The drama "Thunderstorm" is considered to be one of the main works of A. N. Ostrovsky. And this cannot be denied. The love conflict in the play recedes almost into the background, instead, the bitter social truth is exposed, the "dark kingdom" of vices and sins is shown. Dobrolyubov called the playwright a fine connoisseur of the Russian soul. It is difficult to disagree with this opinion. Ostrovsky very subtly describes the experiences of one person, but at the same time is accurate in depicting universal human vices and flaws. human soul, which are inherent in all representatives of the "dark kingdom" in the "Thunderstorm". Dobrolyubov called such people tyrants. The main tyrants of Kalinov are Kabanikha and Dikoy.

Wild is a bright representative of the "dark kingdom", initially shown as an unpleasant and slippery person. He appears in the first act along with his nephew Boris. Savl Prokofievich is very dissatisfied with the appearance of Boris in the city: “A parasite! Get lost!” The merchant swears and spits on the street, which shows his bad manners. It should be noted that in the life of the Wild Place for cultural enrichment or spiritual growth absolutely not. He knows only what is necessary to know in order to lead the "dark kingdom".

Savl Prokofievich does not know either history or its representatives. So, when Kuligin quotes lines from Derzhavin Dikoy, he orders not to be rude to him. Usually, speech allows you to say a lot about a person: about his upbringing, manners, outlook, and so on. Diky's remarks are full of curses and threats: "not a single calculation can do without abuse." In almost every appearance on stage, Savl Prokofievich is either rude to others or expresses himself incorrectly. The merchant is especially annoyed by those who ask him for money. At the same time, Wild himself very often deceives when calculating in his favor. Wild is not afraid of either representatives of the authorities, or a rebellion "senseless and merciless." He is confident in the inviolability of his person and the position that he occupies. It is known that when talking with the mayor that Dikoy allegedly robs ordinary peasants, the merchant openly admits his guilt, but as if he himself is proud of such an act: “Is it worth it, your honor, to talk about such trifles with you! I have a lot of people a year - sometimes people stay: you - then understand: I won’t pay them extra for a penny per person, but I make thousands of this, so it’s good for me! ”Kuligin says that in trade everyone is a friend they steal a friend, and they choose as assistants those who, from prolonged drunkenness, have lost both their human appearance and all humanity.

Wild does not understand what it means to work for the common good. Kuligin proposed to install a lightning rod, with the help of which it would be easier to get electricity. But Savl Prokofievich drove the inventor away with the words: “So you know that you are a worm. I want to - I'm sorry. If I want to, I'll crush it." In this phrase, the position of Wild is most clearly visible. The merchant is confident in his rightness, impunity and power. Savl Prokofievich considers his power to be absolute, because the guarantee of his authority is money, which the merchant has more than enough. The meaning of the life of the Wild is the accumulation and increase of his capital by any legal and illegal methods. Wild believes that wealth gives him the right to scold, humiliate and insult everyone. However, his influence and rudeness scare many, but not Curly. Curly says that he is not afraid of the Wild, so he only acts as he wants. By this, the author wanted to show that sooner or later the tyrants of the dark kingdom will lose their influence, because the prerequisites for this already exist.

The only person with whom the merchant speaks normally is another characteristic representative of the "dark kingdom" - Kabanikha. Marfa Ignatievna is known for her heavy and grumpy disposition. Marfa Ignatievna is a widow. She herself raised her son Tikhon and daughter Varvara. Total control and tyranny led to horrific consequences. Tikhon cannot act against the will of his mother, he also does not want to say something wrong from the point of view of Kabanikha. Tikhon coexists with her, complaining about life, but not trying to change anything. He is weak and spineless. Daughter Varvara lies to her mother, secretly meeting with Kudryash. At the end of the play, she runs away with him from her home. Varvara changed the lock on the gate in the garden so that she could freely go out for a walk at night while the Boar was sleeping. However, she also does not openly confront her mother. Katherine got it the most. The boar humiliated the girl, tried in every possible way to offend and expose her husband (Tikhon) in a bad light. She chose an interesting manipulation tactic. Very measuredly, without haste, Kabanikha gradually “ate” her family, pretending that nothing was happening. Marfa Ignatievna covered herself by taking care of the children. She believed that only the old generation retained an understanding of the norms of life, so this knowledge must be passed on to the next generation, otherwise the world will collapse. But with Kabanikh, all wisdom becomes mutilated, perverted, false. However, it cannot be said that she is doing a good deed. The reader understands that the words "care for children" become an excuse in front of other people. In front of her, the Kabanikha is honest and perfectly understands what she is doing. She embodies the view that the weak should be afraid of the strong. Kabanikha herself speaks of this in the scene of Tikhon's departure. “Why are you standing there, don’t you know the order? Order your wife - how to live without you! To Tikhon’s quite reasonable remark that Katerina has no need to be afraid of him, because he is her husband, Kabanikha replies very sharply: “Why be afraid! Yes, you're crazy, right? You will not be afraid, and even more so me. The boar has long ceased to be a mother, a widow, a woman. Now this is a real tyrant and dictator who seeks to assert his power by any means.

"DARK KINGDOM" IN A.N. OSTROVSKOY'S PIECE "GRO3A"

1.Introduction.

"A ray of light in a dark kingdom."

2. The main part.

2.1 The world of the city of Kalinov.

2.2 The image of nature.

2.3 Inhabitants of Kalinov:

a) Wild and Boar;

b) Tikhon, Boris and Varvara.

2.4 The collapse of the old world.

3. Conclusion.

Fracture in popular consciousness. Yes, everything here seems to be out of captivity.

A. N. Ostrovsky

The play by Alexander Nikolayevich Ostrovsky "Thunderstorm", published in 1859, was enthusiastically received by progressive critics thanks, first of all, to the image of the main character - Katerina Kabanova. However, this beautiful female image, “a ray of light in the dark kingdom” (in the words of N. A. Dobrolyubov), was formed precisely in the atmosphere of patriarchal merchant relations, which oppresses and kills everything new.

The action of the play opens with a calm, unhurried exposition. Ostrovsky depicts the idyllic world in which the characters live. This is the provincial town of Kalinov, which is described in great detail. The action takes place against the backdrop of the beautiful nature of central Russia. Kuligin, walking along the river bank, exclaims: “Miracles, truly it must be said that miracles!< … >For fifty years I have been looking at the Volga every day and I can’t get enough of it.” Beautiful nature contrasts with cruel morals cities, with poverty and lack of rights of its inhabitants, with their lack of education and limitations. Heroes seem to be closed in this world; they do not want to know anything new and do not see other lands and countries. Merchant Dikoy and Marfa Kabanova, nicknamed Kabanikha, are the true representatives of the "dark kingdom". These are individuals with a strong character, having power over other heroes and manipulating their relatives with the help of money. They adhere to the old, patriarchal orders, which suit them completely. Kabanova tyrannizes all members of her family, constantly finding fault with her son and daughter-in-law, teaches and criticizes them. However, she no longer has absolute confidence in the inviolability of the patriarchal foundations, so she defends her world with her last strength. Tikhon, Boris and Varvara - representatives younger generation. But they were also influenced by the old world and its practices. Tikhon, completely subordinate to the power of his mother, gradually becomes an inveterate drunkard. And only the death of his wife makes him cry out: “Mommy, you ruined her! You, you, you ... ”Boris is also under the yoke of his uncle Diky. He hopes to receive his grandmother's inheritance, so he endures his uncle's bullying in public. At the request of the Wild, he leaves Katerina, pushing her to commit suicide with this act. Varvara, the daughter of Kabanikhi, is a bright and strong personality. Creating visible humility and obedience to her mother, she lives in her own way. Meeting with Kudryash, Varvara does not worry at all about the moral side of her behavior. For her, in the first place is the observance of external propriety, which drown out the voice of conscience. However patriarchal world, so strong and powerful, destroying main character plays, dies. All heroes feel it. Katerina's public declaration of love for Boris was a terrible blow for Kabanikha, a sign that the old was leaving forever. Through a love-domestic conflict, Ostrovsky showed a turning point that is taking place in the minds of people. A new attitude to the world, individual perception of reality are replacing the patriarchal, communal way of life. In the play "Thunderstorm" these processes are depicted especially vividly and realistically.

The work of A. N. Ostrovsky stands at the origins of our national dramaturgy. Fonvizin, Griboyedov and Gogol began the creation of the great Russian theater. With the advent of Ostrovsky's plays, with the flowering of his talent and skill, dramatic art rose to new heights. No wonder the critic Odoevsky noted that before Ostrovsky in domestic literature there were only 3 dramas: "Undergrowth", "Woe from Wit" and "Inspector". He called the play "Bankrupt" the fourth, emphasizing that it is the last missing cornerstone on which the majestic "building" of the Russian theater will be erected.

From "Bankrupt" to "Thunderstorm"

Yes, it is with the comedy "Our People - Let's Settle" (the second name of "Bankrupt") that the wide popularity of Alexander Nikolayevich Ostrovsky, a playwright, who united in his work and masterfully reworked the best traditions of the "natural" school - socio-psychological and satirical. Having become the "Columbus of Zamoskvorechye", he opened to the world a hitherto unknown layer of Russian life - the middle and small merchants and bourgeoisie, reflected its originality, showed both bright strong, pure characters, and the gloomy harsh reality of the world of huckstering, hypocrisy, lack of high impulses and ideals . It happened in 1849. And already in his first significant play, the writer outlines with strokes a special type of personality that will appear in him again and again: from Samson Silych the Bolshoi to Tit Titych Bruskov from “A Hangover at a Strange Feast” and further, to Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova and Savel Prokopyevich Diky from "Thunderstorms" - a type of tyrant, named very accurately and succinctly and, thanks to the playwright, entered our speech everyday life. This category includes people who completely violate the logical and moral, human community. The critic Dobrolyubov called Dika and Kabanikha, representing the "dark kingdom" in Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm", "tyrants of Russian life" by the critic Dobrolyubov.

Tyranny as a socio-typological phenomenon

Let's analyze this phenomenon in more detail. Why do tyrants appear in society? First of all, from the awareness of one's own complete and absolute power, the complete leveling of the interests and opinions of others in comparison with one's own, the feeling of impunity and the lack of resistance from the victims. This is how the "dark kingdom" is shown in Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm". Wild and Kabanova are the richest residents of the small provincial town of Kalinov, located along the banks of the Volga. Money allows them to feel personal importance and significance. They also give them power - over their own families, over strangers, in some way dependent on them people, and more broadly - over public opinion in the city. The "dark kingdom" in Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm" is terrible because it destroys or distorts the slightest manifestations of protest, any trends of freedom and independence. Tyranny is the other side of slavery. It equally corrupts both the “masters of life” themselves and those who are dependent on them, poisoning all of Russia with its noxious breath. That is why, according to Dobrolyubov's definition, the "dark kingdom" in Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm" is synonymous with tyranny.

drama conflict

Possessing a deep understanding of reality, the writer was able to depict its most significant and significant aspects. In the pre-reform year of 1859, he was under the impression of traveling along the Volga in 1856-1857. creates a play, later recognized as one of his best creations - the drama "Thunderstorm". What is interesting: literally a month after the play was completed, events took place in Kostroma, as if reproducing according to the script literary work. What does it say? About how accurately Alexander Nikolaevich felt and guessed the conflict and how realistically the “dark kingdom” is reflected in the play “Thunderstorm”.

It was not in vain that Ostrovsky chose the main contradiction of Russian life as the main conflict - the clash between the conservative principle, based on patriarchal traditions, formed over the centuries and based on indisputable authority, moral principles and prohibitions, on the one hand, and on the other hand, the rebellious, creative and living principle , the need of the individual to break stereotypes, to move forward in spiritual development. Therefore, not only Dikoy and Kabanikha embody the "dark kingdom" in the play "Thunderstorm". Ostrovsky makes it clear that the slightest concession to him, connivance and non-resistance automatically transfer a person to the rank of accomplices.

The philosophy of the "dark kingdom"

From the very first lines of the play, two elements break into our consciousness: the free, wonderful distances, wide horizons and the stuffy, thickened atmosphere of a pre-storm, the agonizing expectation of some kind of upheaval and a thirst for renewal. Representatives of the "dark kingdom" in the play "Thunderstorm" are horrified by the cataclysms of nature, seeing in them the manifestation of God's wrath and future punishments for sins - obvious and imaginary. Marfa Ignatievna repeats this all the time, echoes her and Dikoy. At Kuligin's request to donate money for the construction of a lightning rod for the townspeople, he reproaches: "The storm was given as a punishment, and you, such and such, want to defend yourself from the Lord with a pole." This remark clearly shows the philosophy that the representatives of the “dark kingdom” adhere to in the play “Thunderstorm”: one cannot resist what has dominated for centuries, one cannot go against the will or punishment from above, humility and humility must remain the ethical norms of our time. What is interesting: the main tyrants of Kalinov themselves not only sincerely believe in this order of things, but also recognize it as the only correct one.

hypocrite under the guise of virtue

The "Dark Kingdom" in A. N. Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm" has many faces. But its pillars are primarily Dikoy and Kabanova. Marfa Ignatyevna, a portly merchant's wife, the mistress of the house, behind the high fence of which invisible tears are shed and everyday humiliation of human dignity and free will takes place, is unequivocally named in the play - a hypocrite. They say about her: "He gives alms to the poor, goes to church, is devoutly baptized, and eats at home, sharpens iron like rust." She tries to observe the external laws of antiquity in everything, while not particularly caring about their internal content. The boar knows that the younger ones must obey the elders and demands blind obedience in everything. When Katerina says goodbye to Tikhon before his departure, she makes her bow at the feet of her husband, and her son - to give his wife a strict order on how to behave. There and “do not argue with mother”, and “do not look at the guys” and many other “wishes”. Moreover, all those present are well aware of the farce of the situation, its falsity. And only Marfa Ignatievna revels in her mission. She also played a decisive role in the tragedy of Katerina, distorting the character of her son, spoiling family life him, outraging the soul of Katerina herself and forcing her to take a fatal step from the banks of the Volga into the abyss.

Lies as a law

"The Dark Kingdom" in A. N. Ostrovsky's drama "Thunderstorm" is tyranny in its highest manifestation. Katerina, comparing life in native family and in her husband's family, he notices the most important difference: here everything seems to be “out of captivity”. And it is true. Either you obey the inhuman rules of the game, or you will be crushed to powder. Kuligin bluntly states that morals in the city are "cruel". He who is rich tries to enslave the poor in order to increase his fortune on their pennies. The same Dikoy swaggers over Boris, who is dependent on him: "If you please me, I will give the inheritance!" But it is impossible to please a petty tyrant, and the fate of the unfortunate Boris and his sister is predetermined. They will remain humiliated and insulted, powerless and defenseless. Is there a way out? There is: lie, dodge, while possible. This is what Tikhon's sister, Barbara, does. It is simple: do what you want, as long as no one notices anything, everything was “sewn and covered”. And when Katerina objects that she doesn’t know how to dissemble, she can’t lie, Varvara simply tells her: “And I didn’t know how, but it became necessary - I learned!”

Kudryash, Varvara and others

And what are the victims of the "dark kingdom" based on the drama by A. N. Ostrovsky "Thunderstorm" in general? These are people with a broken fate, crippled souls, disfigured moral world. The same Tikhon is a kind, gentle person by nature. The tyranny of his mother killed in him the rudiments of his own will. He cannot resist her pressure, he does not know how to resist, and he finds consolation in drunkenness. To support his wife, to take her side, to protect him from the arbitrariness of the boar, is also beyond his power. At his mother's instigation, he beats Katerina, although he takes pity on her. And only the death of his wife makes him openly blame his mother, but it is clear that the fuse will pass very quickly, and everything will remain the same.

Another male character, Vanya Kudryash, is quite another matter. He rebuffs everyone, and even the “piercing” Wild does not let down rudeness. However, this character is also spoiled by the deadening influence of the “dark kingdom”. Curly is a copy of the Wild, only not yet in force, not matured. Time will pass, and he will prove worthy of his master. Barbara, who has become a liar and endures her mother's harassment, eventually runs away from home. The lie has become her second nature, and therefore the heroine evokes our sympathy and compassion. The timid Kuligin rarely dares to defend himself against the impudence of the petty tyrants of the "dark kingdom". In fact, no one, except for Katerina, who, by the way, is also a victim, has sufficient firmness to challenge this "kingdom".

Why Katherine?

The only hero of the work who has the moral determination to condemn the life and customs of the "dark kingdom" in A. N. Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm" is Katerina. Her naturalness, sincerity, ardent impetuosity, inspiration do not allow her to put up with arbitrariness and violence, to accept the etiquette dictated since Domostroev times. Katerina wants to love, enjoy life, experience natural feelings, be open to the world. Like a bird, she dreams of breaking away from the earth, from the deadly life and soaring into the skies. She is religious, but not boar-like. Her straightforward nature is torn in two by the contradiction between duty towards her husband, love for Boris and awareness of her sinfulness before God. And all this is deeply sincere, from the very depths of the heart. Yes, Katerina is also a victim of the "dark kingdom". However, she managed to break his chains. She shook the age-old foundations. And she was able to point the way out to others - not only by her own death, but by protest in general.

A.N. Ostrovsky finishes his work entitled "Thunderstorm" in 1859, when the state was on the verge of abolishing serfdom. The society was on the border of social and state changes.

In the center of events is the merchant environment, which personifies the "dark kingdom". Ostrovsky accurately and beautifully conveys all existing negative images, in fact, a whole gallery of images appears, endowed with enough negative traits character.

He uses the images of the townspeople to show the ignorance of the majority of the population, as well as the lack of education and unwillingness to accept new orders and foundations, because society is constantly changing, and people do not want to follow the ongoing changes.

The most prominent representatives of the dark kingdom are the older generation, which is depicted in the person of the Boar and the Wild. Martha is used to torturing the people around her, including her loved ones, she is constantly irritated, therefore she reproaches them, constantly pours reproaches. At the same time, she completely trusts and relies on the advice of antiquity, she does not look at what is happening in the world around her. At the same time, for others, she also tries to put antiquity in authority. Everything in the house of Kabanikhe obeys her orders and principles.

The second representative of the dark kingdom is much simpler and more primitive in any situation. But at the same time, he easily humiliates other people and yells at them, trying to prove his case.

But at the same time, all manifestations of the characters of the heroes of the dark kingdom come from impotence and emptiness. They understand that in fact they cannot resist the established foundations in society and the fact that society is constantly changing.

But at the same time, not everyone can fight the influence of the dark kingdom. It has enough power and actually puts pressure on some heroes. So, for example, Tikhon Kabanov is actually hammered by his mother, who is trying in everything and always to prove her case.

It is worth saying that the work, called "Thunderstorm", turned out to be actually brilliant. The author actually easily describes a dark realm in which some can recognize the surrounding society, and some can discern their own habits and habits. An ignorant society exists today, while trying to establish its own rules, which are not always correct.

Essay 2

A.N. Ostrovsky wrote the play "Thunderstorm". In his works, the author was not afraid to describe the vices of people and social injustice. The city in which the events of the play "Thunderstorm" took place, critics began to call the "dark kingdom".

The "Dark Realm" absorbs all the characters that fall into it. All who settle in this place become evil, inhuman, immoral people. It completely changes the character of a person. It has its own laws and regulations. One of the representatives of the "dark kingdom" is the powerful woman Kabanikha. She is cruel and heartless. She hates all the people around her, and especially her daughter-in-law Katerina. The girl, against her will, became a victim of this "dark kingdom". Kabanikha mocks her terribly and inhumanly. Katerina wants to escape from this place, but she is unable to change anything. This swamp sucks her in. Katya is a sincere, good-natured, sweet girl. She wants to be free. This place is like hell for her.

Tikhon is the husband of Katerina, he can be considered a victim. He has long come to terms with his life and does not want to change anything. The guy is satisfied with the swamp in which he exists. He cannot be condemned. Tikhon can only sympathize. He has no opinion and is completely dependent on his mother. Perhaps he would like to change his life, but he cannot do it. The death of Katerina awakened a rebel in him, but his protest did not last long and at the same hour was suppressed by Kabanikha.

Even in the "dark kingdom" Dika is ruled by a rich merchant. He is an evil, cruel, greedy man. He is not interested in other people's opinions. He, like Kabanikha, spoils the lives of others and gets incredible pleasure from this. He also has his own victim - this is Boris, his own nephew. The young guy is completely dependent on his uncle and his opinion.

Katerina is the only one bright man in this "dark realm". She is like a ray of sunshine in the darkness. But, she could not cope with evil. The girl was broken by the "dark kingdom".

This society is ruled by money, malice, envy and hatred. There is no place for real sincere feelings. In the "dark kingdom" there is no love, compassion and friendship. In his work, Ostrovsky showed that good is not always stronger than evil. In the work "Thunderstorm" the light could not break through the darkness of hypocrisy, stinginess, anger and cruelty. In the "dark kingdom" evil rules and good has no place here. Ostrovsky described the main human vices in the play "Thunderstorm".

The dark kingdom in the play "Thunderstorm" by Ostrovsky is an allegorical statement familiar to everyone from the light hand of his contemporary, literary critic Dobrolyubova. That is how Nikolai Ivanovich considered it necessary to characterize the difficult social and moral atmosphere in the cities of Russia in early XIX century.

Ostrovsky - a fine connoisseur of Russian life

Alexander Nikolayevich Ostrovsky made a bright breakthrough in Russian drama, for which he received a worthy article-review. He continued the traditions of the Russian national theater laid down by Fonvizin, Gogol, Griboyedov. In particular, Nikolai Dobrolyubov highly appreciated the playwright's deep knowledge and truthful portrayal of the specifics of Russian life. The Volga city of Kalinov, shown in the play, has become a kind of model for the whole of Russia.

The deep meaning of the allegory "dark kingdom"

The dark kingdom in Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm" is a clear and capacious allegory created by the critic Dobrolyubov, which is based on both a broad socio-economic explanation and a narrower one - a literary one. The latter is formulated in relation to provincial town Kalinov, in which Ostrovsky depicted an average (as they say now - average) Russian town of the late 18th century.

The broad meaning of the concept of "dark kingdom"

First, we characterize the broad meaning of this concept: the dark kingdom in Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm" - figurative characteristic socio-political state of Russia at a certain stage of its development.

After all, a thoughtful reader who is interested in history has a clear idea of ​​what kind of Russia (the end of the 18th century) he is talking about. The huge country, a fragment of which was shown by the playwright in the play, lived in the old fashioned way, at a time when industrialization was dynamically taking place in European countries. The people were socially paralyzed (which was abolished in 1861). Strategic railways. The people in their mass were illiterate, uneducated, superstitious. In fact, the state social policy did little.

Everything in the provincial Kalinov, as it were, is "boiled in its own juice." That is, people are not involved in large projects - production, construction. Their judgments betray complete incompetence in the simplest concepts: for example, in the electrical origin of lightning.

The dark kingdom in Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm" is a society devoid of a development vector. The class of the industrial bourgeoisie and the proletariat has not yet taken shape ... The financial flows of society have not been formed insufficient for global socio-economic transformations.

The dark kingdom of the city of Kalinov

In a narrow sense, the dark kingdom in the play "Thunderstorm" is a way of life inherent in the bourgeoisie and the merchant class. According to the description given by Ostrovsky, this community is absolutely dominated by wealthy and arrogant merchants. They constantly carry out psychological pressure on others, not paying attention to their interests. There is no government for these ghouls who "eat with food." For these petty tyrants, money is equivalent to social status, and human and Christian morality is not a decree in their actions. They practically do whatever they please. In particular, realistic, artistically completed images - the merchant Savel Prokopevich Dikoy and the merchant's wife Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova - initiate the "dark kingdom" in the play "Thunderstorm". What are these characters? Let's consider them more closely.

The image of the merchant Saveliy Prokofich Wild

Merchant Dikoy is the richest man in Kalinov. However, the consistency in it does not border on the breadth of the soul and hospitality, but on the "cool disposition". And he understands his wolf nature, and wants to somehow change. “About fasting somehow, about a great one, I spoke ...” Yes, tyranny is his second nature. When a “man” comes to him with a request to borrow money, Dikoy rudely humiliates him, moreover, it almost comes to beating the unfortunate man.

Moreover, this psychotype of behavior is always characteristic of him. (“What can I do, my heart is like that!”) That is, he builds his relationships with others on the basis of fear and his dominance. This is his usual pattern of behavior towards people with inferior

This man was not always rich. However, he came to solvency through a primitive, aggressive, established social model of behavior. Relations with others and relatives (in particular, with his nephew), he builds on only one principle: to humiliate them, formally - to deprive them of social rights, and then use them himself. However, having felt a psychological rebuff from a person with an equal status (for example, from the widow of a merchant Kabanikhi), he begins to treat him more respectfully, without humiliating him. This is a primitive, two-way scheme of behavior.

Behind rudeness and suspicion (“So you know that you are a worm!”) Greed and self-interest are hidden. For example, in the case of a nephew, he actually disinherits him. Savel Prokofich harbors hatred in his soul for everything around him. His credo is to reflexively crush everyone, crush everyone, clearing the living space for himself. If we lived at this time, such an idiot (excuse the frankness) could well, just in the middle of the street, beat us for nothing, just so that we crossed to the other side of the street, clearing the way for him! But such an image was familiar to serf Russia! Not for nothing, after all, Dobrolyubov called the dark kingdom in the play "Thunderstorm" a sensitive and truthful reflection of Russian reality!

The image of the merchant's wife Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova

The second type of Kalinov's wild morals is the rich merchant widow Kabanikh. Her social model of behavior is not as primitive as that of the merchant Wild. (For some reason, an analogy comes to mind regarding this model: “The poor eyesight of a rhinoceros is a problem of those around it, not the rhinoceros itself!) Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova, unlike the merchant Diky, builds her social status gradually. Humiliation is also a tool, but of a completely different kind. She mainly affects members of her family: son Tikhon, daughter Varvara, daughter-in-law Katerina. She puts both her material and moral superiority at the basis of her dominance over others.

Hypocrisy - that's her key to The merchant's wife - a double morality. Formally and outwardly following the Christian cult, it is far from the real merciful Christian consciousness. On the contrary, she interprets her status of churching as a kind of deal with God, believing that she has been given the right not only to teach everyone around her about everything, but also to indicate how they should act.

She does this all the time, completely destroying her son Tikhon as a person, and pushing her daughter-in-law Katerina to commit suicide.

If the merchant Wild, having met on the street, can be bypassed, then the situation is quite different with respect to Kabanikha. So to speak, she continuously, constantly, and not episodically, like Dikoy, "generates" the dark realm in the play "Thunderstorm". Quotes from the work characterizing Kabanikha testify: she zombies her loved ones, demanding that Katerina bow to her husband when he enters the house, suggesting that “you can’t argue with mother”, that the husband gives strict orders to his wife, and on occasion beat her ...

Weak attempts to resist tyrants

What opposes the community of the city of Kalinov to the expansion of the two aforementioned tyrants? Yes, practically nothing. They live in a comfortable society for themselves. As Pushkin wrote in "Boris Godunov": "The people are silent ...". Someone who is educated tries to timidly express his opinion, like engineer Kuligin. Someone, like Barbara, crippled himself morally, living a double life: assenting to tyrants and doing what she pleases. And someone is waiting for an internal and tragic protest (like Katerina).

Conclusion

Does the word "tyranny" occur in our everyday life? We hope that for the majority of our readers - much less often than for the inhabitants of the fortress town of Kalinov. Accept sympathy if your boss or someone from the family circle is a tyrant. Nowadays, this phenomenon does not immediately spread to the entire city. However, it does exist in places. And you need to find a way out of it...

Let's return to Ostrovsky's play. Representatives create a "dark kingdom" in the play "Thunderstorm". Them common features- the presence of capital and the desire to dominate in society. However, it does not rely on spirituality, creativity, or enlightenment. Hence the conclusion: it is necessary to isolate the tyrant, depriving him of the opportunity to lead, as well as depriving him of communication (boycott). A tyrant is strong as long as he feels the indispensability of his beloved and the demand for his capital.

You should just deprive him of such "happiness". In Kalinov, it was not possible to do this. It's real these days.