Ladies' Hairdresser: Analysis of Major Characters

Author: I. Grekova

First published: Damskii master, 1963 (English translation, 1973)

Genre: Novella

Locale: A large, provincial Russian city

Plot: Social realism

Time: The 1960's

Professor Marya Vladimirovna Kovaleva (vlah-dih-MIHrov-nah koh-VAH-lyeh-vah), the director of a computer institute. A single, middle-aged woman with two sons, she is a sympathetic and competent professional who finds time to pursue her own mathematical research, to organize social and cultural events, and to run the household. An intellectual, she reads English novels for recreation. Her decision to do something about her appearance takes her to a hairdressing salon, where she makes the acquaintance of an unusual hairdresser whose nonconformist attitudes arouse her curiosity and bring her back for regular visits.

Vitaly Plavnikov (vih-TAH-lee PLAV-nih-kov), a trainee hairdresser. The twenty-year-old Vitaly stands out because of his unconventional appearance and ideas, and because of his individualism in a society that stresses conformity. Reared partly in a children's home, he never finished high school as a consequence of his father's alcoholism and his stepmother's strong religious beliefs. He wants eventually, however, to go to college to study dialectical materialism. Toward this end, he has devised a rigorous plan for his own intellectual development. He is interested in Marya's advice and suggestions, so he becomes her regular hairdresser. His unusual personality is echoed in his somewhat wild appearance (he has a tuft of hair sticking up on his head), as well as in the seriousness he brings to his work. Unlike the authorities, who view hair-dressing as a production-line activity, Vitaly views his job as a form of art and studies equipment, fashions, and heads with cool detachment. His attitudes lead to conflict with the authorities, who frown on his capricious treatment of clients and eventually force him to change occupations.

Galya, Marya's inefficient secretary. Marya tolerates Galya's unprofessional behavior because she has a soft spot for the attractive twenty-three-year-old and thinks of her almost as a daughter. Galya, with long, light-chestnut hair, blue eyes, a slim waist, and plump legs, is always immaculately dressed and cuts a striking appearance. She is so impressed by Marya's new hairstyle that she asks for the name of the hair-dresser. Marya is happy to oblige; Galya thus meets (and eventually falls in love with) Vitaly.

Kolya and Kostya, Marya's two sons. The twenty-two-year-old Kolya is a college senior, majoring in automation, whereas his younger brother, Kostya, a twenty-year-old sophomore, majors in computing. They live with their mother, adding to her stressful life by living, as Marya puts it, like pigs. They consume all the food in the refrigerator and create a mess but compensate with their humor and occasional thoughtful gestures.

Vyacheslav Nikolaevich Lebedev (VYA-cheh-slahv nih-koh-LA-yeh-vihch LEH-beh-dehv), Marya's deputy director. This garrulous, effeminate older man (his last name is derived from “swan”) is unintentionally a hindrance to Marya's work, as his infuriating manner and appearance cause everyone to refuse granting anything for which he asks.