(248 words) Tolstoy’s short story “After the Ball” describes events that fit in one day. In the evening, the hero watched his beloved and her father circle in dance, at night he remembered and dreamed about her, and in the morning he saw the colonel commanding the beating of the Tatar. This morning was a turning point in his fate.
Ivan Vasilievich languished all night from excessive feelings, could not sleep, so he went out for a walk. He was overwhelmed with love for Vara, and he was happy to meet the dawn with thoughts about her. But his attention was attracted by the drum roll, and he was in the square. There, a runaway Tatar, as punishment, passed through the ranks of soldiers who beat him with gauntlets. Torture was commanded by that same brave military man who had recently shone at a ball with a beautiful daughter. Instead of good nature and courtesy, hatred and anger were on his face. The colonel even whipped the young subordinate with gloves on the cheeks because he weakly beat the victim. Ivan Vasilievich could not stand this terrible sight. The Tatar's back looked like a bloody mess.
The hero left the square where the reprisal took place. Since then, his affection for Vara has weakened and finally disappeared. That is, that incident with the Tatar changed his life, directed it in a different direction. Instead of marrying the daughter of a cruel colonel, Ivan Vasilyevich chose a different path, because he could not intermarry with someone who was so duplicitous and vile. This story actually happened: Tolstoy’s brother experienced exactly the same emotions and told the writer about them. Thus, the morning that changed life is not a fiction, but a symbol taken from reality, which means a turning point in the fate of man.
Golden Key
