Ostrovsky thunderstorm analysis of the work theme and idea. A.N

Department of Directing Theatrical Performances and Celebrations.

Work completed:

student of group 142

Markelova Evgenia.

Teacher:

Al Daniil Natanovich.

Saint Petersburg

Dramatic analysis of A. N. Ostrovsky’s drama “The Thunderstorm”.

The history of the creation of the play "The Thunderstorm".

Ostrovsky wrote the play "The Thunderstorm" in 1859 - at a time when a change in social foundations was ripe in Russia, on the eve of peasant reform. Therefore, the work was perceived as an expression of the spontaneous revolutionary sentiments of the masses. The title is symbolic. A thunderstorm occurs not only as a natural phenomenon (the action unfolds to the sounds of thunder), but also as an internal one - the characters are characterized through their attitude to the thunderstorm. For each hero, a thunderstorm is a special symbol: for some it is a harbinger of a storm, for others it is purification, the beginning of a new life, for others it is a “voice from above” that predicts some important events or warns against any actions. If we compare drama with dramatic canons, then N.A. wrote best about this. Dobrolyubov: “The subject of the drama must certainly be an event where we see the struggle between passion and duty - with the unhappy consequences of the victory of passion or with the happy ones when duty wins.” Also, the drama must have unity of action, and it must be written in high literary language. “The Thunderstorm”, at the same time, “does not satisfy the most essential goal of the drama - to instill respect for moral duty and show the harmful consequences of being carried away by passion. The main theme of Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm” is a powerful denial of the stagnation and oppression of the motionless “dark kingdom” and the emergence of a positive, bright beginning, the real heroines from the folk environment. Other themes in “The Thunderstorm” are themes of love, family relationships, and sin.

In the city of Kalinov, on the banks of the Volga, lives Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova, a rich merchant's wife, a widow - a rude, wild woman, a bigot and a despot. Together with her in her house live her son Tikhon, daughter Varvara and daughter-in-law Katerina Tikhon. A kind, but weak-willed man is completely under the power of his mother, only furtively violating her orders. He loves his wife, but she does not reciprocate his feelings. Katerina loves a young man, the nephew of the merchant Dikov, Boris Grigorievich, who also suffers hopelessly for her; he lives with his uncle, enjoying the same rights in the family as Katerina did with her mother-in-law; they only occasionally see each other in church. Boris depends on his uncle, Katerina is in eternal enmity with her mother-in-law, which makes the life of lovers full of difficulties and insoluble contradictions. It’s especially difficult for Katerina. A believer woman - she is afraid of her love, afraid of sin, does not want to betray her husband. Having not yet sinned, Katerina believes that she has no forgiveness. But you can’t command your heart, and as soon as the opportunity arises to meet your loved one, the young woman does not refuse. The opportunity for meetings arose thanks to the departure of her husband and the enterprise of his sister. Varvara, a young lady without principles, very quickly organized nightly meetings between lovers, replacing her mother’s gate key. And for ten days Katerina meets with Boris. Varvara also does not miss the opportunity for freedom: she meets with Vanya Kudryash, a young man, Dikiy’s clerk. At the same time, Varvara does not even think about her actions; night festivities do not seem immoral and unworthy to her. Tikhon is not in the city, he walks and drinks freely and, of course, does not feel guilty. Katerina is another matter. During her visits with her beloved, she forgets about the Last Judgment and the fiery hyena, which persecute a believing woman. But then her husband returns and the fear of the sin committed begins to torment Katerina. The approaching thunderstorm increases the woman’s anxiety, and she confesses everything to her husband and mother-in-law, falling to her knees in front of Tikhon. It doesn’t get any easier for her, and she seeks protection and support from Boris, but even here the poor woman has no understanding. Boris cannot disobey his uncle, who sends him to Siberia for love affairs. Katerina doesn’t have much choice, and she rushes into the Volga. The mother forbids her son to approach his wife's body because she is a sinner.

Characteristics of the characters in the play “The Thunderstorm”.

Katerina.

The main character of Ostrovsky's drama "The Thunderstorm". From Katerina's words we learn about her childhood and adolescence. The girl did not receive a good education. She lived with her mother in the village. Katerina's childhood was joyful and cloudless. Her mother “doted on her” and did not force her to do housework! We see that Katerina grew up as a happy, romantic, but limited girl. She loved everything and everyone around her: nature, the sun, the church, her home with wanderers, the beggars whom she helped. But the most important thing about Katya is that she lived in her dreams, apart from the rest of the world. From everything that existed, she chose only that which did not contradict her nature; the rest she did not want to notice and did not notice. We can say that Katerina was naive and kind, brought up in a completely religious spirit. But if she encountered something on her way that contradicted her ideals, then she turned into a rebellious and stubborn nature and defended herself from that extraneous, stranger that boldly disturbed her soul. ON THE. Dobrolyubov wrote in his criticism: “Katerina does not at all belong to the violent character, dissatisfied, who loves to destroy. On the contrary, this is a predominantly creative, loving, ideal character. That's why she tries to ennoble everything in her imagination. The feeling of love for a person, the need for tender pleasures naturally opened up in the young woman.”

After marriage, Katya’s life changed a lot, the girl found herself in a life full of deception, cruelty and desolation. The point is not even that Katerina married Tikhon against her will: she didn’t love anyone at all and she didn’t care who she married. The fact is that the girl was robbed of her former life, which she created for herself. Katerina no longer feels such delight from visiting church; she cannot do her usual activities. Sad, anxious thoughts do not allow her to calmly admire nature. Katya can only endure as long as she can and dream, but she can no longer live with her thoughts, because cruel reality returns her to earth, to where there is humiliation and suffering. Katerina is trying to find her happiness in her love for Tikhon: “I will love my husband. Tisha, my darling, I won’t exchange you for anyone.” But sincere manifestations of this love are stopped by Kabanikha: “Why are you hanging around your neck, shameless one? You’re not saying goodbye to your lover.” Katerina has a strong sense of external humility and duty, which is why she forces herself to love her unloved husband. Tikhon himself, because of his mother’s tyranny, cannot truly love his wife, although he probably wants to. And when he, leaving for a while, leaves Katya to walk around to his heart's content, the girl (already a woman) becomes completely lonely. Why did Katerina fall in love with Boris? The reason is that she lacked something pure in the stuffy atmosphere of Kabanikha’s house. And love for Boris was this pure, did not allow Katerina to completely wither away, somehow supported her. She went on a date with Boris because she wanted to get enough of love, knowing that there would be no other opportunity. On the first date, Katerina told Boris: “You ruined me.” Boris is the reason for discrediting her; souls, and for Katya this is tantamount to death. Sin hangs like a heavy stone on her heart. Katerina sees death as the only way out of this situation: “No, I don’t care whether I go home or go to the grave... It’s better in the grave... To live again? No, no, don’t... . not good" Haunted by her sin, Katerina leaves this life to save her soul.

Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova.

The boar is a prude and a hypocrite. Under the guise of piety, she, “like rusting iron,” eats her household, completely suppressing their will. Kabanikha raised a weak-willed son and wants to control his every step. Kabanikha and Dikoy are “pillars of society”, spiritual mentors in the city of Kalinov. She is the enemy of everything new, young, fresh. “That’s how the old man comes out. I don’t even want to go to another house. And if you get up, you’ll spit, but get out quickly. What will happen, how! the old people will die, I don’t know how the light will stay on. Well, at least it’s good that I won’t see anything.”

Savel Prokofievich Dikoy.

Just like a “dog” pounces on everyone. The capital behind him is the basis of his outrages, which is why he behaves this way. For the Wild there is one law - money. With them he determines the “value” of a person. Swearing is a normal state for him. Dikoy is not scrupulous in his choice of funds. Under the yoke of the Wild and Boars, not only their households groan, but the entire city.

A simple tradesman, a self-taught mechanic and a dreamer. We don't know his appearance. He is over fifty years old, but he is active and proactive. We meet Kuligin at the very beginning of the play. He sits on a bench and admires the Volga, even singing with pleasure.

Kuligin knows how to find a common language with people. “What a good man!” Boris says about him. Kuligin is a noble dreamer, he constantly thinks about the welfare of society - he wants to invent a perpetuum mobile and get a million for it, which he would spend on giving work to the middle class. “Otherwise you have hands, but nothing to work with.”

In the “dark kingdom” Kuligin appears as a good person, he reads poetry, sings, his judgments are always accurate and thorough. He is a kind dreamer who strives to make people's lives better and expand their knowledge about the world around them. Often, it seems that the wise and judicious thoughts that Kuligin expresses are an assessment of the events of the play by the author himself.

I like the image of Kuligin because he always knows what he is striving for. He has a goal - to make the life of society better, for this he tries to come up with all sorts of inventions, perpetuum mobiles, in order to use the money he receives to provide jobs for city residents. Only this character has some aspirations in life, everyone else simply lives, solving everyday problems or creating them for others.

I think that Ostrovsky, in the image of Kuligin, wanted to portray a solution to the problem in Kalinov. If Kuligin were not alone in his aspirations or if he were richer, then he could really change the life of his society, but none of this is given to him, and he is doomed to be an “outcast” in Kalinov.

Vanya Kudryash.

Vanya Kudryash, a young man, Dikiy’s clerk. In him, more than in any of the heroes of “The Thunderstorm,” except, of course, Katerina, the people’s principle triumphs. This is a song nature, gifted and talented, daring and reckless on the outside, but kind and sensitive in depth. Nevertheless, Kudryash gets used to the Viburnum morals, his nature is free, but sometimes self-willed. Kudryash opposes the world of the dark kingdom with his daring and mischief, but not with his moral strength. Kudryash is a freedom-loving man, he does not want to obey tyrants. “No, I won’t slave to him.” Kudryash unreservedly loves Varvara and knows how to stand up for his feelings. Kudryash is also not indifferent to the fate of other people.

She is a typical reflection of ordinary “Kalinovites” who are confident that “it’s still good that there are good people; no, no, and you’ll hear what’s going on in this world, otherwise you’d die like a fool.” Glasha belongs to the “dark kingdom”, dividing this world into “ours” and “theirs”, into patriarchal “virtue”, where everything is “cool and orderly”, and into external vanity, from which the old order and time begin to “become diminished” "

Varvara Kabanova.

The character in Ostrovsky's drama "The Thunderstorm" arouses significant reader interest. This girl shows character, and her character is quite strong. Let her not try to openly fight her mother and the order that reigned in the city of Kalinov. But nevertheless, she is absolutely not going to behave as her domineering and cruel mother demands. Varvara understands perfectly well that she is the master of her own destiny. Varvara is a realistic girl, and in this she differs significantly from the romantic and dreamy Katerina. Varvara looks at life very pragmatically, strives to enjoy all the joys of life and does it willingly. And to Katerina, in response to all her torments, she advises: “What kind of desire is there to dry up! Even if you die of melancholy, they will feel sorry for you! Well, just wait. So what kind of bondage is there to torment yourself!” Varvara knows how to see someone else’s deceit and hypocrisy. One episode clearly demonstrates this. Katerina and Varvara are talking, and suddenly a crazy lady appears. As usual, the crazy old woman talks about God's punishment, about the fire in which all sinners will burn. After she leaves, Katerina is truly scared. She says: “Oh, how she scared me! I’m trembling all over, as if she was prophesying something for me.” Katerina has a presentiment of something bad, although the tragedy is still far away. A developed imagination does a disservice to a girl; she loses her sense of reality. And he begins to suffer from incomprehensible anxiety. And Varvara reacts to the words of the crazy lady very simply: “On your head, old hag!” Varvara does not take the words of the crazy lady to heart for a second. She reassures Katerina, says that the lady “prophesies this to everyone”: “She has sinned all her life from a young age. Ask what they will tell about her! That’s what she is afraid of dying. What she is afraid of, she scares others.” step, Varvara hoped that Katerina would become a little more cheerful and happier when she was next to her beloved man. Varvara simply did not understand that Katerina is a person unlike her, she measures people by her own standards. Varvara knows her brother very well and says that as soon as he breaks free from his mother’s control, he will definitely start drinking. This is what actually happens. She has a great understanding of life and the people who surround her. She just cannot fully understand Katerina, because she is so different from everyone else.

Boris Grigorievich.

Nephew of the Wild. He is one of the weakest characters in the play. Boris himself says about himself: “I’m walking around completely dead... Driven, beaten...” A kind, well-educated man. He stands out sharply against the background of the merchant environment. But he is a weak person by nature. Boris is forced to humiliate himself before his uncle, Dikiy, for the sake of hope for the inheritance that he will leave him. Although the hero himself knows that this will never happen, he nevertheless curries favor with the tyrant, tolerating his antics. Boris is unable to protect either himself or his beloved Katerina. In misfortune, he only rushes about and cries: “Oh, if only these people knew how it feels for me to say goodbye to you! My God! God grant that someday they may feel as sweet as I do now... You villains! Monsters! Oh, if only there was strength! But Boris does not have this power, so he is unable to alleviate Katerina’s suffering and support her choice by taking her with him.

Tikhon Kabanov.

Katerina's husband, Kabanikha's son.

This image in its own way points to the end of the patriarchal way of life. Tikhon no longer considers it necessary to adhere to the old ways in everyday life. But, due to his character, he cannot act as he sees fit and go against his mother. His choice is everyday compromises: “Why listen to her! She needs to say something! Well, let her speak, and you turn a deaf ear!” A kindly but weak man, he rushes between fear of his mother and compassion for his wife. The hero loves Katerina, but not in the way Kabanikha demands - sternly, “like a man.” He doesn’t want to prove his power to his wife, he needs warmth and affection: “Why should she be afraid? It’s enough for me that she loves me.” But Tikhon doesn’t get this in Kabanikha’s house. At home, he is forced to play the role of an obedient son: “Yes, Mama, I don’t want to live by my own will! Where can I live by my own will!” His only outlet is traveling on business, where he forgets all his humiliations, drowning them in wine. Despite the fact that Tikhon loves Katerina, he does not understand what is happening to his wife, what mental anguish she is experiencing. Tikhon's gentleness is one of his negative qualities. It is because of her that he cannot help his wife in her struggle with her passion for Boris; he cannot ease Katerina’s fate even after her public repentance. Although he himself reacted kindly to his wife’s betrayal, without being angry with her: “Mama says that she must be buried alive in the ground so that she can be executed! But I love her, I would be sorry to lay a finger on her.” Only over the body of his dead wife does Tikhon decide to rebel against his mother, publicly blaming her for Katerina’s death. It is this riot in public that deals Kabanikha the most terrible blow.

Compositional structure of the play "The Thunderstorm".

Conflict.

A collision of two or more parties that do not coincide in their views and worldviews. There are several conflicts in Ostrovsky's play The Thunderstorm. If we see in the image of Katerina a reflection of the spontaneous protest of the masses against the constraining conditions of the “dark kingdom” and perceive Katerina’s death as the result of her collision with her tyrant mother-in-law, we should define the genre of the play as a social drama, and the conflict as a social one.

Exposition.

The type of exposition once upon a time, as we get acquainted with the characters, the era and tune in to the genre of the play. The playwright not only introduces us to the characters and the setting: he creates an image of the world in which the characters live and where the events will unfold. That is why in “The Thunderstorm”, as in other plays by Ostrovsky, there are many people who will not become direct participants in the intrigue, but are necessary to understand the very way of life. The action takes place in a fictional remote town, the city of Kalinov is depicted in detail, specifically and in many ways. In violation, it would seem, of the very nature of the drama in The Thunderstorm, an important role is played by the landscape, described not only in the stage directions, but also in the dialogues of the characters. Some people see his beauty, others take a closer look at it and are completely indifferent. The high Volga steep bank and the distances beyond the river introduce the motif of space, flight, inseparable from Katerina. Childishly pure and poetic at the beginning of the play, in the finale he is tragically transformed. Katerina appears on stage, dreaming of spreading her arms and taking off from the coastal cliff, and passes away by falling from this cliff into the Volga.

The beginning of the main conflict.

Katerina decided to admit to herself her love for Boris, which in her eyes is the greatest sin. This determination of Katerina is evident in the scene with the key. At first she pushes the key away: “What! No need! No need!" Then, holding the key in her hands, she admits to herself: “At least I am now! I live, I suffer, I don’t see any light for myself. And I won’t see it, you know!” frightened by someone’s steps, and hiding the key in his pocket: “Well, you know, so be it... that I’m deceiving myself? I should at least die and see him...” Katerina meets with Boris, while the feelings of sin only intensify in her soul: “... after all, I can’t forgive this sin, never forgive it!.. Why do you want my death!”

The main twist.

The emotional drama of its main character Katerina, who is fighting with herself, fighting with Kabanikha, behind whom stand the foundations and traditions of the “dark kingdom.”

Psychological outcome of the conflict.

it is clear that internally Katerina has already made up her mind: “I’m either going to go home or go to the grave!” It’s better in the grave...”, the formal denouement is the death of Katerina.

The ending of this play is based on the words of Tikhon. He exclaims that Kabanikha killed Katerina. But understanding Katerina’s inner experiences is inaccessible to Tikhon, like all other characters in the play.

Conclusion.

In his work A.N. Ostrovsky showed the tragedy of women's fate in the conditions of a bourgeois family that followed the precepts and traditions of house building. The writer showed how a cruel family turns a cheerful and naive girl into a person capable of suicide, that is, a person driven to the extreme of despair and disappointment in life. Ostrovsky’s drama “The Thunderstorm” is a classic tragedy. Everything in “The Thunderstorm” is classic - the characters - the types, the disproportion of causes and suffering, the violation of the scale of emotions and events.

The conflict in “The Thunderstorm,” traditional for this genre, between feeling and duty (sinful love for Boris) plays out in Katerina’s soul. Katerina is a truly tragic hero, rising above her environment. For her, reconciliation on earth is impossible, so the play ends with the death of the heroine. The relevance of the play changes at different times, but the significance of the problems raised by Ostrovsky is still great today. Because even today the main problems of society are centered around the concepts of love and hate, wealth and poverty, good and evil.

List of used literature:

1. N. A. Dobrolyubov “A Ray of Light in the Dark Kingdom”, 1860

2. Article by I. A. Goncharov “Review of the drama “The Thunderstorm” by Ostrovsky.”

3. S. Trukhtin “About Ostrovsky’s play The Thunderstorm.”

St. Petersburg State University of Culture and Arts.

Without a doubt, “The Thunderstorm” (1859) is the pinnacle of Alexander Ostrovsky’s dramaturgy. The author shows, using the example of family relationships, the most important changes in the socio-political life of Russia. That is why his creation needs detailed analysis.

The process of creating the play “The Thunderstorm” is connected by many threads with past periods in Ostrovsky’s work. The author is attracted by the same issues as in the “Muscovites” plays, but the image of the family receives a different interpretation (the denial of the stagnation of patriarchal life and the oppression of Domostroi was new). The appearance of a bright, good beginning, a natural heroine is an innovation in the author’s work.

The first thoughts and sketches of “The Thunderstorm” appeared in the summer of 1859, and already in early October the writer had a clear idea of the whole picture. The work was greatly influenced by the 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 city of Kalinov is a collective image of different Volga cities, which are at the same time similar to each other, but have their own distinctive features. Ostrovsky, as an experienced researcher, entered all his observations about the life of the Russian province and the specific behavior of the inhabitants in his diary. Based on these recordings, the characters of "The Thunderstorm" were later created.

Meaning of the name

A thunderstorm is not only the rampant nature of the elements, but also a symbol of the collapse and purification of the stagnant atmosphere of a provincial town, where the medieval order of Kabanikha and Dikiy ruled. This is the meaning of the title of the play. With the death of Katerina, which occurred during a thunderstorm, the patience of many people is exhausted: Tikhon rebels against the tyranny of his mother, Varvara escapes, Kuligin openly blames the inhabitants of the city for what happened.

Tikhon first spoke about the thunderstorm during the farewell ceremony: “...For two weeks there will be no thunderstorm over me.” By this word he meant the oppressive atmosphere of his home, where an oppressive mother rules the roost. “A thunderstorm is being sent to us as punishment,” Dikoy says to Kuligin. The tyrant understands this phenomenon as punishment for his sins; he is afraid of paying for his unfair treatment of people. Kabanikha agrees with him. Katerina, whose conscience is also not clear, sees the punishment for sin in thunder and lightning. God's righteous wrath - this is another role of the thunderstorm in Ostrovsky's play. And only Kuligin understands that in this natural phenomenon one can only find a flash of electricity, but his progressive views cannot yet get along in a city in need of cleansing. If you need more information about the role and significance of thunderstorms, you can read on this topic.

Genre and direction

“The Thunderstorm” is a drama, according to A. Ostrovsky. This genre defines a heavy, serious, often everyday plot, close to reality. Some reviewers mentioned a more precise formulation: domestic tragedy.

If we talk about the direction, this play is absolutely realistic. The main indicator of this, perhaps, is the description of the morals, habits and everyday aspects of the existence of residents of provincial Volga cities (detailed description). The author attaches great importance to this, carefully outlining the realities of the heroes’ lives and their images.

Composition

Exposition: Ostrovsky paints an image of the city and even the world in which the heroes live and future events will unfold.
What follows is the beginning of Katerina’s conflict with her new family and society as a whole and the internal conflict (dialogue between Katerina and Varvara).
After the beginning, we see the development of the action, during which the heroes strive to resolve the conflict.
Towards the end, the conflict reaches a point where problems require urgent resolution. The climax is Katerina’s last monologue in act 5.
Following it is a denouement that shows the intractability of the conflict using the example of Katerina’s death.

Conflict

Several conflicts can be distinguished in “The Thunderstorm”:

Firstly, this is a confrontation between tyrants (Dikay, Kabanikha) and victims (Katerina, Tikhon, Boris, etc.). This is a conflict between two worldviews - old and new, obsolete and freedom-loving characters. This conflict is highlighted.
On the other hand, the action exists thanks to a psychological conflict, that is, internal - in Katerina’s soul.
The social conflict gave rise to all the previous ones: Ostrovsky begins his work with the marriage of an impoverished noblewoman and a merchant. This trend became widespread during the time of the author. The ruling aristocratic class began to lose power, becoming poorer and ruined due to idleness, wastefulness and commercial illiteracy. But the merchants gained momentum due to unscrupulousness, assertiveness, business acumen and nepotism. Then some decided to improve matters at the expense of others: the nobles married sophisticated and educated daughters to rude, ignorant, but rich sons from the merchant guild. Because of this discrepancy, the marriage of Katerina and Tikhon is initially doomed to failure.

The essence

Brought up in the best traditions of aristocracy, noblewoman Katerina, at the insistence of her parents, married the uncouth and soft-bodied drunkard Tikhon, who belonged to a wealthy merchant family. His mother oppresses her daughter-in-law, imposing on her the false and ridiculous rules of Domostroy: to cry openly before her husband leaves, to humiliate herself in front of us in public, etc. The young heroine finds sympathy from Kabanikha’s daughter, Varvara, who teaches her new relative to hide her thoughts and feelings, secretly acquiring the joys of life. During her husband's departure, Katerina falls in love and begins dating Diky's nephew, Boris. But their dates end in separation, because the woman does not want to hide, she wants to escape with her beloved to Siberia. But the hero cannot risk taking her with him. As a result, she still repents of her sins to her visiting husband and mother-in-law and receives severe punishment from Kabanikha. Realizing that her conscience and domestic oppression do not allow her to live further, she rushes into the Volga. After her death, the younger generation rebels: Tikhon reproaches his mother, Varvara runs away with Kudryash, etc.

Ostrovsky's play combines features and contradictions, all the pros and cons of feudal Russia of the 19th century. The town of Kalinov is a collective image, a simplified model of Russian society, described in detail. Looking at this model, we see “an essential need for active and energetic people.” The author shows that an outdated worldview only gets in the way. It first spoils family relationships, and later prevents cities and the entire country from developing.

The main characters and their characteristics

The work has a clear character system into which the images of the heroes fit.

First, they are the oppressors. Dikoy is a typical tyrant and a rich merchant. His insults send the relatives running to the corners. Dikoy is cruel to her servants. Everyone knows that it is impossible to please him. Kabanova is the embodiment of the patriarchal way of life, the outdated Domostroy. A wealthy merchant, a widow, she constantly insists on observing all the traditions of her ancestors and herself strictly follows them. We described them in more detail in this.
Secondly, adaptable. Tikhon is a weak man who loves his wife, but cannot find the strength to protect her from her mother’s oppression. He does not support the old orders and traditions, but sees no point in going against the system. Such is Boris, who tolerates the machinations of his rich uncle. This is dedicated to revealing their images. Varvara is the daughter of Kabanikha. She takes it by deceit, living a double life. During the day she formally obeys conventions, at night she walks with Curly. Deceit, resourcefulness and cunning do not spoil her cheerful, adventurous disposition: she is also kind and responsive to Katerina, gentle and caring towards her beloved. An entire story is dedicated to the characterization of this girl.
Katerina stands apart; the characterization of the heroine is different from everyone else. This is a young intelligent noblewoman, whom her parents surrounded with understanding, care and attention. Therefore, the girl got used to freedom of thought and speech. But in marriage she faced cruelty, rudeness and humiliation. At first she tried to come to terms with Tikhon and his family, but nothing worked: Katerina’s nature resisted this unnatural union. She then took on the role of a hypocritical mask who has a secret life. This didn’t suit her either, because the heroine is distinguished by her straightforwardness, conscience and honesty. As a result, out of despair, she decided to revolt, admitting her sin and then committing a more terrible one - suicide. We wrote more about Katerina’s image in a section dedicated to her.
Kuligin is also a special hero. He expresses the author’s position, introducing a bit of progressiveness into the archaic world. The hero is a self-taught mechanic, he is educated and smart, unlike the superstitious inhabitants of Kalinov. We also wrote a short story about his role in the play and character.

Themes

The main theme of the work is the life and customs of Kalinov (we dedicated a separate section to it). The author describes a provincial province to show people that they do not need to cling to the remnants of the past, they need to understand the present and think about the future. And the inhabitants of the Volga town are frozen outside of time, their life is monotonous, false and empty. It is spoiled and hampered in its development by superstition, conservatism, as well as the reluctance of tyrants to change for the better. Such a Russia will continue to vegetate in poverty and ignorance.
Also important themes here are love and family, as throughout the narrative, problems of upbringing and generational conflict are raised. The influence of family on certain characters is very important (Katerina is a reflection of her parents’ upbringing, and Tikhon grew up so spineless because of his mother’s tyranny).
Theme of sin and repentance. The heroine stumbled, but realized her mistake in time, deciding to correct herself and repent of what she had done. From the point of view of Christian philosophy, this is a highly moral decision that elevates and justifies Katerina. If you are interested in this topic, read our about it.

Issues

Social conflict entails social and personal problems.

Ostrovsky, firstly, denounces tyranny as a psychological phenomenon in the images of Dikoy and Kabanova. These people played with the destinies of their subordinates, trampling down manifestations of their individuality and freedom. And because of their ignorance and despotism, the younger generation becomes as vicious and useless as the one that has already outlived its usefulness.
Secondly, the author condemns weakness, obedience and selfishness using the images of Tikhon, Boris and Varvara. By their behavior they only condone the tyranny of the masters of life, although they could jointly turn the situation in their favor.
The problem of the contradictory Russian character, conveyed in the image of Katerina, can be called personal, although inspired by global upheavals. A deeply religious woman, in search and discovery of herself, commits adultery and then commits suicide, which contradicts all Christian canons.
Moral issues associated with love and devotion, education and tyranny, sin and repentance. The characters cannot distinguish one from the other; these concepts are intricately intertwined. Katerina, for example, is forced to choose between loyalty and love, and Kabanikha does not see the difference between the role of a mother and the power of a dogmatist; she is driven by good intentions, but she embodies them to the detriment of everyone.
Tragedy of conscience quite important. For example, Tikhon had to decide whether to protect his wife from his mother’s attacks or not. Katerina also made a deal with her conscience when she became close to Boris. You can find out more about this.
Ignorance. The residents of Kalinov are stupid and uneducated; they believe fortune-tellers and wanderers, and not scientists and professionals in their field. Their worldview is turned to the past, they do not strive for a better life, so there is nothing to be surprised at the savagery of morals and the ostentatious hypocrisy of the main people of the city.

Meaning

The author is convinced that the desire for freedom is natural, despite certain failures in life, and tyranny and hypocrisy are ruining the country and the talented people in it. Therefore, one must defend one’s independence, craving for knowledge, beauty and spirituality, otherwise the old orders will not go away, their falseness will simply embrace the new generation and force them to play by their own rules. This idea is reflected in the position of Kuligin, a unique voice of Ostrovsky.

The author's position in the play is clearly expressed. We understand that Kabanikha, although she preserves traditions, is wrong, just like the rebellious Katerina is wrong. However, Katerina had potential, she had intelligence, she had purity of thoughts, and the great people personified in her could still be reborn, throwing off the shackles of ignorance and tyranny. You can find out even more about the meaning of drama in this topic.

Criticism

"The Thunderstorm" became the subject of fierce debate among critics in both the 19th and 20th centuries. In the 19th century, Nikolai Dobrolyubov (article “A Ray of Light in the Dark Kingdom”), Dmitry Pisarev (article “Motives of Russian Drama”) and Apollon Grigoriev wrote about it from opposite positions.

I. A. Goncharov highly appreciated the play and expressed his opinion in a critical article of the same name:

In the same drama, a broad picture of national life and morals was laid out, with unparalleled artistic completeness and fidelity. Every person in drama is a typical character, snatched directly from the environment of folk life.

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A.N. Ostrovsky's drama "The Thunderstorm" is one of the writer's most famous works. It contains many themes: love, freedom, and serfdom. And, of course, the main idea that runs like a red thread through the entire work is reflected in the title of the play.

A thunderstorm is both a natural phenomenon, a danger looming over the city, and a symbol of the era.

From the very beginning of the story, in the first act, we hear a conversation between two heroes about Kalinov’s morals. Kudryash and Kuligin are minor characters, but despite this they carry an important semantic load. Their conversation revolves around the Wild One. This hero is gifted by the author with a speaking surname; indeed, human concepts seem to be alien to him. This hero is a kind of thunderstorm for everyone at home, as well as for the courtyard people; his sudden anger keeps the entire neighborhood in fear.

Another episode in which Dikoy and one of the heroes who first appear on stage, Kuligin, are present. In this episode, Kuligin asks Dikiy for money to build a clock and a lightning rod; the hero wants to do something useful and good, to somehow move the ossified society. But he is refused, it turns out that Dikiy’s stupidity and short-sightedness is even deeper than it might seem to us, he is categorically against the construction, because a thunderstorm, in his opinion, is sent to people as punishment, and watches are not needed at all (the author probably emphasizes the lack of watches the fact that Kalinov’s development is lagging behind, there is no education and rough serfdom still reigns).

The main character of the work, Katerina, lives with her husband in the house of his mother Kabanikha. Kabanovs, this is their telling surname, and it does not require further explanation. Freedom-loving Katerina languishes under the yoke of this cruel woman, a real thunderstorm for her entire home. Only Katerina’s good manners and wisdom allowed her to remain under her power for a long time, but only externally, internally the heroine always remains free.

Much in Katerina’s life is connected with thunderstorms. She is afraid of this natural phenomenon, faints, her intuition tells her that something is about to happen that will decide her fate. And she admits her actions with Boris, and understands: she cannot live in the Kabanovs’ house anymore. After all, Kabanikha became a thunderstorm not only for her, but also for her son. He runs away from home to spend a few days in freedom.

As for Katerina, she herself can be called a thunderstorm for the outdated foundations of the Kalinovites. In the finale, she seems to challenge the slavery and oppression that reigns in the city. Throughout the entire action, tension is felt, a thunderstorm hangs over Kalinov’s tyrants.

Much indicates that the power of Kabanikha and Dikiy is in danger. Kudryash refuses to obey them, and in the end disappears along with Varvara, who also only creates the appearance of subordination to Kabanikha, but in reality she does what she considers necessary.

And, of course, Kuligin’s words at the end of the play confirm the idea that the power of the Wild and Kabanovs is short-lived, a thunderstorm is approaching them. Kuligin reminds them that Katerina’s body may belong to them, but her soul is free.

The meaning of the title of this play is very significant. Many times it occurs as a natural phenomenon, is reflected in the images and characters of the characters, and seems to be a character itself. The whole atmosphere of the work is reflected in the title of A.N. Ostrovsky’s wonderful and still popular and beloved play “The Thunderstorm”.

The meaning of the title, the title of Ostrovsky's play The Thunderstorm

A.N. Ostrovsky is one of the most outstanding writers of the 19th century; his works tell us about the struggle of humanity, kindness, compassion with meanness, greed and malice. In each of his books, the author shows kind, naive heroes faced with the cruel reality of the world, which leads them to complete disappointment in life and kills all the good that is in them.

"The Thunderstorm" is the pinnacle of the playwright's creative quest. After all, this play marked the beginning of such a monumental theme, which was subsequently used more than once as the main theme in their works by various writers of contemporaries and subsequent centuries. What has impressed readers so much over three centuries?

Katerina, translated from Greek, means “pure”; Ostrovsky tells us how people around her, rotten to the very bones, oppress her and drive her into a corner, because they feel the strength in her and understand that she is the beginning of the end for them.
This fragile, naive girl cannot be called strong-willed or strong, she did not accomplish a feat, on the contrary, her act can be perceived as weakness, but the death of the heroine became a protest against the existing order, by her example she freed the hands of all the oppressed. Her image is a “ray of light”, a symbol of the fight against cruel, selfish people who ruin the lives of everyone around, that is, against the “dark kingdom”.

In the last days and weeks of her life, Katerina was terribly afraid of thunder, believing that God’s punishment for her sins was falling on her head, she was so pure that she did not understand that the thunderstorm did not come to kill her, lightning and thunder were splitting into pieces the world of those who offended her, the darkness has come to an end.

Katerina played the role of a soldier who runs ahead of everyone with a flag, calling to fight, the role of a soldier who awakens strength and resistance in souls. After all, after her death, everyone who had been silent and patient before protested. Kabanov finally realized and understood that his tyrant mother was to blame for what happened, but his conscience was not calm either, because he could not prevent the tragedy. Kudryash and Varvara decide to run away, to leave behind Diky and Kabanikha, whose life will become unbearable if they have no one to oppress and no one to pour their dirt on.

A thunderstorm that brings death to the dark kingdom, to the former terrible foundations - this is the main meaning and significance of Ostrovsky’s play.

Alexander Nikolaevich shows the hackneyed and banal theme of the struggle between good and evil in a completely unique light and perceives it quite sharply. I think this is a very important work that everyone should read.

Several interesting essays

Most likely, the most important character trait of a person is loyalty. It is based on consistency and honesty. Based on our understanding, we ourselves choose who or what to trust.

Bogodul in the story Farewell to Rasputin's Matera essay
One of the minor characters of the work is a stray resident of the island nicknamed Bogodul, presented by the writer in the form of an old man.
Gypsy character and image in the story Gorky's Childhood essay
The character of Maxim Gorky's story, nineteen-year-old Ivan, is very ambiguous. He received the nickname Gypsy because of his appearance - dark skin, dark hair, plus he often stole from the market
What does Mtsyri see as happiness? essay
The plot of the poem “Mtsyri” unfolds around the main character of the work, a little boy who was raised by a monarch. At first the reader may think that Mtsyri is a lucky man

This summer I went to camp. The voucher was given to my mother at work. When I found out that I was going to the camp, I was very happy. I immediately started thinking about what I would need at camp. I decided that I would take a couple of toy cars

Ostrovsky's drama "The Thunderstorm" is the most significant work of the famous playwright. It was written in 1860 during a period of social upsurge, when the foundations of serfdom were cracking and a storm was brewing in the stuffy atmosphere of reality. Ostrovsky's play takes us to the merchant environment, where the Domostroev order was most persistently maintained. Residents of a provincial town live a closed life alien to public interests, in ignorance of what is happening in the world, in ignorance and indifference. Their range of interests is limited to household chores. Behind the external calm of life lie dark thoughts, the dark life of tyrants who do not recognize human dignity. Representatives of the “dark kingdom” are Dikoy and Kabanikha. The first complete type of tyrant merchant, whose meaning of life is to amass capital by any means. The main theme of the thunderstorm is the clash between new trends and old traditions, between the oppressed and the oppressors, between the desire of people for the free manifestation of their human rights, spiritual needs, and the prevailing social and family order in Russia.

If we consider “The Thunderstorm” as a social and everyday drama, then the resulting conflict looks quite simple: it is, as it were, external, social; the attention of the audience is equally distributed between the characters, all of them, like checkers on a board, play almost identical roles necessary to create the plot outline, they confuse and then, flashing and rearranging, as in tag, help resolve the confusing plot. If the system of characters is laid out in such a way that the conflict arises and is resolved, as it were, with the help of all the characters. Here we are dealing with an everyday drama; its conflict is simple and easy to guess.

Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm” raises the problem of the turning point in social life that occurred in the 50s, the change in social foundations. The author cannot be absolutely impartial, but it is very difficult for him to express his position - the author's position is revealed in remarks, of which there are not very many and they are not expressive enough. There is only one option left - the author’s position is presented through a certain character, through composition, symbolism, etc.
The names in the play are very symbolic. The speaking names used in “The Thunderstorm” are an echo of the classic theater, the features of which were preserved in the late 60s of the 19th century.
The name Kabanova vividly portrays to us an overweight woman with a difficult character, and the nickname “Kabanikha” complements this unpleasant picture.
The author characterizes the wild as a wild, unrestrained person.
The name Kuligin has many meanings. On the one hand, it is in tune with Kulibin, a self-taught mechanic. On the other hand, “kuliga” is a swamp.

For a long time, critical literature has focused on one conflict or the other. But the author gave the work a deeper meaning - it is a folk tragedy.

Dobrolyubov called Katerina “a ray of light in a dark kingdom,” but later, a few years later, Ostrovsky himself gave such people the name “warm heart.” Indeed, this is a conflict between a “hot heart” and the surrounding icy environment. And a thunderstorm as a physical phenomenon is trying to melt this ice. Another meaning put by the author into a thunderstorm symbolizes the wrath of God, and everyone who is afraid of a thunderstorm is not ready to accept death and stand before the judgment of God, or they think so. But the author puts his words into Kuligin’s mouth. “The judge is more merciful than you,” he says. In this way he characterizes his attitude towards this society. And this ending expresses hope. Ostrovsky divides all his time in Kalinov, like the play, into day and night. During the day, people play the faithful, living according to “Domostroy,” and at night they take off their masks. Young people go out and have fun, and the elders turn a blind eye to it. The author's position is expressed partly in Kuligin's monologues, and partly it can be understood from the opposition of Katerina and Kabanikha. The author's position is expressed in the composition. A special feature of the composition are two possible options for climax and denouement.

Of course, the play was written on a social and everyday theme: it is characterized by the author’s special attention to depicting the details of everyday life, the desire to accurately convey the atmosphere of the city of Kalinov, its “cruel morals.” The fictional city is described in detail and in many ways. The landscape concept plays an important role, but a contradiction is immediately visible here: Kuligin speaks of the beauty of the distances beyond the river, the high Volga cliff. “Nothing,” Kudryash objects to him. Pictures of night walks along the boulevard, songs, picturesque nature, Katerina’s stories about childhood - this is the poetry of Kalinov’s world, which collides with the everyday cruelty of the inhabitants, stories about “naked poverty.” The Kalinovites have preserved only vague legends about the past - Lithuania “fell to us from the sky”, news from the big world is brought to them by the wanderer Feklusha. Undoubtedly, such attention by the author to the details of the characters’ everyday life makes it possible to talk about drama as a genre of the play “The Thunderstorm”.

Another feature characteristic of drama and present in the play is the presence of a chain of intra-family conflicts. At first it is a conflict between the daughter-in-law and mother-in-law behind the locks of the house gate, then the whole city learns about this conflict, and from an everyday one it develops into a social one. The expression of conflict in the actions and words of the characters, characteristic of drama, is most clearly shown in the monologues and dialogues of the characters. So, we learn about Katerina’s life before marriage from a conversation between young Kabanova and Varvara: Katerina lived “not worried about anything,” like a “bird in the wild,” spending the whole day in pleasures and household chores. We know nothing about the first meeting of Katerina and Boris, or how their love began. In his article, N.A. Dobrolyubov considered the insufficient “development of passion” to be a significant omission, and said that this is why the “struggle between passion and duty” is designated “not quite clearly and strongly” for us. But this fact does not contradict the laws of drama.

The originality of the “Thunderstorms” genre is also manifested in the fact that, despite the gloomy, tragic overall coloring, the play also contains comic and satirical scenes. Feklushi’s anecdotal and ignorant stories about the Saltans, about lands where all the people “have dog heads,” seem ridiculous to us. After the release of “The Thunderstorm,” A.D. Galakhov wrote in a review of the play that “the action and the catastrophe are tragic, although many places excite laughter.”

The play is based on the conflict between an individual and the surrounding society (Katerina and the “dark kingdom”).

The action of “The Thunderstorm” takes place on the banks of the Volga, in an ancient city, where, as it seems, nothing has changed for centuries and cannot change, and it is in the conservative patriarchal family of this city that Ostrovsky sees manifestations of an irresistible renewal of life, its selfless and rebellious beginning. A conflict “breaks out” between two opposing characters, human natures. Two opposing forces are embodied in the young merchant's wife Katerina Kabanova and her mother-in-law, Marfa Kabanova. Kabanikha is a convinced and principled keeper of antiquity, once and for all found and established norms and rules of life. Katerina is an ever-searching, creative person who takes bold risks for the sake of the living needs of her soul.

In his article “A Ray of Light in a Dark Kingdom,” Dobrolyubov wrote about the play: ““The Thunderstorm” represents an idyll of the “dark kingdom”... The mutual relations of tyranny and voicelessness are brought to the most tragic consequences in it...”

Kabanikha does not recognize the legitimacy of individual differences between people and the diversity of life of peoples. Everything in which the life of other places differs from the life of the city of Kalinov testifies to “infidelity”: people who live differently from the Kalinovites must have the heads of dogs. The center of the Universe is the pious city of Kalinov, the center of this city is the house of the Kabanovs, - this is how the experienced wanderer Feklusha characterizes the world to please the stern mistress. Any change seems to Kabanikha to be the beginning of sin.

Throughout the entire action of the play, Katerina is accompanied by the motif of flight and fast driving. She wants to fly like a bird, and she dreams about flying, she tried to sail along the Volga, and in her dreams she sees herself racing in a troika. She turns to both Tikhon and Boris with a request to take her with them, to take her away. However, this movement has one feature - the absence of a clearly defined goal.

The “dispute” of Katerina and Kabanikha is accompanied by the dispute of Kuligin and Dikiy, the drama of the slavish position of feelings in the world of calculation is here accompanied by a depiction of the tragedy of the mind in the “dark kingdom”, the tragedy of the desecration of beauty and poetry is the tragedy of the enslavement of science by wild “patrons”.

“The Thunderstorm” is usually called a drama, not a tragedy, despite the death of Katerina. The play also traces comedic traditions in its satirical depiction of the morals of the merchants.

Ostrovsky introduces a landscape that acts not only as a background, but also as the embodiment of the elements opposing the “dark kingdom” (scenes on the Volga, the death of Katerina).

When creating the images of Katerina, Kuligin and Kudryash, the author uses folklore traditions. The characters' speech is filled with colloquialisms. Ostrovsky introduces symbols that carry a semantic load in the text: thunderstorm - contradictions in Katerina’s soul; lightning rod - a symbol of enlightenment, etc.

"Dark Kingdom" and its victims

Dobrolyubov speaks of the inhabitants of the city of Kalinov in the following way: “Their life flows smoothly and peacefully, no interests of the world disturb them, because they do not reach them; kingdoms can collapse, new countries open up, the face of the earth... change... - the inhabitants of the town of Kalinov will continue to exist in complete ignorance of the rest of the world... The concepts and way of life they accept * are the best in the world, everything new comes from evil spirits... they find awkward and even daring to persistently search for reasonable grounds... The information reported by the Feklushis is such that they are not capable of inspiring a great desire to exchange their life for another... A dark mass, terrible in its naivety and sincerity.”

The wanderers in the play are of no small importance, as they characterize the downtroddenness of the people. “Because of their weakness they themselves did not go far, but they heard a lot”: about sins, six or twelve embarrassing enemies, about distant countries where the Saltans rule the earth, about people with dog heads, about the endless bustle in Moscow, where “the last times are coming ", about the "fiery serpent", etc.

In the play, the tyrants are Dikaya and Kabanova, to whom Dobrolyubov gave the following assessment: “The absence of any law, any logic - this is the law and logic of this life... The tyrants of Russian life, however, begin to feel some kind of discontent and fear, without knowing what and why... Apart from them, without asking them, another life grew up... the old Kabanovs breathe heavily, feeling that there is a power higher than them, which they cannot overcome, which they do not know how to approach... The Wild and Kabanovs, meeting themselves with a contradiction and not being able to defeat him, but wanting to stand on their own, they directly declare themselves against logic, that is, they make fools of themselves in front of the majority of people.”

Kabanikha demands obedience and self-respect from the spineless Tikhon, whom he does not perceive as an independent person, and scolds him. For this reason, he cannot form an independent relationship with Katerina, whom Kabanikha hates with unconscious hatred.

Dobrolyubov characterizes Diky as follows: “It seems to him that if he recognizes over himself the laws of common sense, common to all people, then his importance will greatly suffer from this... He realizes that he is absurd... The habit of fooling around in him is so strong that he even submits to it contrary to the voice of my own common sense.”

At first glance, Varvara and Kudryash are opposed to the “dark kingdom,” but in fact they are connected with it internally. They leave only because they could not adapt to it.

Kuligin opposes the ignorance of the “dark kingdom” and is the bearer of the ideas of enlightenment. He passively observes, although he really wants to benefit society, trying to change something in it. His abilities cannot develop in the conditions of the “dark kingdom”, since his dependence on him is too great.

Dobrolyubov about Tikhon: “Simple-hearted and vulgar, not at all evil, but extremely characterless... from the many pathetic types who are usually called harmless, although in a general sense they are as harmful as the tyrants themselves, because they serve them faithful assistants... no strong feeling, no decisive desire can develop in him.”

Dobrolyubov says about Boris: “Not a hero... He has had enough education and cannot cope with the old way of life, nor with his heart, nor with common sense - he walks as if lost... one of those people who do not know how to do what they understand, and They don’t understand what they’re doing.”

Boris understands that he will be left without an inheritance, but despite this, he will never decide to break off relations with Dikiy, since he has no inner strength (“Oh, if only there was strength!”).

Dobrolyubov about Katerina: “Katerina did not kill the human nature in herself... The Russian strong character... amazes us with its opposition to all tyrant principles... Character... creative, loving, ideal... She tries to smooth out any external dissonance... she covers up any shortcoming from the fullness of her inner strength... She strange, extravagant from the point of view of those around her, but this is because she cannot in any way accept their views and inclinations... She strives for a new life, even if she had to die in this impulse... A mature demand for right and ^the expanse of life... In the dry, monotonous life of her youth, in the rough and superstitious concepts of the environment, she constantly knew how to take what agreed with her natural aspirations for beauty, harmony, contentment, happiness... All the ideas instilled in her from childhood, all the principles of the environment environments rebel against her natural aspirations and actions. Everything is against Katerina, even her own concepts of good and evil.”

Katerina fights with herself and in the end internally justifies herself. The need to love and be loved is felt with particular force; offended feelings of the wife and woman in the mother-in-law's house; mortal melancholy caused by the monotony and monotony of her life; desire of will.

The author, creating the image of Katerina, turns to folklore traditions (motifs of folk songs; appeals to “dear friend”, to “wild winds”; the image of a “grave”), thereby emphasizing her belonging to the people.