A red handkerchief (symbol)
A little “red handkerchief” that was often kept in “breast pocket” was a symbol of loyalty to the Revolution. That was how the supporters and members of the Communist Party could recognize each other even in a crowd. There were also “red kerchiefs” and “trim, military leather jackets” which students like to wear. One could assume and – probably – wouldn’t be mistaken that any attire of a red color was symbolic.
The Little Apple (allegory)
“The Song of the Little Apple” is allegory of a civil war. The Russian Empire was in agony. The Red Army, the White Army, anarchists, and – of course – various national movements for independence (Finland, Estonia, Ukraine etc.) became the death of the state which was often called the prison of the peoples. Although “no one knew what the little apple was,” “everyone understood” the meaning, fir it was “the song of revolution, written on no banner, but in every weary throat.” The little apple that was “rolling” in an unknown direction stood for the country which was divided by the civil war and numerous ethnical conflicts and – consequently – was heading towards the uncertain future.
A life (motif)
What is the most valuable thing any human being – and not only human – can possess? The answer is a life. For Kira, to live is the highest pleasure, the most important task and the only one duty of a person. She knows “life,” she is “life”, but it is not her fault that the country she is forced to live in is always ready to “sacrifice the few who know life” for the benefit of “masses.”
