The Prisoner of the Caucasus

Interesting Facts

• The novella is based on real events involving a Russian army officer captured by the mountain tribes.
• The main characters, Zhilin and Kostylin, represent contrasting images: Zhilin is brave and resourceful, while Kostylin is cowardly and weak-willed.
• Tolstoy drew on his personal impressions from his service in the Caucasus to create realistic descriptions of the nature and life of the mountain tribes.
• The novella addresses themes of courage, friendship, and human dignity, which were important to Tolstoy throughout his creative career.
• The work was written in 1872 and became part of the cycle «Caucasian Stories», which also includes other works by Tolstoy about the Caucasus.