Essay on the topic: Mtsyri as a romantic hero. "Mtsyri as a romantic hero" - an essay based on Lermontov's poem Why is Mtsyri romantic
At the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, a romantic tradition developed in Russia, replacing classicism. If the previous literary movement focused on the development of society and sought to describe the ideal world order, then for romanticism something completely different becomes important. In the works of the romantics, man, his inner world, aspirations and feelings come first. Romantic writers firmly believe that every person is unique and of primary value, so they shift their attention to the depiction of feelings and experiences. This is how a romantic hero appears, for whose portrayal quite clear literary canons are soon formed.
The first rule of romanticism as a literary movement is the depiction of an unusual hero in unusual conditions. As a rule, romantic writers choose an atypical setting for their works: a forest, mountains, desert, or some ancient castle. An unusual hero is placed in a mysterious place, possessing all the best human qualities: he is handsome, proud and noble. He is better than the people around him and at the same time arouses their hostility. From here follows the second condition: the opposition of the hero and society, the hero and the surrounding reality. The romantic hero is always in opposition, since he clearly sees the imperfection of the world and, due to his moral purity, does not want to come to terms with it. This is what the romantic conflict is built on. Another prerequisite for the literature of romanticism is a detailed description of the hero’s thoughts. For this, the form of a diary, lyrical monologue or confession is chosen.
A classic example of a romantic hero in the works of Russian writers can be the heroes of the works of M. Lermontov. These are Pechorin and Arbenin, Demon and Mtsyri... Let's consider Mtsyri as a romantic hero.
Mtsyri as a romantic hero
In his works, Lermontov took into account the creative experience of Byron, who was his idol for many years, which is why we can talk about Lermontov’s heroes as Byronic heroes. The Byronic hero is a romantic hero of the highest quality, a rebel hero with a fiery nature. No circumstances can break him. These qualities especially attracted Lermontov, and it is them that he writes out in his heroes with special care. Such is the romantic hero Mtsyri, who can be called the ideal of a romantic hero.
We learn about Mtsyri’s life, or rather about its key moments, first-hand, since Lermontov chose the form of confession for the poem. This is one of the most popular genres of romanticism, since confession allows you to open the depths of the human soul, making the story both emotional and sincere. The hero is placed in an unusual place: in a monastery in the Caucasus, and the Caucasus for Russian people then seemed to be a very exotic land, a center of freedom and free-thinking. The features of the romantic hero of “Mtsyri” can already be seen in how little the reader is told about the hero’s previous life - just a few meager phrases about his childhood. His life in the monastery is shrouded in mystery, so characteristic of romantic works. As a little boy, Mtsyri was captured by a Russian general and brought to the monastery, where he grew up - that’s what the reader knows. But Mtsyri himself is not an ordinary monk, he has a completely different character, he is a rebel by nature. He was never able to forget his homeland and abandon it; he longs for real life and is ready to pay any price for it.
Was it easy for Mtsyri to decide to escape from the quiet existence in his cell? It is obvious that the monks who cured and raised Mtsyri did not wish him harm. But their world cannot become Mtsyri, since it was created for another life. And in her name he is ready to take risks. In accordance with the romantic tradition, life in the monastery and life outside it are contrasted here, with the first symbolizing the lack of freedom and constraint of the human personality, while the second is an ideal life. It is precisely this that Mtsyri, born for freedom, strives for. His escape is a rebellion against tradition; it is significant that it takes place on a stormy, stormy night, when monks are supposed to pray, fearing the “wrath of God.” For Mtsyri, the thunderstorm evokes delight, a desire to become related to the rebellious elements: “I’m like a brother...”. The hero's sincerity overcomes his ostentatious monastic humility - Mtsyri finds himself free.
Tragedy of Mtsyri
The romantic hero is almost always doomed to defeat in the fight against the world, since this fight is unequal. His dreams, as a rule, do not come true, and his life ends early. In this, the romantic hero of Lermontov’s poem “Mtsyri” turns out to be an exception: he still managed to fulfill part of his dream and breathe in the air of freedom. Another thing is that, as the epigraph to the poem tells us, he “tasted little honey,” and freedom was given to him for only three days - but the more vividly they will experience this time. Mtsyri is happy with his merging with nature. Here memories of his family, his native village and a happy childhood return to him. Here his blood awakens, the blood of the warlike highlanders, and he turns out to be capable of feats. During the battle with the leopard, Mtsyri appears before the reader as a brave warrior, fully aware of his strength and able to use it. He is beautiful, just like the wild nature around him: he is part of it and its child.
But Lermontov could not rightfully be called a great romantic poet if he had turned his poem into a happy fairy tale. Mtsyri is defeated by circumstances, he is wounded and again brought to his cell. Freedom only beckoned him, but his main dream: to return to his homeland, to the distant, free Caucasus, did not come true. And, if you think about it, it was not feasible at all, because no one was waiting for him there. Mtsyri's relatives were long dead, the house was destroyed, and in his own home he would have turned out to be exactly the same stranger as in the monastery. This is where true romantic tragedy manifests itself: the hero is completely excluded from this world and is equally alien to everyone in it. Happiness may await him only beyond the limits of life, but Mtsyri does not want to give up. He would willingly exchange “Paradise and Eternity” for a few minutes at home. He dies unbroken and his last gaze is turned to the Caucasus.
The image of Mtsyri is the image of a romantic hero with a deeply tragic story, who rightfully enjoys the love of many generations of readers. “...You see what a fiery soul, what a mighty spirit, what a gigantic nature this Mtsyri has!” - this is how the critic Belinsky spoke about him, and the critic’s words really fully characterize the hero. Years go by, literary trends change, the romantic tradition is a thing of the past, but the image of Mtsyri still inspires heroic deeds and awakens love for what is most valuable: life and homeland.
The given image of the romantic hero of the poem and a description of his features will be useful to 8th grade students when searching for materials for an essay on the topic “Mtsyri as a romantic hero of Lermontov’s poem”
Work test
Lermontov was always fascinated and attracted by the Caucasus. The majesty of the mountains, the crystal purity and dangerous power of the rivers, the bright unusual greenery and, of course, the freedom-loving and proud people fed the imagination of the romantic poet. And the Caucasus was also chosen as the setting for the poem “Mtsyri”.
This is a work about courage and freedom. The poet almost completely excluded the love motive - it is present only in the episode of Mtsyri’s brief meeting with a Georgian woman at a mountain stream. The hero, defeating the involuntary impulse of the young heart, refuses excellent happiness in the name of his homeland and freedom. Lermontov does not share these concepts: love for the motherland and thirst for will merge into one, but “fiery passion.”
The monastery becomes a prison for Mtsyri, the cells seem stuffy to him, the walls seem gloomy and dull, the guards-monks are cowardly and pitiful, he himself is a slave and a prisoner. His desire to find out whether “we were born into this world for freedom or prison” is due to a passionate impulse for freedom. The short days of escape are his whole life. Only outside the monastery he lived, and did not vegetate. Only these days he calls bliss.
Mtsyri's freedom-loving patriotism is least of all similar to a dreamy love for his native beautiful landscapes and expensive graves, although the hero yearns for them too. It is precisely because he truly loves his homeland that he wants to fight for the freedom of his homeland. And the poet with undoubted sympathy sings of the warlike dreams of the young man.
Mtsyri remembers his father and acquaintances first of all as warriors; It is no coincidence that he dreams of battles in which he wins; it is not for nothing that his dreams draw him into the “wonderful world of anxiety and battles.” He is convinced that he could be “in the land of his fathers, not the last of the daredevils.” Although fate did not allow Mtsyri to experience the rapture of battle, with all his feelings he is a warrior. He was distinguished by his stern restraint even from his childhood. The young man, proud of this, says: “Do you remember, in my childhood I never knew tears.” He gives vent to tears only while running, because no one sees them. Tragic loneliness in the monastery strengthened Mtsyri’s will. He fled from the monastery into a stormy night: what frightened the fearful monks was close to him - Mtsyri feels a kinship with the elements.
The hero’s courage and fortitude are most clearly demonstrated in the battle with the leopard. Mtsyri is not afraid of death, because he knows: returning to the monastery means continuing his previous suffering. The tragic ending indicates that the approach of death does not weaken the spirit of the hero and the power of his love of freedom. The old monk's admonitions do not make him repent. Even now he would “trade paradise and eternity” for a few minutes of life among his loved ones. It was not his fault if he failed to join the ranks of the fighters for what he considered his sacred duty: the circumstances turned out to be insurmountable, and he “argued with fate” in vain. Defeated, Mtsyri was not spiritually broken, his courage, integrity, heroism are traits that Lermontov did not find among his fearful and inactive contemporaries.
The true hero of the poem is the Caucasus. The landscape in the work serves as a means of revealing the image of Mtsyri. Despising his surroundings, the hero feels a kinship only with nature. Imprisoned in a monastery, he compares himself to a pale greenhouse leaf that has grown between damp slabs. Having broken free, he wakes up along with the flowers. A child of nature, he falls to the ground and, like a fairy-tale hero, learns the secret of bird songs. He understands the dispute between the stream and the stones, the thought of separated rocks yearning to meet. Mtsyri sees what others do not notice: the shine of snake scales and the shimmer of silver on the fur of a leopard, the jagged teeth of distant mountains and the pale stripe “between the dark sky and earth”; it seems to him that his “diligent gaze” could follow through the transparent blue of the sky behind the flight of angels.
Mtsyri, full of fiery passions, gloomy and lonely, reveals his soul in a confessional story. The lines about Mtsyri’s unhappy childhood and adolescence help to better understand his experiences and thoughts. The author sought to reveal as fully as possible - to “tell the soul” of his amazing hero.
So, in Lermontov’s poem all the features of romanticism are present: the place of action is the Caucasus, exotic and magnificent; the poet's attention is focused on the psychology of the protagonist; The plot of the work consists of bright, far from ordinary events. But the main thing is that in the center of the poem is the image of Mtsyri, an extraordinary, strong, brave, freedom-loving person - the author endowed him with all the qualities of a romantic hero, wonderful, but impossible.
- a work written by Lermontov. It introduces us to the young novice Mtsyri, who was imprisoned within the walls of the monastery against his will. This monastery became captivity for the freedom-loving resident of Georgia.
Mtsyri romantic hero essay
Expanding the topic, one should answer in general about who exactly in the literature of the turn of the 19th century could be considered a romantic hero. This is a man with an unusual destiny, a man with sincere and high feelings, who could be a rebel against the prevailing circumstances. This is a person endowed with the best qualities of human character, a person with a bright soul.
What features of a romantic hero are inherent in Mtsyri and why is Mtsyri a romantic hero?
Getting acquainted with the work and its hero, who finds himself in a world alien to him, in a world of obedience and prohibitions while the guy’s soul demands freedom, we are every time convinced that Mtsyri is the hero - a romantic. He is endowed with determination, courage, courage. There are no or very few romantic moments in the work itself. For example, we see only one meeting of the hero with an unfamiliar girl, when his heart began to beat faster. The poem is still written in the spirit of romanticism, and Mtsyri is the romantic hero of the poem, who could not live in captivity and fled from the monastery. I escaped and only in freedom saw all the beauty of the world around me and was able to breathe deeply. Some three days of wandering seemed to him like eternity and paradise. The meeting with the leopard, where the young man faced the animal in a duel, did not frighten him, because it was outside the monastery that he found the freedom he desired.
It is a pity that Mtsyri could not find his way home, and after three days of wandering he again found himself within the walls of the monastery. It's a shame that our hero dies. But I am glad that he was able to achieve his goal, and his death was only the final release from prison. Mtsyri became free forever.
M. Yu. Lermontov admired the Caucasus since childhood. Majestic inaccessible mountains, clear rivers and Caucasians, freedom-loving and proud. In the essay “Mtsyri as a Romantic Hero” it should be noted that the theme of freedom is key in the poem.
History of creation
In the essay “Mtsyri as a Romantic Hero” one can cite the history of writing the poem as one of the arguments. The story of Lermontov's first biographer P. A. Viskovatov tells how the poet, during his first Caucasian exile, met a monk who told this story.
The monk told Lermontov that, as a child, he ended up in a monastery. General Ermolov brought him there. For a long time he could not get used to monastic life and tried to escape. Perhaps it was under the impression of this story that Mikhail Yuryevich wrote his poem.
But it is impossible to determine how reliable Viskovatov’s story is. Some researchers believe that the basis could be the story of the artist P.Z. Zakharov, who was of Chechen nationality. He was taken to Tiflis by General Ermolov. Both of these stories are about the difficult fate of captive mountaineers who found themselves far from their relatives and their homeland and dreamed of enjoying life. Mtsyri is a freedom-loving, impressionable young man with a warm heart.
Character character
In the essay "Mtsyri - the romantic hero of the poem" you need to reveal the character of the main character. This is a freedom-loving young man, eager to break out of the walls of the monastery and see the world. He wants to find his place in life, because he does not want to be a monk and give up all worldly joys.
Mtsyri avoided the company of monks, believing that behind the walls they hid from real life. His hot, ardent nature strives for freedom, to experience all the feelings that ordinary people experience. His rebellious spirit cannot come to terms with the fact that in his prime he will have to give up joys. So he runs away. And as events develop, the young man’s determination, his courage and loyalty to his dream become more and more apparent.
The protagonist's childhood
In the essay “Mtsyri as a Romantic Hero,” the image of a young man is revealed by a story about his past. In earlier works, the poet did not talk about the conditions that influenced the development of character. The story about childhood and the difficult years of adolescence reveals the character’s inner world more deeply.
The reader learns that one Russian general was heading to Tiflis. His path passed through the mountains, and a captive child rode with him. But the baby could not bear the hardships of the journey and fell ill. But despite his fragile build and timidity, he felt the mental fortitude characteristic of mountaineers.
One monk took pity on him and took the boy away. At first, the child avoided society and did not play noisy games. He loved to wander alone and was homesick. But gradually the boy got used to the monks and even learned a foreign language and was baptized. And having become a young man, he was ready to take the monastic vow. But then Mtsyri suddenly disappeared. After reading the story of the protagonist's childhood, the reader begins to understand the motives of the young man and empathize with him.
The hero's attitude towards the monastery
In the essay “Mtsyri as a Romantic Hero” it is worth writing about what feelings the young man had towards the monastery. Despite the fact that the monk took pity on him, and thanks to him the boy was able to survive, Mtsyri never developed warm feelings for his benefactor. For the young man, the monastery was a dungeon. Mtsyri retained in his heart childhood memories of his home, for which he yearned.
In the essay “Mtsyri as a Romantic Hero” one can point out that such characters are characterized by strong experiences and spiritual doubts. He was frightened by the prospect of becoming a monk and giving up all the joys of life. Therefore, he succumbs to a spiritual impulse and runs away from the monastery to see the world. Despite the fact that the monastery is associated with peace of mind, Mtsyri does not find peace there and strives to escape from there. The young man called those three days that he spent outside the monastery walls blessed.
Memories of family
In the essay “Mtsyri as a Romantic Hero” it should be noted that one of the important characteristics of the character is his love for his homeland and home. The young man tells the monk that he remembers his village and family. He was saddened that he could not address anyone with the sacred words “mother” and “father.” Despite the monk's efforts to make the boy forget them, Mtsyri says that he was born with the sound of these words.
Romantic heroes often have difficult relationships with their families, because it is important for a person to feel the support of his ancestors. The young man preserved his childhood memories like a treasure. And this is important to note in an essay on the topic “Mtsyri as a romantic hero.”
The Bravery of a Young Man
In an essay on the topic “Mtsyri as a romantic hero,” you must talk about the hero’s meeting with the leopard. After all, such characters must not only have the ability to experience strong feelings, but also be ready to perform brave deeds. During the meeting with the leopard, the young man showed his courage and perseverance.
Mtsyri was not afraid to die in battle with the beast, because it was more terrible for him to return to the monastery, which he considered a prison. The hero’s resilience is also evident in the fact that he remains true to his dream, despite any obstacles. In the essay “Can Mtsyri be called a romantic hero”, it is worth noting that the young man wanted to be like his father, to participate in battles, defending his homeland and family.
Meeting with a girl
In the essay “Can Mtsyri be called a romantic hero”, his meeting with a young Georgian woman should also be described. But there are also some differences between him and the sentimental character. The young man, who had never seen the girl before, was delighted not so much by her beauty as by her whole image.
Mtsyri was amazed by her simple, artless song. And something similar to love for a moment distracted his thoughts and feelings from his main goal: to find the way to his home. But the young man suddenly loses consciousness, and when he woke up, the young Georgian woman had already left. And Mtsyri saw two saklyas, into one of which the girl entered. And what he saw was dear to him, perhaps because it reminded him of his home, his family. This is a manifestation of the hero’s romantic nature: loyalty to his dream.
Youth and nature
In the essay “Mtsyri as a Romantic Hero” for grade 8, you need to describe the role of landscapes in revealing the character’s image. The young man felt unity with nature; it was closer to him than the company of people. He perceived the thunderstorm as his faithful friend and believed that there was no friendship stronger than his and lightning.
Mtsyri understood the murmur of the stream. Crouching to the ground, he listened to what the plants and animals were saying. Having spent many years in the monastery, dreaming of seeing the world, the young man was amazed by its beauty. In his confession to the monk, Mtsyri said that all the voices of nature merged together. And the proud voice of a man did not sound there. This is proof that the young man loved grass and trees, the company of animals and birds.
Admiration for nature, impressionability - all this is typical of romantic heroes. They often seek solitude among mountains, forests, and lakes, trying to find harmony. The fact that Mtsyri understood the world around him better than people emphasizes his isolation and alienation. After all, he was lonely among the monks, he felt like a stranger. And only after escaping from the monastery, among the herbs and flowers, the young man found peace and felt part of the world around him.
They write an essay “Mtsyri as a romantic hero” in 8th grade. In the image of a courageous young man, M. Yu. Lermontov depicted the qualities that he would like to see in people. The poem praises the strength of a person’s spirit and his loyalty to his dream.
Dream and harsh reality turned out to be very contradictory concepts for the main character of M. Yu. Lermontov’s work “Mtsyri”. The reality of Mtsyri is a monastery where Mtsyri spent his youth and childhood, that is, for him he is associated with a prison, he did not see the beauty of his lands, and, in general, did not see freedom. Mtsyri ended up in the monastery while still a boy, and therefore he had to experience the full brunt of loneliness. And in his dreams he is like a free bird that has the opportunity to fly to his native land, to the land of his fathers. The very concept of Motherland for Mtsyri became the personification of freedom and life for which his soul was destined. Ideally, he sees an environment for his existence: “where people are free.” Mtsyri faces seemingly impossible situations, but he is ready to overcome it just to see his homeland.
He managed to feel the taste of freedom, unity with nature, which, in his opinion, spoke the same language as him. He even fell in love with a girl. He fights with the world around him, as if Mtsyri is removed from society, from human communication, and most importantly - from nature.
All people strive to serve God in order to become a brighter soul, but he, on the contrary, wants to leave this “home of God.” That is, we can say that it is not valuable to him what people value, but, on the contrary, he values what other people do not value. This speaks of the difference between his inner world and others.
The three days spent in freedom became more significant for him than his entire past life. This means that to a certain extent his dream was fulfilled.
The collision of reality and the dreams of the main character, the difference between Mtsyri and others says that Mtsyri is a real romantic hero.
