Lucius Apuleius (Latin Lucius Apuleius Platonicus, about 124, Madavra, North Africa – about 180) is an ancient Roman writer, a Platonist philosopher, a rhetorician. He wrote in Greek and Latin. He was born on the border of Numidia and Getulia in the well-to-do family of a prominent African official (he repeatedly publicly called himself “Semi-Nomidian-half-hegel”). … Read more
In the district Ural town of Uzel, the event: after a long absence, the young millionaire Sergey Aleksandrovich Privalov returns. His arrival makes a noticeable variety and in the life of the local matchmaker – Hionia Alekseevna Zaplatina, “ladies of uncertain years with a faded face.” She sees Privalov as a profitable bridegroom and, at … Read more
Winter in Petersburg in 1839 was with strong thaws. Sentry Postnikov, a soldier of the Izmaylovo Regiment, stood at his post. He heard that a man came to the wormwood and called for help. The soldier for a long time did not dare to leave his post, because this was a terrible violation of the … Read more
Lope de Vega Dog in the hay Diana, the Countess of Belfort, late at night entering the hall of her Neapolitan palace, finds there two cloaked men who, when she appears, hurriedly hide. Intrigued and enraged, Diana orders the butler to call, but the latter justifies his ignorance by going to bed early. Then one … Read more
Secret miracle On the night of March 14, 1936, in the apartment in Celetnaya Street in Prague, Jaromir Hladík, the author of the unfinished tragedy “Enemies”, the work “The Justification of Eternity” and the study of the implicit Judaic sources of Jacob Boehme, sees in a dream a long chess game. The game was started … Read more
Behind the scenes of the circus artists are crowding, the people are cheerful and carefree. Among them stands a not very young bald man whose face is dyed white and red. This clown Edwards, entered the “period of longing,” followed by a period of hard drinking. Edwards is the main decoration of the circus, its … Read more
The action takes place in the mid-40’s. XIX century. in the county town of Zn-sk. The schoolmaster Pyotr Mikhailovich Godnev resigns with the pension, and in his place a certain Kalinovich, a young man who graduated from the law faculty of Moscow University as a candidate, was identified. Godnev – kind, sociable old man, a … Read more
In the reception of private detective Sam Spade appears a young and beautiful woman. She appears as Miss Wonderly and reports that she came to San Francisco after the sister who had fled with her lover. She wants to return her home, and tonight she will meet with a young man who promises to then … Read more
The old communist Mikhail Mostovskoy, taken prisoner on the outskirts of Stalingrad, was brought to a concentration camp in West Germany. He falls asleep under the prayer of the Italian priest, Hardy, argues with the Tolstoyan Ikonnikov, sees the hatred of the Menshevik Chernetsov and the strong will of the “master of the thoughts” of … Read more
V. M. Hugo Ninety-third year In the last days of May, the soldiers and the marquee of the Paris battalion “Red Hat” stumble into the Sodreysk forest to the Breton peasant woman with three children – a baby girl and two boys a little older. Michelle Flechard was killed by her husband and burnt the … Read more
When the sun went down, he sat down by the path and prepared a simple dinner; Then, sending in a mouth a piece at a piece and merrily chewing, he listened as the fire crackled. Passed another day, like thirty others: early in the morning to dig a lot of neat pits, then plant seeds … Read more
“Remember, if our sorrows stem from Pride and Prejudice, then we are also exempt from them Pride and Prejudice, for good and evil are so miraculously balanced in the world.” These words, and in fact, fully reveal the design of the novel by Jane Austen. The provincial family, as they say, of the “middle hand”: … Read more
Edgar Allan Poe The Tale of the Adventures of Arthur Gordon Pym His Narration Artur Gordon Pym begins with his acquaintance with Augustus, the son of Captain Barnard. With this young man he became friends in high school in the city of Nantucket. August already went with his father for whales to the South Pacific … Read more
His Narration Artur Gordon Pym begins with his acquaintance with Augustus, the son of Captain Barnard. With this young man he became friends in high school in the city of Nantucket. August already went with his father for whales to the South Pacific and told a friend a lot about sea adventures, kindling his desire … Read more
AI Kuprin Garnet bracelet Princess Vera Nikolaevna Sheina, wife of the leader of the nobility, already lived with her husband for a while at the dacha, because there was a repair of their city apartment. Today was the day of her name-day, and therefore guests were supposed to come. The first to appear was Vera’s … Read more
Liza Turaeva and Kostya Karnovsky met at the gymnasium ball. They danced together all evening, and then decided to correspond. Fate gave them very few meetings, so the long, from 1910 to 1932, correspondence became an important part of their life. Lisa’s mother died long ago, her father, a regimental officer, married a “domineering, suspicious” … Read more
GK Chesterton The Man Who Was Thursday In a romantic and strange corner of London called Saffron Park, Lucian Gregory met – an anarchist poet whose long fiery curls combined with a rough chin suggested the connection of an angel and a monkey, and Gabriel Syme – a young man in a dandy suit, with … Read more
MA Bulgakov Run Son 1 (North Tavria, October 1920) In the cell of the monastery church there is a conversation. The Budyonnovtsy just arrived and checked the documents. Golubkov, a young St. Petersburg intellectual, wondered where the Reds had come from when the area was in the hands of the Whites. Barabanchikova, a pregnant woman … Read more
M. Mitchell Gone with the Wind April 1861 Plantation Tara, stretching twenty-five miles from Atlanta, Georgia. Twins Tarlton, Stewart and Brent, in love with the charming daughter of the owner of Tara, sixteen-year-old Scarlet, give her two news. First, the war between the North and the South is about to begin. Secondly, Ashley Wilkes marries … Read more
AR Lesage Lame demon “Do you know that you are sleeping since yesterday morning?” – entering the room to the student Don Cleophas, one of his friends asked. Cleophas opened his eyes, and his first thought was that the amazing adventures that he had endured last night were nothing more than a dream. However, very … Read more
In ancient times, a certain Taoist monk, the elder Lui, who comprehended the mystery of immortality, met at the inn with a boy named Lou. They began to talk, and the young man began to complain about his unfortunate fate: he studied for so many years, and everything vegetates without a great career. Then he … Read more
LN Tolstoy Fruits of enlightenment In St. Petersburg, in the rich house of Zvezdintsevs, in front of the mirror, a beautiful and depraved footman Grigori admires him for a long time, lazily responding to the repeated calls of Vasily Leonidich, the master’s son, flirting with Tanya, a cheerful and energetic maid. In the customary morning … Read more
Carlo Goldoni Innkeeper The Count of Albaziorita and the Marquis of Forlipopoli lived in the same Florentine hotel for almost three months, and all this time they sorted out the relationship, arguing that more importantly, a big name or a full purse: the marquis rebuked the count by the fact that his county was bought, … Read more
A long time ago among the samurai regent Mototsune Fujiwara was a kind of ugly and miserable little man who performed some simple duties. Everyone treated him disrespectfully: both coworkers and servants. He was surrounded by universal contempt, he lived a truly dog-life. His clothes were old, worn, the sword second-hand to the extreme. However, … Read more
Ch. T. Aitmatov Farewell, Gyulsary! Last autumn, Tanabai came to the collective farm office, and the brigadier said to him: “We picked you a horse, a horse.” They are getting old, true, but for your work will come down. ” Tanabai saw the pacer, and his heart ached. “So I saw each other again and … Read more
The action takes place in one of the counties of the central strip of Russia. Nikolai Alekseyevich Ivanov, a landowner, sits in his garden and reads a book. Misha Borkin, his distant relative and the manager of his estate, drunkenly returns from the hunt. Seeing Ivanov, takes aim at him with a gun, laughs at … Read more
The novel “Oblomov” by IA Goncharov was published in 1859 in the journal Otechestvennye zapiski (Fatherland Notes) and is considered the pinnacle of the writer’s entire work. The idea of the work appeared in 1849, when the author published in one of the chapters of the future novel “The Sleep of Oblomov” in the “Literary … Read more
IA Bunin A gentleman from San Francisco A gentleman from San Francisco who, in the story, has never been named by name, as the author notes, his name is not remembered either in Naples or Capri, he is traveling with his wife and daughter in the Old World for as long as two years in … Read more
Spain, early XX century. Mountain village. The play begins in the house of the Bridegroom. Mother, learning that he is going to the vineyard and wants to take a knife, breaks into curses to the one who invented the knives, and the guns and pistols are all that can kill a man. Her husband and … Read more
Jean Meillier Testament In the preface the author reports that during his lifetime he could not openly express his thoughts on the ways of managing people and their religions, since this would entail very dangerous and deplorable consequences. The purpose of this work is to expose those ridiculous errors, among which all had the misfortune … Read more
The protagonist Roland Rami returns to civilian life after several months of service in Morocco, where he took part in hostilities. In Paris, with the mediation of one of his army comrades, Rami becomes a member of a small group of young people who meet in the Montmartre region, who practice the art of living … Read more
I rode with hunting one evening, on the road droshky. A heavy thunderstorm caught me on the road. Somehow I was buried under a broad bush and waited patiently for the end of the storm. Suddenly, with a flash of lightning, I saw a tall figure on the road. It turned out to be a … Read more
During the time of the Southern Song Dynasty, many were honored with sovereigns. But it happened more than once that worthy men never met with a happy fate. The rich man Wang Shizhong got sued for murder, but somehow got out. He had a younger brother, Wang Xinzhi. Once the elder brother allowed himself a … Read more
Volodin Innokenty Artemyevitch – a young brilliant successful diplomat, married to the daughter of a major general, prosecutor on special. cases. Enlightenment came to him when he began to disassemble the cabinets of his late mother and came across her notes. His whole life and work appeared to him in a new light, and he … Read more
In the foreword the author reports that during his lifetime he could not openly express his thoughts on the ways of managing people and their religions, since this would entail very dangerous and deplorable consequences. The purpose of this work is to expose those ridiculous errors, among which all had the misfortune to be born … Read more
The events of the old and kind fairy tale unfold in the Swedish city where the boy Malysh lives. He has a mom with a dad, a brother with a sister. But he often feels lonely, as everyone in the family is busy with his own worries. The kid is bored. He is refused a … Read more
Voltaire the Simple-minded On the evening of July 1689, the abbe de Cercabon was walking with his sister along the seashore in his little prior in Lower Brittany, and was reflecting on the bitter fate of his brother and his wife, who had sailed from that very shore to Canada and disappeared there for twenty … Read more
V. Mayakovsky Vladimir Mayakovsky Addressing the crowd, V. Mayakovsky tries to explain why he is carrying his soul on a platter for dinner of going years. Sticking unnecessary tears from the unshaven cheeks of the squares, he feels himself to be the last poet. He is ready to reveal to people their new souls – … Read more
After the marriage, Dr. Watson rarely sees Sherlock Holmes. One evening a great detective comes to his faithful friend and talks about the London professor of mathematics, Professor Moriarty. Professor – Napoleon of the underworld, entangled his web all over London. He prepares crimes, extracts money from them, finds performers. Moriarty himself is invulnerable, since … Read more
Friedrich Schiller Don Carlos Don Carlos, Infante Spanish The action takes place in Spain in 1568, the thirteenth year of the reign of King Philip II. The basis of the plot is the history of the relationship between Philip II, his son Don Carlos, heir to the Spanish throne, and his wife – Queen Elizabeth. … Read more
BL Pasternak Childhood Lewers Zhenya Lewers was born and grew up in Perm. In the summer they lived on the banks of the Kama River at the dacha. One day, waking up in the middle of the night, Zhenya was frightened by the lights and sounds on the other side of the river and burst … Read more
The action takes place in post-war Italy, in a small Sicilian town. Apothecary Manno receives an anonymous letter, where he is threatened with death, without going into an explanation of the reasons. Friends of the pharmacist – Don Luigi Corvaya, Pecorilla’s notary, Laurent’s teacher, Rosello’s lawyer, Dr. Rosho – consider the anonymous letter an evil … Read more
Researcher creativity of the great poet Jeffrey Aspern comes to Venice to get acquainted with his former beloved Juliana Bordero, who lives with her unmarried niece Tina in a big house and does not communicate with anyone. Juliana has Aspern’s letters, which the hero of the story dreams of capturing, but she hides them from … Read more
Part one Zarathustra returns to people after ten years of loneliness in the mountains to bring the message of the Superman. Descending from the mountains, he meets a hermit who speaks of love for God. Continuing the path, Zarathustra is perplexed: “Is this possible?” This holy elder in his forest has not yet heard that … Read more
Nicholas Irtenev has already turned 15 years old. He disdains to go to university, stubbornly prepares for exams, and at the same time tries to achieve spiritual perfection – specially for this he starts a notebook “Rules of life.” On Holy Week, a monk comes to them in the house, to whom Nikolai confesses. But … Read more
Alfredo Trance, the only representative of Hephaeston in Europe, drives through a small village and thinks about how he will work off his business partner, who wants to draw from him an extra five percent. His car, a brand new Studebaker, stalls near the car repair shop. He leaves the car to the mechanic to … Read more
Achieving the favors of Loreta, the young wife of the castle’s ruler, old Valentine, Francia, having entered the castle in the guise of a pilgrim, plays a cruel joke with Valentine. That night, thanks to Francion, incredible events take place in the castle: Loreta has a good time with the thief, taking him for Francia, … Read more
A young Frenchman, medical student Ferdinand Bardamu, is enlisted under the influence of propaganda as a volunteer in the army. For him, life begins, full of hardship, horror and exhausting transitions in Flanders, on the territory of which the French troops take part in the First World War. Once Bardam sent to the intelligence service. … Read more
Sergei Dovlatov Was born on September 3, 1941 in Ufa, in the family of the theater director, a Jew by birth Donat Isaakovich Metchik (1909-1995) and a literary proof-reader, Armenian by nationality Nora Sergeevna Dovlatova (1908-1999). Since 1944 he lived in Leningrad. In 1959 he entered the department of the Finnish language of the philological … Read more
On the edge of the steppe, in the evening of January 1930, Gremyachy Log riding was driven into the farm. The passers-by asked the way to the kook of Yakov Lukich Ostrovnov. The owner, having recognized the visitor, looked around and whispered: “Your Honor, Otkel you? .. Mister esaul…” It was the former commander of … Read more