The novel fathers and sons and its time. What are the eternal themes in the novel "Fathers and Sons"? Conflict between "fathers" and "children"

Essay Turgenev I.S. - Fathers and Sons

Topic: - Hero of Time in I. S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons”

I. S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons,” written in 1861, is rightfully considered one of the famous works of the great novelist. Turgenev was always distinguished by his amazing ability to see, recognize the hero of the era, and feel the mood of society. The novel “Fathers and Sons” was no exception. At the time when it was created, a persistent socio-political struggle was going on in the country between common democrats and liberal nobles. Both of them understood the need for reforms, but had different attitudes towards their implementation. Democratic-minded youth advocated for fundamental changes in Russia, liberals preferred the path of gradual reforms. As a result, a split occurred in Russian society: on one side there were revolutionary democrats, on the other - liberals.
The writer correctly noticed this process and reflected it in his work. He decided to turn to the beginnings of the confrontation - the end of the 50s. It is no coincidence that the novel takes place in 1859. Just at this time, enmity began between the foreign liberal “Bell” of Herzen and the democratic “Contemporary* of Chernyshevsky and Dobrolyubov, or between the “fathers” and “children”.
The only representative of the “children” in the novel is Bazarov. Arkady Kirsanov, who considers himself his student, does not see at all that Bazarov’s ideas are alien to him. Sitnikov and Kukshina, also convinced of their progressive ideas, are, in fact, an evil parody of nihilists. The image of Bazarov is far from clear. He is undoubtedly an outstanding personality, possessing, above all, broad knowledge of the natural sciences. He is used to working and cannot imagine his life without work, which gives him autonomy and independence. His behavior and speech sometimes develop into “immeasurable pride” and pride. “When I meet a person who would not give up in front of me, then I will change my opinion about myself.” Bazarov places himself very highly. “We need the Sitnikovs. I,... I need boobies like that. It’s not for the gods... to burn pots!..” Bazarov, like many progressive people of the late 50s and early 60s, was a materialist. He called philosophy, religion, and noble culture “romanticism, nonsense, rot.” For him, the relationship between a man and a woman comes down to physiology, art - to “the art of making money or no more hemorrhoids.” He laughs at the “mysterious” look between a man and a woman, explaining it by the anatomy of the eye. The world of beauty is completely alien to him; he believes only in what has been tested by experience.
From such an attitude towards life, Bazarov’s bold philosophy originates, which consists in the total denial of any foundations and principles on which human life is based. In other words, the hero’s life philosophy is nihilism. “A nihilist is a person who does not bow to any authorities, who does not take on faith a single principle, no matter how respected this principle may be,” declares Arkady, clearly from the words of Bazarov.
Bazarov’s views were most clearly and fully reflected in disputes with Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov, a convinced liberal and fierce opponent of nihilism. On the question of the nature of transformations in Russia, Bazarov stands for a decisive break in the existing system. He offers nothing in return. However, he doesn’t even think about it. “This is no longer our business... first we need to clear the place.” In his opinion, the nobility, the “aristocrats” have already played their role, their time has passed, like the time of any “principles”.
Art, religion, nature, the world of beauty - all this is alien to Bazarov. “Nature is not a temple, but a workshop.” “Raphael is not worth a penny.” He treats a person as a biological organism: “All people are similar to each other both in body and soul.” He is confident that “moral illnesses,” like “physical illnesses,” are completely treatable, since they are caused by the “ugly state of society”: “Correct society, and there will be no illnesses.”
The hero has a special relationship with the Russian people. On the one hand, he proudly says that he knows how to talk to him, and his “grandfather plowed the land.” On the other hand, it expresses deep contempt for patriarchy and ignorance of the people. Bazarov is as far from the people as Pavel Petrovich. The hero's ideological positions are revealed in disputes with his opponent Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov in chapters 4, 6 and 7, 9; in Chapter 10, the main dispute unfolds - the fight between Bazarov and Pavel Petrovich, of all the disputes the first emerges as the winner.
Before meeting Odintsova, nothing can shake Bazarov’s convictions. Only after chapter 14, where Bazarov meets Anna Sergeevna and a love conflict begins to unfold, changes begin to occur in the hero. Bazarov falls passionately in love and thereby joins the spiritual world, which until recently he denied. Life turns out to be much more complicated than his constructions. He tries to drown out his feeling, but with indignation he notices in himself the same “romanticism” that he himself ridiculed in others. Turgenev makes his hero fail in love. His feeling grew into passion - “strong, heavy,” “similar to malice.” At the same time, he never gives up on himself and, after an unsuccessful confession, immediately leaves, without humiliating himself to the position of a rejected lover.
Unrequited love partly destroyed Bazarov's ideological beliefs. He falls into pessimism and cannot find a place for himself anywhere. But as a man of enormous willpower, he tries to overcome the romanticism in himself, to pull himself together, but he fails to become the same as he was before he met Odintsova. Having lost the meaning of life, suffered a fiasco in love, and sacrificed many of his beliefs, the hero dies at the end of the novel, but not as a nihilist, but as an ordinary person. In the face of death, the remarkable strength of this nature is fully manifested. Pisarev wrote: “To die the way Bazarov died is the same as accomplishing a great feat.”
Thus, Bazarov is shown by Turgenev as an extraordinary person. He is smarter, stronger than the theory he professes. His death is not the death of a person Russia needs in many ways, it is the death of his convictions. Bazarov is not needed as a nihilist, but is needed as a strong, titanic personality in whom eternal human values were alive.

, Economy

Tasks:

Educational:

Generalization of material on the topic “Characteristics of Russia in the early and mid-19th century.”
Preparing students to perceive the complexity of the ideological struggle of the 60s.
Formation of the skill of analyzing a work of art, the ability to highlight important content parts in it.
Leading students to understand the author's intention.

Educational:

Development of the ability to highlight the main thing in the material being studied.
Development of analytical skills in the comparative characterization of historical eras and economic systems.
Development of cognitive interest through preparing messages and creating presentations.

Educational:

Fostering a communicative culture that promotes adaptation in a new team and society.
Fostering a creative approach to completing tasks.

Equipment: Multimedia projector, computer, screen.

In preparation for the lesson, students receive homework: Read chapters 1-4 of I.S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons” and fill in the columns in the table: dates, biography of N. Kirsanov.

The epigraph for the lesson is written on the board:

As for time, why will I depend on it? Let it depend on me.
(Bazarov in conversation with Arkady(chap.VII))

During the classes

Literature teacher: The topic of today's lesson is: (slide 2) “Man and time in I.S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons.” Private life and history, man and time are quite complex philosophical concepts. What associations do they evoke in you? To understand this, I will ask you to write a short philosophical reflection, compose a sequence with the words time and person, working in groups (compiling a sequence by students in groups, reading aloud).

Literature teacher: Analysis of the proposed reflections.

Man and time... The main character of I.S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons,” Evgeny Bazarov, in one of the initial chapters of the novel, in a conversation with Arkady, expresses the following opinion: “As for time, why will I depend on it? Let it depend on me.” (Chapter VII). It is no coincidence that I chose this particular quote from the text as an epigraph to the conversation. I think it will help us formulate the main question that we must answer when reflecting on the first chapters of the novel “Fathers and Sons.” (Students formulate the purpose of the lesson. Teacher’s option: How, according to I.S. Turgenev, are two concepts connected: man and time) (slide 3).

Literature teacher: Man and time... “Time,” so begins the seventeenth chapter of the novel, “sometimes flies like a bird, sometimes crawls like a worm.” Before Turgenev’s eyes, when he writes, are not only the faces of his contemporaries, not only pictures of events, but also the very image of time. This is a feature of Turgenev's talent. Temporary streams he heard, as people hear the murmur of running streams. Time always flows. Therefore, the novel begins as if not from the beginning. The river was already flowing... we approached and heard: (slide 4).

The student reads the beginning of the novel:

What, Peter, haven’t you seen yet? - asked on May 20, 1859, going out without a hat onto the low porch of the inn on the *** highway, a gentleman of about forty years old, in a dusty coat and checkered trousers, asked his servant, a young and cheeky fellow with whitish down on his chin and small dull eyes.

Literature teacher: Already in the first lines of the novel we encounter Turgenev’s unusual historical authenticity; the author indicates exactly not only the year, but also the month and even the date when the action begins on May 20, 1859. Why do you think? ( answer study) Why were these and not other dates taken by Turgenev? Let's listen to a message on this topic.

Message from a group of literary scholars: Annex 1 .

(Students fill out the table) (slide 5).

Economics teacher: 1859 is the time when the novel begins...

By introducing exact dates, Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev correlates the world of the heroes with the reality of the 50s and 60s of the 19th century.

What was the economic reality of Russia during this period?

Examination carried out in pairs on slide 9.

Economics teacher: You examined the facts of the economic situation in Russia only from chapter 3, and (names of the students who prepared the speech) worked with the text of the entire work. They will now present the result of their work to you.

2 table row).

Literature teacher: CONCLUSION (entry in a notebook): Nikolai Petrovich belongs to a generation of people whose formation takes place in the era of the post-December reaction: in 1835 he graduated from the university. Political interests at this time could not manifest themselves openly, so a passion for literature, art, and philosophy came to the fore. It was in them that the mood of the advanced part of society was latently revealed.

What years mark the next historical milestone? (47-48, death of his wife and departure to live in the village) Contemporary readers of Turgenev easily understood the meaning of the phrase: “... but then the 48th year came.”

A history teacher: What events in Russia and abroad determine the life of the country, the state of society at the time indicated by Turgenev? 1835-1848

(Students fill out the table as the messages progress) check on slide 17 ( 3rd row of the table).

Literature teacher: CONCLUSION (entry in a notebook): A new aggravation of the reaction after the revolution in the West led to the fact that part of the nobility finally chose the village as their place of residence, as Nikolai Petrovich did - away from the affairs of the capital - and limited their lives to personal interests. In such an environment the character of the “fathers” was developed.

And as for the time of formation of the generation of “children,” for him, too, Turgenev defines in his work the historical framework of 1848–1859.

A history teacher: What events in Russia and abroad determine the life of the country, the state of society in 1848-1859?

(Students fill out the table as the messages progress) check on slide 17 ( 4 table row).

Literature teacher:(entry in a notebook) So, we see: in 1855 Nikolai Petrovich took his son to the university, and, as you know, this year is the beginning of a new era, an era of social upsurge in the country. The year 1859, when Nikolai Petrovich is waiting for his son to come home, is fraught with a revolutionary situation in Russia.

Summing up the work we did in the lesson, I return to its topic “Man and time in I.S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons.” I would like to hear your answer to the question posed at the beginning of the lesson: How, according to I.S. Turgenev, are two concepts connected: man and time (slide 18)?

Homework: slide19.

Every generation considers itself
more intelligent than the previous one, and
wiser than what follows.

D.Orwell

Plan

I Characteristics of E. Bazarov.
II Generation of “fathers” and “children”.
  1. Comparison of generations.
  2. Bazarov's erroneous views.
  3. The image of a new generation.
III The relevance of the novel today.

The novel by I.S. Turgenev is truly a masterpiece of Russian literature. The work is distinguished by its formulation of the most important social, philosophical, and ethical issues of its time. Evgeny Bazarov occupies a central position in the novel. The novel shows a new type of progressive commoner, democrat Bazarov, “a man of action, not words.” He is a representative of the new young generation. This is a practical person, ideals and authorities do not exist for him, because he does not meet his equals and has his own convictions for everything. “I don’t support anyone’s opinions, I have my own,” says Bazarov, half-contemptuously. In terms of his mental merits, Bazarov is much higher than his environment. Passion for science, the desire to get to the bottom of the truth, a broad outlook and a critical attitude towards reality, a sense of self-esteem - these are the characteristic features of Evgeny Bazarov. This is a person from another world, from a different environment. Turgenev showed his hero as a loner, who later understands that his “nihilism” is a pathetic imitation of a strong personality. The author himself was not satisfied with either the “fathers” or the “children” camp. He could not fall in love with Bazarov, but recognized his strength and paid him a tribute full of respect. Turgenev does not completely sympathize with any of his characters. Representatives of the past generation are depicted with merciless fidelity. They are good people, but Russia will not regret these good people.

People like Bazarov are adamant, true to their ideals, self-confident, energetic and active, honest and sincerely devoted to their work, irreplaceable in any society. Neither the Onegins of Pushkin, nor the Pechorins of Lermontov, striving for self-affirmation, the realization of their capabilities, but not seeing their worthy use, but the Bazarovs, who know what needs to be changed in society at the moment, contribute to social development, the movement of life forward. Bazarov himself says that Russia needs a shoemaker, a tailor, a butcher, that is, people who do specific, necessary things, and not “sit back and respect themselves for it,” like Pavel Petrovich. But doesn’t Bazarov, who sees that “talking about the ills of society is not worth the trouble,” strives to bring benefit to society through his activities, does this hero “engage in nonsense,” like most “advanced people and denouncers”? Undoubtedly, Russia needs Bazarov, the owner of such rare and valuable qualities.

But, according to Turgenev, Bazarov came to life early, he could have done a lot, but “he dies without having done anything.” There are also negative traits in it. Bazarov thoughtlessly denies all things that he does not even know or understand. Poetry, in his opinion, is nonsense, reading Pushkin is wasted time, playing music is ridiculous, enjoying nature is absurd. Love for Evgeny is just a physiological need. Life makes adjustments to his views on love. Bazarov suffers deeply after Odintsova’s refusal. After this, he enters into a realm of subtle experiences that he had not previously experienced. Not a trace of his confidence remains. Passion completely captures the hero, but he finds the strength, unlike Pavel Petrovich, to break with a selfish woman, despite the tragedy of this break. Bazarov is capable of deep critical self-analysis and rethinking of past beliefs. And this is his strength. Rejected, he still won a moral victory. Bazarov’s farewell words contain the main meaning of his life’s ending: “Russia needs me?... No, apparently, I don’t...” Thus, the sources of Bazarov’s suffering are the premature appearance, lack of allies and painful loneliness.

In the stories of heroes, oppositions between generations are constantly outlined. So, Bazarov says about his parents: “I think: it’s good for my parents to live in the world! The father is busy at sixty years old; and my mother feels good: her day is so crammed with all sorts of activities, oohs and aahs, that she has no time to come to her senses, and I...” Nikolai Petrovich’s reflections were especially significant when he clearly realized his separation from his son. “Brother says that we are right,” he thought, “and it seems to me that they are further from the truth than we are, but at the same time I feel that behind them there is something that we do not have, some kind of that advantage over us... Youth? No, not just youth.”

As for the problems that arose in the novel, we can say that in society there will always be disagreements between generations. Be it issues related to nature, culture, or love. But, in my opinion, the novel deals with problems not as relations between generations, but as a whole, problems of society. After all, a person who thinks in a new way, who is passionate about science, could not find his purpose in society. This man is Evgeny Bazarov. Yes, he was wrong, denying everything: love, art, feelings. I think, on his part, it was still youthful maximalism, for which he paid in life.

I believe that the title of the novel “Fathers and Sons” can be interpreted in different ways. Firstly: this is a relationship between generations. But it is also a relationship between people of different views and social status. Nobles and aristocrats who considered themselves superior to everyone else can be classified in one camp. On the other hand, they are opposed by one person, in the person of Evgeniy Bazarov. Thus, the Kirsanovs, Odintsov, and even Bazarov’s follower, Arkady, can be considered “fathers”. In the end, he realized that it was much more convenient not to change anything, to remain among his fathers. And only one person belongs to the generation of “children”. This is Evgeny Bazarov, the image of a new generation. He found no allies and was left alone. This character died because the author himself did not know how Bazarov’s life would turn out in the future. Perhaps the time has not yet come for such people. This is the main problem of society.

Is the novel modern? Undoubtedly, because people like Bazarov will always appear, trying to somehow change the world, but society will not accept such people who are different from the rest. The problem of fathers and sons has existed and, most likely, will exist at all times. Obviously, this is why the novel by I.S. Turgenev’s “Fathers and Sons” still remains relevant. The two generations depicted by the writer differ not so much in age as in their opposing views and worldviews: the old nobility, the aristocracy and the young revolutionary-democratic intelligentsia.

Turgenev’s contemporary, critic Pisarev, saw in the novel “deduced phenomena of life” as very close to himself, so close, “that all of our young generation with their aspirations and ideas can recognize themselves in the characters in this novel.” Because of this, I.S. Turgenev’s work “Fathers and Sons” remains relevant today.