The play "Thunderstorm" by the famous Russian writer of the XIX century Alexander Ostrovsky, was written in 1859 in the wake of a public upsurge on the eve of social reforms. It became one of the best works of the author, opening the eyes of the whole world to the mores and moral values of the then merchant class. It was first published in the Library for Reading magazine in 1860 and, due to the novelty of its subject matter (descriptions of the struggle of new progressive ideas and aspirations with old, conservative foundations), immediately after publication caused a wide public outcry. She became the subject for writing a large number of critical articles of that time (“A Ray of Light in the Dark Kingdom” by Dobrolyubov, “Motives of Russian Drama” by Pisarev, criticism by Apollon Grigoriev).
Inspired by the beauty of the Volga region and its vast expanses during a trip with his family to Kostroma in 1848, Ostrovsky began writing the play in July 1859, after three months he finished it and sent it to the court of St. Petersburg censorship.
Having worked for several years in the office of the Moscow Conscientious Court, he knew well what the merchants were like in Zamoskvorechye (the historical district of the capital, on the right bank of the Moscow River), more than once, on duty, faced with what was happening behind the high fences of the merchants' choir , namely with cruelty, tyranny, ignorance and various superstitions, illegal transactions and scams, tears and suffering of others. The plot of the play is based on the tragic fate of a daughter-in-law in the wealthy merchant family of the Klykovs, which happened in reality: a young woman rushed into the Volga and drowned, unable to withstand the harassment of her imperious mother-in-law, tired of her husband’s spinelessness and secret passion for the postal clerk. Many believed that it was stories from the life of the Kostroma merchants that became the prototype for the plot of the play written by Ostrovsky.
In November 1859, the play was performed on the stage of the Maly Academic Theater in Moscow, and in December of the same year at the Alexandrinsky Drama Theater in St. Petersburg.
At the center of the events described in the play is the wealthy merchant family of the Kabanovs, who live in the fictional Volga city of Kalinovo, a kind of peculiar and closed little world, symbolizing the general structure of the entire patriarchal Russian state. The Kabanov family consists of a domineering and cruel woman-tyrant, and in fact the head of the family, a wealthy merchant and widow Marfa Ignatievna, her son, Tikhon Ivanovich, weak-willed and spineless against the backdrop of the heavy temper of his mother, the daughter of Varvara, who learned by deceit and cunning to resist the despotism of her mother , as well as daughter-in-law Katerina. A young woman, who grew up in a family where she was loved and pitied, suffers in the house of an unloved husband from his lack of will and the claims of her mother-in-law, in fact, having lost her will and becoming a victim of the cruelty and tyranny of the Kabanikh, left to the mercy of fate by a rag-husband.
From hopelessness and despair, Katerina seeks solace in love for Boris Diky, who also loves her, but is afraid to disobey her uncle, the wealthy merchant Savel Prokofich Diky, because the financial situation of him and his sister depends on him. Secretly, he meets with Katerina, but at the last moment he betrays her and runs away, then, at the direction of his uncle, he leaves for Siberia.
Katerina, being brought up in obedience and submission to her husband, tormented by her own sin, confesses everything to her husband in the presence of his mother. She makes the life of her daughter-in-law completely unbearable, and Katerina, suffering from unhappy love, reproaches of conscience and cruel persecution of the tyrant and despot Kabanikhi, decides to end her torment, the only way in which she sees salvation is suicide. She throws herself off a cliff into the Volga and dies tragically.
All the characters in the play are divided into two opposing camps, some (Kabanikha, her son and daughter, merchant Dikoy and his nephew Boris, maids Feklusha and Glasha) are representatives of the old, patriarchal way of life, others (Katerina, self-taught mechanic Kuligin) are new, progressive.
A young woman, Katerina, the wife of Tikhon Kabanov, is the central character of the play. She was brought up in strict patriarchal rules, in accordance with the laws of the ancient Russian Domostroy: a wife must obey her husband in everything, respect him, fulfill all his requirements. At first, Katerina tried with all her might to love her husband, to become a submissive and good wife for him, but due to his complete spinelessness and weakness of character, she can only feel pity for him.
Outwardly, she looks weak and silent, but in the depths of her soul there is enough willpower and perseverance to resist the tyranny of her mother-in-law, who is afraid that her daughter-in-law can change her son Tikhon and he will no longer obey the will of his mother. Katerina is cramped and stuffy in the dark realm of life in Kalinovo, she literally suffocates there and in her dreams she flies away like a bird away from this terrible place for her.
Having fallen in love with the visiting young man Boris, the nephew of a wealthy merchant and businessman, she creates in her head the image of an ideal lover and a real man, which is completely untrue, breaks her heart and leads to a tragic ending.
In the play, Katerina's character is opposed not to a specific person, her mother-in-law, but to the entire existing patriarchal way of life at that time.
Marfa Ignatyevna Kabanova (Kabanikha), like the merchant-tyrant Dikoy, who tortures and insults his relatives, does not pay wages and deceives his workers, are vivid representatives of the old, petty-bourgeois way of life. They are distinguished by stupidity and ignorance, unjustified cruelty, rudeness and rudeness, complete rejection of any progressive changes in the ossified patriarchal way of life.
(Tikhon, in the illustration near the Kabanikhi - Marfa Ignatievna)
Tikhon Kabanov throughout the play is characterized as a quiet and weak-willed person, who is under the complete influence of a despotic mother. Distinguished by his gentle nature, he makes no attempt to protect his wife from the attacks of his mother.
At the end of the play, he finally breaks down and the author shows his rebellion against tyranny and despotism, it is his phrase at the end of the play that leads readers to a certain conclusion about the depth and tragedy of the current situation.
(Fragment from a dramatic production)
The work begins with a description of the city on the Volga of Kalinov, whose image is a collective image of all Russian cities of that time. The landscape of the Volga expanses depicted in the play contrasts with the musty, dull and gloomy atmosphere of life in this city, which is emphasized by the dead isolation of the life of its inhabitants, their underdevelopment, dullness and wild lack of education. The author described the general state of urban life as if before a thunderstorm, when the old, dilapidated way of life is shaken, and new and progressive trends, like a gust of furious thunderstorm wind, will carry away outdated rules and prejudices that prevent people from living normally. The period of life of the inhabitants of the city of Kalinov described in the play is just in a state when outwardly everything looks calm, but this is only the calm before the coming storm.
The genre of the play can be interpreted as a social drama, as well as a tragedy. The first is characterized by the use of a thorough description of living conditions, the maximum transfer of its "density", as well as the alignment of characters. The attention of readers should be distributed among all participants in the production. The interpretation of the play as a tragedy suggests its deeper meaning and solidity. If we see in the death of Katerina the consequence of her conflict with her mother-in-law, then she looks like a victim of a family conflict, and all the unfolding action in the play seems small and insignificant for a real tragedy. But if we consider the death of the main character as a conflict of a new, progressive time with a fading, old era, then her act is best interpreted in a heroic way, characteristic of a tragic narrative.
The talented playwright Alexander Ostrovsky from the social drama about the life of the merchant class gradually creates a real tragedy, in which, with the help of a love and domestic conflict, he showed the onset of an epoch-making turning point in the minds of the people. Ordinary people are aware of the awakening sense of their own dignity, they begin to relate to the world around them in a new way, they want to decide their own destinies and fearlessly express their will. This nascent desire comes into irreconcilable contradiction with the real patriarchal way of life. The fate of Katerina acquires a social historical meaning, expressing the state of the people's consciousness at the turning point of two eras.
Alexander Ostrovsky, who noticed in time the doom of decaying patriarchal foundations, wrote the play "Thunderstorm" and opened the eyes of the entire Russian public to what was happening. He depicted the destruction of the usual, outdated way of life, with the help of the ambiguous and figurative concept of a thunderstorm, which, gradually growing, will sweep away everything from its path and open the way for a new, better life.
Russian dramaturgy is considered one of the richest in all world literature. The cultural heritage of mankind would be incomplete without the creativity of such people as Fonvizin, Griboedov, Gorky, Chekhov and, in the end, Alexander Ostrovsky. He is considered the main Russian playwright of the mid-nineteenth century. And his play "Thunderstorm" is one of the main dramatic works of its time. The wise Litrekon offers you an analysis of this play.
Ostrovsky was inspired to create the play "Thunderstorm" after his trip along the Volga. Having seen the patriarchal way of life of the provincial cities of Central Russia and the Volga region in all its glory, the writer wanted the inhabitants of large cities to see this world hidden inside Russia. He began and finished writing the play in 1859.
The prototype of the main character of the play, Katerina, was the actress Kositskaya, with whom the playwright had a very close relationship. The woman was married, and the playwright himself had a wife. Despite this, they loved each other, and it was Kositskaya who became the first performer of the role of Katerina.
The realism of the play was proven by life itself: literally a month after the writer finished the work, the “Klykov case” broke out in Kostroma. The petty bourgeois Alexandra Pavlovna Klykova rushed to the Volga because of the oppression of her mother-in-law and secret love for the local postal clerk. The husband, weak-willed and spineless, did not stand up for his wife, and his mother was dissatisfied with the arrears of the dowry and blamed her daughter-in-law for everything.
The name "Thunderstorm" could be given to the work for the reason that this word best conveys what happened in a quiet provincial town - after a long forcing tension, an inevitable breakdown occurs, an explosion that forever changes the fate of many characters. The meaning of the title conveys the idea of the work itself: a stagnant and stuffy city needed freshness and a shake of a thunderstorm. They appeared in the form of Katerina.
The storm itself, as a natural phenomenon, plays an important role in the play, symbolizing the inevitability of punishment - fate hanging over the heroes. Clouds were gathering over Katerina after the betrayal, and now her confession and, finally, suicide, which coincided with a thunderous natural phenomenon, became a kind of natural disaster in the fate of the Kabanov family and Kalinov himself. The role of a thunderstorm in the play is a metaphor for the events taking place there, a natural expression of social conflict.
The play "Thunderstorm" can be safely attributed to the direction of realism. In it, Ostrovsky tried to accurately reflect the life and customs of the provincial outback. The characters he created are as close to real as possible.
The genre of this work is drama. The Thunderstorm is a play that builds on mundane social conflict and shows us heroes who tried to rebel against circumstances.
The plot is based on a classic love triangle. The composition of the play is quite traditional, and is divided into the following elements:
A huge role in the development of the plot is played by nature, in particular a thunderstorm, which intensifies as it approaches the climax.
The main social conflict of the play is the confrontation between the old world represented by the Kabanikh and the Wild and the new one represented by Katerina and other young characters. There is also a confrontation between fathers and children, merchants (Kabanovs) and nobility (Katerina), wealth (Dikoi and Kabanova) and poverty (Kudryash, Boris). Love (Katerina, Boris and Tikhon) and everyday (mother-in-law and daughter-in-law) conflicts also take place in the text.
Despite the fact that outwardly this conflict is a classic family quarrel, it becomes clear that Ostrovsky primarily condemns not individuals, but the society that created them and encourages their way of life.
The action takes place in Kalinin, a small town on the banks of the Volga. At the beginning of the play, we are introduced to two young people: Katerina Kabanova, who lives in a merchant family under severe pressure from her mother-in-law, Kabanikh, and a young man, Boris, who is trying in vain to get his rightful inheritance, appropriated by his uncle Savel Prokofich.
Katerina's husband temporarily leaves the house, and passion flares up between the characters. However, over time, Katerina's conscience begins to torment. Unable to bear the mental anguish, she publicly confesses her infidelity.
At the end of the story, hunted by the townspeople and abandoned by her lover, Katerina commits suicide by throwing herself into the Volga.
The images of the heroes in the play "Thunderstorm" are reflected in the table from the Wise Litrekon.
| hero name | estate and role | characteristic |
| Katerina Kabanova | noblewoman, merchant's wife | the main character of the work. smart, sublime and kind girl. sincerely despises the pettiness, hypocrisy and narrow-mindedness of the inhabitants of the city. dreams of escaping from this atmosphere. principled, and therefore could not hide adultery and admitted it. however, in the end, she was not ready for direct confrontation with society and, unable to withstand the persecution, committed suicide. |
| marfa kabanova (boar) | merchant, widow, head of family | rich merchant. widow. champion of sanctimonious morality. superstitious, uneducated, grouchy, but absolutely confident in her boundless wisdom. considers himself right in all matters. established her undeniable power in the house. undividedly controls the son - the quiet, limits the daughter - the barbarian in everything, and harasses Katerina. |
| Boris | nephew of a wild one trying to reclaim an inheritance | progressive young man. wishing to return the money that was due to him by law, he fell into bondage to the wild. like Katerina, she sincerely despises the conservative and ignorant inhabitants of Kalinin, but also does not withstand direct confrontation and leaves Katerina, recommending that she submit to her fate. |
| kuligin | tradesman, inventor, supporter of progressive thinking | self-taught mechanic. one of the few worthy inhabitants of the city, forced, however, to come to terms with the depravity and hypocrisy of its inhabitants. tries to raise funds for lightning rod devices that could help the city, but fails. one of the few who sympathizes with Katerina. |
| savel prokofich wild | merchant, master of life, important person in the city | greedy old merchant. bully and arrogant. ignorant and self-satisfied. periodically robs his employees. cruelly tyrannizes and belittles those who are poorer and weaker than him, including his nephew, Boris, but kowtows to those who are richer and more influential than him. |
| tihon boars | son of a boar, merchant | the weak-willed son of Marfa Ignatievna. he is terribly afraid of his mother, and therefore cannot even protect his wife from her. the limit of his dreams is to leave the house for at least a couple of weeks to get rid of the control of the boar. during these periods he drinks and walks. admits to Kuligin that during his departure he himself cheated on Katerina. only Katerina's suicide inspires him to a short-term rebellion against his mother. |
| varvara kabanova | sister tihon | quiet sister. unlike his brother, he does not experience weak-willed horror in front of his mother. noticing mutual feelings between Katerina and Boris, she organizes their secret meeting, contributing to the suicide of the main character. at the end of the play, she runs away from home with her lover. |
The theme of the play "Thunderstorm" is interesting and relevant even today:
There are many more topics in The Thunderstorm than described here, and if you need a complete list of them, contact Litrecon in the comments, he will supplement the list.
The problematics of the play "Thunderstorm" is no less deep and relevant:
The wise Litrekon knows other problems in the play "Thunderstorm", but listing them can take a lot of space and time. If you need a complete list, let me know in the comments.
What is the meaning of the play "Thunderstorm"? The author wanted to show that even the most authoritative patriarchal foundations need to be developed and re-evaluated, otherwise they stagnate and only interfere with people. The orders of Domostroy are hopelessly outdated, so the inhabitants of Kalinov, who is behind the times, become hostages of hypocrisy in order to correspond to them at least outwardly. They can no longer live as they used to, but they also lack the courage and strength to change the old order. One Katerina declared a rebellion against the conventions of the old world and fell victim in an unequal battle.
The main idea in the play "Thunderstorm" is expressed in the need for progress and enlightenment, both scientific and moral. He likens them to fresh air, which gives the world a thunderstorm. Before this phenomenon, the world is shrouded in stuffiness, dries up with heat, and only thunder can free the earth from this burden and give it the freshness necessary for renewal. The same thing happened in Kalinovo: the death of Katerina and her bold rebellion shook the stagnant city.
Ostrovsky's play can affect not only the remote province of the Russian Empire of the nineteenth century. The images created by the writer remain relevant for residents of big cities today. Thunderstorm can help each of us look at our lives, weigh our actions and words and determine who we are: hypocritical Kalinin residents or highly moral Katerina.
The author's position in the play "Thunderstorm" is unequivocal. Ostrovsky clearly sympathized with his heroine and justified her act by the degradation of the social structure, in which a person is forced to hide his feelings, and the depravity of people embittered at each other.
What did critics say about Ostrovsky's Thunderstorm? The play was perceived ambiguously in the years of its creation, it is ambiguously perceived even now. Basically, the disputes were and are being conducted around the moral image of Katerina.
If the critic Nikolai Dobrolyubov perceived her as a positive character, as "a ray of light in a dark kingdom", then Dmitry Pisarev, on the contrary, saw Katerina as an infantile and stupid merchant's wife, just as vicious and hypocritical as the people around her.
One way or another, today "Thunderstorm" is a monument to Russian drama, evidence of the cultural life and moods of the intelligentsia of the Russian Empire of the nineteenth century.
The goal of The Thunderstorm is to show in all a terrifying light how that terrible family despotism that prevails in the "dark kingdom" - in the life of some part of our callous, undeveloped merchant class, the inner side of their life still belonging to times long gone - and that murderous, fatal mysticism, which entangles the soul of an undeveloped person with a terrible net . (“Thunderstorm”. Drama by A. N. Ostrovsky, Moscow Bulletin magazine, 1859, No. 49)
Many reviewers spoke about the vitality and sincerity of Ostrovsky's drama. Both viewers and readers believed in his works.
“... the works of Mr. Ostrovsky instill some confidence that he heard all this somewhere, saw it somewhere, not in his imagination, but in reality. Whether it was so or not is all the same, the point is in the impression.<…>(N. F. Pavlov, article "Thunderstorm", newspaper "Our Time", 1860, No. 1)
Critics also spoke more than once about the innovation and freshness of Ostrovsky's view of social phenomena.
“If we say that Ostrovsky’s new drama, The Thunderstorm ... belongs to phenomena that emerge from a series of ordinary phenomena on our stage, then, of course, even young skeptics will not reproach us in this case for being carried away .... The new drama of Mr. Ostrovsky, in our extreme conviction, belongs to the remarkable phenomena of Russian literature - both in thought, which is contained in it, and in execution. (I. I. Panaev, “Notes of a New Poet” about “Thunderstorm”, “Sovremennik” magazine, 1859 No. 12)
In particular, A.N. Ostrovsky significantly enriched the gallery of female images of Russian literature.
In The Thunderstorm one can hear new motifs, the charm of which is doubled precisely because they are new. Ostrovsky's gallery of Russian women has been adorned with new characters, and his Katerina, the old woman Kabanova, Varvara, even Feklusha will occupy a prominent place in it. In this play, we noticed another new feature in the talent of its author, although his creative methods remained the same as before. This is an attempt at analysis.<…>We only doubt that analysis can get along with the dramatic form, which in its essence is already alien to it. (M. M. Dostoevsky, “Thunderstorm”. Drama in five acts by A. N. Ostrovsky”, “Light”, 1860 No. 3)
A feature of the play "Thunderstorm" is a unique national language that conveys the Russian mentality and its undeniable originality.
... the language of Ostrovsky is the richest treasury of Russian speech. In this regard, we can put in one row only three writers: Krylov, Pushkin and Ostrovsky. (A.M. Skabichevsky, book "The History of Modern Russian Literature. (1848-1890)", St. Petersburg, 1891)
The comedy "Thunderstorm" is one of the most famous works of the Russian playwright A. N. Ostrovsky. The idea, the characters of the work can be explored forever. The images of the characters in "Thunderstorm" are quite remarkable.
All characters can be divided into 2 groups: representatives of the older and younger generations. The elder represents the Boar and Wild. They are representatives of the patriarchal world, where selfishness and poverty rule. Other characters suffer from the tyranny of the Boar and the Wild. First of all, these are Varvara, Katerina, Boris and Tikhon. Comparative characteristics of the characters show that all the heroes resigned themselves to their fate, and only Katerina is not able to go against her conscience and her desires.
The entire work "Thunderstorm" is dedicated to the history of the main character Katerina. She is one of the participants. Katerina has to choose between two men, and these men are Boris and Tikhon. These characters will help to understand in detail the behavior of the characters in the play.
Before analyzing the character of Boris, you need to familiarize yourself with his history.
Boris is not Kalinov. He gets there at the behest of his parents. Boris was supposed to get the inheritance, which for the time being is in charge of Dikoy. For good behavior and obedience, Dikoy is obliged to give the inheritance to Boris, but readers understand that because of the greed of Dikoy, this will never happen. Therefore, Boris has to stay in Kalinovo and live there according to the rules established by Diky and Kabanikha.
Among all the characters, he singles out two heroes, two men - these are Boris and Tikhon. Comparative characteristics of these heroes can say a lot.
Tikhon depends on Kabanikhi - his mother. He has to obey her in everything. The boar does not hesitate to get into the personal life of his son, dictating how he should treat his wife. His daughter-in-law, Katerina Kabanikha, is literally slaughtered from the world. Katerina Kabanikha constantly finds fault.
Once Tikhon is forced to leave for another city for a few days. The reader clearly sees how glad he is of the opportunity to be alone and show his independence.
So, we have two characters - this is Boris and Tikhon. A comparative description of these heroes is impossible without an analysis of their lifestyle. So, both characters live with tyrants, both heroes are forced to obey someone else's will. Both characters lack independence. Both heroes love Katerina.
At the end of the play, both suffer greatly after Katerina's death. Tikhon is left alone with his mother, and orders Boris Dika to leave Kalinov. Of course, after the incident with Katerina, he definitely will not see the inheritance.
There are more differences between Boris and Tikhon than they have in common. So, Boris and Tikhon are a comparative characteristic. The table below will help organize the knowledge about these heroes.
| Boris | Tikhon | |
| Relationship with Katerina | Boris is ready for anything. He risks his reputation, the reputation of Katerina - a married woman. His love is passionate, open and emotional. | Tikhon loves Katerina, but the reader sometimes questions this: if he loves her, why doesn’t he protect Kabanikha from attacks? Why doesn't he feel her suffering? |
| Relationships with other characters in the play | Boris operates under the cover of Varvara. Night Kalinov is the time when all young people go out into the streets with songs and romantic moods. | Tikhon is treated well, but little is said about his relationship with other characters. The only remarkable thing is his relationship with his mother. He loves her to some extent and tries to respect her, but on the other hand, he feels her wrong. |
Such are Boris and Tikhon. The comparative characteristics of the characters given in the table above are quite short and capacious. It is worth noting that readers mostly sympathize with Boris than Tikhon.
The characterization of Boris and Tikhon suggests that the two men loved Katerina. However, neither one nor the other could save her. Katerina threw herself off a cliff into the river, no one stopped her. It was Boris and Tikhon, whose comparative characteristics were given above, who were supposed to save her, who were supposed to rebel against the power of Kalinov's petty tyrants. However, they did not succeed, and the lifeless body of Katerina was carried out of the river.
Kalinov is a town that lives by its own rules. Dobrolyubov called Katerina "a ray of light in a dark kingdom", and this is true. Katerina could not change her fate, but perhaps she is the whole city. Her death is the first catastrophe that violated the patriarchal way of the family. Kabanikha and Dikoy feel that the youth is getting out of their power, which means that changes are coming.
Thus, A. Ostrovsky was able to show not just a family tragedy. Before us is the tragedy of an entire city perishing in the despotism of the Wild and Boar. Kalinov is not a fictional city, but there are a lot of such "Kalinovs" throughout Russia.
Topic: The meaning of the title of the play by A. Ostrovsky “Thunderstorm”
The peculiarity of the conflict
The purpose of the lesson: trace how Ostrovsky universally implements the metaphorthunderstorms how, through the image of a thunderstorm, it shows the thunderous state of society, a thunderstorm in the souls of people;
cultivate a love for Russian literature
DURING THE CLASSES
There is an epigraph on the board: “We will not pick up a name - what does this mean? This means that the idea of the play is not clear; that the plot is not properly covered ... that the very existence of the play is not justified; why was it written, what does the author want to say?
A. N. Ostrovsky.
I. Statement of the educational task.
– Reread the topic of the lesson, try to determine the learning task yourself. What will we talk about in class? What are the key words in the formulation of the topic of the lesson? (Thunderstorm is a character.) So, we will talk about a thunderstorm as a character in a play. This is not enough. Reread the epigraph to the lesson. What does the author want to say? (Thunderstorm - idea - plot).
So, the educational task of the lesson is to find out what is the meaning of the title of the play; learn to analyze dramatic text.
II. Text conversation.
– What is the meaning of the word “thunderstorm” according to the dictionary of V.I.Dal? (Fear, noise, anxiety, disturbance, crush, thunder, natural phenomenon, threat, threaten, tragedy, purification.)
– In what sense does “thunderstorm” appear in the play? (In the first meaning - “threat”, “intimidation”, “swearing”.)
Conclusion number 1. The entire exposition is connected with the meaning of the word “thunderstorm”. Ostrovsky universally implements the metaphorthunderstorms.
– What images are associated with the metaphor of a thunderstorm in the exposition? (Almost all actors.)
– What meaning of “thunderstorm” prevails in the exposition? (Fear, threat, threaten.)
Conclusion number 2. For Kalinovites, a thunderstorm is “from above” and “from below”. From above - the punishment of God, from below - the power and money of the possessor.
– What images of the drama symbolize the storm from below? (Wild, Kabanova.)
- What is the storm of the Wild? (Money - power - fear.)
- What is Kabanova's thunderstorm? (Money - power under the guise of piety - fear.)
Conclusion number 3. The goal of the “warrior” Wild is the lawless intoxication with power. Kabanova is a more complex version of tyranny: its goal is the legitimate intoxication with power (under the guise of piety).
– Why do they need fear in society? (Keep power.)
- Are only Dikoy and Kabanova intoxicated with power? (Analyze Kuligin's monologue in act 1.)
Conclusion number 4.
Ostrovsky in a detailed composition had to show that the order of the merchant town, whose roots are Old Believers, rests on fear.
The siege war of the Boar, just like the dashing attacks of the Wild, comes from uncertainty and anxiety. Diky's anxiety is vague and unconscious, Kabanikh's fear is conscious and far-sighted: something is not going well, something is broken in the mechanism of power and subordination.
Thus, the metaphor of a thunderstorm - fear, intoxication with power, threat, threaten - runs through the entire exposition.
– When does a thunderstorm appear as a natural phenomenon? (At the end of act 1.)
Consider the meaning of this scene. Why did Ostrovsky introduce the half-crazy lady? To whom is she addressing? What prophesies? What is the basis of her prophecy? (“I sinned all my life from a young age.”)
- What is Varvara's reaction to her hysteria? (Smiling.)
What is Katherine's reaction? (“I’m scared to death…”)
Conclusion number 5. Varvara has common sense, she accepts centuries-old traditions with irony. This is her protection. Barbara needs calculation and common sense against fear. Katerina has a complete lack of calculation and common sense, increased emotionality.
– What scares Katherine? (Death will find you with sinful, evil thoughts.)
- How can you confirm that the author defined this scene as a plot? (Thunder peals sound 2 times. Katerina's fear intensifies.)
Thus, a thunderstorm is involved in the plot of the action. .
– What shock did Katerina experience in the scene of Tikhon's farewell before leaving for Moscow? (Shocked by the humiliation.)
- Prove it with text. Pay attention to the remarks. (D.2, yavl. 3,4.)
- "Foretell a bad outcome" - this is another meaning of the word "thunderstorm". How is this meaning played out in this scene?
- “Tisha, don’t leave ...” - “Well, take me with you ...” - “Fathers, I am dying ...” - “... take an oath ...”
- Is Tikhon able to protect Katerina? What norms of Domostroy does Katerina violate? (Throws herself on Tikhon's neck. - He doesn't howl: "What's the matter with making people laugh")
- How does the metaphor of a thunderstorm break into Katerina's monologue after the farewell scene? (“…she crushed me…”) Analyze Katerina's monologue (D.2, yavl.4).
- How does Kudryash warn Boris about the possible death of Katerina? (“Only the women are locked up.” - “So you want to completely ruin her.” - “They will eat it, drive it into the coffin.”)
The theme of the coffin, the grave, breaks in, which from now on sounds stronger.
– Is Boris able to protect Katerina? Who is trying to protect the heroine? (Kuligin.)
- How? (Proposes to install a lightning rod.)
- Why do you think Dikoy got so angry in a conversation with Kuligin about a lightning rod? (“Thunderstorm is sent to us as a punishment ...”)
Lightning rod against the Wild himself. They experience the fear of God before the Wild himself, they are afraid of punishment from the Wild himself. Kabanikhi has the same role; breaking away from her, Tikhon rejoices that over him "there will be no thunderstorm for two weeks." Tyranny is associated with fear for one's power, so it requires constant confirmation and testing.
– When is the second time a thunderstorm breaks into a play as a natural phenomenon? Analyze this scene. Find frightening, warning phrases of those present (“a thunderstorm will not pass in vain”, “... creeps, overlaid with a hat”).
- Why does Katerina hide screaming when the mistress appears?
- Whom does the crazy lady address? Find frightening, key phrases in the lady's speech. (“... I don’t want to die ...” - “... Beauty is death after all ...” - “... into the pool with beauty ...” - “... you can’t leave God ...”)
- Name the set of circumstances that intensify the tragedy in Katerina's soul and lead to recognition. (The conversations of those present, the crazy lady with her prophecy, fiery hell.)
And Katerina's confession sounds like a thunderclap.
For Katerina, a thunderstorm (as well as for Kalinovites) is not a stupid fear, but a reminder to a person of responsibility to the higher forces of goodness and truth. “… a heavenly thunderstorm… only harmonizes with a moral thunderstorm even more terrible. And the mother-in-law is a thunderstorm, and the consciousness of a crime is a thunderstorm. (Mikh. Pisarev.)
Thus, in the climactic scene is also presentthunderstorm.
The storm brings cleansing. The death of Katerina, like a peal of thunder, a lightning discharge, brings purification: an awakening sense of personality and a new attitude towards the world.
– In which of the heroes, under the influence of Katerina's death, does a personality awaken? (Varvara and Kudryash ran away. - Tikhon publicly blames his mother for the first time: “you ruined her.” - Kuligin: “... the soul is now not yours, it is before a judge who is more merciful than you!”)
So, A.N. Ostrovsky universally realized the metaphorthunderstorms in the play. The title of the play is an image that symbolizes not only the elemental force of nature, but also the stormy state of society, a storm in the souls of people. The storm passes through all the elements of the composition (all the important moments of the plot are connected with the image of the storm). Ostrovsky used all the meanings of the word “thunderstorm” indicated in the dictionary by V. Dahl.
III. The death of Katerina, like a lightning discharge, brings purification.
The conflict in the drama "Thunderstorm"
1. Between generations, with the environment
2. Katerina's internal conflict: between religious feeling and actions
The originality of the genre "Thunderstorms" It also manifests itself in the fact that, despite the gloomy, tragic general coloring, there are also comic, satirical scenes in the play. The anecdotal and ignorant stories of Feklusha about the saltans, about the lands where all the people are “with dog heads” seem ridiculous to us. After the release of The Thunderstorm, A. D. Galakhov wrote in a review of the play that "the action and the catastrophe are tragic, although many places excite laughter."
The author himself called his play a drama. But could it be otherwise? At that time, speaking of the tragic genre, they were used to dealing with a historical plot, with the main characters, outstanding not only in character, but also in position, placed in exceptional life situations. usually associated with the images of historical figures, even legendary ones, such as Oedipus (Sophocles), Hamlet (Shakespeare), Boris Godunov (Pushkin). The innovation of A. N. Ostrovsky consisted in the fact that he wrote the tragedy on exclusively vital material, completely uncharacteristic of the tragic genre.
The tragedy of "Thunderstorm" is revealed by the conflict with the environment not only of the main character, Katerina, but also of other characters. Here "the living envy ... the dead" (N. A. Dobrolyubov). So, the fate of Tikhon, who is a weak-willed toy in the hands of his imperious and despotic, is tragic here. Regarding Tikhon's final words, N. A. Dobrolyubov wrote that Tikhon's "woe" was in his indecision. If life is sickening, what prevents him from rushing into the Volga? Tikhon is absolutely unable to do anything, even that "in which he recognizes his good and salvation." Tragic in its hopelessness is the situation of Kuligin, who dreams of the happiness of the working people, but is doomed to obey the will of a rude tyrant - Diky and repair small household utensils, earning only "daily bread" by "honest labor".
Katerina differs from Kalinov's "dark kingdom" in her morality and willpower. Her soul is constantly drawn to beauty, her dreams are full of fabulous visions. It seems that she fell in love with Boris not real, but created by her imagination. Katerina could well adapt to the morality of the city and continue to deceive her husband, but “she doesn’t know how to deceive, she can’t hide anything,” honesty does not allow Katerina to continue to pretend to her husband. As a deeply religious person, Katerina had to have great courage to overcome not only the fear of the physical end, but also the fear of “before the judge” for the sin of suicide. The spiritual strength of Katerina "... and the desire for freedom, mixed with religious prejudices, create a tragedy" (V. I. Nemirovich-Danchenko).
A feature of the tragic genre is the physical death of the protagonist. Thus, Katerina, according to V. G. Belinsky, is “a real tragic heroine.” The fate of Katerina was determined by the collision of two historical eras. Not only her misfortune is that she commits suicide, it is a misfortune, a tragedy of society. She needs to free herself from the heavy oppression, from the fear that burdens the soul.
The overall color of the play is also tragic, with its gloominess, with every second feeling of an impending thunderstorm. Here, the parallelism of the social, public thunderstorm and the thunderstorm as a natural phenomenon is clearly emphasized.
In the presence of an undoubted tragic conflict, the play is imbued with optimism. The death of Katerina testifies to the rejection of the "dark kingdom", about resistance, about the growth of forces called upon to replace the Boars and the Wild. Albeit still timidly, the Kuligins are already beginning to protest.
So, the genre originality of The Thunderstorm lies in the fact that it, without a doubt, is a tragedy, the first Russian tragedy written on social and everyday material. This is not only the tragedy of Katerina, it is the tragedy of the entire Russian society, which is at a critical stage in its development, living on the eve of significant changes, in a revolutionary situation that contributed to the realization of self-esteem by the individual.
IV. Homework:
Prepare an oral essay on the topic: “The meaning of the title of Ostrovsky’s play “Thunderstorm”.
By heart an excerpt of your choice (Kuligin “We have cruel morals, sir ....” 1 act., yavl. 3, Katerina “I say: why do people not fly ...” 1 act., yavl. 7.
“Ostrovsky's plays are modern,” we say, without thinking about the meaning of what was said. Modern... Modern?! Really... Why? Obviously, in order to answer this question, it is necessary to take a closer look at at least one of the plays... Take a closer look... Think about it...
The play "Thunderstorm" ... What questions are posed by the playwright here? Why is such a strange at first glance the title given by Ostrovsky to this play? "Thunderstorm"...
The heroes of "Thunderstorm" live in a world of crisis and catastrophe. This catastrophicity is akin to a pre-stormy atmosphere: something else is holding back the elements, but the spirit of struggle and confrontation is invisibly in the air. Just as naturally and inevitably, as a thunderstorm gathers over Kalinov, a thunderstorm of the human spirit gathers, which has not endured oppression and violence, which has proved unable to come to terms with life in slavery even in the face of death.
Ostrovsky's merit lies not only in the fact that the great playwright skillfully portrayed and conveyed the feeling of the swaying world, the confrontation between the old and the new, tyranny and the simple desire to live, but also in the fact that he showed the birth of the first protest, determining its inevitability at all times and era. Protest against what? I have yet to answer this question.
Who lives in the city on the banks of the Volga, where the action of the drama takes place? The population of Kalinov is certainly heterogeneous. Thinking about it, you can draw an imaginary line between all the heroes of the play, thereby dividing them into representatives of the "dark kingdom" - oppressors - and "fighters" against oppression. Thus, on one side of this line will be Kabanikha, Wild, the wanderer Feklusha, and on the other - Kudryash, Varvara, Tikhon and Katerina. We agree, however, that some heroes will stand a little closer to this line, thereby showing their incomplete belonging to one or another part of Kalinov's society, some - a little further ...
Of course, Kabanikha is a representative of the "dark kingdom", but she, as Kudryash aptly emphasizes
Ostrovsky, is terrible not for her adherence to antiquity, but for her tyranny "under the guise of piety."
The old morality is largely denied here, the most cruel formulas are extracted from Domostroy, justifying despotism.
“Enemies must be forgiven, sir!” Kuligin says to Tikhon. And what does he hear in response? "Come on, talk to your mother, what will she tell you about this."
Unlike the tyranny of the Kabanikh, the willfulness of the Wild is not constrained by anything, it is not justified by any rules. Money untied his hands, allowed him to twist people and the law as he himself wanted. The moral foundations in his soul are significantly shaken, and, according to Kabanikh, he cannot be re-educated, he can only be “stopped”. The "young forces of life" stand up against the fathers of the city. These are Tikhon and Varvara, Kudryash and Katerina.
Tikhon is quiet, and that says it all. Yes, he is kind, generous and, undoubtedly, loves Katerina. Sharing in no way the despotic pretensions of his mother, he nevertheless bends before her, and only in the finale of the play is born in him something resembling a protest: “Mother, you ruined her! You, you, you ... ”The former Tikhon is no longer in these words. He turns out to be much higher in moral terms than Boris, who, guided by the vile "shit-covered", leaves the crowd and bows to Kabanova.
Unlike her brother, Barbara is endowed with both will and fearlessness, but she is a child of wild and boar, and therefore, is not without the immorality of her “fathers”. She simply does not understand Katerina's mental anguish. “I don't understand what you're saying,” she asks desperately. - What a hunt to dry something! Even if you die of longing, they will pity you! How about, wait. So what a bondage to torment yourself!”
Morally higher than Barbara is Kudryash. In it we notice "folk roots". He is talented and gifted. He opposes the "dark kingdom" with daring and mischief, but not with moral strength.
All these people live, deceiving each other, cunningly dodging. But here among them appears a man endowed with pride, self-esteem, “a ray of light in a dark kingdom,” as Katerina Dobrolyubov would call her. The bright beginning in her is natural, like breathing, she is a freedom-loving, passionate nature. In the Kabanova family, she is like a prisoner. She can't breathe there. Drawing an image
his main character, Ostrovsky put in the foreground her closeness to nature, to folk origins. In the morning she bows to the sun, fascinated listening to the birds singing. When she is offended as a child, she gets into a boat and sails along the Volga, not knowing where. This reminds us of Russian folk tales, in which a little girl often asks for protection by the river, by the forest... "Why don't people fly!" - and this is inextricably linked with Russian epics, legends. In them, a maiden languishing in captivity asks the forces of nature to turn her into a free bird in order to fly away from captivity to freedom.
Gradually, we understand that Katerina has only one way out. This exit is liberation. However, moral impeccability excludes for her the possibility of an easy release, so Katerina's release is tragic.
The conflict in the drama is not only external. Contradictions also exist in the soul of the heroine herself: an unstable conscience collides with reckless love, and fear with a desperate desire to be free.
And when this pure soul dies, having found no other way out of moral death, violence, oppression, a flash of light, brighter than lightning, illuminates the entire play, giving it a meaning that goes far beyond the ordinary drama in a merchant family. This flash illuminates all the characters, forcing the reader and viewer to think, feel and act.
Undoubtedly, the image of Katerina has always given food for thought. In this way, Ostrovsky not only showed the birth of a protest directed against despotism, tyranny, against everything that fetters a person, seeks to destroy pride, self-esteem. With the image of Katerina, Ostrovsky designated a new type of heroine in dramaturgy: not an aristocrat, not a noblewoman, but a representative of the merchant class, that is, a simple woman from the people, showed her special charm and undoubted superiority over the pompous "dolls" of secular salons. It was the ability to show the true "Russianness" and nationality of life, events and characters that showed the contradictions that were characteristic of Russia, to reveal the essence of purely Russian phenomena, the ability to describe folk customs distinguishes Ostrovsky's plays from the plays that were before him. And it is this feature of his work that gives us the right to call him the father of the Russian theater.
Ostrovsky's plays have been staged and will continue to be staged on the stage of various theaters in various parts of the world.
Why are these plays, written over a hundred years ago, so modern now?
The answer is simple. Ostrovsky poses universal human problems, questions that sound equally relevant at all times and epochs. This is a question of moral choice, and the problem of misunderstanding between the old and the new, this and much, much more, which is impossible to cover with a simple school essay. My thoughts are just a drop in the ocean... Or put it another way? A whole drop... After all, it is these tiny particles that make up the world's ocean of readers' reflections and judgments.
