"The Key Without the Right of Transfer" by Georgy Polonsky, summary Automatic translate

Written in 1975, the novel draws attention to its acute generational conflict, where strict school regulations clash with the vibrant, innovative thinking of young people. The author describes the fine line between pedagogical authoritarianism and genuine trust, demonstrating the difficulties of finding common ground between adults and children. The novella was successfully adapted for the screen by director Dinara Asanova in 1976. The film of the same name won the Special Jury Prize at the 10th Moscow International Film Festival and the Best Director award at the All-Union Film Festival in Riga.

The new director and the tenth "B"

Events unfold around the appointment of a new school principal. Retired military man Kirill Alekseevich Nazarov steps into the school. Vice Principal Olga Denisovna immediately brings him up to speed on current affairs. The previous principal, the beloved Serafima Osipovna, known among the students as "Baba Sima," is losing her sight and resigning. Nazarov takes over the principal’s office, noticing an abandoned flip calendar with a note about the chemistry class level. He begins to tour the classrooms, surveying the surroundings and observing the teachers.

Marina Maksimovna, a young literature teacher, teaches a class in the tenth grade, Class B. She offers the students extremely revealing essay topics that require personal reflection. The students react in different ways. Thoughtful Alyosha Smorodin writes his paper, occasionally glancing at the teacher. Sharp-tongued Zhenya Adamyan discusses the difficulty of the assignments. Withdrawn Sasha Maidanov refuses to answer questions, considering them unnecessary. Maidanov crumples up the sheets of paper and heads for the exit. In the hallway, he gets into an argument with Smorodin. The aggressive teenager breaks Alyosha’s glasses. Yulia Bayushkina, who has enormous influence over Sasha, puts the bully down with one icy remark.

Nazarov runs into his chemistry teacher, Emma Pavlovna. The young woman complains about a difficult class and Adamyan’s constant ridicule. The principal advises her to answer the student’s tricky questions directly, rather than veering off topic. Later, Nazarov drops by Marina Maksimovna’s class and formally introduces himself to the class. He announces that he will be teaching military training and social studies. Nazarov then works in the library, where he finds a mountain of methodological literature. Marina Maksimovna stops by to borrow a book by Herzen. They have a heated exchange. An interesting detail is revealed: the principal had previously served on the committee that deprived Marina’s sculptor husband of his studio. The verbal altercation brings the young woman to tears.

Birthday and recording on tape

Sunday arrives, Yulia Bayushkina’s birthday. She’s turning seventeen. That morning, her parents give her a portable tape recorder. Yulia refuses to celebrate at home with the adult guests her mother has invited. She calls Maidanov and runs off to her classmates. Marina Maksimovna, along with her young son Anton and the others, heads out of town. They’re heading to Blintsovo, to Sasha Maidanov’s dacha. The teacher is trying to mend fences with him and finally get him out of the criminal world.

The out-of-town trip is a joyful one. The schoolchildren go skiing on Maidan skis, fool around in the fluffy snow, and recite poetry. Maidan thaws, shows concern, and finds common ground with little Anton. That evening, the boys drink tea by the heated stove and have a frank conversation with the teacher. Yulia discreetly activates the record button on her new tape recorder. The students’ bold arguments are captured on tape. The students criticize the weak-willed chemistry teacher, Emma Pavlovna, whom they call "Golgotha" behind their backs. The boys also make fun of the soldierly ways of the new principal, Nazarov. Marina Maksimovna answers the teenagers honestly, without trying to smooth things over for the sake of artificial subordination.

Late that evening, the boys walk Marina Maksimovna home. The phone rings. Yulia’s mother, Klavdiya Petrovna Bayushkina, starts a scene right there on the line. She’s upset by the disruption of their family gathering. She blames Marina for turning her daughter against the family. Frustrated, Yulia refuses to go to her parents’ house. The next day, Nazarov teaches a military training lesson. He sternly questions Smorodin about road signs and how to assemble a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Alyosha cites poor eyesight. The principal harshly suppresses the young man’s plans to become a "perpetual white-ticket holder."

Conflict with parents and theft

During literature class, Class 10B, led by Marina Maksimovna, insists on going to the principal’s office. They want to watch the television play "Mozart and Salieri" on Channel 2. Nazarov gives up his office to the students. At that moment, Klavdiya Petrovna Bayushkina and Irina Ivanovna Smorodina appear in the lobby. The mothers demand an audience. Nazarov leads them to the teachers’ lounge, where Olga Denisovna is also present. Smorodina’s mother quickly becomes embarrassed and leaves. Bayushkina brings a yellow men’s briefcase with a tape recorder hidden inside. She accuses the literature teacher of corrupting minds.

Klavdiya Petrovna starts the tape recording. Nazarov and Olga Denisovna listen to the freewheeling speeches of Class 10B. The head teacher is horrified that the teachers’ authority is being discussed so brazenly. Nazarov frowns, takes the tape recorder from Bayushkina, and promises to look into the matter. He hides the confiscated device in his briefcase. Meanwhile, Emma Pavlovna loses her temper in chemistry class and throws Adamyan out of class for an innocent question about substitution reactions. Nazarov witnesses this scene.

The students learn of Yulia’s mother’s vile act. Adamyan and Maidanov decide to save their beloved teacher from impending trouble. The boys devise a daring plan. Zhenya distracts secretary Alina with conversation in the hallway. Sasha sneaks into Nazarov’s office and steals a tape recorder from his yellow briefcase. Maidanov replaces the missing tape recorder with a heavy volume of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Later, the boys attempt to smuggle the device out of the building. They are intercepted in the radio room by electrical engineering teacher Konstantin Mishin. He takes the tape recorder for a school party.

The teachers are organizing a small banquet in the cafeteria. Nazarov sits at the set table with the rest of the staff. Physicist Sumarokov proposes a toast in memory of the former headmistress, Serafima Osipovna. Soon, the conversation at the table escalates into a heated debate about educational methods. Olga Denisovna condemns Marina Maximovna for her familiarity. She demands a strict distance be maintained between the teacher and the class, accusing her of creating a "tavern" for the students. Marina fiercely defends the right to genuine human interaction. The teacher refuses to be a heartless "person in a case" and leaves the cafeteria. Nazarov notices the tape recorder confiscated from the students on the table.

Frank conversation and the finale

Late in the evening, Nazarov arrives at Marina Maksimovna’s home. The director brings the ill-fated device with him. He sits down at the table and tells Marina a painful story. It turns out that his own teenage daughter, Nadya, recently locked her grandmother in the bathroom. The girl did this so that the elderly peasant woman wouldn’t interfere with her communication with her glamorous friend. Kirill Alekseevich is deeply affected by this cynical cruelty.

Nazarov admits he’s searching for the right ways to cultivate humaneness. He asks Marina point-blank whether her poetry and frank conversations can provide a 100% guarantee against such vile behavior. The teacher answers affirmatively, though she admits to some doubts. The principal sees her sincerity. Nazarov presses the erase button on the tape recorder, permanently deleting the incriminating recording, saving the reputations of Marina and her students.

Students are freezing outside Marina Maksimovna’s house. Smorodin, Adamyan, Maidanov, Kolchin, and Yulia Bayushkina are keeping watch in the snowy darkness, ready to protect their teacher from the wrath of their superiors. Nazarov emerges from the front door. He advises Yulia to return the empty tape recorder to her mother. A taxi carrying Yulia’s parents pulls up. The Bayushkins take their daughter home. The conflict is completely resolved, and the students realize that the stern principal turned out to be a deeply compassionate and fair person.