The play The Storm is the pinnacle of the literary work of Nikolai Ostrovsky. This work was created two years before the introduction of the reform on the abolition of serfdom, and therefore it reflected the problems caused by a significant turning point in society. But even after a century and a half, interest in this play does not fade. What is the tragedy of the main character? How to write an essay on the drama Ostrovsky "Thunderstorm"?
Kalinov
The action of this dramatic work takes place in the fictional Kalinov. A small provincial town is located on the banks of the picturesque Volga. The prototype of Kalinov could be one of the many settlements located on the banks of the deepest river in Russia. There are many of them. They have a marvelous, primordially Russian beauty, but at the same time they seem to be lost in time. Composition on the drama of Ostrovsky's “Thunderstorm”, regardless of which topic it is dedicated to, you need to start with a description of the lifestyle in a provincial small town. After all, it is the mores and moral principles that are familiar in Kalinov that partly caused the tragedy of the main character.
The city seemed to freeze in the patriarchal era. Everything new is alien to its inhabitants. They fear change. Poverty, lack of rights and spiritual poverty reign in Kalinov. And the author contrasted all this with the night walk of youth, the dreams of Katerina about past childhood and the description of coastal landscapes. An essay on Ostrovsky’s drama “The Thunderstorm” is a task in which an important peculiarity should be taken into account: with the development of the plot, the situation becomes more tense, Kalinov’s isolation becomes more suffocating, and the heroine’s life is hopeless.
Residents of Kalinov
Before you start writing an essay on the drama Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm", you need to analyze not only the main, but also secondary characters. At first glance, different people live in the city. But upon closer examination, it turns out that they all have common concepts.
At the center of public life are the Wild and the Boar, which, along with Katerina, is the main character of the work. The essay on the theme "Drama Ostrovsky" Thunderstorm "" can be supplemented by a comparative description of two female images.
Boar and Wild are ardent champions of local morality. Characters such as Kudryash and Varvara prefer to pretend to agree with the patriarchal order that prevails in the city, but they stealthily violate the rules established there.
Indicative is the image of Kuligin. This pundit seeks to introduce his inventions, however, he discusses the topic of scientific discoveries, which even by the mid-nineteenth century are somewhat outdated. And, finally, a new face is arriving in the city - Boris. This young man is smart and educated, but does not have the moral strength that would allow him to resist the local order.
Boar
With this heroine, you should compare the image of Katerina in the drama Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm". The composition, designed to reveal the cause of the tragedy of the main character, is not easy to write without a description of Kabanikh. This female image is contrasted with the image of Katerina. But still they have something in common. Katerina and Kabanikha are strong personalities. The first seeks to defend its truth. The second personifies obsolete patriarchal morality. The boar is not ready to change the way of life, and therefore will defend it to the last.
Against the background of a society dying in the spiritual sense, the image of Katerina in Ostrovsky’s drama “Thunderstorm” becomes especially tragic. The essay about the main character is an essay dedicated to a person who longs for freedom, wants to free himself from fetters and unreasonable worship. Katerina strives for sincerity and spirituality. But both the daughter-in-law and the mother-in-law are deeply religious and are not able to compromise.
Boris
Why does Katerina suddenly interrupt her life in the drama Ostrovsky's "Thunderstorm"? An essay about this heroine is not difficult to write after a detailed description has been compiled. In the life of a young woman, the church plays a huge role. She strives to be impeccable in a spiritual sense. But the task is impossible, because Katerina falls in love with Boris. And the one to whom she must remain faithful until the end of her days causes only acute irritation in her.
Katerina resists the feelings that Boris awakened in her soul. But there is no person nearby who could support her in difficult times and save her from the painful feeling of loneliness. And she violates the spiritual and moral laws, does what she fears most.
The essay “Katerina’s Tragedy in Ostrovsky’s drama“ Thunderstorm ”is not a characteristic of a romantic heroine who decides to end her life only because her lover leaves her. The reason for her terrible act is much deeper. Katerina's love comes first of all from hopeless loneliness and a feeling of powerlessness in front of the "dark kingdom" in which the soulless Boar reigns.
Moral fall
The tragedy of Katerina is difficult for modern man to understand. But nineteenth-century provincial society was dominated by religious prejudices that bordered on pharisism and hypocrisy. Morality was imposed on the girls, according to which they first of all had to maintain a moral appearance. About happiness and true love and speech did not go. But the trouble of Katerina was that she was not capable of lying and hypocrisy. She could not hide her fall and confessed to her husband, after which her position became completely unbearable. And so Katerina decided on a more terrible sin, from the point of view of Christian morality, namely, suicide.
After the death of Katerina
The recognition of the daughter-in-law was a great shock to Kabanikh. And the subsequent rebellion of her son knocked her even more. In the world that she had been protecting for so long, chaos reigned. The tragedy of Katerina also became her grief.
Ostrovsky’s play went beyond social conflict. This work was relevant not only for the second half of the nineteenth century. The play “The Storm” depicts the tragic story of a man who dies from loneliness, prejudice, omnipotence and tyranny. Therefore, the work does not lose its relevance today: in the 21st century, it is still of interest to readers and viewers.