The analysis of Bulgakov's "White Guard" allows us to study in detail his first novel in his creative biography. It describes the events that took place in 1918 in Ukraine during the Civil War. It tells about a family of intellectuals who are trying to survive in the face of serious social upheavals in the country.
The analysis of Bulgakov's "White Guard" should begin with the history of writing the work. The author began working on it in 1923. It is known that there were several variants of the name. Bulgakov also chose between the White Cross and the Midnight Cross. He himself admitted that he loved the novel more than his other things, promised that "the sky would get hot" from him.
His acquaintances recalled that he wrote "The White Guard" at night, when his legs and arms were getting cold, he asked those around him to warm the water in which he warmed them.
At the same time, the beginning of work on the novel coincided with one of the most difficult periods in his life. At that time, he was frankly in poverty, there was not enough money even for food, his clothes crumbled. Bulgakov was looking for one-time orders, wrote feuilletons, performed the duties of a proofreader, while trying to find time for his novel.
In August 1923, he reported that he had finished a draft. In February 1924, one can find references to the fact that Bulgakov began to read excerpts from the work to his friends and acquaintances.
In April 1924, Bulgakov entered into an agreement on the publication of the novel with the magazine Rossiya. The first chapters were published about a year after that. At the same time, only the initial 13 chapters were published, after which the magazine closed. The novel was first published as a separate book in Paris in 1927.
In Russia, the entire text was published only in 1966. The manuscript of the novel has not survived, so it is still unknown what the canonical text was.
In our time, this is one of the most famous works of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov, which was repeatedly filmed, staged on the stage of drama theaters. It is considered one of the most significant and loved by many generations of works in the career of this famous writer.
The action takes place at the turn of 1918-1919. Their place is an unnamed City, in which Kyiv is guessed. For the analysis of the novel "The White Guard" it is important where the main action takes place. German occupation troops are standing in the City, but everyone is waiting for the appearance of Petlyura's army, the fighting continues just a few kilometers from the City itself.
On the streets, the inhabitants are surrounded by an unnatural and very strange life. There are many visitors from St. Petersburg and Moscow, among them journalists, businessmen, poets, lawyers, bankers, who rushed to the City after the election of a hetman in it in the spring of 1918.
In the center of the story is the Turbin family. The head of the family is doctor Alexei, his younger brother Nikolka, who has the rank of non-commissioned officer, their sister Elena, as well as friends of the whole family - lieutenants Myshlaevsky and Shervinsky, second lieutenant Stepanov, who is called Karasem, are having dinner with him. Everyone is discussing the fate and future of their beloved City.
Aleksey Turbin believes that the hetman is to blame for everything, who began to pursue a policy of ukranization, preventing the formation of the Russian army until the last. And if if the army had been formed, then it would have been able to defend the City, Petliura's troops would not be standing under its walls now.
Elena's husband, Sergei Talberg, an officer of the general staff, is also present here, who announces to his wife that the Germans plan to leave the city, so they need to leave today on the staff train. Talberg assures that in the coming months he will return with Denikin's army. Just at this time she is going to the Don.
To protect the city from Petlyura, Russian military formations are formed in the City. Turbin Sr., Myshlaevsky and Karas enter to serve under the command of Colonel Malyshev. But the formed division disbands the very next night, when it becomes known that the hetman fled the city on a German train together with General Belorukov. The division has no one else to protect, as there is no legitimate authority left.
At the same time, Colonel Nai-Turs was instructed to form a separate detachment. He threatens the head of the supply department with a weapon, as he considers it impossible to fight without winter equipment. As a result, his junkers receive the necessary hats and felt boots.
December 14 Petliura attacks the City. The colonel receives a direct order to defend the Polytechnic Highway and, if necessary, to take the fight. In the midst of another battle, he sends a small detachment to find out where the hetman's units are. The messengers return with the news that there are no units, machine guns are firing in the district, and the enemy cavalry is already in the City.
Shortly before this, Corporal Nikolai Turbin was ordered to lead the team along a certain route. Arriving at their destination, the younger Turbin watches the fleeing junkers and hears the command of Nai-Tours to get rid of shoulder straps and weapons, and immediately hide.
At the same time, the colonel covers the retreating junkers to the last. He dies in front of Nicholas. Shaken, Turbin makes his way home through the lanes.
Meanwhile, Aleksey Turbin, who was unaware of the dissolution of the division, arrives at the appointed place and time, where he discovers a building with a large number of abandoned weapons. Only Malyshev explains to him what is happening around him, the city is in the hands of Petliura.
Alexey gets rid of shoulder straps and makes his way home, meets an enemy detachment. The soldiers recognize him as an officer, because there is a cockade on his hat, they begin to pursue him. Alexey is wounded in the arm, he is saved by an unfamiliar woman, whose name is Yulia Reise.
In the morning, a girl in a cab delivers Turbine home.
At this time, Talberg's cousin Larion, who had recently experienced a personal tragedy, came to visit the Turbins from Zhytomyr: his wife left him. Lariosik, as everyone is beginning to call him, likes the Turbins, and the family finds him very nice.
The owner of the building in which the Turbins live is called Vasily Ivanovich Lisovich. Before Petlyura enters the city, Vasilisa, as everyone calls him, builds a hiding place in which he hides jewelry and money. But a stranger spied on his actions through the window. Soon, unknown people come to him, where they immediately find a hiding place, and take away other valuable things of the house manager.
Only when the uninvited guests leave, Vasilisa realizes that in reality they were ordinary bandits. He runs to the Turbins for help so that they save him from a possible new attack. Karas is sent to their rescue, to whom Vasilisa's wife Vanda Mikhailovna, who has always been distinguished by stinginess, immediately puts veal and cognac on the table. The crucian eats its fill and remains to protect the safety of the family.
Three days later, Nikolka manages to get the address of the family of Colonel Nai-Thurs. He goes to his mother and sister. Young Turbin tells about the last minutes of an officer's life. Together with his sister Irina, he goes to the morgue, finds the body and holds a funeral service.
At this time, Alexei's condition worsens. His wound becomes inflamed and typhus begins. Turbin is delirious, his temperature rises. The council of doctors decides that the patient will soon die. At first, everything develops according to the worst scenario, the patient begins to suffer agony. Elena prays, locking herself in her bedroom, to save her brother from death. Soon the doctor, who is on duty at the bedside of the patient, with amazement reports that Alexei is conscious and on the mend, the crisis has passed.
A few weeks later, having finally recovered, Alex goes to Julia, who saved him from certain death. He hands her a bracelet that once belonged to his dead mother, and then asks for permission to visit her. On the way back, he meets Nikolka, who is returning from Irina Nai-Tours.
Elena Turbina receives a letter from her friend in Warsaw, who talks about Thalberg's upcoming marriage to their mutual friend. The novel ends with Elena recalling her prayer, which she has already addressed more than once. On the night of February 3, Petliura's troops leave the City. In the distance, the artillery of the Red Army rumbles. She approaches the city.
Analyzing Bulgakov's The White Guard, it should be noted that the novel is, of course, autobiographical. For almost all characters, you can find prototypes in real life. These are friends, relatives or acquaintances of Bulgakov and his family, as well as iconic military and political figures of that time. Bulgakov even chose the names for the heroes, only slightly changing the names of real people.
The analysis of the novel "The White Guard" was carried out by many researchers. They managed to trace the fate of the characters with almost documentary authenticity. In the analysis of Bulgakov's novel "The White Guard", many emphasize that the events of the work unfold in the scenery of real Kyiv, which was well known to the author.
Carrying out even a brief analysis of the "White Guard", it should be noted that symbols are the key in the works. For example, in the City one can guess the small homeland of the writer, and the house coincides with the real house in which the Bulgakov family lived until 1918.
To analyze the work "The White Guard" it is important to understand even seemingly insignificant symbols. The lamp symbolizes the closed world and comfort that reigns in the Turbins, snow is a vivid image of the Civil War and revolution. Another symbol important for the analysis of Bulgakov's work "The White Guard" is the cross on the monument dedicated to St. Vladimir. It symbolizes the sword of war and civil terror. Analysis of the images of the "White Guard" helps to better understand what he wanted say this work is the author.
To analyze Bulgakov's "White Guard", it is important to study the allusions with which it is filled. Here are just a few examples. So, Nikolka, who comes to the morgue, personifies a journey to the afterlife. The horror and inevitability of the upcoming events, the approaching Apocalypse city can be traced by the appearance in the city of Shpolyansky, who is considered the "forerunner of Satan", the reader should have a clear impression that the kingdom of the Antichrist will soon come.
To analyze the heroes of the White Guard, it is very important to understand these clues.
One of the central places in the novel is occupied by Turbine's dream. Analysis of The White Guard is often based on this particular episode of the novel. In the first part of the work, his dreams are a kind of prophecy. In the first, he sees a nightmare that declares that Holy Rus' is a poor country, and an honor for a Russian person is an exceptionally extra burden.
Right in a dream, he tries to shoot the nightmare that torments him, but he disappears. Researchers believe that the subconscious convinces Turbine to hide from the city, go into exile, but in reality he does not even allow the thought of escaping.
Turbine's next dream already has a tragicomic tinge. He is an even more explicit prophecy of things to come. Alexei dreams of Colonel Nai-Tours and Warmaster Zhilin, who have gone to heaven. In a humorous manner, it is told how Zhilin got to paradise on the carts, and the apostle Peter missed them.
Turbine's dreams become of key importance at the end of the novel. Alexey sees how Alexander I destroys the lists of divisions, as if erasing white officers from the memory, most of whom are dead by that time.
After Turbin sees his own death at Malo-Provalnaya. It is believed that this episode is associated with the resurrection of Alexei, which came after an illness. Bulgakov often attached great importance to the dreams of his heroes.
We have analyzed Bulgakov's "White Guard". A summary is also presented in the review. The article can help students when studying this work or writing an essay.
Analysis of the work
The White Guard is a work that meant that a new writer had come into literature, with his own style and his own manner of writing. This is Bulgakov's first novel. The work is largely autobiographical. The novel reflects that terrible era in the life of Russia, when the Civil War was a destructive step across the country. Terrifying pictures appear before the reader's eyes: son goes against father, brother against brother. It reveals illogical, brutal rules of war that are against human nature. And in this environment, filled with the most cruel pictures of bloodshed, the Turbin family finds itself. This quiet, calm, pretty family, far from any political upheavals, turns out to be not only a witness to large-scale upheavals in the country, but also an unwitting participant in them, she suddenly found herself in the very epicenter of a huge storm. This is a kind of strength test, a lesson in courage, wisdom, and perseverance. And no matter how hard this lesson was, you can’t get away from it. He must necessarily bring the whole past life to a common denominator in order to start a new life. And Turbines overcome this with dignity. They make their choice, stay with their people.
The characters in the novel are very diverse. This is the cunning owner of the Vasilisa house, the brave and courageous Colonel Nai-Tours, who sacrificed his life to save young cadets, the frivolous Larion, the brave Yulia Reise, Alexei Turbin, Nikolai Turbin, who remained true to their own rules of life, the principles of humanity and love for man , the principles of human brotherhood, valor, honor. The Turbin family seems to remain on the periphery of the Civil War. They do not take part in bloody skirmishes, and if Turbin kills one of his pursuers, it is only in order to save his own life.
The novel tells about the bloody page of Russian history, but its depiction is complicated by the fact that this is a war of our own against our own. And therefore, the writer faces a doubly difficult task: to judge, to give a sober assessment, to be impartial, but at the same time to empathize passionately, to hurt himself. Historical prose about the Civil War, like about any other, is characterized by heaviness, heavy rethinking. what you write about. Bulgakov brilliantly copes with his task: his style is light, his thought glides correctly, precisely, snatching events from the very thick of it. V. Sakharov wrote about this in the preface to Bulgakov's book. Sakharov speaks of “the amazing spiritual unity of the author with his characters. “Heroes must be loved; if this does not happen, I do not advise anyone to take up the pen - you will get the biggest trouble, just know it.
The writer talks about the fate of Russia, about the fate of millions of her unreasonable children. Bulgakov is having a hard time with this period, he himself, like Alexei Turbin, was mobilized as a doctor, first into the troops of Petliura, from where he escaped, and then ended up with the White Guards. He saw everything with his own eyes, felt the fury and uncontrollability of the Russian storm. However, he remained true to the principles of justice and love for people. In his novel, he goes far beyond the problems associated with the actual war. He thinks about enduring values. He ends his work with the words: “Everything will pass. Suffering, torment, blood, hunger, pestilence. The sword will disappear, but the stars will remain, when the shadow of our bodies and deeds will not remain on earth. There is not a single person who does not know this. So why don't we want to turn our eyes to them? Why?" The author talks about how insignificant a person is with his petty problems and experiences compared to the eternal and harmonious course of world life. This is a question about the meaning of life. One must live life in such a way as to remain human, not to commit evil, not to envy, not to lie, not to kill. These Christian commandments are the guarantee of true life.
No less interesting are the epigraphs to the novel. There is a deep meaning here. These epigraphs stretch the threads from the novel "The White Guard" to the entire work of Bulgakov, to the problem of creative heritage. “It started to snow lightly, and suddenly it fell in flakes. The wind howled; there was a blizzard. In an instant, the dark sky mingled with the snowy sea. Everything is gone. “Well, sir,” shouted the driver, “trouble: a snowstorm!” This epigraph is taken from "The Captain's Daughter" by A. S. Pushkin. A snowstorm, a storm, is a symbol of the civil war, where everything is mixed up in a furious whirlwind, the road is not visible, it is not known where to go. The feeling of loneliness, fear, the uncertainty of the future and the fear of it are the characteristic moods of the era. The reference to the work of Pushkin also gives a reminder of Pugachev's rebellion. As many researchers aptly noted, the Pugachevs appeared again in the 20th century, only their rebellion is much more terrible and larger.
By mentioning Pushkin, Bulgakov hints at his connection with the creative legacy of the poet. He writes in his novel: “Walls will fall, a falcon will fly from a white mitten, the fire will go out in a bronze lamp, and the Captain’s Daughter will be burned in an oven.” The writer expresses great concern about the fate of the Russian cultural heritage. Like many intellectuals, he did not accept the ideas of the October Revolution. The slogan "Throw Pushkin off the ship of modernity" scared him away. He understood that it is much easier to destroy centuries-old traditions, the works of the "golden age" than to build anew. Moreover, it is practically impossible to build a new state, a new bright life on the basis of suffering, war, and bloody terror. What will be left after the revolution, which will sweep everything out of its way? - Emptiness.
No less interesting is the second epigraph: "And the dead were judged according to what was written in the books, according to their deeds." These are words from a book known as the Apocalypse. These are the Revelations of John the Evangelist. The "apocalyptic" theme acquires the significance of a pivotal one. People who lost their way got into the whirlwind of the revolution and the Civil War. And they were very easily won over by smart and insightful politicians, instilling the idea of a brighter future. And justifying this slogan, people went to kill. But is it possible to build the future on death and destruction?
In conclusion, we can say about the meaning of the title of the novel. The White Guard is not just actually “white” soldiers and officers, that is, the “white army”, but also all people who find themselves in the cycle of revolutionary events, people trying to find shelter in the City.
1. Introduction. M. A. Bulgakov was one of those few writers who, during the years of all-powerful Soviet censorship, continued to defend their rights to authorial independence.
Despite the furious persecution and the ban on publishing, Bulgakov never followed the lead of the authorities and created sharp independent works. One of them is the novel "The White Guard".
2. History of creation. Bulgakov was a direct witness to all the horrors of the Civil War. The events of 1918-1919 made a great impression on him. in Kyiv, when power passed several times to different political forces.
In 1922, the writer decided to write a novel, the main characters of which would be the people closest to him - white officers and intellectuals. Bulgakov worked on The White Guard during 1923-1924.
He read individual chapters in friendly companies. The listeners noted the undoubted merits of the novel, but agreed that it would be unrealistic to print it in Soviet Russia. The first two parts of The White Guard were nevertheless published in 1925 in two issues of the Rossiya magazine.
3. The meaning of the name. The name "White Guard" carries a partly tragic, partly ironic meaning. The Turbin family is a staunch monarchist. They firmly believe that only the monarchy can save Russia. At the same time, the Turbins see that there is no longer any hope for restoration. The abdication of the tsar was an irrevocable step in the history of Russia.
The problem lies not only in the strength of opponents, but also in the fact that there are practically no real people devoted to the idea of the monarchy. The "White Guard" is a dead symbol, a mirage, a dream that will never come true.
The irony of Bulgakov is most clearly manifested in the scene of a night of drinking in the Turbins' house with enthusiastic talk about the revival of the monarchy. Only in this remains the strength of the "white guard". Sobering up and a hangover exactly resemble the state of the noble intelligentsia a year after the revolution.
4. Genre Novel
5. Theme. The main theme of the novel is the horror and helplessness of the townsfolk in the face of huge political and social upheavals.
6. Issues. The main problem of the novel is the feeling of uselessness and uselessness among white officers and noble intelligentsia. There is no one to continue the fight, and it does not make any sense. There are no such people as Turbins left. Betrayal and deceit reign among the white movement. Another problem is the sharp division of the country into many political opponents.
The choice has to be made not only between monarchists and Bolsheviks. Hetman, Petliura, bandits of all stripes - these are just the most significant forces that are tearing apart Ukraine and, in particular, Kyiv. Ordinary inhabitants, who do not want to join any camp, become defenseless victims of the next owners of the city. An important problem is the huge number of victims of the fratricidal war. Human life has depreciated so much that murder has become an everyday thing.
7. Heroes. Turbin Alexey, Turbin Nikolai, Elena Vasilievna Talberg, Vladimir Robertovich Talberg, Myshlaevsky, Shervinsky, Vasily Lisovich, Lariosik.
8. Plot and composition. The action of the novel takes place in late 1918 - early 1919. In the center of the story is the Turbin family - Elena Vasilyevna with two brothers. Alexei Turbin recently returned from the front, where he worked as a military doctor. He dreamed of a simple and quiet life, of a private medical practice. Dreams are not destined to come true. Kyiv is becoming the scene of a fierce struggle, which in some ways is even worse than the situation on the front line.
Nikolai Turbin is still very young. The romantically minded young man endures the power of the Hetman with pain. He sincerely and ardently believes in the monarchical idea, he dreams of taking up arms to defend it. Reality roughly destroys all his idealistic ideas. The first combat clash, the betrayal of the high command, the death of Nai-Turs hit Nikolai. He realizes that he has harbored disembodied illusions so far, but he cannot believe it.
Elena Vasilievna is an example of the resilience of a Russian woman who will protect and take care of her loved ones with all her might. Turbin's friends admire her and, thanks to Elena's support, find the strength to live on. In this regard, Elena's husband, staff captain Talberg, makes a sharp contrast.
Thalberg is the main negative character in the novel. This is a man who has no convictions at all. He easily adapts to any authority for the sake of his career. Talberg's flight before Petlyura's offensive was due only to his sharp statements against the latter. In addition, Talberg learned that a new major political force was being formed on the Don, promising power and influence.
In the image of the captain, Bulgakov showed the worst qualities of the white officers, which led to the defeat of the white movement. Careerism and lack of a sense of homeland are deeply disgusting to the Turbin brothers. Thalberg betrays not only the defenders of the city, but also his wife. Elena Vasilievna loves her husband, but even she is amazed by his act and in the end is forced to admit that he is a bastard.
Vasilisa (Vasily Lisovich) personifies the worst type of layman. He does not evoke pity, since he himself is ready to betray and inform, if he had the courage. Vasilisa's main concern is to better hide the accumulated wealth. Before the love of money, the fear of death even recedes in him. A bandit search in the apartment is the best punishment for Vasilisa, especially since he still saved his miserable life.
Bulgakov's inclusion in the novel of the original character, Lariosik, looks a bit strange. This is a clumsy young man who, by some miracle, survived, having made his way to Kyiv. Critics believe that the author deliberately introduced Lariosik to soften the tragedy of the novel.
As you know, Soviet criticism subjected the novel to merciless persecution, declaring the writer a defender of white officers and "philistine". However, the novel does not defend the white movement in the least. On the contrary, Bulgakov paints a picture of incredible decline and decay in this environment. The main supporters of the Turbina monarchy, in fact, no longer want to fight with anyone. They are ready to become townsfolk, shutting themselves off from the surrounding hostile world in their warm and comfortable apartment. The news reported by their friends is depressing. The white movement no longer exists.
The most honest and noble order, paradoxical as it may seem, is the order for the junkers to drop their weapons, tear off their shoulder straps and go home. Bulgakov himself subjects the "White Guard" to sharp criticism. At the same time, the main thing for him is the tragedy of the Turbin family, who are unlikely to find their place in a new life.
9. What does the author teach. Bulgakov refrains from any authorial assessments in the novel. The reader's attitude to what is happening arises only through the dialogues of the main characters. Of course, this is pity for the Turbin family, pain for the bloody events shaking Kyiv. The "White Guard" is the writer's protest against any political upheavals that always bring death and humiliation to ordinary people.
A work of art always resists analysis: often you do not know which side to approach. And yet the author leaves us the opportunity to penetrate into the depth of the text. The main thing is to see the tip of the thread, pulling on which you unwind the whole ball. One of such author's "hints" is the title of the work.
In the 20th century, titles with a "complicated" meaning became widespread. They, according to the modern writer Umberte Eco, serve as a means for the author to "disorient" the reader. The White Guard was no exception. The traditional perception of the epithet "white" is associated with its political meaning. But let's think. In the city (it is clearly read: in Kiev) German soldiers, troops of Hetman Skoropadsky, Petlyura’s detachments, Red Army soldiers will flash before us ... But no “White Guards”, i.e. officers of the Volunteer (“White”) Army, then just being formed in the distance from Kiev, not in the novel. There are cadets and former officers of the tsarist army who know whom to defend against, but do not know whom to defend. And yet the novel is called The White Guard.
Additional meanings of the word "white" are introduced by both epigraphs. The line of the Apocalypse (“And the dead were judged according to what was written in the books according to their deeds”) makes you read the title differently, as “Heavenly host”, “Christ’s army in white robes”, seems to completely exclude political topics. Suffice it to recall the words that sound in the novel: "... all of you with me, Zhilin, are the same - killed in the battlefield."
The meaning of the name "White Guard" will be further clarified if we turn to the second epigraph - Pushkin's. On the one hand, it actualizes the image of a historical catastrophe as a natural disaster (remember, by the way, Blok’s “The Twelve”), on the other hand, a similar situation is a snowstorm, a desert plain, a lost traveler in Pushkin’s familiar poem “Demons”.
Once color in art had an allegorical meaning. Evil was designated black, virtue and purity of thoughts - white, hope - blue, joy - scarlet. In the era of classicism, each color also had a special meaning: a certain quality, feeling, phenomenon. A peculiar and refined "language of flowers" arose. Powdered wigs were refined in the names of each shade, Ippolit Kuragin from Tolstoy's "War and Peace" was proud of the cloth of the color "thighs of a frightened nymph". The color scheme of the outfit or the bouquet in the hands of the lady contained a whole message that was understandable to the gentleman.
In the era of romanticism, color becomes an iconic phenomenon. Paleness of the face and dark clothes are signs of a romantic hero. Dr. Werner from "A Hero of Our Time" is always dressed in black, and his limp and charming ugliness emphasize the character's attractive demonism. Refusal from bright to rough cosmetics is typical for the appearance of a romantic young lady. The pompous variegation of the 18th century is replaced by simple, "natural" colors.
In realistic art, the color conveys the richness of the palette of the world, the task of the color detail is the accuracy of the description. Bulgakov inherits the traditions of realism, but lives in an era when poetry has become "dark" and is built on distant associations, when painting began to depict not "as in life", but as it is seen (a red horse bathes in a blue river). Color created a stable emotional motive, the melody of the image.
The color scheme of the novel "The White Guard" is white, black, red, gray, green, gold, blue. It is not at all necessary that behind each color there is one, specific meaning. For example, green is the color of the lampshade on the lamp, and the color of the aprons of the schoolgirls, and the door of the morgue in which Nikolka is looking for the body of Nai-Tours is painted in this color ... Still, the main images of the novel have their own, unique color.
Bulgakov's "White Guard", a summary of which is hardly capable of reflecting the entire depth of the work, describes the events of the end of 1918-beginning of 1919. This book is largely autobiographical: the author himself, his friends and relatives are present on its pages. The action of the novel undoubtedly takes place in Kyiv, which is simply called the city. In the "pseudonyms" of the streets, the originals are easily guessed, and the names of the districts (Pechersk, Podol) Bulgakov completely left unchanged.
The townspeople have already experienced a brief "advent" of the Ukrainian People's Republic. Betrayed by the allies, the White Guard dissolved into space. The novel, a summary of which is presented below, fully reflects the nightmare of post-revolutionary life in Kyiv. At the moment when events begin, the city is experiencing its last days under the rule of the German-backed hetman.
On Alekseevsky Spusk, in house number 13, the Turbin family lives: 27-year-old Alexei, 24-year-old Elena and Nikolka, who is only 17 years old. The story begins with the fact that on a frosty December evening Lieutenant Myshlaevsky, frozen to death, tumbles into the apartment. From his story it is clear that there is confusion and betrayal in the army. Late in the evening, Elena's husband, Sergei Talberg, returns from a business trip - an insignificant person, ready to adapt to any boss. He informs his wife that he is forced to flee immediately: the Germans are leaving the capital.
Squads are actively formed in the city to protect against the advancing Petliura. These disparate subdivisions, in which 80 out of 120 junkers do not know how to shoot, are the very White Guard, desperately clinging to their former life and suffering inevitable disaster. A summary of events can hardly adequately describe the subsequent catastrophe.
Someone in the city is still experiencing rainbow illusions. Turbines and family friends also did not lose hope for a good outcome. In the depths of their souls, they cherish the hope that somewhere on the Don - Denikin and his invincible White Guard. The content of the conversations in the Turbins' apartment makes a depressing impression: tales of the emperor's miraculous salvation, toasts to his health, talk of the coming "offensive on Moscow."
The hetman shamefully flees, the generals commanding the troops follow his example. There is confusion in the headquarters. The officers, who have not lost their conscience, warn the personnel and give young guys, almost children, the opportunity to escape. Others throw unprepared, poorly armed junkers to certain death. Among the latter is Nikolka Turbin, the 17-year-old commander of a twenty-eight-man squad. Having received the order to go “for reinforcements”, the guys do not find anyone in the position, and after a few minutes they see the remnants of the fleeing unit of Colonel Nai-Tours, who dies in front of the younger Turbin, trying to cover the panicked “retreat” of the defenders of the city with machine gun fire.
The capital was taken by the Petliurists without a fight - and the miserable, scattered White Guard could not give it. It is not long to read a summary of her future fate - she fits in the answer of a little boy met by the younger Turbin on Alekseevsky: “There are eight hundred of them in the whole city, and they played the fool. Petlyura came, and he has a million troops.
Nikolka himself manages to reach the house by evening, where he finds a pale, agitated Elena: Alexei has not returned. Only the next day, the older brother is brought by the stranger who saved him - Julia Reiss. His condition is critical. When typhus is added to the fever caused by the wound, the doctors decide that Turbin is not a tenant.
In Bulgakov's works, the theme of religion is an everyday phenomenon. The White Guard was no exception. The summary of the prayer that Elena brings to the Mother of God is like a deal: take your husband, but leave your brother. And a miracle happens: the hopeless patient is on the mend and recovers by the time Petlyura leaves the city. At the same time, Elena learns from the received letter that her husband left her.
This is where the misadventures of the Turbins end. The warm company of surviving friends gathers again on Alekseevsky Spusk: Myshlaevsky, Shervinsky, Karas.
Life takes its toll: Nikolka and Aleksey Turbins collide on Malo-Provalnaya Street. The younger one comes from the Nai-Turses: he is attracted by the sister of the deceased colonel. The elder went to thank his savior and confesses that she is dear to him.
In the Reiss house, Alexey sees a photograph of a man and, asking who it is, receives the answer: a cousin who has left for Moscow. Julia is lying - Shpolyansky is her lover. The surname, called the savior, evokes an “unpleasant, sucking thought” in the doctor: this “cousin” was spoken to Turbin by a patient “touched” on the basis of religion as a forerunner of the Antichrist: “He is young. But there are abominations in him, as in a thousand-year-old devil ... ".
It is striking that the White Guard was published in the Soviet Union at all - an analysis of the text, even the most superficial one, gives a clear understanding that Bulgakov considered the Bolsheviks the worst of the threats, "aggels", minions of Satan. From 1917 to 1921, Ukraine was a kingdom of chaos: Kiev was at the mercy of one or the other "benefactors" who could not agree with each other or with anyone else - and as a result, they were not able to fight the dark force, which was coming from the North.
When reading the novel The White Guard, analysis is, in principle, useless: the author speaks quite directly. Mikhail Afanasyevich treated revolutions badly: for example, in the story “Future Prospects”, he unambiguously assesses the situation: the country found itself “at the very bottom of the pit of shame and disaster into which the “great social revolution” drove it.
The White Guard does not in the least conflict with such a worldview. The summary cannot convey the general mood, but it clearly comes through when reading the full version.
The author understood the nature of the cataclysm in his own way: "four times forty times four hundred thousand men with hearts burning with unquenched malice." And after all, these revolutionaries wanted one thing: such an agrarian reform, in which the land would go to the peasants - for eternal possession, with the right to transfer to children and grandchildren. This is very romantic, but the sane Bulgakov understands that "the adored hetman could not carry out such a reform, and no devil will carry it out." It must be said that Mikhail Afanasyevich was absolutely right: as a result of the arrival of the Bolsheviks, the peasants were hardly in a better position.
What people do on the basis and in the name of hatred cannot be good. Bulgakov demonstrates the senseless horror of what is happening to the reader, using jerky, but memorable images. The "White Guard" is replete with them: here is a man running to the midwife, whose wife is giving birth. He gives the “wrong” document to the equestrian Petliurites - and he cuts him with a saber. Behind a stack of firewood, the haidamaks discover a Jew and beat him to death. Even the greedy Turbine homeowner, robbed by bandits under the guise of a search, adds a touch to the picture of the chaos that the revolution ultimately brought to the “little man”.
Anyone who wants to better understand the essence of the events of the early twentieth century cannot find a better textbook than Bulgakov's The White Guard. Reading the summary of this work is the lot of negligent schoolchildren. This book certainly deserves a better fate. Written in magnificent, poignant prose, it once again reminds us what an unsurpassed master of words Mikhail Bulgakov was. The "White Guard", a summary of which in a variety of versions is offered by the worldwide network, belongs to the category of literature with which it is better to get acquainted as closely as possible.
