The purpose of the lesson: to introduce students to the milestones of Gorky's biography and work; show the features of Gorky's romanticism. To trace how the writer's intention is revealed in the composition of the stories.
Methodological techniques: abstract, lecture, analytical conversation, expressive reading.
Lesson equipment: portrait and photographs of A.M. Gorky of different years.
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During the classes.
- The water word of the teacher.
The name of Alexei Maksimovich Gorky (Peshkov) is known to everyone in our country. Several generations have studied his work with school bench. Certain ideas have developed about Gorky: he is the founder of the literature of socialist realism, "the petrel of the revolution", literary critic and a publicist, the initiator of the creation and the first chairman of the Union of Writers of the USSR.
- Abstract on the biography of Gorky.
- Characteristic early stage the creativity of the writer.
Gorky's early stories are of a romantic nature.
Romanticism is a special type of creativity, hallmark which is the display and reproduction of life outside the real-concrete connections of a person with surrounding reality, the image of an exceptional personality, often lonely and not satisfied with the present, striving for a distant ideal and therefore in sharp conflict with society, with people.
In the center of Gorky's narrative, there is usually a romantic hero - a proud, strong, freedom-loving, lonely person, a destroyer of the sleepy vegetation of the majority. The action takes place in an unusual, often exotic setting: in a gypsy camp, in communion with the elements, with the natural world - the sea, mountains, coastal rocks. Often the action is transferred to legendary times.
Distinctive features of Gorky's romantic images are proud disobedience to fate and impudent love of freedom, integrity of nature and heroism of character. The romantic hero strives for unrestricted freedom, without which there is no true happiness for him and which is often dearer to him than life itself. IN romantic stories the writer's observations of contradictions are embodied human soul and the dream of beauty.
For romantic consciousness, the correlation of character with real life circumstances is almost unthinkable - this is how the most important feature of the romantic world is formed: the principle of romantic duality. The ideal world of the hero is opposed to the real, contradictory and far from romantic ideal. The confrontation between the romantic and the world around him is a fundamental feature of this literary movement.
Such are the heroes of Gorky's early romantic stories.
The old gypsy Makar Chudra appears before the reader in romantic landscape.
Give examples to prove this.
The hero is surrounded by “cold waves of the wind”, “the darkness of the autumn night”, which “shuddered and, timidly moving away, opened for a moment on the left - the boundless steppe, on the right - the endless sea”. Let's pay attention to the animation of the landscape, to its breadth, which symbolizes the boundlessness of the hero's freedom, his inability and unwillingness to exchange this freedom for anything.
In a romantic landscape appears and main character story “Old Woman Izergil” (1894): “The wind flowed in a wide, even wave, but sometimes it seemed to jump over something invisible and, giving rise to strong gusts, fluttered the women’s hair into fantastic manes that billowed around their heads. It made women strange and fabulous. They moved farther and farther away from us, and the night and fantasy dressed them more and more beautifully.
In the story "Chelkash" (1894), the seascape is described several times. In the light of the hot sun: “The waves of the sea, clad in granite, are suppressed by huge weights sliding along their ridges, they beat against the sides of ships, against the shores, they beat and grumble, foamed, polluted with various rubbish.” AND dark night: “thick layers of shaggy clouds were moving across the sky, the sea was calm, black and thick as butter. It breathed a damp, salty aroma and sounded kindly, splashing on the sides of the ships, on the shore, slightly rocking Chelkash's boat. Dark hulls of ships rose from the sea to a distant expanse from the shore, thrusting sharp dreams into the sky with multi-colored lanterns on top. The sea reflected the lights of the lanterns and was dotted with a mass of yellow spots. They fluttered beautifully on his velvet, soft, matte black. The sea slept with a healthy, sound sleep of a worker who was very tired during the day.
Let us pay attention to the detailed metaphorical nature of Gorky's style, to the bright sound writing.
It is in such a landscape - seaside, night, mysterious and beautiful - that Gorky's heroes can realize themselves. It is said about Chelkash: “On the sea, a wide, warm feeling always rose in him, covering his whole soul, it cleansed him a little from worldly filth. He appreciated this and liked to see himself as the best here, among water and air, where thoughts about life and life itself always lose - the first - sharpness, the second - the price. At night, the soft noise of his sleepy breath rushes over the sea, this immense sound pours calmness into the soul of a person and, gently taming her evil impulses, will give birth to mighty dreams in her ... "
- A conversation on the romantic stage of M. Gorky's work.
What are the main character traits of Gorky's romantic heroes?
(Makar Chudra carries in his character the only principle that he considers most valuable: the desire for freedom. The same principle is in the character of Chelkash with “his ebullient, nervous nature, greedy for impressions.” The author introduces Chelkash to the reader as follows: “old poisoned wolf, well familiar to the people of Havana, an inveterate drunkard and a clever, bold thief. hallmark Izergil is her confidence that all life was subordinated to love for people, but freedom was above all for her.
The heroes of legends, the old women Izergil - Danko and Larra - also embody a single trait: Larra is extreme individualism, Danko is an extreme degree of self-sacrifice in the name of love for people.)
What is the motivation of the characters?
(Danko, Rada, Zobar, Chelkash are in their essence, they are from the very beginning.
Larra is the son of an eagle, embodying the ideal of strength and will. Let's pay attention to the unusualness and sonority of the names of the characters.
The action of the legends takes place in ancient times - it's like the time that preceded the beginning of history, the era of first creations. Therefore, in the present there are traces directly related to that era - these are blue lights left from Danko's heart, the shadow of Lara, which Izergil sees, the images of Rada and Loiko Zobar, woven before the narrator's gaze in the darkness of the night.)
What is the meaning of opposing Danko and Lara?
(Larra is likened to a mighty beast: “He was agile, predatory, strong, cruel and did not meet people face to face”; “he had no tribe, no mother, no livestock, no wife, and he did not want any of this” Over the years, it turns out that this son of an eagle and a woman was deprived of a heart: "Larra wanted to plunge a knife into himself, but the knife broke - they hit him like a stone. The punishment that befell him is terrible and natural - to be a shadow:" He does not understand a single word people, not their actions – nothing.” The image of Lara embodies an anti-human essence.
Danko carries inexhaustible love for those who were like animals, like wolves that surrounded him, so that it would be easier for them to capture and kill Danko. One desire possessed them - to oust from their consciousness the darkness, cruelty, fear of dark forest, from there "something terrible, dark and cold looked at the walking ones." Danko's heart caught fire and burned to dispel the darkness not only of the forest, but also of the soul. The saved people did not pay attention to the proud heart that fell nearby, and one cautious person noticed this and, being afraid of something, stepped on the proud heart with his foot.
Let's think about what a cautious person was afraid of.
Let's note the symbolic parallels: light and darkness, sun and marsh cold, fiery heart and stone flesh.
Selfless service to people is opposed to Lara's individualism and expresses the ideal of the writer himself.)
V. Conversation.
Composition (building artwork) is subordinated to one goal - to most fully reveal the image of the protagonist, who is the spokesman for the author's idea.
How are the images of the characters revealed in the composition?
(The composition of “Makar Chudra” and “Old Woman Izergil” is a story within a story. This technique is often found in literature. Telling the legends of their people, the heroes of the stories express their ideas about people, about what they consider valuable and important in life. They seem to create coordinates by which one can judge them.
In composition important role play portrait characteristics. The portrait of Rada is given indirectly. We learn about her extraordinary beauty from the reaction of the people she struck. (Description of Rada.) The proud Rada rejected both the money and the proposal to marry the magnate. Pride and beauty are equal in this heroine.
But the portrait of Loiko is drawn in detail. (Description of Loiko.)
- What is the conflict in the work and how is it resolved?
(Telling about the love of Rada and Loiko, Makar Chudra believes that this is the only way he should perceive life real man, the only way to save own freedom. The conflict between love and pride is resolved by the death of both -
no one wanted to submit to a loved one.)
(The image of the narrator is one of the most inconspicuous, he usually remains in the shadows. But the look of this person, traveling around Rus', meeting different people, is very important. The perceiving consciousness (the hero-narrator) is the most important subject of the image, the author's criterion expressing the author's position.The narrator's interested look selects the most bright heroes, the most significant, from his point of view, episodes and talks about them. In this is author's assessment- admiration for strength, beauty, poetry, pride.)
(In “Old Woman Izergil”, the author collides in the legends the ideal expressing love for people, and self-sacrifice, and the anti-ideal, individualism taken to the extreme. These two legends, as it were, frame the story of the life of the old woman Izergil herself. Condemning Lara, the heroine thinks that her fate is closer to Danko - she is also dedicated to love. But from the stories about herself, the heroine appears rather cruel: she easily forgot her former love for the sake of a new one, left the people she once loved. Her indifference is striking.)
What role does the portrait of the Old Woman Izergil play in the composition?
(The portrait of the heroine is contradictory. From her stories, one can imagine how good she was in her youth. But the portrait of the old woman is almost disgusting, anti-aesthetic features are deliberately forced. (Description of the Old Woman.) The features of the portrait of Lara bring these heroes together. (Description of Lara.).)
What is the relationship between romanticism and realism in the story?
(The autobiographical hero is the only realistic image in Gorky's early romantic stories. His realism lies in the fact that the typical circumstances of Russian life in the 1890s were reflected in his character and fate. The development of capitalism led to the fact that millions of people, many of which they made up an army of tramps, vagabonds, detached from past life and did not find a place for themselves in the new conditions. Gorky's autobiographical hero belongs to such people.)
How the composition reveals the image romantic hero in the story "Chelkash"?
(Formally, the story consists of a prologue and three parts. The prologue outlines the scene - the port: “The ringing of anchor chains, the rumble of the clutches of wagons carrying cargo, the metallic shriek of iron sheets falling from somewhere on the pavement stone, the dull thud of wood, the rattling of cab carts, the whistles of steamships, now dull roaring, the screams of loaders, sailors and customs soldiers - all these sounds merge into deafening music labor day…». Let us note the techniques by which this picture is created: first of all, sound writing (assonances and alliterations) and non-union, which gives dynamism to the description.)
What is the role of the portrait of the characters in the story?
(The portrait of the hero in the first part reveals his character: “dry and angular brushes covered with brown skin”; “tousled black hair with gray hair”; “crumpled, sharp, predatory face”; “long, bony, slightly stooped”; , predatory
nose" and "cold gray eyes." The author directly writes about his resemblance “to the steppe hawk with his predatory thinness and this aiming gait, smooth and calm in appearance, but internally excited and vigilant, like the years of that bird of prey that he resembled.”)
What is the meaning of the word "predator"?
(Let's pay attention to how many times the epithet "predatory" was encountered. Obviously, it reveals the essence of the hero. Let's recall how often Gorky likens his heroes to birds - an eagle, a falcon, a hawk.)
What is the role of Gabriel in the story?
(Chelkash is contrasted with Gavrila, a rustic rustic guy. The portrait of Gavrila is built in contrast with the portrait of Chelkash himself: “childish Blue eyes"look" trustingly and good-naturedly ", the movements are clumsy, the mouth is now wide open, then" slaps its lips. Chelkash feels himself the master of the life of Gavrila, who has fallen into his wolf paws, and paternal feeling is mixed in with this. Looking at Gavrila, Chelkash recalls his village past: "He felt lonely, torn out and thrown out forever from the order of life in which the blood that flows in his veins was developed.")
When does the denouement of the story "Chelkash" take place?
(In the third part, in the dialogue between Chelkash and Gavrila, it finally becomes clear how much this different people. For the sake of profit, the cowardly and greedy Gavrila is ready for humiliation, for crime, for murder: he almost killed Chelkash. Gavril causes contempt, disgust in Chelkash.Finally, the author breeds the characters as follows: Gavrila “took off his wet cap, crossed himself, looked at the money clutched in his palm, breathed freely and deeply, hid it in his bosom and with wide, firm steps walked along the coast in the direction opposite to the one where Chelkash disappeared”.)
VI Questions on the early romantic stories of M. Gorky.
- How do you understand the principle of "romantic duality" in Gorky's work?
- What are the features of the landscape in Gorky's early romantic stories? What is the role of the landscape?
- How do you understand the words of the heroine of Gorky's story "Old Woman Izergil": "And I see that people do not live, but everyone tries on"?
- What was the “cautious man” from the story “Old Woman Izergil” afraid of, stepping foot on Danko’s “proud heart”?
- What literary characters can be compared with this "cautious person"?
- What is the ideal of a person in Gorky's early romantic stories?
- What, in your opinion, is the meaning of the opposition of Gorky's heroes - Chelkash and Gavrila?
- What do you see as the features of Gorky's romanticism?
Composition
In his early romantic works, Maxim Gorky resorted to the tried-and-true "story within a story" method. The author listens to the wise Nadyr-Ragim-Ogly, an old Crimean shepherd, who tells him legends and tales, sings strange songs, and then beautiful language conveys what is heard to readers. This allows the author to achieve the reliability that he needs. We unconditionally believe in the existence of Uzh and Falcon, in their conversation. The author does not need to convince the reader of the authenticity of events. Yes, it does not matter - a fairy tale before us or a true story.
The author shows two philosophies, two ways of life. "The madness of the brave" Already contrasts " low truths”, he even hides behind ostentatious patriotism: “Let those who cannot love the earth live by deceit. I know the truth. And I will not believe their calls. Creation of the earth - I live on the earth. The author seems to agree with this petty-bourgeois philosophy. But this is only an external impression. Gorky invites the reader to make his own choice, and does not decide everything for him. The author seems to be saying: “Yes, there is life, there is truth, but it is not eternal. The development of life gives birth to new truths.
Gorky is a master short story. Boring, but bright phrases he knows how to say much more than is sometimes behind long philosophical arguments. The skill and artistic talent of Gorky was already revealed in his early work. “Across the dark blue sky, something solemn, enchanting the soul, confusing the mind with the sweet expectation of some kind of revelation, is written with a golden pattern of stars.” Proof of this is the "Song of the Falcon"
"Makar Chudra" - the first printed work of A. M. Peshkov. It appeared in the Tiflis newspaper "Kavkaz" in 1892 and was signed by a pseudonym that was destined to soon become known to the whole world - Maxim Gorky. The publication of the first story was preceded by years of the author's wanderings around Rus', to which he was driven by an indefatigable desire to know Russia, unravel the mystery of a vast destitute country, and understand the cause of the suffering of its people. In the knapsack of the future writer there was not always a slice of bread, but there was always a thick notebook with notes about interesting events and the people he met along the way. Later, these notes turned into poems and stories, many of which have not reached us.
In his early works, including Makar Chudra, Gorky appears before us as a romantic writer. Main character- old gypsy Makar Chudra. For him, the most important thing in life is personal freedom, which he would never trade for anything. He believes that the peasant is a slave who was born only to pick the ground and die before he even had time to dig his own grave. His maximalist desire for freedom is also embodied by the heroes of the legend he tells. A young, beautiful gypsy couple - Loiko Zobar and Rad-da - love each other. But in both the desire for personal freedom is so strong that they even look at their own love as a chain that binds their independence. Each of them, declaring his love, sets his own conditions, trying to dominate. This leads to a tense conflict, ending in the death of the heroes. Loiko yields to Radda, kneels in front of her in front of everyone, which is considered a terrible humiliation among the gypsies, and at the same moment kills her. And he himself dies at the hands of her father.
A feature of the composition of this story, as already mentioned, is that the author puts a romantic legend into the mouth of the protagonist. It helps us to understand it deeper. inner world and value system. For Makar Chudra, Loiko and Rudd are the ideals of love of freedom. He is sure that two wonderful feelings, pride and love, brought to their highest expression, cannot be reconciled. A person worthy of imitation, in his understanding, must maintain his personal freedom at the cost of his own life. Another feature of the composition of this work is the presence of the image of the narrator. It is almost imperceptible, but we can easily guess the author himself in it. He does not quite agree with his hero. We do not hear direct objections to Makar Chudra. But at the end of the story, where the narrator, looking into the darkness of the steppe, sees how Loiko Zobar and Radda “circled in the darkness of the night smoothly and silently, and the handsome Loiko could not catch up with the proud Radda”, his position is revealed. The independence and pride of these people, of course, delight and attract, but these same traits doom them to loneliness and the impossibility of happiness. They are slaves of their freedom, they are not able to sacrifice even for the people they love.
To express the feelings of the characters and his own, the author widely uses the technique landscape sketches. Seascape is a kind of frame for the whole storyline story. The sea is closely connected with state of mind heroes: at first it is calm, only a "wet, cold wind" carries "across the steppe the thoughtful melody of the splash of a wave running ashore and the rustle of coastal bushes." But now it began to rain, the wind grew stronger, and the sea roars dull and angry and sings a gloomy and solemn anthem proud pair of handsome gypsies. At all feature of this story is its musicality. Music accompanies the whole story about the fate of lovers. “You can’t say anything about her, this Rudd, in words. Perhaps her beauty could be played on a violin, and even then to someone who knows this violin as his soul.
Gorky's work initial stage bears a strong imprint of the new literary movement- the so-called revolutionary romanticism. Philosophical ideas young talented writer, passion, emotionality of his prose, new
approach to a person sharply differed from both naturalistic prose, which had gone into petty everyday realism and chose hopeless boredom as a theme human existence, and from the aesthetic approach to literature and life, which saw value only in "refined" emotions, characters and words.
For youth, there are two most important components of life, two vectors of existence. This is love and freedom. In Gorky's stories "Makar Chudra" and "Old Woman Izergil" love and freedom become the theme of the stories told by the main characters. Gorky's plot find - that old age tells about youth and love - allows us to give a perspective, the point of view of a young person who lives by love and sacrifices everything for it, and a person who has lived his life, who has seen a lot and is able to understand what is really important, what remains at the end long way.
The heroes of the two parables told by the old woman Izergil are the complete opposite. Danko is an example of love-self-sacrifice, love-bestowal. He cannot live, separating himself from his tribe, people, he feels unhappy and not free if the people are not free and unhappy. Pure sacrificial love and the desire for a feat were characteristic of romantic revolutionaries who dreamed of dying for universal ideals, could not imagine life without sacrifice, did not hope and did not want to live to old age. Danko gives the heart that lights the way for people. This is a fairly simple symbol: only pure, full of love and altruism, the heart can become a beacon, and only a selfless sacrifice will help free the people. The tragedy of the parable is that people forget about those who sacrificed themselves for them. They are ungrateful, but well aware of this, Danko does not think about the meaning of his dedication, does not expect recognition, rewards. Gorky polemicizes with the official church concept of merit, in which a person does good deeds, knowing in advance that he will be rewarded. The writer gives an opposite example: the reward for a feat is the feat itself and the happiness of the people for whose sake it is accomplished.
The son of an eagle is the exact opposite of Danko. Larra is single. He is proud and narcissistic, he sincerely considers himself superior, better than other people. It causes disgust, but also pity. After all, Larra does not deceive anyone, he does not pretend that he is able to love. Unfortunately, there are many such people, although their essence is not so clearly manifested in real life. For them, love, interest come down only to possession. If it cannot be possessed, it must be destroyed. After killing the girl, Larra, with Cynical candor, says that he did it because he could not possess her. And he adds that, in his opinion, people only prioritize what they love and observe moral standards. After all, nature gave them only their body as property, and they own both animals and things. Larra is cunning and can talk, but this is a hoax. He overlooks the fact that a person always pays for the possession of money, labor, time, but ultimately a life lived this way and not otherwise. Therefore, the so-called truth of Larra becomes the reason for his rejection. The tribe expels the apostate, saying: you despise us, you are superior - well, live alone if we are unworthy of you. But loneliness becomes an endless torture. Larra understands that his whole philosophy was only a pose, that even in order to consider himself superior to others and be proud of himself, others are still needed. You cannot admire yourself alone, and we all depend on the assessment and recognition from society.
Freedom and love is the theme of the parable about Radda and Loiko. There is no love in slavery, no true feelings in self-deception. The heroes love each other, but freedom is above all for them. Gorky's freedom is not lawless freemen, but the opportunity to preserve one's essence, one's "I", that is, one's humanity, without which there can be neither love nor life.
The early works (1892-1899) of M. Gorky are fanned with a romantic mood. These are "Makar Chudra", "Old Woman Izergil", "Song of the Falcon". It cannot be unambiguously stated that early stories the author are created only within the framework of romanticism: Gorky at the same time creates and realistic works- “Emelyan Pilyai”, “My Companion”, “Konovalov”, “Spouses of the Orlovs”, “Malva”, etc. Romanticism of M. Gorky is, first of all, the atmosphere - night, ancient legends and legends, incredible love stories and colorful characters. The main concepts of the author's romantic works are "freedom", "independence", "struggle", which corresponded to the revolutionary spirit of the times: " Only he is worthy of life and freedom, who every day goes to fight for them."(Goethe).
Romantic stories are born from the desire to oppose the tired, measured, monotonous reality with its spiritual poverty and degradation, the ups of human fantasy, feat, the desire "for freedom, for the light", the thirst for realization in the world, the passion for recognition. Gorky heroes stand above everyday life and everyday life. They are not satisfied with the "average", they strive for the high, the eternal.
The center of the story "Makar Chudra" is the clash of two strong and independent characters - Radda and Loiko Zobar. Both yearn for love, but it's a different kind of love - love-passion, love-fire, love-beauty And love is freedom, love is independence simultaneously. The thirst for freedom reaches the extreme for heroes: heroes are able to pay for not being subject to someone own life. The love of freedom and beauty of the characters are poeticized by the author, raised to the ideal. The tragic legend about Radda and Loiko is told by Makar Chudra, who contrasts them modern man: “They are funny, those your people. They huddle together and crush each other, and there are so many places on earth.
From conflict between characters M. Gorky in the story "Old Woman Izergil" goes on to conflict "hero-society". This conflict is deeper, psychologically and socially sharpened. From the numerous legends and stories told by the Old Woman, images of Larra are born - the son of a woman and an eagle, Danko - "the best of all", etc. Larra, for his selfishness and desire to rule over people, was punished with freedom and the inability to end his life earlier than it was destined: " That's how the man was struck for pride!". Danko, at the cost of his life, tried to bring his fellow tribesmen to freedom and light: “ It burned so brightly. Like the sun, and brighter than the sun, and the whole forest fell silent, lit by this torch great love to people". But Danko's sacrifice went unnoticed: due to fatigue, people refused to continue their journey. The story of Izergil itself, which serves as a link between the two legends, is full of dedication and feat, which the author emphasizes the presence of the heroic in man. 
It is noteworthy that in his stories Gorky brings the private to the global level. So, in Makar Chudra, the proud figures of Radda and Loiko turned into clouds, where the second tries, but cannot overtake the first. In "Old Woman Izergil" the sparks of Danko's heart turned into " blue sparks of the steppe that appear before a thunderstorm.
"The Song of the Falcon" depicts a clash of two truths - the truth of the Falcon, " happiness of battle", and the truth of Uzh:" Fly or crawl, the end is known: everyone will fall into the ground, everything will be dust". Despite the measured and thoughtful position of Uzh, the author is on the side of the “fighting” Falcon: “ The madness of the brave is the wisdom of life».
Despite the use of Gorky's works in revolutionary propaganda, their meaning is deeper: these stories are philosophical reflection author about human nature in man.
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The purpose of the lesson: to trace how the writer's intention is revealed in the composition of the stories.
Methodical methods: analytical conversation.
During the classes
The composition (construction of a work of art) is subordinated to one goal - to most fully reveal the image of the protagonist, who is the spokesman for the author's idea.
II. Conversation
What are the features of the composition of the stories "Makar Chudra" and "Old Woman Izergil"?
(The composition of “Makar Chudra” and “Old Woman Izergil” is a story in a story. This technique is often found in literature (we will give examples). Telling the legends of their people, the heroes of the stories express their ideas about people, about what they consider valuable and important in life They seem to create a coordinate system by which one can judge them.)
What role do portrait characteristics of the characters play in the composition?
(Portrait characteristics play an important role in the composition. The portrait of Radda is given indirectly. We learn about her extraordinary beauty from the reaction of the people she struck. “Perhaps her beauty can be played on the violin, and even then to the one who knows his soul"; "one tycoon", "beautiful as hell on a holiday", "saw her and was dumbfounded". Proud Radda rejected both money and an offer to marry that tycoon: "if an eagle to a raven in a nest of its own free entered, what would she become?” Pride and beauty are equal in this heroine.
But the portrait of Loiko is drawn in detail: “The mustache lay on the shoulders and mixed with curls, the eyes, like clear stars, burn, and the smile is the whole sun, by golly! It was as if he was forged from one piece of iron along with the horse. The image is not just romantic - fabulous, with folklore formulations.)
What is the conflict in the work and how is it resolved?
(Telling about the love of Radda and Loiko Zobar, Makar Chudra believes that this is the only way a real person should perceive life, only this way between love and pride is allowed by the death of both - no one wanted to submit to a loved one.)
(The image of the narrator is one of the most inconspicuous, he usually remains in the shadows. But the look of this person, traveling around Russia, meeting different people, is very important. The perceiving consciousness (in this case, the hero-narrator) is the most important subject of the image, the criterion of the author's assessment of reality , a means of expressing the author's position. The narrator's interested look selects the brightest characters, the most significant, from his point of view, episodes and talks about them. This is the author's assessment - admiration for strength, beauty, poetry, pride.)
(In “The Old Woman Izergil”, the author collides in the legends the ideal expressing love for people and self-sacrifice, and the anti-ideal - taken to the extreme. These two legends seem to frame the story of the life of the old woman Izergil herself. Condemning Larra, the heroine thinks that her fate is closer to the pole Danko - she is also dedicated to love. But from the stories about herself, the heroine appears rather cruel: she easily forgot her former love for the sake of a new one, left the people she once loved. Her indifference is amazing.)
What role does the portrait of the old woman Izergil play in the composition?
(The portrait of the heroine is contradictory. From her stories, one can imagine how good she was in her youth. But the portrait of the old woman is almost disgusting, anti-aesthetic features are deliberately inflated: “Time has bent her in half, her once black eyes were dull and watery. Her dry voice sounded strangely, it crunched like an old woman spoke with bones." She had a toothless mouth, trembling hands, and crooked fingers. The moon illuminated her dry, cracked lips, a pointed chin with gray hair on it and a wrinkled nose, curved like an owl's beak. In place cheeks were black pits, and in one of them lay a strand of ash-gray hair, knocked out from under the red rag that was wrapped around her head. that this dry skin will tear all over, fall apart in pieces, and a naked skeleton with dull black eyes will stand in front of me." The features of Larra's portrait, which the old woman herself tells about, bring these heroes closer: bones, and the wind scattered them. The individualism of the old woman, her stories about people who have gone through their life cycle and turned into shadows, the old woman herself, ancient, “without a body, without blood, with a heart without desires, with eyes without fire - also almost a shadow” reminds the narrator Larr (recall that Larra also turned into a shadow). Thus, with the help of the portrait, the images of Izergil and Larra come closer, the essence of the characters and the position of the author himself are revealed.)
What is the relationship between romanticism and realism in the story?
(The autobiographical hero is the only realistic image in Gorky's early romantic stories. His realism lies in the fact that the typical circumstances of Russian life in the 1890s were reflected in his character and fate. The development of capitalism led to the fact that millions of people, many of which they made up an army of tramps, vagabonds, torn off from their past life and unable to find a place for themselves in the new conditions Gorky's autobiographical hero belongs to such people.)
With what help artistic techniques Is a picture of the scene created in the story "Chelkash"?
(Formally, the story consists of a prologue and three parts. The scene of action is described in the prologue - the port: “The ringing of anchor chains, the rumble of the clutches of wagons carrying cargo, the metallic scream of iron sheets falling from somewhere on the pavement stone, the dull thud of wood, the rattle of cab carts , the whistles of steamships, sometimes piercingly sharp, sometimes deafly roaring, the screams of loaders, sailors and customs soldiers - all these sounds merge into the deafening music of a working day ... ". Let's note the techniques by which this picture is created: first of all, sound writing (assonances and alliterations ) and non-union, which gives dynamism to the description.)
What is the role of the portrait of the characters in the story?
(The portrait of the hero in the first part reveals his character: “dry and angular bones covered with brown skin”; “tousled black hair with gray hair”; “crumpled, sharp, predatory face”; “long, bony, slightly stooped”; , predatory nose" and "cold gray eyes". The author directly writes about his resemblance "to the steppe hawk with his predatory thinness and this aiming gait, smooth and calm in appearance, but internally excited and vigilant, like the years of that bird of prey, which he resembled ".)
What is the meaning of the word "predator"?
(Let's pay attention to how many times the epithet "predatory" was encountered. Obviously, it reveals the essence of the hero. Let's recall how often Gorky likens his heroes to birds - an eagle, a falcon, a hawk.)
What is the role of Gabriel in the story?
(The image of Gavrila serves as an antithesis to the image of Chelkash. Chelkash is opposed to Gavrila, a rustic rustic guy. The portrait of Gavrila is built in contrast with the portrait of Chelkash himself: “childish blue eyes” look “trustfully and good-naturedly”, movements are clumsy, his mouth is either “wide open”, then “ slaps his lips". Chelkash feels himself the master of Gavrila's life, who fell into his "wolf paws", this is mixed with a "fatherly" feeling. Looking at Gavrila, Chelkash recalls his village past: "He felt lonely, torn out and thrown out forever from that order of life, in which the blood that flows in his veins was developed.")
(In the third part, the dialogue between Chelkash and Gavrila, it finally becomes clear how different people they are. For the sake of profit, the cowardly and greedy Gavrila is ready for humiliation, for a crime, for murder: he almost killed Chelkash. Gavrila causes contempt, disgust from Chelkash: “Gnus! .. And you don’t know how to fornicate!” Finally, the author breeds the characters like this: Gavrila “took off his wet cap, crossed himself, looked at the money clutched in his palm, sighed freely and deeply, hid it in his bosom and with wide, firm steps walked along the bank to the side , opposite to the one where Chelkash disappeared.
The author is clearly on the side of the "predatory" Chelkash. The image of Chelkash is romantic: he is a thief, but a bright, brave, courageous person. Gorky does not call the cowardly and greedy Gavrila even a man - he finds the definition of "gnus" for him.)
II. Questions on the early romantic stories of M. Gorky
How do you understand the principle of "romantic duality" in Gorky's work? Justify your answer.
What are the features of the landscape in Gorky's early romantic stories? What is the role of the landscape?
How do you understand the words of the heroine of Gorky's story "Old Woman Izergil": "And I see that people do not live, but everyone tries on"?
What was the “cautious man” from the story “Old Woman Izergil” afraid of, stepping foot on Danko’s “proud heart”? With which literary characters Can you compare this "cautious person"?
What is the ideal of a person in Gorky's early romantic stories?
What, in your opinion, is the meaning of the opposition of Gorky's heroes - Chelkash and Gavrila?
What do you see as the features of Gorky's romanticism?
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Maxim Gorky (Alexey Maksimovich Peshkov, 1868-1936) is one of the most significant figures in the world culture of our century and at the same time one of the most complex and controversial. IN last decade attempts were made to "throw Gorky's work off the ship of modernity." However, let's not forget that at the beginning of the century they tried to do the same with Pushkin and Tolstoy...
Perhaps only Gorky managed to reflect in his work the history, life and culture of Russia in the first third of the 20th century on a truly epic scale.
Early work A.M. Gorky is marked by the influence of romanticism. In the legacy of any writer, something can be liked and something not. One will leave you indifferent, and the other will delight. And this is all the more true for the huge and diverse work of A.M. Gorky. His early works - romantic songs and legends - leave the impression of contact with real talent. The characters in these stories are beautiful. And not only outwardly - they refuse the miserable fate of serving things and money, their life has a high meaning. Heroes early works A.M. Gorky are courageous and selfless (“The Song of the Falcon”, the legend of Danko), they glorify activity, the ability to act (images of the Falcon, Petrel, Danko). One of the most striking early works of A.M. Gorky is the story "Old Woman Izergil" (1894). The story was written using the writer's favorite form of framing: the legend of Larra, the story of the life of Izergil, the legend of Danko. The three parts of the story are united by the main idea - the desire to identify true value human personality.
In 1895 Gorky wrote his "Song of the Falcon". In the contrasting images of the Uzh and the Falcon, two forms of life are embodied: rotting and burning. In order to more clearly show the courage of the fighter, the author contrasts the Falcon with the adapting Uzh, whose soul rots in bourgeois complacency. Gorky delivers a merciless verdict on philistine-philistine well-being: "Born to crawl, he cannot fly." In this work, Gorky sings the song "to the madness of the brave", asserting it as "the wisdom of life."
Gorky believed that with the organization of a “healthy working people - democracy”, a special spiritual culture would be established, under which “life would become joy, music; labor is pleasure. That is why at the beginning of the 20th century the writer’s confessions about the happiness of “living on earth” are very frequent, where “ new life in the new century."
Such a romanticized feeling of the era was expressed by the "Song of the Petrel" (1901). In this work, a person who overthrows a stagnant world was revealed by romantic means. All manifestations of feelings dear to the author are concentrated in the image of the “proud bird”: courage, strength, fiery passion, confidence in victory over a meager and boring life. The petrel combines truly unprecedented abilities: soar up, "pierce" the darkness, call for a storm and enjoy it, see the sun behind the clouds. And the storm itself is like their realization.
Everywhere and always A.M. Gorky strove for the revival of these foundations by nature human being. In Gorky's early romantic works, the awakening of the human soul is laid down and captured - the most beautiful thing that the writer has always worshiped.
Born March 28, 1868 in Nizhny Novgorod. At the age of 11 he became an orphan and lived with relatives in Kazan until 1888. He tried many professions: he was a cook on a steamer, worked in an icon-painting workshop, a foreman. In 1888 he left Kazan for the village of Krasnovidovo, where he was engaged in propaganda revolutionary ideas. Maxim Gorky's first story, Makar Chudra, was published in 1892 in the newspaper Kavkaz. In 1898, the collection Essays and Stories was published, and a year later his first novel, Foma Gordeev, was published. In 1901 Gorky was expelled from Nizhny Novgorod in Arzamas Durnov A.N. Gorky, which we do not know. // Literary newspaper, 1993, March 10 (No. 10). .
A little later, the writer's collaboration with the Moscow Art Theater began. The theater staged the plays "At the Bottom" (1902), "Petty Bourgeois" (1901) and others. The poem "Man" (1903), the plays "Summer Residents" (1904), "Children of the Sun" (1905), "Two Barbarians" (1905) belong to the same period. Gorky becomes an active member of the Moscow Literary Environment, takes part in the creation of collections of the Knowledge Society. In 1905, Gorky was arrested and immediately after his release, he went abroad. From 1906 to 1913 Gorky lived in Capri. In 1907, the novel "Mother" by Mironov R.M. was published in America. Maksim Gorky. His personality and works. - M., 2003 ..
The plays “The Last” (1908), “Vassa Zheleznova” (1910), the stories “Summer” (1909) and “The Town of Okurov” (1909), the novel “The Life of Matvey Kozhemyakin” (1911) are created in Capri. In 1913, Gorky returned to Russia, and in 1915 he began publishing the Chronicle magazine. After the revolution, he worked at the publishing house "World Literature".
In 1921, Gorky again went abroad. In the early 1920s, he completed the trilogy "Childhood", "In People" and "My Universities", wrote the novel "The Artamonov Case", and began work on the novel "The Life of Klim Samgin". In 1931 Gorky returned to the USSR. He died on June 18, 1936 in the village of Gorki.
At the end of the 90s, the reader was amazed by the appearance of three volumes of Essays and Stories by a new writer, M. Gorky. "Great and original talent" - such was the general judgment about the new writer and his books Veselov G.D.
The growing discontent in society and the expectation of drastic changes have caused an increase in romantic tendencies in literature. These tendencies were especially clearly reflected in the work of the young Gorky, in such stories as "Chelkash", "Old Woman Izergil", "Makar Chudra", in revolutionary songs. The heroes of these stories are people "with the sun in their blood", strong, proud, beautiful. These heroes are Gorky's dream. Such a hero was supposed to "strengthen a person's will to live, arouse in him a rebellion against reality, against any oppression of it."
Central way romantic works of Gorky early period is the image of a hero, ready for a feat in the name of the good of the people. Of great importance in the disclosure of this image is the story "Old Woman Izergil", written in 1895. In the image of Danko, Gorky put a humanistic idea of a man who devotes all his strength to serving the people.
Gorky's work at the initial stage bears a strong imprint of a new literary trend - the so-called revolutionary romanticism. The philosophical ideas of the young talented writer, the passion and emotionality of his prose, and the new approach to man differed sharply both from naturalistic prose, which had gone into petty everyday realism and chose the hopeless boredom of human existence as its theme, and from the aesthetic approach to literature and life, which saw value only in "refined" emotions, characters and words.
For youth, there are two most important components of life, two vectors of existence. This is love and freedom. In Gorky's stories "Makar Chudra" and "Old Woman Izergil" love and freedom become the theme of the stories told by the main characters. Gorky's plot find - that old age tells about youth and love - allows us to give a perspective, the point of view of a young person who lives by love and sacrifices everything for it, and a person who has lived his life, who has seen a lot and is able to understand what is really important, what remains at the end of a long journey.
The heroes of the two parables told by the old woman Izergil are the complete opposite. Danko is an example of love-self-sacrifice, love-bestowal. He cannot live, separating himself from his tribe, people, he feels unhappy and not free if the people are not free and unhappy. Pure sacrificial love and the desire for achievement were characteristic of romantic revolutionaries who dreamed of dying for universal ideals, could not imagine life without sacrifice, did not hope and did not want to live to old age. Danko gives the heart that lights the way for people.
This is a fairly simple symbol: only a pure heart full of love and altruism can become a beacon, and only a selfless sacrifice will help free the people. The tragedy of the parable is that people forget about those who sacrificed themselves for them. They are ungrateful, but well aware of this, Danko does not think about the meaning of his dedication, does not expect recognition, rewards. Gorky polemicizes with the official church concept of merit, in which a person does good deeds, knowing in advance that he will be rewarded. The writer gives an opposite example: the reward for a feat is the feat itself and the happiness of the people for whose sake it is accomplished.
The son of an eagle is the exact opposite of Danko. Larra is single. He is proud and narcissistic, he sincerely considers himself superior, better than other people. It causes disgust, but also pity. After all, Larra does not deceive anyone, he does not pretend that he is able to love. Unfortunately, there are many such people, although their essence is not so clearly manifested in real life. For them, love, interest come down only to possession. If it cannot be possessed, it must be destroyed. After killing the girl, Larra, with cynical frankness, says that he did it because he could not own her. And he adds that, in his opinion, people only pretend that they love and observe moral standards. After all, nature gave them only their body as property, and they own both animals and things.
Larra is cunning and can talk, but this is a hoax. He overlooks the fact that a person always pays for the possession of money, labor, time, but ultimately a life lived this way and not otherwise. Therefore, the so-called truth of Larra becomes the reason for his rejection. The tribe expels the apostate, saying: you despise us, you are superior - well, live alone if we are unworthy of you. But loneliness becomes an endless torture. Larra understands that his whole philosophy was only a pose, that even in order to consider himself superior to others and be proud of himself, others are still needed. You cannot admire yourself alone, and we all depend on the assessment and recognition from society.
Romanticism early stories Gorky, his heroic ideals are always close and understandable to youth, they will be loved and will inspire more and more generations of readers to search for truth and heroism.
