What is the genre of the poem The Bronze Horseman? Bronze Horseman (poem)

Topic 2

A.S. Pushkin

Poem " Bronze Horseman»

Genre: poem

Original language: Russian

Year of writing: 1833

Publication: 1834 (excerpt), 1837

Completed in 1833 in Boldino, the poem will not pass the tsarist censorship and will be published with cuts after the death of the poet. Belinsky sensitively realized that the most important lines (Eugene’s challenge to the autocrat) were missing. Poem - unique creation even in the works of Pushkin: the St. Petersburg story (the first romantic poem was also defined by this genre), where one main character is the “little man”, poor Eugene. Against him are the elements of water and wind, the power of autocratic power. Eugene’s ideals are emphatically personal and everyday. Once again, Pushkin’s great idea - the state is determined by the personal happiness (or misfortune) of its citizens. What should a little person do if the meaning of life has disappeared, if Parasha died?

Pushkin glorifies "Peter's creation", the beauty of St. Petersburg, the sovereign flow of the Neva. Peter's plans came true: all the flags floated to visit, St. Petersburg was built. But some moral laws were not taken into account and even trampled upon by the transformer of Russia. The process carried out by the autocratic will is full of insoluble contradictions. “The Duma on the forehead of the copper idol, its fatal will” is one layer of Russian life. Poor Evgeniy is from another layer of him. Natural elements are the third layer. Although all of them, taken together, are Russian life.

Evgeny as a type - result historical development society. His personal tragedy (unlike Vyrin) does not receive an everyday justification, but is inserted by the author into the circle of spontaneous and historical-social events. The action of the poem is transferred from the bureaucratic closet to the streets and squares of the capital. From modest and ordinary thoughts at the beginning of the story, as a result of a cruel moral test, the hero comes to “terrible thoughts.” "Noise internal anxiety"- this is how Pushkin defines the new internal state hero. Evgeniy's madness is not final stage destruction of personality. The main conflict is the clash between Eugene and the Bronze Horseman. The riot is the climax of the poem. Spiritual state the hero is given in development, Pushkin reports the smallest portrait details (forehead, eyes, heart, hands). The hero remembers the past, a terrible clarification of thoughts occurs before the final fall into the abyss of madness.

Against whom and in the name of what is Evgeniy rebelling? Much in the poem is symbolic, and in this - artistic originality poems.

What is Pushkin's attitude to rebellion? Pushkin does not believe in either rebellion or revolution, but, exploring history and modernity as an artist, he came to the conclusion that violence gives rise to protest. In "The Bronze Horseman" it is shown how Eugene's rebellion is naturally born, daring performance hero is natural and justified.

Text of the poem

BRONZE HORSEMAN

PETERSBURG TALE

PREFACE

The incident described in this story is based on truth. Details of the flood are taken from magazines of the time. The curious can consult the news compiled by V. N. Berkh.

INTRODUCTION

On the shore of desert waves

He stood there, full of great thoughts,

And he looked into the distance. Wide before him

The river rushed; poor boat

He strove along it alone.

Along mossy, marshy banks

Blackened huts here and there,

Shelter of a wretched Chukhonian;

And the forest, unknown to the rays

In the fog of the hidden sun,

There was noise all around.

And he thought:

From here we will threaten the Swede,

The city will be founded here

To spite an arrogant neighbor.

Nature destined us here

Cut a window to Europe,1

Stand with a firm foot by the sea.

Here on new waves

All the flags will visit us,

And we’ll record it in the open air.

A hundred years have passed, and the young city,

There is beauty and wonder in full countries,

From the darkness of the forests, from the swamps of blat

He ascended magnificently and proudly;

Where was the Finnish fisherman before?

Nature's sad stepson

Alone on the low banks

Thrown into unknown waters

Your old net, now there

Along busy shores

Slender communities crowd together

Palaces and towers; ships

A crowd from all over the world

They strive for rich marinas;

The Neva is dressed in granite;

Bridges hung over the waters;

Dark green gardens

Islands covered her,

And in front of the younger capital

Old Moscow has faded,

Like before a new queen

Porphyry widow.

I love you, Petra's creation,

I love your strict, slender appearance,

Neva sovereign current,

Its coastal granite,

Your fences have a cast iron pattern,

of your thoughtful nights

Transparent twilight, moonless shine,

When I'm in my room

I write, I read without a lamp,

And the sleeping communities are clear

Deserted streets and light

Admiralty needle,

And, not letting the darkness of the night

To golden skies

One dawn gives way to another

He hurries, giving the night half an hour2.

I love your cruel winter

Still air and frost,

Sleigh running along the wide Neva,

Girls' faces are brighter than roses,

And the shine, and the noise, and the talk of balls,

And at the time of the feast the bachelor

The hiss of foamy glasses

And the punch flame is blue.

I love the warlike liveliness

Amusing Fields of Mars,

Infantry troops and horses

Uniform beauty

In their harmoniously unsteady system

The shreds of these victorious banners,

The shine of these copper caps,

Through those shot through in battle.

I love you, military capital,

Your stronghold is smoke and thunder,

When the queen is full

Gives a son to the royal house,

Or victory over the enemy

Russia triumphs again

Or, breaking your blue ice,

The Neva carries him to the seas

And, sensing the days of spring, he rejoices.

Show off, city Petrov, and stand

Unshakable like Russia,

May he make peace with you

And the defeated element;

Enmity and ancient captivity

Let the Finnish waves forget

And they will not be vain malice

Alarm last sleep Petra!

It was a terrible time

The memory of her is fresh...

About her, my friends, for you

I'll start my story.

My story will be sad.

PART ONE

Over darkened Petrograd

November breathed the autumn chill.

Splashing with a noisy wave

To the edges of your slender fence,

Neva was tossing around like a sick person

Restless in my bed.

It was already late and dark;

The rain beat angrily on the window,

And the wind blew, howling sadly.

At that time from the guests home

Young Evgeniy came...

We will be our hero

Call by this name. It

Sounds nice; been with him for a long time

My pen is also friendly.

We don't need his nickname,

Although in times gone by

Perhaps it shone

And under the pen of Karamzin

In native legends it sounded;

But now with light and rumor

It's forgotten. Our hero

Lives in Kolomna; serves somewhere

He shies away from the nobles and does not bother

Not about deceased relatives,

Not about forgotten antiquities.

So, I came home, Evgeniy

He shook off his overcoat, undressed, and lay down.

But for a long time he could not fall asleep

In the excitement of various thoughts.

What was he thinking about? About,

That he was poor, that he worked hard

He had to deliver to himself

And independence and honor;

What could God add to him?

Mind and money. What is it?

Such idle lucky ones,

Short-sighted, sloths,

For whom life is much easier!

That he serves only two years;

He also thought that the weather

She didn’t let up; that the river

Everything was coming; which is hardly

The bridges have not been removed from the Neva

And what will happen to Parasha?

Separated for two or three days.

Evgeny sighed heartily here

And he daydreamed like a poet:

"Marry? To me? why not?

It’s hard, of course;

But well I'm young and healthy

Ready to work day and night;

I’ll arrange something for myself

Shelter humble and simple

And in it I will calm Parasha.

Perhaps a year or two will pass -

I’ll get a place, Parashe

I will entrust our family

And raising children...

And we will live, and so on until the grave

We'll both get there hand in hand

And our grandchildren will bury us...”

That's what he dreamed. And it was sad

Him that night, and he wished

So that the wind howls less sadly

And let the rain knock on the window

Not so angry...

Sleepy eyes

He finally closed. And so

The darkness of a stormy night is thinning

And the pale day is already coming...3

Terrible day!

Neva all night

Longing for the sea against the storm,

Without overcoming their violent foolishness...

And she couldn’t bear to argue...

In the morning over its banks

There were crowds of people crowded together,

Admiring the splashes, mountains

And the foam of angry waters.

But the strength of the winds from the bay

Blocked Neva

She walked back, angry, seething,

And flooded the islands

The weather became more ferocious

The Neva swelled and roared,

A cauldron bubbling and swirling,

And suddenly, like a wild beast,

She rushed towards the city. In front of her

Everything ran, everything around

Suddenly it was empty - suddenly there was water

Flowed into underground cellars,

Channels poured into the gratings,

And Petropol emerged like a newt,

Waist-deep in water.

Siege! attack! evil waves,

Like thieves, they climb into windows. Chelny

From the run the windows are smashed by the stern.

Trays under a wet veil,

Wrecks of huts, logs, roofs,

Stock trade goods,

The belongings of pale poverty,

Bridges demolished by thunderstorms,

Coffins from a washed-out cemetery

Floating through the streets!

He sees God's wrath and awaits execution.

Alas! everything perishes: shelter and food!

Where will I get it?

In that terrible year

The late Tsar was still in Russia

He ruled with glory. To the balcony

Sad, confused, he went out

And he said: “With God's element

Kings cannot control.” He sat down

And in the Duma with sorrowful eyes

I looked at the evil disaster.

There were stacks of lakes,

And in them there are wide rivers

The streets poured in. Castle

It seemed like a sad island.

The king said - from end to end,

Along nearby streets and distant ones

On a dangerous journey through stormy waters

The generals set off on him

To save and overcome with fear

And there are drowning people at home.

Then, on Petrova Square,

Where a new house has risen in the corner,

Where above the elevated porch

With a raised paw, as if alive,

There are two guard lions standing,

Riding a marble beast,

Without a hat, hands clasped in a cross,

Sat motionless, terribly pale

Eugene. He was afraid, poor thing,

Not for myself. He didn't hear

How the greedy shaft rose,

Washing his soles,

How the rain hit his face,

Like the wind, howling violently,

He suddenly tore off his hat.

His desperate glances

Pointed to the edge

They were motionless. Like mountains

From the indignant depths

The waves rose there and got angry,

There the storm howled, there they rushed

Debris... God, God! there -

Alas! close to the waves,

Almost at the very bay -

The fence is unpainted, but the willow

And a dilapidated house: there it is,

Widow and daughter, his Parasha,

His dream... Or in a dream

Does he see this? or all ours

And life is nothing like an empty dream,

The mockery of heaven over earth?

And he seems to be bewitched

As if chained to marble,

Can't get off! Around him

Water and nothing else!

And with my back turned to him,

In the unshakable heights,

Above the indignant Neva

Stands with outstretched hand

Idol on a bronze horse.

PART TWO

But now, having had enough of destruction

And tired of insolent violence,

The Neva was drawn back,

Admiring your indignation

And leaving with carelessness

Your prey. So villain

With his fierce gang

Having burst into the village, he breaks, cuts,

Destroys and robs; screams, gnashing,

Violence, swearing, anxiety, howling!..

And, burdened with robbery,

Afraid of the chase, tired,

The robbers are hurrying home,

Dropping prey on the way.

The water has subsided and the pavement

It opened, and Evgeny is mine

He hurries, his soul sinking,

In hope, fear and longing

To the barely subdued river.

But victories are full of triumph,

The waves were still boiling angrily,

It was as if a fire was smoldering underneath them,

The foam still covered them,

And Neva was breathing heavily,

Like a horse running back from battle.

Evgeny looks: he sees a boat;

He runs to her as if he were on a find;

He calls the carrier -

And the carrier is carefree

Willingly pay him for a dime

Through terrible waves you are lucky.

And long with stormy waves

An experienced rower fought

And hide deep between their rows

Every hour with daring swimmers

The boat was ready - and finally

He reached the shore.

Unhappy

Runs down a familiar street

To familiar places. Looks

Can't find out. The view is terrible!

Everything is piled up in front of him;

What is dropped, what is demolished;

The houses were crooked, others

Completely collapsed, others

Shifted by waves; all around

As if in a battlefield,

Bodies are lying around. Eugene

Headlong, not remembering anything,

Exhausted from torment,

Runs to where he is waiting

Fate with unknown news,

Like with a sealed letter.

And now he’s running through the suburbs,

And here is the bay, and home is close...

What is this?..

He stopped.

I went back and came back.

He looks... he walks... he still looks.

This is the place where their house stands;

Here is the willow. There was a gate here -

Apparently they were blown away. Where is home?

And, full of gloomy care,

He keeps walking, he walks around,

Talks loudly to himself -

And suddenly, hitting him on the forehead with his hand,

I started laughing.

Night haze

She descended upon the city in trepidation;

But the residents did not sleep for a long time

And they talked among themselves

About the day gone by.

Because of the tired, pale clouds

Flashed over the quiet capital

And I haven’t found any traces

Yesterday's troubles; purple

The evil was already covered up.

Everything returned to the same order.

The streets are already free

With your cold insensibility

People were walking. Official people

Leaving my night shelter,

I went to work. Brave trader,

Not discouraged, I opened

Neva robbed basement,

Collecting your loss is important

Place it on the nearest one. From the yards

They brought boats.

Count Khvostov,

Poet beloved by heaven

Already sang in immortal verses

The misfortune of the Neva banks.

But my poor, poor Evgeniy...

Alas! his confused mind

Against terrible shocks

I couldn't resist. Rebellious noise

The Neva and the winds were heard

In his ears. Terrible thoughts

Silently full, he wandered.

He was tormented by some kind of dream.

A week passed, a month - he

He did not return to his home.

His deserted corner

I rented it out when the deadline passed,

The owner of the poor poet.

Evgeniy for his goods

Didn't come. He'll be out soon

Became alien. I wandered on foot all day,

And he slept on the pier; ate

A piece served into the window.

His clothes are shabby

It tore and smoldered. Angry children

They threw stones after him.

Often coachman's whips

He was whipped because

That he didn't understand the roads

Never again; it seemed he

Didn't notice. He's stunned

Was the noise of internal anxiety.

And so he is his unhappy age

Dragged, neither beast nor man,

Neither this nor that, nor the inhabitant of the world,

Not a dead ghost...

Once he was sleeping

At the Neva pier. Days of summer

We were approaching autumn. Breathed

Stormy wind. Grim Shaft

Splashed on the pier, grumbling fines

And hitting the smooth steps,

Like a petitioner at the door

Judges who don't listen to him.

The poor man woke up. It was gloomy:

The rain fell, the wind howled sadly,

And with him far away, in the darkness of the night

The sentry called back...

Evgeny jumped up; remembered vividly

He is a past horror; hastily

He got up; went wandering, and suddenly

Stopped - and around

He quietly began to move his eyes

With wild fear on your face.

He found himself under the pillars

Big house. On the porch

With a raised paw, as if alive,

The lions stood guard,

And right in the dark heights

Above the fenced rock

Idol with outstretched hand

Sat on a bronze horse.

Evgeny shuddered. cleared up

The thoughts in it are scary. He found out

And the place where the flood played,

Where the waves of predators crowded,

Rioting angrily around him,

And lions, and the square, and that,

Who stood motionless

In the darkness with a copper head,

The one whose will is fatal

A city was founded under the sea...

He is terrible in the surrounding darkness!

What a thought on the brow!

What power is hidden in it!

And what fire there is in this horse!

Where are you galloping, proud horse?

And where will you put your hooves?

O mighty lord of fate!

Aren't you above the abyss?

At the height, with an iron bridle

Raised Russia on its hind legs?5

Around the foot of the idol

The poor madman walked around

And brought wild glances

The face of the ruler of half the world.

His chest felt tight. Chelo

It lay down on the cold grate,

My eyes became foggy,

A fire ran through my heart,

Blood boiled. He became gloomy

Before the proud idol

And, clenching my teeth, clenching my fingers,

As if possessed by black power,

“Welcome, miraculous builder! -

He whispered, trembling angrily, -

Already for you!..” And suddenly headlong

He started to run. It seemed

He is like a formidable king,

Instantly ignited with anger,

The face quietly turned...

And its area is empty

He runs and hears behind him -

It's like thunder roaring -

Heavy ringing galloping

Along the shaken pavement.

And, illuminated by the pale moon,

Stretching out your hand on high,

The Bronze Horseman rushes after him

On a loud galloping horse;

And all night long the poor madman,

Wherever you turn your feet,

Behind him is the Bronze Horseman everywhere

He galloped with a heavy stomp.

And from the time when it happened

He should go to that square,

His face showed

Confusion. To your heart

He hastily pressed his hand,

As if subduing him with torment,

A worn out cap,

Didn’t raise embarrassed eyes

And he walked aside.

Small Island

Visible at the seaside. Sometimes

Lands there with a seine

Late fisherman fishing

And the poor man cooks his dinner,

Or an official will visit,

Walking in a boat on Sunday

Deserted island. Not an adult

There's not a blade of grass there. Flood

Brought there while playing

The house is dilapidated. Above the water

He remained like a black bush.

His last spring

They brought me on a barge. It was empty

And everything is destroyed. At the threshold

They found my madman,

And then his cold corpse

Buried for God's sake.

NOTES

1 Algarotti somewhere said: “Pétersbourg est la fenêtre par laquelle la Russie regarde en Europe.”

2 Look at the verses of the book. Vyazemsky to Countess Z***.

3 Mickiewicz described in beautiful verse the day preceding the St. Petersburg flood in one of his best poems - Oleszkiewicz. It's just a pity that the description is not accurate. There was no snow - the Neva was not covered with ice. Our description is more accurate, although it does not contain bright colors Polish poet.

The history of the people belongs to the Poet.
A.S. Pushkin

“The Bronze Horseman” (1833) is a lyric-epic poem, but Pushkin, who was very well versed in the signs literary genres, called it “Petersburg Tale”. It can be assumed that the subtitle of “The Bronze Horseman” is not a definition of the genre, but an indication of the “truth of the incident.” It is in this sense that the term “a tale” was used by J. G. Byron in relation to his poems. The definition “Petersburg” was supposed to emphasize the local flavor of the plot (cf. also the subtitles romantic poem Pushkin's "Prisoner of the Caucasus" - a story or Lermontov's romantic poem "The Demon" - an oriental story). In accordance with the subtitle, the solemn introduction of the poem ends like this:

It was a terrible time
The memory of her is fresh...
About her, my friends, for you
I’ll start the story now, (introduction)

The epic part of the poem raises serious social and philosophical problems. In it, the author talks about the “little man”, the petty official Evgeniy, describes his dreams, worries and his life tragedy. That is why this work is socially significant: the poet raises in it the important problem of society’s attitude towards the “little man”. The social idea of ​​the poem is precisely that the “little man” is defenseless before people, before the authorities, before nature; the state doesn’t care about him or his problems. “The miraculous builder” (II) did not think about the happiness of poor Eugene and Parasha, so all his miraculous deeds are worth little in the eyes of “ little man”, which threatens the Bronze Horseman with future punishments: “Too bad for you!..” (II). This poem is also a philosophical work, because it decides a common problem relationship between the state and the individual. Understanding this philosophical problem given by the author also using the example of Eugene’s life. Thus, it turns out that two ideas (social and philosophical) are closely intertwined in the poem, which gives the work artistic integrity.

In Pushkin, the image of Evgeniy becomes a symbol of personality, and the idea of ​​autocratic state power embodied in the image of the second main character of the poem - Peter the Great, presented in the form of the famous monument - the Bronze Horseman. Only in the prologue of the poem does the tsar appear: Peter is shown as an outstanding statesman, thinking about the benefit and prosperity of his state, that is, as they would say now, about the geopolitical interests of Russia:

And he thought:
From here we will threaten the Swede.
The city will be founded here
To spite an arrogant neighbor.
Nature destined us here
Open a window to Europe,
Stand with a firm foot by the sea.
Here on new waves
All the flags will visit us,
And we’ll lock it out in the open (intro)

And in the first and second parts of the poem, the great reformer is depicted as the Bronze Horseman, that is, as a symbol of the autocratic state.

The lyrical content of the poem, that is author's attitude to characters and events, expressed by ordinary (for example, vocabulary) and unusual means (special intonation). Pushkin emphasizes his sympathy for Evgeny with the ambiguous word “poor” (marked in the dictionary following values: poor, unhappy, simple, humble); complicated attitude to Peter - with the polysemantic word “idol” (a statue of a pagan deity-idol; an object of adoration, enthusiastic worship). Both of these words are used in the text of the poem in an undifferentiated sense, which deepens the author’s assessment: “poor, my poor Eugene” (II), “poor madman” (II); “an idol on a bronze horse” (I, II). Sometimes the voices of the author and his “little man” hero merge so that it is difficult to distinguish who owns the words:

He is terrible in the surrounding darkness!
What a thought on the brow! (II)

In addition, in the poem Pushkin uses techniques of various artistic styles: odic (solemn, sublime) and idyllic (peaceful, intimate). The introduction is a hymn to Peter, who founded the wondrous city, an ode to the great man who determined the fate of Russia for centuries. Here the poet avoids ordinary expressions, prefers Old Church Slavonic words and forms:

On the shore of desert waves
He stood, full of great thoughts,
And he looked into the distance. Wide before him
The river rushed; poor boat
I strove along it alone... (introduction)

Eugene's thoughts about his life are an idyll, showing ordinary life common man, his dreams of personal happiness. In this case, the language is simple, often used colloquial expressions: “life is much easier” (I), “it’s hard, of course” (I), “I’ll entrust the housekeeping” (I).

The odic style appears again in the climactic scene of the poem - when explaining the crazy Eugene with the Bronze Horseman:

Around the foot of the idol
The poor madman walked around
And brought wild glances
The face of the ruler of half the world.
His chest felt tight. Chelo
It lay against the cold grate...(II)

The precisely chosen style emphasizes the meaning of this scene, where the “little man” speaks on equal terms with the “formidable king” and prophesies retribution for him.

So, “The Bronze Horseman” is a lyric-epic poem. After the solemn introduction (praise to Peter and his creation - Petersburg), the reader has the right to expect a classic heroic poem, but the poet deceives these expectations. He breaks all the rules of poetry heroic poem: instead of a significant event in the history of the nation - a special case (flood in St. Petersburg), instead of an exemplary hero - an insignificant official, instead of a clear moral lesson- a deliberate lack of morality, instead of homogeneous “sonorous verses” - a mixture of ode and idyll. Thus, Pushkin created a lyric-epic poem of a new (realistic) type, different from the classic heroic poem.

The obvious decline of the main event and the main character does not prevent the author from expressing deep social and philosophical ideas in the poem. Pushkin gave his understanding of the modern Russian government system, the role of the state in human life in general. The poet's conclusion is disappointing: the state is opposed to the individual. The Bronze Horseman indifferently turned away from the concerns of the small but living man:

I. has his back turned to him.
In unshakable heights.
Over the indignant Neva
Stands with outstretched hand
Idol on a bronze horse. (I)

The poem is permeated with sympathy for the “little man.” The author portrays Evgeny and Parasha as simple but sensitive people, innocent of anything and unable to survive separation. Their idyllic description contrasts with the tragic reality in which the “little man” is doomed to death. This view of the heroes revealed the poet’s humanism.

The work “The Bronze Horseman” is one of the most famous in poetic creativity A. S. Pushkin. In it, the poet reflects on the reign of Peter the Great, on the state, the tsarist autocracy, and on the role of the common man in history. The main idea of ​​the work is the conflict between the authorities and the “little man” from the common people. The genre of the work “The Bronze Horseman” is not clearly defined, since Pushkin very skillfully combined various styles of presentation in it.

History of creation

The date of writing “The Bronze Horseman” is considered to be the autumn of 1833. This is the period of the so-called Boldino autumn of Pushkin, when his work reaches its greatest flowering. Having written the poem, the poet was unable to publish it - Nicholas I banned the publication of this work.

Only in 1837, after the poet’s death, was it published in Sovremennik. However, censorship in the person of V. A. Zhukovsky made a number of changes to the text that distorted the intent of the work. For the first time in original version, without censorship amendments, it was published only many years later, in 1904.

The work begins with the glorification of Peter the Great and the city of St. Petersburg, his “creation.” Then the reader meets the main character - the petty official Eugene. This is an ordinary person from the people, with simple dreams of a modest happy family life with his beloved Parasha. He lives with these thoughts, goes to bed and wakes up with them.

One day, terrible bad weather hits St. Petersburg. The city suddenly finds itself under water. Only the monument to Peter majestically rises above the destruction. The house, located not far from the river, in which Parasha lived, turns out to be flooded and collapses. The girl and her mother die. Having learned about this tragedy, Evgeniy goes crazy.

One night, Eugene passes by the monument to Peter I. Looking at it, he saw in it the culprit of his troubles. Lost of reason, Eugene whispered evil words to the monument, and the poor man’s sick imagination imagined how, in response, an angry rider began to chase him on a bronze horse. After a short time, Evgeniy died.

Thus, in the work of A. S. Pushkin, two very different characters collide: one is a powerful ruler who, even after death, continues to live in the form of a monument, the other is a modest tradesman, a “little man.” Their destinies collide, creating conflict. The culmination of the work is the threat of a madman and the retaliatory royal anger.

Eugene's image

Describing the main character, Pushkin pays more attention inner peace hero, creating him psychological picture. This young, at first glance, unremarkable man has very good spiritual qualities. It belongs to a bankrupt noble family. His dreams are limited to dreams of a simple family life with his beloved girl. Evgeny is ready to work all his life, thereby providing for his family.

The death of his beloved deprives him of the meaning in life. His mind cannot cope with such a tragedy. He turns into a sick, compassionate ragamuffin.

The fate of the hero is the fate of the “little man” in history. The author showed his helpless attempt to resist state structure in the form of a monument. As a result, the hero is defeated. Pushkin emphasizes the hopelessness of the position of the common man before the authorities.

Image of Peter

The second main character is Peter the Great in the image of the Bronze Horseman. The author's attitude towards him is ambiguous. He admires the will of the creator of the history of the state. But at the same time, Pushkin is tormented by doubts: who was Peter I - a tyrant or the savior of Russia. Having studied in detail the history of the reign of this monarch, the author recognizes his strength, patriotism, as well as the progressiveness of Peter’s reforms. Without belittling the merits of Peter at the beginning of his reign, Pushkin also talks about the shortcomings of his later reign - cruelty and despotism. It is no coincidence that the author associates the image of Peter in the poem “The Bronze Horseman” with a monument - proud, cold and soulless. And here the monarch plays the role negative hero. This is especially clearly defined in the climax of the work, when Eugene protests to the ruler, but does not receive compassion in response. On the contrary, the Bronze Horseman pursues him, instilling fear and demanding obedience.

Pushkin admires Peter the Great, but at the same time he loves the Russian people. In his work, he talks about the shortcomings of government, which led to destructive events. Created by Peter great city St. Petersburg destroyed all hopes with floods of water ordinary people. The author deeply sympathizes to the common people, at the same time emphasizing the unquestioned authority of the monarch.

The main character Eugene dies sick and miserable. Peter, in the image of the Bronze Horseman, has stood unshakable for centuries. The rearing horse represents the state, and the rider holding it by the bridle represents the power of power.

Genre of the work “The Bronze Horseman”

In literary criticism it is customary to call this work a poem. The poet himself called it a “St. Petersburg story.” However, the definition of the genre of the work “The Bronze Horseman” gives rise to a lot of controversy among critics.

The writing style of this work combines a stilted, epic style when describing Peter and a bourgeois, prosaic style, with colloquial episodes when mentioning Eugene. Thus, defining the genre of the work “The Bronze Horseman”, literary critics agree that it represents a whole genre combination in which it is completely different styles combine surprisingly harmoniously.

Appeal to the poem

The theme of the work “The Bronze Horseman” by Alexander Pushkin inspired the Russian Soviet composer R. M. Gliere to create the ballet of the same name. It is no coincidence that a fragment from it, “Hymn to the Great City,” became the anthem of St. Petersburg. After all, all the events that take place in this plot are connected with the history of the city, and therefore are very close and understandable to every Russian person.

Bronze Horseman: Bronze Horseman monument to Peter I St. Petersburg The Bronze Horseman poem by A. S. Pushkin The Bronze Horseman ballet to the music of R. M. Gliere The Bronze Horseman film award ... Wikipedia

Bronze Horseman- poem. Written in October 1833 in Boldin. It appeared in print only after the poet’s death, because at one time censorship did not allow the poem to pass, with the exception of the passage Petersburg. ...This poem of the apotheosis of Peter the Great, the most daring, the most grandiose,... ... Dictionary of literary types

Bronze Horseman (ballet)- This term has other meanings, see Bronze Horseman (meanings). The Bronze Horseman The Bronze Horseman Composer Reinhold Gliere Libretto author Peter Abolimov East ... Wikipedia

POEM- (Greek poiema) 1) a poetic genre of large volume, mainly lyroepic. In ancient times and the Middle Ages, a poem was called a monumental heroic epic(epic) Iliad, Odyssey, Song of Roland, which genetically indicates an epic... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

POEM- (Greek poiema), 1) a poetic genre of large volume, mainly lyroepic. In ancient times and in the Middle Ages, the monumental heroic epic (epic) Iliad, Odyssey, Song of Roland was called a poem, which indicates the epic nature... ... Modern encyclopedia

Poem- (Greek poiema), 1) a poetic genre of large volume, mainly lyroepic. In ancient times and in the Middle Ages, the monumental heroic epic (epic) “Iliad”, “Odyssey”, “Song of Roland” was called a poem, which indicates the epic... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

poem- s; and. [Greek poiēma] 1. Big lyric epic work in verse. Lyrical, epic paragraph. Didactic poems of Boileau. // A prose work modeled after such a poetic work. Gogol's Dead Souls poem in prose... encyclopedic Dictionary

Poem- This article or section needs to be revised. Please improve the article in accordance with the rules for writing articles. Poem... Wikipedia

poem- (Greek poiema) lyric epic genre. The main features of the poem are the presence of a detailed plot, the scale of the depicted phenomena and problems, and the wide development of the image lyrical hero. Rubric: types and genres of literature Genus: lyre epic genres… … Terminological dictionary-thesaurus in literary studies

poem- y, w. 1) A large poetic work with a narrative or lyrical plot. Poems by N. A. Nekrasov. 2) In music: a small lyrical piece of free structure, a large one-movement symphonic work, usually programmatic, as well as ... Popular dictionary of the Russian language

Books

• Bronze Horseman. Queen of Spades, Pushkin Alexander Sergeevich. The book includes two of Pushkin's St. Petersburg masterpieces - the poem "The Bronze Horseman" and the story "The Queen of Spades", along with the third - an example of Russian pictorial Pushkiniana of the twentieth century - illustrations by A.... Buy for 979 rubles
• Bronze Horseman. Queen of Spades, Pushkin Alexander Sergeevich. The book includes two of Pushkin’s St. Petersburg masterpieces - the poem “The Bronze Horseman” and the story “The Queen of Spades”, along with the third - an example of Russian pictorial Pushkiniana of the 20th century - illustrations by A.…

Poem “The Bronze Horseman” by A.S. Pushkin is one of the most perfect creations of the poet. In its style it resembles “Eugene Onegin”, and in its content it is close to both history and mythology. This work reflects the thoughts of A.S. Pushkin about Peter the Great and absorbed various opinions about the reformer.

The poem became the final work written during the Boldino autumn. At the end of 1833, “The Bronze Horseman” was completed.

At the time of Pushkin, there were two types of people - some idolized Peter the Great, while others attributed to him a relationship with Satan. On this basis, myths were born: in the first case, the reformer was called the Father of the Fatherland, they talked about an unprecedented mind, the creation of a paradise city (Petersburg), in the second, they prophesied the collapse of the city on the Neva, accused Peter the Great of having connections with dark forces, and called him the Antichrist.

The essence of the poem

The poem begins with a description of St. Petersburg, A.S. Pushkin emphasizes the uniqueness of the place for construction. Evgeniy lives in the city - the most ordinary employee, poor, does not want to get rich, it is more important for him to remain an honest and happy family man. Financial well-being is required only to provide for your beloved Parasha. The hero dreams of marriage and children, dreams of meeting old age hand in hand with his beloved girl. But his dreams are not destined to come true. The work describes the flood of 1824. A terrible time, when people died in layers of water, when the Neva raged and swallowed the city with its waves. It is in such a flood that Parasha dies. Evgeny, on the other hand, shows courage during a disaster, does not think about himself, tries to see his beloved’s house in the distance and runs to it. When the storm subsides, the hero hurries to the familiar gate: there is a willow tree, but there is no gate and no house either. This picture broke young man, he drags doomedly along the streets of the northern capital, leads the life of a wanderer and every day relives the events of that fateful night. During one of these cloudings, he comes across the house in which he used to live and sees a statue of Peter the Great on a horse - the Bronze Horseman. He hates the reformer because he built a city on the water that killed his beloved. But suddenly the rider comes to life and angrily rushes towards the offender. The tramp will later die.

In the poem, the interests of the state and ordinary person. On the one hand, Petrograd was called the northern Rome, on the other, its foundation on the Neva was dangerous for residents, and the flood of 1824 confirms this. Eugene’s malicious speeches addressed to the reformer ruler are interpreted in different ways: first, it is a rebellion against the autocracy; the second is the revolt of Christianity against paganism; the third is the pathetic murmur of a small person, whose opinion is not compared with the force necessary for changes on a national scale (that is, in order to achieve grandiose goals, something always has to be sacrificed, and the mechanism of collective will will not be stopped by the misfortune of one person).

Genre, verse meter and composition

The genre of The Bronze Horseman is a poem written, like Eugene Onegin, in iambic tetrameter. The composition is quite strange. Has an excessively large introduction, which can generally be considered as a separate independent work. Next are 2 parts, which tell about the main character, the flood and the clash with the Bronze Horseman. There is no epilogue in the poem, or rather, it is not highlighted separately by the poet himself - the last 18 lines are about the island at the seaside and the death of Eugene.

Despite the non-standard structure, the work is perceived as integral. This effect is created by compositional parallelisms. Peter the Great lived 100 years earlier than the main character, but this does not prevent him from creating the feeling of the presence of a reformer ruler. His personality is expressed through the Bronze Horseman monument; but the person of Peter himself appears at the beginning of the poem, in the introduction, when the military and economic significance of St. Petersburg is discussed. A.S. Pushkin also carries the idea of ​​the immortality of the reformer, since even after his death, innovations appeared and the old ones remained in force for a long time, that is, he launched that heavy and clumsy machine of change in Russia.

So, the figure of the ruler appears throughout the poem, then as himself, then in the form of a monument, it is revived by Eugene’s clouded mind. The time period of the narrative between the introduction and the first part is 100 years, but despite such a sharp jump, the reader does not feel it, since A.S. Pushkin connected the events of 1824 with the so-called “culprit” of the flood, because it was Peter who built the city on the Neva. It's interesting to note that this book in terms of composition, it is completely uncharacteristic of Pushkin’s style; it is an experiment.

Characteristics of the main characters

1. Evgeniy – we know little about him; lived in Kolomna, served there. He was poor, but had no addiction to money. Despite the complete ordinariness of the hero, and he could easily get lost among thousands of the same gray residents of St. Petersburg, he has a high and bright dream that fully meets the ideals of many people - marrying the girl he loves. He, as Pushkin himself liked to call his characters, is “the hero of a French novel.” But his dreams are not destined to come true, Parasha dies in the flood of 1824, and Evgeniy goes crazy. The poet painted for us a weak and insignificant young man, whose face is instantly lost against the background of the figure of Peter the Great, but even this everyman has his own goal, which in strength and nobility is commensurate with or even surpasses the personality of the Bronze Horseman.
2. Peter the Great - in the introduction his figure is presented as a portrait of the Creator; Pushkin recognizes an incredible mind in the ruler, but emphasizes despotism. First, the poet shows that although the emperor is higher than Eugene, he is not higher than God and the elements, which are not subject to him, but the power of Russia will pass through all adversity and remain unharmed and unshakable. The author noted more than once that the reformer was too autocratic and did not pay attention to troubles ordinary people who became victims of his global transformations. Probably, opinions on this topic will always differ: on the one hand, tyranny is a bad quality that a ruler should not have, but on the other hand, would such extensive changes be possible if Peter had been softer? Everyone answers this question for themselves.

Subjects

The clash between power and the common man - main topic poem "The Bronze Horseman". In this work A.S. Pushkin reflects on the role of the individual in the fate of the entire state.

The Bronze Horseman personifies Peter the Great, whose reign was close to despotism and tyranny. With his hand, reforms were introduced that completely changed the course of ordinary Russian life. But when a forest is cut down, chips inevitably fly. Can a little man find his happiness when such a lumberjack does not take into account his interests? The poem answers - no. A clash of interests between the authorities and people in this case is inevitable; of course, the latter remain the losers. A.S. Pushkin reflects on the structure of the state in Peter's times and on the fate of an individual hero in it - Eugene, coming to the conclusion that the empire is cruel to people in any case, and whether its greatness is worth such sacrifices is an open question.

The creator also addresses the theme of tragic loss loved one. Evgeniy cannot stand the loneliness and grief of loss and does not find anything to cling to in life if there is no love.

Issues

• In the poem “The Bronze Horseman” by A.S. Pushkin raises the problem of the individual and the state. Evgeniy comes from the people. He is an ordinary petty official, living from hand to mouth. His soul is full of high feelings for Parasha, with whom he dreams of marrying. The monument to the Bronze Horseman becomes the face of the state. In the oblivion of reason, a young man comes across the house in which he lived before the death of his beloved and before his madness. His gaze stumbles upon the monument, and his sick mind brings the statue to life. Here it is, the inevitable clash between the individual and the state. But the horseman angrily chases after Evgeniy, pursues him. How dare the hero grumble against the emperor?! The reformer thought on a larger scale, considering plans for the future in a full-length dimension, as if from a bird's eye view he looked at his creations, without peering at the people who were overwhelmed by his innovations. The people sometimes suffered from Peter’s decisions, just as they now sometimes suffer from the ruling hand. The monarch built a beautiful city, which during the flood of 1824 became a cemetery for many residents. But he doesn't take opinions into account ordinary people, one gets the feeling that with his thoughts he went far ahead of his time, and even after a hundred years not everyone was able to comprehend his plan. Thus, the individual is in no way protected from the arbitrariness of superiors; her rights are grossly trampled upon with impunity.
• The problem of loneliness also bothered the author. The hero could not bear a day of life without his other half. Pushkin reflects on how vulnerable and vulnerable we still are, how the mind is not strong and subject to suffering.
• The problem of indifference. No one helped the townspeople evacuate, no one corrected the consequences of the storm, and compensation for the families of the victims and social support for the victims were not even dreamed of by officials. The state apparatus showed surprising indifference to the fate of its subjects.

The State in the Image of the Bronze Horseman

For the first time we encounter the image of Peter the Great in the poem “The Bronze Horseman” in the introduction. Here the ruler is depicted as the Creator, who conquered the elements and built a city on the water.

The emperor's reforms were disastrous for ordinary people, since they were aimed only at the nobility. Yes, and she had a hard time: let us remember how Peter forcibly cut the beards of the boyars. But the main victim of the monarch’s ambitions was ordinary working people: it was they who paved the way for the northern capital with hundreds of lives. A city on bones - here it is - the personification of the state machine. It was comfortable for Peter himself and his entourage to live in innovations, because they saw only one side of new things - progressive and beneficial, but the fact that destructive effect And " side effects“These changes fell on the shoulders of “small” people and no one cared. The elite looked at St. Petersburg drowning in the Neva from “high balconies” and did not feel all the sorrows of the city’s watery foundation. Peter perfectly reflects the categorical absolutist state system– there will be reforms, but the people will “live somehow.”

If at first we see the Creator, then closer to the middle of the poem the poet propagates the idea that Peter the Great is not God and it is completely beyond his power to cope with the elements. At the end of the work we see only a stone likeness of the former, sensational ruler in Russia. Years later, the Bronze Horseman became only a reason for unreasonable worry and fear, but this is only a fleeting feeling of a madman.

What is the meaning of the poem?

Pushkin created a multifaceted and ambiguous work, which must be assessed from the point of view of ideological and thematic content. The meaning of the poem “The Bronze Horseman” lies in the confrontation between Eugene and the Bronze Horseman, the individual and the state, which criticism deciphers in different ways. So, the first meaning is the confrontation between paganism and Christianity. Peter was often awarded the title of Antichrist, and Eugene opposes such thoughts. One more thought: the hero is an everyman, and the reformer is a genius, they live in different worlds and don't understand each other. The author, however, recognizes that both types are needed for the harmonious existence of civilization. The third meaning is that the main character personified the rebellion against autocracy and despotism, which the poet propagated, because he belonged to the Decembrists. He allegorically retold the same helplessness of the uprising in the poem. And another interpretation of the idea is a pathetic and doomed to failure attempt by a “little” man to change and turn the course of the state machine in the other direction.