Zhilin and Kostylin (comparative characteristics of the heroes). Learning to write an essay. Zhilin and Kostylin (comparative characteristics of the characters) Comparison of Zhilin and Kostylin from the Caucasian story

Leo Tolstoy is best known for his large-scale works. "War and Peace", "Sunday", "Anna Karenina" - these novels are remembered in the first place. But among the works of Tolstoy there are stories, simple and truthful. One of them is the "Prisoner of the Caucasus". The two main characters are Zhilin and Kostylin. Comparative characteristics of these heroes are presented in the article.

History of creation

Before giving a comparative description of Zhilin and Kostylin, it is worth talking about how work on the Prisoner of the Caucasus began. The idea of ​​the work came from the writer in his youth. The plot was based on the events that happened to Tolstoy during his service in the Caucasus. In 1853, Tolstoy was almost taken prisoner. As a true artist, he kept this event in his memory, and later, returning to Yasnaya Polyana, transferred it to paper. True, the hero of Tolstoy did not manage to escape capture. Otherwise, the plot would not be so entertaining.

The story was first published in 1872. The author himself highly valued his work and recalled it even in the treatise "What is art?". Critics praised the "Prisoner of the Caucasus". An important feature of the story is the simplicity of presentation, which is not characteristic of Tolstoy the novelist. Samuil Marshak called the work "an example of a small story for children."

Plan

A comparative description of Zhilin and Kostylin in the article is given simultaneously with the presentation of the story. The author created two vivid portraits. One belongs to the main character, the other to his antipode. There are several other interesting images. But in literature lessons, students first of all make up a comparative description of Zhilin and Kostylin. Why? The actions of these characters illustrate the author's idea. One brave and noble. The other is a coward and a traitor. We see a similar opposition in the works of other Russian writers, for example, in The Captain's Daughter.

Let's draw up a plan for the comparative characteristics of Zhilin and Kostylin:

Appearance. Tatars. In captivity.

Letter from mother

The protagonist of the story is an officer named Zhilin. One day he receives a letter from his mother. She asks her son to come and say goodbye. The woman feels an imminent death, and therefore hastily looks for a bride for him. At that time it was very dangerous in the Caucasus. Tartars scurried everywhere (as all Muslims were called in the 19th century). Zhilin was not supposed to leave the fortress without an escort of soldiers.

Kostylin

At that moment, when Zhilin was thinking about whether he should go alone, unaccompanied by soldiers, another officer rode up to him on a horse and offered to ride together. The author gives a description of the main character: he was a short, strong man. When compiling a comparative description of Zhilin and Kostylin from The Prisoner of the Caucasus, it is worth mentioning that the author gave the names of his heroes not random, they correspond to their appearance. Zhilin - strong, sinewy. Kostylin - overweight, full, clumsy.

So, the main character agrees to go. But on condition: do not disperse under any circumstances. When asked if the gun is loaded, Kostylin answers in the affirmative.

Tatars

A comparative description of Zhilin and Kostylin must be compiled on the basis of the capture scene. The officers did not manage to drive far from the fortress - the Tatars appeared. Kostylin at that moment drove a little further away. When he saw the approaching Tatars, he did not shoot, but rushed away. The main point in the comparative description of Zhilin and Kostylin from The Prisoner of the Caucasus is behavior in a critical situation. The first was never lost, was brave. The second acted cowardly, betraying a comrade.

ransom

There were about thirty Tatars, and Zhilin, of course, failed to resist them. However, he did not give up quickly. “I won’t give myself up alive,” he thought, and this thought perfectly reveals the inner world of the hero of the story “Prisoner of the Caucasus”. The characteristics of Zhilin and Kostylin are given by the author already at the beginning of the work. But what happened to the officer next? What is the fate of the traitor, who, seeing the Tatars, "has gone to the fortress"?

As already mentioned, Zhilin was short, but daring. Despite the fact that he was left alone, he fought for a long time with the Tatars who attacked him. However, they won and took the captive to their village. They put stocks on him and took him to the barn.

In order to make a complete description of the heroes of Zhilin and Kostylin, you need to remember how the main character behaved in captivity. After all, later the officer who betrayed him will also get there.

The Tatars who captured Zhilin did not speak Russian - they called an interpreter. The Russian officer was brought to the chief - Abdul-Murat - and was told that he was now his master. He, with the help of an interpreter, put forward a demand: Zhilin would be released after three thousand coins were paid for him. But the captive had no rich relatives, and he did not want to upset his mother either. He immediately told the Tatars that he could not give more than five hundred rubles.

Zhilin understood: you can’t be shy with the Tatars. He spoke to them confidently, even with some challenge. Suddenly they brought Kostylin. It turned out he couldn't escape. He, unlike the main character, behaved quietly and immediately wrote a letter home - asked to send five thousand rubles. Zhilin also wrote, but the address was incorrect. He was sure that he would run away sooner or later. At the same time, he demanded from the Tatars that they keep him together with his comrade. Even at such moments, he thought not only about himself, but also about another prisoner, who, by the way, did not deserve this.

In a comparative full description of Zhilin and Kostylin, one must certainly say: the main character, unlike the second captive officer, was ready to fight to the last.

In captivity

Zhilin is a man accustomed to wrestling. He did not write more letters home, he understood that the mother, to whom he himself had sent money before, could not collect even five hundred rubles. He hatched an escape plan. In the essay “Comparative Characteristics of Zhilin and Kostylin”, it is important to talk about how the officers behaved in captivity.

Kostylin either slept or counted the days. He wrote another letter to relatives. He yearned, missed home, and did not think about escaping. He was too cowardly to take such a step.

Zhilin became bored, but he was "a master of all needlework." I started making clay toys. Once he made a doll and gave it to Dina, the daughter of his "owner". The girl was frightened at first, but over time she ceased to be afraid of the Russian prisoner and even imbued him with sympathy. Soon Zhilin made another clay doll for Dina. And she, as a sign of gratitude, brought him milk (the Tatars kept their prisoners on dry rations).

Dina began to bring milk to Zhilin every day, and sometimes, if she was lucky, cakes or lamb. Soon the whole village learned that the Russian was a master of all trades. One day Zhilin called Abdul to him and ordered to repair the broken watch, and he quickly completed the task.

They began to come to the captured Russian from nearby villages. To fix the watch, then the gun. Two months later, he began to understand a little the language of the inhabitants of the village. Somehow they turned to him with a request to cure one Tatar. Zhilin was no longer able to do this, but he whispered into the water and gave it to the patient to drink. Tatar, fortunately, recovered.

old horseman

The inhabitants of the village fell in love with the Russian prisoner. The owner once admitted: "I would have let you go, but I gave my word, and I spent money on you." Only the old Tatar, who always walked in a turban, did not like Zhilin. The history of this man is very interesting. Once the Russians ravaged the village, killed his entire family. Only one son survived, and even he went over to the side of the enemy. The old man found the traitor and killed him. He hated the Russians and more than once demanded to kill Zhilin.

Preparing to escape

Zhilin made toys for Tatar children, watched the life of the village. But he was not resigned to his fate. But he knew that there was no one to pay the ransom for him. Zhilin gradually made a dig in the barn. Kostylin did not take part in this. He humbly waited for the money that rich relatives were supposed to send him.

Zhilin did not even think of running alone. He developed an escape plan, but he would never have left the village without Kostylin. He refused to run for a long time. Kostylin was scared, besides, he did not know the way. But pity from the Tatars was not to be expected. One of them was killed by Russian soldiers.

Failed Escape

Zhilin was dexterous and hardy. Kostylin - slow, clumsy. On a quiet summer night, they finally decided to run. We got out of the barn and went towards the fortress. But Kostylin kept stopping, sighing and groaning. If Zhilin had fled himself, he would not have fallen into the hands of the Tatars again. Kostylin began to complain and lament. In a word, he did not behave at all as befits an officer. Zhilin had to drag him on himself - he could not leave his comrade.

The fugitives were quickly overtaken by the Tatars. From now on, the chances of salvation have become very small. Abdula promised Zhilin that he would kill them if he did not receive a ransom within two weeks. Now they were kept in a dungeon, separately. The blocks were not removed and they were not allowed into the fresh air.

Dina

There was very little room in the dungeon. There was no point in digging. Dina began to come to Zhilin: she brought cakes, cherries. And once she said: "They want to kill you." The old men ordered Abdul to destroy the prisoners, and in the Caucasus one is not supposed to argue with the frights. Zhilin asked the girl to bring him a long stick with which he could get out of the basement. But she refused - she was afraid of her father.

Somehow, Abdul's daughter brought him a long pole. On that day, there was almost no one in the village, about which she informed Zhilin. Kostylin did not want to run, but he helped his comrade get out of the basement. Zhilin said goodbye to him. Dina accompanied him to the outskirts of the village.

Return

But this time was not without adventure. Zhilin was already approaching the fortress when he saw the Tatars. Fortunately, there were Cossacks nearby who rushed to his cry. Zhilin was saved. For a long time he told his comrades about what he had experienced during these months.

Kostylin returned a month later. Still, they paid five thousand rubles for it. They brought him barely alive.

Kostylin is a weak person. Unlike Zhilin, he is ready for any kind of humiliation, just not to fight. But he's not a scoundrel. During the first escape, he asks his comrade to leave him, not to drag him on himself. But he refuses. Zhilin's principle: to die, but not to leave a friend in trouble.

The characters are brought up in different conditions. The author says almost nothing about Zhilin's family, but it is known that he is not rich, not noble. However, he was used to taking care not only of himself, but also of his mother. Kostylin is from a rich noble family. Probably, someone always made the decision for him. He was not accustomed to acting - accustomed to go with the flow.

"Prisoner of the Caucasus" in cinema

The story has been filmed twice. For the first time in 1975. The second film based on the work of Leo Tolstoy was released in the mid-nineties. Shot by Sergei Bodrov Sr. However, in the 1995 film, the events take place during the years of the First Chechen War.

Kostylin is one of the negative characters in Leo Tolstoy's story "Prisoner of the Caucasus", a Russian officer who was captured by the Tatars. Outwardly, this is a heavy, fat and clumsy man. He went on vacation, and on the way he met Zhilin, after which it was decided to go together, since the roads were not safe during the Caucasian War. And in fact, soon, they were overtaken by the Tatars. Kostylin had a gun in this case, but he did not use it. When Zhilin asked Kostylin to shoot, he got scared and fled, leaving his comrade behind. As a result, Zhilin was captured, and Kostylin was also soon caught up, as the horse stood under him, and the gun stopped.

In captivity, this hero showed himself not from the best side. Instead of mobilizing all his strength and thinking about how to get out of this situation, he quickly gave up. By order of the Tatars, he wrote a letter home asking for a ransom of five thousand coins. Zhilin, unlike Kostylin, agreed to write such a letter only on the condition that they be fed, given fresh clothes and their shackles removed. At the same time, he indicated the address on the letter incorrect so that it would not reach. While Kostylin was waiting for a ransom, Zhilin was considering an escape plan and was digging under the shed. And even during the escape, Kostylin let his comrade down. On the way, he moaned so much that he rubbed his legs that Zhilin agreed to carry him on himself. As a result, one Tatar noticed them and both were returned to the village.

Kostylin despaired and did not agree to run a second time. He decided to meekly wait until the ransom was paid for him. Zhilin, with the help of the girl Dina, nevertheless managed to escape and, despite all the difficulties, reached his native fields. Once on the Russian side, he told the Cossacks who saved him about his adventures and said that he would remain to serve in the Caucasus. A month later, a ransom for Kostylin came and he was released, but the poor fellow was exhausted and barely alive.

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In the work of Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy "Prisoner of the Caucasus" two different, opposite main characters are shown - Zhilin and Kostylin. This story shows a true, life story that surprises with its simplicity.

The two main characters are fellow officers and friends in need. Zhilin and Kostylin are nobles serving in the Caucasus. While going on vacation, they are captured by the highlanders. Reading this story, you have to look at this situation through the eyes of two completely different people.

Outwardly, friends are very different from each other. Kostylin is an obese man who, because of his weight, is constantly sweating and blushing. Zhilin, on the contrary, is short, slim and dexterous. Paying attention to the names of the characters, you can see how accurately they describe the characters. The surname Zhilina speaks of his athletic build, endurance and strength. While the name of Kostylin shows the opposite - his clumsiness and lack of independence.

In the story, Zhilin is shown as a prudent and intelligent young man. He is able to sensibly assess the situation and find the right solution to it. Kostylin, on the other hand, behaves carelessly, until he is in danger. He does not hide his fear and often exposes himself as a coward. But the characters of the heroes are definitely manifested at the moment when they are both captured by the highlanders.

Once in captivity, Zhilin shows his courageous features, despite the threat to his life. He refuses to pay the ransom and deliberately sends the letter to a different address in order to prevent the mother's worries in advance. But Kostylin acts differently. He immediately writes several letters home, asking for help and the speedy sending of money for his ransom.

Zhilin initially set the goal of running away home, but in addition to this, he observes local life, tries to understand other people's life and customs. Zhilin wins the respect of the owner with his positive qualities. He makes toys, heals the locals, and befriends Dina, who helps him escape at the end.

Kostylin is inactive throughout the story, waiting for a letter from his relatives. When Zhilin manages to escape, he takes Kostylin with him, who becomes a complaining burden during the escape. Zhilin endures pain and fatigue, without abandoning Kostylin, carries him on himself. When the comrades are again captured and returned to captivity, Kostylin will also be inactive.

At the end of the story, the comrades manage to escape for the second time, but this happens only because of the unbroken spirit of Zhilin, who never ceased to resist. The author strongly sympathizes with Zhilin, admiring his courage and steadfastness. The reader, while reading the story, cannot help but feel some contempt for Kostylin, who does not make even a drop of effort to free himself from enemy captivity. The work shows two characters who are complete opposites of each other. This is what makes readers compare the individual qualities of the personality and the actions of the characters.

Option 2

Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy in his work entitled "Prisoner of the Caucasus" talks about two Russian officers Zhilin and Kostylin. The author uses an interesting feature, he describes their behavior in the same situations, showing how different the attitude to what is happening and the behavior can be depending on the character.

The heroes meet at the beginning of the story, Zhilin is ready for a dangerous act, because he is in a hurry to meet his mother, while Kostylin is simply driven by hunger and heat, which does not allow him to live in peace. There is also a difference in the external description of young people, Zhilin is not tall, but at the same time he is quite daring and able to get out of any situation. Kostylin, on the contrary, is tall, overweight and quite thick.

Their surnames can be called speaking, Zhilin is formed from the word "lived", it can be called quite sinewy, strong and hardy enough. Kostylin, on the other hand, needs support and support in everything, a kind of crutch that will support him, because he himself cannot do anything.

Zhilin is portrayed as a resolute person and capable of taking independent actions, but at the same time he can prudently look ahead and make informed decisions. At the same time, Kostylin is more like a frivolous person who sometimes is not responsible for the decisions he makes, he hopes that he will be carried away and nothing fatal will happen.

Another key point is the attitude towards animals, Zhilin affectionately calls her mother, and Kostylin simply scoffs, beating her with a whip that turned up under her arm.

This difference is especially noticeable when they are captured. Kostylin asks his mother to send money, and Zhilin specifically writes the wrong address so that the letter does not reach his mother. At the same time, he takes advantage of the time spent in captivity, tries to observe the culture and lifestyle of the people who took him prisoner. What can not be said about Kostylin, he dreams of leaving captivity as soon as possible, even if this becomes a burden for his relatives and friends.

Thus, two people who find themselves in the same circumstances show completely different character traits, they show the difference in upbringing.

Comparison of Zhilin and Kostylin

Tolstoy in the story "Prisoner of the Caucasus" tells about two officers Zhilin and Kostylin. The author puts them on equal terms, as two military men with similar fates and in the same situation. But in view of their character and personality, everyone behaves differently under the same conditions. Leo Tolstoy talks about this state of affairs.

Zhilin and Kostyli were participants in the battles for the annexation of the Caucasus to Russian lands. And now the fate, or rather, by their own decision, the comrades remain together. Thus, they get into trouble, where Kostylin escaped leaving a friend, a gun and ran away, thinking only about his life. Zhilin, on the other hand, did not boast of his life and conceived only by his death to benefit and kill at least one Tatar with a saber.

But fate did not save Kostylin from captivity, where Zhilin was already at that time. The Tatars force the prisoners to immediately write letters to their homeland so that they send a huge ransom if they want to see their own men again. So Kostylin, without hesitation, writes a letter to his father's house, where he asks his family to send 5 thousand rubles. Zhilin, on the contrary, does not want to send a letter, but because this is impossible, he simply writes the wrong address of his house. Zhilin understands that mother lives alone and will not be able to send such an amount.

In anticipation of salvation or death, Zhilin and Kostylin also behaved differently, although it would seem that in a limited situation there is no chance of being realized. Zhilin dug a tunnel at night, and during the day he made dolls for a little Tatar girl, who in return brought him cakes and milk. Kostylin did nothing at that time. And on the day of the escape, both captives run together barefoot, as a result of which they wash their legs and Zhilin has to carry his weakened partner. Because of this, they are caught again.

Even after the Caucasian captives are caught, Zhilin does not give up and continues to believe in his escape, Kostylin continues to live the former life of a captive person. The same girl who fed him in the old days comes to the aid of the brave and courageous Zhilin. She lowers a long stick into the pit, by which the man is understood. He was able to run to the Russians, where safety awaited him, and Kostylin waited for money from his relatives and was ransomed.

Thus, the reader directly sees the antipode heroes. Zhilin is a brave, courageous, honest and determined young man who thinks not only about himself, but also about his relatives, about the people around him, no matter what the circumstances, and Kostylin is selfish, miserable, cowardly and lazy.

Everyone makes mistakes regardless of age and amount of wisdom. This is an unchanging part of life, lessons through which no one has the right to step over.

“The Prisoner of the Caucasus” is an instructive story by L. N. Tolstoy for children. In it, the writer showed two bright opposite images: the bold and resourceful Zhilin and the weak and cowardly Kostylin. The contrast between these people is enhanced by an extreme situation - being captured.

Before captivity

Zhilin and Kostylin are two Russian officers serving in the Caucasus. Kostylin is “a heavy, fat man”, so it is logical to assume that he prefers to command rather than fight. And the commander from Kostylin is useless. He persuades Zhilin to leave the soldiers and continue the journey together: "There is no urine, I want to eat, and it's hot." It is hard for Kostylin to endure even such inconveniences.

All the way Kostylin thinks only about food, completely forgetting about the possible attack of the highlanders. Even at the entrance to the gorge, he ignores Zhilin's warning: “What to watch? Let's go ahead." This already shows a huge difference between the two officers.

Zhilin is a prudent commander. He climbs the mountain and notices the mountaineers. Together, the officers had a chance to shoot back in order to retreat to the convoy. However, Kostylin breaks the agreement, betrays his comrade-in-arms and takes to flight.

When Zhilin realizes that it will no longer be possible to escape from the trap, he makes a courageous decision: “I won’t give myself up alive ...”. A horse is killed under a brave officer. Zhilin is trying to fight back to the end, but, leaning in a crowd, the highlanders take him prisoner.

Together again

Once captured, Zhilin does not despair. He examines the village with interest and remembers all the details. which may come in handy when escaping.

Zhilin certainly knows about the cruelty of the highlanders, but he behaves and talks to them very boldly: “It’s worse to be shy with them.” Even under threat of punishment, the officer declares that he refuses to pay three thousand rubles. Such behavior involuntarily arouses respect among the enemies: “Dzhigit Urus!”.

During the dispute over the amount of the ransom, Zhilin meets Kostylin again. It turns out that the coward also could not escape. Unlike Zhilin, Kostylin's will was broken even before the captivity. The highlanders easily forced him to write a letter asking him to pay five thousand rubles.

The officers were specially brought together to influence the intractable Zhilin. The idea of ​​the mountaineers failed. Zhilin still managed to reduce the ransom to 500 rubles (“If you want it, kill it, you won’t benefit”), and even demanded a decent allowance for himself and his friend.

behavior in captivity

Kostylin completely resigned himself to fate. He pins all his hopes only on a ransom, "counts the days ... or sleeps."

Zhilin hopes for his own strength. Knowing that the old mother could hardly collect even five hundred rubles, he sent a letter to a false address.

Zhilin's skillful hands allowed him to gain Dina's trust and even greater respect from the owner. From all over the district, various things are brought to the officer for repair. Zhilin needed the glory of the master only to divert attention. Secretly, he began to dig a tunnel in a barn, and one day, climbing a mountain, he outlined a path to escape.

First escape

The initiative to escape belongs exclusively to Zhilin. He even had to persuade a friend to run away together. Kostylin from the very beginning became a burden for Zhilin. He constantly complained of fatigue and injured legs. In a fit of irritation, Zhilin regretted that he had taken "this deck with me ... I would have left a long time ago."

The negative attitude towards Kostylin softens a little when he asks Zhilin to leave him and run away alone. But the officer cannot go for it. Zhilin courageously shouldered fat Kostylin.

Even with a heavy burden, Zhilin could have escaped his pursuers. The fugitives issued a cry from Kostylin.

Second escape

The failure had a hard effect on both captives. Kostylin fell ill in the pit and had already ceased to hope for anything. Even Zhilin did not see a way out of the situation.

Zhilin was helped by the friendly relations that had been established with Dina. The girl at first fed the captives, and then decided to help them escape. Kostylin didn’t have the strength for the second attempt: “I can’t seem to get out of here.”