The Cranes Are Flying Research Papers

During the thaw under Khrushchev, censorship of the arts relaxed. The film The Cranes Are Flying is a result of this thaw. It explored Soviet home life during World War II—a topic that had been highly ‘Stalinized’ previously. Unlike the earlier propaganda-like films under Stalin, The Cranes Are Flying showed a more realistic view of what the people faced. Out of all the characters, Veronika is shown to have suffered the most. Despite the trauma she experienced, Veronika remains a good person and the hero of the story.
In the beginning, Veronika is in a devoted and loving relationship with Boris. Boris patriotically volunteers to fight in the war. Veronika misses her chance to say goodbye and is clearly distressed by this. Boris’s departure
In the next air raid scene, Veronika refuses to go to a shelter. Veronika is emotionally fragile—Mark senses this and takes advantage of her. He tells her that he loves her, and it is heavily implied that he raped her. He may love the idea of her, but he does not truly love or care for her. Mark doesn’t truly know her like Boris did. Boris treated her kindly and with love, while Mark is more concerned with owning and controlling her. This trauma further broke Veronika’s spirit and shamed her. As Mark tells the family that the two would marry, Veronika looks as though she is dissociated from the situation. She does not speak or show emotion to anyone. The rest of the family is upset by the perceived slight to Boris. They could have refused to allow the marriage to proceed, but instead blame Veronika for being unfaithful. This marriage is unhappy for Veronika. The whole family unit is sent to live communally with other families as the war continues. Veronika continues to help the war effort by working with the soldiers in the hospital. One soldier becomes upset after receiving news that his girlfriend was unfaithful while he was at war. As Veronika listens, Fyodor tells the soldier “She's not worth a dime if she gave up a handsome soldier like this, a real hero for a puny draft-dodger! ... And whatever she's got, she deserves it! … Killing her would be too good
Fyodor also reveals the truth about Mark. Earlier in the movie, Mark told Veronika that the talented people would not be sent to war. This sounds entitled—his ability to play the piano means he won’t do his duty like everyone else. Mark was actually paying to avoid the war. This would be very hard for Veronika to hear, because the man she loved had volunteered to fight while Mark had lied and paid to avoid it. Veronika then learns from Harmonica Guy that Boris was killed—he didn’t realize who he was talking to and had shared the news rather insensitively. She still has hope that Boris could be alive, until she speaks with Stepan when the war is over. Even though she is heartbroken and devastated by the news, she still shares all her flowers with the people. Veronika is patriotic and supports and cares for her fellow