The Night by Ivan Bunin. Short summary

5 seconds

Late at night the author, admiring the night sea, reflects on his existence, birth and death, loneliness. He dreams of sharing his life through creativity and leaving a memory of himself.

1 minute

The author is sitting on the balcony of his dacha in the late afternoon. He listens to the transparent murmuring, admiring the bottomless sky and the night sea. The writer reflects on his feelings, his understanding of his thoughts, his existence, his loneliness, and relates his reasoning to biblical motifs.

The day tells us to fulfill our purpose, and the night is about freedom and the pursuit of understanding the world. The writer thinks about birth and death, his beginning and his end. He believes that poets and artists have a special sensual memory. One comes to think of age: in spite of external changes, the feeling remains as in childhood and adolescence.

Dawn brings him a sense of happiness, closeness to all people. He understands why the apostle Peter cried at dawn. The author discusses the burden of creativity, the need to share his life with people. His dream is to leave a memory of himself. It is nearing dawn. He goes to the sea and dips his hands into the water with pleasure. The night thoughts recede.