What does a person feel at the bottom of social life? The answer to this question was given in his dramatic play by Maxim Gorky. The deep processes of the beginning of the 20th century contributed to the tragic changes in the existence of many people in Russia. But the drama, the classic of Russian and Soviet literature, has, above all, a philosophical conflict. Its main theme is the clash of different life positions. How to write an essay on the work "At the bottom?" What should the analysis of this play be based on?
History of creation
Maxim Gorky did not immediately find the name for his play. Initially, he had several versions. Among them are “Bottom” and “Nochlezhka”. The author made a choice in favor of the well-known symbolic name. An analysis of the title should begin the essay on the work “At the Bottom”. The heroes of the play are people who are on the sidelines of social life. They are rejected by society. Each of them has its own background, but all of them are united by the bottom. The bottom of life and the bottom of the soul, on which they found themselves for various reasons, but they are not destined to get out of.
Composition
In order to write an essay on the work "At the Bottom", you should pay attention to plot features. The atmosphere in which the play takes place is a dark, unsightly basement. It is inhabited by strange, faceless people. Many of them no longer even have names, just nicknames. “There are no masters, only one naked person remains,” one of the characters remarks.
Kostylev and his wife Vasilisa are the managers of the dormitory basement. At the beginning of the work, a social conflict is planned between them and the inhabitants of this miserable house. But in the work there is, oddly enough, a love line.
Wife Kostyleva persuades Vaska Ashes to kill her husband. If he commits this crime, she will become the sovereign mistress of the rooming house and will acquire a new, younger spouse. But the thief Vaska is attracted by the sister of Vasilisa. Even being in such a deplorable position, people are able to hate each other, feel jealousy, and have mercantile plans. However, not even this idea is the main thing in the play. After all, the main tragedy of the characters lies in their loneliness and disunity. They talk, but do not understand each other. Everyone hears only himself. An essay on the work “At the Bottom” can be written about the loneliness of man among people.
Philosophical talk
There is no mutual understanding between the characters, although they are constantly talking. It is noteworthy that people who do not have or are deprived of the most necessary talk about honor and conscience, about the purpose of a person in life. The action, however, begins to develop with the advent of Luke, the wanderer, whose speeches awaken weak hope in the inhabitants of the overnight stay. An essay on the work of Maxim Gorky “At the Bottom” can be dedicated to this character.
Luke
The fate of an elderly wanderer is not easier. He, like the inhabitants of the rooming house, refers to the so-called former people. Nevertheless, he did not forget how to sympathize and did not lose his love and respect for people. And most importantly, each person Luke is able to hear and understand.
He comforts a terminally ill woman with a tale of heaven in heaven. He advises Vaska Peplu to go to Siberia and start all over with a white sheet. And Nastya, whose fantasies in the rooming house evoke only a sarcastic laugh, he consoles with the words: "If you believe that you had real love, then it was."
The philosophizing wanderer expresses wise maxims, narrates parables, and in the climax sets out his position regarding lies and its benefits. Deception, in his opinion, can help a person, sometimes even save him. “Luke is a preacher of lies” - this may be the title of the work on the work “At the Bottom”.
Gorky M. admitted that the questions he posed to himself in the process of creating the play were related to concepts such as truth and compassion. Does a man need truth and can a lie save him? The fantastic stories of Luke did not help the inhabitants of the overnight stay. But they shook them, made them think and feel a spiritual uplift.
Author Innovation
Gorky became the creator of the new genre of the play. This work contains features that were not previously used in dramaturgy. Through the parables and utterances of Luke, Gorky M. expresses the humanistic idea. The school essay on the work “At the Bottom” should include an analysis of the dialogues. It is on them that the action of the play is built, and thanks to them you can understand the position of the author.
Maxim Gorky in this dramatic work acted as a continuer of Chekhov's traditions. He did not divide the heroes into positive and negative, did not introduce the main character into the play. These features are characteristic of the dramatic works of Anton Chekhov.
Justifying the liar comforter Luke, the author accuses the heroes who are not able to face the truth. They are not satisfied with reality, but they are not even trying to change anything. Therefore, a lie becomes their only consolation.