Dostoevsky has women who are sisters of mercy. Little hero

DOSTOEVSKY Fyodor

If there is no God and immortality of the soul, then there can be no love for humanity. - Fedor Dostoevsky

If you take everything that is foreign to your heart so much and if you sympathize with everything so much, then really, there is something to be happy about. the most unfortunate person. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Poor People"

If you yourself sin and are grieved even to the point of death about your sins or about your sudden sin, then rejoice for another, rejoice for the righteous, rejoice in the fact that even if you sinned, then he is righteous and has not sinned. - Fedor Dostoevsky"The Brothers Karamazov"

If such a feeling of “thirst for fame” becomes the main and only motive of an artist, then this artist is no longer an artist, because he has already lost the main artistic instinct, that is, love for art, solely because it is art, and nothing else, not fame. . - Fedor Dostoevsky"Netochka Nezvanova"

If what we consider sacred is shameful and vicious, then we will not escape punishment from nature itself: what is shameful and vicious carries death within itself and, sooner or later, will execute itself on its own. - Fedor Dostoevsky

If you set off towards your goal and start stopping along the way to throw stones at every dog ​​that barks at you, you will never reach your goal. - Fedor Dostoevsky

If the belief in immortality is so necessary for human existence, then, therefore, it is normal condition humanity, and if so, then the immortality of the human soul itself undoubtedly exists. - Fedor Dostoevsky

If you want to regenerate humanity, give it land. - Fedor Dostoevsky

If you want to examine a person and know his soul, then delve not into how he is silent, or how he speaks, or how he cries, or how he is excited by the noblest ideas, but look at him better when he laughs. A person laughs well means he is a good person. - Fedor Dostoevsky

If you want, a person must be deeply unhappy, because then he will be happy. If he is constantly happy, he will immediately become deeply unhappy. - Fedor Dostoevsky

If you want to conquer the whole world, conquer yourself. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Demons"

If a person is educated, then he has received moral development and, if possible, a correct concept of evil and good. Consequently, he, so to speak, is morally armed against evil with his education, and consequently, he has the means to repel evil. – Fedor Dostoevsky

If there is something that protects society even in our time and corrects even the criminal himself and regenerates him into another person, then this, again, is the only law of Christ, which is reflected in the consciousness of one’s own conscience. Only by realizing his guilt as a son of Christ’s society, that is, the church, does he recognize his guilt before society itself, that is, before the church. Thus, it is only before the church that a modern criminal is able to admit his guilt, and not so much before the state. - Fedor Dostoevsky"The Brothers Karamazov"

If I see where the grain or the idea of ​​the future is, it’s here, in Russia. Why is that? But because we have and still have survived among the people one principle, and that is that the earth is everything to them, and that they derive everything from the earth and from the earth, and this is even in the vast majority. But the main thing is that this is a normal human law. There is something sacramental in the earth, in the soil. If you want to regenerate humanity for the better, to make people almost like animals, then give them land - and you will achieve your goal. At least our land and community are in the worst shape, I agree, but still a huge seed for a future idea, and that’s the point. In my opinion, order is in the earth and from the earth, and this is everywhere, throughout all of humanity. The whole order in every country - political, civil, everything - is always connected with the soil and with the nature of land ownership in the country. The nature of land ownership was the same as the nature of everything else. If there is something where we have the most disorder in Russia, it is in the ownership of land, in the relations of owners to workers and among themselves, in the very nature of cultivation of the land. And until all this is settled, do not expect a firm arrangement in everything else. – Fedor Dostoevsky

There is a God, there is! – Fedor Dostoevsky

There are things in the memories of every person that he reveals not to everyone, but perhaps only to his friends. There are also those that he will not reveal to his friends, except to himself, and even then in secret. But, finally, there are those that a person is afraid to reveal even to himself, and every decent person will accumulate quite a few such things. That is, even this: the more decent a person he is, the more he has them. At least, I myself only recently decided to remember my other previous adventures, and until now I have always avoided them, even with some anxiety. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Notes from the Underground"

There is, in extreme cases, that degree of final cynical frankness when nervous man, irritated and infuriated, is no longer afraid of anything and is ready for any scandal, even glad of it; rushes at people, having at the same time a vague but firm goal of certainly flying from the bell tower a minute later and at the same time resolving all bewilderments, if any. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Idiot"

There are things that not only cannot be talked about intelligently, but which it is also unwise to begin to talk about. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Demons"

There is the main thing, and there is the most important thing. - Fedor Dostoevsky

There are strange friendships: both friends almost want to eat each other, they live like this all their lives, and yet they cannot part. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Demons"

There are women who are definitely sisters of mercy in life. You don’t have to hide anything in front of them, at least nothing that is sick and wounded in your soul. Whoever is suffering, go to them boldly and with hope and do not be afraid to be a burden, because few of us know how infinitely patient love, compassion and forgiveness can be in another woman’s heart. Whole treasures of sympathy, consolation, hope are stored in these pure hearts, so often also wounded, because a heart that loves a lot saddens a lot, but where the wound is carefully closed from a curious glance, because deep grief is most often silent and hidden. Neither the depth of the wound, nor its pus, nor its stench will frighten them; whoever approaches them is worthy of them; Yes, however, they seem to be born for heroism... - Fedor Dostoevsky

Eat historical events, carrying everything along with it and from which you cannot get rid of either by will or cunning, just as you cannot prevent the sea tide from stopping and returning back. - Fedor Dostoevsky

There are people like tigers, eager to lick blood. Who has once experienced this power, this boundless dominion over the body, blood and spirit of a man like himself, a man created in the same way, a brother according to the law of Christ; whoever has experienced the power and complete opportunity to humiliate with the highest humiliation another being who bears the image of God, he involuntarily somehow becomes no longer in control of his feelings. Tyranny is a habit; it is gifted with development, it finally develops into a disease. I stand by what is most best person can become coarse and dull from habit to the point of being a beast. Blood and power intoxicate: they develop coarseness and depravity; The most abnormal phenomena become accessible to the mind and feeling and, finally, sweet. Man and citizen perish forever under the tyrant, and a return to human dignity, to repentance, to rebirth becomes almost impossible for him. Moreover, the example and the possibility of such self-will have a contagious effect on the entire society: such power is seductive. A society that looks at such a phenomenon with indifference is already infected at its core. In a word, the right of corporal punishment given to one over another is one of the ulcers of society, it is one of the most powerful means for destroying every embryo in it, every attempt at citizenship, and a complete basis for its inevitable and irresistible decay. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Notes from the House of the Dead"

There are people about whom it is difficult to say anything that would present them at once and entirely, in their most typical and characteristic form; These are the people who are usually called “ordinary” people, “the majority”, and who really constitute the vast majority of any society. Ordinary people are constantly and for the most part a necessary link in the connection of everyday events; the very essence of some ordinary persons lies precisely in their everlasting and unchanging ordinariness, which never wants to remain what it is, and at all costs wants to become original and independent, having no the slightest means to independence. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Idiot"

There are people for whom clean underwear is even indecent. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Demons"

There are people whom for some reason it’s nice to see next to you in difficult times. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Idiot"

There are small children and big children. Everything is “child”. - Fedor Dostoevsky"The Brothers Karamazov"

There are moments in which you experience much more with your consciousness than in entire years. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Netochka Nezvanova"

There are minutes, you get to minutes, and time suddenly stops and will be forever. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Demons"

There are moments when people love crime. - Fedor Dostoevsky"The Brothers Karamazov"

There are times when even the most just person cannot be impartial. – Fedor Dostoevsky

There are natures so beautiful by nature, so rewarded by God, that even the thought that they could someday change for the worse will seem impossible to you. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Notes from the House of the Dead"

There are misfortunes that carry punishment in themselves. - Fedor Dostoevsky

There are seconds, five or six of them come at a time, and suddenly you feel the presence of eternal harmony, completely achieved. This is not earthly; I’m not talking about the fact that it is heavenly, but about the fact that a person in earthly form cannot bear. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Demons"

There is such a secret of nature, its law, according to which you can speak perfectly only the language with which you were born, that is, which the people to whom you belong speak. - Fedor Dostoevsky

There are some natures for whom quite strange things happen when they are especially happy and happy. The grimaces of a drunken man, a man who has tripped and fallen on the street, an argument between two women, and so on and so forth on this topic sometimes produce in some people the most good-natured delight, no one knows why. - Fedor Dostoevsky"The village of Stepanchikovo and its inhabitants"

There are crimes that always and everywhere, according to all kinds of laws, have been considered indisputable crimes since the beginning of the world and will be considered such as long as a person remains a person. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Notes from the House of the Dead"

There are such characters who really like to consider themselves offended and oppressed, complain about it out loud or console themselves in secret, worshiping their unrecognized greatness. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Netochka Nezvanova"

There is such a limit of shame in the consciousness of one’s own insignificance and weakness, beyond which a person can no longer go and from which he begins to feel enormous pleasure in his very shame. - Fedor Dostoevsky"Idiot"

There are three kinds of scoundrels in the world: naive scoundrels, that is, convinced that their meanness is the highest nobility, scoundrels who are ashamed of their own meanness with the inevitable intention of finishing it, and, finally, simply scoundrels, purebred scoundrels. – Fedor Dostoevsky

IN Lately I often hear different opinions about a woman’s vocation, and, to be honest, sometimes I ask myself this question: what is my purpose in this life? Yes, for me, like many, great family, interesting job, beloved friends. On weekends we go to temple. However, despite the apparent fullness of life, I invariably felt a lack of something important. I came to the understanding that I not only want to invest in myself, family and profession - this is my direct responsibility, but to do something at the call of my soul, without any external motivators.

Six months ago, a very unexpected ministry appeared in my life (if someone had told me about this several years ago, I would never have believed it) - once a week I come to the palliative department, where there are people with serious, incurable diseases. Just one hour next to seriously ill patients - and I leave the walls of this institution as a completely different person. I suddenly stop feeling tired, forget about momentary difficulties and understand how beautiful this life is, how multifaceted and fulfilling it is. I find myself waiting for each new meeting with those who are already on the verge of death, and who have such a thirst for life.

There is such wisdom that if you feel bad, find someone who is even worse and help him. But if everything is relatively good for you, is it worth waiting for some troubles before you start giving part of your life to those who need support and attention? This is probably what guides the sisters of mercy next to whom I work for a long time, but whose motivation is sometimes hidden from prying eyes. Agree, this is not a typical situation when modern woman not only tries to become an ideal mother or housewife, but also gives part of her time, strength and energy to complete strangers.

Now there are more than 50 sisters in the Ekaterinburg Orthodox Mercy Service who serve in all social projects- from helping children to supporting the homeless. All of them are the most ordinary girls and women: students and pensioners, newly minted and mothers of many children, workaholics and housewives. They all have one thing in common - sincere desire help those who need care, attention and support - domestic, material, mental or spiritual.

Looking at them, you understand that a woman’s role and calling can be not only in family and work; there is another undeservedly forgotten area where a woman can realize herself - this is the path of serving her neighbors. It was service, selfless and even sacrificial, as was done at the beginning of the 20th century by Princess Elizaveta Feodorovna, the royal princesses of the Romanovs during the First World War, and the nurses during the Great Patriotic War. The ministry of a modern sister of mercy is even more diverse; each of them can find a job to her liking.

Traditionally, nursing care is indispensable in the children's sphere - walks, accompaniment during treatment in the hospital, creative and play activities. Sometimes a sister of mercy turns out to be for a lonely sick child, perhaps not a natural mother, but for some time the only close person who can share the pain and fears of her little ward. Not only children, but also parents need nursing support, for example, in the children's oncology center, where sisters help their loved ones cope with the loss of a child. Some sisters care for lonely and elderly people at home, in hospitals and boarding homes, and also serve the homeless. They serve because people who end up on the street are a special category of wards who need a special approach and huge heart, full of love and care.

Sometimes I get very sad from lack of time and consciousness own helplessness in the face of many important and urgent matters, and I look at the nurses - how do they manage everything? But, as the classic said, a person always finds time for what is truly valuable to him, what resonates in his heart. And if, in addition to satisfying her own needs and interests, fulfilling her direct work or household responsibilities, a woman finds the opportunity to take care of someone who is now in pain, difficulty and fear, I think this is worthy of respect.

It is clear that not everyone can become Mother Teresa. And it is not at all necessary to go against the system or take sick children out of the combat zone. But I am sure that many of us can do at least one good deed, in a word, with a glance, to console and support your neighbor. And this is also the true feminine purpose.

One of the integral components military history Fatherland is the participation of Russian women in wars. The Russians left their noticeable mark on them. Unfortunately this important aspect our history has not yet received due attention. The service of women in the active Russian army has aroused the interest of researchers before. However, these were small works that covered a narrow topic: the service of nurses in military hospitals and on the battlefield; Works dedicated to individuals were published. It should be noted that the study of new archival and literary sources gives grounds to assert that in various historical eras during the wars women took Active participation as part of the active army. If we take a retrospective look into the depths of centuries, then we will see bright, strong, brave natures who fought on the battlefield for Holy Rus'. The epic lines brought to us the mighty prowess of the woodpiles, who not only guarded the borders of the Fatherland, but also entered into fights with male heroes, deftly rode horses, shot accurately from a bow, and wielded a sword superbly. Historically, an extraordinary personality, the Russian princess Olga, perhaps still has no rivals among the extraordinary women with whom Russia is rich. She led her well-armed squad against rebellious neighbors and conquered their lands; Possessing a shrewd state mind, she wisely ruled the principality. The mighty and influential Byzantium sought her favor, and the princes respected and feared her.

IN greatest battle on the Kulikovo field in 1380 men's clothes The Russian princesses Daria Andreevna Rostovskaya, Feodora Ivanovna Pubzholskaya, the daughter of the governor Fili Fekla, fought with the Horde. Undoubtedly, there were other women, both from privileged classes and commoners, but information about this, unfortunately, has not reached us.

It was not allowed by the way of life, traditions, views on the position of a woman in society to hold a weapon in her hands, although the rank of colonel of the Life Guards Preobrazhensky Regiment was held “according to the state” by all those who independently ruled Russian empresses– Catherine I, Anna Ioannovna, Elizaveta Petrovna, Catherine II. And whoever was not entitled to “according to the state”, during periods of military danger, under male name, V men's suit increased the honor of the uniform and glory with their exploits Russian weapons. In 1807, Alexandra Tikhomirova (known under the name Alexander Tikhomirov), who served in the army for about 15 years, died. Only after her death did her colleagues learn from her confessor that the brave guards captain was a woman. Tatyana Markina, under the surname Kurtochkin, a Cossack from the village of Nagaevskaya, rose from private to the rank of captain, who amazed Catherine II when it became known that the captain was “female.” The name of staff captain Nadezhda Andreevna Durova is well known. She received her baptism of fire in 1807 at the battle of Gutstadt, and took part in the battles of Heilsberg and Friedland. For her bravery and courage, Emperor Alexander I awarded her the insignia of the military order, allowing her, as a special favor for military merit and courage, to remain in the army under the name Alexandrov. Durova participated in Patriotic War 1812 Served as an orderly for Kutuzov. She took part in the battles near Smolensk and in the Battle of Borodino. Here she was shell-shocked, after recovery she returned to the active army and again distinguished herself in many battles. In 1816 she retired, she, like all officers, was awarded a pension. In the Patriotic War of 1812, many women took part in the popular partisan movement. Some detachments were led by women: elder Vasilisa Kozhina, peasant Anfisa, Praskovya the lacemaker, who led a detachment of 60 people (mostly women), the French placed a large reward on her head. The “women’s teams” caused a lot of harm to the enemy; once they repulsed a detachment of Russian prisoners, among whom was a wounded colonel. The fearlessness of these women, their valor in defending the Fatherland from invaders, was rewarded with an award - a silver medal in memory of the Patriotic War.

Panorama “Defense of Sevastopol 1854-1855” Dasha Sevastopolskaya

A study of the tradition of women's participation in the military history of Russia shows that it was especially active in the field of medicine. The documented use of female labor in Russian military hospitals begins with the reforms of Peter I. In the military regulations of 1716, Chapter 34 “On the field hospital” or hospital states that “... it is always necessary to be with ten sick people to serve one healthy soldier and several women who have to serve these sick people and wash their clothes...” After Peter I, there was some lull in the recruitment of women for military needs. And only starting from Crimean War 1853-1856 a woman, like a sister of mercy, does not leave the battlefield, including the last world war. For the first time in world history, 120 sisters of mercy of the Holy Cross community arrived in the Crimean Company at the theater of military operations in Crimea in November 1854 (17 sisters died in the line of duty, 4 were injured). The initiator of the use of female care for the sick and wounded in war was the outstanding military surgeon N. I. Pirogov. The sisters were well prepared professionally and distinguished themselves with exceptional conscientiousness in their work. They mostly came from high circles and the intelligentsia. Among them: E. Khitrova, E. Bakunina, M. Kutuzova, V. Shchedrin and many others. The sisters of mercy worked steadfastly under bullets and cannonballs with a huge amount wounded and sick. It is impossible not to mention the name of the Russian woman who is considered the first sister of mercy - Dasha Sevastopolskaya (Daria Lavrentievna Mikhailova). She proved herself in the Battle of Alma, setting up a dressing station in the ravine. All 11 months of the siege this 16 summer girl She worked without straightening her back in hospitals, at dressing stations, enduring all the horrors of war along with the city’s defenders. She was awarded by the Emperor with a monetary allowance and a silver medal, and the Empress sent her a gold cross with the inscription “Sevastopol”.

At the official level, the right of women to participate in war to care for the wounded was recognized during Russian-Turkish war 1877-1878 For the first time in the history of Russia in various medical institutions in both theaters of military operations - the Balkan and the Caucasus, with the Highest command, women doctors who received medical education abroad worked; 40 graduates and 12 students were seconded last year Petersburg Women's Medical Courses, who worked as doctors and paramedics; as well as nurses trained both in communities and through the Red Cross. The female students were sent to military temporary hospitals and infirmaries, they worked under the guidance of Professor N.V. Sklifosovsky. Women operated on the same basis as male doctors. All participants in the war were awarded medals established in memory of this war. 6 nurses who provided assistance to the wounded on the battlefield were awarded a special silver medal “For Bravery”: Boye, Dukhonina, Olkhina, Polozova, Engelhardt, Yukhantseva. Women doctors who participated in this war were awarded the medal “For Diligence.”

From the field of medicine, let us return again to the service of women in the active army. The first regular female military formation in Russia was the Volunteer Shock Battalion of Death under the command of Maria Leontievna Bochkareva. This happened during the First World War. A peasant by birth, she voluntarily went to the front in 1914. Despite the harsh discipline, Bochkareva enjoyed unquestioned authority among her “soldiers,” as she lovingly called the battalion fighters. She was distinguished by her courage, more than once raising soldiers into a bayonet attack, for which she was awarded two St. George's crosses and two medals.

As for World War II, the undisputed leader in terms of the scale of female participation was the Soviet Union. Women

Anelya Tadeushevna Kzhivon (1925 - 1943).

replaced the men who went to the front in production and made up the overwhelming majority of the medical staff of military hospitals. They performed auxiliary work in the active army, were part of partisan detachments and finally, they fought alongside men on the front line. The Red Army was the first European army of the 20th century to include separate female combat units on a regular basis. Official Russian historiography suggests that total number women involved in fighting on the USSR side is 800,000 people.

Colossal losses Soviet troops on initial stage The wars led to the fact that in 1942 the USSR carried out a massive mobilization of women to serve in the active army and in rear units. Only on the basis of three orders of the People's Commissar of Defense Joseph Stalin dated April and October 1942, relatively recently declassified and published in Russia, 120,000 women were subject to mobilization and deployment to the signal forces, air force and air defense. On the mobilization of the Komsomol Central Committee for military service About 500,000 girls were drafted, 70% of whom served in the active army. Women were supposed to replace Red Army soldiers sent to the front in auxiliary services and perform the work of signalmen, armed forces, drivers of cars and tractors, telephone operators, intelligence officers, machine gunners, gun crew numbers, storekeepers, librarians, and cooks.

Assessing the military feat of Soviet women, who went through the entire battle path together with male soldiers, Marshal Soviet Union A. I. Eremenko wrote: “There is hardly a single military specialty that our brave women did not cope with as well as their brothers, husbands and fathers.”

The first of the women Heroes of the Soviet Union during the war years was 18-year-old partisan Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya. Highest degree she was awarded the distinction by decree of February 16, 1942 (posthumously). And in total, for their exploits during the Great Patriotic War, 90 women became Heroes of the Soviet Union, more than half of them were awarded the title posthumously.
Sad statistics: out of 27 partisans and underground women, 22 were awarded posthumously, out of 16 representatives ground forces– 13 posthumously.

It should be noted that 30 people found awards after the war. Thus, by decree of May 15, 1946, six female pilots of the 46th Guards Taman Aviation Regiment received the “Golden Stars” of Heroes, and on the 20th anniversary of the Victory, 14 women were awarded at once, although 12 of them were posthumous.
The only foreigner among the Heroes is a rifleman of a company of machine gunners of the 1st Polish Infantry Division

them. T. Kosciuszko Anela Krzywoń - died on October 12, 1943, saving wounded soldiers. On November 11, 1943, she was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Last time in the history of the USSR, the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded to women on May 5, 1990. Ekaterina Demina (Mikhailova), a medical instructor of the 369th separate battalion, was awarded the “Gold Star” Marine Corps. Two pilots, Ekaterina Zelenko and Lydia Litvyak, became heroes (posthumously). On September 12, 1941, Senior Lieutenant Zelenko rammed a German Me-109 fighter in her Su-2 bomber. Zelenko died after destroying an enemy plane. It was the only ram in aviation history performed by a woman. Junior Lieutenant Litvyak is the most successful female fighter who personally shot down 11 enemy aircraft and died in air combat August 1, 1943

In the military history of the Fatherland, Women of Russia were active participants in the struggle for its freedom and independence. Mastered any "masculine" military specialty. As he wrote in “ Sevastopol stories» L.N. Tolstoy, “Because of the reward, because of the name, because of the threat, people cannot accept all the horrors of war. There must be another, high motivating reason. And there is this reason – love for the Motherland.”

In our time of peace, women continue the military work begun by their compatriots in past times, many girls devote their lives to serving the Fatherland. In some military universities, they are trained as cadets along with boys. In particular, at the Military University of the Ministry of Defense at the faculty foreign languages and foreign military information Girls study in the specialty “translation and translation studies” - future military translators, and they are a model, both in study and service, not inferior to boys. These are: Sergeant Major D.V. Tumartsova, Senior Sergeant N.A. Moroz, Sergeant E.V. Lupanova, Sergeant A.V. Gerasimova, cadets E.M. Konyakhina, E.A. Tarasova, E.V. Gusev and many others. Today in the ranks of the Armed Forces Russian Federation among female officers there are generals, colonels, lieutenant colonels, majors, captains, senior lieutenants and lieutenants. The tradition of Russian women serving their Fatherland continues.

Congratulations to all women of Russia on the coming of spring and the upcoming wonderful holiday - International Women's Day!

Community Morpolita and Gabriel Tsobehia

Literature:

1. Mordovtsev D.L. Russian historical women. St. Petersburg, 1872.
2. Shashkov S.S. The story of a Russian woman. St. Petersburg, 1879.
3. Zorin A.E. Women are heroin addicts in 1812. M., 1912.
4. Shchebkina E. From the history of female personality in Russia. St. Petersburg, 1914.
5. Durova N.A. Cavalry maiden St. Petersburg, 1887.
6. Pirogov N.I. Historical overview actions of the Holy Cross community of sisters in hospitals in Crimea and Kherson province. St. Petersburg, 1876.
7. Military medical report for the war with Turkey 1877-1878. St. Petersburg, 1884.
8. Ivanova Yu.N. The bravest of the beautiful: Women of Russia in wars. M., 2002.
9. Murmantseva V.S. Soviet women in the Great Patriotic War. M., 1974.

Even in the magazine itself, Dostoevsky continued to call the story a “Children's fairy tale” (letter to M. M. Dostoevsky dated March 1, 1858). From this it is clear that the change of title was not agreed with him and was caused, in all likelihood, by the need to disguise the authorship in case the authorities had information about who owned the work called “Children's Fairy Tale”. The same letter said: “The news of the publication of “Children's Fairy Tale” was not entirely pleasant to me. I’ve been thinking for a long time about redoing it and redoing it well, and, first of all, I started throwing out everything that was worthless.” The revision was carried out during the preparation of the collected works of 1860: several were omitted introductory paragraphs, containing the narrator’s address to a certain Mashenka, and, accordingly, in other places phrases that related to her, although one, due to an oversight, remained (“Add to that...” - p. 359).

Work on “A Children’s Tale” was Dostoevsky’s reaction to the oppressive morally and physically of the prison casemate and helped him to withstand, not to break in spirit, as happened with some Petrashevskyites In March 1874, sitting in the guardhouse on Sennaya Square for publication in “Grazhdanin” Notes without the permission of the Minister of the Court, which was required in this case, Dostoevsky told to Vs. who visited him. S. Solovyov: “When I found myself in the fortress, I thought that this was the end for me, I thought that I couldn’t stand it for three days, and suddenly I completely calmed down. After all, what was I doing there?.. I wrote “The Little Hero” - read it, is there any anger or torment visible in it? I dreamed of quiet, good, good dreams». (Soloviev Vs. S. Memories of Dostoevsky // History. Vestn. 1881. No. 3. P. 615). The word “dreams” is used metaphorically and accurately conveys the character of the work, reflected in its original title. From the darkness of loneliness, the writer escaped into the fabulous world of childhood - as Alekseevsky’s ravelin should have portrayed it - where reigned festive mood and everything shimmered with bright, joyful, soothing colors. The vision of this world was woven from images born creative imagination and memories that besieged the prisoner during the long hours of captivity. “I, of course, drive away all temptations from the imagination, but next time you can’t cope with them, and the old life breaks into the soul, and the past is experienced again,” Dostoevsky shared with his brother in a letter dated July 18, 1849. Landscape in the story inspired by impressions preserved from life in Darovoe, Tula estate Dostoevsky, and, perhaps, at the dacha of their relatives, the Kumanins, in Pokrovskoye (Fili) near Moscow.

The story echoes Dostoevsky's previous works. Even in “Poor People” and “The Mistress” there was a fluent motif of a child’s unconscious sensation, among the carefree joys and beauty of childhood, of something wrong, alarming, ugly in the world of childhood (see: current ed. Vol. 1. pp. 115-116 , 354-356); in “Little Hero” he becomes one of the core ones, manifesting himself in children's perception relationship between m-me M* and her husband. Some themes of “Netochka Nezvanova” vary in the story: the emergence in the child’s soul of a feeling of love-devotion, love-self-sacrifice is traced, and m-me M* and her husband seem to continue Alexandra Mikhailovna and her husband.

A special rich layer in the story consists of theatrical reminiscences, associations, and comparisons. According to the subtle observation of A. A. Gozenpud, the entire plot develops as a continuous performance in which each character plays a role (the hero uses this word twice in relation to himself - see pp. 371, 373) in accordance with theatrical role. In contrast to the naughty blonde and the sad

m-me M* one can discern the stage grand coquette and the young heroine, the owner of the estate is a vaudeville old grunt, a grumbling hussar; the “little hero” himself acts as a page in love, a character in many plays, the theatrical forerunner of which was Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro. Theatricality, and through it the fictionality, “fabulousness” of what is happening is emphasized by the entire background, against which dancing, music, singing, games, cavalcades, performances flash in a kaleidoscope. home theater living pictures, charades, proverbs and one of the light and witty comedies popular in the 1840s by the French playwright E.-O. Scriba (1791-1861). In his characterizations, the narrator often uses comparisons drawn from dramatic works. The blonde's witty exchange with the young man in love with her reminds him of the relationship between Beatrice and Benedict in Shakespeare's comedy Much Ado About Nothing. In his lady's husband, he sees simultaneously Moliere's Tartuffe, Shakespeare's Falstaff, whom he interprets in his own way, and a jealous Arab, i.e. Othello. (In the fortress, Dostoevsky read Shakespeare, given to him by his brother). The name of the mad horse Tancred may have come from tragedy of the same name Voltaire or from Rossini's opera based on its plot. The mention of Bluebeard’s costume, in which m-me M’s friend tried to “dress up” her husband (p. 372), probably meant not so much the most famous jealous man from the fairy tale French writer Charles Perrault (1628-1703), many of his theatrical variations in opera, ballet or vaudeville. 1

During Dostoevsky's lifetime, there were no critical reviews of The Little Hero.

P. 357. ...he recently managed to justify this guess...- The word “guess” is used here instead of the word “guess”, which, according to V.I. Dahl, had the meaning of “intention, thought, intention.”

P. 357. Bonmotists(from the French bon mot - sharpness) - witty words.

P. 358. ...she would probably be called a schoolgirl.- The schoolgirl is a naughty girl.

P. 359. ...my blonde, really, was worth that famous brunette ~ to the mantilla of his beauty.- This refers to the fifth stanza of the poem by the French writer Alfred de Musset (1810-1857) “L’Andalouse” (“L’Andalouse”, 1829), which became widely known as a romance.

P. 363. There are women who are definitely sisters of mercy...- The first St. Petersburg Community of Sisters of Charity in Russia, a philanthropic organization for helping the poor and sick, existed in 1849 for only its fifth year and was little known for its deeds. IN previous year Newspapers wrote about her several times in connection with charity concert, organized by her to raise funds and attract attention. See for example: Sollogub V. Community of Sisters of Mercy // St. Petersburg Gazette. 1848. March 27. No. 70; Tombol Concert // Ibid. 4 Apr. No. 77; V.V. Community of Sisters of Charity // Ibid. June 29. No. 143. V. Sollogub’s article was reprinted by “Vedomosti SPb. police" (1848, April 1, No. 73).

P. 367. ...their Moloch and Baal...- The ancient peoples of Asia Minor have sun deities; V literary tradition, dating back to Christianity

1 See: Gozenpud A. A. About Dostoevsky's theatrical impressions. (Vaudeville and melodrama of the 40s and 60s of the 19th century) // Dostoevsky and the theater: Collection. articles / Comp. and general ed. A. A. Ninova. L., 1983. pp. 85-86.

interpretation, symbolize a cruel, inexorable force that requires worship and human sacrifice.