Katerina and Boris relationship. Boris and Katerina

He said wonderful and just words about the Thunderstorm play in his letter to A. N. Ostrovsky to V.P. Botkin: “You have never revealed your poetic powers so much as in this play ... In Thunderstorm "You took a plot that is full of poetry through and through, a plot that is impossible for someone who does not have poetic creativity ... Katerina's love belongs to the same phenomena of moral nature, to which world cataclysms in physical nature belong .. . ".

So, Katerina is in love with Boris. After reading this line, one can only breathe: “Well, all ages are submissive to love ...”, or you can think deeply, because love for Boris became a real tragedy for the heroine of “Gro-za”, amplifying the drama she was going through, once in the "dark kingdom".

Katerina is a thin, dreamy, ethical girl. This is a highly moral person, simply stuffy, artless in relations with people. She does not know how to lie, pretend, hide her feelings. She feels deeply, therefore, once she sees Boris and falls in love with him, she can no longer help herself. “Do I want to think about him? - she argues. - But what to do if it doesn't get out of my head. Whatever I think about, but he still stands before my eyes. " For married Katerina, faithful to her husband and devout, this love becomes a real moral torture. “It’s as if I’m standing over an abyss and someone is pushing me there, but I have nothing to hold on to,” she describes her condition.

Being kind, Katerina pity her husband, whom she never loved and does not love, with whom she can never be happy. He is a weak, weak-willed person who allows himself to be humiliated in front of his wife.

Boris and Katerina cannot see each other, because the married ladies are kept in Kalinov under seven locks. Tikhon's sister, Varvara, for whom there have been no moral barriers for a long time, is taken to solve the problem. “And I was not a deceiver,” she says about herself, “but I learned when I needed to.” Katerina would hardly have been able to master this science.

At first resisting, Katerina nevertheless accepts Varvara's services. She can no longer find herself in a suffocating atmosphere of bigotry, lack of freedom, tyranny, and she can not fight her love by force. The heroine is committing a great sin - she decides to meet with Boris. Fate favors this: Ka-baniha sends his son out of the house. Katerina experiences the current situation painfully, but she cannot overcome it. Several meetings with Boris oss-broadcast her life with rays of happiness, but not for long.

Boris is dependent on his uncle, the Wild merchant. He is an orphan, and his grandmother in a will ordered that Boris receive a share of the inheritance only after the age of majority and only on condition of respectful attitude towards his uncle, which is, in principle, impossible. Not because Boris is not respectful to his elders, but because it is impossible to please a Wild, imperious, rude, shameless and cunning person. Nevertheless, Boris continues to live in his uncle's house, patiently enduring all the insults. There is no strength in his character that would help him to overcome circumstances.

Once in Kalinov, Boris, like Katerina, feels uncomfortable. “It’s painful for me here, without a habit! He says. “Everyone is looking at me somehow wildly, as if I’m superfluous here, as if I’m interfering with them.” Love becomes an unexpected misfortune for him. "Hunted down, hammered," he exclaims, "and then I foolishly decided to fall in love."

Boris cannot overcome his feelings. “If I have already fallen in love ...”, - he says, revealing his secret to Kud-ryash, and does not finish the phrase, because everything is clear anyway. However, he cannot take the first step either. Barbara turns out to be much more agile than him. Boris accepts her service, but does not know how to answer for what he has done. Punished by his uncle, he obediently goes to Siberia. At Katerina's request to take her with him, Boris refuses - he is wary of his uncle. Boris actually betrays Katerina, leaving her in this position.

The heroine is stronger than Boris. It is she, who does not know how to lie, who speaks publicly about her love. She challenges the "dark kingdom" by throwing herself into the abyss. Boris, of course, sympathizes with Katerina, but the only thing he can do to help her is to wish her death.

Ostrovsky showed Katerina a woman who was “downtrodden by the environment,” but at the same time he endowed her with the positive qualities of a strong nature, capable of resisting despotism to the end. About Boris, the critic N. Dobrolyubov said that he was the same Tikhon, only "educated." "Education took away from him the power to do dirty tricks ... but it did not give him the strength to resist the dirty tricks that others do ...".

Lesson topic: "Who is to blame for the death of Katerina?" (Katerina's love in the play by A.N. Ostrovsky "The Thunderstorm")

The purpose of the lesson:-analyze the image of the heroine; to understand why she decided to love Boris, what this love led to.

Find out Katerina's suicide - strength or weakness.

Find out the character traits of Katerina, why she cannot live according to the laws of the "dark kingdom".

Teach to conduct research work on the text.

Learn to express your opinion.

Lesson form: dispute.

Methodological techniques: conversation with episode analysis, student reports, musical accompaniment, use of motion pictures and illustrations .

Equipment: the play by A.N. Ostrovsky "The Thunderstorm", illustrations for the play, portraits of the actresses who played Katerina, the film "The Thunderstorm", musical accompaniment, verses by A. Dementyev and P. Vegin .

During the classes:

Organizing time.

Organization of the group for work, mark the absent.

Communication of the topic and objectives of the lesson.

Love is stronger than death, stronger than the fear of death.

(I.S. Turgenev)

Music sounds: romance "Under the caress of a plush blanket" - 2min 35 sec.

What kind of love is sung about in the romance? (love is self-sacrifice that leads to destruction).

The main heroine of the play "The Thunderstorm" love also led to death.

The topic of our lesson: "Do not tempt me by loving!" (Katerina's love in the play by A.N. Ostrovsky "The Thunderstorm")

Epigraph of the lesson: "Love is stronger than death, stronger than the fear of death."

How do you understand these words?

When a person loves, he is ready for anything, ready to sacrifice himself for the sake of his beloved, ready to perform a feat in the name of love. The main heroine of the play - Katerina is ready to sacrifice a lot in the name of love, even her principles, she rushes into the pool without fear of God's punishment.

We need to figure out why Katerina decided to love Boris, why Katerina committed suicide, Katerina's death was a victory or defeat, to reveal the traits of Katerina's character, why she cannot live according to the laws of the "dark kingdom", what are the origins of Katerina's character. We teach the lesson in the form of a dispute in which you must express your opinion - is Katerina's love a weakness or strength? Suicide of Katerina - Is it a victory or a defeat? Can this be called Katherine's protest against the "dark kingdom"? During the lesson, each of you should form your own opinion on this matter, which you will express during the dispute.

Homework implementation.

To better understand the image of Katerina and its incompatibility with the norms and morality of the "dark kingdom", let us recall the previous lesson, the way of life and customs of the city of Kalinov, after completing the assignments.

Assignments: "Do you know the play" Thunderstorm "(handout)

Students read the question and answer it orally

Homework question: Which of the characters in the play does not belong to either the “victims” or the “owners” of the city of Kalinov? (Katerina Kabanova). Why? (She does not subordinate anyone to herself and does not know how to obey herself)

New material.

1) Katerina's character traits.

Katerina is the main character of Ostrovsky's play, does not obey the "masters" of life (Kabanikha and the Wild), the laws of the dark kingdom are alien to her, she lives as her conscience tells her. The names of the heroes have a symbolic meaning: Katerina - Greek. "Cleanliness", "decency"; but the name of Kabanikha is Martha - Greek. "Mistress", "mistress", this is how she feels in the play; Kabanikha's daughter - Varvara - from the Greek "foreign", "rough". Such Katerina by virtue of her character.

What character traits appear from the very first remarks of Katerina? (read out the lines) - the inability to be hypocritical, straightforwardness.

From the very first remarks of Katerina, a conflict is felt.

Where did such traits of Katerina come from, if the city of Kalinov lives by different principles? (upbringing in childhood, in the home)

Let us compare the life of Katerina in the Kabanikha's house and in the house of her parents.

At the parents' house:

- "like a bird in the wild"

- "mama doted on her"

- "they were not forced to work"

- "I embroidered, went to church, walked"

In her parents' house, Katerina felt the cordial attitude of her relatives, relative freedom, listened to the stories of pilgrims, praying mantis, and attended church. Hence, Katerina has a morbid impressionability and a romantic attitude towards life.

In Kabanikha's house:

- "wilted like a flower"

- "they scold you out of love"

- "all under duress"

- "will not be afraid of me, and even more so"

In the house of Kabanova, Katerina experienced a cruel relationship to her mother-in-law, which caused a constant spiritual rebellion, and Tikhon did not understand Katerina. And he lived by the orders of Kabanikha.

The influence of the Kabanovs' life on Katerina:

A) Awareness of their doom

B) Seclusion, disappointment in family life.

C) Passionate desire for freedom, love, happiness.

Now let's find out the character traits of the main character and what is her conflict with others?

Katerina's character traits - the principles of life in the Kabanikha house

Love of freedom - submission

Independence - giving up your will

Self-esteem - humiliation by reproaches and suspicions

Dreaminess and poetry - lack of spiritual principles

Religiousness - religious hypocrisy

Determination - not to let live of your own free will (bondage)

Kindness, unselfishness - rudeness and abuse

Honesty, spontaneity is deceit

Output: For Katerina, the main thing is to live according to your soul, and for Kabanikha, the main thing is to subdue and not let you live in your own way. Here a sharp contrast arises — an irreconcilable conflict emerges.

What is your opinion on the question: How does Katerina differ from the residents of the city of Kalinova? (spontaneity, kindness, sincerity, honesty, etc.)

Is Katerina's desire for freedom a protest or a state of mind? (Students' opinions)

2) Is Katerina's love for Boris a protest or a sincere feeling?

Love is the driving force behind the story. What is love? Definition according to the Ozhegov dictionary (Love of children, parents, friends, high feeling)

1) all the heroes talk about love, especially Katerina.

2) We are talking about different love (love of parents, friendship, sons

and about love as a high spiritual feeling.)

3) The first and last remarks about love belong to Katerina.

4) In 4.D, where the scene of Katerina's repentance is described - there are no replicas at all with the word "love"

Is the tragedy of Katerina a tragedy of love or conscience?

Poem by A. Dementyev "The soul does not want change"

Love not only uplifts.

Love sometimes destroys us.

Breaks fates and hearts ...

Beautiful in her desires

She can be so dangerous

Like an explosion, like nine grams of lead.

She bursts in suddenly.

And you can’t tomorrow

Don't see a pretty face.

Love not only uplifts.

Love decides and decides everything.

And we go into this captivity.

And we do not dream of freedom.

While the dawn rises in my soul

The soul does not want change.

So Katerina's love is not only a sublime feeling, but a destructive feeling, which played a fatal role in her fate, led the heroine to death. Cases of suicide in the patriarchal merchant world were not isolated - we will see this from the history of the creation of the play "The Thunderstorm" (student report)

“On the instructions of His Imperial Highness, General-Admiral, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich, prominent Russian writers who already had travel experience and a taste for essay prose were sent to the country for new materials for the Sea Collection. They were supposed to study and describe folk crafts associated with the sea, lakes and rivers, the techniques of local shipbuilding and navigation, the state of domestic fishing and the very state of the waterways of Russia.

Ostrovsky got the Upper Volga from the source to Nizhny Novgorod. And he got down to business with enthusiasm. "

“In the ancient dispute of the Volga cities about which of them, by the will of Ostrovsky, was turned into Kalinov (the scene of the play“ The Thunderstorm ”), arguments in favor of Kineshma, Tver, Kostroma are most often heard. The disputants seemed to have forgotten about Rzhev, but meanwhile, Rzhev was clearly involved in the birth of the mysterious idea of ​​the "Thunderstorm"!

It is not known exactly where The Thunderstorm was written - at a dacha near Moscow or in the Trans-Volga Shchelykovo, but it was created with amazing speed, truly by inspiration, in a few months in 1859.

For quite a long time it was believed that Ostrovsky took the plot of "The Thunderstorm" from the life of the Kostroma merchants, which was based on the sensational Klykov case in Kostroma at the end of the summer of 1859. Until the beginning of the 20th century, the Kostroma residents proudly pointed to the place of Katerina's suicide - a gazebo at the end of a small boulevard, in those years literally hanging over the Volga. They also showed the house where she lived - next to the Church of the Assumption. And the code "Thunderstorm" was for the first time on the stage of the Kostroma theater, the artists made up "like the Klykovs".

Kostroma local historians later thoroughly examined the "Klykovskoe Delo" in the archives and, with documents in hand, came to the conclusion that Ostrovsky used this very story in his work on The Thunderstorm. The coincidences were almost literal. A.P. Klykova was issued at the age of sixteen into a gloomy and unsociable merchant family, consisting of old parents, a son and an unmarried daughter. The mistress of the house, stern and obstinate, depersonalized her husband and children with her despotism. She forced the young daughter-in-law to do any dirty work, refused her requests to see her relatives.

At the time of the drama, Klykova was 19 years old. In the past, she was brought up in love and the hall of the soul in her doted grandmother, she was cheerful, cheerful, lively. Now she found herself in an unkind and alien family. Her young husband, Klykov, a carefree and apathetic man, could not protect his wife from the oppression of his mother-in-law and treated her indifferently. The Klykovs had no children. And then another man, Maryin, an employee in the post office, stood in the way of the young woman. Suspicions began, scenes of jealousy. It ended with the fact that on November 10, 1859, the body of A.P. Klykova was found in the Volga. A long trial began, which received wide publicity even outside the Kostroma province, and none of the Kostroma residents doubted that Ostrovsky had used the materials of this case in the "Thunderstorm".

Many decades passed before the researchers of Ostrovsky's creativity established precisely that The Thunderstorm was written before the Klykova merchant's wife from Kostroma threw herself into the Volga. Ostrovsky began work on The Thunderstorm in June-July 1859 and finished on October 9 of the same year.

It can be concluded that such cases happened in the merchant environment, as the patriarchal foundations of society did not allow living freely, independently, but subjugated, enslaved. A woman could not love who she wants, they were not married out for love, and she had to come to terms with her fate.

Katerina Kabanova did not accept, as did A.P. Klykova.

Reading the dialogue between Katerina and Varvara (D.2, app. 2)

Whom did Katerina love?

Why does Varvara guess about Katerina's love?

What can be said about the principles of the Kabanovs' house? How did Varvara adapt?

Katerina fell in love with Boris, but Katerina's conscience, her religiosity does not allow her to transgress the moral law - to cheat on her husband. The torment of Katerina was noticed by Varvara, who adapted to the laws of the "dark kingdom", learned to deceive and secretly from her mother meets with her beloved Curly. It is Varvara who arranges a meeting between Katerina and Boris when Tikhon leaves on business.

Analysis of the scene "Farewell to Tikhon" D2, yavl.3,4,5.

(Reading by Role)

How do the characters behave in this scene, how does this characterize them?

What significance does this scene have in the development of events?

(In this scene, Kabanikha's despotism is revealed to the extreme, Tikhon's complete inability not only to protect, but also to understand Katerina is revealed. This scene explains Katerina's decision to go on a date with Boris.)

How does Tikhon behave before leaving?

(To understand Tikhon's state of mind before leaving, one must clearly understand his position in his mother's house, his desire to be freed from custody for at least two weeks. not everything. Mother demands that he give instructions to Katerina how to live without him. Tikhon understands that, fulfilling his mother's will, he humiliates his wife.

When Kabanikha's instructions become completely offensive, Tikhon tries to object to the bullying of Katerina, but his mother is adamant, and he quietly, embarrassed, as if apologizing to his wife, says: “Don't look at the guys!” The goal of Kabanikha is to lead to complete obedience of the family and, above all, the wayward Katerina)

Analysis of a monologue with a key. D 2, yavl. 10.

Let's try to understand why Katerina fell in love with Boris?

We will find the answer in Dobrolyubov's article: “This passion is for her all life; all the strength of her nature, all her living aspirations merge here. She is attracted to Boris not only by the fact that she likes him, that he does not look like the rest of those around her both in appearance and in speech, her need for love, which has not found a response in her husband, and the offended feeling of his wife and woman, attracts her, and the deathly melancholy of her monotonous life, and the desire for will, space, hot, unforbidden freedom. "

Reading a monologue. (Read by a student)

What feelings does Katerina experience, how are these feelings reflected in her speech? What is the meaning of the scene?

(Here the victory of Katerina's natural feeling over the dogmas of house building is revealed. Katerina's speech is full of short, abrupt interrogative and exclamatory sentences, repetitions, comparisons that convey the tension of Katerina's feelings.

After an agitated introduction, Katerina's bitter thoughts about life in captivity follow. Speech becomes more restrained, balanced. Katerina disputes the original decision - to throw the key: “What a sin, if I look at it once, even from a distance! Yes, even though I will talk! .. But he himself did not want to. " This part of the monologue is accompanied by remarks: after thinking, silence, pondering, pensively looking at the key characterizing Katerina's state.

The monologue ends with a strong impulse of feelings: "I should at least die, but see him ..."

The choice of love dooms Katerina to torment. She meets with Boris.

An excerpt from the film "Thunderstorm" (scene "Date")

What is the complexity of Katerina's inner state?

(Katerina goes to deception and stands on a par with Varvara, this is not typical of Katerina's nature. The author shows the evolution of the heroine's state of mind - from confusion to the assertion of the right to love. to Boris "with fright, but without raising his eyes," "lifts his eyes and looks at Boris," "throws herself on his neck.")

How is Katerina's struggle with herself shown in these monologues? (her monologues are tense, emotional, it is not the mind that speaks in them, but the heart.)

How is Katerina's determination expressed? (decided on love with Boris, acted at the behest of the heart, not the law)

Output: Katerina's love is a sincere feeling, she is not capable of hypocrisy and pretending, she acts at the behest of her heart, violating the moral and religious law - she is cheating on her husband, and Tikhon did not strive to win Katerina's love, but lived by the orders and orders of his "mamma", therefore Katerina did not find support and love in him, so she is looking for it on the side.

So. is Katerina's love a sincere feeling or a protest? (students' opinions )

Repentance of Katerina (D.4, javl 6)

After her husband's arrival, Katerina “just became on her own ... She was trembling all over, as if her fever was beating; so pale, rushing about the house, as if looking for what. Eyes like a madman. "

Why did the changes take place in Katherine? (Katerina was religious, cheating on her husband, she committed a grave sin, she went for a deception, which is contrary to her nature, so Katerina has a hard time in her soul, it is easier for her to confess, repent)

Since the drama is called "The Thunderstorm", the thunderstorm motif is present throughout the entire play. Let's try to figure out how the title of the play determines the actions of the main character.

What do you think is the meaning of the title?

(Thunderstorm - in nature - the motive of an impending thunderstorm is constantly heard.

A thunderstorm in Katerina's soul - disagreement with the morality of the "dark kingdom", the desire to live according to the dictates of the heart, love for Boris, leads to confusion in the soul.

Thunderstorm in society - a conflict is brewing, the unwillingness of many to live according to norms and

rules of house building, free feelings awaken in a society that is not free.)

Thunderstorm in nature - refreshing

Thunderstorm in the soul - clears

Thunderstorm in society - enlightens.

How residents of Kalinov perceived a thunderstorm (as a divine phenomenon. As a punishment of God, Katerina is no exception, she is afraid of a thunderstorm, following religious motives)

How is the repentance scene motivated? (read an excerpt from the play)

(A thunderstorm is approaching, which, according to the Kalinovites, “is being sent to us as punishment.” The gloomy coloring is intensified by the scene of action - instead of a panorama of the Volga, there is a narrow gallery with oppressive arches. husband, before whom she is guilty - torture for her)

What is the difference in Katerina's state of mind in D.1 and D.4?

(The difference in the state of mind of Katerina is also expressed in her exclamations after the lady left for D.1 “Oh, how she frightened me, I tremble all over, as if she was predicting something for me; D.4.:“ Ah, I’m dying! ”Katerina waiting for God's punishment. She seeks protection from God, kneels down and sees the image of hell in front of her. This is how Ostrovsky brings him to the culmination of the play - the scene of repentance.)

E.4.javl.6. - Read the passage. What feelings does Katerina have now?

(If in the monologue with the key and in the scene of the date the victory of love in Katerina's soul is revealed, then in the scene of repentance the power of the norms of religious morality gravitating over Katerina is clearly revealed.)

(If Katerina hid her sin, learned to pretend and cheat, continued to go on dates with Boris, this would mean that Katerina has adapted to the surrounding society, reconciled with its moral principles, despotism)

What explains Katerina's remorse?

(Katerina's repentance is explained not only by the fear of God's punishment, but also by the fact that her high morality is rebelling against the deception that has entered her life. She said about herself: “I don’t know how to deceive, I can’t hide anything.” For Katerina's moral assessment of her actions and thoughts is an important aspect of spiritual life. And in the nationwide recognition of Katerina, one can see an attempt to atone for her guilt, severely punish herself, an attempt at moral purification.)

Could Katerina find the way to the salvation of the soul? Why? (students' opinions)

Farewell to Boris. (D.5, yavl 3.4)

(Reading excerpt)

The romance "And finally I will tell" sounds

Katerina throws herself into the Volga, not reconciling with the laws of the "dark kingdom".

Why Boris could not save Katerina (He was a “victim” of the “dark kingdom”, lived under the influence of the Wild one, and could not disobey him, obey him and could not, like Katerina, oppose bondage because of the fear of the “victim”)

What conclusion can be drawn?

Output: Katerina never betrayed herself, she decided on love at the behest of her heart, she confessed to treason due to her inner feeling of freedom (a lie is lack of freedom), says goodbye to Boris not only because of the feeling of love, but also because of the fact that he suffered because of her, she threw herself into the Volga at the request of a free soul.

Prove that Katherine's death is a protest.

(Timid Tikhon blames his mother for the death of his wife, Varvara runs away from home)

Who will pray for the heroines who died for love?

Poem by P. Vegin "The keeper of the hearth"

You are destroying the hearth.

Blue fire is boiling

Desperate eyes.

Warrior in love

What a drama to you, what a shame?

And you destroy the house

To build a temple.

The heroine of the play, destroying the family, went to love, experienced moments of happiness, built a temple of love, probably the goddess of love will pray for her soul.

Will the city of Kalinov be able to live as before after the death of Katerina? (students' opinions)

Work on the textbook (Reserve)

The role of Katerina was played by many actresses, everyone approached the interpretation of this image in different ways.

"Performers of the roles of Katerina"

1- Kositskaya

2-Fedotova

3-Strepetova

4-Ermolova

5-Tarasova

6-Kozyreva

Textbook work: How did the actresses embody the image of Katerina?

Output: Diverse stage performances are a continuation of the controversy: is it strength or weakness? Protest or humility?

6.Critics about the play.

"What is the critic supposed to do here?"

Student message

Dobrolyubov "A ray of light in the dark kingdom"

- "Thunderstorm" is the revolutionary forces ripening in the depths of Russia

The critic noted strong, rebellious motives in the character of Katerina

In Katerina we see a protest against the Kabanov concepts of morality.

Katerina is a healthy person. Who found the determination to end this rotten life at all costs.

D. Pisarev "Motives of Russian Drama"

Katerina is a “crazy dreamer

Katerina's whole life consists of internal contradictions

She constantly rushes from one extreme to another.

She confuses her life and the lives of others at every step.

She confused everything, cuts the tightened knots with the most stupid means - suicide.

Apollon Grigoriev

Saw the poetry of folk life in Katherine

He noted the beauty of nature, the Volga, against the background of which the action unfolds: "As if not an artist, but a whole people created here!"

7. Fastening.

T eating task.

Lesson summary.

So, we examined in the lesson the image of the main character of Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm", what conclusion can be drawn about her? (strong, decisive, able to love, defend her feelings, but not knowing how to lie, deceive, afraid of God - all this led the heroine to death)

Disassemble the circuit. (Met Zolotareva p. 196) - to draw the conclusion of the lesson

Post marks.

Lesson conclusion: Katerina is a strong person who knew how to love, is ready for self-sacrifice in the name of love, but she is honest, sincere and therefore she is not capable of pretending, deceiving, i.e. to live according to the laws of the "dark kingdom", she chose a way out - suicide, in order to rid herself and her soul of remorse and get away from the norms and rules of the city of Kalinov.

The romance "Love is a fairy land" sounds

9. D / s

Make a description of the literary hero - Katherine according to the plan (see the stand)

In the position of Katerina, we see that all the "ideas" instilled in her since childhood, all the principles of the environment - rebel against her natural aspirations and actions. The terrible struggle to which the young woman is condemned is waged in every word, in every movement of the drama, and this is where the whole importance of the introductory persons, for whom Ostrovsky is so reproached, turns out to be. Take a good look: you see that Katerina was brought up in concepts that are the same as the concepts of the environment in which she lives, and she cannot renounce them without having any theoretical education. The stories of the wanderers and the suggestions of her household, although she processed it in her own way, could not help but leave an ugly mark in her soul: indeed, we see in the play that Katerina, having lost her rainbow dreams and ideal, lofty aspirations, kept one thing from her upbringing. a strong feeling - fear of some dark forces, something unknown, which she could not explain to herself properly, nor reject. She fears for every thought, for the simplest feeling she expects herself to be punished; it seems to her that the storm will kill her, because she is a sinner, the pictures of fiery hell on the church wall seem to her already a harbinger of her eternal torment ... And everything around her supports and develops this fear in her: Feklushi go to Kabanikha to talk about the last times; Dikoy insists that a thunderstorm is sent to us as a punishment, so that we feel; a lady who has come, instilling fear in everyone in the city, appears several times in order to shout over Katerina in an ominous voice: "Everything will burn in the fire in the inextinguishable." Everyone around is full of superstitious fear, and everyone around, in accordance with the concepts of Katerina herself, should look at her feelings for Boris as the greatest crime. Even the daring Kudryash, the esprit-fort * of this milieu, finds that the girls can walk with the guys as much as you want - that's nothing, but the women have to be locked up. This conviction is so strong in him that, having learned about Boris's love for Katerina, he, in spite of his daring and some kind of outrage, says that "this business must be abandoned." Everything is against Katerina, even her own notions of good and evil; everything must force her - to drown her impulses and wither in the cold and gloomy formalism of family mute and obedience, without any living aspirations, without will, without love, or learn to deceive people and conscience.<…>

The environment in which Katerina lives requires her to lie and deceive; “You can't live without it,” Varvara tells her, “you remember where you live; we have the whole house on this. And I was not a deceiver, but I learned when I needed to. " Katerina succumbs to her position, goes out to Boris at night, hides her feelings from her mother-in-law for ten days ... You might think: here's a woman who has gone astray, has learned to deceive her family and will be lecherous on the sly, pretending to caress her husband and wearing a disgusting mask of humility! One could not severely blame her for that either: her situation is so difficult! But then she would be one of the dozen people of the type who is already so worn out in stories that showed how "the environment seizes good people." Katerina is not like that: the denouement of her love in all the domestic environment is visible in advance, even when she just gets down to business. She does not engage in psychological analysis and therefore cannot express subtle observations of herself; what she says about herself, so it means, strongly lets her know herself. And she, at the first proposal of Varvara to meet her with Boris, cries out: “No, no, don't! God forbid: if I see him at least once, I'll run away from home, I won't go home for anything in the world! " It is not a reasonable precaution in her that says - it is passion; and it is already clear that no matter how she restrained herself, passion is higher than her, higher than all her prejudices and fears, higher than all suggestions. heard by her since childhood. In this passion lies her whole life; all the strength of her nature, all her living aspirations merge here. She is attracted to Boris not only by the fact that she likes him, that he, both in appearance and in speech, is not like the others around her; she is attracted to him by the need for love, which has not found a response in her husband, and the offended feeling of the wife and woman, and the mortal melancholy of her monotonous life, and the desire for will, space, hot, unforbidden freedom. She keeps dreaming of how to “fly invisibly wherever she wants”; but then such a thought comes: “if it were my will, I would now ride on the Volga, on a boat, singing, or in a troika on a good one, embracing” ... “Only not with my husband,” Varya prompts her, and Katerina does not can hide her feelings and immediately opens up to her with a question: "how do you know?" It can be seen that Varvara's remark explained a lot for her herself: while telling her dreams so naively, she still did not fully understand their meaning. But one word is enough to convey to her thoughts the certainty that she herself was afraid to give them. Until now, she could still doubt whether this new feeling was precisely the bliss for which she was so painfully seeking. But once having uttered a word of mystery, she will not abandon her in her thoughts. Fear, doubts, the thought of sin and human judgment - all this comes to her mind, but no longer has power over her; this is so, formalities, to clear the conscience. In the monologue with the key (the last in the second act), we see a woman, in whose soul a decisive step has already been taken, but who only wants to somehow "speak" herself. She makes an attempt to stand somewhat aside from herself and judge the deed on which she decided as an outside matter; but her thoughts are all directed towards justifying this act. “Here,” he says, “how long will it take to die ... Someone is having fun in captivity ... At least now I live, I suffer, I don’t see a glimpse of myself ... my mother-in-law crushed me” ... and so on. etc. - all exculpatory articles. And then there were also lightening considerations: “It’s evident already, fate wants it so ... But what a sin in this, if I look at him once ... Yes, even though I’ll talk, it’s not a problem. Or maybe such a case will not come out for the rest of his life ... ”This monologue aroused in some critics a desire to sneer at Katerina as a shameless hypocrite *; but we know no greater shamelessness than to assure that we or one of our ideal friends are not involved in such transactions with conscience ... In these transactions, it is not individuals who are to blame, but those concepts that have been hammered into their heads since childhood and which so often the natural course of the living strivings of the soul is repugnant. Until these concepts are expelled from society, until complete harmony of the ideas and needs of nature is restored in the human being, such transactions are inevitable. It is also good if, while doing them, they come to what seems to be nature and common sense, and do not fall under the yoke of the conventional instructions of artificial morality. It was for this that Katerina became strong, and the stronger nature speaks in her, the more calmly she looks into the face of children's nonsense, which those around her have taught her to fear. Therefore, it even seems to us that the artist playing the role of Katerina on the St. Petersburg stage is making a small mistake, giving the monologue we are talking about too much heat and tragedy. She obviously wants to express the struggle going on in Katherine's soul, and from this point of view, she conveys the difficult monologue admirably. But it seems to us that it is more consistent with the character and position of Katerina in this case - to give her words more calm and lightness. The struggle, in fact, is already over, there remains only a little reflection, the old rags still cover Katerina, and she, little by little, throws it off of herself. The end of the monologue betrays her heart. “Whatever happens, and I’ll see Boris,” she concludes, and in the foreboding forgetfulness exclaims: “Oh, if the night is quick!”

Such love, such a feeling will not get along within the walls of the boar's house, with pretense and deception. Although Katerina decided on a secret date, for the very first time, in the delight of love, she says to Boris, who assures that no one will know anything: “Eh, it’s no one's fault to feel sorry for me,” she went for it herself. Do not regret, ruin me! Let everyone know, let everyone see what I am doing ... If I was not afraid of sin for you, will I be afraid of human judgment? "

And, for sure, she is not afraid of anything, except for the deprivation of the opportunity to see her chosen one, to talk with him, to enjoy with him these summer nights, these new feelings for her. Her husband came, and her life was out of life. It was necessary to hide, to be cunning; she did not want to and did not know how; she had to return again to her callous, dreary life — that seemed to her bitter than before. Moreover, he had to be afraid every minute for himself, for every word he said, especially in front of his mother-in-law; one had to be afraid of a terrible punishment for the soul ... Such a situation was unbearable for Katerina: days and nights she kept thinking, suffering, exalted her imagination, and without that hot, and the end was that she could not bear - for all the people crowded in the gallery of the old church, she repented of everything to her husband. His first movement was fear of what his mother would say. “Don’t, don’t tell, mother is here,” he whispers in confusion. But the mother has already listened and demands a complete confession, at the end of which she deduces her morality: "what, son, where will the will lead?"

It is difficult, of course, to mock common sense more than how Kabanikha does it in his exclamation. But in the “dark kingdom” common sense means nothing: they took measures against the “criminal” that were completely disgusting to him, but usual in that life: the husband, at the behest of his mother, beat his wife dearly, the mother-in-law locked her up and began to eat. ..

The will and peace of the poor woman is over: before they could not reproach her, even though she could feel her complete righteousness in front of these people. And now, one way or another, she is to blame for them, she violated her duties to them, brought grief and shame to the family; now the most cruel treatment of her already has reasons and justification. What is left for her?

<…> Another solution would be less impossible - to flee with Boris from arbitrariness and domestic violence. Despite the severity of the formal law, despite the fierceness of gross tyranny, such steps do not represent an impossibility in themselves, especially for such characters as Katerina. And she does not neglect this exit, because she is not an abstract heroine who wants death on principle. Having run away from home to meet with Boris, and already thinking about death, she, however, is not at all averse from running away; when she learned that Boris was going far away to Siberia, she very simply said to him: "Take me with you from here." But it is here that a stone emerges in front of us for a minute, which keeps people in the depths of the pool, which we call the "dark kingdom." This stone is material dependence. Boris has nothing and is completely dependent on his uncle - the Wild; Dikoy and the Kabanovs settled in order to send him to Kyakhta, and, of course, they would not allow him to take Katerina with him. That is why he answers her: “No, Katya; I am not going on my own free will, my uncle sends, the horses are already ready, "and so on. Boris is not a hero, he is far from worth Katerina, and she fell in love with him more in solitude. He had enough "education" and could not cope with either the old way of life, nor with his heart, nor with common sense - he walks as if he is lost. He lives with his uncle because he and his sister must give part of the grandmother's inheritance to him, "if they are respectful to him." Boris understands well that Dikoy will never recognize him as respectful and, therefore, will not give him anything; Yes, this is not enough. Boris thinks like this: “No, he will break down on us first, scold us in every possible way, as his heart desires, but all the same ends up by giving nothing or just a little, and he’ll even start telling what he gave out of mercy, that this should not have happened either. " And yet he lives with his uncle and endures his curses; why? - unknown. At the first meeting with Katerina, when she talks about what awaits her for this, Boris interrupts her with the words: "Well, what to think about this, we are good now." And at the last meeting, he cries: “Who knew that we would suffer so much with you for our love! It would be better for me to run then! " In a word, this is one of those very common people who do not know how to do what they understand and do not understand what they are doing. Their type has been portrayed many times in our fiction - sometimes with exaggerated compassion for them, sometimes with excessive bitterness against them. Ostrovsky gives them to us as they are, and with special skill he draws in two or three features their complete insignificance, although, incidentally, not devoid of a certain degree of spiritual nobility. There is nothing to spread about Boris; in fact, it should also be attributed to the situation in which the heroine of the play finds herself. He represents one of the circumstances which necessitates her fatal end. If it were a different person and in a different position, then there would be no need to rush into the water. But the fact of the matter is that the environment, subject to the power of the Dikikhs and Kabanovs, usually produces Tikhonov and Borisov, who are incapable of rising and adopting their human nature, even when faced with characters such as Katerina. We said a few words above about Tikhon; Boris is essentially the same, only "educated". Education took away from him the power to do dirty tricks, it’s true; but it did not give him the strength to resist the dirty tricks that others do; it did not even develop in him the ability to behave in such a way as to remain alien to everything ugly that swarms around him. No, not only does he not oppose, he submits to other people's filth, he willy-nilly participates in them and must accept all their consequences. But he understands his position, talks about him and often even deceives, for the first time, truly living and strong natures who, judging by themselves, think that if a person thinks so, understands so, then he should do so. Looking from their point of view, such natures do not hesitate to say to the "educated" sufferers, moving away from the sad circumstances of life: "Take me with you, I will follow you everywhere." But this is where the powerlessness of the sufferers appears; it turns out that they did not foresee, and that they curse themselves, and that they would be glad, but it is impossible, and that they have no will, and most importantly, that they have nothing behind their souls and that in order to continue their existence they must serve that the same to the Wild one, from whom we would like to get rid of ...

There is nothing to praise or scold these people, but you need to pay attention to the practical basis on which the question passes; it must be admitted that it is difficult for a person awaiting an inheritance from an uncle to throw off dependence on this uncle, and then one must give up unnecessary hopes for nephews awaiting an inheritance. even though they were "educated" at the very least. If we are to sort out the guilty person, then not so much the nephews as the uncles, or, better to say, their inheritance, will be to blame.

Dobrolyubov N.A. "A ray of light in the dark kingdom"

Ostrovsky's drama "The Thunderstorm" stands out from the great many of his plays thanks to Katerina. In drama, there is very rarely a “living” positive hero. As a rule, the author has enough colors for negative characters, but positive ones always come out primitively schematic. Perhaps because there is so little really good in this world. Katerina - the main character in Ostrovsky's drama - is the only thing that is good in that dark world, the “dark kingdom” of philistinism that surrounds her. The desire to fly - this is the main difference between Katerina and those people, into whose trap she fell, thanks to her marriage. But, unfortunately, there was only one way out of the trap for her.
From the words of Katerina, we learn about her childhood and adolescence. The girl did not receive a good education. She lived with her mother in the village. Katerina's childhood was joyful, cloudless. Mother did not like her in her, did not force her to work in the household. Katya lived freely: she got up early, washed herself with spring water, watered the flowers, went to church with her mother, then sat down to do some work and listened to the pilgrims and praying moths, of whom there were many in their house. Katerina had magical dreams in which she flew under the clouds. And how strongly the act of a six-year-old girl contrasts with such a quiet, happy life when Katya, offended by something, ran away from her house to the Volga in the evening, got into a boat and pushed off the shore! ..
We see that Katerina grew up a happy, romantic, but limited girl. She was very devout and passionately loving. She loved everything and everyone around her: nature, the sun, the church, her home with wanderers, the beggars whom she helped. But the most important thing about Katya is that she lived in her dreams, apart from the rest of the world. From all that exists, she chose only that which did not contradict her nature, the rest she did not want to notice and did not notice. Therefore, the girl saw angels in the sky, and for her the church was a place where everything is light, where you can dream.
But if she met on her way something that contradicted her ideals, then a rebellious and stubborn nature manifested in her and she defended herself from that stranger, stranger who dared to disturb her soul. This explains the case with the boat.
After marriage, Katya's life changed a lot. From a free, joyful, sublime world in which she felt her merger with nature, the girl found herself in a life full of deception, cruelty and doom. The point is not even that Katerina did not marry Tikhon of her own free will: she didn’t love anyone at all and she didn’t care who to marry. The fact is that the girl was robbed of her old life, which she had created for herself. Katerina no longer feels such delight from attending church, she cannot do her usual things. Sad, disturbing thoughts do not allow her to calmly admire nature. Katya is left to endure, as long as she is, and to dream, but she can no longer live with her thoughts, because the cruel reality brings her back to earth, where humiliation and suffering are.
Katerina is trying to find her happiness in her love for Tikhon: “I will love my husband. Tisha, my dear, I will not trade you for anyone. " But sincere manifestations of this love are suppressed by Kabanikha: “What are you hanging around your neck, shameless woman? You don't say goodbye to your lover. " In Katerina, there is a strong sense of external obedience and duty, which is why she forces herself to love her unloved husband. Tikhon himself, due to the tyranny of his mother, cannot really love his wife, although he probably wants to. And when he, leaving for a while,
leaves Katya to walk freely, the woman becomes completely lonely.
Why did Katerina fall in love with Boris? After all, he did not flaunt his masculine qualities, like Paratov, did not even talk to her. Perhaps the reason is that she lacked something clean in the stuffy atmosphere of Kabanikha's house. And love for Boris was this pure, did not allow Katerina to wither away completely, somehow supported her. She went on a date with Boris because she felt like a person with pride and elementary rights. It was a rebellion against resignation to fate, against lawlessness. Katerina knew that she was committing a sin, but she also knew that it was still impossible to live further. She sacrificed the purity of her conscience to freedom and Boris.
In my opinion, taking this step, Katya already felt the approaching end and, probably, thought: "Now or never." She wanted to be filled with love, knowing that there would be no other occasion. On the first date, Katerina said to Boris: "You ruined me." Boris is the reason for the discrediting of her soul, and for Katya it is tantamount to death. Sin hangs like a heavy stone on her heart. Katerina is very much afraid of an impending thunderstorm; considering it a punishment for what was done. Katerina was afraid of a thunderstorm ever since she began to think about Boris. For her pure soul, even the thought of love for a stranger is a sin.
Katya cannot continue living with her sin, and she considers repentance to be the only way to at least partially get rid of it. She confesses everything to her husband and Kabanikha. Such an act in our time seems very strange, naive. “I don’t know how to deceive; I can’t hide anything ”- such is Katerina. Tikhon forgave his wife, but did she forgive herself? Being very religious, Katya is afraid of God, and her God lives in her, God is her conscience. A woman is tormented by two questions: how she will return home and look into the eyes of her husband, whom she has cheated on, and how she will live with a stain on her conscience. The only way out of this situation, Katerina sees death: “No, I have to go home or go to the grave - all the same ... It's better in the grave ... To live again? No, no, don’t ... not good. ”
Pursued by her sin, Katerina dies in order to save her soul. Dobrolyubov defined Katerina's character as "decisive, whole, Russian." Decisive, because she decided to take the last step, to die, in order to save herself from shame and remorse. Whole, because in Katya's character everything is harmonious, one, nothing contradicts each other, because Katya is one with nature, with God. Russian, because whoever, no matter how a Russian person, is capable of loving so, is able to sacrifice so, so seemingly submissively endure all hardships, while remaining himself, free, not a slave.