The idea of the book was formed by Saltykov-Shchedrin gradually, over the course of several years. In 1867, the writer composed and presented to the public a new fairy-tale-fiction "The Story of the Governor with a Stuffed Head" (it forms the basis of the chapter known to us called "Organchik"). In 1868, the author began work on a full-length novel. This process took a little over a year (1869-1870). Initially, the work was entitled "Glupovsky Chronicler". The name "History of one city", which became the final version, appeared later. The literary work was published in parts in the journal Domestic Notes.
Due to inexperience, some people consider the book of Saltykov-Shchedrin to be a story or a fairy tale, but this is not so. Such voluminous literature cannot claim the title of small prose. The genre of the work “The History of a City” is larger and is called “satirical novel”. It is a kind of chronological review of the fictional town of Foolov. His fate is recorded in the annals, which the author finds and publishes, accompanying them with his own comments.
Also, such terms as “political pamphlet” and “satirical chronicle” can be applied to this book, but it only absorbed some of the features of these genres, and is not their “purebred” literary embodiment.
What is the piece about?
The writer allegorically conveyed the history of Russia, which he assessed critically. He called the inhabitants of the Russian Empire "stupid". They are residents of the city of the same name, whose life is described in the Foolov Chronicle. This ethnic group originated from an ancient people called "thugs". For their ignorance, they were renamed accordingly.
The bunglers were at enmity with neighboring tribes, as well as among themselves. And now, tired of quarrels and unrest, they decided to find a ruler who would arrange order. After three years they found a suitable prince who agreed to rule over them. Together with the acquired power, people founded the city of Foolov. So the writer designated the formation Ancient Russia and calling Rurik to reign.
First, the ruler sent them a governor, but he was stealing, and then he arrived personally and imposed strict orders. This is how Saltykov-Shchedrin imagined the period of feudal fragmentation in medieval Russia.
Further, the writer interrupts the narrative and lists the biographies of famous mayors, each of which is a separate and complete story. The first was Dementy Varlamovich Brudasty, in whose head there was an organ that played only two compositions: “I won’t stand it!” and "I'll ruin it!" Then his head broke, and anarchy set in - the turmoil that came after the death of Ivan the Terrible. It was his author who depicted in the image of Brody. Then identical twin impostors appeared, but they were soon removed - this is the appearance of False Dmitry and his followers.
Anarchy reigned for a week, during which six mayors succeeded each other. This is the era of palace coups, when in Russian Empire only women and intrigues ruled.
Semyon Konstantinovich Dvoekurov, who founded mead and brewing, is most likely a prototype of Peter the Great, although this assumption runs counter to historical chronology. But the reformist activity and the iron hand of the ruler are very similar to the characteristics of the emperor.
The bosses were replaced, their conceit grew in proportion to the degree of absurdity in the work. Frankly insane reforms or hopeless stagnation ruined the country, the people slipped into poverty and ignorance, and the elite feasted, then fought, then hunted for the female sex. The alternation of incessant mistakes and defeats led to horrific consequences, satirically described by the author. In the end, the last ruler of Grim-Grumbling dies, and after his death, the story ends, and because of the open ending, hope for a change for the better dawns.
Nestor also described the history of the emergence of Russia in "The Tale temporary years". The author draws this parallel specifically to hint who he means by the Foolovites, and who are all these mayors: a flight of fancy or real Russian rulers? The writer makes it clear that he does not describe the entire human race, namely Russia and its depravity, reshaping its fate in his own way.
The composition is built in chronological order, the work has a classic linear narrative, but each chapter is a receptacle for a full-fledged plot, where there are heroes, events and outcomes.
Description of the city
Foolov is in a distant province, we learn about this when Brodystoy's head deteriorates on the road. This is a small settlement, a county, because two impostors come to pick up from the province, that is, the town is only an insignificant part of it. It does not even have an academy, but thanks to the efforts of Dvoekurov, mead and brewing flourishes. It is divided into "settlements": "Pushkarskaya settlement, followed by the settlements of Bolotnaya and Scoundrel." Agriculture is developed there, since the drought that has fallen from the sins of the next boss greatly offends the interests of the inhabitants, they are even ready to rebel. With Pimple, crops increase, which immensely pleases the Foolovites. "The history of one city" is replete with dramatic events, the cause of which is the agrarian crisis.
Gloomy-Grumbling fought with the river, from which we conclude that the county is located on the bank, in a hilly area, as the mayor takes the people away in search of a plain. Main place in this region is the bell tower: objectionable citizens are thrown from it.
main characters
- The prince is a foreign ruler who agreed to take power over the Foolovites. He is cruel and narrow-minded, because he sent thieving and worthless governors, and then led with the help of only one phrase: "I'll shut up." The history of one city and the characterization of heroes began with him.
- Dementy Varlamovich Brudasty is a closed, gloomy, silent owner of a head with an organ, who plays two phrases: “I will not tolerate it!” and "I'll ruin it!" His decision-making machine got damp on the road, they could not fix it, so they sent for a new one to Petersburg, but the serviceable head was delayed and never arrived. The prototype of Ivan the Terrible.
- Iraida Lukinichna Paleologiva - the wife of the mayor, who ruled over the city for a day. A hint of Sophia Paleolog, the second wife of Ivan IIII, the grandmother of Ivan the Terrible.
- Clementine de Bourbon - the mother of the mayor, she also happened to rule for one day.
- Amalia Karlovna Stockfish is a pompadour who also wanted to stay in power. German names and surnames of women - the author's humorous look at the era of German favoritism, as well as a number of crowned persons of foreign origin: Anna Ioanovna, Catherine II, etc.
- Semyon Konstantinovich Dvoekurov - reformer and educator: “He introduced mead and brewing and made it mandatory to use mustard and bay leaf. He also wanted to open the Academy of Sciences, but did not have time to complete the reforms that had begun.
- Pyotr Petrovich Ferdyshchenko (a parody of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov) is a cowardly, weak-willed, loving politician, under whom there was order in Glupov for 6 years, but then he fell in love with a married woman Alena and exiled her husband to Siberia so that she would yield to his onslaught. The woman succumbed, but fate brought down a drought on the people, and people began to die of hunger. There was a riot (meaning the salt riot of 1648), as a result of which the ruler's mistress died, she was thrown from the bell tower. Then the mayor complained to the capital, he was sent soldiers. The uprising was suppressed, and he found himself a new passion, because of which disasters again occurred - fires. But they also coped with them, and he, having gone on a trip to Glupov, died of overeating. It is obvious that the hero did not know how to restrain his desires and fell victim to them.
- Vasilisk Semenovich Borodavkin, an imitator of Dvoekurov, planted reforms with fire and sword. Decisive, likes to plan and establish. Studied, unlike colleagues, the history of Glupov. However, he himself was not far off: he established a military campaign against his own people, in the dark "his own fought with his own." Then he carried out an unsuccessful transformation in the army, replacing the soldiers with tin copies. With his battles, he brought the city to complete exhaustion. After him, the plunder and ruin was completed by Vogues.
- Circassian Mikeladze, a passionate hunter for the female sex, was only engaged in arranging his rich personal life at the expense of his official position.
- Theophylact Irinarkhovich Benevolensky (a parody of Alexander the Great) is a friend of Speransky (the famous reformer) at the university, who wrote laws at night and scattered them around the city. He liked to be clever and splurge, but did nothing useful. Dismissed for high treason (relations with Napoleon).
- Lieutenant Colonel Pimple - the owner of a head stuffed with truffles, which was eaten in a hungry impulse by the leader of the nobility. With him there was a flourishing Agriculture, since he did not interfere in the life of the wards and did not interfere with their work.
- State Councilor Ivanov - an official who arrived from St. Petersburg, who "turned out to be so small that he could not contain anything extensive" and burst from the effort to comprehend another thought.
- The emigrant Viscount de Chario is a foreigner who, instead of working, only had fun and threw balls. Soon, for idleness and embezzlement, he was sent abroad. It was later revealed that he was female.
- Erast Andreevich Sadilov is a lover of carousing at public expense. Under him, the population stopped working in the fields and became fascinated with paganism. But the wife of the pharmacist Pfeifer came to the mayor and imposed new religious views on him, he began to organize readings and confessional gatherings instead of feasts, and, having learned about this, the higher authorities deprived him of his post.
- Gloomy-Grumbling (a parody of Arakcheev, a military official) is a martinet who planned to give the whole city a barracks look and order. He despised education and culture, but he wanted all citizens to have the same homes and families on uniform streets. The official destroyed the whole of Foolov, moved it to a lowland, but then a natural cataclysm happened, and the official was carried away by a storm.
This is where the list of heroes ends. The mayors in the novel by Saltykov-Shchedrin are people who, by adequate standards, are in no way able to manage at least any settlement and be the personification of power. All their actions are completely fantastic, meaningless and often contradict one another. One ruler builds, another destroys everything. One takes the place of the other, but nothing changes in the life of the people. There are no significant changes or improvements. The political figures in the "History of a City" have common features- tyranny, pronounced depravity, bribery, greed, stupidity and despotism. Outwardly, the characters retain an ordinary human appearance, while the inner content of the personality is fraught with a thirst for suppression and oppression of the people for the purpose of profit.
Topics
- Power. This is the main theme of the work "The History of a City", which is revealed in a new way in each chapter. Mainly, it is seen through the prism of a satirical image of the modern political structure of Russia to Saltykov-Shchedrin. The satire here is aimed at two sides of life - to show how destructive autocracy is and to reveal the passivity of the masses. In relation to the autocracy, it bears a complete and merciless denial, then in relation to ordinary people, its goal was to correct morals and enlighten minds.
- War. The author drew attention to the destructiveness of bloodshed, which only ruins the city and kills people.
- Religion and fanaticism. The writer is ironic about the readiness of the people to believe in any impostor and in any idols, if only to shift the responsibility for their lives onto them.
- Ignorance. The people are not educated and not developed, so the rulers manipulate them as they want. Foolov's life is not getting better, not only because of politicians, but also because of the unwillingness of people to develop and learn new skills. For example, none of Dvoekurov's reforms took root, although many of them had a positive result for the enrichment of the city.
- Servility. The Foolovites are ready to endure any arbitrariness, so long as there is no famine.
Issues
- Of course, the author touches upon issues related to government. The main problem in the novel is the imperfection of power and its political methods. In Foolovo, the rulers, they are also mayors, are replaced one after another. But at the same time they do not bring something new into the life of the people and into the structure of the city. Their duties include concern only for their well-being, the interests of the inhabitants of the county do not concern the mayors.
- Personnel issue. There is no one to appoint to the position of a manager: all candidates are vicious and not adapted to disinterested service in the name of an idea, and not for profit. Responsibility and the desire to eliminate pressing problems are completely alien to them. This happens because society is initially unfairly divided into castes, and no one from ordinary people cannot occupy an important post. The ruling elite, feeling the absence of competition, lives in idleness of mind and body and does not work conscientiously, but simply squeezes everything that it can give out of the rank.
- Ignorance. Politicians do not understand the problems of mere mortals, and even if they want to help, they cannot do it right. There are no people from the people in power, there is a blank wall between the estates, therefore even the most humane officials are powerless. “The history of one city” is only a reflection of the real problems of the Russian Empire, where there were talented rulers, but they failed to improve their lives due to isolation from their subjects.
- Inequality. The people are defenseless before the arbitrariness of the managers. For example, the mayor sends Alena's husband into exile without guilt, abusing his position. And the woman surrenders, because she does not even count on justice.
- A responsibility. Officials are not punished for their destructive deeds, and their successors feel safe: no matter what you do, there will be nothing serious for it. Just removed from office, and then as a last resort.
- Reverence. The people are a great force, there is no sense in it if they agree to blindly obey the authorities in everything. He does not defend his rights, he does not protect his people, in fact, he turns into an inert mass and, of his own free will, deprives himself and his children of a happy and just future.
- Fanaticism. In the novel, the author focuses on the topic of excessive religious zeal, which does not enlighten, but blinds people, dooming them to idle talk.
- Embezzlement. All the deputies of the prince turned out to be thieves, that is, the system is so rotten that it allows its elements to turn any fraud with impunity.
the main idea
The author's intention is to depict a state system in which society comes to terms with its eternally oppressed position and believes that this is in the order of things. In the face of society in the story, the people (the Foolovites) act, while the "oppressor" is the mayors, who succeed each other at an enviable speed, while managing to ruin and destroy their possessions. Saltykov-Shchedrin ironically remarks that the inhabitants are driven by the force of "bosses' love", and without a ruler they immediately fall into anarchy. Thus, the idea of the work “The History of a City” is the desire to show the history of Russian society from the outside, how people for many years transferred all responsibility for arranging their well-being onto the shoulders of the revered monarch and were invariably deceived, because one person cannot change the whole country. Changes cannot come from outside as long as the people are ruled by the consciousness that autocracy is the highest order. People must realize their personal responsibility to their homeland and forge their own happiness, but tyranny does not allow them to express themselves, and they ardently support it, because as long as it exists, nothing needs to be done.
Despite the satirical and ironic basis of the story, it contains a very important essence. In the work "The History of a City" the meaning is to show that only with a free and critical vision of power and its imperfections, changes for the better are possible. If a society lives according to the rules of blind obedience, then oppression is inevitable. The author does not call for uprisings and revolution, there are no ardent rebellious moans in the text, but the essence is the same - without people's awareness of their role and responsibility, there is no way to change.
The writer does not just criticize the monarchical system, he offers an alternative, opposing censorship and risking his public office, because the publication of "History ..." could entail for him not only resignation, but also imprisonment. He does not just speak, but by his actions calls on society not to be afraid of the authorities and openly talk to her about the sore. The main idea of Saltykov-Shchedrin is to instill in people the freedom of thought and speech so that they can improve their lives themselves, without waiting for the mercy of the mayors. He educates the reader in an active civic position.
Artistic media
The peculiarity of the narration is betrayed by the peculiar interweaving of the world of fantasy and the real, where the fantastic grotesque and journalistic intensity of actual and real problems coexist. Unusual and incredible incidents and events emphasize the absurdity of the depicted reality. The author skillfully uses such artistic techniques as the grotesque and hyperbole. Everything in the life of the Foolovites is unbelievable, exaggerated, ridiculous. For example, the vices of city governors have grown to colossal proportions, they are deliberately taken out of reality. The writer exaggerates in order to eradicate real-life problems through ridicule and public abuse. Irony is also one of the means of expressing the author's position and his attitude to what is happening in the country. People love to laugh, and serious topics are best presented in a humorous style, otherwise the work will not find its reader. Saltykov-Shchedrin's novel "The History of a City" is, first of all, funny, which is why it was and is still popular. At the same time, he is ruthlessly truthful, he hits hard on topical issues, but the reader has already swallowed the bait in the form of humor and cannot tear himself away from the book.
What does the book teach?
The Foolovites, who personify the people, are in a state of unconscious worship of authority. They unquestioningly submit to the whims of the autocracy, absurd orders and tyranny of the ruler. At the same time, they experience fear and reverence for the patron. The authorities in the person of city governors use their instrument of suppression to the fullest, regardless of the opinion and interests of the townspeople. Therefore, Saltykov-Shchedrin points out that the common people and their leader are worth each other, because until society “grows up” to higher standards and learns to defend its rights, the state will not change: it will meet primitive demand with a cruel and unfair offer.
The symbolic ending of the "History of a City", in which the despotic mayor Ugryum-Burcheev dies, is intended to leave a message that the Russian autocracy has no future. But there is no certainty, no constancy in matters of power. All that remains is the tart taste of tyranny, perhaps followed by something new.
Interesting? Save it on your wall!The writing
The history of one city is a cycle of stories that are not connected by a plot or the same characters, but combined into one work due to a common goal - a satirical depiction of the modern political structure of Russia to Saltykov-Shchedrin. The history of one city is defined as a satirical chronicle. Indeed, stories from the life of the city of Glupov make us laugh too, now, more than a century after the death of the writer. However, this laughter is a laughter at ourselves, since the history of one city is, in essence, a satirical history of Russian society and the state, presented in the form of a comic description.
In the History of one city, the genre features of a political pamphlet are clearly expressed. This is already noticeable in the Inventory of the Mayors, especially in the description of the causes of their death. So, one was eaten by bedbugs, another was torn to pieces by dogs, the third died of gluttony, the fourth - from damage to the head instrument, the fifth - from strain, trying to comprehend the executive decree, the sixth - from efforts to increase the population of Foolov. In this row stands the mayor Pimple, whose stuffed head was bitten off by the marshal of the nobility.
The techniques of the political pamphlet are reinforced by such means of artistic representation as fantasy and the grotesque.
Almost the main feature of this work, which certainly deserves attention, is a gallery of images of city governors who do not care about the fate of the city given to them into power, thinking only about their own good and benefit, or not thinking about anything at all, since some simply do not capable of thought process. Showing the images of the city governors of Glupov, Saltykov-Shchedrin often describes the real rulers of Russia, with all their shortcomings. One can easily recognize A. Menshikov, and Peter I, and Alexander I, and Peter III, and Arakcheev, whose unsightly essence was shown by the writer in the image of Gloomy-Burcheev, who ruled in the most tragic time of the existence of Glupov, in the Foolov city governors.
But Shchedrin's satire is peculiar in that it does not spare not only the ruling circles, up to the emperors, but also the ordinary, ordinary, gray person who obeys the tyrant rulers. In his dullness and ignorance, the simple citizen Glupova is ready to blindly obey any, the most ridiculous and absurd orders, recklessly believing in the tsar-father. And nowhere does Saltykov-Shchedrin so condemn the love of the boss, the veneration of rank, as in the History of a City. In one of the first chapters of the work, the Foolovites, still called bunglers, are knocked down in search of slave fetters, in search of a prince who will rule them. Moreover, they are not looking for anyone, but for the most stupid one. But even the most stupid prince cannot fail to notice the even greater stupidity of the people who came to bow to him. He simply refuses to govern such a people, only accepting tribute favorably and putting an innovative thief in his place as mayor. Thus, Saltykov-Shchedrin shows the inactivity of the Russian rulers, their unwillingness to do anything useful for the state. The satire of Saltykov-Shchedrin exposes the henchmen of the sovereign, flatterers who plunder the country and the treasury. With particular force, the writer's satirical talent manifested itself in the chapter devoted to Brudastom the Organchik. This mayor day and night wrote more and more urges, according to which they seized and caught, flogged and flogged, described and sold. With the Foolovites, he explained himself only with the help of two remarks: I will ruin it! and I won't! It was for this that an empty vessel was needed instead of a head. But the apotheosis of bossy idiocy is Ug-ryum-Burcheev in the History of a City. This is the most sinister figure in the entire gallery of Foolov's mayors. Saltykov-Shchedrin calls him both a gloomy idiot, and a gloomy scoundrel, and a tight-tailed to the marrow of his bones. It recognizes neither schools nor literacy, but only the science of numbers taught on the fingers. the main objective of all his labors - to turn the city into a barracks, to force everyone to march, to unquestioningly carry out absurd orders. According to his plan, even brides and grooms should be of the same height and physique. A swooping tornado carries away Grim-Burcheev. Saltykov-Shchedrin's contemporaries perceived such an end for the idiot mayor as a purifying force, as a symbol of popular anger.
This gallery of all kinds of scoundrels causes not just Homeric laughter, but also anxiety for a country in which a headless mannequin can rule a huge country. Of course, literary work cannot resolve the political issues raised in it. But the fact that these questions have been asked means that someone has thought about them, tried to fix something. The merciless satire of Saltykov-edrin is like a bitter medicine needed for a cure. The writer's goal is to make the reader think about the flax trouble, about the wrong state structure of Russia. It remains to be hoped that the works of Saltykov-Shchedrin achieved their goal, helped to at least partially realize the mistakes, at least some of them no longer repeat.
Saltykov-Shchedrin chose, it seems to me, the most difficult genre of literature, satire. After all, satire is a kind of comic that most mercilessly ridicules reality and, unlike humor, does not give a chance for correction.
The writer had the gift of sensitively capturing the most acute conflicts brewing in Russia and parading them in front of the entire Russian society in his works.
Difficult and thorny was the creative path of the satirist. FROM early years life's contradictions entered his soul, from which the mighty tree of Shchedrin's satire subsequently grew. And I think that Pushkin's lines of satire the brave ruler, said in Eugene Onegin about Fonvizin, can be safely redirected to Saltykov-Shchedrin.
Most closely Shchedrin studied the political life of Russia: the relationship between different classes, the oppression of the peasantry by the upper strata of society. The lawlessness of the tsarist administration, its reprisals against the people, are perfectly reflected in the novel The History of a City. In it, Saltykov-Shchedrin predicted the death of the Russian autocracy, tangibly conveyed the growth of popular anger: the North darkened and covered with clouds; from these clouds something rushed to the city: either a downpour, or a tornado.
The inevitable fall of the tsarist regime, the process of destruction of not only political, but also its moral foundations are clearly depicted in the novel by Lord Golovleva. Here we see the history of three generations of the Golovlyov nobles, as well as a vivid picture of the decay and degeneration of the whole nobility. In the image of Yudushka Golovlev, all the ulcers and vices of both the family and the entire class of owners are embodied. I am especially struck by the speech of Judas the misanthrope and fornication words. All of it consists of sighs, hypocritical appeals to God, incessant repetitions: An god, here he is. And there, and here, and here with us, as long as we are talking with you everywhere he is! And he sees everything, hears everything, only pretends not to notice.
Empty talk and hypocrisy helped him hide the true essence of his nature, the desire to torture, ruin, deprive, suck blood. The name Judas has become a household name for every exploiter, parasite. With the power of his talent, Saltykov-Shchedrin created a vivid, typical, unforgettable image, mercilessly exposing political betrayal, greed, hypocrisy. It seems to me that it is appropriate here to quote the words of Mikhailovsky, who said about Lord Golovlev that this is a critical encyclopedia of Russian life.
The writer has distinguished himself in many genres of literature. From his pen came novels, chronicles, stories, short stories, essays, plays. But the most vivid artistic talent of Saltykov-Shchedrin is expressed in his famous Tales. The writer himself defined them as follows: Fairy tales for children of a fair age. They combine elements of folklore and author's literature: fairy tales and fables. They most fully reflect the life experience and wisdom of the satirist. Despite the topical political motives, fairy tales still retain all the charm of folk art: In a certain kingdom, the Bogatyr was born. Baba Yaga gave birth to him, nurtured him, nursed him ... (Bogatyr).
Saltykov-Shchedrin created many fairy tales by using the technique of allegory. The author called this style of writing Aesopian language after the ancient Greek fabulist Aesop, who in ancient times used the same technique in his fables. Aesopian language was one of the means of protecting Shchedrin's works from the tsarist censorship that tormented them. In some fairy tales of the satirist, the characters are animals. Their images are endowed with ready-made characters: the wolf is greedy and angry, the bear is rustic, the fox is insidious, the hare is cowardly and boastful, and the donkey is hopelessly stupid. For example, in the fairy tale Selfless Hare, the wolf enjoys the position of the ruler, the despot: ... Here is my solution [hare]: I sentence you to deprivation of the stomach by tearing ... Or maybe ... ha ha ... I will honor you. However, the author does not at all evoke sympathy for the hare, because he also lives according to the laws of the wolf, resignedly goes to the wolf's mouth! The Shchedrin Hare is not just cowardly and helpless, he is cowardly, he refuses to resist in advance, making it easier for the wolf to solve the food problem. And here the author's irony turns into caustic sarcasm, into deep contempt for the psychology of a slave.
In general, all the fairy tales of Saltykov-Shchedrin can be conditionally divided into three main groups: fairy tales that castigate the autocracy and the exploiting classes; fairy tales that expose the cowardice of the modern writer of the liberal intelligentsia and, of course, fairy tales about the people.
The writer ridicules the stupidity and worthlessness of the generals, putting the following words into the mouth of one of them: Who would have thought, Your Excellency, that human food in its original form flies, swims and grows on trees
The generals are saved from death by a man whom they force to work for themselves. The peasant is a huge man, much stronger and smarter than the generals. However, due to slavish obedience, habit, he unquestioningly obeys the generals and fulfills all their requirements. He only cares about how he would please his generals for the fact that they favored him, a parasite, and did not disdain his muzhik labor. The muzhik's humility reaches the point that he himself twisted the rope with which the generals tied him to a tree so as not to run away.
An unprecedented satire on the Russian liberal intelligentsia is developed by Saltykov-Shchedrin in fairy tales about fish and hares. Such is the tale of the wise scribbler. In the image of a pis-kar, the satirist showed a miserable layman, the meaning of whose life was the idea of self-preservation. Shchedrin showed how boring and useless the life of people who prefer their petty personal interests to the public struggle. The whole biography of such people comes down to one phrase: Lived trembled, and died trembled.
Konyaga adjoins the fairy tales about the people. The title of the story speaks for itself. A driven peasant nag is a symbol of folk life. No end to work! The whole meaning of his existence is exhausted by work: for her he is conceived and born. The question is asked in the tale: Where is the way out? And the answer is given: The exit is in Konyag itself.
In my opinion, in fairy tales about the people, Shchedrin's irony and sarcasm are replaced by pity and bitterness. The writer's language is deeply folk, close to Russian folklore. In fairy tales, Shchedrin widely uses proverbs, sayings, sayings: Two deaths cannot happen, one cannot be avoided, My hut is on the edge, Once upon a time ..., In a certain kingdom, in a certain state .... The tales of Saltykov-Shchedrin awakened the political consciousness of the people, calling for struggle, for protest. Despite the fact that many years have passed since the satirist wrote his famous works, they are all relevant now. Unfortunately, society did not get rid of the vices that the writer denounced in his work. It is no coincidence that many playwrights of our time turn to his works to show the imperfection of modern society. After all, the bureaucratic system that Saltykov-Shchedrin castigated, in my opinion, not only has not outlived its usefulness, but is also flourishing. But are there not enough Jews today who are ready to sell even their own mother for their material well-being? A very topical topic for modern times is the topic of ordinary intellectuals who sit in their apartments, as in holes, and do not want to see anything beyond their own door.
Shchedrin's satire is a special phenomenon in Russian literature. His individuality lies in the fact that he sets himself a fundamental creative task: to hunt down, expose and destroy. If the humor in the work of N.V. Gogol, as V.G. Belinsky wrote, ... is calm in its indignation, good-natured in its cunning, then in the work of Shchedrin it is ... formidable and open, bilious, poisonous, merciless.I. S. Turgenev wrote: I saw how the audience writhed with laughter while reading some of Saltykov's essays. There was something terrible about that laugh. The audience, laughing at the same time, felt how the scourge was whipping itself. The literary heritage of the writer belongs not only to the past, but also to the present and the future. Shchedrin must be known and read! It introduces an understanding of the social depths and patterns of life, highly elevates the spirituality of a person and morally cleanses him. I think that the work of M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, with its relevance, is close to every modern person.
Other writings on this work
"The History of a City" by M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin as a satire on the autocracy “In Saltykov there is ... this serious and vicious humor, this realism, sober and clear among the most unbridled imagination ...” (I.S. Turgenev). "History of one city" as a socio-political satire Analysis of 5 chapters (optional) in the work of M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City" Analysis of the chapter "Fantastic Traveler" (based on the novel by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City") Analysis of the chapter "On the Root of the Origin of the Foolovites" (based on the novel by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City") Foolov and the Foolovites (based on the novel by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City") Grotesque as a leading artistic technique in the "History of a City" by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin Grotesque, its functions and meaning in the image of the city of Glupov and its mayors The twenty-third mayor of the city of Glupov (based on the novel by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City") The yoke of madness in the "History of a City" by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin The use of the grotesque technique in depicting the life of the Foolovites (based on the novel by Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City") The image of the Foolovites in the "History of a City" Images of mayors in the "History of one city" M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin. The main problems of the novel by Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City" Parody as an artistic technique in the "History of a City" by M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin Parody as an artistic technique in the "History of a City" by M. Saltykov-Shchedrin Techniques of a satirical image in the novel by M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City" Methods of satirical depiction of mayors in the "History of one city" by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin Review of the "History of a City" by M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin The novel "The History of a City" by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin - the history of Russia in the mirror of satire Satire on the Russian autocracy in the "History of one city" M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin Satirical chronicle of Russian life Satirical chronicle of Russian life (“History of one city” by M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin) The originality of satire by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin Functions and meaning of the grotesque in the image of the city of Glupov and its mayors in the novel by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "History of one city" Characteristics of Vasilisk Semenovich Wartkin Characteristics of the mayor Brodasty (based on the novel by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City") A series of mayors in the "History of one city" M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin What brings together Zamyatin's novel "We" and Saltykov-Shchedrin's novel "The History of a City"? The history of the creation of the novel "The History of a City" Heroes and problems of satire M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin Laughter through tears in the "History of a City" People and power as the central theme of the novel The activities of the mayors of the city of Glupov Elements of the grotesque in the early works of M. E. Saltykov The theme of the people in the "History of one city" Description of the city of Glupov and its mayors Fantastic motivation in the "History of a City" Characteristics of the image of Benevolensky Feofilakt Irinarkhovich The meaning of the finale of the novel "The History of a City" The plot and composition of the novel "The History of a City"Saltykov-Shchedrin is called one of the most famous and great Russian satirists of the 19th century.
And the key work, with which the work of Saltykov-Shchedrin is associated, is the "History of a City", filled with symbolism and subtle satire.
Saltykov-Shchedrin began to write a masterpiece of social satire in 1868, and in 1870 The History of a City was completed.
Naturally, the idea and the main theme of this satirical work caused a certain resonance not only in literary circles, but also in much wider, completely different circles of society.
The art of satire in the "History of a City"
The focus of the work of Saltykov-Shchedrin is the history of the city of Foolov and its people, who are called Foolovites. Initially, the general concept of history and its satirical motives were perceived by critics and many readers as a depiction of Russia's past - the 18th century.
But the writer intended to portray common system national autocracy, which applies both to the past and to the miserable present. The life of the city of Glupov and the consciousness of its population is a vast caricature of the life and state structure of all of Russia, as well as the behavior and meaning of existence of Russians.
The central character of the story is the people themselves, whose image the writer reveals more and more with new chapters. A more detailed picture of Saltykov-Shchedrin's critical attitude to society can be seen with the help of mayors, who are constantly changing throughout the story.
Images of mayors
The images of city governors are different, but similar in their limitations and absurdity. Foolovets Brodasty is despotic, limited in his mind and awareness of reality, he is the most accurate example of an autocratic system that absorbs people's feelings and souls in its path.
And the mayor Pimple, whose name speaks for itself, is represented by the image of "a head that lives separately from the body." Saltykov-Shchedrin symbolically showed how once his head was eaten by an official.
The activity of another mayor, Ugryum-Burcheev, is grotesquely ridiculed by the author in the “military populations” organized by him and the way of thinking, which was “what I want, I turn back.”
Grotesque, pathos, Aesopian language as a means of depicting reality
The power of Saltykov-Shchedrin's creativity can be called the power satirical denunciation the reality that many people, out of habit and spinelessness, seem to be the norm.
The most paradoxical thing is that what he describes turns out to be the real truth, despite all the grotesque and pathos used by the writer as a means of depicting the past and present.
The parody that the writer creates in the "History of a City" is so accurate and skillfully beaten that it has nothing to do with absurdity and simple humor.
The work of Saltykov-Shchedrin, a democrat for whom the autocratic-feudal system prevailing in Russia was absolutely unacceptable, had a satirical orientation. The writer was outraged by the Russian society of "slaves and masters", the excesses of the landlords, the humility of the people, and in all his works he denounced the "ulcers" of society, cruelly ridiculed its vices and imperfections.
So, starting to write the "History of a City", Saltykov-Shchedrin set himself the goal of exposing the ugliness, the impossibility of the existence of autocracy with its social vices, laws, mores, and ridiculing all its realities.
Thus, the “History of a City” is a satirical work, the dominant artistic means in depicting the history of the city of Glupov, its inhabitants and mayors is the grotesque, the technique of combining the fantastic and the real, creating absurd situations, comic inconsistencies. In fact, all the events taking place in the city are grotesque. Its inhabitants, the Foolovtsy, “descending from an ancient tribe of bunglers,” who did not know how to live in self-government and decided to find a master for themselves, are unusually “loving bosses.” “Experiencing unaccountable fear”, unable to live independently, they “feel like orphans” without city governors and consider the atrocities of the Organchik, who had a mechanism in his head and knew only two words - “I will not tolerate” and “I will ruin” as “saving severity”. Quite “common” in Foolovo are such city governors as Pimple with a stuffed head or the Frenchman Du Mario, who “turned out to be a girl upon closer examination.” However, the absurdity reaches its climax with the appearance of Ugryum-Burcheev, "a scoundrel who planned to embrace the entire universe." In an effort to realize his "systematic nonsense", Ugryum-Burcheev tries to equalize everything in nature, to arrange society in such a way that everyone in Foolov lives according to a plan invented by himself, so that the entire structure of the city is created anew according to his project, which leads to the destruction of Glupov by his own residents who unquestioningly carry out the orders of the "scoundrel", and further - to the death of Ugryum-Burcheev and all the Foolovites, consequently, the disappearance of the orders established by him as an unnatural phenomenon, unacceptable by nature itself.
Thus, by using the grotesque, Saltykov-Shchedrin creates a logical, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, a comically absurd picture, but for all its absurdity and fantasy, The History of a City is a realistic work that touches on many topical problems. The images of the city of Glupov and its mayors are allegorical, they symbolize autocratic-feudal Russia, the power that reigns in it, Russian society. Therefore, the grotesque used by Saltykov-Shchedrin in the narrative is also a way to expose the disgusting for the writer, ugly realities of his contemporary life, as well as a means of identifying the author's position, Saltykov-Shchedrin's attitude to what is happening in Russia.
Describing the fantastically comical life of the Foolovites, their constant fear, all-forgiving love for their bosses, Saltykov-Shchedrin expresses his contempt for the people, apathetic and submissively slavish, as the writer believes, by nature. Only once in the work were the Foolovites free - under the mayor with a stuffed head. By creating this grotesque situation, Saltykov-Shchedrin shows that under the existing socio-political system, the people cannot be free. The absurdity of the behavior of the “strong” (symbolizing real power) of this world in the work embodies the lawlessness and arbitrariness perpetrated in Russia by high-ranking officials. The grotesque image of Gloomy-Burcheev, his "systematic nonsense" (a kind of dystopia), which the mayor decided to bring to life at all costs, and the fantastic end of the reign - the realization of Saltykov-Shchedrin's idea of inhumanity, the unnaturalness of absolute power, bordering on tyranny, about the impossibility of its existence. The writer embodies the idea that autocratic-feudal Russia with its ugly way of life will sooner or later come to an end.
So, denouncing vices and revealing the absurdity and absurdity real life the grotesque conveys a special "evil irony", "bitter laughter" characteristic of Saltykov-Shchedrin, "laughter through contempt and indignation". The writer sometimes seems absolutely ruthless to his characters, overly critical and demanding of the world around him. But, as Lermontov said, "the cure for the disease can be bitter." The cruel denunciation of the vices of society, according to Saltykov-Shchedrin, is the only effective means in the fight against the "disease" of Russia. Ridicule of imperfections makes them obvious, understandable to everyone. It would be wrong to say that Saltykov-Shchedrin did not love Russia, he despised the shortcomings, vices of her life and devoted all his creative activity to the fight against them.
Essays on literature: "The history of one city" as a socio-political satire The story of M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin "The History of a City" is a cycle of stories that are not interconnected by plot or the same characters, but combined into one work due to a common goal - a satirical depiction of the modern political structure of Russia to Saltykov-Shchedrin. "The history of one city" is defined as a satirical chronicle. Indeed, stories from the life of the city of Glupov make us laugh too, now, more than a century after the death of the writer. However, this laughter is a laughter at ourselves, since the "History of a City" is, in essence, a satirical history of Russian society and the state, presented in the form of a comic description. The "History of a City" clearly expresses the genre features of a political pamphlet.
This is noticeable already in the Inventory of the Mayors, especially in the description of the causes of their death. So, one was eaten by bedbugs, another was torn to pieces by dogs, the third died of gluttony, the fourth - from damage to the head instrument, the fifth - from strain, trying to comprehend the authorities' decree, the sixth - from efforts to increase the population of Foolov. In this row stands the mayor Pimple, whose stuffed head was bitten off by the marshal of the nobility. The techniques of the political pamphlet are reinforced by such means of artistic representation as fantasy and the grotesque. Almost the main feature of this work, which certainly deserves attention, is the gallery of images of mayors who do not care about the fate of the city given to them, who think only about their own good and benefit, or who do not think about anything at all, since some are simply not capable of thought process. Showing the images of the city governors of Glupov, Saltykov-Shchedrin often describes the real rulers of Russia, with all their shortcomings.
One can easily recognize A. Menshikov, and Peter I, and Alexander I, and Peter III, and Arakcheev, whose unsightly essence was shown by the writer in the image of Gloomy-Burcheev, who ruled in the most tragic time of the existence of Glupov, in the Foolov city governors. But Shchedrin's satire is peculiar in that it does not spare not only the ruling circles, up to the emperors, but also the ordinary, ordinary, gray person who obeys the tyrant rulers. In his dullness and ignorance, the simple citizen Glupova is ready to blindly obey any, the most ridiculous and absurd orders, recklessly believing in the tsar-father. And nowhere does Saltykov-Shchedrin so condemn the love of the boss, the veneration of rank, as in The History of a City. In one of the first chapters of the work, the Foolovites, still called bunglers, are knocked down in search of slave fetters, in search of a prince who will rule them. Moreover, they are not looking for anyone, but for the most stupid one. But even the most stupid prince cannot fail to notice the even greater stupidity of the people who came to bow to him.
He simply refuses to govern such a people, only favorably accepting tribute and putting a "thief-innovator" in his place as mayor. Thus, Saltykov-Shchedrin shows the inactivity of the Russian rulers, their unwillingness to do anything useful for the state. The satire of Saltykov-Shchedrin exposes the henchmen of the sovereign, flatterers who plunder the country and the treasury. With particular force, the writer's satirical talent manifested itself in the chapter devoted to Brudastom the Organchik. This mayor day and night wrote "more and more urges" according to which "they grabbed and caught, flogged and flogged, described and sold." With the Foolovites, he explained himself only with the help of two remarks: "I will ruin!" and "I won't stand it!
"It was precisely for this that an empty vessel was needed instead of a head. But the apotheosis of bossy idiocy is in the "History of a City" Gloomy-Grumbling. This is the most sinister figure in the entire gallery of Foolov's mayors. "gloomy scoundrel", and "tight-tailed to the marrow of bones". He does not recognize either schools or literacy, but only the science of numbers taught on the fingers. The main goal of all his "works" is to turn the city into a barracks, to force everyone to march, to unquestioningly fulfill absurd orders.According to his plan, even brides and grooms should be of the same height and physique.
A swooping tornado carries away Grim-Burcheev. Saltykov-Shchedrin's contemporaries perceived such an end for the idiot mayor as a purifying force, as a symbol of popular anger. This gallery of all kinds of scoundrels causes not just Homeric laughter, but also anxiety for a country in which a headless mannequin can rule a huge country. Of course, a literary work cannot solve the political questions posed in it. But the fact that these questions have been asked means that someone has thought about them, tried to fix something. The merciless satire of Saltykov-Shchedrin is like a bitter medicine needed for a cure.
The writer's goal is to make the reader think about the ill-being, about the wrong state structure of Russia. It remains to be hoped that the works of Saltykov-Shchedrin achieved their goal, helped to at least partially realize the mistakes, at least some of them no longer repeat.
