Brief description of the story by Asya Turgenev. My reading of the story "Asya"

Someone N.N. talks about how at twenty-five he went abroad to see the world. He didn’t have a specific travel plan; he just wanted new impressions, acquaintances, and communication. His heart was broken by a young widow whom the narrator met on the waters. The widow preferred him to the Bavarian lieutenant. However, N.N.’s heart wound was shallow.

The young man stopped in a small German town 3. There he met Gagin and his sister Asya. The hero liked the brother and sister. Gagin was a pleasant young man, sweet and affectionate. “He spoke in such a way that, even without seeing his face, you could feel from the mere sound of his voice that he was smiling.” Gagina's sister, Asya, seemed very pretty to the narrator. "There was something unique, special, in her dark complexion, round face, with a small thin nose, almost childish cheeks and black, bright eyes. She was gracefully built, but as if not yet fully developed." The narrator mentally noted that the brother and sister were not at all alike. That same evening, N.N. received an invitation to dinner from the Gagins. The narrator's new acquaintances lived in a cozy house on the slope of the mountain, from where a wonderful view of the Rhine opened up. At dinner, Asya was at first shy of N.N., but then she spoke to him. According to the narrator, he had never seen a creature more active than this girl: “She did not sit for a single moment. at attention; she got up, ran into the house and came running again, hummed in a low voice, often laughed, and in a strange way: it seemed that she was laughing not at what she heard, but at various thoughts that came into her head. Her big eyes looked straight, bright, boldly, but sometimes her eyelids squinted slightly, and then her gaze suddenly became deep and tender." After dinner, N.N. returns home. He admires the beauty of the night nature, enjoys the fragrance of the fields, rejoices in the to the sounds of the waltz and feels happy. Suddenly N.N. realizes that he hasn’t remembered the widow all evening.

The next morning, Gagin himself comes to the narrator. Young people are having breakfast. N.N. finds out that Gagin is the owner of quite great fortune and, not burdened by material problems, intends to become an artist. The narrator goes to Gagin to look at his sketches and finds that the sketches are good, there is a lot of life and truth in them, but the drawing technique leaves much to be desired. Gagin agrees with his reasoning, complaining about his own indiscipline, which prevents him from improving in the art of painting. Then the young people go to look for Asya, who has gone alone to the ruins of the feudal castle. Soon they saw her. The girl was sitting on a rock ledge, right above the abyss. Then she foolishly bought a glass of water and began to water the flowers growing on the walls. N.N. feels hostility towards Gagina's sister - her behavior seems unnatural to him. He decides that Asya just wants to surprise them with her childish antics. However, at the same time N.N. involuntarily admires the dexterity with which the girl climbs the ruins. On the way back, Asya continues to play pranks - she ties a scarf around her head, puts a long branch on her shoulder - like a gun, and laughs incessantly. With her behavior she shocks the prim English family passing by. At home, Asya changes her role and pretends to be a well-bred young lady. Gagin does not make any comments to her - it is noticeable that he is used to indulging his sister in everything. Left with N.N. alone, Gagin says that Asya is proud and spoiled.

Returning home, N.N. thinks about this strange girl and suddenly begins to doubt that Asya is actually Gagin’s sister.

The next day N.N. comes to the Gagins again. Asya, dressed in an old dress, plays the role of a simple Russian girl, almost a maid. She embroiders on a hoop and hums a folk song in a low voice. Gagin is going to paint sketches from life and invites N.N. with him. After spending time in nature and talking about the importance of the artist in society, the young people return home. The narrator says that that evening he did not notice in Asa “neither a shadow of coquetry, nor a sign of a deliberately accepted role,” that it was impossible to blame her for unnaturalness. Returning home, he exclaims: “What a chameleon this girl is!” His suspicions that Gagin and Asya are not brother and sister at all continue to grow.

Then, within two weeks, N.N. notices that Asya has changed - she avoids him and does not allow herself the same pranks. He noted that the girl spoke French and German well, but it was noticeable that Asya had received a rather strange upbringing, which had nothing to do with the upbringing of Gagin himself. To questions from N.N. Asya reluctantly answered that she had lived in the village for some time. According to the narrator, he saw her as a mysterious creature and once noticed that he liked Asya even in those moments when she made him angry. One day N.N. accidentally witnesses a frank conversation between Asya and Gagin. The girl, through tears, tells Gagin that she doesn’t want to love anyone but him. He replies that he believes Asya and is trying to calm her down. N.N. decides that he was fooled. Surprised and annoyed by what he saw, he returns to his home.

In the morning N.N. goes to the mountains for three days. In his memoirs, he draws the beauty of German nature, describes lovely landscapes with villages and windmills. At home N.N. finds a note from Gagin, in which he asks him to come to their home. Asya at the sight of N.N. behaves strangely again, laughs for no reason. Gagin asks to excuse her behavior. Left alone with the guest, he decides to tell him the truth. It turns out that Asya is indeed Gagin’s sister, but only on her father’s side. Her mother was the maid Tatiana. Gagin's father was a widow by that time and wanted to marry Tatyana, but she refused. Asya was nine years old when her mother died. Her father took her into his house and raised her as a young lady. The girl loved her father very much, but at the same time she was aware of her ambiguous position: “conceit developed strongly in her, mistrust too; bad habits took root, simplicity disappeared.” She wanted to make the whole world forget about her origin. When Asya was 13 years old, her father fell seriously ill. Before his death, he called Gagin from St. Petersburg and bequeathed to him to take care of his sister. The girl was at first shy of her brother, but when she was convinced that he recognized her as a sister and loved her as a sister, she became passionately attached to him. Gagin took Asya to St. Petersburg and placed her in a boarding school there. When the girl turned 17, he retired and went abroad with Asya. “That’s all true,” Gagin spoke again, “but I’m in trouble with her. She’s real gunpowder. Until now she hasn’t liked anyone, but it’ll be a disaster if she loves anyone!”

After this story N.N. felt sorry for Asa. Now he understood her. N.N. and Asya go for a walk in the vineyard. N.N. says: “...this day went as well as possible. We had fun like children. Asya was very sweet and simple. Gagin was happy looking at her...” N.N. thinks a lot about Asa, whose fate has become indifferent to him and is happy that he and this girl have become close. “I felt that only since yesterday had I recognized her; until then she had turned away from me. And so, when she finally revealed herself to me, with what a captivating light her image illuminated, how new it was for me, what secret charms I was bashfully it was clear..."

One evening, in a fit of frankness, Asya turns to N.N. asking her to always believe what she says. That same evening N.N. wonders if this girl is in love with him? Soon he receives a note from Asya asking for a private meeting. Then the excited Gagin comes and reports that Asya is in love with N.N. He is very worried about his sister, who developed a fever due to her worries, and wants to take her away. But Gagina is stopped by the thought that Asya may also like N.N. He asks the narrator if he will marry his sister? N.N. avoids a direct answer, saying that he must first explain himself to Asya herself. At the same time, he thinks: “To marry a seventeen-year-old girl with her character, how is that possible!”

Seeing each other on a date, Asya and N.N. at first they can't find the words. N.N. describes Asya’s excitement: “Oh, the look of a woman who fell in love - who can describe you? They begged, these eyes, they trusted, questioned, surrendered... I could not resist their charm...” N.N. wants to hug the girl, but then he remembers Gagina. Wanting to do the right thing, he tells Asya that they need to break up, citing the fact that the girl told her brother everything and did not allow their feelings to develop. Asya runs away in tears! N.H. returns home and suddenly realizes that he loves Asya. Her image haunts him relentlessly. He comes to Gagin and finds out that, despite the late evening, Asya has not returned yet. N.N. He starts looking for it, but can’t find it anywhere. Returning to Gagin, he learns that Asya is already at home. He wants to talk to her, but Gagin suggests doing it tomorrow.

The next morning N.N. goes to Asya with the intention of asking for her hand. However, he learns that the Gagins have left. The maid gives him a note. Gagin writes that he understands his reluctance to marry his sister. Therefore, he takes Asya away for her peace of mind and asks them not to look for them. Returning home, N.N. receives another note, which is given to him by an old German woman. The note contains the words of Asya herself: “Farewell, we won’t see each other again. I’m not leaving out of pride - no, I can’t do otherwise. Yesterday, when I cried in front of you, if you had said one word to me, just one word - I would have stayed . You didn’t say it. Apparently, it’s better... Goodbye forever!

N.N. says that he rushed to look for the Gagins, first in Cologne, where they took tickets, then in London. However, the search was fruitless, and the traces of Asya and her brother were lost. N.N. was very worried and never experienced such a deep feeling in his life. Now, in his declining years, he is consoled by the thought that fate acted well and did not allow him to marry Asa: he probably would not have been happy with her. However, N.N. like a shrine, her notes and the geranium flower plucked by Asya’s hand continue to be preserved.

The work of Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev has its own unique and unusual features. It is known that even in his youth the young writer was distinguished by both intelligence and high level education, but only his artistic talent had a certain passivity, which manifested itself in his indecision and long, careful self-analysis.

Perhaps the roots of such restraint go back to childhood, when, as a child master, he depended on an overbearing mother who was simply a despot. But not only this trait of his character prevented the talented writer from studying literary activity. Researchers of Turgenev's life and work discovered that the writer was optional. He was never in a hurry.

But despite such negative qualities of his character, he was a gentle and generous person. He never held a grudge, did not try to hurt with a word. The writer's contemporaries claimed that he was also very modest. And his most wonderful quality was that he was very talented.

The history of the creation of Turgenev's story "Asya"

Already starting in mid-summer 1857, famous writer began working on his new story, and worked on it until November of the same year. The slow pace of writing a new work was due to the author’s illness. Sovremennik expected his work much earlier.

As the writer himself spoke about the idea of ​​his story, it did not arise by chance. In one of the German cities he saw the usual picture: one elderly woman suddenly looked out of the window located on the first floor. The head of a young and beautiful girl immediately appeared, but from the window located above. And as the author stated, at that moment he decided to imagine how the fate of these women might develop. This is how the idea for his story came about. But still there were prototypes of heroes. Researchers believe that among them was the fate of the author himself, and that in Asya they easily recognized the illegitimate daughter of the author.

It is known that Polina Brewer, the illegitimate daughter of the writer, was in the same strange position as the heroine. Born a peasant, she finds herself in a world of nobles who does not accept her just as she cannot accept him. But there are other opinions: some researchers of Turgenev’s work argued that the prototype of the main character is Varvara Zhitova, Turgenev’s sister, whose fate was very similar to the fate of the writer’s daughter. Most likely, the image of Asya is collective.

The plot of Turgenev's story

The narration comes from the perspective of Mr. N.N., who, having heard some familiar melody, suddenly remembers his young years, when he was happy for a moment. And he felt this happiness in small town, which is located on the banks of the Rhine.

Then he, too, hearing the music, crossed by boat to the other side, where he met two vacationers from Russia. It was the aspiring artist Gagin and a young beautiful girl Asya, who introduced herself as her sister young man. Their walks through the ruins of the ancient castle become more and more frequent, and in the soul of Mr. N. a suspicion creeps in that the young people are not brother and sister at all. Soon there is a conversation with the artist, where he learns Asya's story. The girl is really the artist's sister. And her fate is sad.

Gagin lived until he was 12 years old in the family of his father, who was a landowner. Then the boy was sent to a St. Petersburg boarding school. During his training, a sad person came - his mother died. When his father died, Gagin found out that he had a half-sister. At that time, the girl was only thirteen years old, and her mother was a maid in her father’s house. Gagin was unable to take care of the girl at that time, so he sends her to a boarding school for a while, but Asa has a hard time there. Therefore, Gagin decided to take his sister and go abroad with her.

Mr. N. feels sorry for the girl, he falls in love with her. Unexpectedly, a letter arrives from Asya, where she asks for a date. In doubt and hesitation, the narrator decides to reject the girl’s love. The meeting took place in the burgomaster’s house, and Asya unwittingly found herself in the arms of Mr. N., He began to accuse the girl that her brother, who had already talked with him, knew about their love. Thus, he refuses the girl. Asya, disappointed, runs away. And Gagin and Mr. N. are looking for her. Only the next day the narrator begins to realize what he loves.

Suddenly he decides to go to Asya to ask for her hand. But it turns out that the young people left the city. He tried to catch up with them, but the trail was lost. So he never saw them again. There were other women in the narrator’s life, but he could not forget Asya, because he loved only her. This girl gave him the most vivid feelings and the most emotional moments of life.

The image of Asya in Turgenev's story

Turgenev's story “Asya” amazes with its lyricism and sincerity. Its poetry has been attracting readers for many years, who reread it again and again.

The main character of Turgenev's story is Asya, young and thin, beautiful and plump. vitality. Asya is an amazing girl, so when Mr. N. meets her, she soon cannot forget her. Charming girl dreams of a feat to be useful to people And public life. She thinks a lot and her dreams can never be understood by the main character. The girl thinks that life is slowly disappearing, but she hasn’t done anything, hasn’t accomplished anything yet. This is one of those images that gave rise to the name “Turgenev’s Girl”.

Asya understood early and realized what place she occupied in this difficult world. Born of all marriages, in a village hut, but knowing that her father was a landowner, she suffered and suffered, and her further situation, incomprehensible and unclear, continues to torment her all the time. But to herself, she had long ago decided to be no different from secular women who were born and raised in rich families. At the same time, she did not want to blindly follow the crowd. She already had her own, formed, look.

Throughout the story, the reader sees how attentively and carefully, with great love, the narrator treats Asa. He was able to love her not for her external charm, but for beautiful soul. Only at the beginning of Turgenev’s plot does she turn out to be a mystery to everyone, but gradually the author reveals her inner world. The girl's upbringing was a little strange. But at the same time, Asya was not deprived good manners, was well educated, spoke two languages ​​perfectly foreign languages. Gagin had a completely different upbringing.

The character of the main character was also interesting; one could say about her that she was characterized by lyricism, tenderness, and emotionality. So when she falls in love, she feels quite conflicted. A real struggle just broke out inside the heroine. It is to Mr. N. that she tries to open her heart. And the author constantly portrays the girl in different ways. For example, at the beginning of the story she is romantic and very mysterious. But then, revealing himself, he surprises with his courage, invulnerability, and fortitude.

The author interestingly describes how the first feeling comes to this beautiful girl. Her behavior is often impossible to explain, but the reader can see the spiritual evolution of the main character. Right before the reader’s eyes, the girl grew up and learned to trust people. But the result of this growing up is sad: she was disappointed in the person she fell in love with, so many of her hopes were not destined to come true. But I had the strength to live on. She found it difficult to communicate with inner world Mr. N., who was cold and indifferent. Asya turns out to be superior to her friend, spiritually and morally.

Yes, Asya is trying to run away from her love, but this does not save her at all. Asya's fate at the end of the story remains unknown, but her beautiful image is forever remembered by the reader.

Analysis of Turgenev's story

According to the plot of the work, the reader can notice that the narration is told by the author himself, who is precisely the narrator. But as the entire plot unfolds, his name is never mentioned.

There are few main characters in Turgenev’s story “Asya”:

✔ Gagin
✔ Mr. N.N.

A beautiful girl who falls in love for the first time appears quite by chance in the narrator’s life. Therefore, Turgenev's story is, first of all, about love, albeit sad. The narrator returns to his past from time to time, trying to understand the feelings that he once experienced and comparing them with what the girl might have experienced. That is why there are so many monologues by the narrator in the text.
The author carefully observes his heroine and notices any changes in her behavior. The narrator also learns the girl’s story, so he begins to treat her completely differently. Meeting with Mr. N.N. changes the girl, but the hero himself does not understand his happiness. He pushes Asya away, refuses her love, then regrets it, but nothing can be returned.

Critical perception of Turgenev's story "Asya"

During the writer’s lifetime, his beautiful and sad story was translated into many world languages. There were many disputes and critical articles about Turgenev's heroes. Thus, Chernyshevsky dedicated an entire article to the main character, when he said only a few words about the main character, considering him not only an egoist, but also an indecisive person who could not realize his dreams in this life and, accordingly, did not find his place in life . According to Chernyshevsky, the author showed in his interesting story"an extra person."

The conclusion that any reader can draw at the end of the story is simple - love has no tomorrow. You need to love today, now, immediately and forever.

Chapter 1

The whole story is based on the memories of an ordinary Russian traveler, who several years ago was passing through a German town. There, at a party, he met two compatriots - Mr. Gagin and his sister Anna, who later main character called Asya.

Chapter 2

The main character, in the story he is called N.N., is very fascinated by his new acquaintances and, at their invitation, decides to visit their house. Gagin turns out to be an artist and demonstrates his works with great pleasure, but N.N. is not very keen on it. Most of all, he is attracted to Asya, and especially to her behavior - she either “fears” him or flirts with him, and the hero likes it.

Chapter 3

Mr. N.N. begins to suspect that Gagin and Asya are not brother and sister at all, which really worries them strange behavior. And the incident that happened further reinforced all the fears when Anna admitted to Gagin that she loved only him and wanted to be with him all her life.

Chapter 4

For several days N.N. avoided his new friends, he wandered around the city, enjoying nature, but thoughts about Asa were constantly in his head and did not give him peace. One day, returning to the boarding house, he found a note from Gagin asking him to come to their house.

N.N. agreed and upon arriving at the house, he was greeted in a friendly manner, only Asya, giggling a little, ran into another room. She played with our hero again.

Gagin told a story about his sister, where it was revealed that they really do not have brotherly ties, but Asya is his father’s daughter, whom he could not recognize in life, since it was the fruit of his affair with the maid. However, before his death, he left a letter to Gagin with a confession and a request not to abandon the girl.

Chapter 5

N.N. realized that Asya actually has a very difficult fate and he decides to somehow get closer to her. They are having a lot of fun. Everyone is fine, but Gagin is a little sad.

Chapter 6

N.N. comes to Gagin’s house, where Asya admits during a conversation that she feels very good now, with their communication it’s as if she has grown wings and wants to fly.

Chapter 7

Asya’s words made the hero wonder if this is really so and whether she loves him.

Chapter 8

The lovers did not see each other for several days, and one morning N.N. I received a note from my beautiful girlfriend asking me to meet at 4 o’clock in the specified place.

Chapter 9

Gagin comes to N.N., where he talks about his sister’s feelings, but he knows that the hero will never marry her and asks him to say the same to the kopeck piece.

Chapter 10

N.N. goes on a date with his beloved. When they were alone in the room, he wanted to hug her, but, remembering the conversation with Gagin, he literally pulled his body away. On the contrary, he told the girl that she ruined everything by not allowing their feelings to develop.

Chapter 11

The girl runs away in tears, and N.N. reproaches himself for this. He understands that he was cruel and really doesn’t want to lose Asya. He wants to ask for her hand.

Chapter 12

One morning N.N. came to the Gagins’ house and discovered that they had left in an unknown direction.

Gagin left only a note asking not to look for them. And soon the hero is given a note from Asya, and she says that she was waiting for just one word on the date, but he never said it.

Chapter 13

Mr. N.N goes for Asya, but does not find her.

10, 20 years pass, and the hero remains a bachelor and only pleasant memories of his beloved Asa warm his lonely heart.

N.N., a middle-aged socialite, recalls a story that happened when he was twenty-five years old. N.N. then traveled without a goal and without a plan, and on his way he stopped in the quiet German town of N. One day, N.N., having come to a student party, met two Russians in the crowd - a young artist who called himself Gagin, and his sister Anna , which Gagin called Asey. N.N. avoided Russians abroad, but he immediately liked his new acquaintance. Gagin invited N.N. to his home, to the apartment in which he and his sister were staying. N.N. was fascinated by his new friends. Asya At first N.N. was shy, but soon she started talking to him. Evening came, it was time to go home. Leaving the Gagins, N.N. felt happy.

Many days have passed. Asya's pranks were varied, every day she seemed to be a new, different well-bred young lady, now a playful child, now a simple girl. N.N. regularly visited the Gagins. Some time later, Asya stopped playing pranks, looked sad, avoided N.N. Gagin treated her kindly and condescendingly, and N.N.’s suspicion grew stronger that Gagin was not Asya’s brother. A strange incident confirmed his suspicions. One day N.N. accidentally overheard a conversation between the Gagins, in which Asya told Gagin that she loved him and did not want to love anyone else. N.N. was very bitter.

Some next days N.N. spent time in nature, avoiding the Gagins. But a few days later he found a note at home from Gagin, who asked him to come. Gagin met N.N. in a friendly manner, but Asya, seeing the guest, burst out laughing and ran away. Then Gagin told his friend the story of his sister.

Gagin's parents lived in their village. After the death of Gagin's mother, his father raised his son himself. But one day Gagin’s uncle arrived and decided that the boy should study in St. Petersburg. The father resisted, but gave in, and Gagin entered school, and then into the guards regiment. Gagin came often and once, when he was twenty years old, he saw a little girl Asya in his house, but did not pay any attention to her, having heard from her father that she was an orphan and was taken by him “to feed.”

Gagin did not visit his father for a long time and was only receiving letters from him, when suddenly one day news arrived about his fatal illness. Gagin arrived and found his father dying. He bequeathed to his son to take care of his daughter, Gagin’s sister Asya. Soon the father died, and the servant told Gagin that Asya was the daughter of Gagin’s father and the maid Tatyana. Gagin's father became very attached to Tatyana and even wanted to marry her, but Tatyana did not consider herself a lady and lived with her sister along with Asya. When Asya was nine years old, she lost her mother. Her father took her into the house and raised her himself. She was ashamed of her origin and at first was afraid of Gagin, but then she fell in love with him. He also became attached to her, brought her to St. Petersburg and, no matter how bitter it was for him to do this, sent her to a boarding school. She had no friends there, the young ladies didn’t like her, but now she’s seventeen, she finished studying, and they went abroad together. And so... she plays pranks and fools around as before...

After N. N. Gagin’s story, it became easy. Asya, who met them in the room, suddenly asked Gagin to play them a waltz, and N.N. and Asya danced for a long time. Asya waltzed beautifully, and N.N. remembered this dance for a long time afterwards.

The whole next day Gagin, N.N. and Asya were together and having fun like children, but the next day Asya was pale, she said that she was thinking about her death. Everyone except Gagin was sad.

One day N.N. was brought a note from Asya, in which she asked him to come. Soon Gagin came to N.N. and said that Asya was in love with N.N. Yesterday she had a fever all evening, she did not eat anything, cried and admitted that she loved N.N. She wants to leave...

N.N. told a friend about the note that Asya sent him. Gagin understood that his friend would not marry Asa, so they agreed that N.N. would honestly explain to her, and Gagin would sit at home and not show that he knew about the note.

Gagin left, and N.N.’s head was spinning. Another note informed N.N. about the change in the place of their meeting with Asya. Arriving at the appointed place, he saw the hostess, Frau Louise, who led him to the room where Asya was waiting.

Asya was trembling. N.N. hugged her, but immediately remembered Gagina and began to blame Asya for telling her brother everything. Asya listened to his speech and suddenly burst into tears. N.N. was confused, and she rushed to the door and disappeared.

N.N. rushed around the city in search of Asya. He was gnawing at himself. After thinking, he headed to the Gagins’ house. Gagin came out to meet him, worried that Asya was still not there. N.N. looked for Asya all over the city, he repeated a hundred times that he loved her, but could not find her anywhere. However, approaching the Gagins’ house, he saw light in Asya’s room and calmed down. He made a firm decision - tomorrow to go and ask for Asya’s hand. N.N. was happy again.

The next day, N.N. saw a maid at the house, who said that the owners had left, and gave him a note from Gagin, where he wrote that he was convinced of the need for separation. When N.N. walked past Frau Louise’s house, she gave him a note from Asya, where she wrote that if N.N. had said one word, she would have stayed. But apparently it's better this way...

N.N. looked for the Gagins everywhere, but did not find them. He knew many women, but the feeling awakened in him by Asya never happened again. N.N. remained longing for her for the rest of his life.

Turgenev's works are rich various events, where every action and detail plays an important role. And sometimes there is not enough time to read the story again or find certain moment. That's why it exists brief retelling the story “Asya” chapter by chapter to remind the student of what he has read. And to fully understand the book, you need to carefully study it.

The story begins with the memories of Mr. N.N., when at the age of twenty-five, he “broke free” and began his carefree journey without a particular goal. He enjoyed watching people, listening to their stories and having fun with everyone. On the way, his heart was broken by a widow who abandoned him for a foreign lieutenant.

For this reason, the narrator arrived in the small town of Z. in Germany to be alone with his thoughts. He immediately liked the town; the atmosphere that reigned there captivated him. He often walked around the town and sat next to the Rhine River on a bench under an ash tree. One day, sitting in his usual place near the river, he heard music coming from the neighboring town of L., located on the opposite bank. Having asked a passerby, he learned that this was a commercial feast, organized by students of one fraternity. Having become interested, the hero immediately decided to go there.

Chapter 2

Walking in the crowd and becoming infected with joyful madness, the narrator met two compatriots who were also traveling for their own pleasure. With Gagin, who immediately seemed to him a good-natured person, and his dear sister, Asya.

They invited him to their home outside the city. At dinner, Asya was shy at first, but then she began to ask questions herself. Two hours later she left the table, saying that she was very sleepy. Soon the hero himself went home, thinking about his adventure along the way. He tried to understand why he was so happy, and as he fell asleep, he remembered that not once during the day had he thought about the woman who broke his heart.

Chapter 3-4

The next morning Gagin came to the narrator. Sitting in the garden, he shared his plans for the fact that he had always dreamed of painting. In response, N.N. spoke about his bitter experience with the widow, but did not receive much sympathy from his interlocutor. After the conversation, the men went to Gagin’s house to look at the sketches. And when they finished, they went to look for Asya, who went to the “ruins.”

It was a quadrangular tower located on the top of a cliff. Asya was sitting on the ledge of the wall, next to the abyss. She literally played with men, making them nervous. And indeed, after that Asya abruptly jumped off the ruins, asked for a glass of water from the old woman sitting next to her and ran back to the rocks to water the flowers. Later she went to Frau Louise, and her brother and his guest were left alone, and N.N. realized that every day he was becoming more and more attached to Gagin.

In the evening the hero went home in a terrible mood. Asya haunted him; he also began to doubt that she was Gagin’s sister. In such thoughts, he did not even read the widow’s letter intended for him.

Chapter 5-6

Asya's behavior the next day was different. This time she was completely different: there was no pretense, which was always present in the conversation, she was real. After spending the day with Gagin, the hero returned home, wanting the day to end as quickly as possible. As he fell asleep, he noted that Asya was like a chameleon.

For several weeks, N.N. visited the Gagins, where he recognized Asya from a different angle. IN last days she looked rather upset, not a trace of her cheerful mischief remained.

One day N.N. heard a conversation between Gagin and Asya, where the girl said that she wanted to love only him. This confused the main character, who wondered why it was necessary to build this comedy.

Chapter 7-8

Due to insomnia, N.N. went on a trip to the mountains for three days in the hope of resting and dispelling the thoughts that were gnawing at him so much. At home, he found a note from Gagin, where he expressed his disappointment because he was not invited with him. Therefore, the hero moved to the other side to apologize.

Initially, the girl was scared, but after a while she got used to Gagin and fell in love with him like a brother. After her boarding school education, which lasted four years, they went on a trip to different cities. This story captivated the hero and made him feel relief in his soul.

Chapter 9-10

Having returned, N.N. went for a walk with Asya, who was glad to see him back, which she immediately informed him about. She asked him what he liked in women, and, embarrassed, quoted him lines from Eugene Onegin, vividly imagining herself in the image of Tatyana. Later, the girl noticed that she was sorry that they were not birds and could not “drown in the blue,” but N.N. said that there are such high feelings that can lift a person.

Later they began to waltz to the accompaniment of Lanner. At that moment, the man saw the feminine side of Asya, which made him look at the girl differently. On the way back, the hero began to remember the past evening, and a feeling of anxiety mixed with happiness overtook him on the way.

Chapter 11-12

Finding Gagin at the canvas in an excited state, N.N. decided to talk with Asya, who, as usual, was about to leave, but still stayed. The girl was sad and noticed that she was rather ill-mannered and uneducated. But the man objected to her, saying that she was being unfair to herself. Their conversation was interrupted by Gagin asking for advice about the painting.

An hour later, Asya returned and raised a question about death, where she asked the narrator whether he would be sorry if she died. She was worried that he might think she was frivolous when she had always been honest with him. In parting, she said that today the man thinks badly of her. Approaching Rain, the hero asked himself: “Does she really love me?”

Chapter 13-14

This question remained with him the next day, but when he arrived at the Gagins, he saw only a brief glimpse of happiness when the heroine came out to him just to say that she was not feeling well. The next day, N.N. walked aimlessly around the city until he was called by a boy who passed a note from Asya, in which she made an appointment at the chapel.

While the hero was re-reading the note at home, Gagin came to see him and said that at night Asya admitted that she was in love with N.N. She was overcome by the fear that the man despised her, and she asked her brother to immediately leave the city. However, Gagin decided to personally ask his friend about the current situation. The explanation touched the narrator, he admitted that he likes Asya, but he doesn’t know what to do. It was decided that the hero would say his answer in the evening, after his conversation with Asya.

Chapter 15-16

Having crossed the river at the appointed time, the hero noticed a boy who told him that his meeting with Asya was being transferred to Frau Louise’s house. At the same time, the narrator came to the realization that he had to honestly tell everything to the overplayed girl; their wedding was simply unacceptable.

At the appointed hour, N.N. approached the house, where the door was opened for him by an old woman who escorted him upstairs to a small room. Entering the room, the hero noticed a frightened Asya sitting near the window. He felt sorry for her; he took her hand, sitting next to her. There was silence, after which the man could not restrain himself from his feelings, but then he pulled himself together, remembering the conversation with Gagin. He accused Asya that, by her grace, his brother knew about their common secret. For this reason, they should separate and go their separate ways peacefully. After these words, Asya could not stand it and began to cry, and then completely ran out of the room.

Chapter 17–18

After the conversation, the hero went to the field, where he wanted to understand his decision. He felt guilty for missing Asya. Remembering their last meeting, he realized that he was not ready to part with her.

That is why he decisively went to Asya’s house to continue the unfinished conversation, but there he discovered that the girl had not returned there. Having separated from Gagin, the men went to look for her.

Chapter 19-20

N.N. ran around the whole city, but could not find her. He screamed her name and confessed his love for her, vowing never to leave her. At times it seemed to him that he had found her, but later he realized that it was his own imagination that was playing such a cruel joke on him. As a result, he decided to go back to find out news from Gagin.

Having learned that Asya had been found and was now sleeping, N.N. went home, full of hope for tomorrow, because he decided to propose to his chosen one.

Chapter 21-22

Having learned from the maid the next morning about the Gagins' departure and having read a letter where his friend apologized for the fact that they had left and asked not to look for them, N.N. decided to go after them in order to catch up with them. But he understands that this is impossible, because they left early in the morning.

In sadness, he wandered back until he was called by an old woman he knew, who gave him a letter from Asya. The girl said goodbye to him, saying that only one word could stop her, but the man could not utter it.

After reading the letter, N.N. immediately packed his things and set off for Cologne, hoping to find his comrades. But, despite futile attempts, Asya's trace was lost forever. Time moved on, but he could not forget her; her features haunted him forever.

At the end, the narrator concludes that, despite a large number of the women who met him on the way, none of them were able to awaken in him that amazing feeling that he experienced next to Asya.

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