The contrast between true and false patriotism in the novel War and Peace. Use of antithesis in L

L.N. Tolstoy is a classic of world literature, the greatest master of psychologism, the creator of the genre of the epic novel, who skillfully used the means of artistic representation. One of Tolstoy's main ideological and compositional techniques is antithesis. The functions of antithesis in the novel "War and Peace" are very diverse. This stylistic device underlies the principle of composition; a system of characters is built on it, with its help artistic images are created and the inner world of the characters is revealed.

The technique of antithesis underlies the construction of a character system. The heroes are contrasted on the basis of the “naturalness” or “falsity” of their natures.

Tolstoy's heroes, embodying naturalness, the truth of life, have no doubts. Angular, impetuous, with irregular features, Natasha Rostova is the embodiment of the beauty of existence. Despite her lordly upbringing, she personifies folk traditions. Natasha, a gifted nature, is loved by everyone, spontaneous in her feelings, simple, feminine, truthful. Her caring soul was completely dissolved in the anxieties of 1812, in the general misfortune of the people and their feat. Natasha’s spiritual qualities were especially revealed in her courtship of the dying Prince Andrei. The Rostovs were late leaving Moscow, and Natasha insisted that an outbuilding and half of the house be provided for wounded soldiers. Natasha devoted herself entirely to this matter, without emphasizing her merits anywhere or in anything, without saying phrases about patriotism and duty. It is simple and natural, just as Russian soldiers are simple and natural, performing feats without a single thought of glory. They, just like Platon Karataev and Field Marshal Kutuzov, are endowed by nature with an intuitive knowledge of the truth. Kutuzov appears in the novel as the embodiment of the author’s philosophy of history. Tolstoy creates a lively, charming image of a commander. The main advantages of Kutuzov are naturalness and simplicity. He does not play a role, but lives. He can cry both from frustration and from joy. It is Kutuzov’s simplicity that allows him to feel part of “paradise” and not interfere with the movement of history.

These heroes are contrasted with the skillful “poseur” Napoleon in the novel - the embodiment of extreme individualism. He seeks to impose his will on the world. Tolstoy's image of Napoleon is not without grotesque and satirical overtones. He is characterized by theatrical behavior, narcissism, and vanity (he portrays a tenderly loving father, although he has never seen his son). Many people from secular society are spiritually similar to Napoleon, especially the Kuragin family. All members of this family aggressively interfere in the lives of other people, try to impose their desires on them, use others to satisfy their own needs (“a vile, heartless breed” Pierre called this family). Also close to Napoleon are the Russian Emperor Alexander, who does not understand the mood prevailing in the Russian army, the dignitary Speransky, the lady-in-waiting Anna Pavlovna Scherer, the careerist Boris Drubetskoy, the calculating Julie Karagina and many others. All of them are internally empty, insensitive, thirst for fame, care about their careers, and love to talk a lot and beautifully.

Tolstoy's searching heroes Pierre Bezukhov and Andrei Bolkonsky go through a difficult spiritual path in search of truth. They get carried away by false ideas, get mistaken, change internally and ultimately approach the ideal of simplicity.

Both Pierre and Andrei Bolkonsky free themselves from petty selfish feelings and come to understand the true values ​​of life. And ordinary Russian people help them in this. Prince Andrey - Captain Tushin and the artillery soldiers subordinate to him, whom the prince met at the battle of Shengraben. For Pierre - the soldiers whom he sees on the Borodino field and then in captivity, especially Platon Karataev. Watching Karataev, who accepts life as it is, Pierre begins to understand that the meaning of life lies in itself, in its natural joys, in the humble acceptance of the troubles that befall a person.

Prince Andrei, mortally wounded at Borodino, acquires endless love for all people, and then, on the eve of death, complete detachment from earthly worries and worries, supreme peace.

The images of nature in “War and Peace” are symbols of the highest harmony, revelations about the truth of the world. They are opposed to vanity, selfishness, the immutability of people’s lives, and alien spiritual aspirations. Captured by the French and experiencing the horror of execution, Pierre Bezukhov understands that the main value, beyond the control of anyone, is his immortal soul. This liberating feeling comes to him when he contemplates the starry night sky. Devastated, having lost the meaning of existence, Andrei Bolkonsky encounters an old oak tree on the road. This same oak tree, which has sprouted young shoots, symbolizes Bolkonsky’s revival after meeting Natasha Rostova on the Otradnoye estate, where he accidentally overheard Natasha’s conversation, excited by the beauty of the summer night, with Sonya.

The “historical” chapters in the novel are contrasted with chapters describing “living life” that takes place despite Napoleon’s invasion (it is noteworthy that Tolstoy describes in equal detail the Battle of Austerlitz, the Battle of Borodino and Natasha’s first ball, the hunt of the old Count Rostov, giving these events the same place in stories). This antithesis manifests itself at the compositional level. Tolstoy needs to show the contrast between false life and true life, and he combines various episodes in the novel in such a way that this contrast becomes especially obvious. So, after depicting an unnatural meeting of the heads of two states (Napoleon and Alexander I), the writer abruptly moves on to describe the meeting of Natasha and Andrei Bolkonsky.

But in addition to the composition and system of characters, the technique of antithesis is also used to characterize the images of the heroes themselves, highlighting their most striking individual traits. In "War and Peace" this is most clearly manifested when comparing the images of Napoleon and Kutuzov (which are symbols that determine the direction of movement of all other heroes). In every feature of the portrait, behavior, manner of speaking and holding one can feel the huge difference between these heroes. Napoleon is unpleasantly fat (fat thighs, belly, white full neck), strong. And if in Napoleon sleekness and constant care for the body are emphasized, then in Kutuzov there is an old man’s corpulence, flabbiness, physical weakness, which is quite natural for a man of his age. Napoleon's gait is smug, assertive, and he calls the painful trembling of his left calf a great sign. Kutuzov walks awkwardly, poorly, sits awkwardly in the saddle. During the Battle of Borodino, when Napoleon, fussing and worrying, gives many meaningless and contradictory orders, Kutuzov gives almost no orders, leaving the course of the battle to God's will. Kutuzov emphasizes the contradiction between his ordinary, unremarkable appearance and heroic essence. In Napoleon, on the contrary, there is a contradiction between a claim to a great role in history and an empty, inanimate essence.

Thus, the technique of antithesis plays an important role in the novel "War and Peace". At the ideological and compositional level, it helps to distinguish between good and evil, to show the danger of selfish separation of people, to outline ways of moral improvement of the individual, i.e. serves as a means of expressing the author's position in the novel.

An example of completing task 17.3 on the Unified State Exam in literature with examples and quotations from the text.

It is a widely known fact that Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy was favorably received at court and for some time moved in select circles. However, with age, the writer began to realize how much lies and falsehood had accumulated in this high society, how disingenuously people behave towards each other, how dishonor covers itself with a veil of aristocratic origin. Gradually, he left the world and began to look for the truth among simple peasants and artisans, with whom he communicated and discovered a lot of simple, but at the same time, new and surprising things. That is why in his book “War and Peace” the author raises the topic of the truth and falsity of our values, concepts and principles.

Absolutely all components in the novel, from the title to the ideas, are built on contrasts: Kutuzov and Napoleon, military battles and peaceful scenes, sincere heroes and liars. By contrasting one with the other, Tolstoy makes it clear what is true and false in beauty, patriotism and love. Each person must determine this for themselves in order to better understand the world, people and, of course, themselves.

True and false patriotism in the novel War and Peace

In the novel "War and Peace" there are real and false, leavened patriots. For example, many nobles stopped speaking French and wore sundresses and caftans when the War of 1812 began. Prince Rostopchin, the Governor-General of Moscow, completely exuded tasteless, feigned, jingoistic appeals, and this was instead of really helping and supporting the frightened, desperate people who were leaving their native land.

True patriotism was shown by ordinary people who, being not rich, still burned their houses, belongings, arable land, just so as not to leave anything to the enemy, not to help him get to Moscow with their belongings and shelter. Left destitute, these unknown heroes went into the forests and organized partisan detachments, and then dealt crushing blows to the French, risking their lives for the liberation of their homeland. At the same time, many nobles did not see the difference between the Russian Tsar and the foreign invader: they put their personal interests above national ones. They calmly accepted the invaders and fawned over them in order to preserve their privileges.

True and false heroism in the novel War and Peace

Prince Andrei thinks about true and false heroism when he goes to war for glory. At Shengraben, he takes part in the battle and sees the feat of the battery of the modest and awkward captain Tushin, the breakthrough of the detachment of captain Timokhin, who put the French to flight, and the daredevil Dolokhov, who heroically captured the French officer. The hero cannot figure out which of them is the real hero, although the answer lies on the surface. For example, Dolokhov demanded a reward for his action, boasted about it during the formation, and Tushin was almost deprived of command for his modesty, and would have been deprived if Bolkonsky had not stood up for him. Which one is the hero? Selfish Dolokhov or unknown hero Tushin? How to decide, since both of them risked their lives for a common goal?

At the Battle of Austerlitz, Andrei rouses soldiers to a deadly bloody battle that could have been avoided. The hero, like Dolokhov, was flattered by the fame and did not count the heads along which he walked towards her. No wonder Kutuzov taught him to take care of life, but Bolkonsky did not heed this advice. This is false heroism, as the prince was convinced of from his own experience.

True and false beauty in the novel "War and Peace"

Tolstoy describes many ugly women, because his task is to depict the truth of life. For example, about Natasha Rostova he writes: “Ugly, thin...”, and does not forget to mention the ugly stretched mouth of the crying girl, her angularity and imperfections on her face. He speaks directly about Princess Bolkonskaya: “Ugly Princess Marya...”.

But Helen, a regular at salons and balls, is a dazzling beauty. She is superbly built, her shoulders turned even the hottest heads.

However, true beauty for Tolstov does not lie in appearance: “The ugly princess Marya always looked prettier when she cried, and she always cried not from resentment, but from sadness or pity.” The soul of this girl was beautiful and shone from within when she was given free rein. Natasha Rostova is also beautiful in her mercy and simplicity. Her incomparable charm was also manifested in her creativity, because Natasha sang magnificently and danced talentedly.

Thus, true beauty is always expressed in naturalness, kindness, creativity, but not in appetizing forms devoid of spiritual content. Anyone who does not understand true beauty will not find happiness and harmony in life, like Pierre Bezukhov, who was deceived by Helen.

The meaning of the novel "War and Peace" lies in a permanent movement towards the truth, because only those heroes who were able to make this movement understood themselves and found happiness.

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Antithesis (contrast) is one of the most frequently used techniques used to reveal images in a work of art. The essence of antithesis as a trope is the comparison of opposites, concepts or images that are antagonistic to each other. One of the most striking works built on the technique of opposition is the novel by L.N.

Tolstoy "and the world". In it, antithesis is the main technique, laid in the foundation of constructing a system of images. All the characters in the epic novel can be quite clearly divided into two camps, or two worlds - “living” and “dead”.

The action in the novel takes place in two parallel planes - the plane of “peace” and the plane of “war”. For each of the planes, the author selects certain differentiations of the heroes, and their belonging to the “dead” or “living” principle is determined. When describing the world, the dominant criterion on the basis of which the characters are contrasted is the attitude towards the family and children.

In a “dead” world, where everything is subordinated to a single goal, which is to increase one’s own fortune by any means, marriage acts only as one of the possible means. It is not difficult for anyone belonging to this camp to step over the family, as well as through other moral principles. In this regard, the most striking is the image of Helen. The only purpose for which she married Pierre Bezukhov, the heir to the entire fortune of Count Bezukhov, was to receive part of the inheritance.

Breaking up with her husband and receiving more than half of his wealth is the logical conclusion of the intrigue she has built. As an example of the absolute insignificance of moral principles for representatives of the “dead” world, one can cite the scene of the “fight” for the mosaic briefcase of the dying Count Bezukhov. The “battle” actually unfolds before the eyes of the dying man, but this circumstance has no significance for either Prince Vasily or the princess Drubetskaya, equally striving to win the “battle” by any means necessary.

A completely opposite attitude towards moral values ​​reigns in the “living” world. For its representatives, family, children represent the highest, become the true goal of human life. The most indicative in this regard is the Rostov family, the atmosphere in which - love and complete mutual understanding - is directly opposite to the intrigue, envy and anger in the Kuragin family. The Rostov house is open to everyone, and anyone who comes to them will be received with due kindness and cordiality.

It is no coincidence that after returning from the front, Nikolai Rostov goes to his parents’ house. The difference between the attitude towards children in the Kuragin and Rostov families is also characteristic. Prince Vasily’s only desire is to quickly get rid of the “calm fool” Ippolit and the “restless fool” Anatole, while also increasing his fortune. On the contrary, for the Rostovs, children are of important value and no child can be unloved.

But in addition to the plane of the world, in the novel there is a plane of war, where the heroes appear in a completely different form. The main criterion in this regard, by which people are divided into “camps,” is the attitude towards the Motherland, the manifestation of patriotism. The “living” world is the world of true patriots, whose feelings towards the Motherland are completely sincere and genuine.

Andrei Bolkonsky is not guided by any other considerations other than thoughts of defending the Fatherland when he tries to resist general panic and retreat at Austerlitz. Prince Andrei does not think about promotion or awards; he obeys only his own sense of duty. The complete opposite of Andrei Bolkonsky is Boris Drubetskoy.

He sees his main task not as defending the Fatherland, but as promotion, not through merit on the battlefield, but through flattery, hypocrisy, and sycophancy towards his superiors. The fate of people means nothing to him; he is ready to sacrifice them for the sake of his own promotion and nomination for an award. The Rostovs show patriotism in a slightly different form. Nikolai cannot kill a person, regardless of which side he is on, but when retreating from Moscow, the Rostovs sacrifice their own property to save the wounded.

Berg behaves completely differently. Taking advantage of the general distress and confusion, he manages to purchase a “dressing room” for a negligible price, and this “deal” becomes a source of his pride. True patriotism is also demonstrated by heroes who do not belong to any of the worlds and act only in the plane of war, but are also opposed to the “dead” camp.

The most indicative in this regard is Captain Tushin, and especially his perception of his heroism. didn’t even think about the heroic essence of his act - on the contrary, he is trying to justify himself and asks for help from Andrei Bolkonsky. According to Tolstoy, a true patriot does not even notice the fact that he is performing a feat - for him it is only a duty to the Motherland, devoid of any heroic flair. The feat of both Tushin’s battery and Raevsky’s battery, accomplished by the most ordinary, unremarkable people, fits this definition.

Thus, the technique of antithesis is basic for constructing a system of images of the novel and characterizing the main characters. In fact, the antithesis, the opposition of two worlds - “dead” and “living” - forms the basis of the work and determines its structure. And, building the novel on the principle of antithesis, L.

N. Tolstoy debunks the “dead” world, shows its inconsistency and affirms the human and Christian ideals that guide the “living” world.

All the characters in the epic novel can be quite clearly divided into two camps, or two worlds - “living” and “dead”. The action in the novel takes place in two parallel planes - the plane of “peace” and the plane of “war”. For each of the planes, the author selects certain differentiations of the heroes, and their belonging to the “dead” or “living” principle is determined.

When describing the world, the dominant criterion on the basis of which the characters are contrasted is the attitude towards the family and children. In a “dead” world, where everything is subordinated to a single goal, which is to increase one’s own fortune by any means, marriage acts only as one of the possible means. It is not difficult for anyone belonging to this camp to step over the family, as well as through other moral principles. In this regard, the most striking is the image of Helen. The only purpose for which she married Pierre Bezukhov, the heir to the entire fortune of Count Bezukhov, was to receive part of the inheritance. Breaking up with her husband and receiving more than half of his wealth is the logical conclusion of the intrigue she has built.

As an example of the absolute insignificance of moral principles for representatives of the “dead” world, one can cite the scene of the “fight” for the mosaic briefcase of the dying Count Bezukhov. The “battle” actually unfolds before the eyes of the dying man, but this circumstance has no significance for either Prince Vasily or the princess Drubetskaya, equally striving to win the “battle” by any means necessary.

A completely opposite attitude towards moral values ​​reigns in the “living” world. For its representatives, family and children represent the highest ideal and become the true goal of human life. The most indicative in this regard is the Rostov family, the atmosphere in which - love and complete mutual understanding - is directly opposite to the intrigue, envy and anger in the Kuragin family. The Rostov house is open to everyone, and anyone who comes to them will be received with due kindness and cordiality. It is no coincidence that after returning from the front, Nikolai Rostov goes to his parents’ house. The difference between the attitude towards children in the Kuragin and Rostov families is also characteristic. Prince Vasily’s only desire is to quickly get rid of the “calm fool” Ippolit and the “restless fool” Anatole, while also increasing his fortune. On the contrary, for the Rostovs, children are of important value and no child can be unloved.

But in addition to the plane of the world, in the novel there is a plane of war, where the heroes appear in a completely different form. Tolstoy chooses the main criterion in this regard, by which people are divided into “camps,” to be their attitude towards the Motherland, the manifestation of patriotism.

The “living” world is the world of true patriots, whose feelings towards the Motherland are completely sincere and genuine. Andrei Bolkonsky is not guided by any other considerations other than thoughts of defending the Fatherland when he tries to resist general panic and retreat at Austerlitz. Prince Andrei does not think about promotion or awards; he obeys only his own sense of duty. The complete opposite of Andrei Bolkonsky is Boris Drubetskoy. He sees his main task not as defending the Fatherland, but as promotion, not through merit on the battlefield, but through flattery, hypocrisy, and sycophancy towards his superiors. The fate of people means nothing to him; he is ready to sacrifice them for the sake of his own promotion and nomination for an award.

The Rostovs show patriotism in a slightly different form. Nikolai cannot kill a person, regardless of which side he is on, but when retreating from Moscow, the Rostovs sacrifice their own property to save the wounded. Berg behaves completely differently. Taking advantage of the general distress and confusion, he manages to purchase a “dressing room” for a negligible price, and this “deal” becomes a source of his pride.

True patriotism is also demonstrated by heroes who do not belong to any of the worlds and act only in the plane of war, but are also opposed to the “dead” camp. The most indicative in this regard is the feat of Captain Tushin, and especially his perception of his heroism. Tushin did not even think about the heroic essence of his act - on the contrary, he is trying to justify himself and asks for help from Andrei Bolkonsky. According to Tolstoy, a true patriot does not even notice the fact that he is performing a feat - for him it is only a duty to the Motherland, devoid of any heroic flair. The feat of both Tushin’s battery and Raevsky’s battery, accomplished by the most ordinary, unremarkable people, fits this definition.

Thus, the technique of antithesis is basic for constructing a system of images of the novel and characterizing the main characters.

In fact, the antithesis, the opposition of two worlds - “dead” and “living” - forms the basis of the work and determines its structure. And, building the novel on the principle of antithesis, L.N. Tolstoy debunks the “dead” world, shows its inconsistency and affirms the human and Christian ideals that guide the “living” world.

Antithesis is the main ideological and compositional principle of the novels by L. G. Tolstoy “War and Peace” and F. G. Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment”, already inherent in their titles. It manifests itself at all levels of artistic expression: from the problematic to the construction of a system of characters and techniques of psychological depiction. However, in the very use of antithesis, Tolstoy and Dostoevsky often demonstrate different methods. The source of this discrepancy is their views on man. The works of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky have one common feature: their names are ambiguous and polysemantic. The word “war” in “War and Peace” means not only military actions, not only events that occur on the battlefield. War can occur in the everyday lives of people (remember such a war through the inheritance of Count Bezukhov), as well as in their souls. The word “peace” is even more meaningful in terms of meaning: peace as the antithesis of war and “peace” as a community of people. The title of the final edition of L. G. Tolstoy’s novel was “War and Peace,” that is, peace as the antithesis of war. But in Tolstoy’s numerous drafts and sketches there are different spellings of this word. We can find the very connection of “war and peace” in O. S. Pushkin in “Boris Godunov”:

“Describe, without further ado, All that you will witness in life: War and peace, the government of sovereigns, Saints, holy miracles.”

In Pushkin's context, the connection between “war and peace” becomes the key to the historical process as a whole. Thus, the world is a universal category, it is life, it is the universe. On the other hand, it is quite clear that the concepts of “crime” and “punishment” do not interest Dostoevsky for their narrow legal content. Crime and Punishment is a work that poses deep philosophical and moral problems. The artistic space of Tolstoy's novel is, as it were, limited by two poles: on one pole - good and peace, which unite people, on the other - evil and enmity, which lead to their separation. Tolstoy tests his heroes from the point of view of the law of “continuous movement of personality in time.” Heroes capable of mental movement and internal changes, according to the author, carry within themselves the beginning of “living life” and the world. The heroes, motionless, incapable of feeling and understanding the internal laws of life, are assessed by Tolstoy as the bearers of the beginning of war and discord. In his novel, Tolstoy sharply contrasts these characters. Thus, the writer compares Anna Pavlovna Scherer’s salon to a spinning workshop, to a soulless machine. The antithesis “correctness - incorrectness”, “external beauty - living charm” runs through the entire novel. For Tolstoy, Natasha’s irregular and even ugly facial features are much more attractive than Elen’s ancient beauty; Natasha’s cheerful (even if not efficient) laughter is a thousand times sweeter than Elen’s “unchangeable” smile. In the behavior of the characters, the author also contrasts the spontaneous with the intelligent, the natural with the theatrical. For Tolstoy, Natasha’s “mistakes” are much more natural and natural than Sonya’s smart behavior. “Family Thought” contrasts the Rostov family with the Kuragin “clan”. The complete embodiment of war in the novel was Napoleon. He not only constantly plays to the public, but also remains an actor in private. He thinks of himself as a great commander, focusing on some ancient examples. The complete antipode of Napoleon is in the novel Kutuzov, a sincere exponent of the spirit of nations. The antithesis “erroneous - sincere” is also used by Tolstoy when depicting the spiritual ruins of his characters.

So, Pierre in a duel, feeling the stupidity and fallacy of the situation, does not use anything to successfully resolve it, but demands to “start soon” and intensively loads his pistol. Unlike Tolstoy, Dostoevsky never portrays his heroes unambiguously: his people are always contradictory, completely unknowable. His characters combine two abyss together: the abyss of goodness, regret, sacrifice and the abyss of evil, selfishness, individualism, vice. Each of them has two ideals: the ideal of Madonna and the ideal of Sodom. The main core of “Crime and Punishment” is the trial of Raskolnikov, the internal court, the court of conscience. The techniques that Dostoevsky uses in creating the figurative system of his work differ from Tolstoy’s techniques. Dostoevsky resorts to the technique of double portraiture. Moreover, the first portrait, more generalized, usually argues with the second

So, before committing a crime, the author talks about Raskolnikov’s beauty, about his beautiful eyes. But the crime not only stained his soul, but left a tragic reflection on his face. This time we have a portrait of a killer. In Dostoevsky's novel, it is not the characters who argue, but their ideas. Thus, antithesis as an artistic device turned out to be very productive and controversial for two great realist artists - L. G. Tolstoy and F. G. Dostoevsky