A summary of how steel was tempered, chapter by chapter. How steel was hardened, Nikolay Ostrovsky

Pavka Korchagin is a hooligan and doesn’t really want to study, which is why he is kicked out of school. He is very young and has not even finished school yet. But, nevertheless, he leaves the city when everyone learns the news that the king has been overthrown. The boy is eager to fight, the real one. He succeeds. After all, he is strong and agile. He meets a sailor whose name is Zhukhrai. They begin to become friends with him.

The sailor explains to him that he is too small, although he is tough and strong. But then Pavka saves a sailor from a convoy, which only makes Pavka stronger. Then he himself will fall into the hands of the Petliurites. But it’s not for nothing that he is still small and young - he turned away and ran away. Then adult life begins. He goes into battle with others, then when he returns, he becomes a member of the Komsomol club.

His first love is an intellectual who does not fully share Pavel’s views. Therefore, he soon forgets her. He works a lot in life and has become an activist. He fights for Lenin's idea, fulfills all orders from above. He became an example for everyone, as he worked very hard and fought to the end for the right idea, defended his views and comrades. He is a strong, wonderful young man. Soon he fell in love for the second and last time - a girl named Rita, to whom he became both a comrade and a bodyguard.

But he runs away from his love, thinking that it will bring him misfortune, just like the first time. He continues his activist activities, working in steel factories. But in the end he dies from a serious illness.

Detailed summary of the story How Ostrovsky's steel was hardened

Pavka Korchagin was expelled from school, as a result of which he began to work. Soon news of the king's murder comes to the city. The hero faces looting, murder and many other nightmares of coups.

After everything he has seen, the boy strives to get into battle, where he meets the sailor Zhukhr, who told him everything in more detail. Thanks to good physical fitness and fighting skills, Pavka saves Zhukhrai from the convoy. But soon the Petliurists caught Pavka and want to kill him. However, Tonya saves Pavka from under the convoy. Previously, Pavka loved Tonya, but she was an intellectual, and they did not have the opportunity to be together.

Pavel actively participates in the civil war, and after returning to his hometown he takes an active part in the Komsomol organization. Even though Tonya supported Pavka in many of his opinions, Pavka was never able to drag her into the organization. And in the end they had to break off the relationship. Pavka has no choice but to go to Kyiv, where he ends up in Segal’s department.

The second part of the novel begins with the appearance of Pavka’s new love, Rita Ustinovich. At first, Pavka helped her and was a comrade, but he soon realizes that they are connected by something more. Through a telegram, Pavka refuses to meet with her personally and helps build a narrow-gauge railway. Hard work at a construction site bears fruit, and one day Pavka falls to the ground dead, contracting typhus. For a long time nothing is known about Pavel and everyone is resigned to the thought of his death.

However, Korchagin soon recovers and begins to restore order and work in the workshop. Pavka protects her comrades from the enemies of the revolution and performs brave deeds, such as catching criminals and dealing with them.

All the torment, suffering, and death that Pavel has seen in his life make him appreciate the world and understand that we only live once. Despite the fact that Pavka is an exemplary party worker, Lenin does not attach any importance to him. But after his death, Pavka still managed to make significant progress in the party.

Soon he meets Rita at the big theater, tells how much he was in love with her and how much he was able to see. But Rita turns out to be a married woman, and with a daughter at that. Pavka falls ill and goes to a sanatorium for treatment, but all is in vain.

This novel teaches us that each of our lives is not in vain. That through our efforts it is possible to change the lives of the future generation. And that in every great event there is a piece of each of us.

Picture or drawing How steel was hardened

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When someone is absolutely confident in their actions and aspirations, when they are inspired, it energizes those around them. The same thing happens while reading Nikolai Ostrovsky’s novel “How the Steel Was Tempered,” which is imbued with the spirit of patriotism. The novel is autobiographical, so through the image of the main character you can see the writer himself, learn about his worldview and ideals.

Pavka Korchagin lived in difficult times, he was unable to finish school and was forced to work hard. He saw the revolution and the Civil War with his own eyes. He grew up and became a man during all these events. But no matter what happened, he always firmly believed in the correctness of his ideas, he was strong in spirit and did not give up even at the most difficult moment.

The novel contains a lot of communist ideology; it is worth understanding that it was written in the 30s. 20th century, so this is understandable. There is a clear division here into good and bad, white and red, insiders and outsiders. However, much more important is the atmosphere of the book, the protagonist’s faith in justice, in a better future. He was ready to sacrifice his life and his health so that a happy future would become real, present. It is these feelings for their country, for those who live in it, that touch the hearts of readers, forcing them to feel and empathize. The novel leaves a special aftertaste and a lot of questions that you will have to think about.

The work belongs to the Prose genre. It was published in 1933 by the publishing house Children's Literature. The book is part of the "School Library" series. On our website you can download the book “How Steel Was Tempered” in fb2, rtf, epub, pdf, txt format or read online. The book's rating is 4.13 out of 5. Here, before reading, you can also turn to reviews from readers who are already familiar with the book and find out their opinion. In our partner's online store you can buy and read the book in paper form.

Review of the book “How the Steel Was Tempered” - Nikolai Ostrovsky, as part of the “Bookshelf #1” competition.

Nikolai Alekseevich Ostrovsky (1904-1936) - Soviet writer, did not write many books during his life, but one of his most famous works is the novel “How the Steel Was Tempered.” This book literally became a guiding star for many generations of Soviet people, instilling in them the ideals of justice and heroism.

I really love books and films dedicated to the revolution and civil war! In them you can learn a lot about the events that took place in our country at that time. And one of my favorite works on this topic is the novel “How the Steel Was Tempered.”

The entire book is completely imbued with the revolutionary spirit, from the first line to the last word. This book is not just a literary work on the topic of the Civil War, it is a symbol of an entire era!

So what is this book about? It is primarily about struggle, about fortitude, about real people. It tells about the difficult fate of young Pavka Korchagin. Pavka, an ordinary village boy, no different from his peers, embarks on the path of revolutionary struggle. And then we see how Korchagin becomes a real fighter for the liberation of all the oppressed and disadvantaged, who sacredly believed in a bright future.

Ostrovsky showed us the true life of that time, he showed us all the difficulties and adversities, showed us how yesterday's boys become builders of a new life.

The main character of the book is an excellent role model, a man with a capital “M” who is ready to die for his ideas. Of course, now in the 21st century it may seem to us that this book is aimed at promoting the ideas of communism, and that Ostrovsky (Korchagin) himself is an obsessed fanatic. To some extent, yes, there is indeed fanaticism in this book. But this novel was written from the heart by a person who saw it all with his own eyes, so the novel is nothing more than a description of those events.

So what can this book teach? And first of all, she teaches not to give up:

« Learn to live even when life becomes unbearable. Make it useful. »

Pavka Korchagin is a man who does not know how to give up! Did he give up whenDid the Petliurists throw him behind bars, or when his health condition was extremely grave? He did not give up even when he found himself bedridden, then blind, and then completely lost the mobility of his joints; it was preserved only in the hands up to the elbows.

Who is this book about? First of all, of course, about Pavka Korchagin, about his life, love, victories, etc. But it seems to me that Ostrovsky wrote not only about Pavel himself, he wrote about his Komsomol comrades. After all, how many such “Korchagins” were there in Russia at that time? How many young Komsomol members died on the fronts of the civil war?

After reading this book, a desire to live appears and benefits people. Ostrovsky described such fortitude, heroism, determination and courage that you think - there were people! What is at least the most famous quote from the novel worth?

The most precious thing a person has is life. It is given to him once, and he must live it in such a way that there is no excruciating pain for the years spent aimlessly, so that the shame for a petty and petty past does not burn, so that, when dying, he can say: all his life and all his strength were given to the most beautiful thing in the world - the struggle for the liberation of humanity. And we must hurry to live. After all, an absurd illness or some tragic accident can interrupt it.

How the Steel Was Tempered is an excellent literary work, and everyone should read it, so that in each of us there is a piece of Pavka Korchagin - a young Komsomol member who lived his whole life for people! Well, I would like to end with a very beautiful poem that I found on the Internet, it is dedicated to the novel.

I ask you...

I'm reading strictly for the hundredth time
Novel "How the Steel Was Tempered"
And I understand how wretched it is
All modern morality.

How infinitely down to earth
People's dreams and thoughts
Those who have not yet been endowed with misfortune,
Those who did not survive the terrible days.

They don’t understand why I tried
The writer survives in spite of everyone.
Why did you write, why did you work?
After all, you are often unlucky in life.

And so that there are no questions,
And to look fearlessly into the distance,
I ask you - just read
About how steel was tempered

John ZABIROV. 8th grade student at school No. 665, Moscow.

The autobiographical novel by Nikolai Ostrovsky is divided into two parts, each of which contains nine chapters: childhood, adolescence and youth; then mature years and illness.

For an unworthy act (he poured terry into the dough for the priest), the cook’s son Pavka Korchagin is expelled from school, and he ends up “in the public eye.” “The boy looked into the very depths of life, to its bottom, into the well, and the smell of musty mold and swamp dampness came over him, greedy for everything new, unknown.” When the stunning news “The Tsar has been overthrown” burst into his small town like a whirlwind, Pavel had no time to think about studying, he works hard and, like a boy, without hesitation, hides weapons, despite the ban from the bosses of the suddenly influx of non-human weapons. When the province is flooded with an avalanche of Petlyura gangs, he witnesses many Jewish pogroms that end in brutal murders.

Anger and indignation often overwhelm the young daredevil, and he cannot help but help the sailor Zhukhrai, a friend of his brother Artyom, who worked at the depot. The sailor more than once had a kind conversation with Pavel: “You, Pavlusha, have everything to be a good fighter for the workers’ cause, only you are very young and have a very weak concept of the class struggle. I’ll tell you, brother, about the real road, because I know that you’ll be good. I don’t like quiet and clingy ones. Now the fire has started all over the earth. The slaves have risen and the old life must go to the bottom. But for this we need brave lads, not mama’s boys, but people of a strong breed, who before a fight do not crawl into the cracks like a cockroach, but hit without mercy.” The strong and muscular Pavka Korchagin, who knows how to fight, saves Zhukhrai from under the convoy, for which he himself is seized by the Petliurists on denunciation. Pavka was not familiar with the fear of an ordinary person defending his belongings (he had nothing), but ordinary human fear gripped him with an icy hand, especially when he heard from his guard: “Why carry it, sir? A bullet in the back and it’s over.” Pavka became scared. However, Pavka manages to escape and hides with a girl he knows, Tony, with whom he is in love. Unfortunately, she is an intellectual from the “rich class”: the daughter of a forester.

Having undergone his first baptism of fire in the battles of the civil war, Pavel returns to the city where the Komsomol organization was created and becomes its active member. The attempt to drag Tonya into this organization fails. The girl is ready to obey him, but not completely. She comes to the first Komsomol meeting too dressed up, and it’s hard for him to see her among the faded tunics and blouses. Tony's cheap individualism becomes intolerable to Pavel. The need for a break was clear to both of them... Pavel’s intransigence brings him to the Cheka, especially in the province it is headed by Zhukhrai. However, KGB work has a very destructive effect on Pavel’s nerves, his concussion pains become more frequent, he often loses consciousness, and after a short respite in his hometown, Pavel goes to Kyiv, where he also ends up in the Special Department under the leadership of Comrade Segal.

The second part of the novel opens with a description of a trip to a provincial conference with Rita Ustinovich, Korchagin is appointed as her assistant and bodyguard. Having borrowed a “leather jacket” from Rita, he squeezes into the carriage, and then pulls a young woman through the window. “For him, Rita was inviolable. This was his friend and fellow target, his political instructor, and yet she was a woman. He felt this for the first time at the bridge, and that’s why her embrace excites him so much. Pavel felt deep, even breathing, somewhere very close to her lips. The proximity gave birth to an irresistible desire to find those lips. Straining his will, he suppressed this desire.” Unable to control his feelings, Pavel Korchagin refuses to meet with Rita Ustinovich, who teaches him political literacy. Thoughts about personal matters move even further in the young man’s mind when he takes part in the construction of a narrow-gauge railway. The time of year is difficult - winter, Komsomol members work in four shifts, without time to rest. Work is delayed by bandit raids. There is nothing to feed the Komsomol members, there is no clothing or shoes either. Working to the point of exhaustion ends in serious illness. Pavel falls, struck down by typhus. His closest friends, Zhukhrai and Ustinovich, having no information about him, think that he died.

However, after illness, Pavel is back in action. As a worker, he returns to the workshops, where he not only works hard, but also restores order, forcing Komsomol members to wash and clean the workshop, to the great bewilderment of his superiors. In the town and throughout Ukraine, the class struggle continues, security officers catch enemies of the revolution, suppress bandit raids. The young Komsomol member Korchagin does many good deeds, defending his comrades at cell meetings, and his party friends on the dark streets.

“The most precious thing a person has is life. It is given to him once, and he must live it in such a way that there is no excruciating pain for the years spent aimlessly, so that the shame for a petty and petty past does not burn, and so that, dying, he can say: his whole life, all his strength was given to the most beautiful thing in the world - the struggle for the liberation of humanity. And we must hurry to live. After all, an absurd illness or some tragic accident could interrupt it.”

Having witnessed many deaths and killed himself, Pavka valued every day he lived, accepting party orders and statutory regulations as responsible directives of his existence. As a propagandist, he also takes part in the defeat of the “workers’ opposition,” calling the behavior of his brother “petty-bourgeois,” and even more so in verbal attacks on the Trotskyists who dared to speak out against the party. They don’t want to listen to him, but Comrade Lenin pointed out that we must rely on youth.

When it became known in Shepetovka that Lenin had died, thousands of workers became Bolsheviks. Respect from party members moved Pavel far forward, and one day he found himself at the Bolshoi Theater next to Central Committee member Rita Ustinovich, who was surprised to learn that Pavel was alive. Pavel says that he loved her like a Gadfly, a man of courage and infinite endurance. But Rita already has a friend and a three-year-old daughter, and Pavel is sick, and he is sent to the Central Committee sanatorium and thoroughly examined. However, the serious illness, leading to complete immobility, progresses. No new, better sanatoriums and hospitals can save him. With the thought that “we need to stay in the ranks,” Korchagin begins to write. Next to him are good, kind women: first Dora Rodkina, then Taya Kyutsam. “Did he live his twenty-four years well or badly? Going over year after year in his memory, Pavel checked his life as an impartial judge and decided with deep satisfaction that his life was not so bad... Most importantly, he did not sleep through the hot days, found his place in the iron battle for power, and on the crimson banner there are revolutions and a few drops of his blood.”

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Summary of Ostrovsky’s novel “How the Steel Was Tempered”