A person’s place in society is one of the main topics in the work of Maxim Gorky. At the early stage of his literary activity, the writer set forth this idea on the example of romantic characters. In more mature works, the character of the heroes was revealed using philosophical reasoning. But the basis was always the belief that a person is a unique individuality, which is still not able to exist separately, outside of society. An essay on Gorky’s work is the subject of this article.
Life and art
Maxim Gorky is distinguished from other figures in Soviet and Russian literature by a rather unusual fate, both personal and literary. In addition, in his biography there are many mysteries and contradictions.
The future writer was born in the family of a joiner. As a child, living in his mother’s father’s house, he was subjected to an extremely tough, peculiar upbringing. In his youth, he knew deprivation and heavy debilitating labor. He was familiar with the life of almost all walks of life. None of the representatives of Soviet literature could boast of the life experience that this writer possessed. Perhaps that is why he gained the world-famous fame as an intercessor. Who else should represent the interests of the working people, if not a writer, behind whose back there is the experience of a simple worker, loader, baker and chorist?
The last years of Gorky are shrouded in mystery. There are several versions regarding the cause of death. The most common - Gorky was poisoned. At an advanced age, the writer, according to eyewitnesses, became overly sentimental and intractable, which led to a tragic end.
An essay on Gorky’s work should be supplemented with links to important biographical data. Just as the life path of a writer can be imagined by analyzing several works belonging to different periods.
"Childhood"
In this work, Gorky spoke about himself and about his many relatives, among whom he had a hard time living. An essay on Gorky’s work is not an analysis of all his works in chronological order. A small written work is not enough, perhaps, even to consider one of them. But the trilogy, the first part of which depicts the early years of the future Soviet classic, is a topic that cannot be circumvented.
“Childhood” is a work in which the earliest memories of the author are reflected. A kind of confession is this work. A person in Gorky’s work is, if not a fighter, then a person who is characterized by a heightened sense of dignity. Alesha Peshkov possesses these qualities. However, his environment is a rather spiritless society: drunkards, uncles, grandfather, tyrants, quiet and clogged cousins. This situation smothers Alyosha, but at the same time it is in the house of relatives that his character is formed. Here he learned to love and sympathize with people. Grandmother Akulina Ivanovna and Tsyganok (the adopted son of his grandfather) became an example of kindness and compassion for him.
Freedom theme
In his early work, the writer embodied his dream of a beautiful and free man. It was not by chance that Gorky’s life and work served as an example for Soviet man. Motives of freedom and community of people were leading in the culture of the new state. Gorky, with his romantic ideas of selflessness, appeared just in time. “Old Woman Isergil” is a work devoted to the theme of a free man. The author divided the story into three parts. In them, Maxim Gorky examined the main topic on the example of completely different images.
Legend of larre
For all the characters in the story, freedom is the highest value. But Larra despises people. In his concept, freedom is an opportunity to get what you want at any cost. He does not sacrifice anything, but prefers to sacrifice others. For this hero, people are just tools with which he achieves his goals.
To write an essay on the work of Gorky, it is necessary to draw up a conditional plan for the formation of his worldview positions. At the beginning of his journey, this author sacredly believed not only in the idea of a free man, but also in the fact that people can become happy only when they participate in some common cause. Such positions are in harmony with the revolutionary moods that prevailed in the country.
In the story “The Old Woman Izergil”, Gorky shows the reader what punishment for pride and selfishness can be. Larra suffers from loneliness. And the fact that he became like a shadow is to blame for himself, or rather his contempt for people.
The Legend of Danko
Characteristic features of this character are love for people and dedication. In this image lies the idea to which Gorky's early work is subject. Briefly about Danko, we can say that this hero perceives freedom as an opportunity to help people, sacrifice themselves for their salvation.
Memories of Isergil
This heroine condemns Larra and admires the feat of Danko. But in the understanding of freedom, it occupies a middle ground. In it such different qualities as egoism and self-sacrifice are fantastically combined. Isergil knows how to live and be free. But in her confession, she says that she lived the life of a cuckoo. And such an assessment instantly refutes the freedom that it promotes.
A comparative analysis of these characters can be included in the essay "A Man in Gorky's Work". On their example, the author formulated three levels of freedom. It is worth saying a few words about the author’s position. Gorky's romantic work is dedicated to the condemnation of individualism and the praise of a heroic deed in the name of the happiness and freedom of the people. All of the writer's early works are based on this idea.
The image of man in late work
Man for Gorky represented a vast unexplored world. Throughout his career, he sought to comprehend this greatest mystery. The writer dedicated the spiritual and social nature of man to his later works. The work of Maxim Gorky must be considered taking into account the time in which he lived. He created his works when the old system was destroyed, and the new one was just being formed. Gorky sincerely believed in a new man. In his books, he depicted the ideal that, in his conviction, existed. However, it later turned out that such transformations cannot occur without sacrifices. Overboard there were people who did not belong to either the "old" or the "new". Gorky devoted his dramatic works to this social problem.
"At the bottom"
In this play, the author depicted the existence of the so-called former people. The heroes of this social drama are those who, for whatever reason, have lost everything. But, being in miserable conditions, they constantly conduct deep philosophical conversations. The heroes of the play “At the Bottom” are the inhabitants of the shelter. They vegetate in material and spiritual poverty. Each of them, for whatever reason, sank to the social bottom, from where there is no return. And only the fantasies of a newcomer stranger Luke can temporarily instill in their souls the hope of salvation. The new inhabitant reassures everyone, telling tales. His philosophies are wise and filled with profound mercy. But there is no truth in them. And therefore there is no saving power.
Gorky’s life and work was focused on the desire to show that isolation from people (or rather, from the people) cannot bring happiness, but can only lead to spiritual impoverishment.