The main novelist in Russian literature is Ivan Bunin. The work “The Master from San Francisco”, the meaning of which high school students understand in a literature lesson, is a brilliant example of small prose filled with symbols, allusions.
What is this story about? About one American who once died while traveling in the Old World. The philosophical meaning of The Lord of San Francisco is quite deep. The next reading reveals more and more new details. The article presents the most complete analysis of the story of the great Russian classic.
When was the work created?
Bunin wrote the short story in 1915. This is very important to mention in artistic analysis. At the end of the 19th century or in the middle of the 20th century, the story would not have caused such a resonance. After all, the meaning of The Lord of San Francisco is in full accord with the spirit of the times. There is no longer that calm, peaceful Europe. The atmosphere of impending catastrophe reigns in the world.
The mood of the first years of the war can be felt by reading the work “Mr. from San Francisco”. The meaning of the work is somewhere between the lines. But the fact that Bunin wrote a story on a hot topic does not detract from its relevance.
From the history of writing
In the summer of 1915, Ivan Bunin saw Thomas Mann's book Death in Venice in a bookstore. He did not know what the novel of the German writer was about, but her name inspired him. Around the same time, Bunin learned from the newspapers about the sudden death of a wealthy American at the Quisisana Hotel. Then the Russian writer came up with the idea to create a short but vivid story about a man who died while traveling to Europe. This work Bunin first wanted to call "Death on Capri." But he changed his mind only after writing the first three words - "Mr. from San Francisco."
The meaning of the work of Thomas Mann has nothing to do with the main philosophical idea of the novel by Bunin. The story "Death in Venice" refers to a middle-aged man, a supporter of same-sex love. Bunin read Mann’s book only at the end of autumn and called it very unpleasant.
The meaning of The Lord of San Francisco is accessible to the teenager. No wonder the story is included in the school curriculum. With a careful reading, you can see that it is filled with forebodings of a tragedy of European proportions. The work was created a year after the start of World War I and two years before the February Revolution in Russia - an event that influenced the course of world history.
Nameless Hero
What is the meaning of the title of The Lord of San Francisco? The main character is a certain American whose name no one remembers either in Capri or in Naples. And this, perhaps, is the whole characterization that Bunin gives. The billionaire from San Francisco is of no interest to anyone. Nobody remembered his name, because this person is not remarkable. Interest is caused only by his money and position in society. But these categories are ghostly. As soon as an American dies, they immediately forget about him.
Simplicity, visualization - these are the characteristic features of the story. And perhaps that is why the philosophical meaning of The Lord of San Francisco is a matter of interest to readers for over a century. The story aroused admiring reviews of contemporaries of the writer. It is read today. The essence of the work “The Master from San Francisco” was interpreted in its own way by Soviet critics. After all, who is the main character of the story? The American capitalist, who had been saving, robbing and exploiting the Chinese for his whole life. For which he was punished by a sudden, absurd death.
Lies and pretense
The main character worked hard and finally saved up a trip to Europe. He rides on a luxury liner with his wife and daughter, designed for people of high society. This liner easily guesses the Titanic. Everything on the ship breathes pretense. It is worth recalling, for example, two characters that few readers pay attention to. A beautiful couple is dancing on the deck. There is genuine happiness in their eyes. No one knows that these are just hired actors playing love for a lot of money. They have long floated on one or the other liner.
"Titanic"
While analyzing the philosophical meaning of “The Master from San Francisco” by Bunin, it is worth recalling the tragic fate of the famous “Titanic”. You should pay attention to the name of the ship on which the main character floats. Atlantis is an island-state that has gone under water. The Titans are mythical creatures who dared to oppose themselves to the gods. Zeus severely punished them for their insolence and self-confidence.
For Alexander Blok, the liner, which sank in 1914, symbolized world vulgarity. In his diary, the poet mentions a catastrophe even with some gloating. Bunin's work is filled with unkind premonitions and tells about the tragedy of not only an individual person, but of the whole of Europe. However, there is no malevolence in the story. Rather, pity for the main character, and for secondary characters.
The main character in the story
The ship in the work of Ivan Bunin is a symbol of the naive and stupid self-confidence of a man of civilization. The main character, being a wealthy man, is convinced that further events in his life depend only on him. The creators of the huge liner - an example of high technical achievement of the beginning of the XX century - are sure that the giant machine is able to withstand ocean storms.
The mister from San Francisco does not have time to realize his mistake. The creators of the Titanic realized, but too late. Western civilization at the beginning of the 20th century was on the edge of the abyss - this, perhaps, is the meaning of the story of the Russian writer. More than a hundred years have passed since the publication of the work, but little has changed. "Mr. from San Francisco" is relevant today.
Death on Capri
Against the backdrop of the raging ocean, the shine of the liner is miserable, a ticket for which costs a fortune. The ship, seriously overcoming the storm and storm, finally arrives in Europe. There, in Italy, a nameless American, whom all the servants subserviently bowed to, suddenly dies.
After death, an American from a respected rich man turns into an onerous body. He is as soon as possible attributed to the farthest and cheapest number. As for the daughter and wife, they now cause irritation and contempt among others - not at all pity and sympathy. Hotel guests paid a lot of money for rest, entertainment and sudden death annoyed them.
On the ship, meanwhile, a life full of falsity continues. The author, it would seem, should have felt only hostility towards his hero. Bunin despised wealth and could not spare the powerful capitalist. But the people around him from San Francisco were far more unpleasant to him. Are they better than him? They were and remain slaves, creeping in front of wealth - and this is the worst. Bunin feels pity for the American, who is only to blame for the fact that he suddenly died. The writer pities the liner, doomed to death.
Output
Ivan Bunin spoke about the event that occurred at the height of the First World War. But people at all times, regardless of nationality, have something in common. The story in question in this article describes a certain type of people. This is a kind of mini-novel about those to whom, it would seem, all the blessings and joys of the world. However, the life of a society that enjoys all the benefits of civilization, according to the writer, is full of fake, artificial. There is no place in it for manifestations of individuality, since each representative of this false world lives according to the scheme, strives to correspond to his position.
The hero of the story of Ivan Bunin never managed to enjoy the beauties of Italian landscapes in his 58 years. Money destroyed his ability to see the beautiful. "Do not accumulate wealth on Earth," - this is the quote from the Bible is the main philosophical idea of the work.