IN school years many, probably, had a chance to get acquainted with the work of the respected Russian writer Maxim Gorky - the play “At the Bottom”, without embellishment, describing to all of us the familiar archetypes of people living in Russian realities.

Despite the fact that more than a century has passed since the publication of the drama, the situations that it touches on remain relevant today.

In this article, we will analyze in detail the image of the character Luke from this play, get acquainted with his statements and talk about the attitude of other heroes of the work towards him.

Where did the wanderer come from

does not reveal the secret the origin of Luke, only a fleeting mention of his wandering life. The wanderer has neither a homeland, nor at least some definite place of residence. He himself says this about it: "Old man – where it is warm, there is the homeland”.

The inhabitants of the rooming house are also not interested in the past of the old man, they are preoccupied with their problems and attempts "get out in public", and not drag out an existence “at the bottom” for the rest of your life.

Analysis of character characteristics

Luke appears before us in the form soft-hearted old man preaching goodness, love, pity and the will of a person to create his life as his heart tells.

From the hero directly emanates an aura of peacefulness and understanding, which, of course, disposes the characters of the play to him, making them believe that the future is not hopeless and there is a chance to correct their own. social status to fulfill dreams and desires.

To everyone who, willy-nilly, ended up in a rooming house, Luke chooses the right words, gives everyone hope and encourages them to believe in their dreams, no matter how ridiculous they may seem to themselves and others.

But no matter how sweet and comforting the words of the wanderer sounded, they were only empty sounds, distracting roommates from everyday hardships, and not real support, giving strength to get out of poverty and dishonor.

However, Luka is not a liar, he just sincerely pities those around him and cheers them up, even if it is absolutely pointless and useless.

Luke's relationship with other characters in the play "At the Bottom"

The characters relate to the elder in two ways:

• alone ( thief Vaska Pepel, Actor, Anna, Nastya, Natasha) tell him with relief about their life, confess and receive in response the necessary pity, sympathy and soothing statements;
• other ( kartuznik Bubnov, Satin, Baron, Tick) do not trust a stranger too much and speak to him briefly and skeptically.

One thing is certain - nobody remained indifferent to the appearance of such an extraordinary personality in such a dirty and doomed place.

After the sudden disappearance of the wanderer, the fate of some characters has changed dramatically. The wife of the locksmith Klesch, Anna, died of tuberculosis, the Actor could not come to terms with the hopelessness of his life and hanged himself, Vaska Pepel, due to an accidental murder, went to hard labor in Siberia, his dreams of honest life Natasha is finished. The rest of the heroes continued to while away their time in a rooming house, but at the same time started thinking about the meaning of their existence, their actions and the problems of others.

Parable of the Righteous Land

The parable of Luke tells us about a man who endured all the hardships and sufferings of earthly life, believing that there is a righteous land where people live in great relationships, help each other and never lie. One day, he went to a local scientist friend and asked him to show the righteous land on geographical map. He tried to find what he was looking for, but could not. Then the man got angry, hit the scientist, and then went home and strangled himself.

This parable seemed to predetermine fatal fate several characters - the death of Anna and the Actor, imprisonment thief Vaska. They believed that their own righteous land would be found for them, that it was possible to get out of the bottom, poverty, but this did not happen. Luka soon left, and with him the hope that warms the heroes of the play also left.

Quotes

The play "At the bottom" is rich thoughtful phrases and the statements of the characters, but perhaps the most significant of them are the words of Elder Luke.

Here are a few of his quotes, to make an analysis and reflect on which everyone who reads the play “At the Bottom” by Gorky should:

“All of them are people! No matter how you pretend, no matter how you wiggle, but you were born a man, you will die a man ... "

"I don't care! I respect crooks too, in my opinion, not a single flea is bad: everyone is black, everyone jumps ... "

“You, girl, do not be offended ... nothing! Where is it, where are we to pity the dead? E, honey! We don’t feel sorry for the living… we can’t feel sorry for ourselves… where is it!”

“Here, then, you will die, and you will be calm ... you will not need anything else, and there is nothing to be afraid of!”

“... not in the word - the point, but - why is the word spoken? - that's the problem!"

Outcome

The image of the wanderer Luka in Maxim Gorky turned out to be very multifaceted and reflective major philosophical questions about life, love, principles and human priorities.

And not only Luke - all the characters in one way or another reflect those who we meet in real life.

The writer managed to reflect in his work entertaining philosophical and psychological ideas:

All of the above is important for a correct understanding of the work and simply situations that happen to people around us, teaches us to sympathize and correctly arrange life priorities.

Literature lesson in 11th grade.

"Three Truths" in M. Gorky's play "At the Bottom": the truth of a fact (Bubnov), the truth of a comforting lie (Luke), the truth of faith in Man (Satin). Author's position and ways of its expression.

Goals:

educational – continue to work on ideological content play and an in-depth analysis of the work; based on the text of the play, determine the author's position on the question: “Which is better, truth or compassion? Is it necessary to bring compassion to the point of using a lie, like Luke?

developing - to develop the skills of thoughtful reading, the ability to reason on issues of a problematic nature, to express and argue one's opinion;

educational - to cultivate faith in a person, in his limitless possibilities and exceptional potential forces.

Planned results:

personal - the formation of a respectful attitude towards a person, his opinion, worldview, culture; development of competence in solving moral problems and formation moral qualities personality;

meta-subject - development of the ability to formulate, argue and defend one's opinion; possession of oral monologue speech;

subject - understanding of literature as special way knowledge of life; educating a reader with a formed aesthetic taste, able to participate in the discussion of what they read, argue their opinion and create detailed statements of an analytical nature.

Equipment:

the text of the play "At the bottom";

portrait of Maxim Gorky;

portraits of I. Moskvin (1902), M. Tarkhanov (1922), K. Stanislavsky, artists of the Moscow Art Theater, performers of the role of Luke and Satin.

Epigraph: Man is the truth!

M. Gorky. The play "At the Bottom"

Epigraph under the portrait of M. Gorky: Everything is in a person, everything is for a person! Only man exists, everything else is the work of his hands and his brain! Human! It's great! It sounds ... proud! .. One must respect a person! Do not pity ... do not humiliate him with pity ... you must respect!

Dictionary:

skeptic - a person who doubts everything, treats everything incredulously;

parable - a moralizing story;

illusion - deception;

preacher - (transl.) distributor of some doctrine, ideas, views (book);

creed - someone's beliefs, worldview.

Work in the classroom.

Motivation. Teacher's word.

One of the heroes of the play "At the Bottom" Satin said about Luke that he acted on him, "like acid on an old and dirty coin." The play had the same resonance in society at the beginning of the 20th century when it was written. 103 years after its creation, it continues to excite the minds of thinking people. Not by chance. You are reading a play-reflection, all situations of which are caused by one idea - TRUTH. "Man - that's the truth!" - Gorky M. proclaimed through the mouth of Satin. The writer himself said this about the main question posed in the play: “Which is better, truth or compassion? What is more needed? Is it necessary to bring compassion to the point of using lies, like Luke?

In the lesson, we will consider the truth of Bubnov, Luka and Satin and find out what position the author takes in the dispute about a person.

Record the topic of the lesson and the epigraph.

Work on the topic of the lesson.

Question-answer conversation with elements of reasoning.

Difficulty reading and understanding dramatic work in that it lacks the author's speech. You can understand a character (his attitude to the world, people, etc.) if you carefully read what the character says and how.

- What does Bubnov say about the man?

(An exemplary performance by students. Life has made Bubnov an indifferent cynic, a person who does not believe in anything. He states the truth of life: “But I don’t know how to lie! Why? In my opinion, tell the whole truth as it is! Why be shy?” And Bubnov is not shy. He speaks his truths like a croaking raven. It is no coincidence that Pepel calls him that: a raven. Here Anna begs the roommates not to make noise, to give her the opportunity to die peacefully. Bubnov states: "The noise of death is not a hindrance." Here Pepel says to Natasha about his love, promises to make her happy. And Bubnov says: "But the threads are rotten. He seems to be talking about his own, because he sews a cap using rotten threads, but this phrase has another meaning: everything Pepel says is sewn rotten threads. Nastya, who decided to leave the basement, exclaims: “I’m superfluous here!”, To which Bubnov reacts like this: “You’re superfluous everywhere ... and all the people on earth are superfluous ... "Announce the death of Anna. Bubnov indifferently says:" Cough stopped, that means.” Bubnov declares the dreams of all people unnecessary. “Paint, crow, feathers ... go ahead!” - he says to Nastya, who dreams of happy love.)

- What is the truth of Bubnov?

(Exemplary student performance. All people on earth are superfluous. A person is dominated by ruthless laws that govern him. A person helplessly swims with the flow of life, powerless to change anything in his fate: “People all live ... like chips floating in a river ... "For Bubnova, a person is a thing, but a thing cannot resist surrounding reality, cannot experience feelings: “Everything is like this: they will be born, live, die. And I will die ... and you ... why be sorry? His man is nothing more than a dirty animal, and it is at the "bottom" that his real essence: a thief, a sharpie, a pimp, a parasite - everything else is just a blush with which everyone tints the soul, not wanting to speak in their dirty authenticity: “Here ... everything has faded, one naked man remained".)

Teacher. The truth of Bubnov is the truth of the fact against which from the very beginning of his creative way Gorky rebelled. It contains contempt for a person, skepticism, which is based on the denial of wonderful inclinations in a person. True, Bubnov is devoid of spirituality, and this is scary.

- How does Luke feel about the truth of the fact?

(He doesn’t recognize her. “It’s true, maybe she’s blown up for you ...” - he says to Ash. She, really, - it’s not always a person’s illness ... you can’t always cure a person with the truth. And he tells a parable about the righteous land It sounds after Klesh, who had just buried Anna, entered into a dispute about the truth. He shouts in a frenzied voice: "What is the truth? Where is the truth? (He ruffles rags on himself with his hands). That's the truth! There is no work ... there is no strength Here's the truth! There's no shelter... there's no shelter! I need to die... here it is, really! The devil! Why... what is it to me - the truth? Let me breathe... let me breathe! you can’t ... here it is - the truth!

Against the background of this outburst of human rage from his impotence before the circumstances of life, Luke's story sounds about a man who believed in the existence of a righteous land, but, disappointed that there was no such land on the scientist's map, he hanged himself.)

- What is the meaning of the parable of the righteous Earth?

(Luke wants to confirm his words about how dangerous and destructive it is for people cruel truth.)

What is the truth about Luke? What does he say about the person?

(“Someone needs to be kind ... people need to be pitied! Christ - from everyone he pitied and ordered us to do so ... to take pity on a person in time ... it happens well!”

"To caress a person is never harmful."

“He (man) - whatever it is - is always worth its price ...”

"A man can do anything, as long as he wants to."

“Whoever seeks - will find ... Whoever wants hard - will find!”

“A person lives in every way ... as the heart is adjusted, so it lives ... today - good, tomorrow - evil ... "

“All of them are people! No matter how you pretend, no matter how you wobble, but you were born a man, you will die a man ... And that’s all, I look, smarter people become, more and more interesting ... and even though they live - it’s getting worse, but they want everything better - stubborn!”

“People live for the best! That is why every person must be respected ... after all, we don’t know who he is, why he was born and what he can do ... maybe he was born for our happiness, for our great benefit? .. Children should be especially respected ... children! The kids need space! Don’t interfere with children’s lives ... Respect children! ”

"I don't care! I respect crooks too, in my opinion, not a single flea is bad ... "

“We are all wanderers on earth ... They say that our earth is also a wanderer in the sky.”

"Everyone suffers life in their own way."

- How does Luka feel about the inhabitants of the rooming house: Anna, Nastya, Ash, Actor?

- What is guided by Luke, consoling Anna, promising a hospital to the Actor and new life Ashes?

(To relieve suffering is what Elder Luke wants. Satin understood this best of all: “I understand the old man ... He lied ... but - this is out of pity for you ... There are many people who lie out of pity for their neighbor ... They lie beautifully, inspiringly, excitingly! There is a comforting lie, a reconciling lie... Those who are weak in soul... and who live on other people's juices need a lie... it supports some, others hide behind it...")

- Why is Luka accused of lying?

(Ash: You lie well ... you tell fairy tales, it’s nice! Lie, nothing ... not enough, brother, pleasant in the world!

Bubnov: Here is Luka, approximately ... he lies a lot ... and without any benefit to himself)

– Do you agree with this?

(After the words of the children. The actor, Natasha, Pepel, Nastya are having a hard time living at the “day” of life, and Luka seeks to help them change their fate. The crafty old man awakens HOPE in the rooming houses, since hope certainly implies that there are conditions in the world, necessary for its realization, but they exist in the world, not in man himself. internal forces person, but seeks support for him outside of him. )

- How does M. Gorky feel about Luka?

(One more work by Gorky, written a year after the creation of the play “At the Bottom”, will help to find the answer to this question. This is the poem “The Man” (1903), which the author called his credo.

(Man, the hero of the poem, proudly marches across the expanses of the Universe, forward and higher. He is invariably accompanied by a hostile retinue: Love, Friendship, Faith, Hope, Lies and the eternal companion - Death. About Hope in the poem it says this: “Thought looks vigilant, with a sharp eye and mercilessly illuminates everything ... the shy impotence of Hope and the Lie behind her - her sister, smart, painted Lie ... In alliance with the Lie, timid Hope sings to him about the joys of peace, sings about the quiet happiness of reconciliation and soft, beautiful words cradles the slumbering spirit, pushing it into the mire of sweet Leni and into the paws of Boredom, her daughter. So, Nadezhda is the sister of Lies, she reconciles the Man with life, puts him to sleep and deceives him with “beautiful words”.

So Luke is not lying in literally words, but, according to Gorky, he lies in principle. That is why Luke is a representative of lies. The actor speaks several times about the need for a person to believe in himself, in his opinion, because of the lack of faith in himself, he died. Instead of building faith in own forces, in his ability to change lives, Luke offers the heroes of the play the miserable crutches of Hope. The lines of the poem French poet Berenger:

"Lord, if the truth is holy

The world can't find the way

Honor to the madman who will inspire

Mankind has a golden dream, ”-

of course, addressed to Luke. Luke seduces people with hope and destroys them. Perhaps the association is based on this: Luke is crafty).

Working with illustrative material.

- Why did the writer give the wanderer the name Luke?

(Luke is the name of one of the four apostles, the creators of the Gospel. Luke is a preacher of Christian morality. The evil one is insidious, cunning.)

- What side of Luke's character was reflected by I. Moskvin and M. Tarkhanov?

(K. Stanislavsky - Satin. Gorky entrusted him with the most intimate thoughts about a person. Why? This truth is expressed in Satin's famous monologue).

3. Reading Sateen's monologue "Man - that's the truth!" students.

- What kind of person is Sateen talking about?

(Student presentations).

Reflection.

Both Satin and Luca argue that a person must be respected. For Luke, a person is not superfluous on earth, he is the center of the universe, but still he is an accident in the world, just a wanderer on earth: “We are all wanderers on earth ... They say,” I heard, “that our earth is also a wanderer in the sky ". And if this is so, then the main thing is to endure: “Everyone endures life in his own way.” It is here at the level of the goal human existence and the divergence between Luke and Gorky begins. No matter how much Gorky sympathizes with Luka, their union is impossible. At the heart of the truth of Satin-Gorky is a deep faith in man, in his limitless possibilities, in his exceptional potential forces. Such truth is God free man. Such a person does not need pity, he deserves respect. Man, that sounds proud.

Homework.

Write an essay "Who is right in a dispute about the truth?"

(Analysis of an episode from III act plays by M. Gorky "At the bottom")

M. Gorky's play "At the Bottom" was written in 1902 and then staged on the stage of the Moscow Art Theater. The dramatic nerve of the play is the wanderer Luke. It is around him that the characters are grouped, it is with his arrival that the long-stagnant life of the rooming house begins to buzz like a beehive. This wandering preacher consoles everyone, promises deliverance from suffering to everyone, says to everyone: “You - hope!”, “You - believe!” He sees no other relief for people than dreams and illusions. The whole philosophy of Luke is condensed into one of his sayings: "What you believe is what you are." Dying Anna the old man advises not to be afraid of death: after all, she brings peace, which the eternally hungry Anna never knew. The drunken Actor Luka inspires hope for a cure in a free clinic for alcoholics, although he knows that there is no such clinic, and Vaska Peplu talks about the opportunity to start a new life with Natasha in Siberia. One of the ideological centers of the play is the wanderer's story about how he saved two runaway convicts. This happened when he served as a watchman at the dacha of an engineer near Tomsk. Cold winter night thieves entered the cottage. Luke made them repent, took pity on them, fed them. He says: " good men! If I hadn't had pity on them, they might have killed me... or something else... And then - a court, yes a prison, yes Siberia... what's the point? Prison does not teach goodness, and Siberia does not teach ... but a person will teach ... yes! A person can teach good things ... very simply!”

The same thought about great power good sounds in his story about the “righteous land”. There lived one poor man, he lived badly, but did not lose heart, endured and dreamed of leaving this life and going to a righteous land: “There must, he said, be a righteous land in the world ... in that, they say, land - special people inhabit ... good people! They respect each other, they help each other - in any way - simply - they help ... and everything is nice and good with them! In the most difficult moments This man's life was sustained by the thought of a "righteous land." He said to himself: “Nothing! I will suffer! A few more - I'll wait ... and then - I'll give up this whole life and - go to the righteous land ... He had one joy - this land ... ”He lived in Siberia. There he met the exiled scientist and asked him to show on the map where this most righteous land is located. “The scientist opened the book, laid out the plans ... looked and looked - there is no righteous land anywhere! That's right, all the lands are shown, but the righteous one is not!” The man did not believe this scientist. How is it that “lived and lived, endured, endured and believed everything - there is! but according to the plans it turns out - no! He got angry at the scientist, hit him in the ear, and then went home - and strangled himself! ..

Luke's story can be called a parable because it contains an instructive meaning. The listeners were imbued with sympathy for the poor man, whose hopes were not justified. Natasha concludes: “It’s a pity ... a man ... I couldn’t stand the deception ...” Pepel says: “Well ... those are the righteous land ... it didn’t turn out, that means ...” These words suggest that both Natasha and Pepel were also ready to believe in the existence of such a land where they could find shelter and work. He says to Natasha: “I am literate ... I will work ... So he says (points to Luka) - we must go to Siberia of our own free will .. Let's go there, well? .. Do you think - my life - does not disgust me? ... I don’t repent… I don’t believe in conscience… But I feel one thing: we must live… otherwise! It is better to live! It is necessary to live like this ... so that I can respect myself ... "

The parable told by Luke had a sad ending. By this, Luka, as it were, prepared his listeners for the fact that much of what Nastya, Natasha, Actor, Baron, Kleshch, Pepel dream of could turn out to be a utopia, an unattainable hope. The seeds sown by Luke fell on fertile ground. The actor is excited about looking for a mythical city with a marble hospital for alcoholics. Ashes, convinced by the old man that he needs to go to Siberia, dreams of escaping from reality into a fantastic realm of justice and taking the pure Natasha with him. Unhappy Anna tries to love before her death afterworld. Nastya believes in "true love" and is waiting for it. Luke skillfully uses the bright that is still preserved in the minds of these people in order to color, decorate the world. When the collapse of hopes begins, he imperceptibly disappears. The ending is as tragic as in the parable of the "righteous land". The actor commits suicide, Pepel is arrested for the murder of Kostylev, Natasha's life is deeply unhappy and distorted, Anna dies. At the end of the third act, the distraught, crippled Natasha screams heart-rendingly: “Take them ... judge them ... Take me too, take me to prison! For Christ's sake ... in jail me! .. "

In the play "At the bottom" Luke acts as not just a comforter. He philosophically substantiates his position. the main idea Gorky's character is that it is not violence, not prison, but only goodness that can save a person and teach goodness. Luka says: “It is necessary, girl, to be kind to someone ... you need to feel sorry for people! Christ took pity on everyone and ordered us so ... I’ll tell you - it’s good to feel sorry for a person in time! So, in the play, the main bearer of goodness is Luka, he pities people, sympathizes with them and tries to help in word and deed. The author's position is expressed, in particular, plot. Last event plays - the death of the Actor - confirms the words of Luke: a man believed, then he lost his faith and strangled himself. And although Gorky was in many ways close in his human qualities this wanderer-comforter, he was able to expose the false humanism of Luke. It is by the end of the play that he proves that the saving lie did not save anyone, that one cannot live in captivity of illusions, that the way out and insight are always tragic, and most importantly, that a person living in a world of comforting lies reconciles with his miserable, hopeless life and thereby dooms yourself to death.

Hope!”, “You believe!” He sees no other relief for people than dreams and illusions. The whole philosophy of Luke is compressed in one of his sayings “What you believe is what you are.” The old man advises the dying Anna not to be afraid of death, because she brings peace, which the eternally hungry Anna never knew. The drunken Actor Luka inspires hope for a cure in a free clinic for alcoholics, although he knows that there is no such clinic, and Vaska Peplu talks about the opportunity to start a new life with Natasha in Siberia. One of the ideological centers of the play is the wanderer's story about how he saved two runaway convicts. This happened when he served as a watchman at the dacha of an engineer near Tomsk. On a cold winter night, thieves entered the dacha. Luka made them repent, regretted, fed him. He says, “Good men!” If I hadn't had pity on them, they might have killed me or something. And then - the court, but the prison and Siberia, what's the point? Prison - does not teach good, and Siberia will not teach, but man - yes Man - can teach good very simply1 "The same thought about the great power of good sounds in his story about the "righteous land" Once upon a time there was a poor man, he lived badly, but he did not lose heart, endured and dreamed of leaving this life and leaving for the righteous land “There must, he said, be a righteous land in the world in that, they say, land - special people inhabit good people1 they respect each other, each other - in every way - they help and everyone they are gloriously good.” In the most difficult moments of his life, this man was supported by the thought of a “righteous land.” He said to himself, “Nothing! I will endure! A few more - I'll wait and then - I'll give up this whole life and
- I will go to the righteous land. He had one joy - this land "He lived in Siberia. There he met the exiled scientist and asked him to show on the map where this most righteous land is located. That's right, all the lands are shown, but the righteous one is not!” The man did not believe this scientist. How is it that “lived and lived, endured, endured and believed everything - there is, but according to the plans it turns out - no!” He got angry at the scientist, hit him in the ear, and then went home - and strangled himself. a instructive meaning. The listeners were imbued with sympathy for the poor man, whose hopes were not justified. Natasha concludes, “It's a pity for a person. Can't stand the deception." Ashes says “ Well, yes, those righteous land didn’t turn out to mean." These words suggest that both Natasha and Pepel were also ready to believe in the existence of such a land where they could find shelter and work. He says to Natasha, “I will be literate work. So he says (points to Luka) - you have to go to Siberia of your own free will. Let's go there, well, do you think - my life - doesn't suit me? I don't believe in conscience. But I feel like I need to live differently! It is better to JUST! We must live in such a way that I can respect myself.” The parable told by Luke had a sad end. By this, Luka, as it were, prepared his listeners for the fact that much of what Nastya, Natasha, Actor Baron, Klesh Pepel dream of can turn out to be a utopia, an unattainable hope. The seeds sown by Luke fell on fertile soil. The actor is excited about looking for a mythical city with a marble hospital for alcoholics. Ashes, convinced by the old man that he needs to go to Siberia, dreams of escaping from reality into a fantastic realm of justice and taking the pure Natasha with him. Unfortunate Anna tries to love the afterlife before her death. Nastya believes in “true love” and is waiting for it. Luka skillfully uses the bright things that are still preserved in the minds of these people to color and decorate the world around them. When the collapse of hopes begins, he imperceptibly disappears. The finale is as tragic as in the parable of the “righteous land”. The actor commits suicide, Pepel is arrested for the murder of Kostylev, Natasha's life is deeply unhappy and distorted, Anna dies. At the close of the third act, the distraught, crippled Natasha screams heart-rendingly, “Take them, judge them. Take me too, jail me for Christ's sake, jail me! » In the play “At the bottom”, Luke acts as not just a comforter. He philosophically substantiates his position. The main idea of ​​Gorky's character is that it is not violence or prison that can save a person and teach goodness, but only kindness.

A wasteland behind the Kostylevs' rooming house. Natasha and Nastya are sitting on a log, Luka and Baron are sitting on the wood. The tick lies on a pile of branches. Nastya tells fictional story about his romance with a student. The rest convict her of lying, except for Luka, who regrets Nastya: “If you believe, you had real love... that means she was. Natasha says that a lie is more pleasant than the truth, she admits that she herself loves to dream and is waiting for something extraordinary. Natasha says that life is bad for everyone, and Kleshch is indignant: “After all, if everyone had a bad life, then it would not be so insulting.” Bubnov and Baron argue that people lie out of a desire to "color up the soul." Luka advises the Baron to caress Nastya, says that one must be kind: "Christ was sorry for everyone and ordered us so." He tells a story from his life about how he brought up the robbers (made them flog each other), and then gave them bread. If he had not taken pity on them then, they would have killed him and ended up in prison or Siberia, where they would hardly have been taught goodness. The tick screams that there is no truth, no work and no strength. He does not understand what he is guilty of, insists that he hates everyone, and curses his life. Ash appears. He does not like Klesch for anger and pride: “If you value people at work ... then a horse is better than any person ... Carries and - is silent!” Luke tells the parable of the righteous land. One poor man was about to go in search of a righteous land. Despite the fact that he lived very poorly, he did not lose heart, endured and dreamed of leaving this life and going to the righteous land. He lived in Siberia. There he met the exiled scientist and asked him to show the righteous land on the map, which, of course, was not on the map. A person does not believe, gets angry: he endured so much - and all in vain. Beats the scientist, and then leaves and hangs himself. Luka is going to go to Ukraine, where they opened new faith. Pepel calls Natasha to leave with him, promises to stop stealing and start working (he is literate). He does not repent, because he does not believe in conscience, but he feels that it is necessary to live differently. No one ever called him anything other than a thief in his life. He asks Natasha to stay with him and believe him. Natasha replies that she does not love him and that he treated her sister badly. Pepel says that in life he had nothing to grab onto: "Vasilisa is greedy for money," which she needs to debauch. Natasha, according to him, will be able to keep him. Luka advises Natasha to marry Pepel, because she has nowhere else to go, and to remind him more often that he good man. Natasha agrees, but only until the first beatings, and then she promises to strangle herself. Vasilisa appears and “blesses” the young: “Do not be afraid, Natalya! He won't beat you... He can neither beat nor love... I know! He is more verbally daring ... ” Kostylev, who entered, sends Natasha to put on a samovar. Pepel tells Natasha not to listen to Kostylev anymore, Vasilisa encourages Pepel, pushing him against her husband, but Luka calms Ash down. Kostylev tells Luka that a person should live in one place, "and not get confused in vain on the ground." In his opinion, a person must work in order to benefit from him. A person does not need every truth, he needs to be able to remain silent, live righteously, not interfere with anyone, not condemn anyone, not to stir up people in vain. Luke answers with a riddle: “I say - there is land that is inconvenient for sowing ... and there is fertile land ... whatever you sow, it will give birth.” Vasilisa kicks Luka out, suspecting that he is a fugitive. Bubnov, who entered, tells his story: his wife agreed with the master, they wanted to poison Bubnov, he was angry and beat his wife, and the master was angry and beat Bubnov. The workshop was registered to his wife, Bubnov drank heavily and as a result was left with nothing. The Actor appears. He boasts that today he did not drink, but worked (sweeping the street) and earned money for the road. Satin recites Pushkin's poems aloud ("Song of prophetic Oleg”) - “Tell me, sorcerer, favorite of the gods, what will come true in life with me?” Then he tells about himself: in his youth he danced well, played on stage, made people laugh, but defending the honor of his sister, he killed a man, ended up in prison, which completely changed him. Klesch appears, saddened by the fact that he had to sell all the tools: he needed money for Anna's funeral. Now he cannot work. Satin advises him not to do anything: “People are not ashamed that you live worse than a dog ... Think - you won’t work, I won’t ... hundreds more ... thousands, that’s all! - understand? Everyone stops working! Nobody wants to do anything - what will happen then? The tick replies that then everyone will die of hunger. Natasha's screams are heard, a commotion rises, Kvashnya and Nastya bring Natasha, whom Vasilisa beat and scalded her legs with boiling water. Medvedev comes running, whom Kostylev asks to arrest Vaska the thief. Pepel appears, beats Kostylev with a swing and kills him. Vasilisa shouts in a triumphant voice that Pepel killed her husband and calls the police. Ash wants to kill her too, but he is restrained. Satine volunteers to be a witness - to protect Ash. Unexpectedly, Natasha declares that Ashes and Vasilisa conspired and removed the people who interfered with them - her and Kostylev, curses her sister and Ashes. As Cinder tries to calm her down, the police show up.