The episode depicting Natasha Rostova's first ball is one of the main ones in the novel: it is important for revealing the inner world and character of the main character. In this fragment, we see the St. Petersburg ball from beginning to end, with music, flowers, dancing, the sovereign, “ladies in white, blue, pink dresses, with diamonds and pearls on their open arms and necks.”

The appearance of the ball itself is Peronskaya, who knows everything about everyone, with her assessments and comments, the sovereign, “the queen of St. Petersburg, Countess Bezukhova,” “the adjutant dancer who started the ball,” - everything “mixed into one brilliant procession.” But this is not just an ordinary St. Petersburg ball - this is Natasha Rostova’s first ball, at which we meet all the main characters of the novel at once: Natasha, with her sparkling eyes, Prince Andrei and the gloomy, absent-minded Pierre. This event can be called a turning point in Natasha’s life. The ball is very important for her future life. Having attended this ball, she leaves her childhood and moves into adulthood. It is this ball that becomes decisive in the relationship between Natasha and Prince Andrei, whose life paths will subsequently intersect more than once.

Prince Andrei will play an important role in Natasha’s fate. The ball is one of the links in the chain of events telling about the Rostov family. The picture of the ball is preceded by an episode of the arrival of Boris Drubetsky, Natasha’s first hobby. Tender feelings flare up between the young people again, but Natasha no longer perceives Boris as her fiancé. After the conversation with the Countess, Boris stopped visiting the Rostovs.

There is some symbolism in this: Natasha, rejecting Boris, at the same time leaves her childhood in the past. The ball episode should be considered as transitional. The author in every possible way emphasized Natasha’s still childish excited state, more than once using the word “girl” in her description and depicting her with a “grateful childish smile.” It was this state that “most suited her,” and it was precisely this Natasha, “with her surprise, joy and timidity, and even with errors in the French language,” that Prince Andrei fell in love with.

The author gives us the opportunity to compare the main character “with the queen of St. Petersburg” - Helen Bezukhova, against whose background Natasha, with her “thin arms and shoulders”, “vague breasts”, not only does not lose, but also attracts the attention of guests, because in It was something that “did not have a general secular imprint on it.” But we see Natasha as a “girl” not only externally, but also internally: only a child has such strong feelings, experiences and excitement, a strong, boundless feeling of love that a person experiences “at that highest level of happiness, when he becomes completely kind and good and does not believe in the possibility of misfortune, evil and grief." “The expression on Natasha’s face, ready for despair and delight, was a mirror reflection of her feelings” and helped the reader penetrate into the inner world of the main character.

The author masterfully portrayed Natasha's experiences. The following key scenes can be highlighted here. The picture of the ball begins with a description of Natasha’s feelings in the carriage, when the Rostov family is going to the ball and Natasha for the first time imagines what she is about to see and experience. “What awaited her was so beautiful that she did not even believe that it would happen: it was so inconsistent with the impression of the cold, crampedness and darkness of the carriage,” the author’s psychological commentary here is very expressive. And the ball really ends with a feeling of immense happiness overwhelming Natasha.

When the Rostovs arrived at the ball, “the host and hostess, who had already been standing at the front door for half an hour and saying the same thing, greeted the Rostovs in the same way. And two girls in white dresses, with identical roses in their black hair, sat down in the same way. But the hostess involuntarily “I fixed my gaze on thin Natasha and remembered, perhaps, all my golden, irrevocable girlhood and my first ball.”

When they danced Polish and Natasha was not invited, it turned out that each of the men who would play an important role in Natasha’s life in the future did not notice her: “Prince Andrei walked past them with some lady, obviously not recognizing them, handsome Anatole looked at Natasha’s face with the same look as one looks at the wall, Boris walked past him twice and turned away each time. And when the “adjutant manager” and the beautiful Helen danced the first round of the waltz, Natasha and I involuntarily worried that it was not she who was dancing now. Thanks to the skill of Tolstoy the writer, we see the falseness of secular society during the ball.

So, all three main characters of the novel are present at the ball: Andrei Bolkonsky, Pierre Bezukhov, Natasha Rostova. Bolkonsky and Bezukhov are characterized by Peronskaya, who reflects the views of secular society, and by Natasha, through whom in this case Tolstoy expressed his attitude towards these characters. For high society, Pierre is “a buffoon,” and Prince Andrei is a rude man who “doesn’t know how to treat ladies.” At the same time, Natasha happily looks at Pierre’s familiar face and speaks of him as “very good.” And in Prince Andrei we see not only a reformer who is “writing some projects with Speransky,” but also a man with a big soul, who was able to discern in the “trembling” Natasha a huge inner world, acuteness of feelings, inner strength. When Prince Andrei danced with Natasha “one of the merry cotillions before dinner,” he reminded her of their meeting in Otradnoye. There is some symbolism in this. In Otradnoye, the first meeting of Prince Andrei and Natasha took place, a formal acquaintance, and at the ball - their inner rapprochement.

“I would be glad to relax and sit with you, I’m tired; but you see how they choose me, and I’m glad about it, and I’m happy, and I love everyone, and you and I understand all this,” and she said a lot more Natasha's smile to Prince Andrey. It was after the first dance that Natasha was noticed, appreciated, and she enjoyed success with men.

Throughout the novel we meet Natasha in almost all life situations. Tolstoy gives us the opportunity to fully know the character of the main character. The episode of Natasha Rostova's first ball is notable for the fact that we see the heroine's soul in motion: from a moment of despair to the pinnacle of the highest happiness. In despair, she withdraws and asks questions only to herself: “Will no one really come to me, won’t I dance among the first, won’t all these men notice me?..” In moments of highest happiness, her soul is open to everyone: she she is ready to give her love to Prince Andrei, she wants with all her heart to help Pierre, “to convey to him the excess of her happiness,” she gives happy smiles to her father. Perhaps it is precisely for this boundless warmth that Tolstoy loves his heroine.

L.N. Tolstoy wrote his great work “War and Peace,” leaving a rich legacy for his descendants. But among the four volumes of the epic there are scenes that are especially clearly remembered by the reader. Such scenes include Natasha Rostova's first ball.

The significance of the scene for the novel

Analysis of the episode “Natasha Rostova’s First Ball” allows us to assess its significance for the entire work. This is where relationships are established and characters are developed. The ball is the heart of the entire novel, because here the plot lines and characters converge. The ball divides the work into “before” and “after”. It is here that the love of Natasha and Andrey is born. Here, many heroes understand that they lived wrong, they see their mistakes. Pierre is disappointed in his wife, seeing that she is not at all what he saw her before. This scene becomes a fork in the road. After it, it will no longer be the same as it was before, and this makes the ball a particularly important scene for the entire work.

Symbolism of the ball

The ball takes place on December 31st. This date in itself is magical and symbolic. This is the end of the old year and the beginning of a new one. The same can be said about life - here the old life of the characters ends and a new one begins.

The scene is filled with symbolic details, nuances and moments. For example, Andrei Bolkonsky is dressed in a white uniform. This is a symbol of the transition to a new life - bright, clean, “white”.

The prince is freed from the burden of losing his wife. Natasha is also wearing an airy white dress. The author himself points out that the dress resembles Natasha herself - just as clean and airy.

The preparation for the ball is also symbolic. If in the Rostov house preparations are going on in a happy bustle, because this is the first ball for the young charmer, then Pironskaya’s preparations are shown in contrast - outwardly everything happens “in the same way,” but at the same time the author often mentions the word “old”, which indicates how familiar is a ball for the hostess.

Natasha’s trip to the ball also becomes a bright symbol. It takes place in semi-darkness, in a carriage, where Natasha thinks a lot about what is coming. It is noteworthy that the same semi-darkness will accompany her at all turning points: before the meeting in Kuragin, before the meeting with Andrei, liberation and forgiveness.

It is Pierre who will invite Andrey to invite Natasha to dance, thereby marking the beginning of their great and bright love. There is also some symbolism in this, a funny joke, because Pierre will love Natasha all his life, having accepted and forgiven their love with Andrei.

The assessment of what is happening will also be symbolic. But this symbolism is the opposite, the opposite of reality. The hostess of the ball gives a negative assessment to the main character Andrei, she does not like Pierre.

Natasha at the ball

It is here that the heroine reveals herself in all her glory. From a teenager she turns into a young and beautiful girl, striking everyone with her lightness and lack of falsehood. At the beginning of the ball, Natasha thinks that no one will invite her. This fear is expressed in her eyes, in her entire appearance. Thanks to Pierre, Natasha is invited to her first dance by none other than Andrei Bolkonsky. It is here that their feelings begin to arise: fragile and tender Natasha melts in Andrei’s strong arms, and he, in turn, is amazed by her temper, the ice in his soul begins to melt. This dance is a symbol of their love.

Ekaterina Reutova is a student of secondary school No. 2 in Yuryuzan, Chelyabinsk region. The essay was written by her in the 10th grade. Teacher of Russian language and literature - Evgenia Viktorovna SOLOVOVA.

Man and his soul were the subject of creative research by L.N. Tolstoy. He closely studies the path that a person takes, striving for the high and ideal, striving to know himself. The writer himself went through his life through suffering, from the Fall to purification (his diary entries testify to this). He showed this experience through the fates of his favorite heroes.

The heroes beloved and close to Tolstoy are people with a rich inner world, natural people, capable of spiritual change, people looking for their way in life. These include Andrei Bolkonsky, Pierre Bezukhov and Natasha Rostova. Each hero has his own path of spiritual quest, which is not straight and easy. We can say that it resembles a curve, which has its ups and downs, joys and disappointments. In this essay I am interested in the images of Andrei Bolkonsky and Natasha Rostova. Love occupies an important place in the lives of these heroes. The test of love is a traditional device in Russian literature. But before the main characters approached this test, each of them already had a certain life experience behind them. For example, before meeting Natasha, Prince Andrei had a dream of Toulon, Austerlitz, friendship with Pierre, social activities and disappointment in them. Natasha Rostova does not have as rich life experience as Andrei Bolkonsky; she is still a child who is playing at adulthood. Despite the obvious differences between these two heroes, they still have an important similarity: before meeting each other, neither Prince Andrei nor Natasha experienced a true feeling of love in their lives.

Considering the love storyline between Natasha Rostova and Andrei Bolkonsky, one cannot help but note the 16th chapter of the 3rd part of the 2nd volume, since this episode is the composition of the beginning of their relationship. Let us turn to the analysis of this chapter and try to determine the role of the episode in revealing the problems of the work, and also trace how a strong and pure feeling of love arises between the heroes of the novel. The previous chapters of the 3rd part of the 2nd volume tell how the Rostov family gathered for a ball, where the whole flower of society gathered. It is important for Tolstoy to convey the psychological state of Natasha, for whom the ball was a welcome ticket to adulthood. In the 16th chapter, the writer shows the state of mind of his heroine very subtly and truly. To do this, he first describes the external manifestation of Natasha’s anxiety, excitement (“Natasha felt that she was left... among the minority of ladies pushed against the wall...”, “... stood with her thin arms hanging down...”), then, using a monologue in which every word is important, the author turns to the girl’s inner world (“...holding her breath, she looked with shining, frightened eyes...”). The heroine's monologue is very emotional. He reveals Natasha's character, shows the whole essence of her nature. The heroine is very sincere, natural, childishly naive, simple. The expression on her face spoke of her “readiness for the greatest joy and the greatest sorrow.” One thought haunted Natasha: would “no one come up to her”, would she really “dance among the first”, would “all these men not notice” her? Using this gradation, Tolstoy emphasizes the severity of the psychological situation in which Natasha found herself. The writer draws the readers' attention to the heroine's great desire to dance. At this moment, Natasha is not occupied by anything or anyone, her attention is concentrated on this desire. We can conclude that the heroine is at that young age when everything is perceived from the point of view of maximalism. She needs to be noticed by adults and supported in difficult times of doubt and worry. Natasha’s internal concentration and external absent-mindedness are manifested in the way she perceived the people around her (“She did not listen or look at Vera, who was telling her something...”). The climax of Chapter 16 occurs when the first round of the waltz was announced. At that time, Natasha’s condition was close to despair. She “was ready to cry that it was not she who was dancing this first round of the waltz.” At this moment Andrei Bolkonsky appears (“... lively and cheerful, standing... not far from Rostov”). Since he was “a person close to Speransky,” everyone turned to him with “smart” political conversations. But Andrei’s work did not bring him satisfaction, so he did not want to hear anything about it, was absent-minded and, like Natasha, believed that “you need to dance at the ball.” Therefore, I think it is not surprising that the first person to whom he offered a waltz tour was Natasha, who was absolutely, childishly happy when she heard this proposal. Prince Andrei is struck by the naturalness, openness, ease of this girl, and the lack of metropolitan gloss. Waltzing with him, Natasha felt a certain excitement from the fact that hundreds of eyes were watching her dance with an adult man, from the fact that her dress was very open, and simply from the fact that it was the first waltz in her life at a real ball, where only adults are present. Natasha's timidity and the trembling of her flexible, slender figure charmed Prince Andrei. He feels his soul come to life, filled with boundless joy, which the girl seemed to put into his soul and heart, bringing them back to life, kindling a fire in them (“... he felt revived and rejuvenated...”).

Analyzing this chapter, one cannot help but note the image of the sovereign. In the behavior of Emperor Alexander, in his communication with others, the metropolitan gloss is visible. I think it is no coincidence that the author draws this image. He contrasts the sovereign and his strict adherence to secular standards of decency with the emancipation and simplicity of Natasha Rostova. For the emperor, presence at the ball is a common occurrence, and he acts according to a certain scheme that he has developed over the years. As is customary in secular society, he does not do anything thoughtlessly and weighs his every step. And Natasha, who came to the ball for the first time, is so happy about everything and does not pay attention to what she says and does. Therefore, a parallel can be drawn between Natasha and the sovereign. This only further emphasizes Natasha’s naturalness, childish naivety, and her unspoiled by secular society.

So, from all of the above, we can conclude that the significance of this chapter lies not only in the fact that in it we see the emergence of a warm, tender feeling of love between two positive characters, but also in the fact that a meeting with Natasha brings Andrei Bolkonsky out of a mental crisis , born of disappointment in his unfruitful activity, fills him with strength and thirst for life. He understands that “life is not over at thirty-one.”

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“In the epic novel War and Peace there are many small, but extremely significant episodes that are very important for the development of the novel as a whole, combining ideas about man, the history of the universe,” the writer V. Krukover rightly notes. The most significant episode in this series, in my opinion, is Natasha Rostova’s first ball. Many human destinies, closely connected with major historical events, are depicted in the novel “War and Peace”: Tolstoy shows heroes going through a long and difficult path in search of truth and their place in the world, experiencing painful moments when life seems meaningless, and the search for truth lead to a dead end.

Natasha Rostova has her own path in the novel, unlike anyone else’s. Natasha is the favorite heroine of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy. The image of Natasha contains features of the Russian national character. The main thing that attracts people in the heroine is sincerity, sensitivity, spiritual generosity, and a subtle understanding of nature.

Probably Tolstoy himself really lacked spontaneity in secular society, and we know that in his youth he was fond of balls, and in maturity - women, which is why he describes Natasha with such selflessness. We first meet Natasha Rostova at her name day. The girl is not beautiful, but she captivates with her liveliness and sparkle in her eyes. Natasha is by no means a social doll, bound by artificial rules of good manners. Nothing prevents the heroine from saying in the middle of dinner: “Mom! What kind of cake will it be?”

There was something about Natasha that “did not have a general secular imprint on her.” With the help of the image of Natasha, Tolstoy managed to highlight the falseness of secular society. The girl is going to the first ball in her life! There is so much excitement and anxiety during preparations: suddenly the invitation will not be received, or the dress will not be ready. And now this long-awaited day comes. What awaited her was so beautiful that she could not believe it. Natasha’s rich soul cannot accommodate all the feelings she experiences. These feelings are reflected on her face: “she looked ahead with brilliant, frightened eyes, with an expression of readiness for the greatest joy and the greatest sorrow.”

The sincerity of human feelings was little valued in the society into which Natasha was first taken. But she still has to carry it through her entire adult life. Natasha does not have a drop of coquetry and affectation, characteristic of young girls of her circle. Natasha is in full view, everything can be read in her eyes. And there are already tears in her eyes, because the dance begins, the music plays, but no one invites her. It’s a shame that men don’t notice her, but she really wants to dance, because she dances so wonderfully! Pierre Bezukhov comes to Natasha's aid. Of course, it was he, this noblest soul. Fat, clumsy, but with a sensitive and tender heart. Pierre draws the attention of Andrei Bolkonsky to Natasha and asks him to dance with her. Inviting a girl to dance, Prince Andrei sees how her face, ready for despair and delight, is illuminated with a grateful, childish smile. Natasha is happy. And Bolkonsky can no longer take his eyes off her.

If life had been more favorable to Prince Andrei, after this ball he would have become happy for the rest of his days. Having invited Natasha, Prince Andrei felt revived and rejuvenated after the dance. Natasha was special, and he couldn't help but notice. There was no social imprint on her, she was charming. Natasha radiated so much happiness that this light touched not only the prince. “Natasha was as happy as she had never been in her life. She was at that highest level of happiness when a person becomes completely kind and good and does not believe in the possibility of evil, misfortune and grief.” And she believed that those around her should be happy, and it was simply impossible to do otherwise.

Natasha will have to be convinced more than once that it is possible otherwise, and not everything in life depends on the will of people, even good and clear-minded ones. The first ball is the beginning of a new era for Natasha. Joy overflows this rich nature. But what's next for her? Natasha Rostova's path to happiness is not easy; more than once her sincerity and impetuosity will make her suffer, moreover, it will cause the suffering of people close to her. Will this especially affect Prince Andrei, who tried to become her husband?

The author will not blame Natasha for her rash act, which interfered with the happiness of her and the prince; by his attitude towards the heroine, he will make it clear to the reader that a philosophical novel does not imply simplicity in the relationships of the heroes, that a real Russian character is interesting precisely in development, and the more the hero has to endure doubts and overcome obstacles, the more interesting this image in the novel is.

Meeting Tolstoy's favorite heroine at Natasha's first ball promises us a fascinating immersion into the unique fate of a wonderful Russian woman - Natasha Rostova.

Natasha Rostova's first ball in the epic novel War and Peace is considered one of the key and iconic moments of the entire novel. In this episode, Natasha appears as a girl (the author called his heroine this way more than once during the event), who found herself in a secular fake society.

At the ball, readers can see all the central characters of the novel: Bolkonsky, Pierre, Natasha, Helen, Peronskaya, who knew everything about everyone. And each of these characters appears differently: Andrei was gloomy, Pierre was ridiculous, and Natasha looked at everything around her with eyes burning with delight and impression.

Her first ball can be called a kind of transitional age: at the ball she says goodbye to childhood and moves into adulthood, and this event will also become decisive in the relationship between Bolkonsky and Rostova. And even at this moment L.N. Tolstoy leaves some symbolism. Natasha says goodbye to her first love Boris before the ball, no longer seeing him as her fiancé. After this, Boris no longer appeared in the Rostovs' house. The symbolism lies in the fact that, having said goodbye to Boris, Natasha also says goodbye to her childhood. But at the ball, Tolstoy still calls her girl and writes about her childish smile.

(Helen Kuragina and Natasha Rostova, an ideal contrast)

Tolstoy also contrasts Natasha and Helen, showing the author that Natasha’s youth and not yet fully formed body only benefit from Helen. Tolstoy shows that this was precisely what attracted the attention of the guests, because Natasha did not yet have this imprint of social life. But not only externally does Lev Nikolayevich show Natasha’s innocence, but also internally: he masterfully describes her experiences, excitement, emotions, this feeling of boundless love for people and what happens when a person is happy.

(First ball and dance of Natasha Rostova with Andrei Bolkonsky)

Lev Nikolaevich paid special attention to Natasha’s experiences. When she was just going to the ball and imagining what awaited her, when she bowed to the mistress of the house and when she was already at the ball, but none of the men invited Natasha Rostova to dance. Bolkonsky walked past with the lady, Anatole gave her such a look as if he was looking at a wall, and the offended Boris passed by twice, turning away. With this moment, Tolstoy colorfully showed all the falsehood that permeated the secular society of that time.

As already mentioned, three central characters were present at the ball. Peronskaya speaks about Bolkonsky and Pierre, saying that Pierre is just a buffoon, and Bolkonsky is a rude person, but Natasha speaks of Bezukhov as a good person. Bolkonsky saw in Natasha a huge inner trembling world. He invited Rostova to dance and recalled how they had already met once in Otradnoye. And here Tolstoy added symbolism: in Otradnoye they met simply, but at the ball they became spiritually closer to each other. She was immensely glad that Bolkonsky invited her to dance, and she did not try to hide it. She smiled so much that Andrei understood everything without words.

(Andrei Bolkonsky, in the role of Vecheslav Tikhonov, and Natasha Rostova, in the role of Lyudmila Savelyeva, film by Sergei Bondarchuk "War and Peace", USSR 1967)

At the ball, Natasha only slightly opens the door to her inner world, but it is this episode that makes it clear that throughout the entire novel, in moments of sadness and sadness, Natasha withdraws into herself, and in moments of happiness, on the contrary, her soul is open to all people, she gives joy .