This file contains a comprehensive study resource based on Alexander Pushkin’s “The Queen of Spades”, designed for A-Level students, adult learners, and teachers of Russian literature. Included in the document: * biographical and historical-literary background; * history of the story’s creation; * summary and plot analysis; * detailed character descriptions (Hermann, the Countess, Liza, Tomsky, etc.); * thematic and symbolic analysis (fate, greed, gambling, moral downfall, mysticism); 30 discuss