The depiction of the "cruel morals" of the "dark kingdom" in the play "The Thunderstorm" by A. N

Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky was endowed with a great talent as a playwright. He is deservedly considered the founder of the Russian national theater. His plays, varied in themes, glorified Russian literature. Ostrovsky's work was democratic in nature. He created plays in which hatred of the autocratic serf regime was manifested. The writer called for the protection of the oppressed and humiliated citizens of Russia, he longed for social change.

The great merit of Ostrovsky is that he opened the world of the merchants to the enlightened public, about whose everyday life Russian society had a superficial understanding. Merchants in Russia provided trade in goods and food, they were seen in shops, they were considered uneducated and uninteresting. Ostrovsky showed that behind the high fences of merchant houses, almost Shakespearean passions are played out in the hearts and souls of people from the merchant class. He was called Columbus Zamoskvorechye.

Ostrovsky's ability to assert progressive trends in Russian society was fully revealed in the play "The Thunderstorm", published in 1860. The play reflects the irreconcilable contradictions between the individual and society. The playwright raises the acute issue of the position of women in Russian society in the 1860s.

The play takes place in the small Volga town of Kalinov, where mainly merchants live. In his famous article "A ray of light in a dark kingdom" the critic Dobrolyubov characterizes the life of merchants as follows: “Their life flows smoothly and peacefully, no interests of the world disturb them, because they do not reach them; kingdoms can collapse, new countries open up, the face of the earth ... change - the inhabitants of the town of Kalinova will continue to exist in complete ignorance of the rest of the world ... The concepts and way of life they have adopted are the best in the world, everything new comes from evil spirits ... Dark mass, terrible in its naivety and sincerity. "

Ostrovsky, against the backdrop of a beautiful landscape, paints the joyless life of Kalinov's inhabitants. Kuligin, who in the play opposes the ignorance and arbitrariness of the "dark kingdom", says: "Cruel manners, sir, in our city, cruel!"

The term "tyranny" came into use together with Ostrovsky's plays. The playwright called the tyrants "masters of life", the rich, whom no one dared to contradict. Savel Prokofievich Dikoy is portrayed as such in the play "The Thunderstorm". It was not by chance that Ostrovsky awarded him with a "speaking" surname. Dikoy is famous for its wealth, acquired by deception and exploitation of other people's labor. No law is written to him. With his absurd, rude disposition, he instills fear in those around him, he is a "cruel swearing man", a "shrill man." His wife is forced to persuade others every morning: “Father, don’t make you angry! Dear fellows, don't make you angry! " Impunity has corrupted the Wild, he can shout, offend a person, but this applies only to those who do not fight him back. Half of the city belongs to Dikiy, but he doesn't pay those who work for him. To the mayor, he explains: "What's so special here, I give them a penny of shortages, but I have a whole fortune". Pathological greed obscures his mind.

The progressive man Kuligin appeals to Dikiy with a request to give money to install a sundial in the city. In response, he hears: “Why are you crawling to me with all sorts of nonsense! Maybe I don’t want to talk to you. You should have found out first whether I was in the mood to listen to you, a fool, or not. So right with the snout and climb to talk. " Dikoy is completely unbridled in his tyranny, he is sure that any court will be on his side: “For others, you are an honest person, and I think that you are a robber, that's all ... What are you going to sue, or what, with me? .. So know that you are a worm, if I want, I will crush you. "

Another bright representative of the "dark kingdom" morals is Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova. Kuligin speaks about her like this: “Bigot. She clothe the beggars, but she ate the household altogether. " Kabanova single-handedly rules the house and her family, she is used to unquestioning obedience. In her face, Ostrovsky shows an ardent defender of the wild orders of house building in families and in life. She is sure that only fear holds the family together, does not understand what respect, understanding, and a good relationship between people are. The boar suspects everyone of sins, constantly complains about the lack of due respect to the elders on the part of the younger generation. “Elders are not respected very much now…”, she says. The boar is always pitying, posing as a victim: “Mother is old, stupid; Well, you, young people, smart, should not collect from us, from fools. " Material from the site

Kabanova “senses in her heart” that the old order is coming to an end, she is anxious and scared. She turned her own son into a dumb slave who has no power in his own family, acts only at the behest of his mother. Tikhon happily leaves home, just to take a break from scandals and the oppressive atmosphere of his home.

Dobrolyubov writes: “The tyrants of Russian life, however, begin to feel some kind of discontent and fear, themselves not knowing what and why ... it is not clearly visible, but it already gives itself a presentiment and sends bad visions to the dark arbitrariness of tyrants. "

Showing the life of the Russian province, Ostrovsky paints a picture of extreme backwardness, ignorance, rudeness and cruelty that kill all living things around. The life of people depends on the arbitrariness of the Wild and the Wild Boars, who are hostile to any manifestation of free thought, self-esteem in a person. Having shown from the stage the life of the merchants in all its manifestations, Ostrovsky passed a stern sentence to despotism and spiritual slavery.

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Dark kingdom

The most important feature of Ostrovsky's theater to this day is the topicality of the plays. Even today, Ostrovsky's works are successfully performed on the stage of theaters, because the characters and images created by the artist have not lost their freshness. And to this day, viewers are pondering who is right in the dispute between the patriarchal ideas about marriage and the freedom to express feelings, plunge into an atmosphere of dark ignorance, rudeness and are amazed at the purity and sincerity of Katerina's love.

The city of Kalinov, in which the action of the drama The Thunderstorm unfolds, is an artistic space within which the writer tried to summarize as much as possible the vices characteristic of the merchant environment of the middle of the 19th century. It is not for nothing that the critic Dobrolyubov calls Kalinov a "dark kingdom." This definition accurately characterizes the atmosphere described in the city.

Ostrovsky depicts Kalinov as a confined space: the gates are locked, what happens behind the fence does not bother anyone. In the exposition of the play, the viewers are presented with the Volga landscape, which evokes poetic lines in Kuligin's memory.

But the description of the Volga's expanses only enhances the feeling of the closed nature of the city, in which no one even walks along the boulevard. The city lives its own boring and monotonous life. The poorly educated residents of Kalinov learn news about the world not from newspapers, but from wanderers, for example, such as Feklusha. A beloved guest in the Kabanov family says that “there is still a land where all the people are with dog-headed heads”, and in Moscow there are only “festivities and games, and there is a roar through the streets of the Indo, a groan stands”. Ignorant inhabitants of the city of Kalinov willingly believe in such stories, which is why Kalinov appears to the townspeople as a paradise. So, separated from the whole world, like a distant state, in which residents see almost the only promised land, Kalinov himself begins to acquire fabulous features, becoming a symbolic image of a sleepy kingdom. The spiritual life of the inhabitants of Kalinov is limited by the rules of Domostroi, the observance of which requires each generation of parents from each generation of children, tyranny reigns around and money reigns supreme.

The main guardians of the age-old order in the city are Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova and Savel Prokofievich Dikoy, whose moral norms are distorted. A striking example of tyranny is the episode in which Ostrovsky ironically depicts the Wild, talking about his "kind-heartedness": having scolded the peasant who asked for his salary, Savel Prokofievich regrets his behavior and even asks for forgiveness from the employee. Thus, the writer portrays the absurdity of the Wild one, replaced by self-flagellation. Being a well-to-do merchant and having a lot of money, Dikoy considers people beneath him as "worms", whom he can pardon or crush at will, the hero feels impunity for his actions. Even the mayor is unable to influence him. Dikoy, feeling himself not only the master of the city, but also the master of life, is not afraid of an official either. Households are also afraid of a well-to-do merchant. His wife every morning with tears begs those around them: "Father, do not make you angry!" But Savel Prokofievich swears only with those who cannot fight back. As soon as he meets resistance, his mood and tone of communication change dramatically. He is afraid of his clerk Kudryash, who knows how to resist him. Dikoy does not quarrel with the merchant's wife Martha Ignatievna, the only one who understands him. Only Kabanikha is able to pacify Savel Prokofievich's violent temper. She alone sees that Dikoy himself is not happy with his tyranny, but she cannot help herself, so Kabanikha considers herself stronger than him.

Indeed, Marfa Ignatievna is not inferior to the Wild in despotism and tyranny. Being a prude, she tyrannizes her household. The boar is depicted by Ostrovsky as a heroine who considers herself the keeper of the foundations of Domostroi. The patriarchal system of values, from which only the outer ostentatious side remains, is most important to her. Ostrovsky demonstrates Marfa Ignatievna's desire to follow the old traditions in everything in the scene of Tikhon's farewell to Katerina. A conflict arises between Katerina and Kabanikha, reflecting the internal contradictions between the heroines. Kabanikha blames Katerina for not “howling” and “lying on the porch” after her husband left, to which Katerina remarks that to behave like this is “to make people laugh”.

The boar, doing everything “under the guise of piety,” demands complete obedience from her household. In the Kabanov family, everyone should live as Marfa Ignatievna demands. Kuligin quite accurately characterizes Kabanikha in his dialogue with Boris: “Prudish, sir! She clothe the beggars, but she has eaten at home at all! " The main object of her tyranny is her own children. The power-hungry Kabanikha does not notice that under her oppression she has raised a miserable, cowardly man who has no opinion of his own - the son of Tikhon and a cunning daughter, Varvara, who creates the impression of a decent and obedient daughter. In the end, unjustified cruelty and a desire to control everything lead Kabanikha to tragedy: his own son blames his mother for the death of his wife Katerina (“Mamma, you ruined her”), and his beloved daughter, not agreeing to live within the bounds of tyranny, runs away from home.

Assessing the images of the "dark kingdom", one cannot but agree with Ostrovsky that cruel tyranny and despotism are real evil, under the yoke of which human feelings fade and wither, will weakens, reason fades. "Thunderstorm" is an open protest against the "dark kingdom", a challenge to ignorance and rudeness, hypocrisy and cruelty.

Each person is the one and only world, with his own actions, character, habits, honor, morality, self-esteem.

It is the problem of honor and dignity that Ostrovsky raises in his play The Thunderstorm.

In order to show the contradictions between rudeness and honor, between ignorance and dignity, the play shows two generations: people of the older generation, the so-called "dark kingdom", and people of a new trend, more progressive, who do not want to live according to old laws and customs.

Dikoy and Kabanova are typical representatives of the “dark kingdom”. It was in these images that Ostrovsky wanted to show the ruling class in Russia at that time.

So who are Dikoy and Kabanova?

First of all, these are the richest people in the city, in their hands - the "supreme" power, with the help of which they oppress not only their serfs, but also their relatives. Kuligin said well about the life of the bourgeoisie: “... And whoever has money, sir, is trying to enslave the poor so that he can earn even more money on his labors ...”, and also: “In philistinism, sir, you are nothing but rudeness, you will not see ... ”So they live, knowing nothing but money, ruthless exploitation, immeasurable profit at someone else's expense.

The images of Dikiy and Kabanova are very similar: they are rude, ignorant people. They are only engaged in tyranny. The Wild is annoyed by his relatives, who accidentally caught his eye (in particular, Boris): “... Once I told you, two told you:“ Don't you dare to meet me halfway ”; you are itching to do everything! A little space for you, then? Wherever you go, here you are! .. "And if someone comes to ask the Wild for money, then there is no way to do without swearing:" I understand that; but what will you order me to do with yourself when my heart is like that! After all, I already know that I must give, but I can’t do everything good. You are my friend, and I must give you back, but if you come and ask me, I will swear. I will give, I will give, but I will scold. Therefore, just give me a hint of money, I will start to kindle all my insides; he kindles all the insides, and only ... "

Kabanova does not like it when Katerina defends her human dignity and tries to protect her husband from unnecessary abuse. The boar is disgusted that someone dares to contradict her, to do something not at her behest. But between Dikim and Kabanova there is a slight difference in relation to relatives and the people around them. Dikoy swears openly, “as if he had broken off the chain,” Kabanikha- “under the guise of piety”: “I know, I know that my words are not to your liking, but what can I do, I’m not a stranger to you, I have a heart about you it hurts ... After all, because of love, parents are strict with you, because of love they scold you, everyone thinks to teach good. Well, I don’t like that nowadays. And the children will go to the people to praise that the mother is a grumble, that the mother does not give a pass, she squeezes out of the light. And bury, God, you won't please your daughter-in-law with some word, and the conversation started that the mother-in-law had eaten up completely ”.

Greed, rudeness, ignorance, tyranny will always be in them. These qualities were not eradicated, because they were brought up like this, they grew up in the same environment. Such as Kabanova and Dikoy will always be together, it is impossible to separate them. Where one ignoramus and tyrant appeared, another will appear there. Whatever the society, there will always be people who, under the guise of progressive ideas and education, hide, or rather, try to hide their stupidity, rudeness and ignorance. They tyrannize others, while not at all embarrassed or afraid to bear any responsibility for this. Dikoy and Kabanova - this is the very “dark kingdom”, remnants, supporters of the foundations of this “dark kingdom”. That is who they are, these Wild and Kabanovs, stupid, ignorant, hypocritical, rude. They preach the same peace and order. This is a world of money, anger, envy and enmity. They hate everything new and progressive.

The idea of ​​A. N. Ostrovsky was to expose the "dark kingdom" using the images of the Wild and Kabanova. He denounced all rich people of lack of spirituality and meanness. Basically, in the secular society of Russia in the XIX century there were such Wild and Kabanovs, which the author showed us in his drama "The Thunderstorm".

This is a clash of two or more parties that do not coincide in views, attitudes. There are several conflicts in Ostrovsky Storm's play, but how to decide which of them is the main one? In the era of sociologism in literary criticism, it was believed that social conflict was the most important in the play. Of course, if you see in the image of Katerina a reflection of the spontaneous Protestant masses of the people against the shackling conditions of the dark kingdom and perceive the death of Katerina as a result of her collision with her petty mother-in-law, the genre of the play should be defined as a social drama. A drama is a work in which the social and personal aspirations of people, and sometimes their very lives, are threatened with death by external forces beyond their control. The play also contains a generational conflict between Katerina and Kabanikha, the new always comes to the old, the old does not want to surrender to the new. ... But the play is much deeper than it might seem at first glance. After all, Katerina first of all fights with herself, and not with Kabanikha, the conflict develops not around her, but in herself. Therefore, the play The Thunderstorm can be defined as a tragedy.

Tragedy is a work in which there is an insoluble conflict between the personal aspirations of the hero and the super-personal laws of life that occur in the mind of the protagonist. In general, the play is very similar to the ancient tragedy, the chorus is replaced by some off-plot heroes, the denouement ends with the death of the main character, as well as a tragedy, except for the immortal Prometheus. Catherines are the result of the collision of two historical eras.

Some heroes of the play seem to differ in the time in which they live. For example, Kuligin is a man of the 18th century, he wants to invent a sundial, which was still known for the vantichnosti, or a perpetuum mobile, which is a distinctive feature of the Middle Ages, or a lightning rod. He himself goes with his mind to the point that they have long been invented, and he only dreams about it. He quotes Lomonosov and Derzhavin - this is also a human trait

13. The depiction of the "dark kingdom" in the play by A.N. Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm".

In order to show the contradictions between rudeness and honor, between ignorance and dignity, the play shows two generations: people of the older generation, the so-called "dark kingdom", and people of a new trend, more progressive, who do not want to live according to old laws and customs.

Dikoy and Kabanova are typical representatives of the “dark kingdom”. It was in these images that Ostrovsky wanted to show the ruling class in Russia at that time.

Dikoy and Kabanova - this is the very “dark kingdom”, remnants, supporters of the foundations of this “dark kingdom”. That's who they are, these Wild and Kabanovs, stupid, ignorant, hypocritical, rude. They preach the same peace and order. This is a world of money, anger, envy and enmity. They hate everything new and progressive.

The idea of ​​A. N. Ostrovsky was to expose the "dark kingdom" using the images of the Wild and Kabanova. He denounced all rich people of lack of spirituality and meanness. Basically, in the secular society of Russia in the XIX century there were such Wild and Kabanovs, which the author showed us in his drama "The Thunderstorm".

The work of A. N. Ostrovsky stands at the origins of our national drama. Fonvizin, Griboyedov and Gogol began the creation of the great Russian theater. With the appearance of Ostrovsky's plays, with the flowering of his talent and skill, dramatic art rose to new heights. No wonder the critic Odoyevsky noted that before Ostrovsky there were only 3 dramas in Russian literature: "Minor", "Woe from Wit" and "Inspector General". He called the play "Bankrupt" the fourth, stressing that it is the last missing cornerstone on which the majestic "building" of the Russian theater will be erected.

From "Bankrupt" to "Thunderstorm"

Yes, it is with the comedy "Our People - Let Us Count" (the second name is "Bankrupt") that the wide popularity of Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky, a playwright, who combined in his work and skillfully reworked the best traditions of the "natural" school - socio-psychological and satirical, begins. Becoming "Columbus of Zamoskvorechye", he opened to the world a hitherto unknown layer of Russian life - the middle and small merchants and philistines, reflected his originality, showed both bright strong, pure characters and the gloomy harsh reality of the world of huckstering, hypocrisy, lack of high impulses and ideals ... It happened in 1849. And already in his first significant play, the writer outlines with strokes a special type of personality that will appear in him over and over again: from Samson Silych the Bolshoi to Titus Titych Bruskov from "A Hangover in Another's Feast" and further, to Martha Ignatievna Kabanova and Savel Prokopyevich Diky from "Thunderstorms" are a type of tyrant, named very accurately and succinctly and, thanks to the playwright, entered our speech use. People who completely violate the logical and moral and ethical, human society fit into this category. The critic Dobrolyubov called Dikaya and Kabanikha, who represent the "dark kingdom" in Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm", "The tyrants of Russian life".

Petty tyranny as a socio-typological phenomenon

Let us examine this phenomenon in more detail. Why do tyrants appear in society? First of all, from the awareness of their own complete and absolute power, the complete leveling of the interests and opinions of others in comparison with their own, the feeling of impunity and lack of resistance from the victims. This is how the "dark kingdom" is shown in Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm". Dikoy and Kabanova are the richest residents of the small provincial town of Kalinov, located along the banks of the Volga. Money allows them to feel personal value and importance. They also give them power - over their household, over strangers, people in some way dependent on them, and more broadly - over public opinion in the city. The "Dark Kingdom" in Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm" is terrible in that it destroys or mutilates the slightest manifestations of protest, any spirit of freedom and independence. Petty tyranny is the flip side of slavery. It equally corrupts both the "masters of life" themselves and those who depend on them, poisoning all of Russia with its pernicious breath. That is why, according to Dobrolyubov's definition, the "dark kingdom" in Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm" is synonymous with tyranny.

Drama conflict

Possessing a deep understanding of reality, the writer was able to portray the most essential and significant aspects of it. In the pre-reform year 1859, he was impressed by a trip along the Volga in 1856-1857. creates a play, later recognized as one of his best creations - the drama "The Thunderstorm". What is interesting: literally a month after the play was completed, events took place in Kostroma, as if reproducing a literary work according to the script. What does this mean? About how accurately Alexander Nikolaevich felt and guessed the conflict and how the "dark kingdom" is realistically reflected in the play "The Thunderstorm".

It was not for nothing that Ostrovsky chose the main contradiction of Russian life as the main conflict - the clash between the conservative principle, based on patriarchal traditions, formed over the centuries and based on indisputable authority, moral principles and prohibitions, on the one hand, and on the other, a rebellious, creative and lively beginning. , the need of the individual to break stereotypes, to move forward in spiritual development. Therefore, not only Dikoy and Kabanikha embody the "dark kingdom" in the play "The Thunderstorm". Ostrovsky makes it clear that the slightest concession to him, connivance and non-resistance automatically transfer a person to the rank of accomplices.

The philosophy of the "dark kingdom"

From the very first lines of the play, two elements burst into our consciousness: the free, wonderful distances, wide horizons and the stuffy, thickened atmosphere of the pre-storm, the agonizing expectation of some kind of upheaval and the thirst for renewal. Representatives of the "dark kingdom" in the play "The Thunderstorm" are horrified by the cataclysms of nature, seeing in them a manifestation of God's wrath and impending punishments for sins - obvious and imaginary. Martha Ignatievna keeps repeating this all the time, echoes her and Dikoy. At the request of Kuligin to donate money for the construction of a lightning conductor for the townspeople, he reproaches: "The thunderstorm was given as a punishment, and you, such and such, want to defend yourself from the Lord with a pole." This remark clearly shows the philosophy that the representatives of the "dark kingdom" adhere to in the play "The Thunderstorm": one cannot resist what has ruled for centuries, one cannot go against the will or punishment from above, humility and obedience must remain the ethical norms of our time. What is interesting: the main tyrants of Kalinov themselves not only sincerely believe in this order of things, but also recognize it as the only correct one.

A hypocrite under the guise of virtue

"The Dark Kingdom" in the play "The Thunderstorm" by A. N. Ostrovsky has many faces. But its pillars, first of all, are Dikoy and Kabanova. Marfa Ignatievna, a portly merchant's wife, mistress of the house, behind the high fence of which invisible tears are pouring and everyday humiliation of human dignity and free will occurs, is unambiguously named in the play - a prude. They say about her: "She gives alms to the beggars, goes to church, is fervently baptized, and eats her household, sharpens iron like rust." She tries to comply with the external laws of antiquity in everything, while not particularly caring about their internal content. Kabanikha knows that the younger must obey the elders and requires blind obedience in everything. When Katerina bid farewell to Tikhon before his departure, she makes her bow at her husband's feet, and her son - to give his wife a strict order on how to behave. There, and "not to contradict mother", and "not to look at the guys" and many other "wishes". Moreover, all those present are well aware of the farcical situation, its falsity. And only Marfa Ignatievna revels in her mission. She also played a decisive role in the tragedy of Katerina, distorting the character of her son, ruining his family life, outraging the soul of Katerina herself and forcing her to take a fatal step from the banks of the Volga into the abyss.

Lies in the rank of law

"The Dark Kingdom" in the drama of A. N. Ostrovsky "The Thunderstorm" is tyranny in its highest manifestation. Katerina, comparing life in her own family and in the family of her husband, notes the most important difference: everything here seems to be "out of bondage." And it is true. Either you obey the inhuman rules of the game, or they will grind you to dust. Kuligin directly states that the customs in the city are "cruel". He who is rich tries to enslave the poor in order to increase his fortune on their pennies. The same Dikoy swaggers over Boris who is dependent on him: "If you please me, I will give you my inheritance!" But it is impossible to please the tyrant, and the fate of the unfortunate Boris and his sister is predetermined. They will remain humiliated and insulted, powerless and defenseless. Is there a way out? Yes: lie, dodge, as long as possible. This is what Tikhon's sister, Varvara, does. Its are simple: do what you want, so long as no one notices anything, everything is “embroidered and covered”. And when Katerina objects that she does not know how to dissemble, cannot lie, Varvara simply says to her: "And I didn’t know how, but it became necessary - I learned!"

Kudryash, Varvara and others

And what exactly are the victims of the "dark kingdom" based on the drama by A. N. Ostrovsky "The Thunderstorm"? These are people with a broken destiny, crippled souls, a disfigured moral world. The same Tikhon is by nature a kind, gentle person. The tyranny of his mother killed the rudiments of his own will in him. He cannot resist her pressure, does not know how to resist and finds consolation in drunkenness. To support his wife, to take her side, to protect from boar's arbitrariness is also beyond his power. At the instigation of his mother, he beats Katerina, although he pities her. And only the death of his wife makes him openly blame his mother, but it is clear that the fuse will pass very quickly, and everything will remain the same.

Another male character, Vanya Kudryash, is a completely different matter. He rebuffs everyone and even the "piercing" Wild does not let down rudeness. However, this character is also spoiled by the deadening influence of the "dark kingdom". Curly is a copy of the Wild One, who has not yet entered into force, has not matured. Time will pass, and he will be worthy of his master. Barbara, who has become a liar and endures her mother's oppression, eventually runs away from home. Lying has become her second nature, and therefore the heroine evokes sympathy and compassion in us. Timid Kuligin rarely dares to defend himself in front of the impudent tyrants of the "dark kingdom". In fact, no one, except Katerina, who is also a victim, by the way, has sufficient firmness to challenge this "kingdom".

Why Katerina?

The only hero of the work who lacks the moral determination to condemn the life and customs of the "dark kingdom" in the play "The Thunderstorm" by A. N. Ostrovsky is Katerina. Her naturalness, sincerity, ardent impetuosity, inspiration do not allow one to come to terms with arbitrariness and violence, to accept the etiquette dictated since the pre-construction times. Katerina wants to love, enjoy life, experience natural feelings, and be open to the world. Like a bird, she dreams of getting off the ground, from the deadening life and soaring into the skies. She is religious, but not Kaban-style. Her straightforward nature is torn in two by the contradiction between duty to her husband, love for Boris and the awareness of her sinfulness before God. And all this is deeply sincere, from the very depths of the heart. Yes, Katerina is also a victim of the "dark kingdom". However, she managed to break his shackles. The age-old foundations have shaken. And she was able to show the way out to others - not only by her own death, but by protest in general.