INbasisstudyingliterature - creativitywriterAndliteraryprocess - liesanalyticalconsiderationliterary- artisticworks, whichisyourselfcomplex unity, artisticreality, organizedBycertainlaws, reflective, Withonesides, worldviewAndartisticthinkingwriter, AWithanothersides, - lawsreality. Truly " workThere isThat " quantum", Vwhichartisticenergygainsrealbeing" .
" MainVliterary criticismThere issimpleunderstandingmeaning of literaryworks... Targetall sorts of thingsliterary studiesconsists ofVvolume, tolearnreadliteraryworks, understanding the meaning of real life inherent in them" . This thought soundsa call to the researcher not to present a work of art as merely an expression of his own scientific understanding of literature and life. “The main forms of mastering literary works today are their analysis, interpretation and evaluation, therefore the methods of literary criticism are, first of all, methods of analysis, interpretation and evaluation” . In this case, the method should be understood as “a kind of analogue of the subject,” i.e. reflect “the most general properties and laws” of a literary work; "the method must take into account the nature of the subject" . It should always be borne in mind that the “meaning of a literary work” belongs to a second-order reality, the idea of which is associated both with the “meaning of real life” and with the implementation of the “artistic energy” of the creator.
Deepening the understanding of a literary work of art, developing methods for analyzing an individual work of art represents one of important tasks, which is closely related to the theoretical understanding of literary phenomena. However, relying on Marxist-Leninist dialectics, the researcher necessarily concludes that analysis in the proper sense of the term is insufficient, because analysis “is important not in itself, but for the sake of subsequent synthesis, returning us to the original whole, which now appears as a scientifically known concrete” . SpecifiedThe principle applies both to the analysis of the work as a whole and to certain aspects of it. In what follows, we will understand the term “analysis” in in a broad sense- as “a study that includes both the mental decomposition of a work and the combination of selected aspects of elements into a whole” .
Whether in a particular case we turn to the analysis of elements of form or content, we must remember that we are dealing with meaningful form and artistic (figurative, “formulated”) content. In turn, the concept of “meaningful form” is multifaceted. We can identify a number of its levels, aspects that could become the subject of independent consideration or the starting point for analyzing the work as a whole, for example: plot, narration, composition, etc. One of the levels of the substantive form of a work should be considered a system of characters. The importance of the system of characters in a literary work is evidenced, for example, by the following statement by V.G. Belinsky: " Artistic creation must be completely ready in the artist’s soul before he takes up the pen... He must first see in front of him the faces from whose mutual relationships his drama or story is formed..." . In the book "Introduction to Literary Studies" edited by G.N. Pospelov we read: “The characters, in their totality making up the system, are, apparently, the side of a literary work of art that is most closely connected with the content. And when understanding the idea of an epic or dramatic work, it is important to understand first of all the function of the character system - its meaning and meaning. It is with this that it is natural to begin considering a short story or a novel, a comedy ortragedy" .
§ I. Concept of the character system
In itself, the terminological designation of the image of a person in literary work represents one of the important problems modern literary criticism(see AttachmentI). In accordance withthe purpose of this studyWewe will assume that the character ( literary hero) is a character in a plot-driven work of art, most often embodying character traits image of a person. The main characters of the work have a character expressed in a complex system artistic means. A specific analysis of the characters in a literary work will simultaneously reveal their characters and the artistic means of their embodiment.
The organization of characters in a literary work appears as a system. The description of its specific aspects is a task of paramount importance for this work, the starting point for the analysis of the work. At the same time, neither the academic “Theory of Literature” nor the “Brief literary encyclopedia", nor educational theoretical and literary manuals, with the exception of the book "Introduction to Literary Studies" edited by G.N. Pospelov, cited above. A.G. Tseitlin dwells on some aspects of the character system in the book "The Work of a Writer" . Firstly, the characters in a work of fiction act in some way, i.e. perform actions and are therefore in certain relationships. Further: “The writer strives... to ensure that the mental state of the characters becomes clear from his (as in the text - S.Z.) actions.” The character system is “continuously changing”, while a certain “hierarchy of characters” is maintained. In addition, a grouping occurs that “within the system of characters each time corresponds to the correlation of certain social forces”; This is how the principle of “representativeness” of characters is implemented. Above are marked as external properties of the systemcharacters - its variability, hierarchy, and its internal features based on the interaction and opposition of characters - embodiment " state of mind heroes", a reflection of the struggle of social forces, i.e. ultimately - ideological content works.
The concept of a character system is used by many researchers without a special definition, although it should be noted that we are talking mainly about a system of images (as in A.G. Tseitlin), where the image means the image of a person in a work of art . B.T. writes about the system of images. Udodov, noting the peculiarities of the relationship between the characters in the novel “Hero of Our Time”: “Disclosure central image Pechorin is subordinated to the image of all otherscharacters... At the same time minor characters have independent meaning" . E.N. Mikhailova, speaking about the “composition of images”,sets in in this case an important compositional relationship between the characters as a result of their opposition and based on their place in the plot action, emphasizing the active role of Pechorin. The character system in late romantic literature with its specificgrouping becomes the subject of consideration in the article by F.P. Fedorov .
Without using the term “character system”, Yu.V. Mann writes aboutvarious kinds of character connections. Drawing attention to the importance of the “motive of abandonment, departure” for the entire artistic fabric of the novel by I.S. Turgenev’s “Smoke”, the researcher states “a special kind of character connections” that arise as a result of the development of this motif: “Meanwhile, since the motive of leaving realizes not only a moment of ideological confrontation (in itself very important), but a subtle play of sympathies or antipathies, closeness or alienation - in a word, the whole variety of human relationships - then he, thismotive becomes the unifying beginning of the novel's action" . In the novel "Nov" the associative and contrasting connection of the characters is noted." . In the work of Yu.V. Mann, it is important for us, firstly, to highlight the various connections between the characters, and secondly, to establish the connection between the “ideological confrontation” and a wide range of relationships that form the event-psychological basis of the character system. Of course, we have mentioned only a few works that in one way or another deal with the character system; apparently, other interesting observations and conclusions could be cited. However, given everything that has been established above, we can already give a working definition of the character system. The character system is one aspect artistic form literary work, artistic unity in which characters are united by mutual likes and dislikes, coincidence of ideological aspirations and antagonism, family ties, love and friendly affections; they enter into relationships and correlate with each other, and this correlation in the plot serves as one of the expressions - sometimes the most important - of the ideological content of the work, which is embodied through conjugationgroups and individual characters in a certain relation to the author’s world and objective reality.
Based on this definition, the system of characters should be considered from at least two points of view: 1) as a system of relationships between characters (struggle, clashes, etc.) and their relationships with each other: comparison and contrast both on the basis of relationships and outside them; 2) as a concrete embodiment of the principles of compositional coupling of content elements. In the first case, the system of characters is conceptualized as an expression of the theme of the work, i.e. in terms of its content. In this sense, the character system is a reflection of human relations in society. In the second case, the system of characters is considered as a moment in the composition of the work, acting at the same time as a means of characterizing the characters. The system of characters in this case is an important level in the general relationship of a work of art to the world of the author and to reality.
Regarding the hierarchy of characters in the work of A.G. Tseitlin notes that for A.N. Tolstoy, for example, the most important stage was “the establishment of a central figure and then the establishment of the remaining characters, who are located in a descending staircase around this figure” . In the work of G.A. Shengeli concretizes the steps of this “ladder” of characters: “The main characters, those whose fate attracted Special attention writers are called heroes. Other characters are divided into minor, auxiliary and incidental or situational." "In this case, the following complications are possible: minor characters can, while attracting the reader's attention, at the same time attract his sympathy or dissympathy; in the first case, the author usually seeks to set limits on the reader's interest." .
In general, regarding the classification of characters, we can talk about a well-known polyphony research literature, the use of terms in most cases is determined by the individualresearcher's approach. It stands out so much" central character, whoseThe author reveals psychology and point of view on events" , notes the "centralizing role of the main character"
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Literary ideas about the character system
This work is devoted to the analysis of the character system in literature lessons in high school. We will understand the term “analysis” in a broad sense - as “a study that includes both the mental decomposition of a work and the combination of selected aspects of elements into a whole.” The organization of characters in a literary work appears as a system. The description of its specific aspects is a task of paramount importance for this work, the starting point for the analysis of the work. Our task is to identify these aspects and understand by what principle the characters are organized into a system. To begin with, let’s try to decompose the work into its component elements, highlight important aspects, and then combine them into a whole according to common characteristics.
Turning to the consideration of the work, we proceed from the ideas reflected in the work of V.G. Zinchenko "Methods of studying literature". According to these ideas, we are dealing with meaningful form and artistic content. According to the same source, the concept of “meaningful form” consists of several components that can become the subject of independent consideration or the starting point for analyzing a work, for example: plot or composition. One of the levels of the meaningful form of a work should be considered a system of characters. The importance of the system of characters in a literary work is evidenced, for example, by the following statement by V.G. Belinsky: “An artistic creation must be completely ready in the artist’s soul before he takes up the pen... He must firstto see before you the faces from whose mutual relationships his drama or story is formed...". Thus, already V.G. Belinsky noted that there is a certain connection between the heroes of the work, without which the implementation of the plan is impossible.
What is the system in a broad sense? The term "system" comes from the Greek word "systema", meaning a whole made up of parts. The definition of a system is present in various branches of science in a narrow and broad sense - both as a naturally organized collection of homogeneous elements, and as a collection of systems and subsystems. According to the opinion of V.G. Zinchenko« A system is understood as a certain integrity formed by a set of elements that are in connections and relationships with each other. In addition to the property of connectivity, hierarchy is also usually mentioned as the most important feature of the system.” The system of characters in a work, just like any other system, represents integrity. In the case of a character system, its elements will be the characters themselves, that is, the heroes acting in the work. Subsystems can be considered their groups, connections formed by several characters, which are united according to their main characteristics. Let's not forget about the hierarchy, which is somehow present in any work with a sufficient number of characters.
What is a character as an element of a system? The terminological designation of the image of a person in a literary work is one of the important problems of modern literary criticism. In accordance with the task of this work, we will assume that a character is a character in a plot-driven work of art, most often embodying the characteristic features of a person’s image. The main characters of the work have a character expressed in a complex system of artistic means. Thus, a specific analysis of the system of characters in a literary work will simultaneously identify the characters and the artistic means of their embodiment.
There are quite a lot of references to the concept of “character system” today. In literary criticism, the term “character system” appeared only in the 80s of the 20th century.
The concept of a character system is still used by many researchers without a special definition, although it should be noted that we are talking mainly about a system of images, where “by image we mean the image of a person in a work of art.”
Without using the term “character system”, Yu.V. Mann writes about various kinds of connections between characters. Drawing attention to the importance of the “motif of abandonment, departure” for the entire artistic fabric of the novel by I.S. Turgenev’s “Smoke”, the researcher states “a special kind of character connections” that arise as a result of the development of this motive: “Meanwhile, since the motive of leaving realizes not only a moment of ideological confrontation, but a subtle play of sympathies or antipathies, intimacy or alienation - in a word, everything the diversity of human relationships, then it, this motive, becomes the unifying beginning of the novel’s action.” In the work of Yu.V. Mann, it is important for us, firstly, to highlight the various connections between the characters, and secondly, to establish a connection between the “ideological confrontation” and a wide range of relationships that form the event-psychological basis of the character system.
The article by V.A. is also important for us. Grekhneva from the book “Verbal Image and Literary Work”: “In large genre forms (primarily in the novel), the composition can be organized around one or several broadly outlined characters.” Thus, the author of the article strives to designate the system of characters in the work. But we think it would not be entirely correct to assume that this phenomenon is characteristic only of large genre forms.
A.G. also dwells on some features of the character system. Tseitlin in the book “The Work of a Writer”. Firstly, “the characters in a work of fiction act in some way, i.e. perform actions and are therefore in certain relationships.” It is further noted: “The writer strives... to ensure that the hero’s state of mind becomes clear from his actions.” The character system is “continuously changing”, while a certain “hierarchy of characters” is maintained. In addition, a grouping occurs, which “within the system of characters each time corresponds to the correlation of certain social forces.” The literary critic pays attention to both the external properties of the character system (its variability, hierarchy), and its internal features based on the interaction and opposition of characters - the embodiment of the “mental state of the heroes”, a reflection of the struggle of social forces, i.e. ultimately - the ideological content of the work.
N.D. Tamarchenko in the book “ Literary terms” gives the following definition of the concept that interests us: “The system of characters is an artistically purposeful correlation of all the “leading” characters and all the so-called “minor” characters in a literary work. Through the system of characters, a single author’s idea of a person is expressed in his relationship with nature, society and history, as well as about the types of people...” IN this definition the idea is clearly expressed that the character system serves, first of all, as a means of expression author's attitude to the environment and understanding of life as such.
Speaking about the role of the author in the character system, researcher V.E. Khalizev notes that the author invariably expresses (of course, in the language of artistic images, and not by direct conclusions) his attitude towards the position, attitudes, and value orientation of his character. At the same time, the image of the character, according to V.E. Khalizeva (like all other links in the verbal and artistic form), “appears as the embodiment of a writer’s concept, idea, i.e. as something whole within the framework of another, broader, actually artistic integrity(works as such). It depends on this integrity; one might say, it serves it at the will of the author.” With any serious development of the character sphere of the work, the reader inevitably penetrates into spiritual world author: in the images of heroes he sees (primarily by direct feeling) the creative will of the writer.
Expressed by V.E. Khalizev’s idea that the author’s attitude towards the hero can be predominantly either alienated or related, but not neutral, allows us to understand that each character, regardless of his position in the system, has a certain author’s assessment, which, perhaps, in turn, determines his place in this system of characters. Equally interesting is the thought of V.E. Khalizeva about the importance of group, collective characters that can act in a work. In addition, characters are often the stimulus for the development of events that make up the plot, which is important when characters appear in the plot and thus their functions in the system.
Turning to the concept of character as an element of the system of the work of L.V. Chernets notes that the concept of character (hero, character) is the most important in the analysis of epic and dramatic works, where exactly the characters forming a certain system and the plot (system of events) form the basis objective world.
We know that most often literary character- this is a person. The degree of concreteness of its presentation, according to L.V. Chernets, can be different and depends on many reasons: on the place in the system of characters, on the type and genre of the work, etc. But most of all, the principles of the image, the very direction of detailing are determined by the concept of the work, creative method writer: more can be said about a minor character in a realistic story in biographical and social terms than about the main character in a modernist novel. Thus, we cannot judge a character’s place in the system only by the amount of text that the author allocated to this particular hero. It is important to determine the author’s intention and clearly understand which of the heroes serves to implement this idea.
The character sphere of literature consists not only of isolated individuals, but also of collective heroes. L.V. Chernets notes in this regard: “Interest in the problems of nationality, social psychology stimulated in XIX literature-XX V. development of this image angle (the crowd in the “Cathedral Notre Dame of Paris» V. Hugo, the bazaar in “The Belly of Paris” by E. Zola, the workers’ settlement in M. Gorky’s novel “Mother”, “old women”, “neighbors”, “guests”, “drunkards” in L. Andreev’s play “The Life of a Man” and etc.)" .
If the characters in a work are usually not difficult to count, then understanding the characters embodied in them and the corresponding grouping of persons is, according to L.V. Chernets, the act of interpretation, analysis. The author further notes that the number of characters in a work (as in a writer’s work as a whole) usually does not coincide: there are much more characters. There are persons who do not have a character, fulfilling only a plot role (for example, in “Poor Liza” by N.M. Karamzin, the heroine’s friend who informed her mother about the death of her daughter). There are doubles, variants of the same type (six princesses of the Tugoukhovskys in “Woe from Wit” by A.S. Griboedov, Dobchinsky and Bobchinsky in “The Government Inspector” by N.V. Gogol, Berkutov and Glafira, forming a contrasting pair in relation to Kupavina and Lynyaev, in comedy “Wolves and Sheep” by A.N. Ostrovsky). Usually you have to figure out whether heroes of this type are so important in the system, and for what purpose they are present in a particular work.
Researchers also emphasize that the character system is directly related to the plot of the work. L.V. Chernets believes that the basis of the objective world of epic and dramatic works is usually a system of characters and plot. "Even in works main topic which is a person alone with wild, virgin nature (“Robinson Crusoe” by D. Defoe, “Walden, or Life in the Woods” by G. Thoreau, “Mowgli” by R. Kipling), the character sphere, as a rule, is not limited to one hero.”
It is important to remember, according to L.V. Chernets: like any system, the character sphere of a work is characterized through its constituent elements (characters) and structure - “a relatively stable way (law) of connecting elements.” This or that image receives the status of a character precisely as an element of the system, a part of the whole, which is especially clearly visible when comparing images of animals, plants, things, etc. various works them with a person.
Around the main characters, minor ones are grouped, participating in the struggle on one side or the other (the most important property of the structure is hierarchy). At the same time, the diversity of specific characters in archaic plot genres can be classified.
Plot connections as a system-forming principle can be very complex, branched and cover a huge number of characters. As an example, L.V. Chernets cites “War and Peace” by L.N. Tolstoy, where there are about six hundred characters, and “ The human comedy» O. Balzac - about two thousand. The appearance of these individuals is in most cases motivated by the plot.
However, the researcher further notes, plot connection is not the only type of connection between characters. “A character system is a certain ratio of characters. Most often, the plot roles of the heroes more or less correspond to their importance as characters.”
Among the main provisions addressed to the character system, L.V. Chernets highlights a kind of peculiarity that lies in the fact that fantastic creatures can also be characters along with people. Collective heroes also make up the character sphere. In addition, there are characters who have no character, fulfilling only a plot role. Appearance minor characters in most cases it is motivated by the plot. Here the author introduces us to the concept of extra characters. As for the author of the work, his creative position is important here, since the principle of depicting characters is determined by the creative method of the writer.
In the book “Introduction to Literary Studies,” edited by G.N. Pospelov also emphasized the importance of the character system: “Characters, in their totality making up the system, are, apparently, the side of a literary work that is most closely connected with the content. And when understanding the idea of an epic or dramatic work, it is important to understand, first of all, the function of the character system - its meaning and meaning. It is with this that it is natural to begin considering a short story or a novel, a comedy or a tragedy.”
A.B. Esin notes that when analyzing epic and dramatic works, certain attention should be paid to the composition of the character system, that is, the characters in the work (we emphasize that it is not the analysis of the characters themselves, but their mutual connections and relationships, that is, composition). For the convenience of approaching this analysis, notes A.B. Esin, it is customary to distinguish between main characters (who are at the center of the plot, have independent characters and are directly related to all levels of the content of the work), secondary characters (who are also quite actively involved in the plot, who have their own character, but who receive less authorial attention; in some cases, their function - help reveal the images of the main characters) and episodic (appearing in one or two episodes of the plot, often without their own character and standing on the periphery of the author’s attention; their main function is to give impetus to the plot action at the right moment or to highlight certain features of the main characters and secondary ones). This is the most common classification, but not the only one. It would seem a very simple and convenient division, and yet, notes A.B. Yesin, in practice it often causes bewilderment and some confusion. The fact is that the category of a character (main, secondary or episodic) can be determined according to two different parameters. The first is the degree of participation in the plot and, accordingly, the amount of text that this character is given. The second is the degree of importance of this character for revealing aspects of artistic content. But it often happens that the character’s parameters do not coincide with each other; most often in the case where a minor or episodic person from the point of view of the plot carries a large content load.
But it should be noted that this gradation is not always important, in some artistic systems we encounter such an organization of the system of characters that the question of dividing them into main, secondary and episodic ones loses all meaningful meaning. Although in some cases there are differences between individual characters in terms of plot and volume of text. And A.B. himself Esin notes that Gogol wrote about his comedy “The Inspector General”: “every hero is here; the flow and progress of the play produces a shock to the whole machine: not a single wheel should remain rusty and not included in the work.”
The same principle, according to the literary critic, in the composition of the character system is maintained by Gogol in the poem “ Dead Souls" In the orbit of our attention, first of all, Chichikov is the “main” character (the word “main” inevitably has to be put in quotation marks, because, as it gradually turns out, he is not more important than all the others). Next, landowners, sometimes officials and, if time permits, one or two images from among Plyushkin’s “souls” come into our field of vision. And this is unusually small compared to the crowd of people who inhabit the space of Gogol’s poem. The number of people in the poem is simply amazing, they are at every step, and before we get to know Chichikov, we have already seen “two Russian men”, without a name or external signs, who do not play any role in the plot, do not characterize Chichikov in any way and in general seem to be of no use. And we will later meet a great many such figures... List them all, or at least a significant part, according to A.B. Yesina, there is no way. And the most interesting thing in Gogol’s system of “episodic” characters, he notes, is that each of them is unforgettably individual, and yet none of them performs any functions usual for this type of character; they do not provide impetus to the plot action and do not help characterize the main characters. In addition, Esin also draws attention to the detail in the depiction of these characters, which is clearly excessive for a “passing”, peripheral hero; the nameless owner of a roadside tavern turns out to be no less interesting for the author than Chichikov or Plyushkin. And this already creates a special setting, a special meaningful meaning of the composition: before us are no longer images of individual people, but something broader and more significant - the image of a population, a people, a nation; peace at last.
Almost the same composition of the character system, notes A.B. Yesin, observed in Chekhov's plays, and here the matter becomes even more complicated: the main and minor characters cannot be distinguished even by the degree of participation in the plot and the volume of the image. And here, close, but somewhat different from Gogol’s, the following composition carries a meaningful meaning: Chekhov needs to show a certain set of ordinary people, ordinary consciousness, among which there are no outstanding, extraordinary heroes, on whose images one can build a play, but for the most part they , are nevertheless interesting and significant. To do this, it is necessary to show a multitude of equal characters, without singling out the main and minor ones; This is the only way that something common is revealed in them, namely, the drama of a failed life inherent in everyday consciousness, a life that has passed or is passing in vain, without meaning and even without pleasure.
Thus, although A.B. Esin suggests dividing characters into main, secondary and episodic, but in some artistic systems this division loses all meaning, so you need to understand whether it is possible to classify the characters of the work being studied in this way. It is assumed that two parameters should be taken into account to determine the category of characters. This is the degree of participation of a particular character in the plot (the amount of text that is allocated to him) and the degree of importance of this character for revealing aspects of the artistic content. Episodic characters may differ from the main ones only quantitatively (in terms of image volume), and not qualitatively (in terms of the degree of author’s interest in them). This creates a special meaningful meaning - the image of a people, a nation, a population. Sometimes the main and secondary characters cannot be distinguished either by the degree of participation in the plot or by the volume of the image. Many equal characters help to reveal something common. Characters can also be grouped according to the themes they embody.
So, having an idea of what a character system is, it becomes absolutely necessary to understand the function of a character system, its meaning, its significance. It is with the analysis of the character system, as suggested by the above-mentioned researchers, that it is important to begin the analysis of the work. All even the smallest details associated with the presence of a character in the system must be taken into account. Dividing characters into main, secondary and episodic, as noted, is not always possible. Can the characters who appear during the course of the work and are in one way or another included in the system of characters and form part of it be called episodic, that is, appearing only in some episodes? Is the name suitable for the main characters who are the center of the author’s attention? Can the characters who form the basis of the plot action be considered minor?
In order for students to understand the role of characters in a literary work and their role in the text, and to be able to correctly construct a retelling, it is necessary to try to correctly answer these questions in the first literature lessons in high school.
List of used literature
- Andreev A.N. Literary theory: personality, work, artistic creativity. Mn.: BSU, 2004. 187 p.
- Belinsky V.G. Complete collection essays. In 5 volumes. M.: USSR Academy of Sciences, 1954. T.5 414 p.
- Introduction to literary criticism / Rep. ed. G.N. Pospelov. M.: Higher. school, 1976. 283 p.
- Grekhnev V.A. Verbal image and literary work. Book for teachers. M.: Education, 1992. 212 p.
- Esin A.B. Principles and techniques of analyzing a literary work: Tutorial. M.: Flinta, Nauka, 2000. 248 p.
- Zinchenko V.G. and others. Methods of studying literature. Systems approach(textbook)/ Zinchenko V.G., Zusman V.G., Kirnoze Z.I. M.: Flinta: Nauka, 2002. 200 p.
- Literary encyclopedic Dictionary/ Rep. ed. V.M. Kozhevnikova, M.: Sov. encyclopedia, 1987. 432 p.
- Mann Yu.V. Dialectics artistic image. M.: Sov. writer, 1987. 137 p.
- Tamarchenko N.D. Literary terms. Materials for the dictionary. Kolomna, 1999. 282 p.
- Khabibulina, G.N. Introduction to Literary Studies and Literary Theory ( Toolkit) M: graduate School: Academy, 2008. 68 p.
- Khalizev V. E. Theory of Literature. M.: Higher School, 2002. 437 p.
- Chernets L.V., Khalizev V.E., Broitman S.N. Introduction to literary criticism. Literary work: Basic concepts and terms: Textbook. M.: Higher school: Publishing house. Center Academy, 1999. 556 p.
- Tseitlin A.G. The work of a writer. M.: Sov. writer, 1962. 412s.
A literary hero is a person who is clearly individual and at the same time clearly collective, that is, generated by the social environment and interpersonal relationships. He is rarely presented in isolation, in a one-man show. The hero flourishes in a certain social sphere, among their own kind. He is included in the “list of characters,” in the system of characters that most often appears in works of major genres (novels). The hero can be surrounded, on the one hand, by relatives, friends, comrades-in-arms, on the other - by enemies, ill-wishers, on the third - by other people who are strangers to him.
The character system is a strict hierarchical structure. Heroes are usually differentiated based on their artistic significance(values). They are separated by the degree of authorial attention (or frequency of image), ontological purpose and the functions they perform. Traditionally, there are main, secondary and episodic characters.
The main characters are always “in sight”, always at the center of the work. They have a strong character and strong will. And therefore they actively master and transform artistic reality: predetermine events, perform actions, conduct dialogues. The main characters have a well-remembered appearance, clear value orientation. Sometimes they express the basic, general idea of creation; become the author’s “mouthpiece”.
The number of characters at the center of a literary narrative may vary. At I.A. Bunin in “The Life of Arsenyev” we see only one main character. In the Old Russian “Tale of Peter and Fevronya” there are two in the center actors. In J. London's novel “The Hearts of Three” there are already three main characters.
Secondary characters are located next to the main characters, but somewhat behind them, in the background artistic image. The heroes of the second row, as a rule, are the parents, relatives, friends, acquaintances, and colleagues of the heroes of the first row. The personalities and portraits of minor characters are rarely detailed; rather, they appear dotted. These heroes help the main characters “open up” and ensure the development of the action.
This is, for example, a mother poor Lisa in the story of the same name by N.M. Karamzin. This is Kazbich M.Yu. Lermontov from the story “Bela”.
Episodic characters are on the periphery of the world of the work. They don’t quite have characters and act as passive executors of the author’s will. Their functions are purely official. They only appear in one select episode, which is why they are called cameos. Such are the servants and messengers in ancient literature, janitors, carters, casual acquaintances in the literature of the 19th century.
part three and last
How many boys should I take with me? Chernomor
Pushkin, ..., you yourself once upon a time
did you bite emeralds??? 0000 Squirrel
Sms for Pushkin A.S.
3. Minor characters. Episodic characters.
Even Robinson Crusoe, although he lived on a desert island, was not the only character in the book. Conclusion: two characters will clearly not be enough for you to create a series. Those who in cinema are called “supporting actors” and “episodic characters” should come to the rescue.
TO minor characters we will include all those who are not the hero (or villain) of the story, but whose lives are described in sufficient detail. These are the friends of the hero and the villain, their families, bosses, colleagues, neighbors - people in whose company the main characters spend a lot of time.
Is it necessary to think through and describe the images of secondary characters as carefully as the main ones? Perhaps yes - and the secondary characters should be alive, multidimensional. When describing them, it is probably possible to pay less attention to details, but still, each hero should have his own story and his own character.
TO episodic characters we will include all those who appear in our story only to push main character, give the hero a fine for wrong parking or solemnly say: “Inspector from St. Petersburg!”
Despite the insignificance of these characters, one should not underestimate them: in good story unnecessary images no, and it happens that an episodic hero suddenly finds himself in the spotlight. For example, the postman who carried love letters from the heroine to the hero may turn out to be the same villain who intimidated the heroine and killed the hero (as in one of Chesterton's works).
Episodic characters are the easiest to create: one or two are enough. distinctive features, and the image is ready. Most often, when describing such characters, the author uses it either to give the desired tone to the story (an unknown person with a knife on a dark street), or to give comic effect scene (a policeman who lost his cap).
4. Fantastic characters.
In our troubled time, full of horrors, every second, if not every first author includes in the list of characters supernatural creatures: vampires and vampire hunters, werewolves, witches, mermaids, goblin, ghosts, messengers from Heaven and guests from the Underworld... and so on. Now that the readers are being narrated as a hero - oh surprise! oh miracle! - someone appeared and said that our Fedenka was endowed magical power and therefore must pack a suitcase within 24 hours and leave in the direction of Kudykina Gora in order to save the world, they don’t even laugh anymore. They are crying.
How to avoid annoying mistakes and cliches when describing magical characters?
First of all, remember one simple truth:
Nobody knows how to behave fantastic heroes because no one has encountered them in real life.
But that doesn't mean you can force them to do whatever you want.
I still remember the brilliant formulation of my art teacher:
"Fiction is a mixture of the ordinary and the magical. It is an ordinary object (or person) in an unusual setting, or unusual item(or a person) in a normal setting."
Almost all works of science fiction are built on this principle.
Example: An ordinary family- mom, dad and son - wake up one day and realize that all the people except them have disappeared.
Another example: A scientist, turned invisible as a result of an experiment, wanders the streets of an ordinary provincial town and dies at the hands of a violent crowd.
I think you have already guessed that the first work was written by Ray Bradbury, the second by H.G. Wells. If you search your memory, you will find many more examples.
What am I getting at? And to the fact that, oddly enough, science fiction requires even more realism than any other genre. Truth in the description of characters and relationships, accuracy in the description of the world around us - this is what any magical story needs.
Even if your hero is abandoned desert island, alien planet or in parallel reality, he remains the same ordinary person as he was in our world, with all his weaknesses and fears.
Even if your hero comes from other worlds, he must have at least a vague resemblance to a person. However, you are unlikely to be able to describe him in such a way as to not at least slightly “humanize” the hero.
Whatever magical powers your character was not given, he must behave, think and act like a common person.
Even an all-powerful wizard can get sick to his stomach at the most unnecessary moment. Remember this when you start writing the next saga about a fearless warrior or a cunning sorceress.
Last three character tips:
Expediency. Remember: If a character doesn’t symbolize anything, doesn’t do anything important, and doesn’t say anything important, then it’s better not to describe him.
Number. There should be as many characters as necessary to develop the action, but so few that readers can remember them all. I think for a little story in the sim series genre, ten characters is the ideal number (hero, villain, and their entourage).
Names. When naming your characters, try to give each a euphonious, pleasant name, not too common (not Masha Ivanova or Jane Smith), but not too strange (not Dozdraperma Efrailovna and not Zalimania Geilern... hmm). I remind you again: quickly look through all the topics with TV series, is there a character with similar name, otherwise there will be confusion. I won’t even talk about the fact that the character’s name should not coincide with the nickname of someone from the forum - this is obvious to everyone. As a reminder, a character's name is another part of their character, so choose it wisely.
This is where we will finish talking about characters and move on to the next section.