Morals of the merchant environment in A. Ostrovsky's comedy "Own people - let's settle!"
Russian theater in its modern sense begins with Ostrovsky: the writer created a theater school and a holistic concept of acting in the theater. Staged performances at the Moscow Maly Theatre.
The main ideas of the theater reform:
the theater should be built on conventions (there is a 4th wall separating the audience from the actors);
invariability of attitude to language: mastery of speech characteristics, expressing almost everything about the characters;
the bet on the entire troupe, and not on one actor;
"People go to see the game, not the play itself - you can read it."
Ostrovsky's ideas were carried to their logical end by Stanislavsky.
Composition of the Complete Works in 16 volumes. The composition of the PSS in 16 volumes. M: GIHL, 1949 - 1953 With the application of translations not included in the PSS.
Moscow, State publishing house of fiction, 1949 - 1953, circulation 100 thousand copies.
Volume 1: Plays 1847-1854
From the editor.
1. Family picture, 1847.
2. Our people - let's settle. Comedy, 1849.
3. Morning of a young man. Scenes, 1950, qualification. resolution 1852
4. Unexpected case. Dramatic study, 1850, publ. 1851.
5. Poor bride. Comedy, 1851.
6. Do not sit in your sleigh. Comedy, 1852, publ. 1853.
7. Poverty is not a vice. Comedy, 1853, publ. 1854.
8. Don't live as you want. People's drama, 1854, publ. 1855.
Application:
Claim request. Comedy (1st edition of the play "Family Picture").
Volume 2: Plays 1856-1861
9. Hangover in someone else's feast. Comedy, 1855, publ. 1856.
10. Profitable place. Comedy, 1856, publ. 1857.
11. Festive sleep - before dinner. Pictures of Moscow life, 1857, publ. 1857.
12. Didn't get along! Pictures of Moscow life, 1857, publ. 1858.
13. Pupil. Scenes from village life, 1858, publ. 1858.
14. Thunderstorm. Drama, 1859, publ. 1860.
15. An old friend is better than two new ones. Pictures of Moscow life, 1859, publ. 1860.
16. Own dogs squabble, don't pester someone else's! 1861, publ. 1861.
17. What you go for, you will find (Balzaminov's Marriage). Pictures of Moscow life, 1861, publ. 1861.
Volume 3: Plays 1862-1864
18. Kozma Zakharyich Minin, Sukhoruk. Dramatic Chronicle (1st edition), 1861, publ. 1862.
Kozma Zakharyevich Minin, Sukhoruk. Dramatic Chronicle (2nd edition), publ. 1866.
19. Sin and trouble does not live on anyone. Drama, 1863.
20. Hard days. Scenes from Moscow life, 1863.
21. Jokers. Pictures of Moscow life, 1864.
Volume 4: Plays 1865-1867
22. Governor (Dream on the Volga). Comedy (1st edition), 1864, publ. 1865.
23. In a lively place. Comedy, 1865.
24. Abyss. Scenes from Moscow life, 1866.
25. Dmitry Pretender and Vasily Shuisky. Dramatic Chronicle, 1866, publ. 1867.
Volume 5: Plays 1867-1870
26. Tushino. Dramatic Chronicle, 1866, publ. 1867.
27. Simplicity is enough for every wise man. Comedy, 1868.
28. Hot heart. Comedy, 1869.
29. Crazy money. Comedy, 1869, publ. 1870.
Volume 6: Plays 1871-1874
30. Forest. Comedy, 1870, publ. 1871.
31. Not all cats have carnival. Scenes from Moscow life, 1871.
32. There was not a penny, but suddenly Altyn. Comedy, 1871, publ. 1872.
33. Comedian of the 17th century. Comedy in verse, 1872, publ. 1873.
34. Late love. Scenes from the life of the outback, 1873, publ. 1874.
Volume 7: Plays 1873-1876
35. Snow Maiden. Spring Tale, 1873.
36. Labor bread. Scenes from the life of the outback, 1874.
37. Wolves and sheep. Comedy, 1875.
38. Rich brides. Comedy, 1875, publ. 1878.
Volume 8: Plays 1877-1881
39. The truth is good, but happiness is better. Comedy, 1876, publ. 1877.
40. The last victim. Comedy, 1877, publ. 1878.
41. Dowry. Drama, 1878, publ. 1879.
42. The heart is not a stone. Comedy, 1879, publ. 1880.
43. Slaves. Comedy, 1880, publ. 1884?
Volume 9: Plays 1882-1885
44. Talents and fans. Comedy, 1881, publ. 1882.
45. Handsome man. Comedy, 1882, publ. 1883.
46. Guilty without guilt. Comedy, 1883, publ. 1884.
47. Not of this world. Family scenes, 1884, publ. 1885.
48. Governor (Dream on the Volga). (2nd edition).
Volume 10. Plays written jointly with other authors, 1868-1882.
49. Vasilisa Melentyeva. Drama (with the participation of S. A. Gedeonov), 1867.
Together with N. Ya. Solovyov:
50. Happy day. Scenes from the life of a provincial outback, 1877.
51. Marriage of Belugin. Comedy, 1877, publ. 1878.
52. Savage. Comedy, 1879.
53. Shines, but does not heat. Drama, 1880, publ. 1881.
Together with P. M. Nevezhin:
54. A whim. Comedy, 1879, publ. 1881.
55. Old in a new way. Comedy, 1882.
Volume 11: Selected translations from English, Italian, Spanish, 1865-1879.
1) Pacify the wayward. Shakespeare's comedy, 1865.
2) Coffee shop. Comedy Goldoni, 1872.
3) The family of criminals. Drama by P. Giacometti, 1872.
Sideshows by Cervantes:
4) Salamanskaya cave, 1885.
5) Theater of miracles.
6) Two talkers, 1886.
7) Jealous old man.
8) Divorce Judge, 1883.
9) Biscay impostor.
10) Election of alcaldes in Daganso.
11) Watchman, 1884.
Volume 12: Articles about the theater. Notes. Speeches. 1859-1886.
Volume 13: Fiction. Criticism. Diaries. Dictionary. 1843-1886.
Works of art. pp. 7 - 136.
The story of how the quarter warden started dancing, or from the great to the ridiculous is only one step. Story.
Notes of a Zamoskvoretsky resident Essay.
[Biography of Yasha]. Feature article.
Zamoskvorechye on a holiday. Feature article.
Kuzma Samsonych. Feature article.
Did not get along. Tale.
"I dreamed of a big hall ..." Poem.
[Acrostic]. Poem.
Maslenitsa. Poem.
Ivan Tsarevich. A fairy tale in 5 acts and 16 scenes.
Criticism. pp. 137 - 174.
Diaries. pp. 175 - 304.
Dictionary [Materials for the dictionary of the Russian folk language].
Volume 14: Letters 1842 - 1872
Volume 15: Letters 1873 - 1880
Volume 16: Letters 1881 - 1886
Translations not included in the Complete Collection
William Shakespeare. Anthony and Cleopatra. An excerpt from an unfinished translation. , first publication 1891
Staritsky MP For two hares. Comedy from petty-bourgeois life in four acts.
Staritsky M.P. Last night. Historical drama in two scenes.
The play “Our people - we will settle” was attributed to A.N. Ostrovsky to the genre of comedy, however, both contemporaries and critics of later periods considered the story told by the playwright rather tragic. And the fate of the work itself was not simple: it was banned from being staged, and the author himself was even taken under surveillance. However, the reading of the play nevertheless took place - it took place in the house of the Russian historian Mikhail Pogodin. But she had to wait another 11 years for a meeting with the audience - and then the production was significantly curtailed compared to the original.
The basis of Ostrovsky's play "Our People - Let's Settle" is the conflict of fathers and children. The older generation is rather sympathetic, since the merchant Samson Silych Bolshov deceives at least for the sake of the future of his daughter and completely trusts her and her fiancé, but Lazar and Lipochka deceive for their own benefit, not embarrassed to betray the closest person. Thus, social and family conflicts are closely intertwined in the work, which makes it possible to more clearly show the characters' characters.
“Own people - let's settle” is worth reading to the end or downloading in full to see the transformation of a comedy into a tragedy. The viewer can observe the insight of the deceived deceiver Bolshov, who was imprisoned for debt because of the greed and selfishness of his beloved daughter. Morality in the performance of Ostrovsky looks quite cruel, and the younger generation of merchants is even more unattractive than the old one. After all, if Samson Silych believed at least in family ties, then young people believe only in a fat purse. It is not known for certain whether the playwright faced similar situations in practice at the time when he worked in the Moscow Commercial Court, but the maximum realism of the play, which became possible thanks to his legal experience, makes what is happening even more poignant.
Composition
The play "Our people - we will settle", on which A. N. Ostrovsky worked from 1846 to 1849, became the debut of a young playwright. The original title of the work - "Bankrut" - gives an idea of the plot of the play. Its main character, the hardened merchant Bolshov, conceives and carries out an unusual scam. He declares himself a Bacrote, although he is not really one.
Thanks to this deception, Bolshov expects to get even richer. But he alone is "unhandy", and the clerk Podkhalyuzin is well aware of the state of his affairs. The protagonist makes the clerk his accomplice, but does not take into account one thing - Podkhalyuzin is an even greater swindler than Bolshov. As a result, the experienced merchant, the thunderstorm of the whole city, "remains with a big nose" - Podkhalyuzin takes possession of all his fortune, and even marries his only daughter, Lipochka.
In my opinion, in this comedy, Ostrovsky acted in many ways as a successor to the traditions of N.V. Gogol. So, for example, the "manner" of the great Russian comedian is felt in the nature of the conflict of the work, in the fact that there are no positive heroes (the only such "hero" can be called laughter).
But, at the same time, "Our people - let's settle" - a deeply innovative work. This was recognized by all Ostrovsky's "literary" contemporaries. In his play, the playwright used completely new material - he brought merchants to the stage, showed the life and customs of their environment.
In my opinion, the main difference between "Our People - Let's Settle" and Gogol's plays lies in the role of comedic intrigue and the attitude of the characters towards it. In Ostrovsky's comedy there are characters and whole scenes that are not only not needed for the development of the plot, but, on the contrary, slow it down. However, these scenes are no less important for understanding the work than the intrigue based on the imaginary bankruptcy of Bolshov. They are necessary in order to more fully describe the life and customs of the merchants, the conditions in which the main action takes place.
For the first time, Ostrovsky uses a technique that is repeated in almost all of his plays - a detailed slow-motion exposure. In addition, some characters of the work are introduced into the play not at all in order to somehow develop the conflict. These “setting persons” (for example, the matchmaker, Tishka) are interesting in themselves, as representatives of the everyday environment, mores and customs: “Other owners, if a boy already lives in boys, therefore he is present at the shop. And with us here and there, shuffle along the pavement all day long like a madman. We can say that these heroes complement the image of the merchant world with small, but bright, colorful touches.
Thus, the everyday, the ordinary interests Ostrovsky the playwright no less than something out of the ordinary (the scam of Bolshov and Podkhalyuzin). So, the conversations of Bolshov’s wife and daughter about outfits and grooms, the squabble between them, the grumbling of the old nanny perfectly convey the usual atmosphere of a merchant family, the range of interests and dreams of these people: “You didn’t teach - outsiders; completeness, please; you yourself, to confess to say, have not been brought up in anything ”; “Calm down, hey, calm down, shameless! You will take me out of patience, I’ll go straight to my father, so I’ll bang at my feet, I’ll say, there’s no life from my daughter, Samsonushko! “... we all walk in fear; that and look, the drunk will arrive. And what a blessing, Lord! After all, such a mischievous one will be born! etc.
It is important that the characters' speech here becomes their capacious internal characteristic, an accurate "mirror" of life and customs.
In addition, Ostrovsky often seems to slow down the development of events, considering it necessary to show what his characters were thinking about, in what verbal form their reflections are clothed: “That's the trouble! Here it is where the trouble came to us! What to eat now? Well, bad business! Do not pass now to be declared insolvent! Well, let's suppose that the owner will have something left, but what will I have to do with it? (Podkhalyuzin's reasoning), etc. In this play, therefore, for the first time in Russian drama, the dialogues of the characters became an important means of moral description.
It is worth noting that some critics considered Ostrovsky's extensive use of everyday details to be a violation of the laws of the stage. The justification, in their opinion, could only be that the novice playwright was the discoverer of merchant life. But this "violation" later became the law of Ostrovsky's dramaturgy: already in his first comedy, he combined the sharpness of intrigue with numerous everyday details. Moreover, the playwright not only did not abandon this principle later, but also developed it, achieving the maximum aesthetic effect of both components of his play - a dynamic plot and static "conversational" scenes.
Thus, the play by A. N. Ostrovsky “Our people - we will settle!” - this is a revealing comedy, the first satire of the playwright on the mores of the merchant environment. The playwright, for the first time in Russian literature, showed the life of Zamoskvorechye - the life and customs of Moscow merchants, their views on life, dreams and aspirations. In addition, Ostrovsky's first play determined his creative manner, techniques and methods, with the help of which he subsequently created such dramatic masterpieces as The Thunderstorm and The Dowry.
OWN PEOPLE - LET'S MATCH
The nineteen-year-old merchant's daughter Lipochka talks to herself about how she likes to dance, but not with students: “What's the point of being different from the military! And mustaches, and epaulettes, and a uniform, and some even have spurs with bells!
In her dreams - outfits, entertainment, brilliant gentlemen.
Lipochka is an empty-headed girl, and she waltzes badly, although she has taken twenty lessons from a local dance teacher.
Mamma scolds Lipochka for spinning and spinning, and Lipochka fights back: “You are not very important to me, mama!”
Mother and daughter fight. Lipochka really wants to get married. The mother wants a solid groom for her, and the daughter needs a “darling, cutie, capidon”!
"Kapidon" is a word derived from "Cupid", the god of love.
The speech of Lipochka, her mother and father is illiterate to the point of comicality. They constantly insult each other. And if Agrafena Kondratievna still harbors an animal feeling of maternal love for her daughter (“Dike, I’ll wipe your forehead with a handkerchief!”), then Lipochka rushes away from home - towards a free life, where there is only clothes and entertainment.
Lipochka does not want to go for the merchant, only "for the noble." And to be sure to be a brunette!
The matchmaker comes, drinks a glass, promises a "brilliant" groom.
And Samson Silych has his own problems and worries. He turns to the solicitor (the master of concocting court cases) Rispolozhensky (“talking” surname - from “get drunk to the position of robes”), a bitter drunkard, to help him not pay his debts, declare himself bankrupt (an insolvent debtor). In fact, Bolypov has money, but he does not want to give it away.
Rispolozhensky advises Bolypov to sell or mortgage all his shops to someone who is trustworthy. And then announce that he is naked as a falcon.
Please, if you like, get twenty-five kopecks for the ruble of the debt, otherwise you will be left with nothing at all!
Samson Silych believes that he may well trust his clerk. He swears allegiance, but has only his own benefit on his mind. No wonder the name of this clever young man Podkhalyuzin is not even a sycophant, but a sycophant. And what can Bolshov expect from him, who took him to the shop as a boy and humiliated him as best he could, believing that he was doing a good deed?
How can Podkhalyuzin not snatch his piece from the deal?
He knows that Bolypov, a wealthy merchant, only out of greed and even for entertainment started a bankruptcy scam.
Podkhalyuzin attracts Rispolozhensky to his side, promising him twice as much money as Bolshov.
And one more idea dawns on the clerk: should we conclude an alliance with Lipochka? Shouldn't you marry her?
For the matchmaking, he promises Ustinya Naumovna a sable fur coat and two thousand rubles. The reward is incredible!
And to the groom, whom the matchmaker has already found for Lipochka, you just need to say that there is no dowry for the bride, because her father is bankrupt.
Ustinya, tempted by a sable coat and huge money, promises to help Podkhalyuzin.
Bolyiov agrees to give Lipochka to Podkhalyuzin: “My brainchild! I want - I eat with porridge, I want - I churn butter!
Velcro discharged in anticipation of the visit of the groom. The mother looks at her with tears of emotion, the daughter pushes her away: “Leave me alone, mother! Fi! You can’t dress decently, you will immediately become emotional ... "
The matchmaker reports that the “brilliant” groom has changed his mind.
Poppy is in despair. Bolshov announces to his daughter that there is a groom! And invites Podkhalyuzin: "Crawl!"
Lipochka refuses such an awkward marriage, but her father does not listen to her.
Bolypov's daughter is left alone with Podkhalyuzin. He shows her the documents: “Your aunt is a bankrupt!”
Podkhalyuzin seduces her with the prospects of a future life:
“You will go at home in silk dresses, sir, but we won’t put on velvet ones, except for velvet ones.”
And Lazar Elizarovich promises to buy the house, and decorate it with eye-catching luxury. And if Lipochka does not like his beard, then he will change his appearance as his wife wishes.
And they will not obey their parents, they will heal themselves!
Olimpiada Samsonovna agrees.
After the wedding, Lipochka is very satisfied with her life: she has a lot of new dresses, a good house, her husband did not break his promises!
But neither the matchmaker Ustinya nor Rispolozhensky received the promised reward. Podkhalyuzin deceived them.
Moreover, Bolshov is in prison - in the "debt hole". Podkhalyuzin is not going to pay his debts, even if it is twenty-five kopecks per ruble. The newly-baked rich do not need either a father or a mother.
Their people, and agreed in their own way - the deceiver deceived the deceiver.
And Podkhalyuzin opens a store and invites:
"Welcome! If you send a small child, we won’t cheat in an onion.
The first successes 1847 - the beginning of the literary activity of Ostrovsky. The Moscow City Leaf newspaper published scenes from the comedy The Insolvent Debtor. It was an excerpt from the then unfinished comedy "Bankrupt" (later entitled "Own people - let's settle!"). The passage was an exceptional success. This forever determined Ostrovsky's further life path. “I began to consider myself a Russian writer and already, without doubts and hesitations, believed in my vocation,” he wrote in an autobiographical note.
The writer Rostopchina conveyed her impressions in this way: “What a charm of Bankrupt! This is our Russian Tartuffe, and he will not yield to his older brother in the dignity of truth, strength, energy. Hooray! Theatrical literature is being born in our country!..." Gogol praised the young playwright's talent: "The most important thing is that there is talent, and it is heard everywhere..."
Main characters: Samson Silych Bolshov, merchant Agrafena Kondratievna, his wife Olimpiada Samsonovna (Lipochka), their daughter Lazar Elizarych Podkhalyuzin, clerk Ustinya Naumovna, matchmaker Sysa Psoyich Rispolozhensky, lawyer Tishka, a boy in Bolshov's house
The plot of the work: The action takes place in the house of a wealthy merchant Bolshov. His daughter, Lipochka, a marriageable girl, dreams of marrying a military man. Last resort, for noble. The matchmaker Ustinya Naumovna has one suitor better than the other, but even she cannot please everyone at once - dad, mom and daughter.
The owner of the house, the merchant Bolshov, has his own problems. It's time to repay debts, and although he has enough money, creditors do not want to pay. With the help of a corrupt judge, Bolshov prepares documents from which it follows that he is ruined. And as proof of his bankruptcy, he transfers all property to the clerk Podkhalyuzin.
The basis of all the works of Ostrovsky. With what accuracy and realism all the characters of the comedy are drawn! It would seem that in this story there is nothing interesting and entertaining. But the comedy is interesting not because of a complex plot, but because of the truth of life, which is
The comedy Bankrupt was banned for thirty-two years. Why? Censor M. A. Gedeonov wrote in 1849: “All the actors: the merchant, his daughter, the attorney, the clerk and the matchmaker are notorious scoundrels. The conversations are dirty, the whole play is offensive to the Russian merchant class.” Theatrical history of the play:
In the play "Bankrupt" there is no division into right and wrong, there are no positive and negative characters. The theater is not going to either denounce the "dark kingdom" or look for a "beam of light" in it. A funny and sad performance about how one businessman failed, a parable about lost trust even in the closest people. A.I. Lyubeznov - Bolshov in the play "Our people - let's settle" A.N. Ostrovsky. Maly Theater
Having become rich, Bolshov squandered the people's moral "capital", which he inherited. Having become a merchant, he is ready for any meanness and fraud in relation to strangers. He learned the mercantile - merchant "you can't deceive - you can't sell." But some of the old moral foundations still linger in him. Bolshov still believes in the sincerity of family relationships: their people will count, they will not let each other down.
Comedy as an Expression of Typical Merchant Life Its plot is taken from the very thick of life, from legal practice and merchant life well known to the playwright. The deceit here begins small with the ability of the clerk to tighten the fabric or “sneak” through the hand of an arshin of chintz in front of the nose of a gaping buyer; continues with a major and risky scam. This whole life is based on the mechanisms of deception, and if you do not deceive, they will deceive you, that's what Ostrovsky managed to show.
