Comparative characteristics of thick and thin. Chekhov "Thick and thin" - analysis of the story

Analysis of Chekhov's story "Thick and Thin".

Mine creative way Anton Pavlovich Chekhov began with a cheerful and caustic mockery, with humoresques, in which the strongest satirical charge was very soon revealed. In the short and funny stories of A.P. Chekhov, as in a mirror, many human vices and shortcomings are reflected. The author, as it were, invites us to stop and take a closer look, not only at others, but also at ourselves. The artistic talent of the writer was formed in the era of deaf timelessness of the 80s, when a painful change was made in the worldview of the Russian intelligentsia, it was during these years that official relations between people permeated all sectors of society, the "little man" turned into a petty man, lost his humane qualities. Chekhov splendidly illustrated these changes in his short story "Thick and Thin".

Chekhov's story "Thick and Thin" is written in the genre of a skit. The work is very small in volume, written very capaciously and concentrated. It is about a meeting at the railway station of two friends - former classmates: a fat one and a thin one. We do not know what they looked like, what they were wearing, whether they were beautiful or ugly - the author does not report this. But nevertheless, with the help of a few strokes, Chekhov manages to create a full-blooded image. Small, seemingly meaningless details miraculously create the appearance of the characters.

What functions are assigned by Chekhov to this artistic detail? Firstly, with its help, Chekhov manages to achieve the maximum conciseness of his works, which he aspired to throughout his entire work, rightly believing that "brevity is the sister of talent." In the story and the story, according to the writer himself, "there should be nothing superfluous, just like on the deck of a warship." And Chekhov omits all long descriptions, imputing them in one short but significant stroke.

So, for example, the thin author draws a man smelling of "ham and coffee grounds", while a thick one - a man smelling of "sherry and fleur-d" orange. These strokes already show that the second hero is more prosperous and wealthy than the first. Such small parts can be traced throughout the story, it is with the help of them that Chekhov "sculpts", composes, builds images of characters, shows us the place of each hero in life.

Secondly, the artistic detail gives the writer's narration a convexity, brightness and realistic authenticity. The fact is that the mature Chekhov never portrayed extraordinary characters and situations, like, for example, Dostoevsky. For Chekhov, this seemed too simple, primitive and far from real life where exceptional types and occurrences are extremely rare. True to the principles of critical realism, the writer depicted ordinary people and the events of everyday life, and tried to choose short, but the most characteristic episodes from the daily existence of the heroes, such that through which the picture of their life as a whole would be highlighted.

Chekhov portrayed his characters through the prism of particulars and details. The big peeps through the small, "through the nonsense." Summarizing, we can say that the late Chekhov portrayed not "the tragedy in life", but "the tragedy of life."

Thirdly, an artistic detail is necessary for the writer to convey his author's position, which is necessarily present in every work of art as a personal assessment by the author of his characters and their actions. Only such an assessment can be expressed explicitly or implicitly, if the author wants the readers to come to certain conclusions on the basis of what they have read.

Author's position in this story Chekhov is not accentuated. An illusion of "objectivity", the apparent "neutrality" of the author-narrator is created. Chekhov does not allow direct evaluative characteristics of the characters, but this does not mean that he completely avoids expressing his point of view. The writer realized the inefficiency of the old, "evaluative" method, which sinned with straightforwardness, imposing on the reader the author's opinions about the depicted. He came to paradoxical, at first glance, conclusions: "the more objective, the stronger the impression," "one must be indifferent when writing pathetic stories." The veiled nature of the author's point of view creates a special artistic effect: multivariate interpretation of the story seems not only acceptable, but also absolutely correct for a true understanding of the meaning of the work. The text of Chekhov's story gives the reader its own association series.

We now turn to the analysis of the structure of the work. Name Chekhov's story is unique, as it fully reflects the content of the story. It is built on opposition, these are antonyms. It is already clear from the title of the story that two characters will be compared in the text, and not just compared, but contrasted. This technique in a work of art is called antithesis. The essence of the characters, emphasized in the title, is humorously reduced to the trait of their appearance, motivated by the social conditions of life, and even more so by the cliches of the “low” comic genre: “fat” for readers of the 19th and first half of the 20th century, as a rule, is prosperous and rich, while “thin”, if not poor, then experiences undoubted material difficulties .

There is no preface in the work, which is quite natural for the genre of a fictional story, where the narrator is most often hidden and, as it were, alienated from the events described.

The work has exposition one . It plays a very important role here, because already in the description of the characters there is a huge difference in potentials, which sets the reader up to expect an inevitable conflict. One is fat, the other is thin, one is satisfied, the other is exhausted, one is light, without companions, the second is burdened with both belongings and family. Moreover, the fact that the thin man's wife and son are mentioned after "suitcases, bundles and cardboard boxes" enhances the sadly comic effect. It's not just a contrast, it's an antithesis. Antithesis is based on the juxtaposition of contrasting or opposite images, concepts, situations and other elements in a work of art. Here we can easily guess the antagonists (heroes opposing each other).

I would also like to note that the Nikolaevskaya railway connected Moscow and St. Petersburg, and most of its passengers belonged to the employee, "official" people. So already with the first tiny detail, the specific name of the railway track, the author sets the reader's expectation, paints the upcoming conflict in "official tones".

outstretched works (the beginning of the conflict) is the meeting of two friends. This blissful moment of returning to a childish, forgotten state, an instant throw back many years ago. Before us suddenly appear not two respectable men, but two little boys - Porfiry and Misha. Further, the plot, ending with the significant phrase "Both were pleasantly stunned," develops into the main action of the story.

Development of action( the growth of the conflict, the intensity of the means of confrontation used. ) begins after the first sincere joy of recognizing a friend. The thin one is convinced that the fat one, as he was, has remained the same "darling" and "dandy". Undoubtedly, Thin had always envied his friend. And at this first moment of the meeting, Porfiry realizes that even now, after many years, he has before him a man who is more successful in life than himself. The first instinctive intention is to find out if this is true or not (“Well, what are you? Rich? Married?”), he himself suppresses (what if it’s exactly like that ?!) and, not allowing the interlocutor to open his mouth, goes on the attack , showing off their acquisitions (wife-Lutheran, son-school student). Hidden and, most likely, unconscious to the end by the thin itself, aggression is also in further memories - that the thick teased Herostratus. Why does he immediately remember his nickname - Ephialtes ("for the fact that he loved to tell tales")? - Maybe by inertia, but rather, because we really have two old friends in front of us, who have nothing to hide from each other - ("they were children!"). And that rivalry was and is - it's okay, it happens between friends. Therefore, the reader believes in the sincerity of the joy of the heroes.

Further, the pressure of Thin increases. In response to a question about his achievements, he lists: he serves as a collegiate assessor (in the table of ranks, this is the rank upon which personal nobility was given - this is the reason for Porfiry's triumphant tone!), He has an order (Stanislav of the third degree, that is, the lowest award for long service ), his wife moonlights as music lessons, and in order to feed himself, he makes cigarette cases at home for sale almost in bulk - ("we get along somehow"). If you look closely, then there is a reverse gradation (degradation) - from high objects to objects low (from assessor - to cigarette cases). But, apparently, the intonation with which all this is said, magnificent (which is especially comical), is on the rise, tending to a climax.

And finally climax (the highest point of the struggle, the pinnacle of the conflict, when its outcome becomes clear) - Thin (having the rank of collegiate assessor after many years of service) finds out that his childhood friend not only surpassed him ("I suppose, is he already a civilian?"), but surpassed him very, very strongly and ended up in the rank of Privy Councillor. Therefore, the reaction of the subtle, brought up in the traditions of Russian chivalry, is completely natural. As they say, every normal person in a normal hierarchical society would have done the same in his place.

denouement ( the new state of the environment and characters after the resolution of the conflict), which comes after the "tipping point" dramatically changes the course of the conversation. The touching picture of the meeting of two friends, childhood friends, is immediately crossed out. Not two people in front of us - a fat one and a thin one, but two ranks - a big one and a small one, a privy councilor and a collegiate assessor. One is on the top rung of the corporate ladder, the other is somewhere down there. These are people between whom an insurmountable abyss has opened up. The fat one tries to build bridges, but the thin one can no longer keep his distance. His further actions are dictated by the instinct of self-preservation: friendship with superiors does not lead to good. A friend cannot be a boss, and a boss cannot be a friend. From here, there is a direct path to the most important author's idea about the disfiguring, crippling power of the social hierarchy, distorting the human essence, about the need for internal resistance to this power, about the constant education and maintenance of self-esteem. The last phrase, "All three were pleasantly stunned," echoes a similar phrase of the opening, which makes the reader rethink the expression "pleasantly stunned" and feel its second, ironic, meaning.

So the conversation about the composition, having begun, it would seem, with formal things, takes us to a deeper content level of the work.

This work by Chekhov tells about the meeting of two old childhood friends, who, from unexpected happiness, not only "kissed each other and fixed their eyes on each other," but also "were pleasantly stunned." The sincere joy of old friends does not last long, recalling with delight the pranks and pranks of their childhood. The pleasant conversation of two former fellow practitioners is interrupted at the moment when they recognize each other as officials of incompatible status. Striking is the change that has taken place in the subtle when he hears that his friend has "already reached the secret level" and has "two stars." The power of the impression made by this information on the subtle is conveyed by a number of dynamic verbs (“turned pale, petrified”, the face twisted into a smile, “sparks fell from the eyes”; at the same time, three verbs have the same prefix “s”: “shrank, hunched over, narrowed,”) Not only the hero was shocked, but his luggage also shrank (“suitcases, bundles and cartons shrank, grimaced ...”), which again precedes the family, the wife’s chin became even longer, the high school student son “stretched into a pound”.

But the funniest and saddest thing is how the speech of the subtle is transformed: “you” changes to “you”, “my dear” - “to your excellency”, elements of “high calm” appear - “gracious attention”, “life-giving moisture”. The change in syntax is no less striking: practically not a single sentence ends - and one can hear how breath breaks from reverence. This discontinuity and spontaneity of speech plays a very important role, as it speaks of the sincerity and self-forgetfulness of the hero. In Chekhov's story, a funny (and terrible) impression is made by the names of this "naturalness" of the behavior of the subtle.

In vain does the fat man want to stop this pathetic fawning of a former friend: "You and I are childhood friends - and why is this servility!" But how to convince a man whose face "was written so much reverence, sweetness and respectful acid" that the Privy Councilor "vomited."
They have names, the author even calls them, but the names are not important here at all. The characteristics of "thick" and "thin" reveal the inner essence of these heroes much more fully: a contented life, a successful secret adviser and a fussy, barely drivingmake ends meet, collegiate assessor. The joyful meeting of former friends cannot be repeated.

Work description

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov began his creative career with a cheerful and caustic mockery, with humoresques, in which the strongest satirical charge was very soon revealed. In the short and funny stories of A.P. Chekhov, as in a mirror, many human vices and shortcomings are reflected. The author, as it were, invites us to stop and take a closer look, not only at others, but also at ourselves. The artistic talent of the writer was formed in the era of deaf timelessness of the 80s, when a painful change was made in the worldview of the Russian intelligentsia, it was during these years that official relations between people permeated all sectors of society, the "little man" turned into a petty man, lost his humane qualities. Chekhov splendidly illustrated these changes in his short story "Thick and Thin".

The story "Thick and Thin" (1883) refers to the early period of A.P. Chekhov's work. The story is very small in volume, as it is written unusually succinctly and concentrated. A recognized master, Chekhov knew how to "talk briefly about long things." At the same time, the author's position in the story is deliberately not accentuated - the reader himself can draw conclusions based on what he has read.

The genre of the work is a story written in best traditions critical realism. The story clearly shows the features of Chekhov's individual writing style: fast development plot, conciseness, attention to expressive details, accuracy of language.

Problems of the story

In the story, Chekhov shows the dependence of people on their social status and the stereotypes of thinking associated with it.

The author, with his inherent subtle humor, ridicules people who crawl before the position. The main object of ridicule is a small official who grovels when no one forces him to do so. Chekhov truthfully and mercilessly paints a picture of the world of the “thin”, the world of slave psychology. The tragedy lies in the loss of their "I" by such people, the loss of a sense of personality.

Features of the plot composition of the story

The work is distinguished by its extremely brief exposition expressed in one sentence. Even two conclusions can be drawn from it. Firstly, the writer uses the antithesis, saying that one friend is fat, the other is thin, already opposing them to each other. Secondly. The Nikolaev railway connected Moscow and St. Petersburg; its main passengers were officials. It can be assumed that in the story will be discussed exactly about them. outstretched serves as an unexpected meeting of two childhood friends - Michael and Porfiry.

Development of action includes the first sincere joy of recognition, and general memories of childhood, and questions about life. Climax The work is the moment when the “thin” learns that the “fat” has the rank of Privy Councilor. In the acute social denouement the behavior of the “thin” and his family changes dramatically. The “thin” begins to fawn over the “thick”: the appeal to “you” is replaced by “your excellency”, a high style (“gracious attention”) appears in Porfiry’s speech. The writer's special technique - unfinished sentences - as if allows you to hear how the breath of the "subtle" is interrupted from reverence. "Tolstoy" is annoyed by the situation, and he is in a hurry to part with the "thin" family.

Character system

A distinctive feature of the story is the sharpness of the psychological characteristics of the characters. The relationship between the main characters - "thick" and "thin" - is based on the opposition of the two heroes.

There is no description of the appearance of the characters in the narrative, however, with the help of expressive strokes, Chekhov created vivid images, showing the place of each character in life. The author emphasizes the social difference of childhood friends with the help of smells: from the “fat” who dined at the station restaurant, it smelled of “sherry and fleur-d'orange”, from the “thin” - “ham and coffee grounds”.

In the second part of the story, the internal conflict intensifies. The writer reveals it through contrasting the facial expressions of the characters - the "fat" one "grimaced", while the "thin one turned pale, petrified", "shrank, hunched over, narrowed". The “fat” one retains the former appeal to Porfiry to “you”, and the “thin” one has “you” - “What are you with ...”.

The introduction of the minor characters of the wife and the "thin" son helps the author to fully reveal the features of Porfiry's character.

Analysis of stylistic features

The story was written in art style using elements conversational style.

Revealing the character of the characters with the help of a contrasting image, Chekhov widely uses a variety of stylistic devices: antonyms, comparisons, metaphors, alliteration, syntactic antithesis, repeated repetition of the union "a".

Throughout the story, the speech of the characters changes: at the beginning of the story, the author puts colloquial vocabulary (“darling”, “fathers”) into the mouths of the characters, which is replaced in the second part with an official business address.

As a doctor, as a writer, as a person, Chekhov reveals in his work the spiritual diseases of society, calling for "drop by drop to squeeze a slave out of oneself."

• Analysis of the story by A.P. Chekhov "Ionych"

The story "Thick and Thin", written in 1883, belongs to the group of early humorous works by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov. Despite this, it touches upon a serious and topical issue even now. In this article, we provide brief analysis the story "Thick and Thin", thanks to which we get to know the main characters better and understand what goals Chekhov pursued when writing it.

The main characters of the story "Thick and thin" - analysis of images

The situation described in the work is extremely simple. At the railway station, two classmates accidentally met: fat Mikhail and thin Porfiry. Initially, an unexpected meeting brings joy to both, they exchange warm greetings, ask each other about life, family, career. Both fondly recall their childhood years in the gymnasium, playful nicknames and pranks. Thin tells that he has the rank of collegiate assessor. Fat good-naturedly announces that he is already a secret adviser. This is where the culmination suddenly comes, and the analysis of the story “Thick and Thin” allows us to understand its essence.

Chekhov, as a subtle master, in a few sentences ironically describes the metamorphosis that occurred with Tonkiy, his wife, and even his son Nathanael. Not only did Thin "turn pale, petrified," "shrink, hunch over," he seemed to become smaller in comparison with such an important person as his former friend. And then his face "contorted" with "the widest smile." It is significant that the face was precisely “twisted” with a smile, and not “sparkled”, “played”, etc. The word shows us the insincerity, the stiffness and forcedness of this smile. The wife's chin stretched out even more, and the son buttoned his uniform with all the buttons. Interestingly, even Tony's boxes and suitcases "shrank" and "grimaced."

Let's continue the analysis of the story "Thick and Thin". From that moment on, the behavior of Tony and his family changes completely. Characteristic “-s” appear in his speech after the words: “what are you-s”, “hee-hee-hee-s”. They show their humiliation before Tolstoy. Porfiry turns to his former classmate "Your Excellency." There can be no question of any friendly communication.

Fat is shown as a fat, good-natured person. He is sincerely glad to see a friend from the gymnasium. In his speech, as in Tony's remarks, at first there are appeals: "darling", "dear". The phrases of both consist of interrogative-exclamatory sentences, demonstrating cheerful excitement. It is characteristic that after the news of the high rank of Tolstoy, only Thin changes his attitude towards his friend. Tolstoy himself continues the conversation in the same vein. Even seeing how a friend is trying to fawn, Mikhail wants to return the old tone of the conversation, says that there is no need for servility. He even "grimaced" at the Subtle's behavior. Keep this thought in mind, especially if you are analyzing the story "Fat and Thin."

But the author notes that the reverence, which was clearly visible on the face of a lower-ranking official, "sweetness" and "respectful acid" were so obvious that Tolstoy had no choice but to say goodbye. It is noteworthy that for the first time a person with a higher position does not seek to emphasize his superiority. He is respectful and welcoming. And a lower rank person humiliates himself. This sounds like a new disclosure of the theme of the “little man” in literature.

The theme of the "little man" in Chekhov's story "Thick and Thin"

The image of the "little man" has been characteristic of Russian literature since the time of Alexander Pushkin. In the story " Stationmaster we see the author's sympathy for the disenfranchised official of the lower class. Nikolai Gogol in the work "The Overcoat" emphasizes compassion for the plight of a petty official doomed to eternal life.

Chekhov himself late XIX century showed a different perspective of the problem. Often the person himself puts himself in a humiliating position. Slave habits are very difficult for a person to overcome. The writer demonstrates the emergence of this social and psychological illness.

We hope that the analysis of the story "Thick and thin", which was written by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, was useful to you. You can find more material on our literary blog, where we post articles on a variety of topics. Also read

At the Nikolaevskaya railway station railway two friends met: one fat, the other thin. The fat one had just dined at the station, and his lips, covered with oil, were shiny like ripe cherries. He smelled of sherry and fleur-d "orange. Slim had just left the car and was loaded with suitcases, bundles and cartons. He smelled of ham and coffee grounds. A thin woman with a long chin peeked out from behind him - his wife, and a tall, narrow-eyed schoolboy is his son.

Porfiry! - exclaimed the fat one, seeing the thin one. - Is that you? My dove! How many winters, how many years!
- Fathers! - the thin one was amazed. - Misha! Childhood friend! Where did you come from?
The friends kissed each other three times and fixed their eyes full of tears on each other. Both were pleasantly surprised.
- My dear! - began thin after kissing. - That's not expected! Here's a surprise! Well, take a good look at me! Just as handsome as ever! The same soul and dandy! Oh you, Lord! Well, what are you? Rich? Married? I'm already married, as you can see... This is my wife, Louise, nee Wanzenbach... a Lutheran... And this is my son, Nathanael, a student of the third grade. This, Nafanya, is my childhood friend! We studied together in high school!
Nathanael thought for a moment and took off his hat.
We studied together in high school! - continued the thin one. - Do you remember how you were teased? You were teased by Herostratus because you burned a government book with a cigarette, and I was Ephialtes because I loved to slander. Ho-ho... They were children! Don't be afraid, Nafanya! Come closer to him... And this is my wife, nee Wanzenbach... a Lutheran.
Nathanael thought a little and hid behind his father.
- Well, how are you, friend? the fat man asked, looking enthusiastically at his friend. “Where do you serve?” Reached the ranks?
- I serve, my dear! I have been a collegiate assessor for the second year and I have Stanislav. The salary is bad ... well, God bless him! My wife gives music lessons, I privately make cigarette cases from wood. Excellent cigarette cases! I sell for a ruble. If someone takes ten pieces or more, that, you understand, is a concession. Let's get some fun. I served, you know, in the department, and now I have been transferred here as a clerk in the same department ... I will serve here. Well, how are you? Probably already a civilian? BUT?
- No, my dear, raise it higher, - said the fat one. - I have already risen to the secret ... I have two stars.
The thin one suddenly turned pale, petrified, but soon his face twisted in all directions with the broadest smile; it seemed as if sparks were falling from his face and eyes. He himself shrunk, hunched over, narrowed... His suitcases, bundles and cartons shrunk, grimaced... His wife's long chin became even longer; Nathanael stretched out in front and buttoned all the buttons of his uniform ...
- I, Your Excellency ... Very pleased, sir! A friend, one might say, of childhood, and suddenly turned out to be such grandees, sir! Hee hee s.
- Well, it's full! the fat man grimaced. “What is that tone for? You and I are childhood friends - and what is this veneration for!
- Excuse me ... What are you ... - the thin one chuckled, shrinking even more. - Your Excellency's gracious attention ... it seems to be life-giving moisture ... This is, Your Excellency, my son Nathanael ... wife Louise , Lutheran, in a way ...
The fat one wanted to object something, but the thin one's face was written with such reverence, sweetness and respectful acidity that the Privy Councilor vomited. He turned away from the thin one and gave him his hand in parting.
The thin one shook three fingers, bowed with his whole body and giggled like a Chinese: "hee-hee-hee." The wife smiled. Nathanael shuffled his foot and dropped his cap. All three were pleasantly surprised.

LANGUAGE ANALYSIS OF A.P. CHEKHOV'S STORY "THAT AND THIN"

IN 6 CLASS

Teacher of Russian language and literature MBOU lyceum №8

Smotrova Natalia Georgievna

A.P. Chekhov believed that short story It is designed to increase the activity of the reader, to help the reader add what the author did not say. This is the task I put before the student in the lesson.

One of the program works of A.P. Chekhov, which is studied in the 6th grade, is the story "Thick and Thin". In order for the sixth graders to understand its meaning, I conduct a research lesson. Each teacher, as a rule, thinks over the construction of a lesson individually, so I will focus on those language features that students themselves can see, i.e. to find that "leaven on which images and ideas rise."

How does the writer create funny images, what language techniques help him in this? E.A. Zemskaya rightly noted that “the essence of the comic effect created by the means of language lies in the deliberate violation of the accepted mode of expression, in creating a contradiction between the generally accepted system of expression and the given one (“speech technique”)”. This contradiction can manifest itself in different ways, creating a variety of comic speech techniques. One of such techniques may be the metaphorization of words and expressions.

We begin the analysis of the text with the name, which is based on lexical antonyms. I ask you to choose nouns for them: thick - thin (stick, thread, hair, etc.). But in the story we are talking about people, and usually in such cases they say: fat - thin. What is the meaning of the word "thin" in the context? Synonyms are given for this adjective to make sure that it is ambiguous (the guys themselves name the possible meanings) and carries a certain characteristic, assessment. Therefore, "thick" and "thin" are perceived as contextual antonyms. Further, it turns out that we ask the question “who” to the definitions “thick” and “thin”, therefore, they already act as nouns (here it is appropriate to say about the expressive possibilities of word formation when words move from one part of speech to another). I draw the children's attention to the fact that the author's text is very small, but how much can be learned from it.

The opposition indicated in the title intensifies in the first five sentences, and it becomes clear to us that financial situation, the well-being of our heroes is also contrasting. We prove this with an epithet, metaphors and comparison: the fat one has "lips .., covered with oil, shining like ripe cherries»; thin "was loaded suitcases, bundles and cartons. Strengthens the impression and the description of the wife of the thin one, in which we find contextual synonyms for the word “thin” - “ skinny», « long».

Since the story is almost completely dialogical, we analyze the speech of thick and thin, but at the same time we do not forget about the author's text, which helps us better understand the meaning of what is happening.

Of course, children immediately notice the abundance of exclamatory, interrogative sentences; they are predominantly single-component, uncommon; they have a lot of interjections (" fathers”, “Oh, my God”, “ho-ho”, “well, God bless him”), amplifying particles ( here, same) and, of course, appeals, funny and touching at the same time (“dear”, “childhood friend”, “my dear”, “darling”). All this character traits colloquial style of speech. Friends call each other by name, turn to "you", use purely colloquial vocabulary (“well”, “probably”, “good”, “cigarette”, « excellent cigarette cases"), phraseological unit (“How many winters, how many years!”) We understand that due to this there is a feeling of sincere joy from the unexpected meeting of two former classmates. Therefore, the author's phrase "both wereNice stunned" understood by us in the literal sense. It is necessary to pay attention to repeats in the speech of the subtle. Why does he mention twice that his wife, "née Wanzebach, is a Lutheran"? Probably, this is a kind of subject of his pride, affirms success in life. But after the Tolstoy's announcement of his rank, everything changes dramatically, and we again see the contrast, the opposition. The words of the author are exceptionally expressive here. In one paragraph, you can see metaphors (“face twisted”, thin “petrified”, “narrowed”)), and personifications (suitcases, knots, cartons "shrinked, grimaced"), and lexical repetition (“he himself shrunk”, suitcases, bundles, cartons “shrunk”), and hyperbole ("The long chin of the wife has become even longer"), and gradation (“shriveled, hunched, narrowed”), and the transformation of phraseology ("sparks rained down from his face and eyes". Compare: "sparks fell from the eyes"). Each word here helps to create a vivid, memorable image, to understand the whole gamut of subtle feelings. And how his speech changes! Starting with a respectful address "Your Excellency"(3 times), verbs used in plural ("come out", "have mercy"), a pejorative particle (“pleasant-sir”, “nobles-sir”, “you-sir”), which is even present in the pitiful likeness of subtle laughter ("hee-hee-s"), before a large number introductory words, indicating not only the confusion of the subtle, but also the loss of the ability to think in general (it is enough to read the phrase “wife Louise, a Lutheran, in some way"") and build a sentence with a complete meaning ("gracious attention of your excellency ... like life-giving moisture…”). In addition, after each "broken" phrase, an ellipsis. It is easy to imagine how the subtle one takes his breath away, he painfully searches for words appropriate to the changed situation, so as not to inadvertently violate subordination: after all, in front of him is a PRIVATE COUNSELOR, who has two stars.

The guys notice at first glance a strange discrepancy: “so much was written on the face of the thin one ... sweets and respectful acid...". This is nothing but an oxymoron. It helps us to understand why the fat one “vomited” at the sight of such an expression on the face of the thin one (this is also a metaphor). At the end of the story, the already familiar and slightly modified phrase “ All three(here already thin, his wife and son) were pleasantly surprised". The word "pleasant" gives an ironic satirical sound not only to this sentence, but also to the very meeting of two former friends.

In this way, detailed analysis language tools used by A.P. Chekhov in the story "Thick and Thin" allowed students to understand the author's intention, characterize the characters, identify the originality of Chekhov's satire and ways to create a comic effect.