"Paradox", analysis of Korolenko's story. The problem of the meaning of life and the purpose of a person in the story of V.G. Korolenko "Paradox" Korolenko paradox main characters

09.04.2022

The story "Paradox" was written in 1894. Korolenko created it in one breath, literally in a day. In one of his letters, he mentioned that the pessimistic and dull mood of the story was connected with the tragedy that happened in the Korolenko family in 1893. During Vladimir Galaktionovich’s trip to America, his daughter Lyolya died, and the writer felt “broken, broken and worthless.

The story was published in No. 5 of the Russian Wealth magazine.

Literary direction and genre

Korolenko defined the genre of the work as an essay. For stories of the essay type, a description of the life and moral state of a certain environment is characteristic. The story brings the case closer to the novella, which underlies the plot and reveals the character of the characters.

To give the story credibility, Korolenko describes the story as autobiographical, a case from childhood.

Topics and issues

In the very first sentence, the problem of the story is indicated: why man was created, what is the purpose of life. This philosophical problem finds an answer in the aphorism of the unfortunate cripple: "Man is created for happiness, like a bird for flight." This aphorism was invented by the writer and became his most famous catch phrase. But he is not the main idea of the work. It is important that this wisdom is spoken by an unfortunate cripple.

In this context, the aphorism becomes a paradox, and the main idea of the work is that every person strives for happiness, even deeply unhappy. The feeling of happiness is an individual concept, it does not depend on the luck and well-being of a person. Thus, the question of happiness remains open, and the story turns into a story about the first life contradiction that remains with the hero forever.

Initially, the story ended just with the reasoning that in any life circumstances the narrator remembered the aphorism all his life. This story in the life of the narrator became an initiation, after which he ceased to be satisfied with childhood fantasies.

For the writer Korolenko, the story has become a kind of way to overcome his own troubles, because the story describes a much more unfortunate person.

Plot and composition

The story consists of 4 parts. In the first part, the 10-year-old protagonist and his 8-year-old brother are playing in the backyard. They create their children's fantasy world from the surrounding garbage or things that are of no value to adults. In a bucket of rotten water, they hope to catch real fish with make-believe rods. A pile of rubbish seems mysterious to them. Every thing in the landfill is ready to tell its own story, like in Andersen's fairy tales. The main hobby of recent times is fishing over a tub of rotten water, which has overshadowed the game with the old crew.

The second part is the tie. Footman Pavel calls the boys at the request of the pan "to rest." This play on words (peace as calm and as the interior of a landowner's house) emphasizes the collision of two worlds - a fantastic child and a real adult. In such clashes, which happened repeatedly, the world of adults always won.

In the third chapter, the heroes encounter a phenomenon - an unfortunate handless cripple from birth. Residents of three houses overlooking the paved courtyard gathered to see such a spectacle. Among the respected people were the boys' father, an old bachelor Pan Ulyanitsky, military doctor Colonel Dudarev. There was also the mother of the boys and numerous servants.

The main skill of the phenomenon was the ability to write aphorisms, one of which he wrote for the brothers. It was the aphorism "man is born for happiness, like a bird for flight," which the boys' father called a paradox. The moment of writing the aphorism is the climax of the story.

In the fourth chapter, the children witness how a poor cripple, literally begging for money from the audience, gives the promised silver coin, given to him by the doctor, to the first beggar he meets.

At parting, the cripple tells the children that he has nephews, whom he feeds and whips with his feet. A cripple earns food not only for himself, but also for numerous parasite relatives. In his own way, he is happy, in any case, more successful than many of his relatives.

The first contradiction in life pierces into children's hearts and minds, preventing them from enjoying childish fantasies any longer.

Heroes of the story

The narrator reminisces about the events of his childhood. As often happened in the families of landowners, the hero plays with his younger brother (and there are 6 children in the family). The children were left to themselves, went into the world of their own fantasies, when they "got bored with the impressions of real life."

When the phenomenon summons the boys to write them an aphorism, they feel as if they are being punished and must enter a dark room. An encounter with an unfortunate cripple introduces the boys to life's wisdom and contradictions.

Footman Pavel is a realist and a pragmatist, he acts with the fantastic world of childhood the way most adults do - he shows its inconsistency, "toy", explaining how real fishing rods are made, swaying "in the very foundations" the magical world of the green tub and kicking the "golden carriage ". He is the only one laughing, looking at the disabled person. His pragmatism borders on cruelty.

A phenomenon, or a miracle of nature, as his relative Matvey calls him, is a gentry from the Zaslavsky district, Jan Krishtof Zalusky. The narrator compares the phenomenon with a spider: thin legs, a large head and a small body, like a child's. The black eyes of the phenomenon are attentive.

Jan Załuski refers to his ugliness only as a means of earning money. He too often makes his assistant collect the money and counts them cynically. According to Matvey, Yang knows the past, present and future, but sees a person through and through. With visible effort, he performs the usual actions for a healthy person: he gets up, combs his beard with his feet, eats food with his feet, threads a needle and counts money. He hardly crosses his foot.

This act does not delight others, but causes hysteria in women, is perceived as a desecration of God.

The eyes of the cripple are becoming more and more evil: all his tricks degrade human dignity. He justifies himself to the mother of the boys that everyone earns as best he can. This is one of the aphorisms uttered by a cripple. The look of a cripple softens only when communicating with children.

The poor cripple is much more humane than many healthy people. He promises to give the largest coin to the first beggar he meets and keeps his promise, which causes Matvey's indignation.

An encounter with a cripple changes everyone present. His appearance causes horror in the audience, they pray. During the first round, Matvey is served mainly by the gentlemen. But the escort of the cripple forces everyone to give. Ordinary people take the "performance" hard, as the narrator observes, "simple hearts are less sensitive to blasphemy."

By the way people serve a cripple, one can judge their moral state. Ulyanitsy hands over copper coins with visible displeasure and regret, and the doctor, among others, throws a silver coin.

The long-haired relative-guide of the phenomenon, Matvey, behaves as if he is annoyed or ashamed.

Artistic originality

The image of a tub of rotten water is a symbol of the world in which the brothers live. Small “strange creatures” vegetate in the tub, this is a “special world”, in which, however, there are no real fish.

Such a rotten world is easy to shake, stir up, as does the lackey Pavel.

Everything is contradictory in the image of the phenomenon. His ugly appearance contrasts with a pale face "with mobile, sharp features and large, shrewd, shifting eyes." The gloomy figure of the phenomenon is like an annoying spot under the bright sun (metaphor).

The image of the bird, which the cripple points out to the boys, is a symbol of what every person should strive for.

Megamind

"Paradox" is a narrative text, although at the same time it is a kind of artistic sketch of the writer's real life. In general, by the way, Korolenko wrote this entire work in one single day! Based on the biographical information of the writer, we can conclude that this day was not the best in the life of the writer, because his daughter had recently died. Koroleko was suppressed, the whole world around him was divided into two poles: good and evil, which are the main categories of the law, governs and makes up life itself. True happiness is given to a person extremely rarely; it (according to the writer) is very uneven, sometimes quite insignificant. Korolenko decided to devote his entire essay “Paradox” to the philosophical theme of happiness. The heroes of the essay are two little brothers. They often relax in the huge garden of their house (as the author himself emphasizes: this is due to the children of wealthy parents), enjoy life and are almost not concerned about anything. But then one day an incident happens that changes their whole life. One day, a strange couple crept up to their house: a man whose appearance the guys remembered for the rest of their lives, and a weak, but very smart cripple named Jan Krystof Załuski, who had no arms. The purpose of the arrival of strangers was obvious: begging ... but not simple, but very skillful! The cripple was very smart, saying that he could see the past and predict the future, he was also able to perform interesting tricks with just his legs. His assistant called him a "phenomenon". Yang told the children a very clever aphorism (the narrator, by the way, was afraid that he would write something terrible to the children): “Man is created for happiness, like a bird for flight.” It was strange to hear such a thing from a cripple, Yang himself understood this, therefore he called his afarism a “paradox”. The boys were convinced of the veracity of his words later when they saw Jan in ordinary life: although he was more talented and smarter than many other people, he suffered greatly from the fact that he was not like them. Everyone considered him a cripple, inferior, but Yang himself did not consider himself as such (the episode when he gives alms to another beggar). It was after meeting with the cripple that the boys realized that life is very often unfair to people, and happiness is a relative concept. Each of the living people deserves it, but at the same time, each person already has a certain share of this happiness. “But happiness, alas, is not given to everyone,” as Jan Załuski says, and without this addition, the plot of Korolenko’s essay could be perceived incorrectly ... The whole essence of the work lies in the fact that the soul is drawn to harmony and balance, but it will never achieve absolute happiness fail. This is the main “paradox” of life and the whole essay. “Man is created for happiness, only happiness is not always created for him” (c) V.G. Korolenko.

Not every person with physical health and material well-being feels happy. But how, then, to achieve peace of mind for someone who does not have it? - Vladimir Korolenko raised this philosophical question in his work. The “paradox”, the summary of which is just one aphorism expressed by the hero of this story, is a work that can make those who do not experience happiness in their lives think.

History of writing

V. Korolenko wrote this work in one day. And, based on biographical information, we can conclude that this day was not the best in the life of the writer. Shortly before that, his daughter died. Korolenko confessed to his sister in one of his letters that his condition was "broken and worthless."

Life, according to the writer, was a manifestation of the law, the main categories of which are good and evil. Happiness is given to mankind very unevenly. The philosophical topic, over which people have been puzzled for many centuries, was dedicated to Korolenko's "Paradox".

The protagonist of the story is a ten-year-old boy from a wealthy family. He, along with his brother, often rests in a huge beautiful garden, indulging in idle pastime, as it should be, according to the author, for the children of wealthy parents. But one day an incident occurs, after which their mental balance is disturbed. Korolenko gives an extremely simple answer to a complex question.

"Paradox", a summary of which can be formulated in just one phrase: "Man is created for happiness, like a bird for flight," is a deeply philosophical work.

Once, a rather strange couple drove up to the house where the boys lived. One was tall and lanky. The other had a look that each of the brothers remembered for a lifetime. He had a huge head, a weak body and ... no arms. The purpose of these gentlemen's arrival was simple - begging. This is how they earned their living. But they did it, it must be said, very skillfully.

The story created by Korolenko is dedicated to the contradictory nature of happiness. The "paradox", a summary of which is given in the article, tells of a meeting with a person for whom happiness, it would seem, is an unattainable state. But it was he, and his name was Jan Krishtof Załuski, who told a wise aphorism, the meaning of which was that the main purpose of a person is to be happy.

Phenomenon

Załuski and his escort made money with rather artistic performances. First, the strange man was introduced to the public. The assistant called him a "phenomenon." What follows is a brief history of his life. And finally, Załuski himself entered the stage.

A man without hands did all sorts of tricks: threaded a needle with his feet, ate food and took off his jacket in the same way. But the most amazing thing was his ability to write. Moreover, his handwriting was perfect, calligraphic. And it was in this part of the story that Korolenko introduced the philosophical idea. Załuski's paradox was that he, using his specific method, wrote a wise aphorism about human happiness.

strange performance

The armless little man had a sharp tongue and a sense of humor. In addition, he was not without a certain cynicism. He made fun of his physical inferiority in every possible way, but at the same time he did not forget to remind him that he was smart enough, and therefore required a monetary reward. The highlight of his program was a philosophical aphorism, which he asked the embarrassed boy to read.

The image of an unusual "lucky man" was created in this work by Korolenko. The paradox of this character was that, not possessing what is necessary for a normal existence, he preached the philosophy of happiness. And he did it quite truthfully and convincingly.

Paradoxical lucky man

When the wise phrase was read out by the boy, one of the spectators of this unusual performance expressed doubt that it was an aphorism. Załuski did not argue. With his usual malicious irony, he said that this aphorism from the lips of the phenomenon is nothing but a paradox. This word became the key word in Korolenko's work.

The paradox is when a rich and healthy person considers himself unhappy. Paradox is also a cripple talking about happiness.

But Załuski's aphorism has a continuation. V. G. Korolenko endowed his story with a contradictory philosophical idea. The paradox also lies in the fact that Załuski himself denied the veracity of his slogan about happiness.

But happiness is not given to man ...

The only adult who felt compassion for the cripple was the boys' mother. After the performance, she invited Załuski and his friend to the house for dinner. And then the brothers saw how they were moving away, talking to each other. And their conversation interested the children so much that they decided to follow the unusual artists.

Reminiscent of a philosophical parable is a story written by Vladimir Korolenko. "Paradox", the main characters of which met for the first and last time, is a story about a wise wanderer. With his sudden visit, he taught the children an important lesson in life.

Happiness is a relative concept. Man is born to him, like a bird to flight. But later, in a conversation between Załuski and his companion, the boys heard the continuation of the phrase he had uttered: “But happiness, alas, is not given to everyone.” And without this addition to Załuski's aphorism, Korolenko's plot would not have been completed. The paradox of the human soul lies in the fact that it strives for harmony and balance, but it does not know absolute happiness.

The writing

The heroes of V. Korolenko's story "Paradox" are two brothers, little boys. Once in their life there was an incident that they remembered for a long time. Once, a cripple was brought to their yard, to their parents. This man had no arms, he had a small feeble body. But the mind of this cripple was superior to his relative, who took him to rich houses to earn a living.

The disabled person had his own "concert" program. He showed all sorts of "tricks" - what he can do with his legs. Also Pan Jan Krishtof Załuski claimed that he predicts the future, sees the past and the present. He wrote aphorisms that were supposed to somehow reveal the fate of a person, his life.

And so the cripple wanted to write such an aphorism to the boys. The narrator was very afraid of what this "terrible" person might write. But, having unfolded the leaflet, the children saw only: "Man is created for happiness, like a bird for flight." It was strange to receive such a message from a cripple who didn’t even have hands “for flying”. Pan Załuski himself understood this. He called his aphorism a paradox. But these were very bitter words.

The boys were convinced of this later, when they saw the cripple not at his "performance", but in ordinary life. He was very worried because he was not like everyone else. The cripple said that a person is created for happiness, but happiness is not always created for him. And from these words emanated such anguish and pain! It seems to me that the hero realized that he was worthier and more capable than many "ordinary" people. But the cripple could not prove himself, because society put a "stigma" on him, people treated him as a sick, disabled person, inferior. And Pan Załuski himself did not feel like this - this is evidenced by the fact that he gave alms to a beggar, although he himself was doing something similar.

Having met this strange man, the boys realized that life is often unfair: "Mother ... baptized us, trying to protect us from the first contradiction of life, which was a sharp thorn in children's hearts and minds." In addition, the brothers realized that every person wants happiness and every person deserves it. The main thing is the internal content, not external qualities and features.

Jan Krysztof Załuski is the main character. A cripple who has no arms from birth; he has a large head, a pale face "with mobile, sharp features and large, penetrating, shifting eyes." “The torso was very small, the shoulders were narrow, the chest and abdomen were not visible from under the wide, with a strong gray beard.” The legs are “long and thin”, with their help the “phenomenon”, as the accompanying, “long-moustached” subject calls it, removes the cap from his head, combs his beard with a comb, crosses himself and, finally, writes on a white sheet “an even beautiful line”: “Man created for happiness, like a bird for flight. This phrase has really become, as Załuski calls it, an aphorism, and it was especially popular in Soviet times. But this, Załuski emphasized, is not only an aphorism, but also a "paradox". “Man is created for happiness, only happiness is not always created for him,” he says later. Korolenko, who repeatedly showed diseases and human injuries (up to the story “Without a Language”, where the position of a person in a foreign country gives the concept of dumbness a philosophical sound), emphasizes Załuski’s paradox not only for a sharper depiction of relationships between people (Dr. Dudarov’s bewildered arrogance and dignity Załuski) and not for pedagogical purposes, but for the sake of affirming the central idea of all his work: “Life ... seems to me a manifestation of a common great law, the main main features of which are goodness and happiness. The general law of life is the pursuit of happiness and its ever wider realization. It was Załuski's innate misfortune that helped him express this cherished thought of his with particular persuasiveness.

Summary of the “Paradox” by V. G. Korolenko