Such works as "To whom it is good to live in Rus'" is a real digression into the 60s of the XIX century. The poem literally immerses the reader in the events of the post-serf times. A journey in search of a happy person in the Russian Empire reveals numerous problems of society, paints a picture of reality without embellishment and makes you think about the future of the country that dared to live in a new way.
The history of the creation of the Nekrasov poem
The exact date of the start of work on the poem is unknown. But the researchers of Nekrasov's work drew attention to the fact that already in his first part he mentions the Poles who were exiled. This makes it possible to assume that the idea of the poem arose from the poet around 1860-1863, and Nikolai Alekseevich started writing it around 1863. Although the sketches by the poet could have been done earlier.
It is known that since 1866 the first part of Nekrasov's work tried to see the light. For four years, the author tried to publish his work and constantly fell under discontent and sharp condemnation of censorship. Despite this, work on the poem continued.
The poet had to print it gradually all in the same magazine Sovremennik. So it was printed for four years, and all these years the censorship was unhappy. The poet himself was constantly criticized and persecuted. Therefore, he stopped his work for a while, and was able to start it again only in 1870. In this new period of the rise of his literary creativity, he creates three more parts to this poem, which were written at different times:
✪ "Last Child" -1872.
✪ "Peasant Woman" -1873.
✪ "Feast for the whole world" - 1876.
The poet wanted to write a few more chapters, but he was working on his poem at the time when he began to fall ill, so the illness prevented him from realizing these poetic plans. But still realizing that he would soon die, Nikolai Alekseevich tried in his last part to finish it so that the whole poem had logical completeness.
The plot of the poem "To whom it is good to live in Rus'"
In one of the volosts, on a wide road, there are seven peasants who live in neighboring villages. And they think about one question: who lives well in their native land. And their conversation reached such a point that it soon turns into an argument. The matter went on towards the evening, and they could not resolve this dispute in any way. And suddenly the peasants noticed that they had already traveled a long distance, carried away by the conversation. Therefore, they decided not to return home, but to spend the night in a clearing. But the argument continued and ended in a fight.
From such a noise, a chick of a warbler falls out, which Pahom saves, and for this an exemplary mother is ready to fulfill any desire of the men. Having received a magic tablecloth, the men decide to go on a journey to find the answer to the question that interests them so much. Soon they meet a priest who changes the opinion of the men that he lives well and happily. Heroes also get to the village fair.
They try to find happy people among the drunks, and it soon turns out that a peasant doesn’t need much to be happy: eat enough to protect himself from troubles. And in order to learn about happiness, I advise the heroes to find Yermila Girin, whom everyone knows. And here the men learn his story, and then the gentleman appears. But he also complains about his life.
At the end of the poem, the heroes try to look for happy people among women. They get acquainted with one peasant woman Matryona. They help Korchagina in the field, and for this she tells them her story, where she says that a woman cannot have happiness. Women only suffer.
And now the peasants are already on the banks of the Volga. Then they heard a story about a prince who could not come to terms with the abolition of serfdom, and then a story about two sinners. The story of the son of the deacon Grishka Dobrosklonov is also interesting.
You are wretched, You are plentiful, You are powerful, You are powerless, Mother Rus'! In slavery, the saved Heart is free - Gold, gold The heart of the people! The strength of the people, the mighty strength - the conscience is calm, the truth is tenacious!
Genre and unusual composition of the poem "To whom in Rus' it is good to live"
About what is the composition of the Nekrasov poem, there are still disputes between writers and critics. Most researchers of the literary work of Nikolai Nekrasov came to the conclusion that the material should be arranged as follows: the prologue and part one, then the chapter "Peasant Woman" should be placed, the chapter "Last Child" follows the content and in conclusion - "Feast - for the whole world."
Evidence of this arrangement of chapters in the plot of the poem was that, for example, in the first part and in the subsequent chapter, the world is depicted when the peasants were not yet free, that is, this is the world that was a little earlier: old and obsolete. In the next Nekrasov part, it is already shown how this old world is completely destroyed and perishes.
But already in the last Nekrasov chapter, the poet shows all the signs that a new life is beginning. The tone of the narrative changes dramatically and now it is lighter, clearer, more joyful. The reader feels that the poet, like his characters, believes in the future. Especially this striving for a clear and bright future is felt at those moments when the main character, Grishka Dobrosklonov, appears in the poem.
In this part, the poet completes the poem, so it is here that the denouement of the entire plot action takes place. And here is the answer to the question that was posed at the very beginning of the work about who, after all, is well and free, carefree and cheerful in Rus'. It turns out that the most carefree, happy and cheerful person is Grishka, who is the protector of his people. In his beautiful and lyrical songs, he predicted happiness for his people.
But if you carefully read how the denouement in the poem comes in its last part, then you can pay attention to the oddities of the story. The reader does not see the peasants returning to their homes, they do not stop traveling, and, in general, they do not even get to know Grisha. Therefore, a continuation was probably planned here.
In the work, the fabulousness of the composition is easily visible. There are many elements in the text that can easily be attributed to folklore. During the entire journey, the author inserts his lyrical digressions and elements that are completely irrelevant to the plot.
Analysis of Nekrasov's poem "Who Lives Well in Rus'"
It is known from the history of Russia that in 1861 the most shameful phenomenon, serfdom, was abolished. But such a reform caused unrest in society, and soon new problems arose. First of all, the question arose that even a free peasant, poor and destitute, cannot be happy. This problem interested Nikolai Nekrasov, and he decided to write a poem in which the question of peasant happiness would be considered.
Despite the fact that the work is written in simple language, and has an appeal to folklore, it usually seems difficult for the reader to perceive, since it touches on the most serious philosophical problems and questions. For most of the questions, the author himself has been looking for answers all his life. Perhaps that is why it was so difficult for him to write a poem, and he created it for fourteen years. But, unfortunately, the work was never completed.
The poet was conceived to write his poem of eight chapters, but due to illness he was able to write only four and they do not follow at all, as expected, one after another. Now the poem is presented in the form, in the sequence suggested by K. Chukovsky, who for a long time carefully studied the Nekrasov archives.
Nikolai Nekrasov chose ordinary people as the heroes of the poem, which is why he also used colloquial vocabulary. For a long time there were disputes about who can still be attributed to the main characters of the poem. So, there were suggestions that these were heroes - men who walk around the country, trying to find a happy person. But other researchers still believed that it was Grishka Dobrosklonov. This question remains open to this day. But you can consider this poem as if the protagonist in it is the whole common people.
There are no accurate and detailed descriptions of these men in the plot, their characters are also incomprehensible, the author simply does not reveal or show them. But on the other hand, these men are united by one goal, for the sake of which they travel. It is also interesting that the episodic faces in Nekrasov's poem are drawn by the author more clearly, accurately, in detail and vividly. The poet raises many problems that arose among the peasantry after the abolition of serfdom.
Nikolai Alekseevich shows that for each hero in his poem there is a concept of happiness. For example, a rich person sees happiness in having financial well-being. And the peasant dreams that in his life there would be no grief and troubles that usually lie in wait for the peasant at every turn. There are also heroes who are happy because they believe in the happiness of others. The language of the Nekrasov poem is close to the folk language, so there is a huge amount of vernacular in it.
Despite the fact that the work remained unfinished, it reflects the whole reality of what was happening. This is a real literary gift to all lovers of poetry, history and literature.
Nikolay Alekseevich Nekrasov
Who lives well in Rus'
PART ONE
In what year - count, In what land - guess, On the pole path Seven men converged: Seven temporarily liable, Tightened province, Terpigoreva Uyezd, Empty volost, From adjacent villages: Zaplatova, Dyryavina, Razutova, Znobishina, Gorelova, Neyolova - Crop failure, too, We agreed - and argued: Who lives happily, Freely in Rus'? Roman said: to the landowner, Demyan said: to the official, Luka said: to the priest. Fat-bellied merchant! - Said the Gubin brothers, Ivan and Mitrodor. The old man Pakhom strained And said, looking at the ground: To the noble boyar, to the Minister of the Sovereign. And Prov said: to the king ... A man is like a bull: vtemyashitsya In the head, what a whim - You can’t knock it out with a stake: they resist, Everyone stands on his own! Is such a dispute started, What do passers-by think - To know, the children found the treasure And divide it among themselves ... On business, everyone left the house in his own way Until noon: He kept the path to the forge, He went to the village of Ivankovo To call Father Prokofy The child to be christened. In the groin of honeycombs Carried to the bazaar in the Great, And the two brothers of Gubin It's so easy with a halter To catch a stubborn horse Into their own herd. It's high time for everyone to return on their own way - They walk side by side! They go, as if gray wolves are chasing them, What is farther is faster. They go - they perekorya! They shout - they will not come to their senses! And time does not wait. They did not notice the dispute, How the red sun set, How the evening came. Probably a whole night So they went - where they didn’t know, If only the woman they met, Crooked Durandiha, Didn’t shout: “Venerable! Where did you think of going at night? In the high skies, The moon has surfaced, black shadows Have cut the road to Zealous walkers. Oh shadows! black shadows! Who won't you chase? Who won't you overtake? You only, black shadows, You can not catch - hug! At the forest, at the path-path He looked, was silent Pahom, He looked - scattered with his mind And finally said: “Well! The goblin played a glorious joke on us! No way after all, we almost thirty versts moved away! Now toss and turn home - Tired - we will not reach, Let's sit down - there is nothing to do. Let's rest until the sun!..” Having blamed the trouble on the goblin, Under the forest by the path The peasants sat down. They lit a fire, formed, Two ran away for vodka, And the rest for a while A glass was made, Birch barks were pulled. The vodka came soon. The appetizer has also arrived - The peasants are feasting! They drank three kosushki, Ate - and argued Again: who should live happily, Freely in Rus'? Roman shouts: to the landowner, Demyan shouts: to the official, Luka shouts: to the priest; Kupchin fat-bellied, - Shout brothers Gubin, Ivan and Mitrodor; Pakhom shouts: to the Most Serene Noble Boyar, Minister of the Sovereign, And Prov shouts: to the tsar! The visor is stronger than ever The perky men, Cursing swearing, It's no wonder that they'll grab each other's hair... Look, they've already grabbed onto each other! Roman hits Pakhomushka, Demyan hits Luka. And the two bros of Gubin are ironing Prov hefty, - And everyone shouts his own! A booming echo woke up, It went for a walk, it went for a walk, It went to shout, shout, As if to provoke Stubborn men. King! - to the right is heard, to the left it responds: Ass! ass! ass! The whole forest was alarmed, With flying birds, Fast-footed animals And creeping reptiles, - And a groan, and a roar, and a rumble! First of all, a gray hare From a neighboring bush Suddenly jumped out, as if disheveled, And he took to his heels! Behind him, small jackdaws At the top of the birches raised a nasty, sharp squeak. And then at the warbler With fright, a tiny chick From the nest fell; Chirping, crying warbler, Where is the chick? - will not find! Then the old cuckoo woke up and decided to cuckle for someone; It was accepted ten times, Yes, every time it got lost And started again ... Cuckoo, cuckoo, cuckoo! Bread will sting, You will choke on an ear - You will not cuckle! Seven eagle owls have flocked, Admiring the carnage From seven large trees, Night owls are laughing! And their yellow eyes Burn like wax of ardent Fourteen candles! And a raven, a clever bird, Has ripened, sits on a tree Near the fire. He sits and prays to the devil, So that someone will be slapped to death! A cow with a bell, That has strayed from the herd since the evening, barely heard Human voices - Came to the fire, fixed her Eyes on the peasants, Listened to crazy speeches And began, cordially, Mooing, mooing, mooing! A stupid cow lows, Small jackdaws squeak. Violent guys shout, And the echo echoes everything. He has one concern - To tease honest people, To scare guys and women! No one has seen him, And everyone has heard to hear, Without a body - but it lives, Without a language - it screams! The owl - the Princess of Zamoskvoretskaya - immediately looms, Flies over the peasants, Shying either on the ground, or on the bushes with its wing ... The fox itself is cunning, Out of woman's curiosity, Crept up to the peasants, Listened, listened And went away, thinking: "And the devil will not understand them !" And indeed: the disputants themselves hardly knew, they remembered - What they were making noise about ... Having bowed their sides decently to each other, the Peasants finally came to their senses, They got drunk from the puddle, Washed, refreshed, Sleep began to heel them ... Meanwhile, a tiny chick, Little by little, half a sazhen, Low flying over, I crept up to the fire. Pakhomushka caught it, brought it to the fire, looked at it And said: “A small bird, And a nail is agile! I breathe - you roll off your palm, Sneeze - you roll into the fire, I click - you roll dead, And yet you, a small bird, Are stronger than a man! Wings will get stronger soon, bye-bye! Wherever you want, you will fly there! Oh you little pichuga! Give us your wings, We will fly around the whole kingdom, Let's look, explore, Ask - and find out: Who lives happily, Freely in Rus'? “We wouldn’t even need wings, If only we had bread Half a pood a day, And so we would measure Mother Rus' With our feet!” - Said the sullen Prov. “Yes, a bucketful of vodka,” the brothers Gubin, Ivan and Mitrodor, eager for vodka, added. “Yes, in the morning there would be ten Salted cucumbers,” the men joked. "And at noon, a jar of Cold kvass." “And in the evening, a teapot of a hot teapot ...” While they were talking, A chiffchaff curled and circled Above them: she listened to everything And sat down by the fire. Chiviknula, jumped up And in a human voice Pakhom says: “Let the chick go free! For a small chick I will give a large ransom. – What will you give? - "I'll give you bread Half a pood a day, I'll give you a bucket of vodka, I'll give you cucumbers in the morning, And at noon sour kvass, And in the evening I'll have a cup of tea!" - And where, small pichuga, - Gubin brothers asked, - You will find wine and bread.
Before you - summary Nekrasov's poem "Who Lives Well in Rus'" The poem was conceived as a "people's book", an epic depicting a whole era in the life of the people. The poet himself spoke of his work as follows:
“I decided to present in a coherent story everything that I know about the people, everything that I happened to hear from their lips, and I started “Who should live well in Rus'”. It will be the epic of modern peasant life.”
As you know, the poet did not finish the poem. Only the first of 4 parts was completed.
We have not reduced the main points to which you should pay attention. The rest is given in brief.
Summary of “Who lives well in Rus'” chapter by chapter
Click on the desired chapter or part of the work to go to its summary
PART ONE
PART TWO
PART THREE
peasant woman
PART FOUR
Feast - for the whole world
PART ONE
PROLOGUE - summary
In what year - count
In what land - guess
On the pillar path
Seven men came together:
Seven temporarily liable,
tightened province,
County Terpigorev,
empty parish,
From adjacent villages:
Zaplatova, Dyryavina,
Razutova, Znobishina,
Gorelova, Neelova -
Crop failure, too,
Agreed - and argued:
Who has fun
Feel free in Rus'?
Roman said: to the landowner,
“Demyan said: to an official,
Luke said: ass.
Fat-bellied merchant! -
Gubin brothers said
Ivan and Mitrodor.
Old man Pahom pushed
And he said, looking at the ground:
noble boyar,
Minister of the State.
And Prov said: to the king ...
Man what a bull: vtemyashitsya
In the head what a whim -
Stake her from there
You won’t knock out: they rest,
Everyone is on their own!
The men are arguing and do not notice how the evening comes. They built a fire, went for vodka, had a bite, and again began to argue about who lives "fun, freely in Rus'." The dispute turned into a fight. At this time, a chick flew up to the fire. Pahom caught him. A chiffchaff bird appears and asks to let the chick go. In return, she tells how to find a self-assembled tablecloth. The groin releases the chick, the men go the indicated way and find a self-assembled tablecloth. The peasants decide not to return home until they find out "for certain", "Who lives happily, // Freely in Rus'."
Chapter 1
The men are on their way. They meet peasants, artisans, coachmen, soldiers, and travelers understand that the life of these people cannot be called happy. Finally they meet pop. He proves to the peasants that the priest has no peace, no wealth, no happiness - it is difficult for a priest's son to get a diploma, the priesthood is even more expensive. The priest can be called at any time of the day or night, in any weather. The priest has to see the tears of the orphans and the death rattle of the dying. And there is no honor for the priest - they compose about him "funny tales // And obscene songs, // And all kinds of blasphemy." The priest has no wealth either - the rich landlords almost never live in Rus'. The men agree with the priest. They go further.
Chapter 2
The peasants see poor living everywhere. A man bathes a horse in the river. The wanderers learn from him that all the people went to the fair. The men go there. At the fair, people trade, have fun, walk, drink. One peasant is crying in front of the people - he drank all the money, and the granddaughter of the guest is waiting at home. Pavlusha Veretennikov, nicknamed "master" bought shoes for his granddaughter. The old man is very happy. Wanderers are watching a performance in a booth.
Chapter 3
People return drunk after the fair.
People go and fall
As if because of the rollers
Buckshot enemies
They fire at the men.
Some man buries the little girl, while assuring that he is burying his mother. Women quarrel in a ditch: who has a worse house. Yakim Nagoi says that "there is no measure for Russian hops," but it is also impossible to measure the grief of the people.
What follows is a story about Yakime Nagom, who previously lived in St. Petersburg, then ended up in prison because of a lawsuit with a merchant. Then he came to live in his native village. He bought pictures with which he pasted over the hut and which he loved very much. There was a fire. Yakim rushed to save not the accumulated money, but the pictures that he later hung in the new hut. The people, returning, sing songs. Wanderers are sad about their own home, about their wives.
Chapter 4
Wanderers walk among the festive crowd with a bucket of vodka. They promise it to the one who convinces that he is really happy. The deacon is the first to come, he says that he is happy that he believes in the kingdom of heaven. They don't give him vodka. An old woman comes up, says that a very large turnip has been born in her garden. They laughed at her and did not give anything either. A soldier comes with medals, says that he is happy that he survived. They brought it to him.
Approached stonemason tells about his happiness - about great strength. His opponent is a thin man. He says that at one time God punished him for boasting the same way. The contractor praised him at the construction site, and he was glad - he took the burden of fourteen pounds and brought it to the second floor. Since then, and withered. He goes to die at home, an epidemic begins in the car, the dead are unloaded at the stations, but he still survived.
A courtyard man comes, boasts that he was the prince's favorite slave, that he licked plates with the remnants of gourmet food, drank foreign drinks from glasses, suffers from a noble disease of gout. He is chased away. A Belarusian comes up and says that his happiness lies in bread, which he can't get enough of. At home, in Belarus, he ate bread with chaff and bark. A man who had been hurt by a bear came and said that his comrades had died while hunting, but he remained alive. The man received vodka from strangers. The beggars boast that they are happy because they are often served. Wanderers understand that they were wasting vodka on " peasant happiness". They are advised to ask Ermil Girin, who kept the mill, about happiness. By decision of the court, the mill is sold at auction. Yermil won the bargain with the merchant Altynnikov, the clerks demanded a third of the cost immediately, contrary to the rules. Yermil did not have money with him, which was required to be paid within an hour, and it was a long way to go home.
He went out to the square and asked the people to lend as much as they could. They got more money than they needed. Yermil gave the money, the mill became his, and the next Friday he distributed the debts. The wanderers wonder why the people believed Girin and gave money. They answer him that he achieved this with the truth. Girin served as a clerk in the estate of Prince Yurlov. He served for five years and did not take anything from anyone, he was attentive to everyone. But he was expelled, and a new clerk came in his place - a scoundrel and a grabber. After the death of the old prince, the new master drove out all the old henchmen and ordered the peasants to elect a new steward. All unanimously elected Yermila. He served honestly, but one day he nevertheless committed an offense - his younger brother Mitrius " shielded”, and instead of him, the son of Nenila Vlasyevna went to the soldiers.
Since that time, Yermil has become homesick - he does not eat, does not drink, says that he is a criminal. He said that let him be judged according to his conscience. The son of Nenila Vlasvna was returned, and Mitriy was taken away, and a fine was imposed on Yermila. A year after that, he walked not on his own, then resigned from his post, no matter how he was begged to stay.
The narrator advises to go to Girin, but another peasant says that Yermil is in jail. A riot broke out, government troops were needed. To avoid bloodshed, they asked Girin to address the people.
The story is interrupted by the cries of a drunken lackey suffering from gout - now he is suffering from beatings for theft. The strangers leave.
Chapter 5
The landowner Obolt-Obolduev was
... "ruddy,
portly, squat,
sixty years;
Mustache gray, long,
Good fellows.
He mistook the men for robbers, even drew a pistol. But they told him what it was. Obolduev laughs, gets down from the carriage and tells about the life of the landowners.
At first he speaks of the antiquity of his kind, then he recalls the old days when
Not only Russian people,
Russian nature itself
Subdued us.
Then the landowners lived well - luxurious feasts, a whole regiment of servants, their own actors, etc. The landowner recalls dog hunting, unlimited power, how he christened with all his patrimony "on bright Sunday."
Now decay is everywhere - " Noble estate // As if everything was hidden, // Died out! The landowner cannot understand in any way why the “idle hacks” urge him to study and work, because he is a nobleman. He says that he has been living in the village for forty years, but he cannot distinguish a barley ear from a rye ear. The peasants think
The great chain is broken
Torn - jumped:
One end on the master,
Others for a man! ..
PART TWO
Last - summary
Wanderers go, they see haymaking. They take the braids from the women, they begin to mow. Music is heard from the river - this is a landowner riding in a boat. The gray-haired man Vlas urges the women - you should not upset the landowner. Three boats moor to the shore, in them the landowner with his family and servants.
The old landowner bypasses the hay, finds fault that the hay is damp, demands to dry it. He leaves with his retinue for breakfast. Wanderers ask Vlas (he turned out to be the burgomaster) why the landowner orders if serfdom is abolished. Vlas replies that they have a special landowner: when he learned about the abolition of serfdom, he had a stroke - the left half of his body was taken away, he lay motionless.
The heirs arrived, but the old man recovered. His sons told him about the abolition of serfdom, but he called them traitors, cowards, etc. Out of fear that they would be disinherited, the sons decide to indulge him in everything.
That is why they persuade the peasants to play a comedy, as if the peasants were returned to the landlords. But some peasants did not need to be persuaded. Ipat, for example, says: And I'm a serf of the Utyatin princes - and that's the whole story! He recalls how the prince harnessed him to a cart, how he bathed him in an ice hole - he dipped him into one hole, pulled him out of another - and immediately gave him vodka.
The prince put Ipat on the goats to play the violin. The horse stumbled, Ipat fell, and the sleigh ran over him, but the prince left. But after a while he returned. Ipat is grateful to the prince that he did not leave him to freeze. Everyone agrees to pretend that serfdom has not been abolished.
Vlas does not agree to be the burgomaster. Agrees to be Klim Lavin.
Klim has a conscience of clay,
And Minin's beards,
Take a look, you'll think
Why not find a peasant
Degree and sober .
The old prince walks and orders, the peasants laugh at him on the sly. The peasant Agap Petrov did not want to obey the orders of the old landowner, and when he caught him cutting down the forest, he told Utyatin directly about everything, calling him a pea jester. The duckling took the second blow. But contrary to the expectations of the heirs, the old prince recovered again and began to demand a public flogging of Agap.
The latter is being persuaded by the whole world. They took him to the stable, put a damask of wine in front of him and told him to shout louder. He shouted so that even Utyatin took pity. Drunk Agap was carried home. He died soon after: Klim shameless ruined him, anathema, blame!»
Utyatin is sitting at the table at this time. Peasants stand at the porch. Everyone is doing a comedy, as usual, except for one guy - he laughs. The man is a visitor, local orders are ridiculous to him. Utyatin again demands the punishment of the rebel. But the wanderers do not want to blame. Burmistrova's godfather saves the day - she says that her son was laughing - a foolish boy. Utyatin calms down, has fun and swaggers at dinner. Dies after dinner. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. But the joy of the peasants was premature: “ With the death of the Last, the caress of the lord disappeared».
PEASANT WOMAN (FROM THE THIRD PART)
Prologue - summary
The wanderers decide to look for a happy man among women. They are advised to go to the village of Klin and ask for Matrena Timofeevna, nicknamed the "governor". Arriving in the village, the peasants see "wretched houses." The footman who met them explains that "The landowner is abroad, // And the steward is dying." Wanderers meet Matrena Timofeevna.
Matrena Timofeevna
stubborn woman,
Wide and dense
Thirty-eight years old.
Beautiful; gray hair,
The eyes are large, stern,
Eyelashes are the richest
Stern and swarthy.
Wanderers talk about their goal. The peasant woman replies that she has no time to talk about life now - she has to go harvest rye. The men offer to help. Matrena Timofeevna talks about her life.
Chapter 1 - Before marriage. Summary
Matrena Timofeevna was born in a friendly, non-drinking family and lived "like in Christ's bosom." There was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun. Then Matrena Timofeevna met her betrothed;
On the mountain - a stranger!
Philip Korchagin - St. Petersburg worker,
A baker by skill.
Chapter 2 - Songs. Summary
Matrena Timofeevna ends up in a strange house.
The family was big
Grumpy... I got it
From girlish holi to hell!
Husband went to work
Silence, patience advised ...
As ordered, so done:
She walked with anger in her heart.
And didn't say too much
Word to nobody.
Filippushka came in winter,
Bring a silk handkerchief
Yes, I took a ride on a sled
On Catherine's day
And as if there was no grief! ..
She says that her husband beat her only once, when her husband's sister arrived and he asked to give her shoes, but Matryona hesitated. Philip went back to work, and Matrena's son Demushka was born on Kazanskaya. Life in the mother-in-law's house has become even more difficult, but she endures:
Whatever they say, I work
No matter how they scold - I am silent.
Of the entire family of her husband, Matryona Timofeevna was pitied only by her grandfather Savely.
Chapter 3 Summary.
Matrena Timofeevna talks about Savelia.
With a huge gray mane,
Tea, twenty years uncut,
With a big beard
Grandfather looked like a bear ...<…>
... He already knocked,
According to fairy tales, a hundred years.
Grandfather lived in a special room,
Didn't like families
He didn’t let me into his corner;
And she was angry, barking,
His "branded, convict"
He honored his own son.
Savely will not be angry,
He will go into his light,
Reads the holy calendar, is baptized
Yes, suddenly he will say cheerfully;
“Branded, but not a slave!”…
Savely tells Matryona why he is called "branded". In the years of his youth, the serfs of his village did not pay dues, did not go to corvee, because they lived in remote places and it was difficult to get there. The landowner Shalashnikov tried to collect quitrent, but was not very successful in this.
Excellently fought Shalashnikov,
And not so hot great
Received income.
Soon Shalashnikov (he was a military man) was killed near Varna. His heir sends a German governor.
He makes the peasants work. They themselves do not notice how they cut through the clearing, that is, it has now become easy to get to them.
And then came the hardship
Korega peasant-
Ruined to the bone!<…>
The German has a dead grip:
Until they let the world go
Without leaving, sucks!
This went on for eighteen years. The German built a factory, ordered to dig a well. The German began to scold those who dug the well for idleness (among them was Savely). The peasants pushed the German into a pit and the pit was dug up. Next - hard labor, Savelig! tried to run away from her, but he was caught. He spent twenty years in hard labor, another twenty in the settlement.
Chapter 4 Summary
Matryona Timofeevna gave birth to a son, but her mother-in-law does not allow her to be with the child, since the daughter-in-law began to work less.
The mother-in-law insists that Matryona Timofeevna leave her son with his grandfather. Savely overlooked the child: “The old man fell asleep in the sun, // He fed Demidushka to the pigs // Stupid grandfather! ..” Matryona blames her grandfather, cries. But it didn't end there:
The Lord got angry
He sent uninvited guests,
Wrong judges!
A doctor, a camp officer, and the police appear in the village, accuse Matryona of deliberately killing a child. The doctor makes an autopsy, despite the requests of Matryona " without reproach // To an honest burial // To betray the child ". They call her crazy. Grandfather Savely says that her madness lies in the fact that she went to the authorities without taking with her " no tselkovik, no novelty. They bury Demushka in a closed coffin. Matryona Timofeevna cannot come to her senses, Savely, trying to console her, says that her son is now in paradise.
Chapter 5
After Demushka died, Matryona "she was not herself," she could not work. The father-in-law decided to teach her a lesson with the reins. The peasant woman leaned at his feet and asked: "Kill!" The father-in-law retreated. Day and night Matrena Timofeevna is at her son's grave. Closer to winter, my husband arrived. Savely after the death of Demushki
For six days lay hopelessly
Then he went into the woods.
So sang, so cried grandfather,
What a forest groaned! And in autumn
Gone to repentance
At the Sand Monastery.
Every year Matryona has a baby. Three years later, the parents of Matrena Timofeevna die. She goes to her son's grave to cry. Meets grandfather Saveliy there. He came from the monastery to pray for "the dema of the poor, for all the suffering Russian peasantry." Savely did not live long - "in the autumn, the old one had some kind of deep wound on his neck, he was dying hard ...". Savely spoke of the share of the peasants:
There are three paths for men:
Tavern, jail and hard labor,
And the women in Rus'
Three loops: white silk,
The second - red silk,
And the third - black silk,
Choose any! .
Four years have passed. Matryona resigned herself to everything. Once a pilgrim wanderer comes to the village, she talks about the salvation of the soul, demands from mothers that they do not feed babies with milk on fasting days. Matrena Timofeevna did not obey. “Yes, it is clear that God was angry,” the peasant woman believes. When her son Fedot was eight years old, he was sent to herd sheep. One day Fedot was brought in and told that he had fed a sheep to a she-wolf. Fedot says that a huge emaciated she-wolf appeared, grabbed a sheep and started running. Fedot caught up with her and took away the sheep, which was already dead. The she-wolf looked into his eyes plaintively and howled. From the bleeding nipples it was clear that she had wolf cubs in her lair. Fedot took pity on the she-wolf and gave her the sheep. Matrena Timofeevna, trying to save her son from a flogging, asks for mercy from the landowner, who orders to punish not the shepherd, but the “impudent woman”.
Chapter 6 Summary.
Matrena Timofeevna says that the she-wolf did not appear in vain - there was a lack of bread. The mother-in-law told the neighbors that Matryona, who had put on a clean shirt on Christmas, called on hunger.
For a husband, for an intercessor,
I got off cheap;
And one woman
Not for the same
Killed to death with stakes.
Don't mess with the hungry!
After the lack of bread came the recruitment. The brother's older husband was taken to the soldiers, so the family did not expect trouble. But the husband of Matrena Timofeevna is taken to the soldiers out of turn. Life gets even harder. Children had to be sent around the world. The mother-in-law became even more grumpy.
Well don't dress up
Don't wash your face
Neighbors have sharp eyes
Vostro tongues!
Walk the street quieter
Carry your head down
When it's fun, don't laugh
Don't cry out of sadness!
Chapter 7 Summary
Matrena Timofeevna is going to the governor. She has difficulty getting to the city, as she is pregnant. Gives a ruble to the porter to let him in. He says to come back in two hours. Matrena Timofeevna comes, the doorman takes another ruble from her. The governor's wife drives up, Matryona Timofeevna rushes to her with a request for intercession. The peasant woman becomes ill. When she comes to, she is told that she has given birth to a child. The governor, Elena Alexandrovna, was very imbued with Matryona Timofeevna, went after her son as if she were her own (she herself had no children). A messenger is sent to the village to sort everything out. The husband was returned.
Chapter 8 Summary
The men ask if Matryona Timofeevna told them everything. She says that all, except that they survived the fire twice, had anthrax three times, that instead of a horse she had to walk "in a harrow." Matrena Timofeevna recalls the words of the holy pilgrim who went to "Heights of Athens»:
Keys to female happiness
From our free will
Abandoned, lost by God himself!<…>
Yes, they are unlikely to be found ...
What fish swallowed
Those reserved keys
In what seas is that fish
Walking - God forgot!
PART FOUR.
Feast - for the whole world
Introduction - summary
There is a feast in the village. Organized a feast Klim. They sent for the parish deacon Tryphon. He came along with his sons, seminarians Savvushka and Grisha.
... Was the eldest
Already nineteen years old;
Now a protodeacon
I looked, and at Gregory
Face thin, pale
And the hair is thin, curly,
With a hint of red.
Simple guys, kind,
Mowed, reaped, sowed
And drank vodka on holidays
equal to the peasantry.
The clerk and the seminarians began to sing.
I. Bitter Time - Bitter Songs - Summary
CHEERFUL
“Eat prison, Yasha! There is no milk!"
- "Where is our cow?"
Take away, my light!
Master for offspring
I took her home."
It's nice to live people
Saint in Rus'!
"Where are our chickens?" -
The girls are yelling.
"Don't scream, fools!
The Zemsky court ate them;
I took another supply
Yes, he promised to stay ... "
It's nice to live people
Saint in Rus'!
Broke my back
And the sourdough doesn't wait!
Baba Katerina
Remembered - roars:
In the yard for over a year
Daughter ... no dear!
It's nice to live people
Saint in Rus'!
A little from the kids
Look - and there are no children:
The king will take the boys
Barin - daughters!
One freak
Live with family.
It's nice to live people
Saint in Rus'!
Then the wahlaks sang:
corvee
Poor, unkempt Kalinushka,
Nothing for him to flaunt
Only the back is painted
Yes, you don’t know behind the shirt.
From the bast to the gate
The skin is all torn
The belly swells from the chaff.
twisted, twisted,
Slashed, tormented,
Hardly Kalina wanders.
It will knock on the feet of the tavern keeper,
Sorrow drowns in wine
Only on Saturday will come around
From the lord's stables to his wife ...
The men remember the old order. One of the peasants recalls how one day their mistress decided to mercilessly beat the one "who says a strong word." The men stopped swearing, but as soon as the will was announced, they took their souls away so much that "priest Ivan was offended." Another man tells about the serf of the exemplary Jacob the faithful. The greedy landowner Polivanov had a faithful servant Yakov. He was devoted to the master without limit.
Jacob showed up like this from his youth,
Only Jacob had joy:
Gentleman groom, cherish, appease
Yes, the nephew is a youngster to download.
Yakov's nephew Grisha grew up and asked the master for permission to marry the girl Arina.
However, the master himself liked her. He gave Grisha to the soldiers, despite the pleas of Yakov. The serf got drunk and disappeared. Polivanov feels bad without Yakov. Two weeks later, the serf returned. Polivanov is going to visit his sister, Yakov is taking him. They go through the forest, Yakov turns into a deaf place - Devil's ravine. Polivanov is frightened - he begs to be spared. But Yakov says that he is not going to get his hands dirty with murder, and hangs himself on a tree. Polivanov is left alone. He spends the whole night in the ravine, screaming, calling people, but no one responds. In the morning a hunter finds him. The landowner returns home, lamenting: "I'm a sinner, a sinner! Execute me!"
After the story, the peasants start a dispute over who is more sinful - tavern owners, landowners, peasants or robbers. Klim Lavin fights with a merchant. Ionushka, the "humble praying mantis", talks about the power of faith. His story is about the holy fool Fomushka, who called people to flee to the forests, but he was arrested and taken to prison. From the cart, Fomushka shouted: “They beat you with sticks, rods, whips, you will be beaten with iron bars!” In the morning a military team came and pacification and interrogations began, that is, Fomushka's prophecy "almost came true to the point." Jonah talks about Efrosinyushka, the messenger of God, who, in her cholera years, “buries, heals, and takes care of the sick.” Iona Lyapushkin - praying mantis and wanderer. The peasants loved him and argued about who would be the first to take him in. When he appeared, everyone brought icons to meet him, and Jonah followed those whose icon he liked best. Jonah tells a parable about two great sinners.
ABOUT TWO GREAT SINNERS
The true story was told to Jonah in Solovki by Father Pitirim. There were twelve robbers, whose chieftain was Kudeyar. They lived in a dense forest, plundered a lot of wealth, and killed a lot of innocent souls. From near Kyiv, Kudeyar brought himself a beautiful girl. Unexpectedly, “the Lord awakened the conscience” of the robber. Kudeyar " He blew off his mistress's head // And he spotted the Yesaula". returned home with tartsem in monastic clothes y ”, day and night prays to God for forgiveness. A saint of the Lord appeared before Kudeyar. He pointed to a huge oak tree and said: With the same knife that robbed, / Cut him with the same hand! ..<…>The tree has just collapsed, // The chains of sin will fall". Kudeyar begins to fulfill what has been said. Time passes, and pan Glukhovsky passes by. He asks what Kudeyar is doing.
A lot of cruel, scary
The old man heard about the pan
And as a lesson to the sinner
He told his secret.
Pan chuckled: "Salvation
I haven't had tea for a long time
In the world I honor only a woman,
Gold, honor and wine.
You have to live, old man, in my opinion:
How many slaves I destroy
I torture, I torture and hang,
And I would like to see how I sleep!
The hermit becomes furious, attacks the pan and plunges a knife into his heart. At that very moment, the tree collapsed, and a load of sins fell from the old man.
III. Both old and new - summary
PEASANT SIN
One admiral for military service, for the battle with the Turks near Ochakovo, the Empress was granted eight thousand souls of peasants. Dying, he gives the casket to Gleb the elder. Punishes the casket to protect, as it contains a will, according to which all eight thousand souls will receive freedom. After the death of the admiral, a distant relative appears on the estate, promises the headman a lot of money, and the will is burned. Everyone agrees with Ignat that this is a big sin. Grisha Dobrosklonov speaks about the freedom of the peasants, that "there will be no new Gleb in Rus'." Vlas wishes Grisha wealth, a smart and healthy wife. Grisha in response:
I don't need any silver
No gold, but God forbid
So that my countrymen
And every peasant
Lived freely and cheerfully
All over holy Rus'!
A cart of hay is approaching. Soldier Ovsyannikov is sitting on the wagon together with his niece Ustinyushka. The soldier made his living with the help of a raik, a portable panorama showing objects through a magnifying glass. But the tool is broken. The soldier then came up with new songs and began to play on spoons. Sings a song.
Soldier's Toshen light,
There is no truth
Life is boring
The pain is strong.
German bullets,
Turkish bullets,
French bullets,
Russian sticks!
Klim notices that in his yard there is a deck on which he chopped firewood from his youth. She is "not as wounded" as Ovsyannikov. However, the soldier did not receive full board, as the doctor's assistant, when examining the wounds, said that they were second-rate. The soldier reapplies.
IV. Good time - good songs - a summary.
Grisha and Savva take their father home and sing:
The share of the people
his happiness.
Light and freedom
First of all!
We are a little
We ask God:
honest deal
do skillfully
Give us strength!
Working life -
Direct to friend
Road to the heart
Away from the threshold
Coward and lazy!
Isn't it heaven!
The share of the people
his happiness.
Light and freedom
First of all!
Father fell asleep, Savvushka took up the book, and Grisha went into the field. Grisha has a thin face - in the seminary they were underfed by the housekeeper. Grisha remembers his mother Domna, whose favorite son he was. Sings a song:
In the middle of the world
For a free heart
There are two ways.
Weigh the proud strength
Weigh firm will, -
How to go?
One spacious
The road is torn,
The passions of a slave
On it is huge,
Hungry for temptation
The crowd is coming.
About sincere life
About the lofty goal
There thought is ridiculous.
Eternal boils there
Inhuman
Enmity-war.
For mortal blessings...
There are captive souls
Full of sin.<…>
The other one is tight
The road is honest
They walk on it
Only strong souls
loving,
To fight, to work.
For the bypassed
For the oppressed
In their footsteps
Go to the downtrodden
Go to the offended -
Be the first there.
No matter how dark vakhlachina,
No matter how crowded with corvee
And slavery - and she,
Blessed, put
In Grigory Dobrosklonov
Such a messenger.
Fate prepared for him
The path is glorious, the name is loud
people's protector,
Consumption and Siberia.
Grisha sings a song about the bright future of his Motherland: “ You are still destined to suffer a lot, / But you will not die, I know". Grisha sees a barge hauler, who, having completed his work, clinking coppers in his pocket, goes to a tavern. Grisha sings another song.
RUS
You are poor
You are abundant
You are powerful
You are powerless
Mother Rus'!
Saved in bondage
Free heart -
Gold, gold
The heart of the people!
The strength of the people
mighty force -
Conscience is calm
The truth is alive!
Strength with unrighteousness
They don't get along
Victim of untruth
Not called -
Rus' does not stir
Rus' is dead!
And lit up in it
The hidden spark
We got up - nebuzheny,
Came out - uninvited,
Live by the grain
The mountains have been applied!
Rat rises -
Innumerable!
The strength will affect her
Invincible!
You are poor
You are abundant
You are beaten
You are almighty
Mother Rus'!
Grisha is pleased with his song:
He heard immense strength in his chest,
Gracious sounds delighted his ears,
Sounds of the radiant hymn of the noble -
He sang the embodiment of the happiness of the people! ..
I hope this summary of Nekrasov's poem "Who Lives Well in Rus'" helped you prepare for the lesson of Russian literature.
The work of Russian literature of the 19th century does not lose its relevance. The search for happiness can continue. Little has changed in the customs of modern Russia. A summary of Nekrasov’s poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'” by chapters and parts will help you find the right episode and understand the plot.
1 part
Prologue
Seven men from different villages gathered on the road and began to argue about who lives happily and freely in Rus'. The meeting place and the name of the villages are chosen by the author with meaning. Uyezd - Terpigorev (we endure grief), volost - Pustoporozhnaya (empty or empty). Villages with names that convey the main characteristics of the life of peasants:
- clothing from patches - Zaplatovo;
- leaky things - Dyryavino;
- without shoes - Razutovo;
- shivering from illness and fear - Znobishino;
- burnt houses - Gorelovo;
- no food - Neelovo;
- constant crop failures - Crop failure.
Who met on the road, what will be the name of the hero of the poem: Roman, Demyan, Luka, Ivan, Mitrodor, Pahom, Prov. Each of them puts forward his own version, but the men do not come to a consensus. Who can live happily in Rus':
- landowner;
- official;
- merchant;
- boyar;
- minister;
- tsar.
The men argue as only a Russian can. They each went about their business, but forgot about the goal. During the argument, they did not notice how the day ended, the night came. Old Pahom suggested that we stop and wait for the next day to continue our journey. The men sat around the fire, ran for vodka, made glasses from birch bark and continued the argument. The screams turned into a fight that frightened the entire forest. Eagle owls, a cow, a raven, a fox, a cuckoo admire the carnage. The warbler chick fell out of the nest and crept up to the fire. Pahom talks to the chick, explaining its weakness and strength. A hand can crush a helpless chick, but the peasants do not have wings to fly around all of Rus'. Other fellow travelers began to dream of their own: vodka, cucumbers, kvass and hot tea. The mother warbler whirled and listened to the speeches of the disputants. Pichuga promised to help and told me where to find a self-assembly tablecloth. Having learned about the wisdom of the bird, the peasants began to ask to make sure that the shirts do not wear out, the bast shoes do not wipe off, and the louse does not start.
"Everything will do the tablecloth"
Promised foam. The bird warned that one should not ask the tablecloth for more food than the stomach can withstand, and only 1 bucket of vodka. If these conditions are not met, for 3 times the desire will lead to trouble. The men found a tablecloth, arranged a feast. They decided that they would find out who lives happily on Russian soil, only then they will return home.
1 chapter. Pop
The peasants continued on their way. They met many people, but no one was interested in life. All the wanderers were close to them: a lapotnik, an artisan, a beggar, a coachman. The soldier could not be happy. He shaves with an awl, warms himself with smoke. Closer to the night they met a pop. The peasants stood in a row and bowed to the holy man. Luka began to ask the priest if he had a free life. The priest thought for a moment and began to speak. He simply kept silent about the years of study. The priest has no rest. He is called to the sick, dying. The heart aches and hurts for orphans and people leaving for another world. The priest has no honor. They call him insulting words, shun him on the way, compose fairy tales. They do not like either the priest's daughter or the priest. Not held in high esteem by the pop of all classes. Where does the priest get his wealth from? Previously, there were many nobles in Rus'. Children were born in estates, weddings were played. Everyone went to the priests, wealth grew and multiplied. Now in Rus' everything has changed. The landowners scattered throughout the foreign land, leaving only ruined possessions in their homeland. The priest complains about the schismatics who have appeared, who live among the Orthodox. The life of priests is becoming more and more difficult, only poor peasants give income. What can they give? Only a dime and a pie for the holiday. The priest finished his dreary story and moved on. The men attacked Luka, who claimed that the priests live freely.
Chapter 2 rural fair
- Dirty hotel with a beautiful sign and a tray with dishes.
- Two churches: Orthodox and Old Believers.
- School.
- Medical assistant's hut, where the sick bleed.
Wanderers came to the square. There were many tents with different goods. The men are walking among the malls, they are surprised, laugh, and look at the people they meet. Someone sells handicrafts, another checks the rim and gets hit on the forehead. Women scold French fabrics. One got drunk and does not know how to buy the promised gift for his granddaughter. He is helped by Pavlusha Veretennikov, a man without a title. He bought shoes for his granddaughter. The peasants left the village without meeting the one they were looking for. On the hillock it seemed to them that Kuzminskoye was staggering along with the church.
Chapter 3 drunken night
The men were moving along the road, meeting drunks. They
"crawled, lay, rode, floundered."
Sober wanderers walked, looking around and listening to speeches. Some were so bad that it becomes terrifying how the Russian people drink too much. In the ditch, the women are arguing about who lives harder. One goes as if to hard labor, the other is beaten by sons-in-law.
The wanderers hear the familiar voice of Pavlusha Veretennikov. He praises the smart Russian people for proverbs and songs, but is upset because of drunkenness to the point of stupefaction. But the man does not allow him to write down the thought. He began to prove that the peasants drink on time. In suffering people in the field, who works and feeds the whole country? For a drinking family - a non-drinking family. And trouble comes to everyone the same way. Ugly drunken men are no worse than those who were eaten by midges, eaten by swamp reptiles. One of the drunks was Yakim Nagoi. The worker decided to compete with the merchant and ended up in prison. Yakim loved paintings, because of them he almost burned down during a fire. Taking pictures, I did not have time to pull out the rubles. They merged into a lump, lost their value. The men decided that they could not overcome the hops of a Russian person.
Chapter 4 Happy
Wanderers are looking for the lucky one in the festive crowd at the bazaar. But all the arguments they meet seem absurd. There are no truly happy people. Peasant happiness does not impress wanderers. They are sent to Yermil Girin. He collected money from people in an hour. All the peasants chipped in and helped Yermil to buy the mill, to resist the merchant Altynnikov. A week later, Yermil returned everything to the penny, no one demanded more from him, no one was offended. Someone did not take one ruble from Girin, he gave it to the blind. The men decided to find out what kind of witchcraft Yermil owns. Kirin faithfully served as the headman. But he could not send his brother to the army, he replaced him with a peasant. The act exhausted Yermil's soul. He returned the peasant home, and sent his brother to the service. He resigned as headman and took the mill on lease. Fate still took revenge on the peasant, he was put in prison. The wanderers go further, realizing that this is not the happiest person in Rus'.
Chapter 5 landowner
Wanderers meet the landowner. The ruddy landowner was 60 years old. And here the author tried. He chose a special surname for the hero - Obolt-Obolduev Gavrila Afanasyevich. The landowner decided that they were going to rob him. He drew a pistol, but the men calmed him down and explained the essence of their dispute. Gavrila Afanasyevich was amused at the question of the peasants. He laughed his fill and began to talk about his life. He started with a family tree. The men quickly understood what was being said. The ancestor of the landowner was Oboldui, who is already more than 2 and a half centuries old. He entertained the empress by playing with animals. On the other hand, the family originates from the prince who tried to set fire to Moscow and was executed for it. The landowner was famous, the older the tree, the better the family. The wealth of the family was such that it seemed that one could not think about the future. The forests are full of hares, the rivers are full of fish, the arable land is flooded with grain. Houses were built with greenhouses, gazebos and parks. The landowners were celebrating and walking. Hunting was a favorite pastime. But gradually the power of the Russian landowner is leaving with it. Peasants if the master of gifts from all over the vast country. The long life ended quickly. Houses sorted out brick by brick, everything began to fall into disrepair. There is land left to work on. The landowner does not know how to work, he spends his whole life
"lived by someone else's work."
The peasants realized that the landowner was not the one they were looking for.
2 part. Last
Chapter 1
The wanderers reached the Volga. There was a lot of fun going around. The wanderers saw how the wonderful old man swaggered over the peasants. He forced to scatter the heroic haystack. It seemed to him that the hay had not dried up. It turned out to be Prince Utyatin. The wanderers were surprised why the peasants behave this way, if they have long been given freedom and the patrimony does not belong to the prince, but to them. Vlas explains to his comrades what the matter is.
Chapter 2
The landowner was very rich and important. He did not believe that serfdom had been abolished. He got hit. The children and their wives arrived. Everyone thought that the old man would die, but he recovered. The heirs of their father's anger were afraid. One of the ladies said that serfdom was returned. I had to persuade the serfs to continue to behave as before, before the free. They promised to pay for all the quirks of the parent. The prince's orders were as ridiculous as they were absurd. One of the old men could not stand it and told the prince. He was ordered to be punished. Agap was persuaded to drink and scream as if he was being beaten. They made the old man drunk to death, he died by morning.
Chapter 3
The peasants, believing in the promises of their heirs, behave like serfs. The Prince of the Last is dying. But no one fulfills the promises, the promised lands do not pass to the peasants. There is a lawsuit going on.
3 part. peasant woman
The men decided to look for happy people among the women. They were advised to find Matryona Timofeeva Korchagina. Wanderers go through the fields, admiring the rye. Wheat does not please them, it does not feed everyone. We reached the desired village - Klin. The peasants were surprised at every step. Strange, absurd work went on throughout the village. Everything around was destroyed, broken or spoiled. Finally, they saw reapers and reapers. Pretty girls have changed the scene. Among them was Matrena Timofeevna, popularly nicknamed the governor's wife. The woman was about 37 - 38 years old. The appearance of a woman attracts with beauty:
- big stern eyes;
- wide tight posture;
- rich eyelashes;
- swarthy skin.
Matryona is neat in her clothes: a white shirt and a short sundress. The woman could not immediately answer the question of the wanderers. She thought, reproached the peasants, they chose the wrong time for talking. But the peasants offered their help in exchange for a story. The Governor agreed. The self-made tablecloth fed and watered the peasants. The hostess agreed to open the soul.
1 chapter. before marriage
Matryona was happy in her parents' house. Everyone treated her well: father, brother, mother. The girl grew up hardworking. She has been helping with housework since she was 5 years old. A kind worker grew up, a lover of singing and dancing. Matryona was in no hurry to get married. But the stove-maker Philip Korchagin appeared. The girl thought it over all night, cried, but after looking at the guy more carefully, she agreed. Happiness was only on the night of the matchmaking, as Matryona said.
Chapter 2 Songs
Wanderers and a woman sing songs. They talk about a heavy share in someone else's house. Matrena continues the story of her life. The girl got into a huge family. The husband went to work, advised his wife to be silent and endure. Matrena worked for her older sister-in-law, the devout Martha, looked after her father-in-law, and gratified her mother-in-law. It occurred to Philip's mother that rye would be best grown from stolen seeds. The father-in-law went to steal, he was caught, beaten and thrown into the barn half dead. Matryona praises her husband, and the wanderers ask if he beat her. The woman tells. Philip was beaten for a slow answer to a question when his wife lifted a heavy pot and could not speak. The wanderers sang a new song about her husband's whip and relatives. Matrena gave birth to a son, Demushka, when her husband again went to work. The trouble came again: the master's manager, Abram Gordeevich Sitnikov, liked the woman. He didn't let go. Of the whole family, only grandfather Savely felt sorry for Matryona. She went to him for advice.
Chapter 3 Saveliy, Holy Russian hero
Grandfather Savely looked like a bear. He did not cut his hair for 20 years, bent from the years he had lived. According to the documents, my grandfather was already over 100 years old. He lived in a corner - in a special room. He did not let his family members in, they did not like him. Even his own son scolded his father. They called grandfather branded. But Savely was not offended:
"Branded, but not a slave!"
Grandfather rejoiced at the failures of the family: they were waiting for matchmakers - beggars came under the windows, the father-in-law was beaten in a drinking tavern. Grandfather collects mushrooms and berries, catches birds. In winter he talks to himself on the stove. The old man has many sayings and favorite sayings. Matryona and her son went to the old man. The grandfather told the woman why he was called branded in the family. He was a convict, he buried the German Vogel alive in the ground. Savely tells the woman how they lived. Times were good for the peasants. The master could not get to the village because there were no roads. Only bears disturbed the inhabitants, but even those men coped easily without guns:
"with a knife and a horn."
Grandfather tells when he was frightened, from which his back bent. He stepped on a sleepy bear, was not afraid, drove a horn into her and raised her like a chicken. The back crunched from heaviness, in youth it ached a little, and in old age it bent. In a lean year, Shalashnikov reached them. The landowner began to tear "three skins" from the peasants. When Shalashnikov died, a German, a strange and quiet man, was sent to the village. He forced them to work, unbeknownst to themselves, the peasants cut a clearing to the village, a road appeared. With her came hard labor. The German grip is to let it go around the world. Russian heroes endured, did not break. Peasants
"the axes lay for the time being."
The German ordered to dig a well and came to scold him for his slowness. Hungry men stood and listened to his whining. Savely gently pushed him with his shoulder, the others did the same. They carefully threw the German into the pit. He shouted, demanded a rope and a ladder, but Savely said:
"Give it up!"
The pit was quickly dug up, as if it never happened. Next came penal servitude, prison, and flogging. The old man's skin has become like dressed, the grandfather jokes, that's why it has been worn "for a hundred years", that it has endured so much. Grandfather returned to his homeland while there was money, he was loved, then they began to hate him.
Chapter 4
Matrena continues the story of her life. She loved her son Demushka, took him everywhere with her, but her mother-in-law demanded to leave the child with her grandfather. The woman was loading compressed sheaves of rye when she saw Savely crawling towards her. The old man roared. He fell asleep and did not notice how the pigs ate the child. Matryona experienced terrible grief, but even more terrible were the interrogations of the police officer. He found out whether Matryona cohabited with Savely, whether she had killed her son in conspiracy, or if she poured arsenic. The mother asked to bury Demushka according to the Christian custom, but they began to cut the child, “torment and plast”. The woman almost went crazy with anger and grief, she cursed Savely. Having gone crazy in her mind, she went into oblivion, when she woke up, she saw that her grandfather was reading a prayer over a small coffin. Matryona began to chase the old man, and he asked for forgiveness and explained that Demushka had melted the old man's petrified heart. All night Savely read a prayer over the child, and the mother held a candle in her hands.
Chapter 5
It has been 20 years since the son died, and the woman still regrets his fate. Matryona stopped working, she was not afraid of her father-in-law's reins. I could not make any more promises with my grandfather Savely. The old man sat out of grief in his room for 6 days, went into the forest. He wept so that the whole forest moaned with him. In autumn, grandfather went to the Sand Monastery to repent for what he had done. Life began to go on as usual: children, work. Parents died, Matrena went to cry at Demushka's grave. There she met Savelia. He prayed for Dema, Russian suffering, for the peasantry, asked to remove anger from his mother's heart. Matrena reassured the old man, saying that she had forgiven him a long time ago. Savely asked to look at him as before. The kind look of the woman delighted the grandfather. The “hero” died hard: he did not eat for 100 days and dried up. He lived for 107 years, asked to be buried next to Demushka. The request was fulfilled. Matrena worked for the whole family. The son was given at the age of 8 as a shepherd. He did not follow the sheep, and the she-wolf carried it away. The mother did not let the crowd flog her son. Fedot said that the huge she-wolf grabbed the sheep and ran. The boy rushed after her, boldly took away the animal from the gray one, but took pity on her. The she-wolf was covered in blood, her nipples were cut with grass. She howled as plaintively as a mother weeps. The boy gave her the sheep, came to the village and told everything honestly. The headman ordered the shepherd to be forgiven, and the woman to be punished with rods.
Chapter 6
A hungry year has come to the village. The peasants were looking for reasons in their neighbors, Matryona was almost killed for a clean shirt, dressed in Christmas. The husband was taken into the army, poverty became almost unbearable. Matryona sends the children to beg. The woman cannot stand it and leaves the house at night. She sings to the wanderers a song that she likes very much.
Chapter 7
Matrena ran at night to ask for help in the city from the governor. All night the woman walked, praying to God to herself. In the morning I reached the Cathedral Square. I learned that the porter's name was Makar and began to wait. He promised to start in two hours. The woman walked around the city, looked at the monument to Susanin, which reminded her of Savely, was frightened by the cry of a drake that fell under the knife. I returned to the governor's house early, managed to talk with Makar. A lady in a sable coat came down the stairs, Matryona threw herself at her feet. She asked so much that she began to give birth in the governor's house. The lady baptized the boy, chose the name Liodor for him. Elena Alexandrovna (lady) returned Philip. Matrena wishes the lady only joy and goodness. The husband's family is grateful to the daughter-in-law, with a man in the house, hunger is not so terrible.
Chapter 8
The woman was defamed in the district, they began to call a new name - the governor. Matryona has 5 sons, one is already in the army. Korchagina sums up her story:
"... It's not a matter of looking for a happy woman among women! ...".
Wanderers are trying to find out if the woman told them everything about her life, but she only tells them about troubles and grief:
- Anthrax;
- Work instead of a horse;
- Scourge and loss of the firstborn.
The woman did not experience only "the last shame." Matrena says that the keys to women's happiness are lost by God. She tells a parable she heard from the holy old woman. God abandoned the keys, they were looking for them, but they decided that the fish had swallowed them. The warriors of the Lord went through the whole of God's world, finally found the loss. Women breathed a sigh of relief throughout the world. But it turned out that these were the keys to slavery. No one still knows where this fish walks.
4 part. A feast for the whole world
The wanderers settled down at the end of the village under the willow. They remember the master - the Last. Under the feast, they begin to sing and share stories.
Song Merry. It is sung like a dance priests and courtyard people. Only vakhlak did not sing. A song about the hard lot of a Russian peasant.
“It is glorious for the people to live in holy Rus'”:
He has no milk - the master took the cow for offspring, there are no chickens - the judges of the Zemstvo council ate, the children are taken away: the king - the boys, the master - the daughters.
Barshine song. The second song is sad and drawn out. The hero of the story is the unkempt Kalinushka. His only back is painted from a rod and whips. Grief drowns Kalinushka in a tavern, he sees his wife only on Saturday, he will "backfire" on her from the master's stables.
About the exemplary lackey - Yakov Verny. The story is told by the courtyard Vikenty Alexandrovich. The protagonist of the story is a gentleman, cruel and evil. For bribes, he bought a village for himself and established his own law. The cruelty of the master was in relation not only to the courtyards. He gave his own daughter in marriage, flogged the guy and "chased away (the children) naked." Polivanov had a serf - Yakov. He served his master like a faithful dog. The serf took care of the master, humored him as best he could. The old man began to get sick, his legs gave out. Jacob carried him in his arms like a child. Jacob's nephew Grisha grew up. Yakov asked permission to marry the girl Arisha, but the master himself liked the girl, he sent Grigory to recruit. The serf was on fire. He drank for 2 weeks, the master felt what it was like for him without an assistant. Yakov returned and devotedly again began to look after the landowner. They went to visit their sister. The landowner settled down carelessly in the carriage, Yakov took him to the forest. The master was frightened when he saw that they had turned off the road to the ravine. Frightened, he decided that he was waiting for death. But the serf laughed evilly:
"Found the murderer!",
Jacob did not want
"... dirty your hands with murder ...".
He made a rope and hanged himself in front of the master. He lay all night in a ravine, driving away birds and wolves. The hunter found him the next morning. The master understood what sin he had committed against the faithful serf.
A story about two great sinners. Ionushka began to tell the story of Father Pitirim from Solovki. Twelve robbers with ataman Kudeyar rampaged in Rus'. Suddenly, the robber Kudeyar woke up conscience. He began to argue with her, trying to gain the upper hand. He cut off the beauty's head, killed the captain. But conscience won. Disbanded the ataman gang, went to pray. For a long time he sat under the oak, asking God. The Lord heard the sinner. He suggested that he cut down a centuries-old tree with a knife. The chieftain set to work, but the oak did not give in to him. Pan Glukhovsky came to him. He began to boast that he kills easily and sleeps peacefully, without remorse. Kudeyar could not stand it, plunged a knife into the heart of the pan. The oak collapsed at the same moment. One sinner was forgiven by God for sins, freeing the world from another villain.
Peasant sin. The widower-ammiral received 8,000 souls from the empress for his service. Ammiral leaves a will to the headman. Freemen are hidden in the casket. After the death of the emmiral, a relative finds out from Gleb, where the free will is kept and burns the will. A peasant's sin is a betrayal among one's own. He is not forgiven even by God.
Song Hungry. The peasants sing it in chorus, like a beaten march, the words are approaching in a cloud and dragging the soul. A song about hunger, a man's constant desire for food. He is ready to eat everything alone, dreams of a cheesecake from a large table. The song is not sung with a voice, but with a hungry gut.
Grisha Dobrosklonov joins the wanderers. He tells the peasants that the main thing for him is to achieve a good life for the peasants. They sing a song about the share of people's and working life. The people ask God for few things - light and freedom.
Epilogue. Grisha Dobrosklonov
Gregory lived in the family of a poor, seedy peasant. He was the son of a deacon, who boasted of his children, but did not think about their food. Grigory remembered the song that his mother sang to him. Song "Salty". The essence of the song is that the mother managed to salt her son's piece of bread with her tears. The guy grew up with love for his mother in his heart. Already at the age of 15, he knows for whom he will give his life. There are two roads in front of a person:
- Spacious, where people inhumanly fight among themselves for the sake of passions and sin.
- Close, where honest people suffer and fight for the oppressed.
Dobrosklonov thinks about his homeland, he goes his own way. Meets barge haulers, sings songs about a great and mighty country. Gregory composes the song "Rus". He believes that the song will help the peasants, give optimism, replace sad stories.
Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov's poem "Who Lives Well in Rus'" has its own unique feature. All the names of the villages and the names of the heroes clearly reflect the essence of what is happening. In the first chapter, the reader can get acquainted with seven men from the villages of Zaplatovo, Dyryaevo, Razutovo, Znobishino, Gorelovo, Neyolovo, Neurozhayko, who argue about who lives well in Rus', and in no way cannot come to an agreement. No one is even going to yield to another ... So unusually begins the work that Nikolai Nekrasov conceived in order, as he writes, "to present in a coherent story everything that he knows about the people, everything that happened to be heard from his lips ..."
The history of the creation of the poem
Nikolai Nekrasov began working on his work in the early 1860s and finished the first part five years later. The prologue was published in the January issue of the Sovremennik magazine for 1866. Then painstaking work began on the second part, which was called "Last Child" and was published in 1972. The third part, entitled "Peasant Woman", was released in 1973, and the fourth, "A Feast for the Whole World" - in the fall of 1976, that is, three years later. It is a pity that the author of the legendary epic did not manage to fully complete his plan - the writing of the poem was interrupted by an untimely death - in 1877. However, even after 140 years, this work remains important for people, it is read and studied by both children and adults. The poem “To whom it is good to live in Rus'” is included in the compulsory school curriculum.
Part 1. Prologue: who is the happiest in Rus'
So, the prologue tells how seven men meet on a high road, and then go on a journey to find a happy man. Who in Rus' lives freely, happily and cheerfully - this is the main question of curious travelers. Each, arguing with the other, believes that he is right. Roman shouts that the landowner has the best life, Demyan claims that the official lives wonderfully, Luka proves that it’s still a priest, the rest also express their opinion: “noble boyar”, “fat-bellied merchant”, “sovereign minister” or the tsar .
Such a disagreement leads to a ridiculous fight, which is observed by birds and animals. It is interesting to read how the author displays their surprise at what is happening. Even the cow “came to the fire, stared at the peasants, listened to crazy speeches and began, cordially, to moo, moo, moo! ..”
At last, having kneaded each other's sides, the peasants came to their senses. They saw a tiny warbler chick flying up to the fire, and Pahom took it in his hands. The travelers began to envy the little bird that could fly wherever it wanted. They talked about what everyone wants, when suddenly ... the bird spoke in a human voice, asking to release the chick and promising a large ransom for it.
The bird showed the peasants the way to where the real tablecloth was buried. Wow! Now you can definitely live, not grieve. But the quick-witted wanderers also asked that their clothes not wear out. “And this will be done by a self-assembled tablecloth,” said the warbler. And she kept her promise.
The life of the peasants began to be full and cheerful. But they have not yet resolved the main question: who still lives well in Rus'. And friends decided not to return to their families until they find the answer to it.
Chapter 1. Pop
On the way, the peasants met the priest and, bowing low, asked him to answer “in conscience, without laughter and without cunning,” whether he really lives well in Rus'. What the pop said dispelled the ideas of the seven curious about his happy life. No matter how severe the circumstances are - a dead autumn night, or a severe frost, or a spring flood - the priest has to go where he is called, without arguing or contradicting. The work is not easy, besides, the groans of people leaving for another world, the weeping of orphans and the sobs of widows completely upset the peace of the priest's soul. And only outwardly it seems that pop is held in high esteem. In fact, he is often the target of ridicule by the common people.
Chapter 2
Further, the road leads purposeful wanderers to other villages, which for some reason turn out to be empty. The reason is that all the people are at the fair, in the village of Kuzminskoe. And it was decided to go there to ask people about happiness.
The life of the village evoked not very pleasant feelings among the peasants: there were a lot of drunks around, everywhere it was dirty, dull, uncomfortable. Books are also sold at the fair, but low-quality books, Belinsky and Gogol are not to be found here.
By evening, everyone becomes so drunk that it seems that even the church with the bell tower is shaking.
Chapter 3
At night, the men are on their way again. They hear the conversations of drunk people. Suddenly, attention is attracted by Pavlush Veretennikov, who makes notes in a notebook. He collects peasant songs and sayings, as well as their stories. After everything that has been said is captured on paper, Veretennikov begins to reproach the assembled people for drunkenness, to which he hears objections: “The peasant drinks mainly because he has grief, and therefore it is impossible, even a sin, to reproach for it.
Chapter 4
Men do not deviate from their goal - by all means to find a happy person. They promise to reward with a bucket of vodka the one who tells that it is he who lives freely and cheerfully in Rus'. Drinkers peck at such a "tempting" offer. But no matter how hard they try to colorfully paint the gloomy everyday life of those who want to get drunk for free, nothing comes out of them. Stories of an old woman who has born up to a thousand turnips, a sexton rejoicing when they pour him a pigtail; the paralyzed former courtyard, who for forty years licked the master's plates with the best French truffle, does not impress the stubborn seekers of happiness on Russian soil.
Chapter 5
Maybe luck will smile on them here - the searchers assumed a happy Russian person, having met the landowner Gavrila Afanasich Obolt-Obolduev on the road. At first he was frightened, thinking that he saw the robbers, but after learning about the unusual desire of the seven men who blocked his path, he calmed down, laughed and told his story.
Maybe before the landowner considered himself happy, but not now. Indeed, in the old days, Gavriil Afanasyevich was the owner of the entire district, a whole regiment of servants and arranged holidays with theatrical performances and dances. Even the peasants did not hesitate to invite the peasants to pray in the manor house on holidays. Now everything has changed: the family estate of Obolt-Obolduev was sold for debts, because, left without peasants who knew how to cultivate the land, the landowner, who was not used to working, suffered heavy losses, which led to a deplorable outcome.
Part 2
The next day, the travelers went to the banks of the Volga, where they saw a large hay meadow. Before they had time to talk with the locals, they noticed three boats at the pier. It turns out that this is a noble family: two gentlemen with their wives, their children, servants and a gray-haired old gentleman named Utyatin. Everything in this family, to the surprise of travelers, occurs according to such a scenario, as if there was no abolition of serfdom. It turns out that Utyatin was very angry when he found out that the peasants were given freedom and came down with a stroke, threatening to deprive his sons of their inheritance. To prevent this from happening, they came up with a cunning plan: they persuaded the peasants to play along with the landowner, posing as serfs. As a reward, they promised the best meadows after the death of the master.
Utyatin, hearing that the peasants were staying with him, perked up, and the comedy began. Some even liked the role of serfs, but Agap Petrov could not come to terms with the shameful fate and told the landowner everything to his face. For this, the prince sentenced him to flogging. The peasants also played a role here: they took the “rebellious” to the stable, put wine in front of him and asked him to shout louder, for appearances. Alas, Agap could not bear such humiliation, got very drunk and died the same night.
Further, the Last (Prince Utyatin) arranges a feast, where, barely moving his tongue, he delivers a speech about the advantages and benefits of serfdom. After that, he lies down in the boat and gives up the spirit. Everyone is glad that they finally got rid of the old tyrant, however, the heirs are not even going to fulfill their promise to those who played the role of serfs. The hopes of the peasants were not justified: no one gave them meadows.
Part 3. Peasant woman.
No longer hoping to find a happy man among the men, the wanderers decided to ask the women. And from the lips of a peasant woman named Korchagina Matryona Timofeevna they hear a very sad and, one might say, terrible story. Only in her parents' house she was happy, and then, when she married Philip, a ruddy and strong guy, a hard life began. Love did not last long, because the husband went to work, leaving his young wife with his family. Matryona works tirelessly and sees no support from anyone except old Savely, who lives a century after hard labor, which lasted twenty years. Only one joy appears in her difficult fate - the son of Demushka. But suddenly a terrible misfortune befell the woman: it is impossible to even imagine what happened to the child because the mother-in-law did not allow her daughter-in-law to take him into the field with her. Due to an oversight of the boy's grandfather, the pigs eat him. What grief for a mother! She mourns Demushka all the time, although other children were born in the family. For their sake, a woman sacrifices herself, for example, she takes upon herself the punishment when they want to flog her son Fedot for a sheep that was carried away by wolves. When Matryona was carrying another son, Lidor, in her womb, her husband was unfairly taken into the army, and his wife had to go to the city to look for the truth. It’s good that the governor’s wife, Elena Alexandrovna, helped her then. By the way, in the waiting room Matryona gave birth to a son.
Yes, the life of the one who was called “lucky” in the village was not easy: she constantly had to fight for herself, for her children, and for her husband.
Part 4. A feast for the whole world.
At the end of the village of Valakhchina, a feast was held, where everyone was gathered: the wandering peasants, and Vlas the headman, and Klim Yakovlevich. Among the celebrating - two seminarians, simple, kind guys - Savvushka and Grisha Dobrosklonov. They sing funny songs and tell different stories. They do it because ordinary people ask for it. From the age of fifteen, Grisha knows for sure that he will devote his life to the happiness of the Russian people. He sings a song about a great and mighty country called Rus'. Isn't this the lucky one that the travelers were so stubbornly looking for? After all, he clearly sees the purpose of his life - in serving the disadvantaged people. Unfortunately, Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov died untimely, before he had time to finish the poem (according to the author's plan, the peasants were to go to St. Petersburg). But the reflections of the seven wanderers coincide with the thought of Dobrosklonov, who thinks that every peasant should live freely and cheerfully in Rus'. This was the main intention of the author.
The poem by Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov became legendary, a symbol of the struggle for the happy everyday life of ordinary people, as well as the result of the author's reflections on the fate of the peasantry.
