The Cup of Life by Ivan Bunin. Short summary

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Sasha likes Kir, but she marries Peter. The men have a lifelong rivalry for success. Alexandra remains a rich widow, but her taste for life is already lost. One day she is trampled in the crowd.

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Seminarian Kir Jordansky falls in love with the priest’s daughter Sasha. She likes him, but the girl marries Peter Selikhov. The rivals have been competing for success and wealth for 30 years. The seminarian becomes an archpriest, and Pyotr becomes a loan shark. Both buy houses.

The spouses grow old. Selikhov constantly changes his will. Alexandra Vasilyevna is afraid that her husband will leave her destitute. He does not notice her for a long time. One of young Sasha’s admirers, Horizontov, returns. Everyone is surprised by his enormous height, appetite and habits. Father Kir does not understand the giant’s way of life and argues with him. Gorizontov assures that he holds the cup of life firmly in his hands and enjoys it.

In Lent, Selikhov dies. He leaves everything to his wife, but for some reason this does not please her. Alexandra dreams of seeing Kir. In June, a widow is crushed to death in a crowd of people meeting an important official. Gorizontov goes to Moscow to negotiate the sale of his skeleton to the university after his death. The archpriest has not risen from his bed for a long time. The dark streets are quiet and empty.