The meaning of the lyrics of the song "Incident at the Restaurant" (Sluchay v restorane) the performer of the song "Vladimir Vysotsky"

"Three Bears" and "The Wounded Knight" hang here and there on the walls...

A captain sits alone at the table.

"May I?" I asked. "Have a seat!

...Light up!" - "I'm sorry, I don't smoke "Kazbek"..."

"Alright, drink up then - let's have some dishes!..

While they bring them... Drink, I said!

Cheers!" - "I certainly will!"

"So," - the captain said, getting drunk -

"You drink vodka beautifully, I must say.

But have you ever seen a machine gun or a tank up close?

And have you ever, say, been in an attack?

In forty-three, near Kursk, I was a sergeant -

Behind my back - such things...

A lot of everything, brother, behind my back,

So that you, lad, could live peacefully!"

He swore and drank, he asked about my father,

And he shouted, staring at his plate:

"I gave half my life for you, you scoundrel, -

And you're wasting your life, you Judas!

And to give you a rifle, to send you to battle?!

And you're here, drinking vodka with me!.."

I sat as if in a trench near the Kursk salient -

Where the captain had been a sergeant.

He got more and more drunk, and I followed right behind -

But at the very end of the conversation

I offended him - I said: "Captain,

You'll never be a major!.."

В ресторане по стенкам висят тут и там

"Три медведя", "Заколотый витязь"...

За столом одиноко сидит капитан.

"Разрешите?" - спросил я. "Садитесь!

...Закури!" - "Извините, "Казбек" не курю..."

"Ладно, выпей, - давай-ка посуду!..

Да пока принесут... Пей, кому говорю!

Будь здоров!" - "Обязательно буду!"

"Ну, так что же, - сказал, захмелев, капитан, -

Водку пьешь ты красиво, однако.

А видал ты вблизи пулемет или танк?

А ходил ли ты, скажем, в атаку?

В сорок третьем под Курском я был старшиной, -

За моею спиной - такое...

Много всякого, брат, за моею спиной,

Чтоб жилось тебе, парень, спокойно!"

Он ругался и пил, он спросил про отца,

И кричал он, уставясь на блюдо:

"Я полжизни отдал за тебя, подлеца, -

А ты жизнь прожигаешь, иуда!

А винтовку тебе, а послать тебя в бой?!

А ты водку тут хлещешь со мною!.."

Я сидел как в окопе под Курской дугой -

Там, где был капитан старшиною.

Он все больше хмелел, я - за ним по пятам, -

Только в самом конце разговора

Я обидел его - я сказал: "Капитан,

Никогда ты не будешь майором!.."

The poem "An Incident in a Restaurant" by Vladimir Vysotsky depicts a dramatic encounter between a lyrical hero and a war veteran, a captain. The text is filled with deep meaning and makes one think about the price of peace, the memory of war, and the gap between generations.

Contrast of Generations: From the very beginning of the poem, a contrast is created between the peaceful atmosphere of the restaurant with its serene paintings ("Three Bears", "The Stabbed Knight") and the lonely figure of the captain, whose soul is still at war. The lyrical hero, a young man far removed from the horrors of war, unwittingly becomes the listener to the veteran's confession.

The Tragedy of the Captain's Fate: The captain, whose youth was spent on the battlefields, cannot find his place in civilian life. He is lonely, tormented by memories of the war. Alcohol becomes the only way for him to drown out the pain. He seeks understanding but does not find it in the face of the carefree young man. The captain sees in him an ungrateful descendant who does not appreciate the peace won by the blood and suffering of his generation.

Guilt and Injustice: Listening to the captain's story, the lyrical hero feels guilty that he lives in peace without knowing the hardships and suffering of war. He realizes that he has no right to judge the captain for his pain and despair. The phrase "I sat as if in a trench near the Kursk Salient" is key in the poem. It shows that the hero, albeit for a short time, was able to penetrate the world of the captain's experiences, to feel the weight of his burden.

An Inappropriate Joke: However, the ending of the poem is tragicomic. The lyrical hero's awkward joke that the captain will never become a major exposes the gap between generations. The captain, who risked his life for the future, does not need ranks and awards. His pain is the pain of the entire generation that went through the war, a generation that did not receive due recognition and understanding.

Symbolism: The images of the "machine gun," "tank," "attack," "trench" are not just descriptions of military operations, but symbols of pain, fear, loss that forever remained in the captain's memory.

Relevance: The poem "An Incident in a Restaurant", written in 1972, does not lose its relevance even today. It reminds us of the price of peace, the need to remember the heroism of veterans, and that each generation must treat the past of their country with understanding and respect.