Essay: “Katerina’s emotional drama” based on the play by A.N. Ostrovsky "Thunderstorm". Plan for an essay on the emotional drama of Katerina in Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm"

The emotional drama of Katerina (based on the play by A.N. Ostrovsky “The Thunderstorm”)

Character consists of the ability to act on principles. A. N. Ostrovsky wrote many plays from the life of the merchants. They are so truthful and bright that Dobrolyubov called them “plays of life.” In these works, the life of the merchants is described as a world of hidden, quietly sighing sorrow, a world of dull, aching pain, a world of prison-like deathly silence. And even if a senseless murmur appears, it dies away at its birth. The critic N.A. Dobrolyubov titled his article devoted to the analysis of Ostrovsky’s plays “The Dark Kingdom.” He expressed the idea that the tyranny of the merchants rests only on ignorance and humility. But a way out will be found, because the desire to live with dignity cannot be destroyed in a person.

“...Who will be able to throw a ray of light into the ugly darkness of the dark kingdom?” - asks Dobrolyubov. The answer to this question was new play playwright "The Thunderstorm".

Written in 1860, the play, both in its spirit and in its title, seemed to symbolize the process of renewal of society, which was shaking off the torpor of tyranny. The thunderstorm has long been the personification of the struggle for freedom. And in the play this is not only a natural phenomenon, but a vivid image of the internal struggle that began in the dark merchant life.

There is a lot in the play characters. But the main one is Katerina. The image of this woman is not only the most complex, but it is sharply different from all others. No wonder the critic called it “a ray of light in dark kingdom" How is Katerina so different from other “residents” of this “kingdom”?

There are no free people in this world! Neither tyrants nor their victims are such. Here you can deceive, like Varvara, but you cannot live according to truth and conscience without betraying your soul.

Katerina was brought up in a merchant family, she “lived at home, did not worry about anything, like a bird in the wild.” But after marriage, this free nature fell into an iron cage of tyranny.

In Katerina’s house there were always many pilgrims and praying mantises, whose stories (and the whole situation in the house) made her very religious, sincerely believing in the commandments of the church. It is not surprising that she perceives her love for Boris as a grave sin. But Katerina is a “poet” in religion. She is endowed with a vivid imagination and dreaminess. Listening various stories, she seems to see them in reality. She often dreamed of paradise gardens and birds, and when she entered the church, she saw angels. Even her speech is musical and melodious, reminiscent of folk tales and songs.

However, religion, a secluded life, and the lack of outlet for her extraordinary sensitivity had a negative impact on her character. Therefore, when during a thunderstorm she heard the curses of the crazy lady, she began to pray. When she saw a drawing of “fiery hell” on the wall, her nerves could not stand it, and she confessed to Tikhon her love for Boris.

But religiosity even somehow sets off such traits of the heroine as the desire for independence and truth, courage and determination. Tyrant Wild and Kabanikha, who always reproaches and hates her relatives, are never able to understand other people. In comparison with them or with the spineless Tikhon, who only sometimes allows him to go on a spree for a few days, with her beloved Boris, who is unable to appreciate true love, Katerina’s character becomes especially attractive. She does not want and cannot deceive and directly declares: “I don’t know how to deceive; I couldn’t hide anything).”

Love for Boris is everything for Katerina: longing for freedom, dreams of real life. And in the name of this love, she enters into an unequal duel with the “dark kingdom.” She does not perceive her protest as an indignation against the entire system, she does not even think about it. But the “dark kingdom” is structured in such a way that any manifestation of independence, independence, and personal dignity is perceived by him as a mortal sin, as a rebellion against the foundations of the rule of tyrants. That is why the play ends with the death of the heroine: after all, she is not only lonely, but also crushed by the inner consciousness of her “sin.”

The death of a brave woman is not a cry of despair. No, this is a moral victory over the “dark kingdom” that fetters her freedom, will, and reason. Suicide, according to the teachings of the church, is an unforgivable sin. But Katerina is no longer afraid of this. Having fallen in love, she declares to Boris: “If I was not afraid of sin for you, will I be afraid human court? And her last words were: “My friend! My joy! Goodbye!"

You can justify or blame Katerina for her fatal decision, but you cannot help but admire the integrity of her nature, her thirst for freedom, and her determination. Her death shocked even such downtrodden people as Tikhon, who to his face blames his mother for the death of his wife.

This means that Katerina’s action was really “ a terrible challenge tyrant force." This means that in the “dark kingdom” bright natures can be born who, with their life or death, can illuminate this “kingdom”. Send a request indicating the topic right now to find out about the possibility of receiving a consultation.

Katerina – central character Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm". Since its writing, the work has enjoyed enormous popularity. Performances based on the play never leave the stage largest theaters. main reason such popularity lies in the author’s talented disclosure of Katerina’s character.

Inevitable conflict with others and emotional drama main character leads to her tragic death.

In the image of Katerina, Ostrovsky portrayed a strong independent personality held back by chains traditional society. The patriarchal way of life, which everyone in the city adheres to, stifles the slightest manifestations of the living soul. His main supporter is Tikhon’s mother. She raised her son in conditions of unquestioning obedience. Tikhon in his soul understands the stupidity of his mother’s instructions, but he does not have the will to resist her.

Katerina sincerely loves and pities her husband. She cannot look at his humiliation in front of his mother with indifference. But she is not able to fix anything. The stuffy atmosphere that reigns in the city gradually takes over her. Katerina unconsciously wants to break out of it.

Heartwarming drama Katerina is that in other conditions she would never have cheated on her husband. But in this “sleepy kingdom” she is too cramped, she is suffocating from such a life. In the famous monologue of the main character “Why don’t people fly” this is most clearly expressed spiritual aspiration. The fantastic desire to become a bird and fly “far, far away” is a passionate impulse of a tormented soul.

In reality, Katerina's liberation occurred as a result of her sudden love for Boris. The woman's decency did not allow her to speak openly about it. The rapprochement occurred with the assistance of Varvara. The affair with Boris, on the one hand, inspired Katerina and allowed her to feel real pleasure in life. On the other hand, this novel became disastrous for the main character.

The image of Katerina is extremely tragic. She cannot be considered a fallen woman who betrayed her husband for the sake of a fleeting hobby. The betrayal occurred due to the fault of an old woman who had lost her mind and her weak-willed son. The time spent without my husband flashed by in an instant. Katerina anticipates the inevitable retribution for her terrible sin. She could easily hide all this, but, being a deeply religious person, she does not even allow the thought of deception.

Katerina's mental turmoil worsens with the arrival of Tikhon. She lives as if in delirium, frightening those around her with her behavior and words. Katerina awaits divine punishment for her sinful behavior. The feeling of impending death leads her to make a terrible confession to her husband and his mother. By admitting her sin, she seems to cleanse her soul before death. Katerina’s suicide is a natural outcome of the work. Her spiritual drama could not be resolved any other way.

Katerina is an excellent example of a strong spiritual personality. She is not to blame for either the betrayal or her own death. Ostrovsky convincingly showed the destructive impact that outdated concepts and prejudices have on the human soul. Katerina's emotional drama is indicative of any historical era.

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1. Katerina is a ray of light in a dark kingdom.
2. Carefree childhood and the easy youth of Katerina
3. Marriage to Tikhon, or Katerina’s personal Hell
4. Boris as a savior for Katerina
5. Katerina’s death as liberation from earthly torment and humiliation
____________________
Katerina's character influences us

A new life that

Reveals to us in the very

Her death.

N. A. Dobrolyubov.

Dobrolyubov, analyzing in detail the image of Katerina, called her “a ray of light in a dark kingdom,” and in this I agree with him, since Ostrovsky showed the lack of rights of women in that era. A woman had to obey her husband in everything, forget that she was the same person, with the same rights as a man. She had to do everything for show, observing old rituals.

Katerina is a “Russian strong character”, for whom truth and a sense of duty are above all.

Katerina's childhood and youth were carefree. As she herself says: ... “she lived, grieved for nothing, like a bird in the wild.” Mama doted on her, dressed her up like a doll, and did not force her to work. The young girl went to wash herself, listened to the stories of the wanderers, then sat down to do some work, and so the whole day passed.

Since childhood, Katya was a very brave, determined, hot girl. If she encountered something on her way that contradicted her ideals, she became stubborn and rebellious. This is confirmed by the boat incident. When Katerina was six years old, she was offended by her parents, ran away from home in the evening to the Volga, got into a boat and pushed off from the shore. And they found her only in the morning, about ten miles away.

Given in marriage to Tikhon, she found herself in an evil environment of heartlessness and stupid slavish admiration for the power of the old. Kabanova is trying to instill in Katerina her laws, which, in her opinion, constitute the basis of domestic well-being and the strength of family ties. This is how her son was raised. Kabanova intended to mold something out of Katerina similar to that what she turned her child into.

But Katya is trying to defend her right to respect, she doesn’t want to please anyone, she wants to love and be loved. Tikhon does not give her this love, and the need for it draws her to Boris. She sees that in appearance he is similar to other residents of the city of Kalinov, and imagines that he is the only person who will dare to take her from the “dark kingdom” to fairy world. The heroine is looking for an explanation for her feelings, in her soul she wants to justify herself to her husband, she is trying to tear away vague desires from herself.

The most main feature Her character is honesty. Honesty with yourself, your husband and other people. She cannot lie, hide.

The greatest value is freedom of the soul. Living in parental home, she didn’t worry about anything, like a bird in the wild, but once in the Kabanovs’ house, Katerina found herself in an atmosphere of annoying guardianship, humiliation, suspicion and lies. Not the desire to accept the morality of the “dark kingdom”, the ability to preserve the purity of one’s soul is evidence of the heroine’s strength of character. She says about herself: “And if I get really tired of it here, no force can hold me back. I’ll throw myself out the window, throw myself into the Volga.”

With such a character, Katya could not stay in his house after betraying Tikhon. It is difficult for her to be in a place where she is not understood. Before her death she says: “What goes home, what goes to the grave, it’s all the same... It’s better in the grave...” Katerina considers her death to be liberation from earthly torment and humiliation. Such liberation is sad, but what to do when there is no other way out.

The heroine dies defending her independence. By dying, she saves her soul and gains the desired freedom.

"The Thunderstorm" is Ostrovsky's highest achievement in the pre-reform years (1859) - the central conflict of the play, conceived as social drama, gradually reaches true tragedy. This happens thanks to the image central heroine plays by Katerina Kabanova.

From the very first scenes, the heroine attracts the attention of the audience. Sincerity sounds in the story about her free life in home spent among flowers, icons, prayers. Religion for Katerina is a love of beauty. God is everywhere for her, but her simple-hearted faith is also filled with sincere impulses to live according to her conscience, according to God’s covenants: “I’m not afraid to die, but when I think that suddenly I will appear before God as I am here with you, after this conversation , that’s what’s scary,” Katya says in a conversation with Varvara.

In the first scenes, in conversations with Kabanikha, Katerina meekly tries to come to terms with her mother-in-law’s grumpy remarks. But Kabanikha personifies the entire way of life and laws of the surrounding world. And it immediately becomes clear that the heroine with her dreamy and romantic soul is a stranger in the Kabanovs’ house.

Katerina is a free soul, a poetic nature. The author captured the beauty in her people's soul. “You know, sometimes it seems to me that I’m a bird. When you’re standing on a mountain, you feel the urge to fly,” she says to Varvara and admits that now it’s as if she’s been replaced and “some kind of dream creeps into my head.” This outlines the theme of the heroine’s discord with the world and with herself, associated with the unclear needs of the soul, the desire for love.

The heroine is endowed with such human qualities, which are not valued in the world of Kabanovs and Wild. There is not a drop of falsehood in her, she is always natural and frank: “I don’t know how to deceive, I can’t hide anything.” Katya is modest, but not at all resigned: “And if I get tired of being here, no force can hold me back. I’ll throw myself out the window, throw myself into the Volga.”

Why did such a deep and integral personality turn out to be broken? Why did her prophetic premonitions come true (“I will die soon”)?

In the play, two conflicts develop simultaneously. One of them - caused by social reasons - the conflict of a free soul with “tyrant power” plays, according to Dobrolyubov, main role in drama. The other - internal, affecting moral aspects - develops in the soul of the heroine. This is what determines the tragedy of Ostrovsky’s play.

Dobrolyubov is right: “The character of the heroine expresses the demand for the right and spaciousness of life, he is focused, decisive and selfless,” and her nature is “filled with an instinctive sense of freedom.” According to the critic, Katerina is taking the path free love, which is above prejudice. But soon the heroine becomes convinced that her feeling is incompatible with the life of society, because external circumstances put pressure on her. Dobrolyubov interprets the tragic ending as higher form protest as a triumph of light over darkness.

Catherine's drama cannot be motivated by social reasons alone. Resolution is very important for a playwright moral problems: Katerina’s mental struggle - central theme"Thunderstorms".

So, in the first act, in a conversation with Varvara, the heroine admits that she loves someone - this is the beginning of the plot. Even then her soul is filled with confusion and horror. main topic accompanied by the image of a thunderstorm. Katerina's soul is in tune with the world around her - nature is full of beauty, but also threat, which increases the heroine's anxiety.

Kabanova's conflict with those around her gradually grows. This is facilitated by Tikhon’s departure and the humiliating farewell scene. Here, with the assistance of Varvara, a key falls into Katya’s hands, which becomes a symbol of freedom and bondage at the same time.

Essence tragic conflict in its unsolvability. Having embarked on the path of struggle against social foundations, the heroine dooms herself to a tragic ending; she does not find a way out in this life.

In the third act, Katerina, overcoming shame and fear, confesses her love to Boris. The choice has been made, although she is still trying to resist the force that is dragging her into the abyss: “Get away from me! Get away, damned man!” But the thirst for love turns out to be stronger. The words of the crazy lady gradually begin to come true.

In the fourth, climactic act, retribution approaches Katerina, for sin cannot go unpunished. The heroine is in a painful discord with her conscience. Constantly crying, she shudders at every rustle and glance and longs to clear her conscience with repentance. With the onset of a thunderstorm, the terrible lady appears again, whose speech, full of threats, is addressed directly to Katerina.

The tragic denouement in the fifth act lies in the fact that Katerina does not find support anywhere, everything has collapsed on her. The only way out she sees in death. Thoughts about the future only frighten her, and the grave seems to be the only salvation from mental anguish. Again the heroine turns to nature, in which she dreams of dissolving: “There is a grave under the tree... how nice!.. The sun warms it, the rain wets it...”

Ostrovsky creates a truly folk tragedy. In contemporary society, where there is no true love, kindness, religion, but there is only a family-cage, there is no place for a living soul. Nobody even understands Katerina’s suffering. She judges herself more severely than anyone else and dies.


See also: Dobrolyubov about Katerina and my attitude towards the heroine. Essay plan

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Mikhail (16:20:34 11/15/2011):
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Oleg (20:38:52 10/16/2014):
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Fedor (19:36:49 12/25/2014):
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(-_-) (21:44:36 12/02/2015):
Small correction - Jesus. If you believe, then you should know.

Your name:

Drama A.N. Ostrovsky's "The Thunderstorm" - the playwright's most significant work - appeared in 1860, at a time when the foundations of serfdom were breaking down and a thunderstorm was really brewing in the stuffy Russian atmosphere.

The work is based on the conflict of a young woman, Katerina, with the “dark kingdom,” the kingdom of tyrants, despots, and ignoramuses. You can understand why this conflict arose, why the end of the drama is so tragic, only by looking into Katerina’s soul.

From Katerina’s words, we learn about her life as a girl: “I lived, didn’t worry about anything, like a bird in the wild.” Her mother “doted on her”, did not force her to do housework, “dressed her up like a doll.” Life in her home was free: the girl got up early, went to the spring to wash her face, watered the flowers, of which there were many in the house, with spring water, went with her mother to church, and then did needlework and listened to the stories of the wanderers with whom the house was always full.

By nature, Katerina is an integral, passionate, dreamy person. She sincerely accepts faith with all her soul. “And to death I loved going to church! Surely, it happened that I would enter heaven, and I didn’t see anyone, and I didn’t remember the time, and I didn’t hear when the service was over!” During service and in dreams, she often flew to heaven, soared above the clouds, and communicated with angels. She sometimes got up in the middle of the night and prayed and cried until the morning. What she prayed for, what she cried for - she herself did not know. She simply did not notice everything that contradicted her idea of ​​\u200b\u200blife, carried away in her dreams to heaven.

For all her piety, Katerina is naturally endowed with a strong character and love of freedom. Once, at the age of six, offended by something, she ran away to the Volga at night, got into a boat and pushed off from the shore! One more important detail her life was that she lived in her own world, fenced off from real reality. Her life was pure and complete, her soul was at peace. A naive, kind, pious girl with the makings of a strong, integral, freedom-loving personality - that’s what Katerina was before her marriage.

Marriage changes everything. Although Katerina, in a sense, was lucky: although her husband is subordinate to his mother, he does not offend his wife and even protects him in his own way. Why do we understand from the very beginning of the play that Katerina’s soul is suffering and tossing about?

The first thing Katerina lost when she got married was freedom. In a house that has not become home to her, it is difficult for her from the very need to live in a confined space, to be locked within four walls, limited only by the circle of household chores. Katerina respects herself, and Kabanikha’s Domostroevsky habits constantly hurt her sensitive soul. She does not know how not to notice them and not react to them; she does not want and cannot remain silent, listening to undeserved reproaches. Defending her own dignity, Katerina speaks to her mother-in-law on a first-name basis, as if she were her equal.

After constant communication with nature, which filled her childhood, Katerina finds the reclusive existence unbearable, full of deception, hypocrisy, cruelty, lack of rights, submission to someone else’s will; she is stuffy and bored in her mother-in-law’s house.

In addition, she was married off very early, without love, she, according to Varya, did not play around with girls, her heart “didn’t go away.” But according to Katerina herself, it never “goes away”: “she was born too hot.” Katerina is trying to find her happiness in her love for Tikhon: “I will love my husband. Silence, my dear, I won’t exchange you for anyone.” But to love sincerely and openly, as the soul asks, is not accepted in the “dark kingdom”: Kabanikha pulls her daughter-in-law back: “Why are you hanging around your neck, shameless one? It’s not your lover you’re saying goodbye to.” Katerina admits to Varvara: “Yes, everything here seems to be from under captivity.”

Her feeling for Boris, which flared up at first sight and became the cause of her endless mental suffering, becomes a breath of freedom for her. For a devout woman, the very thoughts of loving someone else’s man are sinful. Hence Katerina’s depression, fear, and premonition of imminent death. Outwardly, she has not yet done anything, but she has already transgressed her internal moral law and is tormented by a feeling of guilt. That is why she no longer experiences the delight of going to church, cannot continue to pray, and is unable to concentrate on her thoughts. Anxious thoughts that trouble the soul do not allow her to admire nature. Her dreams also changed. Instead of heaven, she sees someone who hugs her warmly and takes her somewhere, and she follows him. Internally, she has already sinned and recognizes her love as a “terrible sin,” and therefore is afraid to die suddenly, without repentance, to appear before God “as... is, with all... sins, with all evil thoughts.”

It’s hard for her at home, she wants to run away from her mother-in-law, who humiliates her all the time human dignity, out of sadness, she is ready to do something with herself. Struggling with her feelings, like a drowning man clutching at straws, she asks her husband not to leave her alone. But he says that he himself is tired of life in his mother’s house and wants to take a walk in the wild. Katerina doesn’t have children either, but they could brighten up her loneliness and become her support: “I don’t have children: I would still sit with them and amuse them. I really like talking to children - they are angels.”

So Katerina is left alone. Varya does not understand her, considers her too sophisticated, acts as a temptress, handing over the key to the gate and promising to send Boris. According to it, do whatever you want, as long as everything is covered and covered. Once upon a time she, like Katerina, did not know how to lie, but life taught her both lies and hypocrisy.

Why, in the struggle of motives: to see Boris or throw away the key, does the first desire “come what may, but I will see Boris!” win? Katerina was not lying even to herself, she knew that she was committing a sin, but, apparently, her life had become so unbearable for her that she decided: “I should at least die and see him.” And on the first date, Katerina says to Boris: “You ruined me!”; “If I had my own will, I would not have gone to you. Your will is over me now, don’t you see!”

live with so much grave sin Katerina cannot do it in her heart. That's why she's so afraid of thunderstorms. For her, she is a manifestation of the wrath of God. To be killed by a thunderstorm (and she is sure that it will definitely kill her) and to appear before God without repenting seems impossible to her. Her own judgment of herself is unbearable for her. Her inner foundations are crushed. This is not just a “family deception” - a moral catastrophe has occurred, the moral norms that seemed eternal to Katerina have been violated. She considers repentance to be the only way to save her soul. But no one needs her public recognition, not even her husband: “No need, no need! do not say! What you! Mother is here!

In the minds of ordinary people, her suffering is not a tragedy at all: there are many cases when a wife goes for a walk in the absence of her husband. In addition, Tikhon loves Katerina and forgives her everything. But she is not able to forgive herself, and therefore life turns into constant torment for her; death alone seems to her to be a deliverance.

Katerina would not have become Katerina, who received literary immortality, if she had everything “sewn up.” Just as human judgment is not scary for her, so no deal with conscience is possible for her. “No, it’s all the same to me whether I go home or go to the grave... It’s better in the grave.”

Katerina's emotional drama ends in tragedy. This decisive, integral, Russian nature appointed itself such a punishment for its sin. And if you forget for a moment that the play was written a century and a half ago, then you can see that such a drama could have happened not only in that distant era, it is possible at all times. Because this is the drama of a freedom-loving personality who cannot unfold in the unbearable surrounding world of violence, primarily against a person. This is drama moral personality in a world of surrounding immorality. In the very impossibility for a person to reconcile these contradictory principles, I see the reason for Katerina’s drama.