Vasilisa Ilyinichna - wife of Pantelei Prokofievich and mother of Grigory and Pyotr Melekhov, Don Cossack woman from the novel by M. A. Sholokhov Quiet Don" She became the embodiment of the national image of a Russian woman. At the time of the events described in the novel, Ilyinichna was already at an advanced age, but had a stately gait and a “portly figure.” Of the sons, the eldest, Petro, looked like her. Ilyinichna – Strong woman, a real homemaker. The author calls her “a wise and courageous old woman” who has suffered a lot in her life. As she later admitted to her daughter-in-law Natalya, her husband often cheated on her and beat her half to death, but she endured everything for the sake of her family and children.
Motherhood was the most important thing to her. She waited until the last day for her son Gregory, but died without seeing him. She even pitied her daughter’s husband, Mishka Koshevoy, who brutally killed her son and many fellow villagers, like a mother, darned his clothes, and fed him. It was this maternal feeling that made her smarter and wiser than all the combatants. She understood the futility of war. For her, both “whites” and “reds” were someone’s children. She condemns her son Gregory for cruelty, asks him to be merciful and not forget about God.
March 03 2011
“Quiet Don” by M. Sholokhov is about the fate of the people at a turning point. The fates of the main characters novel. Difficult to fold and women's destinies, marked by a deep and vibrant feeling of love. mother of Grigory Melekhov, Ilyinichna, personifies the difficult lot of a Cossack woman, her higher moral qualities. Life with her husband was not sweet for her. At times, he lost his temper and beat her severely. Ilyinichna aged early and was sick a lot, but until her last day she remained a caring and energetic housewife.
M. Sholokhov calls Ilyinichna a “courageous and proud” old woman. She is characterized by wisdom and justice. Ilyinichna - guardian family life. She consoles her children when they feel bad, but she also judges them harshly when they do wrong. She tries to dissuade Gregory from excessive cruelty: “You are God... God, son, don’t forget...”. All her thoughts are connected with the fate of the children, especially the youngest, Gregory. But she loves not only her children and husband, but also her native land, tormented by wars and revolutions.
External and inner beauty The image of Aksinya is distinctive. She is completely absorbed in love for Gregory, and in the fight for her she shows pride and courage. Having early experienced all the bitterness of a woman’s joyless lot, Aksinya boldly and openly rebels against patriarchal morality. Her passionate love for Gregory expresses a decisive protest against her wasted youth, against the torture and despotism of her father and unloved husband. Her struggle for Gregory, for happiness with him, is a struggle for the assertion of her human rights.
Rebellious and rebellious, with her head held high, she went against prejudice, hypocrisy and falsehood, causing evil rumors and gossip. Throughout her life Aksinya carried her love for Gregory. The strength and depth of her feeling was expressed in her readiness to follow her beloved through the most difficult trials. In the name of this feeling, she leaves her husband and household and leaves with Grigory to work as a farm laborer for the Listnitskys. During the Civil War, she goes with Grigory to the front, sharing with him all the hardships of camp life. And in last time At his call, she leaves the farm with the hope of finding her “share” in Kuban with him. All the strength of Aksinya’s character was expressed in one all-encompassing feeling - love for Gregory.
Natalya, a woman of high moral purity, also loves Grigory. But she is unloved, and her fate is marked by suffering. However, Natalya hopes for a better life. She curses Gregory, but loves him endlessly. And happiness comes, harmony and love reign in the family. She gave birth to twins - a son and a daughter. Natalya turned out to be as loving and caring a mother as she was a wife. But in the end, Natalya cannot forgive her husband’s infidelity, refuses motherhood and dies. Natalya did not want to live destroyed and insulted, because the ideal of her life was purity.
The complete opposite of her is Daria Melekhova, a broken, dissolute woman, ready to “twist love” with the first person she meets. But then the decisive hour comes - the hour of testing, and behind this street morality, behind the swagger, something else is revealed, hitherto hidden, which promised other opportunities, a different direction and development of character. Daria decided to die so as not to be disfigured by the “bad disease.” There is a proud challenge and human power in this decision.
Each of the women - the heroines of the novel "Quiet Don" - goes through her own way of the cross. This path is marked by love, not always happy, more often painful, but always genuine.
The main characters of the novel are people with bright individual characters, strong passions, difficult destinies. It is no coincidence that Grigory Melekhov, whose moral character and thorny life path are shown most deeply in the novel, occupies a central place in the novel. His life's quest reflected the fate of everything Don Cossacks in this difficult time. From childhood, Grigory absorbed a craving for free peasant labor, concern for strengthening the economy and family. shows us that the traditions of the Cossacks include universal human moral values. The world in which the Cossacks live is filled with colors, saturated with beauty native nature. The novel creates beautiful landscapes of the Don land, which help him to deeper reveal the characters' characters, and for readers to feel the strength and beauty of the life of the Cossacks.
The beginning of the novel depicts life and customs Cossack village on the eve of the First World War. It would seem that nothing foreshadows future upheavals. Life in the Cossack village of Tatarsky flows peacefully and calmly. This peace is disturbed only by a rumor about the relationship of the married soldier Aksinya Astakhova with Grishka Melekhov. Already at the very beginning of the novel, we see the original, bright characters of the heroes, whose feelings contradict generally accepted morality. It is in Gregory and Aksinya that the character traits Cossacks. Gregory's marriage suggests that in the Cossack environment a son must unquestioningly obey the will of his father. Using the example of Gregory’s fate, we see how much the father’s decision could determine the course of the whole later life his son. Gregory is forced to pay for his submission to his father's will all his life. This decision also makes two extraordinary, proud and loving women unhappy. The drama of his personal life is aggravated by the upheavals that came to the Don land in 1918. The author of the novel shows how the usual way of life of the Cossacks is collapsing, how yesterday’s friends become enemies, how family ties are severed...
We see how they diverge life paths former friends Grigory Melekhov and Mikhail Koshevoy, who is imbued with political views Bolsheviks. Unlike Gregory, he does not experience doubts or hesitations. The idea of justice, equality and brotherhood takes over Koshev so much that he no longer takes friendship, love, or family into account. Despite the fact that Gregory is his old friend and his wife's brother, he insists on his arrest. And when wooing Grigory’s sister Dunyashka, he completely ignores Ilyinichna’s anger. But he shot her son Peter. There is nothing sacred left for this person. He doesn’t even allow himself to relax and enjoy the beauty of his native land. “There people decide their own and others’ fates, and I herd the fillies. How so? You have to leave, otherwise it will suck you in,” Mishka thinks when he works as a flock worker. Such fanatical devotion to the idea, unshakable confidence in the correctness of one’s thoughts and actions is also characteristic of other communist heroes depicted by Sholokhov in the novel.
The writer portrays Grigory Melekhov in a completely different way. This is an extraordinary, thinking, searching person. During the First World War, he fought bravely at the front, even receiving the St. George Cross. He fulfilled his duty honestly. Subsequent October Revolution and the civil war led Sholokhov's hero into confusion. Now he no longer knows who is right, on whose side to fight. He is trying to make his choice. And what? At first he fights for the Reds, but their killing of unarmed prisoners pushes him away. And when the Bolsheviks come to his homeland, he fiercely fights them. But this Sholokhov hero’s search for truth leads nowhere, turning his life into a drama.
Gregory’s entire essence resists violence against a person, this repels him from both the Reds and the Whites. “They are all the same! - he says to his childhood friends who are leaning towards the Bolsheviks. “They are all a yoke on the neck of the Cossacks!” And when Gregory learns about the rebellion of the Cossacks in the upper reaches of the Don against the Red Army, he takes the side of the rebels. Now he thinks: “It’s as if the days of searching for the truth, trials, transitions and difficult internal struggle. What was there to think about? Why was your soul rushing about - in search of a way out, in resolving contradictions? Life seemed mocking, wisely simple.” Gregory comes to the understanding that “everyone has their own truth, their own furrow. People have always fought and will continue to fight for a piece of bread, for a plot of land, for the right to life... We must fight with those who want to take away life, the right to it.”
But he still doesn’t like this truth of life. He cannot look with indifference at the unharvested wheat, unmown bread, empty threshing floors, thinking about how women are strained from backbreaking work while men are doing meaningless work. Why can’t you live peacefully on your own land and work for yourself, for your family, for the country, in the end? This question is asked by Grigory Melekhov and in his person - all the Cossacks, dreaming of free labor in the native land. Grigory becomes bitter and falls into despair. He is forcibly torn away from everything that is dear to him: from home, family, loving people. He is forced to kill people for ideas that he cannot understand... The hero comes to the realization that “life is going wrong,” but he cannot change anything. Although he wants with all his heart for there to be harmony in the Cossack world.
M. Sholokhov also reveals the inviolability of the house and family among the Cossacks in female images. Grigory’s mother Ilyinichna and his wife Natalya embodied the best traits of a Cossack woman: reverence for the sanctity of the hearth, loyalty and devotion in love, patience, pride, and hard work.
Natalya's rival Aksinya, a beauty with an independent, bold character and stormy temperament, complements the female image of a Cossack woman, making it more vibrant. Gregory's mother was truly a close person to him. She understood him like no one else. She also called on him to love humanity: “We used the rumor that you chopped up some sailors... Lord! Come to your senses, Grishenka! Look at you, look at the children who are growing up, and those you ruined probably also have children left... In your childhood, how affectionate and desirable you were, but now you still live with knitted eyebrows.”
Need a cheat sheet? Then save - "Image of Grigory Melekhov's mother, Ilyinichna. Literary essays!Mikhail Sholokhov wrote a truly brilliant work about such a class in Russia as the Cossacks. This is the novel "Quiet Don". The heroes of the book are simple people with their own difficulties and problems. The female images in this work are revealed on the basis of traditional ideas about what the purpose of a Cossack woman is, who should be a good mother and keeper of the hearth. The female image in the novel “Quiet Don” helps to reveal the personality of the main character, Grigory Melekhov. Before moving on to the analysis of female images of this famous novel, let's say a few words about how it was created.
History of creation: “Quiet Don”
The idea of writing a novel about revolution and ordinary people appeared with Sholokhov in the mid-20s of the last century.
Sholokhov was puzzled by the need to write a novel in such a way as to explain historical conditions that led to the revolution. The author writes about people's lives, their way of life, their difficulties, trying to show the growth of revolutionary sentiments. The change in concept led to the novel receiving a new name - “Quiet Don”.
The life of the characters in the work personifies, according to the author’s plan, the life of different segments of the population during the war and revolution.
In addition, Sholokhov sets himself the task of telling about the tragic fate of people who fell into the maelstrom of events from 1914 to 1921.
The idea of the novel "Quiet Don", which, as is now clear, differed from the author's original idea, matured in last days 1926. The collection of material for the work began.
For this purpose, the writer moved to Veshenskaya Stanitsa, traveling to nearby farms and talking with participants in the war and revolution. To study the folklore of the Cossacks well, the author visits the archives of Rostov and Moscow.
As he wrote, Sholokhov published parts of his novel. Reviews of this work did not leave the pages of the press. Work on the fourth book did not proceed very quickly, which prompted readers who were worried about the fate of the heroes to write numerous letters to Sholokhov.
It is known that a rumor spread among writers that the novel was not written by Sholokhov, but by a certain murdered officer, from whose bag the manuscript was taken. The author was forced to go to Rostov and assemble a commission to refute the slander.
However, the novel written by Sholokhov has stood the test of time. Many generations of people continue to read it, admiring original characters main characters and experiencing the difficulties of life with them.
So, now we know the history of the creation of “Quiet Don”. Let's move on to consider the main female characters of the novel.
Love triangle
The main characters of the novel “Quiet Don” are also doomed to this. In this work, two women, Natalya and Aksinya, love one Cossack - Grigory Melekhov. Natalia - him legal wife, Aksinya is the wife of the Melekhovs’ neighbor, Stepan Astakhov. In the novel Quiet Don, Aksinya passionately loves Gregory with forbidden sensual love. It is not surprising that her sincere attitude deeply touched the Cossack’s heart.
Aksinya
The image of this woman is central to the novel. She is independent, strong, beautiful. Aksinya is capable of deep feelings. She personifies the Cossack woman’s ability to be independent and love passionately, sacrificing herself.
The character and fate of the heroine
Aksinya's life was not easy. The connection with Gregory, about which the whole village was chattering, became known to her husband, Stepan Astakhov. When he asked whether this was true, Aksinya confessed to him without hesitation. Her willingness to take responsibility for her actions reveals in her. What happened between her and Melekhov is not a simple affair for Aksinya, but a deep feeling.
She, like Grigory, did not lie, did not pretend. Both were firmly convinced that the connection between them was not a casual affair. The village residents perceived such behavior as immoral.
Living according to your heart
In the novel "Quiet Don" Aksinya personifies a sensual nature who wants to live according to her own will, obeying only the dictates of her heart. She is even braver than her lover, Grigory Melekhov. It is Aksinya who invites Gregory to leave his native farm, breaking with conventions.
This woman always followed her beloved, without asking where they were going, her feeling was so selfless.
Weaknesses and vices
The heroes of the novel "Quiet Don", like any people, have their own shortcomings. Aksinya is a woman who is capable of strong feelings; her life is ruled by passions, which brings a lot of grief to those around her and to herself. Her love for Melekhov largely became the reason for his discord with his wife Natalya. Aksinya does not back down even when Grigory and Natalya have children. The woman also became the reason for her betrayal of Melekhov and Listnitsky. Nevertheless, it is worth recognizing that Aksinya’s infidelity further shows her strong feelings for Gregory.
The hopelessness of love between Aksinya and Gregory
Aksinya loves Gregory fiercely, her feeling sweeps away everything in its path. She follows him everywhere. People who are capable of feeling so strongly are, as a rule, rarely happy; they want to be close to their loved ones everywhere, to occupy their lives completely. The author emphasizes the doom of this relationship by the fact that the children of Aksinya and Gregory could not survive. Their union is not harmonious, because such passion upsets the natural balance.
Natalia
Unlike Aksinya, Natalya has a completely different character. "Quiet Don" in the images of these two women shows different types Cossack If Aksinya is freedom-loving, sensual, strong, then Natalya is completely different. She is a faithful wife good hostess, mother, This woman is beautiful, kind, hardworking, but at the same time deeply unhappy. She is the dream of any Cossack, but something in her character is missing from her husband, who, in his own way, of course, loves her.
Natalia's love for Gregory
Before the wedding, Natalya was deeply in love with Gregory. Having learned that the Melekhovs should woo her, the girl declares that she does not want to marry anyone else.
After the wedding, for her, as for an exemplary wife, her only happiness is her husband and children. Her love for Gregory is submissive and highly moral.
This is the image of Natalia. “Quiet Don” personifies in this heroine the ideal of the highest female virtue.
Rivals
So, the epic novel “Quiet Don” tells us about the love of two women who competed with each other.
The difference in their personalities is very clear during their meetings with each other.
At the first meeting, Natalya begs Aksinya to leave Gregory. Gregory's beloved shows contempt for his legal wife. Natalya is defeated.
The second meeting between the women occurs five years later. Natalia becomes stronger, she protects her son and daughter. Both rivals have matured: they have more self-esteem, they do not stoop to abuse and swearing, giving Gregory the opportunity to choose.
Death of Natalia and Aksinya
The novel "Quiet Don", the characters of which formed such a typical for works of this type love triangle, describes the death of many heroes. During civil war in fact, people died in countless numbers.
The fate of Grigory Melekhov turned out to be very difficult, as he lost his beloved women: Aksinya, whom he loved passionately, and Natalya. He also loved her in his own way, although he did not admit it.
As for Natalya, this female character in the novel Quiet Don helps our imagination imagine a beautiful, God-fearing, but nervous Cossack woman. Her husband's infidelity led her to attempt suicide, which left her with a permanent scar on her neck.
Long before her death, Natalya thought about leaving the Melekhovs for her parents’ house to give her husband the opportunity to live with Aksinya, but Grigory’s mother dissuaded her from this.
Later, Natalya killed the child Gregory, whom she was carrying. This caused the woman's death. After Natalya's death, Aksinya takes care of her children, they even call her mom.
Grigory is having a hard time with the death of his wife. When he sees the telegram informing him of this, he feels pain in his heart. It became even more painful for him when he learned that Natalya was pushed to take such a terrible step by a conversation with Aksinya, whose female character in the novel “Quiet Don” personifies selfless, ardent love. However, her feeling is subordinated to reason; Aksinya has enough strength to fight for Gregory. His wife, Natalya, loved him only with her heart, she was too pure, her ideas about human relationships were too exalted. Aksinya told Gregory’s wife about her relationship with him, after which Natalya decides to take a fatal step. It is not known whether Melekhova’s beloved imagined how this would turn out for her rival.
Having learned the truth, Grigory for some time experiences hostility towards Aksinya. He remembers Natalya, strokes and caresses the children for a long time, imagining how she kissed and baptized them before her death. It becomes even more painful for him when he learns from Ilyinichna that Natalya forgave him for everything, loving him until the last minute of her unhappy life.
Aksinya's death also causes deep suffering in Gregory's soul. The beloved dies right in Melekhov’s arms. Blood flows from her mouth, bubbling in her throat. This strong Cossack understands that the worst thing has happened in his life.
Loneliness of Grigory Melekhov
The death of Aksinya led to the fact that Gregory’s life practically lost its meaning. He buries her himself, thinking that their separation will be short-lived.
Death took away those closest and dearest to his heart. By the end of the work, he remains only with his son Mishatka.
The death of women dear to his heart, according to the author, deepens the loneliness of the protagonist.
The female image in the novel "Quiet Don", be it Natalya, Aksinya or other heroines of the novel, is something that gives strength. Without such support, main character ceases to understand the meaning of his existence.
Other female characters in the novel “Quiet Don”
Central female images in the novel, these are, of course, Aksinya and Natalya. However, in this article we cannot ignore other female images.
Gregory's mother, Ilyinichna, deserves special attention. This is an elderly Cossack woman who dedicated her life to the well-being of children and family. The author depicts her as a real keeper of the hearth. In her youth, Ilyinichna was distinguished by her beauty and stature, but she quickly grew old from hard work. She suffered a lot of grief from her husband, Pantelei Prokofievich, who was distinguished by a very tough temperament, reaching the point of unconsciousness in anger.
The whole life of this wise woman is filled with troubles and worries about her family; she tries to isolate them from adversity and troubles. This is her characteristic. “Quiet Don” portrays Ilyinichna as a good housewife, prudent and economical.
She has a negative attitude towards Gregory’s relationship with Aksinya. However, during the war, Ilyinichna becomes close to her amid worries about her son.
This elderly woman loves her daughter-in-law Natalya, worries about her, and tries to shift some of the work to Daria. She feels pain that Gregory is cheating on her. Natalya's death shocked Ilyinichna.
No less interesting is the wife of Grigory’s older brother, Daria. “Quiet Don” in her image presents to our attention a dissolute, lazy, cunning heroine. She is beautiful and lives for sensual pleasures. Daria loves to attract the attention of men and knows how to do it. She likes gatherings and holidays. After the death of her husband, Daria tried to make up for lost years and had affairs, which led to her illness and death.
The reader gets to know Dunyasha Melekhova back when she was a long-armed teenager with big eyes. Later she becomes a slender Cossack woman with an obstinate character. The matured Dunyasha is presented in the novel as an intelligent, self-sufficient girl who achieves her goal by marrying a man. She fell in love with him despite the fact that her chosen one committed many bloody crimes.
We looked at the main female characters in the novel "Quiet Don". They are the ones who help the author comprehend this new milestone in the life of the Don Cossacks. The woman in Sholokhov's work occupies a central place. The author connects with it questions about the meaning of life, the concepts of happiness and love.
Grigory Melekhov is the most famous and memorable character in Sholokhov’s novel “Quiet Don”. But few people know that in the first edition of the work there was no such hero at all. His place was taken by a certain Abram Ermakov, who looked very much like Gregory. Why the author decided to make changes to the novel is still unknown.
Hero's appearance
Grigory Melekhov (the character’s characteristics will be discussed in detail in this article) is endowed by the author with “wild” beauty, like all the Cossacks of his family. He was taller than his older brother, with black hair and a hooked nose, which made him look like a gypsy. The eyes are slightly slanted, almond-shaped and “blue,” and “sharp slabs of cheekbones are covered with brown skin.” His smile was “bestial”, his “wolf teeth” were snow-white. Hands are stubborn and callous to affection.
In his entire appearance one can feel wildness and roughness, combined with incredible beauty. Even during the war, he did not lose his attractiveness. Although he lost a lot of weight and looked more like an Asian.
Grigory Melikhov wore traditional Cossack clothes: wide trousers, white woolen stockings, chiriki (shoes), zipun, loose shirt, short fur coat. The clothing has a direct indication of nationality. The author emphasizes Cossack origin your hero.
Who is the main character of the novel?
Let's start with the fact that Sholokhov's focus is on the people, and not on a specific individual. And Gregory stands out from the general background only because he is the embodiment of folk traits. It became a reflection of Cossack prowess and “love for farming, for work” - the two main commandments of the Cossacks, who were warriors and farmers at the same time.
But Grigory Melekhov (“Quiet Don”) is famous not only for this. Distinctive features His character became self-willed, the desire for truth and independence in actions. He always strives to verify everything personally and does not take anyone’s word for it. For him, truth is born slowly, from concrete reality, painfully and painfully. His whole life is a search for truth. The same thoughts tormented the Cossacks, who first encountered the new government.
Grigory Melekhov and Aksinya
The love conflict is one of the main ones in the novel. The main character's relationship with Aksinya runs like a red thread throughout the entire work. Their feeling was high, but tragic.
Let's talk a little about heroin. Aksinya is a stately, beautiful and proud Cossack woman who perceives what is happening very emotionally. It fell to her lot hard fate. At sixteen, Aksinya was raped by her father, and a year later she was married to Stepan Astakhov, who beat her. This was followed by the death of the child. An unloved husband and hard work - this is the whole life of a young woman. This was the fate of many peasant and Cossack women, which is why it is generally accepted that “Quiet Don” reflects an entire era.
The fate of Grigory Melekhov turned out to be closely intertwined with the life of Aksinya. The woman wanted true love, that’s why she responded so readily to her neighbor’s advances. Passion flared up between the young people, burning away fear, shame and doubt.
Even marrying Natalya did not stop Gregory. He continued to meet with Aksinya, for which he was expelled from home by his father. But even here the lovers did not give up. Their life as workers does not bring happiness. And Aksinya’s betrayal with her master’s son forces Gregory to return to his wife.
However, the final break does not occur. The lovers begin to meet again. They carry their feelings throughout their lives, despite all misfortunes and tragedies.
Character
Grigory Melekhov does not run from reality. He soberly assesses everything that happens around him and takes an active part in all events. This is considered the most striking and memorable in his image. He is characterized by breadth of soul and nobility. So, he saves Stepan Astakhov’s life, risking himself, although he does not have any friendly feelings towards him. He then bravely rushes to save those who killed his brother.
The image of Melekhov is complex and ambiguous. He is characterized by tossing and feeling of internal dissatisfaction with his actions. That is why he constantly rushes about; making a choice is not an easy task for him.
Social aspect
The character of a hero is determined by his origin. For example, Listnitsky is a landowner, and Koshevoy is a farm laborer, so they cannot be relied upon. Grigory Melekhov has a completely different origin. “Quiet Don” was written during the heyday of socialist realism and harsh criticism. Therefore, it is not surprising that the main character has a peasant origin, which was considered the most “correct”. However, the fact that he was from the middle peasants was the reason for all his throwing. The hero is both a worker and an owner. This is the cause of internal discord.
During the war, Grigory Melekhov practically does not care about his family, even Aksinya fades into the background. At this time, he is trying to understand the social structure and his place in it. In war, the hero does not seek benefit for himself, the main thing is to find the truth. That is why he peers so intently at the world. He does not share the enthusiasm of other Cossacks for the coming of the revolution. Grigory does not understand why they need her.
Previously, the Cossacks themselves decided who would rule them, they chose an ataman, but now they are imprisoned for this. There is no need for generals or peasants on the Don; the people will figure it out themselves, just as they figured it out before. And the promises of the Bolsheviks are false. They say that everyone is equal, but here comes the Red Army, the platoon commander has chrome boots, and the soldiers are all in bandages. And where is the equality?
Search
Grigory Melekhov sees reality very clearly and soberly assesses what is happening. In this he is similar to many Cossacks, but there is one difference - the hero is looking for the truth. This is what haunts him. Sholokhov himself wrote that Melekhov embodied the opinion of all Cossacks, but his strength lies in the fact that he was not afraid to speak out and tried to resolve contradictions, and did not humbly accept what was happening, hiding behind words about brotherhood and equality.
Grigory could admit that the Reds were right, but he felt the lies in their slogans and promises. He could not take everything on faith, and when he checked it in reality, it turned out that he was being lied to.
Turning a blind eye to lies was tantamount to betraying oneself, one’s land and one’s people.
How to deal with an unnecessary person?
Grigory Melekhov (his characterization confirms this) stood out from other representatives of the Cossacks. This attracted Shtokman's attention to him. This man did not have time to convince people like our hero, so he immediately decided to eliminate him. The innocent Gregory was doomed to arrest and death. What else to do with unnecessary people who ask unnecessary questions?
The order is given to Koshevoy, who is surprised and embarrassed. Gregory, his friend, is accused of having a dangerous way of thinking. Here we see the main conflict of the novel, where two sides collide, each of which is right. Shtokman is taking all measures to prevent an uprising that could prevent the accession of Soviet power, which he serves. Gregory’s character does not allow him to come to terms with either his fate or the fate of his people.
However, Shtokman's order becomes the beginning of the very uprising that he wanted to prevent. Together with Melekhov, who entered into battle with Koshev, the entire Cossacks rise. In this scene, the reader can clearly see that Gregory is truly a reflection of the people's will.
Melekhov decides to fight the power of the Reds. And this decision was due to a series of incidents: the arrest of his father, numerous executions in Tatarskoye, a threat to the life of the hero himself, insults to the Red Army soldiers stationed at his base.
Gregory has made his choice and is confident in it. However, not all so simple. This is not the last turn in his fate.
Throwing
The image of Grigory Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don” is very ambiguous. He is constantly tossing around and is not sure of the right choice. This is what happens with the decision to confront the Red Army. He sees the prisoners and dead who took part in his uprising, and understands who might benefit from this. The final epiphany comes when Gregory alone rushes to the machine gun and kills the sailors who controlled it. Melekhov then rolls around in the snow and exclaims: “Who did I kill!”
The hero again finds himself in conflict with the world. All Melekhov’s vacillations reflect the vacillations of the entire Cossacks, who first came from monarchism to Bolshevism, then decided to build autonomy, and then returned to Bolshevism again. Only in the example of Gregory do we see everything more clearly than what actually happened. This is connected with the very character of the hero, with his intransigence, passion, and unbridledness. Melekhov judges himself and those around him strictly. He is ready to answer for his wrong actions, but he wants others to answer too.
Summing up
The image of Grigory Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don” is full of tragedy. Throughout his life he tried to find the truth, but what did he get in the end? IN last chapter In the book we see how the hero loses the most precious thing - his beloved woman. Aksinya's death was the most terrible blow for Melekhov. At that moment the meaning of life was taken away from him. He has no more close people left in this world. Mental devastation leads him to the forest. He tries to live alone, but cannot stand it and returns to the farm where his son lives - the only thing left of Aksinya and their love.
What is the tragedy of Grigory Melekhov? He came into conflict with the world, could not come to terms with its new laws, attempts to change something ended in failure. But the hero could not come to terms with what was happening. New era“grinded” and distorted his fate. Gregory simply turned out to be a person who could not adapt to change.
Introduction
The fate of Grigory Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don” by Sholokhov becomes the focus of the reader’s attention. This hero, who by the will of fate found himself in the midst of difficult historical events, for many years I have been forced to find my own path in life.
Description of Grigory Melekhov
Already from the first pages of the novel, Sholokhov introduces us to unusual fate grandfather Gregory, explaining why the Melekhovs differ in appearance from the rest of the inhabitants of the farm. Gregory, like his father, had “a drooping kite nose, in slightly slanting slits there were bluish almonds of hot eyes, sharp slabs of cheekbones.” Remembering the origin of Pantelei Prokofievich, everyone in the farmstead called the Melekhovs “Turks.”
Life changing inner world Gregory. His appearance also changes. From a carefree, cheerful guy, he turns into a stern warrior whose heart has hardened. Gregory “knew that he would no longer laugh as before; knew that his eyes were sunken and his cheekbones were sticking out sharply,” and in his gaze “a light of senseless cruelty began to shine through more and more often.”
At the end of the novel, a completely different Gregory appears before us. This is a mature man, tired of life, “with tired squinting eyes, with the reddish tips of a black mustache, with premature gray hair at the temples and hard wrinkles on the forehead.”
Characteristics of Gregory
At the beginning of the work, Grigory Melekhov is a young Cossack living according to the laws of his ancestors. The main thing for him is farming and family. He enthusiastically helps his father in the mowing and fishing. He is unable to contradict his parents when they marry him to the unloved Natalya Korshunova.
But, for all that, Gregory is a passionate, addicted person. Contrary to his father's prohibitions, he continues to go to night games. He meets Aksinya Astakhova, the neighbor’s wife, and then leaves his home with her.
Gregory, like most Cossacks, is characterized by courage, sometimes reaching the point of recklessness. He behaves heroically at the front, participating in the most dangerous forays. At the same time, the hero is not alien to humanity. He is worried about a gosling he accidentally killed while mowing. He suffers for a long time because of the murdered unarmed Austrian. “By obeying his heart,” Grigory saves his sworn enemy Stepan from death. He goes against a whole platoon of Cossacks, defending Franya.
In Gregory, passion and obedience, madness and gentleness, kindness and hatred coexist at the same time.
The fate of Grigory Melekhov and his path of quest
The fate of Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don” is tragic. He is constantly forced to look for a “way out,” the right road. It's not easy for him in the war. His personal life is also complicated.
Like the beloved heroes of L.N. Tolstoy, Grigory goes through a difficult path life's quest. At the beginning, everything seemed clear to him. Like other Cossacks, he is called up for war. For him there is no doubt that he must defend the Fatherland. But, getting to the front, the hero understands that his whole nature is opposed to murder.
Grigory moves from white to red, but even here he will be disappointed. Seeing how Podtyolkov deals with captured young officers, he loses faith in this power and the next year he again finds himself in the White Army.
Tossing between the whites and the reds, the hero himself becomes embittered. He loots and kills. He tries to forget himself in drunkenness and fornication. In the end, fleeing the persecution of the new government, he finds himself among the bandits. Then he becomes a deserter.
Grigory is exhausted from tossing and turning. He wants to live on his land, raise bread and children. Although life hardens the hero and gives his features something “wolfish,” in essence, he is not a killer. Having lost everything and not having found his way, Grigory returns to his native farm, realizing that, most likely, death awaits him here. But a son and a home are the only things that keep the hero alive.
Gregory's relationship with Aksinya and Natalya
Fate sends the hero two passionate loving women. But Gregory’s relationship with them is not easy. While still single, Grigory falls in love with Aksinya, the wife of Stepan Astakhov, his neighbor. Over time, the woman reciprocates his feelings, and their relationship develops into unbridled passion. “So unusual and obvious was their crazy connection, they burned so frantically with one shameless flame, people without conscience and without hiding, losing weight and blackening their faces in front of their neighbors, that now for some reason people were ashamed to look at them when they met.”
Despite this, he cannot resist his father’s will and marries Natalya Korshunova, promising himself to forget Aksinya and settle down. But Gregory is unable to keep his vow to himself. Although Natalya is beautiful and selflessly loves her husband, he gets back together with Aksinya and leaves his wife and parental home.
After Aksinya's betrayal, Grigory returns to his wife again. She accepts him and forgives past grievances. But he was not destined for peace family life. The image of Aksinya haunts him. Fate brings them together again. Unable to bear the shame and betrayal, Natalya has an abortion and dies. Grigory blames himself for the death of his wife and experiences this loss cruelly.
Now, it would seem, nothing can stop him from finding happiness with the woman he loves. But circumstances force him to leave his place and, together with Aksinya, set off on the road again, the last for his beloved.
With the death of Aksinya, Gregory's life loses all meaning. The hero no longer has even a ghostly hope for happiness. “And Grigory, dying of horror, realized that it was all over, that the worst thing that could happen in his life had already happened.”
Conclusion
In conclusion of my essay on the topic “The Fate of Grigory Melekhov in the novel “Quiet Don””, I want to fully agree with critics who believe that in “Quiet Don” the fate of Grigory Melekhov is the most difficult and one of the most tragic. Using the example of Grigory Sholokhov, he showed how the whirlpool of political events breaks human destiny. And the one who sees his destiny in peaceful work suddenly becomes a cruel killer with a devastated soul.
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