“Society has power to reform a man.” Bring out the
significance of the statement in changing the life of
Lushkoff with reference to the story “The beggar”
Answers
One day advocate Sergei came across a beggar. He was dressed in very poor clothes. He was crying and requested Sergei to have pity on him. Ile told Sergei that he had the offer of a position in Kaluga, but he did not have money to get there. So he wanted some money to pay for the fare. Sergei looked at the beggar closely. Suddenly he remembered that he had seen him the previous day in Sadovya Street. Then he had told him that he was a student and had been expelled for not paying his fees. At first, the beggar denied the charge. But when Sergei rebuked him, he admitted that he earned his living by lying. He told Sergei that his name was Lushkoff and that he was out of work. Sergei refused to give him alms. But he said that he would give him work of chopping wood. He brought Lushkoff home. He called his maidservant Olga and told her to take him into the woodshed and get some wood chopped. Sergei could see from a room that Lushkoff was weak as well as unwilling to do the chopping work. However, after one hour, Olga came and told Sergei that the wood had been chopped. Sergei gave Lushkoff half a rouble.
After getting wood chopped, Sergei was happy that he had helped a man. He had reformed a beggar. He told Lushkoff that he could come on the first of every month and chop wood for money. Thus Lushkoff came on the first of every month. Although he was so weak that he could hardly stand on his legs, yet there was always work for him and he did it. Sometimes, it was chopping of wood. At other times, he had to shovel snow, or to put the woodshed in order. Sometimes, he was asked to beat the dust out of mattresses and rugs. Every time he received from twenty to forty copecks. One day Sergei moved to another house. He hired Lushkoff to help in packing and hauling of furniture. This time, he was silent and sober. After the work was done, Sergei offered to find better work for him. Ile wrote a letter to one of his friends. He gave this letter to Lushkoff and told him that he would find the job of copying the written matter. In this way, Sergei helped Lushkoff. He was pleased at having put a man on the right path.
After that Sergei did not come across Lushkoff for two years. Then one day, he came across Lushkoff standing at the ticket window of a theatre, paying for a scat. He was wearing a coat collar of curly fur and sealskin cap. Sergei recognised him. Lushkoff told him that now he was a notary and was paid thiry five roubles a month Sergei was pleased to hear this. He congratulated Lushkoff for standing on own feet in life. At this, Lushkoff disclosed something to him. He said that it was not because of him, but his maidservant because at he had reformed himself. When he used to come to his house to chop wood, he could not do so because he was weak and inexperienced Then Olga would take pity on him and chop the wood for him. He told Sergei that he never chopped a single stick. It was all done by Olga. Her kindness transformed him. He stopped drinking and started earning his living by work. In this way, Olga’s kindness had changed his life.
Hope it Helped
^_^
Answer:
In the story 'The Beggar', Lushkoff is first seen as an alcoholic who resorted to telling lies and begging in order to survive. But with mercy of people around him he started working. But the incident which brought change in him was the good nature of Olga, the cook. Because of her, he changed from being Lushkoff, the beggar to Lushkoff, the advocate. This story shows how the society helped him change.