I walk through the underground passage near the hotel. The Problem of Mercy - Arguments and Essay

What is true mercy? What role does it play in a person’s life? It is precisely the problem of the role of true mercy that the Author poses in his text.

To attract readers' attention to this problem, F. Iskander narrates on behalf of the lyrical hero about the situation that happened in the underground passage. Passing a blind musician in an empty underground passage, the main character scoops out what he thinks is all the small change and gives it to someone in need. Moving away from the musician, he finds more change and again gives it to the blind man, but this time he still has a few more coins and again he gives them. Wondering why he didn’t clear everything out the first time, he answers himself, “Because, alas, he was indifferent to the musician.” After some consideration, the author gives advice, “Give indifferently what you can give to the needy, and move on without thinking about it.”

I completely agree with F.

Iskander. Mercy must be sincere and there is no need to wait for gratitude, because if you expect gratitude, this is no longer mercy, but an exchange of goods.

There are many examples of the manifestation of mercy in Russian literature, but one of the most indicative, I believe, is the story of V. G. Rasputin “French Lessons”. The story describes the life of a boy from a poor family who tries to study at school, but he does not even have enough money for food. And so his teacher, Lidia Mikhailovna, invites him to her home under the pretext of additional classes, but the boy did not accept money from the teacher, then she decided to play the game “measures” with him for money. The director, who found out about this, fired Lydia Mikhailovna, and she, in turn, took all the blame on herself, allowing the boy to continue studying at school.

I believe that Lydia Mikhailovna is the personification of mercy and kindness, and it is precisely this kind of selfless mercy that every person should strive for.

Recently, I read V. Krapivin’s story “Geese geese ha-ha-ha,” in which an example of mercy is clearly expressed. It takes place in the distant future, each person has his own index, according to which he performs almost all operations, they do not have a prison, only lethal injection, and for each violation you are added to the list of violators, from which the machine then selects a victim. And so an ordinary lawfully obedient citizen, Carnelius Glas, comes home and finds a notice in his mailbox indicating that he has been chosen by the machine for punishment. It is difficult for any person to imagine that here you live, you have a family, children, a house, and at one moment for some insignificant violation, in this case, crossing the road in the wrong place, takes your life, and Cornelius cannot understand for a long time, what happened, having come to the place indicated in the address, and having stayed there for a couple of days, due to some reasons, Glas extends his life span for a few more weeks, he learns about children who do not have an index, he sees how they are cruelly treated, but tries to be indifferent. One day a boy named Prince is brought to them, who also has no index; the lyrical hero becomes so attached to him that he decides that it is his duty to save these children. He takes them away, risking being caught and losing his remaining days of life. In fact, Cornelius was under no obligation to save the boys, but he, showing mercy, risking his most valuable time and life, helps strangers to escape. I gave this example not by chance; it shows how risky mercy can be and in what forms it can manifest itself.

I would like to believe that readers will think about the problem raised in the text..., learn not to shift responsibility to others, pay attention not only to themselves and not expect gratitude in return.

Updated: 2017-10-24

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Often people do good deeds: they give up their place to elders, help carry a heavy bag, or give alms. But few people think about the importance of these matters for each of us.

So what is the role of mercy in human life? The answer to the question posed is given by the author of the text, reflecting on this problem.

Mercy is a true universal value. These are actions done without thinking, from the heart, actions that do not require anything in return. It is mercy that makes a person human, because helping the weak is the highest manifestation of humanity. Such actions are very important in people's lives; they allow them to develop spiritually. The author of this text writes about this: “Kindness and gratitude are necessary for man and serve the development of man in the field of spirit...” A person with highly developed morality will not allow injustice, the horrors of war or other disasters. That is why F. Iskander says that spiritual values are much more important than material ones: “The exchange of spiritual values... may be even more necessary for a person than trade.”

By showing mercy, a person can find true friends. Thus, Jack London’s work “The Call of the Wild” tells the story of the life of the dog Beck. One day, after a long journey in a sled, the dog was exhausted. Beck could not go further, and the owner was about to beat him, but John Thornton stood up for the dog. He began to look after the dog. This act of kindness amazed the dog, and Beck was loyal to John until his death. This example proves that mercy plays a very important role in human life.

Sometimes mercy allows a person to forgive someone. Thus, the film “The Revenant” tells about the plight of the tracker Hugh. His son is killed and he wants to take revenge on the killer. But, having gone through the most difficult path and caught the culprit of death, the main character lets him go. Hugh understands that revenge is not the way out of the situation. Mercy gives him peace of mind. This example once again proves the importance of this quality for a person.

To summarize, we can say with confidence: mercy plays a huge role in everyone’s life. After all, this is exactly what makes a person human.

Vladislav Sobolev

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In the rhythm of modern life, people increasingly forget to show mercy to those in need of support and compassion. Fazil Iskander's text is precisely a reminder to us of the importance of this problem in society.

The author tells about an ordinary, at first glance, case when the hero gives alms to a blind musician. At the same time, Iskander places special emphasis on the internal monologue of the narrator, who asks the question: why didn’t he give away all the change in his pocket? And he finds the answer almost immediately - the point here is indifference.

The hero does not find any lofty purpose in the “small act of mercy”; pompous words are rejected by him. For the narrator, this is not grace, but an ordinary and natural act - payment for the opportunity to listen to music, because the blind man seemed to be playing only for him, therefore, “giving good.”

The author draws a parallel between the exchange of values in the spiritual sphere and ordinary trade. This is a kind of “barter” when “gratitude in response to kindness” becomes the most important link in the development of a person’s spirit and morality. The writer this way

leads us to the idea that the manifestation of kindness is a natural process, and we should not expect reciprocal gratitude in advance for the mercy shown, or later complain about its absence.

It is impossible to disagree with the position of Fazil Iskander. Mercy should not stem from vain motives, because it is an impulse of the soul, it cannot be rationally measured by benefit or due gratitude. Russian classics also believed this, in whose works one can find many examples of mercy. In the novel “The Master and Margarita,” M. A. Bulgakov describes such an impulse of the soul when the heroine at Satan’s ball asks for mercy on the unfortunate Frida. With her selfless and selfless act, she deprives herself of the chance to save the Master. However, Margarita takes this step without hesitation, knowing in advance that she will not receive any personal benefit.

In conclusion, I would like to say that with his work Iskander teaches us to show mercy without thinking about gratitude. The exchange of goodness should be a natural process of relationships between people. Without a sense of compassion, which forms the moral basis of society, a kind and harmonious world is impossible.

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Text. F. Iskander
(1) I walk through the underground passage near the Sovetskaya Hotel. Ahead, a poor musician in black glasses sits on a bench and sings, playing along with himself on the guitar. (2) For some reason the passage was empty at that time.
(3) I caught up with the musician, took some change out of my coat and poured it into his iron box. I'm moving on.
(4) I accidentally put my hand in my pocket and feel that there are still a lot of coins there. (5) What the hell! I was sure that when I gave money to the musician, I emptied everything that was in my pocket.
(b) He returned to the musician and, already glad that he was wearing black glasses and he, most likely, did not notice the stupid complexity of the entire procedure, he again took a lot of small change from his coat and poured it into his iron box.
(7) I went further. He walked away about ten steps and, putting his hand into his pocket again, suddenly discovered that there were still a lot of coins there. (8) At the first moment I was so amazed that it was time to shout: “Miracle! Miracle! The Lord fills my pocket, which is emptied for the beggar!”
(9) But after a moment it cooled down. I realized that the coins were simply getting stuck in the deep folds of my coat. (10) There are a lot of them accumulated there. Change is often given in small change, but there seems to be nothing to buy with it. (11)11Why did I not rake in enough coins the first and second time? (12) Because he did it carelessly and automatically. (13) Why carelessly and automatically? Because, alas, he was indifferent to the musician. (14) Then why did he take the change out of his pocket?
(15) Most likely because he crossed underground passages many times, where beggars sat with outstretched hands, and quite often, out of haste, out of laziness, passed by. (16) I passed, but there was a scratch on my conscience: I had to stop and give them something. (17) Perhaps unconsciously this small act of mercy was transferred to others. (18) Usually a lot of people scurry along these passages. (19) And now there was no one, and it was as if he was playing for me alone.
(20) However, there is something in all this. (21) Perhaps, in a greater sense, good should be done indifferently, so that vanity does not arise, so as not to expect any gratitude, so as not to become angry because no one thanks you. (22) And what kind of good is it if in response to it a person gives you something good? (23) So, you are in the calculation and there was no disinterested good. (24) By the way, as soon as we realized the selflessness of our act, we received a secret reward for our selflessness. (25) Give indifferently what you can give to someone in need, and move on without thinking about it.
(26) But you can pose the question this way. (27) Kindness and gratitude are necessary for man and serve the development of humanity in the spiritual realm, just as trade does in the material realm. The exchange of spiritual values (gratitude in response to kindness) is perhaps even more necessary for a person than trade.
(F. Iskander)

Composition
In modern society, people, unfortunately, have increasingly begun to forget how important it is to show mercy to those who so need support and compassion. This spiritual impulse often brings benefits not only to the recipient of selfless help, but also to the giver himself. However, it also happens that a person shows goodness only from selfish motives, unconscious, perhaps, but still no less vain. The text of Fazil Iskander is dedicated to the problem of understanding mercy.
The author talks about an act that, at first glance, seems ordinary - the hero gives alms to a blind musician. But the writer especially focuses on the internal monologue. The hero-narrator is trying to understand why he didn’t give away all the change in his pocket right away: “Why did I not get enough coins the first and second time?” The answer comes instantly - it's all about indifference. Surprising, however, is the conclusion of the main character: he finds in this “small act of mercy” not a sublime goal, not grace; he rejects pompous words: “Miracle! Miracle! The Lord fills my pocket […] But after a moment I grew cold.” It turns out that this is an ordinary and self-evident act in response to the opportunity to listen to a musician: after all, “he seemed to play for” him alone, and therefore he himself “gave a benefit.” The writer draws an unusual parallel between the exchange of intangible values and ordinary trade in the spiritual sphere, proving that “barter”, “gratitude in response to kindness” is the most important for the development of the human spirit and morality.
Thus, Iskander convinces us that we should not show mercy and do good, expecting gratitude in advance and subsequently complaining about its absence (“Give indifferently what you can give to the needy”). After all, this is a completely natural process.
I cannot but agree with the author's position. An act of mercy has no right to flow from vain motives; it is an impulse of the soul that cannot be rationally measured by the words “benefit” or “due gratitude.” When a person shows compassion to another or even performs a small favor, the last thing he should think about is how it will benefit himself. Russian literature also teaches us this, in which there are many examples of mercy shown by heroes. For example, the act of Margarita from the novel by M.A. can be considered as such. Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita". The main character of the work selflessly and disinterestedly asks for mercy on Frida, whose fate she became imbued with, although, having made this decision, she voluntarily gave up the chance to save her lover. Margarita did not think for a second that she would not receive any benefit - rather, on the contrary - from her action.
The heroine of another work, Sonechka Marmeladova from “Crime and Punishment” by F.M. Dostoevsky is also an example of a person capable of truly merciful acts. By showing compassion, she was able to save Raskolnikov from spiritual death. It was a natural desire to help a person in need of support and suffering, since Sonechka saw that Raskolnikov was capable of good deeds.
Thus, the work of Fazil Iskander teaches us that it is impossible to show mercy, desiring in advance only gratitude and benefit for oneself. The exchange of good should be a natural process of relationships between people, because the feeling of compassion is the moral basis without which it is impossible to imagine a harmonious world.

Iskander Fazil

Mercy

I walk through the underground passage near the Sovetskaya Hotel. Ahead, a poor musician in black glasses sits on a bench and sings, playing along with himself on the guitar. For some reason the passage was empty at that time.

He caught up with the musician, took the change out of his coat and poured it into his iron box. I'm moving on.

I accidentally put my hand in my pocket and feel that there are still a lot of coins there. What the hell! I was sure that when I gave money to the musician, I emptied everything that was in my pocket.

He returned to the musician and, already glad that he was wearing black glasses and he, most likely, did not notice the stupid complexity of the whole procedure, he again took a small amount of change from his coat and poured it into his iron box.

I moved on. He walked away about ten steps and, putting his hand into his pocket again, suddenly discovered that there were still a lot of coins there. At the first moment I was so amazed that it was time to shout: “Miracle! Miracle! The Lord fills my pocket, which is emptied for the beggar!”

But after a moment it cooled down. I realized that the coins were simply getting stuck in the deep folds of my coat. There are a lot of them accumulated there. Change is often given in small change, but there seems to be nothing to buy with it. Why did I not rake in enough coins the first and second time? Because he did it casually and automatically. Why carelessly and automatically? Because, alas, he was indifferent to the musician. Then why did he take the change out of his pocket?

Most likely because he crossed underground passages many times, where beggars sat with their hands outstretched, and quite often, out of haste and laziness, passed by. I passed, but there was a scratch on my conscience: I had to stop and give them something. Perhaps unconsciously this small act of mercy was transferred to others. Usually there are a lot of people scurrying along these passages. And now there was no one, and it was as if he was playing for me alone.

However, there is something in all this. Perhaps, in a greater sense, good should be done indifferently, so that vanity does not arise, so as not to expect any gratitude, so as not to become angry because no one thanks you. And what kind of good is it if in response to it a person gives you something good? This means that you are in the calculation and there was no disinterested good. By the way, as soon as we realized the selflessness of our act, we received a secret reward for our selflessness. Give indifferently what you can give to someone in need, and move on without thinking about it.

But the question can be put this way. Kindness and gratitude are necessary for man and serve the development of humanity in the spiritual realm, just as trade does in the material realm. The exchange of spiritual values (gratitude in response to kindness) is perhaps even more necessary for a person than trade.