The novel by N. G. Chernyshevsky “What to do?” created by him in the chamber of the Peter and Paul Fortress in the period from 14/12/1862 to 4/04/1863. for three and a half months. From January to April 1863, parts of the manuscript were submitted to the commission on the writer's case for censorship. The censorship did not find anything reprehensible and allowed the publication. The oversight was soon discovered and the censor Beketov was removed from his post, but the novel had already been published in the journal Sovremennik (1863, No 3-5). The bans on the issues of the magazine did not lead to anything, and the book was distributed throughout the country in "samizdat".

In 1905, under Emperor Nicholas II, the ban on publication was lifted, and in 1906 the book was published in a separate edition. The reaction of readers to the novel is interesting, and their opinions were divided into two camps. Some supported the author, others considered the novel devoid of artistry.

Analysis of the work

1. Socio-political renewal of society through revolution. In the book, the author, due to censorship, could not expand on this topic in more detail. It is given in semi-hints in the description of Rakhmetov's life and in the 6th chapter of the novel.

2. Moral and psychological. That a person, by the power of his mind, is able to create in himself new predetermined moral qualities. The author describes the whole process from a small one (the struggle against despotism in the family) to a large-scale one, that is, a revolution.

3. Women's emancipation, family morality. This topic is revealed in the history of Vera's family, in the relationship of three young people before the alleged suicide of Lopukhov, in the first 3 dreams of Vera.

4. Future socialist society. This is a dream of a beautiful and bright life, which the author unfolds in the 4th dream of Vera Pavlovna. Here is the vision of lighter labor with the help of technical means, i.e., the technogenic development of production.

(Chernyshevsky in the cell of the Peter and Paul Fortress writes a novel)

The pathos of the novel is the propaganda of the idea of ​​transforming the world through revolution, the preparation of minds and the expectation of it. Moreover, the desire to actively participate in it. The main goal of the work is the development and implementation of a new method of revolutionary education, the creation of a textbook on the formation of a new worldview for every thinking person.

Story line

In the novel, it actually covers the main idea of ​​the work. No wonder, at first, even the censors considered the novel nothing more than a love story. The beginning of the work, deliberately entertaining, in the spirit of French novels, aimed to confuse censorship and, along the way, attract the attention of the majority of the reading public. The plot is based on an uncomplicated love story, behind which the social, philosophical and economic problems of that time are hidden. Aesop's narrative language is permeated through and through with the ideas of the coming revolution.

The plot is this. There is an ordinary girl, Vera Pavlovna Rozalskaya, whom her mercenary mother tries in every possible way to pass off as a rich man. Trying to avoid this fate, the girl resorts to the help of her friend Dmitry Lopukhov and enters into a fictitious marriage with him. Thus, she gains freedom and leaves her parents' house. In search of a job, Vera opens a sewing workshop. This is no ordinary workshop. There is no hired labor here, the workers have their share in the profits, therefore they are interested in the prosperity of the enterprise.

Vera and Alexander Kirsanov are mutually in love. In order to free his imaginary wife from remorse, Lopukhov fakes suicide (it is from the description of it that the whole action begins) and leaves for America. There he acquires the new name Charles Beaumont, becomes an agent of an English company and, fulfilling her task, comes to Russia to purchase a stearin plant from the industrialist Polozov. Lopukhov meets his daughter Katya at Polozov's house. They fall in love with each other, the case ends with a wedding. Now Dmitry appears in front of the Kirsanov family. Friendship begins with families, they settle in the same house. A circle of “new people” is formed around them, who want to arrange their own and social life in a new way. Ekaterina Vasilievna, Lopukhov-Beaumont's wife, also joins the cause, setting up a new sewing workshop. This is the happy ending.

main characters

The central character of the novel is Vera Rozalskaya. A sociable person, she belongs to the type of "honest girls" who are not ready to compromise for the sake of a profitable marriage without love. The girl is romantic, but, despite this, quite modern, with good administrative inclinations, as they would say today. Therefore, she was able to interest the girls and organize a sewing production and more.

Another character in the novel is Lopukhov Dmitry Sergeevich, a student at the Medical Academy. Somewhat closed, prefers loneliness. He is honest, decent and noble. It was these qualities that inspired him to help Vera in her difficult situation. For her sake, he quits his studies in his last year and begins to engage in private practice. Considered the official husband of Vera Pavlovna, he behaves towards her in the highest degree decent and noble. The apogee of his nobility is his decision to stage his own death in order to give Kirsanov and Vera, who love each other, to unite their destinies. Just like Vera, he refers to the formation of new people. Smart, enterprising. This can be judged, if only because the English company entrusted him with a very serious matter.

Kirsanov Alexander husband of Vera Pavlovna, best friend of Lopukhov. His attitude towards his wife is very impressive. He not only loves her dearly, but also looks for an occupation for her in which she could fulfill herself. The author feels deep sympathy for him and speaks of him as a brave man who knows how to carry out the work he has undertaken to the end. At the same time, the man is honest, deeply decent and noble. Not knowing about the true relationship between Vera and Lopukhov, having fallen in love with Vera Pavlovna, he disappears from their house for a long time, so as not to disturb the peace of the people he loves. Only Lopukhov's illness forces him to appear for the treatment of a friend. The fictitious husband, understanding the state of the lovers, imitates his death and makes room for Kirsanov next to Vera. Thus, lovers find happiness in family life.

(In the photo, the artist Karnovich-Valois in the role of Rakhmetov, the play "New People")

A close friend of Dmitry and Alexander, the revolutionary Rakhmetov is the most significant hero novel, although he is given little space in the novel. In the ideological outline of the story, he had a special role and is devoted to a separate digression in chapter 29. The man is extraordinary in every way. At the age of 16 he left the university for three years and wandered around Russia in search of adventure and education of character. This is a person with already formed principles in all spheres of life, in the material, physical and spiritual. At the same time, possessing an ebullient nature. He sees his future life in serving people and prepares for this by tempering his spirit and body. He even refused his beloved woman, because love can limit his actions. He would like to live like most people, but he cannot afford it.

In Russian literature, Rakhmetov became the first practical revolutionary. Opinions about him were completely opposite, from indignation to admiration. This is the ideal image of a revolutionary hero. But today, from the standpoint of knowledge of history, such a person could only evoke sympathy, since we know how accurately history proved the correctness of the words of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte of France: “Revolutions are conceived by heroes, fools carry out, and scoundrels use its fruits.” Perhaps the voiced opinion does not quite fit into the framework of the image and characteristics of Rakhmetov formed over decades, but this is indeed the case. The foregoing does not in the least detract from the qualities of Rakhmetov, because he is a hero of his time.

According to Chernyshevsky, using the example of Vera, Lopukhov and Kirsanov, he wanted to show ordinary people of the new generation, of which there are thousands. But without the image of Rakhmetov, the reader could have a misleading opinion about the main characters of the novel. According to the writer, all people should be like these three heroes, but the highest ideal that all people should strive for is the image of Rakhmetov. And with this I fully agree.

It was written partly in response to Ivan Turgenev's Fathers and Sons.

Chernyshevsky wrote the novel while in solitary confinement of the Alekseevsky ravelin of the Peter and Paul Fortress, from December 14, 1862 to April 4, 1863. Since January 1863, the manuscript has been handed over in parts to the commission of inquiry on the Chernyshevsky case (the last part was handed over on April 6). The commission, and after it the censors, saw in the novel only love line and given permission to print. The oversight of censorship was soon noticed, the responsible censor Beketov was removed from his post. However, the novel had already been published in the journal Sovremennik (1863, Nos. 3-5). Despite the fact that the issues of Sovremennik, in which the novel What Is to Be Done? were published, were banned, the text of the novel in handwritten copies was distributed throughout the country and caused a lot of imitation.

In 1867, the novel was published as a separate book in Geneva (in Russian) by Russian emigrants, then was translated into Polish, Serbian, Hungarian, French, English, German, Italian, Swedish and Dutch. In Soviet times also into Finnish and Tajik (Farsi). The influence of Chernyshevsky's novel is felt by Emil Zola ("Lady's happiness"), Strindberg ("Utopias in reality"), the figure of the Bulgarian national revival Lyuben Karvelov ("Is fate to blame", written in Serbian).

What Is to Be Done, like Fathers and Sons, spawned the so-called anti-nihilistic novel. In particular, "On Knives" by Leskov, where the motifs of Chernyshevsky's work are parodied.

The ban on the publication of the novel What Is to Be Done? was removed only in 1905. In 1906, the novel was first published in Russia as a separate edition.

In the novel by N. G. Chernyshevsky “What to do?” aluminum is mentioned. In the "naive utopia" of Vera Pavlovna's fourth dream, it is called the metal of the future. Aluminum reached the "big future" by the middle of the 20th century.

The "lady in mourning" that appears at the end of the work is Olga Sokratovna Chernyshevskaya, the writer's wife. At the end of the novel, we are talking about the release of Chernyshevsky from the Peter and Paul Fortress, where he was at the time of writing the novel. He did not wait for release: on February 7, 1864, he was sentenced to 14 years of hard labor, followed by a settlement in Siberia.

The main characters with the surname Kirsanov are also found in Ivan Turgenev's novel "Fathers and Sons", but the researchers refuse to connect the heroes of Chernyshevsky and Turgenev's novels with each other.

F. M. Dostoevsky argues with the ideas of Chernyshevsky, in particular with his thoughts about the future of mankind, in Notes from the Underground, thanks to which the image of the “crystal palace” has become a common motif of world literature of the 20th century.

In literature lessons, as a rule, they rarely pay attention to Chernyshevsky's work "What to do". This is partly correct: delving into the endless dreams of Vera Pavlovna, analyzing the plot, which serves only as a frame for the main idea of ​​​​the work, trying through the gnashing of teeth to make out the author’s not the most highly artistic and easy language, stumbling over almost every word - classes are long, tedious and not completely justified. From the point of view of literary criticism, this is not the best choice for consideration. But what an impact this novel had on the development of Russian social thought in the 19th century! After reading it, one can understand how the most progressive thinkers of that time lived.

Nikolai Chernyshevsky was arrested and imprisoned for his radical statements against the authorities at that time. Peter and Paul Fortress. It was there that his work was born. The history of the novel What Is to Be Done began in December 1862 (it was completed by its author in April 1863). Initially, the writer conceived it as a response to Turgenev's book "Fathers and Sons", where he portrayed a man of a new formation - the nihilist Bazarov. Evgeny suffered a tragic ending, but Rakhmetov was created to counterbalance him - a more perfect hero of the same mindset, who no longer suffered from Anna Odintsova, but was engaged in business, and very productively.

In order to deceive the vigilant censors and the judicial commission, the author introduces a love triangle into the political utopia, which occupies a large part of the volume of the text. With this trick, he confused the officials, and they gave permission for publication. When the deception was revealed, it was already too late: the novel "What to do" was distributed throughout the country in issues of "Sovremennik" and hand-written copies. The ban did not stop either the distribution of the book or its imitation. It was removed only in 1905, and a year later separate copies were officially released. But for the first time in Russian it was published long before that, in 1867 in Geneva.

It is worth quoting some contemporaries to understand how significant and necessary this book was for the people of that time.

The writer Leskov recalled: “They talked about Chernyshevsky’s novel not in a whisper, not in silence, but at the top of their lungs in the halls, at the entrances, at the table of Mrs. Milbret and in the basement pub of the Shtenbokov passage. They shouted: “disgusting”, “charm”, “abomination”, etc. - all in different tones.

The anarchist Kropotkin spoke enthusiastically about the work:

For the Russian youth of that time, it was a kind of revelation and turned into a program, became a kind of banner

Even Lenin honored her with his praise:

The novel “What is to be done?” plowed me deep. This is the thing that gives a charge for life.

Genre

There is an antithesis in the work: the direction of the novel "What to do" is sociological realism, and the genre is utopia. That is, truth and fiction closely coexist in the book and give rise to a mixture of the present (objectively reflected realities of that time) and the future (the image of Rakhmetov, Vera Pavlovna's dreams). That is why he caused such a resonance in society: people painfully perceived the prospects that Chernyshevsky put forward.

In addition, "What to do" is a philosophical and journalistic novel. He deserved this title thanks to the hidden meanings that the author gradually introduced. He was not even a writer, he simply used a literary form understandable to everyone to spread his political views and express his deep thoughts about the just social order of tomorrow. In his work, it is the journalistic intensity that is obvious, philosophical questions are covered, and the fictional plot serves only as a cover from the close attention of the censors.

What is the novel about?

It's time to tell what the book "What to do?". The action begins with an unknown man committing suicide by shooting himself and falling into a river. It turned out to be someone Dmitry Lopukhov, a progressive-minded young man who was pushed to this desperate act by love and friendship.

The essence of the prehistory of "What to do" is as follows: main character Vera lives with an ignorant and rude family, where a prudent and cruel mother established her own rules. She wants to marry off her daughter to the rich son of the mistress of the house where her husband works as a manager. A greedy woman does not shun any means, she can even sacrifice her daughter's honor. A moral and proud girl is looking for salvation from a tutor for her brother, student Lopukhov. He is secretly engaged in her enlightenment, pitying her bright head. He also arranges for her to run away from home under the auspices of a fictitious marriage. In fact, young people live like brother and sister, there are no love feelings between them.

"Spouses" are often in a society of like-minded people, where the heroine meets Lopukhov's best friend, Kirsanov. Alexander and Vera are imbued with mutual sympathy, but they cannot be together, as they are afraid to hurt their friend's feelings. Dmitry became attached to his “wife”, discovered in her a multifaceted and strong personality, being engaged in her education. A girl, for example, does not want to sit on his neck and wants to arrange her own life by opening a sewing workshop where women in trouble could honestly earn money. With the help of true friends, she realizes her dream, and a gallery opens before us. female images with life stories that characterize a vicious environment where the weaker sex has to fight for survival and defend honor.

Dimitri feels that he is disturbing his friends and fakes his own suicide so as not to stand in their way. He loves and respects his wife, but understands that she will be happy only with Kirsanov. Naturally, no one knows about his plans, everyone sincerely mourns his death. But according to a number of hints from the author, we understand that Lopukhov calmly went abroad and returned from there in the final, reuniting with his comrades.

A separate semantic line is the company's acquaintance with Rakhmetov, a man of a new formation who embodies the ideal of a revolutionary, according to Chernyshevsky (he came to Vera on the day she received a note about her husband's suicide). It is not the actions of the hero that are revolutionary, but his very essence. The author tells about him in detail, reporting that he sold the estate and led a Spartan lifestyle, just to help his people. In his image, the true meaning of the book is hidden.

Main characters and their characteristics

First of all, the novel is remarkable for its characters, and not for the plot, which was needed to divert the attention of the censors. Chernyshevsky in the work "What to do" draws images strong people, "salts of the earth", smart, resolute, courageous and honest people, on whose shoulders the furious machine of the revolution will later rush at full speed. These are the images of Kirsanov, Lopukhov, Vera Pavlovna, which are central characters books. All of them are constant participants in the action in the work. But the image of Rakhmetov stands apart above them. In contrast to him and the trinity "Lopukhov, Kirsanov, Vera Pavlovna", the writer wanted to show the "commonness" of the latter. In the last chapters, he brings clarity and literally chews his intention for the reader:

“At the height at which they stand, all people must stand, all people can stand. Higher natures, which I and you cannot keep up with, my miserable friends, higher natures are not like that. I showed you a light outline of the profile of one of them: you see the wrong features.

1. Rakhmetov – the protagonist novel What to Do? Already from the middle of the 17th year, he began his transformation into a "special person", before that he was "an ordinary, good, high school student who completed the course." Having managed to appreciate all the “charms” of a free student life, he quickly lost interest in them: he wanted something more, meaningful, and fate brought him to Kirsanov, who helped him embark on the path of rebirth. He began to voraciously absorb knowledge from various fields, read books “on a binge”, train his physical strength with hard work, gymnastics and lead a Spartan lifestyle to strengthen his will: refuse luxury in clothes, sleep on felt, eat only what ordinary people can afford. For closeness with the people, purposefulness, developed strength among people, he acquired the nickname "Nikitushka Lomov", in honor of the famous barge hauler, who was distinguished by his physical capabilities. In the circle of friends, they began to call him a “rigorist” for the fact that “he adopted original principles in material, moral, and mental life,” and later “they developed into a complete system, which he strictly adhered to.” This is an extremely purposeful and fruitful person who works for the benefit of someone else's happiness and limits his own, I am content with little.
2. Vera Pavlovna- the main character of the novel "What to do", a beautiful swarthy woman with long dark hair. In her family, she felt like a stranger, because her mother tried to profitably marry her off at any cost. Although she was characterized by calmness, poise and thoughtfulness, in this situation she showed cunning, inflexibility and willpower. She pretended to favor courtship, but in fact she was looking for a way out of the trap set by her mother. Under the influence of education and a good environment, she is transformed and becomes much smarter, more interesting and stronger. Even her beauty blossoms, as does her soul. Now we have a new type of self-confident and intellectually developed woman who runs a business and provides for herself. Such is the ideal of a lady, according to Chernyshevsky.
3. Lopukhov Dmitry Sergeevich is a medical student, husband and liberator of the Faith. He is distinguished by composure, a sophisticated mind, cunning, and at the same time responsiveness, kindness, sensitivity. He sacrifices his career to save a stranger, and even limits his freedom for her. He is prudent, pragmatic and restrained, his environment appreciates efficiency and education in him. As you can see, under the influence of love, the hero also becomes a romantic, because again he radically changes his life for the sake of a woman, staging suicide. This act betrays in him a strong strategist who calculates everything in advance.
4. Alexander Matveevich Kirsanov- Vera's lover. He is a kind, intelligent, sympathetic young man, always ready to meet his friends. He resists his feelings for his comrade's wife, does not allow him to destroy their relationship. For example, for a long time ceases to be in their house. The hero cannot betray Lopukhov's trust, both of them "breast, without connections, without acquaintances, made their way." The character is resolute and firm, and this masculinity does not prevent him from having a delicate taste (for example, he loves opera). By the way, it was he who inspired Rakhmetov to the feat of revolutionary self-denial.

The main characters of "What to do" are noble, decent, honest. There are not so many such characters in literature, there is nothing to say about life, but Chernyshevsky goes further and introduces an almost utopian character, thereby showing that decency is far from the limit of personality development, that people have become smaller in their aspirations and goals, that you can be even better, harder, stronger. Everything is known in comparison, and by adding the image of Rakhmetov, the writer raises the level of perception for readers. This is exactly what, in his opinion, a real revolutionary looks like, capable of leading the Kirsanovs and Lopukhovs. They are strong and intelligent, but not mature enough for decisive independent action.

Subject

• Love Theme. Chernyshevsky in the novel "What to do" reveals the favorite motif of writers in a new role. Now the extra link in love triangle self-destructs and sacrifices its interests to the reciprocity of the remaining parties. A person in this utopia controls his feelings to the maximum, sometimes even, it seems, completely refuses them. Lopukhov ignores pride, male pride, a feeling for Vera, just to please his friends and at the same time ensure their happiness without guilt. Such a perception of love is too far from reality, but we take it on account of the author's innovation, who presented the hackneyed topic in such a fresh and original way.
• Strength of will. The hero of the novel "What to do" curbed almost all passions in himself: he refused alcohol, the company of women, stopped wasting time on entertainment, doing only "other people's affairs or nobody's affairs in particular."
• Indifference and responsiveness. If Vera's mother, Marya Aleksevna, was indifferent to the fate of her daughter and thought only about the material side of family life, then an outsider, Lopukhov, without any ulterior motive, sacrifices his bachelor calmness and career for the sake of the girl. So Chernyshevsky draws a line between the old-regime philistines with a petty, greedy soul and representatives of the new generation, pure and disinterested in their thoughts.
• Revolution Theme. The need for change is expressed not only in the image of Rakhmetov, but also in the dreams of Vera Pavlovna, where in symbolic visions the meaning of life is revealed to her: it is necessary to bring people out of the dungeon, where they are imprisoned by conventions and a tyrannical regime. The writer considers enlightenment to be the basis of the new free world, it is with him that the happy life of the heroine begins.
• Enlightenment Theme. The new people in What Is to Be Done are educated and smart, and they devote most of their time to learning. But their impulse does not stop there: they try to help others and invest their strength in helping the people in the fight against age-old ignorance.

Issues

Many writers and public figures even after a while mentioned this book. Chernyshevsky understood the spirit of that time and successfully developed these thoughts further, creating a real reminder of a Russian revolutionary. The problems in the novel "What to do" turned out to be painfully relevant and topical: the author touched upon the problem of social and gender inequality, topical political problems and even the imperfections of the mentality.

• Women's issue. The problems in the novel "What to do" primarily concern women and their social disorder in the realities of tsarist Russia. They have nowhere to go to work, nothing to support themselves without a humiliating marriage of convenience or even more humiliating yellow ticket earnings. The position of a governess is little better: no one will do anything to the owner of the house for harassment if he is a noble person. So Vera would have fallen victim to the lust of an officer if progress in the person of Lopukhov had not saved her. He treated the girl differently, as an equal. This attitude is the key to prosperity and independence of the weaker sex. And the point here is not in frantic feminism, but in the banal opportunity to provide for oneself and the family in case the marriage did not work out or the husband died. The writer complains about the lack of rights and helplessness of women, and not about the underestimated superiority of one sex over the other.
• Crisis of the monarchy. Ever since the uprising on Senate Square in 1825, the ideas of the insolvency of the autocracy had been ripening in the minds of the Decembrists, but the people were not then ready for coups of this magnitude. Subsequently, the thirst for revolution only strengthened and became stronger with each new generation, which could not be said about the monarchy, which fought this dissent as best it could, but, as you know, by 1905 it itself staggered, and in the 17th it already voluntarily surrendered its positions Provisional Government.
• Problem moral choice. Kirsanov runs into her when he realizes his feelings for a friend's wife. Vera constantly feels it, starting with the failed "advantageous marriage" and ending with the relationship with Alexander. Lopukhov also faces a choice: to leave everything as it is, or to do justice? All the characters in What Is to Be Done stand the test and make the perfect decision.
• The problem of poverty. It is the depressing financial situation that leads Vera's mother to moral degradation. Marya Alekseevna cares about "real dirt", that is, she thinks how to survive in a country where she is not considered anything without a title and wealth? Her thoughts are burdened not by excesses, but by worries about daily bread. Constant need reduced her spiritual needs to a minimum, leaving no place or time for them.
• The problem of social inequality. Vera's mother, not sparing her daughter's honor, lures officer Storeshnikov to make him her son-in-law. There was not a drop of dignity left in her, because she was born and lived in a rigid hierarchy, where those who are lower are dumb slaves for those who are higher. She will consider it lucky if the master's son dishonors her daughter, if only he would marry after that. Such an upbringing disgusts Chernyshevsky, and he caustically ridicules him.

The meaning of the novel

The author created a role model for young people to show how to behave. Chernyshevsky gave Russia the image of Rakhmetov, in which most of the answers to the burning questions “what to do”, “who to be”, “what to strive for” are collected - Lenin saw this and took a number of actions that led to a successful coup, otherwise he would not have spoke highly of the book. I.e, the main idea The novel What Is to Be Done is an enthusiastic hymn to a new type of active person who can solve the problems of his people. The writer not only criticized contemporary society, but also suggested ways to resolve those conflict situations that were tearing him apart. In his opinion, it was necessary to do as Rakhmetov did: to abandon egoism and class arrogance, to help ordinary people not only with a word, but with a ruble, to participate in large and global projects that could really change the situation.

A real revolutionary, according to Chernyshevsky, is obliged to live the life that a simple person lives. People in power should not be elevated to a separate elite caste, as is often the case. They are servants of the people who appointed them. Something like this can express the position of the author, which he conveyed to his “special” hero and which he wants to convey to the reader through him. Rakhmetov - accumulation of all positive qualities, one might say, "superman", as in Nietzsche. With the help of it, the idea of ​​the novel "What to do" is expressed - bright ideals and a firm determination to defend them.

Nevertheless, Chernyshevsky warns the reader that the path is thorny and "poor in personal joys" of these people, "to which they invite you." These are people who are trying to be reborn from a person into an abstract idea, devoid of personal feelings and passions, without which life is hard and joyless. The writer warns against admiration for such Rakhmetovs, calling them ridiculous and pathetic, because they are trying to embrace the immensity, to exchange a fate full of earthly blessings for duty and unrequited service to society. But meanwhile, the author understands that without them, life would completely lose its taste and “turn sour”. Rakhmetov - no romantic hero, but quite real person, which the creator considers from different angles.

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On July 11, 1856, a note left by a strange guest is found in the room of one of the large St. Petersburg hotels. The note says that its author will soon be heard on the Liteiny Bridge and that no one should be suspected. The circumstances are clarified very soon: at night, a man is shooting at Liteiny Bridge. His shot cap is fished out of the water.

On the same morning, a young lady sits and sews in a dacha on Kamenny Island, singing a lively and bold French song about working people who will be set free by knowledge. Her name is Vera Pavlovna. The maid brings her a letter, after reading which Vera Pavlovna sobs, covering her face with her hands. The young man who entered tries to calm her down, but Vera Pavlovna is inconsolable. She repels young man with the words: “You are in the blood! You have his blood on you! It’s not your fault - I’m alone ... ”The letter received by Vera Pavlovna says that the person who writes it leaves the stage because he loves“ both of you ”too much ...

The tragic denouement is preceded by the life story of Vera Pavlovna. She spent her childhood in St. Petersburg, in a multi-storey building on Gorokhovaya, between Sadovaya and Semyonovsky bridges. Her father, Pavel Konstantinovich Rozalsky, is the manager of the house, her mother gives money on bail. The only concern of the mother, Marya Alekseevna, in relation to Verochka: to marry her as soon as possible to a rich man. A narrow-minded and evil woman does everything possible for this: she invites a music teacher to her daughter, dresses her up and even takes her to the theater. Soon the beautiful swarthy girl is noticed by the master's son, officer Storeshnikov, and immediately decides to seduce her. Hoping to force Storeshnikov to marry, Marya Alekseevna demands that her daughter be favorable to him, while Verochka refuses this in every possible way, understanding the true intentions of the womanizer. She manages to somehow deceive her mother, pretending that she is luring her boyfriend, but this cannot last long. Vera's position in the house becomes completely unbearable. It is resolved in an unexpected way.

A teacher, a graduate medical student, Dmitry Sergeevich Lopukhov, was invited to Verochka's brother Fedya. At first, young people are wary of each other, but then they begin to talk about books, about music, about a fair way of thinking, and soon they feel affection for each other. Having learned about the plight of the girl, Lopukhov tries to help her. He is looking for a governess position for her, which would give Verochka the opportunity to live separately from her parents. But the search turns out to be unsuccessful: no one wants to take responsibility for the fate of the girl if she runs away from home. Then the student in love finds another way out: shortly before the end of the course, in order to have enough money, he leaves his studies and, taking up private lessons and translating a geography textbook, makes an offer to Verochka. At this time, Verochka has her first dream: she sees herself released from a damp and dark basement and talking with an amazing beauty who calls herself love for people. Verochka promises the beauty that she will always let other girls out of the cellars, locked up just like she was locked up.

Young people rent an apartment, and their life is going well. True, their relationship seems strange to the landlady: "cute" and "cute" sleep in different rooms, enter each other only after knocking, do not show each other undressed, etc. Verochka hardly manages to explain to the hostess that they should be a relationship between spouses if they do not want to annoy each other.

Vera Pavlovna reads books, gives private lessons, and runs the household. Soon she starts her own enterprise - a sewing workshop. The girls work in the workshop self-employed, but are its co-owners and receive their share of the income, like Vera Pavlovna. They not only work together, but spend their free time together: go on picnics, talk. In her second dream, Vera Pavlovna sees a field on which ears of corn grow. She also sees dirt on this field - or rather, two dirt: fantastic and real. The real dirt is taking care of the most necessary things (such that Vera Pavlovna's mother was always burdened), and ears of corn can grow out of it. Fantastic dirt - caring for the superfluous and unnecessary; nothing worthwhile grows out of it.

The Lopukhov spouses often have Dmitry Sergeevich's best friend, his former classmate and spiritually close person to him - Alexander Matveevich Kirsanov. Both of them "chest, without connections, without acquaintances, made their way." Kirsanov is a strong-willed, courageous person, capable of both a decisive act and a subtle feeling. He brightens up the loneliness of Vera Pavlovna with conversations, when Lopukhov is busy, he takes her to the Opera, which they both love. However, soon, without explaining the reasons, Kirsanov ceases to visit his friend, which greatly offends both him and Vera Pavlovna. They do not know true reason his "cooling": Kirsanov is in love with a friend's wife. He reappears in the house only when Lopukhov falls ill: Kirsanov is a doctor, he treats Lopukhov and helps Vera Pavlovna take care of him. Vera Pavlovna is in complete turmoil: she feels that she is in love with her husband's friend. She has a third dream. In this dream, Vera Pavlovna, with the help of some unknown woman, reads the pages of her own diary, which says that she feels gratitude to her husband, and not that quiet, tender feeling, the need for which is so great in it.

The situation in which three smart and decent "new people" have fallen into seems insoluble. Finally, Lopukhov finds a way out - a shot on the Liteiny Bridge. On the day this news was received, an old acquaintance of Kirsanov and Lopukhov, Rakhmetov, "a special person" comes to Vera Pavlovna. The “higher nature” was awakened in him at one time by Kirsanov, who introduced the student Rakhmetov to books “that need to be read.” Coming from a wealthy family, Rakhmetov sold the estate, distributed money to his fellows and now leads a harsh lifestyle: partly because he considers it impossible for himself to have what a simple person does not have, partly out of a desire to educate his character. So, one day he decides to sleep on nails to test his physical abilities. He doesn't drink wine, he doesn't touch women. Rakhmetov is often called Nikitushka Lomov - for the fact that he walked along the Volga with barge haulers in order to get closer to the people and gain the love and respect of ordinary people. Rakhmetov's life is shrouded in a veil of mystery of a clearly revolutionary persuasion. He has a lot to do, but none of it is his personal business. He travels around Europe, intending to return to Russia in three years, when he "needs" to be there. This "very rare specimen" is different from just "honest and good people"by what is" the engine of engines, the salt of the salt of the earth.

Rakhmetov brings Vera Pavlovna a note from Lopukhov, after reading which she becomes calm and even cheerful. In addition, Rakhmetov explains to Vera Pavlovna that the dissimilarity of her character with the character of Lopukhov was too great, which is why she reached out to Kirsanov. Having calmed down after a conversation with Rakhmetov, Vera Pavlovna leaves for Novgorod, where she marries Kirsanov a few weeks later.

The dissimilarity between the characters of Lopukhov and Vera Pavlovna is also mentioned in a letter that she soon receives from Berlin. he had a penchant for solitude, which was in no way possible during his life with the sociable Vera Pavlovna. Thus, love affairs are arranged to the general pleasure. The Kirsanov family has approximately the same lifestyle as the Lopukhov family before. Alexander Matveyevich works hard, Vera Pavlovna eats cream, takes baths and is engaged in sewing workshops: she now has two of them. Similarly, there are neutral and non-neutral rooms in the house, and spouses can enter non-neutral rooms only after knocking. But Vera Pavlovna notices that Kirsanov not only allows her to lead the lifestyle that she likes, and is not only ready to lend a shoulder to her in difficult times, but is also keenly interested in her life. He understands her desire to engage in some business, "which cannot be postponed." With the help of Kirsanov, Vera Pavlovna begins to study medicine.

Soon she has a fourth dream. Nature in this dream "pours aroma and song, love and bliss into the chest." The poet, whose forehead and thought are illuminated by inspiration, sings a song about the meaning of history. Before Vera Pavlovna are pictures of the life of women in different millennia. First, the slave woman obeys her master among the tents of the nomads, then the Athenians worship the woman, still not recognizing her as their equal. Then the image of a beautiful lady arises, for the sake of which a knight fights in a tournament. But he loves her only until she becomes his wife, that is, a slave. Then Vera Pavlovna sees her own face instead of the face of the goddess. Its features are far from perfect, but it is illuminated by the radiance of love. great woman, familiar to her from her first dream, explains to Vera Pavlovna what is the meaning of women's equality and freedom. This woman also shows Vera Pavlovna pictures of the future: the citizens of New Russia live in a beautiful house made of cast iron, crystal and aluminum. In the morning they work, in the evening they have fun, and "whoever has not worked out enough, he has not prepared the nerve to feel the fullness of fun." The guidebook explains to Vera Pavlovna that this future should be loved, that one should work for it and transfer from it to the present everything that can be transferred.

The Kirsanovs have a lot of young people, like-minded people: “This type has recently appeared and is quickly spreading.” All these people are decent, hardworking, having unshakable life principles and possessing "cold-blooded practicality." The Beaumont family soon appears among them. Ekaterina Vasilievna Beaumont, nee Polozova, was one of the richest brides in St. Petersburg. Kirsanov once helped her with smart advice: with his help, Polozova figured out that the person she was in love with was not worthy of her. Then Ekaterina Vasilievna marries a man who calls himself an agent of an English firm, Charles Beaumont. He speaks excellent Russian - because he allegedly lived in Russia until the age of twenty. His romance with Polozova develops calmly: both of them are people who "do not rage for no reason." When Beaumont meets Kirsanov, it becomes clear that this person is Lopukhov. The Kirsanov and Beaumont families feel such a spiritual closeness that they soon settle in the same house, receive guests together. Ekaterina Vasilievna also arranges a sewing workshop, and the circle of “new people” is thus becoming wider and wider.

retold

History of creation

Chernyshevsky himself called these people a type that "has recently come into being and is rapidly growing", is a product and a sign of the times.

These heroes have a special revolutionary morality, which is based on the enlightenment theory of the 18th century, the so-called "theory of rational egoism." This theory is that a person can be happy if his personal interests match the public ones.

Vera Pavlovna is the main character of the novel. Her prototypes are Chernyshevsky's wife Olga Sokratovna and Marya Aleksandrovna Bokova-Sechenova, who fictitiously married her teacher, and then became the wife of the physiologist Sechenov.

Vera Pavlovna managed to escape from the circumstances that had surrounded her since childhood. Her character was tempered in a family where her father was indifferent to her, and for her mother she was just a profitable commodity.

Vera is as enterprising as her mother, thanks to which she manages to create sewing workshops that give a good profit. Vera Pavlovna is smart and educated, balanced and kind to both her husband and girls. She is not a prude, not hypocritical and smart. Chernyshevsky admires Vera Pavlovna's desire to break outdated moral principles.

Chernyshevsky emphasizes the similarities between Lopukhov and Kirsanov. Both doctors, engaged in science, both from poor families and have achieved everything with hard work. For the sake of helping an unfamiliar girl, Lopukhov abandons his scientific career. He is more rational than Kirsanov. This is evidenced by the intention of imaginary suicide. But Kirsanov is capable of any sacrifice for the sake of friendship and love, avoids communication with a friend and lover in order to forget her. Kirsanov is more sensitive and charismatic. Rakhmetov believes him, embarking on the path of improvement.

But the protagonist of the novel (not according to the plot, but according to the idea) is not just " new person”, but the “special person” is the revolutionary Rakhmetov. He generally refuses egoism as such, from happiness for himself. A revolutionary must sacrifice himself, give his life for those he loves, live like the rest of the people.

By origin he is an aristocrat, but he broke with the past. Rakhmetov earned as a simple carpenter, barge hauler. He had the nickname "Nikitushka Lomov", like a barge haul hero. Rakhmetov invested all his funds in the cause of the revolution. He led the most ascetic life. If new people are called Chernyshevsky the salt of the earth, then revolutionaries like Rakhmetov are “the color of the best people, engine engines, salt of the salt of the earth". The image of Rakhmetov is covered with a halo of mystery and innuendo, since Chernyshevsky could not say everything directly.

Rakhmetov had several prototypes. One of them is the landowner Bakhmetev, who transferred almost all of his fortune to Herzen in London for the cause of Russian propaganda. The image of Rakhmetov is collective.

The image of Rakhmetov is far from ideal. Chernyshevsky warns readers against admiring such heroes, because their service is unrequited.

Stylistic features

Chernyshevsky widely uses two means artistic expressiveness- allegory and silence. Vera Pavlovna's dreams are full of allegories. The dark basement in the first dream is an allegory of women's lack of freedom. The bride of Lopukhov is great love to people, the real and fantastic dirt from the second dream - the circumstances in which the poor and the rich live. The huge glass house in the last dream is an allegory of the communist happy future, which, according to Chernyshevsky, will definitely come and bring joy to everyone without exception. Silence is associated with censorship prohibitions. But some mystery of images or storylines does not spoil the pleasure of reading: "I know more about Rakhmetov than I say." The meaning of the finale of the novel, which is interpreted in different ways, the image of a lady in mourning, remains vague. All songs and toasts of a cheerful picnic are allegorical.

In the last tiny chapter, Change of Scenery, the lady is no longer in mourning, but in smart clothes. In a young man of about 30, the released Rakhmetov is guessed. This chapter depicts the future, albeit not far off.