Character History
The main character of the story of Anton Chekhov "Man in a case". Greek teacher, lonely man of older years, closed from the outside world, cowardly and timid.History of creation
Anton Chekhov wrote a story "Man in the case" in 1898, and in the same year the text was published in the literary and political journal "Russian Thought". The story became the first part of the "Little Trilogy" series, which includes the texts of Chekhov "Gooseberry" and "On Love".
The author conceived a series in the spring-in summer of 1898, when he lived in the village of Melikov Moscow region. The first story of Chekhov wrote for the month, and in early June he was already preparing for the press. Chekhov was not going to close the story of the story "On Love", but sick with tuberculosis, the creative activity of the writer fell, and the series was never continued.
It is not known whether Belikova has a prototype, but some contemporaries Chekhov believed that a certain Alexander Dyakonov became the prototype of the hero, the inspector of one Taganrog gymnasium. According to another version, in the image of Belikova Chekhov described the conservative publicist Mikhail Menshikov famous at the time. However, researchers note that the similarity between Belikov and Menshikov is extremely external. Most likely, Belikov is a collective image.
In 1939, the studio "Belarusfilm" came out the film "Man in the case" directed by Isidor Annensky. The role of Belikova there actor Nikolai Khmelev.
Story "Man in the Case"
Belikov - an elderly teacher of the Greek language, whose full name is unknown. The hero has long been in forty, he has a pale little face similar to the ferrous face. Belikov wears dark glasses and hide the face behind the raised collar, and the ears plug by cotton. On the face of the hero at times, a weak curve appears, and the figure of Belikova looks curved and small, as if "pulled out ticks" from somewhere. Even in warm and clear weather, the hero wears a coat on cotton, Kalosh and an umbrella and seeks to get dwelled even in the summer.
The hero prefers loneliness and seeks to get angry from the surrounding world, create a protective shell around him, a certain "case", inside which the hero will be protected from external influences. Belikov's thoughts writer also calls "case" - narrow. On the surrounding "case considerations", the hero produce an oppressive impression.
Belikov belonging things are also stored in cases. The hero holds everything in the covers - an umbrella, the clocks that are stored in the case of a gray suede case, and even a penny knife for sharpening the pencils hero takes out a cover.
Belikov is a fortune. What is happening around causes an anxiety from the hero, scares and annoying. Favorite phrase Belikova; "No matter what happened," the hero sounds in the speech on any occasion. To take a break from the disgusting and disturbing reality, the hero is engaged in ancient languages, loves to remember the past and ghouls who never existed really harvested and customs.
According to Belikova, "Something" can come out of any innocent ventilation. The hero is upset when a new drama circle opens in the city or tea, because any innovation may end fire. Belikova plunged into the despondency to retreat from the rules, even if what was happening did not have a direct relationship to him. The hero began to worry when heard of the gymnasisters or love adventures of an extraneous class lady.
In the gymnasium Belikov worked for fifteen years, and all this time was inhibited surrounding his own presence. The hero creates an atmosphere of increased anxiety on the pedsovets, worrying, as if not reached the authorities, information about, for example, that students are noisy in classes. The very superiors of Belikov belongs to the great reverence and the same requires others. Belikova is afraid and listen to colleagues and even the director of the gymnasium. A stroke atmosphere is formed around the hero, "like in a police booth." Some colleagues consider Belikov's sonmaker.
Outside the work of Belikov behaves no better. The hero goes to society and attends acquaintances, but these visits are given to him hard and makes their Belikov only decency for the sake. In the city of Belikova, fear, the ladies are afraid to arrange homemade performances on Saturdays, people are afraid even to send letters or raise the voice. And the hero himself is afraid of public opinion and therefore does not hold the houses of women's servants and even in a meal oriented not to his own tastes, but for what people will think if they see him for the meal.
Belikov is always afraid of everything and even in his own apartment can sleep well: fears for his own destiny, because he thinks that or a servant in his sleep will dance him, or thieves will be taken to the house. The hero's apartment itself looks like a box. Little bedroom, bed with canopy, everywhere valve and shutters. The hero is afraid of people to such an extent that he is hard to go close to someone, and a crowded gymnasium, where Belikov works, also causes that fear.
Once Belikov happened to fall in love. It happened after acquaintance with Vares, the sister of one of the young colleagues Belikova. However, these relationships end in nothing. The hero is afraid to marry, because "no matter how something happens, and the girl's brother once drives Belikov from the apartment and descends that from the stairs. This humiliating scene occurs in front of Var. The humiliated Belikov returns home, falls into bed and does not get up, and in a month it dies, thus completing his sad biography. According to modern specialists, Chekhov Belikov is a classic psychostenic.