Mikhail Lermontov quite often thought about fidelity and justice on a national scale. However, there was censorship under the emperor, so the writer succumbed to the trick and criticized the existing regime in his works. One such innovative masterpiece, where he skillfully hides the true meaning behind historical details, is “The Song of the Merchant Kalashnikov.” Characteristics of the main characters and a brief analysis of the work will help readers better understand the essence of the poem.
History of writing
After graduating from the Guards School, Mikhail Yuryevich left for Tsarskoye Selo. It was there that Lermontov began work on the work. At this time, the writer formed his own point of view about life in Russia.
The man recognizes the undeniable advantages of his own people and blames the government for all troubles. The latter, according to the author, is not capable of a fair trial. During this period, Lermontov himself suffered at the hands of the emperor : the man was sent into exile for a work dedicated to the death of Alexander Pushkin.
At first the poem was published anonymously. The work was published in 1838 in “Literary additions to the publication “Russian Invalid”. Two years later, the work was included in the writer’s collection of poems.
The work belongs to the genre of historical poem with a romantic slant. The closeness of “Song about the Merchant Kalashnikov” to folklore legends indicates that it belongs to the romanticism movement. In addition, other elements of this movement are obvious: a tragic end and the conflict of one individual with society.
The essence of the work
The action takes place during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. The young merchant Stepan Kalashnikov, in a fair fight, kills the Tsar's guardsman, who disgraced his family. This is a romantic work where each character is a bearer of some quality:
- Ivan the Terrible - power and despotism.
- Kalashnikov - honor and duty.
- Kiribeevich - passions.
All heroes are in constant confrontation. The struggle between them can only be resolved after someone's death. This is what the work says.
In style, the poem is close to the Russian epic, or rather, to a “legend”. Lermontov immerses readers in the atmosphere of antiquity from the beginning of his work, giving the title an ancient flavor. Back in the Middle Ages, the authors revealed the contents of the book in the title; no intrigue was created.
Mikhail Yuryevich deliberately gave such a title to the poem so that readers would immediately see a hint of the essence of the work, plunging into deep antiquity.
Main characters
The Tsar is a strict ruler, trying to dispense justice, but does not understand what happened, does not determine the true culprit. Ivan the Terrible executed Kalashnikov, and at the same time ordered help for his family - his wife and children. He helped them financially, but deprived them of their beloved husband and father. If the tsar had understood the dispute and the reasons for the duel between the merchant and the guardsman, perhaps he would not have made such an unfair decision.
Kalashnikov is a young merchant, Stepan Paramonovich. An honest merchant who observes all Christian commandments, a good family man. Stepan is happy - a beautiful house, a good wife, beloved children. One day he did not find his wife at home. She returned late in the evening all in tears. She told her husband that the guardsman Kiribeevich had disgraced her and kissed and hugged her in public. Kalashnikov could not bear the shame inflicted by the Tsar's guardsman; he went to fist fights to take revenge on the offender. Having challenged him to a duel, he killed him, for which he himself was executed. If Kalashnikov had confessed to the sovereign why he killed his enemy, he would have lived. But the daring merchant did not want to name his beloved and discredit him. He said that only God will know why the guardsman was punished.
Alena Dmitrievna is a beautiful young woman, the God-fearing, faithful wife of Stepan Paramonovich. She didn’t want to deceive her husband, she admitted to him that Kiribeevich was pursuing her, but unwittingly became the culprit of his death.
Kiribeevich is a smug, permissive servant of the tsar, a guardsman. He is brave and ardent, for which the sovereign loves him, but he is completely devoid of moral principles. He deceives the king, does not admit that he loves a married woman, tries to bribe her with wealth and gifts. Seeing Kalashnikov, the guardsman realized that this would not be an easy battle and he would have to answer for what he had done. In battle, he again began to be cunning, fought dishonestly, but was killed dead by a blow from Kalashnikov.
Topics and problems
In the work “Song about the Merchant Kalashnikov” the author touches on several problems at once. Some of them:
- Permissiveness of power. The Tsar's oprichnik Kiribeevich was confident of his impunity for any offense, because the emperor would believe that he was innocent of anything. The man began to harass someone else's wife, which resulted in a fight that ended in a bloody massacre.
- Morality is expressed in the behavior of the head of state. In his reign, the king does not show wisdom, allowing arbitrary desires to prevail over the interests of the country and people. He does not consider it necessary to execute the strongman who defeated his best guardsman. The man believes that such a person will be useful to the country. The emperor puts his interests above human destinies.
- Injustice. Ivan the Terrible, announcing the rules of the game to the fighters, subsequently does not follow them himself when he decides to execute the merchant, because he is a ruler and everything is possible for him.
In addition, Lermontov raises many different topics in the poem. The main theme is honor. Stepan Kalashnikov understood what awaited him after the battle, but the man considered it his duty to protect the dignity and honor of his family. The hero could not allow the king's servants to abuse his wife and then live in shame. Other aspects:
- Love. Often people don't see any obstacles because of passion. So the royal guardsman, despite the fact that Alena was married, began to show her attention, and then completely crossed all boundaries. The second side of the bright feeling is the reaction of the husband, who cares about the honor and reputation of his family. The hero sacrifices himself, but before that he provides his wife with everything necessary for a further full life. Stepan's chosen one loves him with all her heart, the woman is faithful to him.
- Freedom. Stepan is a free person, the man does not give up even under pressure from the tsar. Despite the slave status in Rus', the hero openly rebels against the system, defending the integrity of the family.
Comparative characteristics of the main characters of “Songs about the merchant Kalashnikov...” by M. Lermontov
Comparative characteristics of the main characters
“Songs about Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich, the young guardsman and the daring merchant Kalashnikov”
M.Yu. Lermontov.
In the lyric epic work by M.Yu. Lermontov “Song about ...”, I met two heroes: Stepan Paramonovich and the Tsar’s guardsman Kiribeevich. To understand whose side the truth is on, it is necessary to compare these two heroes.
I'll start with Kalashnikov. Stepan Paramonovich is a “young merchant”, “a handsome fellow”, “a daring fighter” - this is what the author himself says about him. A beautiful wife, youth, prosperity - it would seem that his life was a success! But at one moment everything collapses!
In my opinion, in the situation in which Kalashnikov found himself, he behaved correctly and chose the right path. Of course, if he were a dishonest person, he would have met Kiribeevich alone on the street on a dark night and secretly dealt him a fatal blow. But this would be unmanly and would hardly clear the honor of the family. Kalashnikov challenges him, his rival, to a fight in public, without fear and in such a way that he made Kiribeevich “turn pale in face like autumn snow.”
In my eyes, based on the “Song...”, Stepan Paramonovich appears as a brave, caring, fair, hardworking and intelligent person. And the fact that he acted more nobly than his opponent also characterizes him as a decent person and as a person with self-esteem.
For me, a person of the 21st century, the behavior of Kalashnikov and his wife is not entirely clear. After all, in today’s families, equality generally reigns, and Kalashnikov’s behavior seems to have been copied from a work of that time called “Domostroy.”
It was Stepan Paramonovich’s perseverance and persistence, it seems to me, that, at least after his death, were able to clear his family of shame. And, despite his public execution, the people retained a good reputation about him, and even the guslars composed songs about him.
It was Kiribeevich's turn. Not only in character and actions, but also in his position in society and appearance, he is very different from Stepan Paramonovich Kalashnikov. Kiribeevich is a young guardsman, the tsar’s favorite. In this regard, he developed such character traits as vanity, excessive ambition, waywardness and arrogance. And this immediately repels readers from this hero. In appearance, it is in no way inferior to its rival Kalashnikov. Such epithets as “Daunting fighter”, “wild fellow” picture in our imagination a young man with a stately, heroic physique.
Kiribeevich is quite selfish, and in his love for Alena Dmitrievna, he thinks only of himself. But this hero also has attractive sides. Courage, boldness, fearlessness, and perseverance together make up the impression of the “young guardsman” as a courageous person. Although, if you put all the positive and negative qualities of this hero on the scale, then, in my opinion, the negative ones will also be heavy.
A person who disgraced someone’s family simply cannot be a positive hero. I think that if this guardsman is capable of loving like that, he will be able to take the path of correction, but only the person for whom he has feelings can change it.
I hope I have sufficiently revealed the inner world of these heroes. Like most people who have read this work, I am on the side of Kalashnikov. And you will probably agree with me.
Chueva Elena, 7th grade. branch of MBOU Sosnovskaya secondary school No. 1 in the village of Rabochiy, Tambov region
Main thought
The main idea of the work is the need to protect dignity in any case. Moreover, it does not matter at all how this will be done. It is important to fight for your own freedom, otherwise someone will appear who can take it away.
Despotism always seeks support in slavery, but if people rebel against tyranny, it will fall. This slogan is directly related to the era of the author himself: Mikhail Yuryevich calls on society to stop tolerating royal tyranny and fearlessly oppose the dictatorship, as the main character of the work.
The meaning of Stepan’s action is clear: the man realizes that everyone will perceive his inaction as capitulation. The enemy will not retreat, and a complaint to the head of state will not change anything. The hero cannot risk his family, so he sacrifices himself in order to get out of the current situation with honor, having first ensured a comfortable existence for his children and wife.
Essentially, the hero had no other choice. However, the writer was critical of his contemporaries and believed that they needed a lesson from the past. This is the only way, and not otherwise, that one should react to arbitrariness - this is Lermontov’s position. Mikhail Yuryevich saw a simple way out of the circle of tyranny - rebellion against the system.
The moral of the work is this: even if everyone around is against it, it is important to defend your own point of view and try to achieve justice. Otherwise, a person will lose everything that is dear to him.
The writer also notes the importance of love and loyalty, the need to protect loved ones, and the willingness to shield the family from bad weather and troubles.
Characters of the poem
There were several characters in Mikhail Lermontov's work. Characteristics of Kalashnikov Stepan and other heroes will help readers get to know each of them better:
- Ivan the Terrible is a strict, cruel ruler, whom those around him respect and fear. The author demonstrates him as a fair person, but he does not understand people at all. The tsar's retinue is insincere towards him, the man does not know the whole situation of the main character, therefore, without understanding it, he sends Kalashnikov to the chopping block. The emperor assigns lifelong security to the merchant's family. This is, of course, generous of him, but he kills his beloved husband and father. If the sovereign had known the true reason why Stepan challenged his guardsman to battle, he would have spared his life.
- Alena Dmitrievna is Kalashnikov’s wife, a beautiful and very good-natured woman who unwittingly caused the death of her husband.
- Stepan Paramonovich is a merchant, a good owner, a respectable family man, an honest person, he loves his job very much. Kalashnikov has a big house, a beautiful wife, and children. Basically, he is a happy person. Returning home one day, the hero saw that his wife was gone. Soon Alena returned in tears: Kiribeevich pestered her in public, and everyone around just laughed. In the morning the man went to a fist fight, which took place in the presence of the emperor. There he killed the offender of his chosen one.
- Kiribeevich is a smug man, guardsman of Ivan the Terrible. He deliberately does not tell the king the whole story of the “matchmaking”, because the object of his adoration is someone else’s wife. He openly pesters a woman and promises her prosperity for life. Having met Kalashnikov in battle, he realized that it would be a mortal duel. The hero tried to fight an unfair battle, but the merchant took his life with a blow.
- Neighbors of the Kalashnikovs. Seeing Kiribeevich pestering Stepan’s wife, they, without understanding it, point at the woman and mock.
After analyzing the poem about the life of the merchant Kalashnikov, a conclusion arises: the world demands justice, but only a few daredevils can achieve it. That is why you should not expect objectivity out of nowhere, you need to defend a just cause. Otherwise, chaos will reign in society.
“Song about the merchant Kalashnikov” main characters
The main characters of the poem “Song about the Merchant Kalashnikov” are briefly summarized in this article.
“Song about the merchant Kalashnikov” main characters
“Song about the merchant Kalashnikov” by M. Yu. Lermontov is a historical poem written in folk style in 1837. It was first published in 1838. The main characters resolve the dispute as real men should: with dignity and honesty. The author of the poem described the tragedy of one family - the image of the merchant Kalashnikov, a pious, righteous man and the cunning, secretive liar Kiribeevich. Lermontov also describes Ivan the Terrible as a hot-tempered, treacherous, inconsistent and generous ruler. As a result, the main character was executed by order of the king.
- Tsar.
A stern and strict ruler who is respected and feared. He is fair, however, he does not know how to understand people. His surroundings are insincere and secretive. Ivan the Terrible did not even try to understand the situation with the merchant Kalashnikov, why he challenged his oprichnik and sent him to the chopping block. The family of the executed hero was assigned lifelong support. Stepan Paramonovich Kalashnikov. An honest man, a merchant, a Christian and a good owner. He loves what he does. Stepan Paramonovich knows how and loves to work. He has a wife and children, a big beautiful house. He feels like a happy man. One day, upon returning home, he noticed that his beloved wife was not there, and the children were in tears. Having returned, Alena Dmitrievna told how Kiribeevich had disgraced her: he pestered and kissed her in public, and they laughed. Kalashnikov decided to take a difficult step. In the morning he went to fist fights, which were held in the presence of the king. Having challenged Kiribeech to a fight, Stepan Paramonovich kills him. For this he was executed.
- Alena Dmitrievna
The main character's wife, a beautiful woman and a kind Christian. She unwittingly became the cause of her husband’s death.
- Kiribeevich
A cunning and smug guardsman of the Tsar. He did not tell the king the story of his matchmaking with a married woman. He promised Alena Dmitrievna riches and openly pestered her in public places. He met the heroine’s husband, Stepan Paramonovich, in fist fights, and realized that he could not avoid a mortal fight. He tried to fight unfairly, but lost and was killed. The secondary characters of the story are Kalashnikov’s acquaintances and neighbors, who saw Kiribeevich pestering Alena Dmitrievna. However, they did not understand what was happening and laughed at the poor disgraced woman.
We hope that from this article you learned who the main characters of “The Song of the Merchant Kalashnikov” are.
