"The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish" by A. S. Pushkin. Tale of a goldfish in a new way

Which of us has not been familiar with The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish since childhood? Someone read it in childhood, someone first met her after seeing a cartoon on a television screen. The plot of the work, of course, is familiar to everyone. But not many people know how and when it was written. It is about the creation, origins and characters of this work that we will talk in our article. And also consider modern alterations of the fairy tale.

Who wrote the fairy tale about and when?

The tale was written by the great Russian poet Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin in the village of Boldino on October 14, 1833. This period in the writer's work is usually called the second Boldin autumn. The work was first published in 1835 on the pages of the Library for Reading magazine. At the same time, Pushkin created another famous work - "The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Bogatyrs."

History of creation

Even in the early action, A. S. Pushkin began to be interested in folk art. The tales he heard in his cradle from his beloved nanny remained in his memory for the rest of his life. In addition, later, already in the 20s of the 19th century, the poet studied folklore in the village of Mikhailovskoye. It was then that he began to have ideas for future fairy tales.

However, Pushkin turned directly to folk stories only in the 1930s. He began to try his hand at creating fairy tales. One of them was the story of the golden fish. In this work, the poet tried to show the nationality of Russian literature.

For whom did A. S. Pushkin write fairy tales?

Pushkin wrote fairy tales at the peak of his creativity. And initially they were not intended for children, although they immediately entered the circle of their reading. The fairy tale about the goldfish is not just entertainment for children with a moral at the end. This is primarily an example of creativity, traditions and beliefs of the Russian people.

Nevertheless, the plot of the tale itself is not an exact retelling of folk works. In fact, little of Russian folklore is reflected in it. Many researchers argue that most of the poet's fairy tales, including the fairy tale about the goldfish (the text of the work confirms this), were borrowed from German fairy tales collected by the Grimm brothers.

Pushkin chose the plot he liked, remade it at his own discretion and clothed it in poetic form, not caring about how authentic the stories would be. However, the poet managed to convey, if not the plot, then the spirit and character of the Russian people.

Images of the main characters

The fairy tale about the goldfish is not rich in characters - there are only three of them, but this is enough for a fascinating and instructive plot.

The images of the old man and the old woman are diametrically opposed, and their views on life are completely different. They are both poor, but reflect different aspects of poverty. So, the old man is always disinterested and ready to help in trouble, because he himself has been in the same situation more than once and knows what grief is. He is kind and calm, even when he is lucky, he does not use the offer of the fish, but simply lets her go free.

The old woman, despite the same social position, is arrogant, cruel and greedy. She pushes the old man around, harasses him, constantly scolds and is always dissatisfied with everything. For this, she will be punished at the end of the tale, left with nothing.

However, the old man does not receive any reward, because he is unable to resist the will of the old woman. For his obedience, he did not deserve a better life. Here Pushkin describes one of the main features of the Russian people - patience. It is this that does not allow us to live better and more peacefully.

The image of the fish is incredibly poetic and saturated with folk wisdom. She acts as a higher power, which for the time being is ready to fulfill desires. However, her patience is not unlimited.

The tale about the old man and the goldfish begins with a description of the blue sea, on the shore of which an old man and an old woman have been living in a dugout for 33 years. They live very poorly and the only thing that feeds them is the sea.

One day the old man goes fishing. He throws a net twice, but both times it brings only sea mud. For the third time, the old man is lucky - a goldfish gets into his net. She speaks in a human voice and asks to be released, promising to grant her wish. The old man did not ask the fish for anything, but simply let it go.

When he returned home, he told his wife everything. The old woman began to scold him and told him to go back and ask the fish for a new trough. The old man went and bowed to the fish, and the old woman got what she asked for.

But this was not enough for her. She demanded a new home. The fish fulfilled this desire. Then the old woman wanted to become a pillar noblewoman. Again the old man went to the fish, and again she fulfilled her wish. The fisherman himself was sent by his evil wife to work at the stable.

But even this was not enough. The old woman ordered her husband to go to the sea again and ask him to make her queen. This wish was also fulfilled. But even this did not satisfy the greed of the old woman. Again she called the old man to her and ordered to ask the fish to make her the queen of the sea, and she herself served on her parcels.

The fisherman conveyed the words of his wife. But the fish did not answer, only splashed its tail and swam away into the depths of the sea. For a long time he stood by the sea, waiting for an answer. But no more fish appeared, and the old man returned home. And there an old woman with a broken trough was waiting for him, sitting by an old dugout.

Plot Source

As noted above, the tale about the fisherman and the goldfish has its roots not only in Russian, but also in foreign folklore. So, the plot of this work is often compared with the fairy tale "The Greedy Old Woman", which was part of the collection of the Brothers Grimm. However, this resemblance is very remote. German authors focused all their attention in the tale on the moral conclusion - greed does not lead to good, you need to be able to be content with what you have.

Actions also take place on the seashore, however, instead of a goldfish, a flounder acts as a fulfiller of desires, which later turns out to be also an enchanted prince. Pushkin replaced this image with a golden fish, symbolizing prosperity and good luck in Russian culture.

Tale of a goldfish in a new way

Today you can find many alterations of this fairy tale in a new way. They are characterized by a change in time. That is, from antiquity the main characters are transferred to the modern world, where there is just as much poverty and injustice. The moment of catching a goldfish remains unchanged, like the magical heroine herself. But the desire of the old woman is changing. Now she already needs an Indesit car, new boots, a villa, a Ford. She wants to be a blonde with long legs.

In some alterations, the end of the story is also changed. The fairy tale can end with a happy family life of an old man and an old woman who are 40 years younger. However, this end is more the exception than the rule. Usually the ending is either close to the original, or talks about the death of an old man or old woman.

conclusions

Thus, the fairy tale about the goldfish still lives and remains relevant. This is confirmed by its many alterations. Sounding in a new way gives it a new life, but the problems laid down by Pushkin remain unchanged even in alterations.

All these new versions tell about the same heroes, the same greedy old woman, and the obedient old man, and the wish-fulfilling fish, which speaks of the incredible skill and talent of Pushkin, who managed to write a work that remains relevant even after almost two centuries.