The Tales of Belkin

Puskin’s debut in prose. Unpolished tales about the play of chance, where the author hides behind literary masks. Contemporaries of “The Tales of Belkin” didn’t appreciate them, but posterity saw in them the beginning of great Russian prose.

The collection “The Tales of the Late Ivan Petrovich Belkin, Published by A. P.” includes five stories from provincial and Moscow life, told by the appointed compiler Belkin through various “persons.”

“The Shot” — a story of a duel stretched across several years, a battle of pride, the nature of bravery, and the psychology of revenge.

“The Blizzard” — a tragicomedy of a strange marriage which, after a few years, ends with the heroine’s meeting the stranger she was accidentally betrothed to.

“The Undertaker” — a tale about a gloomy professional of the funeral business (contrasted with the cheerful gravediggers of Shakespeare and Walter Scott), to whom, in a dream, the corpses he once deceived come. “Haven’t you recognized me, Prokhorov?” said the skeleton. “Do you remember the retired sergeant of the guard Pyotr Petrovich Kurilkin—the very one to whom, in 1799, you sold your first coffin—and also a pine one for an oak?”

“The Stationmaster” — a variation on the plot of the “prodigal daughter,” who, against her father’s will, runs away to Petersburg with a hussar, but—against his fears—doesn’t end up on the street; she marries and appears at the grave of her parent who died of grief—in a carriage drawn by six horses, with three little barons and a nursemaid, and with a black little mop dog.”

“The Village Maiden” — a happy version of “Romeo and Juliet” set in the scenery of the Russian village. In the warring neighbors there is a son and a daughter; wishing to meet the young man, the not-so-poor Liza disguises herself as a peasant girl; passionate meetings end with the recognition of the maiden, reconciliation of families, and a future betrothal. “Readers will spare me the unnecessary duty of describing the resolution.”

Here, the resolution is not described, but it is clear. In other cases, Pushkin builds the action according to Aristotle’s laws: exposition—complications—climax—and resolution. However, despite the structural similarity, “Belkin’s Tales” are very diverse in their subject matter and emotional tone.