Analysis of Pushkin's "Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Bogatyrs". “My attitude to the act of the merchant Kalashnikov What feelings of the young tsar he was able to express

The story "Shulamith" consists of 12 parts. Its main characters were King Solomon, his wife Astiz and Shulamith, a commoner with whom the king fell in love.

First, the author tells about the reign of the great king, his wisdom and wealth, for which he was famous far beyond the borders of his country. Then it is said what kind of women Solomon preferred. He had a huge number of wives and concubines, as well as many dancers and slaves. In addition, Solomon entered into close relations with Queen Balkis, who was considered the most beautiful woman in the world. God gave the great king not only wisdom, fame and wealth, but also a beautiful body and some extraordinary abilities. No woman could resist Solomon.

One day the king fell in love with a simple but very beautiful girl named Shulamith. The girl worked in one of the royal vineyards, helping her brothers. It was there that Shulamith and Solomon met and immediately fell in love. Solomon introduced himself as a new acquaintance as the royal cook, and then made an appointment with her at night. When, finally, their meeting took place, Solomon confessed to his beloved who he really was. Shulamith moves to the palace.

While the king enjoys love with a new concubine, one of his wives - Astiz - is present at the sacrifice in the temple of Isis. The legal wife is furious that the king preferred a commoner to her. Astiz wants to kill the girl. For these purposes, she chose the head of the royal guard named Eliav. The prudent queen knows that Eliav has long been in love with her, which means that she will do what she demands of him. Astiz promises the head of the guard to make him king over himself. Eliav does not have to be persuaded for long. The hired killer goes to the royal chambers.

On her last night, Shulamith is sad and does not respond to the caresses of the king. When Solomon tries to find out what is happening to her, the girl confesses that she feels the approaching death. Shulamith tries to get up from the bed, but at that moment she is pierced by Eliav's sword. The killer was found and executed. The king found out who ordered the crime and expelled Astiz from his country. Having punished the conspirators, Solomon could not be consoled. He was always next to the body of his beloved and did not talk to anyone.

Character characteristics

King Solomon

The great tsar is certainly a historical person. How this man actually looked, and what his character was, modern historians can only guess. Solomon is traditionally described using superlatives: the most beautiful, the most powerful, the richest. Kuprin did not depart from this tradition either.

The image of Solomon is perfect. The king was a just ruler and judge, did good deeds, understood the languages of animals and birds, and had the gift of healing. In addition, he knew how to seduce women and be a skilled lover. The author sympathizes with his character, talking about him with pleasure, looking at him from different angles, like a gem. Solomon managed to please both God and people.

The young beloved of the king is only 13 years old. The character of the girl changes during the development of the plot. When Solomon first sees Shulamith, a naive, slightly frightened girl appears before him.

But love changes the main character. Her first "adult" act is the sale of silver earrings, which were the only wealth of the girl. With the proceeds, she bought myrrh, an aromatic resin, to anoint her body with her for the first date with her beloved. This little sacrifice testifies to great strength a new feeling for Shulamith, to which she gave herself without a trace, without thinking about the consequences. The girl was rewarded for her sacrifice with a week of love in the arms of the king.

After spending quite a bit of time with the wise Solomon, Shulamith changed. She acquired the wisdom inherent in her beloved and the mystical gift of divination. Just a week from a naive girl main character turned into an experienced sensual woman, becoming even more desirable for the king.

Queen Astis

Astiz is the owner of unnatural beauty, which quickly bored Solomon. The author describes her as follows: bleached, rouged, blue hair, eyes, "like a beast." Only the eyes, which cannot be hidden under the paint, reveal the essence of the queen. Greedy, cruel and depraved Astiz does not tolerate rivals.

Beauty and age

The new beloved wife is much younger than the queen. Astiz can bypass Shulamith in origin and upbringing, but not in age. No amount of jewelery can bring back her youth.

Solomon had many concubines and wives. But Astiz was jealous of Shulamith. The commoner got a rare beauty and so much attention from the greatest of kings. In order to get rid of her rival, the queen is ready to become the mistress of the head of the royal guard. The end for Astiz always justifies the means.

Love is the treasure of our life. The author develops this idea throughout the story. Solomon got all the riches of this world. The king had so much gold that he gave it to make shields for the guards. Silver in his reign was worth no more than an ordinary cobblestone. The king could afford any whim.

However, the main wealth of Solomon was the ability to love and be loved. Many great kings, having gained power and wealth, ceased to appreciate simple human joys. Terrible rulers were callous in soul. Women became for them an ordinary object of carnal pleasures. Solomon is able to respect every woman, regardless of her origin. This attracted the representatives of the fair sex in the king. Each beloved of Solomon felt unique and unique in his arms.

Analysis of the work

Biblical verses and legends were inspired by Kuprin's Shulamith. Summary this work can be summarized in just a few words. However, the meaning laid down in Shulamith by the author can be understood only after full reading.

The development of the plot does not begin at the very beginning of the story. The plot of the drama occurs only in the fourth chapter. Prior to this, the author describes the life and deeds of King Solomon, talking about his tastes and passions. The purpose of the first three chapters is to introduce the reader to the personality of the greatest of kings as well as possible.

The story very realistically depicts army everyday life, injustice towards junior ranks and general inhumanity and cruelty in the army.

Our next article is devoted to the story, the main theme of which is eternal, pure and selfless love.

Kuprin does not strive for historical authenticity. If the names Shulamith (Shulamita) and Solomon can be found in the Bible, the name Astiz is not found in the sources. The author wanted to create a work about love and jealousy. He chose the legendary king as the main character. The biblical legend inspired Kuprin to create a continuation of the story. He moves Shulamith to the palace, dresses her in silk and gold, and endows her with a prophetic gift, thanks to which the girl foresees her death. Astis was sent to the temple of Isis, where, during the sacrifice of the priests, she planned to kill her rival.

The falsification of facts, which the author allowed himself, not only does not distort the meaning of history, but, on the contrary, makes it even more fascinating. Perhaps there was no Astiz. However, the role of this character is to create a tragedy that could touch the soul of the reader.

Rather, we will talk about not one, but two idols at once, two equestrian monuments in St. Petersburg, depicting the Russian Tsar Peter I in the form of an ancient triumphant.

One of these monuments, the work of Etienne Falcone, acquired the significance of the symbol of the Northern capital on the Senate Square. He has few equals in world sculpture. Sung by Pushkin as the Bronze Horseman, he organically fit into the ensemble of the Neva embankments.

In the unshakable height

Over the indignant Neva,

Standing with outstretched hand

Idol on a bronze horse...

What a thought!

What power is hidden in it!

And what a fire in this horse!

Where are you galloping, proud horse,

And where will you lower your hooves?

O mighty lord of Fate!

Are you not so above the abyss

At the height of an iron bridle raised Russia on its hind legs?

Another equestrian monument to Peter I, by Carlo Rastrelli, stands opposite the Mikhailovsky Castle. Cast in the reign of the daughter of Peter I, Elizabeth, the statue had been waiting in the wings for over forty years and was already installed by the great-grandson of the reformer - Paul I in front of the southern facade of his new residence. Along with the impetuous Bronze Horseman Falcone, the proud monument of Rastrelli is a symbolic embodiment of the victorious, transformed Russia. Like many years ago, today it is the compositional center of the ensemble of Klenovaya and Zamkovaya streets.

The mistress was asked to tell the story of the creation of these amazing monuments of the Baroque and Classicism era in Russia.

So, my dear readers, starting the story, I want to remind you that art never dies, it exists next to us, inside us, helps to set milestones in the historical path. A look at the figure and role in the history of Peter the Great is ambiguous, but today we will look at him through the eyes of contemporaries and descendants who came to replace him. Elizabeth, Catherine II, Paul I - daughter, grandson's wife and great-grandson. And those who, with their talent and labor, created the image of the Transformer, Father of the Fatherland and Hero - Carlo Bartolomeo Rastrelli and Etienne Falcone.

The Works and Days of Carlo Rastrelli

1715. Peter I sends his trusted person, F. Lefort, to Europe in order to recruit noble architects, sculptors, mechanics, engraving and chasing specialists to work in St. Petersburg. In Paris, Lefort concludes a contract for a period of three years with the Italian architect and sculptor Count Carlo Bartolomeo Rastrelli. Talented artist travels to Russia in order to win the favor of Tsar Peter.

According to the contract, the Italian must draft two country palaces and carry out their construction. But Rastrelli himself has other plans. He knows that in the country where he will work, churches are erected in memory of great events and heroes, and there is not a single secular monument. A year later, Rastrelli presented the tsar with a model of an equestrian monument, but Peter, busy with war and construction, reacted coolly to the master’s idea. The time for monuments to kings and commanders has not yet come. A king dressed in a Roman toga would, at the very least, cause bewilderment and fear. Carlo Rastrelli devoted several years to creating a sculptural portrait. He created a whole gallery of images of the courtiers and the king himself.

The sculptor obviously does not resort to flattery and creates the image of a man full of energy and intelligence, convinced of his grandiose plans, at the same time, intolerant and merciless. Clenched jaws, slightly shifted eyebrows, a proudly raised chin, an easily recognizable mustache - such is Peter. Carlo Rastrelli managed to reveal his impulsive and impetuous nature. The all-conquering power of Peter is emphasized by the restless, brittle folds of the ermine mantle and the chased knight's armor. And now this bust is one of the treasures of the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg.

In 1720, it seemed that the hour was coming for a talented sculptor. Peter is preparing to take the title of emperor. Before that, Russia was a kingdom; now it was to become an empire. In the time of Peter the words "empire" and "emperor" sounded in the Western manner and undoubtedly expressed a new level of power and greatness. The brilliance of the Constantinople court, which once blinded the Russian grand dukes, lost all meaning for Peter. Peter was interested in the customs inherited by Europe from Ancient Rome and in 1717 made a new trip to Europe. In Paris, he saw an equestrian statue of the "Sun King" Louis XIV, and he wanted to raise his own prestige, to receive exactly the same monument glorifying the monarch. With his characteristic activity, he chose a place for the monument on Vasilyevsky Island, opposite the building of the Twelve Colleges, where St. Petersburg University is now located. And, of course, he appointed Carlo Rastrelli as the author and executor of the project. The sculptor understood the task: the equestrian statue of Peter in the armor of a Roman triumphant, erected in front of the building where government offices were located, should personify the connection of victories on the battlefield with state transformations.

Peter just had time to approve the sketch of the future monument, and the sculptor began to work on making a model - when suddenly, on January 28, 1725, the emperor died. With the death of Peter, work on the monument was delayed. Rastrelli was instructed to make death masks and the so-called "wax person with dresses" of the late sovereign. By the way, the plaster mask of Peter Rastrelli was made back in 1719. Then Pope Clement wished to place the figure of the Russian Tsar Peter in the wax museum in the Vatican. The pope called the king to Rome, but he had no time to go and had to take off his mask at home and send it along with casts of hands and feet. At the same time, Peter I ordered to make his own wax bust in armor, painted, in the fashion of that time. I must say, a very painful technology! Peter had to shave his head and shave off his famous mustache. Then he was seated in a chair, his hands were tied to the armrests, and his torso to the back. The eyes were covered with plaster. The head and face were smeared with goose fat. On top they put on a barrel - a formwork - having strengthened it on props. Tubes were inserted into the nostrils to breathe. The whole structure was filled with liquid gypsum and they waited for the gypsum to harden. During the procedure, the king's batmen and son Francesco assisted the master. When the plaster hardened, the master checked its readiness by knocking. The formwork was torn off and they began to split what happened - it was something like a white pedestal, in which the king's head was located. The hardened gypsum was chipped off, collected, all the pieces were peeled off from the face. Peter endured courageously. This custom of removing masks from the human face was inherited in the west from the Romans.

Wax person of Peter I. 1725

The "person" of Peter is dressed in a rich dress made of blue grodetur - a good-quality ribbed silk fabric. The costume was sewn by Catherine's hands for her own coronation. Prior to this event, Peter preferred to dress in the green uniform of the Transfiguration, in which he fought near Poltava. Peter wore it only once - on the day of his wife's coronation on May 7, 1724. The sculptor himself carved the figure of Peter from wood in exact accordance with the measurements of the king's body. The wig on his head is from his own hair. Wide-open, looking directly at the viewer, the eyes are made with enamel on gold by the famous miniaturist Andrey Ovsov. To give the figure mobility, special round hinges are carved for the arms and legs. Currently it is in the State Hermitage Museum Exposition.

Catherine I was in no hurry to erect a monument to her husband. She reigned for two years. Peter the grandson who replaced her, the son of the executed Tsarevich Alexei, did not even think about perpetuating his grandfather in the form of a Roman commander. In the reign of Anna Ioannovna, there was no time for Peter the Hero. Everything changed with the coming to power of Peter's daughter, Elizabeth. It was important for her, who seized the throne as a result of a palace coup, to justify her deed by demonstrating a blood connection with her great father. Therefore, already in the first days of her reign, there was talk of an equestrian monument to the founder of the empire.

Carlo Rastrelli enthusiastically took up the statue of a demigod hero standing above people, alien to unrest and suffering, inexorable to everything that goes against his will. His new face, under the sculptor's chisel, has lost its impetuosity and passion, the gaze that bores the viewer, as it was endowed with in a bronze bust. Now the emperor, crowned with a laurel wreath, seated on a "step ringing walking horse, was filled with a silent consciousness of his superiority.

The work went well. Already in 1743 Elizaveta Petrovna "tried out", as they said then, a model of a life-size monument. However, the next year, in 1744, Carlo Rastrelli died before he could start casting the monument.

How the statue was cast

Casting of an equestrian statueinstructed to do the assistant Carlo Rastrelli - the Frenchman Martel.The royal office reported that Martel "has the art of making excellent portraits of silver and copper and knows other skills." But this master never cast equestrian statues! Having taken up responsible work, the Frenchman slowly moved towards success and in nine years he only managed to remove a collapsible form (in pieces) from a clay model and cast a new one on it - from wax. He started making the wax statue in 1753.

At this time, the son of the author of the monument, Bartolomeo Rastrelli, designed a new Winter Palace, the same one that now occupies State Hermitage. The embodiment of the rapidly growing greatness of the empire, the palace amazed the imagination with hundreds of snow-white columns on an azure (now green) background - ordinary, paired, grouped in bunches, almost a thousand windows in stucco casings, gilded vases and statues along the roofs. How infinitely far from all this splendor is the modest summer palace of Peter! That is why it seemed especially necessary to the architect that the founder of the empire himself decorate the residence of his daughter with his own presence. Therefore, it was decided to install a statue of the work of Rastrelli the father in front of the Winter Palace in the center of the round square. Rastrelli-son intended to surround the area with a double colonnade, which would even more closely connect the monument with the palace and separate it from the city. Everyone had to see for themselves that the very memory of Peter belongs to his daughter. Elizabeth liked the idea of Bartolomeo Rastrelli.

The implementation of the plan was prevented by the war with Prussia. The country was experiencing financial difficulties, and Elizabeth had to save on everything, including her whims. But work on the statue continued. For eight years they prepared, dried, bound with iron hoops a form of refractory clay, burned it out and melted wax from this form. And then the day came when the craftsmen fired up the melting furnace and cast the statue. This happened in 1761, but in the same year, on December 25, Elizaveta Petrovna died. Ironically, Elizabeth's nephew and heir, Grand Duke Peter Fedorovich, was not only the grandson of Peter I, but also the great-nephew of Charles XII. Growing up at the court of his father Karl Friedrich Holstein in hatred for everything Russian (mother, Elizabeth's older sister Anna Petrovna died three months after his birth), he reigned under the name of Peter III. His short reign was marked by the worship of the military art of the enemy of Russia, the Prussian king Frederick II, the replacement of Peter's uniforms with Prussian ones, and the conclusion of peace with Prussia, when our army entered Berlin victoriously. Under such an emperor, even mentioning the erection of a triumphal monument to his grandfather in front of the Winter Palace was dangerous. Six months later, Peter III, who did not have time to be crowned, was overthrown by the guards and killed by those close to his wife Catherine. The new empress was in dire need of the love of her people and wished to acquire immortal glory and greatness. Catherine II was wise. She understood how important it was to perpetuate the memory of the Great Peter, emphasizing her own role as his successor. But at the same time, the already finished statue commissioned by his daughter was no good. She emphasized the connection between her daughter and her father, and for yesterday's German princess this was unacceptable. In vain did Rastrelli's son look forward to the imminent installation of his father's offspring on the square in front of the Winter Palace. Offensive news was received from the Senate: "Her Imperial Majesty did not deign to try the mentioned portrait in the argument that it was not made by the art that should represent such a great monarch and serve to decorate the capital St. Petersburg."

Falcone's daring plan

Catherine decided to entrust the creation of a new monument to a sculptor who could surpass Carlo Rastrelli. It wasn't easy. The empress was helped by the great French encyclopedist, philosopher and art critic Denis Diderot, who recommended the sculptor Etienne Falcone to her.

Etienne Maurice Falcone began his career in the workshop of an artisan. At the age of 25, the "carpenter's apprentice" could hardly sign his name, but his passion for learning and his enormous capacity for work turned him into one of the most educated artists of his time. In articles and treatises written by him. which amounted to six voluminous volumes, he argued that the only purpose of art is to enlighten, instruct people on a good path, inspire them with high ideals.

Falcone arrived in Russia in 1766, accompanied by his seventeen-year-old student Marie Ann Collot, and he was immediately presented with a monument program drawn up by the president of the Academy of Arts, Betsky. It was a multi-figure composition. The pedestal with the statue was supposed to be surrounded by four statues of virtues, which made up the glory of Great Peter, trampling vices.

My monument will be simple, - answered the sculptor. He defined the image of Peter as follows: "Creator, Transformer, Legislator." Falcone conceived to create an image embodying the country and its progress. He considered it unacceptable to oppose the hero to the crowd. After all, heroes are the sons of the people, always inextricably linked with its history and destiny. Having carefully studied all the historical material, lifetime sculptural portraits and the mask of Peter, created by Rastrelli, in early 1768 the sculptor began work on a model of the monument in the size of the future statue. Previously, he studied the movement of a horse with a rider for a long time. For this, a mound of earth was poured, the shape corresponding to the pedestal. Hundreds of times the rider, on the orders of Falcone, galloped on various horses. "Because the eye can grasp the effects of such rapid movements only with the help of many repeated impressions," the sculptor himself wrote. Having studied the movement of the horse, he began to examine, draw, sculpt each part from below, from above, in front, behind, on both sides. A suitable model of a horse was found in the stables of Count Orlov. General P.I. posed for the rider figure. Melissino, who resembled Tsar Peter in height and build.

Meanwhile, Catherine, who did not want to follow her predecessor Elizabeth in anything, chose a different place for the monument. Next to the Admiralty, where Petersburg once began, stretched a vast square. The end of the Admiralty limited one side of it, the second was the building of the Senate, the third side of the square was open towards the mirror of the Neva, and in the fourth, in the depths, a cathedral was laid in the name of Isaac of Dalmatia, the saint on whose day Peter saw the light. On April 12, 1768, it was recorded in the Chamber Fourier journal that the Empress, on her way to Tsarskoye Selo, deigned to visit the "portrait foundry house", that is, the workshop of Falconet. Here the sculptor introduced Her Majesty to the finished model. Catherine praised his work, with the exception of the head of the statue, but gave the sculptor the freedom to create further.

"Your statue will be, perhaps, the first good one I have seen. Every schoolboy understands your art more than I do," she said.

Unlike Catherine, the president of the Academy, Betsky, intervened in the work for any reason. He either took the master away from work, ordering him to provide an analysis of equestrian monuments erected in European countries, or demanded that one eye of the rider look at the Admiralty, and the other - on the building of the Twelve Collegia. Falcone complained to Catherine about Betsky. He explained to her that Peter, in his opinion, should be presented on a horse rearing up at the edge of a cliff. "Having raised his hand on high," with formidable force, he is turned to the overseas distance, as a ruler not only over people, but also over the elements. The horse is all in motion, the impulse covers him entirely, and the posture of the rider personifies majestic peace. This contrast is the essence of composition.

Monument to Peter I. Modern view

Peter does not sit on a horse, as in the statue of Rastrelli, but commands them, indicating a sharp and impetuous movement. The horse does not just obey the rider - it has the same passion, the same desire. The absence of a saddle and stirrups and a cloak falling from the rider's shoulders onto the horse's croup merges them together. Under the hooves, writhing, the snake is dying. It symbolizes the forces of evil trampled by Peter. Truth and goodness triumph. Nothing more prevents the rider from rushing into the boundless distance.

Snake. Modern look

The work was nearing completion, but the horseman's head still failed Falcone. He made three sculptural versions of the portrait, but they were rejected by the empress. Many, taking advantage of this, criticized the statue. Falcone was nervous, offended and annoyed. Catherine though encouraged him: "Laugh at fools and go your own way", it was clear that she did not like Peter's head.

How wounded was Falcone's vanity!

Marie Collo pleases

empress

And then the young Marie Ann Collot asked her teacher to allow her to fashion the head of Peter. Marie came to Falcone's workshop as a little girl. He immediately drew attention to a talented child and undertook to teach her. In Russia, Marie was his assistant for 12 years, and then became his daughter-in-law, marrying his son Pierre Etienne, a painter.

Working on the head of Peter, Collot came from a plaster death mask. The sketch made by her delighted the master. The student, using a plaster cast of the king's face, achieved not only a portrait resemblance, but also managed to express the high mind, determination, and will of Peter.

Proudly tossed head of the king in a wreath of laurels strikes with an expression of lofty thought. The eyes are wide open, they illuminate the face with the light of reason.

And the fact that Peter's gaze is directed in the same direction as the gesture of the hand strengthens the sense of purpose. Peter is Russia, uncontrollably striving forward.

This time, the Empress liked Peter's head.

"Thunder Stone"

Now Falcone, with relief, takes up the preparation of the pedestal. He conceives it in the form of a rock and, following the advice of military engineer Carbury Laskari, decides to carve it out of a monolith. The rock was supposed to show how the rider at full gallop overcame a steep climb and reared his horse over the abyss. What was needed was a block similar to a sea wave with a smooth rise and a sharp drop down.

A suitable rock was found 12 versts from Petersburg, near the village of Lakhta. in the middle of an impenetrable swamp. It was a granite boulder. According to legend, lightning struck him, and he gave a crack. The locals called it "Thunder-Stone" and said that Tsar Peter surveyed the area from here even before the founding of the capital.

But to extract and deliver to the place a monolith weighing more than one hundred thousand pounds seemed madness. Betsky believed that the case was hopeless. Falcone stood his ground.

In September 1768, work began to prepare the rock for transportation. The diggers dug a pit around a stone that had sunk five meters into the ground and exposed its lower part. The following winter, under the leadership of the military engineer Laskari, second lieutenant Ivan Shpakovsky and "without ranks" Ivan Khozyainov, piles were driven into the frozen swamp. A clearing was cut through the forest leading to the coast of the Gulf of Finland. Iron-covered wooden gutters were arranged along the road like rails. In March 1769, the Thunder-Stone was lifted with twelve 30-meter levers and installed on a wooden platform adapted for movement on skids. In the runners were made semicircular grooves with bronze balls on which it moved. They pulled the block with the help of ropes and two gates, which set 32 people in motion. In fact, hundreds of working people were involved in transporting the stone block. Thanks to their efforts, she, as if reluctantly, slowly crawled towards the Gulf of Finland.

Transportation of "Thunderstone"

During the movement, there were people on the stone. Two drummers gave signals to the workers at the gate in a fractional battle. Forty masons continued to work the rock. Several blacksmiths fixed and sharpened tools using a small forge installed here.

Out of curiosity, many Petersburgers came to see how the stone was moving towards the bay. Ekaterina also came to Lakhta with her retinue.

Having reached the shore, the stone was loaded onto a raft, fixed between two ships and the Gulf of Finland, and then along the Neva was delivered to the place chosen by the Empress.

The news of the unparalleled engineering enterprise spread throughout Europe. The world has never seen anything like it, people admired. In honor of the event, a medal was knocked out with the inscription: "It is like boldness. 1770."

Casting a statue

Relations between Falcone and Betsky did not improve. The nobleman continued to attack the sculptor, now demanding more magnificent folds of clothing, then rejecting the image of a snake under the hooves of a horse. Suddenly, Ekaterina also began to cool off towards the master. Among the Russian masters, no one undertook to cast the monument. The foundry master Ersman was called from France, but he also considered the task impossible. Things turned out so that Falcone had to take up the casting himself. He was not a novice in this business, having mastered it back in Paris. He began work in 1775, having spent four years preparing.

The casting of the statue nearly ended in disaster. In the smelting furnace, which had been stoked for many days, the workers lit a strong fire. the foreign caster on duty fell asleep, and the upper part of the mold was burned. The metal pouring into this part turned into a shapeless mass. The workshop started on fire. Falcone was wounded and lost consciousness. All the workers ran away, except for the foundry worker Emelyan Kailov. The courageous caster, left alone, managed for everyone, forcing the bronze to flow from the furnace into the mold to the last drop. Processing the cast statue took Falcone another three years. Together with an experienced chaser Sandoz, the sculptor himself minted and finished bronze.

In 1778, Falcone, in his last letter to the Empress, reported on the completion of the work. But during this time, his relationship with the Court deteriorated so much that he did not receive a response from Catherine. She no longer needed the artist, and so he left Russia without waiting for the installation of his monument.

Triumph of Catherine

After the departure of Falcone, the management of the construction of the monument passed to the architect Felten. Four more years they leveled the Senate Square, installed the pedestal, mounted the figure, cast the grate.

The opening of the monument was scheduled for August 7, 1782. This year was just the centennial anniversary of Peter's accession. Peter's Guards regiments arrived on the square - a total of 15 thousand soldiers and officers. As soon as Catherine appeared on the balcony of the Senate building, a rocket took off. Immediately the linen shields that surrounded the monument fell onto the pavement. The army saluted the monument "with a gun and the evasion of banners, and ships - by raising flags, and at the same moment the firing from both fortresses and ships, mixed with the rapid fire of the regiments and the drumming and playing of military music, shook the city created by Peter with delight" .

And you know who remembered him? The son of Catherine the Great is Paul I. After the death of his mother, who followed on November 5, 1796, who did not love him and kept him away from the Court, and even thought of resigning the throne to her grandson Alexander, Paul began to act contrary to her. However, he had very serious reasons to emphasize that he inherited the crown from his father, the grandson of Peter I, and not from his mother, who seized the throne by force. After all, his father was killed before he had time to perform the ceremony of coronation and was buried not in the royal tomb of the Peter and Paul Cathedral, but in the Alexander Nevsky Monastery. A year later, Paul will rename it to Lavra. Catherine II seemed to have crossed out Peter III from the list of Russian tsars. And so, the day after the death of his mother, Paul ordered to dig up the ashes of his father from the grave. The coffin was placed in the monastery cathedral and... for the first time in history, the coronation was performed over the ashes. Then the remains of Peter, along with the body of Catherine, were buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral. Paul's legacy was confirmed, justice was done. The new emperor showed them that he received his power from God and did not consider himself indebted to the nobility, like his mother.
Before the anointed of God, everyone is equal, and he is just with everyone - this is how Paul thought. When meeting with the imperial carriage, now any nobleman, no matter how noble he was, had to get out of the carriage and bow to the anointed one, even if the dirt on the road was knee-deep. For the offense of a nobleman, corporal punishment awaited, like a peasant. For the slightest omission in the parade, the regiment in full force marched to Siberia. Here is such justice.
Paul declared a relentless war on round hats, turn-down collars, waistcoats, and cuffed boots. Everyone was ordered to powder their hair and wear a pigtail. It was strictly forbidden to comb hair on the forehead. This was equality.
Pavel constantly imagined that the hated spirit of mother Catherine still lives in the walls of the royal palaces. He decided to build himself a new residence and chose a place near the Champ de Mars - a vast area for parades and drill.
A powerful citadel began to be built here - beyond all styles and eras - a castle full of grandeur and tragic beauty. It was intended to embody the Russian emperor's dream of an ideal knight's home, such as the Camelot of the legendary King Arthur of the Britons. The castle was founded in February 1797. With amazing speed, a project was prepared by the famous architect Vasily Bazhenov and working drawings, and all the work was completed in two and a half years. Bazhenov's assistants were Vincenzo Brenna and the young Carlo Rossi. An absolute record for that time! Work was carried out day and night, by the light of torches and lanterns. Also unfinished. "raw", the new residence of Paul impressed everyone! The entrance, flanked by granite obelisks, resembled a triumphal arch. According to the custom of Ancient Rome, it was decorated with images of trophies and monograms. The moat, connected to the Fontanka and Moika rivers, cut off the castle from the city. It could only be entered through a drawbridge, guarded day and night. The castle was named Mikhailovsky, as Pavel gave himself under the protection of the Archangel Michael, the traditional patron of Russian tsars. It was decided to erect a statue in front of the main facade. It was then that they remembered the unrealized project of the monument to Peter I, abandoned under Catherine. And Paul once again emphasizes that in everything he follows contrary to his mother. The sculpture is carefully restored and erected in the middle of the square in front of the castle on a polished granite pedestal.

Peter is represented as an ancient triumphant commander in a Roman toga with a laurel wreath on his forehead. In his hand is a field marshal's baton.

On the pedestal, to the right along the horse's course, there is a relief "victory at Poltava" - Peter's greatest land triumph. On the left is the "Gangut victory" - a triumph in a naval battle. The inscription on the front expresses Paul's thought that he alone should be considered the successor of his grandfather's glorious deeds. She is laconic: "Great-grandfather - great-grandson."

The image is impressive not only of the rider, but also of the knight's horse. The horse arched its neck and flared its nostrils like a beast of prey. The rider, arrogantly straightening his body and throwing back his head crowned with laurels, is arrogant and even somewhat gloomy. The image of Peter, created by Carlo Rastrelli, is endowed with superhuman strength, will and knowledge, inaccessible to ordinary people.

The monument found its place, but did not provide protection to the great-grandson. For only 38 days Pavel admired the moat, square square and equestrian monument of his great-grandfather from the windows of the castle. On March 11, 1801, he was killed by conspirators with the tacit consent of his son Alexander. The dead emperor was taken to be buried past the bronze great-grandfather, who still haughtily looked at the procession and the tearful great-great-grandson. Subsequently, an eyewitness will write with irony: "The sovereign walked with eyes full of tears - father's killers - in front, grandfather's killers - behind."

But no one is allowed to interrupt the victory march copper horsemen. One strives forward, not stopping before the gaping abyss, asserting the connection of royal power with the state, military and spiritual life of the country. The other personifies the power and will of the ruler.

In the 18th century, Christian symbols were replaced by secular ones. The language of art is allegorical. Peter the Great, what was he like? Refer with this question to the works of Carlo Rastrelli, who knew him personally, sculpted from nature, touched him with his hands. Or trust the genius of Falcone, a thinker and philosopher who managed to capture a moment and thereby express an entire heroic era.

Sections: Literature

The concept of the work. Setting diagnostic goals, distribution of material by lessons.

The age of the students, the recommendation of the program, literary analysis allow us to create a general methodological concept: by reading and analyzing the work of M.Yu. Lermontov, we can reveal the connections fiction with the historical past of Russia and folklore, showing the significance of the paintings of everyday life of the 16th century and the reflection of folklore traditions in the author's ideas of the characters and the form of the work.

The focus will be on the issue of duty, honor and human dignity. We will consider this problem as a test of a person, traditional for Russian fiction. We will reveal the position of the author, who admired a simple person from the people, before whose feat both time and power are powerless.

Based on the concept of the poem and the features of its artistic form, taking into account the characteristics of the students, we form diagnostic goals, answering the questions:

What can students learn from our lessons?
They learn that the fate of M.Yu. Lermontov is similar to the fate of A.S. Pushkin not only in terms of irreconcilability with the autocracy and arbitrariness of the authorities, but also in terms of the attitude of the authorities towards them. They learn that M.Yu. Lermontov - the only one in the literature of the 19th century - recreated the image of Ivan the Terrible and his era based on folk songs; about the role of oral folk art in the creation of characters and forms of the work. Learn about the life, way of life, customs of Russia of the XVI century; that the poet, dissatisfied with modern reality (the 19th century), takes us to the distant past in order to "look for a life there that he does not see in the present."
What concepts will students learn in class or continue to learn?
Will continue to improve literary concepts: theme, idea, composition artwork, features of the poem. They will master the concepts: lyrical-epic genre; author's attitude and ways of expressing it in the poem; continues to develop artistic means expressiveness (epithets, comparisons, repetitions), epic verse.
What will they learn? What skills will be learned?
Working with the text of the poem, they will learn:

to compare the characters not only with each other, but also with the works of artists, and on this basis to penetrate into the depths of the characters' characters, taking into account the author's point of view;
determine the character of the characters by their actions, attitude towards other characters;
determine the author's attitude towards the characters.

Will improve:

the ability to visually concretize the images of characters, the place of action;
the ability to determine the theme, problematics, idea of the work; correlate the title of the work with its idea;
the ability to expressively read and in reading intonation to convey the feelings of the characters and their attitude towards each other.

What independent activity of students will show their knowledge, understanding and skills? What can they do during and after school at home?
As a result, students will be able to:

answer the questions: “Why M.Yu. Lermontov called his work "Song ..."? “Why are the names in the title in this order?”, “Why the conflict between Kalashnikov and Kiribeevich could not be resolved peacefully?”, “Is the king’s court fair?”;
create verbal portraits heroes;
convey in verbal form the idea of the work and explain what elements of the plot help Lermontov to express it;
highlight the elements of the composition of the poem, its features and explain their role;
explain why there are so many ancient words, constant epithets, comparisons, repetitions in the poem;
expressively read the dialogues of the characters;
accurately characterize each character, reveal their relationship to each other.

The system of lessons on the topic:

Secrets of Ancient Russia.
“Yes, there were people in our time, a mighty, dashing tribe…”
Folklore traditions in the "Song ..."

The first lesson in the system plays the role of creating an attitude to read. Since M.Yu. Lermontov is a permanent author in school textbooks, students know many facts of his biography. By the 7th grade, they are already familiar with such works as “Borodino”, “Three Palm Trees”, “Cliff”, “Leaf”, which present the main motives of his work: a feeling of loneliness and longing, a thirst for struggle and freedom, the poet’s love for abandoned homeland, admiration for the feat of the Russian warrior. Now the students have to get acquainted with a historical song that reveals the conflict of power and common man doomed to perish.

TO first lesson On the basis of memoirs and memoirs of contemporaries, the students were offered a story about the life of M.Yu. Lermontov and answer the questions: “What is the similarity between the fate of Lermontov and the fate of Pushkin? How can this similarity be explained? (the facts of despotism and autocratic arbitrariness, which provoked the angry protest of the poets).

In order to create a certain emotional mood before studying the topic and orient children to the perception of the poem, we will introduce them to historical material: “The History of the Russian State” by N.M. Karamzin, “A course of lectures on Russian history” by V.O. Klyuchevsky, excerpts from "Domostroy" and works of "related" art: paintings by I. Repin "Ivan the Terrible kills his son", V. Vasnetsov "Ivan the Terrible", illustrations depicting old Moscow by I. Bilibin, B. Kustodiev, P. Korovin , capturing the harsh ruler of Russia and his unforgettable time, important for understanding ideological content and images of "Songs ...".

Before we start reading the poem, let's find out the meaning and role of ancient words and expressions. Next, we need to determine the learning task, which will dictate the methods of working with the text and the types of activities of students. As a problematic issue, we will choose the following: “Could the conflict between Kalashnikov and Kiribeevich be resolved peacefully?” Reflections of children on this question will lead students to the idea of the work.

What episodes and artistic elements of the work will help us come to its idea? First of all, we must identify the conflict and the features of its artistic embodiment. To do this, we select the elements of the composition: exposition, the plot of the action, the episodes of the development of the action, the climax and the denouement. The author focuses first on Ivan the Terrible, then his faithful oprichnik Kiribeevich, followed by Alena Dmitrievna, the merchant Kalashnikov, and then again the tsar, Kiribeevich, Kalashnikov. Kiribeevich dies at the climax, Kalashnikov dies at the denouement. But there is more in the poem characters- guslars, with the mention of which each chapter begins and ends. Although they are conditional narrators, it is their feelings and attitudes that help determine the author's position in relation to the characters and the genre of the work.

In the poem, in addition to the conflicts "Kiribeevich - the Kalashnikov family" and "Kalashnikov - the tsar", there is another one - the conflict of a worthy person and the crowd, which in this case took the form of historical social psychology. The fact that the head of a dishonored family killed the “offender by free will” should be known to everyone. This is what will wash away the stain of shame from the family.

Our task is to realize what qualities the author appreciates in people, what unites the Kalashnikov family and what distinguishes them from the world of people endowed with power. Thus, in the center of the second lesson is the analysis of the images of "Songs ..."

2nd lesson. Lesson project “Yes, there were people in our time, a mighty, dashing tribe…”

Created on the basis of the literature program for the 7th grade, ed. V. Ya. Korovina, textbook-reader and methodological recommendations. At the 1st lesson, the students got acquainted with historical materials, paintings depicting the life of old Moscow, as well as with the facts of the biography of M.Yu. Lermontov, largely explaining why he turned to the distant past. We got acquainted with the text "Songs about Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich, a young guardsman and a daring merchant Kalashnikov"

Lesson Objectives:

in the lesson, students will continue to form and improve the ability to compare heroes, determine the characters of characters by their speech and actions;
will understand the role composition plays in the embodiment author's position and what means help the author in creating characters;
intonationally convey the feelings of the characters and their relationship to each other; compare literary images with the images of artists.

During the classes

1. Stage of detection of perception (conversation).

How do you feel after reading the poem?

What pictures of old Moscow and its life does the poet draw? Do they help explain the behavior of the characters?

Who is the real hero in "Song ..." and why?

Why are the heroes of "Songs ..." in the title in this order: "about Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich, a young guardsman and a daring merchant Kalashnikov"?

In what do you see main problem poems?

Examination homework . (By the lesson, the children had to re-read the poem again, highlighting the elements of the composition in it and create a slide show on the work, using illustrative material and Internet resources).

Play the content of the poem with a slide show in strict accordance with the development of the action (Figures 1-9), highlight the elements of the composition (Appendix 1), identify conflicts.

Why couldn't the conflict between Kalashnikov and Kiribeevich be resolved peacefully? (this will be the learning task).

2. Stage of analysis of the work, or work with the text. (Image analysis).

The central place in the exposition "Feast in the Tsar's Chambers" is given to the king. How does M.Yu. Lermontov and how do artists see him?

a) Comparison of the description of Tsar Lermontov and V. Vasnetsov, I. Repin. (Word drawing).

What comparisons and epithets does the guslar use to characterize the king?

What kind artistic details, in your opinion, are especially expressive? Can Ivan the Terrible be called wise and just?

In Lermontov's work, the tsar smiles, he seems to be cheerful ... but let's take a closer look: aren't the "blue clouds" running into the "red sun" too often?

What makes Ivan Vasilyevich frown?

To whom does the king pay more attention at the feast? Why?

What do you know about guardsmen? How does the king feel about them? How does this show up in the poem?

b) Oral story about Kiribeevich.

What is the oprichnik sad about?

Why does he tell the tsar about Alena Dmitrievna, but does not say that she is a married woman?

Would the king help him if he knew this?

c) Description of Alena Dmitrievna with illustrations by P. Korovin.

Does Alena Dmitrievna love her husband?

Why was Kalashnikov surprised when he didn't find his wife at home? How to explain the words with which a husband meets his wife? What do you remember about Domostroy?

How does the character of Alena Dmitrievna reflect popular ideas about the ideal woman - the wife?

How does Kiribeevich and Kalashnikov show their love for Alena Dmitrievna?

d) Comparative analysis. Kiribeevich - Kalashnikov (slide show: "Merchant Kalashnikov in the shop", "Fist fight" (artist I. Bilibin, B. Kustodiev), "Death of the guardsman", "Kalashnikov is answering to the tsar", "Farewell of the merchant with his brothers") .

Why did each of them go to the duel? To whom do the heroes bow before the battle? Why?

e) Expressive reading on the roles of the dialogue between Kiribeevich and Kalashnikov before the battle.

Do the pictures of the harsh life of the 16th century matter for revealing the characters of the characters? What qualities, in your opinion, should a person have in order to dare to defend his honor before all the people under these conditions? Are the final lines of "Borodino" in the title of the topic of our lesson applicable to the heroes of "Songs ..."?

Expressive reading of the lines about the death of Kiribeevich and Kalashnikov.

What feeling do they have? How do you explain this feeling?

How do Kiribeevich and Kalashnikov die? What kind of memory does each one leave behind?

f) Comparison of an excerpt from Lermontov's poem with an excerpt from a folk song about Stepan Razin "Bury me brothers ...", "They buried him across the Moscow River ..."

What is the similarity? Which passage is more poetic? What are they convinced of?

3. Final stage.

In the third chapter we meet again with the king.

What is his role in the poem? After all, the main clash is between Kalashnikov and Kiribeevich.

Why did the king order the execution of the winner of the fistfight? Did he do the right thing?

What is the genre of this work? Why M.Yu. Lermontov calls it "Song ..."? Does this clarify the author's position?

The theme and plot of "Song ..." is associated with the 16th century.

Why did the poet turn to the distant past?

Did he manage to convey the flavor of that era? In what?

What folklore traditions does the poet continue in his work?

4. Homework:

memorize an excerpt from the poem "Dawn Dawn ...";
pick up musical themes to the images of "Songs ...";
write out on the cards examples of visual means, old words, expressions. (for Game).

On the final lesson, dedicated to folklore traditions in the "Song ...", it is important to find out that M.Yu. Lermontov did not imitate oral folk poetry, he was imbued with its spirit and, relying on its features, created a peculiar, original work, where every image, every scene of the poem is marked by Lermontov's mighty talent. This will help us compare "Songs ..." with epics (about Stavr Godinovich), folk songs. Literary game, with the help of which we will show the features of the use of tropes in the poem, its connection with folklore, discuss the problem of duty and honor, will be the final chord in the system of lessons, after which the children will write essays on the poem.

What feelings of the young tsar the actor was able to express In the words of Peter I appeal to the politician

Answers:

What story? understood nothing