The ending of each work, whether it be a novel or a play or a short story, always draws a line, as it were, sums up the whole book. And the way the finale of a single book turns out is of great importance in understanding the whole work. Fathers and Sons is no exception. I. Turgenev “kills” the protagonist, Evgeny Vasilievich Bazarov, not out of pure fantasy. The last chapters, describing his death throes, carry a huge ideological meaning.
Throughout the novel, Yevgeny Bazarov presented himself as a nihilist, a man
Denying everything. But the nihilists are still only the seed of the revolutionary movement that is emerging in Russia. Their time had not yet come, they anticipated their own revolutionary era. This is the tragedy of the work itself and the fate of the protagonist.
Bazarov dies from an accidental cut on his finger during an autopsy of a man who died of typhus. Bazarov himself becomes infected with this deadly disease, and he has only a few days left to live.
However, the protagonist in the face of death shows willpower and courage. Even when he reports the infection to his father, he seems to casually talk about it: “Well, so I asked
County doctor [to open a typhoid peasant]; Well, he cut himself."
Bazarov feels the approach of the inevitable end: "If I got infected, it's too late now." But he was not afraid, he did not try to deceive himself, he remained true to his convictions. The death of Bazarov is heroic, but it attracts not only the heroism and stamina of Yevgeny, but also the humanity of his behavior. He becomes closer to us before his death: a romantic is clearly revealed in him, and he utters a phrase that he was afraid to utter before: “I love you!”
Despite the fact that Bazarov dies by accident, his very death is the natural end of the novel. I. Turgenev himself defines his main character as "doomed to perish."
There are two reasons for this: loneliness and internal conflict.
Bazarov is doomed to loneliness. Neither the parents, nor the Kirsanovs, nor Odintsova are close, understanding people. Bazarov is lonely, if only because he denies everything. But it is precisely this denial that confuses him when he asks: “What next?” But there is no answer to this question. Therefore, the beliefs of the hero himself are hopeless.
Bazarov dies because he was driven into a dead end by his theory. His return to his parental home looks like an escape from himself, from his own soul. On the one hand, Bazarov is confident in his views. But on the other hand, he understands that he cannot cope with all the complexity of feelings. Therefore, Turgenev leads to death not so much Bazarov as a person, but his ideas. He shows that nihilism has no future.
Before the very end in Bazarov, he is freed from nihilism, which constitutes his valuable picture of the world almost until his death. He acquires courageous features, so Eugene can boldly face death. He did not flinch before this last test that fell to his lot. Unable to fully reveal himself during his lifetime, Bazarov showed everything he was capable of in the face of death. A heavy, senseless death does not embitter Bazarov, but on the contrary, he tries not to show his suffering, he consoles his parents, takes care of them before his death, and finally finds peace.
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Essays on topics:
- Throughout the novel “Fathers and Sons”, the author tries to show the full-length figure of the protagonist Yevgeny Bazarov from all sides. AND...
- In 1861, the year of the abolition of serfdom, Turgenev wrote his best novel Fathers and Sons, which he dedicated to the memory of the great...
Preview:
Municipal educational institution secondary school No. 25 with in-depth study of individual subjects of the city of Rossosh, Rossoshansky municipal district of the Voronezh region
Subject:
Lesson developer:
Teacher of Russian language and literature
Ivleva L.E.
2012
Subject:
"The role of the episode of Bazarov's death in the novel by I.S. Turgenev "Fathers and Sons"
“... And after all, I also thought: I’ll break off a lot of things, I won’t die, where! There is a task, because I am a giant! And now the whole task of the giant is how to die decently, although no one cares about this .. ”
I.S. Turgenev
Goals:
- Leading students to the answer to the question: why does Turgenev end the novel with the death scene of the protagonist?
- To see the spiritual wealth and fortitude of Bazarov.
- Clarify the features of the author's position in relation to the main character.
- Through artistic analysis, come to a conclusion about the role of the episode in the novel.
- Compare students' findings with critics' opinions.
During the classes
1. The message of the topic of the lesson.
2. Working with text.
(Homework check)
Selection of phrases and text proving Bazarov's loneliness, his doom in society.
First group.
Bazarov and the Kirsanov brothers (gap for ideological reasons).
Chapter 10, 6 : – You are destroying everything “But you must also build”.
“It's none of our business anymore. First you need to clear the place.
“I don’t understand how it is possible not to recognize principles!
“At the present time, denial is most useful.
Second group.
Bazarov and Odintsova (unrequited love).
Chapter 26: “it can be seen that Bazarov is right, curiosity, only curiosity, and love for peace, selfishness ...;
Third group.
Kukshina and Sitnikov - Bazarov (vulgarity and insignificance).
Chapter 19: “I need such rumors. It’s not for the gods to burn the pots!”
Fourth group.
Bazarov and Arkady (denial of friendship - softness of Arkady).
Chapter 26: “We are saying goodbye forever, and you yourself know it, you are a nice fellow, but you are still a soft, liberal barich.”
Fifth group.
Bazarov and parents (people of different generations, different development).
Chapter 21:
“I'm leaving tomorrow. It’s boring, you want to work, but you can’t here.”
“He got bored with us. One is now like a finger, one!”
- With whom does Bazarov consider himself close? In whom he finds understanding, in his opinion (with the people).
- Is it really?
3. Reading creative works - miniatures "Bazarov and the people."
(Individual homework)
Bazarov believes that he speaks the same language with the people, considers himself close to him. "My grandfather plowed the land." However, he himself is a master for his men, and they do not understand and do not want to understand him.
Bazarov looks down on the people, somewhere even looks down on them, with such feelings there can be no mutual understanding.
- So why does Turgenev doom him to death?
(He considers him doomed. Two reasons: loneliness in society and the hero’s internal conflict. The author shows how Bazarov remains lonely.)
– But Turgenev does not just state death, he assigns special significance to the episode of death. Which? We will talk about this after reading the text.
4. Expressive reading of the episode.
5. Conversation. Episode analysis.
6. What qualities of Bazarov appeared in the episode?
Chapter 27:
- Courage. “I am infected, and in a few days you will bury me”, “I did not expect that I would die so soon”, “tomorrow my brain will resign”.
- Willpower “ He had not yet lost his memory and understood what was said to him; he was still fighting. “I don’t want to rave,” he whispered, clenching his fists, “what nonsense!”
- Convinced materialist. “After all, even the memoryless are communed”, “do not interfere with me” (refusal to confess). “Have you ever seen that people in my position do not go to the Elysees?”
- Pity for parents. "Mother? Poor fellow! Did she feed someone with her amazing borscht?”. “I’m not refusing if it can console you, but I don’t think there’s any need to rush?”
- Strong love. The ability to admire, to love. “Magnanimous! Oh, how close, and how young, fresh, clean in this nasty room! Live long, that's the best, and use it while it's time."
- Romanticism of science. What means of artistic expression does Turgenev resort to to show the romanticism of Bazarov?
Metaphors: a half-crushed worm, a giant, a dying lamp.
Aphorism.
Epithets: young, fresh, clean, dying.
Why such poetry in the hero's speech? What can be said here about Turgenev's position? Bazarov is a romantic at heart, but he believes that romanticism has no place in life now.
And life took its toll. Turgenev sees him as an unfulfilled poet, capable of strong feelings, possessing fortitude. - Quoting critics about the last episode. (Individual homework)
“The whole interest, the whole meaning of the novel lies in the death of Bazarov ... The description of Bazarov’s death is the best place in Turgenev’s novel, I even doubt that there is anything more remarkable in all the works of our artist.”
“To die the way Bazarov died is the same as doing a great feat.”
DI. Pisarev
Conclusion:
Why, after all, does Turgenev end the novel with the scene of the death of the hero, despite his superiority over other heroes?
Bazarov dies from an accidental cut on his finger, but death, from the author's point of view, is natural. Turgenev defines the figure of Bazarov as tragic and "doomed to die."
Turgenev was very fond of Bazarov and repeated many times that Bazarov was a “clever” and a “hero”. The author wanted the reader to fall in love with Bazarov (but by no means Bazarovism) with his rudeness, heartlessness, ruthless dryness.
Homework.
Write creative work.
I option.
Episode analysis. Chapter 27, from the words "Bazarov suddenly turned on the sofa ..."
II option.
Episode analysis. Chapter 27, from the words “She looked at Bazarov ... and stopped at the door ...”
Episode analysis.
Algorithm of work at the lesson.
The role of the episode of Bazarov's death, analysis of the episode from the novel.
Turgenev "Fathers and Sons".
Episode - a Greek word, has three interpretations: "Case", "Insert", "Outsider". There are two meanings in the explanatory dictionary:
- A case from one's life. Just an episode.
- A part of a work that has independent meaning. Episode from the work. Thus, in order to analyze an episode, it is necessary to determine its boundaries. Having determined the topic, the main idea and titled, you can start the analysis according to the plan:
- What part of the work does he occupy (i.e., the role in the composition)?
- Condensed retelling. Name the first events (the plot), the main event (the climax), the last event (the denouement) of the incident, if they were not highlighted by the students during the transition of the plot.
- Next, we look at how the episode is built. An episode is a single piece of text, which implies the presence of an introduction (message of revenge and time of action) and a conclusion (consequence). Having defined the main part with the boundaries of the tie, divide it into parts (you can make a plan). Find out where the climax is.
- Let's ask the question: What qualities of the hero's character appeared in the episode?
- If you look at the whole work, then what role does this incident (episode) play in the fate of the hero, what did or did not change in it, but could it?
- If you look at the plot of the whole work, then what is the role of the episode in the plot (is it the plot, one of the passing events of the action, the climax, the denouement)?
- Author's position. How does the author feel about the protagonist? What words or expressions characterize the character or what is happening? What is the author's assessment in them?
- Features of the writer's language. You can pay attention to the language of the characters, the language of the author or narrator (if any). Vocabulary, neologisms, syntactic structure, aphorism and more.
- What artistic techniques does the author use in this episode?
- Thus, we come to the issue of the episode, its connection with the artistic whole.
When working with an episode, the main attention should be paid to understanding its artistic features, in other words, to suggest a path from artistic features to problems, and not vice versa. In other words, with this way of analysis, the student learns to “read” everything from the text, and not to illustrate with the text the positions taken from where (at best, from the words of the teacher or from the textbook) are not clear.
"Trial by Death"
Based on the novel "Fathers and Sons"
1. Atypical threshold situation.
2. Laws of the new time.
3. Courage and fear.
In the novel by I. S. Turgenev Trial by death occupies a non-central position. However, this episode, associated with the image of Bazarov, plays an important role in understanding such an ambiguous person as Yevgeny Bazarov. When a person stands on the most important threshold of his life - death, he is faced with an atypical situation for him. And everyone will behave differently in this case. Human behavior in this case is simply impossible to predict. As well as not be able to guess the actions of others. Ivan (Sergeevich Turgenev managed to lift this veil.
Through Trial by death passes the central character of the novel - Yevgeny Bazarov. It all starts with infection at the autopsy of a man who died of typhus. Unlike the son, the news causes a great shock to the father. “Vasily Ivanovich suddenly turned pale all over and, without saying a word, rushed into the office, from where he immediately returned with a piece of hellish stone in his hand.” The father wants to do everything in his own way, as he believes that the son was negligent about his wound. Bazarov's behavior is not clear: either he resigns himself to his fate, or he simply does not want to live.
Some critics wrote that Turgenev deliberately killed Bazarov. This person became the harbinger of a new time. But the environment turned out to be unable not only to accept, but also to understand him. Arkady Kirsanov at first succumbs to the influence of his comrade, but eventually moves away from Yevgeny. Bazarov remains alone in his views on the changing world. Therefore, one can probably agree with critics that his disappearance from the narrative is the most acceptable end of the novel.
Bazarov is the "swallow" of new ideas, but when "cold weather" appears, he, like this bird, disappears. Perhaps that is why he himself is so indifferent to his wound. "This<прижечь ранку>should have been done earlier; and now, for real, and a hellish stone is not needed. If I've been infected, it's too late now."
Eugene is quite courageous about his illness, remains indifferent to all manifestations of his illness: headaches, fever, lack of appetite, chills. "Bazarov no longer got up that day and spent the whole night in a heavy, semi-forgetful slumber." The most important stage in approaching death begins. She takes the last strength from Eugene. He comes to terms with this manifestation of the disease. In the morning he even tries to get up, but his head is spinning, his nose bleeds - and he lies down again. Having shown the protagonist's steadfast attitude to inevitable death, some kind of hidden humility before fate, the writer turns to his entourage.
The father shows a lot of unnecessary anxiety. As a doctor, he understands that his son is dying. But he doesn't put up with it. Arina Vlasyevna notices her husband's behavior and tries to understand what is happening. But this only irritates him. "Here he is<отец>he caught himself and forced himself to smile back at her; but, to his own horror, instead of a smile, laughter came from somewhere.
Previously, both the son and the father only walked around the very designation of the disease. But Bazarov also calmly calls everything by its proper name. Now he speaks directly about the threshold to which life has brought him. “Old man,” Bazarov began in a hoarse and slow voice, “my business is lousy. I am infected, and in a few days you will bury me.” Perhaps such coldness to his infection occurs in Bazarov because he considers this just an unpleasant accident. He most likely does not realize that the end has come. Although quite clearly he gives orders to his father, who notes that the son speaks "quite rightly."
The red dogs that run and stand over Yevgeny during his delirium make him start thinking about death. "Strange!" he says. - I want to stop the thought on death, and nothing comes out. I see some kind of stain ... and nothing else. The onset of death turns out to be a new page in the life of the protagonist. He hasn't experienced this feeling before and doesn't know how to act. Testing as such does not work. After all, if we talk about the test, then only in relation to the manifestations of the disease, which Bazarov passes steadfastly and calmly. It is possible that he himself wishes death, because he understands that his life and ideas are not yet needed and are too cardinal for this world.
Before his death, Eugene wants to see only two people - Arkady and Odintsova. But then he says that there is no need to say anything to Arkady Nikolayevich, because "he is now in the jackdaws." His comrade is now far from him, and therefore Bazarov does not want to see him before his death. And besides a friend, only one person remains, the beloved woman of Evgeny, Anna Sergeevna.
He is trying to return the feeling of love, so he wants to take a last look at the one that has taken a place in his heart.
However, Odintsova is not so courageous. She decided to go to Bazarov in response to his message. Bazarov's father accepts her as a savior, especially since she brought a doctor. When at last Odintsova saw Bazarov, she already knew that he was not a tenant in the world. And the first impression - a cold languid fright, the first thoughts - if she really loved him. But Eugene, although he himself invited her, reacted sarcastically to her presence: “This is royal. They say that kings also visit the dying.”
And here Bazarov's attitude to death is manifested in words. He considers it an old phenomenon. Perhaps this is better known to him as a person who has been associated with medicine for more than a year. “The old thing is death, but new for everyone. Until now, I’m not afraid ... and then unconsciousness will come, and whoosh! ”
Sarcasm is preserved in Bazarov's speech. The bitter irony makes Odintsova shudder. He invited her to come, but says not to approach, as the disease is contagious. Afraid of getting infected, Anna Sergeevna does not take off her gloves when she gives him a drink, and at the same time she breathes timidly. And she only kissed him on the forehead.
These two characters approach the concept of death in different ways. It seems that Bazarov knows everything about her and therefore is so calm about both her manifestation and her arrival. Odintsova is constantly afraid of something, either the appearance of the patient, or getting infected. She does not pass the test of death, perhaps because she herself does not stand on this key threshold. Throughout his son’s illness, Bazarov’s father has hope that everything will get better, although as a doctor he himself knows the consequences of the manifestation of such signs of the disease. Bazarov himself confirms that death came suddenly. He wanted to do a lot: “And I also thought: I’ll break off a lot of things, I won’t die, where! There is a task, because I am a giant!” And now the whole task of the giant is to die, although "no one cares about this ..." Trial by death Eugene passes nobly, courageously, and he remains a giant until the very last minute.
In the 60s of the XIX century, Russia was embraced by a new trend of "nihilists" and J.S. Turgenev studies its foundations, its directions with interest. He creates a wonderful novel "Fathers and Sons", the main character of which is an ardent representative of the nihilists.
Appears before readers. Throughout the novel, the author tries to reveal the features of his character, demeanor, habits and life principles.
Eugene was a hardworking person who studied natural sciences, devoted all his time to research. The hero is of the opinion that society needs only useful sciences, such as physics, mathematics or chemistry. They can be much more useful than ordinary poetry and poems.
Bazarov is blind in relation to the surrounding beauties of nature, he does not perceive art, does not believe in religion. According to the principles of the nihilists, he is trying to destroy everything that the ancestors left and handed over. In his opinion, it is necessary to clear the place in order to create something new. But, creation is no longer his concern.
The main character is extremely smart and witty. He is independent and independent. However, such a position in life is quite dangerous, because it fundamentally contradicts the normal laws of human existence.
Deep changes take place in the soul of the hero after he falls in love with Anna Odintsova. Now Eugene understands what feelings are, what romance is. And most importantly, the emotions that have appeared are absolutely not subject to reason, they are difficult to manage. Everything that Eugene lived before is destroyed. All the life theories of the nihilists are dispelled. Bazarov does not know how to live on.
To put things in order in his thoughts, the hero leaves for his parents' house. And then misfortune befalls him. At the autopsy of a typhoid patient, Eugene becomes infected with a virus. Now, he will die! But, the desire to live in it flared up more and more. He understood that neither chemistry nor medicine would save him from death. And at such a moment, Bazarov thinks about the existence of a real God, who could miraculously correct the whole situation.
He asks his parents to pray for him. Right now, just before his death, Eugene understands the value of life. He looks differently at his parents, who were madly in love with their son. He rethinks his love for Anna. He calls Odintsova to him, goodbye and the woman fulfills the request of Eugene. It is in moments of communication with his beloved that Bazarov reveals the true essence of his soul. Only now he realizes that he lived his life completely senselessly, that he left nothing behind.
Turgenev's hero was endowed with intelligence, strength, and diligence. He was a good man who fell under the influence of nihilism. And what happened in the end? It was nihilism that killed all human impulses in his soul, destroyed all the bright dreams that a person can aspire to.
The ideas of nihilism have no future;
Let later, but the epiphany of the hero, awakening: human nature prevails over an erroneous idea;
Bazarov seeks not to show his suffering, to console his parents, to prevent them from seeking solace in religion.
The mention of Sitnikov and Kukshina is a confirmation of the absurdity of the ideas of nihilism and its doom;
The life of Nikolai Petrovich and Arkady is an idyll of family happiness, far from public disputes (a variant of the noble path in future Russia);
The fate of Pavel Petrovich – the result of a life ruined by empty love affairs (without a family, without love, away from the Motherland);
The fate of Odintsova is a variant of a fulfilled life: the heroine marries a man who is one of the future public figures of Russia;
The description of Bazarov's grave is a declaration of the eternity of nature and life, the temporality of empty social theories that claim to be eternal, the futility of the human desire to know and change the world, the greatness of nature compared to the vanity of human life.
Evgeny Vasilyevich Bazarov is the protagonist of the novel. Initially, the reader only knows about him that he is a medical student who has come to the village for the holidays. First, Bazarov visits the family of his friend Arkady Kirsanov, then he goes with him to the provincial city, where he meets Anna Sergeevna Odintsova, lives for some time in her estate, but after an unsuccessful declaration of love he is forced to leave and, finally, ends up in his parents' house, where he was heading from the beginning. He does not live long in his parents' estate, longing drives him away and makes him repeat the same route once again. In the end, it turns out that there is no place for him anywhere. Bazarov returns home again and soon dies.
The basis of the actions and behavior of the hero is his commitment to ideas. nihilism. Bazarov calls himself a “nihilist” (from the Latin nihil, nothing), that is, a person who “recognizes nothing, respects nothing, treats everything from a critical point of view, does not bow to any authorities, does not accept a single principle faith, no matter how much respect this principle may be surrounded by. He categorically denies the values of the old world: its aesthetics, social order, the laws of life of the aristocracy; love, poetry, music, the beauty of nature, family ties, such moral categories as duty, right, duty. Bazarov acts as a merciless opponent of traditional humanism: in the eyes of the “nihilist”, humanistic culture turns out to be a refuge for the weak and timid, creating beautiful illusions that can serve as their justification. The "nihilist" opposes the humanistic ideals with the truths of natural science, which affirm the cruel logic of life-struggle.
Bazarov is shown outside the environment of like-minded people, outside the sphere of practical work. Turgenev speaks of Bazarov's readiness to act in the spirit of his democratic convictions - that is, to destroy in order to make room for those who will build. But the author does not give him the opportunity to act, because, from his point of view, Russia does not yet need such actions.
Bazarov fights against the old religious, aesthetic and patriarchal ideas, mercilessly ridicules the romantic deification of nature, art and love. He affirms positive values only in relation to the natural sciences, based on the conviction that man is a “worker” in the workshop of nature. A person appears to Bazarov as a kind of bodily organism and nothing more. According to Bazarov, society is to blame for the moral shortcomings of individuals. With the right organization of society, all moral diseases will disappear. Art for the hero is a perversion, nonsense.
Bazarov's test of love for Odintsova."Romantic nonsense" considers Bazarov and the spiritual refinement of love feelings. The story of Pavel Petrovich's love for Princess R. is not introduced into the novel as an interstitial episode. He is a warning to the arrogant Bazarov
In a love collision, Bazarov's beliefs are tested for strength, and it turns out that they are imperfect, cannot be accepted as absolute. Now Bazarov's soul is splitting into two halves - on the one hand, we see the denial of the spiritual foundations of love, on the other hand, the ability to passionately and spiritually love. Cynicism is being replaced by a deeper understanding of human relationships. A rationalist who denies the power of true love, Bazarov is seized by a passion for a woman who is alien to him both in social status and in character, so seized that failure plunges him into a state of depression and longing. Rejected, he won a moral victory over a selfish woman from the noble circle. When he sees the complete hopelessness of his love, nothing causes him love complaints and requests. He painfully feels the loss, leaves for his parents in the hope of being healed of love, but before his death he says goodbye to Odintsova as to the beauty of life itself, calling love a "form" of human existence.
The nihilist Bazarov is capable of truly great and selfless love, striking us with depth and seriousness, passionate tension, integrity and strength of heartfelt feelings. In a love conflict, he looks like a large, strong personality, capable of a real feeling for a woman.
Bazarov and Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov. Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov - aristocrat, Angloman, liberal. In essence, the same doctrinaire as Bazarov. The very first difficulty - unrequited love - made Pavel Petrovich incapable of anything. A brilliant career and secular successes are interrupted by tragic love, and then the hero finds a way out in giving up hopes for happiness and in fulfilling moral and civic duty, Pavel Petrovich moves to the village, where he tries to help his brother in his economic transformations and advocates liberal government reforms. Aristocracy, according to the hero, is not a class privilege, but a high social mission of a certain circle of people, a duty to society. An aristocrat should be a natural supporter of freedom and humanity.
Pavel Petrovich appears in the novel as a convinced and honest man. but clearly limited. Turgenev shows that his ideals are hopelessly far from reality, and his position in life does not provide peace of mind even to himself. In the reader's mind, the hero remains lonely and unhappy, a man of unfulfilled aspirations and an unfulfilled destiny. This, to a certain extent, brings him closer to Bazarov. Bazarov is a product of the vices of the older generation, his philosophy is the denial of the life attitudes of the "fathers". Turgenev shows that absolutely nothing can be built on denial, because the essence of life lies in affirmation, not denial.
Duel of Bazarov and Pavel Petrovich. For the insult inflicted on Fenechka, Pavel Petrovich challenged Bazarov to a duel. This is also the conflict node of the work. The duel completed and exhausted his social conflict, for after the duel Bazarov would forever part with both the Kirsanov brothers and Arkady. She, putting Pavel Petrovich and Bazarov in a situation of life and death, thereby revealed not separate and external, but the essential qualities of both. The true reason for the duel is Fenechka, in whose features Kirsanov Sr. found similarities with his fatal beloved Princess R. and whom he also secretly loved. It is no coincidence that both antagonists have feelings for this young woman. Unable to wrest true love from their hearts, they try to find some kind of surrogate for this feeling. Both heroes are doomed people. Bazarov is destined to die physically. Pavel Petrovich, having settled the marriage of Nikolai Petrovich with Fenechka, also feels like a dead man. The moral death of Pavel Petrovich is the departure of the old, the doom of the obsolete.
Arkady Kirsanov. In Arkady Kirsanov, the unchanging and eternal signs of youth and youth, with all the advantages and disadvantages of this age, are most openly manifested. Arkady's "nihilism" is a lively play of young forces, a youthful feeling of complete freedom and independence, an ease of attitude towards traditions and authorities. The Kirsanovs are equally far from both the noble aristocracy and the raznochintsy. Turgenev is interested in these heroes not from a political, but from a universal point of view. The ingenuous souls of Nikolai Petrovich and Arkady retain their simplicity and worldly unpretentiousness in the era of social storms and catastrophes.
Pseudonihilists Kukshin and Sitnikov. Bazarov is alone in the novel, he has no true followers. It is impossible to consider the successors of the work of the hero of his imaginary comrades-in-arms: Arkady, who, after his marriage, completely forgets about his youthful passion for fashionable free-thinking; or Sitnikova and Kukshina - grotesque images, completely devoid of the charm and conviction of the "teacher".
Kukshina Avdotya Nikitishna is an emancipated landowner, a pseudo-nihilist, cheeky, vulgar, frankly stupid. Sitnikov is a pseudo-nihilist, recommended to everyone as a "student" of Bazarov. He is trying to demonstrate the same freedom and harshness of judgments and actions as Bazarov's. But the resemblance to the "teacher" turns out to be parodic. Next to a truly new man of his time, Turgenev put his caricatured “double”: Sitnikov’s “nihilism” is understood as a form of overcoming complexes (he is ashamed, for example, of his father-farmer, who profits from soldering the people, at the same time he is burdened by his human insignificance ).
The worldview crisis of Bazarov. Denying art and poetry, neglecting the spiritual life of a person, Bazarov falls into one-sidedness, without noticing it himself. By challenging the "damned barchuks", the hero goes too far. The denial of "your" art develops in him into a denial of art in general; the denial of "your" love - into the assertion that love is a "feigned feeling", explicable only by the physiology of the sexes; the denial of sentimental noble love for the people - in contempt for the peasant. Thus, the nihilist breaks with the eternal, enduring values of culture, placing himself in a tragic situation. Failure in love led to a crisis in his worldview. Two riddles arose before Bazarov: the mystery of his own soul and the riddle of the world around him. The world, which seemed simple and understandable to Bazarov, becomes full of secrets.
So is this theory necessary for society and do you need to him this type of hero like Bazarov? The dying Yevgeny tries to meditate on this with bitterness. “Russia needs me... no. apparently not needed,” and he asks himself the question: “Yes, and who is needed?” The answer is unexpectedly simple: we need a shoemaker, a butcher, a tailor, because each of these inconspicuous people does their job, working for the good of society and without thinking about lofty goals. Bazarov comes to this understanding of truth on the verge of death.
The main conflict in the novel is not the dispute between "fathers" and "children", but internal conflict experienced by Bazarov, the demands of living human nature are incompatible with nihilism. Being a strong personality, Bazarov cannot renounce his convictions, but he is not able to turn away from the demands of nature either. The conflict is unresolvable, and the hero is aware of this.
Bazarov's death. Bazarov's convictions come into tragic conflict with his human nature. He cannot give up his convictions, but he cannot stifle the awakened person in himself. For him there is no way out of this situation, and that is why he dies. The death of Bazarov is the death of his doctrine. The suffering of the hero, his untimely death is the necessary payment for his exclusivity, for his maximalism.
Bazarov dies young, without having time to start the activity for which he was preparing, without completing his work, alone, without leaving behind children, friends, like-minded people, not understood by the people and far from him. His great power is wasted. The gigantic task of Bazarov remained unfulfilled.
In the death of Bazarov, the political views of the author were manifested. Turgenev, a true liberal, a supporter of the gradual, reformist transformation of Russia, an opponent of all revolutionary outbursts, did not believe in the promise of revolutionary democrats, could not place great hopes on them, perceived them as a great force, but transient, believed that they would very soon come down from historical arena and will give way to new social forces - gradualist reformers. Therefore, the democratic revolutionaries, even if they were smart, attractive, honest, like Bazarov, seemed to the writer tragic loners, historically doomed.
The death scene and the scene of Bazarov's death is the most difficult exam for the right to be called a person and the most brilliant victory of the hero. “To die as Bazarov died is the same as doing a great feat” (D. I. Pisarev). Such a person who knows how to die calmly and firmly will not retreat in the face of an obstacle and will not flinch in the face of danger.
The dying Bazarov is simple and humane, there is no need to hide his feelings, he thinks a lot about himself, about his parents. Before his death, he calls Odintsova to tell her with sudden tenderness: “Listen, I didn’t kiss you then ... Blow on the dying lamp and let it go out.” The very tone of the last lines, the poetic rhythmic speech, the solemnity of the words that sound like a requiem, emphasize the author's loving attitude towards Bazarov, the moral justification of the hero, regret for a wonderful person, the thought of the futility of his struggle and aspirations. Turgenev reconciles his hero with eternal existence. Only nature, which Bazarov wanted to turn into a workshop, and his parents, who gave him life, surround him.
The description of Bazarov's grave is a statement of the eternity and grandeur of nature and life in comparison with the vanity, temporality, futility of social theories, human aspirations to know and change the world, and human mortality. Turgenev is characterized by subtle lyricism, this is especially evident in the descriptions of nature. In the landscape, Turgenev continues the traditions of the late Pushkin. For Turgenev, nature as such is important: aesthetic admiration for it.
Critics of the novel.“Did I want to scold Bazarov or exalt him? I don’t know this myself, because I don’t know whether I love him or hate him!” "My whole story is directed against the nobility as an advanced class." “The word “nihilist” that I issued was then used by many who were only waiting for an opportunity, a pretext to stop the movement that had taken possession of Russian society ...”. “I dreamed of a gloomy, wild, large figure, half grown out of the soil, strong, vicious, honest - and yet doomed to death because it still stands on the eve of the future” (Turgenev). Conclusion. Turgenev shows Bazarov inconsistently, but he does not seek to debunk him, to destroy him.
In accordance with the vectors of the struggle of social movements in the 60s, points of view on Turgenev's work were also lined up. Along with the positive assessments of the novel and the protagonist in Pisarev's articles, negative criticism was also heard from the ranks of the Democrats.
Position M.A. Antonovich (article "Asmodeus of our time"). A very harsh position that denies the social significance and artistic value of the novel. In the novel "... there is not a single living person and living soul, but all are only abstract ideas and different directions, personified and called by their own names." The author is not disposed towards the younger generation and "he gives full preference to fathers and always tries to elevate them at the expense of children." Bazarov, according to Antonovich, is both a glutton, a talker, a cynic, a drunkard, a braggart, a pitiful caricature of youth, and the whole novel is a slander of the younger generation. Dobrolyubov had already died by this time, and Chernyshevsky was arrested, and Antonovich, who had a primitive understanding of the principles of "real criticism", took the original author's intention for the final artistic result.
The novel was more deeply perceived by the liberal and conservative part of society. Even here, however, there are extreme judgments.
The position of M.N. Katkov, editor of the Russky Vestnik magazine.
“What a shame it was for Turgenev to lower the flag in front of the radical and salute him as before a well-deserved warrior.” “If Bazarov is not elevated to apotheosis, then one cannot but admit that he somehow accidentally landed on a very high pedestal. He really suppresses everything around him. Everything in front of him is either rags or weak and green. Was such an impression to be desired? Katkov denies nihilism, considering it a social disease that must be combated by strengthening protective conservative principles, but notes that Turgenev puts Bazarov above all.
The novel in the assessment of D.I. Pisarev (article "Bazarov"). Pisarev gives the most detailed and detailed analysis of the novel. “Turgenev does not like merciless denial, and meanwhile the personality of a merciless denier comes out as a strong personality and inspires involuntary respect in every reader. Turgenev is inclined towards idealism, and meanwhile, none of the idealists bred in his novel can be compared with Bazarov either in strength of mind or in strength of character.
Pisarev explains the positive meaning of the protagonist, emphasizes the vital importance of Bazarov; analyzes Bazarov's relationship with other heroes, determines their attitude to the camps of "fathers" and "children"; proves that nihilism got its start precisely on Russian soil; defines the originality of the novel. D. Pisarev's thoughts about the novel were shared by A. Herzen.
The most artistically adequate interpretation of the novel belongs to F. Dostoevsky and N. Strakhov (Vremya magazine). The views of F.M. Dostoevsky. Bazarov is a "theorist" who is at odds with "life", a victim of his dry and abstract theory. This is a hero close to Raskolnikov. Without considering the theory of Bazarov, Dostoevsky believes that any abstract, rational theory brings suffering to a person. Theory is broken against life. Dostoevsky does not talk about the reasons that give rise to these theories. N.Strakhov noted that I.S. Turgenev "wrote a novel that was neither progressive nor retrograde, but, so to speak, everlasting." The critic saw that the author "stands for the eternal principles of human life," and Bazarov, who is "alienated from life," meanwhile, "lives deeply and strongly."
The point of view of Dostoevsky and Strakhov is quite consistent with the judgments of Turgenev himself in his article “On the occasion of Fathers and Sons”, where Bazarov is called a tragic person.
