"(the first is “Old World Landowners”, the third is “Viy”, the fourth is “The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich”).
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 1 – summary
Two sons, Ostap and Andriy, came to the Cossack colonel Taras Bulba (see The image of Taras Bulba in Gogol’s story) after finishing their studies in the Kyiv Bursa. (See Meeting of Taras Bulba with his sons.) The old warrior Bulba neglected the Bursat teachings, believing that a young man could learn the best science among the Cossacks of the Zaporozhye Sich. The next day Taras and both of his sons went to Zaporozhye.
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 2 – summary
Bulba's children - the stern, firm Ostap and the dexterous Andriy, greedy for female beauty - were not alike. Ostap thought only about military glory, and Andriy, even while studying in Kyiv, was inflamed with passionate love for a Pole he accidentally saw - the daughter of the Kovno governor. Once he even snuck into her house through the chimney.
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 3 – summary
Trying to quickly acquaint his sons with military affairs, Bulba suggested that the main Zaporozhye leader - the Koshevoy Ataman - organize a campaign against the Tatars or Turks. The cautious chieftain refused, citing treaties. Then Taras organized a Cossack riot and gathering in the Sich. Running out to the main square, the Cossacks deposed the Koschevoy and elected Bulba’s comrade, Kirdyaga, in his place.
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 4 – summary
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 5 – summary
The Cossacks brought terrible devastation to all the southern regions of Poland. Ostap and Andriy, delighting Bulba, showed unheard-of courage in this war. In the end, the Zaporozhye army besieged the city of Dubno and decided to starve it out.
One night, when the entire Cossack army was sleeping under the city walls, Andriy suddenly saw in front of him the face of an old Tatar woman - the servant of that Polish lady whom he fell in love with in Kyiv. The Tatar woman said that her mistress was in Dubno and was already close to starvation. From the city walls she saw Andriy among the Cossacks and now asks him for at least a piece of bread.
Andriy's heart began to beat at this news. Slowly filling a bag with food, he followed the Tatar woman to a secret underground passage that led outside the city walls.
"Taras Bulba". Feature film based on the story by N.V. Gogol, 2009
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 6 – summary
The Tatar woman escorted Andriy into the city, to her mistress’s house. The lady, who had become even more beautiful, looked tenderly at her savior. Love clouded the Cossack's mind. He immediately swore to the beautiful Pole that he would renounce his homeland, father and Cossacks for her sake.
A Tatar woman ran in and brought news to Andria and the lady: strong Polish reinforcements had entered the city.
Andriy and the Polish beauty. Illustration by S. Ovcharenko for Gogol’s story “Taras Bulba”
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 7 – summary
The Poles managed to get into the city, suddenly attacking the drunken Pereyaslavsky kuren at one gate. Many Cossacks died in this case. Taras Bulba could not find Andriy and thought that he was also killed. However, a Jewish friend, Yankel, said: he saw his son in the city. Enchanted by the beautiful Pole, he ordered the Cossacks to be told that they were no longer his brothers.
New bloody battles began to boil under the walls of Dubno. When the ataman of the Uman kuren fell among them, the Cossacks chose Bulba’s son, Ostap, in his place.
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 8 – summary
The Cossacks received news that the deserted Sich had been brutally plundered by the Tatars. The Zaporozhye army was divided: one half of it rushed after the Tatarva, and the other remained to besiege Dubno.
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 9 – summary
Taras tried to encourage those remaining under the walls of the city with a proud speech about comradeship. Having learned about the retreat of half the Cossacks, the nobles came out from behind the walls with strong detachments. In a mortal battle, many glorious warriors died on both sides. At the decisive moment, Polish reinforcements unexpectedly flew out of the city gates, at the head of which Bulba’s son, Andriy, rode, cutting down the Cossacks.
The enraged father caught up with his son near the forest, grabbed his horse by the reins, cursed Andriy for betraying the people and faith, and shot him with a gun. (See Death of Andriy.) Ostap drove up to Bulba. A crowd of Poles suddenly rushed at them from the forest. Taras saw how Ostap was grabbed and began to be tied up. He rushed to help his son, but lost consciousness from a terrible blow.
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 10 – summary
Old comrade Tovkach carried the wounded Bulba out of the battle and took him on horseback to the Sich. There Taras's wounds healed, but he knew nothing about Ostap's fate. The thought of his son haunted Bulba.
Taras decided, at least at the cost of his own life, to find out what happened to Ostap. The Poles valued Bulba's head at two thousand ducats, but a Jewish friend, Yankel, for a generous bribe, secretly took him through the outposts to Warsaw at the bottom of a cart covered with bricks on top.
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 11 – summary
In Warsaw, Yankel, with the help of other nosy Jews, learned that Ostap was sitting in a city dungeon. An attempt to rescue him from there or at least get a meeting with him for money failed. Bulba soon learned that the next day Ostap and other Cossacks would be executed in the city square in the presence of a huge crowd.
Taras wished to go to the place of execution. Ostap was brought to the executioner first. He endured terrible torment with unshakable courage. “Good, son, good!” - Bulba said to himself with a sinking heart, looking at this. Just before his death, in terrible suffering, Ostap exclaimed: “Father! Can you hear?
“I hear you!” - he heard in response amid the general silence. Polish guards rushed to look for Taras, but he had already escaped. (See Death of Ostap.)
Ostap before execution. Illustration by S. Ovcharenko for Gogol's story "Taras Bulba"
Gogol “Taras Bulba”, chapter 12 – summary
Hetman Ostranitsa and his comrade Gunya raised a new Cossack uprising in Little Russia. The regiment led by Taras Bulba, who avenged the murdered Ostap, fought best of all. The Cossacks defeated the crown hetman Nikolai Pototsky himself, but then their leaders imprudently made peace with the enemy.
Bulba dissuaded him from this world, and when they did not listen to him, he continued to fight with one of his regiments. Five Polish regiments overtook him on the banks of the Dniester. The nobles grabbed Taras, chained him to a high tree on a hill and began to burn him at the stake. But even in the last minutes of his life, Bulba managed to shout to his comrades galloping towards the river about the place where the boats were hidden. Already engulfed in fire, he loudly prophesied that a great Orthodox kingdom would rise on Russian soil, and there would be no power in the world that would not submit to him. (See Death of Taras Bulba.)
We are publishing a review by Dariusz Klechowski, a literary scholar and doctoral student at the University of Lodz (Poland), on “Taras Bulba” by Vladimir Bortko - a film that caused a lot of discussion in Russia, Ukraine and did not go unnoticed in Poland.
The author, taking into account that the object of his consideration is commercial cinema intended for mass audiences, reflects on the objectives of the film (creating a mythological image of the Cossacks, strengthening the state identity of the Russians), about the complex interaction of the picture with its literary prototype, about the possibilities of harmony in the film epic between reality and myth, analyzes individual strong and weak points of the resulting film interpretation. D. Klekhovsky's view draws attention to many aspects of this film adaptation that have so far remained outside the scope of broad discussion.
I would like to emphasize right away that I do not consider the film “Taras Bulba” by Vladimir Bortko to be consciously anti-Polish, as suggested by some Polish critics (for example, Vaclav Radzivinovich on the pages of “Gazeta Wyborcza”). I think that the director, although he made a film fulfilling a specific state order, did not set himself, nor did the customer, such short-sighted political goals. If anyone could be addressed with such a reproach, although also with caution, it would be the author literary basis of the film.
And the remarkable material, as V. Bortko himself emphasized, the almost ready-made script for the film, was, of course, the text by Nikolai Gogol. Published for the first time in 1835 (the second edition in 1842), the romantic story (better to say, a romantic epic), which created the myth of the Cossacks, from the very beginning aroused a variety of emotions among readers: from absolute delight to absolute denial. The Russian reader is delighted. This is understandable, because the story connected the history of the Zaporozhye Cossacks with the idea of a great, royal, Orthodox Russia. It was received negatively by some Ukrainian readers, who considered it to falsify the history of this part of the world. Polish readers perceived Gogol's story as anti-Polish. This is best demonstrated by the fact that 150 years passed between the first Polish edition of Gogol’s work (1850) and the second. It couldn't be any other way. Gogol's text encourages polemics. After all Ukraine has been the subject of controversy for many peoples who lay claim to ownership of this piece of land. Objective interpretation of Ukrainian historyXVI And XVIIcenturies - the task is still impossible. I'm not even talking about the Cossack myth, which has been and is being subjected to a wide variety of interpretations.
Vladimir Bortko, an experienced director, decided to measure himself by this myth. However, I think that he did not have much chance of success even at the moment of making the decision to shoot the film. Whoever gives money sets certain conditions. It is clear what goals the state order pursues. The film, at its core, should strengthen the spirit of Russian statehood and relate to a certain understanding of history. It is clear that a system of this kind of orders operates in every state. Just look at the American, English and Polish experience in this matter. But a good director will be able, even in such a difficult situation, to carry out his interpretation, in this case of historical events and a literary work. How did V. Bortko cope with this task?
The beginning of the film is disappointing because it is perceived as an unambiguous courtesy to the customer. The first scene, which is a kind of epigraph to the film, corresponds to chapter 9 of the story. This is Taras’s speech, preparing the Cossacks for the decisive battle near the city of Dubno, besieged by them. However, it also shows that the director is not going to be completely faithful to the original text. Black and white footage in the rain and with the echoes of thunder, with the text accentuated by the actor, are largely an appeal to the modern Russian viewer, who must remember the tradition of their ancestors (the idea of commonwealth and Cossack camaraderie), which is so necessary today, but does not enjoy much respect in society . So, Gogol's words become part of the promoted unity of Russia. This, unfortunately, determines the direction of the film.
If this compositional rearrangement can be understood, then other deviations from Gogol’s text make us think. In order to justify the actions of the Cossacks in the eyes of the audience, the director introduces a scene with Taras’s wife killed by the Poles. In Gogol, the motivation for Cossack actions is often associated with impulse, with the desire to obtain temporary benefit. As the main character states this, a Cossack should take a walk, this corresponds to his nature. The word “take a walk” contains a lot of meanings, but least of all there are serious political intentions in it. Although Bortko retains this word, he still tries to make Taras an avenger and a fighter for faith and homeland. In the film, the scene of the arrival of Bulba's comrades with the corpse of his wife at the Zaporozhye fortress gives the main character a motive for revenge. In Gogol, Taras becomes an avenger only at the end of the story, after the execution of the sentence on his eldest son Ostap. Before, it seems, Gogol's Taras was ruled by a boundless sense of freedom. This is all he is, real, and the words about defending the homeland and faith in the story are rather signsXIX V., partly conditional and intended for the writer’s contemporaries.
Feature of the CossacksXVIIV. there was their reluctance to submit to anyone: the Turks, Poles, Moscow. But the Cossacks did not create their own statehood. Their freedom is special, freedom to the point of anarchy. Bortko is trying to give the Cossacks features that Gogol does not have many of (and they can be justified by the genre characteristics of the epic) and which are little consistent with the historical circumstances of that time.
In my opinion, the film breaks the harmony between reality and myth.
And if we are already talking about this, then it is worth saying a little about the specific features of the historical era depicted in the story and in the film. Gogol talks about historyXVcentury, which, of course, is a literary fiction, because the events described date back to the first halfXVIIV. But in the work, historical time is deliberately deprived of specificity, because the writer set himself the task of creating a mythological image of the Zaporozhye Sich. Bortko's narrator talks aboutXVIcentury, but the realities of the historical era date back to the 30sXVIIV. The film, indeed, by visualizing it, clarifies what remains unidentified in the work: details of Cossack and Polish clothing, architecture, weapons.
For example, pleasant, not only for the eyes of Polish spectators, images of Polish hussars with huge wings attached to their backs. However, this detail, as in the film “1612” by Vladimir Khotinenko, poorly correlates with real military practice. These wings were very uncomfortable for riders. They were worn only before a battle in open space, where the hussars could develop greater speed, due to which the wind, moving the wings, created a specific noise that frightened the enemy’s horses. In the film, Polish hussars ride with these wings all the time. Clearly, this creates an aesthetic effect. The “aesthetic” portrayal of Poles is, in my opinion, an argument against those who consider the film anti-Polish. The Poles in the film are elegantly dressed, proud, and skillfully defend the city besieged by the Cossacks. Their position seems quite justified, because they are trying to maintain the limits of their influence. Sometimes they go to the extent of cruel measures (the director emphasized this in the scene of the execution of the sentence on the Cossacks, which Gogol does not have), but in this one does not feel any special hatred towards the enemy; most likely, this is punishment for the purpose of intimidation. The Poles, of course, are enemies, and one cannot love or admire enemies. It’s only a pity that the director omitted what we find in Gogol’s text - the cruelty of the Cossack army. In the story we can read the following: “A hair would now stand on end from those terrible signs of the ferocity of the semi-savage age that the Cossacks carried everywhere. Beaten babies, cut off breasts of women, torn skin from the legs up to the knees of those released - in a word, the Cossacks repaid their former debts with large coins.”. I quote this fragment not to emphasize the particular atrocities of the Cossacks, but to show the cruelty of that era, the cruelty that was the norm for all warring parties.
In general, for a modern viewer, even a viewer of commercial cinema, it would be important and honest to explain the basis of the tragic struggle in Ukraine inXVIIV. At least with a short text at the beginning of the film. Of course, we won’t find this in Gogol, but the romantic epic didn’t need it. And in the film, a few words about the struggle of the Cossacks for equal rights with the Polish gentry would give a true idea of what will subsequently be shown on the screen. But, apparently, this was not the director’s task.
Returning to the problem of the violation of harmony between myth and historical reality in the film, it must be emphasized that Bortko took from Gogol’s text everything that can be considered patriotic in the understanding of a modern Russian. So, the Cossacks go to fight the Poles for the Orthodox faith and the Russian land. They make patriotic speeches characterizing their struggle as fair and the enemy as an aggressor. This, of course, is not entirely consistent with history, but it is consistent with Gogol’s idea and the style of his story. However the pathos of these scenes, which does not offend in a literary work, is exaggerated in the film. Embodied through realistic aesthetics, it becomes unbearable. This is especially jarring in the scenes of the death of the Cossacks during the last battle near the besieged Dubno: they, like ancient heroes, kill dozens of enemies and, before falling in battle, pronounce praise on the Russian land. I am now talking about the impressions of the viewer who perceives this film as historical. But V. Bortko’s painting, as I have already emphasized several times, is designed for a mass audience who does not strive for a historical and artistic understanding of what they see.
I will add that the battle scenes of the film are striking in their naturalism, the abundance of blood, so striking in the clash with the pathetic and poetic words uttered by the Cossacks at the moment of death. The music hurts the ear, as if from a synthesizer, so inappropriate to the scenes of the battle, as well as to the Cossack lifestyle.
Despite these points in Bortko’s painting, I find several interesting aspects in it that could still confirm the previously expressed idea that a good director, even in the most difficult situation, can resist the proposed circumstances.
The first remarkable move is the performance of the main role by Bogdan Stupka. His playing, expressive and smooth, without any psychological overtones, gives an idea of the Cossack nature and strength. Taras, played by Stupka, is harsh, merciless, and stingy in expressing his feelings. This is the embodiment of the Cossack, the Cossack lifestyle. The pathos of his speeches seems authentic, in contrast to the speeches of his comrades. Let us add that Stupka is, in a sense, a real legionnaire. He played the roles of Cossacks in Ukrainian, Polish, and now in Russian cinema. I remember him in Bohdan Khmelnytsky’s film “With Fire and Sword” (dir. Jerzy Hoffman, based on the novel by G. Sienkiewicz). Taras, performed by Stupka, gives a wonderful insight into Gogol’s “great Cossack”.
The film, in my opinion, does not confirm the point of view according to which Bulba’s sons - Ostap and Andriy - express two sides of the nature of Taras himself. Ostap, performed by Vladimir Vdovichenkov, is a rather pale character. Even the scene of his terrible execution does not have the expressive effect for which it is intended. The viewer was simply taught a lesson entitled: my father and I are one, even when I oppose him.
It seems to me that the director put much more into the story of Andria (a very average role played by Igor Petrenko) than we could find in Gogol. First of all, he added scenes that are not in the story. The first is the birth of Andriy and his baptism in the Dnieper. Taras himself delivers the baby, and then immerses the baby in the river three times and signs him with the Orthodox sign of the cross. Then he passes the boy into the hands of his eldest son and hugs them both as a sign of acceptance into the ranks of the Cossack comradeship. These memories of the protagonist express his ideas about the ideal and are the backdrop for the family tragedy that unfolds later. It is necessary to emphasize the secondary role of a woman in Cossack life, because it was not her - the mother - who was given the first opportunity to hold her newborn son in her arms.
The second scene is a conversation between the brothers in the Zaporozhye Sich, immediately after burying alive a Cossack who killed his friend for fun. When Ostap feels sorry for the executed Cossack, Andriy asks whether he would feel sorry for him even if in the place of the Cossack there was an ordinary person or a Lyakh. The director denotes two different approaches of the brothers to personality, law, homeland. Ostap divides humanity into his own, the Cossacks, and strangers, that is, everyone else. He is only interested in the Cossack land and the rights established on it. Ostap speaks of the Latin tradition, which he became acquainted with with his brother at the Kiev-Mohyla Academy, as alien to him and Ukrainian (one might guess also Russian) soil. Therefore, for him the Lyakh is not a person, but an enemy who must be destroyed. Andriy, imbued with the spirit of humanism, is inclined to think about common (Roman) law and humanity, without division into tribes or nations (although the latter concept, of course, did not yet exist). A dispute between brothers foreshadows a future split. For a viewer who knows a little about historyXVIIc., it becomes clear that this is an expressive sign of the situation of choice carried out in this part of the world not only in former times.
The third scene added by the director is the birth of the son of a beautiful Polish woman and Andriy. This love (which for Andriy from Bortko’s film became a logical consequence of his way of thinking) is hampered by all conceivable circumstances. The only road for Andriy, who is trying to win his beloved, is class elevation, which for the son of a rich and respected Cossack means betrayal of his own, especially since Andriy’s love unfolds in military conditions. But love turns out to be stronger than the inevitable shame of a traitor. Let us add that in both Gogol and Bortko this love is of a romantic nature, and Andriy, before becoming a knight, saves a Polish woman from starvation. Andriy's betrayal has a connotation of a romantic tragedy, and not the usual for XVII V. utilitarianism. Let us recall that one of the reasons for the Cossack riots was the refusal of the Polish king and magnates to equalize the rights of the Cossacks with the Polish gentry.
In Bortko’s painting, the Cossack Andriy and the knight Andriy are as if two different characters (as a suit changes a person!) The metamorphosis here occurs in the spirit of the romantic transformation of the hero, however, with a tragic ending, as in the story - death at the hands of the father. The director remained faithful to Gogol and showed how, from a terrible knight dispensing blows in the midst of battle, Andriy again becomes an unconditionally obedient son, accepting the words of his father: “I gave birth to you, I will kill you.”. This may seem paradoxical, but this behavior is connected in some sense with the legal consciousness of Andriy, who, despite the strength of his love, ultimately still recognizes the right of primacy of his father.
Birth of son Andriy and Polish noblewoman (she also dies during childbirth) - probably one of the most important symbols, according to the director’s plan. In the face of death and the terrible tragedy that we are witnessing, new life is the promise of continuity in the history of two peoples. The voivode, the baby’s grandfather, does not dare to kill his grandson, which may also indicate weakening Polish influence and loss of vitality. The development of Andriy's storyline in the film may indicate an attempt by the director to go beyond the propaganda depiction of the tragedy of UkraineXVIIV. with an expressive message for our modern times.
To add to the list of episodes that are important for my understanding of the film, I would like to mention another collective scene that Bortko saved in the film. In a speech - a toast before the battle - Bulba drinks for the third time to all Christians in the world, while making a broad gesture with his hand towards the besieged Poles. Thismeaningfully .
In conclusion, I want to emphasize that in an artistic sense, in my opinion, the best part in Bortko’s film is the one that shows the Zaporozhye Sich. This is important, because it is Gogol’s Sich who is the main character of the story. Colorful images of Cossack life, full of energy, cruelty and humor, can give the modern viewer an idea of both that place and that time. The weakening of anti-Semitic notes in the film also deserves mention, which is probably the merit of Sergei Dontsov, who played the role of the cunning but understanding Jew Yankel. But the Polish actress Magda Melzaz in the role of the lady does not convince. For some reason, extras - Polish knights - use exclusively modern profanity. The translation of Polish expressions into Russian can be strange, for example, the words of the governor: “ du ż o ich jest ? (are there many of them?) translated: “what do you say?”, and the phrase: “ w polu ich jak szara ń czy “(in a field of them like locusts) for some reason the translation sounds: “I’m the only one who got through.”
Of course, V. Bortko's film is not a masterpiece. This is a commercial film designed for mass audiences who succumb to propaganda slogans. For strengthening the unity of the state was one of the main cultural goals of the film. As I already suggested at the beginning of the text, the essential task was not the attack on the Poles, whose image in the film is quite balanced.
Without a doubt, the director tried to create a mythological image of the Cossacks in his film, following Gogol in this. How difficult it is to make a film based on a national epic was also seen by other film masters, for example, Andrzej Wajda, who created a film based on “Pan Tadeusz” by Adam Mickiewicz. It is difficult to translate the style of the epic and the specific kind of romantic pathos into the language of cinema. Therefore, directors sometimes fall into a kind of “comic book style”. Nevertheless, I believe that V. Bortko’s film can be an important word in the discussion about the history of that time and that territory.
Dariusz Klechowski,literary critic,doctoral student at the University of Lodz (Poland).Area of scientific interests: Russian-Polish cultural relations.
Retelling plan
1. Taras Bulba meets his sons who arrived from Bursa.
2. The next morning they leave for the Zaporozhye Sich.
3. Thoughts of the heroes during the road.
4. Customs and morals of the Zaporozhye Cossacks.
5. The Cossacks go on a campaign.
6. Cossacks besiege the Polish city of Dubno.
7. Andriy goes on a date with the lady in the besieged city.
8. Andriy's betrayal.
9. A terrible battle near the city walls. During the battle, Taras notices Andriy's absence.
10. The Cossack army is divided. Half goes to Sich to rescue comrades captured by the Tatars, the other half remains near the city of Dubno to rescue prisoners here.
11. Battle near the city of Dubno. Taras Bulba kills his son Andriy.
12. Taras was saved from a fierce battle. Ostap remains in captivity.
13. Taras, having recovered from his wounds, goes to Warsaw to look for Ostap.
14. Taras is present at the execution of his son Ostap.
15. Taras Bulba takes revenge for the death of his son.
16. Death of Taras Bulba.
Retelling
Chapter I
Taras meets with his sons Ostap and Andriy, who came home from Kyiv, where they studied at a bursa (theological school). The father admires his sons, jokingly, invites the eldest (Ostap) to fight with his fists. And father and son, instead of greeting, began to punch each other in the sides, and in the lower back, and in the chest. The youngest son stood silently and watched, for which he received a reproach from his father.
Taras is going to send his sons to Zaporozhye: “There is a school for you; there you will only gain some sense.” The mother was saddened that the children would only be home for a week. Taras shouted at his wife and ordered her to set the table and treat her sons. Bulba led his sons into the little room (follows a description of the decoration of the rooms, characteristic of Little Russian houses). Bulba invited all the centurions and the entire regimental rank to dinner. Taras introduced them to his sons. When the guests sat down at the table, Taras began to make fun of his sons, asking if they were punished in the bursa? Ostap restrainedly answered his father that all this was already in the past, now he was ready to personally show what kind of thing a Cossack saber was. Taras approved of his son’s words and immediately said that he and his sons would leave for the Sich. The poor mother looked at her sons with grief in her eyes: she was facing a quick separation from her children.
Next, it tells about the origin (“one of the indigenous, old colonels”) and the character of Taras: he was distinguished by a rough straightforwardness of character, loved the simple life of the Cossacks, and considered himself a legitimate defender of Orthodoxy. Before leaving for the Sich, Taras transferred his power to Esaul Tovkach.
When they went to bed, the mother sat for a long time at the head of her sons: she combed their young, carelessly tousled curls with a comb and cried. Like every woman of that daring century, she saw her husband for two or three days a year and endured insults, even beatings. All her love turned into one maternal feeling. The mother was afraid that at the very first battle the Tatar would cut off their heads, and she wouldn’t know... Sobbing, she looked into their eyes and dreamed that suddenly in the morning Bulba would change her mind and not go to the Sich.
Waking up early in the morning, Taras Bulba woke up his sons and began to hurry his wife. After breakfast with the whole family, they sat down before the long journey. The mother, hugging her sons, blessed them.
Saddled horses stood at the porch. Bulba jumped on his Devil... The mother's tears touched the young Cossacks, and they, hiding from their father, brushed away their tears. Having driven quite far, the brothers looked back: only two pipes were visible from afar... Goodbye to childhood and games...
Chapter II
The three horsemen rode in silence. Taras thought about the past, remembering his young years, and imagined the upcoming meeting with the Cossacks. The sons remembered something else. At the age of twelve they were sent to the Kyiv Academy. Ostap, the eldest son, ran away from the academy in his first year. They returned him, flogged him, and put him back behind the book. Four times he buried the primer in the ground, for which he was flogged four times, and again they bought him the primer. Only his father’s promise to keep Ostap in the monastery for twenty years calmed him down. Ostap did not show much effort in his studies, but he was a good friend, a straightforward person, and his mother’s tears touched him to the depths of his soul.
Andriy was more developed and studied more willingly. He had a heavy and strong character. Andriy knew how to evade punishment, but just like his brother, he was “seething with a thirst for achievement.” He loved to wander the streets of Kyiv. Once he was almost run over by some Polish gentleman's car, Andriy managed to jump to the side and fell into the mud. A laughing girl watched him from the windows of a neighboring house. After questioning the servants, Andriy learned that she was the daughter of a governor who had come for a while. The next night, Andriy snuck into the beauty’s house. By morning, the maid took Andriy out into the garden, and he climbed out through the fence into the street. And now, in the steppe, he recalled this meeting with the beautiful Polish woman.
Taras, waking up from his reverie, began to encourage his sons and said that they would soon be there.
The steppe, life and customs of the Cossacks, their customs and traditions are described. After a three-day journey, Taras and his sons reached the Dnieper, where the Sich was then. As they entered, they were deafened by fifty blacksmith's hammers striking in twenty-five forges dug in the ground. Meeting of Taras with familiar Cossacks.
Chapter III
Taras lived with his sons in the Sich for about a week. Ostap and Andriy did little military training.
The entire Sich was some kind of continuous feast, a holiday that had lost its beginning. Some were engaged in crafts, others kept shops and traded; but most of them walked from morning to evening. Ostap and Andriy were surprised that during their time the death of the people came to the Sich, and no one asked who they were, where they were from... The Sich consisted of more than sixty kurens, which looked like separate republics. Everything was in the hands of the smoking ataman: money, clothes, food, fuel. They gave him money to save. Having plunged into this riotous sea, Ostap and Andriy quickly forgot their father’s house, and Bursa, and everything that had previously worried their souls.
But Sich lived according to very strict laws. If a Cossack stole something, he was tied to a pillory and a club was placed next to him, and anyone passing by was obliged to strike until he was beaten to death. A debtor who did not return the money on time was tied to a cannon and kept there until one of his comrades paid the debt for him. A terrible execution was prescribed for murder: they dug a hole, lowered the living murderer into it and placed a coffin with the murdered man on top of it, and then covered both of them with earth.
Both young Cossacks were soon in good standing with the Cossacks. They were distinguished by their youthful prowess, luck in everything, they shot accurately at the target, and swam across the Dnieper against the current. But Taras was not satisfied with this idle life, he thought about how to raise the Sich to a brave enterprise, where the knight could roam properly.
Chapter IV
Taras Bulba, consult with the smart and cunning Cossack, elected Koschevo, about how to rouse the Cossacks to some cause. An hour later, all the Cossacks were alerted. Several people swam to the opposite bank of the Dnieper and took out weapons and money hidden in the reeds. Others began to inspect the canoes and prepare them for the journey.
At this time, a large ferry began to moor to the shore. When the Koschevoi asked what the Cossacks had come with, a broad-shouldered Cossack of about fifty answered that it was trouble. The old Cossack explained that the holy churches had been taken away. The colonels gave everything to the Poles.
The Cossacks gathered on the shore noisily discussed what they had heard: everyone was excited - both heavy-minded people and strong men... Now everyone wanted to go on a hike - old and young. It was decided to go straight to Poland and take revenge on it for all the evil, the disgrace of the faith and glory of the Cossacks, collect booty from the cities, and set fire to the villages. Everything around suddenly changed. The Cossacks began to prepare for the campaign: the sounds of test firing, the clanking of sabers, and the creaking of turning carts were heard. In a small village church, the priest served a prayer service, sprinkled everyone with holy water, and everyone kissed the cross. When the camp set off, the Cossacks looked back, and each of them said goodbye to the Sich.
Chapter V
Soon the entire Polish southwest became a prey to fear. Rumors spread that the Cossacks had appeared. Everything that could escape was saved, scattered... Everyone knew how difficult it was to deal with the crowd known as the Zaporozhye army.
And Taras was pleased to see that both of his sons were among the first. Looking at Ostap, he thought that in time he would become a good colonel, who would put even his father in his belt.
Taras marveled at the resourcefulness of his youngest son, Andriy. But Taras was afraid that Andriy would fall into the hands of the enemy.
The army decided to go straight to the city of Dubno. In a day and a half, the Cossacks reached the walls of the city, where, according to rumors, there were a lot of treasury and rich inhabitants. The residents of the city decided to die on the doorsteps of their houses, but not to let the enemy in. The city was surrounded by a high earthen rampart, and there was a well-armed garrison in the city. The Cossacks climbed onto the rampart, but were met with strong grapeshot. All the residents (even women and children) stood in a heap on the earthen rampart. The Cossacks did not like to deal with fortresses and, on the orders of the Koshevoy, retreated and surrounded the city. The Cossacks, just like in the Sich, began to play leapfrog, exchanged loot, smoked cradles... The young Cossacks did not like this kind of life. Andriy was noticeably bored. Taras reassured his son: “Be patient with the Cossack, you will become an ataman!” Tarasov's regiment also arrived. All the Cossacks numbered more than four thousand.
The night before the siege of the city, Ostap went about his business, and Andriy could not sleep. Gogol describes the June night and the sleeping Cossacks.
Suddenly Andriy felt that someone was bending down in front of him. He grabbed the gun: “Who are you? If there is an unclean spirit, get out of sight; if a living person starts a joke at the wrong time, I will kill you at one glance.” Andriy began to peer closely and recognized the woman as a servant of the Polish lady. The Tatar woman told Andriy that the lady was in the city, that she had not eaten anything for the second day, because the city had run out of food and the residents were eating nothing but land. From the city rampart the lady saw Andriy among the Cossacks and sent her maid to him. If he remembers, then let him come to her himself, and if he forgot, then at least give a piece of bread to her sick mother.
Various feelings awoke in the chest of the young Cossack. He decided to go to the city. I started looking for bread and porridge. But there was no porridge in the cauldrons. Then, from under Ostap’s head, he pulled out a bag of white bread, which he had won in battle, and set off secretly after the Tatar woman into the city.
Chapter VI
Making his way through the streets of the city, Andriy was amazed at what terrible victims the famine led to. He asked if there were really no cattle left in the city? The maid said that everyone had eaten too much, you couldn’t even find a mouse in the city. When asked why the city was not surrendered, the Tatar woman replied that the governor was ordered to hold it and wait for reinforcements. The Tatar woman led Andriy into the room where the lady was sitting. Then she brought in the already sliced bread on a golden platter and placed it in front of the panna.
The beauty looked at her, at the bread and then at Andriy... She took a piece of bread and brought it to her mouth. As soon as she took a bite, the Tatar woman said that she should not eat again, the bread “will be poisonous” after a long hunger. Pannochka obeyed and put the bread on the dish. Andriy began to ask the beauty why she was so sad. In response, she said that he could not love her, that his duty and covenant forbade it, since they were enemies. Andriy objected: he has no one - no comrades, no homeland. “My homeland is you! This is my homeland!.. And I will sell, give away, and destroy everything that I have for such a homeland!” - said Andriy. Suddenly their conversation is interrupted by a maid: the Poles have entered the city, they are saved.
And the young Cossack died! Lost for all Cossack knighthood. And Taras will curse his son.
Chapter VII
Noise and movement occurred in the Zaporozhye camp. At first no one could understand what happened. Then they found out that the entire Pereyaslavsky kuren was dead drunk, so half of the Cossacks were killed and the other half were bandaged. While other kurens were waking up from the noise, the Polish army was leaving for the city gates. After the incident, the Koshevoy gave the order for everyone to gather. He began to scold the Cossacks, accusing them of drunkenness. The Cossacks, feeling guilty, stood with their heads bowed. In response to the evil words of the Koshevoy, Ataman Kukubenko objected that there was no sin in this, that the Cossacks got drunk. After all, they had been idle for days, and there was no fasting. But they will show how to attack innocent people, they will beat the treacherous Poles so that they will not take even a toe home. The Cossacks liked the speech of the kuren chieftain. Koshevoy ordered to split into three detachments and wait in front of the three gates of the city for the Polish army to leave them. He strictly ordered each ataman to take a look at his kuren, and whoever has a deficiency should be replenished with the remnants of Pereyaslavsky.
The atamans each went to their own kuren. Taras suddenly found out that Andriy was not there. Didn't the Poles take him prisoner? But Andriy was not the type to surrender. Taras, thoughtful, walked in front of the regiment. He led his regiment into an ambush and disappeared with it behind the forest. And the Cossacks - on foot and on horseback - set out on three roads to three gates. The movement of the Cossacks was heard in the city. Everyone poured out onto the shaft. The colonel began shouting for the Cossacks to surrender their weapons, and ordered the captured Cossacks to be paraded. The Cossacks tied up with ropes were led out onto the rampart; in front of them was the kuren ataman Khlib. The chieftain was ashamed of this shame; overnight his head turned gray from worry.
They began firing grapeshot from the rampart. The gates opened and the army marched out. Koshevoy commanded that the Cossacks attack and not allow the Poles to line up. The Cossacks struck suddenly, knocked down and mixed up the enemies in a heap. When describing the battle in detail, the author pays special attention to Ostap’s behavior. Taras heard that Ostap was appointed ataman of the Umanets. The old Cossack was delighted and began to thank the Umanians for the honor shown to their son.
The Cossacks retreated again, preparing to go to the camps, when the Poles appeared on the rampart, but in tattered uniforms... The Cossacks settled down to rest after a difficult battle. Some began to cover the wounds with earth, others, who were fresher, picked up the bodies of the dead and buried them.
Chapter VIII
Early in the morning, the awakened Cossacks gathered in circles. News came from the Sich that the Tatars, during the absence of the Cossacks, attacked it and robbed it, beat it and took everyone prisoner and headed straight to Perekop. In such cases, the Cossacks immediately chased after the kidnappers, trying to overtake them on the road and recapture the prisoners. If this could not be done, then the prisoners could find themselves in the bazaars of Asia Minor, in Smyrna, on the Cretan island... The Cossacks began to demand that the Council be convened. Koshevoy decided to follow the Tatar robbers. The Cossacks supported his decision. But Taras Bulba did not like such words. The old Cossack thought for a moment and said: “No, your advice is wrong, Koschevoi! - he said. “...Have you forgotten that ours, captured by the Poles, remain captives?” Taras, with his bright speech, began to convince the Cossacks to stay and free their comrades taken prisoner by the Poles. The Cossacks became thoughtful. The oldest Cossack in the entire army, Kasyan Bovdyug, stepped forward. He said that both the Koshevoy and Taras are each right in their own way. He offered to make a choice: whoever loves the comrades captured by the Tatars, let them go to free them, and whoever wants, let him stay here and free another group of comrades. The Koshevoy will go with one half of the army, and the other will choose a chieftain for himself. And such an ataman could be Taras Bulba, because there is no equal to him in valor.
The Cossacks thanked the wise Cossack for the right decision. When the Cossacks divided into two groups, Koshevoy walked between the rows and told them to say goodbye and kiss each other. As night fell, a group of Cossacks, led by Koshev, set off. Another group remained near the city of Dubno with ataman Taras Bulba.
Chapter IX
No one in the city found out that half of the Cossacks set out in pursuit of the Tatars.
Koshevoy’s words that there would not be enough supplies in the city for a long time came true. Several times the troops tried to make a sortie for food, but were killed by the Cossacks. The colonels were preparing to give battle. Taras guessed this, observing the movement and noise in the city. He ordered the Cossacks to prepare for defense. And when everything was done, Taras made a speech to the Cossacks. The chieftain called on his comrades to lay down their heads if necessary, but not to surrender Russian lands to enemies and to free their comrades from captivity. This speech touched all the Cossacks and reached the very heart of everyone.
An enemy army was leaving the city. The fat colonel gave orders. They began to closely advance on the Cossack camps. The Cossacks started shooting at the enemy, approaching the rifle shot. The superiority in battle was on the side of the Cossacks. But cannon shots rang out, and many Cossacks were wounded. Taras ordered the Nezamaikovsky and Steblikivsky kurens to mount their horses. But the Cossacks did not have time to do this, because cannons were firing from the city. More than half of the Nezamaikovsky kuren never happened. This angered the Cossacks, they went to the guns. During the battle, Taras several times encouraged his comrades with the words: “What, gentlemen? There is life in the old dog yet; The Cossack strength is still strong; Are the Cossacks still not giving in?”
The author describes how heroically and steadfastly the Cossacks accepted death. Already only three kuren chieftains remained alive, but the Cossacks rushed into battle again. Taras waved his handkerchief to Ostap, who was in ambush. Ostap struck the cavalry. So victory was close. But suddenly a hussar regiment, the beauty of all cavalry regiments, flew out of the city gates. Among the enemy soldiers, Taras recognized his son Andriy. Old Taras stopped and looked at how he cleared the road in front of him, accelerated, chopped and rained blows right and left. Taras ordered the Cossacks to lure Andriy to the forest. Thirty of the fastest Cossacks rushed to carry out the ataman’s order. Taras, grabbing the reins of Andriy's horse, stopped him. Andriy was scared when he saw his father. Taras ordered his son to get off his horse, stand and not move. Then, stepping back, he took the gun off his shoulder and fired. The son-killer looked at the lifeless corpse for a long time. Ostap drove up and asked his father: “Did you kill him, dad?” Taras nodded his head. Brother Ostats felt sorry for him, and he immediately said: “Let’s betray Dad, he’ll be honest with the earth.” “They will bury him without us!” - Taras answered. For about two minutes Taras thought about what to do with the body of his youngest son. Suddenly they brought him news that fresh force had arrived to help the Poles. “On your horses, Ostap!” - said Taras, still in a hurry to catch the Cossacks. Before they had time to leave the forest, enemy forces surrounded the forest on all sides. Six Poles attacked Ostap. Taras, fighting off the enemy, looked forward, at Ostap. But suddenly Taras himself was struck like a heavy stone. And he fell like a felled oak tree to the ground. And fog covered his eyes.
Chapter X
Taras woke up in a strange little room and saw Tovkach in front of him. Taras began to ask where he was. Tovkach said that they managed to get him out of the forest, chopped to pieces, and for two weeks now he has been taking Taras to Ukraine. Taras remembered that Ostap was captured and tied before his eyes and that he was being held captive by the Poles. Grief overwhelmed the old Cossack. He again fell unconscious from the fever. His faithful comrade Tovkach rode without rest days and nights, and brought him, unconscious, to the Zaporozhye Sich. There he treated him with herbs and lotions. A month and a half later, Taras got back on his feet. There was nothing left in the Sich that Taras knew; all his old comrades had died. No matter how hard the Cossacks tried to cheer him up, they failed. He looked at everything sternly and indifferently, and his face expressed unquenchable grief, and quietly, with his head bowed, he said: “My son! Ostap is mine!”
The old Cossack suffered for a long time. And he decided to go and find out what happened to Ostap: is he alive? in grave? Or is he no longer even in the grave itself? A week later, Taras found himself in the city of Uman. He drove up to one of the houses where the Jews lived. He entered the house to talk to Yankel. Yankel was praying in his room when he suddenly saw Taras, for whose head the Poles promised two thousand chervonets, but he suppressed his greed for gold and listened to Taras. Taras reminded the Jew of his service done to save his life, and asked him to help him now. Yankel said that in Warsaw he would be recognized and arrested. Taras promised him five thousand gold if he took him to Warsaw. Yankel suggested taking the brick to Warsaw, and with this cart Taras.
Chapter XI
Yankel found out that Ostap was sitting in the city dungeon, and hoped, although it was very difficult, to arrange a meeting for Taras with his son. Yankel left Taras in the house of his friends, and he himself went with two other Jews to arrange the matter.
Taras felt uneasy. His soul was in a feverish state. He stayed in this state all day, did not eat, did not drink... Having returned, the Jews began to explain to Taras that they could not do anything. Tomorrow all prisoners will be executed. And if he wants, tomorrow at dawn he can be taken to the square. Taras agreed. At night, with the help of the Jews, he made his way into the dungeon. But I couldn’t meet my son. Then he headed to the square where the execution was to take place. A lot of people gathered in the square. Suddenly shouts were heard from the crowd: “They are leading! They're leading! Cossacks!..” Ostap walked ahead of everyone.
Taras, standing in the crowd, did not utter a word. He watched and listened to the speech of his eldest son, with which he addressed his Cossack brothers. Ostap called on the Cossacks to bravely accept death.
Next, the author describes the execution. Ostap endured all the savage torments with steadfastness and courage. Neither a scream nor a groan was heard even when they began to break the bones in his arms and legs... Taras stood in the crowd, with his head bowed and his eyes proudly raised, saying approvingly: “Good, son, good!” When Ostap was brought to his last death throes, he exclaimed in mental weakness:
- Father! Where are you? Can you hear?
- I hear! - rang out amid the general silence.
Some of the military horsemen rushed to look for Taras. But there was no trace of him.
Chapter XII
Taras gathered an army and spoke out for the liberation of Ukraine from foreign invaders. He walked throughout Poland with his regiment, burned eighteen towns, about forty churches and was already approaching the city of Krakow. He beat up all the nobles a lot, plundered the richest and best castles: “This is a wake for Ostap for you, enemy Poles!” - Taras said. And Taras held such funerals for his son in every village, until the Polish authorities saw that Taras’s actions were more than ordinary robbery. And therefore Pototsky was entrusted with five regiments to certainly catch Taras.
The Cossacks took six days to escape persecution, but Pototsky managed to overtake the army of Taras near the Dniester itself. Description of the battle in which Taras was captured. Thirty people hung on his arms and legs. With the hetman's permission, his enemies came up with a terrible execution for him: to burn him alive in front of everyone.
They pulled him to a tree trunk with iron chains, nailed his hands and, lifting him higher so that he could be seen from everywhere, they began to build a fire under the tree. But Taras was not thinking about his death. He watched as the Cossacks shot back, and was very happy to see how several Cossacks managed to swim across the Dniester. The fire rose above the fire, engulfed his legs and spread flames across the wood...
But are there really such fires, torments and such strength in the world that would overpower the Russian force!
Taras Bulba is a story by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol, the idea of which came to the author in 1830. The writing of the work lasted for ten years. The version revised by the author contains twelve chapters. Throughout the story, it tells about what happened during the war between the Cossacks and the Poles; what incredible difficulties the Cossacks had to experience while defending their land, how they did not bend under fire or sword, wanting to remain faithful to the Fatherland. Only Taras Bulba’s youngest son Andrei turned out to be a traitor and was killed by his own father... You can learn more about the story by reading the summary.
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Chapter 1
Two sons of Taras Bulba - Ostap and Andrey - return home after studying at the Kyiv Bursa. They are greeted by a joyful father and a worried mother. After a short greeting, Taras and the eldest son Ostap suddenly wanted to measure their strength and began to beat each other, much to the concern of their mother. Finally, the father appreciated his son’s strength with the words: “Yes, he fights well!.. He will be a good Cossack!”
The dream of making his sons fighters for his homeland has been ingrained in the soul of the stubborn Taras Bulba for a long time. And he decided to send them to Zaporozhye. He is not touched by the tears of his mother, who has not seen Ostap and Andrei for so long, nor by the fact that they have not been home for so long. “Sons should be at war – that’s it,” Taras thinks. In the heat of inflamed feelings, he suddenly expresses a desire to go with them. The father and two young Cossacks, to the great grief of the poor old woman, set off on the road the very next day.
Chapter 2
Bursa, where Ostap and Andrey studied, did not teach them knowledge, but it strengthened their character. For example, the eldest son, often beaten with rods, began to be distinguished by firmness, which is acceptable for the Cossacks, and valued comradeship; The younger one studied better and knew how to at least sometimes evade punishment. In addition to the thirst for achievement, other feelings were also available to his soul.
On the way to Zaporozhye, sitting on a horse, Andrei began to remember his first meeting with a beautiful Polish lady, a lady: how frightened she was when she saw a stranger in front of her, how she put her brilliant diadem on his head; how childishly she behaved, confusing him.
And Zaporozhye was getting closer every day. The Dnieper was already blowing with cold waves, and the Cossacks, after crossing it, found themselves on the island of Khortitsa, near the Sich.
Chapter 3
The incessant feast of the Sich, where Taras Bulba settled with his sons, and the drunken gaiety of the people captivated Ostap and Andrei so much that they enthusiastically indulged in riotous life. The cruel laws of the Cossacks, when a person who stole was beaten to death with a club, and the debtor was chained to a cannon awaiting ransom for him, were not yet so severe punishments in comparison with those that were due for murder. The person who committed this was buried alive in the ground along with the murdered person. This made an indelible impression on Andrey.
So the sons of Taras lived relatively calmly until their father wanted a new war. It was he who began to encourage the Koshevoy to start a battle with the Busurmen, despite the fact that the Sultan had been promised peace. Believing that, without knowing how to fight, a person without a good deed will perish like a dog, Taras Bulba looked for any reason for enmity with other people. The Koschevoy’s objections were met with hostility, and very soon they elected another leader of the Cossacks, an old comrade of Taras Bulba named Kirdyaga. In Sich they celebrated this event all night.
Chapter 4
No matter how strange it may seem to a normal person, Taras Bulba was simply obsessed with the idea of fighting with someone. He lamented that “the Cossack strength is disappearing, there is no war” and began to incite the people to take radical action. A reason was soon found. A ferry with fugitive Cossacks arrived on the island, who spoke about the lawlessness of the “Jews”, who sew clothes from priests’ vestments and impose a ban on Christian holidays. This became a signal to start a new war between the Cossacks and the Poles.
Chapter 5
The beginning of the war satisfied Taras Bulba. He was proud of his mature sons, although he believed that Ostap was more capable of military affairs than Andrei. The romantic nature of the youngest son was also manifested in his longing for his mother, who handed over the icon; and in contemplation of beautiful nature. A soft heart, not completely hardened by battles, strived to love. That is why Andrei, having learned from the Tatar woman that the lady was starving, decided on a desperate act: to take a bag of food from his sleeping brother, follow the Tatar woman, see the beautiful Polish woman and help her.
Chapter 6
As the Tatar woman leads Andrei through the underground passage, he notices Catholic priests praying and women and children dying of hunger - a terrible picture that makes his heart freeze. Arriving at the place, the young man meets with someone whom he has not seen for a long time - and notices that she has become even more beautiful. Andrei's feelings prevailed over common sense, and he went so far as to give up everything for the sake of this girl - his homeland, his father, his brother, his friends. Without hesitation he went over to the side of the enemy.
Chapter 7
The Cossacks are preparing to attack Dubno with the aim of striking for the captured Cossacks. Taras Bulba is worried because he does not see his son Andrei anywhere - neither in the Cossack detachment, nor among the killed, nor among the prisoners. And suddenly Yankel reports terrible news: he saw Pan Andriy, but not tied up in captivity, but alive, a knight, all in gold, like the richest Polish lord. Taras was shocked by this news, and at first he did not want to believe his ears, accusing Yankel of lying. And he cited more and more terrible facts, saying that Andrei even renounced his father and brother, saying that he would fight with them.
A battle ensues between the Poles and the Cossacks, in which many Cossacks die, including the ataman. Ostap decides to avenge him, and for such a feat he himself is elected chieftain.
Taras worries about his son, worrying why he was not among those who fought.
Chapter 8
The Cossacks are attacked by the Tatars, and after consulting, the Cossacks decide to drive them away and return the loot. However, Taras has a different opinion: he proposes to first rescue his comrades from Polish captivity. Kasyan Bovdyug's wise advice - to divide and go to war with both - turns out to be just the right thing. Warriors do this.
Chapter 9
In a harsh battle, the Cossacks suffered heavy losses: cannons were used against them. However, the Cossacks, encouraged by Bulba, do not give up. Suddenly Taras sees his youngest son riding a black horse as part of a Polish regiment. The father, distraught with anger, catches up with the young man. He kills Andriy with a shot with the words: “I gave birth to you, I will kill you.”
Ostap sees what happened, however, there is no time to figure it out - Polish soldiers attack him. So the eldest son becomes a prisoner of the Poles. And Taras is seriously injured.
Chapter 10
Bulba, brought by his comrades to Sich, recovers from his wounds a month and a half later and decides to go to Warsaw to see Ostap. He turns to Yankel for help, not even afraid that a lot of money is promised for his head. And he, having taken the reward, hides Taras at the bottom of the cart, covering the top with bricks.
Chapter 11
Ostap is going to be executed at dawn. Bulba was late: it was no longer possible to free him from prison. You are only allowed to see him at dawn. Yankel, in order to arrange a meeting, resorts to a trick: he dresses Taras in foreign clothes, but he, offended by a remark addressed to the Cossacks, gives himself away. Then Bulba goes to the place of his son’s execution. He stands in the crowd, sees the torment that one who did not betray the Fatherland has to experience, gives his life for it, and says approvingly: “Good, son, good.”
Chapter 12
The entire nation, led by Taras Bulba, rose up against the Poles. He became very cruel, did not spare any of his enemies, and burned eighteen cities. Considerable money was offered for Bulba's head, but they could not take him - until he himself, due to an absurd accident, fell into the hands of enemies. Taras's cradle of tobacco fell out, and he stopped his horses to look for it in the grass. Then the Poles captured him and sentenced him to a harsh death - by burning. But Taras did not give up in the face of torment, and even a blazing fire did not stop him. Until his last breath, he encouraged the Cossacks fighting the battle on the banks of the Dniester River.
And then they remembered and praised their chieftain.
The story begins with the arrival of Taras Bulba’s two sons, Ostap and Andriy, at their home. They, like many other children of the Cossacks-Cossacks, were sent to study at the Kyiv Bursa - to the seminary. There were no plans to make priests out of them, but Cossack Colonel Taras believed that his children should have an education. He considered no less important the continuation of their male education in the Zaporozhye Sich, where he and his sons had to go as quickly as possible.
Already in the first scene of the story, the characters of the main characters are visible. Ostap is courageous, decisive, straightforward. He does not tolerate jokes and ridicule and is ready to defend his honor with all his might, even in front of his father. Andriy, on the contrary, is gentle, sensitive, dreamy. Taras is noisy, extravagant, does not tolerate refusal in anything, he is a man of action.
With great tenderness Gogol describes the mother of the young Cossacks - the wife of Taras Bulba. She is a quiet, unrequited woman, accustomed to obeying her husband, and suffered many insults from him. During his frequent departures, she managed a large household herself. She raised her children without the help of her husband, but does not have the opportunity to keep them at home. She only has one night left to admire the children before leaving. The poor mother does not know whether her sons will return home alive, because at that time the Cossacks were in a state of almost continuous war.
In Zaporozhye Sich
The day after the young people return from Bursa, their father takes them to the Cossack military camp. On the way, travelers have different thoughts. Ostap dreams of military glory, Taras remembers his old exploits, and Andriy dreams of a beautiful Polish girl whom he met and fell in love with during his studies.
Taras brings his sons to the Zaporozhye Sich - a Cossack camp. Here they spend almost all their time between battles. This is a male community with its own laws, where daring and youth, the ability to drink alcohol and fight enemies are valued. Kurenny atamans here are chosen by the Cossacks, the rules are established once and for all.
Ostap and Andriy, despite all their differences, come to court in the Sich. Both young Cossacks and veterans consider them good warriors, respect and love them. Old Taras is proud of them. He is glad that his children perform well in peacetime. He hopes that during the war he will not be ashamed of his sons.
The war has begun
You don’t have to wait long for a suitable opportunity, and Taras himself helps to increase the military fervor of the Cossacks. On his advice, the head of the Sich, the Koshevoy, was re-elected. Now the Cossacks are commanded by a warlike man who gives the command to prepare for war with Poland.
However, the Cossacks cannot break their word given to the Poles and Turks. They cannot attack their enemies without a reason. But the reason will also soon be found. A detachment of Cossacks appears in the Sich and talks about the atrocities of the Poles and Jews. This becomes the formal reason for the Cossacks to speak out.
War is always accompanied by death, blood and fires. The Cossacks marched across Poland, sparing no one, killing both old and young. Every Polish or Jewish family could become a victim of a pogrom.
Ostap and Andriy during the war
The sons of old Taras were tempered in battle. Ostap showed himself to be a skillful leader, and his father already dreamed that he would become a famous commander. And in every battle Andriy surprised everyone with his reckless courage and military prowess.
The Cossacks brought with them fear, fires, hatred and murder. In battles and battles, in smoke and fire, the Zaporozhye army came to the large city of Dubna. It was a large and well-fortified fortress. The Cossack army could not take it right away, so a siege was organized.
Skirmishes rarely happened, and the rest of the time the Cossacks burned villages around, robbed local residents, had fun and waited for a real battle. And in the besieged fortress, real famine began. The residents of Dubna did not give up.
Andria's betrayal
One night an elderly woman came to Andriy. He recognized her as the maid of a beautiful Polish woman. The girl saw Andriy from the walls of the fortress and recognized him as a seminarian who was in love with her. She sent her maid for help. The old woman asked to give her some food for her mistress, but Andriy did differently. He decided to go to the Polish woman himself to see her again.
But, having seen the girl, he could no longer part with her, and remained in the fortress to protect her from his comrades. Andriy abandoned his Fatherland, his family and friends - he betrayed his land.
Andrey's betrayal
Taras did not believe this for a long time, but when he saw his son with the Poles, he vowed to kill him with his own hands. In one of the battles, when a detachment from the city tried to break the siege, the old Cossack fulfilled his promise - he killed his youngest son. In the same battle, Ostap Bulba was captured.
Death of Ostap
Taras was seriously wounded in the battle and was ill for a long time. He managed to recover only after lengthy treatment. And then he learned that Ostap was in Warsaw and was about to be executed.
Taras, with the help of a Jew whom he once saved from death, comes to Warsaw to try to save his son. He gives a large sum to the prison guard to see Ostap. But the Pole deceives Taras. He doesn't even get to see his son.
The old Cossack can do nothing more. But he wants to see Ostap at least once again and goes to the square where the execution of the Cossacks is to take place. Taras sees that Ostap did not lose the honor of an Orthodox warrior here either and withstood all the torture without requests or groans. And only before his death he loudly calls for his father. And his father responds to him, but the Poles, who were just waiting for this, fail to catch him. Taras leaves the city to begin a terrible revenge for his son.
Read. The story describes the difficult life of a St. Petersburg official who is forced to endure hardships every day for the sake of his dream.
The novel-poem by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol is a recognized encyclopedia of human souls and characters, types of Russia at that time.
Death of Taras
The Poles captured many Ukrainian cities and villages, killed and burned Ukrainians. The entire Cossack army rose up to fight them. Everyone fought bravely, but Taras Bulba’s regiment was distinguished among them for its courage and cruelty.
The Poles began to ask for mercy from the Cossacks, but they did not believe their enemies. The war continued, and only the requests of the Orthodox clergy could give hope to the Poles.
A peace treaty was signed, according to which the Cossacks received their former rights and freedoms, and the Orthodox churches remained untouched. The Cossacks returned to the camps, but Taras urged not to believe the vile Poles and not to stop the war with them.
He turned out to be right: the Poles broke their word and killed the Cossack atamans and foremen. Taras and his regiment walked around Poland, celebrating a cruel funeral for his eldest son, sparing no one: neither children, nor old, nor young.
The Poles tried for a long time to catch Taras. They sent their best troops against him, led by Hetman Potocki. But old Bulba would have left him too, his regiment had already broken through the encirclement of the enemies. But he felt sorry for the lost old pipe that he had left on the battlefield, and Taras returned. Then the Poles captured him.
The Poles decided to execute Taras Bulba with a terrible execution. They were so afraid of the old Cossack that they came up with the most terrible death for him - in fire. But even from the fire he gave instructions to his comrades on how they could escape.
The story “Taras Bulba” is a terrible story about cruel times, about fidelity, about love, about betrayal. Cossack Taras is a symbol of the unbending will and devotion of an Orthodox warrior, contempt for fear and love for his native land.
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Very briefly
Year: 1835 Genre: story
Main characters: Taras Bulba is a Cossack colonel, Ostap and Andriy are his sons.
Two sons return to Taras from the seminary, whom he decides to send into battle so that they do not waste their young strength and will. The mother cries over the sleeping heads of her sons and says goodbye to him in the morning. During the war, Andriy sees his beloved’s maid in a dream, abandoning his father, he wanders at night to his beloved clearing. In one of the battles, his father meets him one on one and kills him for betrayal. Ostap is captured and executed in front of his father. The father, consumed by revenge, is also captured and dies with thoughts of his sons, life and comrades.
The main idea. The story talks about how children can do rash things for the sake of love.
Read the summary of Gogol Taras Bulba
Two sons come to the colonel. Two healthy and strong guys were embarrassed by their father’s ridicule about their clothes. The father greets his eldest son with cuffs instead of greetings. The mother protected her youngest son from such a fatherly greeting.
Taras Bulba, seeing the strength in the young Cossacks, decides to send them to the Zaporozhye Sich. The mother sat grieving all night by the bed of the fellows. Along the way, the sons experience separation from their mother, the father, remembering the past years, sheds a tear. The youngest son, Andriy, dreamed of a Polish woman with whom he spent the night, and recalled how he ran away from the servants at night.
Taras does not want to waste time on military exercises. After consulting with his comrades, he decides to organize a campaign in order not to waste the young Cossack strength. The new Koshevoy decides to go to Poland, to answer for all the shamed Cossack forces and faith in it.
In battles, good fellows showed valor and were always among the first. The father was proud of his sons. But one night Andriy had a dream about a clearing, how her maid was calling for help, telling him that his sweetheart was starving. The guy, without thinking twice, loads up some bread and follows the Tatar woman’s trail to his beloved. Helping his beloved, Andriy has to renounce his father. He is full of courage and confidence to protect her from his yesterday’s comrades until death overtakes him.
The father, having found his youngest son, knows about his betrayal. During the battles with the Poles, news comes that due to the lack of military power, the Tatars captured the remaining Cossacks and took the treasury.
The time for a decisive battle is coming. Andriy is lured into the forest, he appears before his father. Taras Bulba deals with Andriy. At this time, Ostap was captured, and the wounded Taras returned to the Sich.
Having healed his wounds, the father rushes in search of his eldest son, his father’s pride. Having found him, she tries to save him, to get him out of captivity, but all attempts bring no benefit. Taras is present at the execution of his eldest son. Not a single cry for help escapes from the chest of the valiant young man, only the question of whether his father hears him. Bulba tells him that he hears, they begin to pursue him, but they never find him.
The Cossack army, led by Taras, attacks the Poles with particular ferocity. The enemy is defeated and their leader no longer dares to offend the Cossack army. But this does not stop Taras Bulba, he intends to take harsh revenge for the death of his eldest son, Ostap, and destroys everything in his path.
The last battle lasts about four days. The Cossack regiment was resting in a fortress on the river bank, while they were overtaken by the enemy. The chieftain was captured, tied to a huge oak tree, and there he died. Before his death, he shouts to his comrades to save themselves and tells them which way to return home. Before his death, Taras thinks about his comrades and the path he has taken in life.
Summary of Taras Bulba in Chapters (Gogol)
Chapter 1
In this chapter, Taras Bulba meets Ostap and Andriy. They returned from Kyiv, having completed their studies there. He begins to joke about their appearance, but naturally with kindness. But the elder is outraged by this. And instead of greeting each other in a family way, some misunderstanding occurs between them, but it quickly ended.
But it was not easy for his mother to accept his decision, and she hugged them and wanted the night to last forever.
When the children were leaving, she ran towards them with an ease and speed that no one had seen in her before. She couldn’t just let her blood loved ones go. And the Cossacks even had to dismiss her aside.
Chapter 2
In this chapter, Taras Bulba recalls his youth, his friends - the Cossacks and the adventures in which he found himself, and also imagines how he will tell his sons about this. But his sons have completely different thoughts. When they turned 12 years old, they were sent to the Kyiv Academy. The eldest son wanted to run away from there and even buried the primer, but everyone unsuccessfully returned it, and bought the book. But he still did not want to give up if his father had not said that he would send him to a monastery. Naturally, he didn’t want to go there, so he began to try to do everything correctly and slowly took a place among the best students.
But Andriy wanted to study, so he didn’t need much effort for this. He grew up as an inventive boy, so he often became the author of adventures. But, nevertheless, he was not punished, because his flexible mind allowed him to avoid it. He was an open and sincere boy. But one day he saw a Polish girl and fell in love. Literally the next night he was looking for a way to get into her chambers. Of course, the lady was scared at first, but then she became cheerful and even put various jewelry on him. The Tatar woman helped Andriy leave the house when there was a knock on the door.
They continued to gallop across the beautiful endless steppes. Everything here breathed freedom and purity. After some time they were already on the island of Khortitsa. The sons arrived at the Sich. People here lived an ordinary life.
Chapter 3
They saw the Sich as a “constant feast.” Craftsmen, merchants and traders lived here, but many people were just walking.
But on Khortitsa everything was different. People lived here who had no education or simply dropped out of the academy, but you could also meet learned people. All of them were united by faith in God and immeasurable love for their native land.
The sons very quickly joined this environment and liked it. But Taras Bulba was against it, because he brought them here so that they could participate in the battles. And now he constantly thinks about the event that would lead to war. And then, by the way, there was a quarrel with the Koshevoy. Of course, Taras does not intend to retreat from his plans, even despite the fact that the Koshevoy does not want war at all. And Taras came up with revenge. He persuades his friends to get everyone drunk so that they drive away the Koschevoy. Everything works out as he planned, and Kirdyag is elected.
Chapter 4
In this chapter, Taras asks the new Koshevoy for permission to go on a new campaign. But that wise man answers him the following: “It is necessary for the people to gather independently without any coercion.” But the whole point is that he did not want to take responsibility for violating the peace between states. But then a ferry arrives on the island, carrying the Cossacks who were able to escape. They say very scary things. Both old and young are ready to go defend their homeland, defeat the Poles and take trophies from the villages that will be captured.
The Cossacks began shouting: “Hang the ass up! So they don’t make skirts from the priest’s vestments!” These words became parting words for the Cossacks. But here’s the problem, because Taras Bulba had a Jewish friend. He tries with all his might to save his life and saves it, and then even gives permission to go to Poland.
Chapter 5
The glorious Cossacks create legends about their conquests.
The Cossacks moved at night and rested during the day. Taras Bulba was proud of his sons, who had become mature. It always seemed to him that Ostap was simply a born warrior. He has shown himself to be a brave, courageous warrior who has an analytical mind. But Andriy saw romance in the Ryazan campaigns and battles with the sword. All his actions were done intuitively, but sometimes he could do something that more than one experienced warrior would not do.
Here the army had already approached the city of Dubno. And the Cossacks rushed to the rampart, but they were met with arrows, covered with stones, thrown with sand and poured boiling water on them. The Cossacks realized that they were under siege, but it was not a strong point and they decided to starve out the city. They began to trample their fields with their roots, all the crops in the gardens were also destroyed. The sons did not like such a life, but their father encouraged them with the words: “Be patient with the Cossack, and you will become an ataman!”
Esaul brought his sons an icon from their mother. Andriy misses her very much, but his father’s orders do not allow him to return, although his heart shrinks from separation. When everyone is sleeping, he admires the night sky. Looks at the beautiful nature and enjoys. But then a figure catches his eye. Having looked closely, I saw in her a Tatar who was serving the lady. The Tatar woman tells him about hunger and the lady who has not eaten for several days. As it turned out, she recognized him and asked to find him. Maybe he will give her some bread, but if not, then let her just come. Andriy immediately begins to look for supplies, but it turns out that everything has been eaten. Then he decides to take a desperate act, pulling out a bag of groceries from under his older brother. Ostap woke up for a moment and immediately fell asleep. He carefully goes out into the street, where the Tatar woman was waiting for him, promising to lead him through the underground passage.
But suddenly the father calls out, saying that women are no good. Then Taras quickly fell asleep.
Chapter 6
As promised, the Tatar woman leads Andriy through an underground passage, they end up in a Catholic monastery, where they found priests reading a prayer. Andriy really liked the interior decoration of the monastery, especially the stained glass windows on the windows, how they shimmer and play with colors in the light. But most of all he liked the music.
They enter the city and already at dawn. Andriy noticed a woman holding a child in her arms, but, unfortunately, she turned out to be dead from hunger. Then, out of nowhere, a man appears, begging for a pile of bread. Andriy fulfills his request, but as soon as he eats it, he immediately dies, because he has been hungry for a long time. The Tatar woman says that all living things that could be eaten have been eaten. But, nevertheless, the governor ordered not to surrender, so one of these days two regiments from Poland should come to the rescue.
Andriy and the maid enter the house, where he sees his beloved. Now she is completely different - a beauty that cannot be described in a fairy tale. And then he saw her as a lovely, flighty girl. They can't look at each other enough. The Tatar woman cut the bread and brought it, then the lady began to eat it, but Andriy warned that you need to eat in parts or you might die. The feelings that flared up between them were so strong that he was ready to renounce everything just to be with her and serve only her alone.
A cheerful Tatar woman appears in the room and says that the Poles have come and are leading the captured Cossacks. Andriy kisses his beloved.
Chapter 7
The Cossacks decide to attack Dubno in order to strike back for their captured friends. But Yankel tells Taras about what Andriy saw in the city. “They gave him another horse, changed his clothes and now he shines like a coin.” But Taras doesn’t believe it, he seemed dumbfounded by what he heard.
Then Yankel presents him with another piece of news about the upcoming wedding of Andriy and the master’s daughter. Which should take place after he drives the Cossacks out of the city. But Taras Bulba still doesn’t believe it, he is furious and suspects that Yankel is lying to him.
In the morning they learn that many Cossacks were killed, and many Cossacks were taken prisoner from the kuren. And then a battle breaks out between the Cossacks and the Poles. They want to break the Polish army into pieces, then they can quickly win.
But in the battle one of the Cossack atamans is killed, then Ostap takes revenge for him. And in response, the Cossacks elect him ataman for his courage. Ostap had the opportunity to prove himself as a wise leader; he ordered to retreat from the walls, and after a while various objects fell from there.
The battle is over. The Cossacks buried their comrades, but they tied the Poles to wild horses so that they would be dragged across the steppes and ravines. Taras was worried about the only question: why his youngest son did not participate in the battle. He hated the lady and was ready to take revenge on her for his son, who renounced everything for her. But what awaits Taras Bulba tomorrow?
Chapter 8
From the Sich they bring news that during the absence of the Cossacks, Khortitsa was attacked by the Tatars. Koshevoy gathers a council, but he addresses them not as a boss, but as a friend, comrade. Everyone decided to catch up with the Tatars and return what they took. But Taras did not share this decision. He talks about the main value of the Cossacks - this is camaraderie, and that you cannot go after the Tatars if their comrades have not yet been freed from Polish captivity. But the Cossacks agree with both Taras and the Koshevoy. But no one knows how to solve this situation. Then Kasyan Bovdyug comes. He is a wise and respected Cossack. And he proposes to split up: those who want to take revenge on the Tatars should go with the Koshevoy, and those who rescue their own from captivity should stay with Bulba.
The Cossacks say goodbye, drink to their faith and the Sich.
Chapter 9
Due to poor calculations, the city is starving again. News reaches the chief that the Cossacks have left after the Tatars and are beginning active preparations for the battle. The Poles admire the fighting tactics of the Cossacks, but, nevertheless, they lost a lot of people. But the Cossacks are not going to give up; Taras Bulba invigorates them. Then he notices his son, who is riding at the head of a Polish regiment. He was simply enraged by what he saw. He starts chasing him. And the son, at the sight of his father, lost all his fighting spirit. Then Andriy gets off his horse. And before his death, he only managed to name his mother and Polish girl. Taras Bulba shoots at him, while uttering a phrase that has long become a “catch phrase”: “I gave birth to you, I will kill you!” Ostap sees all this, but there is no time to figure it out, because the Poles are attacking him.
Chapter 10
But Bulba remains alive, he is brought to the Sich. A month and a half later, he is recovering from his wounds. In Sich everything is completely different. The Cossacks are no longer the same, and those who left to fight the Tatars simply did not return. Taras Bulba was very stern, indifferent, and he did not take part in festivities and fun. Taras turns to Yankel for help to take him to Warsaw. He was not afraid that a lot of money was promised for his head. Taking payment for the service, he hides it in a cart and covers it with bricks.
Chapter 11
Taras appeals to the Jews to let his son go. But it’s too late, the execution is scheduled. But he is allowed a meeting at dawn. Naturally he agreed. Yankel dresses him in different clothes, they end up in prison. Yankel flatters the guards. But then Taras is touched by the word, and he reveals the whole secret.
Bulba demands that he be taken to the place of execution. The Cossacks walked drooping, Ostap walked ahead. He shouted into the crowd: “Do you hear?”, and in response, “I hear.”
Chapter 12
The entire Sich gathered under the leadership of Taras Bulba for Poland. He became very cruel and hated the Poles. He reached Krakow with his army and burned 18 cities. But Hetman Pototsky was ordered to seize Bulba. The battle lasted 4 days. Victory was almost won, but Taras was captured while looking for a cradle in the grass. And he was burned.
About the product
This work belongs to the cycle called “Mirgorod”. Moreover, there are two editions from 1835 and 1842. But Gogol wanted to make some adjustments and not publish the book yet. But still it was published without his amendments.
The events described in the book date back to approximately the 17th century, but the author deliberately mentions the 15th century, which may well indicate the fantastic nature of the story. In the work itself, two plans can be distinguished, but this is a conditional division. The first tells about the life of the Zaporozhye Cossacks, and also describes their campaign against Poland, but the second tells the story of the Cossack Taras Bulba, as well as his sons.
As in any story, there are main characters and secondary characters. So the main ones are:
Taras Bulba is the main character, he is respected, he is a good warrior. His virtues are considered to be strong faith and love for the Fatherland.
The next main character is his eldest son Taras Ostap. He graduated from seminary. He took part in battles, where he showed himself to be Khrabrovo, a calculating person, he perfectly analyzes the situation and therefore is able to make the right decision. He's a good son.
There is also a younger son, Andriy. He sees beauty in every insignificant detail, feels nature, but, despite his delicate nature, while participating in battles, he showed himself to be a brave warrior and uses a non-standard approach when fighting.
In addition to the main characters, there are other people worthy of attention:
Yankel is a Jew, he often seeks benefit for himself in any situation.
Pannochka is the daughter of a Polish gentleman; Taras’s youngest son is in love with her.
Tatarka is the lady's servant. It is she who tells Andriy that there is a famine in Dubno and how to get there through an underground passage.
The main idea: the work tells the story of a father and sons, loyalty to the homeland, heroism and love. These topics are still relevant today.
Picture or drawing of Taras Bulba
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