The system of characters in Lermontov's novel "A Hero of Our Time" is called concentric, since all the characters gather around the main one - Pechorin, and serve only as a kind of background for him. The main task of each of them is not so much the manifestation of one's own character traits or feelings, but rather the emphasis on the individual qualities of Pechorin.
Heroes of the novel "A Hero of Our Time"
For example, Kazbich And Azamat in the chapter "Bel" they focus on the fact that Pechorin does not need anyone or anything. Kazbich and Azamat are solid natures, they have a specific goal: to get a horse. But Pechorin has no goal in life, he is only able to worry about an unpleasant society.
Task Maksim Maksimych- to emphasize the mind of Pechorin. Although this hero is quite observant and attentive (there is sometimes a narration on his behalf), he is not able to truly understand Pechorin, since he is obviously more stupid than him.
Dr. Werner, who was a second in a duel, sets off Pechorin's inability to be friends and be faithful. Pechorin has no friends, because he does not need anyone. He is selfish and arrogant, he is not capable of loyalty.
It is also worth noting here officer Vulich, with whom Pechorin argues about whether there is fate in the next world (chapter "Fatalist"). Vulich wants to shoot himself, but the gun misfires; later he still dies through the fault of a drunk, and Pechorin neutralizes this criminal, thereby saving own life. Consequently, Vulich resigned himself to his fate, and he was destined to die on that day. Pechorin told him that fate can be replayed. It turns out that Vulich sets off Pechorin's disobedience to fate.
very important in the novel. female images: Faith, Bela And Princess Mary. The stories associated with them show that Pechorin is no longer capable of true love. All three of his romantic "adventures" end very sadly: the married Vera leaves Pechorin and leaves with her husband, Bela dies, and due to the courtship of Princess Mary, a duel occurs between Pechorin and Grushnitsky. Pechorin kills his opponent, and for this he is exiled to the fortress. Thus, we see that love literally destroys both Pechorin himself, and the women he loves, and his rival (Grushnitsky).
Image Grushnitsky in the novel is especially interesting: he is a kind of parodic double of Pechorin, and this is precisely what irritates him so much. Grushnitsky trumps what is a shame for Pechorin - not wanting to make public his young age, he, explaining the position of ensign, calls himself demoted; in fact, Pechorin has been demoted, and is very ashamed of this. Lermontov concludes that such a double must be destroyed for the sake of the peaceful existence of Pechorin himself. This is what happens in their duel.
By building a system of characters in this way, Lermontov wanted to reveal the character of his protagonist as versatile as possible. The secondary characters are only means for this. In addition to using secondary characters to reveal the image of Pechorin, Lermontov also used
The very title of the novel suggests that Lermontov wanted to delve deeper into public life of his time. the main problem this novel is the fate of the thinker, talented person, which could not find a use for itself in conditions of social stagnation.
In the image of his main character, Lermontov embodied the features inherent in young generation that time. In this way, the author raised the question of the fate of an outstanding human personality in that era. In the preface, he noted that "the hero of our time" is not a portrait of one person, but made up of the vices of the entire generation in their full development.
The main task of the novel is to reveal the depth of the image of Pechorin. There is no apparent plot connection between the stories. Each of them is a separate episode of the hero's life, which reflects different traits of his character.
The deep inner world of Grigory Alexandrovich, his negative traits most clearly revealed in the story "Princess Mary". The plot here is Pechorin's meeting with Grushnitsky, a familiar cadet. And then Pechorin's next "experiment" begins, the purpose of which is to comprehend the truth and human nature. Main character plays the role of an observer and actor simultaneously. It is not enough for him just to observe the behavior of people, he pushes them against each other, forcing their souls to open up and manifest themselves to the fullest: love, hate, suffer. This is what makes the people on whom he "experiments" dislike and even hate him.
This is exactly what happens in the case of Grushnitsky. This young army officer from the petty nobility was placed next to Grigory Alexandrovich not by chance. The image of the junker is very important in the novel, it is a crooked mirror of Pechorin - it sets off the truth and significance of this "suffering egoist", the depth and exclusivity of his nature.
Grushnitsky has a trait that especially irritates Pechorin: he is vain, tends to play the role of a disappointed romantic hero. Pechorin clearly sees his posturing and desire to produce an effect. Having exchanged a coarse soldier's overcoat for a brilliant officer's uniform, Grushnitsky could not hide his delight.
Delving into the plot, the reader understands that the young Princess Ligovskaya was not interested in Pechorin, he seeks her love only to annoy Grushnitsky, without even thinking about what dooms Mary to suffering. Later, this subtle, calculated move of the protagonist becomes clear, on the one hand, it does not decorate him, and on the other hand, it exposes Grushnitsky, who, seized with jealousy and hatred, easily succumbs to the influence of others. He turns out to be capable of low and vile deeds and participates in an intrigue directed against Pechorin. The scene of the duel between Pechorin and Grushnitsky reveals the characters of the characters. It is written vividly and impressively. Pechorin is cheerful and full of nobility, he is ready to forgive Grushnitsky because he wanted to shoot with an unarmed man, but Grushnitsky could not rise to nobility, plead guilty and ask for forgiveness.
Pechorin can be condemned for his indifferent attitude towards the young princess, but is it worth it? The princess changed after meeting him: she became smarter and wiser. This girl has matured, began to understand people. And we cannot firmly say what would be best for her: to remain the same naive girl or become a woman with a well-defined character. I think the second one is better. Pechorin in this case played positive role in her destiny.
The hero always hopes to find in people something for which they can be loved and respected, but he does not find it. I think that's why he despises others or is indifferent to them. This hurts him badly.
Each story has another separate goal - to show the loneliness of the hero, his alienation from people. The author achieves this by placing Pechorin in a different environment. The contrast of the hero against the background of other people, against the background of the highlanders, helps to reveal to us as much as possible many traits of his character. We see that, because of his alienation, the hero is not subject to tradition or moral standards the society in which he enters.
The image of Pechorin "as a hero of his time" is revealed in relationships with other characters who are not similar either in character or in position to Pechorin. Special meaning there is also a change of persons leading the narration. First, Maksim Maksimych, "a passing officer," tells about Pechorin. Then the author-narrator speaks about him, and then Pechorin reveals himself in his diaries. Already the portrait of Pechorin characterizes him as an outstanding personality.
It is impossible not to note the skill with which Lermontov revealed his main character to us. Throughout the work, the author strives to reveal the inner world of Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin as fully as possible. The compositional complexity of the novel is inextricably linked with the psychological complexity of the image of the protagonist. The ambiguity of Pechorin's character, the inconsistency of this image was revealed not only in the study of his own spiritual world, but also in the correlation of the hero with other characters. In the first part we see Pechorin through the eyes of Maxim Maksimych. This person is sincerely attached to Pechorin, but spiritually deeply alien to him. They are separated not only by the difference in social status and age. They are people of fundamentally different types of consciousness and children different eras. For the staff captain, an old Caucasian, his young friend is an alien, strange and inexplicable phenomenon. Therefore, in the story of Maxim Maksimych, Pechorin appears as a mysterious and mysterious person.
There are qualities in Pechorin that attract people with whom he has to communicate. There are situations when it even compares favorably with others. Pechorin, with whomever he communicates, impresses everyone without making much effort. Werner - only person, with which Pechorin is easy and simple. They understand each other perfectly, and Pechorin values Werner's opinion. The history of their relationship is the history of the failed friendship of people who are spiritually and intellectually similar. Pechorin explains the impossibility of their friendship as follows: “I am incapable of friendship: of two friends, one is always the slave of the other.” Throughout the novel, Pechorin does not have a single friend, but he acquires many enemies. In Pechorin's duel with Grushnitsky, Werner acts as a second, but the outcome of the duel frightens him, and Werner decides to say goodbye to Pechorin.
Already from the first story "Bella" we discover the duality and contradiction of the hero. Maxim Maksimovich described Pechorin as follows: “He was a nice guy, I can assure you; just a little weird. After all, for example, in the rain, in the cold all day hunting; everyone will get cold, tired - but nothing to him. And the hero himself wrote in his diary: “I have an innate gift to contradict; my whole life has been only a chain of sad and unfortunate contradictions of heart or mind.
We see the duality of his nature in the fact that he is extraordinary, clever man, but on the other hand, an egoist who breaks hearts, and at the same time a victim or hostage of society, to which he opposes himself.
A passion for contradictions and a split personality are the main character traits of the hero. Contradictions are manifested in the external circumstances of his life; skepticism and unbelief give rise to discord in his soul, feelings and thoughts.
Pechorin is a richly gifted nature, he is eager for action, constantly feeling the need to search for a sphere of his activity. He creates adventures for himself, actively intervening in the fate and lives of those around him, changing the course of things in such a way that it leads to an explosion, to a collision. Adding to people's lives his alienation, his craving for destruction, he acts without regard for the feelings of other people, not paying attention to them.
Grigory Pechorin is an energetic, intelligent person, but he cannot find application for his mind, his knowledge. Possessing effective energy, he directs it to ordinary circumstances, for which it becomes destructive. His life does not correspond to the desire to surpass everyone, to exalt his will and desires, the thirst for power over people. The character of Gregory is manifested in different situations, But special feature for him is the desire for introspection. The hero considers his actions and condemns himself, fighting with himself. His nature needs this inner struggle, it contains the unity of the personality. The hero's reasoning about himself, his conviction that his "appointment is high", suggests that he dreamed of the fate of a person capable of playing great role in the lives of many people. Not wishing harm to anyone, but not doing good either, he destroys the settled, calm life of those around him. Pechorin opposes other characters, as movement - peace. He interferes in other people's lives.
Pechorin tries to explain why fate needs him, and comes to an unexpected conclusion, in which something irrational is felt: fate keeps him so that he can drink the “cup of suffering” to the end.
The motive of fate grows towards the end of the novel. In the story "The Fatalist" Pechorin tries his luck and emerges victorious from this clash, but doubts his victory.
He cannot stay in one place, he needs to change the situation, the environment, so he cannot be happy with any woman. Pechorin does not feel any deep love or real affection for any of the women. He treats Bela like a boring toy. Playing on the prejudices and instincts of the highlanders, Pechorin spends his mind, energy on a goal unworthy of a decent person. In his attitude towards Princess Mary, Pechorin looks even more repulsive.
After some time, Grigory Pechorin is overcome by boredom, and he rushes in search of novelty and change. Only the hero's tender relationship with Vera shows the reader that he loves her. This feeling is most strongly manifested at the moment when there is a danger of losing Faith: "Faith has become dearer to me than anything in the world ...".
The plot of the novel indicates to the reader the aimlessness of the life of the protagonist. Although Pechorin is cruel and indifferent, Belinsky called him a “suffering egoist,” because he condemns himself for his actions, and nothing brings him satisfaction. Pechorin has everything to achieve his goal, but he does not see this goal: “Why did I live? why was he born? To find a goal, one must stop, stop being free, give up part of one's freedom. Pechorin does not do this. This, too, is the tragic inconsistency of his nature. lermontov pechorin novel
All the life of G.A. Pechorin can be called a tragedy. Lermontov showed the reader two main reasons for this tragedy. The first is a feature of Pechorin's personality. The fate of the hero is not easy, he experienced a lot, influenced many people's lives, destroyed many human destinies.
The second reason for his tragedy is the unreasonable structure of society. From this point of view, the tragedy of Pechorin is a tragedy of time. He dies, apparently without resolving his contradictions.
Lermontov did not seek to pass a moral judgment. He only with great power showed all the abysses human soul devoid of faith, imbued with skepticism and disappointment.
Pechorin is an ambiguous personality
The image of Pechorin in the novel "A Hero of Our Time" by Lermontov is an ambiguous image. It cannot be called positive, but it is not negative either. Many of his actions are worthy of condemnation, but it is also important to understand the motives of his behavior before making an assessment. The author called Pechorin a hero of his time, not because he recommended to be equal to him, and not because he wanted to ridicule him. He just showed a portrait typical representative that generation - extra person”- so that everyone can see what the social structure that disfigures the personality leads to.
Qualities of Pechorin
Knowledge of people
Can such a quality of Pechorin as an understanding of the psychology of people, the motives of their actions, be called bad? Another thing is that he uses it for other purposes. Instead of doing good, helping others, he plays with them, and these games, as a rule, end tragically. This was the end of the story with the mountain girl Bela, whom Pechorin persuaded her brother to steal. Making love freedom-loving girl, he lost interest in her, and soon Bela fell victim to the vengeful Kazbich.
Playing with Princess Mary also did not lead to anything good. Pechorin's intervention in her relationship with Grushnitsky resulted in broken heart princesses and death at the duel of Grushnitsky.
Ability to analyze
Pechorin demonstrates a brilliant ability to analyze in a conversation with Dr. Werner (chapter "Princess Mary"). He absolutely logically calculates that Princess Ligovskaya was interested in him, and not her daughter Mary. “You have a great gift for thinking,” Werner notes. However, this gift again does not find a worthy application. Pechorin could possibly do scientific discoveries, but he became disillusioned with the study of science, because he saw that in his society no one needed knowledge.
Independence from the opinions of others
The description of Pechorin in the novel "A Hero of Our Time" gives many a reason to accuse him of mental callousness. It would seem that he acted badly towards his old friend Maxim Maksimych. Upon learning that his colleague, with whom they ate more than one pood of salt together, stopped in the same city, Pechorin did not rush to meet him. Maksim Maksimych was very upset and offended by him. However, Pechorin is to blame, in fact, only for not living up to the old man's expectations. "Am I not the same?" - he reminded, nevertheless embracing Maxim Maksimych in a friendly way. Indeed, Pechorin never tries to portray himself as someone he is not, just to please others. He prefers to be rather than seem, always honest in the manifestation of his feelings, and from this point of view, his behavior deserves all approval. He also does not care what others say about him - Pechorin always does as he sees fit. IN modern conditions such qualities would be invaluable and would help him quickly achieve his goal, to fully realize himself.
Bravery
Courage and fearlessness are character traits due to which one could say “Pechorin is the hero of our time” without any ambiguity. They also appear on the hunt (Maxim Maksimych witnessed how Pechorin “went on a boar one on one”), and in a duel (he was not afraid to shoot with Grushnitsky on conditions that were obviously losing for him), and in a situation where it was necessary to pacify the raging drunken Cossack (chapter "Fatalist"). “... nothing will happen worse than death - and you can’t escape death,” Pechorin believes, and this conviction allows him to move forward more boldly. However, even the mortal danger he faced daily on Caucasian war, did not help him cope with boredom: he quickly got used to the buzz of Chechen bullets. It's obvious that military service was not his vocation, and therefore Pechorin's brilliant abilities in this area did not find further application. He decided to travel in the hope of finding a remedy for boredom "through storms and bad roads."
pride
Pechorin cannot be called conceited, greedy for praise, but he is proud enough. He is very hurt if a woman does not consider him the best and prefers another. And he strives by all means, by any means, to win her attention. This happened in the situation with Princess Mary, who at first liked Grushnitsky. From the analysis of Pechorin, which he himself does in his journal, it follows that it was important for him not so much to achieve the love of this girl as to recapture her from a competitor. “I also confess that an unpleasant, but familiar feeling ran lightly at that moment through my heart; this feeling - it was envy ... it is unlikely that there will be a young man who, having met a pretty woman who riveted his idle attention and suddenly clearly distinguishes another, who is equally unfamiliar to her, I say, there is hardly such a young man (of course, who lived in high society and accustomed to indulge his vanity), who would not be unpleasantly struck by this.
Pechorin loves to achieve victory in everything. He managed to switch Mary's interest to his own person, make the proud Bela his mistress, get a secret date from Vera, and outplay Grushnitsky in a duel. If he had a worthy cause, this desire to be the first would allow him to achieve tremendous success. But he has to give vent to his leadership in such a strange and destructive way.
selfishness
In the essay on the topic “Pechorin - the hero of our time”, one cannot fail to mention such a trait of his character as selfishness. He does not really care about the feelings and fates of other people who have become hostages of his whims, for him only the satisfaction of his own needs matters. Pechorin did not even spare Vera - the only woman who he thought he truly loved. He put her reputation at risk by visiting her at night in the absence of her husband. A vivid illustration of his dismissive, selfish attitude is his beloved horse, driven by him, who did not manage to catch up with the carriage with the departed Vera. On the way to Essentuki, Pechorin saw that “instead of a saddle, two ravens were sitting on his back.” Moreover, Pechorin sometimes enjoys the suffering of others. He imagines how Mary, after his incomprehensible behavior, "will spend the night without sleep and will cry", and this thought gives him "immense pleasure". “There are moments when I understand the Vampire…” he admits.
Pechorin's behavior is the result of the influence of circumstances
But can this bad character trait be called innate? Is Pechorin flawed from the very beginning, or was the living conditions made him so? Here is what he himself told Princess Mary: “... such was my fate from childhood. Everyone read on my face signs of bad feelings, which were not there; but they were supposed - and they were born. I was modest - I was accused of slyness: I became secretive ... I was ready to love the whole world - no one understood me: and I learned to hate ... I spoke the truth - they did not believe me: I began to deceive ... I became a moral cripple.
Finding himself in an environment that does not correspond to his inner essence, Pechorin is forced to break himself, to become what he is not in reality. This is where this internal inconsistency comes from, which left its mark on his appearance. The author of the novel draws a portrait of Pechorin: laughter with non-laughing eyes, a daring and at the same time indifferently calm look, a straight frame, limp, like a Balzac young lady, when he sat down on a bench, and other "inconsistencies".
Pechorin himself realizes that he makes an ambiguous impression: “Some revere me worse, others better than I really am ... Some will say: he was a kind fellow, others a bastard. Both will be false." But the truth is that under the influence of external circumstances, his personality has undergone such complex and ugly deformations that it is no longer possible to separate the bad from the good, the real from the false.
In the novel "A Hero of Our Time" the image of Pechorin is moral, psychological portrait a whole generation. How many of its representatives, not finding in others the response of the "soul wonderful impulses”, were forced to adapt, to become the same as everyone around, or to perish. The author of the novel, Mikhail Lermontov, whose life ended tragically and prematurely, was one of them.
Artwork test
Pechorin is an ambiguous personality
The image of Pechorin in the novel "A Hero of Our Time" by Lermontov is an ambiguous image. It cannot be called positive, but it is not negative either. Many of his actions are worthy of condemnation, but it is also important to understand the motives of his behavior before making an assessment. The author called Pechorin a hero of his time, not because he recommended to be equal to him, and not because he wanted to ridicule him. He simply showed a portrait of a typical representative of that generation - an "extra person" - so that everyone could see what the social structure that disfigures the personality leads to.
Qualities of Pechorin
Knowledge of people
Can such a quality of Pechorin as an understanding of the psychology of people, the motives of their actions, be called bad? Another thing is that he uses it for other purposes. Instead of doing good, helping others, he plays with them, and these games, as a rule, end tragically. This was the end of the story with the mountain girl Bela, whom Pechorin persuaded her brother to steal. Having achieved the love of a freedom-loving girl, he lost interest in her, and soon Bela fell victim to the vengeful Kazbich.
Playing with Princess Mary also did not lead to anything good. Pechorin's intervention in her relationship with Grushnitsky resulted in a broken heart of the princess and death in a duel by Grushnitsky.
Ability to analyze
Pechorin demonstrates a brilliant ability to analyze in a conversation with Dr. Werner (chapter "Princess Mary"). He absolutely logically calculates that Princess Ligovskaya was interested in him, and not her daughter Mary. “You have a great gift for thinking,” Werner notes. However, this gift again does not find a worthy application. Pechorin, perhaps, could make scientific discoveries, but he was disappointed in the study of sciences, because he saw that no one needed knowledge in his society.
Independence from the opinions of others
The description of Pechorin in the novel "A Hero of Our Time" gives many a reason to accuse him of spiritual callousness. It would seem that he acted badly towards his old friend Maxim Maksimych. Upon learning that his colleague, with whom they ate more than one pood of salt together, stopped in the same city, Pechorin did not rush to meet him. Maksim Maksimych was very upset and offended by him. However, Pechorin is to blame, in fact, only for not living up to the old man's expectations. "Am I not the same?" - he reminded, nevertheless embracing Maxim Maksimych in a friendly way. Indeed, Pechorin never tries to portray himself as someone he is not, just to please others. He prefers to be rather than seem, always honest in the manifestation of his feelings, and from this point of view, his behavior deserves all approval. He also does not care what others say about him - Pechorin always does as he sees fit. In modern conditions, such qualities would be invaluable and would help him quickly achieve his goal, to fully realize himself.
Bravery
Courage and fearlessness are character traits due to which one could say “Pechorin is the hero of our time” without any ambiguity. They also appear on the hunt (Maxim Maksimych witnessed how Pechorin “went on a boar one on one”), and in a duel (he was not afraid to shoot with Grushnitsky on conditions that were obviously losing for him), and in a situation where it was necessary to pacify the raging drunken Cossack (chapter "Fatalist"). “... nothing will happen worse than death - and you can’t escape death,” Pechorin believes, and this conviction allows him to move forward more boldly. However, even the mortal danger that he faced daily in the Caucasian War did not help him cope with boredom: he quickly got used to the buzz of Chechen bullets. Obviously, military service was not his vocation, and therefore Pechorin's brilliant abilities in this area did not find further application. He decided to travel in the hope of finding a remedy for boredom "through storms and bad roads."
pride
Pechorin cannot be called conceited, greedy for praise, but he is proud enough. He is very hurt if a woman does not consider him the best and prefers another. And he strives by all means, by any means, to win her attention. This happened in the situation with Princess Mary, who at first liked Grushnitsky. From the analysis of Pechorin, which he himself does in his journal, it follows that it was important for him not so much to achieve the love of this girl as to recapture her from a competitor. “I also confess that an unpleasant, but familiar feeling ran lightly at that moment through my heart; this feeling - it was envy ... it is unlikely that there will be a young man who, having met a pretty woman who riveted his idle attention and suddenly clearly distinguishes another, who is equally unfamiliar to her, I say, there is hardly such a young man (of course, who lived in high society and accustomed to indulge his vanity), who would not be unpleasantly struck by this.
Pechorin loves to achieve victory in everything. He managed to switch Mary's interest to his own person, make the proud Bela his mistress, get a secret date from Vera, and outplay Grushnitsky in a duel. If he had a worthy cause, this desire to be the first would allow him to achieve tremendous success. But he has to give vent to his leadership in such a strange and destructive way.
selfishness
In the essay on the topic “Pechorin - the hero of our time”, one cannot fail to mention such a trait of his character as selfishness. He does not really care about the feelings and fates of other people who have become hostages of his whims, for him only the satisfaction of his own needs matters. Pechorin did not even spare Vera, the only woman whom he believed he really loved. He put her reputation at risk by visiting her at night in the absence of her husband. A vivid illustration of his dismissive, selfish attitude is his beloved horse, driven by him, who did not manage to catch up with the carriage with the departed Vera. On the way to Essentuki, Pechorin saw that “instead of a saddle, two ravens were sitting on his back.” Moreover, Pechorin sometimes enjoys the suffering of others. He imagines how Mary, after his incomprehensible behavior, "will spend the night without sleep and will cry", and this thought gives him "immense pleasure". “There are moments when I understand the Vampire…” he admits.
Pechorin's behavior is the result of the influence of circumstances
But can this bad character trait be called innate? Is Pechorin flawed from the very beginning, or was the living conditions made him so? Here is what he himself told Princess Mary: “... such was my fate from childhood. Everyone read on my face signs of bad feelings, which were not there; but they were supposed - and they were born. I was modest - I was accused of slyness: I became secretive ... I was ready to love the whole world - no one understood me: and I learned to hate ... I spoke the truth - they did not believe me: I began to deceive ... I became a moral cripple.
Finding himself in an environment that does not correspond to his inner essence, Pechorin is forced to break himself, to become what he is not in reality. This is where this internal inconsistency comes from, which left its mark on his appearance. The author of the novel draws a portrait of Pechorin: laughter with non-laughing eyes, a daring and at the same time indifferently calm look, a straight frame, limp, like a Balzac young lady, when he sat down on a bench, and other "inconsistencies".
Pechorin himself realizes that he makes an ambiguous impression: “Some revere me worse, others better than I really am ... Some will say: he was a kind fellow, others a bastard. Both will be false." But the truth is that under the influence of external circumstances, his personality has undergone such complex and ugly deformations that it is no longer possible to separate the bad from the good, the real from the false.
In the novel A Hero of Our Time, the image of Pechorin is a moral, psychological portrait of a whole generation. How many of its representatives, having not found a response in the surrounding “soul to wonderful impulses”, were forced to adapt, become the same as everyone around, or die. The author of the novel, Mikhail Lermontov, whose life ended tragically and prematurely, was one of them.
Artwork test
Pechorin is a secular young man, an officer exiled to the Caucasus after the "story that made a stir in St. Petersburg." From the story about his life, which Pechorin shared with Maxim Maksimych, we learn that Pechorin, as soon as he left the care of his “relatives”, began to enjoy “mad pleasures”, which he soon “got sick of”. Then he went into big light", but also secular society he soon got tired of it. The love of secular beauties did not satisfy him either. He studied, read - but science did not fully reveal him. He got bored. When he was transferred to the Caucasus, he thought that "boredom does not live under Chechen bullets," but he soon got used to the buzz of bullets, and he became more bored than before.
So, in early youth, Pechorin quickly got fed up with secular pleasures and tries to find the meaning of life in reading books, which he also quickly gets bored with. Pechorin is searching for the meaning of life, is disappointed and suffers deeply. The fate and mood of Pechorin are determined by the gloomy era in which he lives. After the defeat of Decembrism in Russia, the dead time of the Nikolaev reaction began. Any social activity became even more inaccessible to cultured person. Every manifestation of living, free thought was persecuted. People endowed with intelligence, abilities, people with serious interests could not find application for their spiritual powers... At the same time, empty Savor did not satisfy them. The consciousness of the complete impossibility of finding a use for their forces was especially painful for people of 30-40 years old, because after the defeat of the uprising on December 14, they had no hope of a close change for the better.
Pechorin is an intelligent, gifted, courageous, cultured person, critical of the surrounding society, loving and feeling nature.
He is well versed in people, gives them accurate and accurate characteristics. He understood Grushnitsky and Dr. Werner very well. He knows in advance how Princess Mary will behave in this or that case.
Pechorin is very brave and has exceptional endurance. During the duel, only by the feverish pulse, Dr. Werner was able to make sure that Pechorin was worried. Knowing that there is no bullet in his pistol, while his opponent fired from a loaded one, Pechorin does not give out to his enemies that he knows their “cunning” (“Princess Mary”), He boldly rushes into the hut, where with a pistol in his hand the murderer of Vulich is sitting, ready to kill anyone who dares to touch him (“Fatalist”).
In the "Journal" (diary) of Pechorin, we find, by the way, the quoted quotations from classical works Griboyedov, Pushkin, names of writers, titles of works, names of heroes of Russian and foreign works. All this testifies not only to Pechorin's erudition, but also to profound knowledge them literature.
Brief remarks by the author of the "Journal" addressed to the representatives noble society give a devastating characterization to the miserable and vulgar people surrounding Pechorin.
Pechorin's sharply critical attitude towards himself evokes sympathy. We see that the bad deeds committed by him cause suffering, first of all, to himself.
Pechorin deeply feels and understands nature. Communication with nature has a beneficial effect on Pechorin. “Whatever grief lies on the heart, no matter what anxiety torments the thought, everything will dissipate in a minute, it will become easy on the soul, the fatigue of the body will overcome the anxiety of the mind.”
On the eve of the duel, Pechorin thinks about himself with sadness and bitterness. He sure was born for high purpose because, he writes, “I feel immense strength in my soul. But I did not guess this destination, but was carried away by the bait of empty and ungrateful passions ... "
And such a spiritually gifted person “born for a high purpose” is forced to live in inactivity, in search of adventure, spending his “immense strength” on trifles. He seeks pleasure in female love but love brings him only disappointment and grief. With whomever Pechorin connects his fate, this connection, no matter how short-lived it may be, brings grief (and sometimes death) to him and other people. His love brought death to Bela; his love made unhappy Vera, who was devoted to him; his relationship with Princess Mary ended tragically - the wound inflicted by Pechorin on the sensitive, gentle, sincere Mary will not heal for a long time in the heart of a young girl; with his appearance, Pechorin destroyed the peaceful life " honest smugglers"("Taman"). Pechorin killed Grushnitsky, Pechorin deeply upset the kind Maxim Maksimych, who sincerely considered him his friend.
A deep and terrible contradiction: smart, capable of a hot impulse, able to appreciate people, brave, strong Pechorin is out of work in life, and closeness with him causes other people only misfortune! Who is to blame for this? Is it Pechorin himself? And is it his fault that he "did not guess" his high appointment?
No, he is not to blame for his misfortune. The contradiction of his nature is explained by the fact that in the time of Pechorin, gifted, searching people, people with deep interests, with serious needs, not content with the empty, meaningless life that they were forced to lead, did not find application for their “immense forces” and “aged in inaction ". An intelligent, gifted person, deprived of a living thing that captures him, involuntarily turns to his inner world. He, as they say, “delves into himself”, analyzes his every act, every spiritual movement.
This is how Pechorin behaves. He says about himself: “For a long time I have been living not with my heart, but with my head. I weigh, analyze my own actions and passions with severe curiosity, but without participation. There are two people in me, one lives in the full sense of the word, the other thinks and judges him ... "
With all their positive qualities Pechorin cannot be perceived as positive hero. The very word "hero" in the title of the novel, as applied to Pechorin, sounds ironic. Pechorin is a representative of the generation ridiculed in the Duma. It not only lacks the ability to act, it lacks faith, active love for people, readiness to sacrifice oneself for them; Pechorin is burdened by inaction, but mainly because it makes him suffer, and not because he cannot bring relief to the suffering people around him ... He, in the words of Herzen, is "intelligent uselessness." A man living in the years of the Nikolaev reaction, he does not belong to those people of the 40s, about whom Herzen spoke with pride: “I did not meet such a circle of people, talented, versatile and pure, then anywhere ...”
In order to better understand Pechorin, Lermontov shows him in different settings, and different conditions, in collisions with different people.
Of great importance is a detailed description of his appearance ("Maxim Maksimych"), In features appearance Pechorin reflects his character. Pechorin's internal inconsistency is emphasized in his portrait.
On the one hand, "slim, thin frame and broad shoulders ..."
On the other - "... the position of his whole body depicted some kind of nervous weakness." Lermontov highlights another strange feature in the portrait of the hero: Pechorin's eyes "did not laugh when he laughed." This, according to the author, is "a sign or evil temper or deep, persistent sadness." When all parts of the novel are read, this feature of Pechorin becomes clear.
