Learn from Matrosov’s Excellent Qualities
I
The Soviet writer Zhurba’s long novel Ordinary Soldier has been widely read among readers in our country, and has played a huge educational role. The heroic image of the Soviet hero Alexander Matrosov, created by the author, has become a model for young people to learn from.
Matrosov lived only 19 years, but in this short 19 years he walked a winding life path and created immortal brilliant feats of heroism.
Matrosov’s home was in a city by the beautiful and mighty Dnieper River, born in an era of difficult restoration of the national economy. His father, in response to the party’s call, helped farmers implement collectivization and was killed by a rich farmer; two years later his mother died as well, leaving only his grandmother with him. Grandmother could tell many stories, often taking him to look at the Dnieper River, telling stories about his grandfather—the former harbormaster on the Dnieper River; she did her best to urge him to study and keep up with schoolwork. Later she also died, and Matrosov became an orphan. Kind-hearted neighbors took him in and planned to send him to a children’s care home.
However, the young Matrosov ardently fantasized about “travel,” and he and his little friends secretly left his hometown and began a wandering life.
One time he was stranded alone in Zaporizhzhia and met Grandfather Magar, who ran a “Red Guerrilla” farm with a righteous conscience. The old man told him many life truths, truths that were seeds of kindness that later took root in his naive mind. The next day, the old man personally sent him to the children’s care home.
In the care home he lived for more than a year. Once there was an unfortunate incident: the dining hall lost some chocolate candies, and the director wrongly accused him of stealing without investigation. This greatly wounded the young man’s dignity, and in a fit he escaped from the care home, which again led him off the track of life.
When he wandered near the city of Lonato (identified in text as Rontha? — transliteration uncertain), the benevolent police sent him to the Ufimga Children’s Foster Home. Upon arriving, he neither wished to study nor to work; he planned to escape at every opportunity, but failed every time. In the foster home he luckily received help from good-hearted people: a counselor Kornik, who guided him with patient and experienced methods; a strict yet considerate workshop technician Livovich; a caring teacher Ilariazovna who treated students with sincerity; a fellow student Anyaiga who offered sympathy in his loneliest and most painful times; and youngest nurse Lina who first showed him pure friendship… These noble souls finally led him to a broad and radiant life path; in a little over a year he became a new young Soviet with noble character.
The foster home’s evaluation form for him read:
“Working as a fitter in a furniture workshop, he worked with a Stakanovite method. Due to excellent production work, diligent study, and good conduct, from March 15, 1942, to September 23, Matrosov served as assistant counselor. He was also chosen as chairman of the center mediation committee. Matrosov’s active work in the educational department and his personal volunteering thoroughly prepared him for independent living. Comrade Matrosov is patient, disciplined, and good at properly building cooperative relationships with comrades…”
Not only did he love labor, but he had begun to form a sense of serving the homeland and the collective.
In autumn 1942, when the homeland summoned the people to participate in the righteous anti-Fascist war, Matrosov—the 18-year-old Soviet youth—stood tall and took on the sacred duty to defend the homeland. While at the infantry school, his name, along with the top students, was listed on the honor roll; the Komsomol meeting approved his joining the organization. After four months of strict training, in January 1943 he bravely joined the front-line unit to fight the enemy.
In the army’s combat life Matrosov grew more steadfast and courageous. He saw many true heroes and lived with them: there was Captain Afanasiev at the front line, who always stood at the front; Junior Lieutenant Arkhohov who, with his right hand injured, still directed with his left; the political department deputy director of the regiment, registered as a Soviet hero, Bugraev, who led Komsomol work; the tested old Bolshevik Kedrov, and frontline medics Valeria who fought on the front lines, and Antoshchenko, a young machine-gunner who sacrificed himself for the sake of the others… These ordinary Soviet people taught Matrosov heroism and excellent qualities, leaving a deep imprint on his soul.
From the Barents Sea to the Black Sea, the entire Soviet front opened up with large-scale offensives. Matrosov’s unit received orders to move with the speed of a forced march to pursue the defeated Hitler army on the Kalinin front. In a six-day-six-night, 200-kilometer march, he displayed astounding perseverance and optimism, becoming a model for Komsomol members in the second company.
As soon as the march ended, the command ordered the company to storm through the dense pines to fully occupy a strong German position at Chorny Shyg village, as part of the corps’ overall mission. Before the assault, the company selected a group of the most agile soldiers for reconnaissance; Matrosov bravely asked to join, and the company commander approved. In reconnaissance he faced harsh tests and completed the task brilliantly.
In the assault on the Chorny Shyg village fortification, he served as the communications man for the company commander Arkhohov. The company quickly pushed into the pine forest, meeting the enemy’s heavy fire. This forest stronghold with complex firepower was a fortified structure on the Kalinin front. The assault company was the assault team; the battle lasted all day, and by dusk it had destroyed 20 fire points, driving the enemy from half the forest, but the assault company lost contact with the rest of the unit.
Before dawn, the assault squad was about to occupy Chorny Shyg village; only three fire points remained for the enemy to block the advance. Time passed quickly; if the task could not be completed by dawn, the arduous march and the entire battalion’s fight would be in vain, and a chain of front-line failures could ensue.
Captain Arkhohov sent six machine gunners to destroy this final fire point, but all six fell.
Matrosov believed the decisive moment of battle had arrived. For victory, he bravely crawled toward the fire point. When he was very close to the firepoint’s embrasure, he fired a volley into a hole, and a mine exploded. The soldiers saw the fire point explode and stood up to charge, but the enemy’s machine gun suddenly roared again.
In this critical moment, Matrosov laid his chest against the firing line of a flamethrower-style machine gun and pressed down the enemy’s fire.
One minute later, the battalion occupied Chorny Shyg village.
Matrosov died on February 23, 1943, the day of the 25th anniversary of the glorious Soviet Red Army. He was only 19 years old at the time.
The ordinary soldier Alexander Matrosov’s great feats were honored by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, with the title of Hero of the Soviet Union posthumously. The unit he served was transformed into a Guards regiment, named after him.
Matrosov’s transformation from a lonely, wandering child into a Soviet hero was not by chance. His heroism was the result of long cultivation.
We learn from heroes, and from Matrosov. It is not about blindly imitating his individual actions, but about a comprehensive analysis and learning from his character. What are the main excellent qualities of Matrosov worth learning? What is the ideological basis of these qualities? How were they gradually cultivated and formed? I, the author, would like to share some initial thoughts based on my own experience, as a reference for young friends reading this.
II
Matrosov was a loyal, honest, upright, and straightforward person. He took the maxim “Please believe me honestly” as his motto and as the standard of life. He dared to admit mistakes and insisted on the truth. He never told a lie, never deceived anyone. He always maintained the conscience of a Soviet person, the conscience of a Komsomol member.
Even when Matrosov was wandering, this precious honest quality lit up his young soul. Beekeeping Grandpa Magar taught him: a person should live according to conscience; a person should be upright and selfless. He fell in love with Grandpa’s words, “Please believe me honestly,” and used this phrase to correct himself and regulate his thoughts.
He was once attracted by Grandpa Magar’s sun watch and a hunting rifle. At that time, the room was empty. The watch and rifle, to him, were incredibly tempting! If he had them, he could live alone in the woods freely, hunting game and leading a strange adventurous life. But when he grabbed the watch, his hand felt as if burned… Grandpa’s words “Please believe me honestly” immediately sounded in his ears; how shameful this was! Grandpa’s noble moral power defeated his momentary selfish desire, and he put the watch back on the desk, blushing.
A young man, only with honest character, can be truly empirical and truth-seeking, adhere to truth. Honesty is the starting point for cultivating communist moral qualities. Honesty is also the fundamental difference between communist and bourgeois morality. For example, learning must rid itself of arrogance and conceit; labor must ensure quality and not be fake; in dealing with people, one must be sincere and straightforward, not a façade; when solving problems, one must be selfless, not harming others for one’s own gain. Chairman Mao taught us tirelessly to guard against exaggeration, against “boasting,” “showing off,” and “stealing,” whose spirit is to value the word “honesty” itself.
Matrosov’s life, in any situation and in front of any person, was loyal and honest, always consistent, never hypocritical, never deceived. He did not distort facts or truth for personal gain. In the children’s foster home, Matrosov once took a history test on ancient world history; the female teacher happened to choose a topic he was familiar with and gave him a score of five, though his preparation was not thorough. His friend Chimoshiga prepared more thoroughly, but the teacher gave a less-known topic and earned only a two. Matrosov should have been happy, but he was distressed and could not sleep that night. He believed his success and honor were accidental; achieving a perfect score was not deserved. He thought: to hide his lack of preparation would be dishonest; that would deceive his comrades and his beloved teacher. The next day, in front of the class, he publicly admitted that his preparation was insufficient; he revealed that Chimoshiga had prepared thoroughly; and, in the name of “moral purity,” he requested his and Chimoshiga’s scores to be re-evaluated. After re-evaluation, Chimoshiga received three points and he four.
This portrayal is deeply moving. If we were in Matrosov’s place and happened to get five points by chance, would we honestly request a re-test? Or would we respond as some of his classmates did, saying: “We got five; there’s nothing more to discuss. Who knows if you prepared enough?” Such questions invite deep reflection. In our real life, there are still people who, to gain personal honor and status, distort facts and truth, deceive leaders and people. This petty opportunism is despicable compared to Matrosov’s noble honesty. Matrosov’s pursuit was not for personal glory or chance success, but for diligent study and the acquisition of complex scientific knowledge. From the novel we see that Matrosov in study, just as in daily life, strictly followed the standard of loyal honesty.
Matrosov’s loyal honesty is linked with his frank and straightforward disposition. This character is vividly depicted in the novel. Interestingly, soon after Matrosov entered the foster home, he and his friends Zeshega and Korekov once promised to escape and not reveal the secret. But life progressed. Under the guidance of new friends, Matrosov found the path he should follow, and abandoned the plan to escape. Korekov, who had more backward ideas, still sought opportunities to escape. Matrosov understood that their former friendship was wrong, but did not know how to handle his friend’s faults and simply severed ties. Later, Matrosov repeatedly felt distressed about this and wanted to help Korekov but Korekov remained hostile. In the spring, when the foster home students were building a batch of timber in the ice, Matrosov led the work, while Korekov was lazy and complained. During the task, Korekov fell into a crack. When friends were anxious, Matrosov bravely risked his own life, laid a plank across the crack, and himself leaned into the crack to pull Korekov out. He seemed to forget their past quarrels. Korekov, ashamed and moved, walked toward him, extended his hand silently, and said, “Give me your hand!” He smiled and solemnly shook Korekov’s cold fingers. What an exciting scene; such understanding and sincere friendship between comrades is such a beautiful thing for the youth. Thus, their initial friendship was restored and gained a new content and basis. Later, the originally backward, lazy Korekov finally progressed and joined the Soviet Union’s advanced producers’ honorable team.
Matrosov’s vivid example of dealing with Korekov teaches us young people to be loyal to friends, even if a friend temporarily lags behind (in fact among every group of friends there will be advanced and backward ones). Do not adopt a cold, distant, sarcastic, or punitive attitude; instead, be loyal, help them, and start with care, sympathy, and support, applying comrades’ critique to help them improve step by step. For instance, Shanghai State-owned No. 2 Machine Plant’s young worker Ma Chenglun moved from corruption to active labor, eventually becoming a model worker, illustrating that when a person most needs help from friends, you can lend a hand and pull him up. This comradeship and class solidarity, as Garyin said, is one of the most socialist qualities.
Matrosov’s qualities of valuing friendship and class solidarity are inseparable from his collectivist thinking. Living in the great Soviet family, he deeply felt the comrades’ unity and the strength of the collective, and he viewed the interests of the collective as supreme. He never wanted to leave the collective, comrades, or friends. He always trusted the collective and was loyal to it. Our study of Matrosov’s valuing friendship and class solidarity should keep this in mind.
III
Some young friends, after reading the heroes’ deeds, are moved by their bravery and want to imitate their hero actions.
Learning from heroes is good, and learning courage and heroic deeds is not objectionable. But first we must clarify what courage is and what heroic actions are; this is a common misunderstanding for young friends when learning from heroes.
For example, some young friends equate bravery with impulsive risk-taking in moments of emotion, thinking that anything ordinary people would not dare to do is “heroic.” They imagine that if someone is not afraid to die, he is courageous. It is said a young machine tool worker who tries to appear heroic would jump down from a moving bus before it stops, or a student would borrow a gun and a mare to go reconnaissance. These stories are nonsense and illustrate that a rash risk or blind fearlessness is not courage or heroic behavior; these stories violate labor discipline, waste production, and injure the person. They are foolish.
So what is true courage? What is true heroic behavior? What motivates them?
Matrosov’s heroism is convincingly explained: true courage and heroic behavior are born only for noble aims and cannot be blind impulse.
What power supported Matrosov to bravely press himself against a burning machine gun muzzle? It is his deep patriotism and collectivist thinking, his life goal to build a good socialist society. For the homeland and people’s happiness, to completely destroy the enemy, he sacrificed his precious life. This excellent ideological quality—the boundless loyalty to the homeland and the people—is the most fundamental point for us to learn from heroes.
Some young friends only admire Matrosov’s courage and self-sacrifice, but neglect to explore the driving force behind his courage. If understood this way, they cannot truly understand the hero; they may only worship him as a “god” or an icon, and will not learn anything real.
In fact, Zhurba’s novel follows realism, depicting Matrosov as an ordinary person with his own personality. When he crawled toward the fire point, he did not lack awareness of the danger and difficulties before him; his inner thoughts were turbulent. He wondered, “Danger, is it? I might not get up like those six men. I know, but I cannot wait any longer; I must go. I go—for the lives of my friends, for victory…” He too, like an ordinary person, first considered that what he was doing was life-endangering, and he did not want to die, for there were many important things he must do. But his noble quality distinct from others was his strong sense of responsibility to the collective—the soldier’s self-awareness to defend the homeland. This high spiritual power compelled him to fling himself toward the fire point despite difficulties and danger, regardless of his own life. In a letter to his girlfriend Lina before his death, he wrote: “I am walking on a road toward a sacred purpose,” and asked her to believe: “I will always act according to the conscience of a Komsomol member and as the homeland commands.” After his sacrifice, comrades found two pieces of branches in his pocket—a poplar branch and a willow branch, with buds opening. This shows Matrosov also loved life very much; he was not a god or a martyr as some youths imagine. His courage and self-sacrifice arose from a great life purpose and lofty ideals. When the people and the homeland need him, he spontaneously feels a responsibility to give his youth and life for others, to complete heroic feats. His life may have ended, but the flower of his life blossoms in the hearts of the people and will never fade.
Great willpower and true courage are produced only for great ends. If we further examine Matrosov’s growth process and how he established his great life purpose, it will undoubtedly help us learn from heroes.
Matrosov was an orphan once, and he had fallen into a wayward life. But people took him in, educated him, and led him to a broad path. As he said when he joined the infantry school’s Komsomol: “In any capitalist country, they would stamp me out like grass by the roadside.” He fully felt that living in the Soviet Union and within the great collective is happy and wonderful; no one will be abandoned here, and everyone has a bright future. Therefore, he loved his homeland and the great collective, and he was willing to contribute everything for the homeland’s cause.
Matrosov not only felt the beauty of life from personal experience, but also saw the country’s construction day by day. In just a few five-year plans, amazing miracles appeared: canals were dug, deserts irrigated, swamps drained, harvests were bountiful; many new industrial cities were built; in the northern cold lands, many fruit orchards were cultivated. He believed that only by moving forward along the socialist-communist construction path could people create real happiness. To be a fighter for the socialist-communist cause was the most valuable thing for a person.
Having a living purpose broadened Matrosov’s vision and gave him great ideals. For example, while in the foster home, he had various dreams: traveler, astronomer, botanist, geologist, electrical engineer… He also wanted to be an inventor, creating a “cloud-catcher” device to manage wind and clouds. He thought: after I study well, I can approach the broad and wonderful world. Perhaps he, Sasha (Matrosov’s given name), could lead an expeditionary scientific expedition, or pilot ships on the sea, operating machines never seen before. Because he lived in a country where anything was possible and achievable, he was extremely happy. These dreams, even in the army, did not disappear. A wonderful life purpose and lofty ideals can translate into enormous material power for a young person! From the novel we can see that this power propelled Matrosov to overcome learning difficulties, to fight tenaciously against the enemy, and finally to heroically sacrifice himself.
Matrosov’s growth as a hero could not have happened without the education of the Soviet Communist Party and the tireless care and cultivation from many outstanding yet ordinary Soviet people.
Among these lovely Soviets, perhaps the first to enlighten Matrosov was Grandpa Magar the apiarist. This humorous and zealously helpful beekeeper knew so much that for a naive Matrosov almost everything was new, making him quite captivated. Grandpa asked, “Why do the poppy flowers in the field bloom?” He did not know. Grandpa told him the story of the People’s Hero Danko, hoping he could become brave and loyal like Danko.
The old man’s deep loving kindness moved this homeless wanderer. He thus buried Grandpa’s words deep in his heart, and the image of the people’s hero Danko became a lifelong model. In the Fascist anti-Soviet struggle, this respected apiarist eventually took Danko’s path, becoming a people’s hero with a firm stance and a willingness to die. The novel’s portrayal of Grandpa’s sacrifice is deeply moving; when German SS agents suspended him from a tree, Grandpa shouted loudly, his echo drifting over the Dnieper: “Nonsense, you enemies! You will not occupy our land watered by the people’s blood; you will surely perish, like the plague when the sun shines!” Grandpa’s story of Danko taught Matrosov and urged him to join the guerrilla movement, and the fascists killed him for this.
Like Gorky’s Danko, a heroic figure praised by a beekeeper, such figures were common in the Soviet life. In the army, wasn’t Bugraev Captain in the forefront whom Matrosov often looked up to as a model? Captain Bugraev, a young yet gray-haired commander of the regiment’s Komsomol leadership, was the political department deputy and a man Matrosov respected. When Estonia withdrew during the early anti-Fascist war, Bugraev was injured and fell behind enemy lines. He crawled eight days and nights toward the front, without medicine or food, drinking only water from muddy pools, guiding the fallen soldiers, erasing their documents, and risking his life to collect party and Komsomol certificates; on the ninth day, when he crawled back to the command post, he fainted. There were 57 party and Komsomol certificates found on him, and his temples were gray. Later, he contributed again on the battlefield and was awarded the Soviet hero title by the command. Bugraev’s heroic example profoundly influenced Matrosov.
It is these admirable Soviets, including Communist Party members and Komsomol members, who used their active lives to teach Matrosov to understand truth and life’s meaning, thus establishing a great life purpose.
Understanding that Matrosov’s heroic actions stemmed from his great life purpose, and from his high patriotism and collectivist thinking, we can further understand Matrosov’s loyalty, honesty, valuing friendship, fearless bravery, and self-sacrifice. We learn from heroes, and from Matrosov, not to treat him as a god or an idol, but as a person, and to learn from these fundamental ideas.
Learn Matrosov’s Excellent Qualities (Tang Tiehai, author) (z-library.sk, 1lib.sk, z-lib.sk) (1).pdf (894.1 KB)