Women's fate in Ostrovsky's plays. Women's images in plays A

(354 words) Women's images in literature play a rather large role. It is the weaker sex that is sometimes destined to show life with all the difficulties and hardships, convey a certain idea to readers and influence society as a whole. The works of A.N. Ostrovsky are famous for the variety of female images, each of which has its own individuality, but at the same time reflects certain features characteristic of that time. This is especially noticeable in his drama The Thunderstorm, written in 1859.

Katerina Kabanova is the main character of the work, it is for her emotional experiences that we observe the entire play. A pure, sincere, sensitive girl, "a ray of light in a dark kingdom." From childhood, she was surrounded by the love and care of her parents, so she grew up with a passionate and dreamy nature. She was open to the world, she didn't have to pretend to express her emotions. But then, having married Tikhon, she ended up in a completely different world, saturated with malice and despotism on the part of her mother-in-law. Such a life was unbearable to her, as a result of which she fell in love with Boris. However, unfortunately, everything ended sadly: Katerina could not cope with her pangs of conscience, so she died, purposefully choosing the path of death.

Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova became another vivid image in the play. A rich merchant's wife and part-time mother of Tikhon, Katerina's mother-in-law. She is the personification of tyranny and cruelty - traits inherent in this Kalinov. More than anything, she appreciates the orders and customs regulated by Domostroy. He condemns his son and daughter-in-law because they do not act as prescribed by law. Even when Katerina confesses her sin, Kabanikha is happy, because she has a reason to forever humiliate a young woman. However, at the end of the work, the merchant's wife is left alone, because even her only son has abandoned her.

Another interesting heroine in the work was the daughter of Kabanikhi - Barbara. A smart and cunning girl who despises the laws of Domostroy and tries to act differently. It was she who persuaded Katerina to meet with Boris, since in her view you need to do whatever you want. The heroine will never come out openly against cruel orders, but she is ready to fight for her happiness using lies. In the end, Varvara runs away with Kudryash from her home to start another life.

In Ostrovsky's play, we see completely different heroines, differing in their worldview. Each of them personifies a certain group of people who lived at that time.

Being in many ways a turning point for Russian society as a whole, the 19th century suffered many cardinal changes in all areas of public life. Since this process could not but be very significant for the Russian people, it became necessary to draw public attention to it. This function has been taken over by the literature. To raise the most pressing issues of our time, many bright, colorful characters were created. It should be noted that the works were traditionally dominated by male images, reflecting the most

Socially active representatives of the society of that time. However, if you pay attention to the works of many Russian classics, starting with Fonvizin and Griboedov, it is impossible not to notice their interest in depicting female images. Alexander Nikolayevich Ostrovsky was no exception. On the contrary, he created a whole series of very expressive female characters capable, according to Goncharov, “to think, speak and act as they think, speak and act themselves”, each of which is deeply typical and at the same time individual and self-valuable.
It is easy to note that, in general, Ostrovsky's work is dominated by family conflicts, in which the dominant role is played not by a man, but by a woman. The underlying motive here is often the confrontation between the old and the new. Usually it is expressed by a conflict between a strong, despotic woman of the older generation and a young, socially helpless girl (a kind of motive for the relationship between the “executioner and the victim”). This alignment is typical both for Ostrovsky's comedy "The Forest" and for his drama "Thunderstorm".
It should be emphasized that in the comedy "Forest" this conflict is revealed in a more simplified (compared to "Thunderstorm") form. The older generation is represented here by Gurmyzhskaya. Ostrovsky creates a very colorful image of a wealthy landowner, who once shone in the world, now living in the provinces. As one of the most eloquent characteristics, the author cites her imaginary penchant for charity. According to her, she is only “a clerk with her money, and every poor, every unfortunate one is their master.” Gurmyzhskaya is a characteristic type of heroine, which is a noble version of the “tyranny” principle, so fully revealed by Ostrovsky in The Thunderstorm. In the comedy "The Forest" this motif is not so pronounced. Gurmyzhskaya lives with the knowledge of her former life and does not want to part with them. To do this, she writes out from St. Petersburg the half-educated high school student Bulanov. Ostrovsky very clearly draws a grotesque-comedy image of a careerist and a “resident”. Gurmyzhskaya falls in love with him, and Aksyusha becomes her “opponent”, according to Strakhov, “an honestly and mentally strong girl”, but in many ways inferior to Katerina from “Thunderstorm”, despite the fact that parallels in the construction of the image are clearly traced. For example, she also lives under the auspices of a strong, domineering woman, she also falls in love with a young man who is under the command of her father and wholly and completely dependent on him (it's hard not to remember Boris and Dikoy from Thunderstorm); finally, it also strives for personal freedom, for independent self-determination. However, despite some psychological sketches that are deep in their semantic load (for example, her conversation with Peter, in which she admits: “I have no tears, and there is no great longing, but, I tell you, my heart is empty here”), the image is much more simplified, devoid of the deep psychological analysis characteristic of Ostrovsky in The Thunderstorm. N. A. Dobrolyubov points out that “he does not punish either the villain or the victim.” Indeed, neither Gurmyzhskaya with Bulanov, nor Aksyusha with Peter, and other heroes receive a harsh assessment: Ostrovsky draws the attention of readers not to specific heroes, but to the social types that they represent.
The same situation can be traced in The Thunderstorm, but here a much more detailed construction of the psychological portrait is obvious. In this case, the local nobility gives way to the merchants. The role of Gurmyzhskaya is played by Kabanikha, "a typical tyrant of Russian life."
This is a very colorful figure, symbolizing one of the most significant parts of the “dark kingdom” and speaking on behalf of patriarchal principles. It represents the impersonal “we”, the old order, doomed to perish even in such a “provincial” city of Kalinov, where it still has sufficient strength. The new time frightens the Kabanikha, she feels the changes, notices that “they don’t really respect the elders today,” and tries to maintain her authority in every way. Ostrovsky emphasizes that she is not doing this out of malice, that her trouble is that she sincerely believes that the young “know nothing, no order” and that “it’s good, whoever has elders in the house, they the house is holding on as long as they are alive.” Just like Gurmyzhskaya, Kabanikha has a strongly developed motive of imaginary charity, she welcomes “wanderers, shows them favors”, listens to their words, at the same time keeping her household in strictness and obedience.
In such conditions, the main character of "Thunderstorm" Katerina finds herself. This is an incomparably more complex (compared to Aksyusha) image, causing a lot of controversy in Russian criticism. In view of its deep internal inconsistency, modern critics tend to highlight the "light and dark sides of the soul" of Katerina. The “bright side” includes her poetry and romanticism, sincere religiosity, as well as her “complete opposition to any arrogant beginnings.” Ostrovsky draws an example of a "female energetic character." Not distinguished by a special education and striving for high ideals, Katerina has a strong sense of inner freedom. Any attempts to impose any restrictions on her turn all her strength and energy into protest. And here the “dark side” of her soul opens, indicating her connection with the “dark kingdom”. Although, according to Dobrolyubov, “Katerina does not at all belong to violent characters, never dissatisfied, loving to destroy at all costs,” she becomes the slave of her emotions. Her wounded pride and offended conceit come to the fore, pushing her onto the sinful path of adultery. It should be noted that, despite her great social dependence, in Ostrovsky it is the woman who plays the leading role in the love triangle, and the beloved does not always correspond to the deep inner decency of the heroine. This situation is observed both in "Thunderstorm" and in "Forest". Actually, Katerina's love for Boris is part of a protest against the growing oppression of the "dark kingdom", a short-term consolation for her. However, completely confused in the current situation, she acutely feels the need for liberation and, being an idealist in her soul, sees it only in death. Ostrovsky emphasizes that this is the only way out in this case, emphasizing this with the words of Boris: “There is only one thing we need to ask God for her to die as soon as possible, so that she does not suffer for a long time!”, And also a short but expressive remark by Tikhon, uttered over the dead Katerina: “It’s good for you, Katya!”
Speaking about the image of Katerina, one cannot fail to mention the figure of Varvara, who here performs the function of a carefree, windy soubrette. Ostrovsky deliberately pushes the reader to compare these two images, focuses even more on the positive features of the main character. “You are kind of tricky, God is with you!” - says Varvara, favorably emphasizing this "sophistication" with her frivolity and, albeit practical, but superficial "grip". If we turn to the comedy “Forest”, then here the role of the soubrette is played by Julitta, the housekeeper of Gurmyzhskaya, but she is by no means an antipode, but, on the contrary, a double of her ardent and amorous mistress, dreams also take possession of her (“So sometimes she will find something like a cloud”, - recognized). Gurmyzhskaya's love affair with Bulanov is emphasized by Ulita's love for Schastlivtsev.
Many female characters are satirical and grotesque in Ostrovsky. In the comedy "The Forest", according to the laws of the genre, this applies to all characters; As for the "Thunderstorm", here it was precisely the satirical female images that were one of the expressions of the comedic principle. This includes the wanderer Feklusha and the “girl” Glasha. Both images can be safely called grotesque-comedy. Feklusha is presented as a narrator of folk tales and legends, appeasing those around her with her stories about how “the Saltans rule the earth” and “whatever they judge, everything is wrong”, and about the lands “where all the people are with dog heads”. Glasha, on the other hand, is a typical reflection of ordinary “Kalinovites”, who listen with reverence to such Feklush, confident that “it’s still good that there are good people; no, no, yes, and you will hear what is happening in the world, otherwise you would have died like fools. Both Feklusha and Glasha belong to the “dark kingdom”, dividing this world into “ours” and “alien”, into patriarchal “virtue”, where everything is “cool and decent”, and into external fuss, from which the old orders and time begin "come to belittlement." With these characters, Ostrovsky introduces the problem of absurd ignorance and lack of enlightenment of the old conservative way of life, its inconsistency with modern trends.
Thus, drawing a line under all of the above, it should be emphasized that, while firmly aware of all the changes and trends in society, Ostrovsky was nevertheless opposed to the ideas of violent transformations and saw his educational activities in a rather traditional aspect: in moral re-education, exposure of vice, the discovery of the virtue of simple and eternal life values. And an important role in the disclosure of this topic was played by such accurately selected and “written out” characters, including female ones, as dominant in many of his plays, including “Thunderstorm” and “Forest”. It was their presence that made possible such plot moves as the conflict between the old and the new generation, the confrontation or, on the contrary, the union of a strong, thoughtful personality and a carefree, but practical staff, the introduction of comedy-grotesque images, and much more, which ultimately ensured the fulfillment of the task. and made Ostrovsky one of the most prominent Russian playwrights of the 19th century.

Two dramas by A. N. Ostrovsky are devoted to the same problem - the position of women in Russian society. Before us are the fates of three young women: Katerina, Varvara, Larisa. Three images, three destinies.

Katerina differs in character from all the characters in the drama "Thunderstorm". Honest, sincere and principled, she is not capable of deceit and falsehood, of resourcefulness and opportunism. Therefore, in a cruel world where wild and wild boars reign, her life turns out to be unbearable, impossible and ends so tragically. Katerina's protest against Kabanikha is a struggle of the bright, pure, human against the darkness of lies and cruelty of the "dark kingdom". No wonder Ostrovsky, who paid great attention to names and surnames, gave the heroine of "Thunderstorm" the name Ekaterina, which means "eternally pure" in Greek. Katerina is a poetic nature. Unlike the rude people around her, she feels the beauty of nature and loves it. It is the beauty of nature that is natural and sincere. “I used to get up early in the morning; in the summer, I’ll go to the spring, I’ll wash myself, I’ll bring water with me and that’s it, I’ll water all the flowers in the house. I had many, many flowers,” she says about her childhood. Her soul is constantly drawn to beauty. Dreams were filled with miracles, fabulous visions. She often dreamed that she was flying like a bird. She talks about her desire to fly several times. By this, Ostrovsky emphasizes the romantic sublimity of Katerina's soul. Married early, she tries to get along with her mother-in-law, to love her husband, but no one needs sincere feelings in the Kabanovs' house. The tenderness that overwhelms her soul finds no use for itself. Deep melancholy sounds in her words about children: “If only someone’s children! Eco grief! I don’t have children: all I would do is sit with them and amuse them. What a loving wife and mother she would have been under other conditions!

Katerina's sincere faith differs from Kabanikh's religiosity. For Kabanikh, religion is a gloomy force that suppresses the will of a person, and for Katerina, faith is a poetic world of fairy-tale images and supreme justice. “... I loved going to church to death! It’s like, it happened, I’ll go into paradise, and I don’t see anyone, and I don’t remember the time, and I don’t hear when the service is over,” she recalls.

Captivity is Katerina's main enemy. The external conditions of her life in Kalinovo seem to be no different from those of her childhood. The same motives, the same rituals, that is, the same activities, but "everything here seems to be from captivity," says Katerina. Bondage is incompatible with the freedom-loving soul of the heroine. “And bondage is bitter, oh, how bitter,” she says in the scene with the key, and these words, these thoughts push her to the decision to see Boris. In Katerina's behavior, as Dobrolyubov said, a "resolute, integral Russian character" appeared, which "will withstand itself, in spite of any obstacles, and when there is not enough strength, it will die, but will not betray itself."

Barbara is the exact opposite of Katerina. She is not superstitious, she is not afraid of thunderstorms, she does not consider it necessary to strictly observe established customs. Due to her position, she cannot openly oppose her mother and therefore cunning and deceiving her. She hopes that marriage will give her the opportunity to leave this house, to escape from the "dark kingdom". To Katerina's words that | she can't hide anything, Varvara replies: "Well, you can't do without it! You remember where you live! when needed." Varvara despises her brother's spinelessness and resents her mother's heartlessness, but she does not understand Katerina. She is only interested in and concerned about the outer side of life. She reconciled herself and adapted to the laws of the old world around her.

Larisa, unlike Katerina, grew up and was brought up in conditions where the weak are humiliated, where the strongest survive. In her character there is no integrity that is in Katerina. Therefore, Larisa does not strive, and cannot make her dreams and desires come true. Her name means "Seagull" in Greek. This bird is associated with something white, light, piercingly screaming. And this image is fully consistent with Larisa.

Katerina and Larisa have different upbringings, different characters, different ages, but they are united by the desire to love and be loved, to find understanding, in a word, to become happy. And each goes to this goal, overcoming the obstacles created by the foundations of society.

Katerina cannot connect with her loved one and finds a way out in death.

Larisa's situation is more complicated. She was disappointed in the person she loved and stopped believing in the existence of love and happiness. Realizing that she is surrounded by lies and deceit, Larisa sees two ways out of the current situation: either the search for material values, or death. And under the circumstances, she chooses the first. But the author does not want to see her as an ordinary dependent woman, and she passes away.

Composition on the theme "Female images of Ostrovsky"

Alexander Nikolayevich Ostrovsky, in his works, revealed the events taking place in the nineteenth century through female images. His heroines most often personify the prism through which a large number of conflicts, both social and public, pass. The women in the plays are presented to readers as a living personification of the era and the vices and ideals that reign in it. At the same time, as a rule, the heroines are not ready to accept the injustice or filth of society that is imposed on them by everyone around them. On the contrary, women are ready to fiercely defend their individuality, their own ideals and purity.
If we recall the play "Thunderstorm" by A.N. Ostrovsky, then it contains a large number of colorful female images, each of which is unique and attractive to the reader in its own way. Katerina is a young and inspired by her ideals girl who recently got married. In her mind, marriage was a great joy. She passionately desired to become a wife and mother, for her this would be the greatest happiness. But when her dream came true and she married Tikhon, the harsh reality sobers her up. She does not feel those feelings of love for her husband, which she was waiting for. But then Boris appears. In it, Katerina finds a response to her ardent feelings. Finally, what she dreamed about happened. She met her love. However, the tragedy is that the heroine cannot be with him. Treason and remorse lead Katerina to despair. For the sake of love, she sacrificed her previously unshakable principles. But that didn't make her happy either. She sees no point in continuing to exist, and decides to commit suicide.
Varvara looms completely different in the play "Thunderstorm". Her image is more quirky, cunning and far-sighted. For her, marriage is not a sublime and romantic union of two loving hearts, but a great deal to get out of the oppression of a tyrant mother who controls absolutely everything in the house. Barbara is the exact opposite of Katerina. In my opinion, these two images are so close to each other in the play on purpose to show readers what could have happened to Catherine if she had acted differently, more cunningly, indulged all the whims and desires of Kabanikha. Thus, and with such behavior, Catherine would turn into Barbara. This very thoughtful move is used by Ostrovsky not only in the play "Thunderstorm".
A slightly different situation is played out in the play "Dowry". In it, the main character is Larisa Ogudalova. For her, marriage is also a good deal that would provide her with a comfortable existence. Her fate is also not very successful. The man she loved left her and fled in an unknown direction. Therefore, she decides to marry the first who woo her. It turns out to be a not particularly rich tradesman Karandyshev. He is happy that Larisa finally responded to his courtship with consent, because the hero has long, but to no avail, tried to get her attention. The wedding should take place as soon as possible, but all plans are disrupted by the arrival of Paratov, Larisa's unhappy love. He gives her a lot of promises and hopes for a better future, which he is not going to fulfill. But the heroine again trusts him and succumbs to temptation. Karandyshev finds out about this and is going to take terrible revenge. A shot at his beloved girl Larisa stops both her and his own shame. She accepts death with gratitude, because it would be very difficult to survive such a shame.
So, the female images of Ostrovsky are very diverse, but one cannot help but sympathize with them and it is impossible not to admire them.

Two dramas by A. N. Ostrovsky are devoted to the same problem - the position of women in Russian society. Before us are the fates of three young women: Katerina, Varvara, Larisa. Three images, three destinies.
Katerina differs in character from all the characters in the drama "Thunderstorm". Honest, sincere and principled, she is not capable of deceit and falsehood, of resourcefulness and opportunism. Therefore, in a cruel world where wild and wild boars reign, her life turns out to be unbearable, impossible and ends so tragically. Katerina's protest

Against Kabanikha - this is a struggle of light, pure, human against the darkness of lies and cruelty of the "dark kingdom". No wonder Ostrovsky, who paid great attention to names and surnames, gave the heroine of "Thunderstorm" the name Ekaterina, which in Greek means "eternally pure." Katerina is a poetic nature. Unlike the rude people around her, she feels the beauty of nature and loves it. It is the beauty of nature that is natural and sincere. “I used to get up early in the morning; in the summer, so I go to the key, I wash myself, I bring some water with me and that's it, I water all the flowers in the house. I had many, many flowers,” she says of her childhood. Her soul is constantly drawn to beauty. Dreams were filled with miracles, fabulous visions. She often dreamed that she was flying like a bird. She talks about her desire to fly several times. By this, Ostrovsky emphasizes the romantic sublimity of Katerina's soul. Married early, she tries to get along with her mother-in-law, to love her husband, but no one needs sincere feelings in the Kabanovs' house. The tenderness that overwhelms her soul finds no use for itself. Deep melancholy sounds in her words about children: “If only someone’s children! Eco grief! I don’t have children: all I would do is sit with them and amuse them. I love to talk with children very much - they are angels, after all. What a loving wife and mother she would have been under other conditions!
Katerina's sincere faith differs from Kabanikh's religiosity. For Kabanikh, religion is a dark force that suppresses the will of a person, and for Katerina, faith is a poetic world of fairy-tale images and supreme justice. “... I loved going to church to death! For sure, it used to happen that I would enter paradise, and I didn’t see anyone, and I don’t remember the time, and I didn’t hear when the service was over, ”she recalls.
Captivity is Katerina's main enemy. The external conditions of her life in Kalinovo seem to be no different from those of her childhood. The same motives, the same rituals, that is, the same activities, but “everything here seems to be from bondage,” says Katerina. Bondage is incompatible with the freedom-loving soul of the heroine. “And bondage is bitter, oh, how bitter,” she says in the scene with the key, and these words, these thoughts push her to the decision to see Boris. In the behavior of Katerina, as Dobrolyubov said, a “resolute, integral Russian character” appeared, which “will withstand itself, in spite of any obstacles, and when there is not enough strength, it will die, but will not betray itself.”
Barbara is the exact opposite of Katerina. She is not superstitious, she is not afraid of thunderstorms, she does not consider it necessary to strictly observe established customs. Due to her position, she cannot openly oppose her mother and therefore cunning and deceiving her. She hopes that marriage will give her the opportunity to leave this house, to escape from the "dark kingdom". To Katerina's words that she cannot hide anything, Varvara replies: “Well, you can't do without it! You remember where you live! Our whole house is based on that. And I was not a liar, but I learned when it became necessary. Varvara despises her brother's spinelessness and resents her mother's heartlessness, but she does not understand Katerina. She is only interested in and concerned about the outer side of life. She reconciled herself and adapted to the laws of the old world around her.
Larisa, unlike Katerina, grew up and was brought up in conditions where the weak are humiliated, where the strongest survive. In her character there is no integrity that is in Katerina. Therefore, Larisa does not strive, and cannot make her dreams and desires come true. Her name means "Seagull" in Greek. This bird is associated with something white, light, piercingly screaming. And this image is fully consistent with Larisa.
Katerina and Larisa have different upbringings, different characters, different ages, but they are united by the desire to love and be loved, to find understanding, in a word, to become happy. And each goes to this goal, overcoming the obstacles created by the foundations of society.
Katerina cannot connect with her loved one and finds a way out in death.
Larisa's situation is more complicated. She was disappointed in the person she loved and stopped believing in the existence of love and happiness. Realizing that she is surrounded by lies and deceit, Larisa sees two ways out of the current situation: either the search for material values, or death. And under the circumstances, she chooses the first. But the author does not want to see her as an ordinary dependent woman, and she passes away.

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