"Obelisk" is a story created by Vasil Bykov. It was written by him in 1971. In this article, we will describe the summary of the work, and analyze it. Bykova (Obelisk, Sotnikov, Survive to Dawn, The Sign of Trouble, The Third Rocket - all these are his works) are rightly considered one of the best authors who wrote about the Great Patriotic War. In the article, we first describe the summary of the story. After that, we will analyze it. Bykova (Obelisk and Survive Dawn) was awarded the USSR State Prize in 1974.
The beginning of the story
A journalist learned one day in the fall of the death of Miklashevich, a teacher who lived in the village of Seltso. The deceased was only 36 years old. Guilt fell upon the newsboy, and he decided to go to Seltso. A fellow traveler was taken by a truck driver passing by. So begins the story created by Vasily Bykov - "Obelisk".
Miklashevich at one of the conferences turned to the journalist for help. This hero was associated with the partisans in wartime. The Germans killed five of his classmates. Thanks to the efforts of the teachers, a monument was erected in their honor. The newspaperman promised Miklashevich to help in one case, but did not have time, which is noted by Vasily Bykov.
The obelisk appeared around the bend. The journalist went out and headed to the school. Here was a livestock specialist who indicated where they were commemorating. Arriving crouched. They brought a couple of bottles, revival came. Ksendzov, the head of the district, was given the floor.
He said that the deceased was a loyal communist and an active public figure. Then he began to spread about the successes of the Soviet people in cultural, scientific, economic fields, but he was interrupted by a veteran. The old man was indignant that no one remembers Frost at the wake. The journalist found out that this veteran is Timofey Titovich Tkachuk, a former teacher.
Obelisk near the village of Seltso
We continue to describe the summary of the work that Bykov created. "Obelisk" (an analysis of which we will conduct later) tells about the following events.
When Tkachuk left, the newspaperman went after him. Tkachuk sat on the foliage, and the journalist went to the obelisk made of concrete. The structure looked modest, but it was well maintained. Another name was added with white paint on the plate - A.I. Frost.
Veteran approached the road and offered to get together. He said that since childhood he knew Miklashevich, considered him an excellent teacher and a good person. The guys loved him very much. When the deceased was still a child, he ran after Frost. The veteran told the journalist the following story.
Frost - a school teacher
The Byelorussian SSR and Western Belarus were reunited in 1939, in the fall. Tkachuk was sent west to organize collective farms and schools. Timofei taught and headed the district. Frost opened a school at the Seltso estate. Podgayskaya worked here - a Polish woman who knew a little Belarusian, but did not speak Russian. She complained about the methods of raising Frost, Tkachuk traveled with a check.
Children worked in the school yard: a tree fell and they sawed it. It was difficult with firewood. Other schools in Tkachuku complained about a lack of fuel, but here they took the initiative. Ales Ivanovich Moroz went to the head. He was limping.
A teacher was born in the Mogilev region. He had problems with his leg from birth. Ales Ivanovich said that before children went to a Polish school, and it was not easy for them to master the Belarusian program. Frost dreamed of making them worthy people.
Frost takes care of students
Timofey Titovich drove in 1941, in January, to warm himself at school. He saw a boy of about ten. He said that the teacher went to see the sisters. Frozen Frost arrived soon. He said that Kolya Borodich used to accompany them, but he had to, since Kolya did not appear. The girls' mother did not let them go to school: there were no shoes. Ales Ivanovich therefore bought them boots. Frost left the boy who met Timofei Titovich at school, as his father beat him at home. His name was Pavlik Miklashevich.
Sivak, the local prosecutor, said he should give the child back to his father. Frost had to submit. A parent hit Paul on the road with a belt. Then Ales Ivanovich grabbed the belt from his father, and the men almost started a fight. Litigation followed. The teacher managed to get the boy to be sent to an orphanage. However, Frost was not going to fulfill this decision.
You must admit that the image of a kind and selfless teacher was created by the Bulls. The Obelisk, the analysis of which is largely based on the personality of this person, is a work in which Ales Moroz is the main character.
Start of war
The war has changed everything. The Germans were on the offensive, and the Russians were not to be seen. Fascists soon appeared in the village. Everyone expected to be driven away quickly. No one thought that there would be a four-year war ... Of the local there were many traitors. All this is not in vain mentioned by the Bulls. Obelisk (an analysis of the work is given below) is a story based on the impressions of the author himself, who participated in the war. A photo of Bykov is presented below.
The teachers joined the detachment of Seleznev, the Cossack, and Sivak later added here. We began to prepare for the cold, to dig trenches. It was decided to establish ties with their people and local villages. Seleznev sent fighters for reconnaissance.
Tkachuk and Sivak entered Seltso. A friend of the prosecutor became a policeman, and Frost continued to teach. The head of the district did not expect such a thing from Ales! Sivak said that he was then not in vain repressed ...
Help Frost during the war years
Night. Tkachuk met Ales, and Sivak was waiting on the street. Frost said that he was masking and did not want the invaders to capture the guys. They decided that the teacher would report on the partisans in the village.
Frost actively helped. He recorded military reports from the receiver, passing them to the partisans. Ours sat in shelters in winter: little food, cold. Only mail cheered up.
School search
At first, the policemen and fascists did not touch Ales. But once everything changed. Lavchenya, a policeman nicknamed Cain, served the Nazis. He was an ordinary youth before, but he immediately went over to the side of the enemy in the war. Lavchenya raped, robbed, killed. Police once burst into school. They searched briefcases, books, and began to interrogate Frost.
Guys decide to kill the policeman
Borodich wanted to kill Cain, but Ales forbade it. Pavel Miklashevich was then 15 years old. The oldest was Nikolai Borodich (18 years old). Timka and Ostap Kozhani were in the same group, as well as Kolya and Andryusha Smurny (namesake names) - only 6 guys. Kolya, the youngest, was 13 years old. They figured out how to neutralize this policeman.
Fatal act
Cain often visited his father, where he drank and had fun with colleagues or Germans. Spring came. Timofey Titovich was appointed Commissioner. The sentry once brought Ales. He crouched down and reported that they had captured the guys.
It turned out that Borodich persuaded the rest. The next fatal act describes the Bulls ("Obelisk"). Analyzing the work, we can say that this is the culmination of the action, after which comes the denouement. The boys at night sawed up pillars at the bridge so that Cain's car would fall into a ravine. The elder comrade and Smurny watched in the bushes, the rest left. Cain's car fell under the bridge. However, except for the German, all the other passengers survived and quickly got out.
The guys headed to the village, but they were noticed. Pavel Miklashevich reported everything to the teacher. The policeman came to Ales at night and said that they had seized the guys, and he was next.
A connected Ulyana arrived, who came only in extreme cases. The Germans threatened to hang the guys, demanded the extradition of Frost. Ales was called to go. Tkachuk and Cossack began shouting that they won’t let the guys go, Alesya would be killed. They learned about further events from Gusak, and then from Miklashevich.
Frost comes to the Germans
The guys were kept in the barn, waiting for Frost. At first, the children were not recognized. But Borodich during the torture took the blame, admitting to everything. He thought the others would be released. Ales Ivanovich was dragged into the hut. Hearing his voice, the children lost heart. No one expected that Frost would appear on his own. All seven were taken outside in the evening. Vanya Kozhan, the elder brother of the twins, came forward and asked the German why the guys weren’t letting go, because, according to the Nazis, he needed only a teacher. The guy hit on the teeth of a German, Ivan hit him with his foot. They killed the boy.
The fate of the guys
The captives were escorted by 7 policemen and 4 Germans. Frost whispered at the bridge to Pavel so that he would run to the bushes when he shouted. I could see the forest. Suddenly Ales Ivanovich cried out loud and looked to the left, as if he had seen someone. Everyone looked around, even Miklashevich, but then he understood everything and ran. They shot him, and then threw him into the water. The frost was severely beaten, and he no longer got up.
The boy was found at night. Others were taken away and bullied for 5 days. Everyone was hanged on the first day of Easter.
Papers Discovered in 1944
Police and Gestapo papers were found in 1944. Among them was Cain's report on Ales Moroz. Cain was reportedly captured by a guerrilla gang leader. This lie was beneficial to everyone - both the police and the Germans. Report on the losses demanded from Seleznev. He wrote that the teacher was captured. Two documents gathered on him, which were unrealistic to refute. However, Miklashevich succeeded.
Pavel was very ill, was treated annually. His chest was shot through and tuberculosis started. It was possible to cure the lungs, but the heart stopped.
The dispute about the act of Ales
This concludes the story of Frost. Ksendzov’s car was driving past. He agreed to take fellow travelers with him. A dispute began in which the head of the district (Ksendzov) said that Ales was not a hero, since he did not kill the Germans and did not save the children. Only by chance did Miklashevich survived. The veteran began to prove the opposite to him, since Frost gave his life for the guys. Of course, this action is regarded as heroic by the author himself, Vasil Bykov.
Obelisk: analysis of the work
Consider the product in more detail. To do this, we will analyze it. Bykova's “Obelisk” sounds like a requiem for unknown war heroes. The story became a literary obelisk dedicated to them. However, the content is not limited to this appeal to history. What can be seen by analyzing the work "Obelisk" (Vasil Bykov). The reader in it can consider the fate of those who survived the war and who died in these years.
The atmosphere of meditation is permeated by the story, as analysis shows. Bykova's Obelisk is not the only work in which this atmosphere is felt. It is characteristic of all the work of Vasil Vladimirovich. This atmosphere is needed in order to adjust the reader’s perception to the realization of the moral meaning of the feat. Bykov is strict with himself and his generation, since for him the feat of war is the main measure by which a person is evaluated.
In the story Vasil Bykov outlined the paths of three generations. "Obelisk" (the analysis of which we are conducting) is a work in which they are represented by the following heroes: Vitka, Miklashevich and Moroz. Each of the three generations is worthy of a heroic path, not always recognized by all.
Conducting an analysis of Bykov’s novel Obelisk, the problems that the writer raises in the work should be highlighted . The author makes the reader think about the meaning of the feat and heroism, unlike ordinary, to delve into the moral origins of actions. The representatives of three generations had a choice: to do so or not? At the same time, they were not satisfied with the possibility of formal justification. Heroes acted guided by conscience. The debate in the Obelisk helps to understand the continuity of true kindness, selflessness, heroism. Ksendzov most likely would prefer to find himself in a similar situation. This is a lover to teach and censure, not capable of self-sacrifice, in the work "Obelisk" (Bulls). The analysis (problems of the story, heroes of the work and other points) you can continue by including quotes from the text and adding your own thoughts.