The fate of man heroes of the work list. "The Fate of Man" main characters

There are many works in Russian literature that tell about the Great Patriotic War. A striking example is Mikhail Sholokhov’s story “The Fate of a Man,” where the author gives us not so much a description of the war, but a description of the life of an ordinary person during the difficult war years. In the story “The Fate of Man” the main characters are not historical figures, not titled officials, nor famous officers. They are ordinary people, but with a very difficult fate.

Main characters

Sholokhov's story is small in volume, it takes up only ten pages of text. And there are not so many heroes in it. The main character of the story is a Soviet soldier - Andrei Sokolov. Everything that happens to him in life, we hear from his lips. Sokolov is the narrator of the entire story. His named son, the boy Vanyusha, plays an important role in the story. It ends the sad story of Sokolov and opens a new page in his life. They become inseparable from each other, so let’s classify Vanyusha as one of the main characters.

Andrey Sokolov

Andrei Sokolov is the main character of the story “The Fate of a Man” by Sholokhov. His character is truly Russian. How many troubles he experienced, what torments he endured, only he himself knows. The hero speaks about this on the pages of the story: “Why did you, life, cripple me like that? Why did you distort it like that?” He slowly tells his life from beginning to end to a fellow traveler with whom he sat down to have a cigarette by the road.

Sokolov had to endure a lot: hunger, captivity, the loss of his family, and the death of his son on the day the war ended. But he endured everything, survived everything, because he had a strong character and iron fortitude. “That’s why you’re a man, that’s why you’re a soldier, to endure everything, to endure everything, if need calls for it,” Andrei Sokolov himself said. His Russian character did not allow him to break down, retreat in the face of difficulties, or surrender to the enemy. He snatched life from death itself.
All the hardships and cruelties of the war that Andrei Sokolov endured did not kill his human feelings or harden his heart. When he met little Vanyusha, just as lonely as he was, just as unhappy and unwanted, he realized that he could become his family. “There is no way for us to disappear separately! I’ll take him as my child,” Sokolov decided. And he became a father to a homeless boy.

Sholokhov very accurately revealed the character of the Russian man, a simple soldier who fought not for ranks and orders, but for the Motherland. Sokolov is one of those many who fought for the country, not sparing their lives. He embodied the entire spirit of the Russian people - persistent, strong, invincible. The characterization of the hero of the story “The Fate of a Man” is given by Sholokhov through the speech of the character himself, through his thoughts, feelings, and actions. We walk with him through the pages of his life. Sokolov goes through a difficult path, but remains human. A kind, sympathetic person who lends a helping hand to little Vanyusha.

Vanyusha

A boy of five or six years old. He was left without parents, without a home. His father died at the front, and his mother was killed by a bomb while traveling on a train. Vanyusha walked around in tattered, dirty clothes, and ate what people served. When he met Andrei Sokolov, he reached out to him with all his soul. “Dear folder! I knew! I knew you would find me! You'll find it anyway! I’ve been waiting so long for you to find me!” – the delighted Vanyusha shouted with tears in his eyes. For a long time he could not tear himself away from his father, apparently afraid that he would lose him again. But in Vanyusha’s memory the image of his real father was preserved; he remembered the leather cloak that he wore. And Sokolov told Vanyusha that he probably lost him in the war.

Two loneliness, two destinies are now intertwined so tightly that they can never be separated. The heroes of “The Fate of Man” Andrei Sokolov and Vanyusha are now together, they are one family. And we understand that they will live according to their conscience, in truth. They will survive everything, they will survive everything, they will be able to do everything.

Minor characters

There are also a number of minor characters in the work. This is Sokolov’s wife Irina, his children – daughters Nastenka and Olyushka, son Anatoly. They don’t speak in the story, they are invisible to us, Andrei remembers them. The company commander, the dark-haired German, the military doctor, the traitor Kryzhnev, Lagerführer Müller, the Russian colonel, Andrei’s Uryupinsk friend - all these are the heroes of Sokolov’s own story. Some have neither a first nor a last name, because they are episodic characters in Sokolov’s life.

The real, audible hero here is the author. He meets Andrei Sokolov at the crossing and listens to his life story. It is with him that our hero talks, to whom he tells his fate.

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Andrei Sokolov is the main character of the story “The Fate of Man” by Sholokhov. His character is truly Russian. How many troubles he experienced, what torments he endured, only he himself knows. The hero speaks about this on the pages of the story: “Why did you, life, cripple me like that? Why did you distort it like that?” He slowly tells his life from beginning to end to a fellow traveler with whom he sat down to have a cigarette by the road.

Minor characters

The real, audible hero here is the author. He meets Andrei Sokolov at the crossing and listens to his life story. It is with him that our hero talks, to whom he tells his fate.

There are many works about the Great Patriotic War, one of them is the story of M.A. Sholokhov “The Fate of Man”, a summary of which is presented below.

The plot of this work does not contain a description of military operations or exploits in the rear; here we are talking about a man who was captured, and what mark the war as a whole left on his life.

Analysis of this work and its concise presentation will help to penetrate into the essence of the story.

About the story “The Fate of Man”

The work describes the complex ups and downs of the life of an ordinary Soviet soldier who saw the horrors of war, survived the hardships of German captivity, lost his family, was on the verge of life and death many times, but despite all this, retained his humanity and found the strength to live on.

“The Fate of Man” from the point of view of genre is considered to be a story. However, this work contains signs of different genres.

The volume of the work is small, which means it is more like a story. However, what is described here is not a single incident, but a large period of time, several years long, which allows us to call this book a story.

Who is the author of the story “The Fate of Man”

Mikhail Aleksandrovich Sholokhov is one of the greatest writers of his time, as well as a prominent public figure.

He was awarded the title of academician, twice Hero of Socialist Labor, and in 1965 won the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Among his most famous works are such novels as “Virgin Soil Upturned”, the epic novel “Quiet Don”, “They Fought for the Motherland” and, of course, the story “The Fate of a Man”.

The year the story “The Fate of Man” was written

The story “The Fate of Man” was written in 1956. The war ended more than 10 years ago, but it still worried M. Sholokhov.

It was at this time that the author rethought the image of the heroic Victory.

In 1953, I.V. died. Stalin. Sholokhov looked critically at many things, including the actions of the deceased head of state.

Stalin’s well-known order No. 270 stated that everyone who surrendered to the enemy should be considered deserters and traitors to the Motherland. They were to be destroyed and their families deprived of any government support.

Sholokhov's story “The Fate of Man” opened a new page in the military literature of those years. The horrors of captivity described in the story, which millions of soldiers had to endure, became the starting point for changing attitudes towards people who found themselves in such a situation.

The history of the creation of the story “The Fate of Man”

The work is based on the true story of a man whom Sholokhov met while hunting on the Upper Don about a year after the end of the war.

In a casual conversation, the writer heard a story that shook him to the core. “I will definitely, definitely write about this,” Sholokhov thought.

Only 10 years later the writer decided to bring his plan to life. At this time, he read the works of Hemingway and, the main characters of which are powerless, worthless people who have lost the meaning of life after returning from the war.

Then he remembered his casual acquaintance and decided that it was time to write his story, a story of hardship, difficult trials and faith in life no matter what.

It took Sholokhov only seven days to write the text of the story. December 31, 1956 is the date of writing and publication of the story in the Pravda newspaper.

The work found a great response in the writing community, including abroad. A little later, the story was read on the radio by the famous actor S. Lukyanov.

The main characters of M. Sholokhov’s story “The Fate of Man”

There is only one main character in the story - Andrei Sokolov, a man of iron will, but at the same time not without a soft heart.

This hero embodies the main features of a true Russian character - willpower, love of life, patriotism and mercy.

The story is told on his behalf.

Other characters in “The Fate of Man” by M.A. Sholokhov

We learn about the remaining characters from the memories of the main character.

He speaks warmly about his family: his wife Irina and children - Anatoly, Nastenka and Olyushka.

In the episodes there are heroes whom the narrator sympathizes with - a military doctor who helped Russian soldiers in captivity, a company commander saved by Sokolov from an informer, and a Uryupinsk friend who sheltered the hero at home after the war.

There are also negative characters: the traitor Kryzhnev, the camp commissioner Müller, the German major engineer.

The only character we see in the hero's present is his adopted son Vanyusha, a little boy who firmly believes that Sokolov is his real father.

“The Fate of Man” - summary

The story is not told in chapters, but in continuous text, but for an abbreviated retelling it is convenient to divide it into small segments.

Andrey Sokolov

In its structure, the work is a story within a story.

The road ahead was not easy, and halfway through the journey they had to cross a river that stretched for a whole kilometer. At the crossing, a thin, leaky boat was waiting for them, which could only carry two people at a time. The boatman was the first to cross the narrator.

On the other bank, while waiting for his friend, the author met a man with a boy of 4-5 years old. A conversation ensued. The man mistakenly assumed that the narrator had the same profession as him - a driver. Perhaps that is why he suddenly wanted to pour out his soul and tell the story of his difficult life.

He did not introduce himself right away, but as the story progresses we learn that his name is Andrei Sokolov. Now the story is told on his behalf.

Pre-war time

From the very beginning of Andrei Sokolov's life, he was haunted by difficulties and hardships.

He was born in 1900 in the Voronezh province. He went through the Civil War, in the hungry year of 1922 he ended up in the Kuban, and that’s the only way he survived. And his relatives - father, mother and two sisters - died of hunger in their homeland.

There was no relative left in the whole world. Returning from Kuban, he moved to Voronezh, where he started working as a carpenter, then worked at a factory, and mastered metalworking skills.

Soon he started a family. He married a modest orphan girl out of great love. After the loss of his loved ones, she became a joy for him - smart, cheerful and at the same time wise. Life began to improve: children appeared - son Anatoly and two daughters, Nastya and Olya - all excellent students and the pride of their father.

The hero mastered a new profession as a driver, began to earn good money and rebuilt a house with two rooms. Only the location of the house was unfortunate - near an aircraft factory. He did not know then what fatal role this would play in his life.

War and captivity

A new war suddenly burst into the life of Andrei Sokolov. Already on the third day, the whole family gathered to accompany him to the station.

Saying goodbye to his family was a difficult ordeal for him. The always calm and quiet wife suddenly went into a frenzy, did not let him go, but only insisted that they would not have to see each other again.

He felt offended that they were burying him alive, and pushed his wife away, for which he reproached himself every day afterwards.

Military everyday life began for Andrei Sokolov: he worked as a driver and received two minor wounds. He wrote letters to his family infrequently and always very briefly, never complaining. In this, for the first time, his special masculine endurance was revealed: he did not tolerate soldiers sending tearful letters to their relatives, for whom it was already difficult in the rear.

His greatest test came in May 1942. There was a fierce battle near Lozovenki. The ammunition was running out and Andrei Sokolov had to deliver it to a battery of soldiers under fire. But he did not reach his destination. The blast wave threw him aside and temporarily disabled him.

When he came to his senses, he discovered that he was behind enemy lines. At first he tried to pretend to be dead so as not to give up, but passing Germans discovered him. Then Sokolov gathered his remaining strength to stand up and face death with dignity. One German raised his machine gun, but the other pulled it back, realizing that Sokolov could still be useful for work.

Sokolov, along with other prisoners, was driven west. The Germans treated them like cattle: they shot all the wounded on the spot, they did the same to those who tried to escape, and they beat them - they beat them just like that, out of anger.

The episode in the church is of particular importance in the story. On one of the first nights, the Germans drove the soldiers into the church.

Here Sokolov was able to get to know more closely who was captured with him. He was surprised that the military doctor, who immediately set his shoulder, even in such a situation selflessly continued to do his job.

Then he accidentally overheard the conversation and then something else struck him: the soldier was going to betray his commander, who was facing death for his adherence to the Communist Party. Sokolov decided to strangle the traitor, he killed a person for the first time, and “his own,” but for him he was worse than an enemy.

Another significant incident occurred in the church: the Germans shot a prisoner who did not want to desecrate the holy place by relieving himself.

All the way to the camp Sokolov was thinking about escape, and then an opportunity arose. The prisoners were sent into the forest to dig graves for their own, the guards were distracted and Sokolov managed to escape.

But four days later, the Germans and dogs caught up with the exhausted soldier. There was no living space left on him from the beatings of the Nazis and dog bites; he spent a whole month in a punishment cell, but survived and was transported to Germany.

Andrei Sokolov traveled half of Germany, worked in factories and mines in Saxony and Thuringia. The conditions were such that it would have been easier to die.

The prisoners were constantly beaten, brutally, almost to death, fed with a tiny piece of bread with sawdust and rutabaga soup, and forced to work until they lost their pulse. Sokolov recalls that he once weighed almost ninety kilograms, but now did not reach fifty.

On the brink of death

One of the culminating moments of the story is the incident in Dresden. At this time, Sokolov was working in a stone quarry.

The work was extremely hard, and Sokolov, unable to bear it, somehow let slip: “They need four cubic meters of output, but for the grave of each of us, one cubic meter through the eyes is enough.” This phrase of his reached the commandant.

When they called to Commandant Muller, Sokolov said goodbye to his comrades in advance, since he knew that he was going to his death. Muller had an excellent command of the Russian language and did not need an intermediary in a conversation with a Russian soldier. He immediately said that he would now personally shoot Sokolov. To which he replied: “Your will.”

Müller was a little drunk and tipsy, and there was a bottle and various snacks on the table, then he poured a full glass of schnapps, put a piece of bread with lard on it and handed it all to Sokolov with the words: “Before you die, Russian Ivan, drink to the victory of German weapons "

Of course, Sokolov was not satisfied with such a toast, and he preferred to refuse, pretending not to drink. Then Müller offered him a drink “to his death.” Sokolov took the glass and drank it in one gulp, without taking a bite.

Müller pointed to the bread, but Sokolov explained that he didn’t snack after the first one. Then the commandant poured him a second glass. Sokolov also swallowed it, but did not take the bread.

Despite severe hunger, he wanted to show that they had not yet knocked the man out of him, and he would not pounce on a German handout. He said out loud that he wasn’t used to snacking after the second one either.

Muller was very amused by this and poured a third glass. Sokolov drank it slowly and broke only a small piece of bread. Such dignity amazed the commandant, he recognized Sokolov as a brave soldier and released him, giving him a loaf of bread with lard.

Release from captivity

In 1944, there was a turning point in the war and the Germans began to run out of people. Drivers were needed, and then Sokolov was assigned to a German major engineer.

At some point, the major was sent to the front line. Sokolov found himself close to Soviet troops for the first time in two years.

This was his chance. He came up with a plan according to which he was supposed to escape, taking with him the major with the drawings in order to hand him over to his own.

This is what he did: while driving around German fortifications, he stunned the major, changed into a previously prepared German uniform to deceive the checkpoint, and, under bullets rushing from both sides, “surrendered” to his own people.

Sokolov was received as a hero and promised to be nominated for an award. He was sent to the hospital to improve his health. He immediately wrote a letter home, but the answer did not come for a long time.

Finally, he received news, but not from his family. His neighbor wrote, he reported tragic news: during the bombing of an aircraft factory, a large shell hit the house where Sokolov’s wife and two daughters were at that time, and the son, having learned about the death of the family, voluntarily went to the front.

Having received a month's leave, the hero went to Voronezh, but almost immediately returned to the division: his soul was so heavy.

Son Anatoly

A few months later, the hero receives a letter from his son, who briefly described his life: he serves not far from his father and is already in command of a battery.

Sokolov is filled with pride. He is already dreaming of how they will live together after the war, how his son will get married, and he will start babysitting his grandchildren, everything will work out.

But these aspirations were not destined to come true. On the morning of May 9, Victory Day, Anatoly is killed by a German sniper.

Post-war time

War is over. Sokolov was sick of returning to his hometown, and he went to Uryupinsk to visit his friend, who had been calling him for a long time.

There the hero again got a job as a driver, and everyday work began.

One day Sokolov noticed a street boy near the teahouse where he always had lunch. It turned out that Vanyusha’s mother died when the train was shelled, and her father died at the front.

Sokolov felt some warmth in his chest, looking at this grimy baby with eyes as bright as stars. I couldn’t stand it, I called him over and called him his father. Thus two orphaned hearts united.

Because of the accident, Sokolov’s driver’s license was taken away, and he decided to leave Uryupinsk with his new son. Our narrator found them on the road.

Conclusion

Sholokhov's story “The Fate of Man” makes you think about many things: about the will to live and patriotism, about real masculine actions and mercy for the weak, about fearlessness before death and feat in the name of loved ones and the country.

But the main idea is this: war is the worst thing that can happen to a person, it not only exterminates people, but also breaks the fate of those who survived.

Twelve years after the Great Patriotic War in 1957, M.A. Sholokhov writes the story “The Fate of a Man”, the main character of which is a simple Russian man - Andrei Sokolov.

M. Sholokhov reveals the personality of Andrei Sokolov using various artistic techniques, characterizing his actions, showing the hero’s relationships with different people, placing him in various life situations. The story about the fate of Andrei Sokolov is told in the first person, which makes the story more objective for the reader; the hero himself characterizes his actions. The author, using artistic and expressive means, evaluates what he heard. This way the reader gets to know the writer's position. For example, having met Andrei Sokolov, the narrator drew attention to his “big dark hands,” testifying to the hard backbreaking labor that befell him, and to his “eyes, as if sprinkled with ashes,” speaking about what he had experienced.

Before the war, Andrei Sokolov lived an ordinary life: “he studied the car business, sat behind the wheel of a truck,” married his beloved Irinka, had a son and two daughters, “worked...for these ten years, day and night,” “earned good money,...lived... no worse than people." The war changed his life. With particular pain Andrei Sokolov recalls the scene of farewell to his wife, who “clung ... like a leaf to a branch, and only trembles all over, but cannot utter a word,” the hero then pushed his wife away and cannot forgive himself for this years later, because then it was their last meeting. This is how the author describes the state of Andrei Sokolov after what was told: “... I didn’t see a single tear in his seemingly dead, extinct eyes.” This detail shows the hero’s relationship to the past: for him, the events of those days still remain the most important in life, Sokolov is still alive, but has “dead eyes.”

During the war, the hero faces a real test - captivity. Andrei Sokolov showed steadfastness, mental firmness, and strength of character there too: without hesitation, he killed a traitor who wanted to betray his platoon commander; tried to escape. The scene at Commandant Müller’s is significant, where they brought Sokolov, hungry and tired after hard work. And here the hero did not flinch: he “drank three glasses of vodka, but didn’t snack on anything, because “I wanted... to show them, damned, that although I’m starving, I’m not going to choke on their handout, that I have my own.” , Russian dignity and pride and that they did not turn me into a beast, no matter how hard they tried.” The courage of the Russian soldier amazed Müller. Having received a loaf of bread and a piece of bacon, Andrei Sokolov divided the food equally between the prisoners, “they divided it without offense.” This fact also testifies to the breadth of the Russian soul. Having escaped from captivity, in the hospital the hero learns about the death of his wife and daughters. The death of his loved ones did not embitter him; he again dreams of happiness, now with his son Anatoly: “I began to have old man’s dreams at night: how the war will end, how I will marry a son, and I myself will live with the young, work as a carpenter and nurse my grandchildren.” But the war took Andrei Sokolov and his son away. The only thing that the war did not take away from the hero was self-esteem, honor, and love for people. The Russian soldier did not become bitter, he was able to overcome himself and find a kindred spirit in the little orphan Vanyusha. Andrei Sokolov is the owner of a strong character: he was able to survive in the inhuman conditions of fascist captivity, survived the death of loved ones, and found a new son.

The title of the story “The Fate of a Man” is important for understanding the essence of the character of a simple Russian soldier. The life of a particular person is summarized by the writer and becomes the fate of thousands of Russian people who survived the war and lost loved ones, but retained the main thing - the human soul. The humanistic orientation of the story allows the writer to talk about Andrei Sokolov as a real person. The main means of revealing the image of the main character is the soldier's monologue-story about himself. Here the author acts as a listener, without giving direct assessments of the events, but only observing the state of Andrei Sokolov: “The narrator fell silent for a minute, and then spoke in a different, intermittent and quiet voice.” The hero’s sincerity made him closer to the author: “A stranger, but a man who had become close to me stood up and extended a large hand, hard as a tree...”

Thus, the image of Andrei Sokolov, the character of the hero is revealed by the writer through his speech, his own description of actions, the author’s assessment of what he heard, through the title of the story “The Fate of a Man.”

There are many works in Russian literature that tell about the Great Patriotic War. A striking example is Mikhail Sholokhov’s story “The Fate of a Man,” where the author gives us not so much a description of the war, but a description of the life of an ordinary person during the difficult war years. In the story "The Fate of Man" the main characters are not historical figures, not titled officials, nor famous officers. They are ordinary people, but with a very difficult fate.

Main characters

Andrey Sokolov

Andrei Sokolov is the main character of the story “The Fate of Man” by Sholokhov.
His character is truly Russian. How many troubles he experienced, what torments he endured, only he himself knows. The hero speaks about this on the pages of the story: “Why did you, life, cripple me like that? Why did you distort it like that?” He slowly tells his life from beginning to end to a fellow traveler with whom he sat down to have a cigarette by the road.

All the hardships and cruelties of the war that Andrei Sokolov endured did not kill his human feelings or harden his heart. When he met little Vanyusha, just as lonely as he was, just as unhappy and unwanted, he realized that he could become his family. “There is no way for us to disappear separately! I’ll take him as my child,” Sokolov decided. And he became a father to a homeless boy.

Vanyusha

Minor characters

The real, audible hero here is the author. He meets Andrei Sokolov at the crossing and listens to his life story. It is with him that our hero talks, to whom he tells his fate.

Characteristics of the main characters “The Fate of Man” in Sholokhov’s story |