A lot has been written about the mother’s readiness to sacrifice everything that she has for the sake of the happiness of children. One of the best works on this subject can rightfully be called the short story “The Legend of Mothers” by Ivan Pankin, a children's writer of the second half of the 20th century. For half a century, he has been a model of selfless motherly love and selflessness, on which more than one generation has been brought up. And the collection with the same name, published in 1965, was immediately loved by little readers.
Briefly about the author
We can say that the story to some extent was the result of personal experiences of I. Pankin.
He was born in 1921 in a peasant family, in early childhood he became an orphan. His path to the dream - to become a sailor - was not easy, but during the Second World War he already fought in the Marine Corps. Then there was another desire - to write. Already in adulthood, Ivan Fedorovich graduated from the Literary Institute, and literary work turned for him into his main occupation. I. Pankin (“The Legend of Mothers” among them) devoted many works to children. They teach good and justice, foster a sense of respect and compassion for others, touch upon problems that will always be eternal.
Genre originality
"The Legend of Mothers" ... Pankin himself determined the genre of his work, putting its name in the title. Traditionally, the basis of a legend, folk or author, is a story about some heroic or historical event that took place in reality, but set out in a fairy tale form. Indeed, Ivan Fedorovich’s real (in this case, the youth’s desire to become sailors, as well as the sacrifice and selflessness of their mothers) are combined with fantastic elements. First, along with ordinary people, Neptune and his daughters become heroes. And the strength, beauty and vigilance of mothers in an unusual way are transferred to their sons and save the latter from the wrath of the sea lord.
Narrative form
The work is addressed to children. This largely explains the form in which the "Legend of Mothers" is written. The text begins and ends with direct addresses: “my dear boy”, “my friend”. They are repeated more than once in the course of the story, which brings the author closer to the reader, helps to establish trusting relationships between them. This is also facilitated by the question-answer form of small arguments containing a commentary on the story. The narration is revived by an abundance of dialogues and conversational vocabulary. Summing up, it can be noted that the work more closely resembles an ordinary fairy tale, which is told to the child before going to bed.
I. Pankin "The Legend of Mothers": the plot
The author’s question “... do you know where the sailors came from?” immediately attracts the attention of small readers to the plot.
Young men of one of the tribes who lived in the Black Sea in ancient times annually shot arrows of happiness during the celebration of the end of field work. So they determined their future fate. For a very long time no one dared to shoot an arrow in the direction of the sea, which was very pleasing to Neptune, who constantly watched the games. He laughed and proudly said that everyone was afraid of him and there would never be a daredevil who decided to seek happiness in the sea.
But once the youths, all to one, shot towards the sea. This caused the fury of the terrible lord. He roared and threatened to bury everyone in the depths of the sea.
The legend of mother and her selfless love for children
The pride of this tribe has always been considered women - "strong, beautiful, never aging." Hearing the threats of Neptune, the mothers thought about how to help their sons survive in the sea. Their decision - to give their strength to the children - was a way out of the situation, but in an instant made the women weak. The youths, however, resisted the mighty wave and did not abandon their desire to devote themselves to the sea.
But the legend of the mother and her sacrifice does not end there. An enraged Neptune threatened the women that he would tear their sons' veins when they went out to sea. The lords who learned about this daughter, as ugly as the father, themselves turned to their mothers. They promised to get Manila grass from the bottom, which will help the young men gain the same strength in their hands as Neptune had. In return, they asked women for their beauty. Truly inexhaustible love for children - the legend about the mother leads to such an idea. Each of the women, without hesitation, agreed to give her beauty. Only Neptune found out about everything and severely punished his daughters. He turned them into gulls, now they moan above the water, attracting the attention of sailors.
Soon the young people hit the road. They waited a long time for their mother to return home, until they learned from Neptune that the children were wandering at sea. Then the women gave the light of their eyes to distant stars, and they illuminated the ship’s path to their native coast. So all the attempts of the sea king to stop the youths were unsuccessful, and the sailors have since turned into strong and invincible men. After all, mothers gave them all the best they had. The legend of the mother and her boundless love for children tells about this.
Idea of the work
The act of women is truly worthy to be called heroic. They gave their health to save the lives of their beloved children. That is why Ivan Pankin called his story “The Legend of Mothers” exactly. Always loving, protecting from life's troubles, ready for any donations for the happiness and well-being of her child is the mother.
As a rule, in return she does not require anything from children. However, I. Pankin has repeatedly called on young readers to be attentive to women living next to them. This is the only way to thank them for the great feat of life that they perform every day. After all, if they are weak, then their strength now belongs to the children. They do not differ in beauty - it means they sacrificed it for the sons and daughters.