Gypsies analysis. Essay analysis of the poem Pushkin's Gypsies. The problem of human freedom

In his early work, Alexander Sergeevich very often copied the thoughts of Byron and Rousseau. These writers were idols for the great Russian poet, but the period of romanticism passed, and with it new thoughts about the universe and the attitude of people in society appeared. Pushkin began to think more realistically, so he entered into some kind of dispute with Byron. He began it in the poem “Prisoner of the Caucasus,” which was written in the spirit of romanticism, but this romanticism was rather critical. The poet came to the conclusion that the return of man to his natural habitat is a step backward, not forward. Alexander Sergeevich perceives such behavior as a betrayal of a person’s destiny, which is determined by the Creator.

Artificial return of man to nature

Alexander Pushkin wrote “Gypsies” in 1824; the poem was a continuation of the experiment he had begun and the end of the dispute with the romantics. In order to more realistically describe the events in his work, the writer lived for several weeks in a gypsy camp in Chisinau, experiencing all the delights of a free life. The hero of the poem “Gypsies” by Pushkin, Aleko, is very similar to the author himself, even the name was chosen to be in tune with Alexander. The poet, being in exile in Moldova, often compared himself with Ovid; he languished in the stuffiness of the cities - all this is present in the work.

The main character is tired of civilization, and now he has to discover a new world in which people are devoid of any prejudices, they are free, simple, they are not characterized by pretense or artificiality. Pushkin wrote “Gypsies” to show whether a change in social circle and living conditions will affect a person. Aleko found himself in a gypsy camp, he ended up exactly where he wanted. It is assumed that main character I should relax, find peace of mind, but this did not happen. Even love for Zemfira did not bring the desired update.

Solving the problem of “man and environment”

Pushkin composed “Gypsies” with the aim of showing the erroneous judgment of Rousseau, who believed that every person can find harmony in the lap of nature. Aleko hates a society that trades in its will, but he himself acts like the people he despises. The main character found himself in a world he had long dreamed of, but could not overcome his loneliness. Aleko proudly declared that he would never give up his rights, but then what right did he have to take the life of another person or control his feelings?

Pushkin created “Gypsies” to show that he could not overstep his beliefs. Aleko was defeated because, despite his loud statements, the hero himself turned out to be a defender of spiritual slavery. In his early work, the poet placed a hero whom he associated with himself in a central place. In the same poem, Pushkin portrayed the main character objectively. “Gypsies,” the analysis of which showed how much the author’s views had changed, became the first work in which Alexander Sergeevich looks at the hero from the outside. The poem clearly shows Alexander Pushkin's transition from romanticism to realism.

In the summer of 1821, during his exile in Chisinau, Pushkin traveled for several weeks with a camp of gypsies. Impressed by those days, he began to write a poem "Gypsies", which he completed at the end of 1824 in Mikhailovsky. For the first time, excerpts from the poem were published in the almanac “Polar Star”, then in “Northern Flowers”. Readers were able to read the full text of “Gypsies” only in 1827, when the work was published as a separate edition.

“Gypsies” completes the cycle of Pushkin’s “southern” poems. This is practically the last work of the poet, written in romantic style. It reflected creative crisis author, profound changes in his worldview. The main theme of the poem is the debunking of the romantic hero. But the poet did not find anything to replace the usual ideals, which is why the ending of the work is so gloomy.

Motive flight from civilization to free savages was quite popular at that time. In “Gypsies” Pushkin showed how false and utopian such an idea is. The hero of the poem, Aleko, is an exile persecuted by the law. But the young man not only wants to avoid responsibility for the crime he committed. Aleko became disillusioned with civilization and hated city life. Among the gypsies he seeks freedom and sincerity of feelings.

This plot plot is typical for a romantic work. The author does not say anything about Aleko’s past, about the crime he committed. The reader can only guess about this from individual points. It is clear that Aleko is an educated person, since he is aware of the fate of Ovid. Surely he knows city life well, about which he speaks as follows: “Crowds: mad persecution or brilliant shame”.

Aleko easily accepts the primitive life of the gypsies and quickly fits into their nomadic life. "Tattered Tents", "poor dinner", tattered clothes and the need to walk around villages with a tame bear to earn bread do not frighten him. The love of the beautiful Zemfira and the desired freedom should make Aleko completely happy. But this did not happen.

Owns the hero "secret sadness", the reason for which even Aleko himself does not understand. This is a longing for a familiar life, comfort, communication with educated people. In fact, Aleko never became part of the gypsy freemen, because he did not understand and did not accept the essence of this will - freedom of feelings and actions.

The heroines of the poem, Zemfira and Mariula, have no moral obligations to men and children. They blindly follow their desires, obey their passions. Pushkin deliberately created the image of Zemfira’s mother, who left her daughter for the sake of new love. In a civilized society, this act would cause universal condemnation, but Zemfira does not condemn her mother. She does the same.

Gypsies do not consider betrayal a sin, because no one can hold back love. For an old man, his daughter’s action is common. But for Aleko, this is an attack on his rights, which cannot go unpunished. The murder of Zemfira and her lover clearly shows that in his soul the hero of the poem never became a gypsy. "I'm not like that", admits Aleko.

The old man calls the young man proud man, evil and brave as opposed to peaceful and "timid soul" fellow tribesmen. He clearly defines the reason for Aleko’s action - selfishness. “You only want freedom for yourself”, Zemfira’s father accuses the killer. Considering himself free, Aleko does not want to see others free.

For the first time, Pushkin depicted the expulsion of a romantic hero not only from a civilized society, but also from the world of freedom. Aleko commits a crime not against prejudices and traditions, but against universal human values. His jealousy and cruelty do not evoke the sympathy of readers. The hero turns out to be an egoist and a murderer.

At the same time, the poet destroys the romantic aura of gypsy will. The colorfully described details of everyday life show the poverty and ignorance of the wild people, and freedom of love and action does not bring them happiness. This plot twist and assessment of the characters’ actions allowed critics to call the poem “atypical.”

Compositionally the work is built around the gypsy song of Zemfira, which, not by chance, occupies a central place, since it is culmination conflict. The poem consists of eleven parts. Nine of them are written in iambic tetrameter, and Zemfira’s song is written in two-foot anapest. Another song, “The Bird of God Doesn’t Know...” is written in trochee tetrameter.

In addition to the two songs, the poem contains two more stories by the old gypsy: about the exiled poet and about his unfaithful wife Mariula. They serve to develop the plot and reveal the characters' characters well. The parts of the work have completely different forms. There is a narration on behalf of the author, descriptions of the nature and life of the gypsies, and dialogues. All parts are masterfully combined into one whole and consistently realize the poet’s intentions.

“Gypsies” did not have much success in Russia, although some phrases of the poem became catchphrases. The work was enthusiastically received by the European public. It was “Gypsies” that inspired Merimee to write “Carmen”, and Rachmaninov - his first opera “Aleko”. The song “The Bird of God Doesn’t Know...” was set to music by 32 composers. She was included in many children's books and anthologies.

“Gypsies”, a summary of the chapters of Pushkin’s poem

Pushkin began the poem “Gypsies” (1824) in the south, but finished it in Mikhailovskoye. Like other poems, the author's origin is also strongly expressed here. There is a lot from Pushkin in Aleko, starting with the name (Aleko - Alexander) and ending with the hero’s thoughts about the captivity of stuffy cities, about Ovid (Pushkin often remembered him in Moldova, comparing the fate of the exiled Roman poet with his own), about glory. However, the attitude towards the hero changes, the objective and critical principle intensifies.

“The Gypsies” (as somewhat earlier in “Prisoner of the Caucasus”) uses a plot that has gained wide popularity since the time of the French writer and thinker Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Aleko, disillusioned with civilized “urban” society, finds himself in a gypsy camp that is exotic for the reader, in a new world of “natural” people - simple, free, close to nature, devoid of prejudices, without any artificiality or pretense. It would seem that this is where Aleko should find peace of mind and internally liberate himself. In reality this did not happen. Even love for Zemfira does not bring the hero the desired renewal. Aleko still cannot overcome his fatal loneliness. A hero who despises people because they “trade in their will”; he himself bears the stamp of the society he rejects. Harmonic tranquility in the lap of nature, once advocated by Rousseau, turns out to be impossible for modern man infected with individualism. Even before Zemfira’s murder, Aleko proudly declares that he will never give up “his rights.” But what right does a person have to the feelings and especially the life of another person? So Aleko, who accused the world he left behind of the fact that there “they are ashamed of love,” turns out to be a defender of slavery - albeit spiritual. Aleko suffers a moral defeat - and this is the great moral lesson of Pushkin's poem.

In early romantic poems, the central place was usually occupied by a hero whose point of view approximated the author's. Aleko’s “Gypsies” is presented objectively, Pushkin looks at it as if from the outside. The problem of “man and environment” is posed more clearly and definitely in “Gypsies”: the hero’s dependence on the society that gave birth and raised him is already outlined. This is how the thread stretches to the achievements of Pushkin the realist.

Alexander Pushkin began his creative career as an adherent of the romanticism movement in Russian literature. However, at the end of the 20s of the 19th century, the poet underwent an ideological crisis. The ideas of romanticism no longer seem close to ideal to him. The search for new forms of depicting the world is reflected in Pushkin’s poem “Gypsies”.

The poet’s idea to write about this freedom-loving people arose during his exile in Chisinau. There he meets a camp of gypsies and learns their life and views on the world. Therefore, partly this work can be considered autobiographical. The author does not hide this and even calls the main character by the name Aleko - a derivative of Alexander.

The poem begins in the spirit of romanticism. The main character gets tired of the bustle of society, the vices of civilization and asks for refuge from free people - the gypsies. Aleko is brought to the camp by a young gypsy woman who is in love with him. She asks her father to shelter a man who has fled from the civilized world. The old man agrees, but hints to the young man that people who are accustomed to living in the bliss of blessings are unlikely to be able to come to terms with the wretched way of life of the nomadic gypsies. And young Zemfira doubts Aleko’s decision. She asks her beloved if it is difficult for him to leave his hometown and the company of ladies in beautiful dresses. The hero replies that he has nothing to regret, because the society in which he lived is brilliant, but false.

At first glance, Aleko may seem like a typical romantic hero rebelling against society. He is tired of living among falsehood - and therefore is looking for harmony among the gypsies, who are famous for their freedom-loving views. The motive of denying civilization and turning to a natural way of life was popular in the literature of romanticism. But in Pushkin’s poem there is no happy ending to such an escape. The poet does not idealize either civilized society or natural people.

The way of life of the Roma is striking in its poverty. Already at the beginning of the poem it is told how the old man is waiting for his daughter for a meager dinner. The freedom-loving sentiments of the nomadic people are also questionable.

The praised freedom in love turns out to be simple licentiousness and primitiveness. Zemfira's own mother leaves her, running away with a new man. But the girl does not blame her mother, because she, too, is ready to do anything for the sake of passion. But her heart is not constant. She easily falls in love with Aleko - and just as easily cheats on him with a young gypsy. Zemfira hints to her husband about her infidelity in the song. Aleko is bitter about his wife's betrayal.

In a civilized society, women would condemn such an act. Therefore, although the hero denies that society, he cannot get rid of its prejudices. And besides, Aleko is an egoist who seeks freedom only for himself. He does not like the idea that others also have the right to freedom. Having tracked down the lovers, the main character first kills the young gypsy, and then Zemfira herself. The woman remains adamant even at such a moment and says that she still loves the gypsy.

He only seems like a romantic hero, but in reality he is a simple egoist running away from the authorities. The author indicates that the hero was persecuted for some crime.

The young man is seized with passion for a young gypsy, but does he truly love her? Without hesitation, he kills his cheating wife in a fit of wounded pride and self-pity.

The idea of the poem is to expose romantic ideals. Even the very concept of freedom is questionable. Pushkin is looking for a new self in this work, but has not yet found it. Although the poet’s path from romanticism to realism in his work is already visible.

“Gypsies” did not become the most popular poem of the talented author in Russia, but it inspired other writers and composers. So, Merimee writes “Carmen”, where the connection between his heroine and Zemfira is clearly captured. The song, which is included in the poem “The Bird of God Does Not Know,” was set to music.

"Gypsies" analysis of the work - theme, idea, genre, plot, composition, characters, issues and other issues are discussed in this article.

“Gypsies” completes the cycle of Pushkin’s “southern” poems. This is practically the last work of the poet, written in romantic style. It reflected the author’s creative crisis and profound changes in his worldview. The main theme of the poem is the debunking of the romantic hero. But the poet did not find anything to replace the usual ideals, which is why the ending of the work is so gloomy.

The heroines of the poem, Zemfira and Mariula, have no moral obligations to men and children. They blindly follow their desires, obey their passions. Pushkin deliberately created the image of Zemfira's mother, who left her daughter for a new love. In a civilized society, this act would cause universal condemnation, but Zemfira does not condemn her mother. She does the same.

The old man calls the young man a proud man, angry and brave as opposed to peaceful and "timid soul" fellow tribesmen. He clearly defines the reason for Aleko's action - selfishness. “You only want freedom for yourself”, - Zemfira’s father accuses the killer. Considering himself free, Aleko does not want to see others free.