1.1 Principles of composition in a novel

Features of the composition of the novel "A Hero of Our Time" by M. Lermontov. “Gradual penetration into inner world hero ... All stories have one thought, and this thought is expressed in one person, who is the hero of all stories, ”Belinsky said about the novel“ A Hero of Our Time ”. This work is the first Russian psychological romance, since in it the narration is determined not by the chronology of events, but by the development of the character of the protagonist.

M.Yu. Lermontov said the following about his novel: "There is not a page, not a word, not a line that would have been thrown by chance: here everything follows from one main idea and everything returns to it." Also, the content and form of the work serves to reveal the main idea of \u200b\u200bthe novel by Lermontov. The main idea of \u200b\u200bthe work concerns the problem of personality unusual person, with its vices and virtues in modern society. In the preface to the novel, Lermontov wrote: “It was just fun for him (the author) to draw modern man, how he understands it ... It will also happen that the disease is indicated, but how to cure it - that is already God knows! " ...

In 1839, Mikhail Lermontov's story "Bela" was published in the third issue of the journal Otechestvennye zapiski. Then, in the eleventh issue, the story "Fatalist" appeared and in the second book of the magazine for 1840 - "Taman". In the same 1840, three novels already known to the reader, telling about various episodes in the life of a certain Pechorin, were published in print as chapters of the novel A Hero of Our Time. Criticism met the new work ambiguously: heated debates ensued. Along with the stormy delights of the "frantic" Vissarion Belinsky, who called Lermontov's novel a work representing "a completely new world of art", who saw in it "a deep knowledge of the human heart and modern society", "richness of content and originality", the voices of critics sounded in the press, absolutely who did not accept the novel. The image of Pechorin seemed to them a slanderous caricature, an imitation of Western models. Lermontov's opponents liked only the "truly Russian" Maxim Maksimych.

Because of such a reaction of criticism, Lermontov decided to add to the novel the author's preface and the preface to "Pechorin's Journal". Both prefaces play a very important role in the work: they show as accurately as possible author's position and explain Lermontov's method of cognizing reality. The compositional complexity of the novel is inherently linked to the psychological complexity of the protagonist's image.

The ambiguity of Pechorin's character, the inconsistency of this image is shown not only in the study the spiritual worldbut also in comparison of the hero with other characters. The reader constantly has to compare the protagonist with the people around him. Thus, a compositional solution of the novel was found, according to which the reader gradually approaches the hero. Lermontov first published separately three stories, which in the end were not even the chapters of one part, thus "Hero of Our Time" creates a special, completely new type of novel in Russian literature, easily and organically combining the features of many genres. As B. Eikhenbaum noted, "A Hero of Our Time" was a step beyond these small genres on the way to the genre of the novel that unites them. "

Thus, we see that the composition of the novel is subordinated to the logic of revealing the image of the protagonist.

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Features of the composition of the novel "A Hero of Our Time" proceed from the fact that the novel by M.Yu. Lermontov's work became an advanced work of its time: in it the author used a new genre of a psycho-oriented novel, a new image of the protagonist and, accordingly, a new compositional division of the work.

The author himself, after the publication of his novel in its finished form, admitted that not a single word, not a single line in it arose by chance, everything written was subordinated to one main goal - to show readers their contemporary - a man with noble and bad inclinations, who, in obedience to feeling selfishness, was able to realize only his vices in life, and his dignity remained only good desires.

When the novel was just published, critics and ordinary readers had many questions that concerned the compositional division of this work. We will try to consider the main of these questions.

Why was the chronology of the episodes in the life of the protagonist broken?

The peculiarities of the composition of "A Hero of Our Time" are connected with the fact that we learn about the life of the protagonist rather inconsistently. The first part of the novel tells how Pechorin kidnapped a Circassian woman Bela from his own father, made her his mistress, and later lost interest in this girl. Bela, as a result of a tragic accident, was killed by a Circassian Kazbich in love with her.

In the second part, entitled "Maxim Maksimovich", readers learn that several years have passed since Bela's death, Pechorin decided to go to Persia and died on the way there. From Pechorin's diary, it becomes known about the events that happened to the main character before meeting Bela: Pechorin got into a funny adventure with smugglers on Taman and in the city of Kislovodsk he met the young princess Mary Ligovskaya, whom, unwittingly, he fell in love with himself, and then refused to share her feelings. There was also a duel between Pechorin and Grushnitsky, as a result of which the latter was killed.

The novel "A Hero of Our Time" ends with the part "Fatalist", which tells about a private episode from the life of Pechorin.

Studying the plot and composition of the "Hero of Our Time", literary scholars agree that the author violated the chronological presentation of the main character's life in order, on the one hand, to emphasize the confusion of Pechorin's life, his inability to subordinate his fate to one main idea, on the other hand, Lermontov tried to reveal the image of your main character gradually: first, the readers saw him from the side through the eyes of Maxim Maksimovich and the narrator-officer, and then only got acquainted with Pechorin's personal diary, in which he was extremely frank.

How is the plot and plot in the novel related?

The novelty of Lermontov the prose writer contributed to the fact that the plot and plot of the novel "A Hero of Our Time" do not coincide with each other. This leads to the fact that the reader pays more attention not to the outer outline of events from the life of the protagonist, but to his inner experiences. Literary critics have dubbed this method of constructing a work "tense composition", when readers see the heroes of the novel at the peak moments of their fate.

Therefore, the composition of Lermontov's "Hero of Our Time" is a unique phenomenon in the history of Russian literature: the author talks about key episodes from the life of his hero, giving him a characterization precisely at the moments of the highest life trials: these are Pechorin's love experiences, his duel with Grushnitsky, his skirmish with drunken Cossack, his dangerous adventure with smugglers on Taman.

In addition, Lermontov resorts to a ring composition: for the first time we meet Pechorin in the fortress in which he serves with Maxim Maksimovich, for the last time we see the hero in the same fortress, before he leaves for Persia.

How does the compositional division of the work help to reveal the image of the main character?

According to most literary critics, the originality of the compositional solution of the novel helps to examine in detail the image of Pechorin.
In the first part of Bela, Pechorin's personality is shown through the eyes of his commander, the kind and honest Maxim Maksimovich. The author debunks the myth existing in the literature of that time about the beautiful love between a savage and a young educated nobleman. Pechorin does not in any way correspond to the image of a young romantic hero, which was created in the works of the writer's contemporaries.

In the second part of "Maxim Maksimovich" we find a more detailed description of the personality of the protagonist. Pechorin is described through the eyes of the narrator. Readers get an idea of \u200b\u200bthe hero's appearance and behavior. The romantic halo around Grigory Alexandrovich is finally fluttering.

In Taman, Lermontov refutes the myth of romantic love between a girl engaged in smuggling activities and a young officer. A young smuggler with the romantic name Ondine does not behave at all exalted, she is ready to kill Pechorin only because he was an unwitting witness to her crime. Pechorin is also characterized in this part as a man of an adventurous warehouse, ready for anything to satisfy his own desires.

Part "Princess Mary" is built on the principle of a secular story: it contains a love story and a conflict between two officers for possession of the girl's heart, which ends tragically. In this part, the image of Pechorin receives a full realistic characterization: readers see all the external actions of the hero and the secret movements of his soul.

In the last part of the novel "The Fatalist" Lermontov poses the most important questions for him about the meaning of human life on earth: is a person the master of his own destiny or is he led by some evil fate; is it possible to deceive your fate or is it impossible, etc.? In the last part, Pechorin appears before us in the form of a man who is ready to fight with fate. However, readers understand that this struggle will lead him to an early death.

The role of composition in The Hero of Our Time is very important. It is thanks to the unusual compositional division of the work that the author manages to achieve the full embodiment of his creative intention - the creation of a new psychologically-oriented genre of the novel.

The presented compositional features of the work can be used by pupils of the 9th grade when preparing material for an essay on the topic "Features of the composition of the novel" Hero of Our Time ".

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The novel "The Master and Margarita" is not in vain called the "sunset romance" of M. Bulgakov. For many years he rebuilt, supplemented and polished his final work. Everything that M. Bulgakov experienced in his life - both happy and difficult - he gave all his most important thoughts, all his soul and all his talent to this novel. And a truly extraordinary creation was born.

The work is unusual, first of all, in terms of genre. Researchers still cannot define it. Many consider "The Master and Margarita" a mystical novel, referring to the words of the author: "I am a mystical writer." Other researchers call this work satirical, while others consider M. Bulgakov's novel fantastic, and the fourth - philosophical. I must say that there are grounds for all these definitions, as we will see below.

But first, a few words about the composition of the novel, without the analysis of which it is impossible to understand its genre originality... The book clearly identifies two plots: the real world of Moscow in the 1930s, where the master and Margarita live, and the world of ancient Yershalaim, where Yeshua and Pontius Pilate operate. It should be noted that the second plot is in a sense canonical, since the display of the Gospel events is one of the deepest traditions of world literature. Suffice it to recall in this connection such works as "Paradise Returned" by G. Milton, "Jesus Christ in Flanders" by O. Balzac, "Christ Visiting the Men" by N. Leskov and others.

The plot about Yeshua is written in the genre of a parable novel. The story is coldly objective, tragically tense and impersonal. The author does not declare himself in any way - neither by appeals to the reader, nor by expressing his opinion about what is happening. Based on the events described, we could expect in this layer of the Bulgakov novel the expression of the mystical principle - various miracles, transformations. But there is nothing like this in the master's novel - all events are absolutely real. The author even rejects the scene of the resurrection as a sign of the presence of a miracle in the human world.

The novel-parable is a kind of starting point from which the events of the contemporary M. Bulgakov stratum develop. The truth, unrecognized in ancient Yershalaim, comes to the world again. All mysticism is paradoxically transferred to the story of this world. It is also serious - let us recall at least the appearance of the living dead at a ball at Satan's or the transformation of Volan and his retinue in the finale of the novel. It is also grotesque, turning into the mysticism of current modernity and manifesting itself in the mysterious movements of Styopa Likhodeev, and in miracles in a variety show, and in a "bad apartment" from which people disappear. It is also ironic: it is enough to recall the beginning of the novel, when the devil asks Berlioz whether the devil exists, and, having received a negative answer, complains: "What is it you have - whatever you miss - there is nothing." The combination of satire and mysticism thus determines the genre nature of the novel about the master.

A very peculiar philosophy emerges from the collision of two worlds and two novels.

From the first pages of the novel, the theme of fate arises. Berlioz's sudden death immediately raises philosophical questions: who breaks the thread of life? Is it possible to influence human destiny? The answer to these questions will be given, but not immediately, and not even in this time and space. Yeshua denies the ability of one person to influence the fate of another in earthly life. But in another life, in the other world, it is possible; Margarita frees the master and brings forgiveness to Frida, and the master grants Pontius Pilate the desired meeting with the wandering philosopher. This is how the understanding of the unity of being and non-being, the real fate of a person and posthumous life arises in the novel.

The need to talk about this arises because the writer is deeply convinced: the truth of the historical process has been forgotten, and humanity is going the wrong way. The novel about Yeshua is a return to this mistake, when Pontius Pilate was the first to make a moral choice, for which mankind has been paying for more than two thousand years. The story of the master himself is a repetition of the same mistake. But the repetition of the mistake also brings with it a new return - as a reminder of the truth on a new round of history.

So, we are convinced that the genre nature of M. Bulgakov's novel is complex and unique. But this is how the work that survived in so many cataclysms of history should have been. This is how a manuscript should be that did not burn.

Critics have identified the genre "Hero of Our Time"as psychological romance... When writing this work, M. Yu. Lermontov set out to show the "history of the human soul", to reveal the inner world of the protagonist. Lermontov began work on the novel under the impression of his first exile to the Caucasus. First, separate stories were written, which were published in print as they were written: "Bela", "Fatalist" were published in the journal "Otechestvennye zapiski" in 1839, then the story "Taman" was published. Later, all five stories: "Bela", "Maxim Maksimych", "Taman", "Princess Mary", "Fatalist" - were combined into a novel under the title "A Hero of Our Time".

Critics, readers perceived the image of the main character ambiguously: some considered Pechorin a caricature of a modern person, and the novel itself was immoral; others - that the image of Pechorin is a portrait of the author himself. M. Yu. Lermontov was forced to write a preface to the second edition, in which he commented on his perception of the hero and explained his creative principles. The author writes that his main principle when writing a novel is adherence to the truth of life and a critical assessment of the hero.

The stories from which the "Hero of Our Time" is composed are arranged in a certain sequence. This was done for a specific purpose: the author gradually immerses the reader in the inner world of the protagonist, reveals his character.

There are three storytellers in the work. In the story "Bela" we see Pechorin through the eyes of Maksim Maksimych, the staff captain, who notes the "strangeness" in the behavior of Grigory Alexandrovich, selfishness, mystery. In "Maksim Maksimych" the role of the narrator is given to a wandering officer - a person closer in outlook and social position to the hero. He notes in the appearance of Pechorin the features of a strong, but internally lonely personality. In the next three stories - "Taman", "Princess Mary", "Fatalist" - Pechorin himself plays the role of the narrator, who tells about his adventures in a seaside town, about his stay in Pyatigorsk, about an incident in a Cossack village. The reader learns about the feelings, experiences of the hero from the lips of the hero himself, who impartially analyzes his actions, his behavior, motives. For the first time in Russian literature, much attention was paid not to events, but to the “dialectics of the soul”, and Pechorin’s form of diary confession allows to show all the “movements of the soul”. The hero himself admits that his soul is familiar with such feelings as envy, pity, love, hatred. But reason still prevails over feelings: we see this in the scene of the pursuit of Vera.

The author shows the hero in various life situations, surrounds him with a variety of characters (Pechorin among the highlanders, in the circle of "honest smugglers" and "water society"). I believe that this is an exceptional and at the same time typical hero of that time: he seeks love, but he himself brings only suffering and even death; this is a person who lives a complex spiritual life, but is absolutely inactive or wastes energy on trifles; conscious of his vices and ruthlessly condemning them in other people; a man who, according to V. G. Belinsky, "is frantically chasing ... life, looking for it everywhere" and at the same time looking for death.