The Great Patriotic War in literature: the best works about the feat of the Soviet people. Review topic “literature of the period of the Great Patriotic War and the first post-war years

The Great Patriotic War is an event that affected the fate of all of Russia. Everyone has touched it to one degree or another. Artists, musicians, writers and poets also did not remain indifferent to the fate of their country.

The role of literature during the Second World War
Literature became what gave people hope, gave them strength to fight on and go to the end. This is precisely the purpose of this type of art.

From the first days of the front, writers talked about responsibility for the fate of Russia, about the suffering and hardships that people endured. Many writers went to the front as correspondents. At the same time, one thing was undeniable - an unhindered faith in victory, which nothing could break.

We hear the call to eradicate the “cursed beast that has risen over Europe and swung at your future” in the poem-appeals “To arms, patriot!” P. Komarova, “Listen, Fatherland”, “Beat the enemy!” V. Inber I. Avramenko, in the essays of L. Leonov “The Glory of Russia.”

Features of literature during the war
military journalism

The war made us think not only about real problems, but also about the history of Russia. It was at this time that A. Tolstoy’s works “Motherland”, “Peter the Great”, the story “Ivan the Terrible”, as well as “The Great Sovereign”, a play by V. Solovyov appeared.

There was such a thing as a work written “Hot on the heels.” That is, just yesterday evening a poem, essay or story written could appear in print today. Journalism played a major role, since thanks to it there was an opportunity to hurt the patriotic feelings of the Russian people. As A. Tolstoy said, literature has become “the voice of the Russian people.”

Poems about war were given the same attention as ordinary political or secular news. The press regularly published excerpts from the works of Soviet poets.

Creativity of writers during the Second World War
The work of A. Tvardovsky became an indisputable contribution to the general treasury. Of course, the most famous of his works, the poem “Vasily Terkin,” became a kind of illustration of the life of a simple Russian soldier. She opened deep characteristic features Soviet warrior, for which she became beloved among the people.

Tvardovsky A.T. In “The Ballad of a Comrade” the poet wrote: “One’s own misfortune does not count.” This line clearly reveals to us those patriotic impulses thanks to which people did not give up. They were ready to endure a lot. The main thing is to know that they are fighting to win. And even if its price is too high. At a rally of Soviet writers, a promise was made “to give all my experience and talent, all my blood, if necessary, to the cause of the sacred people's war against the enemies of our Motherland." More than half of them openly went to the front to fight the enemy. Many of them, including A. Gaidar, E. Petrov, Yu. Krymov, M. Jalil, never returned.

Many works of Soviet writers were published in the main newspaper of the USSR at that time - “Red Star”. The works of V.V. Vishnevsky, K.M. Simonov, A.P. Platonov, V.S. Grossman were published there.

During the war, the work of K.M. also plays a major role. Simonova. These are the poems “The Forties”, “If your home is dear to you”, “By the fire”, “Death of a friend”, “We will not see you”. Some time after the Second World War, Konstantin Mikhailovich’s first novel, “Comrades in Arms,” was written. He saw the light in 1952.

Post-war literature
And the dawns here are quiet. Many works about the Second World War began to be written later, in the 1960s and 70s. This applies to the stories of V. Bykov (“Obelisk”, “Sotnikov”), B. Vasilyev (“And the dawns here are like this”, “Not on the lists”, “Tomorrow there was a war”).

The second example is M. Sholokhov. He will write such impressive works as “The Fate of Man”, “They Fought for the Motherland”. Is it true, last novel is never considered completed. Mikhail Sholokhov began writing it during the war years, but returned to completing the plan only 20 years later. But in the end last chapters The novels were burned by the writer.

The biography of the legendary pilot Alexei Maresyev became the basis of the famous book “The Tale of a Real Man” by B. Polevoy. Reading it, one cannot help but admire the heroism ordinary people.

One of the classic examples of works about the Great Patriotic War can be considered the novel by Yu. Bondarev “ Hot snow" It was written 30 years later, but it well illustrates the terrible events of 1942 that took place near Stalingrad. Despite the fact that there are only three fighters left, and only one gun, the soldiers continue to hold back the German advance and fight to the bitter end.

You think about the price of the victory that our people paid with the lives of their best sons and daughters, about the price of the peace that the earth breathes, when reading bitter and such profound works Soviet literature.

The Great Patriotic War was a difficult test that befell the Russian people. The literature of that time could not remain aloof from this event. So in On the first day of the war, at a rally of Soviet writers, the following words were heard: “Every Soviet writer I am ready to give everything, my strength, all my experience and talent, all my blood, if necessary, to the cause of the holy people’s war against the enemies of our Motherland.” These words were justified. From the very beginning of the war, writers felt “mobilized and called upon.” About two thousand writers went to the front, more than four hundred of them did not return. These are A. Gaidar, E. Petrov, Y. Krymov, M. Jalil; M. Kulchitsky, V. Bagritsky, P. Kogan died very young.Front-line writers fully shared with their people both the pain of retreat and the joy of victory. Georgy Suvorov, a front-line writer who died shortly before the victory, wrote: “My good age we lived as people, and for people.”Writers lived the same life with the fighting people: they froze in the trenches, went on the attack, performed feats and... wrote.Oh book! Treasured friend!You're in a fighter's duffel bagI went all the way to victory Until the very end. Your big truthShe led us along.Your reader and authorWe went into battle together.Russian literature of the Second World War period became literature of one theme - the theme of war, the theme of the Motherland. The writers felt like “trench poets” (A. Surkov), and all literature as a whole, in the apt expression of A. Tolstov, was “the voice of the heroic soul of the people.” The slogan “All forces to defeat the enemy!” directly related to writers. Writers of the war years mastered all kinds literary weapons: lyricism and satire, epic and drama. Nevertheless, the lyricists and publicists said the first word.Poems were published by the central and front-line press, broadcast on the radio along with information about the most important military and political events, and sounded from numerous improvised stages at the front and in the rear. Many poems were copied into front-line notebooks and learned by heart. The poems “Wait for me” by Konstantin Simonov, “Dugout” by Alexander Surkov, “Ogonyok” by Isakovsky gave rise to numerous poetic responses. The poetic dialogue between writers and readers testified that during the war years a cordial contact unprecedented in the history of our poetry was established between poets and the people. Spiritual closeness with the people is the most remarkable and exceptional feature of the lyrics of 1941-1945.Motherland, war, death and immortality, hatred of the enemy, military brotherhood and camaraderie, love and loyalty, the dream of victory, thinking about the fate of the people - these are the main motives of military poetry. In the poems of Tikhonov, Surkov, Isakovsky, Tvardovsky one can hear anxiety for the fatherland and merciless hatred of the enemy, the bitterness of loss and the awareness of the cruel necessity of war.During the war, the feeling of homeland intensified. Torn away from their favorite activities and native places, millions of Soviet people seemed to take a new look at their familiar native lands, at the home where they were born, at themselves, at their people. This was reflected in poetry: heartfelt poems appeared about Moscow by Surkov and Gusev, about Leningrad by Tikhonov, Olga Berggolts, and about the Smolensk region by Isakovsky.The character of the so-called lyrical hero: first of all, he became more earthly, closer than in the lyrics of the previous period. Poetry, as it were, entered into the war, and the war, with all its battle and everyday details, into poetry. The “landing” of the lyrics did not prevent the poets from conveying the grandeur of events and the beauty of the feat of our people. Heroes often endure severe, sometimes inhuman, hardships and suffering:Time to raise ten generationsThe weight we lifted.(A. Surkov wrote in his poems)Love for the fatherland and hatred for the enemy is the inexhaustible and only source from which our lyrics drew their inspiration during the Second World War. The most famous poets of that time were: Nikolai Tikhonov, Alexander Tvardovsky, Alexey Surkov, Olga Berggolts, Mikhail Isakovsky, Konstantin Simonov.In the poetry of the war years, three main genre groups of poems can be distinguished: lyrical (ode, elegy, song), satirical and lyrical-epic (ballads, poems).
PROSE. During the Great Patriotic War, not only poetic genres developed, but also prose. It is represented by journalistic and essay genres, war stories and heroic stories. Journalistic genres are very diverse: articles, essays, feuilletons, appeals, letters, leaflets.Articles written by: Leonov, Alexey Tolstoy, Mikhail Sholokhov, Vsevolod Vishnevsky, Nikolai Tikhonov. With their articles they instilled high civic feelings, taught an uncompromising attitude towards fascism, and revealed the true face of the “organizers of the new order.”Soviet writers contrasted fascist false propaganda with great human truth. Hundreds of articles presented irrefutable facts about the atrocities of the invaders, quoted letters, diaries, testimonies of prisoners of war, named names, dates, numbers, and made references to secret documents, orders and instructions of the authorities. In their articles, they told the harsh truth about the war, supported the people's bright dream of victory, and called for perseverance, courage and perseverance. "Not a step further!" - this is how Alexei Tolstov’s article “Moscow is threatened by an enemy” begins.In mood and tone, war journalism was either satirical or lyrical. In satirical articles, fascists were mercilessly ridiculed. The pamphlet became a favorite genre of satirical journalism. Articles addressed to the homeland and people were very diverse in genre: articles - appeals, appeals, appeals, letters, diaries. This is, for example, Leonid Leonov’s letter to an “Unknown American Friend.”Journalism had a huge influence on all genres of wartime literature, and above all on the essay. From the essays, the world first learned about the immortal names of Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya, Liza Chaikina, Alexander Matrosov, and about the feat of the Young Guards who preceded the novel “The Young Guard.” Very common in 1943-1945 was an essay about the feat of a large group of people. Thus, essays appear about the U-2 night aviation (Simonov), about the heroic Komsomol (Vishnevsky), and many others. Essays on the heroic home front are portrait sketches. Moreover, from the very beginning, writers pay attention not so much to the fate of individual heroes, but to mass labor heroism. Most often, Marietta Shaginyan, Kononenko, Karavaeva, and Kolosov wrote about people on the home front.The defense of Leningrad and the battle of Moscow were the reason for the creation of a number of event essays, which represent an artistic chronicle of military operations. This is evidenced by the essays: “Moscow. November 1941” by Lidin, “July - December” by Simonov.

During the Great Patriotic War, works were also created in which the main attention was paid to the fate of man in war. Human happiness and war - this is how one can formulate the basic principle of such works as “Simply Love” by V. Vasilevskaya, “It Was in Leningrad” by A. Chakovsky, “The Third Chamber” by Leonidov.

In 1942, V. Nekrasov’s war story “In the Trenches of Stalingrad” appeared. This was the first work of a then unknown front-line writer, who rose to the rank of captain, who fought at Stalingrad all the long days and nights, participating in its defense, in the terrible and overwhelming battles that our army fought. In the work we see the author’s desire not only to embody personal memories of the war, but also to try to psychologically motivate a person’s actions, to explore the moral and philosophical origins of the soldier’s feat. The reader saw in the story a great test, which was written honestly and reliably, and was faced with all the inhumanity and cruelty of war. This was one of the first attempts to psychologically comprehend the feat of the people.

The war became a great misfortune and misfortune for everyone. But it is precisely at this time that people show moral essence, “it (war) is like a litmus test, like some kind of special developer.” For example, Valega is an illiterate person, “...reads syllables, and ask him what his homeland is, he, by God, won’t really explain. But for this homeland... he will fight to the last bullet. And the cartridges will run out - with fists, teeth...” The battalion commander Shiryaev and Kerzhentsev are doing everything possible to save as many human lives as possible in order to fulfill their duty. They are contrasted in the novel with the image of Kaluzhsky, who thinks only about not getting to the front line; the author also condemns Abrosimov, who believes that if a task is set, then it must be completed, despite any losses, throwing people under the destructive fire of machine guns.

Reading the story, you feel the author’s faith in the Russian soldier, who, despite all the suffering, troubles, and failures, has no doubts about the justice of the liberation war. The heroes of the story by V. P. Nekrasov live in faith in a future victory and are ready to give their lives for it without hesitation.

In the same harsh forty-second, the events of V. Kondratiev’s story “Sashka” take place. The author of the work is also a front-line soldier, and he fought near Rzhev just like his hero. And his story is dedicated to the exploits of ordinary Russian soldiers. V. Kondratiev, like V. Nekrasov, did not deviate from the truth, he spoke honestly and talentedly about that cruel and difficult time. The hero of V. Kondratyev’s story, Sashka, is very young, but he has already been on the front line for two months, where “just to dry off and warm up is already considerable luck” and"...With the bread is bad, there is no gain. Half a pot... millet for two - and be healthy.”

The neutral zone, which is only a thousand steps, is shot right through. And Sashka will crawl there at night to get his company commander some felt boots from a dead German, because the lieutenant’s boots are such that they cannot be dried over the summer, although Sashka’s shoes are even worse. The image of the main character embodies the best human qualities Russian soldier, Sashka is smart, quick-witted, dexterous - this is evidenced by the episode of his capture of the “language”. One of the main points of the story is Sashka’s refusal to shoot the captured German. When he was asked why he did not follow the order and did not shoot the prisoner, Sashka answered simply: “We are people, not fascists.”

The main character embodied the best traits of the people's character: courage, patriotism, desire for achievement, hard work, endurance, humanism and deep faith in victory. But the most valuable thing about him is the ability to think, the ability to comprehend what is happening. Sashka understood that “both commanders and privates have not yet learned how to fight properly. And that learning on the go, in battles, goes on throughout Sashka’s life. “He understood and grumbled, like the others, but he did not lose faith and did his soldier’s job as best he could, although he did not commit any special heroics.”

“The story of Sashka is the story of a man who found himself in the most difficult time in the most difficult place in the most difficult position - a soldier,” K. M. Simonov wrote about Kondratiev’s hero.

The theme of human feats in war was developed in the literature of the post-war period.

Used literature:

• History of Russian Soviet literature. Edited by prof. P.S. Vykhodtseva. Publishing house "Higher School", Moscow - 1970

• For the sake of life on earth. P. Toper. Literature and war. Traditions. Solutions. Heroes. Ed. third. Moscow, "Soviet Writer", 1985

Russian literature of the twentieth century. Ed. "Astrel", 2000

The development of literature during the Great Patriotic War and post-war decades is one of the most important topics in Russian art. It has a number of features that distinguish it from military literature of other countries and periods. In particular, poetry and journalism acquire a huge role in the spiritual life of the people, since difficult times full of hardships require small forms from genres.

For everyone literary works The war years are characterized by pathos. Heroic pathos and national pride have become unchanging attributes of any book. In the very first days of the Nazi offensive, writers, poets, publicists and all creative people felt mobilized on the information front. This call was accompanied by very real battles, injuries and deaths, from which not a single Geneva Convention saved the Soviet intelligentsia. Of the two thousand authors who went to the front line, 400 did not return. Of course, no one counted injuries, illnesses and grief. That’s why every poem, every story, every article is characterized by overflowing emotionality, drama, intensity of syllables and words, and the warmth of a friend who is experiencing the same thing as you.

Poetry

Poetry becomes the voice of the Motherland, who called out to her sons from the posters. The most musical poems were turned into songs and flew to the front with teams of artists, where they were indispensable, like medicine or weapons. Literature of the Great Period Patriotic War(1941-1945) for most Soviet people are poems, because they flew in the format of songs even to the most remote corners of the front, proclaiming the fortitude and intransigence of soldiers. In addition, it was easier to declare them on the radio, diluting front-line reports. They were also published in the central and front-line press during the Great Patriotic War.

To this day, the people love the song lyrics of M. Isakovsky, V. Lebedev-Kumach, A. Surkov, K. Simonov, O. Berggolts, N. Tikhonov, M. Aliger, P. Kogan, Vs. Bagritsky, N. Tikhonov, A. Tvardovsky. A profound national feeling resounds in their poems. The poets' instincts became sharper, their view of their native latitudes became filial, respectful, and tender. The image of the Motherland is a concrete, understandable symbol that no longer needs colorful descriptions. Heroic pathos also penetrated into intimate lyrics.

Melodic poetry with its inherent emotionality and declarative oratorical speech very soon spreads on the fronts and in the rear. The flourishing of the genre was logically determined: it was necessary to epically reflect pictures of heroic struggle. Military literature outgrew poems and resulted in a national epic. As an example, you can read A. Tvardovsky “Vasily Terkin”, M. Aliger “Zoya”, P. Antokolsky “Son”. The poem “Vasily Terkin,” familiar to us from school times, expresses the severity of military life and the indomitably cheerful disposition of the Soviet soldier. Thus, poetry during the Second World War acquired enormous importance in the cultural life of the people.

Main genre groups of war poems:

1. Lyrical (ode, elegy, song)
2. Satirical
3. Lyrical-epic (ballads, poems)

The most famous poets wartime:

1. Nikolay Tikhonov
2. Alexander Tvardovsky
3. Alexey Surkov
4. Olga Berggolts
5. Mikhail Isakovsky
6. Konstantin Simonov

Prose

Small forms of literature (such as short stories and tales) were especially famous. Sincere, unbending and, in truth, folk characters inspired Soviet citizens. For example, one of the most famous works of that period, “The Dawns Here Are Quiet” is still known to everyone from school. Its author, Boris Vasiliev, already mentioned above, in his works adhered to one main theme: the incompatibility of the natural human, life-giving and merciful principle, embodied, as a rule, in female images, and war. The tone of the work, characteristic of many writers of that time, namely the tragedy of the inevitable death of noble and unselfish souls in a collision with the cruelty and injustice of “power”, combined with a sentimental-romantic idealization of “positive” images and plot melodrama, captivates the reader from the first pages, but leaves deep wound impressionable people. Probably, this textbook example gives the most complete idea of ​​the dramatic intensity of prose during the Second World War (1941-1945).

Large works appeared only at the end of the war, after the turning point. No one doubted victory anymore, and the Soviet government provided writers with conditions for creativity. Military literature, namely prose, has become one of the key areas of the country's information policy. The people needed support, they needed to realize the greatness of that feat, the price of which was human lives. Examples of prose from the Second World War include V. Grossman’s novel “The People Are Immortal,” A. Beck’s novel “Volokolamsk Highway,” and B. Gorbatov’s epic “The Unconquered.”

Famous prose writers of the war:

1. A. Gaidar
2. E. Petrov
3. Yu. Krymov
4. M. Jalil,
5. M. Kulchitsky
6. V. Bagritsky
7. P. Kogan
8. M. Sholokhov
9. K. Simonov

Journalism

Outstanding wartime publicists: A. Tolstoy (“What We Defend”, “Moscow is Threatened by the Enemy”, “Motherland”), M. Sholokhov (“On the Don”, “Cossacks”, short story “The Science of Hate”), I. Ehrenburg (“Stand!”), L. Leonov (“Glory to Russia”, “Reflections near Kyiv”, “Rage”). All these are articles published in those newspapers that soldiers received in the trenches of the front and read before the battle. Exhausted by back-breaking work, people greedily drilled their tired eyes into these same lines. The journalism of those years has enormous literary, artistic and historical value. For example, articles by Boris Vasiliev calling for the establishment of priority national culture over politics (an example of which was set by Vasiliev himself, leaving the CPSU in 1989, which he had been a member of since 1952, and since the early 1990s, moving away from participation in “perestroika” political actions). His journalistic materials about the war are distinguished by a sound assessment and the greatest possible objectivity.

The main journalistic genres of wartime:

1. articles
2. essays
3. feuilletons
4. appeals
5. letters
6. leaflets

The most famous publicists:

1. Alexey Tolstoy
2. Mikhail Sholokhov
3. Vsevolod Vishnevsky
4. Nikolay Tikhonov
5. Ilya Erenburg
6. Marietta Shahinyan

The most important weapon of journalism of those years was the facts of violence of the Nazi occupiers against the civilian population. It was the journalists who found and systematized documentary evidence that enemy propaganda was at odds with the truth in everything. It was they who convincingly argued the patriotic position to those who doubted, because only in it lay salvation. No deal with the enemy could guarantee freedom and prosperity for the dissatisfied. The people had to realize this, learning the monstrous details of the massacres of children, women and the wounded that were practiced by the soldiers of the Third Reich.

Dramaturgy

The dramatic works of K. Simonov, L. Leonov, A. Korneichuk demonstrate the spiritual nobility of the Russian people, their moral purity and spiritual strength. The origins of their heroism are reflected in the plays “Russian People” by K. Simonov and “Invasion” by L. Leonov. The history of the confrontation between two types of military leaders is played out polemically in the play “Front” by A. Korneychuk. Drama during the Great Patriotic War is very emotional literature, filled with heroic pathos characteristic of the era. It breaks out of the framework of socialist realism and becomes closer and more understandable to the viewer. The actors are no longer acting, they are depicting their own everyday life on stage, reliving their own tragedies so that people are internally indignant and continue their courageous resistance.

Everyone was united by the literature of the war years: in each play the main idea was a call for the unity of all social forces in the face of an external threat. For example, in Simonov’s play “Russian People” main character- an intellectual seemingly alien to proletarian ideology. Panin, a poet and essayist, becomes a military correspondent, like the author himself once did. However, his heroism is not inferior to the courage of battalion commander Safonov, who sincerely loves a woman, but still sends her on combat missions, because his feelings towards his homeland are no less significant and strong.

The role of literature during the war years

The literature of the period of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) is distinguished by its purposefulness: all writers, as one, strive to help their people withstand the heavy burden of occupation. These are books about the Motherland, self-sacrifice, tragic love to his country and the duty with which it obliges every citizen to defend the fatherland at any cost. Crazy, tragic, merciless love revealed the hidden treasures of the soul in people, and writers, like painters, accurately reflected what they saw with their own eyes. According to Alexei Nikolaevich Tolstoy, “literature in the days of war becomes truly folk art, the voice of the heroic soul of the people."

Writers were not separated from front-line soldiers and home front workers; they became understandable and close to everyone, since the war united the nation. The authors froze and starved at the fronts as war correspondents, cultural workers, and died with soldiers and nurses. An intellectual, a worker or a collective farmer - everyone was at one. In the first years of the struggle, masterpieces were born in one day and remained in Russian literature forever. Main task These works are the pathos of defense, the pathos of patriotism, raising and maintaining military spirit in the ranks of the Soviet army. What is now called “on the information front” was really needed then. Moreover, literature from the war years is not a state order. Writers like Simonov, Tvardovsky, Ehrenburg came out on their own, absorbing impressions on the front line and transferring them to notebooks to the sound of exploding shells. That's why you really believe these books. Their authors suffered through what they wrote and risked their lives to pass on this pain to their descendants, in whose hands the world of tomorrow was supposed to be.

List of popular books

Books will tell about the collapse of simple human happiness in military realities:

1. “Simply Love” by V. Vasilevskaya,
2. “It was in Leningrad” by A. Chakovsky,
3. "Third Chamber" of Leonidov.
4. “And the dawns here are quiet” by B. Vasiliev
5. “The Fate of Man” by M. Sholokhov

Books about heroic exploits in the bloodiest battles during the Second World War:

1. “In the trenches of Stalingrad” by V. Nekrasov,
2. "Moscow. November 1941" Lidina,
3. “July – December” by Simonov,
4. “Brest Fortress” by S. Smirnov,
5. “They fought for their homeland” by M. Sholokhov

Soviet literature about betrayal:

1. “The battalions ask for fire” by Yu. Bondarev
2. “Sotnikov” by V. Bykov
3. “Sign of Trouble” by V. Bykov
4. “Live and Remember” by V. Rasputin

Books dedicated to the siege of Leningrad:

1. “The Siege Book” by A. Adamovich, D. Granin
2. “The Road of Life” by N. Khodza
3. “Baltic Sky” by N. Chukovsky

About children participating in the war:

1. Young Guard - Alexander Fadeev
2. Tomorrow there was a war - Boris Vasiliev
3. Goodbye boys – Boris Balter
4. Boys with bows – Valentin Pikul

About women participating in the war:

1. The war has no woman's face– Svetlana Alekseevich
2. Madonna with ration bread – Maria Glushko
3. Partisan Lara – Nadezhda Nadezhdina
4. Girls' team - P. Zavodchikov, F. Samoilov

An alternative view of military leadership:

1. Life and Fate – Vasily Grossman
2. Penal battalion – Eduard Volodarsky
3. In war as in war - Viktor Kurochkin

It has been widely covered in the literature, especially in Soviet era, as many authors have shared personal experience and they themselves experienced all the described horrors together with ordinary soldiers. Therefore, it is not surprising that first the war and then the post-war years were marked by the writing of a number of works dedicated to the feat Soviet people in the brutal struggle against Nazi Germany. We cannot pass by such books and forget about them, because they make us think about life and death, war and peace, past and present. We present to your attention a list best books, dedicated to the Great Patriotic War, which are worth reading and re-reading.

Vasil Bykov

Vasil Bykov (books are presented below) - an outstanding Soviet writer, public figure and a WWII participant. Probably one of the most famous authors war novels. Bykov wrote mainly about a person during the most severe trials that befell him, and about the heroism of ordinary soldiers. Vasil Vladimirovich sang in his works the feat of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War. Below we will look at the most famous novels by this author: “Sotnikov”, “Obelisk” and “Until Dawn”.

"Sotnikov"

The story was written in 1968. This is another example of how it was described in fiction. Initially, the arbitrariness was called “Liquidation”, and the basis of the plot was the author’s meeting with a former fellow soldier, whom he considered dead. In 1976, the film “The Ascent” was made based on this book.

The story tells about a partisan detachment that is in dire need of provisions and medicine. Rybak and the intellectual Sotnikov, who is sick, but volunteers to go because no more volunteers were found, are sent for supplies. Long wanderings and searches lead the partisans to the village of Lyasiny, here they rest a little and receive a sheep carcass. Now you can go back. But on the way back they come across a detachment of policemen. Sotnikov is seriously wounded. Now the Fisherman must save the life of his comrade and bring the promised provisions to the camp. However, he fails, and together they fall into the hands of the Germans.

"Obelisk"

Vasil Bykov wrote a lot. The writer's books have often been filmed. One of these books was the story “Obelisk”. The work is constructed according to the “story within a story” type and has a pronounced heroic character.

The hero of the story, whose name remains unknown, comes to the funeral of Pavel Miklashevich, a village teacher. At the wake, everyone remembers the deceased with a kind word, but then the conversation comes up about Frost, and everyone falls silent. On the way home, the hero asks his fellow traveler what kind of relationship a certain Moroz has with Miklashevich. Then they tell him that Moroz was the teacher of the deceased. He treated the children as family, took care of them, and took Miklashevich, who was oppressed by his father, to live with him. When the war began, Moroz helped the partisans. The village was occupied by police. One day, his students, including Miklashevich, sawed off the bridge supports, and the police chief and his assistants ended up in the water. The boys were caught. Moroz, who by that time had fled to the partisans, surrendered to free the students. But the Nazis decided to hang both the children and their teacher. Before his execution, Moroz helped Miklashevich escape. The rest were hanged.

"Until Dawn"

A story from 1972. As you can see, the Great Patriotic War in literature continues to be relevant even after decades. This is also confirmed by the fact that Bykov was awarded the USSR State Prize for this story. The work talks about everyday life military intelligence officers and saboteurs. The story was originally written in Belarusian language, and only then translated into Russian.

November 1941, the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. Lieutenant Soviet army Igor Ivanovsky, the main character of the story, commands a sabotage group. He will have to lead his comrades beyond the front line - to the lands of Belarus occupied by the German invaders. Their task is to blow up a German ammunition depot. Bykov talks about the feat of ordinary soldiers. It was they, and not the staff officers, who became the force that helped win the war.

In 1975, the book was filmed. The script for the film was written by Bykov himself.

“And the dawns here are quiet...”

A work by the Soviet and Russian writer Boris Lvovich Vasiliev. One of the most famous front-line stories, largely thanks to the 1972 film adaptation of the same name. “And the dawns here are quiet...” Boris Vasiliev wrote in 1969. The work is based on real events: during the war, soldiers serving on Kirovskaya railway, prevented German saboteurs from blowing up the railway track. After a fierce battle, only the commander remained alive Soviet group, who was awarded the medal "For Military Merit".

“And the dawns here are quiet...” (Boris Vasiliev) - a book describing the 171st patrol in the Karelian wilderness. Here is the calculation of anti-aircraft installations. The soldiers, not knowing what to do, begin to drink and idle. Then Fyodor Vaskov, the commandant of the patrol, asks to “send non-drinkers.” The command sends two squads of female anti-aircraft gunners to him. And somehow one of the new arrivals notices German saboteurs in the forest.

Vaskov realizes that the Germans want to get to strategic targets and understands that they need to be intercepted here. To do this, he assembles a detachment of 5 anti-aircraft gunners and leads them to the Sinyukhin ridge through the swamps along a path known to him alone. During the campaign, it turns out that there are 16 Germans, so he sends one of the girls for reinforcements, while he himself pursues the enemy. However, the girl does not reach her own people and dies in the swamps. Vaskov has to engage in an unequal battle with the Germans, and as a result, the four girls remaining with him die. But still, the commandant manages to capture the enemies, and he takes them to the location of the Soviet troops.

The story describes the feat of a man who himself decides to confront the enemy and not allow him to walk around with impunity. native land. Without an order from his superiors, the main character goes into battle himself and takes 5 volunteers with him - the girls volunteered themselves.

"Tomorrow there was a war"

The book is a kind of biography of the author of this work, Boris Lvovich Vasiliev. The story begins with the writer telling about his childhood, that he was born in Smolensk, his father was the commander of the Red Army. And before becoming anyone in this life, choosing his profession and deciding on his place in society, Vasiliev became a soldier, like many of his peers.

“Tomorrow there was war” is a work about the pre-war period. Its main characters are still very young students of the 9th grade, the book tells about their growing up, love and friendship, idealistic youth, which turned out to be too short due to the outbreak of the war. The work tells about the first serious confrontation and choice, about the collapse of hopes, about the inevitable growing up. And all this against the backdrop of an looming, grave threat that cannot be stopped or avoided. And within a year, these boys and girls will find themselves in the heat of a fierce battle, in which many of them are destined to burn. However, for his short life they learn what honor, duty, friendship and truth are.

"Hot Snow"

A novel by front-line writer Yuri Vasilyevich Bondarev. The Great Patriotic War is particularly widely represented in the literature of this writer and became the main motive of all his work. But most famous work Bondarev is precisely the novel “Hot Snow,” written in 1970. The action of the work takes place in December 1942 near Stalingrad. The novel is based on real events - the attempt of the German army to relieve Paulus's sixth army, surrounded at Stalingrad. This battle was decisive in the battle for Stalingrad. The book was filmed by G. Yegiazarov.

The novel begins with the fact that two artillery platoons under the command of Davlatyan and Kuznetsov have to gain a foothold on the Myshkova River, and then hold back the advance of German tanks rushing to the rescue of Paulus’s army.

After the first wave of the offensive, Lieutenant Kuznetsov’s platoon is left with one gun and three soldiers. Nevertheless, the soldiers continue to repel the onslaught of enemies for another day.

"The Fate of Man"

"The Fate of Man" - school work, which is studied within the framework of the topic “The Great Patriotic War in Literature.” The story was written by the famous Soviet writer Mikhail Sholokhov in 1957.

The work describes the life of a simple driver Andrei Sokolov, who had to leave his family and home with the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. However, before the hero gets to the front, he is immediately wounded and ends up in Nazi captivity, and then in a concentration camp. Thanks to his courage, Sokolov manages to survive captivity, and at the end of the war he manages to escape. Once among his own people, he receives leave and goes to small homeland, where he learns that his family died, only his son survived, who went to war. Andrei returns to the front and learns that his son was shot by a sniper on the last day of the war. However, this is not the end of the hero’s story; Sholokhov shows that even after losing everything, you can find new hope and gain strength in order to live on.

"Brest Fortress"

The book by the famous journalist was written in 1954. For this work the author was awarded the Lenin Prize in 1964. And this is not surprising, because the book is the result of Smirnov’s ten-year work on the history of defense Brest Fortress.

The work “Brest Fortress” (Sergei Smirnov) is itself a part of history. Writing literally bit by bit he collected information about the defenders, wanting their good names and honor not to be forgotten. Many of the heroes were captured, for which they were convicted after the end of the war. And Smirnov wanted to protect them. The book contains many memories and testimonies of participants in the battles, which fills the book with true tragedy, full of courageous and decisive actions.

"The Living and the Dead"

The Great Patriotic War in the literature of the 20th century describes the life of ordinary people who, by the will of fate, turned out to be heroes and traitors. This cruel time ground many, and only a few managed to slip between the millstones of history.

“The Living and the Dead” is the first book in the famous trilogy of the same name by Konstantin Mikhailovich Simonov. The second two parts of the epic are called “Soldiers Are Not Born” and “The Last Summer.” The first part of the trilogy was published in 1959.

Many critics consider the work one of the brightest and most talented examples of describing the Great Patriotic War in the literature of the 20th century. At the same time, the epic novel is not a historiographical work or a chronicle of the war. The characters in the book are fictional people, although they have certain prototypes.

“War does not have a woman’s face”

Literature dedicated to the Great Patriotic War usually describes the exploits of men, sometimes forgetting that women also contributed to the overall victory. But the book Belarusian writer Svetlana Alexievich, one might say, restores historical justice. The writer collected in her work the stories of those women who took part in the Great Patriotic War. The title of the book was the first lines of the novel “War Under the Roofs” by A. Adamovich.

“Not on the lists”

Another story whose theme was the Great Patriotic War. IN Soviet literature Boris Vasiliev, whom we already mentioned above, was quite famous. But he gained this fame precisely thanks to his military work, one of which is the story “Not on the Lists.”

The book was written in 1974. The action takes place in the Brest Fortress itself, besieged by fascist invaders. Lieutenant Nikolai Pluzhnikov, the main character of the work, ends up in this fortress before the start of the war - he arrived on the night of June 21-22. And at dawn the battle begins. Nikolai has the opportunity to leave here, since his name is not on any military list, but he decides to stay and defend his homeland to the end.

"Babi Yar"

Anatoly Kuznetsov published the documentary novel “Babi Yar” in 1965. The work is based on the childhood memories of the author, who during the war found himself in German-occupied territory.

The novel begins with a short introduction by the author, a short introductory chapter and several chapters, which are combined into three parts. The first part tells about the withdrawal of retreating Soviet troops from Kyiv, the collapse of the Southwestern Front and the beginning of the occupation. Also included were scenes of the execution of Jews, explosions Kiev-Pechersk Lavra and Khreshchatyk.

The second part is completely devoted to the occupation life of 1941-1943, the deportation of Russians and Ukrainians as workers to Germany, the famine, clandestine production, and Ukrainian nationalists. The final part of the novel tells about the liberation of the Ukrainian land from the German occupiers, the flight of the police, the battle for the city, and the uprising in the Babi Yar concentration camp.

"The Tale of a Real Man"

Literature about the Great Patriotic War also includes the work of another Russian writer who went through the war as a military journalist, Boris Polevoy. The story was written in 1946, that is, almost immediately after the end of hostilities.

The plot is based on an event from the life of USSR military pilot Alexei Meresyev. Its prototype was real character, hero Soviet Union Alexey Maresyev, who, like his hero, was a pilot. The story tells how he was shot down in battle with the Germans and seriously wounded. As a result of the accident, he lost both legs. However, his willpower was so great that he managed to return to the ranks of Soviet pilots.

The work was awarded the Stalin Prize. The story is imbued with humanistic and patriotic ideas.

"Madonna of Ration Bread"

Maria Glushko is a Crimean Soviet writer who went to the front at the beginning of the Second World War. Her book “Madonna with Ration Bread” is about the feat of all mothers who had to survive the Great Patriotic War. The heroine of the work is a very young girl, Nina, whose husband is going to war, and she, at the insistence of her father, goes to be evacuated to Tashkent, where her stepmother and brother are waiting for her. The heroine is in the last stages of pregnancy, but this will not protect her from the flow of human troubles. And for little time Nina will have to find out what was previously hidden from her behind the prosperity and tranquility of her pre-war existence: people live in the country so differently, what kind of people they have life principles, values, attitudes, how they differ from her, who grew up in ignorance and prosperity. But the main thing that the heroine has to do is to give birth to a child and save him from all the scourges of war.

"Vasily Terkin"

Literature portrayed such characters as the heroes of the Great Patriotic War to the reader in different ways, but the most memorable, cheerful and charismatic, undoubtedly, was Vasily Terkin.

This poem by Alexander Tvardovsky, which began publication in 1942, immediately received popular love and recognition. The work was written and published throughout the Second World War, the last part was published in 1945. The main task of the poem was to maintain the morale of the soldiers, and Tvardovsky successfully accomplished this task, largely thanks to the image of the main character. The daring and cheerful Terkin, who is always ready for battle, won the hearts of many ordinary soldiers. He is the soul of the unit, a cheerful fellow and a jokester, and in battle he is a role model, a resourceful warrior who always achieves his goal. Even being on the verge of death, he continues to fight and is already entering into battle with Death itself.

The work includes a prologue, 30 chapters of main content, divided into three parts, and an epilogue. Each chapter is a short front-line story from the life of the main character.

Thus, we see that the exploits of the Great Patriotic War literature Soviet period widely covered. We can say that this is one of the main themes of the mid and second half of the 20th century for Russian and Soviet writers. This is due to the fact that the entire country was involved in the battle with the German invaders. Even those who were not at the front worked tirelessly in the rear, providing the soldiers with ammunition and provisions.

Literature during the Great Patriotic War (gg.) The Great Patriotic War is a difficult test that befell the Russian people. The literature of that time could not remain aloof from this event.

On the first day of the war, at a rally of Soviet writers, the following words were spoken: “Every Soviet writer is ready to give everything, his strength, all his experience and talent, all his blood, if necessary, to the cause of the holy people’s war against the enemies of our Motherland.” About two thousand writers went to the front, more than four hundred of them did not return (A. Gaidar, E. Petrov, Yu. Krymov, M. Jalil; M. Kulchitsky, V. Bagritsky, P. Kogan died very young). Front-line writers fully shared with their people both the pain of retreat and the joy of victory. Georgy Suvorov, a front-line writer who died shortly before the victory, wrote: “We lived our good life as people, and for people.”

Russian literature of the Second World War period became literature of one theme - war, the theme of the Motherland. Writers felt like “trench poets” (A. Surkov), and all literature as a whole, in the apt expression of A. Tolstov, was “the voice of the heroic soul of the people.” The slogan “All forces to defeat the enemy!” directly related to writers. Motherland, war, death and immortality, hatred of the enemy, military brotherhood and camaraderie, love and loyalty, the dream of victory, thinking about the fate of the people - these are the main motives of military poetry. The theme of war, the theme of the homeland...

Writers lived the same life with the fighting people: they froze in the trenches, went on the attack, performed feats and... wrote. Oh book! Treasured friend! You're in a fighter's duffel bag. You've walked the entire victorious path to the very end. Your great truth led us along. Your reader and author went into battle together.

The character of the so-called lyrical hero also changed in the lyrics of the war years: first of all, he became more earthly, closer than in the lyrics of the previous period. Poetry, as it were, entered into the war, and the war, with all its battle and everyday details, into poetry. Heroes often endure severe, sometimes inhuman, hardships and suffering: It is time for ten generations to lift the heaviness that we have lifted. (A. Surkov).

Representatives of literature during the war years 1. A.A. Surkov; 2. K.M. Simonov; 3. A.T. Tvardovsky; 4. A.N. Tolstoy; 5. M.I. Sholokhov; 6. A.A. Fadeev; 7. B.L. Gorbatov; 8. V.A. Sokolov; 9. V.S. Vysotsky; 10. V.A. Smolensky; 11. V.V. Mayakovsky; 12. V.L. Britishish; 13. O. Berggolts.

In the poetry of the war years, three main genre groups of poems can be distinguished: 1) lyrical (ode, elegy, song), 2) satirical; 3) lyrical-epic (ballads, poems). During the Great Patriotic War, not only poetic genres developed, but also prose. It is represented by: - ​​journalistic and essay genres, - war stories and heroic stories. Journalistic genres are very diverse: - articles, - essays, - feuilletons, - appeals, letters, - leaflets. Articles written by: Leonov, Alexey Tolstoy, Mikhail Sholokhov, Vsevolod Vishnevsky, Nikolai Tikhonov.

Alexey Alexandrovich Surkov () Russian Soviet poet, public figure, lieutenant colonel (1943). Hero Socialist Labor(1969). Winner of two Stalin Prizes (1946, 1951). Member of the CPSU(b) since 1925. The Great Patriotic War During A.A. Surkov, as a war correspondent, he participated in the liberation campaigns in Western Belarus, the war with the White Finns, and then in the Great Patriotic War. His “December Diary” (1940), realistically capturing the difficulties of the harsh winter campaign and “the faces of traveling friends,” served as an approach to the poems written during the Great Patriotic War in the collections: December near Moscow: June - December. “Roads Lead to the West”: January-May 1942. I Sing Victory: 1943 – 1945. His songs “The Fire Beats in a Quiet Stove...”, Song of the Brave (1941) and a number of poems, awarded the USSR State Prize in 1946, gained particular popularity.

The fire beats in the cramped stove, There is resin on the logs, like a tear. And the accordion sings to me in the dugout about your smile and eyes. The bushes whispered to me about you in the snow-white fields near Moscow. I want you to hear how my living voice yearns. Poems by Alexey Aleksandrovich Surkov Here is a road swept away by bombs, A black wall of destroyed tanks. From this road the German iron wave rolled back. Here steel helmets and flat bayonets are trampled into the snowdrifts and virgin soil. From here, for the first time in the entire war, regiments poured forward to the west. We will preserve in songs for posterity the names of those burnt villages, Where, beyond the last bitter frontier, the night ended and the day began. Near Moscow, 1941

Konstantin Mikhailovich Simonov (), Soviet writer, public figure. Hero of Socialist Labor (1974). Winner of the Lenin Prize (1974) and six Stalin Prizes (1942, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950). Deputy General Secretary of the USSR SP. Member of the CPSU(b) since 1942. At the beginning of the war, he was drafted into the army and worked for the newspaper “Battle Banner.” In 1942 he was awarded the rank of senior battalion commissar, in 1943 the rank of lieutenant colonel, and after the war, colonel. Most his military correspondence was published in Red Star. During the war years he wrote the plays “Russian People”, “Wait for Me”, “So It Will Be”, the story “Days and Nights”, two books of poems “With You and Without You” and “War”. As a war correspondent, he visited all fronts, walked through the lands of Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Poland and Germany, and witnessed the last battles for Berlin. After the war, his collections of essays “Letters from Czechoslovakia”, “ Slavic friendship", "Yugoslav notebook", "From the Black to the Barents Sea. Notes of a war correspondent."

1. Stalin Prize first degree (1942) for the play “A Guy from Our City” 2. Stalin Prize of the second degree (1943) for the play “Russian People” 3. Stalin Prize of the second degree (1946) for the novel “Days and Nights” 4. Stalin Prize of the first degree (1947) for the play “The Russian Question” 5. Stalin Prize of the first degree (1949) for the collection of poems “Friends and Enemies” 6. Stalin Prize of the second degree (1950) for the play “Alien Shadow” In the days of the farewell of the Soviet people to Stalin were published the following lines by K. M. Simonov: There are no words that can describe all the intolerance of grief and sadness. There are no words to tell how much we mourn for you, Comrade Stalin... For special services in the field literary creativity K. Simonov was awarded:

Wait for me and I will return. Just wait a lot. Wait when the yellow rains bring sadness, Wait when the snow is blowing, Wait when it’s hot, Wait when others are not welcome, Forgetting yesterday. Wait until no letters come from distant places, Wait until everyone who is waiting together gets tired of it. Wait for me, and I will return, Don’t wish well to everyone who knows by heart, That it’s time to forget. Let the son and mother believe that I am not there, Let the friends get tired of waiting, Sit by the fire, Drink bitter wine In remembrance of the soul... Wait. And don’t rush to drink with them at the same time.

Poems of the war years - they will help - to relive the rich range of feelings born of this time, and their unprecedented strength and acuteness - will help to avoid the erroneous, one-sided idea of ​​​​a war-victory with unfurled banners, orchestras, orders, general rejoicing or about war- defeat with failures, deaths, blood, tears standing in the throat; - paint an objective picture, tell subsequent generations the truth about unforgettable days. The liberation war is not only death, blood and suffering. These are also gigantic upsurges of the human spirit - selflessness, selflessness, heroism.