“You are some kind of… interesting priest”: Revisiting the image of a priest in the story by Vasily Shukshin “Veruyu!”

This paper analyzes the image of a priest in the story “Veruyu!” (“I Believe!”) authored by famous Russian writer Vasily Shukshin, offering a revised interpretation of this significant work. The analysis demonstrates the priest as a figure possessing pagan attributes, his image embellished with literary and cultural allusions. Maxim Yarikov, the protagonist, and the priest exemplify the dichotomy of powers existing within each peasant. Maxim, the passionate hero, represents the eternal peasant striving for knowledge and action (reminiscent of Lomonosov’s ideals), while the priest, the demotivating hero, embodies pagan, archetypal, and patriarchal forces equally inherent to rural life. Combined, they yield a substantial force that proves unmanageable for positive or appropriate application in the social and cultural milieu of a Soviet village following World War II. The rebel is the true articulation of the untapped fervor of the Russian peasant in Shuksin’s artistry. It could be the Stepan Razin revolt (as depicted in “Ya prishel dat’ vam volyu” (“I came to give you freedom”)) or a suicidal act, a behavioral response protesting aggression or unavoidable adverse actions by society or authority. The characters of Maxim and the priest may also reflect the inner spiritual conflicts that tormented Shukshin himself on his journey toward genuine Orthodox faith and the Church. The images of Maxim Yarikov and the priest can also be considered as the personification of those thoughts and internal spiritual contradictions that tormented Vasily Shukshin himself on his path to the true Orthodox faith, to the church.

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