When was Ostrovsky's thunderstorm written? The history of the creation of Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm"

1. The nationality of Ostrovsky’s creativity.
2. Fateful journey along the Volga.
3. The nationwide scale of the tragedy.
4. The meaning of “Thunderstorm” from Dobrolyubov’s point of view.

“Ostrovsky’s world is not our world, and to a certain extent we, people of another culture, visit it as strangers... The alien and incomprehensible life that happens there... may be curious for us, like everything unprecedented and unheard of; but in itself the human variety that Ostrovsky has chosen for himself is uninteresting. He gave some reflection of the known environment, certain quarters of the Russian city; but he did not rise above the level of specific life, and the merchant overshadowed the person for him,” Yu. I. Aikhenvald wrote about A. N. Ostrovsky at the beginning of the 20th century. Critic Yu. Lebedev deeply disagrees with Aikhenvald’s opinion. He writes: “His attitude towards Ostrovsky is more despotic than any Kabanikh. And in him, no matter how sad it is to admit it, is a typical example of that sophisticated aesthetic “height” that our culture of the early 20th century was gaining in order to completely isolate itself from national life, first spiritually and then physically crush it.” This position is much closer to me, since I believe that Ostrovsky’s world may be far from aesthetic heights, but the nationality of his world of artistic heroes with all the truth of life is undeniable. Ostrovsky's plays undoubtedly have enormous national significance. He opened up a huge country for the reader - the world of merchants as the center of people's life in movement and development.

During the period of mature creativity, the writer creates the play “The Thunderstorm”, which became a kind of analysis of the dark and light sides of merchant life. The creation of the play was preceded by a trip to the Upper Volga, thanks to which the playwright’s childhood memories of a trip to his father’s homeland in Kostroma came to life. Ostrovsky recorded his impressions from his trip to provincial Russia in his diary, and this diary witnessed how much the future playwright was struck by his acquaintance with the people and poetic folk art. He wrote: “From Pereyaslavl begins Merya, a land abundant with mountains and waters, and a people who are tall, and beautiful, and intelligent, and frank, and obliging, and a free mind, and a wide-open soul. These are my beloved fellow countrymen, with whom I seem to get along well... On the meadow side the views are amazing: what kind of villages, what kind of buildings, just as if you are driving not through Russia, but through some promised land.” These impressions could not simply dissolve in a series of life events, they matured in the playwright’s soul, and when the time came, “The Thunderstorm” was born. His friend S.V. Maksimov spoke about the influence of the trip along the Volga on the writer’s subsequent work: “The artist, strong in talent, was not able to miss a favorable opportunity... He continued to observe the characters and worldview of the indigenous Russian people, who came out to meet him in the hundreds. .. The Volga gave Ostrovsky abundant food, showed him new themes for dramas and comedies and inspired him to those that constitute the honor and pride of Russian literature. From the veche, once free, Novgorod suburbs there was a whiff of that transitional time, when the heavy hand of Moscow shackled the old will and sent ironclad governors on long raked paws... Outwardly beautiful Torzhok, jealously guarding its Novgorod antiquity to the strange customs of girlish freedom and strict seclusion married, inspired Ostrovsky to create the deeply poetic “Thunderstorm” with playful Varvara and artistically graceful Katerina.”

It was assumed that Ostrovsky took the plot of “The Thunderstorm” from the life of the Kostroma merchants. The play is based on the Klykov case, which was sensational in Kostroma in 1859. Until the beginning of the 20th century, any of its residents could show the place of Katerina’s suicide - a gazebo over the Volga at the end of the boulevard, as well as the house next to the Church of the Assumption where she lived. When “The Thunderstorm” was first staged on the stage of the Kostroma Theater, the actors made themselves up “to look like the Klykovs.”

Kostroma local historians carefully studied the “Klykovo Case” in the archives and came to the conclusion that, indeed, it was this story that Ostrovsky used when creating “The Thunderstorm.” The story of A.P. Klykova is as follows: she, raised by her grandmother in love and affection, was a cheerful and cheerful sixteen-year-old girl who was married into an unsociable merchant family. This family consisted of parents, a son and an unmarried daughter. The stern mother-in-law suppressed her family with her despotism, and not only forced her young daughter-in-law to do all the menial work, but also “ate to eat.” Young Klykov did not protect his wife from his mother’s oppression. After some time, the young woman met another man, an employee of the Maryin post office. The situation in the family became even more unbearable: suspicions and scenes of jealousy seemed endless. As a result, on November 10, 1859, the body of the unfortunate woman was found in the Volga. The trial that began lasted a very long time and received wide publicity outside the Kostroma province. Therefore, no one doubted that Ostrovsky used the materials of this case in “The Thunderstorm”.

However, several decades later, researchers of Ostrovsky’s work absolutely established that the play “The Thunderstorm” was written before the tragic events in Kostroma took place. Even more surprising is the fact of such a coincidence. This testifies to how insightful Ostrovsky is, who was able to predict the growing conflict in merchant life between the old and new ways of life. The famous theater figure S. A. Yuriev accurately noted: “It was not Ostrovsky who wrote “The Thunderstorm”... Volga wrote “The Thunderstorm.”

The play takes place over the great Russian Volga River, from a place overlooking the vast expanse of the Russian Empire. It was not by chance that the author chose this particular location - in this way he emphasized the national scale of the tragedy that unfolded. Katerina’s fate is the fate of many Russian women of that time, given in marriage to an unloved man and suffering from the despotism of their mothers-in-law. But the old Domostroevsky world has already been shaken, the new generation can no longer put up with wild laws. This crisis state of the merchant world is the focus of the author, who examines this problem using the example of one family.

In Russian criticism of the 60s, “The Thunderstorm” gave rise to heated controversy. For Dobrolyubov, the play became evidence of the revolutionary forces emerging in Russia, and the critic rightly noted the rebellious notes in Katerina’s character, which he associated with the atmosphere of crisis in Russian life: “In Katerina we see a protest against Kabanov’s concepts of morality, a protest brought to the end, proclaimed and under domestic torture and over the abyss into which the poor woman threw herself. She doesn’t want to put up with it, doesn’t want to take advantage of the miserable vegetation that is given to her in exchange for her living soul... What a joyful, fresh life a healthy person breathes upon us, finding within himself the determination to end this rotten life at any cost !

“The Thunderstorm” was not written by Ostrovsky... “The Thunderstorm” was written by Volga.
S. A. Yuryev

Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky was one of the largest cultural figures of the 19th century. His work will forever remain in the history of literature, and his contribution to the development of Russian theater is difficult to overestimate. The writer made some changes to the production of plays: attention should no longer be focused on just one character; a fourth scene is introduced, separating the audience from the actors in order to emphasize the conventionality of what is happening; ordinary people and standard everyday situations are depicted. The last position most accurately reflected the essence of the realistic method that Ostrovsky adhered to. His literary work began in the mid-1840s. “Our people are numbered,” “Family pictures,” “Poverty is not a vice” and other plays were written. The drama “The Thunderstorm” has a history of creation that is not limited to just working on the text and writing conversations between the characters.

The history of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” by Ostrovsky begins in the summer of 1859, and ends a few months later, in early October. It is known that this was preceded by a trip along the Volga. Under the patronage of the Maritime Ministry, an ethnographic expedition was organized to study the customs and morals of the indigenous population of Russia. Ostrovsky also took part in it.

The prototypes of the city of Kalinov were many Volga towns, at the same time similar to each other, but with something unique: Tver, Torzhok, Ostashkovo and many others. Ostrovsky, as an experienced researcher, recorded all his observations about the life of the Russian province and the characters of the people in his diary. Based on these recordings, the characters of "The Thunderstorm" were later created.

For a long time there was a hypothesis that the plot of “The Thunderstorm” was completely borrowed from real life. In 1859, precisely at this time the play was written, a resident of Kostroma left home early in the morning, and later her body was discovered in the Volga. The victim was the girl Alexandra Klykova. During the investigation, it became clear that the situation in the Klykov family was quite tense. The mother-in-law constantly mocked the girl, and the spineless husband could not influence the situation. The catalyst for this outcome of events was the love relationship between Alexandra and the postal employee.

This assumption is deeply ingrained in people's minds. Surely in the modern world, tourist routes would already be laid in that place. In Kostroma, “The Thunderstorm” was published as a separate book; during the production, the actors tried to resemble the Klykovs, and local residents even showed the place from which Alexandra-Katerina allegedly threw herself. Kostroma local historian Vinogradov, to whom the famous literature researcher S. Yu. Lebedev refers, found many literal coincidences in the text of the play and in the “Kostroma case”. Both Alexandra and Katerina were married off early. Alexandra was barely 16 years old. Katerina was 19.

Both girls had to endure discontent and despotism from their mothers-in-law. Alexandra Klykova had to do all the menial housework. Neither the Klykov family nor the Kabanov family had children. The series of “coincidences” does not end there. The investigation knew that Alexandra had a relationship with another person, a postal worker. In the play "The Thunderstorm" Katerina falls in love with Boris. That is why for a long time it was believed that “The Thunderstorm” was nothing more than a real-life incident reflected in the play.

However, at the beginning of the twentieth century, the myth created around this incident was dispelled due to a comparison of dates. So, the incident in Kostroma occurred in November, and a month earlier, on October 14, Ostrovsky took the play to print. Thus, the writer could not display on the pages what had not yet happened in reality. But this does not make the creative history of “The Thunderstorm” any less interesting. It can be assumed that Ostrovsky, being an intelligent person, was able to predict how the girl’s fate would turn out in the typical conditions of that time. It is quite possible that Alexandra, like Katerina, was tormented by the stuffiness that is mentioned in the play. The old orders are becoming obsolete and the absolute inertia and hopelessness of the current situation. However, one should not completely correlate Alexandra with Katerina. It is quite possible that in the case of Klykova, the reasons for the girl’s death were only everyday difficulties, and not a deep-seated personal conflict, like Katerina Kabanova’s.

The most realistic prototype of Katerina can be called theater actress Lyubov Pavlovna Kositskaya, who later played this role. Ostrovsky, like Kositskaya, had his own family; it was this circumstance that prevented the further development of the relationship between the playwright and the actress. Kositskaya was originally from the Volga region, but at the age of 16 she ran away from home in search of a better life. Katerina’s dream, according to Ostrovsky’s biographers, was nothing more than the recorded dream of Lyubov Kositskaya. In addition, Lyubov Kositskaya was extremely sensitive to faith and churches. In one of the episodes, Katerina utters the following words:

“... Until death, I loved going to church! Exactly, it happened that I would enter heaven, and I didn’t see anyone, and I didn’t remember the time, and I didn’t hear when the service was over... And you know, on a sunny day such a light pillar comes from the dome, and smoke moves in this pillar, like clouds, and I see that it used to be as if angels were flying and singing in this pillar.”

The history of the creation of Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm" is interesting in its own way: there are both legends and personal drama. The premiere of “The Thunderstorm” took place on November 16, 1859 on the stage of the Maly Theater.

Work test

“The Thunderstorm” was not written by Ostrovsky... “The Thunderstorm” was written by Volga.
S. A. Yuryev

“... Until death, I loved going to church! Exactly, it happened that I would enter heaven, and I didn’t see anyone, and I didn’t remember the time, and I didn’t hear when the service was over... And you know, on a sunny day such a light pillar comes from the dome, and smoke moves in this pillar, like clouds, and I see that it used to be as if angels were flying and singing in this pillar.”

Work test

The 50-60s of the 19th century were a rather difficult time for all of Russia. It was marked by a broad social upsurge that took place in connection with the emergence of new democratically minded forces and the actualization of the issue of serfdom. Against this background, people started talking loudly about the existing contradictions between generations and about the position of Russian women in the conditions of patriarchal relations that still persisted in most of the country.

In such a difficult situation, it was written, then staged and published, which was quite sensational in those years.

Chronology of work on the drama

The history of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” raises many questions. Briefly it can be described as follows.

Ostrovsky most likely began work on the work in July 1859 (in any case, no later than this month), and in early October he sent the finished text to the publishing house. This is proven by the original manuscript, which is still kept in the Russian State Library. A month later, the play was already staged on the St. Petersburg stage: on November 16 there was a premiere at the Maly Theater, on December 2 at the Alexandrinsky Theater. The following year it was published in the “Library for Reading” (in No. 1), and a little later it was published as a separate book.

The reaction of progressive minds to the appearance of the play

The new drama of the then-famous “Columbus of Zamoskvorechye” was met with stormy reviews and comments, both positive (for example, the assessment of N. Dobrolyubov, I. Goncharov, P. Pletnev) and condemning (L. Tolstoy, A. Fet). The then-recognized critic D. Pisarev, who in this regard entered into polemics with Dobrolyubov on a number of issues, also reacted ambiguously to Ostrovsky’s new creation. Be that as it may, “The Thunderstorm” will forever be among the playwright’s best plays. And the real reward, undoubtedly, was the Great Uvarov Prize, awarded to authors only for truly brilliant works written for the stage.

Plot and characters

The history of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” is largely explained by the action of the drama, which takes place in a small town with the beautiful name Kalinov, located on the banks of the Volga. When you meet him, he looks quite prosperous: a magnificent landscape that gives a feeling of peace and quiet. One of the first phrases a viewer hears from a local resident is: “Beauty!” But as you get to know the characters, the mood and general atmosphere change. The playwright skillfully exposes the vices of a society that has lived for centuries according to the laws of house-building. Hence, perhaps, the name of the city - Kalinov, which came from Russian folklore. This is a symbol of an established, scary, “fairy-tale” world that is difficult to destroy.

And now, among the “evil” and powerful forces, a person appears who decides to openly oppose their power - Katerina. The fate of the heroine is tragic, since she has not yet found either like-minded people or defenders (in the person of, for example, the same husband) capable of supporting her in the ongoing confrontation. The young man, in whom she sees her future happiness and a better destiny, also chickened out, not truly understanding Katerina. In conditions where all moral principles have been destroyed, it is difficult to find those responsible for the girl’s death.

Controversy over the origins of the plot

Statements regarding the prototypes and plot basis of the work are very contradictory. Thus, for Kostroma residents, the creative history of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” was directly related to recent tragic incidents in their city. Some details indicated that the prototype of Katerina could be an acquaintance of the writer L.P. Kositskaya. People who personally knew the playwright believed that the appearance of “The Thunderstorm” was the result of Ostrovsky’s journey along the Volga.

What prompted such judgments?

Tragedy of the Klykov family

According to the first version, the history of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” is connected with an incident in the city of Kostroma. At the beginning of November 1859, one of the city residents, Alexandra Klykova, who was only 19 years old, disappeared. Later, her body was found in the waters of the Volga, and a criminal case was opened on this fact. Two versions were considered: suicide or murder and an attempt to hide the crime. During the investigation, it turned out that the girl had recently been married off, and she ended up in a merchant family, where a despotic mother-in-law who did not take anyone into account completely ruled. Brought up in different conditions, Alexandra was unable to accept her fate and settle into her new family. She did not find support in her husband either - quiet, obedient, inferior to his mother in everything. All these details are easily recognizable in the drama. That is why, after the book appeared in Kostroma, local residents persistently started talking about the fact that the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” was directly related to the life of the Klykov family. And although it later turned out that the work was written a month before this tragedy, the actors who played on the local stage spent a long time making up specifically for the Klykov family. And the place on the banks of the Volga, from which Katerina-Alexandra allegedly threw herself into the waters, was one of the local attractions.

Is the thunderstorm a personal drama of A.N. Ostrovsky?

Another version, concerning the prototype of the main character, is associated with the playwright’s own note in the text. Next to Katerina’s monologue, in which she tells Varenka about her dream, it is written: “I heard from L.P. about the same dream..." For L.P. the famous actress L.P. Kositskaya, who most likely had a relationship with Ostrovsky, is hiding. Both are family people, so they are forced to hide their affection. Researchers explaining the creation of Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm” and considering this version also refer to the fact that it was Kositskaya who played the role of the main character for the first time. And the playwright, as you know, preferred to choose actors himself to stage his own works at the Maly Theater.

Trip along the Volga

Finally, the third and more probable version - the story of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” is connected with the author’s journey along the great Russian river.

In the summer months of 1856-57, Ostrovsky took part in the expedition of the Russian Geographical Society along the Volga. He visited many settlements located along the banks of the river, met and talked for a long time with local residents, and studied the peculiarities of their way of life. Ostrovsky witnessed many scenes unfolding in individual families and in the city as a whole. He was interested in the smallest details, which he later analyzed in the essay “Journey along the Volga.”

Echoes of these observations can also be found in the drama: a living folk language, typical scenes of communication between people (they, by the way, are often not directly related to the plot, but well characterize the general atmosphere of the city), the features of everyday life are beautifully shown, from different sides. All this confirms that the history of the creation of Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm” originates in his personal observations and attempts to understand how Russian people live, what hinders the development of the entire social structure of Russia.

Visionary playwright?

Thus, the tragedy that occurred in Kostroma in the fall of 1859 was predicted by Ostrovsky, who knew well the peculiarities of the life of the Russian merchants in the middle of the 19th century. This is a typical situation that could happen in any family living on the vast territory of the Russian state. The playwright successfully depicts the moment when the old forces are still clinging to what is passing and are trying by all means to maintain their power, and the new ones, just emerging, are entering into a difficult struggle, the outcome of which will determine the future fate of Russia. And against this background, it is no longer so important what the history of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm” is connected with. The main thing is that this could serve as the beginning of progressive changes throughout the life of the country.

A. N. Ostrovsky was a prominent literary figure. He changed a lot in the production of plays, and his works are distinguished by realism, the views of which the writer adhered to. One of his most famous works is the play "The Thunderstorm", an analysis of which is presented below.

History of the play

The analysis of "The Thunderstorm" should begin with the history of its writing, because the circumstances of that time played an important role in the creation of the plot. The play was written in 1859 during Ostrovsky's travels around the Volga region. The writer observed and explored not only the beauty of nature and the sights of the Volga region cities.

He was no less interested in the people he met on his journey. He studied their characters, everyday life, and their life stories. Alexander Nikolaevich took notes, and then based on them he created his work.

But the story of the creation of Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm" has different versions. For a very long time they were of the opinion that the writer took the plot for the play from real life. There lived a girl in Kostroma who, unable to withstand her mother-in-law’s oppression, threw herself into the river.

Researchers found many matches. This happened in the same year in which the play was written. Both girls were young and were married off at a very early age. Both were oppressed by their mothers-in-law, and their husbands were weak-willed. Katerina had an affair with the nephew of the most influential man in the city, and a poor Kostroma girl had an affair with a postal employee. It is not surprising that due to such a large number of coincidences, for a long time everyone believed that the plot was based on real events.

But more detailed studies have refuted this theory. Ostrovsky sent the play to print in October, and the girl dropped out a month later. Therefore, the plot could not be based on the life story of this Kostroma family. However, perhaps, thanks to his powers of observation, Alexander Nikolaevich was able to predict this sad end. But the story of the creation of the play also has a more romantic version.

Who was the prototype for the main character?

In the analysis of "The Thunderstorm" one can also point out that there were many disputes about who the image of Katerina was copied from. There was also room for the writer’s personal drama. Both Alexander Nikolaevich and Lyubov Pavlovna Kositskaya had families. And this served as an obstacle to the further development of their relationship.

Kositskaya was a theater actress, and many believe that she is the prototype of the image of Katerina in Ostrovsky's "The Thunderstorm". Later, Lyubov Pavlovna will play her role. The woman herself was from the Volga region, and the playwright’s biographers wrote that “Katerina’s Dream” was written down from Kositskaya’s words. Lyubov Kositskaya, like Katerina, was a believer and loved the church very much.

But "The Thunderstorm" is not only a drama about personal relationships, it is a play about the growing conflict in society. In that era there were already people who wanted to change the old order, but the ossified “Domostroevsky” society did not want to obey them. And this confrontation is reflected in Ostrovsky’s play.

The play takes place in the fictional Volga city of Kalinov. The inhabitants of this town are people accustomed to deception, tyranny, and ignorance. Several people from the Kalinovsky society stood out for their desire for a better life - these are Katerina Kabanova, Boris and Kuligin.

The young girl was married to the weak-willed Tikhon, whose stern and oppressive mother constantly oppressed the girl. Kabanikha established very strict rules in her house, so all members of the Kabanov family did not like her and were afraid of her. During Tikhon's departure on business, Katerina secretly meets with Boris, an educated young man who came from another city to visit his uncle, Dikiy, a man of the same tough character as Kabanikha.

When her husband returned, the young woman stopped seeing Boris. She feared punishment for her action because she was pious. Despite all the persuasion, Katerina confessed everything to Tikhon and his mother. The boar began to tyrannize the young woman even more. Boris's uncle sent him to Siberia. Katerina, having said goodbye to him, rushed into the Volga, realizing that she could no longer live in tyranny. Tikhon accused his mother that it was because of her attitude that his wife decided to take such a step. This is a summary of "The Thunderstorm" by Ostrovsky.

Brief description of the characters

The next point in the analysis of the play is the characteristics of the heroes of Ostrovsky's "The Thunderstorm". All the characters turned out to be memorable, with bright characters. The main character (Katerina) is a young woman brought up in the house-building order. But she understood the rigidity of these views and strived for a better life, where all people would live honestly and do the right thing. She was devout and loved to go to church and pray.

Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova is a widow, a wealthy merchant. She adhered to the principles of house building. She had a bad temper and established tyrannical rules in the house. Tikhon, her son, a weak-willed man, loved to drink. He understood that his mother was unfair to his wife, but was afraid to go against her will.

Boris, an educated young man, came so that Dikoy would give him part of the inheritance. He is impressionable and does not accept the laws of Kalinov society. Dikoy is an influential man, everyone was afraid of him because they knew what a harsh character he had. Kuligin is a tradesman who believes in the power of science. Tries to prove to others the importance of scientific discoveries.

This is a characteristic of the heroes of Ostrovsky's "The Thunderstorm", who played a significant role in the plot. They can be divided into two small societies: those who held the old views and those who believed that change was necessary to create better conditions.

Ray of light in the play

In the analysis of "The Thunderstorm" it is worth highlighting the main female character - Katerina Kabanova. It is a reflection of what tyranny and despotic attitudes can do to a person. The young woman, although she grew up in the “old” society, unlike the majority, sees the injustice of such orders. But Katerina was honest, she did not want and did not know how to deceive, and this is one of the reasons why she told her husband everything. And those people who surrounded her were accustomed to deceiving, fearing, and tyrannizing. But the young woman could not accept this; all her spiritual purity opposed it. Because of the inner light and the desire to live honestly, the image of Katerina from Ostrovsky’s “The Thunderstorm” was compared to “a ray of light in a dark kingdom.”

And the only joys in her life were prayer and love for Boris. Unlike all those who talked about faith, Katerina believed in the power of prayer, she was very afraid of committing a sin, so she could not meet with Boris. The young woman understood that after her act, her mother-in-law would torment her even more. Katerina saw that in this society no one wanted to change, and she could not live among injustice, misunderstanding and without love. Therefore, throwing herself into the river seemed to her the only way out. As Kuligin later said, she found peace.

Image of a thunderstorm

In the play, some of the important episodes are associated with a thunderstorm. According to the plot, Katerina was very afraid of this natural phenomenon. Because people believed that a thunderstorm would punish a sinful person. And all these clouds, thunder - all this only intensified the depressing atmosphere of the Kabanovs’ house.

In the analysis of "The Thunderstorm" it should also be noted that it is very symbolic that all episodes with this natural phenomenon are connected with Katerina. This is a reflection of her inner world, the tension in which she was, the storm of feelings that raged inside her. Katerina was afraid of this intensity of feelings, so she was very worried when there was a thunderstorm. Also, thunderstorm and rain are a symbol of purification; when the young woman threw herself into the river, she found peace. Just like nature seems cleaner after rain.

The main idea of the play

What is the main meaning of Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm"? The playwright sought to show how unfair society is structured. How they can oppress the weak and defenseless, leaving people no choice. Perhaps Alexander Nikolaevich wanted to show that society should reconsider its views. The meaning of Ostrovsky's "The Thunderstorm" is that one cannot live in ignorance, lies and rigidity. We must strive to become better, to treat people more tolerantly, so that their life does not resemble the “dark kingdom”, like Katerina Kabanova’s.

Personality conflict

The play shows the growth of Katerina's internal conflict. On the one hand, there is the understanding that it is impossible to live in tyranny, love for Boris. On the other hand, strict upbringing, a sense of duty and fear of committing a sin. A woman cannot come to one decision. Throughout the play, she meets with Boris, but does not even think about leaving her husband.

The conflict is growing, and the impetus for Katerina’s sad death was separation from Boris and increased persecution from her mother-in-law. But personal conflict does not occupy the most important place in the play.

Social issue

In the analysis of "The Thunderstorm" it should be noted that the playwright tried to convey the mood of society that was at that time. People understood that changes were needed, that the old system of society must give way to a new, enlightened one. But the people of the old order did not want to admit that their views had lost their strength, that they were ignorant. And this struggle between the “old” and the “new” was reflected in A. Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm”.