The master is a landowner, the owner of possessions, on the territory of which peasants and farmsteads work. Serfdom in Russia was canceled more than 150 years ago. But the word "master" did not go out of use. It can be heard today, and not only in historical films.
Master
"Barin" is a word that is quite common in 19th century Russian literature. Heroes of books use it as a reference. Often in the third person. For example: "Barin deigned to rest." A synonym for this word is “master”. However, the master is not only the rightful owner of land. So the courtyards called the son of the landowner, even if he was no more than three years old. Barin is a representative of the upper class. Recall some events from Russian history, this will help to understand the origin of the term.
Boyarin
The word "master" came from the name of the highest feudal estate in Russia. Boyar is a nobleman. The etymology of this word is a debatable topic. Some researchers believe that the word "boyar" came into Russian from the Turkic language. Others speak of its Slavic origin. Regarding the history of the boyars, there are also several versions that we will not present here. We will only say that this word at some point was transformed into the term "master".
First landowners
In the 16th century, the king gave the land to serving people, that is, nobles. Sometimes for life, and sometimes for life. The landowners differed from the estates in that the latter inherited the land. These two concepts merged into one during the reign of Peter the Great. The nobility flourished in the central regions, but was hardly observed in Siberia. The landlords met both large and small. The latter included the nobles who owned dozens of souls. But even the one who had only two serfs was a master. That is how courtyards addressed him.
Examples from the literature
The serfs spoke of their master with respect, reverence, servility. It is worth recalling one of Pushkin's works - the story "Dubrovsky". Even after the main character became impoverished and lost his estate, he remained a master for his people. However, in Pushkin’s work the talk is not so much about the landowner as about the noble robber.
The protagonist of the poem Dead Souls is a dubious person. Later it turns out that Chichikov is none other than an ordinary swindler, a con man. He is not rich. But for his only servant Petrushka Chichikov - master. The footman cleans his master’s costume, cleans his room. Parsley is lazy and slow. But he obeys Chichikov unquestioningly, because it is customary for the master to be afraid.
Abolition of serfdom
After 1862, the size of land ownership became an indicator of wealth for landowners. However, despite government support, noble land ownership was steadily declining. Very often landowners leased their land. By the end of the 19th century, the number of representatives of this estate was significantly reduced.
After 1917, the landowners did not remain in Russia. Probably, it is precisely the ardent revolutionaries that the word whose meaning we are considering owes a negative connotation. Barin - who is this for them? This is one who does not work, but exploits others.
Negative value
In Soviet Russia, the words "master", "master" became almost abusive. This is the name of those who have not worked for centuries, but owned land and estates. The Bolsheviks hastily plundered and burned the estates, but the owners themselves were shot or exiled to Siberia. But hostility to the landowners remained. And today the word "master" is used in everyday speech often with a negative connotation when it comes to a person who prefers to shift his responsibilities to others.
Rich
Barin is also called a person who does not like to deny himself anything. Not all Russian landowners were rich. The master is a nobleman, perhaps impoverished or one who owned only twenty souls, that is, serfs. According to the concepts of the 19th century, such a landowner was almost on the verge of poverty. Nevertheless, the word "master" is associated with wealth, power.
Phraseologisms
"Master-master" is an expression used when a person makes the wrong decision, but there is no point in arguing with him. Perhaps it is difficult to find a book by a Russian writer of the 18th or 19th century, in which the words "master", "lady" would not be found. Landowner culture has left its mark on phraseology.
"The master will judge us" - how can these words be understood? The landlords exploited the labor of serfs for a very long time, but it is impossible to say that the latter did not like it. Rather, they did not know what freedom was, and therefore they did not particularly strive for it. Serfs used to rely on the will of the master. However, there was also a riot, senseless and merciless. But what does the phraseologism "gentleman judge us" mean? It is used when people are in no hurry to make a decision, relying on a more authoritative person. At all times there were those who did not strive for freedom.
Another phraseologism is "the master is not great." It is used much less frequently than the one given above. It is appropriate when it comes to an insignificant person, one in which you can not especially stand on ceremony.
In the cinema
In any painting based on the work of a Russian writer of the 19th century, you can hear the word, the meaning of which is discussed above. In 2006, the film was shot on the original plot - the film "Barin". The first frames show our time. But once a miracle happens: the main character falls into the past, namely in the first half of the 19th century. He is surrounded by strangers who call him nothing more than a gentleman.
In 2017, the show began the series "Bloody Mistress." This is a film about the events that took place in the early years of the reign of Catherine the Great. The main character is Daria Saltykova, a landowner accused of torturing more than 30 serfs, for which she was called the "bloody mistress" by the authors of the script.