Portrait characteristics of a left-hander from the story of a left-hander. N.S. Leskov "Lefty": description, heroes, analysis of the work. Indifference to wealth and comfort

creative work

2. Description of Lefty

Distinctive properties of N.S. Leskov - fairy tale motifs, the interweaving of the comic and the tragic, the ambiguity of the author's assessments of the characters - were fully manifested in one of the most famous works writer "Lefty".

Introducing us to the main character, the author does not demonstrate his attractiveness, only a few details: “a left-handed oblique, a birthmark on the cheek, and the hair on the temples was torn out during teaching.” However, Lefty is a skilled Tula artisan, one of those Tula gunsmiths who managed to shoe the English "nymphosoria" and, thereby, surpass the English masters.

When meeting with the tsar himself, Lefty is not frightened, but “walks in what he was: in shawls, one trouser leg is in a boot, the other is dangled, and the ozyamchik is old, the hooks do not fasten, they are lost, and the collar is torn; but don't be embarrassed." The left-hander, an unsightly little man, is not afraid to go to the sovereign, as he is confident in his rightness, in the quality of his work. Indeed, there is something to marvel at here - the craftsmen not only did not spoil the curiosity, but also bypassed the British in terms of skill: they shod a steel flea and wrote their names on the horseshoes. This is such a miniature work that you can see the result in a “melkoskop”, which magnifies several hundred times, and the craftsmen, due to poverty, did all the delicate work without a “milkoscope”, because they “have shot their eyes like that”. However, Lefty's name was not on the horseshoes, as he considered himself unworthy of it. In his opinion, he did nothing special, because he worked with parts less than horseshoes: he forged carnations to nail them.

The left-hander is ready to sacrifice himself for the sake of the Fatherland, in the name of the cause. He travels to England without documents, hungry (on the road, “at each station, the belts were still tightened by one badge so that the intestines and lungs would not get mixed up”) to show Russian ingenuity and skill to foreigners, and earns the respect of the British with his unwillingness to stay in their country .

The skill and ability of Lefty aroused well-deserved respect among the British, but, unfortunately, he was deprived of the technical knowledge available to English masters, and, as a result, the “nymphosoria” savvy to Lefty and his comrades can no longer dance: “This is a pity,” the British regret, - it would be better if you knew at least four rules of addition from arithmetic, then it would be much more useful for you than the entire Half Dream Book. Then you could realize that in every machine there is a force calculation; otherwise you are very skillful in your hands, and you didn’t realize that such a small machine, as in a nymphosoria, is designed for the most accurate accuracy and cannot carry its horseshoes. Through this, now the nymphosoria does not jump and the dance does not dance.

When Lefty returns to his homeland, he falls ill and dies, useless to anyone. Thrown on the floor in a "common" hospital, he personifies inhumanity, shortsightedness and ingratitude state power- the reason for the unsettledness of Russia, according to the author.

From the whole story it becomes obvious that Leskov sympathizes with Lefty, pities him, the author's comments are filled with bitterness. The image of Lefty reflected Leskov's search for a positive national hero, and, in my opinion, this image is very close to the goal.

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In "The Tale of the Tula Oblique Lefty and the Steel Flea" N.S. Leskov tells of a talented gunsmith who performed a technical miracle by making horseshoes and shoeing a steel flea created by the British, and so small that it cannot be seen without a "melkoscope".

Left-hander is a man of the people, dark, small and nondescript. External characteristic The left-hander is also unpretentious: "a left-handed oblique, a birthmark on the cheek, and the hair on the temples was torn out during the teaching." At first glance, this character is completely uninteresting. However, opinion about him changes when he, having received the task of creating a product more amazing than an English flea that can dance, puts horseshoes on this flea.

He is at the same time a very skilled craftsman, a rare craftsman, and at the same time he is a downtrodden man who considers himself an insignificant creature. When the British make an offer to Lefty to stay with them, he resolutely refuses. The hero cannot even imagine life away from his homeland, where he is absolutely powerless, but he feels himself in his environment. Lefty is not ready to fight the circumstances. Dying, he does not complain about his fate, does not feel bitterness, but only feels the need to discover the secret of the British gunsmithing skills: a gun cannot be cleaned with a brick.

The character of the Russian people is revealed in the image of Lefty. Talented and nameless, a sincere patriot, content with his share, hardworking and undemanding - such is Lefty, such is the whole Russian people. Leskov sees moral value a person in his close connection with the Russian national element - nature, native land, people and traditions. However, the author is not inclined to idealize his hero. Leskov does not elevate, but also does not belittle the people, but depicts them according to specific historical conditions, while penetrating into the depths of the people's soul, where the richest Creative skills, the desire for ingenuity, skill and service to the motherland. The author realistically depicts an ordinary representative of the Russian people: he has ingenuity, talent, but is uneducated. The left-hander does not have enough knowledge to bring the matter to the end: the savvy steel flea has lost the ability to dance. This is understandable, because the hero "instead of the four rules of addition from arithmetic, he takes everything according to the Psalter and according to the Half Dream Book."

And with all this, a specific representative of the Russian people with all their talents turns out to be useless to anyone. Having fulfilled his function, proving to the British that Russian masters have no less ability than English ones, he dies, forgotten by everyone.

This is the inattention of the authorities to fate ordinary people, the denseness and lack of education of the people is, according to Leskov, the reason for the backwardness of Russia. This can be easily seen by comparing the conversation between Nikolai and Lefty, when the emperor condescends to be a craftsman, and the meeting of the hero with the English, who talk to Lefty on an equal footing, respecting the master in him. The image of Lefty is the image of a righteous person who is ready to sacrifice himself in the name of the Fatherland and the Common Cause. The hero goes to England, without documents, hungry, “at each station, the belts were still tightened by one badge so that the intestines and lungs would not get mixed up.” He seeks to show foreigners the skill and ingenuity of the Russian people. He earns the respect of the English for his talent and refusal to stay in their country.

But in his own country, Lefty remains unrecognized, he dies, as thousands of the same unrecognized craftsmen from the people died. Only an Englishman was able to see the true essence of a talented master: “Even though he has a sheepskin coat, but the soul of a man.”

Lefty - main character the story of the same name by N. S. Leskov, a talented Russian artisan, gunsmith. He, along with two other craftsmen, was commissioned to create some kind of masterpiece involving a steel dancing flea, so as not to be inferior in ingenuity to the British. After much deliberation, these three craftsmen decided to shoe the flea, keeping their plans a secret. Lefty himself created carnations for horseshoes. The external characterization of the hero is scarce. Their story is only known that Lefty was slanting, had a birthmark on his cheek and bald patches on his temples.

Particular attention is paid to the talent of the master. He is described as a skilled craftsman and craftsman. At the same time, the hero does not feel significant at all. When the British offer him to stay with them and promise a carefree life, he immediately rejects their offer. In his actions, one can see not only loyalty to the motherland, but also disbelief in better life V best conditions. The left-hander is such a downtrodden creature that it doesn’t even occur to him to show even the slightest resistance to circumstances. And he even dies in a strange way. Returning to St. Petersburg, he ended up in a hospital for people of the lower class. Cabbers, carrying him on a stretcher, dropped him, as a result of which Lefty broke his head. So, a wonderful master died unknown and useless to anyone.

The tragic fate of Lefty is contrasted with the life of the English skipper who came with him. Immediately upon arrival, he was taken to the British Embassy, ​​where he was warmly and thoughtfully received. With this opposition, the author wanted to emphasize the indifference to human life that prevails in the country. In fact, a rare craftsman with an outstanding talent died, and no one cared before. There is a lot of comical in the description of this hero. For example, being an oblique left-hander, he was able to create the finest work, invisible to the human eye.

), three Russian craftsmen shod a flea.

One of these craftsmen is Lefty. This is a Tula craftsman who lives in poverty, wears bad clothes, but is a master of his craft. He is a religious and patriotic person. Despite the fact that he is left-handed, has no special education, and even oblique, he performs a very delicate, invisible to the human eye, incredible work.

By order of the king, he goes to England, where he presents a savvy flea and tells what Russian craftsmen are capable of. The British really like this simple talented person. They bombard him with lucrative offers of cooperation, but Lefty, being an honest, disinterested and devoted person to his country, does not agree to their tempting offers. He sees how masters are treated in England, he sees that they are well-fed and well-dressed, but he yearns for his homeland.

Upon returning to Russia, he falls ill, no one, except for his new English friend, takes care of him and does not want to treat him. But even abandoned by the ungrateful tsarist authorities, being dying, he cares and thinks about his country. He asks to convey to the king the cunning of the military affairs of the British.

This hardworking person does not forget about his country for a minute, he worries and cares about his Motherland until his last breath.

Essay Description Lefty

The plot of Leskov's story is revealed around the main character Levsha, who was a master from Tula. The description of the craftsman does not appear immediately, approximately in the middle of the story. The hero is a master blacksmith, he is left-handed, a patriot of his Motherland, very naive, devoted to Tsar Alexander I and Platov. There is a birthmark on his cheek, his eyes squint, but despite this, he does an excellent job with his job.

Left-hander, together with his comrades, Platonov instructed to make a masterpiece, but at the same time using a steel flea. Thus, he wanted to prove to others that not only the British are able to invent non-standard things. For a long time, three craftsmen “puzzled their brains” about what to do to surprise the people and decided to shoe a miniature flea. Without special equipment and proper knowledge, they still succeeded. This invention shocked everyone.

After inventing an ingenious product, Lefty goes to England without any documents. The British offered the young man both education and money, but he remained faithful to his homeland and refused everything. Lefty wanted to get home as soon as possible.

Excessive modesty and ruined Lefty. In winter, he refused a cozy cabin, because he considered himself unworthy of such honors. Therefore, he spent the whole journey on deck and fell ill.

Upon arrival in St. Petersburg, Lefty was robbed. Having neither money nor documents with him, not a single hospital wanted to accept him, only a hospital for the poor. No one even thought to save the great master, except for an Englishman who brought a good doctor. But, unfortunately, it was already too late. Modestly, unknown to anyone, Lefty died. Even in the last moments of his life, the master wants to convey a message to the king that one should not clean weapons with bricks.

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The image of Lefty in Leskov's work is quite interesting and unusual. There are very few people like him, and even more so in our time. He goes with the flow, practically does not change anything, fate develops tragically, but he still enjoys life.

Lefty - a talented Tula gunsmith

When Nikolai Pavlovich, the Russian emperor, ordered to improve a flea brought from England by the previous emperor Alexander Pavlovich, Lefty did the hardest work.

He forged the smallest detail that even the human eye cannot see. Of the three masters who performed the operation to improve the flea, he was the most assiduous, resourceful, and talented.

Modest, inconspicuous and ugly

Despite all the work of Lefty, many underestimated him. Usually this was due to appearance.

He was inconspicuous, ugly face, oblique, and even left-handed. Almost no one guessed what a huge potential is hidden in this seemingly most ordinary peasant.


But, as I said, people like our hero are not often met.

Dear readers! We bring to your attention which was written by N. Leskov.

In his place, many would certainly have demanded monetary compensation for moral damage, or a personal workshop, or some other reward for the great quality work done.

But Lefty was not like that. He floated calmly with the flow. Didn't go anywhere. Perhaps even underestimated himself. He did not demand anything at all, although he lived not so luxuriously.

Even on the paws of a flea, he did not sign, but simply made the work twice as difficult as the other masters who forged the flea with him. So none of those who saw the creation joint activities Russian and English masters did not learn that not two masters worked on a work of art, but three. And the name of the third remained unknown to the world.

Special Patriotism Lefty

Despite all the difficulties that Lefty went through, he never betrayed his homeland. No matter how much he was underestimated, he always remained true to his beloved country. When he went to England, it can be assumed that he really liked it there. He was offered to stay, promising all the vital and comfortable conditions.


He knew that his work would be appreciated there. But Lefty remembered that it was closer than motherland, for him there is practically nothing, and it doesn’t matter what kind of people there will be. The main thing is that at home. I had to refuse. For some, this may be commonplace, but for Lefty, it was huge selection.

Dear readers! We offer in the story of Nikolai Leskov “The Old Genius”

Just imagine: a homeland where no one needs you, and then you are invited to another, more progressive country, where you will be appreciated ...

Lefty dies

Upon arrival in Russia, a terrible thing happens. Our hero is very ill. Dat is so strong that you have to go to the hospital. His name has already been forgotten. What he did is also forgotten. Yes, who he is, everyone has already forgotten. Lefty was taken to a hospital for the poor. In the meantime, they carried it on a stretcher, dropped it, and the guy broke his head. So he died in the hospital. None of those who saw him, none of those who surrounded him, or carried him in a stretcher, suspected that a great master gunsmith was dying before their eyes, with whom practically no one can compare. But he is still happy with what he has. This is how the life of Lefty ends tragically.