One of the important female characters in M. Yu. Lermontov’s novel “A Hero of Our Time” is Vera, a young woman to whom the main character, Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin, was truly attached. Wise, gentle, endlessly loving, she became the only one who could fall in love not with a fictional image, but with the very essence of Pechorin, with all his advantages and disadvantages. The characterization of Vera is of great importance in the novel, as it helps to better reveal the hero’s inner world. Thanks to her, it becomes clear that even the seemingly soulless Pechorin has deep feelings, he is capable of loving, suffering, and empathy.
The material was prepared jointly with a teacher of the highest category, Kuchmina Nadezhda Vladimirovna.
Experience as a teacher of Russian language and literature - 27 years.
a brief description of
Before reading this analysis, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the work itself, Hero of Our Time.
Full name : Vera.
Age not specified, young woman.
Occupation - no specific type of activity.
Family - son from his first marriage, second husband - Semyon Vasilyevich G...v.
Social status : noblewoman.
Origin - comes from a noble family.
Upbringing is traditional for noble families.
Education is traditional for noble families.
Appearance - average height, attractive blonde with blue eyes, a mole on her cheek.
Character - soft, kind, sacrificial, jealous, wise, caring, pragmatic.
Positive traits - loving, kind, gentle.
Negative traits - jealous, possessive, capable of cheating on her husband.
The work is “Hero of Our Time.”
Author - Mikhail Yurievich Lermontov.
Vera is an important character for understanding the image of Pechorin
The characterization of Vera in the novel “A Hero of Our Time” gives the reader the opportunity to better know and understand the main character, Pechorin. Faith was his only love, and it is in love that a person shows himself most clearly.
We have a new characteristic of Faith.
We meet Vera in the chapter “Princess Mary”. She and her husband come for rest and treatment to Kislovodsk, where Pechorin was already staying by that time. Doctor Werner tells him about her arrival, not yet knowing that they know each other. It turns out that this girl is Pechorin’s old love, and that the feeling for her has not faded away in him to this day. Already knowing a lot of unpleasant things about Pechorin from previous chapters, this information about him seems unusual to us, revealing him from a new, unexpected side. Is he really capable of truly loving? And who is the woman who was able to awaken sincere affection in the egoist Pechorin?
Characterization of Vera by other heroes
Pechorin
Vera is Pechorin’s old love, whom he accidentally met again on the waters.
“I haven’t seen her yet, but I’m sure I recognize in your portrait a woman whom I loved in the old days...”
Source: Part two, chapter II “Princess Mary”, May 13th
“... terrible sadness oppressed my heart. Did fate bring us together again in the Caucasus, or did she come here on purpose, knowing that she would meet me?..”
Source: Part two, chapter II “Princess Mary”, May 13th
Pechorin believes that Vera is one of those women who value sadness and disappointment most of all in love.
“Maybe,” I thought, “that’s why you loved me: joys are forgotten, but sorrows are never ...”
Source: Part two, chapter II “Princess Mary”, May 16th
Pechorin treats Vera with great care. He loves her in his own way and does not intend to consciously hurt her.
“She trusted me again with the same carelessness - I will not deceive her: she is the only woman in the world whom I would not be able to deceive . I know that we will soon be separated again and, perhaps, forever: we will both go different ways to the grave; but the memory of her will remain inviolable in my soul..."
Source: Part two, chapter II “Princess Mary”, May 16th
Pechorin, who considers himself an evil genius, a destroyer of women's hopes and illusions, does not understand why Vera loves him so much. She is the only woman who was able to accept him with all his shortcomings and vices.
“Why she loves me so much, I really don’t know! Moreover, this is one woman who understood me completely, with all my petty weaknesses, bad passions ... Is evil really so attractive?”
Source: Part two, chapter II “Princess Mary”, May 23
“Vera loves me more than Princess Mary will ever love...”
Source: Part two, chapter II “Princess Mary”, June 3
Werner
Doctor Werner informed Pechorin of Vera’s presence. He noted not only the attractive appearance of the young woman, but also, due to his profession, made conclusions about her serious illness.
“... some lady from the newcomers, a relative of the princess by marriage, very pretty, but, it seems, very sick... Didn’t you meet her at the well? - she is of average height, blonde, with regular features, consumptive complexion, and a black mole on her right cheek; her face struck me with its expressiveness..."
Source: Part two, chapter II “Princess Mary”, May 16th
Detailed characteristics of Werner.
Vera's character traits and examples of their manifestation (behavior and actions)
The image of Vera is a mystery to many readers. The author did not describe her spiritual world, he simply showed a weak woman who fell under the influence of a person with a demonic nature.
The main trait of her character is the ability for selfless and selfless love . She submits to some truly hypnotic influence of Pechorin on her. “My weak heart again submitted to a familiar voice,” Vera wrote in her farewell letter.
This heroine is smart , she understands that Pechorin loved her as a source of joys, sorrows and anxieties, without which life is boring for him. She understands that her beloved is an egoist who absorbs the feelings of women, and associates the concept of evil with him. “Evil in no one is so attractive,” she writes to Pechorin.
Vera violates the sanctity of marriage with her second husband, since she is unable to resist the evil charm of her beloved. In her heart she remains faithful to Pechorin alone.
She has a too submissive and sacrificial nature and does not have the moral core that, for example, Tatyana Larina had. She finds herself under the power of Pechorin, unable to resist him, and after separation she again entrusts herself to him with the same carelessness.
sacrifice and self-denial was also manifested in the fact that she married not for love, but so that her son would have conditions for a good life - her second husband is old, but rich. For her son, she wants to save her reputation, so she tries to hide her connection with Pechorin. V. G. Belinsky, recognizing that Vera is acting immorally by deceiving her husband, believes that “in Vera this sin is redeemed by suffering from the consciousness of her unhappy role.” He puts Tatyana Larina above Vera in nature and character.
Vera is jealous , she is jealous of her beloved for Mary, who began to confide her heartfelt secrets to her. When Pechorin assures her that he does not love Mary, she wonders why he then pursues the girl and disturbs her imagination. Vera's jealousy is so strong that in her farewell letter she asks Pechorin not to marry Mary.
This heroine has no feminine pride or self-esteem . She loves Pechorin selflessly, submitting to his tyrannical nature. As V. G. Belinsky noted, there is something slavish in her adoration of her beloved.
Having learned about the duel between Pechorin and Grushnitsky, Vera could not stand the psychological stress and told her husband that she loved Pechorin. Her husband took her from Kislovodsk, and before leaving, she wrote a letter to Pechorin, in which she said goodbye to him and admitted that she understood all the secrets of his soul and that her love had merged with her soul.
Biography
Vera is a young attractive woman. Married twice. In her first marriage, Vera had a son, but nothing is known about her husband’s fate—most likely, he died. To provide her son with a stable future and a proper place in society, Vera remarried.
Her second husband turned out to be a very noble, wealthy man, but at the same time old and sick. This union initially became a kind of deal in which Vera gave herself, her youth and beauty in exchange for the well-being of her only son.
While still in her first marriage, Vera met the strong, passionate and, in fact, the only love of her life - Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin. This meeting turned out to be fateful, leaving a deep mark on the hearts and souls of Vera and Pechorin.
The second meeting took place a few years later in Pyatigorsk, where Vera came with her second husband for treatment. By that time, the woman was already suffering from a serious illness, which was slowly but surely eroding her vitality.
Just like the first time, Vera could not resist the strength of her feelings for Pechorin. Her husband became aware of this connection, and in terrible anger he hastened to take his young wife away from temptation. Vera only managed to write a farewell letter to Pechorin, in which she confessed her eternal love to him.
Appearance
The first mention of Vera and her appearance comes from the lips of Doctor Werner when he tells Pechorin about new faces who have come to the mineral waters. Among the new arrivals, he noted a relative (by marriage) of Princess Ligovskaya, a very pretty but sick woman. As a doctor, he assumed she had consumption.
According to the doctor, Vera was a blonde of average height with regular features of an expressive face and a black mole on her right cheek. Pechorin was excited by this message: from the doctor’s description, he realized that it was Vera. Perhaps he still loves her, but love usually continues in the family or ends in separation. Here the separation occurred, but love, especially on her part, did not end. Such love is called selfless, selfless, overstepping the prohibitions of society. Such love leaves an indelible mark on the soul. And now Vera is sick. The fact that love for Vera still glimmers in Pechorin’s heart is evidenced by his entry in the journal: “...why doesn’t she want to give me a chance to see her alone? Love, like fire, goes out without food.”
Image of Vera
In the image of Vera, M. Yu. Lermontov embodied all the qualities that he himself highly valued in women: femininity, gentleness, sacrifice, wisdom, and the ability to forgive. The heroine reveals herself most fully in her love for Pechorin.
Having fallen in love with a young handsome officer with all her heart, Vera decided to commit adultery for the sake of her feelings. For the first time, she was able to truly love, giving all of herself without reserve to her beloved man. Possessing intelligence and natural wisdom, Vera was able to accept Pechorin for who he really was - with all his shortcomings, weaknesses, and bad inclinations. Vera realized that there was no point in expecting from Pechorin beyond what he could offer her, and simply enjoyed the strong and vibrant feeling.
Vera's personality is also revealed in her attitude towards her son. In fact, this is the only person to whom she is attached on this earth. For the sake of the well-being of her child, Vera remarried without love, solely for convenience. Knowing full well that her days were numbered, the woman sacrificed her youth and beauty for the sake of her unborn son.
Vera is not able to fight for her love, to build life as her heart tells her. She adapts to life’s circumstances and meekly submits to the will of those who are stronger than her. As a result, Vera feels deeply unhappy, a devastated person, incapable of decisive action.
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Role in Pechorin's life
Vera is Pechorin’s long-time love, the only woman he met on his life’s path who fully understood him and loved him for who he is. She understood that her beloved was an established personality, therefore, although she saw his shortcomings, she did not try to remake Pechorin.
For the main character, Vera is the only woman for whom he has deep feelings. Pechorin realized how dear she was to him only when he lost her forever. Desperate, he tried to catch up with Vera, but only drove his horse. Pechorin threw himself on the grass and cried: he grieved that this woman was lost to him forever. After some time, he stopped crying, calmed down and reasoned sensibly that it was useless to grieve, that there was no need to chase after lost happiness. His rationality was also manifested in the fact that the hero was pleased that he still had the ability to cry - he believed that crying was useful.
Conclusion
In M. Yu. Lermontov’s novel “A Hero of Our Time,” the image of Vera plays a great role, with the help of which one can better understand Pechorin’s inner world, his inner experiences and doubts, his desperate desire to love and be loved.
The heroine's role is to demonstrate that true love is impossible without reciprocity, a sincere and respectful attitude towards each other. A brief description of Vera with quotes will allow you to better prepare for a literature lesson, write an essay or report on a given topic.
The collected material, which includes quotes from the text, allows you to independently characterize the character according to plan, and will help you compose a detailed written work or write an essay on a given topic.
Tragic connection
Pechorin experiences a deep sense of melancholy and is in a fierce search for his own place in this world. He sincerely wants to achieve moral satisfaction and find a purpose in life. The history of the relationships between the heroes develops in a tragic light:
- The long separation from Vera and the unexpected meeting awakened old feelings. The heroine does not limit herself to relationships with her husband, but she meets Pechorin secretly.
- Their happiness did not last long, because the hero tries to achieve feelings of jealousy on the part of Vera and begins to flirt with Princess Mary, which only causes her beloved mental suffering.
- Pechorin and Grushnitsky are planning a duel over the princess, and Vera is very worried about the main character.
- The fear of losing a loved one and mental anxiety push the heroine to confess to her husband that she has cheated.
- The husband takes Vera as far as possible from Pechorin, and she leaves a farewell letter to Gregory with a heartfelt declaration of love.
The heroine is a very sensitive character and incredibly smart. This is what attracts Pechorin. However, these qualities do not help the girl avoid harmful relationships that are doomed to failure.
Pechorin pursues his selfish goals, and Vera understands this, but wants to help him, to heal him from the depression that has taken possession of the hero.
The image of Vera clearly characterizes the love for Pechorin. In the novel “A Hero of Our Time” you can see how a woman sacrifices herself for the sake of her beloved, but does not receive a response to this. Thus, Vera is simply trying to be happy at least for a short period of time, before the disease takes all her strength. However, Pechorin did not ask her to sacrifice herself.
Guided by her desires, a woman becomes a tragic figure in Lermontov's novel. The author shows how in vain the heroine wastes her strength on a man who promised her nothing.
Vera became an incredibly important woman in Pechorin's life. He felt a strong spiritual connection with her, and the heroine could make his life happier, help him find the purpose of his existence. But Pechorin’s moral disharmony does not allow him to realize the importance of these feelings, and he loses the only person who can support him. Vera could have found peace of mind thanks to the main character, but she sacrificed herself in vain.
Reader reviews
Readers develop an ambivalent attitude towards Vera. On the one hand, she is a real traitor who cheats on her second husband and ultimately gets what she deserves, having lost the brightest feeling in her life. On the other hand, Faith is a model of love. She completely dissolves in Pechorin, accepts his whole nature, sacrifices herself, her moral purity and marriage in order to be closer to her love object. She is the only woman who was able to win Gregory’s heart: but, unfortunately, due to his character and life goals, their relationship never works out. Vera, who learned about the betrayal and decided to open up to her husband, evokes sympathy among a number of readers.
THE BEAUTY SECRETS OF THE BRILLIANT VERA GLAGOLEVA
About a month and a half after information about her deteriorating health appeared in the media, Vera Glagoleva attended the wedding of her daughter Anastasia Shubskaya. Many found that the woman looked amazing. The actress had a wonderful time having fun in the company of family and friends. Footage of Glagoleva singing in the company of soloists of the group “Ivanushki International” spread all over the Internet. From the outside it seemed that everything was fine with the artist, and there was no talk of any illness.
Photos from the wedding of Anastasia Shubskaya and Alexander Ovechkin spread all over the Internet
Photo: Instagram
Vera Glagoleva generally always took care of her health and tried to stick to a diet. Even during pregnancy, the actress usually gained only the weight of the child. The woman believed that she was lucky with her genetics. In addition, Glagoleva led an active lifestyle since childhood. She preferred active games in the fresh air to sitting passively within four walls.
“I was a tomboy, I was friends with my brother Boris’s classmates. We spent hours playing all sorts of outdoor games like Cossack robbers, I was even the goalkeeper of the neighborhood football team. So the calories were burned,” said the actress.
Vera Glagoleva accidentally became an actress
Photo: Galina Kmit / RIA Novosti
The grandmother tried to feed her granddaughter and even prepared special cocktails “to increase her appetite” with cocoa and aloe juice, but it was all to no avail. The family's neighbors saw Vera and her brother Boris off with puzzled looks. They sincerely could not understand what the secret of their thinness was. Over the years, the situation has not changed - in her youth, the actress’s weight was 45 kilograms with a height of 164 centimeters. Only once did Glagoleva give in and suddenly begin to gain weight. As a result, Vera Vitalievna reduced the portions of food consumed and returned to her previous shape.
Glagoleva said that she likes thin people. Therefore, she controlled her loved ones and forbade them to overeat. Vera Glagoleva believed that a person’s health depends on his weight.
“I always watched my daughters, then my grandchildren, so that they did not gain weight. I adhere to the position of pediatrician Benjamin Spock, who believed that a healthy child intuitively knows how much to eat. I’m sure that when a child who has not been overfed grows up, he will thank his parents,” the star explained.
Vera Glagoleva with one of her grandchildren
Photo: Still from the program “Guests on Sundays”
Sometimes the actress could even raise her voice and sternly reprimand her relatives. “Stop eating!” – Vera Glagoleva could easily tell her daughters. Moreover, the eldest heiress of the celebrity, Anna Nakhapetova, became a ballerina. The young woman, who stood at the machine for hours, had to constantly keep herself in shape. Therefore, she could not afford to relax and taste pancakes with sour cream, as her mother and her younger sister Maria did.
At the same time, Vera Glagoleva did not visit the fitness club or swimming pool. It was difficult to catch the actress on a cardio machine; she preferred to ride a bike, play football with her grandchildren, or do yoga. Over the years, the artist believed, it was necessary to limit calorie intake. Therefore, she did not eat flour and sweets, and also gave up meat.
