Who wrote the work Prisoner of the Caucasus. Brief description of the work “Prisoner of the Caucasus” by L. N. Tolstoy

« Caucasian prisoner" - a story telling about a brave officer who did not lose hope of surviving when he was captured by the Tatars.

In the middle of the 19th century. there was a difficult and bloody war in the Caucasus, L.N. Tolstoy served there at that time, so he saw everything with his own eyes.

The genre of the work is determined by the writer himself - a true story, it indicates the reality of the events described. The beginning. Life goes to his mother. Highlights:

1. Zhilin and Kostylin are captured.
2. Unsuccessful escape.
3. Zhilin’s second escape.

The denouement is the happy release of Zhilin, he finds himself in a Cossack detachment. Barely alive, Kostylin, having paid off, ends up in his camp.

The story fully and in detail describes the life of the highlanders, their customs. The narration amazes with its dynamism: everything around moves, breathes, lives, everything is real, but at the same time we are as if in a fairy tale. But the main thing is vivid description characters and actions of people who know how to endure difficulties with dignity, fight for freedom without losing their own dignity.

The story is based on a comparison of two heroes. By the way, their last names are significant. Zhilin - from the word “vein”, the popular name for blood vessels and tendons. This is a strong, strong-willed, calm, courageous person, capable of withstanding a lot. Kostylin - from the word “crutch”, a wooden tool that helps the lame move. This is a weak-willed person who easily gives in to despondency; he needs to be supported and guided. From the very beginning, the characters behave differently. They both don’t want to move with the barely crawling convoy. However, Zhilin is thinking about whether it is worth risking his life by getting along dangerous places on one's own. This hero always thinks first, makes a decision, and then acts. Kostylin’s thoughts here (and further) are deliberately hidden from us by the author. He does not think through his actions in advance. He invites Zhilin to go together, without thinking about the consequences, and tacitly agrees with Zhilin’s proposal not to separate in case of danger. When meeting with the Tatars, Kostylin instantly forgets his promise and, seeing that Zhilin is almost in captivity, shamelessly runs away.

When both end up with the Tatars, Kostylin immediately agrees to write a letter home to be ransomed for five thousand rubles. Zhilin knows that his mother will not be able to send such a sum for ransom, so he first bargains with his captors, and then indicates the wrong address on the envelope. Zhilin says that they won’t be able to give more than five hundred rubles for it. He just wants to gain time so he can get out of captivity himself.

Zhilin commands respect even from his enemies. His “master” Abdul-Murat calls him a horseman, local residents value him as a master who can fix any thing. Zhilin made friends with Dina, the daughter of Abdul-Murat, and makes toys for her.

Kostylin, in captivity, is simply waiting for help from home, and Zhilin is counting only on himself. He prepares an escape: he examines the area to know where to move when escaping, feeds the owner’s dog to tame it, and digs a hole out of the barn. Trying to escape from captivity, he does not forget Kostylin and takes him with him. Zhilin does not remember evil (after all, Kostylin once betrayed him). After an unsuccessful escape, Zhilin still does not give up, and Kostylin completely loses heart. Thanks to a happy coincidence of circumstances (Dina’s help, the absence of the Tatars), his own perseverance, courage and ingenuity, Zhilin manages to escape from captivity.

in Wikisource

"Prisoner of the Caucasus"- a story (sometimes called a story) by Leo Tolstoy, telling about a Russian officer captured by the highlanders. Written for ABC, first published in 1872 in the magazine Zarya. One of the most popular works of the writer, reprinted many times and included in the school curriculum.

The title of the story is a reference to the title of Pushkin's poem "Prisoner of the Caucasus".

Story

The plot of the story is partly based on a real event that happened to Tolstoy during his service in the Caucasus in the 1850s. On June 23, 1853, he wrote in his diary: “I almost got captured, but in this case I behaved well, although too sensitive.” According to the memoirs of S. A. Bers, the writer’s brother-in-law,

The peaceful Chechen Sado, with whom L. N. was traveling, was his great friend. And not long before they exchanged horses. Sado bought a young horse. Having tested it, he gave it to his friend L. N-chu, and he himself moved to his pacer, who, as you know, does not know how to gallop. It was in this form that the Chechens overtook them. L.N-ch, having the opportunity to gallop away on his friend’s frisky horse, did not leave him. Sado, like all mountaineers, never parted with his gun, but, unfortunately, it was not loaded. Nevertheless, he aimed it at his pursuers and, threatening, shouted at them. Judging by the further actions of the pursuers, they intended to capture both, especially Sado, for revenge, and therefore did not shoot. This circumstance saved them. They managed to approach Grozny, where a sharp-eyed sentry noticed the pursuit from afar and raised the alarm. The Cossacks who came to meet them forced the Chechens to stop the pursuit.

Tolstoy's daughter talks about this incident as follows:

Tolstoy and his friend Sado accompanied the convoy to the Grozny fortress. The convoy walked slowly, stopped, Tolstoy was bored. He and four other horsemen accompanying the convoy decided to overtake it and ride forward. The road went through a gorge; the mountaineers could attack at any moment from above, from the mountain, or unexpectedly from behind cliffs and rock ledges. Three drove along the bottom of the gorge, and two - Tolstoy and Sado - along the top of the ridge. Before they had time to reach the ridge of the mountain, they saw Chechens rushing towards them. Tolstoy shouted to his comrades about the danger, and he, together with Sado, rushed forward to the fortress with all his might. Fortunately, the Chechens did not shoot; they wanted to capture Sado alive. The horses were playful and managed to gallop away. The young officer was injured; the horse killed under him crushed him and he could not free himself from under it. The Chechens galloping past hacked him half to death with swords, and when the Russians picked him up, it was already too late, he died in terrible agony.

While actively compiling The ABC, Tolstoy wrote a story about a Caucasian prisoner. Sending the story to N. N. Strakhov in March 1872, Tolstoy noted:

The story “Prisoner of the Caucasus” was published in the magazine “Zarya” (1872, No. 2). It was included in the “Fourth Russian Reading Book,” published on November 1, 1872.

Tolstoy himself highly appreciated his story and mentioned it in his treatise “What is Art? " in the following context:

At the same time, he defines the “second kind” of good art there as “art that conveys the simplest everyday feelings, those that are accessible to all people around the world - world art.”

Commenting on this treatise, the philosopher Lev Shestov notes that “...he actually perfectly understands that his “Caucasian Prisoner” or “God knows the truth, but will not soon tell” (only these two stories of all that he has written, belongs to he is for good art) - will not have for readers the meaning that not only his great novels have - but even “The Death of Ivan Ilyich.”

Plot

The action takes place during the Caucasian War.

Officer Zhilin serves in the Caucasus. His mother sends a letter asking him to visit her, and Zhilin leaves the fortress along with the convoy. On the way, he overtakes the convoy and comes across several mounted “Tatars” (Muslim mountaineers), who shoot his horse and take him prisoner. Zhilin is brought to a mountain village, where he is sold to Abdul-Murat. The same owner turns out to have Zhilin’s colleague Kostylin, who was also caught by the Tatars. Abdul forces the officers to write letters home so that they can be ransomed. Zhilin indicates the wrong address on the letter, realizing that his mother still cannot collect the required amount.

Zhilin and Kostylin live in a barn; during the day they put stocks on their feet. Zhilin makes dolls, attracting local children and, above all, Abdul’s 13-year-old daughter, Dina. While walking around the village and its surroundings, Zhilin wonders in which direction he can run back to the Russian fortress. At night he digs in the barn. Dina sometimes brings him flatbreads or pieces of lamb.

When Zhilin notices that the inhabitants of the village are alarmed because of the death of one of his fellow villagers in a battle with the Russians, he decides to escape. He and Kostylin crawl into a tunnel at night and try to get to the forest, and from there to the fortress. However, due to the slowness of the corpulent Kostylin, they do not have time to get there; the Tatars notice them and bring them back. Now they are put in a pit and the pads are not removed at night. Dina sometimes continues to bring food to Zilina.

Realizing that the mountaineers are afraid of the arrival of the Russians and could kill the prisoners, Zhilin one day, at nightfall, asks Dina to bring him a long stick, with the help of which he climbs out of the hole (the sick and soggy Kostylin remains behind). He tries to knock the lock off the blocks, but cannot do this, including with the help of Dina. Having made his way through the forest, at dawn Zhilin goes to the location of the Russian troops. Subsequently, Kostylin is ransomed from captivity.

Reviews

“Prisoner of the Caucasus” is written in a completely special, new language. Simplicity of presentation is put in the foreground. There is not a single superfluous word, not a single stylistic embellishment... You can’t help but be amazed at this incredible, unprecedented restraint, this ascetically strict fulfillment of the task undertaken to tell the people the events that are interesting to them “without further ado.” This is a feat that, perhaps, will not be possible for any of the other luminaries of our modern literature. The artistic simplicity of the story in “Prisoner of the Caucasus” is brought to its apogee. There is nowhere to go further, and before this majestic simplicity the most talented attempts of the same kind by Western writers completely disappear and fade into obscurity.

The theme “Russian among the Chechens” is the theme of Pushkin’s “Prisoner of the Caucasus”. Tolstoy took the same title, but told everything differently. His prisoner is a Russian officer from the poor nobles, a man who knows how to do everything with his own hands. He's almost not a gentleman. He is captured because another, noble officer, rode away with a gun, did not help him, and was also captured. Zhilin—that’s the prisoner’s name—understands why the highlanders don’t like Russians. The Chechens are strangers, but not hostile to him, and they respect his courage and ability to fix the watch. The prisoner is freed not by a woman who is in love with him, but by a girl who takes pity on him. He tries to save his comrade, he took him with him, but he was timid and lacking energy. Zhilin was dragging Kostylin on his shoulders, but was caught with him, and then ran away alone.

Tolstoy is proud of this story. This is wonderful prose - calm, there are no decorations in it and there is not even what is called psychological analysis. Human interests collide, and we sympathize with Zhilin - to a good person, and what we know about him is enough for us, but he himself doesn’t want to know much about himself.

Film adaptations

"Prisoner of the Caucasus" - a classic 1975 film adaptation; director Georgiy Kalatozishvili, in the role of Zhilin Yuri Nazarov

"Prisoner of the Caucasus" - a 1996 film in which the motives of the story are used, but the action is moved during Chechen war 1990s; director Sergei Bodrov Sr. , in the role of Zhilin Sergei Bodrov Jr.

Audio performances

There are several audio versions of the story:

Vladimir Makanin's story “Prisoner of the Caucasus” (1994) in its title contains a reference to several works of Russian classics called “Prisoner of the Caucasus”, including Tolstoy’s story. Also in Makanin’s novel “Asan” (2008), dedicated to the events of the Chechen War of the 1990s, the main character’s name is Alexander Sergeevich Zhilin.

Notes

Links

“Prisoner of the Caucasus” in the Collected Works of Leo Tolstoy in 22 volumes (“Russian Virtual Library”)

Bibliography of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy
Novels	Family happiness Decembrists War and peace Anna Karenina Resurrection
Stories	(Trilogy) Childhood Adolescence Youth Two Hussars Albert Morning of the Landowner Cossacks Polikushka Canvasser Notes of a Madman Death of Ivan Ilyich Kreutzer Sonata The Devil Father Sergius Hadji-Murat
Stories	Sevastopol stories (collection) Raid Marker's notes Forest cutting Blizzard Demoted Lucerne Three deaths Caucasian prisoner God sees the truth, but will not tell soon How much land does a person need? Francoise Is it expensive? The owner and the worker Who is right? After the ball Fake coupon Alyosha Pot of Roots Vasilyev Berries For what? Divine and human Khodynka What I saw in a dream Accidentally
Dramas	The power of darkness The fruits of enlightenment The living corpse
Educational and methodological manuals	ABC New alphabet Arithmetic First Russian book for reading Second Russian book for reading Third Russian book for reading Fourth Russian book for reading
Pedagogical articles	About public education Upbringing and education Progress and definition of education About public education
Journalistic works	About the census in Moscow Confession So what should we do? About life Hunger or not hunger? The kingdom of God is within you
	Who should learn to write from whom, the peasant children from us or us from the peasant children? A few words about the book “War and Peace” About art What is art? About Shakespeare and drama
Other	Reading circle

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

It tells the story of a Russian officer captured by the mountaineers. Written for ABC, first published in 1872 in the magazine Zarya. One of the most popular works of the writer, reprinted many times and included in the school curriculum.

The title of the story is a reference to the title of Pushkin's poem "Prisoner of the Caucasus".

Story

Tolstoy's daughter talks about this incident as follows:

While actively compiling The ABC, Tolstoy wrote a story about a Caucasian prisoner. Sending the story to N. N. Strakhov in March 1872, Tolstoy noted:

The story “Prisoner of the Caucasus” was published in the magazine “Zarya” (1872, No. 2). It was included in the “Fourth Russian Reading Book,” published on November 1, 1872.

Tolstoy himself highly appreciated his story and mentioned it in his treatise “What is Art? " in the following context:

At the same time, he defines the “second kind” of good art there as “art that conveys the simplest everyday feelings, those that are accessible to all people around the world - world art.”

Plot

The action takes place during the Caucasian War.

Officer Zhilin serves in the Caucasus. His mother sends a letter asking him to visit her, and Zhilin leaves the fortress along with the convoy. On the way, he overtakes the convoy and meets Kostylin. Then they come across several mounted “Tatars” (Muslim mountaineers), when Kostylin sees the Tatars, he rides off, leaving Zhilin alone. And they shoot his horse and take him prisoner. Zilina is brought to a mountain village, where he is sold to Abdul-Murat. The same owner turns out to have Zhilin’s colleague Kostylin, who was also caught by the Tatars. Abdul forces the officers to write letters home so that they can be ransomed. Zhilin indicates the wrong address on the letter, realizing that his mother still cannot collect the required amount.

Zhilin and Kostylin live in a barn; during the day they put pads on their feet. Zhilin makes dolls, attracting local children and, above all, Abdul’s 13-year-old daughter, Dina. While walking around the village and its surroundings, Zhilin wonders in which direction he can run back to the Russian fortress. At night he digs in the barn. Dina sometimes brings him flatbreads or pieces of lamb.

Realizing that the mountaineers are afraid of the arrival of the Russians and could kill the prisoners, Zhilin one day, at nightfall, asks Dina to bring him a long stick, with the help of which he climbs out of the hole (the sick and soggy Kostylin remains there). He tries to knock the lock off the blocks, but cannot do this, including with the help of Dina. Having made his way through the forest, at dawn Zhilin goes to the location of the Russian troops. Subsequently, Kostylin, with extremely poor health, was ransomed from captivity.

Reviews

Tolstoy is proud of this story. This is wonderful prose - calm, there are no decorations in it and there is not even what is called psychological analysis. Human interests collide, and we sympathize with Zhilin - a good person, and what we know about him is enough for us, but he himself doesn’t want to know much about himself.

Film adaptations

"Prisoner of the Caucasus" - a classic 1975 film adaptation; director Georgiy Kalatozishvili, in the role of Zhilin Yuri Nazarov
"Prisoner of the Caucasus" - a 1996 film that uses motifs from the story, but the action is moved during the Chechen War of the 1990s; director Sergei Bodrov Sr. , in the role of Zhilin Sergei Bodrov Jr.

Audio performances

There are several audio versions of the story:

Having traveled around the entire line of troops from the right to the left flank, Prince Andrei climbed to the battery from which, according to the headquarters officer, the entire field was visible. Here he dismounted from his horse and stopped at the outermost of the four cannons that had been removed from the limbers. In front of the guns walked the sentry artilleryman, who was stretched out in front of the officer, but at a sign made to him, he resumed his uniform, boring walk. Behind the guns there were limbers, and further back there was a hitching post and artillery fires. To the left, not far from the outermost gun, there was a new wicker hut, from which animated officer voices could be heard.
Indeed, from the battery there was a view of almost the entire location of the Russian troops and most of the enemy. Directly opposite the battery, on the horizon of the opposite hillock, the village of Shengraben was visible; to the left and to the right one could discern in three places, among the smoke of their fires, masses of French troops, of which, obviously, most of them were in the village itself and behind the mountain. To the left of the village, in the smoke, there seemed to be something similar to a battery, but it was impossible to get a good look at it with the naked eye. Our right flank was located on a rather steep hill, which dominated the French position. Our infantry was positioned along it, and the dragoons were visible at the very edge. In the center, where the Tushin battery was located, from which Prince Andrei viewed the position, there was the most gentle and straight descent and ascent to the stream that separated us from Shengraben. To the left, our troops adjoined the forest, where the fires of our infantry, chopping wood, were smoking. The French line was wider than ours, and it was clear that the French could easily get around us on both sides. Behind our position there was a steep and deep ravine, along which it was difficult for artillery and cavalry to retreat. Prince Andrei, leaning on the cannon and taking out his wallet, drew for himself a plan for the disposition of the troops. He wrote notes in pencil in two places, intending to communicate them to Bagration. He intended, firstly, to concentrate all the artillery in the center and, secondly, to transfer the cavalry back to the other side of the ravine. Prince Andrei, constantly being with the commander-in-chief, monitoring the movements of the masses and general orders and constantly engaged in historical descriptions of battles, and in this upcoming matter involuntarily thought about the future course of military operations only in general outline. He imagined only the following kind of major accidents: “If the enemy launches an attack on the right flank,” he said to himself, “the Kiev Grenadier and Podolsk Jaeger will have to hold their position until the reserves of the center approach them. In this case, the dragoons can hit the flank and overthrow them. In the event of an attack on the center, we place a central battery on this hill and, under its cover, pull together the left flank and retreat to the ravine in echelons,” he reasoned with himself...
All the time that he was on the battery at the gun, he, as often happens, without ceasing, heard the sounds of the voices of the officers speaking in the booth, but did not understand a single word of what they were saying. Suddenly the sound of voices from the booth struck him with such a sincere tone that he involuntarily began to listen.
“No, my dear,” said a pleasant voice that seemed familiar to Prince Andrei, “I say that if it were possible to know what will happen after death, then none of us would be afraid of death.” So, my dear.
Another, younger voice interrupted him:
- Yes, be afraid, don’t be afraid, it doesn’t matter - you won’t escape.
- And you’re still afraid! Oh you, learned people, said a third courageous voice, interrupting both. “You artillerymen are very learned because you can take everything with you, including vodka and snacks.
And the owner of the courageous voice, apparently an infantry officer, laughed.
“But you’re still afraid,” continued the first familiar voice. - You're afraid of the unknown, that's what. Whatever you say, the soul will go to heaven... after all, we know that there is no heaven, but only one sphere.
Again the courageous voice interrupted the artilleryman.
“Well, treat me to your herbalist, Tushin,” he said.

It is in vain that Leo Tolstoy is considered a purely serious, “adult” writer. In addition to “War and Peace”, “Sunday” and other complex works, he wrote a number of stories and fairy tales for children, developed the “ABC”, which he used to teach literacy to peasant children. The story “Prisoner of the Caucasus” is included in it and has enjoyed constant interest among all generations of girls and boys from the end of the 19th century to the present day.

Genre and place of the work in the writer’s work

"Prisoner of the Caucasus" by Tolstoy, summary which we will now consider, researchers call a short story or a large story. The confusion in the genre nature of the work is associated with its non-standard sizes, a large number characters, multiple storylines and conflicts. The author himself defined it as “truth”, i.e. a narration of real-life deeds and events. The story takes place in the Caucasus, during the war with the highlanders. It is worth noting that this topic was not completed for the writer, and Tolstoy’s “Prisoner of the Caucasus” (a summary follows below) was not the only work related to it. “Cossacks” and “Hadji Murat” are also devoted to the description of military clashes and the peculiarities of human relationships different cultures and nationalities and contain many interesting observations and colorful sketches. The story was published in 1872 in the magazine “Zarya”. Since Soviet times and to this day, it has been part of school programs most of the former Soviet republics.

History of creation

What is Tolstoy’s “Prisoner of the Caucasus”? Its brief content can be correlated with real events, in which Tolstoy became a participant. He himself served in the Caucasus, was a participant in the fighting and once almost was captured. Lev Nikolaevich and his comrade Sado, a Chechen by nationality, miraculously escaped. The sensations they experienced during the adventure formed the basis of the story. As for the name, there are some literary associations associated with it. In particular, with Pushkin’s southern romantic poem. True, Tolstoy’s “Prisoner of the Caucasus” (a brief summary of the story gives a complete idea of the writing method) belongs to realistic works, but the corresponding “exotic” flavor is clearly felt in it. I would like to note one more detail. Tolstoy gave the story great value, because it was a sample of his new prose, a kind of experiment in the field of language and style. Therefore, when sending the work to critic Nikolai Strakhov, I asked him to pay attention to this aspect of the work.

Plot and characters

So, what did Tolstoy tell us about (“Prisoner of the Caucasus”)? The summary of the story can be reduced to several storylines. A poor Russian officer Zhilin, serving in a remote fortress, receives a letter from his old mother asking him to come on leave and see him. Having asked for leave, he and the convoy set off on the road. Another officer, Kostylin, is traveling with Zhilin. Since the convoy is moving slowly, the road is long, and the day is hot, the friends decide not to wait for an escort and cover the rest of the journey on their own. Kostylin has a gun, the horses under both are good, and even if they catch the eye of the mountaineers, they will be able to avoid a skirmish. However, due to Kostylin's oversight and cowardice, the officers are captured. Their behavior gives a clear idea of the character and personality type of each. Kostylin is overweight on the outside and equally apathetic and clumsy on the inside. When in trouble, he resigns himself to the circumstances, sleeps or grumbles, complains. When the Tatars demand to write a ransom request, the hero fulfills all the conditions. He is passive, phlegmatic, devoid of any enterprise. Zhilin is a completely different matter. He clearly sympathizes with Tolstoy. “Prisoner of the Caucasus” (a brief summary allows us to reveal the meaning of the title) is therefore named in singular that this particular character is the main character, the real hero. Not wanting to burden his mother with debts, Zhilin signs the letter incorrectly, gains authority and respect from the village residents, and finds common language with the girl Dina and organizes an escape twice. He does not lose heart, fights against circumstances, and does not abandon his comrade. Strong-willed, energetic, enterprising, courageous, Zhilin achieves his goal. It’s not scary to go on reconnaissance missions with this one. This is a reliable, simple person who has always been close and interesting to the writer.

It is in the charm of Zhilin’s personality, the entertaining plot, and the simplicity and brevity of the language that lies the secret of the story’s enormous popularity.

While staying in the Caucasus in the mid-19th century, Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy became involved in a dangerous event, which inspired him to write “Prisoner of the Caucasus.” While accompanying the convoy to the Grozny fortress, he and his friend fell into a trap among the Chechens. The life of the great writer was saved by the fact that the mountaineers did not want to kill his companion, so they did not shoot. Tolstoy and his partner managed to gallop to the fortress, where the Cossacks covered them.

The key idea of the work is the contrast of an optimistic and strong-willed person with another - sluggish, lack of initiative, grumpy and pitiful. The first character retains courage, honor, courage and achieves release from captivity. The main message: under no circumstances should you give up and give up; hopeless situations exist only for those who do not want to act.

Analysis of the work

Storyline

The events of the story unfold in parallel with the Caucasian War and tell the story of officer Zhilin, who at the beginning of the work, at the written request of his mother, leaves with a convoy to visit her. On the way, he meets another officer - Kostylin - and continues the journey with him. Having met the mountaineers, Zhilin’s fellow traveler runs away, and the main character is captured and sold to the rich man Abdul-Marat from a mountain village. The fugitive officer is caught later and the prisoners are kept together in a barn.

The mountaineers seek to obtain a ransom for the Russian officers and force them to write letters home, but Zhilin writes a false address so that his mother, who is unable to raise so much money, does not find out about anything. During the day, prisoners are allowed to walk around the village in stocks and main character makes dolls for local children, thanks to which he wins the favor of 13-year-old Dina, daughter of Abdul-Marat. At the same time, he plans an escape and prepares a tunnel from the barn.

Having learned that the villagers are worried about the death of one of the highlanders in battle, the officers decide to flee. They leave through the tunnel and go towards the Russian positions, but the mountaineers quickly discover and return the fugitives, throwing them into a pit. Now the prisoners are forced to sit in stocks around the clock, but Dina from time to time brings Zhilin lamb and flat cakes. Kostylin finally loses heart and begins to get sick.

One night, the main character, with the help of a long stick brought by Dina, gets out of the hole and, right in the stocks, runs away through the forest to the Russians. Kostylin remains in captivity until the end until the mountaineers receive a ransom for him.

Main characters

Tolstoy portrayed the main character as an honest and authoritative person who treats his subordinates, relatives and even those who captivated him with respect and responsibility. Despite his obstinacy and initiative, he is careful, calculating and cold-blooded, has an inquisitive mind (he navigates by the stars, learns the language of the mountaineers). He has a sense of self-esteem and demands that the “Tatars” treat their captives with respect. A jack of all trades, he repairs guns, watches, and even makes dolls.

Despite Kostylin’s meanness, because of whom Ivan was captured, he does not hold a grudge and does not blame his neighbor in captivity, plans to escape together and does not abandon him after the first almost successful attempt. Zhilin is a hero, noble towards enemies and allies, who preserves human face and honor even in the most difficult and insurmountable circumstances.

Kostylin is a wealthy, overweight and clumsy officer, whom Tolstoy portrays as weak both physically and morally. Because of his cowardice and meanness, the heroes are captured and fail their first attempt to escape. He meekly and unquestioningly accepts the fate of a prisoner, agrees to any conditions of detention and does not even believe Zhilin’s words that he can escape. All day long he complains about his situation, sits inactive, and becomes more and more “loose” from his own pity. As a result, Kostylin is overtaken by illness, and at the time of Zhilin’s second attempt to escape, he refuses, saying that he does not even have the strength to turn around. He is brought back from captivity barely alive a month after the ransom from his relatives arrives.

Kostylin in the story of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy is a reflection of cowardice, meanness and weakness of will. This is a person who, under the pressure of circumstances, is unable to show respect for himself and, especially, for others. He fears only for himself, not thinking about risk and brave actions, because of which he becomes a burden for the active and energetic Zhilin, prolonging his joint imprisonment.

General analysis

One of the most famous stories Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy's "Prisoner of the Caucasus" is based on a comparison of two extremely opposite characters. The author makes them antagonists not only in character, but even in appearance:

Zhilin is not tall, but has great strength and dexterity, and Kostylin is fat, clumsy, overweight.
Kostylin is rich, and Zhilin, although he lives in abundance, cannot (and does not want) to pay a ransom to the mountaineers.
Abdul-Marat himself speaks about Zhilin’s obstinacy and the meekness of his partner in a conversation with the main character. The first optimist expects to escape from the very beginning, and the second says that escaping is reckless because they do not know the area.
Kostylin spends his days sleeping and waiting for a reply letter, while Zhilin works on needlework and repairs.
Kostylin abandons Zhilin at their first meeting and runs away to the fortress, but during the first escape attempt he drags a comrade with wounded legs on himself.

Tolstoy appears in his story as a bearer of justice, telling a parable about how fate rewards an initiative and brave person with salvation.

An important idea is contained in the title of the work. Kostylin is a prisoner of the Caucasus in the literal sense of the word even after the ransom, because he did nothing to deserve his freedom. However, Tolstoy seems to be ironic about Zhilin - he showed his will and broke out of captivity, but does not leave the region, because he considers his service to be fate and duty. The Caucasus will captivate not only Russian officers forced to fight for their homeland, but also mountaineers who also have no moral right to give up this land. In a certain sense, all the characters here remain Caucasian captives, even the generous Dina, who is destined to continue to live in her native society.