Ecoberry

Antek

"Antek is a short story written by Bolesław Prus in 1880. It says about the harsh and difficult life on a farm in 19th century and not an easy one – children’s fate. The most important problems showed in the book were the backwardness of peasants, common problem of using children to do the hard work and not giving them possibility to study or develop themselves."

Plot:

The main character is a teenager – Antek. Together with his parents and sister Rozalka they live in the village on the grounds of the Russian annexation. The financial state of the family is disastrous. Antek had to work and help his mother since he was five. At first he was swineherd but couldn’t concentrate on the animals which made lots of damages because of that.

Antek’s favorite activity is making toys out of wood, but it’s something his mother disapproves of. His first work was a windmill probably because of his fascination with the windmill standing across the river. Because of constant chiseling and constructing he often wasn’t able to carry out his duties. To the mother it was obvious that this “freak” could only grow up into being a useless man at which the whole village would be laughing, and when the boy mentioned that in the future he wants to be a windmill constructor the whole family considered him to be insane.

Soon after that one more child came to the house – Wojtek and Antek’s father died while cutting of the forest. At the same time Rozalka got ill, mother was trying to cure her with her own methods but since nothing was helping she asked the witch-doctor for advice. However, she also wasn’t able to help the kid and decided that her only hope was to perspire a lot and suggested putting her into the hot stove. The eight-year-old girl chocked there and died. Antek was sent to school although village people widely disapproved of that. But the boy wasn’t able to learn anything at school because mostly the kids were sent to professor’s maid in order to help her. Unfortunately, soon there was not enough money fad Antek to attend the school so he started learning the profession of blacksmith in the village nearby. The smart boy learns everything really fast and after only year and a half he can shoe a horse all by himself. That, however, bothers the blacksmith because the boy was supposed to be learning the profession for the next six years and only then be able to leave. From that moment on Antek is helping on the farm and not allowed going inside the forge. Because of that Antek decides to leave the job, after all he can do the same things at home.

He again has time to chisel in the wood. He’s even selling his sculptures to the tavern-keeper who resells them making much more money. Since Antek became a handsome young man, village-mayor’s daughter shows her interest in him. Antek likes her too and therefore decides to carve her a beautiful cross.

Antek’s mother wants him to leave so that her life would become much easier. The friend of the family says the actual words, he orders him to leave. The boy decides to give the cross as a present but he isn’t brave enough; decides to leave it in the church and sets off.

Significance of the work:

Bolesław Prus wanted to point out in the short-story the 19th century problem of the countryside; the fact that there was no wisdom or common sense among the peasants and therefore need to bring the knowledge to them. The pupils were treated incredibly wrong and they were being used. "Countryside is depicted here as a place where a child with talent and potential can't achieve anything because instead of help he gets only criticism." Living in the small, narrow-minded backwoods he had no chances of making his dreams come true, there was no one who understood him, or helped him make the right choices.

Sources

“Antek” by Bolesław Prus

www.np.ostatnidzwonek.pl/