Katarynka

Description

Katarynka is divided into two parts. The first part presents the characters' biographies, the second – introduces the action.

In the first part Prus makes a detailed description of the main character, Mr. Tomasz. He is a middle-aged gentelman living in Warsaw, next to the Old Town. He is always neatly dressed and is endowed with a good sense of taste. Around midday, Mr Tomasz walks from Krasiński Square to Senatorska Street. He has been doing so for 30 years. As a young man, Tomasz was a spontaneous and sociable attorney. He dedicated his days to his two favourtie pastimes - work and women. Although he had many lady friends, he never married. Instead, he grew increasingly interested in high culture. At the beginning of the story, Mr. Tomasz has already retired and is still alone. His apartment holds an impressive collection of art and furniture, he is very rich, but has no women friends.

Mr. Tomasz, however, has one aversion. He can't stand the sound of barrel organs. The antipathy reaches the absurd – he pays the watchman to keep the hated organ-grinders out of his courtyard.

The action starts when Mr. Tomasz discovers a blind eight-year-old girl has moved into the flat opposite Mr Tomasz’s, with her mother and her friend. Mr. Tomas feels attracted to the little girl by her offbeat behaviour. Only then does he realise she is blind. The child’s affliction shocks Mr Tomasz and he decides to get closer to her and to her mother.

Thereafter the author shifts his narratio to describe the life of the girl and her mother after the girl lost her eyesight. It is a description of fairly happy moments spent in their old flat.

One day, the man is very busy working and ignores his daily routines, even forgetting to instruct the new watchman not to let organ-grinders into the courtyard. He is very upset hearing sounds of a barrel-organ. But when he gets up to chase the barrel-grider away, he sees the little girl in the opposite window enjoying the metallic tones of the music. It turns out the girl enjoys listening to the melodies played by the barrel-grinders. Mr. Tomasz finds himself yielding to her charm and in turn, to the barrel organ music. This time, he pays the caretaker to let in organ-grinders everyday. He also decides to support the girl's medical treatment. In the final scene, Mr. Tomasz sets out to his eye surgeon with a new life-goal in mind- helping the little girl and her mother.

Characters