The novel of the Golovlev family is three generations of the Golovlev family. "Golovlevs": history of publication, analysis, meaning of the novel

Chapter 1. The world of the estate in the novel "Lord Golovlevs"

In the literature of the nineteenth century, one of the varieties of narrative prose was designated - the estate story. According to V.G. Shchukina, N.M. Karamzin as the author of "A Knight of Our Time", but only the era of romanticism gave it its final look. An integral part of the estate story was included in Eugene Onegin (chapters from two to six). The coryphaeus, of course, should be considered Turgenev, who turned to this genre in the forties ("Diary of an Extra Man", "Three Portraits") and achieved a high level of artistic excellence in "Rudin" using worked-out poetic techniques, clichés and templates. "Noble Nest", "On the Eve" and "First Love". 1

The estate was the keeper of deep meanings and spiritual values. Its essential feature was the constant memory of the past, the living presence of tradition, which were reminded of the portraits and graves of ancestors, family legends. All of this taught us to think retrospectively and sentimentally. The real historical chronotope of the estate favored the emergence of an emotional lyrical atmosphere of "noble nests".

The hero of the manor story is a worried person; he thinks, but his ideas are not hard-won. He is worried, perhaps, only by emotional dramas, and all actions do not go beyond the nobleman's code of conduct, the main elements of which are love, friendship

Shchukin V.G. Poetry of estate prose // From the history of Russian culture, vol. 5. (19th century). M., 1996, p. 577.

rivalry, secret dates and timid kisses in the moonlight, internal monologues ... "The poetics of a manor story is the poetics of remembrance," V.G. Shchukin. 1

M.E. Saltykov - Shchedrin in a number of his novels is also a writer of everyday life of the noble manor life, but the term "manor story" with its characteristics is completely inappropriate for this author. The harmonious and bright world of estate life in the works of I.S. Turgenev, I.A. Goncharova, L.N. Tolstoy is replaced by the "escheat" existence of the Golovlev family estates.

Such a sharp change in the aesthetic assessments of manor life was not a whim of the great satirist. Saltykov caught in the life of post-reform Russia the emergence of an important socio-economic symptom that determined the subsequent fate of the "noble nests". Having lost the fundamental opportunity to live at the expense of the exploitation of serfs, the noble estate, letting in the mercantile spirit of the new capitalizing time, began to die quietly, which at the end of the century we were told in the artistically perfect works of A.P. Chekhov ("The Cherry Orchard") and I.A. Bunin ("Sukhodol", "Antonovskie apples", "Life of Arseniev"). And the beginning of this process was noticed by literature in the middle of the nineteenth century, when social motives invade the idyllic world of the Russian estate, recreated on the pages of many writers, and the tone of the narrative changes.

1 Shchukin V.G. Poetry of the estate and prose of the slum // From the history of Russian culture. T. 5. (19th century). M., 1996.p.580

The change of "milestones" can be found even earlier, since the time of "Dead Souls" by N.V. Gogol, in whose work an ironic attitude to the estate is developed, with its facade, "unnecessary" decoration, and the writer sees the economic estate as the ideal of the new estate. 1

The old retirements described by Gogol are inhabited by some kind of ghosts, terrible and grotesque - ugly, which will come to life again in the works of the author we are examining.

In a review of I. Mikhailov's novel “Clogged Roads”, Saltykov, ironically at the established traditions in the reproduction of the estate world, wrote: “Since I.S. Turgenev gifted us with masterful paintings of "noble nests" ", describing these nests" according to Turgenev "costs almost nothing. First of all, it is necessary to depict a landowner suffering from shortness of breath, a landlord who is slightly knocked down and rushing from corner to corner, and next to them a young passionate creature, choking in the tightness of everyday squabbles. Then jam, jam, jam, cream, cream, cream, and at night, simmer the nightingale ”(IX; 266).

Since the 60s of the nineteenth century M.E. Saltykov - Shchedrin does not at all recognize novels based on a love story, he is especially not satisfied with the Onegin conflict: “Even the harsh moralists - and they understood how great the feat of life that was coming to a woman in this case, and therefore called the victory over adultery - triumph of virtue"(XI; 275). "We<…> to the best of our ability, we protest against the author's intention to assure the public that every manor house is an arena for falling in love

1 Elsberg Y. Saltykov - Shchedrin. Life and art. M., 1953, p. 575.

and that under every bush of the landowner's garden sits a woman of "striking beauty" (IX; 379).

Two novels by Saltykov, "The Golovlevs" and "Poshekhonskaya antiquity", depict the disintegration of noble families, speak of the closeness of the moribund order. 1 The most abundant material of truthful pictures of the mores of the province, the life of the noblemen - landowners in the estate is presented by the author in the first novel - an epic canvas of landlord life. Golovlevites will have to look into the estate with sober eyes "Bowl", "pot",which until now someone has filled, and will make sure that other times have come. “We didn’t grieve about what was happening there, in the depths of the pot, we knew that Ivanushki lived there, and Ivanushki were run by the policemen ...” (III; 492).

Saltykov - Shchedrin describes in detail how a complete "bowl"Golovlev: "<…> "Supplies for the winter flocked from everywhere, from all estates were brought by carts<…> natural service.<…> All this was measured, accepted and added to the reserves of previous years ”(XIII; 44).

"Pot", on the creation of which Arina Petrovna spent so much time and effort, gave a fatal crack at the first serious collision with the real social and political reality.

Shchedrin, who thoroughly and comprehensively studied the life and life of the noble estate of this period, draws in his work the seamy side of Russian local culture. Local relations, the house, the landscape of the serf and the post-reform village are represented by the harsh pen of the critic.

1 Kirpotin V.L. M.E. Saltykov - Shchedrin. Life and art. M., 1995.

He approaches the description of local life from the point of view of its "terrible lining."

The manor house as depicted by the author "Lord Golovlyov" is not a "Noble Nest" by I.S. Turgenev and not the Rostovs' estate from "War and Peace" by L.N. Tolstoy. There is a manor here, but without linden alleys and shady pavilions, this is a family nest where people come to die. 1 The satirist is interested in a real family drama, its origins and soil, the very process of the disintegration and death of a whole family, various forms of corruption of the human personality.

In the Golovlevskaya, Dubrovinskaya and Pogorelkovskaya estates, Saltykov saw, first of all, rooms in which "It was deserted, unpleasant, smelled of alienation, dryness", dirty black mezzanines, a smelly courtyard - places where not only the economic exploitation of serfs, but also complete destruction the principle of nepotism. Mocking the epigones of the noble tradition, the satirist reminds us that death is spreading in the name of the main passion, the passion for acquisitiveness, the golovlevishin, as a composite image of a terrible, obsolete oppressive system.

For the first time Shchedrin gave a satirical picture of the estate of a small landowner in "Gentlemen of Tashkent". “In former times, poor landowners, when choosing a manor settlement, were guided by the following considerations: firstly, that the church stood before our eyes, and secondly, that the peasant was always at hand.

The landowner will fence off a more spacious place along with the peasant huts<… > and folds a house there<… > in general, something that is covered with snow in winter, and faintly visible from behind the tyna in summer. Then the front garden will open in front, in which<… > there is nowhere to turn, but from behind and on the sides it will grow people, and table, and barn, and small cells, and this awkward rabble will go black and decay,<… > may they replenish with dirt, dung and stench. No garden, no water, not even just given before my eyes. Only the appearance that the church, lonely standing in the middle of the square, and to the right and to the left a row of rickety peasant huts, divided by a street on which there is no passage from manure and dirt, but the master knows what is happening in which hut, what is said, what kind of peasant really is due to illness, he does not go to the corvee, which only takes time off, from whom the cow calved, what it brought, etc. "(X; 133).

Drawing the world of the estate, Shchedrin is interested in the state of life in it. Obviously starting from his early sketch of the estate ("The Lord of Tashkent"), in the novel "The Lord Golovlevs" the artist draws a detailed pictorial picture of the manor houses and their inhabitants.

In the center of the novel are "toponymic characters" 1 carrying a huge generalizing function, covering all the characters, all the events of the work. These are landlord estates, more like not family nests, but grave crypts.

1 Pavlova I.B. The artistic originality of Shchedrin's novels of the 60s and 70s

Years ("The History of a City" "Diaries of a Provincial in St. Petersburg", "Golovlevs"): Author. dis ... cand. philol. sciences. M., Institute of World Literature. Gorky, 1980, p. 25.

On Stepan Vladimirovich, returning home, the view of a lordly estate, “made the effect of Medusa's head. There he fancied coffin"(XIII; 30). The Golovlev estate is shown, as V.Sh. Krivonos, “a concentration of chaos and destruction. And with the estates, and with the manor houses, the novel constantly combines the idea of \u200b\u200bdeath and escheat, of the disastrous impact of an evil force beyond the control of man and life-threatening. " 1

A place where events unfold, separate from the whole world: in

all decay and meaninglessness are dumb. The mustiness and impenetrability, the emptiness of the Golovlevs' world gave birth to the symbol of the "coffin" that permeates the entire work. The manor with its destruction and lifeless solitude is quite consistent with the concept of a coffin. 2

According to V.G. Shchukin, “the manor type of dwelling was designed to provide its inhabitants with full<…> isolation, isolation of the artificially created paradise in the bosom of nature from the hardships of the outside world "2. In Shchedrin's novel, such isolation of the estate is provided: not even its location, remoteness from other settlements are shown. But the order created in it can hardly be compared with paradise.

1 Krivonos V.Sh. Roman M.E. Saltykova - Shchedrin "Lord Golovlevs" and national symbols // Literature of Nekrasov magazines. Interuniversity collection of scientific papers. Ivanovo. 1987, p. 114.

2 See Dal V.I. Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language: In 4 volumes, M., 1989, vol. 1.p.396. The word "coffin", besides the meaning of "death", "death", has an allegorical, figurative meaning: "locality, occupation, harmful, deadly."

The inhabitant of Golovleva, Anninka, characterizes her native abode with striking accuracy: “Golovlevo is death, spiteful, empty of the womb; it is death, always waiting for a new victim.<… > And how strange and cruel it all came together! You cannot even imagine that some future is possible, that there is a door through which you can go somewhere, that at least something can happen. " (XIII; 250) But this estranged - withered world is not the only one, the village of Pogorelka and Dubrovinskaya estate are also Golovlevo in miniature. “The burned out was a sad manor. She stood, as they say, on a poke, without a garden, without a shadow, without any signs of any comfort whatsoever.<… > House<… > as if crushed and all blackened<… > ; behind were<… > services, also falling into disrepair; and all around were fields, fields without end; even the forest was not visible on the horizon ”(XIII; 96).

Shchedrin introduces symbolic details into the image of the Dubrovin estate. “On the Dubrovinsky manor house it looks like everything died out. <… > Even the trees stand downcast and not mobile, exactly tortured. <… > And the manor house<… > and<… > front garden<… >, and a birch grove,<… > and a peasant village, and a rye field<… > , - everything drowns in the luminous darkness. All smells, from the fragrances of flowering lindens to the miasma of the barnyard, stand in a thick mass in the air. Not a sound (XIII; 54, 55) .. The "thick" vapors of a hot July day are depressing, the dull and motionless trees "as if tortured", but silence kills even more. "Not a sound", not a rustle, nothing but a seal of death, a symbol of decay.

In Saltykov's novel, the concept of "estate" and "house" completely coincide, since any estate is unthinkable without its center - the house, which is one of the earliest archetypes 1. Golovlev's estates do not have its archetypal features.

From time immemorial, in the human mind, the house “protected a person from the hardships of the outside world, created an atmosphere of security, certainty<… > "2. It was he, like the biblical ark, who was called to save the people who took refuge in it from hostile elements - first natural, then social. In such a house, a person not only lives, but saves the soul, reinforcing it with prayer.

In Shchedrin's novel, the place where Golovlev's master lives is associated with the inhuman, the dead: “There was something escheat in this house and in this person, something that arouses involuntary and superstitious fear” (XII; 141) ...

The final embodiment of death and doom under Shchedrin's pen is acquired by the Golovlev estate, which will become the kingdom of "silent alarm", where everything will breathe death: “It's December in the yard at half-time; the surroundings, seized by the boundless snow shroud, quietly numb<… >... And there is almost no trace of the Golovlev estate.<… > The yard is deserted and quiet; not the slightest movementneither at a human, nor near a stockyard; even peasant villagecalmed down, as if died » (XII; 228).

1. Shchukin V.G. Saving shelter About some mythopoetic sources of the Slavic concept of the House. // From the history of Russian culture Vol.5 (19th century). M., 1996 p 589-609

2. Ibid, from 589.

The manor (manor house) has always been built by the owners for centuries. It was planned that, while remaining the property of one family, it would be inherited. The house is the point of intersection not only of administrative and economic interests, but also of family relations. In the dictionary of V.I. Dahl we find the meaning of the word house - “family”, “a group of people connected by blood ties” 1.

1 Dal V.I. Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language: V 4t M., 1998 v.1.P.446

The great Russian writer ME Saltykov-Shchedrin was writing the novel "The Lord Golovlevs" in the period from 1875 to 1880. According to literary critics, the work consists of several separate works, which over time have been combined into one whole. Some of the short stories that later became the basis of the work were published in the journal Otechestvennye zapiski. However, it was only in 1880 that the novel was created by the writer in its entirety.

Like most of the works of Saltykov-Shchedrin, the novel "The Lord Golovlevs", the summary of which we recall today, is permeated with a certain melancholy and hopelessness. True, this does not interfere with the easy perception of the confident and clear literary style of the writer.

Difficult time

In part, critics associate this “sadness-melancholy” with the fact that the events described in the novel do not take place at the best time for Russia. The brilliant age of strong emperors has already ended, the state is experiencing a certain decline. In addition, the abolition of serfdom is imminent - an event with which neither the landowners nor the majority of the peasants know what to do. Both those and others do not really imagine the further way of life. Undoubtedly, this adds some wariness to society, which is reflected in the novel.

However, if you look at the events described from a slightly different angle, it becomes obvious that the point is not in a radical change in the historical era and the usual way of life. All the signs of the usual disintegration of certain social strata are evident (and this does not have to be precisely the noble caste). If you carefully study the literature of that time, you can clearly see: as soon as the primary accumulation of capital ended, subsequent generations of artisan, merchant and noble families squandered it uncontrollably. This is the story that Saltykov-Shchedrin told in the novel "The Lord Golovlevs".

This phenomenon was associated with a more or less stable economic system, the absence of global wars, as well as the rule of fairly liberal emperors. In other words, the efforts that were required from the ancestors in order to survive, earn capital and give birth to viable offspring were no longer required. Such trends have been observed in the history of all the once powerful world empires, whose existence was nearing decline.

Nobles

Saltykov-Shchedrin in the novel "Lord Golovlevs" (a summary, of course, will not convey the true mood of the author), using the example of a separate noble family, tries to describe exactly this order of things. The once powerful noble family of the Golovlevs is experiencing the first signs of confusion and uncertainty about the future in connection with the upcoming abolition of serfdom.

But in spite of everything, family capital and possessions are still increasing. The main merit in this belongs to the mistress - Arina Petrovna Golovleva, a wayward and tough woman. With an iron hand, she rules over her many estates. However, not everything is in order in the family itself. Her husband, Vladimir Mikhailovich Golovlev, is an extremely disorderly person. He practically does not engage in extensive farming, spending days on end devoting himself to the dubious muse of the poet Barkov, running after courtyard girls and drunkenness (still secret and dimly expressed). This is how the older characters, the Golovlevs, are briefly characterized in the novel.

Arina Petrovna, tired of fighting her husband's vices, devotes herself entirely to economic affairs. She does this so enthusiastically that she even forgets about her children, for whose sake, in essence, wealth is multiplied.

Stepka-dunce

The Golovlevs have four children - three sons and a daughter. In the novel "Lord Golovlevs" chapters are devoted to the description of the fate of the noble descendants. The eldest son, Stepan Vladimirovich, was an exact copy of his father. He inherited from Vladimir Mikhailovich the same eccentric character, mischievousness and restlessness, for which he was nicknamed in the family Stepka the goof. From his mother, the eldest son inherited a rather interesting trait - the ability to find the weaknesses of human characters. Stepan used this gift exclusively for buffoonery and imitation of people, for which he was often beaten by his mother.

Having entered the university, Stepan showed an absolute unwillingness to study. Stepan devotes all his free time to hanging out with richer students, who take him to their noisy companies exclusively as a jester. Considering that his mother sent rather meager support for his training, such a way of spending time helped the older son of the Golovlevs to exist quite well in the capital. Having received his diploma, Stepan begins long ordeals in various departments, but he still does not find the desired job. The reason for these failures lies in the same unwillingness and inability to work.

The mother nevertheless decides to support the unlucky son and gives him the possession of a Moscow house. But it did not help. Soon Arina Petrovna learns that the house has been sold, and for very little money. Stepan partially pledged it, partially lost it, and now he is humiliated to the point of begging from wealthy peasants who live in Moscow. He soon realizes that there are no more prerequisites for his further stay in the capital. On reflection, Stepan returns to his native estate so as not to think about a piece of bread.

Runaway Anna

Happiness did not smile on daughter Anna either. The Golovlevs (the analysis of their actions is quite simple - they talk about the desire to give the children a foundation for building their lives) sent her to study too. Mother hoped that after her studies, Anna would successfully replace her in economic matters. But even here the Golovlevs were mistaken.

Unable to withstand such a betrayal, Anna Vladimirovna dies. Arina Petrovna is forced to shelter the two remaining orphans.

Younger children

The middle son, Porfiry Vladimirovich, was the direct opposite of Stepan. From an early age he was very meek and affectionate, helpful, but loved to be poor, for which he received from Stepan the impartial nicknames of Judush and Kropivushka. Arina Petrovna did not particularly trust Porfiry, treating him more with apprehension than with love, but she always gave the best pieces during meals to him, appreciating loyalty.

The youngest, Pavel Vladimirovich, is presented in the novel as a sluggish and infantile person, not like the rest of the Golovlevs. An analysis of his character reveals a certain kind of kindness, although, as further emphasized in the novel, he did not do good deeds. Paul was rather clever, but he did not show his intelligence anywhere, living gloomily and unsociable in a world known to him alone.

The bitter fate of Stepan

So, we now know who the Golovlevs are. We will continue to recall the summary of the novel from the moment when Stepan, having suffered a fiasco in the capital, returns to his native estate for a family court. It is the family that must decide the further fate of the unlucky eldest son.

But Messrs. Golovlevs (Saltykov-Shchedrin quite vividly describes the discussions on this topic) have almost withdrawn themselves and did not come to a consensus to solve the problem. The first to revolt was the head of the family, Vladimir Mikhailovich. He showed extreme disrespect for his wife, calling her a "witch", and refused to discuss any of Stepan's fate. The main motive for this reluctance is that it will still be the way Arina Petrovna wants. Younger brother Paul also withdrew from solving this problem, saying that his opinion certainly does not interest anyone in this house.

Seeing complete indifference to the fate of his brother, Porfiry enters the game. He, allegedly pitying his brother, justifies him, says many words about his unfortunate fate and begs his mother to leave her older brother under supervision in Golovlev (the name of the estate gave the name to the noble family). But not just like that, but in exchange for Stepan's refusal of the inheritance. Arina Petrovna agrees, not seeing anything wrong with this.

This is how the Golovlevs changed Stepan's life. Roman Saltykov-Shchedrin continues with the description of Stepan's further existence, saying that this is a living hell. He sits all day in a dirty little room, eats meager food and often takes a drink. It seems that, being in the parental home, Stepan should return to normal life, but the callousness of his family and the lack of basic amenities gradually drive him into gloomy melancholy, and then into depression. The absence of any desires, the longing and hatred with which the memories of their unhappy life come, bring the eldest son to death.

After years

The work of "Lord Golovlev" continues ten years later. Much changes in the unhurried life of a noble family. First of all, the abolition of serfdom turns everything upside down. Arina Petrovna is at a loss. She does not know how to continue to run the household. What to do with the peasants? How to feed them? Or maybe you need to let them go to all four sides? But they themselves seem to be not yet ready for such freedom.

At this time, Vladimir Mikhailovich Golovlev quietly and peacefully passes away. Arina Petrovna, despite the fact that she clearly did not love her husband during her lifetime, falls into despondency. Porfiry took advantage of this condition. He persuades his mother to share the estate honestly. Arina Petrovna agrees, leaving only capital for herself. The younger gentlemen Golovlevs (Judas and Paul) divided the estate among themselves. An interesting fact is that Porfiry was able to bargain himself the best part.

The wanderings of the old woman

The novel "The Lord Golovlevs" tells how, continuing to follow the usual way of life, Arina Petrovna tried to further increase her son's estate. However, Porfiry's mediocre leadership leaves her without money. Offended by the ungrateful and selfish son, Arina Petrovna moves to the youngest. Paul undertook to feed and water his mother along with his nieces in exchange for complete non-interference in the affairs of the estate. The elderly Mrs. Golovleva agrees.

But the estate was poorly managed because of Paul's penchant for alcohol. And while he “safely” quietly drank himself intoxicated, finding joy in intoxicating himself with vodka, the estate was plundered. Arina Petrovna was left only to silently watch this destructive process. In the end, Paul finally lost his health and died, not even having time to write off the remnants of his mother's estate. And once again Porfiry took possession of the property.

Arina Petrovna did not wait for mercy from her son and went with her granddaughters to a wretched village, once "thrown" by her daughter Anna. Porfiry did not seem to chase them away, on the contrary, upon learning of their departure, he wished them luck and invited them to visit him more often in a related way, Saltykov writes. Lord Golovlevs are not famous for affection for each other, but upbringing obliges.

Arina Petrovna's grown-up granddaughters Anninka and Lyubinka, having left for a remote village, very quickly cannot stand her monotonous life. Having argued a little with their grandmother, they rush to the city, to look for the best, as it seems to them, life. Burning alone, Arina Petrovna decides to return to Golovlevo.

Porfiry's children

And how do the remaining Golovlevs live? The summary of how they while away their days is dull. Once flourishing, today the vast estate is deserted; there are almost no inhabitants left in it. Porfiry, widowed, found himself consolation - the deacon's daughter Evprakseyushka.

Porfiry also went wrong with his sons. The eldest, Vladimir, desperate to knock out a part of the inheritance from his stingy father for food, committed suicide. The second son - Peter - serves as an officer, but depressed by the lack of money and the complete indifference of his father, he loses state money in the capital. In the hope that now, finally, Porfiry will help him, he comes to Golovlevo and throws himself at his feet, begging him to save him from dishonor. But the father is adamant. He is not at all interested in the dishonor of his son or the requests of his own mother, writes Saltykov-Shchedrin. Messrs. Golovlevs, and Porfiry in particular, do not waste energy on relatives. Being in outright stupidity and idle talk, Judas reacts exclusively to the priest's daughter, with whom he is forbidden to amuse himself.

Arina Petrovna, completely in despair, curses her son, but even this did not make any impression on Porfiry, however, like the subsequent death of her mother.

Porfiry zealously counts the remaining crumbs of money bequeathed to him by his mother, and again thinks of nothing and no one except Yevprakseyushka. The arrival of his niece Anninka slightly melted his stone heart. However, she, having lived for some time with a crazy uncle, decides that the life of a provincial actress is still better than rotting alive in Golovlev. And he leaves the estate pretty quickly.

The worthlessness of existence

The remaining Golovlevs dispersed to different places. Porfiry's problems, whose life again goes on as usual, now concern his mistress Eupraxia. She sees the future as completely bleak next to such a mean and evil person. The situation is aggravated by Eupraxia's pregnancy. Having given birth to a son, she is completely convinced that her fears were not unfounded: Porfiry is giving the baby to an orphanage. Eupraxia, however, hated Golovlev with fierce hatred.

Without thinking twice, she declares a real war of nagging and disobedience to the evil and unbalanced master. Most interestingly, Porfiry really suffers from such tactics, not knowing how to spend time without his former mistress. Golovlev finally withdraws into himself, spending time in his office, nurturing some terrible plans for revenge on the whole world known only to him.

No heirs

The pessimistic picture is complemented by the suddenly returned niece Anna. Endlessly worn out by the beggarly existence and endless drinking with officers and merchants, she falls ill with an incurable disease. The fatal point in her life is the suicide of her sister Lyubinka. After that, she no longer thinks about anything except death.

But before her death, Anninka set herself a goal: to bring to the attention of her uncle all the baseness and badness of his essence. Drinking with him all night long in an empty estate, the girl drove Porfiry to madness with endless accusations and reproaches. Judas, in the end, realizes how worthless he has lived his life, hoarding, humiliating and offending everyone around him. In an alcoholic intoxication, the simple truth begins to reach him that there is simply no place for people like him on this earth.

Porfiry decides to ask for forgiveness at his mother's grave. He gets ready for the road and leaves in the bitter frost at the cemetery. The next day he was found frozen on the side of the road. Everything is bad for Anna. A woman is unable to fight a deadly disease that takes her strength every day. Soon she falls into a fever and loses consciousness, which no longer returns to her. And therefore, a horse courier was sent to the neighboring village, where the Golovlevs' second cousin lived, who vigilantly followed the latest events on the estate. The Golovlevs no longer had direct heirs.

· "The head of the family, Vladimir Mikhailovich Golovlev, even from a young age was known for his careless and mischievous character, and for Arina Petrovna, who was always distinguished by her seriousness and efficiency, he never imagined anything pretty. He led an idle and idle life, most often he locked himself in his office, imitated the singing of starlings, roosters, etc., and was engaged in the composition of the so-called "free poetry"<…> Arina Petrovna did not immediately fall in love with these poems of her husband, called them filthiness and clowning, and since Vladimir Mikhailovich actually married for this, in order to always have a listener at hand for his poems, it is clear that the quarrels did not take long. Gradually growing and becoming bitter, these quarrels ended, on the part of the wife, with complete and contemptuous indifference to her husband-jester, on the part of the husband - sincere hatred for his wife, hatred, which, however, included a significant share of cowardice. "- M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin "Lord Golovlevs".

· « Arina Petrovna - a woman of about sixty, but still vigorous and accustomed to living with all her will. She keeps herself formidable; single-handedly and uncontrollably manages the vast Golovlev estate, lives in solitude, prudently, almost sparingly, does not lead friendships with neighbors, does well for local authorities, and demands from her children that they be in such obedience to her, so that at every action they ask themselves will mamma say about this? In general, it has an independent, adamant and partly obstinate character, which, incidentally, is greatly facilitated by the fact that in the entire Golovlev family there is not a single person from whom it could meet opposition. " -M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin "Lord Golovlevs".

· « Stepan Vladimirovich, eldest son,<…>, had a reputation in the family under the name Stepki-dunce and Styopka the mischievous man. He very early became one of the "hateful" and from childhood he played in the house the role of either a pariah or a jester. Unfortunately, he was a gifted fellow who too willingly and quickly perceived the impressions generated by the environment. From his father, he took over inexhaustible mischief, from his mother - the ability to quickly guess the weaknesses of people. Thanks to the first quality, he soon became a favorite of his father, which further increased his mother's dislike for him. Often, during Arina Petrovna's absences around the house, the father and the teenager-son retired to an office decorated with a portrait of Barkov, read free poetry and gossip, and especially the "witch", that is, Arina Petrovna. But the "witch" seemed to guess their activities by instinct; She drove up to the porch inaudibly, tiptoed to the door of the study, and overheard cheerful speeches. This was followed by the immediate and brutal beating of Stepka the dunce. But Styopka did not quit; he was insensitive to either beatings or admonitions, and after half an hour he again began to play tricks. He will cut the kerchief of the girl Anyutka into pieces, then he will let the sleepy Vasyutka put flies in his mouth, then climb into the kitchen and pull off a pie there (Arina Petrovna, out of economy, kept the children starving), which, however, will immediately share with the brothers. -M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin "Lord Golovlevs".

· “After Stepan Vladimirovich, the oldest member of the Golovlev family was a daughter, Anna Vladimirovna, about which Arina Petrovna also did not like to talk. The fact is that Arina Petrovna had plans for Annushka, and Annushka not only did not justify her hopes, but instead caused a scandal for the whole district. When her daughter left the institute, Arina Petrovna settled her in the village, hoping to make her a gifted house secretary and accountant, and instead Annushka, one fine night, fled from Golovlyov with the cornet Ulanov and married him. Two years later, the young capital lived, and the cornet fled to no one knows where, leaving Anna Vladimirovna with two twin daughters: Anninka and Lyubonka. Then Anna Vladimirovna herself died three months later, and Arina Petrovna, willy-nilly, had to shelter full orphans at home. Which she did, placing the little ones in the outhouse and putting the crooked old woman Palashka on them. " -M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin "Lord Golovlevs".

· « Porfiry Vladimirovich He was known in the family under three names: Judas, a blood-sucker and an outspoken boy, which nicknames were given to him by Stepka the dunce in childhood. From infancy, he loved to fondle his dear friend mamma, secretly kiss her on the shoulder, and sometimes a little nap. Sometimes she would open the door of mama's room inaudibly, quietly sneak into a corner, sit down and, as if enchanted, did not take her eyes off mama while she was writing or fiddling with accounts. But Arina Petrovna, even then, was somehow suspicious of these filial ingratiations. And then this gaze fixed on her seemed mysterious to her, and then she could not determine for herself what exactly he was exuding from himself: poison or filial piety ”-M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin "Lord Golovlevs".

· “The complete opposite with Porfiry Vladimirovich was represented by his brother, Pavel Vladimirovich... This was the complete personification of a person devoid of any actions. Even as a boy, he did not show the slightest inclination either to study, or to games, or to sociability, but he loved to live apart, in alienation from people. It used to be hammered into a corner, puffed up and began to fantasize. It seems to him that he ate oatmeal, that this made his legs thin, and he does not study. Or - that he is not Paul the noble's son, but Davydka the shepherd, that a bolona has grown on his forehead, like Davydka's, that he clicks with an arapnik and does not study. Arina Petrovna would look and look at him, and so her mother's heart would boil ”-M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin"Lord Golovlevs".

The main character of the work is Porfiry Vladimirovich Golovlev, one of the sons of the large family of the landowner Arina Petrovna, nicknamed from early childhood by the relatives of Judas and the bloodsucker.

The writer presents the hero as a hereditary nobleman with a bright, humble face, eyes that exude a bewitching poisonous look and a voice paralyzing will.

Characteristic features of Yudushka Golovlev are his hypocrisy, deceitful pretense, expressed in the form of excessive money-grubbing and avarice. From an early age, Judas, with the help of ingratiation, sneaking and lies, receives all the best from his mother, and later, using already improved methods of influencing his mother, becomes the sole owner of the Golovlev family estate.

Distinguished by idle talk and talkativeness, Judas does not have a single moral principle in his character, since by nature he has a malicious instinct. At the same time, Golovlev positions himself in the image of a direct and truthful person, committing disgusting and base deeds. However, in his character there is religiosity and piety, expressed in daily many hours of prayers, but these qualities are due to Judas' fear of evil spirits, and they are not able to cultivate in the hero's soul kindness and compassion for others.

As a widower, Golovlev brings up two sons, treating them with complete indifference, cruelty and coldness. Both sons die at a young age, without waiting for the help needed from their father.

Having entered the inheritance on the estate, Golovlev takes up the duties of the owner, expelling the elderly mother to his brother's house and starting to tyrannize the servants and workers, since he does not feel a single moral restriction for unseemly actions. Moreover, he is able to destroy a person only with the help of his stinging phrases and words.

Judas seduces the simple girl Eupraxia, forcing her to enter into cohabitation with him. The girl gives birth to a son to Golovlev, whom he gets rid of by sending the baby to an orphanage.

By old age, Judas becomes a wild, self-contained person, constantly talking in thoughts with different people. Suddenly, he remembers his deceased mother and feels a pang of conscience for mistreating her. Judas visits the abandoned grave of his mother, on the way to which he freezes on the road, dying.

Using the image of Judushka Golovlyov, the writer reveals the moral problems of the serf society.

Essay on the theme of Judas

An interesting character Judas, even a little malicious and sinister. Since childhood, he is accustomed to sounding and informing, and delivering unpleasant news in an affectionate voice, looking faithfully into the eyes. His own mother was surprised at the greed, stinginess and cruelty of her son. Why did Porfiry become like this? Maybe because the mother never really loved her children, considering them a burden? All her life she lived with her unloved husband, who also liked to mess with people. Perhaps the relationship between the parents also influenced Porfisha's character.

Her daughter died and left her two granddaughters, the eldest son Stepan drank himself out of despair. Mrs. Golovleva divides her estate for two into Judas and Paul. Quietly and peacefully, Porfisha's mother survives from her native estate, and the poor woman goes to Paul, who later becomes drunk and dies.

Porfiry is not loved by either the family or the courtyard people. Being a crafty person from childhood, in order to be a beloved son, he could not hesitate to tell about any mistake of his sister and brothers. No, not right away, but first, it will start to interest you from afar, it will spark interest, and then it will lay out the most important thing. He can easily get into the trust of anyone, as he did with his good friend mama. Always affectionate, he never uses bad words, always only diminutively affectionate, and this makes it even more disgusting and scary. He sometimes had enough facial expressions and gestures to get his way.

It is especially disgusting to listen to how Porfiry Vladimirovich kindly refuses his son who needs money, it is so unpleasant that there is disgust for this person. Really, you cannot allocate an amount from your capital that will help a person, because he has no one except you. He behaves in the same way with his nieces, who can not stand it and leave. Insidious and evil, but at the same time cowardly and unable to admit his mistakes, he quietly sends his newborn son to an orphanage. In order not to find out about his love affair.

So Judas was left alone. And only conversations with his niece over a bottle of alcoholic drink open his eyes that it is he who is to blame for the death of all relatives.

Sometimes too late we begin to understand the horror of what we have done. And this is unfortunate. You have to be more human and kinder.

Several interesting compositions

• Analysis Horse surname composition based on the story of Chekhov

  In my opinion, Chekhov, in his story "The Horse Family", revealed several problems, even rather several striking properties of people. I will try to isolate them from a story that undoubtedly evokes humor and a smile even among the saddest people.

  Anton Pavlovich Chekhov is the greatest Russian writer. In his satirical works, he ridicules such vices as greed, cowardice, pride, honor and others, and he does