A.I. Kuprin's story "The Duel": problematics and artistic originality. The image and characteristics of Shurochka in the story Kuprin's duel essay Shurochka is the main character of which work for children

I never understood before the self-sufficiency of Olesya and her grandmother from Kuprin’s story “Olesya”. Smart Russian women live in the forest and they don’t need anything else. Olesya is actually Alena, they began to call her Olesya in Polesie, where her grandmother brought her granddaughter from Russia.

And so I re-read the story, and everything is clear, I simply didn’t pay attention to it due to our Soviet darkness. Olesya is full of otherworldly power, and her mother was like that, and her grandmother was like that. Olesya is sure that this power comes from the Devil. The hero of the story recognizes this power in her, but tries to explain everything to her rationally, talks about hypnosis and scientific discoveries. He himself understands that Olesya owns some ancient techniques, part of some ancient knowledge. And he begins to persuade Olesya to go to church so that she understands that there is nothing in her from dark forces.

Olesya knows the fate of her beloved, knows her destiny, but from a certain moment the will of her man becomes stronger than her will, she goes to church and a disaster happens, but not metaphysical, but quite everyday, which leads to the end of the love affair.

The hero wanted to reconcile the irreconcilable.

So why are Olesya and grandma so self-sufficient? And it’s simple, they have a strength that doesn’t exist in other people, they feel this strength, it keeps them afloat.

But what a sacrificial love Olesya has!

But another heroine from Kuprin’s story “The Duel” is Shurochka, this one is the black one female image, which I can only remember in Russian literature. And again, this one somehow flew by, because criticism wrote about the horrors of life as an officer, but the horror of the story lies elsewhere.

Shurochka, whom Kuprin describes as an unusually charming woman, is, in fact, very attractive. But what is she doing? She kills almost literally two noble people, thirty-year-old Nazansky and a twenty-one-year-old boy, Lieutenant Romashov.

Both are madly in love with her, she makes them fall in love with her. But when Nazansky tries to start new life, leaves the army, ambitious, striving for wealth and social life, Shurochka does not follow him, she does not need simple life. As a result, Nazansky returns to the service to be close to the woman he loves (she is married to another officer), becomes an alcoholic and goes crazy.

Dramatically and with Romashov, Shurochka flirts with him, begins an affair, but her husband is jealous and challenges Romashov to a duel. The night before the fight, Shurochka comes to the boy Romashov, gives herself to him and says that her husband will shoot in the air, which Romashov must also do.

As a result, Shurochka’s husband kills the boy outright, but Shurochka and her husband go to enter the General Staff Academy, i.e. Her husband will enroll for the third time, and Shurochka has a chance for a social life.

Here you go! Associated with dark forces, Olesya is an example of sacrifice and nobility, and Shurochka is an example of the lowest creature a woman can be. She uses her charms for the sake of whim, out of boredom, and then to destroy men.

Something in the image of Shurochka can be seen from Kuprin’s first wife; it was with her that he lived when he wrote “The Duel.”

Shurochka’s plan in the story “The Duel”

After reading Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin’s story “The Duel” and analyzing it, I came to the conclusion that the main character here is not Yuri Alekseevich Romashov, but Alexandra Petrovna Nikolaeva. It is she who is the core of the entire plot.

Let's pay attention to its description in the story. Here's how she describes herself:

“I know that I am young, smart, educated. Not beautiful. But I can be more interesting than many beauties...”

Here is how Nazansky spoke about her:

“Perhaps she never loved anyone but herself. There is an abyss of lust for power in her, some kind of evil and proud force. And at the same time, she is so kind, feminine, and infinitely sweet. It’s like there are two people in it: one with a dry, selfish mind, the other with a tender and passionate heart.”

From her letter to Nazansky we can say that she hates the feeling of pity. She herself admitted that she was calculating and nasty. She also hates cowardice and drunkenness. By coincidence of fate, she had to live in a miserable provincial town,

“which is not on any geographical map.”

She is disgusted by local drinking, gossip, intrigue, card games, and poverty. Her goal is

“society, large, real society, light, music, worship, subtle flattery, intelligent interlocutors.”

She always wants to be perfectly dressed, beautiful, graceful. She wants worship and power.

The most obvious way to break out

"of this slum"

this is to ensure that her husband Vladimir Nikolaev enters the academy General Staff. She not only dreams, but actively achieves her goal. Looks for all possible ways. First of all, she marries Vladimir Efimovich Nikolaev. Why did she choose him? It is clear that it is not out of love. She needed material to work on. A kind of horse. From the small choice available, she chose Nikolaev because

“Volodya doesn’t invent gunpowder, but he is an honest, brave, hardworking person.”

She admitted more than once that she does not love her husband

“I don’t love my husband.<…>He’s rude, he’s insensitive, he’s insensitive.”

However, Shurochka did not immediately meet Nikolaev. Before Vladimir Efimovich, Shurochka had a relationship with Vasily Nilych Nazansky. She was attracted by his extraordinary mind and beautiful soul. But soon she left him for Nikolaev because Nazansky liked to drink and did not succumb to her control. Nikolaev didn’t drink at all. So, she chose Vladimir Efimovich Nikolaev as her control object.

“Our system is my invention, my pride. Every day we go through a piece from mathematics, a piece from military sciences - artillery, however, is not easy for me: all some nasty formulas, especially in ballistics - then a piece from regulations. Then a day later both languages ​​and a day later geography with history.” As for the husband, he “prepared hard all year, without rest”

for the exam. His legs were numb from working out and his back hurt. He worked his ass off. But there was still no result. Couldn't pass the exam:

“They returned to the regiment twice in disgrace.”

Something was missing.

Alexandra Petrovna felt that the ground was slipping away from under her feet. She's tired of these exam failures. She knew many tickets better than Nikolaev. She admitted that she herself could pass this notorious exam. Then she began to think about what would be a bonus for her husband when entering the academy. She was a smart woman and quickly realized that Nikolaev’s heroic past would be a powerful argument. But where can we find a heroic past in peacetime? The right question is the key to the answer. Duel. She guessed that

“People who know how to carry themselves with dignity under fire are forgiven a lot, a lot.”

She hoped that the duel would make it easier to enter the academy. She realized that it was necessary, absolutely necessary, to organize a duel for her husband. But how? How to do it naturally? What could be the reason? It's all a matter of technique. In pursuit of material wealth, Shurochka did not shy away from getting her hands dirty with blood.

The organization of the fight began. Shurochka chose the most banal scheme of the fight - an insult to honor. And on the basis of love. All that remains is to choose a victim. The first available second lieutenant Romashov was chosen.

First of all, she decided to turn the head of this young, stupid, naive graduate. She deliberately made Romashov fall in love with her. She lied that she loved him. She constantly called him

“Romochka”, “darling”, “my love”, “my joy”.

She especially clearly seduced Yuri on their common name day. She said that she dreamed about him. How they dance the waltz together. Then she almost gave it to him. Then she moved away from him

"You shouldn't come to us anymore"

She became a forbidden apple so that he would desire her even more. She played so skillfully that Romashov even stopped loving Raisa Alexandrovna, whom he had previously met.

Secondly, she tried to convince Romashov that duels are normal. She initiated a casual conversation about fights at home:

“I understand: fights between officers are a necessary and reasonable thing<…>now the sentimental opponents of officer duels - oh, I know these despicable liberal cowards! - now they will start shouting: “Oh, barbarity! Ah, a relic of wild times! Ah, fratricide!

She adds:

“What are officers for? For war. What is the first thing required for war? Courage, pride, the ability not to blink before death. Where are these qualities most clearly manifested in peacetime? In duels.<…>And then, what tenderness: fear of a shot! Your profession is to risk your life."

Next, Shurochka needed to set up a quarrel between Romashov and Nikolaev. The pretext for Nikolaev was actually anonymous slanderous letters. I think that Shurochka herself wrote these letters. This was her provocation. I am sure of this, because Nikolaev urged not to talk about the letters in court. Otherwise there would have been a consequence. We would look for the source of the letters and would inevitably come across Alexandra Petrovna. Moreover, Nikolaev was the first to start attacking Romashov at the wake.

Could Romashov be saved? Certainly. There were many bifurcation points where one could choose the path of salvation. First of all, he shouldn't have interacted with him at all. married women. Then he wouldn't be used as a pawn. Secondly, he should not have quarreled with Nikolaev. And fourthly, he could ask for forgiveness in a duel, and thereby survive. In addition, he should have found the source of the anonymous letters. In the end, he should have listened to the sensible advice of his guru, Nazansky. He said that

“It will be bolder to take it and refuse”

from the duel. Romashov even agreed and gave his word to Nazansky that he would refuse, but this calculating bitch (Shurochka) came to Romashov that same evening and, appealing to his feelings, persuaded him to a duel. I convinced that

"one of you will not be injured."

It seems to me that the reason for her appearance at Romashov’s was that she came to persuade Romashov not to shoot first. Although I would not be surprised if she told her husband that he must kill Romashov. Romashov believed his feelings instead of reason and died.

One can only guess how Alexandra Petrovna’s fate will turn out. It is very likely that her husband will finally enter the academy, and soon she will be flirting with actresses like a general's wife. Will she regret Romashov? Hardly. People like her are incapable of feeling. She is guided only by reason and calculation. I think that she did not love Romashov. She used his love. Probably, many years later, sitting by the fireplace of the general’s palace, she could not resist telling her husband that it was she who organized this fight. They will both remember the past and cry for the poor boy. Nikolaev will say that he was unfair to him. Then they both will come to his grave and ask for forgiveness from the granite slab.

A.I. Kuprin entered Russian literature as a singer of bright and healthy human feelings, as a successor to the democratic and humanistic ideas of the great Russian literature of the 19th century. Critical realism, the glorious traditions of which Kuprin embraced, was a progressive phenomenon at the beginning of the 20th century. Bright natural talent, a huge supply of life observations and a sharply critical image of reality - this is what determined the great public resonance of his works during the period of preparation and conduct of the first Russian revolution.

At this time, Kuprin was working on the story “The Duel,” which he began writing in 1902. Published in the sixth collection of the magazine “Knowledge” in 1905, the story “The Duel” evoked a wide response. The pathos of exposing bourgeois society and its high artistic merits put The Duel on a par with the largest works of Russian literature at the turn of two centuries.

The story takes place in the 90s of the 19th century. In “The Duel,” the author explains the reasons for the defeat of the tsarist army in the inglorious war with Japan. This “agony of old Russia” is the main theme of the story. However, in this work one should distinguish

Several thematic lines that, intertwined, create a holistic picture of the officer environment, the barracks life of soldiers, the personal relationships of Romashov and Nazansky, Romashov and Shurochka Nikolaeva, and, finally, the relationship of the hero with the soldiers.

The main character of the story is Second Lieutenant Romashov. This image most fully embodied the features of the Kuprin hero - a truth-seeker, a humanist, a lonely dreamer. Among the officers, Romashov feels lonely, since he does not share the views of the officers around him. Romashov protests with all his soul against the nightmare called “military service,” as he comes to the conclusion that “all military service, with its illusory valor, was created by a cruel, shameful, universal misunderstanding.” “How can a class exist,” Romashov asked himself, “which in peacetime, without bringing a tiny bit of benefit, eats other people’s bread and meat, dresses in other people’s clothes, lives in other people’s houses, and war time– goes to senselessly kill and maim people like themselves?”

A person with a fine mental organization, possessing a sense of self-worth and justice, he is easily vulnerable, sometimes almost defenseless against the evils of life. Already at the beginning of the story, we notice Romashov’s “unadaptability” to army life, his lack of understanding of “military discipline.” The painful emptiness of army life pushes him into a casual relationship with the regimental “seductress” Raisa Peterson, who soon becomes unbearable for him. Garrison life with drunkenness and provincial squalor increasingly alienates Romashov. The dream of beautiful and fairy-tale love forces Romashov to idealize the image of a young, attractive woman, Shurochka Nikolaeva. For the hero of the story, she is “a ray of light in a dark kingdom.” His dreams and hopes are connected with her. Blinded by love, Romashov did not see that Shurochka’s beauty, her charm, willpower, talent - all this was intended for the struggle for her personal, small, selfish happiness: by any means to escape from the bourgeois army environment and find the highest happiness in the “brilliant” life of the capital society.

The love tragedy in “The Duel” grows out of a social tragedy. In the relationship between Romashov and Shurochka, two characters collide, two worldviews that arose within the framework of bourgeois society and testify to the disintegration taking place in it. Why is it impossible for Shurochka and Romashov to be happy? Yes, only because Shurochka is trying with all her might to strengthen her position, and Romashov is gradually losing ground under his feet, because the spiritual and moral values ​​of this society are unbearable for him.

The ending of Romashov’s love tragedy is Shurochka’s visit to him at night. She came to deceive - to deceive basely and shamelessly, to offer conditions for a duel with her husband and at the cost of Romashov’s life to buy her future well-being and happiness. Romashov guesses the purpose of her coming and agrees to all the conditions of the fatal duel with Shurochka’s husband. He speaks about this calmly and coldly: “Okay, so be it. I agree. "In these in simple words contains a whole story - the story of the tragic love of a restless dreamer for a woman in whose soul the morality of “living for oneself” has eradicated human feelings. Romashov understood everything; in his firmly spoken words there was a cold awareness that life had lost its value for him. And here the spiritual superiority of Romashov over Shurochka Nikolaeva, as well as over other inhabitants of the bourgeois world around him, becomes obvious.

Romashov dies because Shurochka makes the conditions of the duel unequal (she promises Romashov that her husband, knowing the conditions of the duel, will shoot to the side). The inevitability of a tragic outcome follows here from deep social reasons. The hero of the story is not able to exist in the whirlpool of bourgeois society, built on hypocrisy and deception, but he is also not able to find a place for himself among the people, to draw strength for a new life from its midst. This is precisely what makes the image of Romashov tragic. The writer did not understand true reasons the evil he portrayed, could not find a way to overcome it. Not recognizing military service, denying the morality of the “aristocratic” stratum of army officers, Romashov felt powerless before life, since he could not leave military service. The honesty and subtlety of the spiritual organization make him feel his powerlessness especially painfully. He finds illusory consolation in the world of uncontrollable, naive dreams. In this world, Romashov is no longer a poor second lieutenant, but a hero, daring, fearless, beautiful. But a dream does not serve as a source of creative inspiration, but primarily as a means of escape, an escape from reality.

The fate of Romashov continued to worry Kuprin for a long time. After the publication of the story, the author continued to be tormented by the fate of the main character and could not part with him. Kuprin intended to re-write the duel scene, save Romashov’s life and show his hero in the thick of people’s life. From the memoirs of Kuprin’s wife, M.K. Kuprina-Iordanskaya, one could find out about Romashov’s further fate: “And here he is in Kyiv. The days of unemployment, wandering, fierce need, changing professions, and at times downright beggary begin...” However, the writer’s plan - to create a new work, “Beggars,” which is a continuation of “The Duel” with Romashov as the main character, remained unfulfilled. The history of the idea indicated that Kuprin intended to show only the gloomy and tragic in his contemporary reality. In his search for a hero, the creator of “The Duel” came to a point that was difficult for him to cross. In life, the type of truth-seeker-fighter had already been formed, but the writer could not part with the type of truth-seeker-sufferer. This was noted by A.M. Gorky, who once said to Kuprin: “What is this! Why are you still mourning your Romashov! He did a smart thing when he finally decided to die and untie your hands. Tell me, what would he do in your novel, why would this intellectual, incapable of anything except whining, exist there... “To which Kuprin answered with his characteristic frankness: “He hoped to make me the herald of the revolution, which completely owned him. But I was not imbued with a fighting mood and could not foresee in advance which direction my future work would take.”

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Answers

What is the theme of the story?

The crisis of Russia, all spheres of Russian life

What three main thematic lines did you see in the story?

The life of officers, soldiers, relationships between people

How does Kuprin paint images of officers?

With cruel strokes, Kuprin paints the army environment. The images of officers were created from many years of experience. Almost all are careerists, drunkards, stupid and ignorant. Service for them is boring, a painful duty. They have no intellectual interests, they can’t read or think, and they don’t want to.

Kuprin managed to create a whole gallery of portraits. These are also representatives of the older generation - Colonel Shulgovich, Captain Sliva, Captain Osadchiy, who is distinguished by his inhumanity towards soldiers and recognizes only cane discipline.

There are also younger officers - Naznansky, Vetkin, Bek-Agamalov. Their lives are no better. Having come to terms with the oppressive order in the army, they try to escape from reality by drinking.

Do you agree that the officers in the story “The Duel” have a single “typical” face? How does this “unity” manifest itself?

Comparison with animals, Kuprin uses the epithet “animal” in describing officers

Kuprin depicts how in the conditions of the army there is a “dehumanization” of a person - a soldier and an officer, how the Russian army is dying

How are the “regimental ladies” depicted?

Officers' wives are just as predatory and bloodthirsty as their husbands. Evil, stupid, ignorant, hypocritical. Regimental ladies are the personification of extreme squalor. Their everyday life is woven from gossip, the provincial game of secularism, boring and vulgar connections. The most repulsive image is Raisa Peterson, the wife of Captain Talman. Evil, stupid, depraved and vindictive. "Oh, how disgusting she is!” - Romashov thinks about her with disgust. "And from the thought of his previous physical intimacy with this woman, he felt as if he had not washed for several months and had not changed his linen” (chapter 9).

The rest of the “ladies” are no better . Even the outwardly charmingShurochka Nikolaeva features of Osadchy, who seem to be unlike him, appear: she advocates fights with a fatal outcome, says: “I would shoot such people like rabid dogs " There is no truly feminine thing left in her: “I don't want a child. Ugh, what disgusting ! - she admits to Romashov (chapter 14).Thoughts about the possibility of another life are combined with thoughts about love forShurochka Nikolaeva . Sweet, feminine Shurochka, with whom Nazansky is in love, essentiallyguilty of the murder of Romashov in a duel.Self-interest, calculation, lust for power, double-mindedness , « some kind of evil and proud force “, Shurochka’s resourcefulness is not noticed by the loving Romashov. She demands: "You definitely have to shoot tomorrow “- and Romashov agrees for her sake to a duel that could have been avoided.

What does Kuprin say about soldiers?

A) poorly thinking, slow-witted BOndarenko ,

B) intimidated, deafened by shoutsArkhipov , which "does not understand and cannot learn the simplest things »,

B) loserKhlebnikov. His image is more detailed than others. A ruined, landless and impoverished Russian peasant, “shaved into a soldier." Khlebnikov's lot as a soldier is painful and pitiful. Corporal punishment and constant humiliation are his lot. Sick and weak, with a face "in the fist ", on which a dirty nose stuck up absurdly, with eyes in which "frozen in dull, submissive horror “, this soldier became a general ridicule in the company and an object for mockery and abuse. He is driven to thoughts of suicide, from which Romashov saves him, who sees a human brother in Khlebnikov. Feeling sorry for Khlebnikov, Romashov says: “Khlebnikov, are you feeling bad? And I don’t feel good, my dear... I don’t understand anything that’s going on in the world. Everything is some kind of wild, senseless, cruel nonsense! But we must endure, my dear, we must endure. …» Khlebnikov, although he sees in Romashov a kind person who has a humane attitude towards a simple soldier, but, first of all, sees in himmaster . The cruelty, injustice, and absurdity of life become obvious, but the hero sees no way out of this horror other than patience.

G) educated, smart, independentFokin.

Depicting gray, depersonalized, oppressed« own ignorance, general slavery, bosses’ indifference, arbitrariness and violence » soldiers, Kuprin evokes compassion in the reader for them, shows that in fact these are living people, and not faceless “cogs” of a military machine.

So Kuprin addresses another, very important topic.– theme of personality.

Image of Romashov.

Lieutenant Romashov is given in continuous movement, in the process of his internal change and spiritual growth. He is fundamentally different from all the officers in the story.

The main character of the story is Second Lieutenant Yuri Alekseevich Romashov. Kuprin will say about him: “He is my double.” Indeed, this hero embodies the best features of Kuprin’s heroes: honesty, decency, intelligence, but at the same time a certain dreaminess, a desire to change the world for the better. Naznansky says about Romashov: “You have... some kind of inner light. But in our den it will be extinguished"

Which of the characters in the story experiences a “serious moral revolution”? What is it connected with?

Romashov. Mercy has triumphed over the sinful essence of man.

What is the meaning of the title of the story?

1. Officer's duel – Romashov and Nikolaev

2. Romashov loses in a duel with reality. If he had survived, he would have faced moral death in the army environment

But the name is also metaphorical , symbolic meaning. Kuprin wrote: “with all the strength of my soul I hate the years of my childhood and youth, the years of the corps, the cadet school and service in the regiment. About everything. What I have experienced and seen, I must write. And with my novel I will challenge the tsar’s army to a duel.” The name also has another, much greater social aspect. Tale –Kuprin's duel with the entire army , with the whole system that kills the personality in a person and kills the person himself. In 1905, this story, of course, was perceived by revolutionary forces as a call to fight. But almost a hundred years after it was written, the story remains a call for respect for the human person, for reconciliation and brotherly love.

3. The meaning of the name isRomashov's duel with the bad that is in him . This conflict is presented as philosophical, the hero’s comprehension of freedom and necessity.

Theme of the fight – a sign of reality itself, the disunity of people, the misunderstanding of one person by another.

1. Portrait and character of Georgy Romashov.
2. Longing for real life in the soul of a young officer.
3. Love for Shurochka as salvation from the cruelty of everyday life in war.
4. The image of Alexandra Petrovna and her attitude to love.
5. The inevitability of a fight.

- Sleep, my beautiful, sleep, my love. I am near, I am guarding you!
A. I. Kuprin

The main character of A. I. Kuprin’s story “The Duel,” Georgy Alekseevich Romashov, is a sensitive and romantic nature. This is evident from the first pages of the work, when the narrator begins to talk about this officer. George often thought about it, loved to watch sunsets, imagining that there was a wonderful city beyond the horizon. The second lieutenant “was of average height, thin, and although quite strong for his build, he was awkward due to great shyness...”. From the same paragraph it turns out that Romashov wore glasses. Here is another episode where Yuri Alekseevich’s appearance is described: “Then Romashov suddenly, with amazing clarity and as if from the outside, imagined himself... pale face, myopia, his usual confusion and awkwardness...”. But, despite this and Georgy Alekseevich’s habit of fantasizing and mentally speaking about himself in the third person, the young warrant officer had a lively mind, imaginative thinking, courage, and the ability to empathize and have compassion for people. He had a strong concept of honor, conscience, and human dignity. In his service, Romashov was guided by the fact that beating a soldier who does not have the right not only to raise his hand against a superior military man, but even to defend himself from beatings is inhumane and cruel. Throughout the story, Georgy repeatedly stood up for a weak person (a Tatar soldier, the always offended Khlebnikov, a woman in a brothel) before a strong one (Colonel Shulgovich, non-commissioned officer Shapovalenko, Lieutenant Bek-Agamalov), when everyone else was obediently silent, preferring inactive.

One of the first chapters of the story says that both officers and soldiers, not particularly burdened by ambition, carried military service, as “forced, unpleasant, disgusting corvée.” Romashov, a sensitive man, did not like army life either. And not only because of its monotony, but also because people, living in such conditions, became embittered, lost their human appearance, and often the officer’s only joy at the end of the day was going to the canteen to drink vodka. The young officer was disgusted by all this - he had already learned to drink, and started a dirty and vulgar affair with a married regimental lady, Raisa Peterson. And Romashov’s soul wanted real, pure and sincere love. Georgy Alekseevich, who has a keen sense of nature, felt the joyful and bright mood of spring: “...And in this soft air, full of strange spring aromas, in this silence, darkness, in these exaggeratedly bright and seemingly warm stars, a secret and passionate fermentation was felt, one could sense the thirst for motherhood and the wasteful voluptuousness of the earth, plants, trees—the whole world.” The desire to love was especially felt in the spring: “... a vague and sweet premonition of future love stirred in my heart...”

Romashov fell in love with the wife of Lieutenant Vladimir Efimych Nikolaev, Shurochka. At first, he felt only secret tenderness for this woman, he loved to visit the Nikolaev family, watch her, pull the thread when she was knitting, talk to her in the presence of her husband, who was preparing for exams. But gradually the feeling of falling in love with the young, charming Alexandra Petrovna grew into a more serious and deep feeling - into love: “... For a moment he remembered Shurochka, so strong, so proud, beautiful - and something languid, sweet and hopeless ached in his heart. near his heart." On April 23, on the day of their joint name day, Alexandra invited Georgy Alekseevich to a picnic in honor of her and his name day. The celebration, especially the time spent in the gathering twilight, away from everyone, alone with Shurochka, further kindled the young second lieutenant’s love for her and forced him to passionately confess his feelings to his beloved. Then Romashov’s heart began to beat faster, but he did not achieve the desired happiness with Shurochka. Moreover, she, calling the young officer “sweet” and “beloved person,” asks him not to come to their home anymore because of the dirty anonymous letters coming to the Nikolaevs’ house. Now Yuri Alekseevich can only walk under her windows, throw flowers at them and mentally turn to his beloved. “...Often, seeing from a distance a woman whose figure, gait, and hat reminded him of Shurochka, he ran after her with a constricted heart, with short breaths, feeling his hands becoming cold and wet from excitement.”

Did Alexandra Petrovna herself love Georgy Romashov? It is difficult to say “yes” unequivocally, even despite her tender words addressed to the young second lieutenant. The main character of the story admires Sasha's pale, dark face, her burning lips, the flexibility of her body and the mole on her ear. Alexandra herself is happy to listen to compliments from a stranger in the presence of her husband. She is ready to show momentary tenderness, sometimes even care for the “prisoner” Romashov, but on the day of the picnic, having skillfully teased the young officer, she cannot and does not want to surrender to the second lieutenant who passionately loves her. She explains this by her reluctance to cowardice and deception. But on the eve of the duel, Shurochka still allowed her lover to “take their happiness,” having previously agreed with Romashov on the terms of the duel, which would be beneficial to both her family and the young officer. In my opinion, the most accurate words about Alexandra Nikolaeva were spoken by Vasily Nazansky, Shurochka’s former lover and close friend of Second Lieutenant Romashov: “Perhaps she never loved anyone but herself. There is an abyss of lust for power in her, some kind of evil and proud force. And at the same time, she is so kind, feminine, and infinitely sweet. It’s like there are two people in it: one with a dry, selfish mind, the other with a tender and passionate heart.” From Alexandra Petrovna’s secret last conversation with Romashov, it becomes obvious that the young woman first worries about her benefit, her reputation, about her business (so that her husband successfully passes the exams), and then she remembers the honor of Georgy Alekseevich. In despair, reaching the point of tears, Shurochka promises to “burn out in an instant like fireworks” if her husband’s reputation suffers and he is left in the regiment. This could not help but touch Romashov to the depths of his soul, because the happiness and well-being of the woman he loves is dearer to him than anything in the world!

The young officer has no choice but to submit to the will of Alexandra Petrovna. Her words “You must definitely shoot yourself tomorrow” sound like an order to “Roma”. Despite Nazansky’s reasonable advice not to play with death, Romashov takes this dangerous step in the name of love, in the name of fulfilling his beloved’s wishes.