Composition reasoning "Psychological portrait" Pechorin. Pechorin as a social and psychological type

The work "Hero of Our Time", written by M.Yu. Lermontov, is considered the first psychological novel in Russian literature, aimed at revealing the human soul, mainly of which is Grigory Pechorin.

Pechorin is an attractive young officer under the age of thirty, of medium height, but strong build: "... He was of medium height; his slender, thin frame and broad shoulders proved a strong build." He has delicate skin, blond hair, but this is a dark mustache and eyebrows, has an unpleasant, penetrating and heavy look, sometimes arrogant, but indifferently calm.This man is mysterious and active, his portrait combines features of strength and weakness, this is a complex nature, so one cannot judge him at first glance.

Pechorin is cruel and selfish. We see this already in the first chapter - he kidnaps Bela just because he liked this girl. Very soon, Pechorin's attitude towards the "poor girl changed." Bela quickly got tired of him, and he began to look for every reason to leave her, at least for a while. Love for Vera was Pechorin's deepest and most lasting affection, but he caused her a lot of suffering: "... you gave me nothing but suffering." Gregory did not know how to truly love. He could only make those who treated him so devotedly and reverently suffer. But problems love relationship little different from the friendly ones. From the words of Pechorin, we can conclude that he is not capable of friendship: "Of two friends, one is always the slave of the other." An example of this is Grushnitsky.

Pechorin, not perceiving friendship as a value, began to mock the cadet. Pretending to help Grushnitsky, he told Mary some moments of the life of a "friend", captured all the girl's attention and made her fall in love with him. Pechorin's hypocrisy destroyed what could be called "friendship" and led to a duel. In this scene, the author showed that in the face of death, the hero of the novel turned out to be as dual as we saw him throughout the entire work.

Pechorin is a person who is distinguished by stubbornness of will. The psychological portrait of the hero is fully revealed. Still, you can treat the hero of the novel in different ways, condemn him or feel sorry for the tormented by society human soul, but one cannot but admire the skill of the great Russian writer, who gave us this image, a psychological portrait of the hero of his time.

Updated: 2017-05-12

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Speaking of Pechorin, one cannot fail to notice the similarity of this image with Eugene Onegin.

Both of them live on everything ready, enjoy all the benefits that the people have earned, and at the same time they are eternally unhappy. But their main difference is that Onegin is an eternally bored observer, and Pechorin is deeply suffering.

The hero of the novel "A Hero of Our Time" has impulsiveness, a desire to act, although he treats life philosophically. His thoughts may seem kind and compassionate, but this is deceptive, because there is nothing virtuous in his actions.

It is impossible to say unequivocally: positive Pechorin or negative. But that. that in his life there are no goals, as well as trailers and respect for others, involuntarily shows him not from the best side.

He cannot realize himself anywhere: he despises the world for hypocrisy, and ordinary people- for gullibility bordering on stupidity.

At the beginning of the work, in the part of "Bela", Pechorin, showing the "spirit of adventurism", succumbing to a burst of tenderness and other bright feelings ruins the lives of Azamat, Kazbich, Bela's father and, finally, Bela herself.

To exchange a girl for a stolen and beloved horse by Kazbich, in my opinion, is an act already unworthy of an officer. I do not think about the consequences, forgetting. that you cannot stand on someone else's grief of happiness, Gregory destroys and does not stop there. Having kidnapped Bela, he fell in love with the unfortunate girl, and then cooled down to her. He did not even hide his indifference, which once again indicates his selfish nature.

Bela's death was useful to Pechorin, and, probably, to herself too, because sooner or later Grigory would have left her and it would have been an even more tragic death.

It is from this that the image of Pechorin is not particularly positive: a cunning egoist who does not think about the consequences, and besides, he does not even have the courage to admit to himself his crimes, justifying himself. And, of course, Grigory Aleksandrovich is very worried, but this does not justify him to some extent.

In the next chapter, Pechorin again showed himself on the bad side. Arrogant and dismissive attitude towards people who helped him and just treated him well, make Pkechorin in my eyes a moral monster, unable to sympathize, not having a sense of gratitude.

In the story "Taman" Gregory demonstrates his participation and indifference, but alas, so ineptly that he again destroys everything. After his "heroic" intervention, the blind child was left completely alone, useless.

This man was able to do something nasty even to his beloved Vera, and again no thoughts and feelings could keep his evil nature.

And summing up the analysis of the image, we can say that this vividly described personality has nothing to justify his low deeds. Everything that he despised in people he himself had in abundance: both hypocrisy and stupidity.

Everything good in these people fades against the backdrop of arrogance, cruelty and recklessness. All the correct thoughts of Pechorin did not carry any good.

And in our time there are such people, and I avoid them, because there is little human in them and one cannot count on the kindness of the Pechorins.

Pechorin is an ambiguous personality

The image of Pechorin in the novel "A Hero of Our Time" by Lermontov is an ambiguous image. It cannot be called positive, but it is not negative either. Many of his actions are worthy of condemnation, but it is also important to understand the motives of his behavior before making an assessment. The author called Pechorin a hero of his time, not because he recommended to be equal to him, and not because he wanted to ridicule him. He simply showed a portrait of a typical representative of that generation - an "extra person" - so that everyone could see what a social structure that disfigures the personality leads to.

Qualities of Pechorin

Knowledge of people

Can such a quality of Pechorin as an understanding of the psychology of people, the motives of their actions, be called bad? Another thing is that he uses it for other purposes. Instead of doing good, helping others, he plays with them, and these games, as a rule, end tragically. This was the end of the story with the mountain girl Bela, whom Pechorin persuaded her brother to steal. Having achieved the love of a freedom-loving girl, he lost interest in her, and soon Bela fell victim to the vengeful Kazbich.

Playing with Princess Mary also did not lead to anything good. Pechorin's intervention in her relationship with Grushnitsky resulted in broken heart princesses and death at the duel of Grushnitsky.

Ability to analyze

Pechorin demonstrates a brilliant ability to analyze in a conversation with Dr. Werner (chapter "Princess Mary"). He absolutely logically calculates that Princess Ligovskaya was interested in him, and not her daughter Mary. “You have a great gift for thinking,” Werner notes. However, this gift again does not find a worthy application. Pechorin could possibly do scientific discoveries, but he became disillusioned with the study of science, because he saw that in his society no one needed knowledge.

Independence from the opinions of others

The description of Pechorin in the novel "A Hero of Our Time" gives many a reason to accuse him of mental callousness. It would seem that he acted badly towards his old friend Maxim Maksimych. Upon learning that his colleague, with whom they ate more than one pood of salt together, stopped in the same city, Pechorin did not rush to meet him. Maxim Maksimych was very upset and offended by him. However, Pechorin is to blame, in fact, only for not living up to the old man's expectations. "Am I not the same?" - he reminded, nevertheless embracing Maxim Maksimych in a friendly way. Indeed, Pechorin never tries to portray himself as someone he is not, just to please others. He prefers to be rather than seem, always honest in the manifestation of his feelings, and from this point of view, his behavior deserves all approval. He also does not care what others say about him - Pechorin always does as he sees fit. AT modern conditions such qualities would be invaluable and would help him quickly achieve his goal, to fully realize himself.

Bravery

Courage and fearlessness are character traits due to which one could say “Pechorin is the hero of our time” without any ambiguity. They also appear on the hunt (Maxim Maksimych witnessed how Pechorin “went on a boar one on one”), and in a duel (he was not afraid to shoot with Grushnitsky on conditions that were obviously losing for him), and in a situation where it was necessary to pacify the raging drunken Cossack (chapter "Fatalist"). "... worse than death nothing will happen - and you will not escape death, ”Pechorin believes, and this conviction allows him to move forward more boldly. However, even the mortal danger he faced daily on Caucasian war, did not help him cope with boredom: he quickly got used to the buzz of Chechen bullets. It's obvious that military service was not his calling, and therefore brilliant abilities Pechorin in this area have not found further application. He decided to travel in the hope of finding a remedy for boredom "through storms and bad roads."

pride

Pechorin cannot be called conceited, greedy for praise, but he is proud enough. He is very hurt if a woman does not consider him the best and prefers another. And he strives by all means, by any means, to win her attention. This happened in the situation with Princess Mary, who at first liked Grushnitsky. From the analysis of Pechorin, which he himself does in his journal, it follows that it was important for him not so much to achieve the love of this girl as to recapture her from a competitor. “I also confess that an unpleasant, but familiar feeling ran lightly at that moment through my heart; this feeling - it was envy ... it is unlikely that there will be a young man who, having met a pretty woman who riveted his idle attention and suddenly clearly distinguished another, who is equally unfamiliar to her, I say, there is hardly such a young man (of course, who lived in high society and accustomed to indulge his vanity), who would not be unpleasantly struck by this.

Pechorin loves to achieve victory in everything. He managed to switch Mary's interest to his own person, make the proud Bela his mistress, get a secret date from Vera, and outplay Grushnitsky in a duel. If he had a worthy job, this desire to be the first would allow him to achieve tremendous success. But he has to give vent to his leadership in such a strange and destructive way.

selfishness

In the essay on the topic “Pechorin - the hero of our time”, one cannot fail to mention such a trait of his character as selfishness. He does not really care about the feelings and fates of other people who have become hostages of his whims, for him only the satisfaction of his own needs matters. Pechorin did not spare even Vera - the only woman who he thought he truly loved. He put her reputation at risk by visiting her at night in the absence of her husband. A vivid illustration of his dismissive, selfish attitude is his beloved horse, driven by him, who did not manage to catch up with the carriage with the departed Vera. On the way to Essentuki, Pechorin saw that “instead of a saddle, two ravens were sitting on his back.” Moreover, Pechorin sometimes enjoys the suffering of others. He imagines how Mary, after his incomprehensible behavior, "will spend the night without sleep and will cry", and this thought gives him "immense pleasure". “There are moments when I understand the Vampire…” he admits.

Pechorin's behavior is the result of the influence of circumstances

But can this bad character trait be called innate? Is Pechorin flawed from the very beginning, or was the living conditions made him so? Here is what he himself told Princess Mary: “... such was my fate from childhood. Everyone read on my face signs of bad feelings, which were not there; but they were supposed - and they were born. I was modest - I was accused of slyness: I became secretive ... I was ready to love the whole world - no one understood me: and I learned to hate ... I spoke the truth - they did not believe me: I began to deceive ... I became a moral cripple.

Being in an environment that does not match his inner essence, Pechorin is forced to break himself, to become what he is not in reality. This is where this internal inconsistency comes from, which left its mark on his appearance. The author of the novel draws a portrait of Pechorin: laughter with non-laughing eyes, a daring and at the same time indifferently calm look, a straight figure, limp, like a Balzac young lady, when he sat down on a bench, and other "inconsistencies".

Pechorin himself realizes that he makes an ambiguous impression: “Some revere me worse, others better than I really am ... Some will say: he was a kind fellow, others a bastard. Both will be false." But the truth is that under the influence of external circumstances, his personality has undergone such complex and ugly deformations that it is no longer possible to separate the bad from the good, the real from the false.

In the novel A Hero of Our Time, the image of Pechorin is a moral, psychological portrait of a whole generation. How many of its representatives, having not found a response in the surrounding “soul to wonderful impulses”, were forced to adapt, become the same as everyone around, or die. The author of the novel, Mikhail Lermontov, whose life ended tragically and prematurely, was one of them.

Artwork test

The image of Pechorin is one of the main artistic discoveries of Lermontov. The Pechorin type is truly epochal." Traditionally, Pechorin is considered to be a type of "superfluous people." However, in the modern era, when some fundamental provisions literary science reviewed or corrected, the problem creative method becomes the most relevant. Those pseudo-revolutionary concepts that have taken root in scientific consciousness in the last 10-15 years do not at all reflect the true needs of literary knowledge on present stage its development. The traditional approaches that oppose them also do not meet the challenge of the times. There is a lot of archaic in them, which has long been overcome by areas adjacent to philology. humanities. accumulated over the past half century
" Korovin V.I. creative way M.Yu. Lermontov. Moscow. "Education". 1973

2 Udodov B.T. Roman M.Yu. Lermontov "A Hero of Our Time". Moscow. "Education". 1989

potential in the field of psychology, anthropology, history, sociology opens up new prospects for historical and literary research.

In the light the latest discoveries fundamental rethinking requires both the original methodological guidelines and narrower problems - genre, type, character. Some terms should also be revised due to their high degree of inertness. At one time, F. Bacon called such terms-concepts "idols" that impede progress scientific knowledge. Among them, of course, should be included psychological analysis and social psychological type and character. All of them require an extensive interpretation on the basis of the discoveries of analytical and individual psychology.

In the West, the integration of literary criticism and scientific psychology took place more than 50 years ago. During this time, fundamental works of an epochal nature were published, among which one can name at least the monographs of J.-P. Sartre on Flaubert, K. Jaspers on Strindberg, E. Kretschmer on European writers, Z. Freud on Goethe, Poe, Jensen, K. -G. Jung about the methodology of literary criticism. In domestic science, archaic concepts are still found, such as “dialectics of the soul”, which characterize the infantile state of psychology and physiology. mid-nineteenth centuries and have not expressed anything from the point of view of strict scientific character for a long time. 1 Therefore, new original points of view appear, and one of them belongs to Oleg Georgievich Egorov, Doctor of Philology, Corresponding Member of IANP. In his study, he attempts to revise the traditional interpretation of the central types of Russian literature XIX century from the position of depth psychology.

Tradition classifies Lermontov Pechorin as a type of "superfluous people" and derives the properties of his character from the social conditions of the Nikolaev era. That is, the psychology of the hero is understood as social psychology, but simply sociology. determinism psychological nature conditions of the socio-political existence of the individual was an ingrained representation of the national literary tradition. There was nothing specifically psychological about this performance.

However, in the text of the novel there are many indications of other sources of Pechorin's character, which escaped the attention of critics due to their ignorance of the basics of scientific psychology. The discoveries of depth psychology of the 20th century make it possible to reveal the true motives of the behavior of the hero Lermontov and the essence of his relationship with other characters in the novel.

The disclosure of the character traits and motives of Pechorin's behavior is facilitated by the fact that part of the novel is written in the form of a diary. In the diary, the hero himself points to the origins of his spiritual conflicts. For scientific analysis important are both Pechorin's interpretation of the essence of these conflicts and their true origin, regardless of their understanding by the hero.

Pechorin refers the origin of the bad properties of his character to childhood in the famous monologue “Yes, that was my fate from childhood!” Elsewhere in his journal, he admits that memories have tremendous power for him. In both cases, the hero's statements are consistent with the conclusions of individual psychology that "the content and emotional coloring of childhood memories, "chosen" by a person from their huge mass in order to explain the direction of his personality, are very important."

The emotional conflicts experienced by Pechorin in childhood shaped his nervous character and guiding personal idea. “From a childish sense of inferiority,” as A. Adler writes, “an irritated desire for
"Egorov. O.G. Nervous character in Russian literature. Scientific and methodological journal "Literature at School". No. 3 2005. Editorial Board of the journal "Lessons of Literature".

authorities". These two spiritual properties - childhood neurosis and the desire for power - determined the entire further line of behavior of Lermontov's hero.

The neurotic warehouse of Pechorin's nature is also noted by other characters, including those acting outside the diary part of the novel. Maxim Maksimych calls this oddities, the sources of which are obscure to him, but their expressions are striking. And this is not surprising, since “nervous people,” according to the theory and practice of deep psychology, “do not have absolutely new features, they do not have a single feature that would not be found in normal person. But the neurotic character is conspicuous, it is more distinct...”. 2 Neither Maksim Maksimych nor Pechorin himself understand, despite very accurate observations, that his “strange behavior” is in him a compensation for a neurotic feeling of inferiority, which the hero himself qualifies as moral inferiority (from childhood I became a moral cripple).

In the lengthy monologue of the story “Princess Mary”, Pechorin lists the spiritual properties that arose in him as a result of childhood conflicts: “Everyone read signs of bad properties on my face that were not there; but they were assumed - and they were born ... no one caressed me, everyone insulted me: I became vindictive ... other children were cheerful and talkative; I felt myself superior to them - I was placed below. I have become envious ... "-" The form and content of a neurotic orientation are born from the impressions of a child who feels offended. These impressions, inevitably arising from the initial feeling of inferiority, cause an aggressive reaction in life, the purpose of which is to overcome one great uncertainty. In this aggressive position all the child's attempts find their place, which promise an elevation of his personal feelings. All manifestations of neurosis come from these preparatory means, which are directed towards the ultimate goal - to excellence. 3 “Children,” as individual psychology testifies, “do not explicitly express their desire for power over others, but hide it under the guise of caring and love and go about their business under a deceptive mask ... An undisguised desire for power and self-doubt can damage development child and turn courage into audacity, gentleness into a sophisticated strategy, the goal of which is complete domination. What happened to Pechorin in his mature years.

The connectedness of a rigid sociological attitude did not allow researchers to get out of the vicious circle of sociological determinants earlier. In the old social psychology there was nothing that would help to interpret the image from its personal psychological premises. All explanations were reduced to the era, time, method of romanticism. Axiologically, Lermontov's hero in all interpretations turned out to be a victim of circumstances, conditions, but never of his own choice, which lies in his spiritual depths.

Explaining the contradictions of his character with the spiritual conflicts of childhood, Pechorin builds his life plan not with an eye to the past, but based on the future. Therefore, all his extravagant actions should be interpreted not causally, but teleologically. “The neurotic psyche is not controlled by memories, but by a fictitious end goal that uses memories practically, in the form of readiness and character traits.” Such a goal for Pechorin is the thirst for power over other people. My ambition is suppressed by circumstances,” he admits in his diary, “but it manifested itself in a different form, for ambition is nothing more than a thirst for power, and my first pleasure is to subordinate everything that surrounds me to my will.” "A sign of neurosis, its difference from the norm, is, according to depth psychology, in the tendency"
1 Adler A.O. About the nervous character. Moscow. 1997

2 Adler A.O. About the nervous character. Moscow. 1997

3 Adler A.O. About the nervous character. Moscow. 1997

4 Adler A.O. About the nervous character. Moscow. 1997

show your superiority by all means." This circumstance was not noted by Lermontov's contemporary criticism, but did not go unnoticed by the reader of the 1840s. So, the sister of Nicholas I, Maria Pavlovna, quite correctly called the fundamental property of Pechorin’s character: “In Lermontov’s writings,” she wrote, “you find nothing but the desire and need to play a difficult game for dominance, winning a victory through a kind of spiritual indifference.”

Pechorin's childhood impressions are not limited solely to mental conflicts. From childhood, the hero also carried ideas about his social role. The fact that Pechorin, dwelling on the bad consequences of upbringing, does not mention his parents is indicative. He does not fix his neurotic symptoms on his parents. This gives grounds to assume an early liberation of the hero from their influence, an early break in family ties.

But freedom does not lead the hero to mental recovery. The break probably occurred before the completion of the process of individualization, most likely at its primary stage. Instead of gradually and painlessly freeing himself from psychological dependence on parental authority in the process of going through a long path of psychological self-realization and at the same time adapting to life in society, to its requirements and duties, Pechorin, as a result of a sharp break, receives a new mental trauma that forever fixes in his mind the image family as a miniature model of a social organism, to which it is necessary to stand in the same relationship as with the family. This is the reason for the constant flight of the hero from society and understanding him as a device of a despotic and hostile free individuality.

Just as in his spiritual life his psychic energy looked for detours and thereby led to spiritual conflicts, so in everyday life he sought to achieve the goal bypassing the socially accepted trajectory of movement public man. From this point of view, the composition of the novel reflects the curvature of the spiritual and life path of the hero.

By the beginning of the plot action of the novel, Pechorin's personal idea was not only formed, but also repeatedly tested in practice. Its essence was "the desire to be at the top." In the psychology of neurosis, "bottom" is a manifestation of a feeling of inferiority, "top" is a sense of a fictitious ultimate goal. In the change and fluctuations of mental manifestations, one finds "down", then "up".

The consequence of Pechorin's adventures in St. Petersburg was a link to the Caucasus: he ended up "below". But this fall was partly compensated by the fact that the Caucasus, being the “bottom” in the socio-hierarchical sense, is the “top” geographically. It is no coincidence that in Pyatigorsk Pechorin "rented an apartment on the highest place, at the sole of Mashuk."

The desire to dominate, to be "above" directs Pechorin's relationship in love. “The neurotic brings old prejudices into love and acts as if love should provide protection for his idea, the triumph of his inflated ideal of superiority, and not give new reality- friendship and unity with another person. 2 In his diary, Pechorin admits: “But there is an immense pleasure in the possession of a young, barely blossoming soul! .. I feel in myself this insatiable greed, absorbing everything that meets on the way ...”. "A nervous person is incapable of true love, because his frozen readiness serves fiction, the will to power, and not to social life."

The neurotic character of Pechorin is also manifested in his relationship with other characters in his diary, primarily with Werner and Grushnitsky. Pechorin did not get along with Werner because they have a lot in common, for example, in their way of thinking and in their relationship to the “water society”, as the hero claims. On the contrary, they are largely

1 Adler A.O. About the nervous character. Moscow. 1997 2 Adler A.O. About the nervous character. Moscow. 1997

are opposite. Pechorin admits that “he is not capable of friendship: of two friends, one is always the slave of the other, although often neither of them admits this to himself” (that is, one is always “above”).

In relations with Werner, Pechorin has an undeniable advantage. He is at the top here too. And the choice of Pechorin is not accidental. Werner is inferior to him in everything: he is pale, ugly, of low birth, has lost his clientele. Werner is overwhelmed by the same idea as Pechorin - to get "up". He cannot compete with Pechorin, and both understand this internally.

Pechorin could not be in close relations with Grushnitsky, not because he was lower in mind (Pechorin recognizes many virtues for him: wit, courage, good qualities of the soul), and Werner is smarter, but because in Grushnitsky’s society he cannot excel . He admits this from the very beginning: “... I don’t like him either: I feel that someday we will collide on a narrow road, and one of us will not do well.”

Grushnitsky has many properties that Werner does not have, but Pechorin has: an attractive appearance, origin, "is engaged in a whole life with oneself." Even in the speech of Pechorin and Grushnitsky there is one common phrase (Pechorin: “they (the wives of local authorities) are accustomed in the Caucasus to meet an ardent heart under a numbered button and an educated mind under a white cap”; Grushnitsky: “And what do they (the Moscow nobility) care, there Is the mind under a numbered cap or the heart under a thick overcoat?"). Grushnitsky would not have allowed, in friendship with Pechorin, to be in a subordinate position, "below", Pechorin would not have tolerated this either.

Pechorin does not need to compete with Werner: Pechorin surpasses him in almost everything. And Pechorin’s words that he and Werner “soon understood each other and became friends” cannot be understood as equality in relations. Pechorin and Werner gravitate towards each other as nervous characters. Werner cannot claim equality where it is impossible due to social origin and natural primogeniture. This is perceived in that environment as a natural, self-evident fact.

The mistake is that the reader and researcher often trust Pechorin's words too much, being distracted with? socio-historical and cultural realities of the time. Interfering with the understanding of this and entrenched in the mind (according to Pechorin) negative image of Grushnitsky and positive Werner. We must not forget that the images of both acquaintances of Pechorin are created by him, and the diary is a subjective genre.

Insight, understanding each other from a half-word of Pechorin and Werner are not indicators of the equality of both in their relationship. It should also be remembered that Grushnitsky for Pechorin (as well as Pechorin for Grushnitsky) is always an uncomfortable opponent. It is also necessary to take into account the devaluing trend in Pechorin's assessment of Grushnitsky. From the very beginning of their acquaintance, relations of rivalry for primacy in the army circle and the "water society" were established between them. Only Grushnitsky took the direct path in this rivalry, while Pechorin, as a neurotic, took a detour.

In the diary, although Pechorin is frank with himself, this does not change his negative attitude towards his competitor. He tries to belittle all the positive properties of Grushnitsky, and strengthen all the negative ones. If Grushnitsky were as insignificant as the traditional reading of the novel tries to present him, then he would not occupy such important place in Pechorin's journal and in the history of his Pyatigorsk adventures. The personality of Pechorin himself would be diminished by rivalry with such an insignificant character. The issue of primacy is not decided by the mind, courage and moral superiority of Pechorin, but by the estate institution of the duel, which initially equalizes the rivals.

Werner is also neurotic. But the origins of his neurosis are different than those of Pechorin. If the latter has a neurosis family life and relationships (despotic

parents and as a reaction to them - an early male protest), then Werner became neurotic due to organic defects (childhood rickets, congenital lameness, weak physical constitution) and low social origin.

Comparison of the three characters of the novel leads to intense conclusions -
Pechorin, Grushnitsky and Werner - in their usual attitude to strive
"up". Grushnitsky, as a person with an absolutely healthy psyche, goes straight to the goal
expensive (pseudo-romantic poses that he takes are just a tribute to fashion),
while Pechorin and Werner follow a detour to it, which is typical
neurotics.

Pechorin defines life goal Grushnitsky as the desire to "become a hero". And he puts a negative meaning into this assessment. The nervous types are characterized by a "tendency to devalue people and circumstances." But Pechorin himself has already become such a hero in the opinion of other people, albeit unwittingly. Werner informs Pechorin: “The princess began to talk about your adventures, probably adding her remarks to secular gossip”; "In her (Mary's) eyes you have become the hero of a novel in a new way."

Werner is reputed among young people as Mephistopheles, and this book nickname flatters his pride: not being able to succeed in achieving his life goal - to rise in wealth and position, he develops a devaluing tendency in himself, with the help of which he seeks to devalue those values ​​​​and authorities that he not available.

To do this, he, like Grushnitsky, uses book and theatrical clichés - the invariably black color of clothes and yellow gloves that were fashionable at that time, and in addition, a line of behavior (outwardly a skeptic, inside a poet). Like neurotics of his type, he is not alien to sentimentality (“wept over a dying soldier”), impractical in life (“I wouldn’t take an extra step for money”), although he sets a goal to get rich. The nervous warehouse of character turns Werner's goal to rise "up" by the price big money- into a life fiction.

If Grushnitsky is characterized by a prosaic life goal - to succeed with women - to clothe in pseudo-romantic forms characteristic of the collective consciousness of the era and environment, then Pechorin and Werner try to devalue, devalue what, in the opinion of the majority, is of unconditional value (a conversation in the "philosophical and metaphysical direction "in a circle of youth, frequent conversations" about abstract subjects ").

Werner is in implicit, but unconditional submission to Pechorin. This happens involuntarily and imperceptibly for Pechorin himself. Werner is flattered by friendship with Pechorin, whose generosity, appearance, authority and adventurism, as it were, serve as compensation for what he does not have. The charm and power of Pechorin's personality are so great that Werner's professional and human insight is powerless to resist them. Werner not only falls under the influence of Pechorin, but also becomes a tool in his hands: he reports important information for Pechorin, acts in society at his instigation.

The bizarre life path of Pechorin is not only a consequence of his bad upbringing and the social conditions of the time. This is his charisma, which he could not create himself, just like any external factors. The reasons for the controversial life path of Lermontov's hero lie in the dark depths of his psyche, some features of which were revealed to us by the author through brilliant creative intuition. The hero himself, analyzing his life path and character, tries to give a rational interpretation to the unknown depths of his own soul in two monologues: about a presumably existing destiny and about two expressions of his persona - a person acting and a person analyzing. Under latest forms, of course, it is necessary to understand the unconscious and the conscious. The unconsciousness of many of the hero's actions (irrationality from the point of view of the narrator and the characters of the novel) is caused by those unrevealed instincts that lurk in the depths of his soul.

At any social model(not only in the conditions of Nikolaev Russia), this type acted just as recklessly and unmotivated due to the decisive influence on his actions not by the contradictions of the era and the inadequacy of a spiritually gifted personality to it, but by virtue of internal mental factors hidden from consciousness, that is, inaccessible to everyday understanding. That is why the term "extra person" was assigned to Pechorin. Such individuals in various modifications appear in different social epochs, and their actions are always perceived by society as "unreasonable" and "inadequate". Explain them alone social conditions impossible, since the same character acts in the same way in different circumstances.

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Man is always driven by the desire to know his destiny. Should you go with the flow or resist it? What position in society will be correct, should all actions comply with moral standards? These and similar questions often become the main thing for young people who actively comprehend the world and human essence. Youthful maximalism demands to give to these problematic issues clear answers, but it is not always possible to give an answer.

M.Yu. tells us about such a seeker of answers. Lermontov in his novel A Hero of Our Time. It should be noted that with the writing of prose, Mikhail Yuryevich was always on "you" and the same position remained until the end of his life - all the novels he started in prose were never completed. Lermontov had the courage to bring the matter with the "Hero" to its logical conclusion. Perhaps that is why the composition, the manner of presentation of the material and the style of narration look, against the background of other novels, rather unusual.

"A Hero of Our Time" is a work imbued with the spirit of the era. The characterization of Pechorin, the central figure in Mikhail Lermontov's novel, makes it possible to better understand the atmosphere of the 1830s, the time when the work was written. "A Hero of Our Time" is not in vain recognized by critics as the most mature and large-scale in philosophical sense novels by Mikhail Lermontov.

Great importance to understand the novel has a historical context. In the 1830s Russian history was reactive. In 1825, the Decembrist uprising took place, and the following years contributed to the development of a mood of loss. The Nikolaev reaction unsettled many young people: young people did not know which vector of behavior and life to choose, how to make life meaningful.

This was the reason for the emergence of restless personalities, superfluous people.

Origin of Pechorin

Basically, in the novel, one hero is singled out, who is the central image in the story. It seems that this principle was rejected by Lermontov - based on the events told to the reader, the main character is Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin - a young man, an officer. However, the style of narration gives the right to doubt - the position in the text of Maxim Maksimovich is also quite weighty.

In fact, this is a delusion - Mikhail Yuryevich repeatedly emphasized that in his novel main character- Pechorin, this corresponds to the main goal of the story - to tell about the typical people of the generation, to point out their vices and mistakes.

Lermontov gives rather scarce information about childhood, upbringing conditions and the influence of parents on the process of forming Pechorin's positions and preferences. Several fragments of his past life open this veil - we learn that Grigory Alexandrovich was born in St. Petersburg. His parents, according to existing orders, tried to give their son a proper education, but young Pechorin did not feel a burden for the sciences, they "quickly bored" him and he decided to devote himself to military service. Perhaps such an act is not connected with the emerging interest in military affairs, but with the special disposition of society towards military people. The uniform made it possible to brighten up even the most unattractive deeds and character traits, because the military was loved already for what they are. In society, it was difficult to find representatives who did not have a military rank - military service was considered honorable and everyone wanted to “try on” honor and glory along with their uniform.

As it turned out, military affairs did not bring due satisfaction, and Pechorin quickly became disillusioned with her. Grigory Alexandrovich was sent to the Caucasus, as he was involved in a duel. The events that happened to a young man in this area form the basis of Lermontov's novel.

Characteristics of the actions and deeds of Pechorin

The reader gets his first impressions of the protagonist of Lermontov's novel by meeting Maxim Maksimych. The man served with Pechorin in the Caucasus, in the fortress. It was the story of a girl named Bela. Pechorin did badly with Bela: out of boredom, while having fun, the young man stole a Circassian girl. Bela is a beauty, at first cold with Pechorin. Gradually, the young man kindles a flame of love for him in Bela's heart, but as soon as the Circassian fell in love with Pechorin, he immediately lost interest in her.

Pechorin destroys the fate of other people, makes others suffer, but remains indifferent to the consequences of his actions. Bela and the girl's father die. Pechorin remembers the girl, regrets Bela, the past resonates in the hero’s soul with bitterness, but does not cause repentance in Pechorin. While Bela was alive, Gregory told his friend that he still loves the girl, feels gratitude for her, but boredom remains the same, and it is boredom that decides everything.

An attempt to find satisfaction, happiness pushes the young man to experiments that the hero puts on living people. Psychological games, meanwhile, turn out to be useless: the same emptiness remains in the soul of the hero. These same motives accompany the exposure of " honest smugglers» Pechorin: the act of the hero does not bring good results, only leaving the blind boy and the old woman on the verge of survival.

The love of a wild Caucasian beauty or a noblewoman does not matter to Pechorin. The next time, for the experiment, the hero chooses an aristocrat - Princess Mary. The handsome Grigory plays with the girl, evoking love for him in Mary's soul, but then leaves the princess, breaking her heart.

The reader learns about the situation with Princess Mary and the smugglers from the diary that the main character started, wanting to understand himself. In the end, even the diary bothers Pechorin: any activity ends in boredom. Grigory Alexandrovich does not bring anything to the end, not enduring the suffering from the loss of interest in the subject of his former passion. Pechorin's notes accumulate in a suitcase, which falls into the hands of Maxim Maksimych. The man has a strange affection for Pechorin, perceiving the young man as a friend. Maxim Maksimych keeps Grigory's notebooks and diaries, hoping to give the suitcase to a friend. But the young man is indifferent to fame, fame, Pechorin does not want to publish notes, so the diaries turn out to be unnecessary waste paper. In this secular disinterest of Pechorin is the peculiarity and value of the hero Lermontov.

Pechorin has one important feature- sincerity towards yourself. The actions of the hero arouse antipathy and even condemnation in the reader, but one thing must be admitted: Pechorin is open and honest, and the touch of vice is from weakness of will and the inability to resist the influence of society.

Pechorin and Onegin

Already after the first publications of Lermontov's novel, both readers and literary critics began to compare Pechorin from Lermontov's novel and Onegin from Pushkin's work among themselves. Both characters are related by similar traits of character, certain actions. As the researchers note, both Pechorin and Onegin were named according to the same principle. The names of the heroes are based on the name of the river - Onega and Pechora, respectively. But the symbolism does not end there.

The Pechora is a river in the northern part of Russia (the modern Komi Republic and the Nanets Autonomous Okrug), by its nature it is a typical mountain river. Onega - located in the modern Arkhangelsk region and more calm. The nature of the flow has a relationship with the characters of the heroes named after them. Pechorin's life is full of doubts and active searches for his place in society, he, like a seething stream, sweeps away everything without a trace in his path. Onegin is deprived of such a scale of destructive power, complexity and inability to realize himself cause in him a state of dull melancholy.

Byronism and the "Extra Man"

In order to holistically perceive the image of Pechorin, to understand his character, motives and actions, it is necessary to have knowledge about the Byronic and superfluous hero.

The first concept came to Russian literature from England. J. Baynov in his poem "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage" created a unique image endowed with a desire for active search its purpose, the characteristics of egocentrism, dissatisfaction and desire for change.

The second is a phenomenon that arose in Russian literature itself and denotes a person who was ahead of his time and therefore alien and incomprehensible to others. Or one who, based on his knowledge and understanding of worldly truths, is higher in the development of the others and, as a result, he is not accepted by society. Such characters become the cause of suffering for the female representatives who fell in love with them.

Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin is a classic representative of romanticism, who combined the concepts of Byronism and the superfluous person. Despondency, boredom and spleen are the product of such a combination.

Mikhail Lermontov considered the life history of an individual more interesting than the history of a people. " An extra person» Pechorin is made by circumstances. The hero is talented and intelligent, but the tragedy of Grigory Alexandrovich lies in the absence of a goal, in the inability to adapt himself, his talents to this world, in the general restlessness of the individual. In this, Pechorin's personality is an example of a typical decadent.

The forces of a young man are not spent in search of a goal, not in self-realization, but in adventure. Sometimes, literary critics compare the images of Pushkin's Eugene Onegin and Lermontov's Grigory Pechorin: Onegin is characterized by boredom, and Pechorin - suffering.

After the Decembrists were exiled, progressive trends and trends also succumbed to persecution. For Pechorin, a progressive-minded person, this meant the onset of a period of stagnation. Onegin has every opportunity to take the side of the people's cause, but refrains from doing so. Pechorin, having a desire to reform society, is deprived of such an opportunity. Grigory Alexandrovich ruins the wealth of spiritual forces for trifles: he hurts girls, Vera and Princess Mary suffer because of the hero, Bela dies ...

Pechorin was ruined by society and circumstances. The hero keeps a diary, where he notes that, as a child, he spoke only the truth, but adults did not believe in the boy's words.

Then Gregory became disillusioned with life and former ideals: the place of truth was replaced by lies. As a young man, Pechorin sincerely loved the world. Society laughed at him and this love - Grigory's kindness turned into malice.

The secular environment, literature quickly bored the hero. Hobbies were replaced by other passions. Only travel saves from boredom and disappointment. Mikhail Lermontov unfolds on the pages of the novel a whole evolution of the protagonist's personality: Pechorin's characteristic is revealed to the reader by all the central episodes of the formation of the hero's personality.

The character of Grigory Alexandrovich is accompanied by actions, behavior, decisions that more fully reveal the personality of the character. Pechorin is also evaluated by other heroes of Lermontov's novel, for example, Maxim Maksimych, who notices the inconsistency of Grigory. Pechorin is a strong, strong-bodied young man, but sometimes the hero is overcome by a strange physical weakness. Grigory Alexandrovich turned 30 years old, but the hero’s face is full of childish features, and the hero looks no more than 23 years old. The hero laughs, but at the same time, sadness is visible in Pechorin's eyes. Opinions about Pechorin, expressed by different characters in the novel, allow readers to look at the hero, respectively, from different positions.

The death of Pechorin expresses the idea of ​​Mikhail Lermontov: a person who has not found a goal remains superfluous, unnecessary for the environment. Such a person cannot serve for the benefit of mankind, is of no value to society and the fatherland.

In "A Hero of Our Time", the writer described the entire generation of his contemporaries - young people who have lost the purpose and meaning of life. Just as the Hemingway generation is considered lost, so the Lermontov generation is considered lost, superfluous, restless. These young people are subject to boredom, which turns into a vice in the context of the development of their society.

Appearance and age of Pechorin

At the time the story begins, Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin is 25 years old. He looks very good, well-groomed, so in some moments it seems that he is much younger than he really is. There was nothing unusual about his height and build: average height, strong athletic body. He was a man with pleasant features. As the author notes, he had a "unique face", one that women are madly in love with. Light, naturally curly hair, a “slightly upturned” nose, snow-white teeth and a sweetly childish smile - all this favorably complements his appearance.

His brown eyes seemed to have a life of their own—they never laughed when their owner laughed. Lermontov names two reasons for this phenomenon - either we have a person of an evil disposition, or one who is in a state of deep depression. Which explanation (or both at once) is applicable to the hero Lermontov does not give a direct answer - the reader will have to analyze these facts for himself.

The expression on his face is also incapable of expressing any emotion. Pechorin does not restrain himself - he is simply deprived of the ability to empathize.

The heavy, unpleasant look finally lubricates this look.

As you can see, Grigory Alexandrovich looks like a porcelain doll - his cute face with childish features seems to be a frozen mask, not a face real person.

Pechorin's clothes are always neat and clean - this is one of those principles that Grigory Alexandrovich follows impeccably - an aristocrat cannot be an untidy slob.

Being in the Caucasus, Pechorin easily leaves his usual outfit in the closet and puts on the national male attire of the Circassians. Many note that this clothing makes him look like a true Kabardian - sometimes people who belonged to this nationality do not look so impressive. Pechorin is more like a Kabardian than the Kabardians themselves. But even in these clothes he is a dandy - the length of the fur, the trim, the color and size of the clothes - everything is chosen with extraordinary care.

Characteristics of character traits

Pechorin is a classic representative of the aristocracy. He himself comes from a noble family, who received a decent upbringing and education (he knows French, dances well). All his life he lived in abundance, this fact allowed him to start his journey of searching for his destiny and such an occupation that would not let him get bored.

At first, the attention shown to them by women pleasantly flattered Grigory Alexandrovich, but soon he was able to study the behavioral patterns of all women and therefore communication with the ladies became boring and predictable for him. He is alien to the impulses of creating his own family, and as soon as it comes to hints about the wedding, his ardor for the girl instantly disappears.

Pechorin is not diligent - science and reading make him even more depressed than secular society. A rare exception in this regard is given to the works of Walter Scott.

When Savor became too painful for him, and travel, literary activity and science did not bring the desired result, Pechorin decides to start military career. He, as is customary among the aristocracy, serves in the Petersburg guard. But even here he does not stay long - participation in a duel dramatically changes his life - for this offense he is exiled to serve in the Caucasus.

If Pechorin was a hero folk epic, then its constant epithet the word would be "weird". All the characters find in him something unusual, different from other people. This fact has nothing to do with habits, mental or psychological development- here the point is precisely in the ability to express one's emotions, to adhere to one and the same position - sometimes Grigory Alexandrovich is very contradictory.

He likes to bring pain and suffering to others, he is aware of this and understands that such behavior does not paint not only him specifically, but also any person. And yet he does not try to restrain himself. Pechorin, compares himself with a vampire - the realization that someone will spend the night in mental anguish is incredibly flattering to him.

Pechorin is persistent and stubborn, this creates many problems for him, because of this he often finds himself in not the most pleasant situations, but here courage and determination come to his rescue.

Grigory Alexandrovich becomes the cause of the destruction of the life paths of many people. By his grace, a blind boy and an old woman remain abandoned to their fate (an episode with smugglers), Vulich, Bella and her father die, Pechorin's friend dies in a duel at the hands of Pechorin himself, Azamat becomes a criminal. This list can still be replenished with many names of people whom the main character insulted, became a reason for resentment and depression. Does Pechorin know and understand the full severity of the consequences of his actions? Quite, but this fact does not bother him - he does not value either his own life, or the fate of other people.

Thus, the image of Pechorin is contradictory and ambiguous. On the one hand, it is easy to find positive features character, but on the other hand, callousness and selfishness confidently reduce all his positive achievements to "no" - Grigory Alexandrovich destroys his own fate and the fate of those around him with his recklessness. He is a destructive force that is difficult to resist.

Psychological portrait of Grigory Pechorin

Lermontov helps to present the character traits of the character by referring to the appearance and habits of the hero. For example, Pechorin is distinguished by a lazy and careless gait, but at the same time, the hero’s gestures do not indicate that Pechorin is a secretive person. The forehead of the young man was marred by wrinkles, and when Grigory Alexandrovich sat, it seemed that the hero was tired. When Pechorin's lips laughed, his eyes remained motionless, sad.

Pechorin's fatigue was manifested in the fact that the hero's passion did not linger for a long time on any object or person. Grigory Alexandrovich said that in life he is guided not by the dictates of the heart, but by the orders of the head. This is coldness, rationality, periodically interrupted by a short-term riot of feelings. Pechorin is characterized by a trait called fatality. The young man is not afraid to go to the wild boar, looking for adventure and risk, as if trying his luck.

The contradictions in Pechorin's characterization are manifested in the fact that, with the courage described above, the hero is frightened by the slightest crackling of window shutters or the sound of rain. Pechorin is a fatalist, but at the same time convinced of the importance of human willpower. There is a certain predestination in life, expressed at least in the fact that a person will not escape death, so why then are they afraid to die. In the end, Pechorin wants to help society, to be useful by saving people from a Cossack killer.

Grigory Pechorin from the novel by M. Yu. Lermontov “A Hero of Our Time”: characteristics, image, description, portrait