At the bottom what is the truth for everyone. Three truths and their tragic collision (based on M. Gorky's play "At the Depths"). IV. Creative work

M. Gorky's play “At the Depths” raises many deep and philosophical themes. The characters show different points of view on the problems of existence. The main conflict is the collision of three different truths: fact, consolation and lies and faith.

First the truth - the truth of the fact - is represented by Bubnov. He prefers to express his thoughts directly and accurately, based on proven knowledge. Bubnov does not like people and is not going to feel sorry for them, but he believes that everyone has their own purpose. Human understanding, support or humanism are alien to him. His truth is straightforward and callous, since he is convinced that lying is pointless, because all people will die sooner or later. He will not choose his words, try to soften his speech so as not to offend the person. Bubnov's main principle is to tell it like it is.

Second truth- this is the truth of Luke. This person teaches others compassion, comfort, and the ability to accept and hear others. He helps people gain faith in God and themselves, survive difficult life situations, and cope with difficulties. He lies to almost all the residents of the shelter, but he does it for the good. Luke is convinced that hope, even if false, will give people the strength to improve their lives. The truth is not always good for him, because it can hurt and completely deprive a person of the meaning of existence. Luke believes that without some lies, people may not withstand the trials of life. In addition, he is confident that it is faith, and not facts, that gives people strength.

Third the hero who expresses his opinion on this topic is Satin. It is his thoughts that are worth paying special attention to, since Gorky expresses his thoughts through him. The basis of his thoughts is faith in man. Satin is convinced that man changes this world, creates new laws, and controls basic processes. For him, man is the highest being. He believes that the truth should be respected and expressed. For him, lies are the basis for the existence of the world of slaves and masters. At the same time, truth is necessary for a free person. He argues with Luka, believing that a person should not be pitied, but respected.

The three truths in Gorky's play are three opposing points of view on the world. Bubnov is convinced of the power of straightforward facts, which must be expressed without embarrassment or fear. Luke advocates a soft approach and deception for the greater good, if it gives hope and faith in a bright future. Satin believes only in man, his strength and freedom. Such different points of view reveal the topic as deeply as possible and help the reader decide for himself which of the heroes to support.

Option 2

A. M. Gorky's play “At the Lower Depths” is one of the most powerful dramatic works of that time. This play concerns the main issues of the existence of humanity, its perception of the world.

The play describes episodes from the lives of people living in the same shelter. Each of them was once someone, and now they find themselves at the “bottom”. Some of them live in an illusory world, some simply go with the flow, but among them there are also those who are ready to defend their truth.

One day, out of nowhere, Luka appeared in the shelter, inconspicuous from the outside, but with his concept of life stirring the souls of people. He seems to be a kind and compassionate person, but it is impossible to understand what is in his soul; he talks little and reluctantly about himself, at the same time he tries to get into the soul of every person. He is interested in absolutely everything: why Nastya is crying over the book, and why Vasilisa behaves this way, he cares about everything. With his words, he tries to help, encourage, support, and calm everyone. This is his truth, Luke believes that his philosophy is necessary for people. He instilled faith in the future in the shelter's guests, made them look at life differently, and left as suddenly as he had appeared. And what did this give people? Bitter disappointment of unrealistic hopes, and the weak-willed Actor completely took his own life.

Bubnov has a different truth. Skeptical about everything, he denies everyone, including himself. Its truth is that social differences do not play any role, they are all washed off like paint from your hands, seemingly ingrained forever. Having sunk to the “bottom” of life, everyone becomes the same, just as they were born naked, they will die, no matter how hard they try to embellish themselves during life. Bubnov does not recognize any pity for anyone or anything; everyone around him is equal and superfluous, like himself.

The truth of Satin is to exalt a person, Luke’s pity is unacceptable for him, he believes that pity only humiliates a person, and in his concept: “Man sounds proud!” He admires a person as a strong and strong-willed person, capable of reshaping the whole world according to his own understanding. Satin is convinced that a person’s strength lies in himself, there is no need to rely on anyone or feel sorry for anyone, a proud person is capable of anything.

It is also true in his discussions about work, where Satin argues that if work brings pleasure to a person, then his life will be pleasant, and if you work out of obligation, you will again become a slave, slavery is humiliating, a proud and freedom-loving person should strive for achieving higher goals.

Gorky's play makes every person think about his own existence, and decide for himself how to live in this world. All three of these characters are right in their own way, which suggests that there is no single truth and cannot be. Each person is an individual, and each judges in his own way, assessing the truth of these heroes.

Of course, everyone should have kindness and philanthropy, compassion, but at the same time without humiliating human dignity, and have the strength to resist injustice and cruelty.

Essay 3

Maxim Gorky's play “At the Bottom” is a drama that tells about the lives of people who, for various reasons, find themselves at the very bottom of life. Once upon a time they had a decent job, a position in society, families... Now their life is survival in a shelter, in dirt and drunkenness, without money, among people like them. Each of the characters experiences this fall in their own way, but the most clearly expressed are the opinions of three characters, three truths colliding with each other.

The first is the truth of Bubnov, the former owner of a dyeing workshop, and now a cap-maker with debts. Due to a quarrel with his wife, who cheated on him, Bubnov was left with nothing, and this, undoubtedly, left an imprint on his attitude towards life. Lack of compassion for a person, lack of faith in people and in oneself, dry statement of facts, straightforwardness - these are his principles. Bubnov does not want the best in this life, because “Everything is like this: they are born, they live, they die. And I will die... and you...". For this person there is no meaning in life, having taken his place at the very bottom, he inevitably and calmly moves towards death.

The second truth belongs to the wanderer Luke, who appears briefly, illuminating the dark corners of the shelter with a ray of light, and again disappears into nowhere. The elder is kind to everyone without exception, he sincerely empathizes with each hero of the play in his misfortune. He tells the actor about the existence of a hospital where drunkenness is treated for free, Pepla calls on Vaska to move to Siberia, where life is good, he reassures the dying Anna that peace and tranquility await her in the afterlife, and supports Nastya’s romantic hopes of finding her betrothed. “I respect swindlers too, in my opinion, not a single flea is bad: all are black, all jump...” - this is Luka’s life principle. It gives people a chance, allows them to believe in themselves in the most difficult situations. After all, every person deserves to feel self-respect and gain faith. Yes, it becomes clear to the reader of the play that Luke is lying, but this is a white lie. A lie that gave people hope.

Satin, a card sharper who was once an educated telegraph operator, has his own truth. He does not agree with Luke that people should be pitied. In his opinion, every person has the power with which he can achieve whatever he wants, change not only his life, but also the world around him. Satin’s words “Man sounds proud!” became famous for all time. Respect yourself, do not feel sorry for anyone, do not rely on anyone. This character does not accept lies, he tells people only the truth, no matter how cruel it is. Alas, this truth does not bring people happiness, but only returns them from the illusions inspired by Luke to the mortal earth.

Gorky's play "At the Bottom" makes the reader think about who is right in this dispute, whose truth is true? Perhaps there is no clear answer to this question, because each hero is both right and wrong in his own way. Without a doubt, humanity and compassion are important in our world, without them people will become tough and bitter. But sincerity and honesty towards people plays an equally important role. It is important that in any life situation a person remains human.

Lesson 15 “THREE TRUTHS” IN GORKY’S PLAY “AT THE BOTTOM”

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Lesson 15
“Three truths” in Gorky’s play “At the Depths”

Goals : consider the characters’ understanding of Gorky’s play “truth”; find out the meaning of the tragic collision of different points of view: the truth of a fact (Bubnov), the truth of a comforting lie (Luke), the truth of faith in a person (Satin); determine the features of Gorky’s humanism.

During the classes

Gentlemen! If the truth is holy

The world doesn’t know how to find a way,

Honor the madman who inspires

A golden dream for humanity!

I. Introductory conversation.

– Restore the sequence of events of the play. What events take place on stage, and which ones take place “behind the scenes”? What is role in the development of the dramatic action of the traditional “conflict polygon” - Kostylev, Vasilisa, Ashes, Natasha?

The relationships between Vasilisa, Kostylev, Ash, and Natasha only externally motivate the stage action. Some of the events that make up the plot outline of the play take place off stage (the fight between Vasilisa and Natasha, Vasilisa’s revenge - overturning a boiling samovar on her sister, Kostylev’s murder takes place around the corner of the flophouse and is almost invisible to the viewer).

All the other characters in the play are not involved in the love affair. The compositional and plot disunity of the characters is expressed in the organization of the stage space - the characters are dispersed in different corners scenes and "closed» in unconnected microspaces.

Teacher . Thus, the play contains two actions in parallel. First, we see on stage (supposed and real). Detective story with conspiracy, escape, murder, suicide. The second is the exposure of “masks” and the identification of the true essence of a person. This happens as if behind the text and requires decoding. For example, here is the dialogue between Baron and Luke.

Baron. We lived better... yes! I... used to... wake up in the morning and, lying in bed, drink coffee... coffee! – with cream... yes!

Luke. And everyone is people! No matter how you pretend, no matter how you wobble, if you were born a man, you will die a man...

But Baron is afraid to be “just a man.” And he does not recognize “just a person.”

Baron. Who are you, old man?.. Where did you come from?

Luke. Me?

Baron. Wanderer?

Luke. We are all wanderers on earth... They say, I heard, that the earth is our wanderer.

The culmination of the second (implicit) action comes when the “truths” of Bubnov, Satin and Luka collide on the “narrow everyday platform”.

II. Work on the problem stated in the topic of the lesson.

1. The philosophy of truth in Gorky’s play.

– What is the main leitmotif of the play? Which character is the first to formulate the main question of the drama “At the Bottom”?

The dispute about truth is the semantic center of the play. The word “truth” will be heard already on the first page of the play, in Kvashnya’s remark: “Ah! You can’t stand the truth!” Truth – lie (“You’re lying!” – Kleshch’s sharp cry, sounded even before the word “truth”), truth – faith – these are the most important semantic poles that define the problematics of “At the Bottom”.

– How do you understand Luke’s words: “What you believe is what you believe”? How are the heroes of “At the Depths” divided depending on their attitude to the concepts of “faith” and “truth”?

In contrast to the “prose of fact,” Luke offers the truth of the ideal—the “poetry of fact.” If Bubnov (the main ideologist of literally understood “truth”), Satin, Baron are far from illusions and do not need an ideal, then Actor, Nastya, Anna, Natasha, Ashes respond to Luke’s remark - for them faith is more important than truth.

Luke’s hesitant story about hospitals for alcoholics sounded like this: “Nowadays they are curing drunkenness, listen! Free, brother, they treat... this is the kind of hospital built for drunkards... They recognized, you see, that a drunkard is also a person...” In the actor’s imagination, the hospital turns into a “marble palace”: “An excellent hospital... Marble.. .marble floor! Light... cleanliness, food... everything for free! And marble floor. Yes!" The actor is a hero of faith, not the truth of fact, and the loss of the ability to believe turns out to be fatal for him.

– What is truth for the heroes of the play? How can their views be compared?(Work with text.)

A) How does Bubnov understand “truth”? How do his views differ from Luke's philosophy of truth?

Bubnov’s truth consists in exposing the seamy side of existence, this is the “truth of fact.” “What kind of truth do you need, Vaska? And for what? You know the truth about yourself... and everyone knows it...” he drives Ash into the doom of being a thief when he was trying to figure himself out. “That means I’ve stopped coughing,” he reacted to Anna’s death.

After listening to Luke’s allegorical story about his life at his dacha in Siberia and the harboring (rescue) of escaped convicts, Bubnov admitted: “But I... I don’t know how to lie! For what? In my opinion, tell the whole truth as it is! Why be ashamed?

Bubnov sees only the negative side of life and destroys the remnants of faith and hope in people, while Luka knows that in a kind word the ideal becomes real: “A person can teach goodness... very simply,” he concluded the story about life at the dacha, and in setting out the “story” of the righteous land, he reduced it to the fact that the destruction of faith kills a person. Luka (thoughtfully, to Bubnov): “Here... what you say is true... It’s true, it’s not always due to a person’s illness... you can’t always cure a soul with the truth...” Luke heals the soul.

Luka’s position is more humane and more effective than Bubnov’s naked truth, because it appeals to the remnants of humanity in the souls of the night shelters. For Luke, a person “no matter what he is, is always worth his price.” “I’m just saying that if someone hasn’t done good to someone, then they’ve done something bad.” "To caress a person– never harmful."

Such a moral credo harmonizes relations between people, abolishes the wolf principle, and ideally leads to the acquisition of internal completeness and self-sufficiency, the confidence that, despite external circumstances, a person has found truths that no one will ever take away from him.

B) What does Satin see as the truth of life?

One of the climaxes of the play is Satin’s famous monologues from the fourth act about man, truth, and freedom.

A trained student reads Satin's monologue by heart.

It is interesting that Satin supported his reasoning with the authority of Luke, the man in relation to whom we at the beginning of the play represented Satin as an antipode. Moreover, Satin's references to Luke in Act 4 prove the closeness of both. "Old man? He’s a smart guy!.. He... acted on me like acid on an old and dirty coin... Let’s drink to his health!” “Man – that’s the truth! He understood this... you don’t!”

Actually, the “truth” and “lies” of Satin and Luke almost coincide.

Both believe that “a person must be respected” (emphasis on the last word) is not his “mask”; but they differ on how they should communicate their “truth” to people. After all, if you think about it, it is deadly for those who fall into its area.

If everything has faded away and one “naked” person remains, then “what’s next”? For the actor, this thought leads to suicide.

Q) What role does Luke play in addressing the issue of “truth” in the play?

For Luke, the truth is in “comforting lies.”

Luke takes pity on the man and entertains him with a dream. He promises Anna an afterlife, listens to Nastya’s fairy tales, and sends the Actor to a hospital. He lies for the sake of hope, and this is perhaps better than Bubnov’s cynical “truth,” “abomination and lies.”

In the image of Luke there are allusions to the biblical Luke, who was one of the seventy disciples sent by the Lord “to every city and place where He Himself wanted to go.”

Gorky's Luka makes the inhabitants of the bottom think about God and man, about the “better man,” about the highest calling of people.

“Luka” is also light. Luka comes to illuminate the Kostylevo basement with the light of new ideas, forgotten at the bottom of feelings. He talks about how it should be, what should be, and it is not at all necessary to look for practical recommendations or instructions for survival in his reasoning.

Evangelist Luke was a doctor. Luke heals in his own way in the play - with his attitude to life, advice, words, sympathy, love.

Luke heals, but not everyone, but selectively, those who need words. His philosophy is revealed in relation to other characters. He sympathizes with the victims of life: Anna, Natasha, Nastya. Teaches, giving practical advice, Ashes, Actor. Understandingly, meaningfully, often without words, he explains with the smart Bubnov. Skillfully avoids unnecessary explanations.

Luke is flexible and soft. “They crumpled a lot, that’s why it’s soft...” he said in the finale of Act 1.

Luke with his “lies” is sympathetic to Satin. “Dubier... keep quiet about the old man!.. The old man is not a charlatan!.. He lied... but it’s out of pity for you, damn you!” And yet Luke’s “lies” do not suit him. “Lies are the religion of slaves and masters! Truth is the god of a free man!”

Thus, while rejecting the “truth” of Bubnov, Gorky does not deny either the “truth” of Satin or the “truth” of Luke. Essentially, he distinguishes two truths: “truth-truth” and “truth-dream”.

2. Features of Gorky’s humanism.

Problem Human in Gorky’s play “At the Depths” (individual message).

Gorky put his truth about man and overcoming the dead end into the mouths of Actor, Luka and Satin.

At the beginning of the play, indulging in theatrical memories, Actor selflessly spoke about the miracle of talent - the game of transforming a person into a hero. Responding to Satin’s words about books read and education, he separated education and talent: “Education is nonsense, the main thing is talent”; “I say talent, that’s what a hero needs. And talent is faith in yourself, in your strength...”

It is known that Gorky admired knowledge, education, and books, but he valued talent even more highly. Through the Actor, he polemically, maximalistically sharpened and polarized two facets of the spirit: education as a sum of knowledge and living knowledge - a “system of thought.”

In monologues Satina the ideas of Gorky's thoughts about man are confirmed.

Man – “he is everything. He even created God"; “man is the receptacle of the living God”; “Faith in the powers of thought... is a person’s faith in himself.” So in Gorky’s letters. And so - in the play: “A person can believe and not believe... that’s his business! Man is free... he pays for everything himself... Man is the truth! What is a person... it's you, me, them, the old man, Napoleon, Mohammed... in one... In one - all the beginnings and ends... Everything is in a person, everything is for a person! Only man exists, everything else is the work of his hands and his brain!”

The Actor was the first to speak about talent and self-confidence. Satin summarized everything. What is the role Luke? He carries the ideas of transformation and improvement of life, dear to Gorky, at the cost of human creative efforts.

“And yet, I see, people are becoming smarter, more and more interesting... and even though they live, they are getting worse, but they want to be better... they are stubborn!” - the elder confesses in the first act, referring to the common aspirations of everyone for a better life.

Then, in 1902, Gorky shared his observations and moods with V. Veresaev: “The mood for life is growing and expanding, cheerfulness and faith in people are becoming more and more noticeable, and - life is good on earth - by God!” The same words, the same thoughts, even the same intonations in the play and the letter.

In the fourth act Satin remembered and reproduced Luke’s answer to his question “Why do people live?”: “And - people live for the best... For a hundred years... and maybe more - they live for the better person!.. That’s it, dear , everyone, as they are, lives for the best! That’s why every person must be respected... We don’t know who he is, why he was born and what he can do...” And he himself, continuing to talk about a person, said, repeating Luke: “We must respect a person! Don’t feel sorry... don’t humiliate him with pity... you have to respect him!” Satin repeated Luke, speaking about respect, did not agree with him, speaking about pity, but something else is more important - the idea of a “better person”.

The statements of the three characters are similar, and, mutually reinforcing, they work on the problem of the triumph of Man.

In one of Gorky’s letters we read: “I am sure that man is capable of endless improvement, and all his activities will also develop with him... from century to century. I believe in the infinity of life...” Again Luka, Satin, Gorky - about one thing.

3. What is the significance of the 4th act of Gorky’s play?

In this act, the situation is the same, but the previously sleepy thoughts of the tramps begin to “ferment.”

It started with Anna's death scene.

Luke says over the dying woman: “Much merciful Jesus Christ! Receive the spirit of your newly departed servant Anna in peace...” But Anna’s last words were the words about life: “Well... a little more... I wish I could live... a little more! If there is no flour there... here we can be patient... we can!”

– How should we regard these words of Anna – as a victory for Luke or as his defeat? Gorky does not give a clear answer; this phrase can be commented on in different ways. One thing is clear:

Anna spoke for the first time about life positively thanks to Luke.

In the last act, a strange, completely unconscious rapprochement of the “bitter brethren” takes place. In the 4th act, Kleshch repaired Alyoshka’s harmonica, after testing the frets, the already familiar prison song began to sound. And this ending is perceived in two ways. You can do this: you can’t escape from the bottom - “The sun rises and sets... but it’s dark in my prison!” It can be done differently: at the cost of death, a person ended the song of tragic hopelessness...

Suicide Actor interrupted the song.

What prevents homeless shelters from changing their lives for the better? Natasha’s fatal mistake is in not trusting people, Ash (“I somehow don’t believe... any words”), hoping together to change fate.

“That’s why I’m a thief, because no one ever thought of calling me by another name... Call me... Natasha, well?”

Her answer is convinced, mature: “There’s nowhere to go... I know... I thought... But I don’t trust anyone.”

One word of faith in a person could change the lives of both, but it was not spoken.

The Actor, for whom creativity is the meaning of life, a calling, also did not believe in himself. The news of the Actor’s death came after Satin’s famous monologues, shading them with contrast: he couldn’t cope, he couldn’t play, but he could have, he didn’t believe in himself.

All the characters in the play are in the zone of action of the seemingly abstract Good and Evil, but they become quite concrete when it comes to the fate, worldviews, and relationships with the lives of each of the characters. And they connect people with good and evil through their thoughts, words and deeds. They directly or indirectly affect life. Life is a way of choosing your direction between good and evil. In the play, Gorky examined man and tested his capabilities. The play is devoid of utopian optimism, as well as the other extreme - disbelief in man. But one conclusion is indisputable: “Talent is what a hero needs. And talent is faith in yourself, your strength...”

III. The aphoristic language of Gorky's play.

Teacher . One of the characteristic features of Gorky’s work is aphorism. It is characteristic of both the author’s speech and the speech of the characters, which is always sharply individual. Many aphorisms of the play “At the Bottom,” like the aphorisms of the “Songs” about the Falcon and the Petrel, became popular. Let's remember some of them.

– Which characters in the play do the following aphorisms, proverbs, and sayings belong to?

a) Noise is not a hindrance to death.

b) Such a life that you get up in the morning and howl.

c) Expect some sense from the wolf.

d) When work is a duty, life is slavery.

e) Not a single flea is bad: all are black, all jump.

e) Where it is warm for an old man, there is his homeland.

g) Everyone wants order, but there is a lack of reason.

h) If you don’t like it, don’t listen, and don’t bother lying.

(Bubnov - a, b, g; Luka - d, f; Satin - g, Baron - h, Ash - c.)

– What is the role of the aphoristic statements of the characters in the speech structure of the play?

Aphoristic judgments receive the greatest significance in the speech of the main “ideologists” of the play - Luka and Bubnov, heroes whose positions are indicated extremely clearly. The philosophical dispute, in which each of the characters in the play takes its own position, is supported by general folk wisdom, expressed in proverbs and sayings.

IV. Creative work.

Write your reasoning, expressing their attitude to the work they read. (Answer to one question of your choice.)

– What is the meaning of the dispute between Luke and Satin?

– Which side do you take in the “truth” debate?

– What problems raised by M. Gorky in the play “At the Lower Depths” did not leave you indifferent?

When preparing your answer, pay attention to the speech of the characters and how it helps to reveal the idea of the work.

Homework.

Select an episode for analysis (oral). This will be the topic of your future essay.

1. Luke’s story about the “righteous land.” (Analysis of an episode from the 3rd act of Gorky’s play.)

2. Dispute among shelters about a person (Analysis of the dialogue at the beginning of the 3rd act of the play “At the Depths.”)

3. What is the meaning of the ending of Gorky’s play “At the Lower Depths”?

4. Luka's appearance in the shelter. (Analysis of a scene from the 1st act of the play.)

Goals: consider the characters’ understanding of Gorky’s play “truth”; find out the meaning of the tragic collision of different points of view: the truth of a fact (Bubnov), the truth of a comforting lie (Luke), the truth of faith in a person (Satin); determine the features of Gorky’s humanism.

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Lesson topic:

“THREE TRUTHS” IN GORKY’S PLAY “AT THE BOTTOM”

Goals: consider the characters’ understanding of Gorky’s play “truth”; find out the meaning of the tragic collision of different points of view: the truth of a fact (Bubnov), the truth of a comforting lie (Luke), the truth of faith in a person (Satin); determine the features of Gorky’s humanism.

During the classes

Gentlemen! If the truth is holy

The world doesn’t know how to find a way,

Honor the madman who inspires

A golden dream for humanity!

I. Introductory conversation.

– Restore the sequence of events of the play. What events take place on stage and what events take place “behind the scenes”? What is the role of the traditional “conflict polygon” - Kostylev, Vasilisa, Ashes, Natasha - in the development of dramatic action?

Teacher. Thus, the play contains two actions in parallel. First, we see on stage (supposed and real). Detective story with conspiracy, escape, murder, suicide. The second is the exposure of “masks” and the identification of the true essence of a person. This happens as if behind the text and requires decoding. For example, here is the dialogue between Baron and Luke.

Baron. We lived better... yes! I... used to... wake up in the morning and, lying in bed, drink coffee... coffee! – with cream... yes!

Luke. And everyone is people! No matter how you pretend, no matter how you wobble, if you were born a man, you will die a man...

But Baron is afraid to be “just a man.” And he does not recognize “just a person.”

Baron. Who are you, old man?.. Where did you come from?

Luke. Me?

Baron. Wanderer?

Luke. We are all wanderers on earth... They say, I heard, that the earth is our wanderer.

The culmination of the second (implicit) action comes when the “truths” of Bubnov, Satin and Luka collide on the “narrow everyday platform”.

II. Work on the problem stated in the topic of the lesson.

1. The philosophy of truth in Gorky’s play.

– What is the main leitmotif of the play? Which character is the first to formulate the main question of the drama “At the Bottom”?

– What is truth for the heroes of the play? How can their views be compared?(Work with text.)

A) How does Bubnov understand “truth”? How do his views differ from Luke's philosophy of truth?

Bubnov sees only the negative side of life and destroys the remnants of faith and hope in people, while Luka knows that in a kind word the ideal becomes real:“A person can teach goodness... very simply,”he concluded the story about life at the dacha, and in setting out the “story” of the righteous land, he reduced it to the fact that the destruction of faith kills a person.Luka (thoughtfully, to Bubnov): “Here... what you say is true... It’s true, it’s not always due to a person’s illness... you can’t always cure a soul with the truth...” Luke heals the soul.

Luka’s position is more humane and more effective than Bubnov’s naked truth, because it appeals to the remnants of humanity in the souls of the night shelters. For Luke, a person “no matter what he is, is always worth his price.”“I’m just saying that if someone hasn’t done good to someone, then they’ve done something bad.” "To caress a person– never harmful."

B) What does Satin see as the truth of life?

One of the climaxes of the play is Satin’s famous monologues from the fourth act about man, truth, and freedom.

A trained student reads Satin's monologue by heart.

It is interesting that Satin supported his reasoning with the authority of Luke, a man in relation to whom at the beginning of the play we imagined Satin to be an antipode. Moreover, Satin's references to Luke in Act 4 prove the closeness of both."Old man? He’s a smart guy!.. He... acted on me like acid on an old and dirty coin... Let’s drink to his health!” “Man – that’s the truth! He understood this... you don’t!”

Actually, the “truth” and “lies” of Satin and Luke almost coincide.

If everything has faded away and one “naked” person remains, then “what’s next”? For the actor, this thought leads to suicide.

Q) What role does Luke play in addressing the issue of “truth” in the play?

For Luke, the truth is in “comforting lies.”

In the image of Luke there are allusions to the biblical Luke, who was one of the seventy disciples sent by the Lord “to every city and place where He Himself wanted to go.”

Gorky's Luka makes the inhabitants of the bottom think about God and man, about the “better man,” about the highest calling of people.

Evangelist Luke was a doctor. Luke heals in his own way in the play - with his attitude to life, advice, words, sympathy, love.

Luke is flexible and soft. “They crumpled a lot, that’s why it’s soft...” he said in the finale of Act 1.

2. Features of Gorky’s humanism.

The Problem of Man in Gorky’s play “At the Depths” (individual message).

Gorky put his truth about man and overcoming the dead end into the mouths of Actor, Luka and Satin.

At the beginning of the play, indulging in theatrical memories, Actor selflessly spoke about the miracle of talent - the game of transforming a person into a hero. Responding to Satin’s words about books read and education, he separated education and talent: “Education is nonsense, the main thing is talent”; “I say talent, that’s what a hero needs. And talent is faith in yourself, in your strength...”

In Satin's monologues the ideas of Gorky's thoughts about man are confirmed.

The Actor was the first to speak about talent and self-confidence. Satin summarized everything. What is the role Luke ? He carries the ideas of transformation and improvement of life, dear to Gorky, at the cost of human creative efforts.

In the fourth act Satin remembered and reproduced Luke’s answer to his question “Why do people live?”: “And - people live for the best... For a hundred years... and maybe more - they live for the better person!.. That’s it, dear , everyone, as they are, lives for the best! That’s why every person must be respected... We don’t know who he is, why he was born and what he can do...” And he himself, continuing to talk about a person, said, repeating Luke: “We must respect a person! Don’t feel sorry... don’t humiliate him with pity... you have to respect him!” Satin repeated Luke, speaking about respect, did not agree with him, speaking about pity, but something else is more important - the idea of a “better person”.

The statements of the three characters are similar, and, mutually reinforcing, they work on the problem of the triumph of Man.

3. What is the significance of the 4th act of Gorky’s play?

In this act, the situation is the same, but the previously sleepy thoughts of the tramps begin to “ferment.”

It started with Anna's death scene.

Luke says over the dying woman: “Much merciful Jesus Christ! Receive the spirit of your newly departed servant Anna in peace...” But Anna’s last words were the words about life : “Well... a little more... I wish I could live... a little more! If there is no flour there... here we can be patient... we can!”

– How should we regard these words of Anna – as a victory for Luke or as his defeat? Gorky does not give a clear answer; this phrase can be commented on in different ways. One thing is clear:

Anna spoke for the first timeabout life positively thanks to Luke.

The actor's suicide interrupted the song.

“That’s why I’m a thief, because no one ever thought of calling me by another name... Call me... Natasha, well?”

Her answer is convinced, mature:“There’s nowhere to go... I know... I thought... But I don’t trust anyone.”

One word of faith in a person could change the lives of both, but it was not spoken.

III. The aphoristic language of Gorky's play.

Teacher. One of the characteristic features of Gorky’s work is aphorism. It is characteristic of both the author’s speech and the speech of the characters, which is always sharply individual. Many aphorisms of the play “At the Bottom,” like the aphorisms of the “Songs” about the Falcon and the Petrel, became popular. Let's remember some of them.

– Which characters in the play do the following aphorisms, proverbs, and sayings belong to?

a) Noise is not a hindrance to death.

b) Such a life that you get up in the morning and howl.

c) Expect some sense from the wolf.

d) When work is a duty, life is slavery.

e) Not a single flea is bad: all are black, all jump.

e) Where it is warm for an old man, there is his homeland.

g) Everyone wants order, but there is a lack of reason.

h) If you don’t like it, don’t listen, and don’t bother lying.

(Bubnov - a, b, g; Luka - d, f; Satin - g, Baron - h, Ash - c.)

– What is the role of the aphoristic statements of the characters in the speech structure of the play?

IV. Creative work.

Write a reflection expressing your attitude to the work you read.(Answer to one question of your choice.)

– What is the meaning of the dispute between Luke and Satin?

– Which side do you take in the “truth” debate?

– What problems raised by M. Gorky in the play “At the Lower Depths” did not leave you indifferent?

When preparing your answer, pay attention to the speech of the characters and how it helps to reveal the idea of the work.

Homework.

Select an episode for analysis (oral). This will be the topic of your future essay.

1. Luke’s story about the “righteous land.” (Analysis of an episode from the 3rd act of Gorky’s play.)

2. Dispute among shelters about a person (Analysis of the dialogue at the beginning of the 3rd act of the play “At the Depths.”)

3. What is the meaning of the ending of Gorky’s play “At the Lower Depths”?

4. Luka's appearance in the shelter. (Analysis of a scene from the 1st act of the play.)

The play “At the Lower Depths” was written on June 15, 1902, and premiered on stage on December 31 of the same year. It changed many names during the development process and overcame many obstacles due to censorship in Russian theaters, but remains interesting to this day, because in it you can find the truth about the life of “former people”, that is, the social lower classes of society, hence its name , to which we are so accustomed.

You can talk a lot about why Gorky didn’t give it a title, for example, “Without the Sun” or “Nochlezhka,” but the most interesting thing, in my opinion, is to talk about the conflict of this play.

I want to start with the fact that in the play we can notice three “truths”, each of which is true in its own way, they are the ones that make up the conflict of the work.

The “truth” of the wanderer Luke is that if a person needs a lie in order to live, he needs to lie, for this will be a lie for the greater good. Without it, a person may not be able to withstand the difficult truth and die altogether, since everyone needs consolation to continue the fight against despondency. The hero’s speech is aphoristic, and in it you can see his position in life. For example, the hero believes that: “What you believe in is what it is.”

There is also a second “truth”, which is displayed in the image of Satin, who is a cheater and an alcoholic. In the past, he was a telegraph operator, but he dared to kill a man and went to prison, and so he ended up in a shelter, carrying his “truth” that lying is the religion of slaves and you can’t lie to anyone, anywhere. Satin believes that a person should be respected, and not humiliated with pity. According to Konstantin, a person should not despair, and it is in his monologues that the author’s position is observed: “Truth is the god of a free man!”

The third “truth” is that you need to say everything straight, as it is, and this is Bubnov’s truth. He believes that there is no point in lying, since everyone will die sooner or later anyway.

Each person decides for himself which “truth” is closer to him, but the most difficult thing is to make the right choice, because the life of a person, or even hundreds of people, can depend on it. I believe that the truth proposed by Satin is closer to me, since I think that a person should always be aware of his worth and be respected. Lies will always exist, whether we like it or not, because without evil, as we know, there would be no good. However, it cannot be cultivated and turned into an idea, justifying it with an illusory good. Everyone has their own understanding of “good,” and if we begin to deceive each other in order to achieve a “higher” goal, then we will sow only evil. The dispute over whose truth is more truthful will be resolved by force, and there will no longer be time for respect and value of human life and personality.

Luka leaves, like abstract ideals under the pressure of real life. What can he, a tramp and a beggar, advise people? How can I help you? Only to instill destructive vain hope, which, when it leaves, will break a person into smithereens.

In conclusion, I want to write that an honest person is much stronger and kinder than a liar: he is not indifferent if he tries to find the truth and show it to you, and not hide it or “not notice” out of banal indifference to your fate. A liar irresponsibly and cold-bloodedly takes advantage of gullibility and betrays it, while an honest person has to break through the armor of mistrust and act directly for your good. He doesn't use you or fool you for fun. Luka was also neither calculating nor funny, but he was far from real life and immersed in his own illusions. Satin is a realist; he has seen more in his time. This kind of prodigal son learned from his own experience how a person needs respect and truth, which, who knows, could have warned him in due time from a fatal mistake.

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The Fox knows many truths, but the Hedgehog knows one, but a big one.
Archilochus

The play “At the Bottom” is a socio-philosophical drama. More than a hundred years have passed since the creation of the work, the social conditions that Gorky exposed have changed, but the play is still not outdated. Why? Because it raises an “eternal” philosophical topic that will never cease to excite people. Usually for Gorky's play this theme is formulated as follows: a dispute about truth and lies. Such a formulation is clearly insufficient, since truth and lies do not exist by themselves - they are always associated with a person. Therefore, it would be more accurate to formulate the philosophical theme of “At the Bottom” in a different way: a dispute about true and false humanism. Gorky himself, in Satin’s famous monologue from the fourth act, connects truth and lies not only with humanism, but also with human freedom: “Man is free... he pays for everything himself: for faith, for unbelief, for love, for intelligence - man He pays for everything himself, and therefore he is free! Man - that’s the truth!” It follows that the author in the play talks about man - truth - freedom, that is, about the main moral categories of philosophy. Since it is impossible to unambiguously define these ideological categories (“the last questions of humanity,” as F.M. Dostoevsky called them), Gorky presented in his drama several points of view on the problems posed. Drama became polyphonic (the theory of polyphonism in a work of art was developed in his book “The Poetics of Dostoevsky’s Work” by M. M. Bakhtin). In other words, there are several ideologue heroes in the play, each with their own “voice”, that is, with a special point of view on the world and man.

It is generally accepted that Gorky portrayed two ideologists - Satin and Luka, but in fact there are at least four of them: Bubnov and Kostylev should be added to those named. According to Kostylev, the truth is not needed at all, since it threatens the well-being of the “masters of life.” In the third act, Kostylev talks about real wanderers and simultaneously expresses his attitude to the truth: “A strange person... not like others... If he is truly strange... knows something... learned something like that... . no one needs... maybe he learned the truth there... well, not all truth is needed... yes! He - keep it to himself... and - be silent! If he is truly strange... he is silent! Otherwise he says things that no one understands... And he doesn’t want anything, doesn’t interfere with anything, doesn’t bother people in vain...” (III). Indeed, why does Kostylev need the truth? In words he is for honesty and work (“It is necessary that a person be useful... that he work...” III), but in reality he buys stolen goods from Ash.

Bubnov always speaks the truth, but this is the “truth of fact,” which only captures the disorder and injustice of the existing world. Bubnov does not believe that people can live better, more honestly, helping each other, as in a righteous land. Therefore, he calls all dreams of such a life “fairy tales” (III). Bubnov frankly admits: “In my opinion, throw out the whole truth as it is! Why be ashamed? (III). But a person cannot be satisfied with the hopeless “truth of fact.” Kleshch speaks out against Bubnov’s truth when he shouts: “Which truth? Where is the truth? (...) No work... no power! That's the truth! (...) You have to breathe... here it is, the truth! (...) What do I need it for - is it true?” (III). Another hero also speaks out against the “truth of fact,” the same one who believed in the righteous land. This faith, as Luke says, helped him live. And when faith in the possibility of a better life was destroyed, the man hanged himself. There is no righteous land - this is the “truth of fact”, but to say that it should never exist is a lie. That is why Natasha explains the death of the hero of the parable this way: “I could not tolerate deception” (III).

The most interesting hero-ideologist in the play is, of course, Luke. Critics have varied assessments of this strange wanderer - from admiration for the old man’s generosity to exposure of his harmful consolation. Obviously, these are extreme estimates and therefore one-sided. The objective, calm assessment of Luka, which belongs to I.M. Moskvin, the first performer of the role of the old man on the theater stage, seems more convincing. The actor played Luka as a kind and intelligent person, whose consolations are not self-interested. Bubnov notes the same thing in the play: “Luka, for example, lies a lot... and without any benefit to himself... Why would he?” (III).

The reproaches leveled at Luke do not stand up to serious criticism. It should be specially noted that the old man does not “lie” anywhere. He advises Ash to go to Siberia, where he can start a new life. And it is true. His story about a free hospital for alcoholics, which made a strong impression on the Actor, is true, which is confirmed by special research by literary scholars (see the article by Vs. Troitsky “Historical realities in M. Gorky’s play “At the Lower Depths”” // Literature at school, 1980 , No. 6). Who can say that in describing Anna’s afterlife, Luke is being disingenuous? He consoles a dying man. Why blame him? He tells Nastya that he believes in her romance with the noble Gaston-Raoul, because he sees in the story of the unfortunate maiden not just a lie, like Bubnov, but a poetic dream.

Luke’s critics also claim that the harm from the old man’s consolations tragically affected the fate of the night shelters: the old man did not save anyone, did not really help anyone, the death of the Actor is on Luke’s conscience. How easy it is to blame one person for everything! He came to degraded people whom no one cared about, and consoled them as best he could. Neither the state, nor the officials, nor the homeless shelters themselves are to blame—Luke is to blame! It’s true, the old man didn’t save anyone, but he didn’t destroy anyone either - he did what was in his power: he helped people feel like people, the rest depended on them. And the Actor, an experienced heavy drinker, has absolutely no willpower to stop drinking. Vaska Pepel, in a stressed state, having learned that Vasilisa crippled Natalya, accidentally kills Kostylev. Thus, the reproaches expressed against Luke seem unconvincing: Luke is not “lying” anywhere and is not to blame for the misfortunes that happened to the night shelters.

Usually, researchers, condemning Luke, agree that Satin, in contrast to the crafty wanderer, formulates the correct ideas about freedom - truth - man: “Lies are the religion of slaves and masters... Truth is the god of a free man!” Satin explains the reasons for lying this way: “Whoever is weak at heart... and who lives on other people’s juices needs a lie... some are supported by it, others hide behind it... And who is his own master... who is independent and does not eat someone else’s - why would he lie?” (IV). If we decipher this statement, we get the following: Kostylev lies because he “lives on other people’s juices,” and Luka lies because he is “weak at heart.” Kostylev’s position, obviously, should be rejected immediately; Luka’s position requires serious analysis. Satin demands to look life straight in the eye, and Luka looks around in search of a comforting deception. Satin's truth differs from Bubnov's truth: Bubnov does not believe that a person can rise above himself; Satin, unlike Bubnov, believes in man, in his future, in his creative talent. That is, Satin is the only hero in the play who knows the truth.

What is the author's position in the debate about truth - freedom - man? Some literary scholars argue that only the words of Satin set out the author’s position, however, it can be assumed that the author’s position combines the ideas of Satin and Luke, but is not completely exhausted even by both of them. In other words, in Gorky Satin and Luke as ideologists are not opposed, but complement each other.

On the one hand, Satin himself admits that Luke, with his behavior and consoling conversations, pushed him (formerly an educated telegraph operator, and now a tramp) to think about Man. On the other hand, Luke and Satin both talk about goodness, about faith in the best that always lives in the human soul. Satin recalls how Luke answered the question: “What do people live for?” The old man said: “For the best!” (IV). But doesn’t Satin, when discussing Man, repeat the same thing? Luke says about people: “People... They will find and invent everything! You just need to help them... you need to respect them...” (III). Satin formulates a similar thought: “We must respect a person! Don’t feel sorry... don’t humiliate him with pity... you have to respect him!” (IV). The only difference between these statements is that Luke focuses on respect for a specific person, and Satin - on the Person. Diverging in particulars, they agree on the main thing - in the statement that man is the highest truth and value of the world. In Satin's monologue, respect and pity are contrasted, but it cannot be said for sure that this is the author's final position: pity, like love, does not exclude respect. On the third hand, Luka and Satin are extraordinary personalities who never clash in an argument in the play. Luka understands that Satin does not need his consolations, and Satin, carefully watching the old man in the shelter, never ridiculed him or cut him off.

To summarize what has been said, it should be noted that in the socio-philosophical drama “At the Bottom” the main and most interesting is the philosophical content. This idea is proven by the very structure of Gorky’s play: almost all the characters participate in the discussion of the philosophical problem of man - truth - freedom, while in the everyday storyline only four sort things out (Ashes, Natalya, the Kostylev couple). Many plays have been written showing the hopeless life of the poor in pre-revolutionary Russia, but it is very difficult to name another play other than the drama “At the Lower Depths”, in which, along with social problems, the “last” philosophical questions would be posed and successfully resolved.

The author's position (the fifth in a row, but perhaps not the last) in the play “At the Lower Depths” is created as a result of repulsion from false points of view (Kostylev and Bubnov) and the complementarity of two other points of view (Luka and Satin). The author in a polyphonic work, according to M.M. Bakhtin’s definition, does not subscribe to any of the points of view expressed: the solution to the posed philosophical questions does not belong to one hero, but is the result of the searches of all participants in the action. The author, like a conductor, organizes a polyphonic choir of characters, “singing” the same theme in different voices.

Still, there is no final solution to the question of truth - freedom - man in Gorky's drama. However, this is how it should be in a play that poses “eternal” philosophical questions. The open ending of the work forces the reader himself to think about them.