A game from the movie Pollyanna. To the sun - more interesting! Find more "pluses" or a game of joy

Our class teacher suggested that we read Eleanor Porter's Pollyanna. First, as is usually the case in our family, my mother found this book. She read quite a bit, and she liked it so much that my mother told me: “We must definitely read this book together.” We started reading together at the weekend, and then I myself was wondering how this story would end. And over the next week, I finished the book myself, my mother also read it in her spare time.

After reading, I was left with the feeling that this is a very kind book, despite its naivety, it was a pleasure to read it. In terms of genre, I would describe it as a children's fairy tale.

Pollyanna is a girl who is very, very lucky with her father. At one time, he taught her one magical game - "playing for joy." The game is to rejoice despite the fact that there seems to be nothing to rejoice at. This game helps her in difficult situations where other children would cry bitterly: for example, when instead of a beautiful doll they send you crutches as a gift, and instead of a cozy room in a large beautiful house they give you a cramped red-hot kennel with a bare floor and walls. Soon this game helps not only to shine the most beautiful girl, but also gradually makes everyone around her better: Mrs. Snow, who constantly felt sorry for herself, homeless boy Jimmy Bean, who was embittered at the whole world, and strict Aunt Polly, who seemed to always wear in front of him is a large sign with the word "duty".

For more than half the book, I was happy for this girl, and then, when she was hit by a car, I felt so sorry for her, so sorry, right to the point of anger. It is unfair to punish such a bright and kind person so cruelly! After that, she lay in bed for a whole year, then she was treated for ten months, and finally she was able to walk.

This, as I understand it, was the author's intention: to show that a person can do everything, even perform miracles, you just need to really, really believe.

This book is about ordinary miracles that each of us can perform. The fact that life is too short and should not be wasted on resentment, whining and far-fetched difficulties.

Pollyanna understands that if she does not enjoy every new day and someone else's smile, see the positive side in difficult situations and believe in herself and people, then she will simply go crazy. So enjoying life for no reason is not crazy, it's something like a "defense mechanism". And it seems to me that this is a wonderful “mechanism”. If a person feels happy and even more so can give happiness to others, then there can be nothing wrong with that.

For example, I have not yet been able to turn on such a “mechanism”. In difficult situations, I get angry, annoyed. And now I'm thinking - why? There is such an aphorism: “People do not get angry on purpose, but just like that, out of habit.” We get angry because everyone around us is angry, and this book shows that you can live differently, and it's much better. I will definitely try the game that Pollyanna played. I hope it becomes another way to make my life more positive!

Mikhail Lobov, 13 years old, Yaroslavl. Participant of the competition "Book Expert of the 21st Century" (season 2)

Positive thinking and a joyful mood have a lot of advantages over a negative, negative emotional state.

Here are some of these benefits:

• A joyful person always has more strength and energy, other things being equal, he gets tired less and gets sick less. Joy is the best medicine!
• A positive person has more creative ideas, a broader vision of new perspectives and hidden opportunities in life, work, business, relationships, development. A positive person is therefore always more successful, lucky.
• A joyful person has more friends and acquaintances with whom he shares his joys. It is always much more pleasant to be with a joyful person than with an eternally dissatisfied grump or a bore. Therefore, people are drawn to a positive person like flies to honey.
• A positive thinker attracts good things like a magnet: good situations, good people, light and love. After all, as the wise men of the past said: “What is inside, so is outside!”
• A person becomes prosperous because he is very positive and joyful, grateful to God and the Universe for the opportunity to live, create, develop, and not vice versa: he rejoices because everything is fine with him. Everything is so good with us on the outside, how great is the power of our positivism in us inside!
• Only a joyful person, a contented life, humbly accepting those circumstances that he cannot change, but finding opportunities and prospects even in problems and difficulties - only such a person can be happy!

Therefore, the training "Game of Joy" or the game "Look for the good in everything"! is a very valuable tool that allows us to change our lives by changing the situations and circumstances of our lives.

Like everything ingenious, the training "Game of Joy" or the game "Look for the good in everything" is very simple: always, everywhere, in everything, everywhere, in any situation, under any circumstances, look for the good, positive and positive! Psychologists say that there are two categories of people: bee people and fly people...

• "People-bees" seek and fly to honey, that is, they look for the good, positive aspects of things and phenomena in everything.
• “People-flies” are looking for and crawling through ..., for you yourself know what .., they are looking for the bad and negative in everything ...

These people find themselves in conditions corresponding to their thinking: bee people are in “bee hives with excellent honey”, and fly people are in garbage dumps, trash cans and dirty latrines…
The training "Game of joy" or the game "Look for the good in everything" teaches us to become and be "bees" - to look for goodness in life, the honey of life, the nectar of happiness. And thus find yourself in more and more favorable conditions: gradually attract the energies of prosperity, attract positive and kind people to yourself, form positive situations around you with your thinking!
Eleanor Porter's novel "Pollyanna" is a real guide to "playing for joy". In general, with this novel, "The Game of Joy" began.

Eleanor Porter's novel "Pollyanna" is an amazing story of an orphan girl (who was taken in by a stern aunt out of a "sense of duty"), whose ability to enjoy life under any circumstances, to see the best side in everything, helps not only herself, but also those around her people.
The game is to find a reason for joy in any event. And the worse the misfortune, the more difficult and interesting it is to find the positive in it. Polyanna played this game with great skill, as there was plenty of grief and hardship in her life. This is a game of consciously switching from minus to plus, the ability to see the glass as half full and not half empty.
Eleanor Porter's first novel Pollyanna was published in 1912. For over 100 years, Pollyanna, this resilient orphan girl, has served us as an excellent example of a positive attitude towards life and everything that happens in it.
On the cover of the book it says: "For middle school age"! But don't believe it, Eleanor Porter's Pollyanna is a book for all ages - from young children to adults! We will not exaggerate if we say that this is a small masterpiece, a magical book. You need to read it yourself and give it to everyone around you to read.

Based on the novel Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter, a wonderful feature film was made, which is also called Pollyanna. Film "Pollyanna" is a beautiful and meaningful movie about an amazing game that helps people live. And this film and Eleanor Porter's book "Pollyanna" are simply masterpieces of positive thinking! Based on this novel, many theatrical productions have been made, for example, the play “Playing for Joy”, well-known in Russian theaters.

After the publication of Elinor Porter's novel "Pollyanna" in 1912 in the USA, England, and other European countries, many clubs, societies, sections were organized in which people played the "game of joy". The game of joy became so popular that it was played in families, at a party, in parks, in clubs, in groups, at schools ... Everyone and everywhere, thanks to this novel, began to play in joy!
As we have already said, the rules of the game of joy are extremely simple - you need to look for the good in everything that happens, for example:

• It’s raining today, it’s good, after the rain the air will be fresh, and now I’ll put on my favorite raincoat, take my huge umbrella ...
• I got the flu - how good I will lie in a warm pastel, drink tea and watch my favorite comedies ...
• Today I have insomnia - how good: you can lie down and dream, remember the wonderful moments of our lives ...
• I was fired from my job - how good: I will have to find a more interesting job, I will meet new colleagues and friends ...
• From the movie "Pollyanna": "... you should be glad that you broke only one leg, and not two" ...

Despite the ingenious simplicity of the game of joy, a few rules in the book and film can still be traced:

• The wording of the good should not contain the negative! A positive wording should carry only positive emotions and evoke joyful associations.
• Good for us should not be "bad" for someone else. It is impossible to rejoice in that which causes suffering to others.
• It is necessary to play in joy constantly and continuously. The joy game can be an ongoing training to help us live a happier life!

According to the heroine of the novel and film, Pollyanna, more than 800 Bible verses begin with the words “rejoice” and “love”!.. Therefore, friends, rejoice! Play for joy!

Polianna is a cult book by writer Eleanor Porter about a little girl who enjoys life in any situation...

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Our life is often compared to a zebra: sometimes a white stripe, sometimes a black one. When the stripe is white - a person rejoices, when it is black - he is sad and sad. This is quite natural.

But how then to understand the call from the Bible:

Always rejoice. (1 Thess. 5:16)

When you are doing well, it is easy and natural to rejoice. And if you have difficulties and problems? Is it possible that the Apostle Paul, who wrote down these words, had a life not of a "zebra", but of a "white horse"?

Of course not. The book "Acts of the Apostles", which was written by Paul's friend, Luke, clearly tells that the apostle himself had a very difficult and dangerous life, in which there were many unpleasant episodes and even tragedies.

How to learn to enjoy life?

So what's the secret? Is it possible to rejoice even when there seems to be nothing to rejoice at?

Our life is 20% what happens to us and 80% how we feel about it.

This is a very important thought that will help us find the very toggle switch that turns on this bright and so necessary feeling for everyone - joy.

But the difficulty of the task is to find this “tumbler of joy” in yourself and learn how to turn it on when necessary. This toggle switch works on the principle:

If you can't change your circumstances, then change your attitude towards them.

How to learn it? It's no secret that the easiest way to learn something is in the form of a game. That's why kids learn so fast: they play all the time!

The Joy Book by Elior Porter

The greatness and usefulness of a book can only be judged by how it affected the people who read it. The greatest book of all times and peoples is undoubtedly the Bible.

But there are books which, although not inspired by God, can certainly be called "great." One of these books can safely be called a "textbook of joy."

Although it is sold in the section of children's books, it carries deep thoughts and surprisingly affects the worldview even of adults.

And this book is called quite simply: "Pollyanna". You can download Pollyanna's book and read it - you won't regret it!

Perhaps you have already read this book or watched a movie based on it, and you can imagine what it is about.

(Although the film, in principle, is not bad, but it misses a lot of thoughts and scenes. Therefore, I strongly recommend reading the book.)

What is Polianna's book about?

But for those who do not know, I will explain: the book tells about a little orphan girl who got into a situation in which she would have to cry all day long, or at least lose the joy and meaning of her future life.

But the girl had a little secret: she knew about that cherished toggle switch that turns off the negative and turns on the positive.

And in the words of Polianna herself, she learned to "play for joy." Like this? Pollyanna's word:

It started when we got crutches among the donations,” she said solemnly.
- Crutches?
- Yes. Then I really wanted a doll, so dad asked the woman who collected donations. And that lady replied that no one donated dolls, so instead of a doll she sends small crutches. She wrote that they might come in handy too.
"Well, I don't see anything funny so far," said Nancy. - What kind of game is this, just some kind of stupidity.
- Yes, you do not understand. Our the game was about rejoicing, despite the fact that there seems to be nothing to rejoice. So we started with these crutches.
- My house with a front garden! But how can you rejoice when you are waiting for a doll, and crutches are sent to you!
Pollyanna even clapped her hands for joy.
- Can! You can rejoice! Can! Can! she exclaimed. - At first I also thought the same way as you, - she honestly admitted, - but then dad explained everything to me.
- Can you share, show mercy? Nancy asked offendedly, for it seemed to her that the girl was simply laughing at her.
“But listen further,” said Pollyanna, as if nothing had happened, “ that's why I should be glad that I don't need crutches!

Amazing game of an amazing child. But the beauty of this book is that it is essentially a practical "textbook of joy."

After reading this book, you can learn, like Pollyanna, how to play this wonderful game.

Game of joy

Another important point that is shown in this book is that this game is "contagious". In the process of narration, many adult uncles and aunts begin to play it.

Germs of joy quickly spread from the infected to everyone who has a weak immunity to all that is good.

I really like one episode in the book. It tells of Pollyanna's meeting with a local priest who was preparing a sermon in the forest.

His parishioners were not the best people, and therefore the priest constantly frightened them with God's punishment, which, of course, did not encourage these people to become better.

And now he diligently selected verses from the Bible that would denounce his flock. Pollyanna finds him doing this:

The Reverend Paul Ford sat down under a tree and pulled folded pieces of paper from his pocket. He slowly unfolded them and began to read the outline of the Sunday sermon. He wanted to resort to abundant quotations from the Gospel of Matthew.

He wanted to threaten the parishioners with the fate of hypocrites, scribes and Pharisees, to show them how they are like those who pray, but forget about the Law, Faith, Forgiveness and Grace.

He wanted to ask them a bitter question: Where are we going, O brothers and sisters? In a word, he was going to read them an angry sermon....

Mr Ford, do you enjoy being a pastor? she inquired. This time the Reverend Paul Ford didn't make her wait long.
- Like? - looking at the girl intently, he asked again. - Weird question! Why do you care, honey?
- Yes, you see... you look like... Well, just like my dad. He looked like that sometimes too.
- Truth? the pastor responded politely, turning his attention back to the yellowed leaf.
- Well, yes. And when he had such a look, I always asked him, just like you now, whether he likes being a pastor?
Well, what did he say to you? asked Mr. Ford with a melancholy smile.
- Oh, he always answered that he liked it, of course. And then he often said that after all, he would never have remained a pastor if there were not so many joyful texts in the Bible.
- What? What texts? - finally forgetting about his sheet, asked the pastor. Now he kept his eyes fixed on Pollyanna's radiant face.
- Well, in the Bible, of course, they are not called that. That's what my dad called them. Well, you see, these are texts that begin “I rejoice, God!” or: “Let us rejoice...”, or: “I rejoice, Lord...” Well, and all that sort of thing. A lot of them.

Dad told me that once he was very ill, and now he took and counted all the joyful texts in the Bible. You know, there were as many as eight hundred of them!
- Eight hundred?
- Yes. And they all tell us to rejoice. That's why the pope called them "joyful."
“Nd-ah,” drawled the pastor and somehow strangely looked at the drafts of the Sunday sermon. The words rushed into his eyes: “Woe to you ...” - and he hastily turned his gaze to the girl ....

A good lesson for those who are also Christian shepherds:

A person is motivated to change not by fear of God's punishment, but by sincere love for him.

Why is it IMPORTANT to start playing for joy?

Maybe now you think that it is probably easy to give such advice when you are more or less all right. I would see how happy you would be if you had my problems?

Yes, the "game of joy" is not a simple game. But think about these words:

Misfortunes that are patiently endured when they seem inevitable become completely unbearable as soon as the thought arises that they could well have been avoided. (Alexis de Tocqueville)

In other words, we need to root out all negative thoughts as soon as they begin to sprout in our minds.

And, on the contrary, sow positive thoughts and patiently cultivate them. This is not an easy task, but the harvest is worth it. And this wonderful book will help you with this.

If your life is like a zebra - try to think more about the good, and it will start to turn into a rainbow?

This book came to the Russian reader only at the end of the twentieth century. Although in five years, in 2013, it will be a hundred years since it was written. However, despite the fact that we only recently got acquainted with the story of the American writer Eleanor Porter "Pollyanna", as well as its continuation: "The Return of Pollyanna" (translation options: "Pollyanna's Youth", "Pollyanna grows up") and their little heroine, but already love them. This is evidenced by the fact that the famous Orthodox writer Yulia Voznesenskaya mentioned “Pollyanna” in her book “The Way of Cassandra or a Journey with Pasta”, and she even titled the trilogy written later about the adventures of the sisters Yulia and Anna “Yulianna ...”

The action of the story "Pollyanna" takes place in a small, village-like American town of Beldingsville. A seven-year-old orphan girl, her niece, comes here from the Far West to live with her aunt, rich old maid Polly Harrington. By the way, named by her mother Pollyanna in honor of Miss Polly and her late sister Anna. Although they long ago broke off relations with a sister who, in their opinion, made an unforgivable mistake by marrying not a local rich man, but a poor priest (of course, since the setting is the USA, we are talking about a Protestant pastor). Apart from this girl, Miss Harrington has no other relatives. Like her, after the death of her parents, there was no one left except her aunt. But, nevertheless, Pollyanna does not have to count on the participation and affection of a loved one. Because Miss Polly does not hide the fact that for her this girl is just an annoying burden, which she has to bring up solely out of a sense of duty. And, if in all the big and rich house of Miss Harrington for her niece there is only a place in the attic closet, then in her heart there is no place for this girl at all.

I must say that in Russian children's literature there is at least one work, the plot is extremely similar to the story "Pollyanna". Incidentally, written around the same time. True, not in America, but here in Russia. We are talking about the book by L. Charskaya "Notes of a little schoolgirl", the heroine of which, the girl Lena, about the same age as Pollyanna, after the death of her mother, ends up being raised by a wealthy uncle-general. And she, too, is waiting for a miserable little room, the indifference of adults, and in addition - also cruel persecution by her cousins ​​and sisters and the housekeeper. By the way, in the course of the book, Lena, like Pollyanna, has to choose between relatives who do not hide their dislike for her, and strangers, but much kinder to her, people who wished to shelter her. However, despite the obvious similarity of plots, the heroines of these books behave completely differently. Lena meekly endures all injustice and bullying, responding to evil with good. And this is what motivates her enemies to repent and make friends with her. She conquers them with her humility, kindness and nobility. But Pollyanna, at first glance, is her complete antipode. For example, having crossed the threshold of the bare-walled attic closet allotted to her, she does not cry (as the same heroine of L. Charskaya, or you and I, would certainly have done) and does not get angry at her cruel aunt, but ... rejoices at what a wonderful view opens from her window. In addition, the fact that, since there is no mirror in the room, she will not have to see her freckles in it every day ... It is this strange property of the girl’s character - the ability to turn any everyday situation into an occasion for joy, that amazes and perplexes all those who communicate with Pollyanna. And, ultimately, makes them become attached to her and love her.

Eleanor Porter immediately reveals to readers the reason for such an unusual behavior of her heroine. There is no secret here. And everything turns out to be very simple (I will make a reservation right away - just only at first glance). According to Pollyanna, she is just playing one very exciting game. She has several names. For example, "game of joy." Or - "consolation game." Or - "daddy's game."

The last name is due to the fact that Pollyanna believes that her father invented this “game of joy”. As already mentioned, he was a poor missionary pastor who lived, or rather existed, on the donations of his parishioners. It should be noted that the charitable activities of Protestant communities (such as the repeatedly mentioned heroine of "Women's Help") in the dilogy about Pollyanna are described very ironically. And in fact, it most often comes down to useless chatter and help to anyone, except for those who need it most at the moment. An example of this is, for example, the story of Pollyanna's friend, homeless orphan Jimmy Bean, who is turned down by Women's Aid, preferring instead to donate money to a mission in distant India. Or the fate of the friend of one of the heroines of the story "The Return of Pollyanna", Sadie Dean, in which, so to speak, good people took part only when she had already turned from an honest girl into a "fallen girl" ...). And the notorious "donations to the poor" are actually just a way to get rid of unnecessary things, according to the well-known saying: "on you, wretchedly, what is worthless to us." Therefore, according to Pollyanna, “they always turn out to be not at all what you expect. Even when you know in advance that you will not find what you are waiting for, there and then it will not be right. It was for this reason that once Pollyanna, who dreamed of a doll, got children's crutches. It was then that the pope-priest taught her the “joyful game”, the essence of which was to be able to find a reason for joy in everything that happens to you. For example, having received crutches instead of the desired doll as a gift, be glad at least that you don’t need them.

The reader may say, "What nonsense?" What is there to be happy about? By the way, some characters in E. Porter's books (for example, Nancy's servant) at first perceive Pollyanna's "game" in exactly this way: "some kind of nonsense." But in fact, this, so to speak, "game" is not at all nonsense or nonsense. And, in fact, not even a game. Why? This will be discussed further.

However, to begin with, let's recall one book that, probably, each of us read in childhood. We are talking about the science fiction novel by A. Belyaev "Professor Dowell's Head", whose heroine, nurse Marie Laurent, reflecting on how different her life is from the existence of an animated head located in the laboratory of the villain Professor Kern, comes to the following conclusion: "Oh my God ! How happy I am! How much I have! How rich I am! And I didn’t know, I didn’t feel it!”

Literally the same thing is said by one of the characters in the book “The Return of Pollyanna”, a former prisoner, having learned from the girl what her “game” is: “You revealed to me a great truth. I thought no one in the world needed it. And now I know that I have a pair of arms, a pair of legs and a pair of eyes. And I ... will be able to take advantage of this and prove that I do not live on earth for nothing.

To be convinced of the correctness of both statements, it is enough to recall that the prototype of Professor Dowell was the author of the book on the animated head, A. Belyaev, who was seriously ill with bone tuberculosis, and therefore deprived of the ability to move. Or, following the example of Pollyanna, briefly blindfold yourself with a handkerchief to feel what blind people experience. I believe that after this, many everyday difficulties, both real and far-fetched, such as our lack of those values ​​strongly promoted by modern mass culture, such as a stuffed wallet, summer cottages in the Canary Islands, expensive clothes and foreign cars, will seem like things, at best, secondary. Because, as R. Burns once wisely joked:

“Those who have what they have, sometimes they cannot eat,
And others can eat, but sit without bread.
And here we have what we have, but at the same time we have what we have, -
So, it remains for us to thank Heaven!

But that's not all. In fact, in this, using the vocabulary of E. Porter, Pollyanna's "game", was played not only by her father, the priest, but by many very wise and worthy people. To say the least, there were even Orthodox saints among them.

So, one of the "Missionary Letters" of St. Nicholas of Serbia (Velimirovich) is addressed to a simple person, a train driver. He complained about his boring job and was very sad that he could not find a better and more interesting profession. I must say that in the book "Pollyanna" there is an extremely similar story. Although it is not about a machinist, but about a doctor who is tired of his work (or, in modern terms, “professional burnt out”), whom the main character meets:

"Doctor Chilton," she said timidly. (Pollyanna - author)- It seems to me that you have the most joyful job on earth.

The Doctor looked at her in amazement.

- Joyful? Yes, wherever I go, I see only suffering around! ...

“I know,” said Pollyanna. “But you help those who are suffering. And you, of course, rejoice when they stop suffering. So it turns out that you rejoice more than all of us.

There was a lump in the doctor's throat... Now, looking into Pollyanna's eyes, he felt as if he was being blessed for further work. And he knew that neither the most difficult days nor sleepless nights would make him forget the inspiration born of this amazing girl.

Now let's compare this with what St. Nicholas of Serbia replied to his addressee: “My young friend, what better job are you looking for? Is there a better job than yours? The Apostle Peter fished, and the Apostle Paul wove mats. Think about how much more important and interesting your work is than theirs, and thank Providence for entrusting you with just such a job. Since, according to St. Nicholas, the Lord Almighty Himself is the "Engineer of the whole world", carefully leading the world, like a huge train filled with countless passengers, "to the wonderful terminus" - the Kingdom of Heaven. Therefore, driving trains is not only an important and responsible, but also an extremely honorable thing. And it is worth rejoicing that the Lord entrusted it not to someone else, but to you.

And here is another book - "The Spiritual Alphabet", written much earlier, in the 18th century, by another Orthodox saint - Metropolitan Dimitry of Rostov. In the preface to it, the word "joy" occurs in every line. According to Saint Demetrius, we have many reasons to “rejoice in the Lord and give His praise.” For example, for the fact that He created us in His image and likeness, “not a beast, and not a whale, or any other animal, but a man, a rational creature”, endowed with an immortal soul and free will. “Rejoice in the Lord and give thanks to Him, as if ... he constantly looks after your soul: he protects you, preserves you, ... grants you strength, health, ... admonishes you, enlightens you for all good deeds, all righteous and wise works about you. " And the fact that we are not pagans or heretics, but Orthodox is an honor and mercy that God has honored us with. This world, created by Him for us, and the Sacrifice of God the Son on the Cross “for our sake and ours for the sake of salvation”, and the fact that the Lord is long-suffering for us, waiting for our repentance and conversion, and, finally, the eternal joy prepared for us from Him” small for the sake of some pleasing” is also a reason for joy, and one that, in contrast to the imaginary pleasures of the world, to which people so strive, does not “perish soon”, but “abides forever”.

In conclusion, let us turn to the "Ancient Patericon" - a collection of stories about the holy fathers of the 4th - 5th centuries. It is there that you can find a story about two monks who committed the same sin and suffered the same penance for it. However, those who reacted to what happened were exactly the opposite. One of them, bursting into tears, incessantly mourned over his sin, recognizing it as worthy of hellish torments. The other, according to him, “thanked God that He delivered me from the impurity of this world and the future torment… and, remembering God, rejoiced.” By the way, the monastery elders admitted that the repentance of both monks is equally pleasing to the Lord.

The same book also tells about a certain homeless beggar who, in severe frost, spent the night on the street under a matting. But he consoled himself with the fact that, although he was poor, he was free, unlike some disgraced nobles or rich people sitting in prison in chains. And in this he is like a king.

When comparing all these texts and the dilogy about “Pollyanna”, it becomes obvious that what E. Porter called “playing for joy” is actually not a game at all, but an ancient Christian (including Orthodox) tradition, dating back not even to the sixth century but to much more ancient times. To that Book which is called the Book of books, the Bible, the Holy Scriptures. By the way, one of the Epistles of the Holy Apostle Paul located there - the Epistle to the Philippians, is often called "joyful". Just as Christ the Savior ends His Sermon on the Mount with a call to joy (Matthew 5:12). By the way, the fact that the origins of the "joyful game" should be sought precisely in the Holy Scriptures is directly stated in one of the chapters of the story "Pollyanna". Having met a pastor who has fallen into despondency because of the inability to change the behavior of his parishioners for the better, the girl casually tells him that one day, when her father was in a particularly difficult time, he decided to count how many times the Bible speaks of joy. And, having counted eight hundred such texts, he concluded that “if the Lord Himself called us to rejoice eight hundred times, it means that He wanted people to do this at least sometimes.” Not only that, it was this that helped him, despite his illnesses and poverty, despite the misunderstanding on the part of the parishioners, to maintain faith and to the end remain faithful to the path he had chosen to serve God. Thus, the stories about Pollyanna have a very deep Christian meaning. Although E. Porter managed to hide him behind the fascinating, often comical adventures of the most ordinary, in addition, a very lively and cheerful child. And skillfully clothe morality in the form of an entertaining and fun "game". About the same way as the hero of the book of another, known to each of us, American writer, M. Twain, the famous Tom Sawyer, managed to turn the punishment - whitewashing the fence - into an unusually interesting activity, for the right to participate in which his friends vying gave him their toys. Therefore, in the stories about "Pollyanna" there is neither moralizing nor the inevitable falsehood. And this is one of the main advantages of the dilogy.

In my time, I heard the opinion that books about Pollyanna teach people to come to terms with reality, taking away the desire to strive for a better life. “This is the easiest and easiest way to live,” those people said. In fact, this is not true. After all, the heroes of the dilogy, regardless of whether they are rich or poor, are in a constant and, if you think about it, quite a fierce struggle. Although it takes place primarily in their souls. Because “playing for joy” is very difficult. And not only the disabled boy Jamie, who, living in poverty, with strangers, still gives part of his food to birds and squirrels in the city park. And yet - he keeps a kind of diary: the “book of joys”, entering there all the joyful events from his life. And not Pollyanna, secretly crying from grief and loneliness in her dark attic closet ... It is difficult to do this even for completely healthy, in addition, wealthy adults - John Pendleton, Mrs. Carew, Polly Harrington - broken by their big and small misfortunes, who have lost interest to life. After all, according to a well-known expression, “the rich also cry” ... It is possible that it’s even more difficult for them to start “playing a consoling game” than, so to speak, for “little people”, for whom a piece of bread or just a kind word is already joy. And, although E. Porter does not directly say what qualities a person who decides to play the “joyful game” should have, the answer suggests itself - it is about patience and courage. It is no coincidence that the section of the Ancient Patericon, from which the above stories about the two monks and the beggar are borrowed, is entitled: "various stories that encourage us to patience and courage." And both of these qualities, as you know, are among the Christian virtues.

It must be said that E. Porter in the dilogy about Pollyanna deliberately avoids touching on, so to speak, "social topics." They are only touched upon in passing. And for the most part, the characters in both stories (like E. Porter herself, who was the wife of a businessman) are, so to speak, wealthy, or even rich people. Even the orphan boy Jimmy Bean eventually turns out to be not just a rootless tramp, but the nephew of a rich and noble lady, Mrs. Carew. And the heroine, who asked herself the question of how to arrange so that there would be no "rich" and "poor" in the world, adults simply and clearly explain that this is impossible, because then the "balance" in society will be upset. This is, though bitter, but true. After all, the inspired words of the revolutionary anthem “we are ours, we will build a new world, whoever was nothing will become everything” in fact most often come down to the banal “rob the loot”. And the victims of this are, first of all, ordinary people.

But E. Porter's books give hope that the world can still be changed for the better. Only in this case, one must begin with oneself, with one's own soul. And, above all, to learn the most difficult thing - to see in people the best that is in them. Even if it is almost impossible to discern him behind coldness and malice… Or, in the well-known words of the righteous John of Kronstadt, to be able: “to love every person, despite his fall into sin.” For, "sins are sins, but the basis in man is one - the image of God." It is precisely this quality - to see in every person not bad, but above all, good, that the main character of E. Porter - Pollyanna is endowed with. And that is why she is able to ignore human hostility, cruelty and anger. More precisely, that is why she remains undefeated by them. And where it is time for others to fall into despair, she rejoices. How joyful both John Pendleton and Mrs. Carew find when they begin not just, so to speak, to donate money "for the poor", but learn to see them as people equal to themselves. That is, love them.

In the story "Pollyanna" there is an image with which the little heroine of the book is repeatedly associated. This is a rainbow. One of the characters in the book, John Pendleton, calls Pollyanna "a lover of rainbows" (translated by M. Batishcheva - "a rainbow girl"). Not only because, in the course of the story, wanting to distract him from thoughts about his illness, Pollyanna, with the help of pieces of crystal taken from the candlesticks, turns his dull room into a kind of fairy-tale palace, shining with all the colors of the rainbow. In the Bible book of Genesis, after the global flood, the rainbow becomes a sign of the eternal covenant between God and the earth, and “between every living soul in all flesh that is on earth” (Gen. 9, 16). In other words, the fact that the wrath of the Lord on sinning people was replaced by forgiveness and mercy. Even people who are far from faith perceive the rainbow as something that, according to the song from the movie "Eternal Call", "triumphs over the storm", instilling joy and hope in those who see it. How Pollyanna instills them in people.

I must say that the little heroine of E. Porter's books really managed to change for the better, although not the world, but the town of Beldingsville, teaching its inhabitants her "game". Of course, the reader has the right to say that this is possible only in books. However, in real life, even one single person can do a lot. And, both good and bad. And here someone will remember the well-known words of St. Seraphim of Sarov: “Acquire the spirit of peace and thousands around you will be saved.” And someone will come to mind the opposite example - the fable of I.A. Krylov "The Writer and the Robber", about a certain "glory-covered writer", which met at all times, and now in particular, and who

“... the thin one poured poison in his creations,
instilled unbelief, rooted debauchery ... "

in the end, causing the world much more harm than the most terrible robber. Because, as the hellish monster, the “angry Megara”, explains to this writer, over time:

“The poison of your creations not only does not weaken,
But, spilling, century after century, it flies ...
... And how many more will be born in the future
From your books in the world of evil!

... It has already been said that in 2013 it will be one hundred years since the writing of the story "Pollyanna". And, although in addition to her, Eleanor Porter wrote 14 more novels and four volumes of short stories, in the memory of readers she remained precisely “the author of Pollyanna”. That is exactly what was said about her in an obituary printed in 1920 in the New York Times: “The author of Pollyanna has died. But, according to the well-known words of B. Shergin, "death will not take everything - it will only take its own." The Pollyanna stories outlived their author by almost a century. And, unlike the depraved books written by the hero of Krylov's fable, they still continue to fulfill their good, Christian mission, teaching people joy, instilling hope in them. As did their heroine - a girl with a strange name Pollyanna.

Every adult should be 2 hours a day for a child, so said one person very close to me. He has been gone for a long time, but I remember him cheerful, optimistic, albeit far from young, but never losing presence of mind. When I was sad and it seemed that my childhood problems were insoluble, he winked slyly at me and said: let's break through, baby, what are our years)))

Father taught the little daughter play for joy

Christ also tells us to be like children. This does not mean walking around with a stupid expression on your face and inadequately reacting to events around you, it means seeing the world through the prism of childish immediacy and pure perception of the world.

The gardener tells Polianna about dead mother

People at any age need faith that everything will be fine, no matter the situation. It is adults who compose fairy tales. Antoine de Saint-Exupery wrote his "little prince", Lewis Carroll came up with the dreamer Alice, and Astrid Lindrgren fictional friend of Carlson. Well, Eleanor Porter told us a wonderful story about the life of a little girl, Pollyanna. The novel was filmed three times: in 1920 with Mary Pickford in the title role, in 1960 with Hayley Mills and in 2003 in the UK. The main role was played by Georgina Terry, this film was the only one in her acting career.

Georgina Terry, the performer of the role of Polianna, the only role in the film career of the now 22-year-old girl

Plot of the film

Polianna, having lost her parents, ends up in the house of her dead mother's sister, Aunt Polly, who took the orphan out of a sense of duty and settled her in the darkest, sparsely furnished and gloomy room in the attic. But the strict woman, accustomed to control everything and not show emotions, did not yet know what a miracle the Lord had sent down to her in the form of a little niece.

Polianna changed her aunt's life Polly for the better

The father often played the game with his daughter “Learn to rejoice and look for the good in everything”. Of course, you can’t teach anyone to be happy, but you can give a person the opportunity to see the situation in a completely different way. unexpected light. And the girl, with childish spontaneity, transferred her game to the whole village.

The eternally ill Mrs. could not resist the charm and spontaneity of the little neighbor and got out of bed, no longer feeling sorry for herself))

At first, she annoyed many, they did not understand her, ignored her, and even asked her to leave. But once infected with the kindness virus, the inhabitants realized that there was no antidote against it. Yes, it turned out to be unnecessary.

Polianna takes an active part in the fate of all the villagers

The village came to life, the little girl-sun was able to change the usual gloomy world, lit up every corner with her presence, warmed literally all the inhabitants with her warmth: she raised bedridden patients from bed, helped care for children from poor neighborhoods, took care of homeless animals, went to meetings of the trustee advice, arranged the fate of lovers, never passed by someone else's grief and always tried to help.

Mr. Pendlington, who never greeted a polite girl, it is to her that he owes his salvation

For which they fell in love with her, including an elderly traveler - Mr. Pendleton, a gloomy taciturn man. He liked the girl so much that he decided to adopt Polianna and make her the heir to his entire fortune. But the little heroine, having made the right decision that there are those who need a cozy home, love and help more than she, persuaded the old grumbler adopt another round orphan who was completely on the street.

Polianna suits the fate of the boy - round orphan

One day, trouble overtook Polianna herself and she turned out to be bedridden. The residents, infected with the virus of empathy for their neighbor, supported the girl not only morally, but also financially, and she got back on her feet. She had a great reason to rejoice: her illness was the catalyst for the rekindled relationship between her Aunt Polly and Dr. Ford. Two lovers, once parted, became hostages of unforgiven insults and unspoken desires. And only a common misfortune could make them become happy.

Doctor doesn't give up trying to help Pollyanna to her feet. Goodness returned with gratitude and blessings to sunny girl

The ability to rejoice is a rare gift. Many people, having found themselves in a difficult situation, are sure that they are the worst, not wanting to see the obvious: happiness lives in the head and in the heart. A little freckled firefly girl with her own life showed an example of biblical truth: If you want to change the world, start with yourself.

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