In Lermontov's poem "Mtsyri" a young man who escaped from a monastery is shown as a romantic hero. The author develops in his work the ideas of protest and courage. Mikhail Yuryevich almost completely excluded from his creation the love motif that played big role in his poem "Confession". This motif in “Mtsyri” was reflected only in the fleeting meeting of the protagonist with a Georgian woman, which took place near a mountain stream.
Defeating the impulse of his young heart, Mtsyri renounces personal happiness for the sake of the ideal of freedom. In the poem, the patriotic idea is inextricably linked with the theme of freedom. This is also observed in the works of the Decembrist poets. Mikhail Yuryevich does not share these concepts. In his work, thirst for will and love for the Fatherland merge into “fiery passion”. Mtsyri is very attractive as a romantic hero. The plan for analyzing this character must include his relationship to the monastery. This is what we will talk about now.
Mtsyri's relationship to the monastery
The monastery for our hero is a prison. The cells seem stuffy to him, and the walls seem dull and gloomy. The monk guards appear to the main character as pitiful and cowardly, and he himself - as a prisoner and slave. The impulse for freedom is determined by his desire to find out why we were born into the world, “for freedom or prison.” For the young man, his will turns out to be the few days he spent in the world after escaping from the monastery. He lived outside the blank walls life to the fullest, and did not vegetate. The hero calls the time. It is during the days spent in freedom that the image of Mtsyri is fully revealed. As a romantic hero, he manifests himself behind the walls of the monastery.
Patriotism of the protagonist
The freedom-loving patriotism of the main character is least similar to the love of expensive graves and beautiful native landscapes, although Mtsyri yearns for them. He truly loves his Fatherland and wants to fight for its freedom. With undoubted sympathy, Mikhail Yuryevich sings of these youthful dreams. The work does not fully reveal the aspirations of the main character, but in hints they are quite palpable. The young man remembers his acquaintances and his father mainly as warriors. It is no coincidence that this hero dreams of battles in which he is victorious. It is not for nothing that his dreams draw him into the world of battles and anxieties.
Character of the main character
Mtsyri as a romantic hero is shown to be brave and courageous. He himself is convinced that “in the land of his fathers” he could be one of the “dares”. And although this hero was not destined to experience the rapture of battle, he is a true warrior by nature. More from youth Mtsyri was distinguished by stern restraint. Proud of this, the hero says that he has never known tears. Only during his escape does the young man give free rein to his tears, since no one can see them. The will of the protagonist was strengthened by loneliness within the monastery walls. It is no coincidence that it was on a stormy night that Mtsyri decided to escape: the fearful monks were frightened by the rampant elements, but not this young man. Before the thunderstorm, all he had was a feeling of brotherhood.
The resilience and masculinity of a young man
Mtsyri's fortitude and masculinity manifests itself most forcefully in the episode of the battle with the leopard. The grave did not frighten him, since he understood that returning to the monastery would be a continuation of suffering. The tragic ending created by the author shows that the hero’s spirit does not weaken due to the approach of death. His freedom-loving patriotism does not disappear in front of her. Mtsyri is not forced to repent by the monk’s exhortations. He says that he would trade eternity and paradise again for a few minutes spent among loved ones. It is not Mtsyri’s fault that the circumstances could not be overcome, and he could not join the ranks of the fighters. The hero tried in vain to argue with his fate. He was defeated, but not broken internally. Mtsyri is positive hero Russian literature. His integrity, masculinity, and courage were a reproach to the inactive and fearful representatives of the noble society contemporary with Lermontov.
The role of landscape in revealing character
The Caucasian landscape serves to reveal the image of the young man from the poem "Mtsyri". Like a romantic hero, despising his surroundings, he feels kinship only with nature. Having grown up within the walls of a monastery, he compares himself to a greenhouse leaf. Having broken free, he raises his head along with the flowers at sunrise. Being a child of nature, Mtsyri falls to the ground and, like the hero of fairy tales, learns the secret of the prophetic chirping of birds, the riddles of their songs. He understands the thoughts of those separated rocks eager to meet, arguing with the stones of the stream. The young man’s gaze is sharpened: he notices how the leopard’s fur shimmers with silver, how the snake’s scales glisten, he sees a pale stripe between earth and sky and the jagged teeth of distant mountains. Mtsyri, as the romantic hero of the poem, thinks that through the blue sky he could see the flight of angels.
Traditions of romanticism and new features of Lermontov’s poem
Of course, Mikhail Yuryevich’s poem continues the traditions of romanticism. This is evidenced, in particular, by central image works. Full of fiery passions, Mtsyri, as a romantic hero, lonely and gloomy, reveals his soul in a confessional story. In this, Mikhail Yuryevich followed tradition. All this is typical of romanticism. Nevertheless, Lermontov, who wrote his poem during the years when he was working on the realistic work “Hero of Our Time,” introduced into “Mtsyri” features that were not characteristic of his earlier poems. Indeed, the past of the heroes of “Boyar Orsha” and “Confession” remains unknown to us. We do not know what social conditions influenced the development of their characters. And in the work “Mtsyri” we find lines that the protagonist’s childhood and adolescence were unhappy. This helps us gain a deeper understanding of his thoughts and experiences. It should also be noted that the form of confession, so characteristic of poems in the style of romanticism, is associated with the desire to “tell the soul,” that is, to reveal it as deeply as possible. Such detailing of experiences and the psychologism of the work are natural for Lermontov, since he simultaneously created a socio-psychological novel.
The combination in the confession of numerous metaphors of a romantic nature (images of flame, fire), with the poetically sparse and precise speech of the introduction, characteristic of realism, is very expressive. The poem begins with the lines: “Once upon a time, a Russian general...” The work, romantic in its form, indicated that realistic tendencies were becoming more and more distinct in Lermontov’s work.
Lermontov's innovation
So, we have revealed the topic “Mtsyri as a romantic hero”. Lermontov entered domestic literature as a successor of the Decembrist poets and the traditions of Pushkin. However, he also introduced something new into the development of Russian artistic expression.
Belinsky said that we can talk about the so-called Lermontov element. The critic explained that it means, first of all, “original living thought.” Of course, it is also felt in the creation of such an image as Mtsyri. This young man was briefly described by us as a romantic hero. You saw that the work also has some realistic features.
Lermontov was in love with the Caucasus from the very beginning early childhood. The majesty of the mountains, the crystal purity and at the same time dangerous power of the rivers, the bright unusual greenery and people, freedom-loving and proud, shook the imagination of a big-eyed and impressionable child. Perhaps this is why, even in his youth, Lermontov was so attracted to the image of a rebel, on the verge of death, making an angry protest speech (the poem “Confession”, 1830, the action takes place in Spain) before the elder monk. Or maybe it was a premonition own death and a subconscious protest against the monastic prohibition to rejoice in everything that is given by God in this life. This acute desire to experience ordinary human, earthly happiness is heard in the dying confession of young Mtsyri, the hero of one of Lermontov’s most remarkable poems about the Caucasus (1839 - the poet himself had very little time left).
Before "Mtsyri" the poem "The Fugitive" was written. In it, Lermontov develops the theme of punishment for cowardice and betrayal. Brief story: a traitor to duty, forgetting about his homeland, Harun fled from the battlefield without taking revenge on his enemies for the death of his father and brothers. But neither a friend, nor a lover, nor a mother will accept the fugitive; even everyone will turn away from his corpse, and no one will take him to the cemetery. The poem called for heroism, for the fight for the freedom of the homeland.
In the poem “Mtsyri” Lermontov develops the idea of courage and protest inherent in “Confession” and the poem “The Fugitive”. In "Mtsyri" the poet almost completely excluded the love motive, which played such a significant role
in “Confession” (the love of the hero-monk for a nun). This motive was reflected only in a brief meeting between Mtsyri and a Georgian woman near a mountain stream. The hero, defeating the involuntary impulse of the young heart, renounces personal happiness in the name of the ideal of freedom. The patriotic idea is combined in the poem with the theme of freedom, as in the works of the Decembrist poets. Lermontov does not share these concepts: love for the fatherland 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 deaf, the monk guards seem cowardly and pitiful, and he himself seems like 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. Short days escape is his will. Only outside the monastery he lived, and did not vegetate. Only these days he calls bliss.
Mtsyri’s freedom-loving patriotism is least like a dreamy love for family beautiful scenery and dear graves, although the hero yearns for them too. It is precisely because Mtsyri truly loves his homeland that he wants to fight for its freedom. And the poet with undoubted sympathy sings of the warlike dreams of the young man. The poem does not fully reveal the hero’s aspirations, but they are palpable in hints. 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 have been “not one of the last daredevils in the land of his fathers.” 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: “You remember your childhood years: I never knew tears.” He gives vent to tears only during his escape, because no one sees them. The tragic loneliness in the monastery strengthened Mtsyri's will. It is no coincidence that he fled from the monastery on a stormy night: what frightened the fearful monks filled his heart with a feeling of brotherhood with the thunderstorm.
Mtsyri’s courage and stamina are demonstrated most forcefully in the battle with the leopard. :His
he was not afraid of the grave, because he knew: returning to the monastery was a continuation of previous suffering, Tragic ending indicates that the approach of death does not weaken the spirit of the hero and the power of his freedom-loving patriotism. The old monk's admonitions do not make him repent. Even now he would “exchange paradise and eternity” for non-. how many minutes of life are there among loved ones (poems that displeased the censor). It was not his fault if he failed to join the ranks of fighters for what he considered his sacred duty:
Lermontov was in love with the Caucasus from early childhood. The majesty of the mountains, the crystal purity and at the same time dangerous power of the rivers, the bright unusual greenery and people, freedom-loving and proud, shook the imagination of a big-eyed and impressionable child. Perhaps that is why, even in his youth, Lermontov was so attracted to the image of a rebel, on the verge of death, making an angry protest speech (the poem “Confession”, 1830, the action takes place in Spain) before the elder monk. Or maybe it was a premonition of his own death and a subconscious protest against the monastic prohibition to rejoice in everything that is given by God in this life. This acute desire to experience ordinary human, earthly happiness is heard in the dying confession of young Mtsyri, the hero of one of Lermontov’s most remarkable poems about the Caucasus (1839 - the poet himself had very little time left).
Before “Mtsyri” the poem “The Fugitive” was written. In it, Lermontov develops the theme of punishment for cowardice and betrayal. Brief plot: a traitor to duty, forgetting about his homeland, Harun fled from the battlefield without taking revenge on his enemies for the death of his father and brothers. But neither a friend, nor a lover, nor a mother will accept the fugitive; even everyone will turn away from his corpse, and no one will take him to the cemetery. The poem called for heroism, for the fight for the freedom of the homeland.
In the poem “Mtsyri” Lermontov develops the idea of courage and protest inherent in “Confession” and the poem “The Fugitive”. In “Mtsyri” the poet almost completely excluded the love motif that played such a significant role in “Confession” (the love of the hero-monk for a nun). This motive was reflected only in a brief meeting between Mtsyri and a Georgian woman near a mountain stream. The hero, defeating the involuntary impulse of the young heart, renounces personal happiness in the name of the ideal of freedom. The patriotic idea is combined in the poem with the theme of freedom, as in the works of the Decembrist poets. Lermontov does not share these concepts: love for the fatherland 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 deaf, the monk guards seem cowardly and pitiful, and he himself becomes 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. Short days of escape are his will. 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 Mtsyri truly loves his homeland that he wants to fight for its freedom. And the poet with undoubted sympathy sings of the warlike dreams of the young man. The poem does not fully reveal the hero’s aspirations, but they are palpable in hints. 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 have been “not one of the last daredevils in the land of his fathers.” Although fate did not allow Mtsyri to experience the rapture of battle, with all the structure of his feelings he is a warrior. He was distinguished by his stern restraint even from his childhood. The young man, proud of this, says: “You remember your childhood years: I never knew tears.” He gives vent to tears only during his escape, because no one sees them. The tragic loneliness in the monastery strengthened Mtsyri's will. It is no coincidence that he fled from the monastery on a stormy night: what frightened the fearful monks filled his heart with a feeling of brotherhood with the thunderstorm.
Mtsyri’s courage and stamina are demonstrated most forcefully in the battle with the leopard. He was not afraid of the grave, because he knew: returning to the monastery was a continuation of previous suffering. The tragic ending testifies that the approach of death does not weaken the spirit of the hero and the power of his freedom-loving patriotism. 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 (poems that displeased the censorship). It was not his fault if he failed to join the ranks of fighters for what he considered his sacred duty: circumstances turned out to be insurmountable, and he “argued with fate” in vain.
Defeated, he is not spiritually broken and remains a positive image of our literature, and his masculinity, integrity, heroism were a reproach to the fragmented hearts of fearful and inactive contemporaries from the noble society. The Caucasian landscape is introduced into the poem mainly as a means of revealing the image of the hero. Despising his surroundings, Mtsyri feels only a kinship with nature. Imprisoned in a monastery, he compares himself to a pale greenhouse leaf growing between damp slabs. Having broken free, he, along with the sleepy flowers, raises his head when the east turns rich. A child of nature, he falls to the ground and learns how fairy tale hero, the mystery of bird songs, the mysteries of their prophetic chirping. He understands the dispute between the stream and the stones, the thought of separated rocks yearning to meet. His gaze is sharpened: he notices the shine of snake scales and the shimmer of silver on the leopard’s fur, he sees the jagged teeth of distant mountains and the pale stripe “between dark sky and the earth,” it seems to him that his “diligent gaze” could see the flight of angels through the transparent blue of the sky. (The verse of the poem also corresponds to the character of the hero).
Lermontov's poem continues the traditions of advanced romanticism; Mtsyri, full of fiery passions, gloomy and lonely, revealing his “soul” in a confessional story, is perceived as the hero of romantic poems. However, Lermontov, who created “Mtsyri” in those years when the realistic novel “Hero of Our Time” was also being created, introduces features into his work that are not present in his earlier poems. If
The past of the heroes of “Confession” and “Boyar Orsha” remains completely unknown, and we do not know those social conditions, which shaped their characters, then the lines about Mtsyri’s unhappy childhood and adolescence help to better understand the hero’s experiences and thoughts. The very form of confession, characteristic of romantic poems, is associated with the desire to reveal deeper - to “tell the soul.” This psychologism of the work, the detailing of the hero’s experiences, is natural for the poet, who at the same time created a socio-psychological novel.
An expressive combination of many metaphors romantic in nature in the confession itself (images of fire, fervor) with a realistically accurate and poetically sparse introduction. (“Once upon a time, a Russian general…”) The poem, romantic in form, testified to the growth of realistic tendencies in Lermontov’s work.
Lermontov entered Russian literature as a successor to the traditions of Pushkin and the Decembrist poets and at the same time as a new link in the chain of development national culture. According to Belinsky, he contributed to national literature his own, “Lermontov element”. Briefly explaining what should be included in this definition, the critic as the first characteristic feature creative heritage the poet noted the “original living thought” in his poems. And he repeated: “Everything in them breathes original and creative thought.”
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At the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, Russia developed romantic tradition, which replaced 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 comes first, his inner world, aspirations and sensations. Romantic writers firmly believe that every person is unique and of primary value, so they focus their attention on 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. Placed in a mysterious place unusual hero, possessing all the best human qualities: he is beautiful, 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 required condition for the literature of romanticism, this is a detailed description of the hero’s thoughts. For this, the form of a diary, lyrical monologue or confession is chosen.
Classic example romantic hero In the works of Russian writers, heroes of the works of M. Lermontov can serve. 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, the former long years his idol, which is why we can talk about Lermontov’s heroes as Byronic heroes. The Byronic hero is a romantic hero 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 reveal depths human soul, making the story both emotional and sincere. The hero is placed in unusual place: to a monastery in the Caucasus, and the Caucasus for Russian people then seemed like 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 yearns 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 lack of freedom and constraint human personality, the second one is 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's beautiful, just like wild nature around: he is her part and her 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 deep tragic story, which 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 and change literary movements, the romantic tradition is a thing of the past, but the image of Mtsyri still inspires deeds and awakens love for the 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
Romanticism is one of the main literary directions of the XIX century. The main thing in romanticism is the spiritual, creative formation of a personality striving for an ideal through fictional events, against the backdrop of raging emotional passions. Mtsyri’s poem is one of the brightest works of Russian romanticism.
Lermontov deviated from the canons of classicism and introduced free compositional structure works. The action of the poem does not take place in one place, in one day and by the same persons. The poem covers three days of Mtsyri’s life, change of landscapes, background, escape, meeting a Georgian woman, fight with a leopard, return, confession. The main principles of classicism are violated, therefore the poem - this is a vivid work of romanticism.
The basis of the work of romanticism is the conflict between real world and a fictional, ideal world. The real world of Mtsyri is a monastery, his prison, and he is yearning for freedom, not knowing what it is, but dreaming about it.
Mtsyri's conflict is his isolation from the real world where he lives and dreams about fictional world freedom where he has never been.
Dramatic plot - main character lonely and unhappy, the desire for an ideal leads to the tragedy of a strong personality. Mtsyri dreams of freedom, he strives for a fictional world, for him the ideal is his native place, the memory of them, but in reality he is a prisoner imprisoned in a monastery. Fighter, a strong personality dies - this is the tragedy of Mtsyri.
The use of bright, emotional means of artistic expression that convey human passions. Lermontov uses vivid epithets that convey state of mind Mtsyri personifies nature with a living being, metaphors describing the monastery, the state of a monk, after Mtsyri’s confession, comparisons give us an image of the young man’s passion.
The author's attitude to reality is expressed through the main character-rebel. Mtsyri is the hero-rebel, striving for freedom. He is a prisoner of the soul, but his spirit breaks out and he finds peace. We see everything that happens through the eyes of a young man, we feel nature, passion, pain ,disappointment through the feelings of a young man.
Feelings come first, the denial of rationality, reasonableness, against the backdrop of natural phenomena. Mtsyri’s mind is captivated by the idea of freedom, he is a prisoner of his dreams. Passions rage against the backdrop of nature, thunderstorm, night, heaven, wind-violence of the elements, as an expression of Mtsyri’s feelings. the escape is unreasonable, he loses his way and returns back to prison, but his mind is silent, he is driven by a soul thirsting for freedom.
The confession of the fugitive is shocking; three days made the young man truly free. His rebellious spirit escaped from the body of a submissive captive. Mtsyri is a real child of nature, he is eager for freedom. The discovery that he returned to where he fled from kills the love of freedom of the young highlander. Mtsyri surrenders , his spirit is broken. But he is happy, he saw as much in three years as he had never seen in his entire life.
Mtsyri's life is short, three days of freedom and finding peace. Mtsyri dies in harmony with himself, his spirit is free, his grave looks at the mountains of his native Caucasus, the wind shakes the acacia trees and brings the sounds of his distant homeland.
