"Farewell to Matera"

Each person has his own small homeland, that land that is the Universe and everything that Matera became for the heroes of the story by Valentin Rasputin. From love to small homeland All books by V.G. take their origins. Rasputin, so I would like to consider this topic first. In the story “Farewell to Matera,” fate is easily read native village writer - Atalanka, which fell into the flood zone during the construction of the Bratsk hydroelectric power station.

Matera is both an island and a village of the same name. Russian peasants inhabited this place for three hundred years. Slowly, without haste, life goes on on this island, and for those three hundred extra years Matera made many people happy. She accepted everyone, became a mother to everyone and carefully fed her children, and the children responded to her with love. And the residents of Matera did not need comfortable houses with heating, or a kitchen with a gas stove. They did not see happiness in this. If only I had the opportunity to touch my native land, light the stove, drink tea from a samovar, live my whole life next to the graves of my parents, and when the turn comes, lie next to them. But Matera leaves, the soul of this world leaves.

Mothers stand up to defend their homeland, try to save their village, their history. But what can old men and women do against the almighty boss, who gave the order to flood Matera and wipe it off the face of the earth? For strangers, this island is just a territory, a flood zone.

Rasputin skillfully depicts scenes of people parting with the village. Let’s read again how Yegor and Nastasya postpone their departure again and again, how they do not want to leave their native land, how Bogodul desperately fights to preserve the cemetery, because it is sacred to the inhabitants of Matera: “And the old women crawled around the cemetery until the last night, stuck put back the crosses, installed bedside tables.”

All this once again proves that it is impossible to tear a people away from the land, from its roots, that such actions can be equated to brutal murder.

The main ideological character of the story is the old woman Daria. This is the person who remained devoted to his homeland until the end of his life, until the last minute. This woman is a kind of guardian of eternity. Daria is a true national character. The writer himself is close to the thoughts of this sweet old woman. Rasputin gives her only positive features, simple and unpretentious speech. It must be said that all the old residents of Matera are described by the author with warmth. But it is through Daria’s voice that the author expresses his opinions regarding moral problems. This old woman concludes that the sense of conscience has begun to be lost in people and society. “There are a lot more people,” she reflects, “but my conscience is the same... our conscience has grown old, she has become an old woman, no one looks at her... What about conscience if this happens!”

Rasputin's characters directly associate the loss of conscience with a person's separation from the earth, from his roots, from age-old traditions. Unfortunately, only old men and women remained faithful to Matera. Young people live in the future and calmly part with their small homeland. Thus, two more problems are touched upon: the problem of memory and the peculiar conflict of “fathers” and “children”.

In this context, “fathers” are people for whom breaking with the earth is fatal; they grew up on it and absorbed love for it with their mother’s milk. This is Bogodul, and grandfather Yegor, and Nastasya, and Sima, and Katerina. “Children” are those youth who so easily left the village to the mercy of fate, a village with a history of three hundred years. This is Andrey, Petrukha, Klavka Strigunova. As we know, the views of “fathers” differ sharply from the views of “children”, therefore the conflict between them is eternal and inevitable. And if in Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons” the truth was on the side of the “children”, on the side of the new generation, which sought to eradicate the morally decaying nobility, then in the story “Farewell to Mother” the situation is completely opposite: young people are ruining the only thing that makes it possible preservation of life on earth (customs, traditions, national roots). This idea is confirmed by Daria’s words, expressing the idea of ​​the work: “The truth is in memory. He who has no memory has no life.” Memory is not just events recorded in the brain, it is a spiritual connection with something. The writer makes you wonder whether a person who leaves his native land, having broken with his roots, happy, and, burning bridges, leaving Matera, is he not losing his soul, his moral support? Lack of connection with one’s native land, readiness to leave it and forget how “ bad dream”, a disdainful attitude towards their small homeland (“They should have been drowned a long time ago. There is no smell of living things... not people, but bugs and cockroaches. They found a place to live - in the middle of the water... like frogs”) does not characterize the heroes from the best side.

The outcome of the work is deplorable... An entire village disappeared from the map of Siberia, and with it the traditions and customs that over the centuries shaped the human soul, his unique character, and were the roots of our lives.

V. Rasputin touches on many moral issues in his story, but the fate of Matera is the leading theme of this work. Not only is the theme traditional here: the fate of the village, its moral principles, but also the characters themselves. The work largely follows the traditions of humanism. Rasputin is not against change, he does not try in his story to protest against everything new, progressive, but makes one think about such transformations in life that would not destroy the humanity in a person. Many moral imperatives are also traditional in the story.

“Farewell to Matera” is the result of an analysis of one social phenomenon, carried out on the basis of the author’s memoirs. Rasputin explores the branchy tree of moral problems that this event exposed. Like any humanist, in his story he addresses issues of humanity and solves many moral problems, and also, which is not unimportant, establishes connections between them, demonstrates the inseparability and dependence on each other of the processes occurring in the human soul.

Time does not stand still. Society and life itself are constantly moving forward, making their own adjustments to already established rules. But this happens differently for everyone and not always in accordance with the laws of morality and conscience.

The story “Farewell to Matera” by V. Rasputin is an example of how new trends run counter to moral principles, how progress literally “absorbs” human souls. The work, which appeared in the mid-70s of the last century, touches on many important issues that have not lost their relevance today.

The history of the story

The second half of the 20th century became a time of change in the history of the country. And the achievements of the scientific and technical industry, which contributed to the transition to a more high degree development, often led to serious contradictions in society. One such example is the construction of a powerful power plant near the writer’s native village, Atalanka. As a result, it ended up in a flood zone. It would seem like such a trifle: to destroy a small village in order to bring considerable benefit to the whole country. But no one thought about the fate of its old residents. And the ecological balance was disrupted as a result of interference in the natural course of development of nature.

These events could not help but touch the soul of the writer, whose childhood and youth were spent in the outback, in direct connection with established traditions and foundations. Therefore, Rasputin’s story “Farewell to Matera” is also a bitter reflection on what the author himself had to endure.

Plot basis

The action begins in the spring, but the symbolic understanding of this time as the birth of a new life in in this case not applicable. On the contrary, it is at this moment that news of its imminent flooding spreads around the village.

At the center of the story are the tragic fates of its indigenous inhabitants: Daria, Nastasya, Katerina, the “old old women” who dreamed of ending their lives here and sheltered the useless Bogodul (associations arise with the holy fool, the wanderer, the man of God). And then everything falls apart for them. Neither stories about a comfortable apartment in a new village on the banks of the Angara, nor fiery speeches of the young (Andrey, Daria’s grandson) that the country needs this, can convince them of the advisability of destroying their home. The old women gather for a cup of tea every evening, as if they are trying to enjoy each other's company before parting. They say goodbye to every corner of nature, so dear to the heart. All this time, Daria is trying to rebuild her life, hers and her village’s, bit by bit, trying not to miss anything: after all, for her, “the whole truth is in memory.”

All this is majestically observed by the invisible Master: he is not able to save the island, and for him this is also a farewell to Matera.

The content of the last months of the old-timers' stay on the island is supplemented by a number of terrible events. The burning of Katerina's house by her own drunkard son. An unwanted move to Nastasya’s village and watching how a hut without a mistress immediately turned into an orphan. Finally, the outrages of the “officials” sent by the SES to destroy the cemetery, and the decisive opposition of the old women to them - where did the strength come from in protecting their native graves!

AND tragic ending: people in a boat caught in the fog, lost in the middle of the river, having lost their bearings in life. Among them is the son of the main character, Pavel, who was never able to tear his native place out of his heart. And the old women who remained on the island at the time of its flooding, and with them an innocent baby. Towering, unbroken - neither fire took it, nor an ax, nor even a modern chainsaw - foliage as proof of eternal life.

“Farewell to Matera”: problems

Simple plot. However, decades pass, and it still does not lose its relevance: after all, the author brings up very important issues related to the development of society. Here are the most important ones:

• Why was a person born, what answer should he give at the end of his life?
• How to maintain mutual understanding between generations?
• What are the advantages of the “rural” way of life over the “urban” one?
• Why is it impossible to live without memory (in the broad sense)?
• What kind of power should the government have so that it does not lose the trust of the people?

And what is the threat to humanity from interfering in the natural development of nature? Could such actions be the beginning of the tragic end of his existence?

Questions that are initially quite complex and do not imply a clear answer are addressed by Rasputin. “Farewell to Matera” is his vision of problems, as well as an attempt to attract the attention of everyone living on Earth to them.

Daria Pinigina - the oldest resident of the village

A keeper of centuries-old traditions, faithful to the memory of her family, respectful of the places where her life passed - this is how the main character of the story is seen. My son and his family went to the village, one joy is their arrival once a week. The grandson for the most part does not understand and does not accept her beliefs, since he is a person of a different generation. As a result, lonely old women like herself become family people for her. She whiles away the time with them and shares her worries and thoughts.

The analysis of the work “Farewell to Matera” begins with the image of Daria. It helps to understand how important it is not to lose touch with the past. The main belief of the heroine is that without memory there is no life, since as a result the moral foundations of human existence itself are lost. Thus, an unremarkable old woman becomes a measure of conscience for Rasputin and his readers. It is precisely such inconspicuous heroes, according to the author, who attract him most.

Scene of farewell to the house

An important point in understanding inner world Daria becomes an episode in which she “prepares” her home for death. The parallel between the decoration of a house that will be burned and the dead body is obvious. Rasputin includes in the work "Farewell to Matera" detailed description how the heroine “washes” and whitens it, decorates it with fresh fir - everything as it should be when saying goodbye to the deceased. She sees in her house living soul, addresses him as the most dear creature. She will never understand how a person (meaning Petrukha, the son of her friend) can with his own hands burn down the house in which he was born and lived.

Cemetery protection

Another key scene, without which an analysis of the work “Farewell to Matera” is impossible, is the destruction of graves in the local cemetery. No good intentions can explain such a barbaric act of the authorities, committed in front of the residents. To the pain of having to leave graves dear people for drowning, another one was added - to see how crosses are burned. So the old women with sticks had to stand up to protect them. But it was possible to “do this cleanup in the end” so that the residents would not see.

Where has the conscience gone? And also - simple respect for people and their feelings? These are the questions asked by Rasputin (“Farewell to Matera,” by the way, is not the writer’s only work on this topic) and his heroes. The merit of the author is that he was able to convey to the reader a very important idea: any government restructuring must be correlated with the peculiarities of the people’s way of life, the characteristics of the human soul. This is where trust in each other and any relationship between people begins.

Generational connection: is it important?

Where do people like SES workers and Petrukha come from? And not all of its inhabitants feel the same way about the destruction of Matera as these five old women. Klavka, for example, is only rejoicing at the opportunity to move into a comfortable house.

Again, Daria’s words come to mind about what it means for a person to remember his roots, his ancestors, and the laws of morality. Old people leave, and with them the experience and knowledge accumulated over centuries disappears, modern world no one needs. Young people are always in a hurry somewhere, making grandiose plans that are very far from the way of life that their ancestors had. And if Pavel, Daria’s son, still feels uncomfortable in the village: he is burdened and new home built by someone “not for themselves,” and stupidly located buildings, and land on which nothing grows, then her grandson, Andrei, no longer understands at all what can keep a person on such an abandoned island as Matera. For him, the main thing is progress and the prospects that it opens up for people.

The connection between generations is a rather hackneyed topic. “Farewell to Matera,” using the example of one family, shows how lost it is: Daria sacredly honors her ancestors, her main concern is to transport the graves to the ground. Such a thought seems strange to Pavel, but still he does not dare to immediately refuse his mother. Although he will not fulfill the request: there are enough other problems. And the grandson doesn’t even understand why this is needed. So what can we say about those who are “just doing their job” to clean up the territory - what a word they made up! However, you cannot live in the future without remembering the past. That's why history is written. And they are stored so that mistakes are not repeated in the future. This is another important idea that the author is trying to convey to his contemporary.

Small homeland - what does it mean for a person?

Rasputin, as a person who grew up in a village, a Russian at heart, is also concerned about another question: will society lose its roots, which originate in his father’s home? For Daria and other old women, Matera is the place where their family originated, the traditions that have developed over centuries, the covenants given by their ancestors, the main one of which is to take care of the land-nurse. Unfortunately, young people easily leave their native places, and with them they lose their spiritual connection with their hearth. The analysis of the work leads to such sad reflections. Saying goodbye to Matera could be the beginning of loss moral support, supporting a person, and an example of this is Pavel, who found himself in the final between two banks.

The relationship between man and nature

The story begins with a description of the beauty of the island, untouched by civilization, which has preserved its primitiveness. Landscape sketches play special role in conveying the author's ideas. An analysis of the work “Farewell to Matera” makes it possible to understand that a person who has long considered himself the master of the world is deeply mistaken. Civilization can never prevail over what was created before it. The proof is the unbroken, mighty foliage that will protect the island until its death. He did not succumb to man, retaining his dominant principle.

The meaning of the story “Farewell to Matera”

Contents of one of best works V. Rasputin still sounds like a warning many years later. In order for life to continue and the connection with the past not to be lost, you must always remember your roots, that we are all children of the same mother earth. And everyone’s duty is to be on this earth not guests or temporary residents, but guardians of everything that has been accumulated by previous generations.

1. Man and progress.

One of the important ones is the problem associated with man and scientific and technological progress. We learn that they want to build a hydroelectric power station on the Angara River, and the water will flood many lands, including Matera. Residents of the island reacted differently to this event. Klavka Strigunov said that the island “should have been drowned a long time ago. There is no smell of living things... not people, but bugs and cockroaches. We found a place to live - among the water... like frogs.”

And Petrukha himself burns down his house just to get money for it. Andrey Pinigin was also happy dramatic changes and wanted to take part in the construction of a new hydroelectric power station. The hero says this: “Man is the king of nature,” but Daria answers her grandson: “He’ll reign, he’ll reign, and he’ll burn.” She argues that it is not machines that serve man, but man who serves machines. Other village residents who did not want to leave their native land understood this, drove away the “devils” and “asps,” put crosses in place and installed bedside tables in the cemetery until late at night. Daria also whitewashed and decorated her hut before setting it on fire, and when Petrukha’s house burned, people looked at the fire with regret and thought that the same would happen to their huts.

These island residents loved their native land and their ancestors. Of course, scientific and technological progress is necessary, but we must not forget about traditions and spiritual values; we must carefully preserve the connection between generations and love our native land.

2. Memory problem.

For three hundred years, the people of Materu lived; to be happy, it was enough for them to light the stove, drink tea from a samovar, and be near their ancestors. And they love their native land very much, they try to protect and save it. Many fought desperately to preserve the cemetery, Yegor and Nastasya postponed the move. And their children want to destroy and forget everything that connected the younger generation with their ancestors (customs, traditions, the village in which they grew up). Thus, moral foundations began to crumble. This idea is confirmed by Daria, who says that “the truth is in memory. He who has no memory has no life”, that the sense of conscience began to be lost in people and society. The heroine was worried about the fate of the village, valued moral principles, customs, traditions, and remembered her roots.

3. The problem of the connection between man and nature.

The fate of the island was already predetermined, and nature felt the approach of misfortune. People are not ready for such changes, for life in another village. They worked on this land with pleasure, invested love, and rejoiced when they worked together. The heroes also took care of their pets: cows, horses, cats. Residents feel a blood connection with the island; they are not ready to part with the land that raised them. Thus, people share it with nature tragic fate. But there were also workers who treated nature ruthlessly. One day they decided to destroy the “royal foliage,” but the tree did not burn, and they could not cut it down either. It was impossible to imagine Matera without Listven. People admired him and believed that the tree supported the entire island with its roots, and as long as he lived, the village would stand. Residents of Matera felt a connection with nature and treated it with care and reverence.

4. The problem of responsibility to ancestors.

The main character, who throughout the entire work worries about the fate of the graves of her relatives, is undoubtedly Daria Pinigina. She preserves the memory of deceased relatives and protects gravestones from arsonists. Daria’s desire is great to take them with her to a new place of residence; for her, this is an important thread that connects her with the past. IN difficult times the heroine turns for advice not to living people, but to already deceased relatives, she is oppressed by the fact that it was in her lifetime that such a fate befell - the flooding of Matera. Daria feels that she can’t just let her house burn down, in which more than one generation was born and lived, where she lived long life and she, the house, which is the family hearth. Spiritual connection and memory of loved ones help the heroine accept the right decision what to do with the house. Daria Pinigina remembers everyone who is buried in this cemetery, preserves history and considers it her duty to prevent them from sinking.

5. The problem of the purpose of life.

The story presents 3 generations of Pinigins. Each of them perceives life differently, each has their own goals and views. Andrey, Daria’s grandson, wants to be at the “front line” where all the young people are. He doesn’t want to spend his youth in a remote village, working in a field or at a factory: “...I want my work to be visible, so that it remains forever, but what about at the factory? You can’t leave the territory for a week<...>I want to go where there are young people like myself, where everything is different... new. The hydroelectric power station will be built, it will stand for a thousand years...” For Andrei, his grandmother’s worries about the fate of Matera seem insignificant. For Daria, it is important to preserve the memory of her relatives, she is the only one who can do this. Even moving due to the flooding of Matera, she wants take the graves with her. Daria is not ready to accept the fact that all her relatives will remain on this island, and she will leave without doing anything. Pavel feels sorry for his native island of Matera, but he no longer has the strength to worry about it. of all the troubles he had experienced: “...Paul recalled with shame how he stood near his burning hut and pulled everything out of himself, looked for some strong, hysterical feeling - it’s not a stump that’s on fire, it’s his own hut - and he couldn’t pull it out and find anything, except for the bitter and awkward surprise that he lived here. This is how much the soul has been poisoned!..” Pavel does not have a specific goal in life, he does not try to make a career or achieve something more, he “goes with the flow”, wants a calm and quiet life. Their goals diverge, but if Daria’s goal has a moral basis that encourages her to preserve the memory of past generations, then Andrei’s goal does not have this, while Pavel finds himself “between two shores.”

6. The problem of the strength of the native connection.

V. Rasputin in his work clearly shows the relationship between generations. Daria appears before us as a person who is trying with all her might to preserve the memory of her ancestors, protecting the graves in the cemetery, asking Pavel to take them with him to the new village. And if the author shows this connection as strong and indestructible, then Daria’s connection with her grandson Andrei is completely different. In the era of technological progress, Andrey does not want to sit still, he always tries to be in the thick of things. Matera’s sad fate does not evoke a drop of pity in him: “Why would I need anything else? I want to go there. Matera, grandma, will be flooded anyway - even with me, even without me. I have nothing to do with it. Electricity, grandma, required, electricity.” Andrey's conversation with Pavel and Daria shows us that the younger generation, striving for something new, forgets about their little homeland, is not imbued with the experiences of their relatives, and forgets moral values. The ancestral connection in the Pinigin family is weakening. The story also shows the Zotov family. Katerina's son, Petrukha, is lazy, irresponsible and selfish. His connection with his mother is completely absent, he does not show care or respect for her, and even sets fire home, leaving Katerina without a roof over her head. So the author shows that the ancestral connection may not always be reliable and strong, as a result of any external events it can be broken, thereby V. Rasputin pushes us to such an idea as maintaining the family connection, no matter what.

Effective preparation for the Unified State Exam (all subjects) -

(399 words) In the short story “Farewell to Matera,” which was written in 1976, the author was able to reveal to the reader large-scale problems a person's presence in society. He pointed out significant differences in life in the capital and rural areas, showed us the change and conflict of generations, and also exposed the position of the authorities in relation to the residents.

The main problem in the work “Farewell to Matera” is ecology. It opens the narrative, and it is also closely intertwined with other themes. Starting from the image of an environmental disaster, the characters smoothly move on to thoughts of a moral and philosophical nature. Scientific and technological progress has reached a little-known village in Siberia and requires its destruction. Everyone understands that the flooding of Matera is justified by motives that contribute to improving the quality of life of entire cities. But the price of this happy tomorrow too big. A hydroelectric power station is being built on Angara to supply energy to the entire country. However, the river will overflow its banks, flooding almost all floodplain meadows, all residential and non-residential land, and the ecological situation will change.

The author also touches on the problem of fathers and children. For younger generation relocation is a step towards something new, they rejoice at it. For old-timers, relocation means death: not because everything in the city is different from the village, but because the graves of their ancestors are located here. Therefore, misunderstanding reigns in families, which only overshadows the upcoming changes.

In addition, the writer draws our attention to the problem of historical memory. Right before my eyes local residents the authorities destroy graves and tear out crosses, arguing that villages will be flooded, and ships filled with travelers will sail through these places, “and here your crosses are floating.” The city’s rulers do not want to deal with the experiences of the inhabitants of Matera, who perceive the cemetery as the “home” of relatives who have passed on to another world. Residents are deprived of the right to historical memory. Moreover, the heroes resign themselves and realize the inevitability of this, but why destroy the cemetery in front of them, causing new pain? “Administrative people” could carry out a “cleanup” after the residents are resettled. Thus, the problem of relations between the authorities and the people appears in the work.

In "Farewell to Matera" there is no last place is devoted to the problem of understanding the purpose of people’s stay in this world. Rasputin is convinced that the meaning of existence lies in the transmission of spiritual and intellectual experience to descendants. And even a person dies in order to provide life to the heirs - this is how nature intended. Therefore, an individual feels the fullness of existence only when he feels a connection with his ancestors. Therefore, it is quite natural that the old generation of Matera wants to find peace before the resettlement, living on their own land, in their own environment.

Valentin Rasputin touches on problems that are relevant for all generations and times in his work “Farewell to Matera”. However, he does not say how to solve them, but only informs. And only the reader will independently find solutions.

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Lesson objectives:

Lesson equipment: portrait of V.G. Rasputin

Methodical techniques:

Lesson progress

I. Teacher's word

Valentin Grigorievich Rasputin (1937) - one of the recognized masters of “village prose”, one of those who continues the traditions of Russian classical prose primarily from the point of view of moral and philosophical problems. Rasputin explores the conflict between a wise world order, a wise attitude towards the world and an unwise, fussy, thoughtless existence. In his stories “Money for Maria” (1967), “ Deadline"(1970), "Live and Remember" (1975), "Farewell to Matera" (1976), "Fire" (1985) one can hear anxiety for the fate of the homeland. The writer looks for ways to solve problems in the best features of the Russian national character, in patriarchy. Poetizing the past, the writer acutely poses the problems of our time, asserting eternal values, calls for their conservation. His works contain pain for his country, for what is happening to it.

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“Lesson 4. Current and eternal problems in the story by V.G. Rasputin "Farewell to Matera"

Lesson 4. Current and eternal problems

in the story by V.G. Rasputin "Farewell to Matera"

Lesson objectives: give brief overview creativity of V.G. Rasputin, pay attention to the variety of problems posed by the writer; to form a caring attitude towards the problems of one’s country, a sense of responsibility for its fate.

Lesson equipment: portrait of V.G. Rasputin

Methodical techniques: teacher's lecture; analytical conversation.

Lesson progress

I. Teacher's word

Valentin Grigorievich Rasputin (1937) is one of the recognized masters of “village prose”, one of those who continues the traditions of Russian classical prose, primarily from the point of view of moral and philosophical problems. Rasputin explores the conflict between a wise world order, a wise attitude towards the world and an unwise, fussy, thoughtless existence. In his stories “Money for Maria” (1967), “The Last Term” (1970), “Live and Remember” (1975), “Farewell to Matera” (1976), “Fire” (1985), one can hear anxiety for the fate of the homeland. The writer looks for ways to solve problems in the best features of the Russian national character, in patriarchy. Poeticizing the past, the writer acutely poses the problems of our time, affirming eternal values, and calls for their preservation. His works contain pain for his country, for what is happening to it.

In the story “Farewell to Matera,” Rasputin starts from an autobiographical fact: the village of Ust-Uda Irkutsk region, where he was born, subsequently fell into a flood zone and disappeared. In the story, the writer reflected general trends that are dangerous primarily from the point of view of the moral health of the nation.

II. Analytical conversation

What problems does Rasputin pose in the story “Farewell to Matera”?

(These are both eternal and modern problems. Environmental problems are especially pressing now. This concerns not only our country. All of humanity is concerned with the question: what are the consequences of scientific and technological progress, of civilization as a whole? Will progress lead to the physical destruction of the planet, to the extinction life? Global problems, raised by writers (not only V. Rasputin), are studied by scientists and taken into account by practitioners. Now it is clear to everyone that the main task of humanity is to preserve life on earth. Problems of nature protection, conservation environment are inextricably linked with the problems of the “ecology of the soul.” It is important who each of us feels like: a temporary worker who wants a fatter piece of life, or a person who recognizes himself as a link in an endless chain of generations, who does not have the right to break this chain, who feels gratitude for what past generations have done and responsibility for the future. That is why problems of intergenerational relationships, problems of preserving traditions, and the search for meaning are so important. human existence. Rasputin's story also poses problems of contradictions between urban and rural ways of life, problems of the relationship between the people and the authorities. The writer initially puts spiritual problems in the foreground, which inevitably entail material problems.)

What is the meaning of the conflict in Rasputin's story?

(The conflict in the story “Farewell to Matera” belongs to the category of eternal: it is a conflict between the old and the new. The laws of life are such that the new inevitably wins. Another question: how and at what cost? By sweeping aside and destroying the old, at the cost of moral degradation, or by taking the best , what is in the old, transforming it?

“The new in the story set the goal of breaking the old, age-old foundations of life in half. The beginning of this turning point began during the years of the revolution. The revolution gave rights to people who, in their aspiration for a new life, did not want and could not appreciate what had been created before them. The heirs of the revolution, first of all, destroy, create injustice, and show their short-sightedness and narrow-mindedness. According to a special decree, people are deprived of the houses built by their ancestors, property acquired by labor, and the very opportunity to work on the land is taken away. Here the eternal Russian question of land is solved simply. It does not consist in who should own the land, but in the fact that this land is simply taken out of economic circulation and destroyed. Thus, the conflict acquires a socio-historical meaning.)

How does the conflict develop in the story? What images are opposed?

(Main character The story is about old Daria Pinigina, the patriarch of the village, with a “strict and fair” character. The “weak and suffering” are drawn to her, she personifies the people’s truth, she is the bearer folk traditions, memory of ancestors. Her house is the last stronghold of the “lived-in” world, as opposed to the “mindlessness, the undead” that men from the outside bring with them. The men were sent to burn houses from which people had already been evicted, destroy trees, and destroy the cemetery. They, strangers, do not feel sorry for what is dear to Daria. These people are just a blunt instrument, cutting at the living without pity. The same is the chairman of the former “village council, and now the council in the new village” Vorontsov. He is a representative of the authorities, which means he is responsible for what is happening. However, responsibility is shifted to higher authorities that operate throughout the country. A good goal - the industrial development of the region, the construction of a power plant - is achieved at a price that is immoral to pay. The destruction of the village is hypocritically covered up with words about the welfare of the people.)

What is the drama of the conflict?

(The drama of the conflict is that Daria, her lover, careful attitude Matera is contrasted with her own son and grandson - Pavel and Andrei. They move to the city, move away from peasant image life, indirectly participate in the destruction of his native village: Andrey is going to work at the power plant.)

What does Daria see as the reasons for what is happening?

(The reasons for what is happening, according to Daria, who is watching with pain the destruction of Matera, lie in the human soul: a person is “confused, completely overplayed”, imagines himself as the king of nature, thinks that he has ceased to be “small”, “Christ-like”, has too much self-importance Daria's reasoning is only naive in appearance. in simple words, but, in fact, very deep. She believes that God is silent, “tired of asking people,” and reigned on earth evil spirits" People, Daria reflects, have lost their conscience, but the main testament of their great-grandfathers is “to have a conscience and not suffer from conscience.”)

How it is embodied in the image of Daria moral ideal person?

(Daria is the embodiment of conscience, people's morality, its guardian. For Daria, the value of the past is undeniable: she refuses to move from her native village, at least until the “graves” are not moved. She wants to take away the “graves... "to a new place, wants to save not only the graves, but also the conscience itself from blasphemous destruction. For her, the memory of her ancestors is sacred. Wise aphorism her words sound: “The truth is in memory. He who has no memory has no life.")

How is Daria's moral beauty shown?

(Rasputin shows the moral beauty of Daria through the attitude of people towards her. People go to her for advice, they are drawn to her for understanding, warmth. This is the image of a righteous woman, without whom “the village does not stand” (remember Solzhenitsyn’s heroine from the story “Matrenin’s Dvor”).)

Through what is the image of Daria revealed?

(The depth of Daria’s image is also revealed in communication with nature. The heroine’s worldview is based on the pantheism characteristic of Russian people, the awareness of the inextricable, organic connection between man and nature.)

What is the role of Daria's speech?

(Speech characteristics the heroine takes great place in the story. These are Daria’s thoughts, and her monologues, and dialogues, which gradually develop into a simple but coherent system of people’s views on life, ideas about life and man’s place in it.)

Read and comment key scenes, revealing the image of Daria: the scene in the cemetery, the argument with Andrei (Chapter 14), the scene of farewell to the hut, to the House.

The teacher's word.

“I have always been attracted to images of simple women, distinguished by selflessness, kindness, and the ability to understand another,” Rasputin wrote about his heroines. The strength of the characters of the writer’s favorite heroes lies in wisdom, in the people’s worldview, and in people’s morality. Such people set the tone and intensity of the spiritual life of the people.

How is the philosophical plan of the conflict manifested in the story?

(A private conflict - the destruction of a village and an attempt to defend and save one’s loved one, rises to a philosophical level - the confrontation between life and death, good and evil. This gives special tension to the action. Life desperately resists attempts to kill it: fields and meadows bring a bountiful harvest, they are full of living sounds - laughter, songs, the chirping of mowers. Smells, sounds, colors become brighter, reflecting the inner rise of the characters, people who have long left their native village feel at home again, in local life.”)

(Rasputin uses one of the traditional symbols of life - a tree. The old larch - “royal foliage” - is a symbol of the power of nature. Neither fire, nor an ax, nor a modern weapon - a chainsaw - can cope with it.

There are many traditional symbols in the story. However, sometimes they take on a new sound. The image of spring does not mark the beginning of blossoming, not an awakening (“greenery flared across the earth and trees again, the first rains fell, swifts and swallows flew in”), but the last flash of life, the end of “an endless series of days of Matera - after all, very soon Angara will be at the behest of the builders of the power plant will flood the earth with water.

The image of the House is symbolic. He is depicted as spiritual, alive, feeling. Before the inevitable fire, Daria cleans the House the way a dead person is cleaned before a funeral: he whitewashes, washes, hangs clean curtains, stokes the stove, cleans the corners with fir branches, prays all night, “guiltyly humbly saying goodbye to the hut.” Associated with this image is the image of the Master - the spirit, the brownie of Matera. On the eve of the flooding, his farewell voice is heard. The tragic conclusion of the story is the feeling of the end of the world: the heroes who are the last to remain on the island feel “lifeless,” abandoned in the open emptiness.” The feeling of otherworldliness is enhanced by the image of the fog in which the island is hidden: All around there was only water and fog and nothing but water and fog.”

The main symbol appears to the reader already in the title. “Matera” is both the name of the village and the island on which it stands (this image is associated with both the Flood and Atlantis), and the image of mother earth, and the metaphorical name of Russia, home country, where “from edge to edge... there was enough... expanse, and wealth, and beauty, and wildness, and every creature in pairs.”)

III. We listen to messages by individual assignments (given in advance): image of fire (fire) - chapters 8, 18, 22; the image of “leaf” - chapter 19; the image of the “Master” - chapter 6; image of water.

IV. Lesson summary

Rasputin is worried not only about fate Siberian village, but also for the fate of the entire country, the entire people, worries about the loss moral values, traditions, memory. Heroes sometimes feel the meaninglessness of existence: “Why look for some special, higher truth and service, when the whole truth is that you are of no use now and will not be later...” But hope still prevails: “Life is for that she and life, in order to continue, she will endure everything and will take up everywhere, even on bare stone and in an unsteady quagmire...” It seems life-affirming symbolic image grain growing through chaff, “blackened straw.” A person, Rasputin believes, “cannot become angry,” he is “at the tip of a centuries-old wedge,” which “has no end.” The people, as the writer shows, demand “more and more impatiently and furiously” from each new generation, so that it does not “leave without hope and future” the entire “tribe” of people. Despite the tragic ending of the story (the ending is open), moral victory remains with responsible people who bring goodness, preserve memory and support the fire of life in any conditions, under any trials.

Additional questions:

1. After the release of the story “Farewell to Matera,” critic O. Salynsky wrote: “It is difficult to understand Rasputin when he does not at all elevate the great breadth of views of his heroes to dignity. After all, it is difficult for them to see a person in a person who lives not even far away, but only on the other side of the Angara... And Daria, although she has children and grandchildren, thinks only about the dead and considers them with an unexpectedness for the heroes of V. Rasputin egoism, that her life ends... Those who accept moving to a new place are portrayed as empty, immoral people by nature... the truths that were revealed to Daria before the “end of the world” are quite trivial and are not folk wisdom, but by imitation."

Do you agree with the critic's opinion? What do you think he is right about, and what are you willing to argue with? Justify your answer.

2. What role do semantic antitheses play in the story: Matera is a new village on the right bank of the Angara; old men and women are “sowing” people. Continue the series of contrasts.

3. What is the role of landscape in the story?

4. By what means is the image of the House created in the story? In what works of Russian literature is this image found?

5. What do you see in common in the titles of Rasputin’s works? What is the significance of the titles of his stories?