What is unique about Gorky’s hero and the traditions of which of his predecessors does Gorky continue when creating his heroes?
Read the text fragment below and complete tasks B1-B7; C1-C2.
Luke (thoughtfully, to Bubnov). Here... you say - it’s true... It’s true - it’s not always a person’s illness... you can’t always cure a soul with the truth... There was approximately such a case: I knew one person who went to the righteous land believed...
Bubnov.
What?
Luke. To the righteous land. There must, he said, be a righteous land in the world... in that land, they say, special people inhabit... good people! They respect each other, they simply help each other... and everything is nice and good with them! And so the man kept getting ready to go... to look for this righteous land. He was poor, his life was bad... and when it was so difficult for him that he could even lie down and die, he did not lose his spirit, and everything happened, he only grinned and said: “Nothing! I'll be patient! I’ll wait a few more... and then I’ll give up this whole life and go to the righteous land...” He had only one joy - this land...
Ash. Well? Are you going?
Bubnov.
Where? Ho-ho! Luke. And to this place - it was in Siberia - they sent an exile, a scientist... with books, with plans, he is a scientist, and with all sorts of things... The man says to the scientist: “Show me, do me a favor “Where is the righteous land and how is the road there?” Now this scientist opened his books, laid out his plans... he looked and looked - there was no righteous land anywhere! Everything is true, all the lands are shown, but the righteous one is not!.. Ash (softly)
. Well? No?
Bubnov laughs. Natasha. And after that he went home - and hanged himself!.. Everyone is silent. Luka, smiling, looks at Ash and Natasha.
M. Gorky “At the Bottom”
Indicate the genre of the work from which the fragment is taken.
Explanation.
The fragment is taken from the drama. Let's give a definition.
Drama is one of the main types of fiction. In the broad sense of the word, drama is any literary work written in the form of a conversation between the characters, without the author’s speech.
M. Gorky's play “At the Bottom” reflects the life of people who have sunk to the bottom of their lives, but the problem of the work is that the “bottom” is different for each of the characters.
Answer: drama.
Veronica Likhacheva 18.01.2015 16:52
Specify!GENRE! the work from which the fragment is taken.
Fragment taken from!DRAMA!. Let's give a definition.
Drama is one of the main!KINDS! fiction.
IN!PLAY! M. Gorky's "At the Bottom" reflects the lives of people...
__________________________________
Why then is this not a comedy? And why not a play?
Tatiana Statsenko
Drama is a word that has several meanings. Drama is not only a genre of literature, but also a literary (dramatic), stage and cinematic genre. In terms of literary genre, the play “At the Bottom” is a drama. Drama is characterized by plot-driven and conflict-ridden action.
PLAY (French piece - “thing”, “piece”) - as a dramatic term is used for those works that are difficult to attribute to any of the genres already canonized by the theory. Being the most general, universal designation of dramatic works and having the ability to combine all dramatic genres, the play leveled each of them and thereby lost its individual properties. Thus, the development of dramaturgy does not lead to the consolidation of the play as a genre, but, on the contrary, to the creation of a whole series of new genres that have a clear individual outline and are devoid of the amorphousness and hybridity that constitute the essence of the play.
The fragment depicts an acute clash of positions between the heroes. What is such a collision called in the work?
Explanation.
Such a clash in a work is called a conflict. Let's give a definition.
Conflict is a disagreement, a clash that underlies the struggle of the characters in a work of art (drama, story, story, poem, etc.).
Answer: conflict
Establish a correspondence between the three main characters appearing in this fragment and their occupation.
| A | B | IN |
Explanation.
Luke is a very ambiguous character in the play. This is an elderly wanderer who appears at the shelter for a while. L. consoles people. But how can one console these people who have been thrown out of life, who have sunk to the bottom of life? L. resorts to lies. But this is a white lie. Dying Anna, who has nothing good to remember in life, L. says that in the next world she will be very happy. Prostitute Nastya tells everyone that there was great love in her life. In response, everyone laughs. But Luke says that if she believes, then she really had this love. Pepla L. persuades the thief Vaska to go to Siberia, because there he can work honestly. L. tells the alcoholic Actor about a free hospital where he is treated for drunkenness. He persuades him to prepare for treatment, to pull himself together. Justifying the need to feel sorry for a person, L. tells how he once felt sorry for robbers and how he saved them. Otherwise they would have killed him and perished in hard labor. L. also tells a parable about the “righteous land.” One poor man believed in the existence of such a land. But the scientist didn’t have it on the map. The man became disillusioned with everything and hanged himself. So L. wants to show the need for pity and hope for every person. L. disappears unexpectedly during the ensuing fight, when Ash kills Kostylev. Such a disappearance is perceived ambiguously. In the last act, the night shelters remember L., expressing different points of view on the comforting lie.
Bubnov is a cap-maker, one of the inhabitants of the shelter. We learn that in the past he was the owner of a dye shop. But circumstances changed, his wife got along with the master, and he had to leave in order to stay alive. Now this man has sunk to the very bottom. B.'s position is skepticism, fatalism, he always belittles a person. He is cruel and does not want to retain any good qualities in himself. There is not a drop of compassion in him. To the request of the dying Anna to behave more quietly, he replies: “noise is not a hindrance to death...”. He believes that “all people on earth are superfluous...”. From B.’s point of view, it is at the absolute bottom of life that the true essence of a person is exposed, the layers of civilized, cultural life fall away from him: “... everything faded away, only one naked man remained.” Apparently, by doing this he wants to talk about the animal essence of man. B. sees in him only the low, selfish, not wanting to take into account the development of social and cultural life. In this case, one can consider his following phrase significant: “It turns out that no matter how you paint yourself on the outside, everything will be erased... everything will be erased, yes!” Having sunk to the very bottom of life, B. no longer believes in man; he takes a passive, not only external, but also internal position.
Ash is an inhabitant of the shelter, a hereditary thief. P. is the lover of the hostel owner’s wife, Vasilisa. This is a very cruel woman who constantly pushes him to steal. But P. was tired of such a life. He wants to become an honest person. He falls in love with Vasilisa's sister Natasha, a good girl, a victim of the masters of life. P. confesses his love to the girl and calls her to leave together. Luka encourages P. to go to work in Siberia. There P. wants to become decent and honest. Vasilisa is jealous of P., locks her at home and beats Natasha. Later, in the ensuing fight, P. kills Kostylev. We understand that now he has a direct path to prison or hard labor.
Answer: 432
Establish a correspondence between the three main characters appearing in this fragment and their future fate.
Write down the numbers in your answer, arranging them in the order corresponding to the letters:
| A | B | IN |
Explanation.
A−2: Luka suddenly disappears from the shelter.
Luka disappears unexpectedly during the ensuing fight, when Ash kills Kostylev. Such a disappearance is perceived ambiguously. In the last act, the night shelters remember L., expressing different points of view on the comforting lie.
B−1: Bubnov would like to have a free tavern.
B−4: Ash kills the owner of the shelter.
He falls in love with Vasilisa’s sister, Natasha, a good girl, a victim of the masters of life. P. confesses his love to the girl and calls her to leave together. Luka encourages P. to go to work in Siberia. There P. wants to become decent and honest. Vasilisa is jealous of P., locks her at home and beats Natasha. Later, in the ensuing fight, P. kills Kostylev. We understand that now he has a direct path to prison or hard labor.
Answer: 214
In his speech, Luke talks about a hero who does not participate in the action. What is such a character called in literary criticism?
Explanation.
Such a character is called off-stage. Let's give a definition.
An off-stage character is a character who is mentioned in the speeches of characters on stage, but does not appear on stage himself. Off-stage characters are especially important for characterizing society and the people who mention them.
Answer: off-stage
When discussing the problem, the writer uses such dramatic means as question-and-answer form of presentation, Luke’s monologues, interjections (“Bubnov. Where? Ho-ho!”) and repetitions (“Luke. Show me, do me a favor, where the righteous land lies and how is the way there? "Now the scientist opened his books, laid out his plans... he looked and looked - there is no righteous land anywhere! Everything is right, all the lands are shown, but there is no righteous one!..") in the statements of the heroes who make their dialogue! more lively.
Explanation.
Gorky’s hero-night shelters have one characteristic feature - they are all “former people”, people who sank to the “bottom of life”, who had a past, but due to various circumstances, lost all of this.
The inhabitants of the bottom are very reminiscent of the “little people” of Gogol, Pushkin, Dostoevsky.
The galaxy of “little people” was opened by Pushkin’s stationmaster Samson Vyrin, and continued by Gogol’s Bashmachkin and Dostoevsky’s Marmeladov. A “little” person in literature is not only a person of low rank, without a high social status, but also a person who is lost in life, fearful of it, and has lost interest and the meaning of his existence. This is Samson Vyrin: after losing his daughter, he became an alcoholic. This is Bashmachkin: he saved up for an overcoat all his life, and when it was stolen, he died. This is Marmeladov, who tries to forget that his daughter ended up on the panel to feed his family, because he cannot feed his children and wife.
All these heroes have no future, because they are pitiful, unable to withstand circumstances, awakening pity in readers rather than respect. But Man “must be respected,” says Satin in a famous monologue. But a Man himself must make sure that he is respected and not “humiliated with pity.”
What is unique about Gorky’s hero and the traditions of which of his predecessors does Gorky continue when creating his heroes?
Luka (thoughtfully, to Bubnov). Here... you say - it’s true... It’s true - it’s not always a person’s illness... you can’t always cure a soul with the truth... There was approximately such a case: I knew one person who went to the righteous land believed... Bubnov. What? Luke. To the righteous land. There must, he said, be a righteous land in the world... in that land, they say, special people inhabit... good people! They respect each other, they simply help each other... and everything is nice and good with them! And so the man kept getting ready to go... to look for this righteous land. He was poor, his life was bad... and when it was so difficult for him that he could even lie down and die, he did not lose his spirit, and everything happened, he only grinned and said: “Nothing! I'll be patient! A few more - I’ll wait... and then - I’ll give up this whole life and - I’ll go to the righteous land...” He had only one joy - this land... Ashes. Well? Are you going? Bubnov. Where? Ho-ho! Luke. And to this place - it was in Siberia - they sent an exile, a scientist... with books, with plans, he is a scientist, and with all sorts of things... The man says to the scientist: “Show me, do me a favor “Where is the righteous land and how is the road there?” Now this scientist opened his books, laid out his plans... he looked and looked - there is no righteous land anywhere! Everything is true, all the lands are shown, but the righteous one is not!.. Ashes (quietly). Well? No?
Bubnov laughs. Natasha. Wait... well, grandpa? Luka. The man doesn’t believe... There must be, he says... look for something better! Otherwise, he says, your books and plans are of no use if there is no righteous land... The scientist is offended. My plans, he says, are the most correct, but there is no righteous land anywhere. Well, then the man got angry - how could that be? He lived and lived, endured and endured and believed everything - there is! but according to plans it turns out - no! Robbery!.. And he says to the scientist: “Oh, you... such a bastard! You are a scoundrel, not a scientist..." Yes, in his ear - once! Moreover!.. (After a pause.) And after that he went home - and hanged himself!.. Everyone is silent. Luka, smiling, looks at Ash and Natasha.M. Gorky "At the Bottom"
Show full text
The originality of Gorky's heroes is that he depicts “former”, spiritually “dead” people living at the “bottom” of life. Depicting the life of beggars, people who do not strive for anything, living in a routine, the author continues the traditions of Dostoevsky and Gogol. In the novel "Crime and Punishment" the author also describes the life of a beggar who has lost hope for a bright future for Raskolnikov. Gogol continues the tradition of Dostoevsky and describes in the story “The Overcoat” the routine life of Akaki Bashmachkin, who has no values other than his miserable job, copying papers. However, all three authors do not just narrate
What is unique about Gorky’s hero and the traditions of which of his predecessors does Gorky continue when creating his heroes?
Luka (thoughtfully, to Bubnov). Here... you say - it’s true... It’s true - it’s not always a person’s illness... you can’t always cure a soul with the truth... There was approximately such a case: I knew one person who went to the righteous land believed... Bubnov. What? Luke. To the righteous land. There must, he said, be a righteous land in the world... in that land, they say, special people inhabit... good people! They respect each other, they simply help each other... and everything is nice and good with them! And so the man kept getting ready to go... to look for this righteous land. He was poor, his life was bad... and when it was so difficult for him that he could even lie down and die, he did not lose his spirit, and everything happened, he only grinned and said: “Nothing! I'll be patient! A few more - I’ll wait... and then - I’ll give up this whole life and - I’ll go to the righteous land...” He had only one joy - this land... Ashes. Well? Are you going? Bubnov. Where? Ho-ho! Luke. And to this place - it was in Siberia - they sent an exile, a scientist... with books, with plans, he is a scientist, and with all sorts of things... The man says to the scientist: “Show me, do me a favor “Where is the righteous land and how is the road there?” Now this scientist opened his books, laid out his plans... he looked and looked - there is no righteous land anywhere! Everything is true, all the lands are shown, but the righteous one is not!.. Ashes (quietly). Well? No?
Bubnov laughs. Natasha. Wait... well, grandpa? Luka. The man doesn’t believe... There must be, he says... look for something better! Otherwise, he says, your books and plans are of no use if there is no righteous land... The scientist is offended. My plans, he says, are the most correct, but there is no righteous land anywhere. Well, then the man got angry - how could that be? He lived and lived, endured and endured and believed everything - there is! but according to plans it turns out - no! Robbery!.. And he says to the scientist: “Oh, you... such a bastard! You are a scoundrel, not a scientist..." Yes, in his ear - once! Moreover!.. (After a pause.) And after that he went home - and hanged himself!.. Everyone is silent. Luka, smiling, looks at Ash and Natasha.M. Gorky "At the Bottom"
Show full text
The originality of Gorky's heroes is that he depicts “former”, spiritually “dead” people living at the “bottom” of life. Depicting the life of beggars, people who do not strive for anything, living in a routine, the author continues the traditions of Dostoevsky and Gogol. In the novel "Crime and Punishment" the author also describes the life of a beggar who has lost hope for a bright future for Raskolnikov. Gogol continues the tradition of Dostoevsky and describes in the story “The Overcoat” the routine life of Akaki Bashmachkin, who has no values other than his miserable job, copying papers. However, all three authors do not just narrate
Romanticism as a movement in literature arose in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and became most widespread in Europe in the period from 1790 to 1830. The main idea of romanticism was the affirmation of a creative personality, and its peculiarity was the violent depiction of emotions. The main representatives of romanticism in Russia were Lermontov, Pushkin and Gorky.
Gorky's romantic mood was prompted by growing discontent in society and the expectation of change. It was thanks to the protest against “stagnation” that images of heroes who were capable of saving the people, leading them out of darkness, and showing them the right path began to appear in the writer’s head. But this path seemed completely different to Gorky, different from his usual existence; the author despised everyday life and saw salvation only in freedom from social shackles and conventions, which was reflected in his early stories.
Historically, this period of Gorky’s work coincided with the flourishing of revolutionary movements in Russia, whose views the author clearly sympathized with. He sang the image of a selfless and honest rebel, consumed not by greedy calculations, but by romantic aspirations to change the world for the better and destroy an unjust system. Also, in his works of that time, a craving for freedom and unrealistic ideals was revealed, because the writer had not yet seen the changes, but only had a presentiment of them. When dreams of a new social system took on real shape, his work transformed into socialist realism.
Main features
The main feature of romanticism in Gorky’s work is a clear division of characters into bad and good, that is, there are no complex personalities, a person has either only good qualities or only bad ones. This technique helps the author more clearly show his sympathy and highlight those people who need to be imitated.
In addition, all of Gorky’s romantic works show a love of nature. Nature is always one of the main characters, and all romantic moods are conveyed through it. The writer loved to use descriptions of mountains, forests, seas, endowing every particle of the surrounding world with its own character and behavior.
What is revolutionary romanticism?
The early romantic works of Zhukovsky and Batyushkov were based on the ideas of classicism and, in fact, were a direct continuation of it, which did not correspond to the sentiments of progressive and radically thinking people of that period. There were few of them, so romanticism acquired classical forms: conflict between the individual and society, an extra person, longing for an ideal, etc. However, time passed, and there were more and more revolutionary-minded citizens.
The divergence of literature and popular interests led to a change in romanticism, to the emergence of new ideas and techniques. The main representatives of the new revolutionary romanticism were Pushkin, Gorky and the Decembrist poets, who, first of all, promoted progressive views on the prospects for the development of Russia. The main theme was folk identity - the possibility of independent existence of peasants, hence the term nationality. New images began to appear, and the main ones among them were the genius poet and hero, capable at any moment of saving society from the impending threat.
Old Isergil
In this story there is a contrast between two characters and two types of behavior. The first is Danko - an example of that very hero, the ideal who must save the people. He feels free and happy only when his tribe is free and happy. The young man is filled with love for his people, sacrificial love, which personifies the spirit of the Decembrists, who were ready to die for the well-being of society.
Danko saves his people, but at the same time dies himself. The tragedy of this legend is that the tribe forgets its heroes, it is ungrateful, but for the leader this is not important, because the main reward for the feat is the happiness of the people for whom it was accomplished.
The antagonist is the son of the eagle, Larra, he despised people, despised their way of life and law, he recognized only freedom, turning into permissiveness. He did not know how to love and limit his desires; as a result, he was expelled from the tribe for violating social foundations. Only then did the proud young man realize that without the people he was nothing. When he is alone, no one can admire him, no one needs him. Having shown these two antipodes, Gorky brought everything to one conclusion: the values and interests of the people should always be higher than your values and interests. Freedom is to free people from the tyranny of the spirit, ignorance, that darkness that hid behind the forest, unsuitable for life for the Danko tribe.
It is obvious that the author follows the canon of romanticism: here is the confrontation between the individual and society, here is the yearning for an ideal, here is the proud freedom of loneliness and unnecessary people. However, the dilemma about freedom was not resolved in favor of Larra’s proud and narcissistic loneliness; the writer despises this type, glorified by Byron (one of the founders of romanticism) and Lermontov. His ideal romantic hero is one who, being above society, does not renounce it, but helps it even when it persecutes the savior. In this feature, Gorky is very close to the Christian understanding of freedom.
Makar Chudra
In the story “Makar Chudra,” freedom is also the main value for the heroes. The old gypsy Makar Chudra calls her the main treasure of a person; in her he sees an opportunity to preserve his “I”. Revolutionary romanticism is colorfully manifested precisely in this understanding of freedom: the old man claims that under conditions of tyranny a moral and gifted individual will not develop. This means that it is worth taking risks for the sake of independence, because without it the country will never become better.
Loiko and Radda have the same message. They love each other, but see marriage only as chains and shackles, and not as a chance to find peace. As a result, the love of freedom, which so far appears in the form of ambition, since the heroes cannot use it correctly, leads to the death of both characters. Gorky puts individualism above marriage ties, which only lull a person’s creative and mental abilities with everyday worries and petty interests. He understands that it is easier for a loner to sacrifice his life for the sake of freedom, it is easier to find complete harmony with his inner world. After all, a married Danko cannot really rip out the heart.
Chelkash
The main characters of the story are the old drunkard and thief Chelkash and the young village boy Gavrila. One of them was going to go on a “deal,” but his partner broke his leg, and this could complicate the whole operation, and that’s when the experienced rogue met Gavrila. During their conversation, Gorky paid great attention to Chelkash’s personality, noticed all the little things, described his slightest movements, all the feelings and thoughts that arose in his head. The refined psychologism of the image is a clear adherence to the romantic canon.
Nature also occupies a special place in this work, since Chelkash had a spiritual connection with the sea, and his mental state often depended on the sea. The expression of feelings and moods through the states of the surrounding world is again a romantic trait.
We also see how Gavrila’s character changes over the course of the story, and if at first we felt pity and compassion for him, then in the end they turn into disgust. The main idea of the story is that it doesn’t matter what you look like or what you do, but what’s in your soul is important, the most important thing is to always remain a decent person in any matter. This thought itself carries a revolutionary message: how does it matter what the hero does? Does this mean that the murderer of a dignitary can also be a decent person? Does this mean that a terrorist can blow up His Excellency’s carriage and at the same time maintain moral purity? Yes, this is exactly the kind of freedom the author deliberately allows: not everything is a vice that society condemns. A revolutionary kills, but his motive is sacred. The writer could not say this directly, so he chose abstract examples and images.
Features of Gorky's romanticism
The main feature of Gorky's romanticism is the image of a hero, a certain ideal designed to save the people. He does not renounce the people, but on the contrary wants to lead them to the right path. The main values that the writer exalted in his romantic stories are love, freedom, courage and self-sacrifice. Their understanding depends on the revolutionary sentiments of the author, who writes not only for the thinking intelligentsia, but also for the ordinary Russian peasant, therefore the images and plots are not ornate and simple. They have the character of a religious parable and are even similar in style. For example, the author very clearly shows his attitude towards each character, and it is always clear who the author likes and who he doesn’t.
For Gorky, nature was also an active character and influenced the heroes of the stories. In addition, its individual parts are symbols that must be perceived allegorically.
Interesting? Save it on your wall!In this work, Gorky describes people who have reached the very bottom, “people of the bottom.” Each of the heroes in the past had their own position in life, social status, but due to some circumstances they lost it.
Gogol N.V. has a man “at the bottom”. in the work "Dead Souls". Plyushkin is a rich landowner who lost all his estate after the death of his wife. He became embittered, more suspicious and stingier. Because of his greed, he took everything he saw to his home, even if it had no special purpose.
You can also cite the example of Mr. Marmeladov from the work of F.M. Dostoevsky "Crime and Punishment". Once he was a titular adviser and a rich man, but due to personnel cuts, Semyon Marmeladov lost his position, started drinking and thereby slipped “to the bottom.”
Updated: 2017-01-29
Attention!
Thank you for your attention.
If you notice an error or typo, highlight the text and click Ctrl+Enter.
By doing so, you will provide invaluable benefits to the project and other readers.