What a left-handed man was from the tale. "Russian national character in the work of N.S. Leskov" Lefty "
The genre is determined by the author himself - this is a tale, a work of oral folk art based on traditions, legends. The language of the tale is unusual: many words are distorted, as if they were pronounced by an illiterate person: "small scope" (microscope), "ceramides" (pyramids), etc. This is one of the means of humorous depiction.
This is a story about the unprecedented skill of the Tula gunsmiths, about the ordinary Russian people who believe in God and diligently do their work not for the sake of money and glory, but for the prosperity of their Fatherland. Leskov shows various Russian characters worthy of all respect. Many characters tales are real, but described from the point of view of a commoner. For example, General Platov is represented by a Don Cossack. He is opposed to the king.
Tsar Alexander is a person interested in foreign things, surprised and rejoicing at other people's merits. Platov is a strict Cossack, for whom everything native is the highest value, and he is sure that there are more miracles in Russia.
Tsar Nikolai Pavlovich is a just tsar who trusts Russian craftsmen and knows that they will not let him down.
Lefty is a Tula gunsmith, an inconspicuous person, endowed with tremendous talent and skill, tolerant of others and grateful. He was not seduced by the tempting offers of the British, returned to his homeland, and there he was useless and died in a hospital for the poor.
- New!
How is the author's patriotic feeling expressed in this work? The patriotic feeling is expressed primarily by the creation of the image of the Lefty. The author sees the talent of a Russian person, a high professional and grieves that in other countries ...
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This is one of Leskov's most popular works. Written in the form of a folk tale in 1881 and then published in the magazine "Rus" under the title "The Tale of the Tula oblique left-hander and the steel flea (Tsehovaya legend)". Subtitle "Guild Legend" ...
One of the themes that quite often occurs in the work of N.S. Leskov is the theme of a Russian working man, a talented craftsman, a master with golden hands. Such is the hero of the work Lefty, a Tula master who shod steel flea... Work...
More than any other Russian writer of the 19th century, Leskov left traces of stylistic play with the properties of the Russian language. He observed and found these properties in home-grown representatives of such strata of society, whose nationalism had not yet been discolored by the world cultural ...
1880s - the heyday of creativity N. S. Leskov. He spent all his life and all his strength to create a "positive" type of Russian person. He defended the interests of the peasants, defended the interests of the workers, denounced careerism and bribery ...
), three Russian masters shod a flea.
One of these craftsmen is Levsha, a Tula craftsman who lives poorly, wears bad clothes, but is a master of his craft. He is a religious and patriotic person. Although he is left-handed, he does not have special education, and even oblique, he performs a very delicate, invisible to the human eye, incredible work.
By order of the tsar, he goes to England, where he introduces a shod flea and tells what Russian craftsmen are capable of. The British really like this simple talented person. They bombard him with lucrative offers of cooperation, but Lefty, being an honest, disinterested and loyal person to his country, does not agree to their tempting offers. He sees how the craftsmen are treated in England, sees that they are well fed and well dressed, but he yearns for his homeland.
Upon his return to Russia, he falls ill, no one except his new English comrade takes care of him and does not want to treat him. But even abandoned by the ungrateful royal authorities, being near death, he cares and thinks about his country. He asks to convey to the tsar the cunning of military affairs of the British.
This hardworking person does not forget about his country for a minute, he worries and cares about his homeland until his last breath.
Essay Description Lefty
The plot of Leskov's story unfolds around the protagonist Lefty, who was a master from Tula. The description of the craftsman does not appear immediately, approximately in the middle of the story. The hero is a master blacksmith, he is left-handed, a patriot of his homeland, very naive, loyal to Tsar Alexander I and Platov. On his cheek there is birthmark, his eyes are squinting, but despite this, he does an excellent job with his job.
Lefty, together with his comrades, Platonov gave the order to make a masterpiece, but at the same time using a steel flea. Thus, he wanted to prove to others that not only the British are capable of inventing non-standard things. For a long time, three masters "puzzled" what to do to surprise the people and decided to shoe a miniature flea. Without special equipment and proper knowledge, they still succeeded. This invention shocked everyone.
After the invention of an ingenious product, Lefty goes to England, without having any documents with him. The British offered the young man both training and money, but he remained faithful to his homeland and refused everything. The left-hander dreamed of getting home as soon as possible.
Excessive modesty and ruined Lefty. In the winter, he refused a comfortable cabin, because he believed that he was not worthy of such honors. Therefore, he spent the entire journey on deck and fell ill.
Upon arrival in St. Petersburg, Lefty was robbed. With no money, no documents with them, not a single hospital wanted to accept him, only a hospital for the poor. No one even thought to save the great master, except an Englishman who brought a good doctor. Unfortunately, it was already too late. Lefty has died modestly, unknown to anyone. Even in the last minutes of his life, the master wants to convey a message to the king that one should not clean weapons with bricks.
Several interesting compositions
- The image and characteristics of the Lady in the story White poodle Kuprin composition
The lady is a minor character in the work, representing a wealthy landowner, the mother of a spoiled and capricious child named Trilli.
- Essay description from a photograph (picture) of Hippenreiter Birch trunks (description)
In his work, V. Gippenreiter could not get around one of the symbols of Russia - the birch. This tree is in the background of his photographs, and in some of them they are the central characters.
- Composition based on the painting by Polenov Golden Autumn Grade 3, 4 (description)
The painting by Russian artist Vasily Dmitrievich Polenov depicts the beauty of nature in autumn time... The picture fascinates with the variety of colors and the splendor of autumn nature.
- Criticism about the story of Pushkin's Blizzard (reviews)
The work is a short story, which is part of several stories published by the writer in the form of a collection called "Belkin's Tales".
There are many ways to spend your free time. Sometimes you really want to watch a movie or go to a concert. The best option to spend your precious time will go to the theater.
Completed by Evgeniy Trubnikov,
student of grade 9 "A"
Lyceum No. 369
supervisor
Epishova Svetlana Fedorovna,
teacher of Russian language and literature
Saint Petersburg 2011
Introduction
1. Russian national character
2. Description of Lefty
3. The Russian national character of Lefty, the hero of the tale by NS Leskov
Conclusion
Bibliography
Introduction
The mysterious Russian soul ... She, the subject of delight and curses, There is a man's fist clenched, Concrete obstacles crushing. And then suddenly it will become thinner than a petal, More transparent than an autumn web. And then it flies, like on the first day of fishing season Desperate mountain river.(E. Dolmatovsky)
There is such a thing as Russian national character. Times are changing, tsars, leaders, presidents are changing, our country itself is changing, but the features of the Russian national character remain unchanged. Both foreign and Russian thinkers constantly turned to the secret of the “mysterious Russian soul”, because this topic has always remained and will remain relevant and interesting.
To reveal this topic in my work, I chose the work of NS Leskov "Levsha", because he, using the form of a tale, tells us the story of a man who personifies all Russian people. " Where "left-handed" stands, one must read "Russian people" - Leskov himself spoke.
“A tale is a kind of literary and artistic narration, built as a story of a person, the position and speech manner of which are different from the point of view and style of the author himself. The collision and interaction of these semantic and speech positions underlies the artistic effect of skaz ”*. The tale implies a first-person narration, and the narrator's speech should be measured, melodious, sustained in a characteristic this person manner. There is no “Lefty” as such a narrator, but for the rest of the points, the work may well be called a skaz. The author's “reprimand” creates the impression that the story is being led by some villager, simple, but at the same time (judging by the reasoning) educated and wise. With fairy tales "Lefty" is related by the subtext, because they often contain an unobtrusive, often good-naturedly condescending mockery of the "powers that be."
1. Russian national character
Among all the features inherent in the Russian national character, we can single out some that, in my opinion, are the main ones: hard work and giftedness, willpower and kindness, patience and perseverance, courage and courage, love of freedom and patriotism, religiosity. I considered it necessary to cite the statements of some foreigners who touched upon topics of the Russian national character, because they see us from the outside and evaluate us impartially.
· Diligence, giftedness.
“Russian people have many talents and abilities in almost all areas of social life. He is characterized by observation, theoretical and practical mind, natural ingenuity, ingenuity, creativity. The Russian people are a great worker, creator and creator ”. The sharp, practical mind of the Russian person is the source of varied experience and varied abilities. Hence - the rich development of the spirit and an abundance of gifts. The giftedness of the Russian person manifested itself in the very successful development of science and technical inventions, and the love of beauty and the gift of creative imagination contribute to the high development of Russian art.
· Love of freedom
“For the Russian people, freedom is above all.
The Russian heart is closer to the word "will", understood as independence,
freedom in the expression of feelings and in the performance of actions, and not freedom as perceived need, that is, as an opportunity for a person to manifest his will on the basis of awareness of the law ”*.
According to the philosopher N.O. Lossky among the primary properties of the Russian people, along with religiosity, the search for absolute goodness and willpower, include the love of freedom and its highest expression - freedom of the spirit. Anyone who has freedom of spirit is inclined to test any value, not only by thought, but even by experience. This property is associated with the search for absolute goodness. In the real world, it does not exist, therefore, each person does for himself independent choice the best way actions, your own path.
Freedom of spirit, breadth of nature, the search for the perfect good and the associated testing of values by thought and experience led to the fact that the Russian people developed the most diverse, and sometimes opposite, forms and methods. The search for absolute goodness has developed among the Russian people the recognition of the high value of each individual.
The Russian people had to endure many trials during their difficult history, and in each of them they showed courage and courage. Mighty willpower belongs to the primary basic properties of the Russian people. The higher the value, the stronger feelings and energetic activity it evokes in people with a strong will. Hence the passion of the Russian people, manifested in political life, and even greater passion in religious life, is understandable. The willpower of the Russian people, as N.O. Lossky, it is also revealed in the fact that a Russian person, having noticed any of his shortcomings and morally condemning it, obeying a sense of duty, overcomes it and develops a quality that is completely opposite to it.
· Kindness
Often Russian people help those whom they should have hated with all their soul, with whom, in theory, they cannot develop respectable relations. For example, Austrian German Otto Berger, who was in captivity in Russia in 1944-1949, wrote in his book that while living in Russia, the prisoners understood “What a special Russian people. All workers, especially women, treated us as unfortunate, in need of help and protection. Sometimes women took our clothes, our linen and returned it all ironed, washed, repaired. The most amazing thing was that the Russians themselves lived in monstrous poverty, which should have killed in them the desire to help us, their yesterday's enemies ”... Our Russian writer Fyodor Dostoevsky agrees with the opinion of a foreigner: “Russian people do not know how to hate for a long time and seriously,” he wrote about Russian kindness.
The kindness of the Russian people in all its strata is expressed in the absence of rancor. “Often a Russian person, being passionate and inclined to maximalism, experiences a strong feeling of repulsion from another person, but when meeting him, if there is a need for concrete communication, his heart softens and he somehow involuntarily begins to show his spiritual softness towards him, even sometimes condemning himself for it, if he believes that the person does not deserve to be treated kindly. ”*
· Patriotism
The Russian people have always been distinguished by their patriotism. The Russian people could remain dissatisfied with Russia among themselves, but as soon as it was necessary to defend it, to defend the honor of the Motherland, they united and together repulsed the enemy or simply did not allow ridicule of it.
· Patience and resilience
“Russians have boundless patience, an amazing ability to endure hardships, hardships and suffering. In Russian culture, patience and the ability to endure suffering is the ability to exist, the ability to respond to external circumstances, this is the basis of personality "*
· Religiosity
Religiousness is the trait of the Russian national character that has practically determined the entire Russian mentality. In my opinion, if the Russian people were not so religious, then, most likely, their history would have developed differently. Indeed, many of the defining features of the Russian national character were formed precisely thanks to her. In his book The Character of the Russian People, the Russian philosopher N.O. Lossky considers the main and most profound feature of the Russian people to be its religiosity and the search for absolute truth associated with it. “Russians can talk about religion for six hours straight. The Russian idea is a Christian idea; in the foreground is love for the suffering, pity, attention to the individual personality ... ”- writes N.O. Lossky in his book.
2. Description of Lefty
Distinctive properties prose N.S. Leskov's fairy tale motifs, the interweaving of the comic and the tragic, the ambiguity of the author's assessments of the characters - are fully manifested in one of the most famous works of the writer "Lefty".
Introducing us to the main character, the author does not demonstrate his attractiveness, just a few details: “ oblique left-handed, a birthmark on the cheek, and on the temples the hairs were torn out during training. However, Levsha is a skilled Tula craftsman, one of those Tula gunsmiths who managed to shoe the English "nymphosoria" and thereby surpass the English masters.
When meeting with the king himself, Lefty is not afraid, but “ he walks in what he was wearing: in garments, one leg is in a boot, the other is dangling, and the little ozzam is old, the hooks are not fastened, they are lost, and the collar is torn; but nothing, don't be embarrassed”. A left-handed man, an unprepossessing peasant, is not afraid to go to the sovereign, as he is confident in his righteousness, in the quality of his work. Indeed, there is something to marvel at - the craftsmen not only did not spoil the curiosity, but also bypassed the British in skill: they shod a steel flea and wrote their names on the horseshoes. This is such a miniature work that you can see the result through a "small scope" that magnifies several hundred times, and the masters, due to poverty, did all the delicate work without a "small scope", because they had "so focused their eyes." However, the name of Lefty was not on the horseshoes, as he considered himself unworthy of it. In his opinion, he did not do anything special, because he worked with details less than horseshoes: he forged carnations to nail them.
Lefty is ready to sacrifice himself for the sake of the Fatherland, in the name of the cause. He goes to England without documents, hungry (on his way “ at each station, the belts were also pulled one badge so that the intestines did not get mixed up with the lungs”) To show foreigners Russian ingenuity and skill, and earns the respect of the British by their unwillingness to stay in their country.
The skill and skill of the Lefty earned a well-deserved respect among the British, but, unfortunately, he was deprived of technical knowledge available to English masters, and, as a result, the "nymphozoria" grounded by Lefty and her comrades can no longer dance: " It's a pity- the British regret, - it would be better if you knew at least four rules of addition from arithmetic, then you would be much more useful than the whole Half-Dream. Then you could figure out that in every machine there is a calculation of force; otherwise, you are very skillful in your hands, but you didn’t realize that such a small machine, as in the nymphosoria, is designed for the most accurate accuracy and cannot bear its horseshoes. Through this now nymphosoria does not jump and does not dance danse. "
When Lefty returns to his homeland, he falls ill and dies, no one wants. Thrown to the floor in a "common" hospital, he personifies inhumanity, shortsightedness and ingratitude state power- the reason for the disorder in Russia, according to the author.
From the whole story, it becomes obvious that Leskov sympathizes with Lefty, pity him, the author's comments are filled with bitterness. The image of Lefty reflects Leskov's search for a positive national hero, and, in my opinion, this image is very close to the goal.
3. The Russian national character of Lefty, the hero of the tale by NS Leskov
Leskov does not give a name to his hero, thereby emphasizing the collective meaning and significance of his character. The image of Lefty contains the main features of the Russian national character.
· Religiosity
The religiosity of the Russian people is manifested in the episode when Tula masters, including Lefty, before starting work, went to bow to the icon of “Mtsensk Nikola” - the patron saint of trade and military affairs. Also, Lefty's religiosity is "intertwined" with his patriotism. Lefty's faith is one of the reasons he refuses to stay in England. " Because, - he answers, - that our Russian faith is the most correct, and as our righteous fathers believed, the descendants should also believe in the same way. "
· Willpower, courage and courage
The left-hander, among three gunsmiths, worked hard on the outlandish flea for two weeks. All this time they were locked up, keeping their work secret. It is here that the strength of the spirit manifests itself, since I had to work in difficult conditions: with closed windows and doors, without rest, so that during work I never leave their “cramped mansion”, in which “ from the restless work in the air such a sweaty spiral has become that an unfamiliar person with a fresh fever could not breathe even once ”.
· Patience and resilience
Lefty shows patience and resilience many times: and when Platov “ I caught the left-hander by the hair and began to flap back and forth so that the tufts flew ", and when Lefty, sailing home from England, despite the bad weather, sits on the deck in order to see the Motherland as soon as possible:
“As we left the buffet for the Mediterranean Sea, so his desire for Russia became such that it was impossible to calm him down. The flooding has become terrible, but the left-hander will not go down into the cabins - he sits under the present, pushed his head down and looks to the fatherland. Many times the British came to a warm place downstairs to call him, but he, so as not to bother him, even began to shrug. "
· Patriotism
While in England, Lefty rejects lucrative offers from the British: to settle in London, study science, visit factories in practice, get a prestigious job, get married, start a family. (“ Stay with us, we will give you great education, and an amazing master will come out of you ”,“ The English called themselves to send money to his parents ”,“ We will marry you”), Because he loves his homeland, loves her customs, her traditions. Lefty cannot imagine his life outside of Russia. " We, - he says, - are committed to our homeland, and my old man is already an old man, and my parent is an old woman and are accustomed to going to church in her parish ”,“ but I wish rather to my native place, because otherwise I could be a kind of insanity get it. "
Lefty is a true patriot, a patriot at heart, gifted from birth, he is characterized by high morality and religiosity. He went through many trials, but even at the hour of death, he remembers that he must tell the British military secret, ignorance of which negatively affects the combat capability of the Russian army.
· Kindness
Despite his strong affection for his homeland, Lefty refuses the British request to stay very politely, trying not to offend them. He does this in such a way that his refusal not only did not upset the British, but even aroused their respect. And he forgives Ataman Platov for his rude treatment of himself. “Even though he has an ovechkin's coat, he has the soul of a human,” says the “English half-skipper” about his Russian comrade.
· Diligence and giftedness
One of the main themes in the story is the theme of the creative talent of the Russian person. Talent, according to Leskov, cannot exist independently, it must necessarily be based on the moral, spiritual strength of a person. The plot itself, the very history of this tale tells how Lefty, together with his comrades, was able to “surpass” the English masters without any acquired knowledge, only thanks to giftedness and hard work. Extraordinary, wonderful craftsmanship is the main property of Lefty. He wiped his nose with the "English masters", shod a flea with such small nails that you can't even see it through the strongest "small scope". In the image of Levsha, Leskov argued that the opinion put into the mouth of Emperor Alexander Pavlovich was wrong: foreigners “have such a nature of perfection that as you look, you will no longer argue that we, Russians, are worthless with our meaning”.
Lefty's own name, like the names of many of the greatest geniuses, is forever lost to posterity, but his adventures can serve as a memory of an era, the general spirit of which is accurately and correctly captured. The image of the Lefty, according to the writer, reminds of those times when “the inequality of talents and talents” mattered, and makes us look with sadness at modernity, when, “favoring the rise of earnings, machines do not favor artistic prowess, which sometimes exceeded the measure, inspiring the people fantasy for the composition of such fabulous legends today. "
Conclusion
In this work, we examined the Russian national character on the example of the work of NS Leskov "Lefty". Analyzing this work, finding in its protagonist signs of a Russian national character, we found that "Levsha" is a work in which Leskov, an unsurpassed master of tale, skillfully highlighted the main features of the Russian national character and showed them on the example of his heroes, in particular Lefty ... To do this, the author uses various linguistic means of expression, such as the use of "folk" words ("nymphozoria" - infusoria, "bite" - couch, etc.). This gives “Lefty” a special “charm”.
Lefty is a symbol of the Russian people. Lefty personifies the Russian people, he is religious, patriotic, hardworking, kind and freedom-loving. Leskov presented truly great person: a talented master, with a wide soul, ardent loving heart, with deep patriotic feelings.
Thus, at the end of this work, it should be said that the Russian national character, of course, has its own specific traits, different from the features inherent in other peoples and so incomprehensible to them. That inner strength, spirituality and sacrifice of the people, their kindness, spiritual simplicity, compassion and unselfishness and, at the same time, inertia, illogicality and irrationality of actions, behavior justified most often only by intuition, all this makes the Russian people unlike any other people in the world. Russia, in which such an extraordinary people lives, is unlike any other country in the world.
work left-handed Russian national character
Bibliography
1. Leskov NS Lefty. - Astrel, AST, 2006
2. Vyunov Yu.A. “A Word about the Russians”. M., 2002.
3. Vereshchagin E.M. V.G. Kostomarov "Language and Culture". M, 1990.
4. Ter-Minasova S.G. "Language and Intercultural Communication". M., 2000.
5. “Large Soviet encyclopedia”. M, Soviet Encyclopedia, 1970.
6. Lossky NO About Russian character. M., 1990.
It's no secret that a left-handed person differs from a right-handed person not only by the fact that he writes with a pen in his other hand. Let's try to find out about the features, characteristics and qualities of a left-hander.
Today in the world about 8-15% of people use the left hand as the predominant hand, they are called left-handers.
It is interesting that children choose the leading hand at the age three years, this is manifested in games, creative activities - for example, when drawing, decorating, modeling. It is believed that in children who are left-handed, the right hemisphere of the brain is predominant (dominant). His work is responsible for the perception of location and orientation in space, artistic perception, creative, including musical, abilities, intuition, imagination, emotions.
Psychologists often point out that lefties are artistically gifted people, they have excellent ear for music. In addition, left-handed people are characterized by difficulty in pronouncing certain sounds and sometimes delay in the development of speech. Speaking about other qualities of left-handers, psychologists note stubbornness, the ability to draw, sculpt, sing, and difficulty reading and writing.
Left-handed children are often gullible, direct, subject to other people's influence, mood. They are also characterized by moodiness, tearfulness, persistence and perseverance in achieving what they want. The reasons for the difference between right-handed and left-handed is that the right and left hemispheres of the brain are responsible for different areas mental activity.
Also, experts note the connection between temperament and left-handedness. Lefties are more emotional than right-handers, they have a problem with self-control. Lefties can instantly get angry and lose their temper, but they have logical thinking, the ability to consistently process information, generalize and analyze it. Lefties are distinguished by excellent physical mobility, craving for sports, impressionability and vulnerability, they also have a tendency to fantasize and have an excellent memory.
In the past, most children who involuntarily preferred using the left hand were deliberately retrained. Many parents take the news that their child is left-handed negatively, but one should not be so categorical in their judgments. Today, all experts agree that in no case should a left-handed person be retrained. The process of retraining a left-hander is a difficult test for his psyche, which will only cause stress and neurotization of the child.
After retraining, children often suffer from neurotic disorders, including sleep disturbances, appetite disorders, headaches, enuresis, and stuttering.
As recommendations for the behavior of adults with a left-handed child, there is advice not to focus on the fact that the child is different from other children in his left-handedness. In a situation where the baby feels that his feature is of increased interest from others, his self-esteem may decrease and shyness and self-doubt may develop.
Interestingly, when choosing a profession, it is worth considering a person's left-handedness. Lefties have proven themselves well in areas such as design, photography, painting, architecture, music, sports. It is noted that among left-handed people there are a lot creative personalities who have achieved success, as an example, you can name: Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Vladimir Mayakovsky, composers Bach, Beethoven, Charlie Chaplin, Marilyn Monroe. If a left-handed child appears in the family, you should not retrain him; rather, you need to give a chance to prove himself from the creative side and develop the features and skills that he is good at. Children need and need support from their parents. Be healthy!
Distinctive properties of the prose of N.S. Leskov - fabulous motives, the interweaving of the comic and the tragic, the ambiguity of the author's assessments of the characters - fully appeared in one of the most famous works of the writer "Lefty". The title character, outwardly not distinguished by anything special ("there is a birthmark on the cheek, and the hairs on the temples were torn out"), is at the same time, according to the author himself, the most skillful among the Tula gunsmiths. However, Leskov does not idealize the hero, showing that with excellent skill he is not strong in the sciences "and instead of the four rules of addition from arithmetic, he takes everything according to the Psalter and according to Half-Dream".
Lefty is a skilled craftsman, one of those who participated in shoeing fleas, personifies the talent of the Russian people. But the savvy flea stops dancing: Russian craftsmen do not have the elementary technical knowledge that any English master has. Leskov does not give a name to his hero, thereby emphasizing the collective meaning and significance of his character ("Where" Levsha "stands, one must read the Russian people," said Leskov). The left-hander, being in England, rejects the lucrative offers of the British and returns to Russia. He is disinterested and incorruptible, but he is "downtrodden", feels his own insignificance next to officials and nobles. The left-hander is used to constant threats and beatings.
One of the main themes in the story is the theme of the creative talent of the Russian person, which has already been portrayed more than once in Leskov's work (stories "The Stupid Artist", "The Captured Angel"). Talent, according to Leskov, cannot exist independently, it must necessarily be based on the moral, spiritual strength of a person. A left-handed man, an unprepossessing peasant, is not afraid to go to the sovereign, as he is confident in his righteousness, in the quality of his work.
The image of Lefty stands among other images of the righteous created by Leskov. He sacrifices himself for the sake of the Fatherland, in the name of the Cause. He travels to England without documents, hungry (on his way “at each station, the belts were still pulled over one badge so that the intestines and lungs would not get messed up”) to show foreigners Russian ingenuity and skill, and earns the respect of the British by his unwillingness to stay in their country ... Lefty possesses a number of qualities inherent in Leskov's gallery of the righteous: he is a true patriot, a patriot at heart, gifted from birth, he is characterized by high morality and religiosity. He went through many trials, but even at the hour of death, he remembers that he must tell the British military secret, ignorance of which negatively affects the combat capability of the Russian army.
In the authorities' inattention to the fate of national talents, in the obscurity and ignorance of the Russian people themselves, they constitute, according to Leskov, the reason for the backwardness of Russia. It is interesting to compare the conversation between Nicholas and Lefty, to whom the emperor condescends, and the meeting of the hero with the British, who respect the masters in him, talk on equal terms. When Lefty returns to his homeland, he falls ill and dies, no one wants. Thrown to the floor in a "common" hospital, he personifies inhumanity, shortsightedness and ingratitude royal power- the reason for the disorder in Russia, according to the author.
From the whole story it becomes obvious that Leskov sympathizes with Lefty, pity him; the author's comments are filled with bitterness. The image of Lefty reflects Leskov's search for a positive hero, and, I think, this image is closest to this goal.
