Evgeny Onegin belongs to the type. Spiritual quest of Onegin
Pushkin devoted about nine years, almost half of his creative life, to the creation of the novel, putting into it the fruits of “a mind of cold observations and a heart of sorrowful notes.”
With all the breadth of themes of the novel "Eugene Onegin" it is, first of all, a novel about the mental life and quests of the Russian noble intelligentsia of the 20s of the 19th century. Pushkin turned to creating the image of his contemporary in his early romantic works, for example, in “Prisoner of the Caucasus.” However, the hero of this work did not satisfy the author, as he turned out to be romantic. The circumstances in which he acted were hothouse, his past remained vague, the reasons for his disappointment were unclear. Therefore, Pushkin returned to the idea of creating a typical image of a contemporary in his main work, the novel Eugene Onegin.
Now we also have before us a disappointed hero, and in this we can see a connection with romantic poems, but he is depicted completely differently: his upbringing, education, and the environment in which he was born and lives is described in detail. The poet not only indicates obvious signs of his disappointment, but sets out to explain the reasons that gave rise to it.
The concept of “an extra person” appeared in 1850, when I. S. Turgenev’s “Diary of an Extra Man” was published. However, in Pushkin’s drafts there is a remark that Onegin at a social event “stands like something superfluous,” and it was Pushkin who for the first time in Russian literature creates the image of a “superfluous person.”
Onegin "secular Petersburg young man", metropolitan aristocrat; “Having fun and luxury as a child,” he received a home education and upbringing, typical for aristocratic youth of that time, under the guidance of a French tutor, who, “so as not to exhaust the child, taught him everything jokingly, did not bother him with strict morals...”
Onegin leads a life typical of the “golden youth” of that time: balls, restaurants, walks along Nevsky Prospect, visiting theaters. It took him eight years. But Onegin stands out from the general mass of aristocratic youth. Pushkin notes his “involuntary devotion to dreams, inimitable strangeness and a sharp, chilled mind,” a sense of honor, and nobility of soul. This could not but lead Onegin to disappointment in life, in secular society.
Blues and boredom took possession of Onegin. Having moved away from the “empty light”, he tries to engage in some useful activity. Nothing came of trying to write. Eugene did not have a calling: “yawning, he took up his pen,” and he had no habit of work: “he was sick of persistent work.” An attempt to combat “spiritual emptiness” through reading also proved unsuccessful. The books he read either did not satisfy him, or turned out to be in tune with his thoughts and feelings and only strengthened them.
And now Onegin is trying to get involved in organizing the life of the peasants on the estate, which he inherited from his uncle:
He is the yoke of the ancient corvée
I replaced it with a light quitrent...
However, all his activities as a landowner-owner were limited to this reform. The old moods, although somewhat softened by life in the lap of nature, continue to possess him. Everywhere he feels like a stranger and superfluous: both in high society and in provincial drawing rooms. It was hard and unbearable for him to see before him
There's a long row of dinners alone,
See life as a ritual
And after the decorous crowd
Go without sharing with her
No common opinions, no passions.
Onegin's extraordinary mind, his freedom-loving sentiments and critical attitude to reality placed him high above the "secular rabble", especially among the local nobility, thereby dooming him to complete loneliness. Having broken with secular society, in which he found neither high interests nor real feelings, but only a parody of them, Onegin loses touch with people.
Even such strong feelings as love and friendship could not save Onegin from “spiritual emptiness.” He rejected Tatyana’s love, since he valued “freedom and peace” above all else, and failed to discern the depth of her soul and her feelings. Fed up with the love of society ladies, Onegin became disillusioned with this feeling. His attitude towards love is rational and feigned. It is designed in the spirit of acquired secular “truths,” the main goal of which is to charm and seduce, to appear in love.
How early could he be a hypocrite?
To harbor hope, to be jealous,
To dissuade, to make believe,
Seem gloomy, languish.
And finally, Onegin’s friendship with Lensky ended tragically. No matter how Onegin’s noble mind protested against the duel, social conventions shaped by the light still prevailed. Onegin killed his friend Lensky because he could not rise above the public opinion of the local nobility, which he inwardly despised. He was afraid of the “whispers, the laughter of fools,” the gossip of the Zaretskys, Petushkovs, and Skotinins.
And here is public opinion,
Spring of honor, our idol.
And this is what the world revolves on! ?
exclaims Pushkin. The outcome of Onegin’s life is bleak:
Having lived without a goal, without work
Until twenty-six years old,
Languishing in idle leisure
Without work, without wife, without business,
I couldn't do anything...
V. G. Belinsky called Onegin a “reluctant egoist,” a “suffering egoist,” because society made him such a “strong, remarkable nature.” “Evil is hidden not in man, but in society,” the critic wrote. Onegin's skepticism and disappointment are a reflection of the general “illness of modern Russians,” which gripped a significant part of the noble intelligentsia at the beginning of the century. Pushkin condemns not so much the hero as the secular environment that shaped him as a person.
It is obvious that the Onegins are doomed to inaction. The transformation of Onegin into a “superfluous man” was certainly inevitable at that time. He belonged to that enlightened part of the noble intelligentsia who avoided serving tsarism, did not want to be in the ranks of the silent ones, but also stood aloof from public activities. Pushkin’s undoubted merit is that in his novel he showed the tragedy of “superfluous people” and the reasons for their appearance among the noble intelligentsia of the 20s of the 19th century.
Before considering the images of the main characters, you need to understand that for Pushkin’s novel the main technique for creating them is typification. A literary type is not just an image of a hero, marked by a unique individuality, it embodies in a special way - through character traits, through the same individuality - traits inherent not only to the person himself, but also to a certain social group, the “generation” and representative of which he (in socio-psychological terms) is. This is exactly how the images of the heroes of the novel were created, and this is especially noticeable in the image of the main character - Eugene Onegin.
As a person, Onegin is very unusual, his individuality is undeniable, but... he is also very typical, it is no coincidence that one of the “insightful readers” about him - A. A. Bestuzhev - responded like this: “I see a person whom I meet thousands in reality ". A traditional upbringing for his circle, a traditional pastime, traditional interests, “longing laziness,” an appealing, demonstrative disregard for the interests of others - these are the main features that characterize not only Onegin, but also a significant part of the “young people” of that time, who later, after appearance of the novel, will be called "superfluous people." However, can only Onegin be blamed for being such? Probably not, because every person, to a greater or lesser extent, bears the features of the environment to which he belongs, and Onegin is no exception. Therefore, the social circle to which the hero belongs and the “laws of life” of which he has brilliantly mastered and by which for the time being lives calmly can also be considered “superfluous,” that is, not adapted to anything.
However, “Onegin’s Soul” is far from being as simple and unambiguous as one might judge from his behavior. The image of Eugene Onegin in the novel "Eugene Onegin" is very contradictory, the internal conflict in him is obvious, and this is most fully manifested in his relationship with Tatyana. The Evgeny who “gives lessons” to Tatyana is not at all like Evgeny, the author of the letter to the woman he truly loves, who is now inaccessible to him - although she continues to love him... Let’s try to understand the reasons for the “transformation” of the main character, the story the revival of his soul is precisely “rebirth”, because love revives humanity even in the soul of the most seemingly inveterate egoist.
Once in the village, Onegin hoped that a “change of places” would help him get rid of boredom, and, in fact, “for two days” it seemed to him that this was so, but “on the third” day he became convinced “that there is boredom in the village too.” is the same". This is natural, because the reasons for “boredom” are within himself; here, external factors mean little. The provincial nobility, primitive in terms of the level of spiritual life, could not arouse his interest, and his attempts to “establish a new order” led to the fact that “And everyone decided out loud that he is a most dangerous eccentric.” Only Lensky turned out to be not that close to Evgeniy, but “they got along,” and Pushkin caustically remarks that it was a friendship “there’s nothing to do.” Lensky's enthusiasm and Onegin's skepticism are indeed "ice and fire", but there are simply no other people around Eugene Onegin "worthy" of his attention... Perhaps the main thing that distinguishes the heroes is the ability to feel love and everything that associated with this feeling.
For Lensky, love is a feeling in which he plays according to the laws of romanticism, he creates for himself an invented, ideal image of Olga, so far from reality that it becomes incomprehensible: is it really possible to be so... not understanding the most obvious things? However, the romantic poet also plays at romance in life, he constructs it as if he were writing an “ode”, only he has to “read” this “ode-life” himself... Onegin understands people very accurately and deeply, he manages to penetrate the soul of everyone with whom fate brings him together, but his behavior, his attitude towards people can only cause condemnation. Understanding everything, he starts a game with Olga, thereby causing mental trauma to Lensky in love; Realizing the stupidity of the duel, he, thinking that he might be ridiculed, accepts Lensky’s challenge, indulging in these same morals that he so openly despises: “But the whisper, the laughter of fools...” - and this after quite strictly “reprimands” himself for his behavior: “but Eugene, Alone with his soul, Was dissatisfied with himself”... And even when it was still possible to correct something, realizing that it would be best for them to “disperse amicably,” Onegin did not takes the first step towards Lensky, because “wildly secular enmity is afraid of false shame.” Therefore, when he writes in a letter to Tatyana “Lensky fell an unfortunate victim,” he, in all conscience, must clarify that Lensky became a victim of him, Eugene Onegin, false pride, his inability to rise above circumstances, and, by and large, his selfish attitude towards to others.
This same feeling prevents him from truly understanding Tatyana, having received her letter, “Onegin was deeply touched.” Having met her, he behaves as the hero of a “fashionable novel” should behave, internally enjoying the role of a “teacher,” but at the same time admiring himself and not wanting to understand how Tatyana, already discouraged by her “misconduct,” feels. The continuation of the “game” with the girl in love with him follows on the name day, where “somehow the gaze of his eyes Was wonderfully tender,” and “this gaze expressed tenderness: He revived Tanya’s heart.” However, the death of Lensky separates the heroes, whose next meeting took place when Tatyana was already a married lady, and it was this Tatyana who aroused a stormy feeling in the soul of Eugene Onegin, which he considers love. He pursues Tatyana, writes letters to her, reproaches her for not responding to his feelings, forgetting that in her current situation she, strictly speaking, cannot answer them except by violating her marital duty, that for Tatyana, with a “Russian soul,” this was unacceptable from the very beginning. Of course, Onegin is sincerely suffering, but does he have the moral right to write to her: “If only you knew how terrible it is to languish with a thirst for love...”? Who, if not her, should know this?..
The ending of that period of Eugene Onegin’s life, which Pushkin shows us in the novel, is a true collapse. Having realized what exactly he has lost in Tatyana, he finds himself faced with the need to erase her from his heart forever, and this now, when she has taken such a big place in him... How and why should he live next? What could this “hateful freedom” be, for fear of losing which he was once so blind and deaf? The hero cannot but arouse sympathy, and somehow it is not very reassuring that he, in general, deserved what fate gave him, deserved it with his indifference to himself and people, which in the end took revenge on him so cruelly.
There was a lot of debate about whether Eugene Onegin could be considered a person close to the Decembrists, but it seems that Pushkin himself did not set such a goal for himself, he did not strive to create the image of a Decembrist, he wrote a novel in which “the century was reflected and modern man is depicted quite right,” and you can’t argue with that: as a socio-psychological type, Onegin, of course, does not raise any doubts; he is more than convincing as a representative of his time and his social group.
In the image of Onegin, Pushkin reveals other character traits that are opposite to Lensky.
As positive qualities of Onegin’s character, one should note the height of culture, intelligence and a sober, critical attitude to reality. Lensky's youthfully naive enthusiasm is completely alien to him.
Onegin's life experience and cold skeptical mind lead him to deny reality. Onegin by no means “believes in the world’s perfection.” On the contrary, one of his typical features is disappointment in life, dissatisfaction with others, and skepticism.
Onegin is above the environment. His superiority over Lensky is also noticeable. Nevertheless, Pushkin is by no means inclined to affirm Onegin as an ideal; on the contrary, many of the traits that characterize Onegin are given by Pushkin negatively, in an ironic sense. And the main ones - disappointment in life, contempt and indifference to others - are revealed by Pushkin rather as a pose and are devoid of the tragedy that these traits carried in Pushkin’s romantic heroes - the Prisoner of the Caucasus, Aleko and others.
Undoubtedly, Tatyana also comes to this in her reflections on Onegin:
What is he? Is it really imitation?
interpretation of other people's whims,
An insignificant ghost, or else
A complete vocabulary of fashion words?..
Muscovite in Harold's cloak,
Isn't he a parody?
It is obvious that the emergence and prevalence of such an attitude to life among the noble intelligentsia in the 20s of the 19th century and its reflection in literature in the image of a demonic hero cannot at all be explained by the influence of Byron - this influence arose in life itself.
However, establishing the closeness of Onegin’s character to the character of the Captive and Aleko, it should be noted that the meaning of the images of the Captive and Onegin and their functions in the work are completely different.
In “Prisoner of the Caucasus,” Pushkin idealizes this proud spirit of denial of society and life. Aleko has also not yet been removed from his pedestal as a hero. The essence of the Prisoner and Aleko lies in their deeply revolutionary beginning, while in Eugene Onegin this pathos is completely absent. Giving in Onegin character traits that are close to his romantic, rebellious, rebellious hero along the lines of the same denial of reality, contempt for life and for people, etc., Pushkin exposes in him their sterility, their futility. Onegin, taken from a social and everyday perspective, in his most diverse experiences, is revealed from both the positive and negative sides.
This explains the author’s ambivalent attitude towards Onegin. One cannot help but appreciate his culture, the breadth of his horizons, his superiority over those around him, the attractiveness of his cold, skeptical mind; we sympathize with his loneliness, the sincerity and completeness of his experiences (about the death of Lensky, love for Tatyana), etc., but at the same time we see his inferiority.
Onegin, possessing a number of positive qualities, standing head and shoulders above those around him, turns out to be a completely useless person in life. Its capabilities cannot be realized in life, cannot be applied in practice. Noble culture, having created a certain character, no longer creates for him the opportunity for action, is no longer able to use it. Reality does not develop, but destroys the best aspects of this character and, on the contrary, contributes to the development of negative traits. Hence Onegin’s inferiority, which is revealed in two main points: 1) in the absence of a real life goal, practice; 2) in the absence of will, energy.
The inconsistency of Onegin’s character lies in the fact that, having understood the meaninglessness and emptiness of the life around him, despising it, Onegin at the same time could not oppose anything to this life. Pushkin emphasizes in him an early ripening mind and the ability to be critical of the environment and at the same time complete inactivity, the inability to create anything. Pushkin speaks clearly ironically about Onegin’s aspirations to do something. Pushkin's irony is aimed at the aimlessness and futility of Onegin's activities.
Onegin’s only business in the village - replacing corvee with quitrent - was motivated by Pushkin as follows: “just to spend time...”
Onegin’s whole life is revealed by Pushkin as a purposeless, empty existence, devoid of a creative beginning:
Having killed a friend in a duel,
Languishing in idle leisure,
Having lived without a goal, without work
Without work, without wife, without business,
Until twenty-six years old,
I didn't know how to do anything.
In Onegin’s behavior, Pushkin reveals lethargy, apathy and lack of will. Lensky falls victim to this lack of will, for Onegin, despising the light and the environment, at the same time submits to the conventions of this light, does not have the will to throw them off himself, does not find the strength to follow his inner convictions, his inner drives, if they go against with established morals, with established traditions.
Onegin’s behavior in the duel episode is entirely determined by his fear of “false shame,” which he could not rise above. He completely submitted to the conditions of that very life that he denied and despised. The image of Onegin clearly evolves throughout the novel. Onegin “leaves” the novel completely different from how Pushkin portrays him in the first chapters.
At the beginning of the novel, Onegin is presented as a strong, proud, not ordinary man who knows his worth. When meeting with Lensky, in his explanation with Tatyana, he has a patronizing, condescending tone. There is still a lot of self-confidence in his judgments and views.
In “Excerpts from Onegin’s Journey”, not included by Pushkin in the novel, although according to the plan “Onegin’s Journey” was supposed to be the eighth chapter, before Onegin’s appearance in the “big world”, in the image of Onegin the melancholy of spiritual loneliness is brought to the limit, Onegin realizes his own fate tragically:
Why wasn’t I wounded by a bullet in the chest? Why am I not a frail old man...
The meeting with Tatyana and his love for her were the last flash of Onegin’s vital energy. He himself speaks of himself as of a man already doomed: “I know: my life has already been measured...”
Thus, over the course of some three and a half years (this is approximately the duration of the novel), Onegin turns into a person deprived of any prospects in life, deprived of strength and energy, despite his youth, position, culture and intelligence.
In this premature extinction of Onegin, Pushkin reveals the doom and futility of this character in life.
The further fate of Onegin is not given in the novel, but the logic of this character is so clear that his fate has already been determined. It is known that according to Pushkin’s plan, in the future he wanted to connect Onegin with the Decembrist movement, but this was not carried out, and it does not change the essence of the matter, since it is quite obvious that Pushkin, despite all the positive qualities of Onegin, has a negative attitude towards the type of social behavior characteristic of him . It is important to understand not only that in this environment, in these social conditions, Onegin could not realize his potential, but also that Pushkin shows the incapacity of the Onegins, condemns their life “without a goal”, “without work”; Onegin's proud pose with his contempt for people and gloomy disappointment is a social stage that has already been passed; Onegin needs to overcome the inactive individualism that underlies his character and find his place in life.
Giving everything positive that noble culture could give at the heights of its development, Pushkin, in the image of Onegin, at the same time reveals the beginnings leading to its death - inaction, lack of will, aimlessness of existence
In Pushkin’s poetic heritage, the novel “Eugene Onegin” occupies one of the central places. The work begins a new period in Russian literature. In "Eugene Onegin", as in a mirror, Russian life of Pushkin's period of time was reflected. The eight years (1823 - 1831), during which the novel was written, was a turning point in the history of Russia and in the difficult fate of the author himself. The novel reflects the poet’s aspirations and thoughts, his worldview and feelings.
“Eugene Onegin” is not just a novel, but a novel in verse; it obeys special artistic laws. He is free from the classical canons in the field of literary plot and is open to the “unpredictable freedom of the plot of life.”
The central figure of the novel is Eugene Onegin. Who is Eugene Onegin, and why exactly did he appear at the top of the list of “superfluous people” in Russian literature?
In the arena of life - a young nobleman with a complex, contradictory character. He was born on the banks of the Neva; received a typical education for that time. French teachers and tutors taught him in such a way “so that the child would not be exhausted.” The years of study quickly passed, and now the light awaits Evgeny Onegin.
"Cut in the latest fashion,
How dandy London is dressed..."
He knew French perfectly, danced easily and naturally, was smart and sweet, that is, he fit perfectly into the standards of high society. Onegin tried to take from his young life everything he had time for: balls, visits, restaurants, ballet, meetings, masquerades...
But too soon the young, brilliant dandy became fed up with the world and became disillusioned with everything.
As a smart person, he began to look for a way out of the situation. He began to write, but his superficial attitude towards any task and inability to concentrate on serious studies led to the fact that “nothing came out of his pen.” I started to read, “but it was all to no avail.”
The situation was partly saved by the fact that Onegin, albeit for sad reasons, changed his place of residence and ended up in the village. But blues, boredom and melancholy catch up with him here too.
He refuses the love feelings of the modest young lady Tatiana. And he even reads a sermon to her on this topic:
“Learn to control yourself;
Not everyone will understand you, as I say;
Inexperience leads to disaster."
Onegin's acquaintance with his young neighbor Lensky also does not lead to anything good. A duel happened between them and Lensky dies. Onegin begins to be tormented by the pangs of conscience. He is leaving on a trip to Russia. Depression “follows” him everywhere.
The traveler returns to the capital. And what does he see? New Tatyana - a married woman, a society lady. This is no longer that enthusiastic, modest village young lady.
"She doesn't notice him
No matter how he fights, even if he dies.
Accepts freely at home,
When visiting him, he says three words,
Sometimes he will greet you with one bow,
Sometimes he won’t notice at all...”
Now love flares up in Onegin’s heart. But Tatyana rejects him. Onegin is forced to part with her forever.
Let us take a closer look at the figure of Onegin. Onegin is smart, “my good friend,” a man—an old-style intellectual. He is capable of certain activities (one of his good deeds is the abolition of corvée, replacing it with quitrent), but is not capable of hard work. He lacks willpower, demands and self-criticism. He does not have the strength necessary for meaningful, useful social work.
Onegin is a person who fits the category of “superfluous people” in Russian literature. The term “extra person” arose in 1850 after the publication of the story by I.S. Turgenev "Diary of an Extra Man". An extra person is a type of nobleman suffering from boredom, melancholy and loneliness. A superfluous person is characterized by mental fatigue, self-destruction, and deep skepticism.
Dissatisfied, bored in society, Onegin lives in the name of some high principles and ideal aspirations. In fact, Eugene is only ready to apply lofty ideas about the human person, about freedom and its rights to himself, but not only does not recognize these rights in others, but also does not tolerate them.
Conclusion
The novel “Eugene Onegin” is one of the most significant, outstanding works of our poet Alexander Pushkin. The main character, Onegin, idle and bored, is familiar to Russian literature as a type of “superfluous person.”
Onegin has no prospects for self-realization; he has abilities, but no will. Throughout the entire narrative, the author of the novel’s attitude towards Onegin is ironic, without sarcasm; with shades of sympathy for the main character.
