Alexander Pushkin’s “The Tale of the Preacher and His Man Bumpkin” teaches the reader some important life lessons. In the poem, the preacher is self-righteous man who is looking for cheap labor. He wants to find someone to do all the housework, but wants to pay him little money.
After the preacher strikes a deal to have bumpkin work for him, he realizes how capable and hard working bumpkin is. The preacher is afraid bumpkin will flick him, so he develops a plan to make bumpkin lose the deal. The preacher’s wife tells him “Give Bumpkin an impossible task, and make him do just what you ask. He fails, you send him packing, and spare your head a smacking.” By this point in the poem, it is apparent that the preacher is only worried about himself and he is willing to stoop to any level to save his honor.
The bumpkin represents a witty and strong figure that shows the preacher just how conniving the preacher is. He uses his intelligence to undermine the preacher’s excessive pride. When trying to earn rent from the devils, the bumpkin has a hare race with the devil’s grandson and uses a horse to defeat him in a weight-carrying contest. Bumpkin proves to the preacher that he can complete even the most challenging tasks. By doing all the things the preacher asks, the bumpkin teaches the preacher not to underestimate his abilities and the abilities of all others who are of lower status. Additionally, those who do work for the preacher should be paid fairly for the hard work that they do. The preacher should not try to save his pocket when employing others. The preacher’s actions also teaches us that self-arrogance gets one no where; he believed he could easily win the deal and he ended up losing his dignity.
The most significant scene in the poem is at the end when the bumpkin finally flicks the preacher’s brow, crushing the preacher’s pride. The animation at the end of the poem is especially humorous as it shows just how angry and defeated the old preacher is. Pushkin writes this poem using rhyming couplets. He creates a comical poem using this rhyme scheme and the animations, but still manages to portray a principal idea within the poem.
Two questions for the class:
- Do you think bumpkin used incorrect methods to win the money from the devil?
- Do you feel sympathy for the preacher by the end of the poem?
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