What works did Gorky write? Gorky's works: complete list

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Name: Alexey Maksimovich Peshkov
Aliases: Maxim Gorky, Yehudiel Chlamyda
Birthday: March 16, 1868
Place of Birth: Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Empire
Date of death: June 18, 1936
A place of death: Gorki, Moscow region, RSFSR, USSR

Biography of Maxim Gorky

Maxim Gorky was born in Nizhny Novgorod in 1868. In fact, the writer's name was Alexei, but his father was Maxim, and the writer's surname was Peshkov. My father worked as a simple carpenter, so the family could not be called wealthy. At the age of 7, he went to school, but after a couple of months he had to quit his studies due to smallpox. As a result, the boy received a home education, and he also independently studied all subjects.

Gorky had a rather difficult childhood. His parents died too early and the boy lived with his grandfather , who had a very difficult character. Already at the age of 11, the future writer went to earn his own bread, moonlighting either in a bakery or in a dining room on a steamer.

In 1884, Gorky ended up in Kazan and tried to get an education, but this attempt failed, and he had to work hard again to earn money for his livelihood. At the age of 19, Gorky even tries to commit suicide due to poverty and fatigue.

Here he is fond of Marxism, trying to agitate. In 1888 he was arrested for the first time. He gets a job at an iron job, where the authorities keep a close eye on him.

In 1889, Gorky returned to Nizhny Novgorod, got a job with the lawyer Lanin as a clerk. It was during this period that he wrote "The Song of the Old Oak" and turned to Korolenko to appreciate the work.

In 1891, Gorky set off to travel around the country. In Tiflis, his story "Makar Chudra" is published for the first time.

In 1892, Gorky again went to Nizhny Novgorod and returned to the service of the lawyer Lanin. Here it is already published in many editions of Samara and Kazan. In 1895 he moved to Samara. At this time, he actively writes and his works are constantly printed. The two-volume Essays and Stories, published in 1898, is in great demand and is very actively discussed and criticized. In the period from 1900 to 1901 he met Tolstoy and Chekhov.

In 1901, Gorky created his first plays, The Philistines and At the Bottom. They were very popular, and "Petty Bourgeois" was even staged in Vienna and Berlin. The writer became known already at the international level. Since that moment, his works have been translated into different languages ​​of the world, and he and his works have become the object of close attention of foreign critics.

Gorky became a participant in the revolution in 1905, and since 1906 he has been leaving his country in connection with political events. He has been living on the Italian island of Capri for a long time. Here he writes the novel "Mother". This work influenced the emergence of a new trend in literature as socialist realism.

In 1913, Maxim Gorky was finally able to return to his homeland. During this period, he is actively working on his autobiography. He also works as an editor for two newspapers. Then he gathered proletarian writers around him and published a collection of their works.

The period of the revolution in 1917 was a mixed one for Gorky. As a result, he joins the ranks of the Bolsheviks, despite doubts and torments. However, he does not support some of their views and actions. In particular, regarding the intelligentsia. Thanks to Gorky, most of the intelligentsia in those days escaped starvation and painful death.

In 1921 Gorky left his country. There is a version that he does this because Lenin was too worried about the health of the great writer, whose tuberculosis worsened. However, Gorky's contradictions with the authorities could also be the reason. He lived in Prague, Berlin and Sorrento.

When Gorky was 60 years old, Stalin himself invited him to the USSR. The writer was given a warm welcome. He traveled around the country, where he spoke at meetings and rallies. He is honored in every possible way, taken to the Communist Academy.

In 1932, Gorky returned to the USSR for good. He leads a very active literary activity, organizes the All-Union Congress of Soviet Writers, publishes a large number of newspapers.

In 1936, terrible news swept across the country: Maxim Gorky had left this world. The writer caught a cold when he visited his son's grave. However, there is an opinion that both the son and the father were poisoned because of political views, but this has never been proven.

Documentary

Your attention is a documentary film, a biography of Maxim Gorky.

Bibliography of Maxim Gorky

Novels

1899
Foma Gordeev
1900-1901
Three
1906
Mother (second edition - 1907)
1925
The Artamonov case
1925-1936
Life of Klim Samgin

Tale

1908
The life of an unwanted person
1908
Confession
1909
Okurov town
Life of Matvey Kozhemyakin
1913-1914
Childhood
1915-1916
In people
1923
My universities

Stories, essays

1892
girl and death
1892
Makar Chudra
1895
Chelkash
Old Isergil
1897
former people
Spouses Orlovs
Mallow
Konovalov
1898
Essays and stories (collection)
1899
Song of the Falcon (poem in prose)
twenty six and one
1901
Song about the petrel (poem in prose)
1903
Man (poem in prose)
1913
Tales of Italy
1912-1917
In Russia (a cycle of stories)
1924
Stories 1922-1924
1924
Notes from the diary (a cycle of stories)

Plays

1901
Philistines
1902
At the bottom
1904
summer residents
1905
Children of the Sun
Barbarians
1906
Enemies
1910
Vassa Zheleznova (revised in December 1935)
1915
Old man
1930-1931
Somov and others
1932
Egor Bulychov and others
1933
Dostigaev and others

Publicism

1906
My interviews
In America" ​​(pamphlets)
1917-1918
a series of articles "Untimely Thoughts" in the newspaper "New Life"
1922
About the Russian peasantry

The literary activity of Maxim Gorky lasted more than forty years - from the romantic "Old Woman Izergil" to the epic "Life of Klim Samgin"

Text: Arseniy Zamostyanov, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Istorik magazine
Collage: Year of Literature. RF

In the twentieth century, he was both the master of thoughts, and a living symbol of literature, and one of the founders of not only new literature, but also the state. Do not count dissertations and monographs devoted to the "life and work" of the "classic of proletarian literature." Alas, his posthumous fate was too closely linked with the fate of the political system, which Gorky, after many years of hesitation, nevertheless blessed. After the collapse of the USSR, they began to diligently forget about Gorky. Although we have not had and will not have a better chronicler of the “era of initial capital”. Gorky found himself "in an artificial position outside the game." But it seems that he came out of it, and someday he will come out for real.

From a huge and multi-genre heritage, it is not easy to choose the “top ten” and therefore useful. But we will talk almost entirely about textbook works. At least in the recent past, they were diligently studied at school. I don't think it will be forgotten in the future. We don't have a second Gorky...

1. OLD WOMAN IZERGIL

This is a classic of the "early Gorky", the result of his first literary searches. A harsh parable of 1891, a terrible tale, a favorite (in Gorky's system) conflict of Prometheus with both Zeus and birds of prey. This is new literature for that time. Not Tolstoy, not Chekhov, not Leskovsky story. The alignment turns out to be somewhat pretentious: Larra is the son of an eagle, Danko raises his own heart high above his head ... The narrator herself, an old woman, in contrast, is earthy and harsh. In this story, Gorky explores not only the essence of heroism, but also the nature of egoism. Many were hypnotized by the melody of prose.

Actually, this is a ready-made rock opera. And the metaphors are appropriate.

2. SPOUSES ORLOV

Such cruel naturalism - and even with knowledge of the environment - Russian literature did not know. Here you can’t help but believe that the author went barefoot all over Russia. Gorky spoke in detail about the life that he would like to change. Ordinary fights, a tavern, basement passions, illnesses. The light in this life is a medical student. This world wants to throw: “Oh, you bastards! Why do you live? How do you live? You are hypocritical crooks and nothing else! The spouses have the will to change the situation. They work in the cholera barracks, they work furiously.

However, Gorky does not like "happy endings". But faith in a person shows through even in the dirt.

If you think about it, this is not a banality at all. Such is the peshkovskaya grip. Such are Gorky tramps. In the 1980s, the creators of perestroika “chernukha” worked in the style of these paintings.

3. THE SONG ABOUT THE FALCON, THE SONG ABOUT THE PETTER

All his life Alexei Maksimovich wrote poetry, although he did not consider himself a poet. Stalin's half-joking words are known: “This thing is stronger than Goethe's Faust. Love conquers death." The leader spoke about Gorky's poetic fairy tale "The Girl and Death", forgotten in our time. Gorky composed poetry in a somewhat old-fashioned way. He did not delve into the searches of the then poets, but read many. But two of his "songs", written in blank verse, cannot be deleted from Russian literature. Although ... Poems published as prose in 1895 were perceived as something outlandish:

“We sing glory to the madness of the brave!

The madness of the brave is the wisdom of life! O brave Falcon! In a battle with enemies, you bled to death ... But there will be time - and drops of your hot blood, like sparks, will flare up in the darkness of life and will ignite many brave hearts with an insane thirst for freedom, light!

Let you die! .. But in the song of the brave and strong in spirit, you will always be a living example, a proud call to freedom, to light!

We sing a song to the madness of the brave! .. "

It's about the Falcon. And Burevestnik (1901) became a real anthem of the Russian revolution. In particular - the revolution of 1905. The revolutionary song was illegally republished in thousands of copies. You can not accept the stormy Gorky pathos, but it is impossible to erase this melody from memory: “A petrel soars proudly between the clouds and the sea.”

Gorky himself was considered a petrel.

The petrel of the revolution, which really happened, although at first it did not please Alexei Maksimovich.

4. MOTHER

This novel, written under the impressions of the events of 1905, was considered the foundation of socialist realism. At school, he was studied with special tension. They reprinted it countless times, filmed it several times and, between us, imposed it. This caused not only respect, but also rejection.

On the barricade wave of 1905, Gorky joined the Bolshevik Party. An even more convinced Bolshevik was his companion, the actress Maria Andreeva, the most charming revolutionary of the 20th century.

The novel is tendentious. But how convincing is he emotionally

Including in their hope for the proletariat. But the main thing is that this novel is not only a historical document. The strength of the preacher and the strength of the writer multiplied, and the book turned out to be powerful.

5. CHILDHOOD, IN PEOPLE, MY UNIVERSITIES

Korney Chukovsky said after reading this book: "In his old age, Gorky was drawn to colors." Between the revolution of 1905 and the war, the main writer showed how a rebel, Prometheus, is born and matures in a child. During this time, Tolstoy left, and Gorky became the "main" Russian writer - in terms of influence on the minds of readers, in terms of reputation among colleagues - even as picky as Bunin. And the story with Nizhny Novgorod motives was perceived as the program of the ruler of thoughts. Comparisons with Childhood cannot be brushed aside: half a century separates the two stories, but the main thing is that the authors are from different constellations. Gorky revered Tolstoy, but crossed out Tolstoyism. He did not know how to recreate real worlds in prose, Gorky composed a song, an epic, a ballad about the young years of the hero, about his paths, paths.

Gorky admires harsh, brave, thick-skinned people, he is admired by strength, struggle.

He shows them enlarged, neglecting halftones, but refrains from hasty judgments. He despises lack of will and humility, but even admires the cruelty of the world. You can’t say better than Gorky: “A dense, motley, inexpressibly strange life began and flowed with terrible speed. I remember her as a harsh tale, well told by a kind, but painfully truthful genius. One of the most striking episodes in the story "Childhood" is about how Alyosha learned to read and write: "Beeches-people-az-la-bla." This became the main thing in his life.

6. AT THE BOTTOM

Here attestations are superfluous, this is just the Gorky Bible, the apotheosis of Russian outcasts. Gorky brought to the stage the inhabitants of the rooming house, vagabonds, thieves. It turns out that high tragedies and struggles take place in their world, no less significant than those of Shakespeare's kings ... "Man - that sounds proud!" - proclaims Satin, Gorky's favorite hero, a strong personality who was not broken by either prison or drunkenness. He has a strong rival - a wandering preacher of forgiveness. Gorky hated this sweet hypnosis, but refrained from unambiguously exposing Luke. Luke has his own truth.

The heroes of the Gorky rooming house were applauded not only by Moscow and St. Petersburg, but also by Berlin, Paris, Tokyo ...

And they will always put "At the bottom". And in the grumbling of Sateen - a seeker and a robber - they will find new subtexts: “There is only a person, everything else is the work of his hands and his brain! Human! It's great!"

7. BARBARS

As a playwright, Gorky is the most interesting. And "Barbarians" in our list are represented immediately after several Gorky plays about people of the early twentieth century. "Scenes in a county town" are sad: the characters turn out to be false, the provincial reality has gone and is cloudy. But in longing for a hero there is a premonition of something great.

While pumping up sadness, Gorky does not fall into straightforward pessimism.

It is not surprising that the play had a happy theatrical fate: at least two roles - Cherkun and Monakhova - are spelled out with brilliance. There is something for interpreters to look for.

8. Vassa ZHELEZNOVA

But this tragedy in our time simply needs to be re-read and reviewed. I think there is no more insightful book (not to mention plays) about Russian capitalism. Merciless play. Even in our time, hypocrites are afraid of her. It is easiest to repeat the common truth that behind every great fortune there is a crime.

And Gorky managed to show the psychology of this crime of rich quarters.

He knew how to paint vices like no one else. Yes, he exposes Vassa. And yet she came alive. Actresses play it incredibly interesting. Some even manage to justify this killer. Vera Pashennaya, Faina Ranevskaya, Nina Sazonova, Inna Churikova, Tatyana Doronina - Vassa was played by actresses who were worshiped by the theatrical world. And the public watched how mad with fat, weird and dying Russian capitalism.

9. TOWN OF OKUROV

Gorky wrote this story in 1909. A gray county town, the eternal orphanage of fussy, unhappy people. The chronicle turned out to be full-blooded. Gorky is observant and ironic: “The main street, Porechnaya, or Berezhok, is paved with large cobblestones; in the spring, when young grass breaks through the stones, Sukhobaev, the head of the city, calls the prisoners, and they, big and gray, heavy, silently crawl along the street, uprooting the grass. On Porechnaya, the best houses lined up harmoniously - blue, red, green, almost all with front gardens - the white house of Vogel, the chairman of the district council, with a turret on the roof; red-brick with yellow shutters - heads; pinkish - the father of Archpriest Isaiah Kudryavsky and a long row of boastful cozy houses - the authorities lodged in them: the military commander Pokivaiko, a passionate lover of singing, was nicknamed Mazepa for his big mustache and thickness; tax inspector Zhukov, a gloomy man who suffered from hard drinking; zemstvo chief Strehel, theater-goer and playwright; police officer Karl Ignatievich Worms and cheerful doctor Ryakhin, the best artist of the local circle of comedy and drama lovers.

An important topic for Gorky is the eternal dispute about philistinism. Or - "mixture"?

After all, a lot of things are mixed in a Russian person, and perhaps this is precisely his mystery.

10. THE LIFE OF KLIMA SAMGIN

The novel - the largest in Gorky's heritage, "for eight hundred people," as the parodists taunted - remained unfinished. But what remains, in terms of refinement, surpasses everything written by Gorky. It turns out that he knew how to write with restraint, almost academically, but at the same time in a Gorky way.

According to Gorky's definition, this is a book about "an intellectual of average value who goes through a whole range of moods, looking for the most independent place in life, where he would be comfortable both financially and internally."

And all this against the backdrop of the turning-point revolutionary years, right up to 1918. Gorky for the first time showed himself to be a realist, an objective analyst, found a harmonious narrative tone for his last book. He wrote "Samgin" for decades. At the same time, the author does not like the title character. Samghin is a real snake, reminiscent of Shchedrin's Judas Golovlev. But he crawls "throughout all the great Russia" - and the space of history opens up to us. It seems that Gorky, who lived in an eternal hurry, did not want to part with this book. The result was an encyclopedia, and not an idealistic one at all. Gorky writes without hypocrisy about love and flirting, about politics and religion, about nationalism and financial scams... This is both a chronicle and a confession. Like Cervantes, he even mentions himself in the novel: the characters discuss the writer Gorky. Just like us a hundred years later.

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The great Russian writer Maxim Gorky (Peshkov Alexei Maksimovich) was born on March 16, 1868 in Nizhny Novgorod - died on June 18, 1936 in Gorki. At an early age, "went into the people," in his own words. He lived hard, spent the night in the slums among all sorts of rabble, wandered, interrupted by a random piece of bread. He passed vast territories, visited the Don, Ukraine, the Volga region, South Bessarabia, the Caucasus and the Crimea.

Start

He was actively engaged in social and political activities, for which he was arrested more than once. In 1906 he went abroad, where he began to successfully write his works. By 1910, Gorky gained fame, his work aroused great interest. Earlier, in 1904, critical articles began to appear, and then books "On Gorky". Gorky's works interested politicians and public figures. Some of them believed that the writer was too free to interpret the events taking place in the country. Everything that Maxim Gorky wrote, works for the theater or journalistic essays, short stories or multi-page novels, caused a resonance and was often accompanied by anti-government speeches. During World War I, the writer took an openly anti-militarist position. He met the revolution of 1917 enthusiastically, and turned his apartment in Petrograd into a turnout for political figures. Often, Maxim Gorky, whose works became more and more topical, spoke with reviews of his own work in order to avoid misinterpretation.

Abroad

In 1921, the writer went abroad for treatment. For three years, Maxim Gorky lived in Helsinki, Prague and Berlin, then moved to Italy and settled in the city of Sorrento. There he took up the publication of his memoirs of Lenin. In 1925 he wrote the novel The Artamonov Case. All Gorky's works of that time were politicized.

Return to Russia

The year 1928 was a turning point for Gorky. At the invitation of Stalin, he returns to Russia and for a month moves from city to city, meets people, gets acquainted with the achievements in industry, observes how socialist construction is developing. Then Maxim Gorky leaves for Italy. However, the following year (1929), the writer again comes to Russia and this time visits the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camps. At the same time, the reviews leave the most positive. Alexander Solzhenitsyn mentioned this trip of Gorky in his novel The Gulag Archipelago.

The final return of the writer to the Soviet Union took place in October 1932. Since that time, Gorky has been living in the former Ryabushinsky mansion on Spiridonovka, at a dacha in Gorki, and travels to the Crimea on vacation.

First Congress of Writers

After some time, the writer receives a political order from Stalin, who entrusts him with the preparation of the 1st Congress of Soviet Writers. In the light of this order, Maxim Gorky creates several new newspapers and magazines, publishes book series on the history of Soviet plants and factories, the Civil War and some other events of the Soviet era. Then he wrote plays: "Egor Bulychev and others", "Dostigaev and others". Some of Gorky's works, written earlier, were also used by him in the preparation of the first congress of writers, which took place in August 1934. At the congress, organizational issues were mainly resolved, the leadership of the future Union of Writers of the USSR was chosen, and writers' sections were created by genre. Gorky's works were also ignored at the 1st Congress of Writers, but he was elected chairman of the board. In general, the event was considered successful, and Stalin personally thanked Maxim Gorky for his fruitful work.

Popularity

M. Gorky, whose works for many years caused fierce controversy among the intelligentsia, tried to take part in the discussion of his books and especially theatrical plays. From time to time, the writer visited theaters, where he could see for himself that people were not indifferent to his work. Indeed, for many, the writer M. Gorky, whose works were understandable to the common man, became the conductor of a new life. Theater audience went to the performance several times, read and re-read books.

Gorky's early romantic works

The writer's work can be divided into several categories. Gorky's early works are romantic and even sentimental. They still do not feel the rigidity of political sentiments, which are saturated with later stories and novels of the writer.

The writer's first story "Makar Chudra" is about fleeting gypsy love. Not because it was fleeting because "love came and went", but because it lasted only one night, without a single touch. Love lived in the soul, not touching the body. And then the death of a girl at the hands of a loved one, the proud gypsy Rada passed away, and after her Loiko Zobar himself - sailed together through the sky, hand in hand.

Amazing plot, incredible storytelling power. The story "Makar Chudra" became for many years the hallmark of Maxim Gorky, firmly taking first place in the list of "Gorky's early works."

The writer worked hard and fruitfully in his youth. Gorky's early romantic works are a cycle of stories whose heroes are Danko, Sokol, Chelkash and others.

A short story about spiritual excellence makes you think. "Chelkash" is a story about a simple person who carries high aesthetic feelings. Escape from home, vagrancy, complicity in a crime. The meeting of two - one is engaged in the usual business, the other is brought by chance. Envy, distrust, readiness for submissive obedience, fear and servility of Gavrila are opposed to Chelkash's courage, self-confidence, love of freedom. However, society does not need Chelkash, unlike Gavrila. Romantic pathos is intertwined with the tragic. The description of nature in the story is also shrouded in a veil of romance.

In the stories "Makar Chudra", "Old Woman Izergil" and, finally, in "The Song of the Falcon", the motivation for "the madness of the brave" can be traced. The writer puts the characters in difficult conditions and then, without any logic, leads them to the finale. That is why the work of the great writer is interesting, that the narration is unpredictable.

Gorky's work "Old Woman Izergil" consists of several parts. The character of her first story - the son of an eagle and a woman, the sharp-eyed Larra, is presented as an egoist, incapable of high feelings. When he heard the maxim that one inevitably has to pay for what he took, he expressed disbelief, stating that "I would like to remain unharmed." People rejected him, condemning him to loneliness. Larra's pride turned out to be fatal to him.

Danko is no less proud, but he treats people with love. Therefore, he obtains the freedom necessary for his fellow tribesmen who believe him. Despite the threats of those who doubt that he is able to lead the tribe out of the dense forest, the young leader continues on his way, dragging people along with him. And when everyone was running out of strength, and the forest did not end, Danko tore his chest, took out a burning heart and lit the path that led them to the clearing with its flame. The ungrateful tribesmen, breaking free, did not even look in the direction of Danko when he fell and died. People ran away, on the run they trampled on the flaming heart, and it scattered into blue sparks.

Gorky's romantic works leave an indelible mark on the soul. Readers empathize with the characters, the unpredictability of the plot keeps them in suspense, and the ending is often unexpected. In addition, Gorky's romantic works are distinguished by deep morality, which is unobtrusive, but makes you think.

The theme of individual freedom dominates in the early work of the writer. The heroes of Gorky's works are freedom-loving and even ready to give their lives for the right to choose their own destiny.

The poem "The Girl and Death" is a vivid example of self-sacrifice in the name of love. A young, full of life girl makes a deal with death for one night of love. She is ready to die without regret in the morning, just to meet her beloved again.

The king, who considers himself omnipotent, dooms the girl to death only because, returning from the war, he was in a bad mood and did not like her happy laugh. Death spared Love, the girl remained alive and "bony with a scythe" was no longer in control of her.

Romanticism is also present in the "Song of the Petrel". The proud bird is free, it is like a black lightning, rushing between the gray plain of the sea and the clouds hanging over the waves. Let the storm blow harder, the brave bird is ready to fight. And it is important for a penguin to hide his fat body in the rocks, he has a different attitude to the storm - no matter how wet his feathers are.

Man in Gorky's works

The special, refined psychologism of Maxim Gorky is present in all his stories, while the personality is always assigned the main role. Even homeless vagrants, the characters of the rooming house, are presented by the writer as respected citizens, despite their plight. The person in Gorky's works is put at the forefront, everything else is secondary - the events described, the political situation, even the actions of state bodies are in the background.

Gorky's story "Childhood"

The writer tells the story of the life of the boy Alyosha Peshkov, as if on his own behalf. The story is sad, begins with the death of the father and ends with the death of the mother. Left an orphan, the boy heard from his grandfather, the day after his mother's funeral: "You are not a medal, you shouldn't hang around my neck ... Go to the people ...". And kicked out.

Thus ends Gorky's Childhood. And in the middle there were several years of living in the house of his grandfather, a lean little old man who used to flog everyone who was weaker than him with rods on Saturdays. And only his grandchildren, who lived in the house, were inferior to the grandfather in strength, and he beat them backhand, putting them on the bench.

Alexei grew up, supported by his mother, and in the house hung a thick fog of enmity between everyone and everyone. The uncles fought among themselves, threatened the grandfather that they would kill him too, the cousins ​​got drunk, and their wives did not have time to give birth. Alyosha tried to make friends with the neighbor boys, but their parents and other relatives were in such a complicated relationship with his grandfather, grandmother and mother that the children could only communicate through a hole in the fence.

"At the bottom"

In 1902, Gorky turned to a philosophical theme. He created a play about people who, by the will of fate, sank to the very bottom of Russian society. Several characters, the inhabitants of the rooming house, the writer described with frightening authenticity. In the center of the story are homeless people on the verge of despair. Someone is thinking about suicide, someone else is hoping for the best. M. Gorky's work "At the Bottom" is a vivid picture of the social and everyday disorder in society, often turning into a tragedy.

The owner of the doss house, Mikhail Ivanovich Kostylev, lives and does not know that his life is constantly under threat. His wife Vasilisa persuades one of the guests - Vaska Pepel - to kill her husband. This is how it ends: the thief Vaska kills Kostylev and goes to prison. The remaining inhabitants of the rooming house continue to live in an atmosphere of drunken revelry and bloody fights.

After some time, a certain Luke appears, a projector and idler. He "floods", how much in vain, conducts lengthy conversations, promises everyone indiscriminately a happy future and complete prosperity. Then Luke disappears, and the unfortunate people he has given hope to are at a loss. There was a severe disappointment. A forty-year-old homeless man, nicknamed the Actor, commits suicide. Others are not far from it either.

Nochlezhka, as a symbol of the dead end of Russian society at the end of the 19th century, is an undisguised ulcer of the social structure.

Creativity of Maxim Gorky

• "Makar Chudra" - 1892. A story about love and tragedy.
• "Grandfather Arkhip and Lenka" - 1893. A beggar sick old man and with him his grandson Lenka, a teenager. First, the grandfather cannot stand the hardships and dies, then the grandson dies. Good people buried the unfortunate by the road.
• "Old Woman Izergil" - 1895. A few stories of an old woman about selfishness and selflessness.
• "Chelkash" - 1895. A story about "an inveterate drunkard and a clever, bold thief."
• "Spouses Orlov" - 1897. A story about a childless couple who decided to help sick people.
• "Konovalov" - 1898. The story of how Alexander Ivanovich Konovalov, arrested for vagrancy, hanged himself in a prison cell.
• "Foma Gordeev" - 1899. The story of the events of the late XIX century, taking place in the Volga city. About a boy named Foma, who considered his father a fabulous robber.
• "Philistines" - 1901. A Tale of Petty-bourgeois Roots and a New Trend of the Times.
• "At the bottom" - 1902. A sharp topical play about homeless people who have lost all hope.
• "Mother" - 1906. A novel on the theme of revolutionary moods in society, about the events taking place within the limits of a manufactory, with the participation of members of the same family.
• "Vassa Zheleznova" - 1910. A play about a youthful 42-year-old woman, the owner of a steamship company, strong and powerful.
• "Childhood" - 1913. The story of a simple boy and his far from simple life.
• "Tales of Italy" - 1913. A series of short stories on the theme of life in Italian cities.
• "Passion-face" - 1913. A short story about a deeply unhappy family.
• "In people" - 1914. A story about an errand boy in a fashionable shoe store.
• "My Universities" - 1923. Tale of Kazan University and students.
• "Blue Life" - 1924. A story about dreams and fantasies.
• "The Artamonov Case" - 1925. The story of the events taking place at the woven fabric factory.
• "Life of Klim Samgin" - 1936. Events of the early XX century - St. Petersburg, Moscow, barricades.

Each read story, story or novel leaves an impression of high literary skill. Characters carry a number of unique features and characteristics. An analysis of Gorky's works involves comprehensive characterizations of the characters, followed by a summary. The depth of the narrative is organically combined with difficult, but understandable literary devices. All the works of the great Russian writer Maxim Gorky were included in the Golden Fund of Russian Culture.

Alexey Peshkov, better known as the writer Maxim Gorky, is a significant figure for Russian and Soviet literature. He was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize, was the most published Soviet author throughout the existence of the USSR and was considered on a par with Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin and Leo Tolstoy the main creator of domestic literary art.

Alexey Peshkov - the future Maxim Gorky was born in the town of Kanavino, which at that time was located in the Nizhny Novgorod province, and now is one of the districts of Nizhny Novgorod. His father, Maxim Peshkov, was a carpenter, and in the last years of his life he ran a steamship office. Mother Varvara Vasilyevna died of consumption, so Alyosha Peshkov's parents were replaced by grandmother Akulina Ivanovna. From the age of 11, the boy was forced to start working: Maxim Gorky was a messenger at the store, a bartender on a steamer, an assistant baker and an icon painter. The biography of Maxim Gorky is reflected by him personally in the stories "Childhood", "In People" and "My Universities".

After an unsuccessful attempt to become a student at Kazan University and an arrest due to his connection with a Marxist circle, the future writer became a watchman on the railway. And at the age of 23, the young man sets off to wander around the country and managed to get on foot to the Caucasus. It was during this journey that Maxim Gorky briefly wrote down his thoughts, which would later be the basis for his future works. By the way, the first stories of Maxim Gorky also began to be published around that time.

Having already become a famous writer, Alexei Peshkov leaves for the United States, then moves to Italy. This happened not at all because of problems with the authorities, as some sources sometimes present, but because of changes in family life. Although abroad, Gorky continues to write revolutionary books. He returned to Russia in 1913, settled in St. Petersburg and began working for various publishing houses.

The first of the published stories by Maxim Gorky was the famous "Makar Chudra", which was published in 1892. And the fame of the writer was brought by the two-volume Essays and Stories. It is interesting that the circulation of these volumes was almost three times higher than was usually accepted in those years. Of the most popular works of that period, it is worth noting the stories "Old Woman Izergil", "Former People", "Chelkash", "Twenty-six and One", as well as the poem "Song of the Falcon". Another poem "Song of the Petrel" became a textbook. Maxim Gorky devoted a lot of time to children's literature. He wrote a number of fairy tales, for example, "Sparrow", "Samovar", "Tales of Italy", published the first special children's magazine in the Soviet Union and organized holidays for children from poor families.

The plays “At the Bottom”, “Petty Bourgeois” and “Egor Bulychov and Others” by Maxim Gorky are very important for understanding the work of the writer, in which he reveals the talent of the playwright and shows how he sees the life around him. Of great cultural significance for Russian literature are the stories "Childhood" and "In People", the social novels "Mother" and "The Artamonov Case". The last work of Gorky is the epic novel "The Life of Klim Samgin", which has the second name "Forty Years". The writer worked on this manuscript for 11 years, but did not have time to finish it.

After the final return to his homeland in 1932, Maxim Gorky worked in the publishing houses of newspapers and magazines, created a series of books "The History of Factories and Plants", "The Poet's Library", "The History of the Civil War", organized and held the First All-Union Congress of Soviet Writers. After the unexpected death of his son from pneumonia, the writer wilted. During the next visit to the grave of Maxim, he caught a bad cold. For three weeks Gorky had a fever that led to his death on June 18, 1936. The body of the Soviet writer was cremated, and the ashes were placed in the Kremlin wall on Red Square. But first, the brain of Maxim Gorky was removed and transferred to the Research Institute for further study.

For a more complete biography of Maxim Gorky, see here:

From the very beginning of his creative path, Maxim Gorky wrote works on a children's theme. The writer A. M. Gorky is considered one of the founders of modern children's literature, he devoted a lot of effort to its creation, made sure that books were written by people who love children, understand their inner world.

Our virtual exhibition presents books for different age categories of readers.

Books by Maxim Gorky for children of preschool and primary school age.

Gorky, M. Case with Yevseyka [Text] / M. Gorky; comp. V. Prikhodko; rice. Y. Molokonova. - Moscow: Malysh, 1979. –80 s. : ill.

The fairy tale "The Case with Yevseyka" was first published in 1912 in the newspaper "The Day". In 1919, it appeared with some changes in the Northern Lights magazine. It contains extensive educational material, presented poetically, in an entertaining and accessible form for children. Gorky sees nature through the eyes of the boy Evseika. This gives the writer the opportunity to introduce into the fairy tale comparisons understandable to children: sea anemones are like cherries scattered on stones; Yevseyka saw the holothurian "resembling a badly drawn pig", the spiny lobster rolls "eyes on strings", the sepia looks like "a wet handkerchief". When Yevseyka wanted to whistle, it turned out that this could not be done: "water gets into your mouth like a cork."

Gorky, A. M. Vorobishko : [Text] / Alexei Maksimovich Gorky; [art. A. Salimzyanova] . – Moscow: Meshcheryakov Publishing House, 2010. – 30, p. : col. ill. - (Children's classic).

One of the most striking children's works of Gorky can rightly be called the fairy tale "Sparrow". Sparrow Pudik did not yet know how to fly, but he was already looking out of the nest with curiosity: “I wanted to quickly find out what God's world is and whether it is suitable for it.” Due to exorbitant curiosity, Pudik gets into trouble - falls out of the nest; and the cat “red, green eyes” is right there ...

The fairy tale "Sparrow" is written in the style of oral folk art. The narration sounds unhurried, allegorical. As in a folk tale, there is heroic and comic here, and sparrows are endowed with feelings, thoughts, human experiences.

Gorky, M. Once upon a time there was a samovar [Text]: stories and fairy tales / M. Gorky; comp. Vladimir Prikhodko. - Moscow: Children's Literature, 1986. -54, p. : ill. - (School library).

The fairy tale “Samovar” is sustained in satirical tones, the heroes of which were “humanized” objects: a sugar bowl, a creamer, a teapot, cups. The leading role belongs to the “little samovar”, who “loved to show off very much” and wanted “the moon to be removed from the sky and made a tray out of it for him.” By alternating between prose and verse texts, making objects so familiar to children sing songs and have lively conversations, Maxim Gorky achieved the main thing - to write interestingly, but not to allow excessive moralization. Based on his creative principles, the writer initiated the creation of a special type of literary fairy tale in children's literature, characterized by the presence of a significant scientific and educational potential in it.

Gorky, M. About Ivanushka the Fool [Text]: Russian folk tale / Maxim Gorky; fig. Nikolai Kochergin. - St. Petersburg; Moscow: Speech, 2015. - With. : col. ill. - (Series "Mom's Favorite Book").

Full of perky and kind humor, the Russian folk tale "About Ivanushka the Fool", heard by Maxim Gorky as a child and later embodied in the author's retelling, will not only amuse the kids, but also help to instill in children a love of reading and artistic taste. After all, the illustrations for it were created by Nikolai Kochergin, an outstanding artist of a children's book and a real magician of the brush.

Books by Maxim Gorky for children of primary and secondary school age.

Gorky, M. Danko's burning heart [Text] / M. Gorky; rice. V. Samoilov. - Saratov: Privolzhskoe book publishing house, 1973. – 16 s. : ill.

Legends have been created by people since ancient times. In a bright, figurative form, they told about the heroes and events, conveying to the reader folk wisdom, folk aspirations and dreams. Gorky uses the genre of literary legend, because it was the best fit for his plan: briefly, excitedly, vividly sing of all the best that can be in a person. The legend about Danko tells about a brave and handsome young man. He is happy that he lives among people, because he loves them more than himself. Danko is courageous and fearless, he sets himself a noble goal - to be useful to people. From deep compassion for fellow tribesmen who live without the sun in the swamps, who have lost their will and courage, the fire of love for them was lit in Danko's heart. This spark turned into a torch.

Gorky, M. Stories and fairy tales for children [Text] / Maxim Gorky; artistic S. Babyuk. - Moscow: Dragonfly, 2010. –157, p. : ill. - (School library).

In the works of Maxim Gorky for children, fairy tales occupied a special place, in which ideological and aesthetic principles were clearly expressed, the same as in stories on the theme of childhood and adolescence.

In fairy tales, Maxim Gorky continued to work on a new type of children's fairy tale, in the content of which a special role belonged to the cognitive element.

The hymn to nature, the sun in the fairy tale "Morning" is combined with the hymn to labor and "the great work of people, done by them everywhere around us." And then the author considered it necessary to remind the children that working people “decorate and enrich the earth all their lives, but remain poor from birth to death.” Following this, the author poses the question: “Why? You will find out about this later, when you become big, if, of course, you want to know ... "

Creating artistic images of children in his works (“Grandfather Arkhip and Lyonka”, “Misha”, “Shake”, “Ilya's Childhood”, etc.), the writer sought to depict children's fates in a specific social and domestic environment.

In the story "The Shake-Up", the autobiographical beginning was noticeably affected, because the author himself worked as a teenager in an icon-painting workshop, which was also reflected in his trilogy. At the same time, in Shake-Up, Maxim Gorky continued to expand on the theme of the overwork of children and adolescents, which was important to him.

Gorky, M. Tales of Italy [Text] / M. Gorky; engravings by K. Bezborodov. - Moscow: Children's literature, 1980. -128 p. : ill.

"Tales of Italy", written for adults, almost immediately during the revolutionary upsurge of the early 20th century. were published for children. "Tales of Italy" sang the joy of labor, the equality of people, affirmed the idea of ​​the unity of the working people. Most of the heroes of "Fairy Tales" sacredly honor the bright experience of the past: "remembering is the same as understanding."

One of the best tales of the cycle is the tale of Pepe. The boy loved nature: "Everything occupies him - flowers flowing in thick streams over good land, lizards among lilac stones, birds in chased olive foliage." The image of Pepe is given in the perspective of the future - poets and leaders grow out of people like him. And at the same time, it embodies the characteristic features of ordinary people in Italy with their kindness, openness, love for the land.

Books by Maxim Gorky for children of middle and senior school age.

Gorky, M. Childhood [Text] / M. Gorky; artistic B. A. Dekhterev. - Moscow: Soviet Russia, 1982. –208 s. : ill.

The story "Childhood", the first part of Gorky's autobiographical trilogy, was written in 1913. The mature writer turned to the theme of his past. In "Childhood" he tries to comprehend this period of life, the origins of the human character, the reasons for the happiness and unhappiness of an adult.

In the center of the story is the boy Alyosha, by the will of fate "abandoned" to his mother's family. After the death of his father, Alyosha was raised by his grandfather and grandmother. Therefore, we can say that these people are the main ones in his fate, those who raised the boy laid all the foundations in him. But besides them, there were many people in Alyosha's life - numerous uncles and aunts, who all lived under one roof, cousins, guests ... They all raised the hero, influenced him, sometimes without wanting to.

Gorky, M. My universities [Text] / M. Gorky; ill. B. A. Dekhtereva. - Moscow: Soviet Russia, 1984. –128 s. : ill.

The story "My Universities", written in 1923, is the last part of Gorky's autobiographical trilogy.

The plot of the story focuses on the young Alyosha Peshkov, who goes to Kazan to enter the university, but soon, due to lack of funds, he realizes that studying there is not for him.

The young man gets a few jobs, not disdaining hard physical labor. Alyosha lights up with a revolutionary spark, studies literature. So his life itself is a university - this is the main idea of ​​​​the work. Thirst for knowledge, continuous improvement, a mountain of necessary literature for your own enlightenment, meetings with interesting people, as well as like-minded people - all this allows you to form your own vision of the world better than an educational institution.

Gorky, M. Stories. At the bottom [Text] / M. Gorky. - Moscow: Drofa, 2001. - 160 p. - (School program).

The book includes early romantic stories "Makar Chudra", "Old Woman Izergil", "Chelkash", "Konovalov", "Mallow", as well as "The Legend of Marco", "Song of the Falcon", "Song of the Petrel".

In his works, Gorky performed a hymn to a beautiful and strong man. This is no coincidence. Gorky came to literature as an artist of the revolutionary masses rising up to fight. And he became a great poet of the liberation of the people. He put forward a new measure of a person's value: his will to fight, activity, ability to rebuild his life. "Makar Chudra" rightfully opens now all the collected works of the writer. It already sounds the voice of a new revolutionary art, which in the future, having grown stronger and developed, will enrich all Russian and world literature.

The play "At the Bottom", created by the writer in 1902, was conceived by Gorky as one of the four plays in the cycle, showing the life and worldview of people from different strata of society. The deep meaning that the author put into it is an attempt to answer the main questions of human existence: what is a person and whether he will retain his personality, sinking "to the bottom" of moral and social life.

The play "At the Bottom" has been living for more than a century and continues to be one of the most powerful works of Russian classics. The play makes one think about the place of faith and love in a person's life, about the nature of truth and lies, about a person's ability to resist moral and social decline.

Gorky, Maxim. Book about Russian people [Text] / Maxim Gorky. - Moscow: Vagrius, 2000. –577 p. : ill. – (My 20th century).

Perhaps it was Gorky who managed to reflect in his work the history, life and culture of Russia in the first third of the 20th century on a truly epic scale. This applies not only to his prose and drama, but also to his memoirs - primarily to "Notes from a Diary", to the famous literary portraits of Anton Chekhov, Leo Tolstoy, Vladimir Korolenko, Leonid Andreev, Sergei Yesenin, Savva Morozov, and also, to "Untimely Thoughts" - a chronicle of the times of the October Revolution. "The Book of the Russian People" (this is how Gorky originally thought to call his memoirs) is a unique series of characters - from intellectuals to philosophizing tramps, from revolutionaries to ardent monarchists. The essay about V. I. Lenin is published in the first edition - without later layers of "textbook gloss"

Pedagogical views of Maxim Gorky.

Gorky, M. About children's literature [Text]: articles, statements, letters / M. Gorky; intro. Art. comments N. B. Medvedeva. - Moscow: Children's Literature Publishing House, 1968. -432 p.

The purpose of this collection is to present as fully as possible the articles, letters, statements of A. M. Gorky on children's literature and children's reading.

The collection consists of five sections. The first contains articles and statements by A. M. Gorky on children's literature and children's reading; in the second, his letters to relatives, writers, teachers, scientists; in the third letter and appeal to children. The fourth section of the collection includes articles by A. M. Gorky on the work of children.

The last section publishes (in alphabetical order of authors) the memoirs of A. S. Serafimovich, N. D. Teleshov, K. I. Chukovsky, S. Ya. Marshak, A. S. Makarenko and other writers who, together with Gorky, worked on the creation of books for children, contributed to the development of Soviet children's literature. These articles and memoirs of Alexei Maksimovich's contemporaries help to better present Gorky's versatile activities in the field of children's literature.

Books about the life and work of Maxim Gorky.

Bykov, D. L. Was there Gorky? [Text] / Dmitry Bykov. - Moscow: AST: Astrel, 2008. – 348, p., l. ill., port. : ill., portr.

Dmitry Bykov, a well-known prose writer, poet, bright publicist, in his book “Was there Gorky?” draws the figure of a classic writer free from literary gloss and subsequent mythology.

Where does Alexey Peshkov end and Maxim Gorky begin? Who was he? Bytopisatel, singer of the city bottom? "Petrel of the revolution"? An incorrigible romantic? Or did his position in life and writing sometimes border on cold calculation? Be that as it may, Bykov is sure: “Gorky is a great, monstrous, touching, strange and absolutely necessary writer today”

“Maxim Gorky enriched Soviet colloquial speech with dozens of quotes: “We sing a song to the madness of the brave”; "Man - it sounds proud"; "Let the storm come on stronger"; "Not a single flea is bad: all are black, all are jumping." "Lead abominations of life" - this is sometimes attributed to Chekhov, but Gorky said something in the story "Childhood".

Vaksberg, A. I. The death of the petrel [Text]: M. Gorky: The last twenty years / A. I. Vaksberg. - Moscow: TERRA-Sport, 1999. - 391 p.

The author of the book, a well-known writer, a master of documentary prose and journalism, vice-president of the Russian PEN Club, in his documentary novel explores the last 20 years of the life of M. Gorky, a unique historical figure, expresses his purely subjective vision of the events that took place over this time.

The basis of this study is the diversity of Gorky, which was noted by many authors who wrote about him, and above all by those who personally met him. All of them noted the impossibility of showing Gorky's image with a certain sign - positive or negative. The sign slipped away, entered into an irreconcilable conflict with reality. Until now, however, books about Gorky, especially biographical ones, have been almost mythical stereotypes, squeezed into frames strictly defined by party ideologists. That is why in this book the author made extensive use of his right as a creator - to state his own point of view, without taking away from the reader his right to accept or reject.

Maxim Gorky in the memoirs of contemporaries [Text]: in two volumes / comp. and prepare. text by A. A. Krundyshev; artistic V. Maksina. - Moscow: Fiction, 1981. - 445 p.

This volume includes memories of Gorky in the post-revolutionary period: about his life in Sorrento, about his triumphant trip around the Land of the Soviets, about returning to his homeland and about the last days of his life.

“He loved both laughter and jokes, but he treated the vocation of a writer, artist, creator implacably, severely, passionately.

Listening to some novice gifted writer, he could burst into tears, get up and leave, from the table, wiping his eyes with a handkerchief, grumbling: "They write well, devils with stripes."

This was the whole Anatoly Maksimovich ...

A. N. Tolstoy

A. M. Gorky in portraits, illustrations, documents 1968- 1936 [Album]: a manual for secondary school teachers / comp.: R. G. Weislehem; I. M. Kasatkina and others; ed. M. B. Kozmina and L. I. Ponomarev. -Moscow: State Educational and Pedagogical Publishing House of the Ministry of Education of the RSFSR, 1962. – 520 p.

This publication is intended to tell about the life and work of Gorky with the help of visual, documentary and textual material.

The reader will see here reproductions of paintings and illustrations by such artists as I. Repin, V. Serov, S. Gerasimov, Kukryniksy, P. Korin and many others, who are the pride of our art. A large place in the album is occupied by rare documentary photographs taken from the personal archives of the writer or people close to him.

Gorky's activity, as is known, is extraordinarily multifaceted. He is a great writer, the founder of the literature of socialist realism, and an outstanding publicist. A fiery revolutionary, a prominent public figure.

Naturally, all these aspects of the diverse activities of Alexei Maksimovich are reflected in the album (of course, within the limits possible for this edition).

Books from the collection "Rare Book" GBUK RO "Rostov Regional Children's Library. V.M. Velichkina:

Gorky, M. How I studied [Text] / Maxim Gorky. -Moscow; Leningrad: State Publishing House, 1929. – 22 s.

First published on May 29, 1918 in the New Life newspaper under the title "About books", and at the same time, with the subtitle "Story", in the newspaper "Book and Life".

The story is based on a speech that M. Gorky delivered on May 28, 1918 in Petrograd at a rally in the Culture and Freedom society. The speech began with the words: “I will tell you, citizens, about what books have given to my mind and feeling. I learned to read consciously when I was fourteen years old ... ”The work was reprinted several times under the title“ How I Learned ”with the first phrase omitted and slight additions at the end of the story.

In 1922, Maxim Gorky significantly expanded the story for a separate edition of 3. I. Grzhebin.

The story was not included in the collected works.

The great Russian writer Maxim Gorky (Peshkov Alexei Maksimovich) was born on March 16, 1868 in Nizhny Novgorod - died on June 18, 1936 in Gorki. At an early age, "went into the people," in his own words. He lived hard, spent the night in the slums among all sorts of rabble, wandered, interrupted by a random piece of bread. He passed vast territories, visited the Don, Ukraine, the Volga region, South Bessarabia, the Caucasus and the Crimea.

Start

He was actively engaged in social and political activities, for which he was arrested more than once. In 1906 he went abroad, where he began to successfully write his works. By 1910, Gorky gained fame, his work aroused great interest. Earlier, in 1904, critical articles began to appear, and then books "On Gorky". Gorky's works interested politicians and public figures. Some of them believed that the writer was too free to interpret the events taking place in the country. Everything that Maxim Gorky wrote, works for the theater or journalistic essays, short stories or multi-page novels, caused a resonance and was often accompanied by anti-government speeches. During World War I, the writer took an openly anti-militarist position. met the year enthusiastically, and turned his apartment in Petrograd into a turnout for political figures. Often, Maxim Gorky, whose works became more and more topical, spoke with reviews of his own work in order to avoid misinterpretation.

Abroad

In 1921, the writer went abroad for treatment. For three years, Maxim Gorky lived in Helsinki, Prague and Berlin, then moved to Italy and settled in the city of Sorrento. There he took up the publication of his memoirs of Lenin. In 1925 he wrote the novel The Artamonov Case. All Gorky's works of that time were politicized.

Return to Russia

The year 1928 was a turning point for Gorky. At the invitation of Stalin, he returns to Russia and for a month moves from city to city, meets people, gets acquainted with the achievements in industry, observes how socialist construction is developing. Then Maxim Gorky leaves for Italy. However, the following year (1929), the writer again comes to Russia and this time visits the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camps. At the same time, the reviews leave the most positive. Alexander Solzhenitsyn mentioned this trip of Gorky in his novel

The final return of the writer to the Soviet Union took place in October 1932. Since that time, Gorky has been living in the former on Spiridonovka, at a dacha in Gorki, and travels to the Crimea on vacation.

First Congress of Writers

After some time, the writer receives a political order from Stalin, who entrusts him with the preparation of the 1st Congress of Soviet Writers. In the light of this order, Maxim Gorky creates several new newspapers and magazines, publishes book series on the history of Soviet plants and factories, the Civil War and some other events of the Soviet era. Then he wrote plays: "Egor Bulychev and others", "Dostigaev and others". Some of Gorky's works, written earlier, were also used by him in the preparation of the first congress of writers, which took place in August 1934. At the congress, organizational issues were mainly resolved, the leadership of the future Union of Writers of the USSR was chosen, and writers' sections were created by genre. Gorky's works were also ignored at the 1st Congress of Writers, but he was elected chairman of the board. In general, the event was considered successful, and Stalin personally thanked Maxim Gorky for his fruitful work.

Popularity

M. Gorky, whose works for many years caused fierce controversy among the intelligentsia, tried to take part in the discussion of his books and especially theatrical plays. From time to time, the writer visited theaters, where he could see for himself that people were not indifferent to his work. Indeed, for many, the writer M. Gorky, whose works were understandable to the common man, became the conductor of a new life. Theater audience went to the performance several times, read and re-read books.

Gorky's early romantic works

The writer's work can be divided into several categories. Gorky's early works are romantic and even sentimental. They still do not feel the rigidity of political sentiments, which are saturated with later stories and novels of the writer.

The writer's first story "Makar Chudra" is about fleeting gypsy love. Not because it was fleeting because "love came and went", but because it lasted only one night, without a single touch. Love lived in the soul, not touching the body. And then the death of a girl at the hands of a loved one, the proud gypsy Rada passed away, and after her Loiko Zobar himself - sailed together through the sky, hand in hand.

Amazing plot, incredible storytelling power. The story "Makar Chudra" became for many years the hallmark of Maxim Gorky, firmly taking first place in the list of "Gorky's early works."

The writer worked hard and fruitfully in his youth. Gorky's early romantic works are a cycle of stories whose heroes are Danko, Sokol, Chelkash and others.

A short story about spiritual excellence makes you think. "Chelkash" is a story about a simple person who carries high aesthetic feelings. Escape from home, vagrancy, Meeting of two - one is engaged in the usual business, the other is brought by chance. Envy, distrust, readiness for submissive obedience, fear and servility of Gavrila are opposed to Chelkash's courage, self-confidence, love of freedom. However, society does not need Chelkash, unlike Gavrila. Romantic pathos is intertwined with the tragic. The description of nature in the story is also shrouded in a veil of romance.

In the stories "Makar Chudra", "Old Woman Izergil" and, finally, in "The Song of the Falcon", the motivation for "the madness of the brave" can be traced. The writer puts the characters in difficult conditions and then, without any logic, leads them to the finale. That is why the work of the great writer is interesting, that the narration is unpredictable.

Gorky's work "Old Woman Izergil" consists of several parts. The character of her first story - the son of an eagle and a woman, the sharp-eyed Larra, is presented as an egoist, incapable of high feelings. When he heard the maxim that one inevitably has to pay for what he took, he expressed disbelief, stating that "I would like to remain unharmed." People rejected him, condemning him to loneliness. Larra's pride turned out to be fatal to him.

Danko is no less proud, but he treats people with love. Therefore, he obtains the freedom necessary for his fellow tribesmen who believe him. Despite the threats of those who doubt that he is able to lead the tribe out of the young leader, he continues on his way, dragging people along with him. And when everyone was running out of strength, and the forest did not end, Danko tore his chest, took out a burning heart and lit the path that led them to the clearing with its flame. The ungrateful tribesmen, breaking free, did not even look in the direction of Danko when he fell and died. People ran away, on the run they trampled on the flaming heart, and it scattered into blue sparks.

Gorky's romantic works leave an indelible mark on the soul. Readers empathize with the characters, the unpredictability of the plot keeps them in suspense, and the ending is often unexpected. In addition, Gorky's romantic works are distinguished by deep morality, which is unobtrusive, but makes you think.

The theme of individual freedom dominates in the early work of the writer. The heroes of Gorky's works are freedom-loving and even ready to give their lives for the right to choose their own destiny.

The poem "The Girl and Death" is a vivid example of self-sacrifice in the name of love. A young, full of life girl makes a deal with death for one night of love. She is ready to die without regret in the morning, just to meet her beloved again.

The king, who considers himself omnipotent, dooms the girl to death only because, returning from the war, he was in a bad mood and did not like her happy laugh. Death spared Love, the girl remained alive and "bony with a scythe" was no longer in control of her.

Romanticism is also present in the "Song of the Petrel". The proud bird is free, it is like a black lightning, rushing between the gray plain of the sea and the clouds hanging over the waves. Let the storm blow harder, the brave bird is ready to fight. And it is important for a penguin to hide his fat body in the rocks, he has a different attitude to the storm - no matter how wet his feathers are.

Man in Gorky's works

The special, refined psychologism of Maxim Gorky is present in all his stories, while the personality is always assigned the main role. Even homeless vagrants, the characters of the rooming house, are presented by the writer as respected citizens, despite their plight. The person in Gorky's works is put at the forefront, everything else is secondary - the events described, the political situation, even the actions of state bodies are in the background.

Gorky's story "Childhood"

The writer tells the story of the life of the boy Alyosha Peshkov, as if on his own behalf. The story is sad, begins with the death of the father and ends with the death of the mother. Left an orphan, the boy heard from his grandfather, the day after his mother's funeral: "You are not a medal, you shouldn't hang around my neck ... Go to the people ...". And kicked out.

Thus ends Gorky's Childhood. And in the middle there were several years of living in the house of his grandfather, a lean little old man who used to flog everyone who was weaker than him with rods on Saturdays. And only his grandchildren, who lived in the house, were inferior to the grandfather in strength, and he beat them backhand, putting them on the bench.

Alexei grew up, supported by his mother, and in the house hung a thick fog of enmity between everyone and everyone. The uncles fought among themselves, threatened the grandfather that they would kill him too, the cousins ​​got drunk, and their wives did not have time to give birth. Alyosha tried to make friends with the neighbor boys, but their parents and other relatives were in such a complicated relationship with his grandfather, grandmother and mother that the children could only communicate through a hole in the fence.

"At the bottom"

In 1902, Gorky turned to a philosophical theme. He created a play about people who, by the will of fate, sank to the very bottom of Russian society. Several characters, the inhabitants of the rooming house, the writer described with frightening authenticity. In the center of the story are homeless people on the verge of despair. Someone is thinking about suicide, someone else is hoping for the best. M. Gorky's work "At the Bottom" is a vivid picture of the social and everyday disorder in society, often turning into a tragedy.

The owner of the doss house, Mikhail Ivanovich Kostylev, lives and does not know that his life is constantly under threat. His wife Vasilisa persuades one of the guests - Vaska Pepel - to kill her husband. This is how it ends: the thief Vaska kills Kostylev and goes to prison. The remaining inhabitants of the rooming house continue to live in an atmosphere of drunken revelry and bloody fights.

After some time, a certain Luke appears, a projector and idler. He "floods", how much in vain, conducts lengthy conversations, promises everyone indiscriminately a happy future and complete prosperity. Then Luke disappears, and the unfortunate people he has given hope to are at a loss. There was a severe disappointment. A forty-year-old homeless man, nicknamed the Actor, commits suicide. Others are not far from it either.

Nochlezhka, as a symbol of the dead end of Russian society at the end of the 19th century, is an undisguised ulcer of the social structure.

Creativity of Maxim Gorky

• "Makar Chudra" - 1892. A story about love and tragedy.
• "Grandfather Arkhip and Lenka" - 1893. A beggar sick old man and with him his grandson Lenka, a teenager. First, the grandfather cannot stand the hardships and dies, then the grandson dies. Good people buried the unfortunate by the road.
• "Old Woman Izergil" - 1895. A few stories of an old woman about selfishness and selflessness.
• "Chelkash" - 1895. A story about "an inveterate drunkard and a clever, bold thief."
• "Spouses Orlov" - 1897. A story about a childless couple who decided to help sick people.
• "Konovalov" - 1898. The story of how Alexander Ivanovich Konovalov, arrested for vagrancy, hanged himself in a prison cell.
• "Foma Gordeev" - 1899. The story of the events of the late XIX century, taking place in the Volga city. About a boy named Foma, who considered his father a fabulous robber.
• "Philistines" - 1901. A Tale of Petty-bourgeois Roots and a New Trend of the Times.
• "At the bottom" - 1902. A sharp topical play about homeless people who have lost all hope.
• "Mother" - 1906. A novel on the theme of revolutionary moods in society, about the events taking place within the limits of a manufactory, with the participation of members of the same family.
• "Vassa Zheleznova" - 1910. A play about a youthful 42-year-old woman, the owner of a steamship company, strong and powerful.
• "Childhood" - 1913. The story of a simple boy and his far from simple life.
• "Tales of Italy" - 1913. A series of short stories on the theme of life in Italian cities.
• "Passion-face" - 1913. A short story about a deeply unhappy family.
• "In people" - 1914. A story about an errand boy in a fashionable shoe store.
• "My Universities" - 1923. Tale of Kazan University and students.
• "Blue Life" - 1924. A story about dreams and fantasies.
• "The Artamonov Case" - 1925. The story of the events taking place at the woven fabric factory.
• "Life of Klim Samgin" - 1936. Events of the early XX century - St. Petersburg, Moscow, barricades.

Each read story, story or novel leaves an impression of high literary skill. Characters carry a number of unique features and characteristics. An analysis of Gorky's works involves comprehensive characterizations of the characters, followed by a summary. The depth of the narrative is organically combined with difficult, but understandable literary devices. All the works of the great Russian writer Maxim Gorky were included in the Golden Fund of Russian Culture.