7 classics that you now look at differently than at school: book blogger Polina Pars says

1. "Poor Lisa" - an anti-example for the rejected

Young Lisa sells lilies of the valley in the capital's market, where she meets Erast, a young nobleman. They fall in love with each other, and Erast "helps" Lisa lose her virginity. Then he loses interest in her and says that he must leave for military service.

However, a few months later, Lisa accidentally learns that the former lover is engaged to a wealthy widow. She understands: all the love for which he was ready to die is worth nothing. From this heavy realization, Lisa throws herself into the pond.

How "Poor Lisa" can be understood today

At school, everyone unequivocally believed: Erast is an asshole, Lisa is a beautiful girl who takes responsibility and goes to earn a living by honest work. She wants to live, love and work. But meeting with asshole breaks it.

In the 19th century, after the publication of Poor Lisa, many young men and women did commit suicide. But I do not know of cases where people, having read this text today, are so imbued with it that they would go to drown themselves. I guess they don't look at this story imitatively now.

This is the merit of the philosophy of the modern world. An adult understands: even if such shit happened, your life does not end there, from everything you can climb out. For example, see a psychotherapist. Therefore, I hope that today people will read an anti-example in this story: you don’t have to be either like Erast or like Lisa.

2. "Eugene Onegin" - self-help for "rescuers"

A bored young nobleman, Eugene Onegin, arrives at a God-forgotten estate and meets high society there. Tatyana Larina, the daughter of a local landowner, falls in love with him. Next, the classic scheme for today is developed for young adults: Tatyana writes a letter to Onegin, he first rejects her, and then realizes that she is “the one”. But nothing can be returned: “I am given to another; I will be faithful to him for a century, ”says Tatiana.

How "Eugene Onegin" can be understood today

"Eugene Onegin" was sold in textbooks as a story about a bored aristocracy: the main character is an educated person, accustomed to the vibrant life of the capital, who plays with human feelings from idleness.

Today Eugene Onegin is a glamorous bastard. No matter how hard they try to show us that by the end of the novel it changes, in fact it remains the same.

But Tatyana is just the heroine who is undergoing an internal transformation. She is much deeper than just a girl who is ready to creep in front of the capital's handsome man. Being a well-read and dreamy nature, she, due to dissatisfaction with her own life, most likely dreams of becoming the heroine of one of the romance novels. Because of this, he idealizes Onegin and his future with him. Perhaps he thinks: "I can fix it."

But now Zemfira's line is getting viral: "I won't save you." And Tatyana had to come to this thought in the final.

In adulthood, this idea becomes more obvious, especially to women. Because many managed to be in a situation where the boy-guy-man they liked did not reciprocate.

3. "Hero of Our Time" - Asshole Manifesto

"A Hero of Our Time" tells about several events in the life of Ensign Pechorin. First, he “exchanges” the young Circassian Bela for a horse, whom he liked, and locks her in a tower. Then he meets his former love Vera and destroys her happy family life. In parallel with this, he manages to fall in love with Princess Mary, whom he compares with an English horse, and shoot his buddy Grushnitsky in a duel.

In reflections between these events, Pechorin realizes that everyone around him is unhappy, and he is a demon who brings death to others.

How "Hero of Our Time" can be understood today

At school, Pechorin is often very nice to everyone. I think the point is that the "Hero of Our Time" takes place at a time when schoolchildren are in the cocoon of their growing maximalism. They choose some guidelines for themselves, and in this sense, Pechorin - cynical, cold, but so beautiful - can serve them. Boys, of course, are impressed by how easily he falls in love with Princess Mary, and Vera, and Bela.

With girls, too, everything is clear: Pechorin is something like the first literary crash.

But what older and more knowledgeable readers become, the more they understand that being Pechorin and being with Pechorin is not cool. This is a real abuser who breaks women's hearts, compares girls with horses and keeps them locked up. If this is not domestic, then definitely serf violence.

4. "Overcoat" - a story about an iPhone on credit

The old overcoat of the petty official Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin is falling into disrepair. He saves for a long time for a new one, denying himself pleasures - even tea.

When he finally manages to buy an overcoat to the envy of his colleagues, Bashmachkin's authority rises. It would have been so if the criminals had not stolen this overcoat from him. From longing for her Akaki Akakievich dies, turns into ghost and begins to rob passers-by.

How "Overcoat" can be understood today

My classmates slightly mocked Akaky Akakievich. First, of course, because of the name. Secondly, because of the constant mention of him as a small person.

Akaky Akakievich can really be perceived as an envious and insecure person. After all, on the one hand, with the help of a new overcoat, he wanted to get into high society, to become his own in it. On the other hand, to improve the quality of life. But, if you think about it, don't we know these feelings?

Every adult, I think, can find himself in Akaky Akakievich. After all, many had such that they looked at popular bloggers with expensive cars, beautiful apartments and thought: “I want the same». And not necessarily because of the status of these things, but simply because it makes life better and easier.

Therefore, a huge number of people in Russia take iPhones on credit (I was also among them) and find themselves in memes about “Doshirak”. The modern Akaki Akakievich would probably be the same. That's why we understand him so well.

5. "Anna Karenina" - an apology for feminism

Anna Karenina, it would seem, has a wonderful life: a husband, a child. But as soon as she met Vronsky, she fell in love with him to the point of unconsciousness and committed adultery.

When she confessed to her husband of infidelity, although he treated this with understanding, he refused to give her a divorce and forbade her to take her son. Everything else: society began to blame Anna, and relations with Vronsky deteriorated. She could not resist the blows of fate and jumped under the train.

How "Anna Karenina" can be understood today

My teacher presented the story of Anna Karenina as a lesson: “Fu! You can't do that. Karenina is a scoundrel, a traitor and a bad mother who took opium after a difficult birth.

But, even judging by the early reviews of this novel, Leo Tolstoy was called almost the first apologist for feminism. He loved Karenina very much, so he wrote her out as a victim of circumstances, and not as an object for censure for treason.

The fact is that at that time it was very difficult for a woman to start a divorce procedure, and even to ensure that the children stayed with her. Dislike for husband was not a significant reason for breaking up the marriage. Women were closed in the space of invented morality.

After this book came out, it made a splash. We can say that Lev Nikolayevich planted in women the idea that it would be great to simplify the divorce process.

Today "Anna Karenina” can be read from this point of view: she is a victim of circumstances, around which there are a huge number of people who have taken away her right to her own life.

6. "Garnet Bracelet" - a story about the persecution of an anonymous person in a social network

On her birthday, Vera Sheina receives an expensive garnet bracelet from a longtime anonymous admirer. Having connected his connections, Vera's husband finds the sender. It turns out to be Georgy Zheltkov. Once he saw Vera in the box of the theater and fell in love with her unconscious.

Giving such gifts to a married woman in the 19th century is a crime against morality. Therefore, Vera's husband hints to Zheltkov that he will involve the authorities if persecution his wives will not cease. In response to this, Zheltkov asks her to write her last farewell letter, in which he admits that his whole life consisted only in love for Vera. After that, he shoots himself.

After reading the letter, Vera realizes that the love that every woman dreams of has passed her by.

How "Garnet Bracelet" can be understood today

At school we were presented with this story as a story of pure love: “We must not choose money. With a sweet paradise and in a hut. After all, there is an idea that Vera never experienced true love, her marriage was a marriage of convenience.

However, the fact that Zheltkov saw Vera only once, and then began to write mountains of letters to her, which remained unanswered, looks like an unhealthy attraction and persecution.

Today, Vera's reaction may raise questions: “Don't you think this is suspicious? Why do you start crying over unrequited love for someone you don't even know?" Perhaps Zheltkov would have been abuser, who would control Vera's every step if she agreed with him. But we will never know this.

7. "Old Woman Izergil" - philosophy at the minimum wage

Larra, Izergil and Danko are the main characters of the story. Larra is a soulless person who is ready to do anything to achieve his goals and satisfy his desires. For this he is punished and rejected by society.

Danko is a member of a tribe that was banished to the forest. To get people out of there, Danko rips out his heart and thus illuminates the path for everyone.

Izergil is an ordinary woman who tells the narrator about her falling in love, life vicissitudes and other people who met her on the way.

How "Old Woman Izergil" can be understood today

At school, the discussion of this work was reduced to morality: “Danko is correct and selfless, he is ready to die for the good of others. You have to look up to him."

I think that this idea is a consequence of how literature was taught in the Soviet Union: “everything is for the front, everything is for victory”, “I will put my heart on the chopping block”.

Larra, in the understanding of the compilers of textbooks, is apparently a symbol of the "Western world" - he wants to live on his own and for himself.

But, oddly enough, they both look alike. Gorky was interested in philosophy even before the revolution Nietzschewho had the idea of ​​the Superman. This text expresses admiration for this idea, because Danko, like Larra, are Superhumans. They are both brave, young, beautiful and at the same time very proud. They just show it differently. If Larra uses his pride for his own good, then Danko decides out of pride that he is the leader. Indeed, in fact, everyone could pinch off a small piece from their hearts and light the way in the forest with them.

It seems to me that the old woman Izergil is the most adequate in this story. She is not a Superman, but an ordinary person, like all of us. Her life concept is the golden mean between two extremes.

Larra lives without others for himself, Danko lives with others for others, Izergil lives for himself with others. This is probably the most appropriate.

This text by Gorky is very deep. In my opinion, it may be a transitional point from the classical literature of the Golden Age to the classical literature of the 20th century. Therefore, "Old Woman Izergil" should have more readers, especially adults: due to their age and experience, they will be able to look at old characters differently.