Who lives well in Rus' by genre. Genre of the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'
“My favorite child,” Nekrasov wrote in his manuscript about the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'.” Later, in one of his letters to the journalist P. Bezobrazov, the poet himself defined the genre of the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'”: “This will be an epic of modern peasant life.”
And here modern reader Many questions will immediately arise, because when we hear the word epic, we are reminded of large-scale works, for example, the epics of Homer or the multi-volume works of Tolstoy. But does even an unfinished work have the right to be called an epic?
First, let’s figure out what is meant by the concept of “epic”. The problematic of the epic genre involves consideration of the life not of an individual hero, but of an entire people. Any significant events in the history of this people are selected to depict. Most often, such a moment is war. However, at the time Nekrasov created the poem, there is no war going on in Russia, and the poem itself does not mention military actions. And yet, in 1861, something else happened in Russia, no less significant for folk life event: abolition of serfdom. It causes a wave of controversy in high circles, as well as confusion and a complete restructuring of life among the peasants. It is to this turning point that Nekrasov devotes his epic poem.
The genre of the work “Who Lives Well in Rus'” required the author to comply with certain criteria, first of all, scale. The task of showing the life of an entire people is not at all easy, and it was this that influenced Nekrasov’s choice of a plot with travel as the main plot-forming element. Travel is a common motif in Russian literature. Gogol also addressed him in “ Dead souls”, and Radishchev (“Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow”), even in the Middle Ages there was a popular genre of “walking” - “Walking across the three seas”. This technique allows the work to depict a full-fledged picture of folk life, with all its customs, joys and sorrows. In this case, the main plot fades into the background, and the narrative breaks up into many separate kaleidoscopic parts, from which at the same time a three-dimensional picture of life gradually emerges. The peasants' stories about their destinies give way to lingering lyrical songs, the reader gets acquainted with a rural fair, sees folk festivals, elections, learns about attitudes towards women, grieves with the beggar and has fun with the drunk.
It is characteristic that parts sometimes deviate so strongly from each other in the plot that they can be swapped without harm to the composition of the work. This at one time caused long disputes over the correct arrangement of the chapters of the poem (Nekrasov did not leave clear instructions on this).
At the same time, such a “patchwork” of the work is compensated by the internal continuous development of the plot - one of the prerequisites for the epic genre. The people's soul, sometimes very contradictory, sometimes despairing under the weight of troubles and yet not completely broken, moreover, constantly dreaming of happiness - this is what the poet shows the reader.
Among the features of the genre “Who Lives Well in Rus'” can also be mentioned the huge layer of folklore elements included in the text of the poem, from directly introduced songs, proverbs, sayings to implicit references to one or another epic, the use of phrases like “Savely, the Russian hero.” Here Nekrasov’s love for the common people is clearly visible, his sincere interest in the topic - it’s not for nothing that it took so many years (more than 10) to collect material for the poem! Note that the inclusion of folklore elements in the text is also considered a sign of an epic - this allows you to more fully depict the features folk character and way of life.
The genre peculiarity of the poem is also considered to be the bizarre combination of historical facts with fairy tale motifs. In the beginning, written according to all the laws of fairy tales, seven (magic number) peasants set off on their journey. The beginning of their journey is accompanied by miracles - a warbler speaks to them, and they find a self-assembled tablecloth in the forest. But their further path will not follow a fairy tale.
The skillful combination of a fairy-tale, unburdensome plot with serious political problems of post-reform Rus' favorably distinguished Nekrasov’s work immediately after the publication of parts of the poem: it looked interesting against the backdrop of monotonous pamphlets and at the same time made one think. This also allowed the epic poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'” not to lose its interest for the reader today.
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History of creation
Nekrasov devoted many years of his life to working on the poem, which he called his “favorite brainchild.” “I decided,” said Nekrasov, “to present in a coherent story everything that I know about the people, everything that I happened to hear from their lips, and I started “Who Lives Well in Rus'.” This will be an epic of modern peasant life.” The writer saved material for the poem, as he admitted, “word by word for twenty years.” Death interrupted this gigantic work. The poem remained unfinished. Shortly before his death, the poet said: “The one thing I deeply regret is that I did not finish my poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'.” N. A. Nekrasov began work on the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'” in the first half of the 60s of the 19th century. The mention of the exiled Poles in the first part, in the chapter “The Landowner,” suggests that work on the poem began no earlier than 1863. But sketches of the work could have appeared earlier, since Nekrasov had been collecting material for a long time. The manuscript of the first part of the poem is marked 1865, however, it is possible that this is the date of completion of work on this part.
Shortly after finishing work on the first part, the prologue of the poem was published in the January 1866 issue of Sovremennik magazine. Printing lasted for four years and was accompanied, like all of Nekrasov’s publishing activities, by censorship persecution.
The writer began to continue working on the poem only in the 1870s, writing three more parts of the work: “The Last One” (1872), “Peasant Woman” (1873), “A Feast for the Whole World” (1876). The poet did not intend to limit himself to the written chapters; three or four more parts were planned. However, a developing illness interfered with the author's plans. Nekrasov, feeling the approach of death, tried to give some “completeness” to the last part, “A feast for the whole world.”
In the last lifetime edition of “Poems” (-), the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'” was printed in the following sequence: “Prologue. Part one", "Last One", "Peasant Woman".
Plot and structure of the poem
Nekrasov assumed that the poem would have seven or eight parts, but managed to write only four, which, perhaps, did not follow one another.
Part one
The only one has no name. It was written shortly after the abolition of serfdom ().
Prologue
“In what year - count,
In what land - guess
On the sidewalk
Seven men came together..."
They got into an argument:
Who has fun?
Free in Rus'?
They offered six possible answers to this question:
- Novel: to the landowner
- Demyan: to the official
- Gubin brothers - Ivan and Mitrodor: to the merchant;
- Pakhom (old man): to the minister
The peasants decide not to return home until they find the correct answer. They find a self-assembled tablecloth that will feed them and set off.
Peasant woman (from the third part)
The last one (from the second part)
Feast - for the whole world (from the second part)
The chapter “A Feast for the Whole World” is a continuation of “The Last One.” This depicts a fundamentally different state of the world. This is people's Rus' that has already woken up and spoken at once. New heroes are drawn into the festive feast of spiritual awakening. The whole people sings songs of liberation, judges the past, evaluates the present, and begins to think about the future. Sometimes these songs are contrasting to each other. For example, the story “About the exemplary slave - Yakov the Faithful” and the legend “About two great sinners”. Yakov takes revenge on the master for all the bullying in a servile manner, committing suicide in front of his eyes. The robber Kudeyar atones for his sins, murders and violence not with humility, but with the murder of the villain - Pan Glukhovsky. Thus, popular morality justifies righteous anger against the oppressors and even violence against them
List of heroes
Temporarily obliged peasants who went to look for who was living happily and at ease in Rus'(Main characters)
- Novel
- Demyan
- Ivan and Metrodor Gubin
- Old Man Pakhom
Peasants and serfs
- Ermil Girin
- Yakim Nagoy
- Sidor
- Egorka Shutov
- Klim Lavin
- Agap Petrov
- Ipat - sensitive serf
- Yakov - a faithful slave
- Proshka
- Matryona
- Savely
Landowners
- Utyatin
- Obolt-Obolduev
- Prince Peremetev
- Glukhovskaya
Other heroes
- Altynnikov
- Vogel
- Shalashnikov
see also
Links
- Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov: textbook. allowance / Yarosl. state University named after P. G. Demidova and others; [author art.] N.N. Paykov. - Yaroslavl: [b. i.], 2004. - 1 email. wholesale disk (CD-ROM)
Works such as “Who Lives Well in Rus'” are a real excursion into the 60s of the 19th century. The poem literally immerses the reader in the events of post-serfdom. A journey in search of a happy person in Russian Empire, exposes numerous problems of society, paints an unvarnished picture of reality and makes you think about the future of a country that dares to live in a new way.
The history of the creation of Nekrasov's poem
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The exact date when work on the poem began is unknown. But researchers of Nekrasov’s work drew attention to the fact that already in his first part he mentions the Poles who were exiled. This makes it possible to assume that the poet’s idea for the poem arose around 1860-1863, and Nikolai Alekseevich began writing it around 1863. Although the poet’s sketches could have been made earlier.
It is no secret that Nikolai Nekrasov spent a very long time collecting material for his new poetic work. The date on the manuscript after the first chapter is 1865. But this date means that work on the chapter “The Landowner” was completed this year.
It is known that starting in 1866, the first part of Nekrasov’s work tried to see the light of day. For four years, the author tried to publish his work and constantly fell under the discontent and harsh condemnation of censorship. Despite this, work on the poem continued.
The poet had to publish it gradually in the same Sovremennik magazine. So it was published for four years, and all these years the censor was dissatisfied. The poet himself was constantly subject to criticism and persecution. Therefore, he stopped his work for a while, and was able to start it again only in 1870. In this new period of its rise literary creativity he creates three more parts to this poem, which were written in different time:
✪ “The Last One” - 1872.
✪ “Peasant Woman” -1873.
✪ “A Feast for the Whole World” - 1876.
The poet wanted to write a few more chapters, but he was working on his poem at a time when he began to fall ill, so his illness prevented him from realizing these poetic plans. But still, realizing that he would soon die, Nikolai Alekseevich tried in his last part to finish it so that the whole poem had a logical completeness.
The plot of the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'”
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In one of the volosts, on a wide road, there are seven men who live in neighboring villages. And they think about one question: who cares about them? native land life is good. And their conversation got so bad that it soon turned into an argument. It was getting late in the evening, but they could not resolve this dispute. And suddenly the men noticed that they had already walked a long distance, carried away by the conversation. Therefore, they decided not to return home, but to spend the night in the clearing. But the argument continued and led to a fight.
Because of such noise, a chick of a warbler falls out, which Pakhom saves, and for this the exemplary mother is ready to fulfill any desire of the men. Having received the magic tablecloth, the men decide to travel to find the answer to the question that interests them so much. Soon they meet a priest who changes the men’s opinion that he has a good and happy life. The heroes also end up at a rural fair.
They try to find happy people among the drunk, and it soon becomes clear that a peasant doesn’t need much to be happy: he has enough to eat and protects himself from troubles. And to find out about happiness, I advise the heroes to find Ermila Girin, whom everyone knows. And then the men learn his story, and then the master appears. But he also complains about his life.
At the end of the poem, the heroes try to look for happy people among women. They meet one peasant woman, Matryona. They help Korchagina in the field, and in return she tells them her story, where she says that a woman cannot have happiness. Women only suffer.
And now the peasants are already on the banks of the Volga. Then they heard a story about a prince who could not come to terms with the abolition of serfdom, and then a story about two sinners. The story of the sexton's son Grishka Dobrosklonov is also interesting.
You are also poor, You are also abundant, You are also powerful, You are also powerless, Mother Rus'! Saved in slavery, the heart is free - Gold, gold, the people's heart! People's power, mighty power - calm conscience, tenacious truth!
Genre and unusual composition of the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'”
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There is still debate between writers and critics about the composition of Nekrasov's poem. Most researchers of the literary work of Nikolai Nekrasov have come to the conclusion that the material should be arranged as follows: a prologue and part one, then the chapter “Peasant Woman” should be placed, the content should be followed by the chapter “Last One” and in conclusion - “A Feast for the Whole World”.
Evidence of this arrangement of chapters in the plot of the poem is that, for example, in the first part and in the subsequent chapter, the world is depicted when the peasants were not yet free, that is, this is the world that was a little earlier: old and outdated. The next Nekrasov part already shows how this old world is completely destroyed and dies.
But already in the last Nekrasov chapter the poet shows all the signs of what is beginning new life. The tone of the story changes dramatically and is now lighter, clearer, and more joyful. The reader feels that the poet, like his heroes, believe in the future. This aspiration towards a clear and bright future is especially felt in those moments when the poem appears main character- Grishka Dobrosklonov.
In this part, the poet completes the poem, so it is here that the denouement of the entire plot action takes place. And here is the answer to the question that was posed at the very beginning of the work about who, after all, lives well and freely, carefree and cheerfully in Rus'. It turns out that the most carefree, happy and cheerful person is Grishka, who is the protector of his people. In his beautiful and lyrical songs, he predicted happiness for his people.
But if you carefully read how the poem ends in its last part, you can pay attention to the strangeness of the narrative. The reader does not see the peasants returning to their homes, they do not stop traveling, and, in general, they do not even get to know Grisha. Therefore, a continuation may have been planned here.
Poetic composition also has its own characteristics. First of all, it is worth paying attention to the construction, which is based on the classical epic. The poem consists of separate chapters in which there is an independent plot, but there is no main character in the poem, since it tells about the people, as if it were an epic of the life of the entire people. All parts are connected into one thanks to those motives that run through the entire plot. For example, the motif of a long road along which peasants walk to find a happy person.
The fabulousness of the composition is easily visible in the work. The text contains many elements that can easily be attributed to folklore. Throughout the journey, the author inserts his lyrical digressions and elements that are completely irrelevant to the plot.
Analysis of Nekrasov’s poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'”
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From the history of Russia it is known that in 1861 the most shameful phenomenon was abolished - serfdom. But such a reform caused unrest in society, and new problems soon arose. First of all, the question arose that even a free peasant, poor and destitute, cannot be happy. This problem interested Nikolai Nekrasov, and he decided to write a poem in which the issue of peasant happiness would be considered.
Despite the fact that the work was written in simple language, and has an appeal to folklore, but for the reader’s perception it usually seems difficult, since it touches on the most serious philosophical problems and questions. The author himself sought answers to most of the questions all his life. This is probably why writing the poem was so difficult for him, and he created it over the course of fourteen years. But unfortunately, the work was never finished.
The poet intended to write his poem in eight chapters, but due to illness he was able to write only four and they do not follow at all, as expected, one after another. Now the poem is presented in the form and in the sequence proposed by K. Chukovsky, who carefully studied Nekrasov’s archives for a long time.
Nikolai Nekrasov chose the heroes of the poem ordinary people, so I also used colloquial vocabulary. For a long time, there were debates about who could still be considered the main characters of the poem. So, there were assumptions that these are heroes - men who walk around the country, trying to find a happy person. But other researchers still believed that it was Grishka Dobrosklonov. This question remains open today. But you can consider this poem as if the main character in it is all the common people.
There are no accurate and detailed descriptions of these men in the plot, their characters are also incomprehensible, the author simply does not reveal or show them. But these men are united by one goal, for which they travel. It is also interesting that the episodic faces in Nekrasov’s poem are drawn by the author more clearly, accurately, in detail and vividly. The poet raises many problems that arose among the peasantry after the abolition of serfdom.
Nikolai Alekseevich shows that each hero in his poem has his own concept of happiness. For example, a rich person sees happiness in having financial well-being. And the man dreams that in his life there will be no grief and troubles, which usually await the peasant at every step. There are also heroes who are happy because they believe in the happiness of others. The language of Nekrasov’s poem is close to folk, so it contains a huge amount of vernacular.
Despite the fact that the work remained unfinished, it reflects the entire reality of what happened. This is a real literary gift to all lovers of poetry, history and literature.
The abolition of serfdom in 1861 caused a wave of contradictions in Russian society. ON THE. Nekrasov also responded to the debates “for” and “against” the reform with his poem “Who Lives Well in Rus',” which tells about the fate of the peasantry in the new Russia.
The history of the poem
Nekrasov conceived the poem back in the 1850s, when he wanted to tell about everything he knew about the life of a simple Russian backgammon - about the life of the peasantry. The poet began working thoroughly on the work in 1863. Death prevented Nekrasov from finishing the poem; 4 parts and a prologue were published.
For a long time, researchers of the writer’s work could not decide in what sequence the chapters of the poem should be printed, since Nekrasov did not have time to indicate their order. K. Chukovsky, having thoroughly studied the author’s personal notes, allowed for such an order as is known to the modern reader.
Genre of the work
“Who Lives Well in Rus'” belongs to various genres - travel poem, Russian Odyssey, protocol of the All-Russian peasantry. The author gave his own definition of the genre of the work, in my opinion, the most accurate - epic poem.
The epic reflects the existence of an entire people at a turning point in its existence - wars, epidemics, etc. Nekrasov shows events through the eyes of the people, using the means of the folk language to give greater expressiveness.
There are many heroes in the poem; they do not hold together individual chapters, but logically connect the plot into one whole.
Problems of the poem
The narrative about the life of the Russian peasantry covers a wide scale of biography. Men in search of happiness travel around Russia in search of happiness, meet various people: a priest, a landowner, beggars, drunken jokers. Celebrations, fairs, rural festivities, hard work, death and birth - nothing escaped the poet’s gaze.
The main character of the poem is not defined. Seven traveling peasants, Grisha Dobrosklonov stands out most among the other heroes. However, the main actor works is the people.
The poem reflects numerous problems of the Russian people. This is the problem of happiness, the problem of drunkenness and moral decay, sinfulness, freedom, rebellion and tolerance, the collision of old and new, the difficult fate of Russian women.
Happiness is understood by the characters in different ways. The most important thing for the author is the embodiment of happiness in the understanding of Grisha Dobrosklonov. This is where the main idea of the poem arises - true happiness is real only for a person who thinks about the good of the people.
Conclusion
Although the work is unfinished, it is considered integral and self-sufficient in terms of the expression of the author’s main idea and his author's position. The problems of the poem are relevant to this day; the poem is interesting to the modern reader, who is attracted by the pattern of events in history and the worldview of the Russian people.
“My favorite child,” Nekrasov wrote in his manuscript about the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'.” Later, in one of his letters to the journalist P. Bezobrazov, the poet himself defined the genre of the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'”: “This will be an epic of modern peasant life.”
And here the modern reader will immediately have many questions, because when we hear the word epic, we are reminded of large-scale works, for example, the epics of Homer or the multi-volume works of Tolstoy. But does even an unfinished work have the right to be called an epic?
First, let’s figure out what is meant by the concept of “epic”. The problematic of the epic genre involves consideration of the life not of an individual hero, but of an entire people. Any significant events in the history of this people are selected to depict. Most often, such a moment is war. However, at the time Nekrasov created the poem, there is no war going on in Russia, and the poem itself does not mention military actions. And yet, in 1861, another event, no less significant for people’s life, took place in Russia: the abolition of serfdom. It causes a wave of controversy in high circles, as well as confusion and a complete restructuring of life among the peasants. It is to this turning point that Nekrasov devotes his epic poem.
The genre of the work “Who Lives Well in Rus'” required the author to comply with certain criteria, first of all, scale. The task of showing the life of an entire people is not at all easy, and it was this that influenced Nekrasov’s choice of a plot with travel as the main plot-forming element. Travel is a common motif in Russian literature. It was addressed by both Gogol in “Dead Souls” and Radishchev (“Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow”), even in the Middle Ages there was a popular genre of “walking” - “Walking across Three Seas.” This technique allows the work to depict a full-fledged picture of folk life, with all its customs, joys and sorrows. In this case, the main plot fades into the background, and the narrative breaks up into many separate kaleidoscopic parts, from which at the same time a three-dimensional picture of life gradually emerges. The peasants' stories about their destinies give way to lingering lyrical songs, the reader gets acquainted with a rural fair, sees folk festivals, elections, learns about attitudes towards women, grieves with the beggar and has fun with the drunk.
It is characteristic that parts sometimes deviate so strongly from each other in the plot that they can be swapped without harm to the composition of the work. This at one time caused long disputes over the correct arrangement of the chapters of the poem (Nekrasov did not leave clear instructions on this).
At the same time, such a “patchwork” of the work is compensated by the internal continuous development of the plot - one of the prerequisites for the epic genre. The people's soul, sometimes very contradictory, sometimes despairing under the weight of troubles and yet not completely broken, moreover, constantly dreaming of happiness - this is what the poet shows the reader.
Among the features of the genre “Who Lives Well in Rus'” can also be mentioned the huge layer of folklore elements included in the text of the poem, from directly introduced songs, proverbs, sayings to implicit references to one or another epic, the use of phrases like “Savely, the Russian hero.” Here Nekrasov’s love for the common people is clearly visible, his sincere interest in the topic - it’s not for nothing that it took so many years (more than 10) to collect material for the poem! Let us note that the inclusion of folklore elements in the text is also considered a sign of an epic - this makes it possible to more fully depict the features of the people’s character and way of life.
The genre peculiarity of the poem is also considered to be its bizarre combination of historical facts with fairy-tale motifs. In the beginning, written according to all the laws of fairy tales, seven (magic number) peasants set off on their journey. The beginning of their journey is accompanied by miracles - a warbler speaks to them, and they find a self-assembled tablecloth in the forest. But their further path will not follow a fairy tale.
The skillful combination of a fairy-tale, unburdensome plot with serious political problems of post-reform Rus' favorably distinguished Nekrasov’s work immediately after the publication of parts of the poem: it looked interesting against the backdrop of monotonous pamphlets and at the same time made one think. This also allowed the epic poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'” not to lose its interest for the reader today.
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