Short Fiction · Character

Yarmola

A peasant servant with a hunter's patience and a scholar's stubborn hope, Yarmola begs only to sign his own name and cannot master the alphabet's simplest trick.

supporting

Also known as II Yarmola, Yarmola Popruzhuk

First appearance: the witch

As a supporting figure in Short Fiction, Yarmola is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

The gamekeeper, servant, and cook; the narrator attempts to teach him to write his name, revealing his hidden public spirit and the difficulty of literacy.

In the storyIOpen this moment free

See Yarmola in I Book page

Free preview opens at this moment — character cards, Character Web, and themes sit beside the text as you read.

Yarmola serves the narrator of 'The Witch' as servant, hunting companion, and unwitting comic foil, his lean bearded face betraying agonies of thought over letters that refuse to resolve into words. His longing for literacy is real and touching, yet he can spend ten minutes on 'ma' and forget it entirely, while his single-barrelled gun and eager tracking of hares reveal a quieter competence. His patient, baffled devotion grounds the story's early domestic scenes and gives the narrator's remote theorizing a human counterweight.

Continue beside the text

The fuller portrait of Yarmola sits in Reading Lens — open the free preview to keep reading with notes on the page.

See Yarmola in the witch

Character Web

7 connections

A slice of how Yarmola sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Other

Character groups

Diverse Ensemble of Characters
Spies, Priests, and Performers
Witches and Fishermen
Biblical and Romantic Figures
Officers and Children

+2 more in the full Character Web

Open in reader

Narrative arc

Story tension across the book.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This is the story's dramatic climax because Vera Nikolayevna, who has previously dismissed Zheltkov’s love as…

Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.

Follow the arc while reading

In the story

Yarmola appears across 12 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

I
II
III
IV
VI
VII
VIII
IX
+4 more

I
The gamekeeper, servant, and cook; the narrator attempts to teach him to write his name, revealing his hidden public spirit and the difficulty of literacy.
II
The forester and narrator's companion, who reluctantly shares local superstitions about a witch and strongly opposes the narrator's plan to visit her.
III
The narrator's servant, who silently tracks his movements and reproaches him for visiting the witch.
IV
Mentioned indirectly as part of the village; not directly present in this chapter.
VI
Yarmola's silent animosity grows as he observes the narrator's visits to Olyessia, leading to the end of their reading lessons and hunting trips.
VII
Not present in this chapter.
VIII
Announces the sergeant's arrival with a gloomy tone, reflecting his recent hostility.
IX
Yarmola appears in the narrator's feverish dreams as a participant in an abstract dispute.
XI
Mentioned indirectly as part of the narrator's official business at Perebrod; not directly present.
XII
Yarmola rudely informs the narrator of the bailiff's arrival and later leads the horse away.
XIV
Warns the narrator of the villagers' anger and urges him to leave Perebrod for his own safety.
The Murderer
The workman Iazykant (Yarmola) who initially reports the cat's injury, brings the rifle, and ultimately ends the cat's suffering with disgust at the narrator's actions.

Chapter companion notes

Spoil-light check-ins for Yarmola unlock in the free preview.

See Yarmola in the witch

See Yarmola in I