The story of Kuprin leaves no one indifferent. The book intertwines amazing feelings with a tragic denouement. The summary of the story "Olesya" shows how dangerous love can be.
Characters:
- Ivan Timofeevich- a young gentleman;
- Yarmola- servant, forest worker;
- Manuilikha- witch;
- Olesya- the witch's granddaughter;
- Evpsikhy Afrikanovich- constable.
Chapter 1
The young gentleman arrived for 6 months in a remote place of the Volyn province, on the outskirts of Polesie. At first it seemed that the village life would be interesting. I wanted to see nature and meet the locals. Panych wanted to study the folklore and language of the region.
Relationships failed. The peasants behaved with restraint, and at a meeting they threw themselves at the master's feet and kissed his hands, out of habit from the time of Polish serfdom.
After rereading the available literature, Ivan Timofeevich decided to get acquainted with the intelligentsia, but a positive result could not be achieved. The next occupation was the treatment of the sick, but the peasants could not tell where exactly it hurts, so the diagnosis could not be established.
The main business was hunting, but during the fierce time of winter, going out into the forest became impossible. Panych began to teach literacy to the servant Yarmolu, who wanted to learn how to write his last name and become the first literate inhabitant of the village. Gradually he made progress.
Chapter 2
The master finds anxiety. It seems to him that someone else is walking around the house, either whining or growling. It seemed that years would pass in melancholy and idleness until death.
Yarmola said that a strong wind indicates the birth, or fun of a witch. Ivan Timofeevich learned that 5 years ago a witch was exiled from the village to the forest, the house was destroyed. Her name was Manuilikha, she came here from another area. Yarmola said that the witch has either Russian or Gypsy roots. It turned out that she lives 10 miles from the master's house. Women go there to tell fortunes and ask for potions. A granddaughter lives with Manulikha. Ivan Timofeevich was seized with curiosity, he wanted to see a living witch. He began to persuade Yarmola to take him into the forest.
Chapter 3
As soon as it got warmer, Yarmola told the master that at night the hare left a trail, you can go hunting. Comrades began to clean their weapons and went for prey. Seeing where the hare ran, the hunters decided to go around it from different sides. The hare was pursued by the dog Ryabchik. The first attack failed, and the panych went on a different path, but got lost, and Yarmola was far away and did not hear the scream.
Near the swamp could be seen someone's hut. It seemed to be a forester, he would tell the way. The hut did not touch the ground, it looked like a fairy-tale hut on chicken legs. Entering, the panych could not see anything from the darkness. An old woman was standing near the stove, the author realized that this was Manuilikha. The reception turned out to be unkind, the grandmother refused to feed, but she did not kick me out of the house.
For a silver coin, the panych persuaded the witch to tell fortunes. She predicted a long journey, a meeting with a lady of diamonds, news from the king of clubs, a big company and a long life.
The master met with the granddaughter of her grandmother, who decided to show the way. She was a beautiful tall brunette, 20-25 years old. Ivan Timofeevich falls in love with Olesya and wants to visit again. Upon learning that he is not the boss, the girl agrees.
When meeting at home, Yarmola reproaches the master for going to the sorceress. He returned on the trail of a lost comrade. For a servant, divination is a great sin.
Chapter 4
The noble image of Olesya sunk into the soul of the author. When it got warmer, he took tea for the old woman and went to visit. The girl succumbed to persuasion and tells her fortune-telling to the master. The prediction consists of bad events and love for a dark-haired girl. Olesya guesses not only by cards. Seeing a person's face, he can predict his speedy death.
Chapter 5
The guest was invited to dine with a large meal. Then Ivan Timofeevich got ready to go, Olesya went to see him off. On the way, it turned out that her grandmother was a witch. Previously, she treated peasants and showed where the treasures were buried in the ground. Olesya also knows a lot. She made a wound with a knife on the pulse of the master, and, whispering, cured the wound. Panych went ahead, and Olesya stayed behind, and he suddenly fell to the ground several times. The girl said that she knew how to catch up with fear and do other miracles. However, there was no answer to the question of where the grandmother was from. A fire broke out between them.
Chapter 6
The master became a frequent guest of the house in the forest. After the visits, he and Olesya could not part, they talked for a long time. Joint walks lasted a long time. The girl was interested in everything: how the universe works, about scientists, about big cities. Ivan Timofeevich explained with examples that were familiar to Olesya.
For example, he told how big St. Petersburg is, 500 times larger than the nearest village. That the houses there are multi-storey, like a pine tree in a forest. And certain people in their rooms do not see the sun.
Olesya said that she loves solitude and even in the village her longing takes. She doesn't need a husband from the city. Moreover, she does not think about marriage, even more so about the wedding.
While relations with Olesya were strengthening, they went wrong with Yarmola. The servant avoided the master. They stopped hunting. Ivan Timofeevich stayed with him only to help his poor family by paying for housing.
Chapter 7
Grandmother and granddaughter talk about yesterday's visit of the constable. He officially decided to drive them out of the house to their homeland, to the city of Amchensk. The house belonged to the landowner, and now a young gentleman has acquired its territory. The constable also refused a bribe. Ivan Timofeevich promised to take care of their case.
Chapter 8
A constable, Yevpsikhy Afrikanovich, arrives in the village. He was going to work, but the young master persuaded him to come in for a drink of starkey. At first, the conversation did not go, the constable said that he was risking his service. But by presenting a gun, giving radishes and butter, the panych melted the official's heart.
Chapter 9
The constable fulfilled his promise and did not evict the sorceress. However, relations with Olesya began to grow cold. The girl stopped seeing the master. And he was drawn to her.
Ivan Timofeevich suddenly fell ill, tormented by a fever. There were strange images. Consciousness refused to work as before. After 6 days, the disease receded.
Chapter 10
Olesya joyfully greeted the guest, said that she was worried. It was like a declaration of love. She eagerly asked about the illness and the doctor. She said that she would quickly cure, it was necessary to call her.
As it turned out, the grandmother is against their dates. But as Olesya said, “you can’t escape fate.” Now she is not afraid of anything, just to be with a sweetheart. Although they feel good together, the girl foresees trouble.
Chapter 11
For a month, the lovers enjoyed the relationship. Manuilikha looked at the young people with malice, but they did not want to be in the hut.
Ivan Timofeevich liked Olesya's natural tact, her delicacy and chastity. Her upbringing in the forest did not prevent her from being a real noble lady.
The time of the master's departure to the capital was approaching. I didn’t want to leave Olesya, the thought of marriage began to arise more and more often. He was not embarrassed by the difference in position, he just wanted happiness. Olesya responded to a declaration of love with her unwillingness to marry, although she expressed her feelings in every possible way. In subsequent dialogues, Olesya asks if Ivan would like her to go to church, he answers in the affirmative. However, when asked why she needed it, he did not receive an answer.
Chapter 12
People began to celebrate the Trinity. On business, Ivan Timofeevich went to a neighboring village, on his stallion. I spent quite a lot of time, it was necessary to shoe a horse. The square near the church was crowded, many were already drunk. A traditional song was sung.
When the master returned home, the clerk waited for Marinovsky to save money. Nikita Nazarovich said that local women grabbed the witch and wanted to smear it with tar, but she escaped bullying. It turned out that Olesya went to church with everyone. The master quickly saddled his horse and rode to her.
Chapter 13
The master was driving fast, as if delirious. He did not leave concern for his beloved. The beat of the horse reminded him of the song that the old lyre player sang about the raid of the Turkish army.
Olesya lay in the house, not even hearing how Ivan entered. Grandmother urged to be quiet and blamed him for everything that happened. The master asked what was the matter with her. She replied that she was unconscious. Manuilikha thought that it was he who persuaded her granddaughter to go to church, but she heard a negative answer.
Olesya began to regain consciousness. She said that her face is now tormented, love is over. Barin asked for forgiveness. I wanted to ask a doctor, but Olesya flatly refused. She said she was spending her last days with him. Now the peasants will blame her and grandmother for every sin, reprisals cannot be avoided, they need to leave.
The lovers said goodbye, as if for the last time. Olesya did not want to talk when she left, ordered to remember her without longing, she only regretted that she had not given birth to a child. At that time, a thunderstorm was approaching the village.
Chapter 14
There really was a big storm outside. The storm subsided only for minutes, only to return with even greater cruelty. Went a big hail, with a walnut. Yarmola wanted to put shutters on the windows, but did not have time. The hail had already begun to smash the windows.
It seemed to the gentleman that he fell asleep for a moment, and when he woke up, the sun was already outside. Yarmola advised his guest to leave. After all, the hail broke the grain. The whole village is in danger because of the witch. The whole community wanted reprisals not only over the witches, but also over the panych.
Ivan Timofeevich hurried to warn Mikhailikha and Olesya, but when he arrived, he saw an empty house, with scattered things. They've already left.
He wanted to go already, when an object on the corner of the window frame caught his eye - coral beads, which remained forever in the memory of Olesya.
Year of writing: 1898
Genre of work: story
Main characters: Ivan Timofeevich and Olesya
To understand what is at stake in one of the most famous works of Kuprin, a summary of the story "Olesya" for the reader's diary will help.
Plot
The main character is sent to work in the village of Perebrod. He meets the old sorceress Manulikha and her granddaughter Olesya, who live in the forest. The locals can't stand them.
The hero communicates with Olesya. They fall in love. Olesya guesses on the cards and finds out that this love will end very badly for her. But Ivan Timofeevich asks her to become his wife and go with him to the city. Olesya promises to think.
The young sorceress goes to the village to the church. She was brutally beaten by the villagers. Ivan Timofeevich still wants to take the girl away, but she asks him to leave. Arriving the next day at the witches' house, the hero does not find either his grandmother or his beloved there. The women have left these places.
Conclusion (my opinion)
As long as prejudice takes a serious position in human society, innocent people will suffer.
In the school curriculum, a special place is occupied by the story of Alexander Kuprin "Olesya". The summary of the work will help high school students recreate the main plot moves. This is the basis for the analysis of the story in literature lessons.
Kuprin's stories have always been a success with the public. They are distinguished by sensuality and romantic perception of reality. One of the works of the writer, which schoolchildren get acquainted with, is the story "Olesya".
Kuprin published this work in the Kievlyanin magazine in 1898. The basis of the plot is the real love story of the landowner Ivan Timofeevich Poroshin and a young sorceress. Its author was told by a direct participant in the tragic events. Kuprin supplemented it with fiction, turning it into a gripping tragic love story.
A brief retelling will help to reproduce the main plot moves of the work and create a complete picture of the artistic world of the story "Olesya". Let's briefly describe the main events by chapters:
Chapter 1
The events take place in the village of Perebrod, Volyn province. Fate throws the young master Ivan Timofeevich to the outskirts of Polesye.
For six months, his only pastime was hunting. He tried to establish communication with the peasants (he treated them, introduced them to reading and writing), but they shunned the panych.
In mid-January, the weather deteriorated so much that it became impossible to hunt. Therefore, Ivan Timofeevich began to teach his servant Yarmol to write.
Chapter 2
One January evening, when a heavy snowstorm was raging on the street, the master started a conversation with Yarmola about the weather. The servant replied that the blizzard foreshadowed the birth of a witch or the wedding of a witcher. Ivan Timofeevich, who had previously shown interest in folk beliefs and legends, became interested in this story.
The taciturn Yarmola said that a sorceress (katsapka or gypsy) Manuilikha lived in the village, who was at enmity with the peasants, so they expelled her from the village. Now she lives on Bisovo Kut, a few versts from the landowner's estate. Ivan Timofeevich decided to get acquainted with the witch.
Chapter 3
Three days after this, Yarmola informed the master that it was possible to go hunting, since many hare tracks appeared near the village. Tracking the hare, Ivan Timofeevich went to the Irininsky Way. It was driven by the barking of dogs.
Soon he noticed that he got lost and ended up in a swamp, where there was a white hut. Thinking that this was the dwelling of the Irininsky forester, the master decided to go in and ask for help. But it turned out that this is the place where Manuilikha settled.
The witch matched the fairy-tale image: a lean face, a hooked nose, sunken cheeks. She sat on the clay floor and fingered her feathers. Manuilikha greeted the panych unfriendly, but treated him to water and agreed to tell fortunes for a gold coin. In the midst of predictions near the hut, a girlish voice rang out, singing a beautiful Ukrainian song. The doors swung open and a girl entered the house, holding in front of her in her apron a tame finch chick. She brought them to feed.
A girl of about twenty is a beautiful brunette: she had huge dark eyes and eyebrows broken in the middle, which gave the appearance of imperiousness and slyness. She was slim and graceful. The girl turned out to be proud and strict. She showed the panych the way, said that her name was Alena, and in the local way - Olesya.
Chapter 4
In the spring, as soon as the snow melted, Ivan Trofimovich again went to the hut in the swamp. He wanted to see and talk with Olesya. She greeted the master cordially and said that she learned a lot about him and his fate from the cards.
She described the character of the young man: he is kind, but weak-willed, does not keep his word, an imperious person, eager for the female. He is destined to meet great love this year. Passion will give him a brunette. However, this feeling will bring sadness and shame to a man. Olesya admitted that she has a hereditary gift to see the imminent death of a person.
Chapter 5
Escorting the guest through the swamp, Olesya told him about the secret knowledge and skills that Manuilikha once possessed: she healed people, spoke her teeth and ore (blood), found treasures, read the evil eye.
The master asked to show the charms that Olesya owns. She cut his hand with a Finnish knife so that large drops of blood began to fall on the ground, pinched the place above the wound and began to whisper something. The blood stopped, and the deep cut turned into a small scratch.
The second miracle was waiting for the hero on the path. Olesya asked to go ahead of him. The master suddenly began to stumble out of the blue. All this is a spell cast on him by a girl.
She showed the young man how to instill fear in a person. When Olesya looked intently at the hero, it seemed to him that opposite him was the head of Medusa, which he had seen in the Tretyakov Gallery. At parting, the master gave his name for the first time.
Chapter 6
He often visited Manuilikha. He was attracted by the holistic nature of Olesya, her freedom and originality, her clear and innocent mind, her coquettish slyness, which is characteristic of beautiful women. Olesya was interested in stories about different peoples and countries.
Once, talking with Olesya, he said that if she ever wants to get married, then she will have to get married. The girl admitted that she could not enter the temple, because her soul had been given to the unclean since birth.
Chapter 7
During the next visit to the swamp, Ivan Timofeevich learns that Manuilikha and Olesya were threatened by a constable. He set them a condition that the women leave this place in the near future, otherwise they will go to hard labor. The old witch wanted to pay off, but it failed.
Chapter 8
The young master during the next visit by the police officer Evpsiy Afrikanovich to the village invited him to visit. Ivan Timofeevich stood up for Olesya and her grandmother, asked the official to leave them alone. He supported his request with a generous gift - his hunting rifle.
Chapter 9
Evpsikhy Afrikanovich kept his promise and left Manuilikha and her granddaughter alone. However, it was this situation that radically changed the nature of communication between Ivan Timofeevich and Olesya: they no longer walked and did not talk on “live” topics. Communication became forced: the master felt some kind of awkwardness and timidity in the presence of the girl. She was constantly busy with some kind of urgent work.
The master felt that his heart was tied with invisible threads to Olesya. Once, returning from the swamps, Ivan Timofeevich fell ill with a fever. He lay delirious for six days. Having recovered, I felt an irresistible desire to visit Manuilikha's hut.
Chapter 10
Five days later, having finally recovered from his illness, the master went to visit Olesya. Seeing her, the hero realized how dear and sweet she was to him. Olesya's face also lit up with a smile, which expressed all the depth and strength of love for Ivan Timofeevich.
The girl was agitated by the state of her lover, who had become thinner due to illness. She volunteered to escort him to the path. On the way, they had a frank conversation, and Olesya confessed her love to him. She said that her former coldness and alienation were motivated by the desire to defy fate and abandon the deep feeling that arose in her for Ivan Timofeevich.
That night in the forest was the moment of their unity. Ivan Timofeevich came to mind a comparison with the Shakespearean heroes of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" - Titania and Oberon. He told Olesya that their separation further inflamed the fire of love. Looking into the eyes of his beloved, the hero freezes from a premonition of trouble.
Chapter 11
Their happiness lasted for a whole month, but the time came for the master to leave the village and return to the city. Ivan Timofeevich asks Olesya to marry him, but she does not agree, because she is ashamed that she has no education and is illegitimate. The hero understands that with these arguments she covers up her fear of the wedding: she, the witch, is forbidden to appear on the threshold of the church. Under his persuasion, the girl retreats and agrees to come to the temple tomorrow.
Chapter 12
The next day was a big church holiday - Trinity. The master stayed in the city and did not have time to serve in the village church. Returning, he learned from the clerk Mishchenko that Olesya had come to work.
The village girls, after she left the church, wanted to smear the witch with tar and stone her. The girl dodged and, running away to a safe distance, threatened that they would all not be greeted. Ivan Timofeevich went to the forest to look for his bride.
Chapter 13
In the old woman's hut, he finds Olesya in an unconscious state. Manuilikha blames him for the sickness of his granddaughter. Having come to her senses, the girl informs the hero that they need to leave. She really wanted to give birth to a child from him, but this will not happen. She and her grandmother will soon have to leave the refuge in the swamp.
Chapter 14
During the night, it rained over the village with hail. The peasants practically lost their harvest of zhit and blamed the witch and at the same time Ivan Timofeevich for everything. He went to Manuilikha's hut, but did not find the women there: they hastily left the house. The memory of the hero was the corals worn by Olesya.
Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin created a colorful romantic love story between the nobleman Ivan Timofeevich and the forest nymph Olesya - a pure and immaculate soul, a girl who lived in harmony with herself and nature, was distinguished by sincerity and innocence of feelings and actions.
The subtle and insightful psychologist Alexander Kuprin had a brilliant writing talent - he skillfully conveyed the subtle spiritual impulses of a person. His story "Olesya" is full of love and sadness, the tragedy of perceiving the imperfection of the world.
Fate threw the hero for six months in a remote village in the Volyn province, on the outskirts of Polissya, where hunting was his only occupation and pleasure. By that time, he had already "managed to emboss in one small newspaper a story with two murders and one suicide, and he knew theoretically that it is useful for writers to observe morals." When all the books of his library were re-read, he tried to treat the Perebrod residents, but it was impossible to make a diagnosis, because “... the signs of the disease in all ... patients were always the same: “it hurts in the middle” and “no I can't eat or drink." He tried to teach Yarmola Popruzhin to read and write, but abandoned this idea. For several months, this careless tramp, poacher and hunter mastered only the letters of his last name. Yarmola soon became attached to the young master because of his common passion for hunting, for a simple appeal, for helping his family, and mainly because he did not reproach him with drunkenness.
On one of the winter blizzard evenings, he told the hero about one witch, Manuilikha, who was driven out of the village and to whom the village women run. Once during a hunt, Ivan Timofeevich (the hero of the story) got lost and came across a hut that stood in a swamp. “It was not even a hut, but a fabulous hut on chicken legs. It did not touch the ground with the floor, but was built on piles, probably due to the flood that floods the entire ... forest in spring. But one side of it sagged from time to time, and this gave the hut a lame, sad look. In the hut, an old woman sat on the floor and sorted out feathers. The arrival of the guest did not please her. And only a small silver quarter attracted the attention of Manuilikha. Hiding the coin behind her cheek, she began to guess, but suddenly, hearing a resonant female voice, she began to see the young master out. A young girl entered the hut, holding finches in her hands. “There was nothing in her like the local “girls”, whose faces under ugly bandages ... wear such a monotonous, frightened expression - the Stranger ... kept herself light and slender ... The original beauty of her face, once seen, could not be forget, but it was difficult ... to describe it. His charm lay in ... large, shiny, dark eyes ... in the masterful curve of his lips. The girl escorted the guest to the forest path leading to the village. Upon learning that Ivan Timofeevich had visited the witch, Yarmola became angry with him.
Spring has come, early and friendly. As soon as the roads dried up, the hero went to the hut, taking tea and a few lumps of sugar for the grouchy old woman. This time the girl was at home, and the guest began to beg her to tell fortunes to him. But it turned out that Olesya had already thrown her cards once in order to find out the fate of the master. It turned out this: her new acquaintance is a kind man, but weak. His kindness is not good, not cordial. He is not master of his word. Likes to take over people. Loves wine and women. He does not value money, so he will never be rich. He will not love anyone with his heart, because his heart is cold and lazy. But very soon he falls in love. And this love will bring shame and long sorrow to the woman. Olesya, seeing off the guest, showed him "her charms."
From that day on, Ivan Timofeevich became a frequent guest in the hut on chicken legs. Every time he came, "Olesya met ... with her usual restrained dignity ... The old woman still did not stop muttering something under her breath." "Not only Olesya's beauty ... fascinated her, but also her whole, original free nature, her mind, both clear and shrouded in unshakable hereditary superstition." Young people talked about everything, including superstitions. And the girl argued that she could not and was afraid to go to church, because her soul had been “sold to him” since childhood. So far, not a word has been said about love, but our heroes became more and more attached to each other. “But ... relations with Yarmola completely deteriorated. For him, obviously, it was not a secret to visit the hut on chicken legs.
Once, a constable, having come to Manuilikha, ordered her and her granddaughter to leave the hut at 24 o'clock. The poor old woman turned to a new acquaintance for help. Ivan Timofeevich gave the sergeant a gun, and he left the inhabitants of the forest hut alone for a while. But Olesya has changed since then. There was no former gullibility, naive caress and former animation. The young man "was indignant ... against the habit that pulled ... every day to Olesya." He himself did not suspect with what strong invisible threads his heart was tied to a charming and incomprehensible girl for him.
Once, returning from a swamp, he felt ill, and then spent two weeks lying in bed, he was beaten by a fever. But as soon as he got stronger, he went back to the swamp, to the forest hut. The young people sat down nearby, and the girl began to ask in detail about the disease, about medicines. Olesya again went to see off the guest, although her grandmother was against it. Left alone, they confess their love to each other, because “... separation for love is the same as wind for fire; she extinguishes a small love, and inflates a big one even more strongly. “And the whole night merged into some kind of magical, bewitching fairy tale.”
“For almost a month, the naive, charming fairy tale of our love continued, and to this day, together with the beautiful appearance of Olesya, these blazing evening dawns, these dewy mornings, fragrant with lilies of the valley and honey, live with unfading strength in my soul ...” - says the author.
Ivan Timofeevich discovered in this girl, who grew up in the middle of the forest, who could not read, sensitive delicacy and innate tact. “In love - in its direct, in its rough sense - there are always terrible sides that make up torment and shame for nervous artistic natures. But Olesya knew how to avoid them with such naive chastity that not a single bad comparison, not a single cynical moment offended our connection. Meanwhile, the time of departure was approaching, more and more often the thought of marrying a forest sorceress came into the young man's head. Only one circumstance was frightening and alarming: would the girl be able to live in the city, "torn out of this charming framework of the old forest, full of legends and mysterious forces." Ivan Timofeevich told his beloved both about his departure and about his proposal, once again tried to shake her superstition, her humble confidence in the mysterious fatal vocation, spoke of the mercy of God. The girl was amazed by everything she heard. To please her beloved, she decides to go to church. A superstitious thought flashed through Ivan Timofeevich's head: wouldn't some misfortune happen from this?
The premonition did not deceive him. Olesya “overcame her fear and came to church... Throughout the service, the women whispered and looked back. However, Olesya found enough strength in herself to survive until the end of mass. Perhaps she did not understand the real meaning of these hostile looks, perhaps out of pride she neglected them. But when she left the church, at the very fence she was surrounded on all sides by a bunch of women ... At first they only silently and unceremoniously looked at ... the girl. Then rude ridicule rained down ... Several times Olesya tried to pass through this terrible ring, but she was constantly pushed back to the middle ... Almost at the same moment, a daub with tar and a brush appeared over the heads of the raging women, passed from hand to hand .. But Olesya, by some miracle, managed to slip out of this tangle, and she ran headlong along the road ... Stones flew after her, along with abuse, laughter and hooting.
Having learned from the clerk what had happened in the church, Ivan Timofeevich flew straight to Manuilikha's hut. The poor girl lay unconscious. The old woman was wailing all the time. In the evening, Olesya felt better. Tortured and humiliated, she confessed to her Vanechka that out of shame and evil she threatened the villagers, now, if anything happens, people will blame her and her grandmother, so they need to leave.
That night a terrible thunderstorm broke out with hail, which destroyed the entire crop near half of the village. The village was restless. Wanting to save his beloved, Ivan Timofeevich again rushed to the hut. But it was empty. In memory of Olesya, her devoted love, only a string of cheap red beads, known in Polissya as "corals", remained.
(summary read)
The narrator, a young gentleman, who enthusiastically accepted the offer to go to a remote village on the outskirts of woodland in the Volyn province. They sent him there for six months. The author hoped to get to know the locals, to look at their traditions, to study the culture of people who had practically no contact with modern innovations. Untouched nature, the tranquility of the village and the romance of life, untouched by time - all this made the author look forward to arriving at the place of the business trip.
Upon arrival, the author hires a local resident who knows all the features of local traditions well, the servant Yarmol. His servant was a simple man, completely illiterate, but well versed in hunting and locality. No matter how much the author tried to build trusting relationships with local residents, they were reluctant to make contact, but only kissed his hands and kissed his feet, which confused the author. The young gentleman tried to treat the locals, but they also had only two types of illnesses - everything inside hurt, and the stomach ached. Out of boredom, the author decides to make acquaintance with the local intelligentsia, but this does not lead to anything good. Then the author decides to teach Yarmola to read and write, at first he undertakes to teach him the whole alphabet, but then they decide that knowing how to write his last name will be enough for him. The letter to Yarmole was given incredibly hard. The only entertainment of the author is hunting.
On one of the rainy days, the author learns from his servant that witches live in their area, near the swamp. The author became interested in this fact, and he began to ask where they came from, and why they do not live with everyone. It turned out that the old witch came there from afar with a little girl and lived in the village, but then she was kicked out by the locals due to the fact that one of the women's child died after she did not give the witch what she asked for. Since then, old Manuilikha has been living in the forest with her granddaughter. Someone came to her to tell fortunes or predict fate, but in general people were afraid of her, and the authorities tried to evict them at any opportunity. At the request of the author to take him to the witches, Yarmola sharply refused.
During the hunt, when, according to Yarmola, there were especially many hares, the author got lost and ended up in a swampy area, he saw a crumpled hut and went into it. It was dark there, the author, not seeing anything, called the owner. Someone stirred near the stove, and the author managed to make out an ancient old woman with faded eyes. She reminded him of Baba Yaga, and he realized that in front of him was that same Manuilikha. She met him rudely, but when the author showed her the coin, she stopped kicking him out and agreed to tell fortunes. The general phrases of fortune-telling were interrupted by a girl who entered the hut with a laugh, saying that two hazel grouse again followed her, and she did not have bread to feed them. Young, black-browed, with beautiful black hair, a slender figure and eyebrows bent in the middle, the author liked the girl very much. It was Olesya, the old witch's granddaughter. The girl gladly showed the young master the way, and their conversation along the way was very entertaining. Upon returning home, the author could not forget the strong, wild, but beautiful and at the same time naive sorceress.
When it gets warmer, the author again goes to visit the witches. Manuilikha is not happy with him, but the girl is friendly with him. She said that she laid out cards for the master, in response to his request for fortune-telling. It turned out that love awaits him, for a woman with black hair, but he will bring this woman a lot of suffering and even shame. She also described him as a weak person who does not know how to keep his word and as someone who is greedy for female attention. The author does not believe that he is capable of bringing so much suffering to someone. In the fifth chapter, he introduces himself to Olesya as Ivan Timofeevich.
Frequent meetings strengthen the narrator's feelings for the young sorceress - they joke, argue. She proves her ability to cast spells by healing a knife wound and causing him to stumble and fall every 10-20 steps. The author is delighted, asks how she does it. The girl gladly reveals her secrets to him. When the constable once again tries to drive the witches out of the forest, Ivan saves them from expulsion by giving him a good drink and giving him his gun. After this incident, Olesya begins to behave very coldly with Ivan, and because of this, he feels uncomfortable and constrained. He cannot understand the reasons for her such behavior, but still continues to come to the lodge by the swamp. They are silent for a long time, and this breaks Ivan's heart. After some time, the young gentleman falls down with a fever, he is sick for 6 days, and then another 5 moves away from the disease, gaining strength. All this time he constantly thinks about Oles and almost 2 weeks later he visits two witches again.
Olesya was in a completely different mood, she is friendly and very glad to see him again. Manuilikha is wary and unhappy, but the girl tells her that this is her decision and leaves the hut with Ivan into the forest. There she says that she was very bored and admits that she fell in love with Ivan and wants to be with him no matter what. Ivan also loves her, they hug, kiss each other and spend three whole weeks in such a romantic mood. Despite a premonition of trouble, Olesya gives Ivan wonderful, full of love days, and he, in turn, begins to think about marrying her, because the time for his departure was coming.
The girl rejects Ivan's proposal, justifying this by the fact that she is nobody, illegitimate and she does not even have documents. He, in turn, thinks that she does not want to get married because it will take place in the church. The girl rejects this assumption and, in order to prove her feelings, she says that she will come to church tomorrow and will wait for him there. The day coincided with the feast of the Trinity, there were many people in the church, Olesya came to the service. Ivan did not come because of some official business. Olesya was uncomfortable in the church, everyone turned to her, looked at her with a condemning look, but she defended the service to the end. After, already near the temple, she was attacked. The village girls wanted to beat her and then smear her with tar and shame her. The girl with difficulty escaped and rushed to run. The inhabitants threw stones at her. Olesya turned around and shouted that they would still cry and regret what they had done today.
The constable told Ivan about the event, as if it were fun, - he laughed, and it seemed ridiculous to him to mock a young girl. Ivan frightened ran into the forest, he found Olesya unconscious. Manuilikha lamented and blamed the young master. The girl woke up, she did not blame him for anything, but said that they would now have to leave, and therefore part forever. She regretted that she did not have a child, that she would like a child from him. She continued to confess her love to Ivan. When Manuilikha saw off the narrator, she said that there would be a storm at night.
A nighttime thunderstorm, which passed along with heavy hail, destroyed the crops of many families in the village. Yarmola stood over the master for a long time, waiting for him to wake up. When Ivan opened his eyes, his servant said that he needed to leave as soon as possible, because the inhabitants took up arms against the witches and Ivan for his communication with the sorceresses. Ivan quickly got ready and went to Olesya to tell about the mood of the people, but he did not find anyone at home - the doors and windows were open, it was clear that people were gathering in a hurry. Ivan found Olesya's red, "coral" beads, the only reminder of what happened.
This work tells about the stupidity of the people who live only by their own prejudices, and also about the fact that people are ready to blame anyone but themselves for their misfortunes. The author also regrets his own stupidity and inability to keep what he had, despite the fact that he was warned about his shortcomings that could lead to trouble, and about what might happen in the future. In this case, knowing the truth did not help the author avoid the future, he was too stupid to believe and subsequently change his fate. The girl in this story really became a victim, but she went for it voluntarily, for the sake of love, which lasts a short moment.
