The main novelist in Russian literature is IvanBunin. The work "The gentleman from San Francisco", whose meaning is analyzed in the lesson of literature by high school students, is a brilliant example of small prose filled with symbols and allusions.
What is this story about? About one American, who once died while traveling in the Old World. The philosophical meaning of the work "Sir from San Francisco" is quite profound. At the next reading, more and more details are found. The article presents the most complete analysis of the story of the great Russian classic.
Novel Bunin wrote in 1915. This is very important to mention in artistic analysis. At the end of the XIX century or in the middle of the XX century, the story would not cause such a resonance. After all, the meaning of the work "Sir from San Francisco" fully corresponds to the spirit of the times. There is no longer that calm, peaceful Europe. The atmosphere of an impending catastrophe reigns in the world.
The mood of the first years of the war can be felt,read the work "The Gentleman from San Francisco". The meaning of the work is somewhere between the lines. But the fact that Bunin wrote a story on the topic of the day, does not diminish its relevance.
In the summer of 1915 Ivan Bunin saw in the bookThomas Mann's book "Death in Venice". He did not know what the novel of the German writer was about, but his name inspired him. Around the same time, Bunin learned from the newspapers about the sudden death of a rich American in the hotel "Kvisisana". Then the Russian writer came up with the idea of creating a short but bright story about a man who died while traveling to Europe. This work Bunin first wanted to call "Death to Capri." But changed his mind, only writing the first three words - "the gentleman from San Francisco."
The meaning of the work of Thomas Mann has nothing in commonhas with the main philosophical idea of the novella Bunin. In the story "Death in Venice" it is a question of a middle-aged man, a supporter of same-sex love. Mann Bunin read the book only in late autumn and called it very unpleasant.
The meaning of the work "Sir from San Francisco"is available for a teenager. No wonder the story is included in the school curriculum. If you read carefully, you can see that it is filled with forebodings of a tragedy of European proportions. The work was created a year after the outbreak of World War I and two years before the February Revolution in Russia - an event that influenced the course of world history.
What is the meaning of the title of the work "Sir fromSan Francisco "? The protagonist is an American, whose name neither in Capri nor in Naples, no one remembered, and in this, perhaps, all the characteristics of the character that Bunin gives. A billionaire from San Francisco is of no interest to anyone. I do not remember, because this person is unremarkable, only his money and position in society cause interest, but these categories are ghostly: Only an American dies, he is immediately forgotten.
Simplicity, clarity - this is the characteristicspecial characteristic story. And perhaps, that is why the philosophical meaning of the work "Sir from San Francisco" arouses interest among readers for a century. The story caused admiring reviews of the writer's contemporaries. It is read today. The essence of the work "Sir from San Francisco" was interpreted in its own way by Soviet critics. After all, who is the main character in the story? The American capitalist, who saved his life, robbed and exploited the Chinese. For which he was punished by a sudden, ridiculous death.
The protagonist worked hard and, finally, accumulatedon a trip to Europe. He rides on a chic liner with his wife and daughter, destined for the people of the upper world. In this liner, the Titanic is easily guessed. On the steamer, everything breathes pretense. It is worth remembering, for example, two characters, on which few readers pay attention. A beautiful couple is dancing on the deck. In their eyes - sincere happiness. Nobody knows that these are just hired actors playing love for big money. They have long been floating on one and then another liner.
Understanding the philosophical meaning of the "Lord ofSan Francisco "Bunin, it is worth remembering the tragic fate of the famous" Titanic. "We should pay attention to the name of the ship, on which the main hero floats: Atlantis is an island state that has gone under water .Titans are mythical creatures dared to oppose themselves to the gods. brutally punished them for their impudence and self-confidence.
For Alexander Blok the ship, sunk in 1914year, symbolized world vulgarity. In his diary, the poet mentions a catastrophe, even with some gloating. Bunin's work is filled with unpleasant premonitions and narrates about the tragedy not only of an individual, but of all Europe. However, there is no gloating in the story. Rather, it is a pity for both the main character and the secondary characters.
The steamer in Ivan Bunin's work is a symbolnaive and stupid self-confidence of a human civilization. The main character, being a man of wealth, is convinced that the further events in his life depend only on him. The creators of the huge liner - a model of high technical achievement of the early twentieth century - are confident that a giant machine can withstand ocean storms.
His mistake from San Francisco is not to realizehas time. The creators of the "Titanic" - realized, but too late. Western civilization in the early XX century was on the brink of a precipice - this, perhaps, is the meaning of the story of the Russian writer. Over a hundred years after the publication of the work in print, but little has changed. "The gentleman from San Francisco" is still relevant today.
Against the background of a raging ocean of pathetic shine of a liner,ticket for which is worth a fortune. The ship, hard overcoming the storm and storm, finally arrives in Europe. There, in Italy, an unnamed American, before whom all the servants bowed obsequiously, suddenly died.
After death, an American from a respected rich manbecomes a burdensome body. He is taken to the farthest and cheapest number as soon as possible. As for the daughter and the wife, they now cause irritation in the people around them, contempt is not pity and sympathy. The hotel guests paid a lot of money for rest, entertainment and sudden death annoyed them.
On the boat, meanwhile, life continues,full of falsehood. The author, it would seem, should have only dislike towards his hero. Bunin despised wealth and could not spare a powerful capitalist. But far more unpleasant are the people surrounding the gentleman from San Francisco. Are they better than him? They were and remain slaves, creeping before wealth - and this is the worst. Bunin feels pity for the American, who is only to blame for that and suddenly died. The writer regrets the liner, doomed to destruction.
Ivan Bunin told about the event that took place inthe height of the First World War. But people at all times, regardless of nationality, have something in common. The story in question in this article describes a certain type of people. This is a kind of mini-novel about those who are available, it would seem, all the blessings and joys of the world. However, the life of a society that enjoys all the benefits of civilization, according to the writer, is full of false, artificial. In her place there is no manifestation of individuality, since every representative of this false world lives by the scheme, strives to correspond to his position.
The hero of the story of Ivan Bunin never had time forits 58 years of enjoying the beauties of Italian landscapes. Money destroyed in him the ability to see the beautiful. "Do not save wealth on Earth," - it is this quote from the Bible is the main philosophical idea of the work.
