Iermola

"Iermola" by Józef Ignacy Kraszewski is a story set in 19th-century Wolhynian Poland, and it tells about Iermola, an aging, poor servant. The story shows the uncomplicated lives and old ways of the local folk, putting their calm, country life next to the bigger changes happening in the outside world. When Iermola finds an abandoned baby in the woods, his humble life is changed forever. The book starts by showing the countryside, complete with its people, customs, and quiet peacefulness despite them being poor. When Iermola finds the baby, he feels like he needs to help, even though he is limited in what he can do, and this event happens alongside the regular happenings of the village, showing hard-to-see human relationships set among simple rural life.