Kuprin's story Wonderful doctor” is based on real events in ancient times in Kyiv. The author only changed some names.
Two brothers - Volodya and Grisha stood near the display window and looked at what was behind it. And there was something to see - mountains of red apples, oranges and tangerines, smoked and pickled fish, chicken legs, sausages and even a pig with greens in its mouth. Swallowing saliva and sighing heavily, the boys peeled away from the glass and went home. They were returning from the task that their mother had given them - to take a letter to the master asking for help.
Soon they reached their home - a rickety, dilapidated house with a stone basement and a wooden top. Having gone down to the basement and finding their door, they again plunged into their usual poverty. The basement smelled of dirty baby clothes, rats and dampness. In the corner, on a large dirty bed, lay a sick seven-year-old girl, and under the ceiling there was a cradle with a screaming baby. An exhausted, pale mother was kneeling next to the sick girl, not forgetting to rock the cradle.
Hearing that the guys came in, she immediately turned her face to them and with hope in her eyes began to ask them if they had given the letter to the master.
However, the brothers disappointed her by telling her that the doorman did not take the letter from them for the master and sent them away. And Volodya even slapped him on the back of the head.
The mother stopped asking questions and offered them borscht.
Suddenly, footsteps were heard in the corridor and everyone turned to the door, waiting to see who would enter it. It was Mertsalov, their father and husband. His wife did not question him; she understood everything from his eyes. He was desperate.
This year in the Mertsalov family was full of troubles. First, the head of the family fell ill with typhoid fever, and all the money was spent on his treatment. When he was cured, it turned out that his place was taken and he had to look for new job. The family is mired in poverty, pledging and re-pledge of things, hunger, lack of money. And then the children started getting sick. One daughter died, now the second lies unconscious in the heat, and the mother still needs to feed the baby and go to the other end of the city, where she washed things for money.
All day today Mertsalov walked around the city and asked for money from whomever he could. And the children were sent with a letter to former employer Mertsalova. But everywhere there were only refusals and excuses.
After sitting on the chest for a while, Mertsalov resolutely stood up and went to beg. Unnoticed, he reached the garden and sat down on a garden bench. Suddenly, a thought struck his head, and he put his hand under his vest, where there was a thick rope. He decided to die quickly rather than gradually. He didn’t want to think about poverty and the sick Mashutka.
Meanwhile, the creaking of footsteps was heard in the garden, which jerked Mertsalov out of his reverie. Soon an old man came alongside the bench and asked permission to sit on the bench next to Mertsalov.
Mertsalov turned away and moved to the edge of the bench. They were silent for several minutes while the unfamiliar old man smoked.
The old man began to tell Mertsalov that he had bought gifts for the children, which infuriated Mertsalov, and he shouted at the old man and told him about his difficult situation. But the old man was not offended, but said that he was a doctor and asked Mertsalov to show him the sick girl.
Soon they were already at Mertsalov’s house. The doctor examined the girl and prescribed medicine. And then he left, shaking hands with his parents and wishing them luck. Mertsalov was dumbfounded, and then rushed after the doctor to find out his last name. But I didn’t catch up and didn’t recognize. Upon returning, Mertsalov discovered money under the saucer.
He went to the pharmacy to get the medicine the doctor prescribed and there, on the prescription, he saw that the wonderful doctor had the last name Pirogov.
And soon the family’s affairs improved - Mashutka recovered, Mertsalov found a job, and even Grishka found a good place in the bank. The whole family believes that this is all thanks to their savior - the wonderful doctor Pirogov.
Two brothers - Volodya and Grisha stood near the display window and looked at what was behind it. And there was something to see - mountains of red apples, oranges and tangerines, smoked and pickled fish, chicken legs, sausages and even a pig with greens in its mouth. Swallowing saliva and sighing heavily, the boys peeled away from the glass and went home. They were returning from the task that their mother had given them - to take a letter to the master asking for help.
Soon they reached their home - a rickety, dilapidated house with a stone basement and a wooden top. Having gone down to the basement and finding their door, they again plunged into their usual poverty. The basement smelled of dirty baby clothes, rats and dampness. In the corner, on a large dirty bed, lay a sick seven-year-old girl, and under the ceiling there was a cradle with a screaming baby. An exhausted, pale mother was kneeling next to the sick girl, not forgetting to rock the cradle.
Hearing that the guys came in, she immediately turned her face to them and with hope in her eyes began to ask them if they had given the letter to the master.
However, the brothers disappointed her by telling her that the doorman did not take the letter from them for the master and sent them away. And Volodya even slapped him on the back of the head.
The mother stopped asking questions and offered them borscht.
Suddenly, footsteps were heard in the corridor and everyone turned to the door, waiting to see who would enter it. It was Mertsalov, their father and husband. His wife did not question him; she understood everything from his eyes. He was desperate.
This year in the Mertsalov family was full of troubles. First, the head of the family fell ill with typhoid fever, and all the money was spent on his treatment. When he was cured, it turned out that his place was taken and he had to look for a new job. The family is mired in poverty, pledging and re-pledge of things, hunger, lack of money. And then the children started getting sick. One daughter died, now the second lies unconscious in the heat, and the mother still needs to feed the baby and go to the other end of the city, where she washed things for money.
All day today Mertsalov walked around the city and asked for money from whomever he could. And the children were sent with a letter to Mertsalov’s former employer. But everywhere there were only refusals and excuses.
After sitting on the chest for a while, Mertsalov resolutely stood up and went to beg. Unnoticed, he reached the garden and sat down on garden bench. Suddenly, a thought struck his head, and he put his hand under his vest, where there was a thick rope. He decided to die quickly rather than gradually. He didn’t want to think about poverty and the sick Mashutka.
Meanwhile, the creaking of footsteps was heard in the garden, which jerked Mertsalov out of his reverie. Soon an old man came alongside the bench and asked permission to sit on the bench next to Mertsalov.
Mertsalov turned away and moved to the edge of the bench. They were silent for several minutes while the unfamiliar old man smoked.
The old man began to tell Mertsalov that he had bought gifts for the children, which infuriated Mertsalov, and he shouted at the old man and told him about his difficult situation. But the old man was not offended, but said that he was a doctor and asked Mertsalov to show him the sick girl.
Soon they were already at Mertsalov’s house. The doctor examined the girl and prescribed medicine. And then he left, shaking hands with his parents and wishing them luck. Mertsalov was dumbfounded, and then rushed after the doctor to find out his last name. But I didn’t catch up and didn’t recognize. Upon returning, Mertsalov discovered money under the saucer.
He went to the pharmacy to get the medicine the doctor prescribed and there, on the prescription, he saw that the wonderful doctor had the last name Pirogov.
And soon the family’s affairs improved - Mashutka recovered, Mertsalov found a job and even Grishka found a good place in the bank. The whole family believes that this is all thanks to their savior - the wonderful doctor Pirogov.
- Professor Pirogov- famous doctor. He was very kind and responsive.
- Mertsalov family— poor people who did not have money to buy medicine for their children.
The plight of the Mertsalovs
This story took place in Kyiv, in the second half of the 19th century on Christmas Eve. For a year now, the Mertsalov family has been living in the damp basement of an old house. Emelyan Mertsalov was laid off from his job and his relatives began to live in poverty. Most youngest child, who is still lying in the cradle, wants to eat and therefore he screams loudly. His sister, who was a little older than him, rose heat, but my parents don’t have money to buy medicine.
The mother of the family sends her two eldest sons to the manager for whom her husband previously worked, in the hope that he will help them. But the poor boys are driven away without giving them a penny. It should be explained why Mertsalov lost his job. He fell ill with typhus. While the man was being treated, another person was taken in his place. All savings were spent on medicine, so the Mertsalovs had to move to the basement.
One after another, the children began to get sick. One of their girls passed away 3 months ago, and now Masha is also sick. Their father tried to get money: he walked all over the city, begged, humiliated himself, but no one helped him. When the sons returned from the manager with nothing, Mertsalov leaves. He is possessed by a painful desire to run away, to hide somewhere, so as not to see the torment of his relatives.
Meeting with a kind professor
A man simply wanders around the city and ends up in a public garden. There was no one there and silence reigned. Mertsalov wanted to find peace and the thought of suicide arose in his head. He had almost gathered his strength, but suddenly an unfamiliar old man in a fur coat sat down next to him. He starts a conversation with him about New Year's gifts, and from his words Mertsalov is seized with a fit of anger. His interlocutor is not offended by what he said, but only asks him to tell him everything in order.
After 10 minutes, Mertsalov returns home with a mysterious old man, who turned out to be a doctor. With his arrival, firewood and food appear in the house. The good doctor writes a free prescription for medicine, leaves the family some large bills and leaves. The Mertsalovs discover the identity of their savior, Professor Pirogov, on a label attached to the medicine.
After the meeting with Pirogov, it was as if grace descended into the Mertsalovs’ house. The father of the family finds himself a new one Good work, and the children are on the mend. They meet their benefactor, Doctor Pirogov, only once - at his funeral. This amazing and truly magical story is told to the narrator by one of the Mertsalov brothers, who holds an important position in the bank.
Test on the story The Wonderful Doctor
Title of the work: Wonderful doctor
Alexander Kuprin
Year of writing: 1897
Genre of the work: story
Main characters: Mertsalov- poor man, Elizaveta Ivanovna- his wife, Volodya and Grisha- sons, Pirogov- Professor.
After reading summary In the story “The Wonderful Doctor” for a reader’s diary, you can see the incredible change that occurred thanks to one chance meeting.
Plot
Mertsalov fell ill with typhoid fever. All savings went towards treatment. Because of this, the master gave the job of managing the house to someone else. Misfortunes simply surrounded the family. The children began to get sick. One girl died, and infant Masha became seriously ill. Food was scarce. The father of the family did everything necessary, but the situation could not be improved. In desperation, he tried to beg, but received only reproaches and threats. Finding no way out, Mertsalov decides to end his life in the park. Fate presented a meeting with an old man. Hearing the sad story, he helped with funds. He further said that he was a doctor. After the examination, the stranger wrote out a prescription for the patient and gave her more money. The doctor did not answer the question of his name in order to thank him. It soon turned out that this was the famous professor Pirogov. And for the family this incident became a turning point. Everyone rose to their feet.Conclusion (my opinion)
This story is based on real events. Having encountered a lot of suffering along the way, you need to believe that they will come. better times. There are many virtuous people in the world, the main thing is not to despair. Like the professor, doing good should not be given great importance to your person. Selfless help will bring happiness and will be rewarded in the future. The important lesson is that it is illogical to divide people by status. Everyone deserves support and help.“This story really happened,” the author states from the first lines of his story. Let's give a brief summary of it. “The Wonderful Doctor” is distinguished by its capacious meaning and vivid language. The documentary basis gives the story a special intriguing flavor. The ending reveals the mystery.
Summary of the story “The Wonderful Doctor.” Hungry children
Two boys stopped in front of a display case with gastronomic abundance and, swallowing their saliva, animatedly discussed what they saw. They are amused by the sight of a ruddy one with a sprig of greenery in his mouth. The author gives a highly aesthetic and appetizing narrative about the “still life” behind glass. There are “garlands of sausages” and “pyramids of delicate golden tangerines.” And the hungry children cast “lovingly greedy” glances at them. Kyiv, preparing for the Christmas holidays, looks too contrasting in comparison with the pitiful, thin figures of beggar children.
Fatal year
Grisha and Volodya went on behalf of their mother with a letter for help. Yes, only the doorman of the influential addressee drove away the little ragamuffins with abuse. And so they returned to their home - a basement with “walls crying from dampness.” The description of the Mertsalov family evokes acute compassion. A seven-year-old sister is lying in a fever, and a hungry baby is screaming in a cradle nearby. An emaciated woman “with a face blackened with grief” gives the boys the remains of a cold stew, which there is nothing to warm up. The father appears with his hands swollen from the frost. We learn that in this fateful year, having fallen ill with typhus, he lost his position as a manager, which brought a modest income. Misfortunes rained down one after another: the children began to get sick, all their savings were gone, a daughter died, and now another was seriously ill. No one gave alms, and there was no one left to ask. Here is a description of the misfortunes, their summary.
Wonderful doctor
Despair covers Mertsalov, he leaves home, wanders around the city, hoping for nothing. Tired, he sits down on a bench in the city garden and feels the urge to commit suicide. At this moment a stranger appears in the alley. He sits down next to you and starts a friendly conversation. When the old man mentions gifts bought for children he knows, Mertsalov cannot stand it and begins to shout hotly and angrily that his children are “dying of hunger.” The old man listens carefully to the confused story and offers help: it turns out that he is a doctor. Mertsalov takes him to his place. The doctor examines the sick girl, writes a prescription, gives money to buy firewood, medicine and food. That same evening, Mertsalov recognizes the name of his benefactor from the label on the bottle of medicine - this is Professor Pirogov, an outstanding Russian physician. From then on, it was as if an “angel descended” on the family, and its affairs went uphill. So says Kuprin. The wonderful doctor (we will conclude the summary with this conclusion) acted very humanely, and this changed not only the circumstances, but also the worldview of the characters in the story. The boys grew up, one of them took a large position in a bank and was always especially sensitive to the needs of poor people.