"Heather honey" reader's diary. Ballad R. Stevenson "Heather honey": history, heroes and analysis of the work of Stevenson heather honey summary

My perception of Stevenson's ballad "Heather Honey"

I love Stevenson's books. I really like to re-read "Treasure Island" about pirates and the sea. But Stevenson also wrote poetry. I read his poem "Heather Honey" and I want to tell you what I think. The poem tells about an ancient drink that little mead brewers drank. They lived in an ancient country, and they are called Pictish. I asked my dad who the Picts were. He explained to me that the Picts - ancient people who lived in England. they were called "painted" Picts because they were all in tattoos. Heather honey was a delicious drink:

Heather drink

Forgotten a long time ago.

And he was sweeter than honey,

Drunker than wine.

For him they took nectar from heather flowers. But the people of the mead were destroyed by the enemies. They knew how to fight and conquered the lands of the Picts, killed. everyone they found. But they did not know how to cook heather honey. Then, when the heather bloomed in the spring, there was no one to cook a delicious drink:

Summer has come in the country

The heather is blooming again

But there is no one to cook

Heather honey.

In their cramped graves,

In the mountains of the native land

Baby Mead Brewers

We found shelter for ourselves.

And then the king of warriors ordered to torture two who survived, because he wanted to try delicious honey... I felt very sorry for them because they both died. The boy and his old father did not reveal the secret of the honey. I think they did it for a reason. They were only left together, and none of their relatives were there anymore. All lay in the graves. The boy and his father had to not give their enemies the last secret - all that remained of their people. The old man told the king that he would reveal the secret of honey, but he was ashamed in front of his son. Therefore, let the son be killed, and he will tell everything:

- I would have betrayed the secret long ago,

If the son did not interfere!

The boy does not feel sorry for his life,

He doesn’t care about death.

I sell my conscience

It will be ashamed to be with him.

Let him be tied tightly

And thrown into the abyss of waters

And I will teach the Scots

Make old honey!

He deceived the king because he was not going to give him a secret and died. But it seems to me that old father did the wrong thing. Why did he think his son would reveal the secret? Everyone always scolds those who are younger. It is not right. After all, when they grow up, they will become the same as those who scolded them. What could this poem be about? I think that Stevenson talks about those who love their homeland and their people and are not afraid to die for them. In the poem, the boy and his father are very memorable. And I also think that everyone should be able to defend themselves and their families, because there are always those who are stronger and for whom all strangers are enemies. And I didn't like the king of conquerors. He was wrong when he killed all the Picts. People should reap in peace among themselves, and then the ancient secrets that people pass on to their children and grandchildren will not disappear from the earth.

7 CLASS

ROVERT LEWIS STEVENSON

VERESKOVY HONEY

(Russian translation - Heather Trunok1)

From heather honey

Pikty2 was brewed for a long time

A drink, honey is sweeter,

Stronger than wine.

1 Heather is an evergreen low bush with very small and numerous leaves and lilac-pink flowers; drink - here: drink.

2 The Pikti are the oldest known peoples inhabiting Scotland (the first mention of them dates back to 297 AD).

Boiled and drank

That magic drink

And in the dungeons of temryavi

Fates rejoiced at their own.

And here is the Scottish owner -

His enemies were afraid! -

I went to the picts with arms,

To destroy them to the feet.

He drove them like a deer,

On the heather hills

Rushing down the bodies from above,

Sowed both death and terror.

And summer has come again

Heather blushed again

And brew a honey drink

Nobody else could.

In the graves, as if for children,

On every red mountain

Lay under red

Sleep forever brovary1.

rode the king of scots

On the heather land;

The bees danced stubbornly,

The cranes were curling.

And the official was gloomy,

Duma he thought of his own:

"The lord of the heather land -

Why don't I drink a drink from heather? "

Suddenly wasal2 royal

Came across strange storage:

1 Brovar is a master brewer.

2 Vassal - in medieval Europe feudal lord who received from a powerful feudal lord land and patronage, for which he performed a number of duties for him.

In the crevice between the stones

I found two brovars.

They dragged out the poor picts

Instantly on White light -

Old father and son,

A boy of an adolescent age.

The king looked at the captives,

Sitting in the saddle;

Silently looked at him

Those brewers are small.

The king ordered them to be delivered

On the cliff and said; -

Old, you spoil your son and yourself,

Just reveal the secret of the drink.

Looked down and up

Old father and son:

Around - red heather,

The Scottish king heard:

Only two words, master,

Let me tell you:

Life appreciates old age.

To live I will do anything

And I will reveal the secret of the drink, -

So he told the king.

Like a sparrow chirping

The call rang out:

I would tell you a secret

I'm only afraid of my son.

Death does not frighten him,

He doesn't appreciate life.

I dare not sell the honor,

As the son looks in the eyes.

Tie it brassly, lord,

And throw it into the seething nurti1,

And I will reveal the secret

That he swore to protect the century.

And the guy was tied up tight

And the strong warrior rocked

Small, like a child's body,

And he sent it to buruni2.

The poor man's last cry

Swallowed up by the waves of evil.

And father stood on the cliff -

The last pict on earth.

Vladyka, I spoke the truth:

I expected trouble from my son,

Didn't believe in the guy's courage

Who didn't have a beard yet.

The torture won't scare me.

I'm not afraid of death

And a heather drink

Mystery will die with me!

There is a translation. Krizhevich

A comment

Robert Louis Stevenson was always worried about the fate of his homeland - little Scotland, whose people made up numerous songs and legends about their heroic past. One of these ancient legends became the basis of the ballad "Heather Honey", which tells about the legendary people - the Pictish.

The Pictish bravely fought against the invaders, sometimes they won, sometimes they lost great battles, lost vast territories, but again and again stood up to defend their native land. In the IX century. The Pictish were finally conquered by the Scots (Scots), they mixed with representatives of other nationalities, lost their own language and ceased to exist as a separate people.

1 The collective is the same as the whirlpool.

2 Buruny - bulk foamy waves.

Chronicles and legends depict the Pictish as extremely brave and courageous warriors. The conquerors, amazed at their courage, did not unravel the mystery of why short people have so much rebelliousness and courage.

Stevenson used the legendary notion of the Picts and built the plot of his ballad around another mystery of the Picts - the method of making heather honey known only to him. This technique is very typical for folklore works, when the hero must reveal a secret and release a magical force. In Stevenson's ballad, such a magical power are the character traits of the courageous picts, glorified by the poet.

Ukrainian translation of the ballad by the poet Yes. Krizhevich is somewhat different from the original. It has a name not "Heather honey", but "Heather drink". The word "drink", used by the translator to designate a magic drink, has a common root with another word - "poison". Such a phrase in the title should lead the reader to the idea that the secret of making the drink "poisoned" the victory of the Scottish king, brought it to naught, because the moral victory was on the side of the last Pict.

From heather honey

Pikty1 was brewed for a long time

The drink for honey is sweeter

Stronger wine.

Boiled and drank

That magic drink

And in those dark lands2

Fates rejoiced at their own.

And here is the Scottish owner -

His enemies were afraid! -

I went to the picts with arms.

To destroy them at the foot.

He drove them like a deer,

On the heather hills

Rushing down the bodies

Sowed both death and horror.

And summer has come again

Heather blushed again

And brew a honey drink

Nobody else could.

In the graves like children3,

On every red mountain

Lay under red

Sleep forever brovary4.

Rode the king of scots

On the heather land:

The bees danced stubbornly,

The cranes were curling.

And there was a gloomy official

Duma he thought of his own:

"The lord of the heather land -

Why don't I drink a drink from heather? "

Suddenly the royal vassal

Came across strange storage:

In the crevice between the stones

I found two brovars.

They dragged out the poor picts

Instantly into the white light -

Old father and son,

Boy of adolescent years 5.

The king looked at the captives,

Sitting in the saddle;

Silently looked at him

Those brewers are small.

The king ordered them to be delivered

On the cliff and said: - Old man,

You spoil your son and yourself,

Just reveal the secret of the drink.

Looked down and up

Father is old and son:

Around - red heather,

The Scottish king heard:

Only two words, master,

Let me tell you!

Old age values life.

To live I will do anything

And I will reveal the secret of the drink, -

So he told the king.

Like a sparrow chirping

The call rang out:

I would tell you a secret

I'm only afraid of my son.

Death does not frighten him,

He doesn't appreciate life.

I dare not sell the honor,

As the son looks in the eyes.

Tie him tightly, lord,

And throw in the seething nurti,

And I will reveal the secret

That he swore to protect the century.

And the guy was tied up tight

And the stout warrior rocked

Small as a child's body

And he sent them to the breakers.

The poor man's last cry

Swallowed up by the waves of evil.

And father stood on the cliff -

The last pict on earth.

Vladyka, I spoke the truth:

I expected trouble from my son.

Didn't believe in the guy's courage

Who didn't have a beard yet.

The torture won't scare me

I'm not afraid of death

And a heather drink

Mystery will die with me!

There is a translation. Krizhevich

1 Pikti - ancient tribes that inhabited the territory of Scotland. In the 9th century, they were conquered by the Scots (Celtic tribes of ancient Ireland and Scotland). Historically, the Picti were not exterminated, but mingled with the conquerors.

2 Ancient legends say that the Picti lived in burrows or caves.

3 The Picti were believed to be very small in stature.

4 Brewer - Brewer.

5 then there is a teenager.

History of the work

Stevenson's Ballad was born in 1875 in beautiful Scotland. Scotland is the land of the scots. From English scot is translated as "scots", land - land. In ancient times, the Scottish land was inhabited by Scots, Britons and Picts. How the latter appeared, no one knows. They are first mentioned in 257 as enemies of Rome. It is known that they united into an alliance, and then into a kingdom. The heyday of the state of the Picts fell on the VIII century. At the beginning of the next century, they were conquered by the Scots. There was no writing and language left of the Picts, but images have survived.

The poem "Heather Honey" is based on a medieval legend called "The Last of the Picts". It was told in the south of Scotland, in the county of Galloway, where, according to legend, the Pictish people ceased to exist. According to legends and chronicles, the Picts were brave warriors. The conquerors were amazed at their courage and wondered why there was so much rebelliousness and courage in the short Picts?

Legend of the Picts

Long ago there was a people called the Picts. They were tiny people with red hair and long arms. And their feet were so wide that when it rained, they could lie upside down and cover themselves with them like umbrellas. This people was a great builder, all the ancient fortresses in the country were built by their hands. They formed a chain from the quarry itself and passed stones to each other to the place where they were building.

This little people were also famous for ale, which they cooked from heather. It was an unusually affordable drink, since there was always a lot of heather in this country. Other tribes living in the country have coveted the recipe for this magical drink. But the Picts did not betray the secret, which was passed from father to son with a strict order: never to let anyone know it. In the country, wars were fought one after another, and soon only a handful of people remained of the once great people. Perhaps the Picts should have disappeared, but the secret of heather honey was still closely kept secret.

Finally, it came to the battle with the Scots, in which the Picts were completely defeated. Only two remained of the great people - a father and a son. They brought these people to the King of Scots. And here stood before him small and defenseless Picts, and the king demanded from them the secret of heather. And he bluntly said that he would torture them cruelly and mercilessly if they did not do it voluntarily. Therefore, it is better to give in and tell.

The last mead brew

The old father said: “I see that there is no point in resisting. But before I tell you a secret, you must fulfill one condition. " "Which?" - asked the king. "Will you do it?" - answered the old man with a question to a question. "Yes," said the king, "you can trust my word." The old Pictish man said: “I would never want to be responsible for the death of my son. But now I wish him death, and I am ready to tell the secret of heather honey only after his death. "

The king was very surprised by the old man's behavior and request. Although he was cruel, it was also hard for him to kill his son in front of his old father. But the king kept his promise. The lad was executed. As soon as the son fell down dead, the father said: “Do what you want with me. You could force your son to tell a secret, for youth is weak. But you can never force me! " The king was amazed that he, the king himself, could be outsmarted by a simple savage. The king decided not to kill the old man. The worst punishment for the Pict would be if he was kept alive. They took the old man as a prisoner. He lived for many years, to a ripe old age - he became blind and unable to walk.

... People would have long forgotten that such a person lived. But somehow fellows stopped in his house and began to boast of their strength. The old man said that he would test one of their wrists so that they could compare the strength of people who lived in the old days. Well done, for the fun of it, handed him an iron rod. The old man just broke it in two like a stick. "A fair amount of cartilage," said the old man, "but not at all what it is today."

This was the last of the Picts.

Heroes of the poem

This beautiful legend formed the basis of Stevenson's ballad "Heather Honey", the main theme of which was the death of the last Picts. The idea of the poem is the struggle against the enslavers for freedom and independence. This ballad was translated into Russian by Marshak in a difficult time for Russia - in 1942. Then the victory over fascism depended on each person, and Stevenson's ballad calls to love the Motherland, to be persistent.

Little Picts showed by their example that to die for the Fatherland is a feat. To give out the secret of heather ale is to betray your people, their traditions. Love to native land dearer than life. Main character, the last of the Picts, proved that it is better to die than to live in dishonor. He is the personification of a brave and courageous people. The son, like the father, is indestructible and freedom-loving. The King of Scots strives for absolute power, he is a cruel and ruthless person.

Ballad analysis

The work begins with a story about the Picts, chanting a heather drink. Then the plot of the plot - "the king of Scots came" and destroyed the people of the Picts. Further, the development of events - heather blooms in the country, but they do not make a drink from it, and after all, "it was sweeter than honey." But the secret of honey died along with the owners of this land - the little Picts. The surviving father and son were found "in the caves underground". They know the secret of heather honey, and the king interrogates them, trying to find out the secret. The culmination of the ballad - at the request of the old man, the son was thrown into the sea. And the denouement of the work - after the death of his son, the father throws down a challenge to his enemies.

The old man is ready to die, but not to betray his people, not to obey the conquerors. In this regard, the ballad goes far beyond the Scottish theme. In a small episode, the author affirms the independence of the people and proclaims the right of every people to freedom, to traditions, to their land. Several times in the work the phrase “the secret of the drink” sounds. But this is not just a recipe for heather honey. This is the secret of the resilience of small mead brewers, which lies in the desire to find freedom and in love for their native land.

The tragedy of the work is that there is no choice between life and death. The father, wise in life, understands that they will be killed anyway, and chooses death for his son. He steadfastly accepts her. The father also dies, but does not reveal the sacred secret. Conquerors can take away the life of an old man, but not love for his native land and not his will.

The work tells the story of a small people called the Pictish writer, making a sweet drink from the heather blossoming in their lands.

One day, by order of the Scottish king, the Pictish population is completely exterminated and only an elderly man who looks like a hunchback dwarf with a fifteen-year-old son remains alive.

The heather is blooming and the king wants to enjoy the famous Pictish drink. However, no one knows the recipe for the preparation of the dish, and the father and son carefully guard the secret of his honey brewing.

The king orders to learn the secret of making a drink from the remaining representatives of the mead brewers, threatening them with torture on a burning fire. The old man agrees to reveal the secret, but suggests that the tormentors throw their own son into the sea before doing so. The king agrees, but after the death of the young man, the proud elder declares to his enemies that the secret of the drink will die with him, and he sacrificed the child, because he was not sure of his son's courage.

The writer reveals in the ballad the eternal theme of love for the motherland, patriotism and self-sacrifice an ordinary person for the sake of the homeland.