Composition: Comparison of families in the novel by L.N. Tolstoy "War and Peace (Literature)

Princess Marya Bolkonskaya

Helen Kuragina

1. Childhood

Natasha is shown in the novel, starting from childhood - here, in childhood, is the source of her sincerity, spontaneity, gaiety.

Nothing is said about the childhood of Princess Marya; they don’t remember the mother in the family, the children are raised by the father, who is an authority for them.

Nothing is said about the childhood of Helen and all the Kuragins.

2. Family. Upbringing

She is happy in her parental family, her life is harmonious and full of events. There are always a lot of young people, guests, music, fun in the house. Therefore, Natasha is sociable, loves music and is seriously engaged in singing.

In the parental family, she is unhappy, squeezed, and feels a sense of fear. The house lives a closed, measured life. Everything is subject to the daily routine of the old man Bolkonsky. There are no guests. Letters to Princess Mary are rare, and even those he looks through. Princess Mary, alone, plays the clavichord.

Relationships in the parental family are not designated by the author, as if they do not exist, they are cold and formal, subject to the laws of secular society and are reduced not to emotional intra-family relations, but to mutually beneficial deals. The Kuragins' house is not shown. Helen appears only in the theater and at social events, her secular coldness and mannerisms are emphasized.

3. Character traits

Ardent, sincere, carried away, impetuous nature. She enjoys life. He likes to sing, dance, tell fortunes and dress up for Christmas, goes hunting.

Restrained, reasonable, sincere nature. There is a lot of meekness, humility, sacrifice in it.

Cold, arrogant, indifferent, narcissistic nature.

4. Inner peace

He has a rich, broad soul, knows how to deeply feel, suffer, experience, love.

Endowed with spiritual wealth, inner harmony, devotion, she knows how to subtly feel, share someone else's grief.

Her soullessness, inner emptiness, immorality, depravity are shown.

5. Love

Love for Natasha is the main thing in life. For her, this is, first of all, a romantic relationship, passion, accompanied by flights of the soul, impulses, follies. Then - awareness of the beauty of the human soul as the basis of family happiness and tranquility.

Love for Princess Mary is the foundation of a family in which a quiet, even family hearth burns, built on trust, harmony and balance of feelings.

The concept of love fundamentally does not exist for Helen Kuragina. She never experienced this feeling.

6. Own family

Natasha has her own family *. She changes a lot, dissolves in the children and the interests of her husband. The main thing for her is the health of children. For Tolstoy, Natasha is the ideal wife and mother.

Princess Marya has her own family - husband, children. She builds a different relationship with them than she had in her parental family. Cares about the spiritual, moral education of children. Keeps a diary. He is trying to balance the ardent, difficult character of her husband, Nikolai Rostov.

Tolstoy does not give Helen the opportunity to create a real family. Her first marriage to Pierre was a marriage of convenience, she despised her husband, treated him condescendingly and arrogantly and spoke derogatoryly about him in society. She was ready for a second, more respectable and profitable marriage. I never wanted children and considered them a burden. For Tolstoy, she is the embodiment of the worst female qualities.

7. Faith

At the beginning of the novel, Natasha is indifferent to faith. She is “like everyone else”: she knows and performs the ritual side, but her soul is not yet filled with faith. Then, after the story with Anatole, the break with Bolkonsky and moral illness, he finds consolation in faith, which greatly contributes toher recovery. He tries to understand a lot for himself, to feel. She understands the dying enlightenment of the soul of Prince Andrei.

Throughout the novel, Princess Mary lives by faith, prays, receives wanderers, and dreams of a pilgrimage. He believes in the saving power of a prayed image, which he gives to a brother who is leaving for the war.

She understands that Prince Andrei found the truth for himself in God.

Shown as a person who does not put God's commandments in anything. She is selfish, does not know how to love people, is deceitful, arrogant. The wedding vow is a mere formality for her. Helen plans to convert to Catholicism only in order to deceive the Orthodox Church, outwardly observing decency,to marry a second time to a more respectable and rich man.

8. External and internal beauty

Natasha is ugly in childhood, but in her youth and youth her beauty is gaining strength, making her draw attention to herself. Her beauty is changeable depending on the state of mind in which she is. But Tolstoy repeatedly emphasizes her "brilliant", "shining" eyes. Natasha's appearance is like a reflection of her rich, sincere inner world.

Tolstoy constantly emphasizes the outward ugliness of Princess Marya, but "beautiful radiant eyes" illuminate this face with an amazing light. Love transforms her beyond recognition. A rich spiritual world makes an outwardly ugly heroine beautiful.

The embodiment of external perfect beauty and internal emptiness and soullessness. Helen resembles a cold antique statue in a secular frozen mask. The author repeatedly mentions her "marble shoulders", as if polished by many admiring glances, and her "monotonous", "unchanging" smile.

9. Author's attitude

The beloved heroine of Tolstoy is endowed with a rich inner life, experiences, carried through many events, losses, through growing up and realizing the truth.The author endows the heroine with internal monologues, in his reasoning reveals the motives of her actions, thoughts, feelings.

Princess Marya is one of Tolstoy's favorite heroines. She also goes through a series of losses and trials. But her character is more stable. She is less addicted anda more reasonable nature, so her image does not undergo significant changes during the novel. She is depicted by Tolstoy as a more whole person. The author also endows her with many internal monologues, she writes letters, keeps a diary.

For Tolstoy, the image of Helen is an aggressive emptiness in a beautiful shell. It has no soul, which means it has no inner life. The author does not give her not only internal monologues, but also any significant events and actions. There are no dialogues with other characters. Her image is almost always given “in retelling” - they talk about her, but she herself is not there: they talk about her successes, illness, death. Tolstoy is alien to this type of empty immoral secular beauties.

A wonderful father, general-in-chief Nikolai Andreevich Bolkonsky, raised a brave son and a beautiful daughter, Princess Marya.

Princess Marya lived in the wilderness, she loved her solitude and did not complain to anyone about it, she understood the pain of her father, who was unjustly dismissed by Emperor Paul.

She was a deeply religious person and understood: the Lord will never put a cross beyond measure on anyone's shoulders. In a difficult moment, this girl became a support to the widowed Prince Andrei, a mother to a little orphaned nephew, a friend to Natasha, who had lost her loved one.

Tolstoy endowed this heroine with a noble soul, which was reflected in her radiant, deep eyes.

For the ability to sacrifice herself, “without demanding rewards,” the Lord grants her the happiness of being the beloved woman of one of the heroes of the novel, Nikolai Rostov. With her sacrificial love, she will save her loved ones from despair, giving herself without a trace to people. Princess Marya will become the mother of four children, she will be able to raise not only them, but also her husband. More than one generation of their kind will imitate this wonderful family.

The Bolkonsky family lived according to the principle: "There is no higher feat than laying down your belly for your friends ...". And for the children, first of all, honor, conscience, decency were in the first place. Kutuzov himself will say to Andrei Bolkonsky: “I know: your road is the road of honor.” And it is no coincidence that on the battlefield of Austerlitz, and at Borodino, Prince Andrei will accomplish a feat.

• Rostov family

The amazing Rostov family, it was considered the most hospitable family in all of Moscow. On holidays and on name days, half the city dined with them. The Rostovs did not divide people by rank and rank, they always helped those in need. The gospel commandment “Love your neighbor…” was the rule of all members of this family.

Children, and the owners themselves, were friends with ordinary people, never offended their servants, and they paid Rostov respect and love. The Russian spirit reigned in this family, so all the children grew up to be kind, generous and noble people.

During the war of 1812, this family sacrificed their property for the sake of wounded soldiers and officers. And the fifteen-year-old son of the Rostovs, Petya, volunteered to go to the front to fight and died fighting the French. Nicholas, the eldest son, was a brave and honest warrior.

The moral support of the family will be Natasha, the youngest daughter of the Rostovs. It is about her that Prince Andrei will say: “Where she is, there is light; where she is not, there is darkness!”

• The Kuragin family

The image of another family, Prince Vasily Kuragin, where the spirit of profit, deceit, selfishness, careerism reigned ...

The family of Prince Vasily Kuragin lived on the principle of profit and calculation. The teachers of the children were only foreigners. The son of Prince Vasily, Ippolit, could not connect two words in Russian, spoke only French and was considered a silly fellow, but his father managed to arrange him as a diplomat, not in the least embarrassed by Hippolyte's unpredictability and stupidity.

The second son of Kuragin, Anatole, caused the misfortune of Prince Andrei Bolkonsky and Natasha Rostova. The depraved and dissolute Anatole upset their marriage, deciding to kidnap and dishonor Natasha.

Pierre Bezukhov gave a very accurate description of the daughter of Prince Vasily to the beautiful Helen: “Where you are, there is evil and debauchery.” It was she who cheated on her husband throughout her entire family life. She was the cause of grief for many good people. "Tolstoy will call the entire Kuragin family a vile, heartless breed." And, indeed, you can’t build happiness either for yourself or for your children on money, on profit and on the calculation of happiness ...

The grain grows clear in the FAMILY,
A person grows up in a FAMILY.
And everything that then gains,
It does not come to him from outside.

A family is not only related by blood.

In the novel "War and Peace" by Leo Tolstoy, the family fulfills its high true purpose. The formation of a person's personality largely depends on the family in which he grows up. As Sukhomlinsky said, the family is the primary environment where a person must learn to do good. However, in the world there is not only good, but also evil in opposition to it. There are families connected only by surname. Its members have nothing in common with each other. But it’s interesting, who will become a person whose personality was formed in an atmosphere of indifference and lack of affection? Three families - the Bolkonskys, the Kuragins and the Rostovs - seem to be the same good and evil. On their example, you can consider in detail all that family and human that only happens in the world. And by bringing them together, get the ideal.

Representatives of the older generation are completely different from each other. Considering idleness and superstition as vices, Bolkonsky's activity and mind as virtues. Hospitable, simple-hearted, simple, trusting, generous Natalia and Ilya Rostov. A very famous and quite influential person in society, holding an important court post Kuragin. There is nothing in common between them, except that they are all family people. They have completely different hobbies and values, a different motto under which they go along with their family (in the event that this family exists).

Relations between the older generation and children are presented differently. Having studied and compared this “quality”, one can confirm or dispute the term “family” that unites these people.

The Rostov family is filled with trust, purity and naturalness. Respect for each other, a desire to help without tedious notations, freedom and love, the absence of strict educational standards, loyalty to family relationships. All this includes a seemingly ideal family, the main thing in the relationship of which is love, life according to the laws of the heart. However, even such a family has vices, something that does not allow it to become a standard. Perhaps a little rigidity and strictness would not hurt the head of the family. The inability to manage the household led to ruin, and the blind love for children really turned a blind eye to the truth.

The Bolkonsky family is alien to the manifestation of sentimentality. The father is an indisputable authority, causing reverence from those around him. He himself studied with Mary, denying the norms of education in court circles. A father loves his children, and they honor and love him. They are connected by quivering feelings for each other, the desire to take care and protect. The main thing in the family is life according to the laws of the mind. Perhaps insufficient expression of feelings moves this family away from the ideal. Brought up in strictness, children wear masks, and only a certain tiny part of them radiates sincerity and enthusiasm.

Is it possible to call the Kuragin family? Their history does not carry the "ancestral poetry" that is characteristic of the Bolkonsky and Rostov families. The Kuragins are united only by kinship, they do not even perceive each other as close people. Children for Prince Vasily are only a burden. He treats them indifferently, wanting to fuse them quickly. After rumors about Helen's connection with Anatole, the prince, taking care of his name, alienated his son from himself. “Family” here is blood ties. Each member of the Kuragin family is used to loneliness and does not feel the need for the support of loved ones. Relationships are fake, hypocritical. This union is one big minus. The family itself is negative. It seems to me that this is the very “evil”. An example of a family that simply should not exist.

Family for me is a real little cult. A family is a house in which you want to stay forever, and people who love each other should become its foundation. The qualities of two families - the Rostovs and the Bolkonskys - I would like to embody in my family. Sincerity, care, understanding, love, feeling for a loved one, the ability to assess the situation and not idealize your children, the desire to raise a full-fledged personality - this is what a real family should be. The strictness and prudence of the Bolkonskys, the love and peace of the Rostovs - this is what can make a family truly happy.

The concept of family in the novel is described from all sides.

Family theme is one of the main ideas of Leo Tolstoy's creativity. The Rostov family in the novel "War and Peace" is distinguished by a sense of kinship, a tender attitude towards children, hospitality and rich traditions. The basis of the relationship between brothers and sisters is love and mutual understanding.

Count Ilya Rostov

Leo Tolstoy favorably treats the noble father of the family, emphasizes the dignity of the old nobleman and forgives the shortcomings inherent in every person. From childhood, five children are brought up in respect for their father, who selflessly takes care of them, sometimes spoiling them, especially little Natasha.

Ilya Andreevich's face was plump, clean-shaven, always cheerful. Blue eyes shone with genuine kindness. On his head, sparse gray hair barely covered his open bald spot. The full neck often took on a red color, like that of an elderly person prone to high blood pressure. A smile betrayed a good mood, even when it was necessary to look angry for educational purposes.

Old man Rostov has a lively character, a habit of ruffling his own hair. In the circle of his family, the father has the appearance of a ruddy, completely self-confident person. The pompous nobility of St. Petersburg, who are alien to family values, condemns the count for his straightforwardness and simplicity of behavior.

The Master's Activities of the Old Count

Ilya Andreevich is accustomed to a luxurious life, often arranges birthday parties for his children and wife. The feasts of the Rostovs' house are distinguished by their generosity, the tables are bursting with treats and wine. At leisure, the nobleman goes to a prestigious aristocratic club to play cards, losing to the nines, although he is personally the foreman of the club.

There are many items of expenditure in the economy, which are a whim, a whim. The manager robs the count, who is poorly versed in business, does not know either income or the total amount of debts.

The nobleman himself felt that he had badly disposed of his wife's rich dowry. Debts were accumulating inexorably, the hour of ruin was approaching, and the old count was unable to do anything. In 1812, Moscow burned down, the count could not recover, gradually withered, experiencing the death of his son Petenka. He fell ill for a short time and died quietly, leaving behind more debts than capital.

On the last day, the father asked forgiveness from all the household members for the ruin he had created.

Mother Natalia Rostova

At the beginning of the story, Countess Rostova is 45 years old. Facial features of the oriental type are pointed, the body is exhausted by numerous births and care for surviving children. The slowness of the tread, the smoothness of movements caused by fatigue, aroused respect from others. The adopted daughter Sonya considers and calls her mother.

Countess Rostova never took care of her husband's affairs, she did not know anything from him. Having grown up in luxury, the noble lady did not know how to save, did not see the need for this. Faced with ruin and relative poverty in her old age, Natalia completely relied on her son Nikolai and stayed with him.

The mother of the family carried the traditions of the Christian religion through her whole life, remaining a pious woman. The countess did not refuse the table to anyone, in good years they lived a lot. After the war, the cheerful Natalya turns into a grieving mother, and after the death of her husband, life completely loses all meaning for her.

Eldest daughter Vera

Leo Tolstoy repeatedly points out that the mother did not love her eldest daughter Vera, who was 20 years old in 1805. The young lady had a cold beauty and a pleasant voice, had an excellent upbringing. The girl studied well, had a decent education and every chance of successfully marrying.

The younger sister condemns Vera for excessive prudence, which has turned into a form of prudence. In the image of a young princess, there are no character traits that are usually characteristic of girls: romance, amorousness and emotionality. Therefore, Natasha calls her older sister evil.

The beautiful Vera never, in her own opinion, does not act badly, marries at the age of 24 an officer Adolf Berg. There is mutual understanding between the spouses, they both do not want to have children. Newlyweds vaguely define their ideological future as life for society.

Elder brother Nikolai Rostov

The young Count Nikolai was included in the list of the best grooms in Russia, had a patriotic upbringing, a university education of a future official, and dreamed of heroically defending his homeland. Possessing a healthy emotionality, the young man knew how to admire historical figures, his commanders and friends. He had honest radiant eyes and a childish smile, which said that its owner was a kind person.

The soul of a young man is full of poetry, pure and open to sincere friendship with peers. The young man passionately describes his brave friend Denisov in a letter to his mother, nobly silent about his own suffering at the front. The battle of Shengraben becomes the baptism of fire of officer Rostov. The young man, who was wounded, suffers from the fact that for some time he felt fear, a desire to hide from bullets and shells.

Nikolai's first love was his adopted sister Sonya, the young man wanted to marry her, but his mother categorically opposed this marriage, wishing Kolenka a more profitable couple. As an adult, in 1812 officer Rostov had to save Princess Maria Bolkonskaya from the French.

The feelings that arose between the girl and the guy both tried to reject for a long time. It was difficult for Marya Nikolaevna to accept the fact that she was older than her chosen one. Nikolai felt embarrassed in the situation that Princess Bolkonskaya was the heir to a very large fortune. But they were drawn to each other by an inexplicable force. Finally, in the fall of 1814, the couple married.

Natasha Rostova

The youngest daughter of Count Rostov did not know the rejection of her parents, she grew up in luxury, but was brought up like a noblewoman - she was spoiled in moderation. At the age of 13, the girl still allows herself to cry, but she amazes with her honesty and openness. She is frank with her mother, dedicates her to her childhood dreams and secrets. The daughter has the same brown eyes as her mother, the same luxurious braid.

At the age of 17, Natasha first comes out, gets to the ball. Men say how beautiful she is, how easily and naturally she dances. A white muslin dress with pink ribbons suits the girl. Prince Bolkonsky falls in love with Natasha, appreciating her grace, slim figure and timid walk in society.

Mother and father gave their daughter a good musical education. Children were taught to ride, so Natasha is an excellent rider, confidently besieges the horse under her without any effort. One of the girl's passions is hunting. The young countess understands people, from the first conversation she did not like Nikolai's friend Dolokhov. Although, for example, she treats Denisov favorably. The heroine calls Dolokhov unnatural and not pleasant.

Natalya Rostova in marriage

Beloved man Prince Andrei Bolkonsky died of a combat wound in 1812. Natasha marries Pierre Bezukhov, plunges deeply into the life and upbringing of four children. Leo Tolstoy is critical of his heroine during this period of her life, relying on the traditional image of a married woman, a mother of many children.

The author is outraged by the fact that an educated and well-mannered girl expresses herself chaotically, dresses sloppily and allows herself to look unkempt just because she became a mother. But the writer respectfully emphasizes that the countess does not go out into the world, she spends all the time with the children.

Natasha Rostova found solace in her family, in caring for her daughters and son.

Sonya Rostova

The girl was Count Rostov's niece in the third family, a second cousin to his children. The Rostovs fed and raised Sonya like their own daughter. In her youth, she was fragile, graceful, with long braids wrapped around her head. In the days of falling in love with Nikolai Rostov, the girl looked happy and enthusiastic.

Relatives condemned the romantic relationship between Sonya and Kolya from the beginning of their development. The mother reproached the girl for giving her brother a reason to treat her like an outside creature. Most of all, Natalya's mother did not like that her son's chosen one was a dowry. However, the devoted girl carried her feelings for Rostov through her whole life.

Modesty and life circumstances did not allow her to demonstrate her emotional world. Dutifully and carefully, Sonya looked after the old countess, lived with her in Nikolai's house with his wife and their children, not claiming his attention. The young Count Rostov could always rely on his sister, especially in difficult days for him.

Petya Rostov

Father and mother raised their youngest son as a patriot. He was a smart, French-speaking, generous and open young man. The young man at a critical moment showed determination, always tried to look courageous.

Leo Tolstoy speaks tenderly of the young officer Rostov. The episode with the captured French drummer is a prime example of humanism. Shortly before his death, Petya meets a very young boy in Russian captivity. The hero loses sleep and peace, he really wants to help his peer, feed the destitute.

When the Patriotic War of 1812 began, Petya so decisively announced his intention to serve in the army that Ilya Andreevich could not resist his son. Rostov was accepted into the regiment of Cossacks, where the general himself took custody of him.

The young adjutant was sent with a message to the partisan detachment to Denisov, ordered to immediately return to the location. But the ardent Petya, having heard about the impending attack, decided to take part in the battle. Without hesitation, he rushes into the thick of the shooting towards death. The bullet hit the sixteen-year-old officer in the head, took away his blooming life, full of daring dreams.

Leo Tolstoy, throughout his career, exalted family values ​​as the most important human virtues.