Gorky's novel "Childhood" is a vivid example of an autobiographical work. The story is conducted in the first person, which made it possible for the writer to depict events more accurately, accurately convey the thoughts and feelings of the main character. In addition, the named work helps to understand who M. Gorky actually was. “Childhood,” a summary of which will be given below, is a unique opportunity to get to know one of the geniuses of Russian literature more closely.
Maxim Gorky “Childhood”: summary
Despite the fact that the work “Childhood” is autobiographical, Gorky narrates on behalf of the boy Alyosha. Already on the first pages of the story, we learn about difficult circumstances in the boy’s family: father’s funeral, mother’s grief, the death of a newborn brother. Alyosha is hard going through all these events. Next to him is a grandmother.
After the tragic events described, Alyosha goes with his grandmother and mother to relatives. True, the boy did not like anyone, as Gorky writes. "Childhood", the brief content of which does not convey many details, pays a lot of attention to the inner experiences of the hero. So, Alyosha often calls her life a harsh tale. For example, he was very afraid of his grandfather. One day, the latter, despite the protests of his grandmother and mother, carved his grandson so that he fell ill. When Alyosha was still sick, grandfather often came to him and talked about himself. Therefore, the protagonist soon ceased to be afraid of him. In addition, the boy was visited by Gypsy - the adopted son Ivan, who received the nickname because of his appearance. It was with him that Alex became friends the most. More than once, the Gypsy woman put his hand under the rods with which his grandfather secured Alexei. True, the named hero often stole. Soon, the Gypsy perishes.
Mother rarely appeared in the house. Very quickly their house became notorious, because there were often fights. Grandfather was attacked by his own son Michael, as the story goes. Alexey’s childhood was full of terrible events. So, the boy was rarely allowed to walk alone, because he constantly "became the culprit of the riots." In addition, he did not have comrades, as Gorky writes. "Childhood," a short summary of which misses a lot, tells the story of Alexei moving with his grandparents to a new house. There he met a man nicknamed "Good Deed" (he often used the phrase) and Uncle Peter, who was a robber.
Once mother came again. She began to teach Alexei literacy. Then his mother took him to school. At the same time, the boy noted that only his grandmother felt sorry for him, others were either indifferent or severe. Only grandmother looked after Alyosha when he became ill.
Soon, the mother of the protagonist got married again, and he and his family ended up in Sormovo. My stepfather was very strict with Alexei. The boy’s school education is also described. It is emphasized that the teacher and the priest immediately disliked the boy, constantly threatening to expel him from school. Then he again moves to his grandfather, begins to earn money and makes friends. At the end of the story, Alexei’s mother dies, and his grandfather invites him to go to the people and earn his own living. So Gorky himself concludes the story.
“Childhood,” a brief summary of which was described above, is one of the best examples of realism in Russian literature.