God Sees the Truth but Waits CLASS-11 NOTES

Summary
A merchant named Ivan Dmitrich Aksionov lived in the city of Vladimir with two shops and a house of his own. He drank alcohol, but after marriage, he did sometimes. As he was preparing to go to the Nizhny Fair one summer, his wife asked him not to leave the family saying she had a nightmare in which he left for the fair and came back with his hair. Grey. He ignored his wife's dream and left for the fair.

 

 Aksionov meets another merchant on the way to the fair. They spend the evening at the inn. Aksionov woke up early to arrive at the fair without the other merchant. When he traveled about twenty kilometers, he stopped to feed the horses and rest. He was approached by police. They explained to him that the merchant had been murdered and robbed and searched Aksionov's luggage. They found a knife stained with blood. Despite Aksionov's claim that he was not the killer, he was sent to jail.

 

 Aksionov's wife with children came to visit him in prison. She lost consciousness when she saw her husband in prison clothes and shackles (chains on his hands and chains on his feet). After recovering to her senses, she informed Aksionov that an appeal to the Tsar had been rejected. Aksionov was shocked when asked if he actually committed the murder he was arrested for. His wife's suspicion of his guilt led him to conclude that he could only count on God to know the truth. He was whipped (beaten) and sent to a Siberian labor camp. He remained there 26 years, lost his youth, and became deeply religious.

 

 A new group of inmates has arrived at the Siberian prison. One of them, Makar Semyonich, had been imprisoned for stealing a horse from a sled. After listening to the conversations, Aksionov was certain that Semyonich was the man responsible for the crime. of which he was accused. One night he found out that Semyonich was digging an escape hole. The next day, authorities discovered the hole. The governor came and asked the prisoners who were trying to escape. Aksionov didn't want to see Makar get whipped. He told the governor he didn't know anything about who dug the hole.

 

 The next night Aksionov found Semyonich sitting at the foot of his bed. Semyonich, overwhelmed by Aksyonov's kindness in protecting him from the governor, confessed to having accused him of murder 26 years earlier and begged his forgiveness. Semyonich offered to admit his guilt to the authorities and thus forgive Aksionov. He died shortly before the authorities ordered his release.

 

 

Understanding the text 

Answer these questions.

a.      What bad habits did Aksionov have before his marriage?
➜ Aksionov was a very beautiful and cheerful person who sought his happiness. Before marriage, she had bad drinking and fighting habits. He drank a lot and argued

b.      What can be the meaning of his wife's dream?
➜ The meaning of his wife's dream can be ominous. In her dream, she had seen her husband come back to his town with gray hair. She was very afraid of her husband. He guessed that the dream was a sign of evil.

c.      Why did Aksionov think of killing himself?
➜ Aksionov thought of killing himself because he remembered all those harsh situations which he had faced in his life without committing any crime. He remembered his torture, the people around him while he was in chains, the convicts, twenty-six years of imprisonment, his premature old age, etc. All these painful thoughts made him so wretched that he was ready to kill himself.

d.      Why did Makar disclose that he had killed the merchant?
➜ Makar disclosed that he had killed the merchant because he felt ashamed of himself. He felt pity over Aksionov. Aksionov saved Makar from the governor though he was a victim of Makar's crime. The act of Aksionov made Makar feel ashamed and disclose his crime. 

e.      Why doesn't Aksionov wish to return to his family at the end of the story?
➜ Aksionov doesn't wish to return to his family at the end of the story because he has become quite Old. He has spent his entire life in prison without committing any crime. He is feeble too at this age. He desires to die in the prison instead of going to his family.

 

 Reference to the context 

a.     "Well, old man," repeated the Governor, "tell me the truth: who has been digging under the wall?"

i.                 Who is that old man?
➜ That old man is Aksionov who has spent his twenty-six years in prison. 

ii.               Which truth is the speaker asking about?
➜ The speaker is asking about the truth of digging an escape hole.

iii.              Which wall does the speaker mean?
➜ The speaker means the prison's wall.

b.      Describe Aksionov's character.
➜ Aksionov is the protagonist of the story. He is a successful young merchant whose comfortable life is disrupted when he is framed for murder and sent to the Siberian prison camp. His wife’s suspicion of his guilt makes him conclude that he can rely on God alone to know the truth. He earns a reputation as a good person among the prison officials and fellow prisoners. After finding himself imprisoned with the man who framed him, Aksionov is ready to kill himself. However, at the end of the story, he is able to forgive Semyonich. He dies shortly before the authorities order him to be released.

c.      What is the theme of the story?
➜ The story has the theme of injustice, acceptance, faith, and forgiveness. The case against Aksionov is not convincing. The government authorities without establishing motive or recovering a bloody knife and twenty thousand rubles stolen from the merchant declare him guilty. When his wife's appeal to the Czar is rejected, Aksionov accepts that the injustice to which he is subjected is impossible to correct. He devotes himself to God to offer him the justice that man can’t give him. In prison, Aksionov converts himself into a humble and religious figure. Officials and prisoners respect him for his impartiality in resolving arguments. Aksionov's faith in God is so strong that he believes he must be sinful to deserve the torturous life God has given him. After Aksionov is unwilling to inform on Semyonich's tunnel-digging, Semyonich is shaken by Aksionov's mercy. Aksionov finally grants Semyonich forgiveness.

d.      Which symbols are used in the story and what do they indicate?
➜ The story offers several symbols for its artistic expression that supersedes flat writing. Aksionov’s house and two shops represent his family and material possessions. The prison itself is a symbol of Aksionov’s suffering and final spiritual transformation. His gray hair emerges as a clear symbol of his suffering, highlighting not only his aging but also his physical decay resulting from punishment. His grey hair suggests how the stress of his wrongful imprisonment prematurely ages him. The blood-stained knife unpredictably found in Aksionov's bag works as the crucial piece of evidence required to convict him. This knife symbolizes Aksionov's lack of control over his fate. The book ‘The Lives of the Saints’ Aksionov buys represents his religious devotion.

 

 

 Reference beyond the text 

a.      What role does religion play in Aksionov's life? How does he undergo a spiritual transformation in the story?
➜ Christianity plays an important role in Aksionov’s life. He spends his entire life in a Siberian prison expecting the right judgment of God. His wife’s suspicion of his guilt makes him conclude that he can rely on God alone to know the truth and to offer mercy. Imprisoned for 26 years, he loses his youthful cheerfulness and becomes deeply religious. He devotes his life to God. In prison, Aksionov learns to make boots and earns a little money, with which he buys the book ‘The Lives of the Saints’ and reads it. On Sundays in the prison church, he reads the lessons and sings in the choir. The prison authorities even like him for his humbleness. His fellow prisoners respect him calling him ‘Grandfather’ and ‘The Saint’. By the time the real killer of the merchant arrives in prison, Askionov is able to forgive him. At the end of the story, he has no desire to return home but to be with God.

Aksionov’s spiritual transformation is remarkable in the story. Before the imprisonment, he is carefree and enjoys materialistic life. Despite Aksionov’s rejection of the legitimacy of the state that has jailed him, he realizes that the reason he is suffering in Siberia is to pay for his sins. Aksionov considers his miseries as a test of faith that gives him a chance to achieve salvation by reforming his character and devoting his life to God.

b.      What does the story tell us about the existence of an unfair system of justice?
➜ The story tells us about the existence of an unjust justice system through the incident in the life of the main protagonist. Here in this story, a good and innocent man is wrongfully jailed for murder, punished by 26 years, and forced to lose everything and his whole life without guilt or crime, but only on the basis of evidence. He suffers a lot throughout his life but gains self-realization and ends up dying peacefully.