Autumn Flowers (Kuprin)

Disclaimer: This summary was generated by AI, so it may contain errors.

Aleksandr Kuprin

Autumn Flowers

Summary of the Short Story

Microsummary: A woman secretly left her former lover after a brief reunion, fearing their past love would be replaced by a false, strained relationship, and wrote him a heartfelt letter explaining her decision.

A woman wrote a letter to her former lover, explaining that she had left town without seeing him as planned. She described her life in Petersburg society and how she was drawn to him by memories of their past love. They had met again after years of separation, but their reunion was strained and awkward. They tried to recapture their past happiness, but it was impossible.

👩🏻

The Narrator (Z) — narrator; married woman; nostalgic, thoughtful, and cautious.

🧔🏻

The Angry Friend — narrator's former lover; manly, more confident, and nostalgic.

They spent an evening together, reminiscing about their past love and the beautiful moments they had shared. However, they both realized that their old love was dead and could not be revived.

Yes, our old days are dead. …

The woman decided to leave town to avoid falling into a false and destructive relationship with her former lover.

In her letter, she expressed her belief that their brief meeting would eventually become a tender, sweet, and poignant memory for both of them. She ended the letter by kissing him on his clever, beautiful eyes.