Acquaintance with famous prose poems begins at school. Teenagers learn the specifics of an unusual genre in which the prosaic form of presentation and the true lyricism that each line breathes are intertwined. Let us analyze the “Two Rich Men” of Turgenev, one of the small works of this genre.
Content
Discussions about a small work should begin with an account of its plot, which is based on the method of comparison:
- In the first lines, the author describes the good deeds of the millionaire Rothschild, who really tried to help those in need, allocating substantial sums from his pocket to charity.
- Further, the writer describes with the simplest words a case in the life of a peasant, a very poor peasant who is ready to take an orphan girl into education, realizing that his own life will become even harder.
- Finally, a brief, but capacious and expressive conclusion - "Far from Rothschild to this man."
When analyzing Turgenev's “Two Rich Men”, it is necessary to emphasize the idea of ​​comparison: a millionaire, of course, is generous and noble, but he gives from surpluses. And the unfortunate peasant, himself extremely poor, is ready to endure even greater need to help a destitute girl, poorer than him.
The images
The next stage of the analysis of “Two Rich Men” by Turgenev is a description of the heroes. Two types of characters can be distinguished:
- Direct actors: the peasant himself and his wife.
- Persons mentioned: Rothschild and the girl Katka.
Moreover, the first category of heroes has no names, and the second is more specific, and the real-life millionaire, and the unfortunate orphan. Why does the author use this technique? In analyzing Turgenev’s poem, “Two Rich Men,” one must find the answer to this question. For the author, a noble peasant soul is of great value, so the described event could happen in any corner of the vast country, in many families in need. The classic sincerely admires the nature of a Russian man, ready for self-sacrifice.
Features of a peasant family
We continue the analysis of Turgenev's “Two Rich Men” with a description of the appearance of the peasant family, which the author skillfully paints in front of his readers:
- First of all, these are very poor people, who, apparently, have their own children.
- Turgenev does not say the age of his characters, nor tries to describe their appearance, since this data is not required to convey his key idea.
- It should be noted that in the speech of both the peasant and his wife, the selfish “I” does not sound, both say “we”, which emphasizes their desire to make a joint decision.
- The reader understands that her husband has the final word, so the unhappy orphan will find a new home and hope for a happy, albeit very poor, life.
When analyzing Turgenev’s “Two Rich Men” poem, it is important to show that the author depicted a collective image of a Russian peasant family, the best people of their time, ready to help those in need, even depriving themselves of the most necessary (in a rural environment, lack of salt in the house was considered a sign of extreme poverty).
Receptions
The text is small in volume, therefore does not contain an abundance of artistic and expressive means. However, the whole narrative rests on a comparison of the millionaire benefactor Rothschild and the nameless peasant. This is very important to emphasize when analyzing Turgenev's “Two Rich Men”:
- Everyone knows the rich man, with his good deeds (their value is not diminished by the author) he helped people, no doubt, but he also earned fame.
- And the poor peasant poor man in his act only created difficulties for himself, no one knows his name, and few people could be interested in the modest victim of a bonded person.
Therefore, the main device, comparing the rich man and the poor peasant, helps Turgenev convey the main idea - the value of the act for which there is no reward is greater, the peasant’s business is completely disinterested, no one will say thanks to him except the saved girl.
The meaning of the name
Conducting an analysis of Turgenev’s prose “Two Rich Men”, the title of the work should be explained. Why are two rich people mentioned?
- With regards to Rothschild, everything is clear: he is a rich man, a philanthropist, who directed part of his income to help children and those in need.
- The second rich man is a peasant who possesses the most valuable, according to the author, rich rich heart, capable of sacrifice, empathy.
And the value of the spiritual component is much more important than material wealth. Turgenev is trying to convey this idea to his readers.
Speech Originality
The next stage of the analysis of Turgenev’s poem “Two Rich Men” is the study of his speech features. The writer is known for the fact that in his prose texts he often uses dialectic vocabulary to give credibility to the story. Therefore, in a small work in the remarks of the peasants one can find such words and expressions that the educated Turgenev is clearly uncharacteristic:
- Pennies, salt, chowder, treatment Katka - these words and phrases help the author create the image of a simple village woman, a real woman who is economical and practical. Her arguments against the adoption of an orphan in the family are quite logical, because the couple are in poverty. When analyzing Turgenev’s “Two Rich Men”, it is important to emphasize that the wife is not a negative character; rather, she is an ordinary woman, whom extreme poverty forces to be somewhat stingy.
- And we her ... and not salty - this is the only phrase that the man said for the whole story, but very significant. He himself does not doubt that he makes the right decision. This man managed to maintain his kind generous heart, despite living in very difficult conditions.
At the same time, the author’s words in the introductory part and the completion of the text are literate literary speech, which makes the conversation of the characters even more believable.
Concluding the analysis of Turgenev’s poem “Two Rich Men”, it should be noted that the author, of course, rejoices that there are philanthropists like Rothschild in the world who help the poor. But their achievements lose their value when compared with the actions of ordinary peasants, who deny themselves even food to help even poorer people. And the writer sincerely admires such “men and women”, of whom there are so many in his homeland.