The conflict of generations - as the main conflict in A. Griboyedov's comedy "Woe from Wit"

Alexander Sergeevich Griboyedov was one of the smartest people of his time. He received an excellent education, knew several oriental languages, was a subtle politician and diplomat. Griboedov died at the age of 34 a painful death, torn to pieces by fanatics. He left two wonderful waltzes and the comedy "Woe from Wit" to posterity.

“Woe from Wit” is a socio-political comedy. Griboedov gave in it a true picture of Russian life after the Patriotic War of 1812. The reader can trace the development of the conflict between the two socio-political camps: serf-owners (Famus society) and anti-serf-owners (Chatsky).

Famus society is traditional. His life foundations are such that one must learn, “looking at the elders”, destroy free-thinking thoughts, serve with humility to persons who are a step higher, and most importantly, be rich. A peculiar ideal of this society is in the monologues of Famusov Maxim Petrovich and Uncle Kuzma Petrovich:

Here is an example:

The deceased was a respectable chamberlain,

With the key, he was able to deliver the key to his son;

Rich, and was married to a rich woman;

Married children, grandchildren;

He died, everyone sadly remembers him:

Kuzma Petrovich! Peace be upon him! -

What aces live and die in Moscow!...

The image of Chatsky, on the contrary, is something new, fresh, bursting into life, bringing change. This is a realistic image of a person expressing the advanced ideas of his time. Chatsky could be called a hero of his time. A whole political program can be traced in Chatsky's monologues. He exposes serfdom and its offspring: inhumanity, hypocrisy, stupid militaryism, ignorance, false patriotism. He gives a merciless characterization of the Famus society.

The dialogues between Famusov and Chatsky are a struggle. At the beginning of the comedy, it does not yet appear in an acute form. After all, Famusov is Chatsky's tutor. At the beginning of the comedy, Famusov is favorable to Chatsky, he is even ready to give Sophia's hand, but at the same time sets his own conditions:

I would say, firstly: do not be blissful,

Name, brother, do not manage by mistake,

And, most importantly, go and serve.

To which Chatsky throws:

I would be glad to serve, it is sickening to serve.

But gradually another struggle begins, an important and serious one, a whole battle. Both Famusov and Chatsky threw down the gauntlet to each other.

See what fathers did

Would learn by looking at the elders! -

Famusov's war cry rang out. And in response - Chatsky's monologue “Who are the judges?”. In this monologue, Chatsky stigmatizes "the meanest traits of the past life."

Each new face that appears in the course of the development of the plot becomes in opposition to Chatsky. Anonymous characters slander him: Mr. N, Mr. D, the 1st princess, the 2nd princess, etc.

But in comedy there is another conflict, another intrigue - love. I. A. Goncharov wrote: “Every step of Chatsky, almost every word of his in the play is closely connected with the play of his feelings for Sophia.” It was the behavior of Sophia, incomprehensible to Chatsky, that served as a motive, a reason for irritation, for that “million of torments”, under the influence of which he could only play the role indicated to him by Griboedov. Chatsky is tormented, not understanding who his opponent is: either Skalozub, or Molchalin? Therefore, he becomes irritable, unbearable, caustic in relation to Famusov's guests. Sofya, irritated by Chatsky's remarks, insulting not only the guests, but also her lover, in a conversation with Mr. N, mentions Chatsky's madness: "He is out of his mind." And the rumor about Chatsky's madness rushes through the halls, spreads among the guests, acquiring fantastic, grotesque forms. And Chatsky himself, still not knowing anything, confirms this rumor with a heated monologue about the “Frenchman from Bordeaux”, which he utters in an empty hall. In the fourth act of the comedy, the outcome of both conflicts comes: Chatsky finds out who Sophia's chosen one is. This is Molchalin. The secret is revealed, the heart is broken, the torment has no end.

Oh! How to comprehend the game of fate?

A persecutor of people with a soul, a scourge! -

Silencers are blissful in the world! -

says heartbroken Chatsky. His hurt pride, escaping resentment burns. He breaks with Sophia:

Enough! With you I am proud of my break.

And before leaving forever, Chatsky in anger throws to the whole Famus society:

He will come out of the fire unharmed,

Who will have time to spend the day with you,

Breathe the air alone

And his mind will survive...

Chatsky leaves. But who is he - the winner or the vanquished? Goncharov most accurately answered this question in the article “A Million of Torments”: “Chatsky is broken by the quantity of the old force, inflicting a mortal blow on it with the quality of the fresh force. He is the eternal detractor of lies, harnessed to the proverb: "One man in the field is not a warrior." There is no warrior if he is Chatsky, and, moreover, a winner, but an advanced warrior, skirmisher and always a victim.

There are several conflicts in the play “Woe from Wit”, while the presence of only one conflict was a necessary condition for the classic play.

“Woe from Wit” is a comedy with two storylines, and at first glance it seems that there are two conflicts in the play: love (between Chatsky and Sophia) and public (between Chatsky and Famusovsky society).

The play begins with the beginning of a love conflict - Chatsky comes to Moscow to his girlfriend. Gradually, a love conflict develops into a public one. Finding out if Sophia loves him, Chatsky is faced with the Famus society. In comedy, the image of Chatsky represents a new type of personality at the beginning of the 19th century. Chatsky is opposed to the entire conservative, ossified world of the Famusovs. In his monologues, ridiculing the life, customs, ideology of the old Moscow society, Chatsky tries to open the eyes of Famusov and everyone else to how they live and how they live. The social conflict “Woe from Wit” is insoluble. The old lordly society does not listen to the freedom-loving, intelligent Chatsky, it does not understand him and declares him crazy.

The social conflict in the play by A. S. Griboedov is connected with another conflict - between the “current century” and the “past century”. Chatsky is a type of a new person, he is the spokesman for the new ideology of the new time, the “current century”. And the old conservative society of the Famusovs belongs to the “past century”. The old does not want to give up its positions and go into the historical past, while the new actively invades life, trying to establish its own laws. The conflict of the old and the new is one of the main ones in the Russian life of that time. This eternal conflict occupies a large place in the literature of the 19th century, for example, in such works as "Fathers and Sons", "Thunderstorm". But this conflict does not exhaust all the collisions of comedy.

Among the heroes of Griboedov's play, perhaps, there are no stupid people, each of them has his own worldly mind, that is, an idea of ​​\u200b\u200blife. Each of the characters in Woe from Wit knows what he needs from life and what he should strive for. For example, Famusov wants to live his life without going beyond secular laws, so as not to give rise to being condemned by powerful secular lionesses, such as Marya Aleksevna and Tatyana Yuryevna. Therefore, Famusov is so concerned about finding a worthy husband for his daughter. The purpose of Molchalin's life is to quietly, even slowly, but surely move up the career ladder. He is not even ashamed of the fact that he will humiliate himself a lot in the struggle to achieve his goals: wealth and power (“to take rewards and live happily”). He does not love Sophia, but looks at her as a means to achieve his goals.

The author shows several conflicts at once. This is a complex relationship between the characters, where there is deceit, betrayal, betrayal and subsequent disappointment and remorse. But the most important conflict is the very attitude of society towards the main character Alexander Chatsky. After an evening event in the Famusovs' house, where all the "light of society" were invited, the young man began to be considered crazy.

These two conflicts are closely intertwined with each other. It was she who became the culprit of the fact that “bad” fame went about Chatsky. His "militant" attitude and non-standard views on the situation in society confused the girl. She reproaches the man for "incompatibility", unrestrained reviews, about those around him involuntarily comparing him with Molchalin.

Molchalin, trying to please everyone and everywhere, was also indirectly drawn into the main conflict between society and Chatsky. He acts as a reverse example of Alexander's behavior.

For the majority, Famusov's secretary causes only emotion. He, as it were, “smoothes out” sharp corners with his complaisance and imaginary “good nature”. In fact, the man chose to build tactics, to be always and in everything useful. Having set this goal, he fulfilled the "whims" of Pavel Famusov's daughter, Sophia. The girl, by virtue of her naivety, perceived the "courteous" gentleman as a potential groom. In fact, Molchalin liked a completely different girl, who also lived in the Famusovs' house. She was the maid Lisa.

And, in turn, due to ingenuity, unlike Chatsky, every time he prevents a conflict. The girl tries to “smooth out” sharp corners and avoids a direct answer. She often succeeds.

Nevertheless, the main conflict is the attitude of society to the new worldview and opinion of Chatsky. His condemning rheas and aggressive attitude against the "prosperous" flattery and lies, in order to obtain any benefits, excites the entire Famus society. For others, such an “approach” to life, which is promoted by a man, is not only unacceptable, but also truly crazy. The shocking truth sounds like an insult and is perceived by everyone with hostility.

A sense of heightened justice makes a man condemn even the behavior of his old friend. In a conversation with him, Alexander learns that he got married and was "under the heel" of his own wife. Seeing the picture of what was happening, the woman immediately hurried to take part in the conversation and free her chosen one from the “revolutionary” parting words of Chatsky.

Famusov's entourage rendered its verdict. Over all the expressed phrases of Alexander, people simply began to make fun. Both conflicting parties were absolutely sure of their correctness and dementia of the opponent. Secondary characters add to the picture of what is happening with their appearance and fill it with characteristic features.

Griboyedov shows with his work how the whole society will subsequently be divided, where everyone, regardless of the opinions of others, will see only their own truth. Where they will be friends and even marry not for love, but only for their own benefit. On the other side of the "barricade" there will always be those who are "mad" from what is happening and under no circumstances will go against their desires, honor and conscience.

The author of the comedy focuses on the obvious confrontation that existed at the beginning of the 19th century between adherents of the "old" way of life, reactionaries and younger, enlightened and progressive representatives of the nobility.

Adhering to the “former” views on life, the landowners tried in every possible way to preserve the life of the serf-owners, which was familiar to them, while their opponents strenuously assured those around them that the “current century” had already come and it was high time to end with the “past century”. It is precisely such nobles that include the hero Griboyedov, throughout the entire action of the play trying to convince people of his rightness who do not want not only to understand him, but at least to hear him.

At the very beginning of the comedy, a naive and dreamy young man comes to Famusov's house, seeking to change the society that is imbued with vices. He talks about his ideas to the owner of the house and his guests, equally old-fashioned and reactionary people who are afraid of any new trends and consider them extremely harmful, for this reason Chatsky's words are completely not perceived by his opponents.

It is worth paying attention to how the author characterizes his characters, in particular, the “member of the English Club” Famusov, and his relative, the man who demands that “no one knows the letter”, and other acquaintances of Sophia’s father, evaluating the whole their narrow-mindedness, narrow-mindedness and hatred for everything unknown to them, which seems alien and dangerous to them.

As a result, Chatsky, who received a deep insult in this "chosen" society, gets rid of all his illusions and understands how pointless it was to try to change such people at least in some way. According to him, at the end of the play, "the veil" finally fell from his eyes.

Famusov, the main antagonist of Chatsky, does not at all hide his indifferent attitude to the service, which for him is only a formality, as he claims, "signed - and out of sight." In addition, this gentleman, confident in his infallibility, constantly makes patronage exclusively to relatives and friends, saying that he will find relatives “and at the bottom of the sea” and is ready for anything for her. The main rule for him is frank groveling before higher ranks, and only in this way, according to Famusov, is it possible to "come out into the people" and become a truly "worthy" person.

Such words infuriate Chatsky, and the young man utters a passionate, hot, filled with the most sincere indignation and anger monologue, denouncing the undisguised "servility" and "buffoonery", without which his interlocutor cannot imagine life. Famusov, in turn, is frankly horrified by such statements and begins to repeat that such dissident personalities as Chatsky should not be allowed into the capital at all, moreover, they must be immediately brought to justice. The guests gathered in the house are happy to learn from the owner that there is a “new project” concerning educational institutions where they will teach “our way, one or two”, while the younger generation will actually not need books.

The people present in Famusov's chambers consider the teachings to be a real "plague", Colonel Skalozub without hesitation expresses a dream "to collect all the books and burn them." Molchalin, whom Sophia is in love with, also learned from childhood that everyone around needs to “please” and behaves that way, absolutely not thinking about self-esteem and pride, he tries to please not only his immediate superior, but also the janitor, and even “ janitor's dog.

Chatsky turns out to be a complete stranger in this environment of “correct”, old-time people, enemies of any progress and improvement of society. His reasoning only frightens those around him, he seems to them a very strange person, there is an assumption that he is simply "out of his mind", Chatsky's high intelligence and his ardent impulses only repel those gathered at Famusov from him.

The main monologue of a young nobleman, in which he asks who are the judges of innovations, and denounces the heartless landowners who do not hesitate to sell children and separate them from their parents or change servants for dogs. Chatsky has already served and traveled, but he wants to be useful to his native country, and not to his superiors, so for now the man, having left his previous occupations, is trying to find his way in life.

He is also deeply outraged by the lack of any patriotism among the members of the "high-society society", their obvious admiration for everything foreign and conversations among the nobility in such an absurd combination of languages ​​as "French and Nizhny Novgorod". He believes that the aristocracy should be closer to the common people and at least be able to speak Russian correctly, while for most nobles it is easier to explain themselves in any of the European languages. At the same time, even Chatsky's opponents notice his extraordinary mind and excellent speech. According to Famusov, his guest is “small with a head” and clearly and competently expresses his thoughts.

The young man is in a completely alien environment for him only for the sake of Sophia, whom he loved from his youth. However, the girl is completely under the influence of the society around her, which formed all her ideas about life, and she is unable to reciprocate Chatsky, who contradicts her usual world of values ​​and concepts.

When it becomes clear to Famusov's guest that Sophia easily betrayed their former feelings and promises, and exposed Chatsky to the general ridicule, talking about his loss of reason, he immediately leaves the empty, devoid of any inner content, realizing that now he has absolutely no need to be here. In the final monologue, he emphasizes his complete disappointment in the audience, from now on all his ties with the "famus" world are severed.

For people like this progressive nobleman, being in such an environment brings only suffering, "woe from the mind," as the play is called. But Chatsky's efforts are still not in vain, his denunciations deal a serious blow to people like Famusov, Skalozub, Molchalin, and other adherents of the "old order".

True, the fight against reactionaries in comedy does not end with the victory of progress, since in real life in Russia it was just beginning at that time. However, Famusov, like his supporters, feels powerless in the face of enlightenment, the approaching new era and a different life, they cannot help but realize that their established world is gradually becoming a thing of the past and they are being replaced by completely different people who adhere to different views and aspirations. .

Pushing around Paskevich,
The disgraced Yermolov is slandering...
What is left for him?
Ambition, coldness and anger...
From official old women,
From caustic secular injections
He rolls in a wagon,
Rest your chin on the cane.
D. Kedrin

Alexander Sergeevich Griboyedov gained great literary fame and national fame by writing the comedy Woe from Wit. This work was innovative in Russian literature of the first quarter of the 19th century.
Classical comedy was characterized by the division of heroes into positive and negative. The victory was always for the good guys, while the bad ones were ridiculed and defeated. In Griboedov's comedy, the characters are distributed in a completely different way. The main conflict of the play is connected with the division of the characters into representatives of the “current century” and “past century”, and the former actually includes one Alexander Andreyevich Chatsky, moreover, he often finds himself in a ridiculous position, although he is a positive hero. At the same time, his main “opponent” Famusov is by no means some notorious bastard, on the contrary, he is a caring father and a good-natured person.
It is interesting that Chatsky's childhood passed in the house of Pavel Afanasyevich Famusov. Moscow lordly life was measured and calm. Every day was like another. Balls, dinners, dinners, christenings...

He got married - he managed, but he gave a miss.
All the same sense, and the same verses in the albums.

Women were mainly occupied with outfits. They love everything foreign, French. The ladies of the Famus society have one goal - to marry or marry off their daughters to an influential and wealthy person. With all this, in the words of Famusov himself, women "are judges of everything, everywhere, there are no judges over them." For patronage, everyone goes to a certain Tatyana Yuryevna, because "officials and officials are all her friends and all her relatives." Princess Marya Alekseevna has such weight in high society that Famusov somehow exclaims in fear:
Oh! My God! What will Princess Marya Aleksevna say!
But what about men? They are all busy trying to move as high as possible on the social ladder. Here is the thoughtless martinet Skalozub, who measures everything by military standards, jokes in a military way, being a model of stupidity and narrow-mindedness. But this just means a good growth prospect. He has one goal - "to get to the generals." Here is a petty official Molchalin. He says, not without pleasure, that “he received three awards, is listed in the Archives,” and he, of course, wants to “reach the known degrees.”
The Moscow “ace” Famusov himself tells young people about the nobleman Maxim Petrovich, who served under Catherine and, seeking a place at court, did not show any business qualities or talents, but became famous only for the fact that his neck often “bent” in bows. But “had a hundred people at his service”, “all in orders”. This is the ideal of the Famus society.
Moscow nobles are arrogant and arrogant. They treat people poorer than themselves with contempt. But a special arrogance is heard in the remarks addressed to the serfs. They are “parsleys”, “fomkas”, “chumps”, “lazy black grouse”. One conversation with them: “Get you to work! Settle you!”. In close formation, the Famusites oppose everything new, advanced. They can be liberal, but they are afraid of fundamental changes like fire. How much hatred in Famusov's words:

Learning is the plague, learning is the cause
What is now more than ever,
Crazy divorced people, and deeds, and opinions.

Thus, Chatsky is well aware of the spirit of the "past century", marked by cringing, hatred for enlightenment, the emptiness of life. All this early aroused boredom and disgust in our hero. Despite his friendship with sweet Sophia, Chatsky leaves the house of his relatives and begins an independent life.
“The desire to travel attacked him...” His soul longed for the novelty of modern ideas, communication with the advanced people of the time. He leaves Moscow and travels to Petersburg. "High thoughts" for him above all. It was in St. Petersburg that Chatsky's views and aspirations were formed. He appears to have taken an interest in literature. Even Famusov heard rumors that Chatsky “writes and translates nicely.” At the same time, Chatsky is fascinated by social activities. He has a "connection with the ministers." However, not for long. High concepts of honor did not allow him to serve, he wanted to serve the cause, not individuals.
After that, Chatsky probably visited the village, where, according to Famusov, he “blissed out”, blunderingly managing the estate. Then our hero goes abroad. At that time, “travelling” was viewed askance as a manifestation of the liberal spirit. But just the acquaintance of representatives of Russian noble youth with the life, philosophy, history of Western Europe was of great importance for their development.
And here we are already meeting with a mature Chatsky, a man with established ideas. Chatsky contrasts the slave morality of the Famus society with a high understanding of honor and duty. He passionately denounces the hated feudal system. He cannot calmly talk about “Nestor noble scoundrels”, who changes servants for dogs, or about the one who “drew ... from mothers, fathers of rejected children to a fortress ballet” and went bankrupt, sold everyone one by one.

Here are those who lived to gray hair!
That's who we should respect in the wilderness!
Here are our strict connoisseurs and judges!

Chatsky hates “the meanest traits of the past life”, people who “draw their judgments from the forgotten newspapers of the times of the Ochakovskys and the conquest of the Crimea”. A sharp protest is caused in him by the noble servility to everything foreign, the French upbringing, usual in the lordly environment. In his famous monologue about the “Frenchman from Bordeaux,” he speaks of the ardent attachment of the common people to their homeland, national customs and language.
As a true enlightener, Chatsky passionately defends the rights of reason and deeply believes in its power. In reason, in education, in public opinion, in the power of ideological and moral influence, he sees the main and powerful means of reshaping society, changing life. He defends the right to serve enlightenment and science:

Now let one of us
Of the young people, there is an enemy of quest, -
Not demanding either places or promotions,
In the sciences, he will stick the mind, hungry for knowledge;
Or in his soul God himself will excite the heat
To creative arts, lofty and beautiful, -
They immediately: robbery! Fire!
And they will be known as a dreamer! Dangerous!!!

Among such young people in the play, in addition to Chatsky, one can perhaps also include Skalozub's cousin, the nephew of Princess Tugoukhovskaya - "a chemist and botanist". But they are mentioned in passing in the play. Among the guests of Famusov, our hero is a loner.
- Of course, Chatsky makes enemies. Well, will Skalozub forgive him if he hears about himself: “Wheezy, strangled, bassoon, a constellation of maneuvers and mazurkas!” Or Natalya Dmitrievna, whom he advised to live in the countryside? Or Khlestov, whom Chatsky openly laughs at? But most of all goes, of course, to Molchalin. Chatsky considers him “the most miserable creature”, similar to all fools. Sophia, out of revenge for such words, declares Chatsky crazy. Everyone happily picks up this news, they sincerely believe in gossip, because, indeed, in this society he seems crazy.
A. S. Pushkin, after reading “Woe from Wit”, noticed that Chatsky throws beads in front of pigs, that he will never convince those to whom he addresses with his angry, passionate monologues. And one cannot but agree with this. But Chatsky is young. Yes, he did not have the goal of starting disputes with the older generation. First of all, he wanted to see Sophia, to whom from childhood he had a cordial affection. Another thing is that in the time that has passed since their last meeting, Sophia has changed. Chatsky is discouraged by her cold reception, he struggles to understand how it could be that she no longer needs him. Maybe it was this mental trauma that triggered the conflict mechanism.
As a result, there is a complete break of Chatsky with the world in which he spent his childhood and with which he is connected by blood ties. But the conflict that led to this gap is not personal, not accidental. This conflict is social. Not just different people clashed, but different worldviews, different social positions. The external tie-in of the conflict was the arrival of Chatsky to Famusov's house, he received development in disputes and monologues of the main characters (“Who are the judges?”, “That's it, you are all proud!”). The growing misunderstanding and alienation lead to a climax: at the ball, Chatsky is recognized as insane. And then he realizes for himself that all his words and spiritual movements were in vain:

Mad you glorified me all in unison.
You are right: he will come out of the fire unharmed,
Who will have time to spend the day with you,
Breathe the air alone
And his mind will survive.

The outcome of the conflict is the departure of Chatsky from Moscow. The relationship between the Famus society and the protagonist is clarified to the end: they deeply despise each other and do not want to have anything in common. It's impossible to tell who's winning. After all, the conflict between the old and the new is eternal, like the world. And the theme of the suffering of an intelligent, educated person in Russia is topical even today. And to this day, they suffer more from the mind than from its absence. In this sense, A.S. Griboedov created a comedy for all time.