What is the dark kingdom in a thunderstorm briefly. The Dark Kingdom in the drama “The Thunderstorm”

Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm" caused a strong reaction in the field of literary scholars and critics. A. Grigoriev, D. Pisarev, F. Dostoevsky dedicated their articles to this work. N. Dobrolyubov, some time after the publication of “The Thunderstorm,” wrote the article “A Ray of Light in the Dark Kingdom.” Being good critic, Dobrolyubov emphasized good style author, praising Ostrovsky for his deep knowledge of the Russian soul, and reproached other critics for the lack direct gaze for the work. In general, Dobrolyubov’s view is interesting from several points of view. For example, the critic believed that dramas should show the harmful influence of passion on a person’s life, which is why he calls Katerina a criminal. But Nikolai Alexandrovich nevertheless says that Katerina is also a martyr, because her suffering evokes a response in the soul of the viewer or reader. Dobrolyubov gives very accurate characteristics. It was he who called the merchants the “dark kingdom” in the play “The Thunderstorm”.

If we trace how the merchant class and adjacent social strata were displayed over the decades, we see full picture degradation and decline. In "The Minor" the Prostakovs are shown limited people, in “Woe from Wit” the Famusovs are frozen statues who refuse to live honestly. All these images are the predecessors of Kabanikha and Wild. It is these two characters that support the “dark kingdom” in the drama “The Thunderstorm”. The author introduces us to the morals and orders of the city from the very first lines of the play: “Cruel morals, sir, in our city, cruel!” In one of the dialogues between residents, the topic of violence is raised: “Whoever has money, sir, tries to enslave the poor... And among themselves, sir, how they live!... They quarrel with each other.” No matter how much people hide what is happening inside families, others already know everything. Kuligin says that no one has prayed to God here for a long time. All the doors are locked, “so that people don’t see how... they eat their own family and tyrannize their family.” Behind the locks there is debauchery and drunkenness. Kabanov goes to drink with Dikoy, Dikoy appears drunk in almost all scenes, Kabanikha is also not averse to having a glass - another in the company of Savl Prokofievich.

The entire world in which the inhabitants of the fictional city of Kalinov live is thoroughly saturated with lies and fraud. Power over the “dark kingdom” belongs to tyrants and deceivers. The residents are so accustomed to dispassionately fawning over wealthier people that this lifestyle is the norm for them. People often come to Dikiy to ask for money, knowing that he will humiliate them and not give them the required amount. Most negative emotions The merchant is called by his own nephew. Not even because Boris flatters Dikoy in order to get money, but because Dikoy himself does not want to part with the inheritance he received. His main traits are rudeness and greed. Dikoy believes that since he has large number money, which means others must obey him, fear him and at the same time respect him.

Kabanikha advocates for the preservation of the patriarchal system. She is a real tyrant, capable of driving anyone she doesn't like crazy. Marfa Ignatievna, hiding behind the fact that she reveres the old order, essentially destroys the family. Her son, Tikhon, is glad to go as far as possible, just not to hear his mother’s orders, her daughter does not value Kabanikha’s opinion, lies to her, and at the end of the play she simply runs away with Kudryash. Katerina suffered the most. The mother-in-law openly hated her daughter-in-law, controlled her every action, and was dissatisfied with every little thing. The most revealing scene seems to be the farewell scene to Tikhon. Kabanikha was offended by the fact that Katya hugged her husband goodbye. After all, she is a woman, which means she should always be inferior to a man. A wife’s destiny is to throw herself at her husband’s feet and sob, begging for a quick return. Katya does not like this point of view, but she is forced to submit to the will of her mother-in-law.

Dobrolyubov calls Katya “a ray of light in a dark kingdom,” which is also very symbolic. Firstly, Katya is different from the residents of the city. Although she was brought up according to the old laws, the preservation of which Kabanikha often talks about, she has a different idea of ​​​​life. Katya is kind and pure. She wants to help the poor, she wants to go to church, do household chores, raise children. But in such a situation, all this seems impossible because of one thing simple fact: in the “dark kingdom” in “The Thunderstorm” it is impossible to find inner peace. People constantly walk in fear, drink, lie, cheat on each other, trying to hide the unsightly sides of life. In such an atmosphere it is impossible to be honest with others, honest with oneself. Secondly, one ray is not enough to illuminate the “kingdom”. Light, according to the laws of physics, must be reflected from some surface. It is also known that black has the ability to absorb other colors. Similar laws apply to the situation with the main character plays. Katerina does not see in others what is in her. Neither the city residents nor Boris, “decently educated person", could not understand the reason internal conflict Kati. After all, even Boris is afraid of public opinion, he is dependent on Diky and the possibility of receiving an inheritance. He is also bound by a chain of deception and lies, because Boris supports Varvara’s idea to deceive Tikhon in order to save secret relationship with Katya. Let's apply the second law here. In Ostrovsky’s “The Thunderstorm,” the “dark kingdom” is so all-consuming that it is impossible to find a way out of it. It eats Katerina, forcing her to take on one of the most terrible sins from the point of view of Christianity - suicide. "The Dark Kingdom" leaves no other choice. It would find her anywhere, even if Katya ran away with Boris, even if she left her husband. No wonder Ostrovsky transfers the action to fictional city. The author wanted to show the typicality of the situation: such a situation was typical of all Russian cities. But is it only Russia?

Are the findings really that disappointing? The power of the tyrants is gradually beginning to weaken. Kabanikha and Dikoy feel this. They feel that soon other people, new ones, will take their place. People like Katya. Honest and open. And, perhaps, it is in them that those old customs that Marfa Ignatievna zealously defended will be revived. Dobrolyubov wrote that the ending of the play should be viewed in a positive way. “We are glad to see Katerina’s deliverance - even through death, if it is impossible otherwise. Living in the “dark kingdom” worse than death" This is confirmed by the words of Tikhon, who for the first time openly opposes not only his mother, but also the entire order of the city. “The play ends with this exclamation, and it seems to us that nothing could have been invented stronger and more truthful than such an ending. Tikhon's words make the viewer think not about love affair, but about this whole life, where the living envy the dead.”

Definition " dark kingdom" and a description of the images of its representatives will be useful to 10th grade students when writing an essay on the topic " Dark Kingdom in the play "The Thunderstorm" by Ostrovsky.

Work test

He is the first writer and playwright, on the pages of whose works the characters of the tyrants of Rus' were captured with all the depth, strength and realism. And the essence of the main conflict in “The Thunderstorm”, one of its most famous plays, lies in the confrontation between heroes representing the patriarchal way of life and people of the new generation who want to be guided in their actions with your own feelings and your own mind. But overcoming the “dark kingdom” is not at all easy, since its power is based on despotism, fear, cunning and money.

Already at the very beginning of the play, we are talking about the merchant Diky - a cruel, capricious and capricious man. They say about him: “Look for another scolder like ours, Savel Prokofich! There’s no way he’ll cut someone off.” Dikoy scolds everyone, especially his family. For example, his wife constantly asks her loved ones: “Fathers, don’t make me angry! Darling, don’t make me angry!” And his biggest sore spot is money. He himself admits that he even regrets paying off his debts: “After all, I already know that I have to pay back, but I can’t do everything with goodness. You are my friend, and I must give it to you, but if you come and ask me, I will scold you.”

Despite all his violent temper, with people who can fight back, Dikoy behaves like an ordinary coward. An example is the situation with a hussar on a transport.

The ignorance that characterizes the Wild One is also typical feature representative of the "dark kingdom". The episode when the local inventor Kuligin asks for money to install lightning rods, and Dikoy refuses him, citing the fact that the thunderstorm is being sent to us as punishment, speaks of him as a narrow-minded, superstitious and uneducated person. ­

The female half of the “dark kingdom” is represented in “The Thunderstorm” by the merchant Kabanikha. Dikoy, of course, is a big scolder, but he is easy-going. But Kabanikha is cunning and vindictive. In addition, she is a real bigot who does evil “under the guise of piety.” The merchant's wife Kabanova vigilantly stands guard over the patriarchal laws of morality and demands from her loved ones that they strictly follow these rules. Kabanikha knows how to pretend to be and loving mother who wants only good, and when necessary she becomes poor or, on the contrary, shows her power.

Instead of a man, Kabanikha raised from her son only her pale shadow, full of fear and humility. Representatives of the “dark kingdom” would be happy to make all the residents of Kalinov so downtrodden and weak-willed. But now the old world is coming to an end, and she becomes afraid. She is opposed no less strong personality– Katerina. The merchant's wife fights, and even, as it seems to her, wins. But at the end of the play she realizes that she is left alone. Even her son rebels against her. To lose former influence and power - what could be worse for Kabanikha?

Another representative of the “dark kingdom” is the wanderer Feklusha, who acts as the defender of the “dark kingdom”. She praises the city of Kalinov, its merchant way of life, while criticizing foreign countries: “Our law is righteous, but theirs... is unrighteous.” But, as a person who has been a lot, she sees signs of impending changes: “ Last times, Mother Marfa Ignatievna, by all accounts, the last.” She turned out to be right - only a year and a half remained before the famous Peasant Reform, which was supposed to put an end to the “dark kingdom”, from the release of the play.

/ / / “The Dark Kingdom” in Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm”

In his play “,” A.N. Ostrovsky portrays for the first time realistic world"dark kingdom" Who was included in it? This most of that society - tyrants who had the power of money in their hands, who wanted to enslave the poor and profit even more from their free labor. Ostrovsky for the first time opens the world of merchants with all the realities and true events. There is nothing humane or good in this world. No faith in free man, in happiness, in love and decent work.

What is the conflict of the play? In the clash of interests and morals of the past and future generations of people. The complex images of the characters in this play are depicted with special meaning. The rich merchant – Dikoy – is quite an important person in the city. Kudryash, you mean Savel Prokofievich, imagines himself as the ruler of the world and the master of the life around him. Many characters are afraid of him and simply stand in awe of his image. The lawlessness in the Wild's behavior is covered up by the power and significance of his financial fortune. He has the patronage of state power.

Ostrovsky creates a rather ambiguous and complex image of the Wild. This character is faced with the problem of not the external opposition of those around him to his person. He is experiencing an internal protest. The hero understands how callous his middle and his heart are. He tells a story about how he scolded a peasant who was transporting firewood over a trifle. Dikoy pounced on him and almost killed him out of nowhere. And then he began to repent and ask for forgiveness. And he admitted that his heart was “wild.”

It is in this image that we see the secret meaning of the “dark kingdom”. It was outliving itself from the inside. The internal protest of the tyrants of that time destroyed themselves.

Analyzing another image of the play “The Dark Kingdom”, one can notice other features of the tyrants of that time.

The person puzzles us. In her opinion, all relationships in the family should be subject to fear. She is despotic and hypocritical. She is used to living according to the principles of the old society. She completely eats up everyone at home and doesn’t give them a peaceful life.

The secondary image of the wanderer Feklushi comes to the defense of the dying “dark kingdom”. She enters into a conversation with Kabanikha and keeps preaching to her her thoughts about the imminent death of the “dark kingdom.”

In his play, in order to convey to the reader all his thoughts and reasoning, Ostrovsky creates many symbolic images. A thunderstorm is one of them. The ending of the play conveys the author’s thoughts that life in such a “dark kingdom” is unbearable and terrible. The reader understands that the world of tyrants is being overcome by an awakened person who is filled with real, human feelings, which can overcome the falsehood and hypocrisy of that “dark kingdom”.

A. N. Ostrovsky had a high understanding of Russian life and a great ability to depict sharply and vividly its most significant aspects. Dobrolyubov called the world depicted by the playwright a “dark kingdom.”
So what is this “dark kingdom”?
Getting acquainted with the situation and lifestyle of the inhabitants of Kalinov from the first scenes of the drama, we can judge the philistinism of the city.
“Cruel morals, sir, in our city, cruel!”
For high fences, behind heavy locks tears flow. “Whoever has money, sir, tries to enslave the poor... And among themselves, sir, how they live!... They quarrel with each other.” Who are they? Rude people, slanderers, envious people, oppressors.
Dobrolyubov calls this type of people “tyrants of Russian life.” Dikoy and Kabanikha are presented in the role of “tyrants” in the play.
The meaning of Dikov’s life is to acquire and increase his wealth. To achieve this, he does not disdain any means. To the mayor, to whom the men complained that Dikoy was robbing them, he replies: “Is it worth it, your honor, for us to talk about such trifles! I have a lot of people a year: you understand: I won’t pay them a penny extra per person, but I make thousands out of this, so it’s good for me!”
The main traits of the Wild are greed and rudeness. Having thousands, he feels his strength and brazenly demands everyone's respect and obedience. He considers himself entitled to scold all people in a row.
His whole life is based on swearing. “Most of all, it’s because of money; not a single settlement is complete without abuse.” No one dares say a word to him about his salary; he scolds him for what it’s worth. Everyone in the house is afraid of him, they try not to make him angry in the morning, otherwise he will find fault with everyone all day. And it’s a disaster if it’s a person whom he doesn’t dare scold; Stay home right now. “Like he broke the chain,” Kudryash characterizes him.
Showing his power, Dikoy says to Kulizhin: “I say that you are a robber, and that’s the end! What, are you going to sue me or something? So you know that you are a worm. If I want, I’ll have mercy, if I want, I’ll crush.”
But Dikoy doesn’t scold everyone, he doesn’t talk to everyone like that. As soon as you encounter resistance, the tone immediately changes. He is afraid of his clerk Kudryash. “He is the word, and I am ten; he will spit and go. No, I won’t slave to him,” says Kudryash. He doesn’t dare scold Kabanikha either.
It turns out that it is not so difficult to humble the Wild One; it is enough to provide him with at least some resistance. But the trouble is that he encounters almost no resistance to this.
The wild man's speech characterizes him as extremely rude, ignorant, uneducated person. He doesn't want to know anything about science, culture, inventions. When Kuligin asks him for money for a sundial, Dikoy won’t even understand, oh
how we're talking about.
In response to quotes from Derzhavin’s poems, Dikoy says to Kuligin: “Don’t you dare be rude to me!”
The limit of the power of tyrants depends on the degree of obedience of those around them. Another mistress of the “dark kingdom” understood this well.
Kabanikha. She is outwardly calm and has good self-control. “A prude, she lavishes on the poor, but completely eats up her family,” is what Kuligin says about her. Measured, monotonously, without raising her voice, she exhausts her family with her endless moralizing,
reproaches, reproaches, complaints: “If the parent ever says something offensive, out of your pride, then, I think, it could be transferred.”
She never tires of repeating that she doesn’t care about herself, but about her children: “After all, parents are strict with you out of love, they scold you out of love, and everyone thinks to teach you good.”
But from her love and care Tikhon becomes stupefied and runs away from Varvara’s house. Her constant tyranny tormented Katerina and led her to death. Kabanikha constantly pretends to be offended and unhappy: “Mother is old and stupid; Well, what about you young people?
smart people shouldn’t exact it from us fools.” She sees her main concern as stopping any possibility of disobedience. The boar eats the family in order to kill their will, any ability to resist. She supports
superstitions and prejudices, strictly observes old customs and orders: “Why are you standing there, don’t you know the order? Order your wife how to live without you!”
Kabanikha is a powerful, proud, willful woman, accustomed only to unquestioning submission and humiliation of others: “Well, well, give orders! So that I can hear what you order her!”
“In the night, in the night,” he orders Tikhon. This is not a woman, but a heartless, cruel executioner. Even at the sight of Katerina’s body pulled out of the Volga, she remains icy calm. Kabanikha understands that only fear can keep people in
subordination, to prolong the reign of tyrants. In response to Tikhon’s words, why should his wife be afraid of him, Kabanikha exclaims in horror: “Why be afraid! Are you crazy, or what? He won’t be afraid of you, and even less so of me.”
She defends the law according to which the weak should fear the strong, according to which a person should not have his own will. After Katerina’s confession, she loudly and triumphantly says to Tikhon: “What, son! Where does the will lead? I told you, so you
I didn't want to listen. That’s what I’ve been waiting for!”
Truly, in the words of Dobrolyubov, “Nothing sacred, nothing pure, nothing right in this dark world" The critic exclaimed: “Tarritability, wild, insane, drove out from him all consciousness of honor and right... the human being was brazenly trampled by tyrants
dignity, personal freedom, belief in love and happiness.”
The power of Kabanikha and Wild is still great “But - a wonderful thing! ... tyrants begin to feel some kind of discontent and fear, without knowing what and why. Besides them, without asking them, another life grew up, with different beginnings. She's still far away, but
He is already giving himself a presentiment and sending bad visions to the dark tyranny of the tyrants.”

A.N. Ostrovsky finished his play in 1859, on the eve of the abolition of serfdom. Russia was awaiting reform, and the play became the first stage in the awareness of impending changes in society.

In his work, Ostrovsky presents us with merchant environment, personifying the “dark kingdom”. The author shows the whole gallery negative images using the example of residents of the city of Kalinov. Using the example of the townspeople, we are shown their ignorance, lack of education, and adherence to the old order. We can say that all Kalinovites are in the shackles of the ancient “house-building”.

Prominent representatives The “dark kingdom” in the play are the “fathers” of the city in the person of Kabanikha and Dikoy. Marfa Kabanova tortures those around her and those close to her with reproaches and suspicion. She relies on the authority of antiquity in everything and expects the same from those around her. There is no need to talk about her love for her son and daughter; Kabanikha’s children are completely subordinate to her power. Everything in Kabanova's house is based on fear. To frighten and humiliate is her philosophy.

Wild is much more primitive than Kabanova. This is the image of a real tyrant. With his screams and swearing, this hero humiliates other people, thereby, as it were, rising above them. It seems to me that this is a way of self-expression for Dikiy: “What are you going to tell me to do with myself when my heart is like this!”; “I scolded him, I scolded him so much that I couldn’t ask for anything better, I almost killed him. This is the kind of heart I have!”

The unreasonable abuse of the Wild One, the hypocritical pickiness of Kabanikha - all this is due to the powerlessness of the heroes. The more real the changes in society and people, the stronger their voices of protest begin to sound. But the rage of these heroes makes no sense: their words remain only an empty sound. “...But everything is somehow restless, it’s not good for them. Besides them, without asking them, another life has grown with other beginnings, and although it is far away and not yet clearly visible, it is already giving itself a presentiment and sending bad visions to dark tyranny,” writes Dobrolyubov about the play.

The images of Kuligin and Katerina are contrasted with the wild one, Kabanikha, and the whole city. In his monologues, Kuligin tries to reason with the residents of Kalinov, to open their eyes to what is happening around them. For example, all the townspeople are in wild, natural horror from the thunderstorm and perceive it as heavenly punishment. Only Kuligin is not afraid, but sees in a thunderstorm a natural phenomenon of nature, beautiful and majestic. He proposes to build a lightning rod, but does not find approval or understanding from others. Despite all this, the “dark kingdom” was unable to absorb this self-taught eccentric. In the midst of savagery and tyranny, he retained the humanity within himself.

But not all the heroes of the play can resist cruel morals"dark kingdom" Tikhon Kabanov is downtrodden and persecuted by this society. Therefore, his image is tragic. The hero could not resist; from childhood he agreed with his mother in everything and never contradicted her. And only at the end of the play, in front of the body of the dead Katerina, Tikhon decides to confront his mother and even blames her for the death of his wife.

Tikhon's sister, Varvara, finds her own way to survive in Kalinov. Strong, brave and cunning character allows the girl to adapt to life in the “dark kingdom.” For her peace of mind and to avoid troubles, she lives according to the principle of “closet and security”, she deceives and deceives. But by doing all this, Varvara is only trying to live as she wants.

Katerina Kabanova is a bright soul. Against the backdrop of everything dead kingdom it stands out for its purity and spontaneity. This heroine is not mired in material interests and outdated everyday truths, like other residents of Kalinov. Her soul strives to free itself from the oppression and suffocation of these people who are strangers to it. Having fallen in love with Boris and cheating on her husband, Katerina is in terrible pangs of conscience. And she perceives the thunderstorm as heavenly punishment for her sins: “Everyone should be afraid! It’s not so scary that it will kill you, but that death will suddenly find you as you are, with all your sins...” Pious Katerina, unable to withstand the pressure of her own conscience, decides on the most terrible sin- suicide.

Dikiy’s nephew, Boris, is also a victim of the “dark kingdom.” He resigned himself to spiritual slavery and broke under the yoke of pressure from the old ways. Boris seduced Katerina, but he did not have the strength to save her, to take her away from the hated city. “The Dark Kingdom” turned out to be stronger than this hero.

Another representative of the “Dark Kingdom” is the wanderer Feklusha. She is highly respected in Kabanikha's house. Her ignorant tales about distant countries listen carefully and even believe them. Only in such a dark and ignorant society can no one doubt Feklusha’s stories. The Wanderer supports Kabanikha, feeling her strength and power in the city.

In my opinion, the play “The Thunderstorm” is a work of genius. It reveals so many images, so many characters that it would be enough for a whole encyclopedia of negative characters. All ignorance, superstition, and lack of education were absorbed into Kalinov’s “dark kingdom.” “The Thunderstorm” shows us that the old way of life has long since become obsolete and does not respond modern conditions life. Change is already on the threshold of the “dark kingdom” and, together with the thunderstorm, is trying to break into it. It doesn't matter that they encounter enormous resistance from wild and boar animals. After reading the play, it becomes clear that they are all powerless in the face of the future.