Mozart - characterization of the hero (Mozart and Salieri Pushkin A.S.). "Mozart and Salieri": characteristics of the heroes Divine gift and traditions

(Illustration by I. F. Rerberg)

Mozart and Salieri - the second work of A. S. Pushkin from the cycle of small tragedies. In total, the author planned to create nine episodes, but did not have time to fulfill his plan. Mozart and Salieri is written on the basis of one of the existing versions of the death of the composer from Austria - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The idea of ​​writing a tragedy arose from the poet long before the appearance of the work itself. He nurtured it for several years, collected material and pondered the idea itself. For many, Pushkin continued the line of Mozart in art. He wrote easily, simply, with inspiration. That is why the theme of envy was close to the poet, as well as to the composer. The feeling that destroys the human soul could not help but make him think about the reasons for its appearance.

Mozart and Salieri - a work that reveals the lowest human traits, exposes the soul and shows the reader the true nature of man. The idea of ​​​​the work is the disclosure to the reader of one of the seven human mortal sins - envy. Salieri envied Mozart and, driven by this feeling, set foot on the path of a murderer.

The history of the creation of the work

The tragedy was conceived and previously sketched in the village of Mikhailovskoye in 1826. It is the second in a collection of small tragedies. For a long time, the sketches were gathering dust on the poet's desktop, and only in 1830 the tragedy was completely written. In 1831 it was first published in one of the almanacs.

When writing the tragedy, Pushkin relied on newspaper clippings, gossip and stories of ordinary people. That is why the work “Mozart and Salieri” cannot be considered historically correct in terms of truthfulness.

Description of the play

The play is written in two acts. The first action takes place in Salieri's room. He talks about whether there is true truth on earth, about his love for art. Further, Mozart joins his conversation. In the first act, Mozart tells a friend that he has composed a new melody. He causes envy and a feeling of genuine anger in Salieri.

In the second act, events unfold more rapidly. Salieri has already made up his mind and is bringing poisoned wine to his friend. He believes that Mozart will not be able to bring anything else to music, after him there will be no one who can also write. That is why, according to Salieri, the sooner he passes away, the better. And at the last moment, he blows, hesitating, but it's too late. Mozart drinks the poison and goes to his room.

(M. A. Vrubel "Salieri pours poison into Mozart's glass", 1884)

The main characters of the play

There are only three characters in the play:

• old man with violin

Each character has its own character. Critics noted that the characters have nothing to do with their prototypes, which is why we can safely say that all the characters in the tragedy are fictitious.

A secondary character, written in the image of the composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart who lived earlier. His role in the work is to reveal the essence of Salieri. In the work, he appears as a cheerful, cheerful person with absolute pitch and a real gift for music. Despite the fact that his life is difficult, he does not lose his love for this world. There is also an opinion that Mozart was friends with Salieri for many years and it is possible that he could also envy him.

The complete opposite of Mozart. Gloomy, gloomy, dissatisfied. He sincerely admires the works of the composer, but the envy that creeps into the soul does not give rest.

“.... when the sacred gift,

When an immortal genius is not a reward

Burning love, selflessness

Works, zeal, prayers sent, -

And illuminates the head of a madman,

Idle revelers!.. Oh Mozart, Mozart! ... "

Envy and the composer's words about the true servants of music give rise to Salieri's desire to kill Mozart. However, what he did does not bring him pleasure, because genius and villainy are incompatible things. The hero is a close friend of the composer, he is always close by and communicates closely with his family. Salieri is cruel, insane, envy-ridden. But, despite all the negative traits, something bright awakens in him in the last act, and in an attempt to stop the composer, he demonstrates this to the reader. Salieri is far from society, he is lonely and gloomy. Writes music in order to become famous.

old man with violin

(M. A. Vrubel "Mozart and Salieri listening to the play of a blind violinist", 1884)

old man with violin- the hero personifies a true love for music. He is blind, plays with mistakes, this fact angers Salieri. The old man with the violin is talented, he does not see the music and the audience, but he continues to play. Despite all the difficulties, the old man does not give up his passion, thus showing that art is available to everyone.

Analysis of the work

(Illustrations by I. F. Rerberg)

The play consists of two scenes. All monologues and dialogues are written in blank verse. The first scene takes place in Salieri's room. It can be called an exposition of tragedy.

The main idea of ​​the work is that true art cannot be immoral. The play addresses the eternal issues of life and death, friendship, human relationships.

Conclusions of the play Mozart and Salieri

Mozart and Salieri - the famous work of A. S. Pushkin, which brought together real life, philosophical reflections, autobiographical impressions. The poet believed that genius and villainy are incompatible things. One cannot exist with the other. In his tragedy, the poet clearly shows this fact. Despite its brevity, the work touches on important themes that, combined with dramatic conflict, create a unique storyline.

Characteristics of the hero

MOZART is the central character in A. S. Pushkin's tragedy Mozart and Salieri (1830). Pushkinsky M. is as far from the real Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756−1791) as the whole plot of the tragedy, based on the legend (now refuted) that Mozart was poisoned by Antonio Salieri, who had burning envy for him. There is a well-known comment by Pushkin concerning the intrigue of the tragedy: "An envious person who could boo Don Juan could poison its creator." In this statement, the key word is the hypothetical "could", indicating fiction. A similar indication is contained in Pushkin's "mistakes" regarding Mozart's works mentioned in the tragedy (for example, after the words "the blind violinist played voi che sapete in a tavern", the note "the old man plays an aria from Don Giovanni" follows; in fact, this is the line of Cherubino's aria from The Marriage of Figaro). Regardless of the origin of such errors (whether they are accidental or deliberate), the effect they create disavows the documentary nature of what is depicted. The image of M. is presented in the tragedy in two ways: directly in action and in the monologues of Salieri, who only thinks about him, being alone with himself, corroded by envy of the “idle reveler”, illuminated by the immortal genius “not as a reward” for labor and diligence. M., as he is shown in action, is close to the verbal portrait drawn up by Salieri. He is both a reveler and a "madman", a musician who creates spontaneously, without any mental effort. M. does not even have a shadow of pride regarding his genius, there is no sense of his own chosenness, which overwhelms Salieri ("I am chosen ..."). Salieri's pathetic words: "You, Mozart, are a god" - he retorts with an ironic remark that "my deity is hungry." M. is so generous to people that he is ready to see geniuses in almost everyone: in Salieri, and in Beaumarchas, but for the company and in himself. Even the absurd street violinist in the eyes of M. is a miracle: he is wonderful from this game, Salieri - the inspiration of M. by the contemptible buffoon is wonderful. M.'s generosity is akin to his innocence and childish gullibility. Childhood in Pushkin's M. has nothing to do with the mannered childishness of the hero of P. Schaeffer's play Amadeus, fashionable in the 80s, in which M. was bred as a capricious and absurd child, annoying with rudeness and bad manners. In Pushkin, M. is childishly open and artless. A notable feature is that M. does not have replicas-aparte pronounced “aside” and usually expressing “rear thoughts”. M. does not have such thoughts regarding Salieri, and, of course, he does not suspect that the “chalice of friendship” offered by him is poisoned. In the image of M., Pushkin's ideal of a "direct poet" found expression, who "complains with his soul at the magnificent games of Melpomene and smiles at the fun of the square and the liberties of the popular print scene." It was the “direct poet” in the person of M. who was granted the highest wisdom that “... genius and villainy are two incompatible things” - a truth that Salieri did not understand.

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MOZART is the central character in A.S. Pushkin's tragedy "Mozart and Salieri" (1830). Pushkinsky M. is as far from the real Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) as the whole plot of the tragedy, based on the legend (now refuted) that Mozart was poisoned by Antonio Salieri, who had burning envy for him. There is a well-known comment by Pushkin regarding the intrigue of the tragedy: "An envious person who could boo Don Juan could poison its creator." In this statement, the key word is the hypothetical "could", indicating fiction. A similar indication is contained in Pushkin's "mistakes" regarding Mozart's works mentioned in the tragedy (for example, after the words "the blind violinist played voi che sapete in a tavern", the note "the old man plays an aria from Don Giovanni" follows; in fact, this is the line of Cherubino's aria from The Marriage of Figaro). Regardless of the origin of such errors (whether they are accidental or deliberate), the effect they create disavows the documentary nature of what is depicted. The image of M. is presented in the tragedy in two ways: directly in action and in the monologues of Salieri, who only thinks about him, being alone with himself, corroded by envy of the “idle reveler”, illuminated by the immortal genius “not as a reward” for labor and diligence. M., as he is shown in action, is close to the verbal portrait drawn up by Salieri. He is both a reveler and a "madman", a musician who creates spontaneously, without any mental effort. M. does not even have a shadow of pride regarding his genius, there is no sense of his own chosenness, which overwhelms Salieri ("I am chosen ..."). Salieri's pathetic words: "You, Mozart, are a god" - he retorts with an ironic remark that "my deity is hungry." M. is so generous to people that he is ready to see geniuses in almost everyone: in Salieri, and in Beaumarchas, but for the company and in himself. Even the absurd street violinist in the eyes of M. is a miracle: he is wonderful from this game, Salieri is wonderfully inspired by M. by a contemptible buffoon. M.'s generosity is akin to his innocence and childish gullibility. Childhood in Pushkin's M. has nothing to do with the mannered childishness of the hero of P. Sheffer's play Amadeus, fashionable in the 80s, in which M. was bred as a capricious and absurd child, annoying with rudeness and bad manners. In Pushkin, M. is childishly open and artless. A notable feature is that M. does not have replicas-aparte pronounced "aside" and usually expressing "rear thoughts". M. does not have such thoughts regarding Salieri, and, of course, he does not suspect that the “chalice of friendship” offered by him is poisoned. In the image of M., Pushkin's ideal of a "direct poet" found expression, who "complains with his soul at the magnificent games of Melpomene and smiles at the fun of the square and the liberties of the popular print scene." It was the “direct poet” in the person of M. who was granted the highest wisdom that “... genius and villainy are two incompatible things” - a truth that Salieri never understood.

It cannot be said that the plot is based on Pushkin's fiction. But the poisoning of one composer by another is not a real historical fact either. This plot is based on magazine gossip. Knowing how this gossip is formed, it can be assumed that some magazine publication in Austria, wanting to gain popularity, wrote that Salieri poisoned Mozart. Other journalists picked up and inflated this "sensation" to incredible proportions. It is only known that the unfortunate Salieri for many years could not wash off the label of an envious person and a poisoner. The source of this gossip is not known. But it took root, and after Salieri's death, it was reported that Salieri confessed to the murder on his deathbed.

Some writers accuse Pushkin of slandering the famous Italian composer. We will not blame our poet for this, who created a tragedy so remarkable in its psychologism. Moreover, this legend was not fiction on his part. It is not his fault that he relied on magazine rumors, thanks to which, it should be noted, two beautiful literary heroes were born from the pen of the great poet - the images of Salieri and Mozart.

In the tragedy "Mozart and Salieri" the main characters are opposed to each other. About the comparative characteristics of Mozart with Salieri - the prototypes of the same name of the great composers and the conversation will go. In this review, it will be a little difficult to separate literary heroes from their real prototypes, since Pushkin sought to recreate the images of living people.

One of them - Salieri personifies the genius of evil, which is strangled by envy. He realizes that he has to work hard to be successful. The Italian is overly self-critical of himself and others, tense. And this tension breaks through his music.

Contrasting, a different attitude to life and to their creations among the main characters is found in relation to the old violinist. Mozart laughs at his performance. He is happy that his music has gone to the people. And he does not care at all that the violinist plays badly, often out of tune.

Salieri sees only that the violinist shamelessly distorts a work of genius. And there is no doubt that if the violinist played an aria from some opera by Salieri, he would strangle the musician for such a performance. But Salieri's music, written according to the canons of harmony and musical literacy, did not leave the theater stage, and street violinists did not perform it.
Mozart is 35 years old, he is full of energy, is in the prime of his abilities and talent. He enjoys life, treats everything with humor.

Salieri has carried poison with him for 18 years. The monologue admits that at some point he also envied the lightness and musicality of Hayden (Franz Joseph Haydn, (1732-1809) - an Austrian composer, a contemporary of the heroes of the tragedy). But then he managed to drown out the temptation with the dream that a Master stronger than Gaiden might appear. There were moments when Salieri wanted to kill himself, which is also a sin before God. But from this step he was stopped by hope, to survive his moments of delight and inspiration. In Mozart, Salieri found his worst enemy. During lunch in a tavern, he poured poison into Mozart's glass.

The killer always finds an excuse for his villainy. The justification for Salieri is an imaginary salvation.

I have been chosen to
Stop - otherwise we all died,
We are all priests, ministers of music,
I'm not alone with my deaf glory ....
What's the use if Mozart is alive
And will it reach new heights?
Will he raise art? Not;
It will fall again as it disappears:

The image of Mozart personifies a genius. To say that this is a genius for good would be too simplistic. Mozart is a Divine Genius, to whom talent and ease in music is given from God. He is a very easy-going and cheerful person. He loves life and seeks to enjoy it. And this trait of the young composer also annoys Salieri. He cannot understand how it is possible, having such talent, such abilities, to be wasted on trifles. “You, Mozart, are not worthy of yourself,” says Salieri.

But Mozart's last days are clouded. It seems to him that he is being pursued by the "man in black" who ordered the Requiem. It is known that, having started work on the Requiem, the real (not literary) Mozart fell ill. The work was intense and took away his strength. Mozart had the feeling that the Requiem was killing him. Obviously, the information, filed under a mystical sauce, was leaked to the press, and Pushkin knew about it. The black man in tragedy is the image of death hovering over the brilliant composer.

Salieri did not live long enough to be 75 years old. He is known as the greatest mentor who brought up great composers. Among them are L. Beethoven, F. Liszt, F. Schubert. He wrote more than 40 operas, small works. But the works of Salieri are too serious for the "average minds", are more known to specialists. Mozart's operas are staged in theaters. His music is played in concerts. People enjoy listening to Mozart in recordings, and sometimes, without thinking about authorship, they put beautiful melodies from Mozart as ringtones on their phones.