Book 1, Part 1, Chapter 5.
The scene of the murder of an Austrian soldier by Grigory Melekhov is one of the most striking episodes that reveals the character of the main character.
First, we see the whole picture of the chase in every detail:
“The Austrian ran without a rifle, with his cap clutched in his fist,” “He lowered his saber onto the Austrian’s temple,” “Without shouting, he pressed his palms to the wound.”
All this suggests that Gregory saw, but did not think, had no idea what was happening and what was about to happen.
Who knows what thoughts flashed through the hero’s head, but he stepped over this line, he killed (“Closing his eyes, Grigory waved his saber”). He probably didn't understand what he did at first. This blow killed not only the Austrian, but also something in him, crippled his soul. That is why he did not think or feel anything, there was nothing left in him except emptiness.
Only the sight of a dead Cossack carried by a horse reminded him of the war and its cruel law: the life of the Austrian he killed for the life of this Cossack.
Only then did he understand the full horror of what had happened (“The darkness filled the crown of his head with lead”). And as if in protest, he “shaked his head,” as if trying to shake out these memories or trying to wake up from a nightmare.
They drove past him the captured Austrians, who seemed like a “crowded gray herd.” This comparison shows that war makes animals out of people: they are ordered, and without asking why, they go and exterminate their own kind.
In war, a person dies, and no one cares who he was, what he lived, or whether anyone will cry for him. Perhaps such thoughts forced Gregory to approach the man he had killed. And his appearance - completely harmless, almost childish (“palm, as if for alms”; exhausted, twisted, stern mouth”) - brought the hero even more pain.
Only the officer's cry awakened him and forced him to return to his horse.
I think the first fight was the hardest for Grigory, but it also changed him: he made him tougher, more severe. Subsequently, he proved himself to be a brave soldier, even becoming an officer.
But no matter how well he served, Gregory’s first battle clearly shows us that the hero is not created to kill, to cause pain; he must work in the field, raise children, create and love.
Updated: 2012-01-20
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Book 1, Part 1, Chapter 5.
The scene of the murder of an Austrian soldier by Grigory Melekhov is one of the most striking episodes that reveals the character of the main character.
First, we see the whole picture of the chase in every detail:
“The Austrian ran without a rifle, with his cap clutched in his fist,” “He lowered his saber onto the Austrian’s temple,” “Without shouting, he pressed his palms to the wound.”
All this suggests that Gregory saw, but did not think, had no idea what was happening and what was about to happen.
Who knows what thoughts flashed through the hero’s head, but he stepped over this line, he killed (“Closing his eyes, Grigory waved his saber”). He probably didn't understand what he did at first. This blow killed not only the Austrian, but also something in him, crippled his soul. That is why he did not think or feel anything, there was nothing left in him except emptiness.
Only the sight of a dead Cossack carried by a horse reminded him of the war and its cruel law: the life of the Austrian he killed for the life of this Cossack.
Only then did he understand the horror
what happened (“The darkness filled the crown of my head with lead”). And as if in protest, he “shaked his head,” as if trying to shake out these memories or trying to wake up from a nightmare.
They drove past him the captured Austrians, who seemed like a “crowded gray herd.” This comparison shows that war makes animals out of people: they are ordered, and without asking why, they go and exterminate their own kind. In war, a person dies, and no one cares who he was, what he lived, or whether anyone will cry for him. Perhaps such thoughts forced Gregory to approach the man he had killed. And his appearance - completely harmless, almost childish (“palm, as if for alms”; exhausted, twisted, stern mouth”) - brought the hero even more pain.
Only the officer's cry awakened him and forced him to return to his horse.
I think the first fight was the hardest for Grigory, but it also changed him: he made him tougher, more severe. Subsequently, he proved himself to be a brave soldier, even becoming an officer.
But no matter how well he served, Gregory’s first battle clearly shows us that the hero is not created to kill, to cause pain; he must work in the field, raise children, create and love.
Other works on this topic:
- Epic novel by M. A. Sholokhov “ Quiet Don” tells about the most difficult time in the history of Russia, huge social upheavals among the Kuban Cossacks. The usual way of life was collapsing, distorted...
- Natalya - wife Grigory Melekhov and daughter of Miron Grigorievich Korshunov. Natalia - a real beauty, she has a reserved and embarrassed smile, bold gray eyes, an open look....
- Grigory Melekhov is one of the central figures in M. A. Sholokhov’s novel “Quiet Don”. Melekhov is a typical Don Cossack peasant of the early 20th century. Its main feature is...
- Panteley Prokofievich Melekhov is a native Cossack, the father of Grigory Melekhov. Life does not seem possible to him away from peasant labor, from the Don region, which is dear to his heart. The hero is devoted...
- Daria Melekhova is the wife of Grigory Melekhov’s older brother, Peter. This woman is a lazy and cynical woman, but at the same time quite charming. Ilyinichna everything...
Epic novel by M.A. Sholokhov's "Quiet Don" tells about the most difficult time in the history of Russia, huge social upheavals among the Kuban Cossacks. The usual way of life collapsed, destinies were distorted and broken, devalued human life. Sholokhov himself characterized his work as “an epic novel about a national tragedy.” Indeed, there is none actor in a novel that would not be affected by the grief and horrors of war. However, the author does not give an unambiguous assessment of the events taking place; he gives this right to the heroes and readers. It is no coincidence that opinions about author's position in the novel "Quiet Don". Critics also talk about Sholokhov’s glorification of the growing wave of the revolution, its strength and power, the frenzy that took possession of the people, and at the same time that Sholokhov was one of the first to see a threat to man in the preceding war and the revolution itself, and expressed this thought with extraordinary brightness in the tragic figure of Grigory Melekhov.
“Quiet Flows the Flow” shows how war corrupts the souls of people and kills everything human in them. Grigory tells his brother: “I, Petro, have lost my soul... It’s as if I’ve been under a millstone, they crushed me and spat me out.” Modern war gives rise to cruelty and madness, melancholy and bewilderment. The contrast to Grishaka’s grandfather’s memories of how he did not “cut down” the Turkish officer is Gregory’s murder of a Hungarian soldier.
The death scene always attracts attention, even if it happens on the battlefield, not being, at first glance, something surprising. An act such as murder makes our soul tremble all the more. Therefore, a lot in Gregory is revealed by the episode of his murder of a person, albeit an enemy, but, above all, a person.
There is nothing remarkable in the description of the Hungarian’s appearance, but in his behavior one immediately notices the determination and irrevocability with which he moves towards the enemy. The only goal facing him is to kill the enemy. Ruthlessness, cruel and insane courage - this is what guides people during battle. This is precisely what pushes Gregory to commit murder, which he would never have committed in peacetime. It's scary that murder in war ceases to be a crime, everything loses its meaning there moral standards. Sholokhov does not avoid naturalistic details in order to convey to the reader the full horror of what happened: “He slowly bent his knees, a gurgling wheeze was buzzing in his throat. Frowning, Grigory waved his saber. The blow with a long pull split the skull in two. The Hungarian fell, his arms bristling, as if he had slipped; the half of the skull thumped dully against the stone of the pavement...” This is the result of a person’s life. Only the remark “frowning” speaks about Gregory’s feelings at this moment. Awareness of what has been done and mental anguish will come later. A talented writer is always a psychologist. And Sholokhov subtly understands that a person cannot immediately comprehend the fact that he has become a murderer. But then the insight will be all the more acute and painful. Grigory will not forget the man he killed for a long time: “... and even in his sleep, burdened with memories, he felt the convulsion of his right hand, clutching the shaft of the pike, waking up and waking up, he drove away sleep from himself, shaded his painfully closed eyes with his palm.” “Blindness and bewilderment crumpled the soul” of Gregory. “My conscience is killing me,” he says, “I cut down a man in vain and because of him, the bastard, my soul is sick. I dream at night, you bastard. Am I to blame? The last question is indeed a very difficult one. Is the soldier who was sent to kill to blame for the war? If we talk in historical, social categories, then, of course, no. He was given a task, and he fulfills it. But why doesn’t the killer leave the pangs of conscience, the thought that it is a sin to take a person’s life?! Moral laws, divine commandments turn out to be stronger than social ones in Gregory, since his soul does not stop hurting from the evil he has done.
Thus, the scene of the murder of the Hungarian contains an important idea, which is key to understanding the entire novel. A great tragedy for any country and any people is a war in which people must, contrary to their nature, kill people, regardless of their nationality and religion. But even more terrible is a civil war, where brothers go to exterminate brothers. An episode from the First World War seems to precede the description of fratricides during the civil war. Sholokhov shows how the hero’s soul begins to writhe, where are the origins of Grigory Melekhov’s life drama. If we comprehend the lessons of “Quiet Don” on a national scale, then one thing is obvious: there cannot be a bright future for people who are accustomed to killing. Generations must change so that the dead stop coming in their dreams and people can learn to enjoy life again.
Introduction
The fate of Grigory Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don” by Sholokhov becomes the focus of the reader’s attention. This hero, who by the will of fate found himself in the midst of difficult historical events, for many years I have been forced to look for my life path.
Description of Grigory Melekhov
Already from the first pages of the novel, Sholokhov introduces us to unusual fate grandfather Gregory, explaining why the Melekhovs differ in appearance from the rest of the inhabitants of the farm. Gregory, like his father, had “a drooping kite nose, in slightly slanting slits there were bluish almonds of hot eyes, sharp slabs of cheekbones.” Remembering the origin of Pantelei Prokofievich, everyone in the farmstead called the Melekhovs “Turks.”
Life changing inner world Gregory. His appearance also changes. From a carefree, cheerful guy, he turns into a stern warrior whose heart has hardened. Gregory “knew that he would no longer laugh as before; knew that his eyes were sunken and his cheekbones were sticking out sharply,” and in his gaze “a light of senseless cruelty began to shine through more and more often.”
At the end of the novel, a completely different Gregory appears before us. This is a mature man, tired of life, “with tired squinting eyes, with the reddish tips of a black mustache, with premature gray hair at the temples and hard wrinkles on the forehead.”
Characteristics of Gregory
At the beginning of the work, Grigory Melekhov is a young Cossack living according to the laws of his ancestors. The main thing for him is farming and family. He enthusiastically helps his father in the mowing and fishing. He is unable to contradict his parents when they marry him to the unloved Natalya Korshunova.
But, for all that, Gregory is a passionate, addicted person. Contrary to his father's prohibitions, he continues to go to night games. He meets Aksinya Astakhova, his neighbor’s wife, and then leaves his home with her.
Gregory, like most Cossacks, is characterized by courage, sometimes reaching the point of recklessness. He behaves heroically at the front, participating in the most dangerous forays. At the same time, the hero is not alien to humanity. He is worried about a gosling he accidentally killed while mowing. For a long time suffers because of the murdered unarmed Austrian. “By obeying his heart,” Grigory saves his sworn enemy Stepan from death. He goes against a whole platoon of Cossacks, defending Franya.
In Gregory, passion and obedience, madness and gentleness, kindness and hatred coexist at the same time.
The fate of Grigory Melekhov and his path of quest
The fate of Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don” is tragic. He is constantly forced to look for a “way out,” the right road. It's not easy for him in the war. His personal life is also complicated.
Like the beloved heroes of L.N. Tolstoy, Grigory goes through a difficult path life's quest. At the beginning, everything seemed clear to him. Like other Cossacks, he is called up for war. For him there is no doubt that he must defend the Fatherland. But, getting to the front, the hero understands that his whole nature is opposed to murder.
Grigory moves from white to red, but even here he will be disappointed. Seeing how Podtyolkov deals with captured young officers, he loses faith both in this power and in next year again finds himself in the white army.
Tossing between the whites and the reds, the hero himself becomes embittered. He loots and kills. He tries to forget himself in drunkenness and fornication. In the end, fleeing the persecution of the new government, he finds himself among the bandits. Then he becomes a deserter.
Grigory is exhausted from throwing. He wants to live on his land, raise bread and children. Although life hardens the hero and gives his features something “wolfish,” in essence, he is not a killer. Having lost everything and not having found his way, Grigory returns to his native farm, realizing that, most likely, death awaits him here. But a son and a home are the only things that keep the hero alive.
Gregory's relationship with Aksinya and Natalya
Fate sends the hero two passionate loving women. But Gregory’s relationship with them is not easy. While still single, Grigory falls in love with Aksinya, the wife of Stepan Astakhov, his neighbor. Over time, the woman reciprocates his feelings, and their relationship develops into unbridled passion. “So unusual and obvious was their crazy connection, they burned so frantically with one shameless flame, people without conscience and without hiding, losing weight and blackening their faces in front of their neighbors, that now for some reason people were ashamed to look at them when they met.”
Despite this, he cannot resist his father’s will and marries Natalya Korshunova, promising himself to forget Aksinya and settle down. But Gregory is unable to keep his vow to himself. Although Natalya is beautiful and selflessly loves her husband, he gets back together with Aksinya and leaves his wife and parental home.
After Aksinya's betrayal, Grigory returns to his wife again. She accepts him and forgives past grievances. But he was not destined for peace family life. The image of Aksinya haunts him. Fate brings them together again. Unable to withstand the shame and betrayal, Natalya has an abortion and dies. Grigory blames himself for the death of his wife and experiences this loss cruelly.
Now, it would seem, nothing can stop him from finding happiness with the woman he loves. But circumstances force him to leave his place and, together with Aksinya, set off on the road again, the last for his beloved.
With the death of Aksinya, Gregory's life loses all meaning. The hero no longer has even a ghostly hope for happiness. “And Gregory, dying of horror, realized that it was all over, that the worst thing that could happen in his life had already happened.”
Conclusion
In conclusion of my essay on the topic “The Fate of Grigory Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don””, I want to fully agree with critics who believe that in “Quiet Don” the fate of Grigory Melekhov is the most difficult and one of the most tragic. Using the example of Grigory Sholokhov, he showed how the whirlpool of political events breaks human destiny. And the one who sees his destiny in peaceful work suddenly becomes a cruel killer with a devastated soul.
Work test
For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been seen since the beginning of creation...
even to this day it will not be... But a brother will betray his brother to death, and a father will betray his children;
and the children will rise up against their parents and kill them.
From the Gospel
Among the heroes of “Quiet Don”, it is Grigory Melekhov’s share
falls to be the moral core of a work that embodies
the main features of a powerful folk spirit. Gregory - a young Cossack,
a daredevil, a man with a capital letter, but at the same time he is a man not without
weaknesses, this is confirmed by his reckless passion for a married woman
to a woman - Aksinya, whom he is unable to overcome.
Grigory Melekhov and Aksinya Astakhova.
The fate of Gregory became a symbol of the tragic destinies of the Russian
Cossacks. And therefore, having traced the entire life path of Grigory Melekhov,
starting with the history of the Melekhov family, one can not only reveal the reasons for its
troubles and losses, but also to come closer to understanding the essence of that historical
era, whose deep and true image we find on the pages of “Quiet
Don", you can realize a lot in tragic fate Cossacks and Russian
the people as a whole.
Gregory inherited a lot from his grandfather Prokofy: hot-tempered,
independent character, the ability for tender, selfless love. Blood
"Turkish" grandmother manifested itself not only in appearance Gregory, but also
in his veins, both on the battlefield and in the ranks. Raised in best traditions
Russian Cossacks, Melekhov from a young age cherished the Cossack honor, which he understood
broader than just military valor and devotion to duty. The main thing is
Unlike ordinary Cossacks, was that his moral
feeling did not allow him to divide his love between his wife and Aksinya,
nor participate in Cossack robberies and massacres. This is being created
the impression that this era, which sends trials to Melekhov, is trying
destroy or break the rebellious, proud Cossack.
Grigory Melekhov in the attack in the First World War.
The brutality caused civil war, Gregory does not accept. And ultimately he turns out to be a stranger in all warring camps. He
begins to doubt whether he is looking for the right truth. Melekhov thinks about the Reds: “They fight so that they can live better, and we for ours.” good life fought... There is no truth in life. It can be seen whoever defeats whom will devour him... But I was looking for the bad truth. He was sick at heart, he swayed back and forth... In the old days, you can hear, the Tatars offended the Don, they went to take away the land, to force him. Now - Rus'. No! I won't make peace! They are strangers to me and to all the Cossacks." He feels a sense of community only with his fellow Cossacks, especially during the Veshensky uprising. He dreams of the Cossacks being independent from both the Bolsheviks and the "cadets", but quickly realizes that there is no "third "there is no place for force" in the struggle between the Reds and Whites. In the White Cossack army of Ataman Krasnov, Grigory Melekhov serves without inspiration. Here he sees robbery, violence against prisoners, and the reluctance of the Cossacks to fight outside the region of the Don Army, and he himself shares their sentiments. And So
Grigory fights with the Reds without enthusiasm after the connection of the Vyoshensky rebels with the troops of General Denikin. The officers who set the tone in the Volunteer Army are not just strangers to him, but also hostile. It is not for nothing that Captain Evgeny Listnitsky also becomes an enemy, whom Grigory beats half to death for his connection with Aksinya. Melekhov anticipates the defeat of White and is not too sad about this. By and large, he is already tired of the war, and the outcome is almost indifferent. Although during the days of retreat “at times he had a vague hope that danger would force the scattered, demoralized and warring white forces to unite, fight back and overturn the victoriously advancing red units.”
