IN bad society
Summary of the story
The hero's childhood took place in the small town of Knyazhye-Veno in the Southwestern Territory. Vasya - that was the boy's name - was the son of the city judge. The child grew up “like a wild tree in a field”: the mother died when the son was only six years old, and the father, absorbed in his grief, paid little attention to the boy. Vasya wandered around the city all day long, and pictures of city life left a deep imprint on his soul.
The city was surrounded by ponds. In the middle of one of them on the island stood old castle, which once belonged to the count's family. There were legends that the island was filled with captured Turks, and the castle stood “on human bones.” The owners left this gloomy dwelling a long time ago, and it gradually collapsed. Its inhabitants were urban beggars who had no other shelter. But there was a split among the poor. Old Janusz, one of the count's former servants, received some right to decide who can live in the castle and who cannot. He left there only “aristocrats”: Catholics and the former count’s servants. The exiles found refuge in a dungeon under an ancient crypt near an abandoned Uniate chapel that stood on the mountain. However, no one knew their whereabouts.
Old Janusz, meeting Vasya, invites him to come into the castle, because there is now “decent society” there. But the boy prefers the “bad company” of exiles from the castle: Vasya feels sorry for them.
Many members of the “bad society” are well known in the city. This is a half-mad elderly “professor” who always mutters something quietly and sadly; the ferocious and pugnacious bayonet-cadet Zausailov; drunken retired official Lavrovsky, telling everyone implausible tragic stories about your life. And Turkevich, who calls himself General, is famous for “exposing” respectable townspeople (police officer, secretary of the district court and others) right under their windows. He does this in order to get money for vodka, and achieves his goal: those “accused” rush to pay him off.
The leader of the entire community of “dark personalities” is Tyburtsy Drab. His origins and past are unknown to anyone. Others suggest that he is an aristocrat, but his appearance is common. He is known for his extraordinary scholarship. At fairs, Tyburtsy entertains the public with lengthy speeches from ancient authors. He is considered a sorcerer.
One day Vasya and three friends come to the old chapel: he wants to look there. Friends help Vasya get inside through a high window. But when they see that there is someone else in the chapel, the friends run away in horror, leaving Vasya to the mercy of fate. It turns out that Tyburtsiya’s children are there: nine-year-old Valek and four-year-old Marusya. Vasya begins to often come to the mountain to visit his new friends, bringing them apples from his garden. But he only walks when Tyburtius cannot find him. Vasya does not tell anyone about this acquaintance. He tells his cowardly friends that he saw devils.
Vasya has a sister, four-year-old Sonya. She, like her brother, is a cheerful and playful child. Brother and sister love each other very much, but Sonya’s nanny prevents their noisy games: she considers Vasya a bad, spoiled boy. My father shares the same view. He finds no place in his soul for love for a boy. Father loves Sonya more because she looks like her late mother.
One day, in a conversation, Valek and Marusya tell Vasya that Tyburtsy loves them very much. Vasya speaks of his father with resentment. But he unexpectedly learns from Valek that the judge is a very fair and honest person. Valek is a very serious and smart boy. Marusya is not at all like the playful Sonya; she is weak, thoughtful, and “cheerless.” Valek says that “the gray stone sucked the life out of her.”
Vasya learns that Valek is stealing food for his hungry sister. This discovery makes a grave impression on Vasya, but still he does not condemn his friend.
Valek shows Vasya the dungeon where all the members of the “bad society” live. In the absence of adults, Vasya comes there and plays with his friends. During a game of blind man's buff, Tyburtsy unexpectedly appears. The children are scared - after all, they are friends without the knowledge of the formidable head of the “bad society”. But Tyburtsy allows Vasya to come, making him promise not to tell anyone where they all live. Tyburtsy brings food, prepares dinner - according to him, Vasya understands that the food is stolen. This, of course, confuses the boy, but he sees that Marusya is so happy about the food... Now Vasya comes to the mountain without hindrance, and the adult members of the “bad society” also get used to the boy and love him.
Autumn comes, and Marusya falls ill. In order to somehow entertain the sick girl, Vasya decides to ask Sonya for a while for a large beautiful doll, a gift from her late mother. Sonya agrees. Marusya is delighted with the doll, and she even feels better.
Old Janusz comes to the judge several times with denunciations against members of “bad society.” He says that Vasya communicates with them. The nanny notices the doll is missing. Vasya is not allowed out of the house, and after a few days he runs away secretly.
Marusya is getting worse. The inhabitants of the dungeon decide that the doll needs to be returned, and the girl will not even notice. But seeing that they want to take the doll, Marusya cries bitterly... Vasya leaves her the doll.
And again Vasya is not allowed to leave the house. The father is trying to get his son to confess where he went and where the doll went. Vasya admits that he took the doll, but says nothing more. The father is angry... And at the most critical moment Tyburtsy appears. He is carrying a doll.
Tyburtsy tells the judge about Vasya’s friendship with his children. He is amazed. The father feels guilty before Vasya. It's like a wall has collapsed for a long time shared father and son, and they felt like close people. Tyburtsy says that Marusya died. The father lets Vasya go to say goodbye to her, while he passes through Vasya money for Tyburtsy and a warning: the head of the “bad society” is better off hiding from the city.
Soon almost all the “dark personalities” disappear somewhere. Only the old “professor” and Turkevich remain, to whom the judge sometimes gives work. Marusya is buried in the old cemetery near the collapsed chapel. Vasya and his sister are taking care of her grave. Sometimes they come to the cemetery with their father. When does the time come for Vasya and Sonya to leave hometown, over this grave they pronounce their vows.

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You are currently reading: Summary In bad company - Korolenko Vladimir Galaktionovich

The story “In Bad Society” by Korolenko was written in 1884, during the writer’s stay in Yakut exile. In his book, the author reveals the topic of social inequality through the prism of a child’s worldview. Later, the story “In Bad Society” was adapted into a more suitable version for children, which was published as the story “Children of the Dungeon.”

To better prepare for a literature lesson, we recommend reading online a summary of “In Bad Society.” Also, a retelling of the story will be useful for the reader's diary.

Main characters

Vasya- a nine-year-old boy with a kind and sensitive heart.

Outrigger- a beggar, homeless boy, independent and responsible, the same age as Vasya.

Marusya– Valeka’s younger sister, a sickly, weak girl of four years old.

Other characters

Tyburtsy- a homeless man with a pure, kind soul, the adoptive father of Marusya and Valek.

Vasya's father- a middle-aged man, a city judge, a widower, the father of Vasya and Sonya.

Sonya- Vasya's younger sister.

I. Ruins

Vasya was only six years old when his mother died. After the death of his wife, the father almost forgot about his existence, and in his own way cared only about his daughter Sonya, “because she had the features of her mother.”

In the small town of Knyazhye-Veno, where Vanya’s family lived, an “old, dilapidated castle” served as a local landmark. Among the residents he enjoyed a bad reputation and “there were legends and stories about him, one more terrible than the other.”

At one time, the ruins of the castle served as a free “shelter for every poor person without the slightest restrictions,” but then the former count’s servant Janusz began to sort out the local society, leaving “only “good Christians,” that is, Catholics, in the castle.”

II. Problematic natures

The beggars expelled from the castle sought refuge for several days, and soon “found shelter somewhere on the mountain, near the Uniate chapel.”

Among the outcasts of society there were truly extraordinary personalities. For example, a man nicknamed “professor”, always muttering something under his breath, who “could not indifferently hear mentions of cutting and piercing weapons ».

The poor always stood up for each other, especially Pan Turkevich and the retired bayonet cadet Zausailov. Under the special care of Mr. Turkevich was the drunken official Lavrovsky, who sank to the very bottom because of unhappy love.

Another remarkable personality among the beggars was Tyburtsy Drab, who amazed everyone with his extraordinary learning and encyclopedic knowledge.

With the arrival of Pan Tyburtsy, two children appeared in the company of local beggars: “a boy of about seven, but tall and developed beyond his years, and a little three-year-old girl” - Valek and his younger sister Marusya.

III. Me and my father

After the death of his mother, Vasya was “very rarely seen at home”: from morning until late evening he wandered around the outskirts of the town, carefully studying them.

Vasya’s endless adventures were associated with strained relations with his father, on whose face “lay the stern stamp of incurable grief.” Vasya would have been glad to share the bitterness of loss with him, but he was always constrained and cold in communicating with the boy.

IV. I'm making a new acquaintance

Having examined all the sights in the city, Vasya decided to explore the abandoned chapel from the inside, and for this purpose he invited his friends with him. They helped him get inside, but they themselves refused to follow him.

The gloomy situation, barely illuminated by the setting sun, made a strong impression on Vasya - it seemed to him that he found himself in the afterlife.

Suddenly, from the darkness of the chapel, two childish figures came out to Vasya. These were the adopted children of Pan Tyburtsy - Valek and Marusya. The guys quickly became friends and agreed to meet soon.

V. The acquaintance continues

Since then, Vasya’s life has changed. Every evening and every morning he "thought about his upcoming visit to the mountain." He sought to spend as much time as possible in “bad company,” and invariably brought apples and delicacies to his new friends.

Little Marusya, who resembled “a flower that grew without the rays of the sun,” was especially happy with Vasya’s visits. The boy often compared his sister Sonya with Marusya and was surprised at the striking contrast between them. Sonya was healthy, strong and very playful, while Marusya, due to weakness, “never ran and laughed very rarely.”

VI. Among the gray stones

Valek completely trusted his new friend and revealed to him main secret local "bad society" - a dungeon. Its cold gray stones amazed Vasya - “it seemed that this dungeon was sensitively guarding its victim.” He felt bad inside, and he asked Valek and Marusya to quickly go upstairs to the sun.

Valek admitted that he ran to the city for a loaf of bread, which he was forced to steal - he does not have money and never had it, and his sister was very hungry.

VII. Pan Tyburtsy appears on stage

A severe thunderstorm forced children frolicking outside to go underground. During their frisky game of blind man's buff, Pan Tyburtsy came down into the dungeon, who could not understand what the son of the city judge was doing in the company of beggars.

Having hastily prepared dinner, Pan Tyburtsy invited Vasya to the “feast”, having previously made him promise that he would not tell anyone where he was going.

Vasya realized for the first time that he had become involved with a caste of outcasts, but he could no longer “change this society, change Valek and Marusa.”

VIII. in autumn

With the onset of autumn cold, “Marusya began to get sick” - she did not complain about bad feeling, but every day she became more and more thin and pale. The cold and damp stones of the underground did their "horrible work, sucking the life out of the little body."

Vasya and Valek tried to take Marusya out more often Fresh air, where she felt a little better. But the girl’s recovery quickly passed.

IX. Doll

Marusya’s illness progressed rapidly, and the girl looked at the world “indifferently with her large, darkened and motionless eyes.” In order to distract her at least a little from her sad thoughts, Vasya brought her a doll, which he begged from Sonya for a while.

When looking at the large doll “with a brightly painted face and luxurious flaxen hair,” Marusya noticeably came to life - never before in her tiny life had she seen such an amazing beauty.

A few days later, Vasya’s father, having learned about the disappearance of the doll, decided to severely punish his son for theft. But at that moment Tyburtsy appeared in their house with a doll in his hands. He spoke privately with Vasya’s father, and then approached the boy and asked him to come say goodbye to Marusya, who had died.

After talking with the beggar, Vasya saw his father completely different for the first time in a long time - he looked at his son with loving, kind eyes.

Conclusion

After the girl's death, "the members of the 'bad society' scattered in different directions." Every spring, Marusya’s small grave “was green with fresh turf, full of flowers,” and Vasya, his father and Sonya often came here.

Conclusion

In his work, Vladimir Korolenko demonstrated the tragedy of the division of society into higher and lower classes, from which children suffer the most.

Suitable for a quick introduction to the plot brief retelling“In Bad Society”, after reading which we recommend reading the story in its full version.

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Korolenko’s story “In Bad Society” was written in 1885. The work was first published in the same year in the magazine “Russian Thought”.

The story tells the story of how the judge’s son, Vasya, made friends with beggar children. Having lost his mother early and deprived of his father's warm attention, the boy spent most of his time with street children. One day, together with the boys, he made his way into the old cemetery chapel. Noticing that someone was there, the boys ran away in fear, but Vasya remained. A boy and a little girl came out to him. Soon the children became friends. The boy learned that their guardian Tyburtsy lived with the children. Vasya liked to communicate with Valek, and he brought gifts to his sister Marusya. Comparing the girl with her sister Sonya, Vasya saw how different the girls of the same age were. Sonya was well-fed, healthy child, and Marusya is fragile and pale “like a flower that grew without the sun.” To bring joy to Marusya, Vasya brought her a beautiful doll taken from his sister.

The writer not only talks about the life of various segments of the town’s population, but poses the problem of relationships between people both within the same family and between representatives of different social classes. A boy from a wealthy family makes friends with poor children, sympathizes with their bitter fate, and in the poor Tyburtia he sees, first of all, a kind and fair person who respects his father, with a reputation as an honest judge. Using the example of the main character, the formation of his personality is shown, problems of mutual understanding, kindness, friendship, respect for a person, regardless of class, are revealed.

Vladimir Galaktionovich Korolenko

"In Bad Society"

The hero's childhood took place in the small town of Knyazhye-Veno in the Southwestern Territory. Vasya - that was the boy's name - was the son of the city judge. The child grew up “like a wild tree in a field”: the mother died when the son was only six years old, and the father, consumed by his grief, paid little attention to the boy. Vasya wandered around the city all day long, and pictures of city life left a deep imprint on his soul.

The city was surrounded by ponds. In the middle of one of them, on the island, stood an ancient castle that once belonged to a count's family. There were legends that the island was filled with captured Turks, and the castle stood “on human bones.” The owners left this gloomy dwelling a long time ago, and it gradually collapsed. Its inhabitants were urban beggars who had no other shelter. But a split occurred among the poor. Old Janusz, one of the count's former servants, received some right to decide who can live in the castle and who cannot. He left only “aristocrats” there: Catholics and the former count’s servants. The exiles found refuge in a dungeon under an ancient crypt near an abandoned Uniate chapel that stood on the mountain. However, no one knew their whereabouts.

Old Janusz, meeting Vasya, invites him to come into the castle, because there is now “decent society” there. But the boy prefers the “bad company” of exiles from the castle: Vasya feels sorry for them.

Many members of the "bad society" are well known in the city. This is a half-mad elderly “professor” who always mutters something quietly and sadly; the ferocious and pugnacious bayonet-cadet Zausailov; a drunken retired official Lavrovsky, telling everyone incredible tragic stories about his life. And Turkevich, who calls himself General, is famous for “exposing” respectable townspeople (police officer, secretary of the district court and others) right under their windows. He does this in order to get money for vodka, and achieves his goal: those “accused” rush to pay him off.

The leader of the entire community of “dark personalities” is Tyburtsy Drab. His origins and past are unknown to anyone. Others suggest that he is an aristocrat, but his appearance is common. He is known for his extraordinary learning. At fairs, Tyburtsy entertains the public with lengthy speeches from ancient authors. He is considered a sorcerer.

One day Vasya and three friends come to the old chapel: he wants to look there. Friends help Vasya get inside through a high window. But seeing that there is someone else in the chapel, the friends run away in horror, leaving Vasya to the mercy of fate. It turns out that Tyburtsiya’s children are there: nine-year-old Valek and four-year-old Marusya. Vasya begins to often come to the mountain to visit his new friends, bringing them apples from his garden. But he only walks when Tyburtius cannot find him. Vasya does not tell anyone about this acquaintance. He tells his cowardly friends that he saw devils.

Vasya has a sister, four-year-old Sonya. She, like her brother, is a cheerful and playful child. Brother and sister love each other very much, but Sonya’s nanny prevents their noisy games: she considers Vasya a bad, spoiled boy. My father shares the same view. He finds no place in his soul for love for a boy. Father loves Sonya more because she looks like her late mother.

One day, in a conversation, Valek and Marusya tell Vasya that Tyburtsy loves them very much. Vasya speaks of his father with resentment. But he unexpectedly learns from Valek that the judge is a very fair and honest person. Valek is a very serious and smart boy. Marusya is not at all like the playful Sonya; she is weak, thoughtful, and “cheerless.” Valek says that “the gray stone sucked the life out of her.”

Vasya learns that Valek is stealing food for his hungry sister. This discovery makes a grave impression on Vasya, but still he does not condemn his friend.

Valek shows Vasya the dungeon where all the members of the “bad society” live. In the absence of adults, Vasya comes there and plays with his friends. During a game of blind man's buff, Tyburtsy unexpectedly appears. The children are scared - after all, they are friends without the knowledge of the formidable head of the “bad society”. But Tyburtsy allows Vasya to come, making him promise not to tell anyone where they all live. Tyburtsy brings food, prepares dinner - according to him, Vasya understands that the food is stolen. This, of course, confuses the boy, but he sees that Marusya is so happy about the food... Now Vasya comes to the mountain without hindrance, and the adult members of the “bad society” also get used to the boy and love him.

Autumn comes, and Marusya falls ill. In order to somehow entertain the sick girl, Vasya decides to ask Sonya for a while for a large beautiful doll, a gift from her late mother. Sonya agrees. Marusya is delighted with the doll, and she even feels better.

Old Janusz comes to the judge several times with denunciations against members of the “bad society.” He says that Vasya communicates with them. The nanny notices the doll is missing. Vasya is not allowed out of the house, and after a few days he runs away secretly.

Marusya is getting worse. The inhabitants of the dungeon decide that the doll needs to be returned, and the girl will not even notice. But seeing that they want to take the doll, Marusya cries bitterly... Vasya leaves her the doll.

And again Vasya is not allowed to leave the house. The father is trying to get his son to confess where he went and where the doll went. Vasya admits that he took the doll, but says nothing more. The father is angry... And at the most critical moment Tyburtsy appears. He is carrying a doll.

Tyburtsy tells the judge about Vasya’s friendship with his children. He is amazed. The father feels guilty before Vasya. It was as if the wall that had separated father and son for a long time had collapsed, and they felt like close people. Tyburtsy says that Marusya died. The father lets Vasya go to say goodbye to her, while he passes through Vasya money for Tyburtsy and a warning: it is better for the head of the “bad society” to hide from the city.

Soon almost all the “dark personalities” disappear somewhere. Only the old “professor” and Turkevich remain, to whom the judge sometimes gives work. Marusya is buried in the old cemetery near the collapsed chapel. Vasya and his sister are taking care of her grave. Sometimes they come to the cemetery with their father. When the time comes for Vasya and Sonya to leave their hometown, they pronounce their vows over this grave.

Main character works Vasya is the son of a city judge. The boy's mother died. They lived with their father in the small town of Knyazhye-Veno in the Southwestern region.

The father paid almost no attention to his son. Grief overshadowed everything for him. After the death of his mother, Vasya felt lonely. He spent time on the streets of the city, absorbing pictures of his life, listening to legends.

The city was surrounded by ponds. In the middle of one of them there was a castle. Once upon a time there lived a count's family. Legend says that the castle was built on the bones of their people, and the island itself was formed by captured Turks, with whom the island was covered.

The owners-counts have not been in this castle for a long time. The beggars of the city now live in this gloomy dwelling. Only over time did disagreements begin between them. The former count's servant began to divide the inhabitants into his people and strangers. Everyone who was expelled by Janusz moved to the dungeon under the old crypt on the mountain near the Uniate chapel. The chapel had long been abandoned, and no one knew about the inhabitants of this dungeon.

Vasya Yanush invited him to the castle, because all the decent people live there, but the boy prefers a different society, for which the boy feels pity.

The dungeon gathered everyone famous people: an elderly professor, a pugnacious bayonet cadet, a drunken retired official telling tragic stories. Turkevich called himself a general. All he does is denounce noble residents of the city under the windows of their houses in order to get money for vodka.

This society is headed by Tyburtsy Drab. Nobody knows anything about this man. In appearance, he comes from the common people, but due to his erudition, they see him as an aristocrat. Drab entertains the public at fairs with conversations about ancient authors, which is why he became known as a sorcerer.

Vasya and his three friends wanted to see the dungeon. The boy, with the help of his friends, gets inside through the window. Frightened, the friends run away. Vasya saw a four-year-old girl and a nine-year-old boy in the dungeon. Marusya and Valek are children of Tyburtsiya. So Vasya made new friends. He often goes to them when no one is in this home. He told his friends that he had met the devils.

Vasya also has a sister, Sonya, whom the boy loves very much. Sonya's nanny prohibits children from noisy games. She believes that Vasya is a bad influence on his sister. My father has the same opinion. He loves the girl too much, because she looks like his late wife. There was no place left in his heart for his son.

One day Valek and Marusya spoke warmly about their father. They talked about his love for them. Vasya could not say this about his father, but the guys knew him as an honest and fair judge. Valek is a serious man beyond his years, and Marusya is pale and thoughtful. Valek said it was from a gray stone. Vasya found out that Valek was stealing food for his sister. No, he didn't blame him. It was just hard for him.

One day Tyburtsy found the children playing. Scared children are allowed to be friends as long as no one finds out about the dungeon. The head of the society brings food. Vasya understands that it was stolen, but Marusya’s joy dispelled all his embarrassment. The boy is treated well by all members of this society.

In the fall, Marusya fell ill. Vasya, in order to bring joy to the girl, asked Sonya for a large doll, which her late mother gave her. Sonya gave her the doll, and Marusya felt even better. Janusz informed the judge that Vasya was communicating with members of “bad society.” The nanny noticed the doll was missing. Vasya was locked at home, but one day the boy runs away. Marusya becomes very ill, but when they wanted to take the doll, the girl began to cry. She kept the doll.

Vasya had to confess where he goes and where the doll is. And at that very moment Tybutsky brought a doll and talked about the friendship of the children. The line of misunderstanding between father and son disappeared. They become close friends. The father lets his son go to Marusya’s funeral, and at the same time gives money to Tyburtsy, and also says that he should leave the city for a while.

The main character of the story is the boy Vasya, who lives in the small town of Knyazhye-Veno. The town belongs to a seedy Polish family, life here is quiet and calm.

Vasya's mother died when the child was only six years old. The boy's father had a hard time with the death of his wife. After her death, he began to pay more attention to his daughter, since the girl looked like her mother, and almost forgot about his son.

Vasya was left to his own devices. He spent most of his time on the streets of the town and often looked at the ruins of the old castle, which was located on a small island. A lot has been said about this place scary stories. They said that the castle stood on the bones of captured Turks who built it. A Uniate chapel was built next to the castle, but now it stood completely abandoned.

For a long time, people left without a means of subsistence found shelter in the ruins of the castle. Here you could get a free roof over your head, as well as somehow organize your life.

However, changes began in the castle. Former servant Janusz obtained the rights to this building and began to carry out “reforms” here. He left only Catholics in the castle, and mercilessly drove out the rest of the beggars.

II. Problematic natures

After the beggars were driven out of the castle, they walked the streets of the city for several days in search of temporary shelter. The weather these days was unkind to people, it poured all the time cold rain. But soon the beggars stopped bothering the townspeople, and life returned to its usual routine.

Rumors spread throughout the city that those expelled from the castle had found shelter in the ruins of the chapel; they also said that there were underground passages there. The exiles began to periodically appear in the city, but, like the inhabitants of the castle, they no longer asked for alms. They preferred to take what they needed for life themselves. For this, the townspeople were persecuted.

Among the exiles there were extraordinary personalities. For example, a man nicknamed “professor”. He was a harmless man who spent his days wandering around the city muttering something. He could talk for hours on any topic and was very afraid of piercing and cutting objects. This fact amused the local residents, who often mocked the “professor.”

However, the expelled beggars stood for each other. Pan Turkevich and bayonet cadet Zausailov were particularly distinguished by their courage. The latter was of enormous stature and constantly fought with local residents. The Jews suffered the most from Zausailov.

The former official Lavrovsky was called “Mr. Clerk” in the city. His tragedy is connected with the local beauty Anna, with whom young Lavrovsky was madly in love. The girl ran away from her parents' nest with one dragoon officer, after which the official started drinking. Lavrovsky often attributed terrible crimes to himself, for example, the murder of his father. But the townspeople only laughed at his stories.

Lavrovsky fell asleep on the street in any weather. He could have died long ago if the former official had not been under the care of Pan Turkevich, a man of a tough disposition, always drunk and ready for a fight. Turkevich called himself a general; he could easily find money for drinks from local officials.

Another person worthy of attention was Tyburtsy Drab. Outwardly, this gentleman somewhat resembled a monkey, but everyone was amazed by his learning. Drab knew by heart vast passages from the works of Cicero and other ancient authors.

III. Me and my father

After the death of his mother, Vasily’s relationship with his father became difficult. The boy felt that every day the parent cared less and less about his son. His father’s face was always stern, so Vasya preferred to spend as little time as possible at home. He left for the city at dawn and returned late in the evening. If little sister Sonya was not yet asleep, the boy would sneak into her room and the children would play together.

For this lifestyle, Vasily began to be called a tramp, but he was not at all offended by this and tried to think less about what others were saying. The boy loved to dream, it seemed to him that big and interesting life is waiting for him ahead.

Sometimes my father asked if Vasya remembered his mother? Of course, he remembered her hands, to which he loved to cuddle at night, he remembered how in Last year In her life she often sat by the window, as if saying goodbye to this world. However, it was difficult for Vasily to tell his father about this, since he was always gloomy and embittered.

Having explored all the city's attractions, the boy became interested in the chapel, which beckoned with its mysteries and promised many new impressions. And soon Vasya decided to get inside this mysterious building.

IV. I'm making a new acquaintance

Vasily decided to carry out his plans together with his friends. The door of the chapel was boarded up, and it was possible to get inside only through the window, which was located quite high above the ground.

Friends helped Vasya climb onto the window frame, but they categorically refused to go down with him. The boy had to do it alone. Below it was dark, eerie and scary, plaster fell down, and the cry of an awakened owl was heard. It seemed to Vasya that he had entered the other world.

Having gotten used to it a little and looked around, our hero heard children's voices, and then saw a boy of about nine and a very small blond girl with blue eyes. These turned out to be the children of Pan Tyburtsy Valek and Marusya.

They escorted Vasily home, and he promised his new acquaintances that he would visit them again soon.

V. The acquaintance continues

Vasily began to often visit Valek and Marusya, and became more and more attached to his new friends. The girl was especially happy about his visits; she gladly accepted gifts.

Vasily compared Marusya with his sister Sonya. In some ways they were similar, even the same age. However, unlike Sonya, Marusya was a weak and sickly girl; she did not like to frolic, like all little children.

This is all from the “gray stones” that suck the last strength out of Marusya. This is roughly how Valek explained his sister’s illness. And their father, Pan Tyburtsy, told him about this. And, according to Valek, Drab loves his children very much. This news especially upset Vasya, since his father was completely different.

VI. Gray Rock Environments

In this chapter, Valek invited Vasya to his home, which turned out to be a damp and dark dungeon. Now it has become obvious that Vasily’s new acquaintances belong to a “bad society”; they are beggars.

The boy also understood what “gray stones” he was talking about. Life in such a dungeon seemed simply terrible to him. Vasya could not stay here even for a few minutes. He asked Valek to quickly take him out into the fresh air.

VII. Pan Tyburtsy appears on stage

Vasya still went to visit Valek and Marusa. When it was warm and sunny, the children played outside, and in inclement weather they went underground. On one of these days, Pan Tyburtsy appeared. At first he treated the guest rudely, but then, upon learning that Vasily was the son of a judge, he softened. Tyburtsy greatly respected the city judge for his principled position.

Then everyone sat down to dinner. Vasya noticed how greedily the children ate meat dishes. Marusya even licked her greasy fingers. The boy realized that life was difficult for the poor, but still condemned them for theft. Vasya was terribly afraid that his father might punish him for his connection with “bad society.”

VIII. in autumn

Autumn came. On rainy days, Marusya’s illness worsened. The girl lay in bed almost all the time. This circumstance greatly upset Vasya; he became even more attached to the baby, trying to take care of her as if he were his sister.

In good weather, Vasya and Valek carried the girl out of the musty dungeon into the fresh air. Here she was better, Marusya came to life for a while. But this state quickly passed.

IX. Doll

Marusya's illness progressed rapidly. The girl never got out of bed and was indifferent to everything. In order to somehow distract Marusya from her illness, Vasya begged his sister for a beautiful doll. This toy became the last and most expensive in the girl’s life. When she was unconscious and no longer recognized anyone, she was still tightly clutching Vasya’s gift in her little hands.

Father found out about the disappearance of Sonya’s doll. He decided to punish his son severely, but Pan Tyburtsy appeared at the judge’s house. The beggar returned the doll and said that Marusya had died. At that moment, Vasily saw his father differently for the first time. He looked at the boy with a kind look.

Conclusion

Tyburtsy and Valek disappeared, the chapel completely collapsed, and Marusya’s grave turned green every spring. Vasya, his father and Sonya often came here.