The chapter “Taman” was included in the “Pechorin Journal”. Restoring chronological sequence events from the life of Pechorin, you should start reading the novel “A Hero of Our Time” with the story “Taman”, where Pechorin talks about an incident that happened to him when he first came from St. Petersburg to the Caucasus. Then follows the story “Princess Mary”, where Pechorin talks about the events in which he participated when he arrived at the waters in Pyatigorsk. Then the story “Bela”, the events of which take place in the fortress where Pechorin was exiled for a duel with Grushnitsky.
Pechorin left the fortress for some time to the Cossack village and witnessed the story with the officer Vulich, described in the short story “Fatalist”. Then five years pass. Pechorin, having retired, lives in St. Petersburg and, bored again, goes to Persia. Along the way he meets Maxim Maksimych. Their meeting is described in the story “Maksim Maksimych”. From the short preface to Pechorin's Journal we learn that, returning from Persia, Pechorin died. Lermontov deviated from such a chronology and structured the composition of the novel in such a way that first we learn about Pechorin from the stories about him by Maxim Maksimych and a passing officer, and then from the diary “Pechorin’s Journal”. Thus, Pechorin’s character is revealed in various situations, in collisions with other characters in the novel. And every time some new facet of the complex and rich nature Pechorina.
“Taman” is the third story in order. With its problematics and the character of the hero’s environment, “Bela” seems to continue and is a record of an episode from the past. The story is told in the first person (Pechorina). Describing an episode from the life of smugglers, Pechorin says nothing about his thoughts and experiences. His attention is focused on showing the events themselves, their participants, and the setting. The landscape helps create the mysterious and romantic mood of the story. With amazing skill, Lermontov describes the restless sea, the moon, and clouds. “The shore sloped down to the sea almost right next to its walls, and below, dark blue waves splashed with a continuous roar. The moon quietly looked at the restless, but submissive element, and I could distinguish in its light, far from the shore, two ships,” writes Pechorin. There is an atmosphere of mystery and uncertainty around him. The night, the reed roof and white walls of the new home, the meeting with the blind boy - all this amazes Pechorin’s imagination so much that for a long time he cannot fall asleep in the new place. Much in the boy’s behavior seems incomprehensible and mysterious: how a blind man so easily descends a narrow steep path, how he feels a person’s gaze. His barely noticeable smile makes an unpleasant impression on Pechorin. Pechorin's curiosity is also spurred by the boy's actions. Alone, in the middle of the night, with some kind of bundle, he goes down to the sea. Pechorin began to watch him, hiding behind a protruding rock. He saw a white woman approach him female figure and spoke to him. From the conversation it became clear that they were waiting for Yanko, who must sail by boat on a stormy sea, bypassing the coast guards. He delivered some cargo by boat. Taking a bundle each, they set off along the shore and disappeared from sight.
What kind of people live on the shore? What mysteries lie behind their unusual behavior? These questions haunt Pechorin, and he boldly invades the unknown, boldly rushes towards danger. Pechorin meets an old woman and her daughter. Hearing the song, Pechorin looked up and on the roof of the roof saw a girl in a striped dress, with loose braids, a real mermaid. Subsequently, he nicknamed her Ondine. She was extraordinarily beautiful: “The extraordinary flexibility of her figure, the special tilt of her head that is only characteristic of her, her long brown hair“, some kind of golden tint of her slightly tanned skin on her neck and shoulders, and especially her correct nose - all this was charming for me.” Having spoken to this girl, Pechorin spoke about the night scene on the shore, which he had witnessed, and threatened to report everything to the commandant. This was a great carelessness on his part, and he soon repented. The poetic girl - “undine”, “real mermaid” - insidiously lures Pechorin into a trap, hinting at love: “She jumped up, wrapped her arms around my neck, and a wet, fiery kiss sounded on my lips. My vision grew dark, my head began to spin, I squeezed her in my arms with all the strength of youthful passion...” Ondine made an appointment for Pechorin at night on the shore. Forgetting caution, Pechorin gets into the boat. Having sailed some distance from the shore, the girl hugged Pechorin, unfastened the pistol and threw it overboard. Pechorin realized that he could die because he did not know how to swim. This gave him strength, and a short fight ended with him throwing her into the waves. The hope for love turned out to be deceived, the date ended in a fierce struggle for life. All this angers Pechorin, who suffered because of his naivety and gullibility. But, despite everything, he managed to uncover the secret of the “peaceful smugglers.” This brings disappointment to the hero: “And why did fate throw me into the peaceful circle of honest smugglers? Like a stone thrown into a smooth spring, I disturbed their calm and, like a stone, I almost sank to the bottom myself.” Upon returning, Pechorin discovers that the blind man had carried his things to the shore in a sack - a box, a saber with a silver frame, a Dagestan dagger - a gift from a friend. “Wouldn’t it be funny to complain to the authorities that a blind boy robbed me, and an eighteen-year-old girl almost drowned me?” In the morning Pechorin leaves for Gelendzhik.
Pechorin realizes that he made a mistake by invading the lives of these people, and blames himself for invading their circle, which disrupted their lives. Yanko and the girl leave, leaving the boy and the old woman without a means of subsistence. Pechorin admits: “I don’t know what happened to the old woman and the poor blind man. And what do I care about human joys and misfortunes, me, a traveling officer, and even on the road for official reasons.”
“Taman” amazes with its masterful portrayal of the characters’ characters. The image of a smuggler girl is truly romantic. This girl is characterized by bizarre mood swings, “quick transitions from the greatest anxiety to complete immobility.” Her speeches are mysterious and close in form to folk proverbs and sayings; her songs, reminiscent of folk songs, speak of her desire for a violent will. She has a lot of vitality, courage, determination, and the poetry of “wild freedom.” A rich, unique nature, full of mystery, it is as if by nature itself created for the free, risk-filled life that she leads. No less colorful is the image of the smuggler Yanko, painted with spare but bright strokes. He is determined and fearless, not afraid of storms. Having learned about the danger that threatens him, he leaves his native place to look for fishing in another place: “... but I love everywhere, wherever the wind blows and the sea makes noise!” But at the same time, Yanko shows cruelty and stinginess, leaving a blind boy on the shore with a few coins. Pechorin's personality is complemented by such qualities that appear in moments of danger: courage, determination, willingness to take risks, willpower.
At the end of the story, Pechorin peers at the white sail that flashed between the dark waves in the light of the moon. This symbolic image reminds of one of the most amazingly beautiful and deepest in thought Lermontov’s poems - “The Lonely Sail Whitens...”. The life of the main character, Pechorin, was just as rebellious and restless.
Lesson topic: Pechorin in a clash with smugglers. (Analysis of the story “Taman”).Lesson objectives: 1) analyze the story “Taman”, concentrate students’ attention on the image of Pechorin;
2) cultivate an active life position in students;
3) develop coherent speech among schoolchildren.
You see a man with a strong will,
brave, not pale before any
danger, begging for a storm
and anxiety.
V. G. Belinsky.
Lesson progress:
I Organizational moment.
1. Opening remarks teachers.
Let's start the literature lesson. Currently we are reading and analyzing the novel by M. Yu. Lermontov “A Hero of Our Time”. This is the first in Russian prose psychological novel. His ideological and plot center It is not the external biography (life and adventures) that serves, but rather the personality of a person - his spiritual and mental life. The novel consists of five separate stories, united by the commonality of the hero, but independent in plot. This hero is Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin. Today in class we will analyze the story “Taman”. Lesson topic: “Pechorin in a clash with smugglers.” Analyzing the story “Taman”, the 1st Russian critic half of the 19th century century V. G. Belinsky said about Pechorin this way: (Address to the epigraph of the lesson). I took these words as the epigraph to our lesson.
2. Write down the topic and epigraph in a notebook.
II. Repetition of what was previously covered.
- Let's repeat what we went through earlier. What stories does the novel “A Hero of Our Time” consist of?
What is unique about the structure of the novel?
(Two students on the board show compositional structure novel and chronological sequence of events).
Sample student answer. (Such a violation of the chronological sequence was made by the author in order to implement main task novel: give a comprehensive description of Pechorin. For this purpose, the author first puts the story about Pechorin into the mouth of Maxim Maksimych, a simple man who does not quite understand his former friend (“Bela”), then the author talks about Pechorin on his own behalf, reporting his observations of him (“Maksim Maksimych”). The last three stories are Pechorin's diary, directly revealing to the reader spiritual life hero of the novel.)
What do we learn about Pechorin from the story “Bela”?
Sample student answers. (Pechorin is strange. In the rain, in the cold on the hunt, everyone will be chilled and tired, but he will be okay. And another time the wind will blow, and he assures that he has a cold, he will knock with the shutter - he will shudder, turn pale. At the same time, he went hunting for a wild boar alone alone. Either he could go for hours without saying a word, or he could make you laugh so much that you would tear your stomach.)
(Pechorin in the story “Bela” reminded me of Onegin. In his youth, he madly enjoyed all the pleasures, but soon he became tired of them. Then he entered the big world, he also got tired of it. He began to fall in love with secular beauties, but his heart remained empty. He began to read, study - science soon got boring. Pechorin felt bored. When he was transferred to the Caucasus, at first he was happy. After a month, he got used to the buzzing of bullets and the proximity of death, Pechorin fell in love, but again the love of a savage turned out to be little for him. better than love noble lady.)
(Pechorin, having come into contact with Bela, brings her misfortune. First she suffers, suffers, and then dies. Pechorin himself sincerely experiences Bela’s death. He cannot understand. Who he is, a fool or a villain, but he knows for sure that his soul is corrupted by the light, i.e. secular society.)
Sample student answers. (The author gives psychological portrait hero. Through the contradictions in appearance, he shows the complexity of the hero’s mental organization. A careless and lazy gait is a sure sign of some secretive character. At first glance, it seemed like no more than 23 years, but after that it could have been 30. Light color hair and black mustache are a sign of the breed. The eyes didn't laugh when he laughed. Such contradictions indicate Pechorin’s fatigue and coldness.)
(The hero changed after leaving the fortress. Pechorin’s indifference to life, apathy, coldness, selfishness increased. Previously, he was able to reveal to Maxim Maksimych the reasons for his melancholy, admit that he was suffering, here he cannot talk about even the most superficial events of his life. Previously he wrote down everything that happened to him in a diary; now he is not even interested in the fate of the papers.)
Which story made a sadder impression on you: “Bela” or “Maksim Maksimych”?
Sample student answers. (“Maksim Maksimych.” In “Bela,” despite the death of the heroine, there are descriptions of nature that soften the tragedy and instill optimism in the reader.)
(“Maxim Maksimych.” All that was required of Pechorin was to stay for a few hours, and the hero had nowhere to rush. He needed to share a modest dinner with the old man and tell at least a little about himself, but Pechorin did not even do this.)
So, what impression did you get about the hero from the previous stories?
Sample student answer. (Pechorin is endowed with strength of character, perseverance, nobility, even simplicity, but one cannot help but see his egoism, his habit of considering only his own desires, his inability to constantly feel deeply. He brought misfortune to Bela, but he himself evokes sympathy because he is unhappy. )
III. Working on the topic of the lesson.
- What place does the story “Taman” occupy in the composition of the novel?
Sample student answer. (She opens Pechorin's journal.)
Let us turn to the story “Taman”. How does Pechorin himself talk about what happened in Taman at the beginning of the story? (Reading).
What in the atmosphere of the hut, as well as in the behavior and character of the characters, seemed strange and mysterious to Pechorin?
To better understand Pechorin, to look into the innermost corners of his soul, let's first analyze the images of smugglers. What character traits of smugglers attracted Pechorin?
Sample student answer. (Courage, bravery, boldness).
How do you imagine a man sailing across a strait in a storm?
(Reading the scene “Yanko swims across the strait” from the words “I confess... to the words “My Cossack was very surprised.”)
(Yanko is not only bold and brave, he is also as free as a bird. At the end of the story he will say that he loves everywhere, where the sea is noisy and the wind blows.)
Let's analyze the girl's behavior. To do this, let’s read the scene in the boat from the words “Let’s get into the boat...” to the words “At the bottom of the boat...”
How does a girl behave in a boat?
Sample student answer. (During the fight, she is inferior to Pechorin only in strength, but not in dexterity and courage.)
Let us pay attention to the behavior of the blind boy. Let's read the scene of the blind boy walking at night from the words “Meanwhile the moon...” to the words “What, blind...”.
Comment on this scene.
Sample student answer. (The blind boy is no less courageous than his sighted master-accomplices.)
But the main characters of the story are not the smugglers. And Pechorin. What character traits of Pechorin appear in the story “Taman”?
Sample student answer. (Decision, courage, interest in people, ability to sympathize.)
In what scenes do they appear especially clearly?
Sample student answers. (Pechorin’s first meeting with a blind boy reveals Pechorin’s interest in man. It is important for him to understand the boy’s secret, and he begins to follow him.)
(Observation of the girl and the first conversation with her makes him conclude: “ strange creature! I’ve never seen such a woman!”)
(The scene of Pechorin’s enchantment with Undine reveals his youthful passion. My eyes darkened, my head began to spin. The active principle forces Pechorin to go on a date appointed by the girl at night.)
(Watching the meeting between the blind man and Yanko evokes sadness in the hero and reveals his ability to sympathize with the hero).
What role does the hero play in the story “Taman”: an observer or a participant?
Sample student answer. (Actually, he is an observer who accidentally witnessed the actions of smugglers. But he constantly leaves the role of observer and becomes a participant in the events.)
How do you think the hero relates to nature? Prove with examples from the text.
Sample student answer. (Talking about himself, Pechorin describes nature: a month illuminating a reed roof, dark blue waves splashing with a continuous murmur, the moon covering itself with clouds, fog thickening over the sea. He compares the two stars sparkling on the dark blue vault with two saving beacons. He watches the heavy waves that roll steadily and smoothly one after another. All this suggests that Pechorin loves nature, enjoys its beauty, it gives him strength and confidence.)
What character traits do we see in Pechorin in this story?
Sample student answer. (Activity, desire for action, attraction to danger, perseverance, self-control, love of nature, daydreaming.)
Everything that Pechorin does, he does not do for any benefit. He just can’t help but act, because that’s his nature. In difficult moments, he knows how not to lose his presence of mind. This is how the critic Belinsky assessed Pechorin’s behavior. Read again the words of the critic taken as the epigraph to the lesson.
But is Pechorin happy?
Sample student answer. (No. He feels guilty.)
Let's figure out why. How can you imagine the life of smugglers and a blind man after separation?
How is the grief of the blind boy conveyed?
Why else is Pechorin unhappy?
Sample student answer. (None of Pechorin’s actions has a deep, great purpose. He is active, but his activity is not needed by him or others. There is no purpose in his life, his actions are random, his activity is fruitless. Pechorin is unhappy. He regrets that he disrupted the lives of honest smugglers and excitedly exclaims: (reading from the text)
IY. Summing up the lesson.
1. Conversation with students..
- How does Pechorin in the story “Taman” differ from Pechorin in the stories “Bela” and “Maksim Maksimych”?
Sample student answers. (In the story “Taman” Pechorin does not seem bored and indifferent. The hero here is far from apathy and boredom. A person indifferent to everything does not notice his surroundings, but Pechorin instantly grasps all the details of the hut’s furnishings, catches and remembers the intonations of the voice, the manner of speech of Yanko, the girls, blind.)
(This story allows us to judge deep love hero to nature. Pechorin not only describes her, but also admires her.)
How does Pechorin’s critical attitude towards himself manifest itself?
Sample student answers. (Talking about himself, he does not hide anything. He does not know how to swim, he himself says that he is inferior in dexterity to the girl, does not understand the real reasons for the interest shown in him by Ondine.)
(He even turned out to be a victim: his box and saber were stolen. Pechorin treats himself with irony.)
Does Pechorin evoke condemnation in this story?
Sample student answer. (Rather, he regrets that the powers of his rich nature do not find real use.)
2. The teacher's word.
Pechorin in a clash with smugglers is a man of action. This is not an indoor romantic dreamer or Hamlet, whose will is paralyzed by doubts. He is decisive and courageous, but his activity is pointless. He does not have the opportunity to indulge in major activities, to perform actions that a future historian would remember and for which Pechorin feels the strength. Therefore, he wastes himself by getting involved in other people's affairs, interfering in other people's destinies, invading other people's lives and upsetting other people's happiness. Such was Lermontov's contemporary. This worried the poet greatly. Theme of discontent modern generation sounds in many of the poet’s works. In the poem “Duma” he wrote:
I look sadly at our generation!
His future is either empty or dark,
Meanwhile, under the burden of knowledge and doubt
It will grow old in inactivity.
We are rich, barely out of the cradle,
The mistakes of our fathers and their late minds.
And life is no longer tormenting, like a smooth path without a goal,
Like a feast at someone else's holiday.
The conversation about Pechorin did not end there. We will continue it by reading the story “Princess Mary”.
Y. Homework.
Read the story “Princess Mary”. In the text, use a pencil to underline phrases that characterize the interests and activities of the “water society.” Write down words and comments in your notebook that show Pechorin’s attitude towards noble society and its representatives.
The chapter “Taman” was included in the “Pechorin Journal”. Restoring the chronological sequence of events from Pechorin’s life, one should begin reading the novel “A Hero of Our Time” with the story “Taman”, where Pechorin talks about an incident that happened to him when he first came from St. Petersburg to the Caucasus. Then follows the story “Princess Mary”, where Pechorin talks about the events in which he participated when he arrived at the waters in Pyatigorsk. Then the story “Bela”, the events of which take place in the fortress where Pechorin was exiled for a duel with Grushnitsky. Pechorin left the fortress for some time to the Cossack village and witnessed the story with the officer Vulich, described in the short story “Fatalist”. Then five years pass. Pechorin, having retired, lives in St. Petersburg and, bored again, goes to Persia. Along the way he meets Maxim Maksimych. Their meeting is described in the story “Maksim Maksimych”. From the short preface to Pechorin's Journal we learn that, returning from Persia, Pechorin died. Lermontov deviated from such a chronology and structured the composition of the novel in such a way that first we learn about Pechorin from the stories about him by Maxim Maksimych and a passing officer, and then from the diary “Pechorin’s Journal”. Thus, Pechorin’s character is revealed in various situations, in collisions with other characters in the novel. And every time some new facet of Pechorin’s complex and rich nature is revealed.
“Taman” is the third story in order. With its problematics and the character of the hero’s environment, “Bela” seems to continue and is a record of an episode from the past. The story is told in the first person (Pechorina). Describing an episode from the life of smugglers, Pechorin says nothing about his thoughts and experiences. His attention is focused on showing the events themselves, their participants, and the setting. The landscape helps create the mysterious and romantic mood of the story. With amazing skill, Lermontov describes the restless sea, the moon, and clouds. “The shore sloped down to the sea almost right next to its walls, and below, dark blue waves splashed with a continuous roar. The moon quietly looked at the restless, but submissive element, and I could distinguish in its light, far from the shore, two ships,” writes Pechorin. There is an atmosphere of mystery and uncertainty around him. The night, the reed roof and white walls of the new home, the meeting with the blind boy - all this so amazes Pechorin’s imagination that for a long time he cannot fall asleep in the new place. Much in the boy’s behavior seems incomprehensible and mysterious: how a blind man so easily descends a narrow steep path, how he feels a person’s gaze. His barely noticeable smile makes an unpleasant impression on Pechorin. Pechorin's curiosity is also spurred by the boy's actions. Alone, in the middle of the night, with some kind of bundle, he goes down to the sea. Pechorin began to watch him, hiding behind a protruding rock. He saw a white female figure approach him and speak to him. From the conversation it became clear that they were waiting for Yanko, who must sail by boat on the stormy sea, bypassing the coast guards. He delivered some cargo by boat. Taking a bundle each, they set off along the shore and disappeared from sight.
What kind of people live on the shore? What mysteries lie behind their unusual behavior? These questions haunt Pechorin, and he boldly invades the unknown, boldly rushes towards danger. Pechorin meets an old woman and her daughter. Hearing the song, Pechorin looked up and on the roof of the roof saw a girl in a striped dress, with loose braids, a real mermaid. Subsequently, he nicknamed her Ondine. She was unusually beautiful: “The extraordinary flexibility of her figure, the special, unique tilt of her head, her long brown hair, the kind of golden tint of her slightly tanned skin on her neck and shoulders, and especially her correct nose - all this was charming to me.” Having spoken to this girl, Pechorin spoke about the night scene on the shore, which he had witnessed, and threatened to report everything to the commandant. This was a great carelessness on his part, and he soon repented. The poetic girl - “undine”, “real mermaid” - insidiously lures Pechorin into a trap, hinting at love: “She jumped up, wrapped her arms around my neck, and a wet, fiery kiss sounded on my lips. My vision grew dark, my head began to spin, I squeezed her in my arms with all the strength of youthful passion...” Ondine made an appointment for Pechorin at night on the shore. Forgetting caution, Pechorin gets into the boat. Having sailed some distance from the shore, the girl hugged Pechorin, unfastened the pistol and threw it overboard. Pechorin realized that he could die because he did not know how to swim. This gave him strength, and a short fight ended with him throwing her into the waves. The hope for love turned out to be deceived, the date ended in a fierce struggle for life. All this angers Pechorin, who suffered because of his naivety and gullibility. But, despite everything, he managed to uncover the secret of the “peaceful smugglers.” This brings disappointment to the hero: “And why did fate throw me into the peaceful circle of honest smugglers? Like a stone thrown into a smooth spring, I disturbed their calm and, like a stone, I almost sank to the bottom myself.” Upon returning, Pechorin discovers that the blind man had carried his things to the shore in a sack - a box, a saber with a silver frame, a Dagestan dagger - a gift from a friend. “Wouldn’t it be funny to complain to the authorities that a blind boy robbed me, and an eighteen-year-old girl almost drowned me?” In the morning Pechorin leaves for Gelendzhik.
Pechorin realizes that he made a mistake by invading the lives of these people, and blames himself for invading their circle, which disrupted their lives. Yanko and the girl leave, leaving the boy and the old woman without a means of subsistence. Pechorin admits: “I don’t know what happened to the old woman and the poor blind man. And what do I care about human joys and misfortunes, me, a traveling officer, and even on the road for official reasons.”
“Taman” amazes with its masterful portrayal of the characters’ characters. The image of a smuggler girl is truly romantic. This girl is characterized by bizarre mood swings, “quick transitions from the greatest anxiety to complete immobility.” Her speeches are mysterious and close in form to folk proverbs and sayings; her songs, reminiscent of folk songs, speak of her desire for a violent will. She has a lot of vitality, courage, determination, and the poetry of “wild freedom.” A rich, unique nature, full of mystery, it is as if by nature itself created for the free, risk-filled life that she leads. No less colorful is the image of the smuggler Yanko, painted with spare but bright strokes. He is determined and fearless, not afraid of storms. Having learned about the danger that threatens him, he leaves his native place to look for fishing in another place: “... but everywhere is dear to me, wherever the wind blows and the sea makes noise!” But at the same time, Yanko shows cruelty and stinginess, leaving a blind boy on the shore with a few coins. Pechorin's personality is complemented by such qualities that appear in moments of danger: courage, determination, willingness to take risks, willpower.
At the end of the story, Pechorin peers at the white sail that flashed between the dark waves in the light of the moon. This symbolic image is reminiscent of one of the most amazingly beautiful and deepest in thought Lermontov’s poems - “The Lonely Sail Whitens...”. The life of the main character, Pechorin, was just as rebellious and restless.
The meeting of Pechorin, the main character of Lermontov's novel "A Hero of Our Time", with "honest smugglers" is depicted in the story "Taman", the first in "Pechorin's Journal". The composition of the novel is unusual: it consists of separate stories with their own complete plot, united by a common main character. Lermontov adheres not to the chronology of events, but to the logic of the gradual revelation of the character of the main character. The presence of three narrators is also connected with this. First, Maxim Maksimych talks about Pechorin’s organization of Bela’s kidnapping, his cooling towards her and the girl’s death, then the narrator, wandering around the Caucasus, conveys his impressions of the meeting between Pechorin and Maxim Maksimych. Having received Pechorin’s notes and learned of his death, the narrator allegedly publishes his diaries (“Pechorin’s Journal”) with the goal (as he says in the preface) to show the “history of the soul” of a man called a hero of the time and characterized as a portrait made up of vices of today's young generation.
From the story “Taman” the reader learns that immediately upon arriving in the Caucasus from St. Petersburg, “out of official necessity”, and not of his own free will, Pechorin found himself in the “bad town” of Taman. Detailed description there is no town, only a passing mention of dirty alleys and dilapidated fences, but that is not why it is called “bad”. The epithet rather reflects Pechorin’s attitude to the events taking place in this place. Summing up everything that happened, Pechorin writes in his diary: “... a blind boy robbed me, and an eighteen-year-old girl almost drowned me.” Thus, ironically about what happened, the hero names the two main participants in the unfolding drama.
When creating Taman, Lermontov relied on literary tradition genre of a robber short story, romantic in the nature of its depiction of heroes and circumstances. At first, one gets the impression that the author does not deviate from this genre. The plot of events - “vatera”, where “unclean”, a blind man who is “not as blind as he seems”, a lunar landscape, a storm at sea, a mysterious white figure, a brave swimmer - all this arouses Pechorin’s interest, makes him not sleep at night, secretly monitor what is happening on seashore. However, all this does not disturb and captivate him so much that he forgets about what happened in the recent past: the monotonous sound of the sea reminds him of the “murmur of a falling asleep city” and evokes sad memories. At the same time, the night adventure is not so important that, wanting to find out the outcome, Pechorin postponed his departure to Gelendzhik. Having learned that the ship will not arrive for another three or four days, he returns from the commandant “sullen and angry.”
Subsequently, Pechorin will say that for a long time he has been living not with his heart, but with his head. When going on a date with the “undine,” he does not forget to take a pistol with him and warn the Cossack orderly so that when he hears the shot, he should run to the shore. The beauty, apparently, naively thought that, having charmed Pechorin, she would become the mistress of the situation. However, Pechorin is not like that and knows the value of female coquetry. And yet he gets embarrassed, really worried, he gets dizzy when the girl kisses him. On the one hand, he calls her behavior “comedy”, on the other hand, he succumbs to her charm. He is capable of deeply feeling and worrying, but does not stop analyzing for a minute.
The climactic scene is a desperate struggle in a boat. Previously, Pechorin compared the girl with a romantic mermaid, admiring her long flowing hair, unusually flexible figure, golden tint of skin, regular nose, comparing her with “a bird scared out of the bush.” Like an educated aristocrat, he casually talked about "little foot" and "Geta's Minion." Now he has to fight for his life, and the girl for hers. And it’s not at all strange that now he says about her: “... like a cat grabbed my clothes... her snake nature withstood this torture.” However, it should be noted that, having climbed ashore, Pechorin was “almost happy” when he recognized “his mermaid” in the white figure on the shore.
The ending is not at all romantic. All the heroes are alive, but the “peaceful circle of honest smugglers” is disturbed, a half-deaf old woman and a blind boy are left to the mercy of fate. Pechorin sympathetically tells how the poor blind man cried for a long, long time, but immediately notes that “thank God, in the morning the opportunity arose to go.” In the finale, he once again remembers the abandoned blind man and the old woman, but philosophically remarks: “... what do I care about the joys and misfortunes of men...”. But whether he is truly indifferent to them or is trying to convince himself of this, the reader must understand for himself, reflecting on what he has read and comparing what he has learned about the hero in different parts of the novel.
Critic V.G. Belinsky assessed Pechorin as a man with “a strong will, courageous, not shy of any danger, inviting storms and anxiety.” This is how we know Pechorin from the stories of Maxim Maksimych, and now, in Taman, he himself spoke about one of these cases. Yes, he is active, brave, resourceful, decisive, intelligent, educated, but he is driven only by idle curiosity. “Smugglers” still wins against its background. They are also brave (Yanko) and resourceful (undine), and also evoke sympathy and pity (old woman, boy); they are fighting for life, and Pechorin plays with it, however, not only his own. The consequences of his interference in other people's destinies are sad, and he understands this by comparing himself to a stone that disturbed the surface of a spring, and then, in “Princess Mary,” with an ax in the hands of fate. Pechorin, according to Maxim Maksimych, feels no less unhappy than those to whom he, voluntarily or unwittingly, does evil. This is indirectly confirmed in Taman.
In this part of the novel, Pechorin does not utter a single large monologue; his thoughts and feelings are still largely hidden from the reader, but are already arousing great interest, thanks to omissions and omissions.
“Taman” was highly valued by Belinsky and Turgenev, Tolstoy and Chekhov for its special flavor, harmony, and beautiful language.
talks about an incident that happened to him when he first came from St. Petersburg to the Caucasus. Then follows the story “Princess Mary”, where Pechorin talks about the events in which he participated when he arrived at the waters in Pyatigorsk. Then the story “Bela”, the events of which take place in the fortress where Pechorin was exiled for a duel with Grushnitsky. Pechorin left the fortress for some time to the Cossack village and witnessed the story with the officer Vulich, described in the short story “Fatalist”. Then five years pass. Pechorin, having retired, lives in St. Petersburg and, bored again, goes to Persia. Along the way he meets Maxim Maksimych. Their meeting is described in the story “Maksim Maksimych”. From the short preface to Pechorin's Journal we learn that, returning from Persia, Pechorin died. Lermontov deviated from such a chronology and structured the composition of the novel in such a way that first we learn about Pechorin from the stories about him by Maxim Maksimych and a passing officer, and then from the diary “Pechorin’s Journal”. Thus, Pechorin’s character is revealed in various situations, in collisions with other characters in the novel. And every time some new facet of Pechorin’s complex and rich nature opens up.
“Taman” is the third story in order. With its problematics and the character of the hero’s environment, “Bela” seems to continue and is a record of an episode from the past. The story is told in the first person (Pechorina). Describing an episode from the life of smugglers, Pechorin says nothing about his thoughts and experiences. His attention is focused on showing the events themselves, their participants, and the setting. The landscape helps create the mysterious and romantic mood of the story. With amazing skill, Lermontov describes the restless sea, the moon, and clouds. “The shore sloped down to the sea almost right next to its walls, and below, dark blue waves splashed with a continuous roar. The moon quietly looked at the restless, but submissive element, and I could distinguish in its light, far from the shore, two ships,” writes Pechorin. There is an atmosphere of mystery and uncertainty around him. The night, the reed roof and white walls of the new home, the meeting with the blind boy - all this so amazes Pechorin’s imagination that for a long time he cannot fall asleep in the new place. Much in the boy’s behavior seems incomprehensible and mysterious: how a blind man so easily descends a narrow steep path, how he feels a person’s gaze. His barely noticeable smile makes an unpleasant impression on Pechorin. Pechorin's curiosity is also spurred by the boy's actions. Alone, in the middle of the night, with some kind of bundle, he goes down to the sea. Pechorin began to watch him, hiding behind a protruding rock. He saw a white female figure approach him and speak to him. From the conversation it became clear that they were waiting for Yanko, who must sail by boat on the stormy sea, bypassing the coast guards. He delivered some cargo by boat. Taking a bundle each, they set off along the shore and disappeared from sight.
With an old woman and her daughter. Hearing the song, Pechorin looked up and on the roof of the roof saw a girl in a striped dress, with loose braids, a real mermaid. Subsequently, he nicknamed her Ondine. She was unusually beautiful: “The extraordinary flexibility of her figure, the special, unique tilt of her head, her long brown hair, the kind of golden tint of her slightly tanned skin on her neck and shoulders, and especially her correct nose - all this was charming to me.” Having spoken to this girl, Pechorin spoke about the night scene on the shore, which he had witnessed, and threatened to report everything to the commandant. This was a great carelessness on his part, and he soon repented. The poetic girl - “undine”, “real mermaid” - insidiously lures Pechorin into a trap, hinting at love: “She jumped up, wrapped her arms around my neck, and a wet, fiery kiss sounded on my lips. My vision grew dark, my head began to spin, I squeezed her in my arms with all the strength of youthful passion...” Ondine made an appointment for Pechorin at night on the shore. Forgetting caution, Pechorin gets into the boat. Having sailed some distance from the shore, the girl hugged Pechorin, unfastened the pistol and threw it overboard. Pechorin realized that he could die because he did not know how to swim. This gave him strength, and a short fight ended with him throwing her into the waves. The hope for love turned out to be deceived, the date ended in a fierce struggle for life. All this angers Pechorin, who suffered because of his naivety and gullibility. But, despite everything, he managed to uncover the secret of the “peaceful smugglers.” This brings disappointment to the hero: “And why did fate throw me into the peaceful circle of honest smugglers? Like a stone thrown into a smooth spring, I disturbed their calm and, like a stone, I almost sank to the bottom myself.” Upon returning, Pechorin discovers that the blind man had carried his things to the shore in a sack - a box, a saber with a silver frame, a Dagestan dagger - a gift from a friend. “Wouldn’t it be funny to complain to the authorities that a blind boy robbed me, and an eighteen-year-old girl almost drowned me?” In the morning Pechorin leaves for Gelendzhik.
Pechorin admits: “I don’t know what happened to the old woman and the poor blind man. And what do I care about human joys and misfortunes, me, a traveling officer, and even on the road for official reasons.”
Anxiety to complete immobility." Her speeches are mysterious and close in form to folk proverbs and sayings; her songs, reminiscent of folk songs, speak of her desire for a violent will. She has a lot of vitality, courage, determination, and the poetry of “wild freedom.” A rich, unique nature, full of mystery, it is as if by nature itself created for the free, risk-filled life that she leads. No less colorful is the image of the smuggler Yanko, painted with spare but bright strokes. He is determined and fearless, not afraid of storms. Having learned about the danger that threatens him, he leaves his native place to look for fishing in another place: “... but everywhere is dear to me, wherever the wind blows and the sea makes noise!” But at the same time, Yanko shows cruelty and stinginess, leaving a blind boy on the shore with a few coins. Pechorin's personality is complemented by such qualities that appear in moments of danger: courage, determination, willingness to take risks, willpower.
At the end of the story, Pechorin peers at the white sail that flashed between the dark waves in the light of the moon. This symbolic image is reminiscent of one of the most amazingly beautiful and deepest in thought Lermontov’s poems - “The Lonely Sail Whitens...”. The life of the main character, Pechorin, was just as rebellious and restless.
