"Basket with fir cones", Paustovsky: a short summary and analysis of the story

One of the most famous Russian authors is Konstantin Paustovsky. Many people remember his stories from childhood. They are always associated with the crunch of the first snow, colorful autumn foliage on the trees or under your feet, ringing frosty air and enticing depth of forest lakes. Light light sadness is observed in all his works, without her happiness is impossible, as Paustovsky considered. "Basket with fir cones" completely corresponds to this plot.

Creative way of the writer

His first works Paustovsky Konstantin Georgievich wrote in school days in the gymnasium, and they were published in 1912. Four years later, working in the boiler room, he takes up his first novel, which he will write for seven years, Konstantin Paustovsky. His stories in the form of a collection will come out much earlier - in 1928, under the name "Counter-ships."

The story "Kara-Bugaz" (1932) brought fame to the writer. According to critics of the time, this work immediately put him in the forefront of Soviet writers. Paustovsky is one of those Russian writers who are known not only in Russia, but throughout the world. So, when his first book, published in English ("The Story of Life"), appeared 40 years ago in the US, the then famous critic O. Prescott wrote that this is the best book he read this year.

Paustovsky's literary maturity fell on the era of rigid Stalinist totalitarianism (1930-1950s) - not the best time for a writer's career. Nevertheless, in none of his works did the author write a single laudatory word dedicated to Stalin, nor did he receive any scandalous letters from him. The writer was able to find his place: he looks at the native language and the nature of the country. Gradually, nature becomes a constant source for Paustovsky's creativity. He describes a lot of beautiful places from different parts of Russia: the South and the Black Sea, the middle strip of the Oka edge, Meshchera ... But the vision of nature in Paustovsky is very special. It is through the beauty of nature that he tries to show the beauty of the human soul, language and national culture.

The main purpose of Paustovsky's life was to write two great books. One of them was to be dedicated to various extraordinary people, both famous and little-known, as well as undeservedly forgotten - those whom K. G. Paustovsky admired. Stories dedicated to some of them will be published. These, for example, are the picturesque biographies of M. Gorky, A. Greene, A. Chekhov, I. Bunin , etc. All of them were distinguished by a special vision of the world, especially appreciated by Paustovsky. But, unfortunately, he did not have time to finish this work.

Another main idea, which Paustovsky spent about twenty years - writing an autobiographical novel consisting of six books: "Far Years" (1945), "Restless Youth" (1955), "The Beginning of an Unknown Age" (1957), "The Time of Great Expectations "(1959)," Throw to the South "(1960)," The Book of Wanderings "(1963). Paustovsky died in Moscow in 1968 and is buried in the Tarusa cemetery, on a high hill surrounded by trees, on the shore of a small river. This place was chosen by the writer himself.

Why Norway?

As mentioned earlier, in the 30 years of the twentieth century Paustovsky Konstantin Georgievich turned to the theme of nature. The appearance of the famous miniature about the maple leaf becomes a kind of prologue to the beginning of this new creative stage. The central idea of the writer's works is the thought of the beauty and poetry of the human soul. Paustovsky tries to awaken in his readers the most beautiful and tender feelings.

The story "A basket with fir cones" is a fiction. However, at the same time, this is a true story about a man who is sensitive to nature. A fairy tale "A Basket with Fir Cones" - about the famous Norwegian composer Edward Grieg.

Norway - a country of amazing nature: inaccessible rocks, dense forests, winding sea bays, washed by the cold Arctic Ocean. The inhabitants of this country are proud and courageous: they are used to subduing the elements and controlling it. The folk art of these people is as original and beautiful as the life and nature surrounding them. Norway is rich in songs, legends, legends and tales of Vikings and the mysterious evil spirits with which a man has to engage in opposition and which he must win. Norway is also rich with music. Local residents believe that the most beautiful tunes were stolen by daredevils from evil spirits. Such tunes are able to make not only a person dance, but even a forest and mountains. The original art of this country became known to the world thanks to the creativity of its most talented inhabitants, for example, Henry Juhan Ibsen (a famous Norwegian playwright) or composer Edward Grieg. This composer reflected in his work life, customs, customs, traditions of his native country and told them about the whole world.

Perhaps Grieg was actually Paustovsky's favorite composer, and maybe he was just close to the motives of his work, or he admired him as a person ... Anyway, but this is about him "A Basket with Fir Cones." The author, having made the Norwegian composer the main hero of his work, could not ignore the unusual nature of Norway. This is understandable.

Plot

So, the story "Basket with fir cones" is a work about the famous composer Edward Grieg. During a walk in the autumn forest he meets a little girl Dagny with beautiful green eyes - the daughter of a forester. This little girl, wonderful nature and clear weather act on him in a magical way, and he promises to present her with a gift when she grows up. Grieg fulfilled his promise. When the girl reached eighteen, she first attended a symphony concert. At some point, Dagny suddenly heard her name from the stage. This was the gift of the composer - a work written for her eighteenth birthday. By that time the composer himself was no longer alive. Joy, slightly overshadowed by light sadness, is the "Basket with fir cones".

Analysis of the work (briefly)

As already mentioned, there is a whole cycle of works dedicated to famous people, which Paustovsky wrote. "Basket with spruce cones", obviously, from the same cycle. This is a small touching essay written for children. Teach your little readers to see the beauty of their surrounding nature and to love it - that's what KG Paustovsky wanted. The writer shows people beauty, which can not be overlooked and which should be particularly appreciated.

The unique charm of forests, rivers, lakes, fields, seas and oceans, naturalness, youth is the main motive of the work. And to see, feel this beauty, the author shows two ways at once: using words and music. Music in this story generally has a central role. Despite the fact that the author describes the Norwegian forest, it can be assumed that this could be any other forest anywhere in the world. And even the composer could not be Grieg. These images are very important, but more important than the feelings and emotions of the characters that they are called by nature. The leitmotiv of this story, perhaps, can be called a love of life, which invariably awakens the main characters. The author tries to show how beautiful life is. And you can understand this by observing the nature, communicating with her. And as a symbol of the interaction of nature and man stands a basket with fir cones.

The story plan

To understand all the intricacies of a wonderful story, let's try to distinguish separate parts in it. The product "Basket with fir cones" can be divided as follows:

1. Forests near Bergen.
2. Meeting the composer and the girl.
3. The promise of Grieg.
4. Creation of a work.
5. The first listeners.
6. The first trip of a young girl to a concert.
7. Unexpected announcement.
8. Delight and gratitude.

Music in the story

According to the author, music is a mirror of genius. Music in the story invades the life of heroes and becomes a participant of events. The reader can hear it from the first sentence of the work - it sounds the autumn forest. The composer's meeting with the girl is also filled with her music, she seems to be shed from a basket with fir cones. Perhaps the composer at this moment wanted to hear it not only him, but the whole world, and especially the little girl, who herself is a part of the melody. Maybe this desire and pushed him to give a girl with sparkling green eyes such a gift. Grieg wrote a song for more than a month, which he was going to devote to Dagny. The composer believed that ten years later, hearing the sounds of the melody, the girl would recognize in them her own forest and native nature, familiar from her childhood. He wanted to illuminate with his music all the charm and joy of the girlhood. Grieg tried to convey through the pouring sounds of the beauty of the young girl, which may be similar both to the white night with a mysterious light, and to the shine of the dawn. The one that will become someone's happiness and the sound of whose voice will shake someone's heart. In the end, he wanted to show his music the beauty of life. And he did it.

It was a really valuable gift. The wind in the autumn crowns, rustling golden foliage underfoot and a large basket with spruce cones laid the beginning for him. The great composer, who at the time of the meeting did not have any dolls in his pocket, with moving eyes, or satin ribbons, or velvet hares - nothing that could be given to a little girl, presented her with something more. When Dagny heard his music, she discovered a new, stunningly bright, colorful, inspiring world. Feelings and emotions that were unfamiliar to her earlier, shook the whole soul and opened her eyes to the unknown beauty. This music showed Dagni not only the greatness of the surrounding world, but also the value of human life. Special significance for these moments is attached to the fact that the author of the gift was not alive by that time.

Another important symbol in this story is the old piano - the only decoration of the composer's apartment. He and the white walls of the apartment allowed to see a person with imagination much more than an exquisite interior could show: huge waves of the North Ocean rolling towards the shores and beating against the inaccessible rocks, or, conversely, a little girl singing her lullaby with a rag doll , which she heard From the mother. The old piano admires the lofty human aspirations, grieves over its losses, rejoices at its victories, laughs and cries with it. He can be loud, warlike, accusing and indignant or, on the contrary, suddenly silent. This piano is a living embodiment of music in the story.

The image of Edward Grieg

Bergen ... One of the most beautiful and oldest cities in Western Norway, washed by the waves of the Norwegian Sea. The severe grandeur of the mountain nature is combined with a quiet dormancy of the valleys. Rocky mountain tops, complemented by deep lakes and clean fjords ... It was here, among the fabulous beauty, on June 15, 1843, Edward Grieg was born. Like any other person, he could not remain indifferent to these amazing landscapes. If he were born as an artist, he would paint beautiful pictures that reflected the extraordinary nature of this land, if he became a poet, he would compose poems dedicated to his country. Grieg showed the nature of his beloved country with the help of music.

The author depicts Grieg as a man with a deep spiritual organization, subtly feeling the surrounding nature and people. So, perhaps, there should be a composer. Grieg takes every moment of his life with admiration, he always finds beauty and rejoices in it. The composer opens the sources for his inspiration in the sounds of nature. He writes about simple human feelings: beauty, love and kindness, so it is understandable to everyone, even the simplest person.

The author's introduction of the theater

In this story, the author expresses his opinion about the theater with the voice of Nils, Uncle Dagni, with the help of a single phrase: "In the theater you have to believe everything, otherwise people will not need any theaters." This single capacious phrase speaks volumes. The theater is able to teach a lot a person and show him a lot, but without the viewer's faith it will be just a waste of time.

The image of Niels in the story

Nils is the girl's uncle, a little dreamy and eccentric man, working at the theater as a hairdresser. He sees life in an unusual light and teaches Dagny to look at the world in the same way. His vision of the world is really quite unusual. This man likes to speak sublime and with slight understatement. He compares his niece to the first chord of the overture, and Aunt Magda endows witchcraft over people, because it is she who sews new costumes for people, and with the change of costume, he believes, the person himself changes. He also advises the girl to dress so as to stand out from the environment: into black, when everything is white, and vice versa. And my uncle is right, in the long run. Perhaps he to some extent shows the author's opinion about the theater, music and beauty. And the inner world of Nils and there is a complete basket of surprises with fir cones.

A short narration of the work

Edward Grieg spent the autumn in Bergen. He especially loved the seaside forests for their nebula brought from the sea and the abundance of moss hanging long strands from the trees. During one of the walks in such a forest, he met there Dagny Pedersen, the daughter of a forester. She collected fir cones in the basket. A little girl with two pigtails charmed him, and he decided to give her something. But he did not have anything with him that could charm a green-eyed child. Then he promised to give her something special, but not now, but in ten years. And in response to the pleas of the girl to give her now this thing, he advised her to have patience. Then the composer helped her to carry the basket, learned the name of her father and they said goodbye. To the chagrin of the girl, he did not go to their house for tea.

Grieg decided to write music for her, and printed on the title page: "Dagny Pedersen is the daughter of the forester Hagerup Pedersen when she turns eighteen."

Then the author takes the readers to the composer's house. There is nothing of furniture in it except the old sofa, and, according to Grieg's friends, his home was like a lumberjack hut. The only decoration of this apartment, but perhaps the best of all possible, is an old black grand piano. From under his keys fly a variety of sounds: from very joyful to very sad. And when he suddenly stops talking, in silence for a long time, one string is ringing, like a crying Cinderella, offended by his sisters.

The composer created his own work for more than a month. He wrote it, imagining how this girl runs towards him, panting with happiness. As he says Dagny, that she looks like the sun, and thanks to her in her heart blossomed a delicate white flower. The composer calls her happiness and the glow of the dawn. The first time his work was listened to by the best spectators: the tits on the trees, the cricket, the snow falling from the branches, the washerwoman from the next house, the invisible Cinderella and the sailors who had gone on a spree.

Dagni graduated from school at 18, she turned into a slender girl with thick blond braids. Right after that she went to visit her relatives. Uncle Nils worked as a hairdresser in the theater, and Aunt Magda - a theatrical dressmaker. Their house was filled with various objects of professional attributes: wigs, gypsy shawls, hats, swords, fans, boots, silver shoes, etc. Thanks to their work, Dagni could often visit the theater: the performances deeply excited and touched her.

One day, my aunt insisted that for the sake of diversity, it is necessary to go to a concert in the city park, taking place in the open air. Dagny wore a black dress at the insistence of her uncle and was as good as if she were on her first date.

Symphonic music, heard by her for the first time, made a strange impression. Before her eyes flashed strange pictures, like a dream. Then she suddenly felt that her name had been pronounced on the stage. Then the announcement was repeated, and it turned out that a work devoted to it would now be played.

Music took Dagny to a familiar forest, to her homeland, where shepherd's horns played and the sea rustled. The girl heard the glass ships sailing, the whistling of birds flying over them, children hiding in the forest, the girl's song dedicated to the beloved. She listened to the call of music, and tears of gratitude rolled from her eyes. And in the air it thundered: "You are my happiness, you are my joy, you are the brilliance of the dawn".

When the last sounds of the song died down, Dagni did not look back from the park. She regretted that the author of the music had died, and imagined how she would run to meet him, to thank.

The girl walked for a long time along the empty streets of the city, not noticing anyone, not even Nils, who followed her. Over time, she came to the sea, and she was seized with a new, previously unknown feeling. Here Dagny realized how much she loved life. And her uncle was filled with the confidence that the girl will live her life for good reason.