Seeing the boy, Vasya perked up. He became even calmer when he saw a girl with blond hair and blue eyes, who was also trying to get out of the hatch in the floor of the chapel. The boys were ready to fight, but the girl got out, walked up to the dark-haired one and pressed herself against him. That settled everything. The children met. Vasya found out that the boy’s name is Valek, and the girl’s name is Marusya. They are brother and sister. Vasya pulled apples out of his pocket and treated them to his new acquaintances.
Valek helped Vasya get out back through the window, and he and Marusya went out the other way. They saw off the uninvited guest, and Marusya asked if he would come again. Vasya promised to come. Valek allowed him to come only when the adults were not in the chapel. He also made Vasya promise not to tell anyone about his new acquaintance.
Chapter 5. The acquaintance continues.
This chapter tells how Vasya became more and more attached to his new acquaintances, visiting them every day. He wandered the streets of the city with only one purpose - to see if the adults had left the chapel. As soon as he saw them in the city, he immediately went to the mountain. Valek greeted the boy with restraint. But Marusya happily threw up her hands at the sight of the gifts that Vasya brought for her. Marusya was very pale and small for her age. She walked poorly, staggering like a blade of grass. Thin, thin, she sometimes looked very sad, not like a child. Vasya Marusya reminded her of her mother in the last days of her illness.
The boy compared Marusya with his sister Sonya. They were the same age. But Sonya was a plump, very lively girl, always dressed in beautiful dresses. And Marusya almost never frolicked, she also laughed very rarely and quietly, like a silver bell ringing. Her dress was dirty and old, and her hair had never been braided. But the hair was more luxurious than Sonya's.
At first, Vasya tried to stir up Marusya, started noisy games, involving Valek and Marusya in them. But the girl was afraid of such games and was ready to cry. Her favorite pastime was sitting on the grass and sorting through the flowers that Vasya and Valek picked for her. When Vasya asked why Marusya was like this, Valek replied that it was because of the gray stone sucking the life out of her. That's what Tyburtius told them. Vasya didn’t understand anything, but looking at Marusya, he realized that Tyburtsy was right.
He became quieter around the children, and they could lie on the grass and talk for hours. From Valek, Vasya learned that Tyburtsy was their father and that he loved them. Talking with Valek, he began to look at his father differently, because he learned that everyone in the city respects him for his crystal honesty and justice. Filial pride awoke in the boy’s soul, and at the same time, bitterness from the knowledge that his father would never love him the way Tyburtius loves his children.
Chapter 6. Among the “gray stones”.
In this chapter, Vasya learns that Valek and Marusya belong to “bad society”; they are beggars. For several days he could not go to the mountain because he did not see any of the adult inhabitants of the chapel in the city. He wandered around the city, looking out for them and getting bored. One day he met Valek. He asked why he didn’t come anymore. Vasya told the reason. The boy was happy, because he decided that he was already bored with the new society. he invited Vasya to his place, but he himself fell behind a little.
Valek only caught up with Vasya on the mountain. He held a bun in his hand. He led the guest through the passage used by the inhabitants of the chapel, into the dungeon where these strange people lived. Vasya saw the “professor” and Marusya. The girl, in the light reflecting from the old tombs, almost merged with the gray walls. Vasya remembered Valek’s words about the stone sucking the life out of Marusya. He gave Marusa the apples, and Valek broke off a piece of bread for her. Vasya felt uncomfortable in the dungeon, and he suggested that Valek take Marusya out of there.
When the children went upstairs, a conversation took place between the boys, which greatly shocked Vasya. The boy found out that Valek did not buy the bun, as he thought, but stole it because he did not have money to buy it. Vasya said that stealing is bad. But Valek objected that there were no adults, and Marusya wanted to eat. Vasya, who never knew what hunger was, looked at his friends in a new way. He said that Valek could have told him, and he would have brought some rolls from home. But Valek objected that you can’t save enough for all the beggars. Struck to the core, Vasya left his friends because he could not play with them that day. The realization that his friends were beggars aroused in the boy’s soul a regret that reached the point of heartache. At night he cried a lot.
Chapter 7 Pan Tyburtsy appears on stage.
This chapter tells how Vasya meets Pan Tyburtsy. When he came to the ruins the next day, Valek said that he no longer hoped to see him again. But Vasya resolutely replied that he would always come to them. The boys began to make a trap for sparrows. They gave the thread to Marusya. She pulled it when a sparrow, attracted by the grain, flew into the trap. But soon the sky frowned, rain began to gather, and the children went into the dungeon.
Here they began to play blind man's buff. Vasya was blindfolded, and he pretended that he couldn’t catch Marusya until he came across someone’s wet figure. It was Tyburtsy, who lifted Vasya by the leg above his head and frightened him, terribly rotating his pupils. The boy tried to break free and demanded to let him go. Tyburtsy sternly asked Valek what it was. But he had nothing to say. Finally the man recognized the boy as the judge's son. He began to ask him how he got into the dungeon, how long he had been coming here, and who he had already told about them.
Vasya said that he had been visiting them for six days and had not told anyone about the dungeon and its inhabitants. Tyburtsiy praised him for this and allowed him to continue to come to his children. Then father and son began to prepare dinner from the products brought by Tyburtsy. At the same time, Vasya noticed that Mr. Drab was very tired. This became another of the revelations of life, which the boy learned a lot from communicating with the children of the dungeon.
During dinner, Vasya noticed that Valek and Marusya were eating the meat dish greedily. The girl even licked her greasy fingers. Apparently they didn't see such luxury very often. From the conversation between Tyburtsy and the “professor,” Vasya realized that the products were obtained dishonestly, that is, stolen. But hunger drove these people to steal. Marusya confirmed her father’s words that she was hungry, and meat is good.
Returning home, Vasya reflected on what he had learned new about life. His friends are beggars, thieves who have no home. And these words are always associated with the contemptuous attitude of others. But at the same time, he felt very sorry for Valek and Marusya. Therefore, his attachment to these poor children only intensified as a result of the “mental process.” But the consciousness that stealing is wrong also remains.
In the garden, Vasya came across his father, whom he had always been afraid of, and now that he had a secret, he was even more afraid. When asked by his father where he had been, the boy lied for the first time in his life, answering that he was walking. Vasya was frightened by the thought that his father would find out about his connection with “bad society” and forbid him to meet with friends.
Chapter 8. In autumn.
This chapter says that with the approach of autumn, Marusya’s illness worsened. Vasya could now freely come to the dungeon, without waiting for the adult inhabitants to leave. He soon became his own man among them. All the inhabitants of the dungeon occupied one larger room, and Tyburtsy and the children occupied another smaller one. But in this room there was more sun and less dampness.
In the large room there was a workbench on which the inhabitants made various crafts. There were shavings and scraps lying on the floor here. There was dirt and disorder everywhere. Tyburtsy sometimes forced residents to clean everything up. Vasya did not often enter this room, since the air was musty there and the gloomy Lavrovsky lived there. One day the boy watched as a drunken Lavrovsky was brought into the dungeon. His head was hanging, his feet were pounding on the steps, and tears were flowing down his cheeks. If on the street Vasya would have been amused by such a spectacle, here, “behind the scenes,” the life of beggars without embellishment oppressed the boy.
In the fall, it became more difficult for Vasya to escape from the house. Coming to his friends, he noticed that Marusya was getting worse and worse. She stayed in bed more. The girl became dear to Vasya, just like her sister Sonya. Moreover, no one here grumbled at him, did not reproach him for his depravity, and Marusya was still happy about the appearance of the boy. Valek hugged him like a brother, even Tyburtsy sometimes looked at all three with strange eyes in which a tear shone.
When the weather was good again for several days, Vasya and Valek carried Marusya upstairs every day. Here she seemed to come to life. But this did not last long. Clouds were also gathering over Vasya. One day he saw old Janusz talking about something with his father. From what he heard, Vasya realized that this concerned his friends from the dungeon, and maybe himself. Tyburtsy, to whom the boy told about what he had heard, said that the judge was a very good man, he acted according to the law. After Pan Drab’s words, Vasya saw his father as a formidable and strong hero. But this feeling was again mixed with bitterness from the consciousness that his father did not love him.
Chapter 9. Doll.
This chapter tells how Vasya brought Marusa his sister’s doll. The last fine days have passed. Marusya got worse. She no longer got out of bed, she was indifferent. Vasya first brought her his toys. But they did not entertain her for long. Then he decided to ask his sister Sonya for help. She had a doll, a gift from her mother, with beautiful hair. The boy told Sonya about the sick girl and asked for a doll to borrow for her. Sonya agreed.
The doll really had an amazing effect on Marusya. She seemed to come to life, hugging Vasya, laughing and talking to the doll. She got out of bed and walked her little daughter around the room, sometimes even running. But the doll caused Vasya a lot of anxiety. When he carried her up the mountain, he met old Janusz. Then Sonya's nanny discovered the doll was missing. The girl tried to calm down her nanny, saying that the doll had gone for a walk and would return soon. Vasya expected that his act would soon be revealed, and then his father would find out everything. He already suspected something. Janusz came to him again. Vasya’s father forbade him to leave home.
On the fifth day, the boy managed to sneak away before his father woke up. He came to the dungeon and found out that Marusa felt even worse. She didn't recognize anyone. Vasya told Valek about his fears and the boys decided to take the doll from Marusya and return it to Sonya. But as soon as the doll was taken from the sick girl’s hand, she began to cry very quietly, and an expression of such grief appeared on her face that Vasya immediately put the doll in its place. He realized that he wanted to deprive his little friend of the only joy in life.
At home, Vasya was met by his father, an angry nanny and a tearful Sonya. The father again forbade the boy to leave home. For four days he languished in anticipation of the inevitable retribution. And this day has come. He was called into his father's office. He sat in front of the portrait of his wife. Then he turned to his son and asked if he had taken the doll from his sister. Vasya admitted that he took her, that Sonya allowed him to do this. Then the father demanded to know where he had taken the doll. But the boy flatly refused to do this.
It is not known how all this would have ended, but then Tyburtsy appeared in the office. He brought the doll, then asked the judge to come out with him to tell everything about the incident. the father was very surprised, but obeyed. They left, and Vasya was left alone in the office. When the father returned to the office again, his face was confused. He put his hand on his son's shoulder. But now it was not the same heavy hand that had been forcefully squeezing the boy’s shoulder a few minutes ago. The father stroked his son's head.
Tyburtsy put Vasya on his lap and told him to come to the dungeon, that his father would allow him to do this, because Marusya had died. Pan Drab left, and Vasya was surprised to see the changes that had happened to his father. his gaze expressed love and kindness. Vasya realized that now his father would always look at him with such eyes. Then he asked his father to let him go to the mountain to say goodbye to Marusya. The father immediately agreed. And he also gave Vasya money for Tyburtsy, but not from the judge, but on behalf of him, Vasya.
Conclusion
After Marusya’s funeral, Tyburtsy and Valek disappeared somewhere. The old chapel fell apart even more over time. And only one grave remained green every spring. This was Marusya's grave. Vasya, his father and Sonya often visited her. Vasya and Sonya read together there, thought, and shared their thoughts. Here they, leaving their hometown, made their vows.
Korolenko's work In a Bad Society dates back to 1885. Children become familiar with this work through the curriculum, and write down their thoughts and views in their reading diary, where Korolenko also found his place with his work In Bad Society. For those who do not find time to get acquainted with Korolenko’s story in its entirety, we offer you to get acquainted with a brief retelling.
Korolenko In bad company
Chapter 1
Here is a castle that is located on an island near Prince Town. Vasily, the nine-year-old character in the story Queen In Bad Society, lives in Prince Town. The boy was raised by his father. The father very rarely communicates with his son, only sometimes he could caress his daughter, Vasya’s sister, and that’s because she reminded him of his wife. Vasya often left home and headed to the castle, which attracted and beckoned him.
Beggars live in the castle, but over time, changes came and Janusz, a former servant of the count, who got the right to decide who will live in the castle and who to drive away, drives out all the beggars.
Chapter 2
The exiled people roam and wander around the city, and then disappear. But not from the city. People just found a place to live. They settled in the dungeon of the chapel. Tyburtsy, who had an adopted son and daughter, became the head of the beggars, and their names were Marusya and Valek.
Chapter 3
Here we learn about the relationship between father and son. But they were none. Vasya lives on his own, and because of his father’s constant stern appearance, he tried to avoid meeting him, so he ran out into the street early in the morning and returned very late
The boy often remembers his mother, her tender embrace, and then cries bitterly, because at the age of six he had already experienced a feeling of loneliness. Vasya has a sister and they love each other, but Sonya's nanny did not allow Vasya to play with his sister, so he began to wander.
If Vasya was previously attracted to the castle, now that beggars do not live there, he began to look for new places and now he is attracted to the chapel, which he wants to explore from the inside.
Chapter 4
Vasya and his friends go to the chapel. They help the boy get into the chapel through the window, but his friends, hearing incomprehensible sounds, abandoned Vasya and ran away. Vasya met children in the chapel, those same named children of Tyburtius. The children also invite Vasya to visit and ask him not to tell about his acquaintance with them.
Chapter 5
Vasya is friends with Marusya and Valek. Vasya notices Marusya’s weakness and pale appearance, while his sister is plump and neatly dressed. From conversations with the children, Vasya learns that their father was Tyburtsy, who loved them very much. Vasya felt bitter that his relationship with his father was not the same. Meanwhile, Vasya gained pride in his father, because he learned that in the city his father is respected and considered a fair judge.
Chapter 6
Vasya cannot come to the chapel to see the children, since he has not seen the adults leave it. One day Vasya meets Valek in the city, he calls him to his place. On the way, Valek steals a bun for his sister, who is hungry. Vasya at first said that this was bad, but did not condemn his friend. On the contrary, he felt sad for the poor life of his friends.
Chapter 7
When Vasya again came to his friends, the boy ran into Tyburtsy, who recognized Vasya as the son of a judge. He allows him to continue to be friends with his children, only at the same time he asks not to tell anyone about them. Vasya lied to his father for the first time, saying that he was walking in the city. Vasya was afraid that his father would scold him for his connection with bad society.
Chapter 8
Korolenko's story in a bad society continues chapter by chapter with the fact that with the onset of autumn, the girl's illness only worsened. Every day her condition worsened. Vasya now began to come at any time. One day Vasya saw his father talking to Janusz. It was difficult to understand whether it was about beggars or about Vasya. Vasya told Tyburtsy the conversation he overheard, but he said that his father was fair and always acted within the law. Again Vasya felt proud of his father and at the same time sad, because his father did not love his son.
Chapter 9
The girl is very bad. In order to somehow amuse Marusya, Vasya asks his sister for a doll and she agrees to temporarily lend it to Marusya. The girl was delighted with such a gift, she even cheered up. Vasya, on the other hand, started having problems because of the doll.
The father began to suspect something, he forbids his son to leave the house, but Vasya runs away. He went to Marusya, who again did not get up and felt very bad. Vasya wanted to take the doll, but the girl started crying. Vasya could not deprive Marusya of her only joy. Returning home, he ran into his father, who again locked him at home, and four days later called him into the office. Vasya was afraid to go, but there was nothing left to do. He admitted that he took the doll with Sonya’s permission, but he didn’t say where he took it, and it’s not known what would have happened, but then Tyburtsy came through the door. He brought a doll. Tyburtsy told the judge everything and he softened; moreover, warmth and love for his son appeared in his eyes. Now Vasya was sure that this look would always be like this. The father lets Vasya say goodbye to Marusya, who died, and gives money so that the boy can give it to Tyburtius Drag on his own behalf.
Conclusion
Having buried his daughter, Tyburtsy and his son disappear in an unknown direction. The chapel collapsed even more and only the grave was green in the spring. Vasya, Sonya and their father came here. Here the children loved to spend their free time, and when they grew up, they made their vows on this grave.
Korolenko The main characters in bad society
In Korolenko's story In a Bad Society, the main characters are Vasya, a boy from a prosperous family, the family of a city judge. He is a brave, kind, intelligent tomboy of nine years old who lives with his father since his mother died. Due to lack of attention from his father, he constantly wandered. He makes friends with the children of the poor class and associates with members of bad society.
The main character's name was Vasya. He was a boy from a rich family, his father was a judge. However, the child’s childhood could not be called happy. Vasya was completely alone. His mother died, and his father did not pay any attention to the child. Mr. Judge missed his dead wife very much, he loved her very much. And he treated his little daughter Sonya with tenderness, because she reminded him of his wife. Vasya was left to his own devices, no one was particularly worried about him. He spent whole days on the street. In the city where Vasya lived there was an ancient castle. Now it was almost completely destroyed. Beggars lived in the ruins of the castle. They were outside the law, and their life was very, very difficult. However, the beggars had nowhere to go. Every environment has its disagreements. The environment of beggars and vagabonds was no exception.
It so happened that the count's servant, an old man named Janusz, allowed only some beggars to stay in the castle. The rest had to hide in the dungeon under the crypt. Nobody knew that beggars were hiding there. Old Janusz told the boy Vasya that there was now only “decent society” in the castle, because he left only a select few there. According to Janusz, now the boy can go there. But Vasya was interested in those who were hiding in the dungeon. This is “bad society,” but the boy treats them with pity and interest. Among the “bad society” there are all kinds of people. There is an old man who is practically insane. He just mutters something incomprehensible. There is also a retired drunken official; there is a man who calls himself a general. The main face of the “bad society” is a man named Tyburtsy Drab. Nobody knows where he came from or what kind of person he is. Some suggest that he is of noble birth. However, you can't tell by looking at it. Tyburtsy Drab gives the impression of an intelligent and educated person; he often quotes ancient authors at fairs, which greatly amuses the audience.
One day Vasya and his friends decided to look into the old chapel. With the help of friends, Vasya climbed in through the window. However, his friends soon ran away because they saw that there was someone in the chapel. Here were a boy named Valek and a girl named Marusya. The boy is nine years old, the girl is four. They were the children of Tyburtius. Vasya began to see them often, he even treated them to apples. But he tried to come only when Tyburtsiy was not in the dungeon. Nobody knew about the communication between Vasya and the children from the dungeon. Even Vasya’s friends didn’t know about this; he didn’t tell them anything.
Vasya could not help but compare his life and the life of his sister with the life of the children from the dungeon. They did not have the most necessary things, but their father, Tyburtius, loved them very much. Vasya understood that his own father did not love him. The judge was more loving towards his daughter, four-year-old Sonya. She reminded him of his wife who died. Vasya himself loved his sister very much. And she paid him the same. But Sonya's nanny did not allow the children to play together; she did not love Vasya. Compared to Sonya, Marusya was completely different. Sonya was a playful, cheerful child. Marusya was weak, cheerless, and sad. According to Tyburtsy, which was conveyed to Vasya Valek, a gray stone sucked the life out of Marusya.
In a conversation with his new friends, Vasya once complained that his father did not love him. And I was surprised to learn that the inhabitants of the dungeon considered the judge an honest and fair person. For Vasya this was surprising, because he himself practically did not know his father and tried to avoid him.
Vasya learned all the customs and practices of the inhabitants of the dungeon. One day, while he was playing with his new friends, Tyburtius appeared. Quite unexpectedly, he treated Vasya favorably and allowed him to come whenever he wanted. Tyburtsy asked Vasya not to tell anyone about their place of residence.
Vasya knew that members of the “bad society” live by theft. But he could not condemn them, because they had no other choice. Gradually, all the inhabitants of the dungeon got used to Vasya and even fell in love with the boy. In the fall, with the onset of cold weather, the weak Marusya fell ill. Vasya brought her treats, but Marusya practically did not pay attention to it. Then Vasya decided to give her a large and very beautiful doll that belonged to his sister. The boy told Sonya everything, and the girl allowed him to take the doll. Marusya was very happy about the gift. She even seemed to feel better. She began to get up and play with the doll.
One day Sonya's nanny noticed the doll was missing. Sonya tried to find an excuse, but this alarmed the nanny even more. Vasya was forbidden to leave the house because old Janusz reported to the judge that the boy was communicating with the inhabitants of the dungeon.
Marusya's condition worsened. She practically didn't get up. Vasya said that the nanny missed the doll. They wanted to take the toy away from the sleeping girl, but Marusya woke up and cried bitterly. Vasya couldn't pick up the doll.
At home, Father sternly asked Vasya where he had gone. He also ordered to tell where the doll was. The father believed that Vasya stole this thing, a gift from his late mother. Vasya saw that his father was incredibly angry. He doesn't have a single drop of sympathy or love for his son. But completely unexpectedly Tyburtsy appeared, bringing a doll.
He said that Marusya died. Tyburtsy began to talk with the judge and said that Vasya was friends with his children. This conversation amazed the judge. He looked at his son with different eyes and realized that he was a kind, impressionable and sensitive boy. The father realized that it was in vain to deprive himself and his son of his love. It was as if the judge and Vasya realized for the first time that they were close people. Father allowed Vasya to say goodbye to Marusya, and he also handed over money for Tyburtsy. He said that he had better leave the city.
Soon, almost all the inhabitants of the dungeon disappeared. Only two remained - a half-crazed old man and one other man. And Vasya and Sonya began to look after Marusya’s grave. When they grew up and were about to leave the city, they made their vows over this grave.
Thanks to Korolenko’s work, we get the opportunity to learn about the lives of children from prosperous and disadvantaged families. Communication between children belonging to different social strata becomes possible thanks to Vasya’s spiritual qualities. This boy is amazingly kind, he sympathizes with his new friends who are deprived of the most necessary things. Vasya himself is also deprived of very, very much. He does not know his father's love, and his mother died long ago. There is no mutual understanding in his family, and therefore he seeks friendship and support outside his own family.
The city in which the characters of the story live is gloomy and grey. This city seems sleepy and inhospitable. The image of the city makes it possible to understand that the main characters live in an atmosphere of indifference, callousness and cruelty. Members of the “bad society” are despised and condemned by prosperous people. They do “bad things.” But they are forced to live this way because those around them left them no other choice.
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To convey a summary of “In Bad Society,” a few trivial sentences are not enough. Despite the fact that this fruit of Korolenko’s creativity is usually considered a story, its structure and volume are more reminiscent of a story.
On the pages of the book, a dozen characters await the reader, whose fate will move along a track rich in loops over the course of several months. Over time, the story was recognized as one of the best opuses from the writer’s pen. It was also reprinted many times, and several years after the first publication it was slightly modified and published under the title “Children of the Dungeon.”
Main character and setting
The main character of the work is a boy named Vasya. He lived with his father in the city of Knyazhye-Veno in the South-Western region, populated mainly by Poles and Jews. It would not be out of place to say that the city in the story was captured by the author “from nature.” In the landscapes and descriptions one can recognize exactly the second half of the 19th century. The content of Korolenko’s “In a Bad Society” is generally rich in descriptions of the world around us.
The child's mother died when he was only six years old. The father, busy with judicial service and his own grief, paid little attention to his son. At the same time, Vasya was not prevented from getting out of the house on his own. That is why the boy often wandered around his hometown, full of secrets and mysteries.
Lock
One of these local attractions was which formerly served as the count's residence. However, the reader will find him not at the best of times. Now the walls of the castle are destroyed due to impressive age and lack of maintenance, and its interior has been chosen by the poor of the immediate surroundings. The prototype of this place was the palace that belonged to the noble Lyubomirsky family, who bore the title of princes and lived in Rivne.
Scattered, they did not know how to live in peace and harmony due to differences in religion and conflict with the former count's servant Janusz. Exercising his right to decide who had the right to remain in the castle and who did not, he showed the door to all those who did not belong to the Catholic flock or the servants of the former owners of these walls. The outcasts settled in a dungeon, which was hidden from prying eyes. After this incident, Vasya stopped visiting the castle, which he had visited before, despite the fact that Janusz himself called the boy, whom he considered the son of a respected family. He didn't like how the exiles were treated. The immediate events of Korolenko's story "In a Bad Society", a summary of which cannot do without mentioning this episode, begin precisely from this point.
Meeting in the chapel
One day Vasya and his friends climbed into the chapel. However, after the children realized that there was someone else inside, Vasya’s friends cowardly ran away, leaving the boy alone. In the chapel there were two children from the dungeon. It was Valek and Marusya. They lived together with the exiles who were evicted by Janusz.
The leader of the entire community hiding underground was a man named Tyburtius. A summary of “In Bad Society” cannot do without its characteristics. This personality remained a secret to those around him; almost nothing was known about him. Despite his penniless lifestyle, there were rumors that the man had previously been an aristocrat. This guess was confirmed by the fact that the extravagant man quoted ancient Greek thinkers. Such an education did not in any way correspond to his common appearance. The contrasts gave the townspeople reason to consider Tyburtius a sorcerer.
Vasya quickly became friends with the children from the chapel and began to visit them and feed them. These visits for the time being remained a secret to others. Their friendship also withstood such a test as Valek’s confession that he steals food in order to feed his sister.
Vasya began to visit the dungeon itself while there were no adults inside. However, sooner or later such carelessness was bound to give the boy away. And during his next visit, Tyburtsy noticed the judge’s son. The children were afraid that the unpredictable owner of the dungeon would throw the boy out, but he, on the contrary, allowed the guest to visit them, taking his word that he would remain silent about the secret place. Now Vasya could visit his friends without fear. This is the summary of “In Bad Society” before the start of dramatic events.
Dungeon Dwellers
He met and became close to other exiles of the castle. These were different people: former official Lavrovsky, who loved to tell incredible stories from his past life; Turkevich, who called himself a general and loved to visit the windows of eminent residents of the city, and many others.
Despite the fact that they were all different from each other in the past, now they all lived together and helped their neighbors, sharing the modest life they had built, begging on the street and stealing, like Valek or Tyburtsy himself. Vasya fell in love with these people and did not condemn their sins, realizing that they were all brought to such a state by poverty.
Sonya
The main reason why the main character ran into the dungeon was the tense atmosphere in his own home. If his father did not pay any attention to him, then the servants considered the boy a spoiled child, who, moreover, constantly disappeared in unknown places.
The only person who makes Vasya happy at home is his younger sister Sonya. He loves the four-year-old, playful and cheerful girl very much. However, their own nanny did not allow the children to communicate with each other, because she considered the older brother a bad example for the judge’s daughter. Father himself loved Sonya much more than Vasya, because she reminded him of his deceased wife.
Marusya's disease
With the onset of autumn, Valek's sister Marusya became seriously ill. In the entire work “In Bad Society,” the content can be safely divided into “before” and “after” this event. Vasya, who could not calmly look at his friend’s serious condition, decided to ask Sonya for the doll that her mother left behind. She agreed to borrow the toy, and Marusya, who had nothing of the kind due to poverty, was very happy about the gift and even began to recover in her dungeon “in bad company.” The main characters did not yet realize that the outcome of the whole story was closer than ever.
Secret Revealed
It seemed that everything would work out, but suddenly Janusz came to the judge to denounce the inhabitants of the dungeon, as well as Vasya, who was noticed in unfavorable company. The father was angry with his son and forbade him to leave the house. At the same time, the nanny discovered the doll was missing, which caused another scandal. The judge tried to get Vasya to confess where he goes and where his sister’s toy is now. The boy only replied that he had indeed taken the doll, but did not say what he did with it. Even the summary of “In Bad Society” shows how strong in spirit Vasya was, despite his young age.
Denouement
Several days passed. Tyburtsy came to the boy’s house and gave Sonya’s toy to the judge. In addition, he talked about the friendship of such different children. The father, struck by the story, felt guilty before his son, to whom he did not devote time and who, because of this, began to communicate with beggars who were not loved by anyone in the city. Finally Tyburtsy said that Marusya had died. The judge allowed Vasya to say goodbye to the girl, and he himself gave money to her father, after giving advice to escape from the city. This is where the story "In Bad Society" ends.
The unexpected visit of Tyburtsy and the news of Marusya’s death destroyed the wall between the main character of the story and his father. After the incident, the two of them began to visit the grave near the chapel, where the three children met for the first time. In the story “In Bad Society,” the main characters were never able to appear all together in one scene. The beggars from the dungeon were never seen in the city again. They all suddenly disappeared, as if they had never existed.
The hero's childhood took place in the small town of Knyazhye-Veno in the Southwestern Territory. Vasya - that was the boy's name - was the son of the city judge. The child grew up: the mother died when the son was only six years old, and the father, absorbed in his grief, paid little attention to the boy. Vasya wandered around the city all day long, and pictures of city life left a deep imprint on his soul.
The city was surrounded by ponds. In the middle of one of them, on the island, stood an ancient castle that once belonged to the count's family. There were legends that the island was filled with captured Turks, and the castle still stood. The owners left this gloomy dwelling a long time ago, and it gradually collapsed. Its inhabitants were urban beggars who had no other shelter. But there was a split among the poor. Old Janusz, one of the count's former servants, received a certain right to decide who can live in the castle and who cannot. He left there only: Catholics and the former count's servants. The exiles found refuge in a dungeon under an ancient crypt near an abandoned Uniate chapel that stood on the mountain. However, no one knew their whereabouts.
Old Janusz, meeting Vasya, invites him to come into the castle, because it is there now. But the boy prefers the exiles from the castle: Vasya takes pity on them.
Many members are well known in the city. This is a half-mad elderly man who always mutters something quietly and sadly; the ferocious and pugnacious bayonet-cadet Zausailov; a drunken retired official Lavrovsky, telling everyone incredible tragic stories about his life. And Turkevich, who calls himself General, is famous for the fact that respectable townspeople (police officer, secretary of the district court and others) are right under their windows. He does this in order to get money for vodka, and achieves his goal: they rush to pay him off.
The leader of the entire community is Tyburtsy Drab. His origins and past are unknown to anyone. Others assume that he is an aristocrat, but his appearance is common. He is known for his extraordinary scholarship. At fairs, Tyburtsy entertains the audience with lengthy speeches from ancient authors. He is considered a sorcerer.
One day Vasya and three friends come to the old chapel: he wants to look there. Friends help Vasya get inside through a high window. But seeing that there is still someone in the chapel, the friends run away in horror, leaving Vasya to the mercy of fate. It turns out that Tyburtsiya’s children are there: nine-year-old Valek and four-year-old Marusya. Vasya begins to often come to the mountain to visit his new friends, bringing them apples from his garden. But he only walks when Tyburtius cannot find him. Vasya does not tell anyone about this acquaintance. He tells his cowardly friends that he saw devils.
Vasya has a sister, four-year-old Sonya. She, like her brother, is a cheerful and playful child. Brother and sister love each other very much, but Sonya’s nanny prevents them from noisy games: she considers Vasya a bad, spoiled boy.