Features of the composition of the novel "A Hero of Our Time" come from the fact that the novel by M.Yu. Lermontov became an advanced work of its time: in it the author used a new genre of a psychologically oriented novel, a new image of the protagonist and, accordingly, a new compositional articulation of the work.
The author himself, after the publication of his novel in its finished form, admitted that not a single word, not a single line in it arose by chance, everything written was subordinated to one main goal - to show readers their contemporary - a man with noble and bad inclinations, who, obeying the feeling self-love, he was able to realize in life only his vices, and his virtues remained only good desires.
When the novel was just published, critics and ordinary readers had a lot of questions that related to the compositional division of this work. We will try to consider the main of these issues.
Why was the chronology of the presentation of the episodes of the main character's life broken?
The features of the composition of "A Hero of Our Time" are related to the fact that we learn about the life of the protagonist in a very inconsistent way. The first part of the novel tells how Pechorin kidnapped the Circassian Bela from his own father, made her his mistress, and later lost interest in this girl. As a result of a tragic accident, Bela was killed by the Circassian Kazbich, who was in love with her.
In the second part, entitled "Maxim Maksimovich", readers will learn that several years have passed since the death of Bela, Pechorin decided to go to Persia and died on the way there. From Pechorin's diary, it becomes known about the events that happened to the main character before meeting Bela: Pechorin got into a funny adventure with smugglers on Taman and in the city of Kislovodsk he met the young Princess Mary Ligovskaya, whom, unwittingly, fell in love with himself, and then refused to share her feelings. There was also a duel between Pechorin and Grushnitsky, as a result of which the latter was killed.
The novel "A Hero of Our Time" ends with the part "Fatalist", which tells about a private episode from the life of Pechorin.
Studying the plot and composition of "A Hero of Our Time", literary critics agree that the author violated the chronological presentation of the main character's life in order, on the one hand, to emphasize the chaotic life of Pechorin, his inability to subordinate his fate to one main idea, on the other hand, Lermontov tried to reveal the image of his main character gradually: at first, readers saw him from the side through the eyes of Maxim Maksimovich and the narrator-officer, and then only got acquainted with Pechorin’s personal diary, in which he was extremely frank.
What is the relationship between plot and plot in a novel?
The innovation of Lermontov as a prose writer contributed to the fact that the plot and plot of the novel "A Hero of Our Time" do not coincide with each other. This leads to the fact that the reader pays more attention not to the external outline of events from the life of the protagonist, but to his inner experiences. Literary critics have dubbed this method of constructing a work “tense composition”, when readers see the heroes of the novel at the peak moments of their fate.
Therefore, the composition of Lermontov's "Hero of Our Time" is a unique phenomenon in the history of Russian literature: the author talks about key episodes from the life of his hero, giving him a description precisely at the moments of the highest life trials: these are Pechorin's love experiences, his duel with Grushnitsky, his skirmish with drunken Cossack, his dangerous adventure with smugglers on Taman.
In addition, Lermontov resorts to the reception of a ring composition: for the first time we meet Pechorin in the fortress in which he serves with Maxim Maksimovich, the last time we see the hero in the same fortress, before he leaves for Persia.
How does the compositional division of a work help to reveal the image of the protagonist?
According to most literary critics, the originality of the compositional solution of the novel helps to consider in detail the image of Pechorin.
In the first part of Bela, Pechorin's personality is shown through the eyes of his commander, the kind and honest Maxim Maksimovich. The author debunks the myth of beautiful love between a savage woman and a young educated nobleman that existed in the literature of that time. Pechorin does not in any way correspond to the image of a young romantic hero, which was created in the works of the writer's contemporaries.
In the second part of "Maxim Maksimovich" we meet a more detailed description of the personality of the protagonist. Pechorin is described through the eyes of the narrator. Readers get an idea of the character's appearance and behavior. The romantic halo around Grigory Alexandrovich flutters completely.
In "Taman" Lermontov refutes the myth of romantic love between a girl engaged in smuggling activities and a young officer. A young smuggler with the romantic name Ondine does not behave at all sublimely, she is ready to kill Pechorin only because he turned out to be an unwitting witness to her crime. Pechorin is also characterized in this part as a man of an adventurous warehouse, ready for anything to satisfy his own desires.
Part "Princess Mary" is built on the principle of a society story: it has a love story and a conflict between two officers for possession of the girl's heart, which ends tragically. In this part, the image of Pechorin receives a complete realistic characterization: readers see all the external actions of the hero and the secret movements of his soul.
In the last part of the novel The Fatalist, Lermontov poses the most important questions for him about the meaning of human life on earth: is a person the master of his own destiny or is he led by some kind of evil fate; is it possible to cheat one's fate or is it impossible, etc.? In the last part, Pechorin appears before us in the form of a man who is ready to fight fate. However, readers understand that this struggle will eventually lead him to an early death.
The role of composition in the novel "A Hero of Our Time" is very important. It is thanks to the unusual compositional division of the work that the author manages to achieve the full realization of his creative idea - the creation of a new psychologically oriented genre of the novel.
The presented compositional features of the work can be used by students of grade 9 when preparing material for an essay on the topic “Features of the composition of the novel“ A Hero of Our Time ””.
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Composition- this is the arrangement, the structure of the work.
The novel "A Hero of Our Time" consists of several stories that can be perceived as separate literary works. However, each of the components is an integral part of the whole.
The peculiarity of the composition is that the individual stories are arranged not in chronological order (ie, according to the plot), but in a completely different way. The plot, that is, the totality of events in their compositional sequence, does not coincide with the plot. Lermontov was one of the first in the literature to use this technique. For what purpose did he do it?
The plot, which does not coincide with the plot, helps to switch the reader's attention from the eventful, external side to the internal side, from the detective to the spiritual.
In "A Hero of Our Time" the "summit composition" characteristic of a romantic poem is recreated. The reader sees the hero only in tense, dramatic moments of his life. The gaps between them are not filled. We meet the hero in the fortress and in the last scene we also see him in the fortress - this creates the effect of a circular composition.
In various parts of the novel, we see the main character from the point of view of different characters: the narrator, Maxim Maksimych, Pechorin himself. Thus, the reader sees Pechorin from the positions of different people.
You can talk about the role of each story in the novel from different points of view: you can focus on the compositional role, you can - on the meaning in revealing the character of Pechorin, on his ability to act in various situations. We focus on the content of individual stories.
"Bela": Pechorin fulfills the romantic stereotype "natural love for a savage". Lermontov realistically debunks the accepted point of view that such love can be fruitful. Pechorin is shown through the eyes of the ingenuous Maxim Maksimych.
"Maxim Maksimych": Pechorin is drawn in his relationship with his old colleague Maxim Maksimych as a witness to his past: most likely, he was dry with Maxim Maksimych and hurried to part with him, because he did not want to awaken memories of the departed. The narrator tells about Pechorin - a young educated officer who has already heard the story about Bel.
"Pechorin's Journal": Pechorin himself tells about himself.
"Taman": Pechorin works out a romantic situation of falling in love with an “honest smuggler”, which ends badly for him. The peculiarity of the story is that it does not contain fragments of introspection, but there is a narrative that is close to colloquial speech (this is how Pechorin could tell his comrades about what happened to him). material from the site
"Princess Mary": the genre basis is a secular story, the co-existence in which, as a rule, is associated with a love affair in a secular society and the idea of rivalry between two men. Taman differs from the colloquial narrative style in detailed descriptions of the surroundings and detailed introspection (reflection), similar to the sharpness of the plot. It is a diary entry.
Contains a view of Pechorin from Werner's side, includes remarks from other characters (Vera, Mary, Grushnitsky), describing various manifestations of Pechorin's character.
"Fatalist": again we have the style of oral storytelling (as in "Taman"). The content of the story is an attempt to understand the driving forces of the world (rock, fate or the conscious will of a person).
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Critics have defined the genre of A Hero of Our Time as psychological novel. When writing this work, M. Yu. Lermontov aimed to show the "history of the human soul", to reveal the inner world of the protagonist. M. Yu. Lermontov began work on the novel under the impression of his first exile to the Caucasus. First, separate stories were written, which were published as they were written: “Bela”, “Fatalist” were published in the journal “Notes of the Fatherland” in 1839, followed by the story “Taman”. Later, all five stories: "Bela", "Maxim Maksimych", "Taman", "Princess Mary", "Fatalist" - were combined into a novel under the title "Hero of Our Time".
Critics, readers ambiguously perceived the image of the protagonist: some considered Pechorin a caricature of a modern person, and the novel itself was immoral; others - that the image of Pechorin is a portrait of the author himself. M. Yu. Lermontov was forced to write a preface to the second edition, in which he commented on his perception of the hero and explained his creative principles. The author writes that his main principle when writing a novel is following the truth of life and critical evaluation of the hero.
The stories that make up the "Hero of Our Time" are arranged in a certain sequence. This was done with a specific purpose: the author gradually immerses the reader into the inner world of the protagonist, reveals his character.
There are three narrators in the story. In the story "Bela" we see Pechorin through the eyes of Maxim Maksimych, the staff captain, who notes "strangeness" in the behavior of Grigory Alexandrovich, selfishness, mystery. In "Maxim Maksimych" the role of the narrator is given to a wandering officer - a person who is closer in attitude and social status to the hero. He notes in the appearance of Pechorin the features of a strong, but internally lonely personality. In the next three stories - "Taman", "Princess Mary", "Fatalist" - Pechorin himself is the narrator, who tells about his adventures in the seaside town, about his stay in Pyatigorsk, about the incident in the Cossack village. The reader learns about the feelings, experiences of the hero from the lips of the hero himself, who impartially analyzes his actions, his behavior, and motives. For the first time in Russian literature, much attention was paid not to events, but to the “dialectics of the soul”, and the form of a diary confession allows to show all the “movements of the soul” of Pechorin. The hero himself admits that his soul knows such feelings as envy, pity, love, hatred. But reason nevertheless prevails over feelings: we see this in the scene of the pursuit of Vera.
The author shows the hero in various life situations, surrounds him with a variety of characters (Pechorin among the highlanders, in the circle of "honest smugglers" and "water society"). I believe that this is an exceptional and at the same time typical hero of that time: he is looking for love, but he himself only bears suffering and even death; this is a person living a complex spiritual life, but absolutely inactive or wasting energy on trifles; conscious of his vices and mercilessly condemning them in other people; a person who, according to V. G. Belinsky, “furiously chases ... after life, looking for it everywhere” and at the same time looking for death.
"A Hero of Our Time": a novel or a collection of short stories?
Lermontov's novel "A Hero of Our Time" was created at the intersection of two artistic methods: romanticism and realism. According to romantic canons, the image of the protagonist is developed deeply and opposes all other characters. The whole system of images is built in such a way that the central character is highlighted from different angles of view. Each character is endowed with a complex character. These are very realistic images.
The very title of the novel "A Hero of Our Time" suggests that the author considers the individual in the context of society and era. "A Hero of Our Time" is a socio-psychological, philosophical novel. The conflict between the individual and society is sharper here than in Eugene Onegin. Pechorin "chases furiously for life," but gets nothing from it. The conflict was embodied not only in a typical display of personality, but also in the depiction of representatives of the "water society", their life, entertainment.
With each hero, Pechorin develops his own relationship. He seeks by any means to break through the outer mask of the heroes, to see their true faces, to understand what each of them is capable of" Pechorin confronts the "water society" that hates him, shoots with Grushnitsky, interferes in the life of "peaceful smugglers", falls in love with young Bela , daughter of a peaceful prince.
The history of the relationship between Pechorin and Werner is full of drama. This is the story of the failed friendship of people who are spiritually and intellectually close.
In relations with Vera, Pechorin is the most controversial; here, those forces that determine all his connections with people are brought to the maximum, to the highest intensity.
The problem of personality is revealed psychologically through a psychological portrait built on antitheses and oxymorons (“... his dusty velvet coat made it possible to see dazzlingly clean underwear”, his eyes “did not laugh when he laughed”), through introspection, through internal monologues (“ I sometimes despise myself... isn't that why I despise others too?..", "... why did I live? For what purpose was I born? ...")
Without the philosophical aspect of the novel, it is impossible to understand either the meaning of the era or the essence of the image of the protagonist. "Pechorin's Journal" is filled with thoughts about the meaning of life, about the relationship between the individual and society, about the place of a person in a series of generations, about faith and unbelief, about fate. Compositionally, this theme is completed by the chapter "The Fatalist", saturated with philosophical problems.
The main character trait of Pechorin is reflection. He constantly analyzes his thoughts, actions, desires, tries to reveal the roots of good and evil in one person. But Pechorin's reflection is hypertrophied, it disfigures the soul, distorts the development of the personality, makes both the hero and those with whom fate brings him unhappy.
The peculiarity of the novel is that, despite the fact that the parts differ in terms of genre, the novel does not fall apart and is not a collection of short stories, since all parts are united by one main character; the characters of the heroes are revealed from the external to the internal, from the effect to the cause, from the epic through the psychological to the philosophical.
The epic novel "Quiet Flows the Don" can be considered the pinnacle of M.A. Sholokhov's work. It covers a large period of time, describes the events of the First World War, two revolutions and the Civil War, therefore, in order to understand this work, a great role must be given to composition.
In the center of the novel is the story of the Melekhov family. Through the prism of the personal life of each of its members, Sholokhov conveys the mood of the Don Cossacks in different historical periods.
This technique helps the reader to acutely feel the tragedy of those events and also to learn how ordinary people coped with the difficulties that suddenly fell to their lot.
Lyrical digressions occupy a special place in the novel. M.A. Sholokhov follows the tradition of the genre and describes the landscape surrounding the heroes in all colors and details. In the writer's work, the natural world is inseparable from the human world, the Cossacks sincerely love their native land, live in harmony with it and thank for its generous gifts, which enable them to exist peacefully. Through nature, the feelings of the characters seem to materialize. For example, the state of mind of Aksinya after the break with Grigory is compared with the deserted and wild steppe, where cattle once grazed. And Gregory himself, after the funeral of his beloved, saw above him "a dazzlingly shining black disk of the sun." This technique helps the writer to convey the psychologism of the characters more strongly, their emotional state, which is difficult to describe in words.
An important feature of the composition of The Quiet Flows the Don is the use of antithesis. The whole novel is built on it: Sholokhov constantly compares war and peace, life and death. And accordingly, uncertainty, doubt characterize Grigory Melekhov as the main character. He rushes between whites and reds, between Aksinya and Natalya, between feelings and duty. The constant search for truth, one's place in life is the main motive of The Quiet Flows the Don.
This feature of character determines not only an individual, but the whole era. The space of the novel is constantly narrowing, then expanding. From the events taking place in the Tatarsky farm, the writer moves on to large-scale events, covering large cities and exciting the whole country. Sholokhov includes real historical figures and documents in the narrative, and thus The Quiet Flows the Don becomes a kind of chronicle, and Grigory Melekhov - a socio-psychological type that characterizes society as a whole. And the problematics of the work expands - it becomes nationwide.
The ornate, fickle plot of The Quiet Flows the Don ends in the Melekhovsky courtyard, where it began. Gregory, after long wanderings, returns to his native hut with his little son. The hero now has the opportunity to start all over again: restore the economy, arrange life, raise a child. The ring composition draws the cycle of good and evil. And this is another important motive of the work - the motive of the transience of time. Peaceful life is disturbed by turmoil and destruction, but then returns to its course again. This is a natural historical process. The earth is slowly healing its wounds. Humanity also heals wounds. Only memory remains. And Sholokhov expresses this idea at the end of his novel.
Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev is our outstanding classic who created a truthful, unforgettable gallery of images of Russian people. The writer always went ahead of his time, saw further than his contemporaries, and therefore was often subjected to fierce criticism from both the right and the left. Society did not like the merciless truth with which Turgenev showed his heroes: inactive and idle talkers, stilted and with feigned aristocracy.
The brilliant writer sees the need for changes in Russian society and the unwillingness of this society to do something new. Most are afraid of change, even the smallest change. This situation the writer truthfully and figuratively showed in his novel "Fathers and Sons".
Bazarov is a representative of a new generation. He does not take anything for granted, he wants to check everything empirically. There are no recognized authorities for him. He rejects poetry and art as activities that are useless to society.
His opponent in the novel is Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov, an imposing gentleman, a brilliant aristocrat who puts traditions above all else. Even in the village, Kirsanov is dressed in the latest fashion, requiring compliance with all conventions. The appearance of Bazarov, a nihilist, irritates Pavel Petrovich. He immediately becomes in opposition to Yevgeny Bazarov. Kirsanov is annoyed by dirty nails, sociability and democracy of Bazarov, his ability to communicate with ordinary people. Behind all this, Kirsanov sees a danger to himself and his class. Bazarov and those like him are shaking the foundations of the society in which Pavel Petrovich is used to living, and he will defend his "world" by all means available to him. No wonder he challenges Bazarov to a duel. Kirsanov does not protect Fenechka and his brother, but the foundations and traditions of the society in which he is used to living.
In a dispute, Bazarov is often aggressive, he tries to impose his opinion on the interlocutor. Sometimes he is inconsistent in his judgments (rejecting love, he loves deeply and unrequitedly). Respecting and loving his parents, he cannot stand even a few days in his father's house. Bazarov's attitude to nature is very peculiar: "Nature is not a temple, but a workshop, and a person in it is a worker," he says. Evgeny Vasilievich is devoid of any romance, often deliberately cultivates pragmatism in himself. He ridicules Nikolai Petrovich's love for music and poetry; Arkady's enthusiasm is rejected and condemned, but all this seems deliberate, unnatural. Sometimes Bazarov seems to us an artificially invented hero, and not seen in life. He does not cause sympathy for his straightforwardness. Irritates his categorical and maximalism. And the ending of the novel convinces of the failure of the hero's theory. It is not Bazarov who perishes, but his artificial theory. Or maybe the time has not yet come?
The novel "Fathers and Sons" remains for us a clear example of its time, a mirror reflecting the era with its conflicts and achievements. Reading the novel, we empathize with the characters, disagree with them, enter into disputes, but never remain indifferent, and this is the main merit of the writer.
Turgenev created a classic novel that for more than a hundred years has been awakening the imagination, the desire to think, to find one's own path in life, not to remain indifferent. This is the main merit of the novel and the classics in general.