Russian literature

Victor Eremin

Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin

Let's start with a letter that is unknown to the general reader, but which largely determined the fate of M.Yu. Lermontova*.

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* Biography of M.Yu. For Lermontov, see “100 Great Poets.”

"13/25<июня 1840 г.>10 1/2. I worked and read all of “Hero”, which is well written.<...>

14/26... 3 pm. I worked and continued to read Lermontov's work; I find the second volume less successful than the first*.
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* Let us remind you: the first part of the novel includes “Bela”, “Maksim Maksimych” and “Taman”, the second part includes “Princess Mary” and “Fatalist”. The idea for the novel was finally developed by M.Yu. Lermontov presumably in 1838; and “A Hero of Our Time” was completed in 1839, and the work was repeatedly edited by the author and reworked, new chapters were added - “Fatalist” and “Taman”. Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin first appeared in the story “Princess Ligovskaya” (1836), which was not included in the novel. The final version of “A Hero of Our Time” was published in its entirety as a separate book in 1840. Lermontov wrote and published the famous preface to it in 1841.

7 pm... During this time I read to the end of “Hero” and find the second part disgusting, quite worthy of being in fashion. This is the same depiction of despicable and incredible characters that are found in modern foreign novels. Such novels spoil morals and harden character. And although you read these cat-like sighs with disgust, they still produce a painful effect, because in the end you get used to believing that the whole world consists only of such individuals, in whom even seemingly good deeds are committed only for vile and dirty motives . What result can this give? Contempt or hatred for humanity! But is this the purpose of our existence on earth? People are already too prone to become hypochondriacs or misanthropes, so why arouse or develop such inclinations with such writings! So, I repeat, in my opinion, this is a pathetic talent, it indicates the perverted mind of the author. The captain's character is sketched well. Starting the story, I hoped and rejoiced that he would be the hero of our days, because in this category of people there are much more real people than those who are so indiscriminately awarded with this epithet. Undoubtedly, the Caucasian Corps has a lot of them, but rarely does anyone know how to spot them. However, the captain appears in this work as both a hope and an unrealized one, and Mr. Lermontov failed to follow this noble and such a simple character; he replaces it with despicable, very uninteresting faces, who, rather than causing boredom, would do better if they remained in obscurity - so as not to cause disgust. Happy journey, Mr. Lermontov, may he, if possible, clear his head in an environment where he will be able to complete the character of his captain, if he is able to comprehend and outline it at all.”*
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* M.Yu. Lermontov in the memoirs of his contemporaries. M.: Khud. lit., 1989.

Without suspecting it, Lermontov responded to this letter from Emperor Nicholas I in the Preface to the novel: “... A Hero of Our Time, my dear sirs, is like a portrait, but not of one person; this is a portrait made up of the vices of our entire generation, in their full development...

...Quite a few people were fed sweets; This has spoiled their stomach: they need bitter medicine, caustic truths. But do not think, after this, that the author of this book ever had the bitter dream of becoming a corrector of human vices. God save him from such ignorance! He just had fun drawing modern man as he understands him and, to his and your misfortune, has met him too often. It will also be that the disease is indicated, but God already knows how to cure it!
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* M.Yu. Lermontov. Collection op. in 4 volumes. T. 4. M.: Khud. lit., 1958.

Mikhail Yurievich Lermontov

Youthfully flirting with the reader, the poet lied to please fashionable delusions, but criticism picked up this chatter and cheerfully exaggerates it to this day. Of course, there is no talk of any vices of Lermontov’s generation in the novel - the author talks about the vices of specific individuals who have been, are and will certainly be in all nations and in all times. Lermontov’s maximalism in relation to his contemporaries and compatriots is well known, fully justified by his character, but still dishonestly exploited by liberals in order to discredit Russia’s past.

“Hero of Our Time” and his main character - Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin - turned out to be a stumbling block between two great people of our Motherland, who during their lifetimes performed, of course, in different “weight categories”, but for history this no longer has any significance.

In the above letter to his wife, Emperor Nicholas I implicitly explained why M.Yu. Lermontov could not count on a quick return from the Caucasus, and at the same time he unwittingly accepted a significant share of the blame for the early death of the greatest mystical poet of Russia. The powerful statesman lived with dreams of creating a worthy society, but the poet was immersed in real life, saw real people and talked about their true spiritual existence. As a result, the poet was swallowed up by everyday prose, and the romantic sovereign, in his dreams of heroes, led the country to the Crimean catastrophe, in which the enemy - both external and, to an even greater extent, internal - mercilessly used and exterminated real heroes - Maxim Maksimych, and among them and the Emperor-Knight himself. One example. Let us remember how the institute of sisters of mercy arose in Russia. When the great Russian surgeon N.I. Pirogov (1810-1881) cried out to those in power that in the Crimean War more people were dying because medicines and food did not reach hospitals, but were stolen by a huge pack of official marauders; enthusiastic noblewomen created a control body for public monitoring of supplies to active troops. They could not stand by and watch the wounded suffer, so they began to help doctors - they became sisters of mercy. However, those of them who still tried to control supplies to the army in the field were, by order of Nicholas I, recalled to the rear under various pretexts. The trouble was that the theft turned out to be of such gigantic proportions that it was easier to allow the heroes of Sevastopol to die without help than to start persecuting the looters - in this case, the tsar feared a coup d'etat. It sounds scary, but this was the result of the spiritual decay that gripped all the ruling classes of Russia already in the 1830s - 1840s. and which latently created the general atmosphere of Lermontov’s “Hero of Our Time.” The tsar felt that there was some kind of danger lurking in the novel, but he did not understand what it was, and therefore he blamed everything on the aristocrat Pechorin, demoted to ensign, since he gave many reasons for this.

Thus, “Hero of Our Time” should be considered not so much and not only from the standpoint of the state of Russian society in the early 1840s, but primarily as a harbinger of the national catastrophe of 1853-1856. and the subsequent cataclysms of the early 20th century. In “Hero of Our Time,” Lermontov prophesied the future, for which Nicholas I was angry with him, demanding not foresight, but creation. This is the essence of the conflict between the king and the poet. But everyone must do their own thing, and demanding that a true poet serve the current needs of the state is pointless and fraught.

The conflict between the emperor and the poet over Pechorin is often discussed in critical literature, although it is viewed more as a problem of the individual and society than as a problem of the individual’s existence. And the difference here is fundamental, because in it lies the mystical secret of the poet and his hero. It is impossible to reveal Pechorin’s soul better than Lermontov himself. And it is described in the following lines:

I go out alone onto the road;
Through the fog the flinty path shines;
The night is quiet. The desert listens to God
And star speaks to star*.
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* M. Yu. Lermontov. Collection op. in 4 volumes. T. 1. M.: Khud. lit., 1957.

Loneliness, which occurred not because of a person’s position in society, but generated by personal complexes that arose mainly on the basis of book fantasies, the desire to correspond to the “advanced” literature and philosophy of the 18th - early 19th centuries sucked from thin air, to be not real, but “as in books”, not to be natural, but to play an invented role - this loneliness gave Russia an endless number of crippled young destinies and a whole crowd of so-called “superfluous people” in literature.

Where the concept of “extra person” came from is unknown. There are a number of versions, but we will not analyze them here. His proposed criteria are far-fetched to the point of indecentness and can be applied even to any of us, people of the 21st century, the limitation is only a class sign - an “extra person” can only be a nobleman, preferably from the rich. All the “superfluous people” in Russian literature (of course, besides the dear Ilya Ilyich Oblomov, who was forcibly dragged into their number) are united by the main, indisputable property - they do not live, but in reality play a role invented by them. And the brightest actor from this host of “lonely” is Pechorin.

You should not think that images of so-called “superfluous people” are unique to Russian literature. There are also a lot of them in Western European prose, only they are defined differently and their social framework is wider. The same Werther, for example. But the closest to Pechorin in world literature is Flaubert’s Emma Bovary! True, with the difference that she is initially vicious, and Pechorin forcibly cultivates vice in himself.

So we have come to the main point in the discussion about Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin. The reader draws knowledge about his depravity primarily from Pechorin’s Journal, in other words, the hero’s diary. For some reason, it is customary to take it as the author’s absolute revelation to himself. However, it is much more natural to assume that “Pechorin’s Journal” is not a document about a person’s exploration of himself, but is a document about a person’s description of how he wants to see himself. The real Pechorin is not the self-inventing Pechorin from the “Journal...”. And every fact of his everyday life testifies to this. He, the true Pechorin, commits an act, and then, analyzing it in the “Journal...”, tries to give his action a completely different, often unnatural character, in order to show himself how bad he really is. One can even say that Pechorin is engaged not so much in groundless self-flagellation as in self-education from an ordinary person into the most disgusting scoundrel, since he believes that in this way he elevates himself above the crowd. Paradoxically, given his character, being a scoundrel turned out to be much more difficult than remaining a decent person! This, apparently, lies the mystery of Pechorin.

So, the key to understanding the image of the Hero of our time is pride, expressed in self-abasement! And following her really plunged Pechorin into the abyss of moral and physical collapse.

The true reasons for this life catastrophe were revealed by the author in “Fatalist,” where the disgraced ensign tried to understand what the true purpose of man is and what the meaning of existence is. Discussions about freedom, fate and faith led Pechorin to the actual denial of the moral commandments of Christianity! He turned out to be a man who lost God in the name of his own vanity. In this regard, Pechorin can be considered as a Luciferian type of fighter against God, which is why Lermontov gave him the traits of a genius. By the way, it is they who are so greedily exploited by critics trying to justify the uselessness of a person in a “rotten” society.

In the end, it is necessary to say about the narrowly mystical interpretation of the image of Pechorin, which is closest to the character of this book. I will refer to V.I. Levin: “In a well-known Eastern fairy tale, a genie, imprisoned in a bottle, inhabits the man who freed him and subjugates him. Something similar happened with Lermontov: having left the pages of the novel, Pechorin seemed to begin to influence the author’s actions and worldview.”*
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* V.I. Levin. Duel of Lermontov. Journal "Libraries of educational institutions", issues No. 19, 20. M.: 2006.

In other words, it was not N.S. who allegedly killed Lermontov. Martynov, the poet died at the hands of a hero he himself invented and described, who possessed his creator and pushed him to commit suicide. It seems that it was precisely the latter that Nicholas I intuitively understood, refusing to severely punish Martynov.

The novel was repeatedly illustrated by the greatest Russian artists - M.A. Vrubel, I.E. Repin, E.E. Lansere, V.A. Serov, D.A. Shmarinov and others.

There are no significant musical works on the theme of the novel. The most famous: opera by A.Sh. Melik-Pashayeva* “Pechorin” and ballet by I.A. Demutsky** “Hero of our time.”
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* Alexander Shamilevich Melik-Pashayev (1905-1964) - famous Soviet conductor and composer, author of two operas - “Pechorin” and “Twelfth Night”.
** Ilya Aleksandrovich Demutsky (b. 1983) is one of the most sought-after composers of the Russian liberal Rus-hating crowd; constantly represents national culture at international forums and competitions. Winner of several prestigious international awards. He became especially famous for the symphonic poem “The Last Word of the Defendant” - in support of the group “Pussy Wright”. The ballet “Hero of Our Time” was created in 2014 by order of the management of the Bolshoi Theater and was staged in 2015.

In cinema, “A Hero of Our Time” was filmed mainly as separate stories.

The first films - “Princess Mary”, “Maksim Maksimych” and “Bela” - were produced in 1926-1927. directed by V.G. Barsky*. The role of Pechorin was performed by N.P. Prozorovsky**.
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* Vladimir Grigorievich Barsky (1889-1936) - Soviet actor and director. He worked mainly in Georgian cinema.
** Nikolai Petrovich Prozorovsky (Brzhezitsky-Prozorovsky) (1905-1935) - famous actor of Soviet silent films; filmed since 1924

In 1955, director I.M. Annensky* shot the brilliant film “Princess Mary”. The role of Pechorin was played by A.V. Verbitsky**.
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* Isidor Markovich Annensky (1906-1977) - a classic of Russian film directing; the creator of such famous and timeless film adaptations as “The Bear” (1938), “The Man in a Case” (1939), “The Wedding” (1944), “Anna on the Neck” (1954) and others.
** Anatoly Vsevolodovich Verbitsky (1926-1977) - actor at the Moscow Art Theater since 1947; Due to failures in life and lack of roles, he committed suicide by gas poisoning.

The films of 1965 and 1966 became domestic classics. director S.I. Rostotsky* “Hero of Our Time” (“Maksim Maksimych”, “Taman”) and “Bela”. In both films, actor V.S. starred in the role of Pechorin. Ivashov**.
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* Stanislav Iosifovich Rostotsky (1922-2001) - famous Soviet film director; People's Artist of the USSR (1974); author of the films “It Happened in Penkovo”, “We’ll Live Until Monday”, “And the Dawns Here Are Quiet...”, “White Bim Black Ear” and others.
** Ivashov Vladimir Sergeevich (1939-1995) - world famous Soviet film actor; his star role is Alyosha Skvortsov in the film G.N. Chukhrai "Ballad of a Soldier".

Classic world theater director A.V. Efros* has directed several television plays, incl. in 1974, “Pages of Pechorin’s Magazine” (“Princess Mary”) was released. The role of Pechorin was played by O.I. Dal**.
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* Anatoly Vasilyevich Efros (real name Nathan Isaevich Efros) (1925-1987).
** Oleg Ivanovich Dal (1941-1981) - Soviet theater and film actor. He has starred in so many outstanding domestic films that it is neither possible nor necessary to list them here. Dahl was Efros's favorite actor at the theater on Malaya Bronnaya.

The television series “A Hero of Our Time” (6 episodes) was the first attempt at a full film adaptation of the novel. It was filmed in 2006 by director A.K. Cott*. The film adaptation is successful, it can only be welcomed. The performer of the role of Pechorin is actor I.P. Petrenko**.
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* Alexander Konstantinovich Kott (b. 1973) - domestic film director, creator of the eight-episode television series “Convoy PQ-17”.
** Igor Petrovich Petrenko (b. 1977) is a popular actor in Russian cinema.

In 2011, director R.B. Khrushchev began to fantasize about Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin, who was dying in distant Persia, and made the film “Pechorin.” The leitmotif of the film was the memories of the main character - fragments of the novel. The title role was played by actor St.V. Ryadinsky.
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* Roman Borisovich Khrushch (b. 1960) - domestic film director; He makes few films; his most famous film is “Pechorin”.
** Stanislav Veniaminovich Ryadinsky (b. 1981) - actor of the theater. Lenin Komsomol; is now quite a sought-after actor in Russian cinema.

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A person is always driven by the desire to know his purpose. Should you go with the flow or resist it? What position in society would be correct, should all actions comply with moral standards? These and similar questions often become the main ones for young people who are actively comprehending the world and human essence. Youthful maximalism requires clear answers to these problematic questions, but it is not always possible to give an answer.

It is precisely this seeker of answers that M.Yu. tells us about. Lermontov in his novel “Hero of Our Time”. It should be noted that Mikhail Yuryevich was always on good terms when writing prose, and his same position remained until the end of his life - all the prose novels he started were never finished. Lermontov had the courage to bring the matter with “Hero” to its logical conclusion. This is probably why the composition, the manner of presentation of the material and the style of narration look, compared to other novels, quite unusual.

“Hero of Our Time” is a work imbued with the spirit of the era. The characterization of Pechorin - the central figure of Mikhail Lermontov's novel - allows us to better understand the atmosphere of the 1830s - the time the work was written. It is not for nothing that “A Hero of Our Time” is recognized by critics as the most mature and philosophically ambitious novel by Mikhail Lermontov.

The historical context is of great importance for understanding the novel. In the 1830s, Russian history was characterized by reactivity. In 1825, the Decembrist uprising occurred, and subsequent years contributed to the development of a mood of loss. The Nikolaev reaction unsettled many young people: young people did not know which vector of behavior and life to choose, how to make life meaningful.

This caused the emergence of restless individuals, unnecessary people.

Origin of Pechorin

Basically, the novel singles out one hero, who is the central image in the story. It seems that this principle was rejected by Lermontov - based on the events told to the reader, the main character is Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin - a young man, an officer. However, the style of the narration gives the right to doubt - the position in the text of Maxim Maksimovich is also quite weighty.

In fact, this is a misconception - Mikhail Yuryevich has repeatedly emphasized that in his novel the main character is Pechorin, this corresponds to the main purpose of the story - to talk about typical people of the generation, to point out their vices and mistakes.

Lermontov provides rather scant information about childhood, conditions of upbringing and the influence of parents on the process of formation of Pechorin’s positions and preferences. Several fragments of his past life lift this veil - we learn that Grigory Alexandrovich was born in St. Petersburg. His parents, according to existing orders, tried to give their son a proper education, but young Pechorin did not feel the burden of science, he “quickly got bored” with them and he decided to devote himself to military service. Perhaps such an act is connected not with the emerging interest in military affairs, but with the special disposition of society towards military people. The uniform made it possible to brighten up even the most unattractive actions and character traits, because the military was loved for what they were. In society it was difficult to find representatives who did not have a military rank - military service was considered honorable and everyone wanted to “try on” honor and glory along with the uniform.

As it turned out, military affairs did not bring proper satisfaction and Pechorin quickly became disillusioned with it. Grigory Alexandrovich was sent to the Caucasus because he was involved in a duel. The events that happened to the young man in this area form the basis of Lermontov's novel.

Characteristics of Pechorin's actions and deeds

The reader gets his first impressions of the main character of Lermontov’s novel after meeting Maxim Maksimych. The man served with Pechorin in the Caucasus, in a fortress. It was the story of a girl named Bela. Pechorin treated Bela badly: out of boredom, while having fun, the young man kidnapped a Circassian girl. Bela is a beauty, at first cold with Pechorin. Gradually, the young man kindles the flame of love for him in Bela’s heart, but as soon as the Circassian woman fell in love with Pechorin, he immediately lost interest in her.

Pechorin destroys the destinies of other people, makes those around him suffer, but remains indifferent to the consequences of his actions. Bela and the girl's father die. Pechorin remembers the girl, feels sorry for Bela, the past resonates with bitterness in the hero’s soul, but does not cause Pechorin to repent. While Bela was alive, Grigory told his comrade that he still loved the girl, felt gratitude to her, but boredom remained the same, and it was boredom that decided everything.

An attempt to find satisfaction and happiness pushes the young man to experiments that the hero performs on living people. Psychological games, meanwhile, turn out to be useless: the same emptiness remains in the hero’s soul. The same motives accompany Pechorin’s exposure of the “honest smugglers”: the hero’s act does not bring good results, only leaving the blind boy and the old woman on the brink of survival.

The love of a wild Caucasian beauty or a noblewoman - it does not matter for Pechorin. Next time, the hero chooses an aristocrat, Princess Mary, for the experiment. Handsome Gregory plays with the girl, arousing Mary’s love for him, but then leaves the princess, breaking her heart.

The reader learns about the situation with Princess Mary and the smugglers from the diary that the main character kept, wanting to understand himself. In the end, even Pechorin gets tired of his diary: any activity ends in boredom. Grigory Alexandrovich does not complete anything, unable to bear the suffering of losing interest in the subject of his former passion. Pechorin's notes accumulate in a suitcase, which falls into the hands of Maxim Maksimych. The man experiences a strange attachment to Pechorin, perceiving the young man as a friend. Maxim Maksimych keeps Grigory’s notebooks and diaries, hoping to give the suitcase to a friend. But the young man does not care about fame, fame, Pechorin does not want to publish the entries, so the diaries turn out to be unnecessary waste paper. This secular disinterest of Pechorin is the peculiarity and value of Lermontov’s hero.

Pechorin has one important feature - sincerity towards himself. The hero’s actions evoke antipathy and even condemnation in the reader, but one thing must be recognized: Pechorin is open and honest, and the touch of vice comes from weakness of will and the inability to resist the influence of society.

Pechorin and Onegin

After the first publications of Lermontov's novel, both readers and literary critics began to compare Pechorin from Lermontov's novel and Onegin from Pushkin's work with each other. Both heroes share similar character traits and certain actions. As researchers note, both Pechorin and Onegin were named according to the same principle. The surname of the characters is based on the name of the river - Onega and Pechora, respectively. But the symbolism doesn't end there.

Pechora is a river in the northern part of Russia (modern Komi Republic and Nanets Autonomous Okrug), by its nature it is a typical mountain river. Onega is located in the modern Arkhangelsk region and is calmer. The nature of the flow has a relationship with the characters of the heroes named after them. Pechorin's life is full of doubts and active searches for his place in society; he, like a seething stream, sweeps away everything without a trace in his path. Onegin is deprived of such a scale of destructive power; complexity and inability to realize himself cause him to feel a state of dull melancholy.

Byronism and the “superfluous man”

In order to holistically perceive the image of Pechorin, understand his character, motives and actions, it is necessary to have knowledge about the Byronic and superfluous hero.

The first concept came to Russian literature from England. J. Bynov in his poem “Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage” created a unique image endowed with the desire to actively search for one’s purpose, the characteristics of egocentrism, dissatisfaction and desire for change.

The second is a phenomenon that arose in Russian literature itself and denotes a person who was ahead of his time and therefore alien and incomprehensible to those around him. Or someone who, based on his knowledge and understanding of everyday truths, is higher in development than the rest and, as a result, he is not accepted by society. Such characters become the cause of suffering for female representatives who love them.

Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin is a classic representative of romanticism, who combined the concepts of Byronism and the superfluous man. Dejection, boredom and spleen are the product of this combination.

Mikhail Lermontov considered the life story of an individual more interesting than the history of a people. Circumstances make Pechorin a “superfluous man.” The hero is talented and smart, but the tragedy of Grigory Alexandrovich lies in the lack of a goal, in the inability to adapt himself, his talents to this world, in the general restlessness of the individual. In this, Pechorin’s personality is an example of a typical decadent.

The strength of a young man goes not to finding a goal, not to realizing himself, but to adventure. Sometimes, literary critics compare the images of Pushkin’s Eugene Onegin and Lermontov’s Grigory Pechorin: Onegin is characterized by boredom, and Pechorin is characterized by suffering.

After the Decembrists were exiled, progressive trends and tendencies also succumbed to persecution. For Pechorin, a progressive-minded person, this meant the onset of a period of stagnation. Onegin has every opportunity to take the side of the people's cause, but refrains from doing so. Pechorin, having the desire to reform society, finds himself deprived of such an opportunity. Grigory Alexandrovich wastes his wealth of spiritual strength on trifles: he hurts girls, Vera and Princess Mary suffer because of the hero, Bela dies...

Pechorin was ruined by society and circumstances. The hero keeps a diary, where he notes that, as a child, he spoke only the truth, but adults did not believe in the boy’s words.

Then Gregory became disillusioned with life and his previous ideals: the place of truth was replaced by lies. As a young man, Pechorin sincerely loved the world. Society laughed at him and this love - Gregory’s kindness turned into anger.

The hero quickly became bored with his secular surroundings and literature. Hobbies were replaced by other passions. Only travel can save you from boredom and disappointment. Mikhail Lermontov unfolds on the pages of the novel the entire evolution of the protagonist’s personality: Pechorin’s characterization is revealed to the reader by all the central episodes in the formation of the hero’s personality.

The character of Grigory Alexandrovich is accompanied by actions, behavior, and decisions that more fully reveal the characteristics of the character’s personality. Pechorin is also appreciated by other heroes of Lermontov’s novel, for example, Maxim Maksimych, who notices the inconsistency of Grigory. Pechorin is a strong young man with a strong body, but sometimes the hero is overcome by a strange physical weakness. Grigory Alexandrovich turned 30 years old, but the hero’s face is full of childish features, and the hero looks no more than 23 years old. The hero laughs, but at the same time one can see sadness in Pechorin’s eyes. Opinions about Pechorin expressed by different characters in the novel allow readers to look at the hero, respectively, from different positions.

Pechorin's death expresses the idea of ​​Mikhail Lermontov: a person who has not found a goal remains superfluous, unnecessary for those around him. Such a person cannot serve for the benefit of humanity and is of no value to society and the fatherland.

In “Hero of Our Time,” the writer described the entire generation of contemporaries - young people who have lost the purpose and meaning of life. Just as Hemingway’s generation is considered lost, so Lermontov’s generation is considered lost, superfluous, restless. These young people are susceptible to boredom, which turns into a vice in the context of the development of their society.

Pechorin's appearance and age

At the beginning of the story, Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin is 25 years old. He looks very good, well-groomed, so in some moments it seems that he is much younger than he actually is. There was nothing unusual in his height and build: average height, strong athletic build. He was a man with pleasant features. As the author notes, he had a “unique face,” one that women are madly attracted to. Blonde, naturally curly hair, a “slightly upturned” nose, snow-white teeth and a sweet, childish smile - all this complements his appearance favorably.

His eyes, brown in color, seemed to live a separate life - they never laughed when their owner laughed. Lermontov names two reasons for this phenomenon - either we have in front of us a person of evil disposition, or someone who is in a state of deep depression. Lermontov does not give a direct answer which explanation (or both at once) is applicable to the hero - the reader will have to analyze these facts themselves.

His facial expression is also incapable of expressing any emotion. Pechorin does not restrain himself - he simply lacks the ability to empathize.

This appearance is finally blurred by a heavy, unpleasant look.

As you can see, Grigory Alexandrovich looks like a porcelain doll - his cute face with childish features seems like a frozen mask, and not the face of a real person.

Pechorin's clothes are always neat and clean - this is one of those principles that Grigory Alexandrovich follows impeccably - an aristocrat cannot be an unkempt slob.

While in the Caucasus, Pechorin easily leaves his usual outfit in the closet and dresses in the national men's attire of the Circassians. Many note that these clothes make him look like a true Kabardian - sometimes people who belonged to this nationality do not look so impressive. Pechorin looks more like a Kabardian than the Kabardians themselves. But even in these clothes he is a dandy - the length of the fur, the trim, the color and size of the clothes - everything is chosen with extraordinary care.

Characteristics of character qualities

Pechorin is a classic representative of the aristocracy. He himself comes from a noble family, who received a decent upbringing and education (he knows French and dances well). All his life he lived in abundance, this fact allowed him to begin his journey of searching for his destiny and an activity that would not let him get bored.

At first, the attention shown to him by women pleasantly flattered Grigory Alexandrovich, but soon he was able to study the types of behavior of all women and therefore communication with ladies became boring and predictable for him. The impulse to create his own family is alien to him, and as soon as it comes to hints about marriage, his ardor for the girl instantly disappears.

Pechorin is not assiduous - science and reading make him even more melancholy than secular society. A rare exception in this regard is provided by the works of Walter Scott.

When social life became too burdensome for him, and travel, literary activity and science did not bring the desired result, Pechorin decides to start a military career. He, as is customary among the aristocracy, serves in the St. Petersburg Guard. But he doesn’t stay here for long either - participation in a duel dramatically changes his life - for this offense he is exiled to serve in the Caucasus.

If Pechorin were a hero of a folk epic, then his constant epithet would be the word “strange.” All the heroes find something unusual in him, different from other people. This fact is not related to habits, mental or psychological development - the point here is precisely the ability to express one’s emotions, adhere to the same position - sometimes Grigory Alexandrovich is very contradictory.

He likes to cause pain and suffering to others, he is aware of this and understands that such behavior does not look good not only on him specifically, but on any person. And yet he doesn’t try to restrain himself. Pechorin compares himself to a vampire - the realization that someone will spend the night in mental anguish is incredibly flattering to him.

Pechorin is persistent and stubborn, this creates many problems for him, because of this he often finds himself in not the most pleasant situations, but here courage and determination come to his rescue.

Grigory Alexandrovich becomes the reason for the destruction of the life paths of many people. By his mercy, the blind boy and the old woman are left to their fate (the episode with the smugglers), Vulich, Bella and her father die, Pechorin’s friend dies in a duel at the hands of Pechorin himself, Azamat becomes a criminal. This list can still be replenished with many names of people to whom the main character insulted and became a reason for resentment and depression. Does Pechorin know and understand the full gravity of the consequences of his actions? Quite, but this fact does not bother him - he does not value his life, much less the destinies of other people.

Thus, the image of Pechorin is contradictory and ambiguous. On the one hand, one can easily find positive character traits in him, but on the other hand, callousness and selfishness confidently reduce all his positive achievements to “no” - Grigory Aleksandrovich destroys with his recklessness both his fate and the fates of the people around him. He is a destructive force that is difficult to resist.

Psychological portrait of Grigory Pechorin

Lermontov helps to imagine the character's character traits by referring to the hero's appearance and habits. For example, Pechorin is distinguished by a lazy and careless gait, but at the same time the hero’s gestures do not indicate that Pechorin is a secretive person. The young man’s forehead was marred by wrinkles, and when Grigory Alexandrovich sat, it seemed that the hero was tired. When Pechorin's lips laughed, his eyes remained motionless, sad.

Pechorin's fatigue was manifested in the fact that the hero's passion did not linger for long on any object or person. Grigory Alexandrovich said that in life he is guided not by the dictates of the heart, but by the orders of the head. This is coldness, rationality, periodically interrupted by a short-term riot of feelings. Pechorin is characterized by a trait called fatality. The young man is not afraid to go wild and seeks adventure and risk, as if testing fate.

The contradictions in Pechorin’s characterization are manifested in the fact that with the courage described above, the hero is frightened by the slightest cracking of window shutters or the sound of rain. Pechorin is a fatalist, but at the same time convinced of the importance of human willpower. There is a certain predestination in life, expressed at least in the fact that a person will not escape death, so why then are they afraid to die? In the end, Pechorin wants to help society, to be useful by saving people from the Cossack killer.

Speaking about the characterization of Grigory Pechorin, first of all it should be noted that the author of the work, Mikhail Lermontov, clearly showed his attitude towards the hero Grigory Pechorin. Pechorin does not fit into society, he seems to “fall out” of it, and the point is not at all in his appearance. Indeed, Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin is a handsome officer, has a sharp mind, a lively and ebullient nature, and has an explosive character. However, Mikhail Lermontov himself, mentioning the characterization of Grigory Pechorin, notes: “This is a portrait made up of the vices of our entire generation, in their full development.”

Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin is, of course, a put together image of the people of that time, namely the 30s of the 19th century.

So, Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin is, of course, a put together image of the people of that time, namely the 30s of the 19th century. What interesting things can be said about the characterization of Grigory Pechorin?

He leads a rather boring lifestyle, he is lonely, and it’s hard to keep himself busy. Although at one time Pechorin moved in the best circles of society, he became bored with everything: courting ladies and social amusements.

On the one hand, Grigory is afraid that society will negatively affect him, so internally he shuns its influence, but on the other hand, Pechorin does not worry about the welfare and well-being of others. Not only does he not value true love and friendship, but in addition, Lermontov’s main character does not worry about the fact that by his behavior he is ruining the fates of those close to him. This fact, of course, significantly overshadows the characterization of Grigory Pechorin.

Characteristics of Grigory Pechorin in the chapter "Bela"

As you read the book and analyze Lermontov's hero Pechorin, it becomes clear that Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin indulges in recklessness simply because he is bored. But when the passion of adventure takes possession of him, he is calculating and ready to do anything - sacrifice friendship, hurt someone's feelings, break something inside himself. For example, in the chapter “Bela” Pechorin burns with passion for the girl Bela, and does everything possible to achieve her favor. It seems that Grigory Pechorin loves Bela, but how can one explain the fact that he mercilessly destroys her family, forcibly kidnaps the girl, pushes Bela’s brother Azamat to madness, and then puts on a guise and tries to evoke sympathy and pity for himself? It is unlikely that such actions can be explained by true love.

Reflecting on the characterization of Grigory Pechorin after reading this chapter, it is clear that in fact Lermontov’s hero Pechorin did not need Bela, she became a fleeting quenching of boredom and for a time, while he was seeking her, dispersed his melancholy.

True, Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin is not devoid of compassion. Realizing that he doesn’t need Bela, but he won her heart, Pechorin continues to deceive her, only now his deception lies in the fact that he supposedly loves her dearly.

Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin indulges in recklessness simply because he is bored. But when the passion for adventure takes hold of him, he is calculating and ready to do anything.

Conclusions about the characteristics of Grigory Pechorin

Speaking in simple terms about Lermontov's hero Pechorin, let's say that Pechorin is a bad person who combines the vices of his generation and modern society. But still, from his actions and way of thinking, one can draw important conclusions about the morality of people in general, and look at oneself through the prism of the vicious character of Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin.

“Hero of Our Time” is the most famous prose work of Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov. It owes much of its popularity to the originality of the composition and plot and the contradictory image of the main character. We’ll try to figure out what makes Pechorin’s characterization so unique.

History of creation

The novel was not the writer's first prose work. Back in 1836, Lermontov began a novel about the life of St. Petersburg high society - “Princess Ligovskaya”, where the image of Pechorin first appears. But due to the poet’s exile, the work was not completed. Already in the Caucasus, Lermontov again took up prose, leaving the same hero, but changing the location of the novel and the title. This work was called “Hero of Our Time.”

Publication of the novel begins in 1839 in separate chapters. The first to go into print are “Bela”, “Fatalist”, “Taman”. The work received many negative responses from critics. They were primarily associated with the image of Pechorin, which was perceived as slander “on an entire generation.” In response, Lermontov puts forward his own characterization of Pechorin, in which he calls the hero a collection of all the vices of the society contemporary to the author.

Genre originality

The genre of the work is a novel that reveals the psychological, philosophical and social problems of Nicholas's times. This period, which came immediately after the defeat of the Decembrists, is characterized by the absence of significant social or philosophical ideas that could inspire and unite the advanced society of Russia. Hence the feeling of uselessness and impossibility of finding one’s place in life, from which the younger generation suffered.

The social side of the novel is already evident in the title, which is imbued with Lermontov’s irony. Pechorin, despite his originality, does not fit the role of a hero; it is not for nothing that he is often called an anti-hero in criticism.

The psychological component of the novel lies in the enormous attention that the author pays to the character’s inner experiences. With the help of various artistic techniques, the author's characterization of Pechorin turns into a complex psychological portrait, which reflects all the ambiguity of the character's personality.

And the philosophical in the novel is represented by a number of eternal human questions: why does a person exist, what is he like, what is the meaning of his life, etc.

What is a romantic hero?

Romanticism as a literary movement arose in the 18th century. His hero is, first of all, an extraordinary and unique personality, who is always opposed to society. A romantic character is always lonely and cannot be understood by others. He has no place in the ordinary world. Romanticism is active, it strives for accomplishments, adventures and unusual scenery. That is why Pechorin’s characterization is replete with descriptions of unusual stories and no less unusual actions of the hero.

Portrait of Pechorin

Initially, Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin is an attempt to typify young people of Lermontov’s generation. How did this character turn out?

A brief description of Pechorin begins with a description of his social status. So, this is an officer who was demoted and exiled to the Caucasus because of some unpleasant story. He is from an aristocratic family, educated, cold and calculating, ironic, endowed with an extraordinary mind, and prone to philosophical reasoning. But he doesn’t know where to use his abilities and often wastes his time on trifles. Pechorin is indifferent to others and himself, even if something captures him, he quickly cools down, as was the case with Bela.

But the fault that such an extraordinary personality cannot find a place for himself in the world lies not with Pechorin, but with the entire society, since he is a typical “hero of his time.” The social situation gave birth to people like him.

Quoted description of Pechorin

Two characters speak about Pechorin in the novel: Maxim Maksimovich and the author himself. Also here we can mention the hero himself, who writes about his thoughts and experiences in his diary.

Maxim Maksimych, a simple-minded and kind man, describes Pechorin this way: “A nice fellow... just a little strange.” Pechorin is all about this strangeness. He does illogical things: he hunts in bad weather and sits at home on clear days; goes to the wild boar alone, not valuing his life; He can be silent and gloomy, or he can become the life of the party and tell funny and very interesting stories. Maxim Maksimovich compares his behavior with the behavior of a spoiled child who is used to always getting what he wants. This characteristic reflected mental tossing, worries, and inability to cope with one’s feelings and emotions.

The author’s quotation description of Pechorin is very critical and even ironic: “When he sat down on the bench, his figure bent... the position of his whole body depicted some kind of nervous weakness: he sat as Balzac’s thirty-year-old coquette sits on her downy chairs... There was something childish in his smile...” Lermontov does not at all idealize his hero, seeing his shortcomings and vices.

Attitude towards love

Pechorin made Bela, Princess Mary, Vera, and the “undine” his beloved. The characterization of the hero would be incomplete without a description of his love stories.

Seeing Bela, Pechorin believes that he has finally fallen in love, and this is what will help brighten up his loneliness and save him from suffering. However, time passes, and the hero realizes that he was mistaken - the girl only entertained him for a short time. Pechorin's indifference to the princess revealed all the egoism of this hero, his inability to think about others and sacrifice something for them.

The next victim of the character's troubled soul is Princess Mary. This proud girl decides to step over social inequality and is the first to confess her love. However, Pechorin is afraid of family life, which will bring peace. The hero doesn’t need this, he craves new experiences.

A brief description of Pechorin in connection with his attitude towards love can boil down to the fact that the hero appears as a cruel person, incapable of constant and deep feelings. He only causes pain and suffering to both the girls and himself.

Duel between Pechorin and Grushnitsky

The main character appears as a contradictory, ambiguous and unpredictable personality. The characterization of Pechorin and Grushnitsky points to another striking feature of the character - the desire to have fun, to play with the destinies of other people.

The duel in the novel was Pechorin’s attempt not only to laugh at Grushnitsky, but also to conduct a kind of psychological experiment. The main character gives his opponent the opportunity to do the right thing and show his best qualities.

The comparative characteristics of Pechorin and Grushnitsky in this scene are not on the side of the latter. Since it was his meanness and desire to humiliate the main character that led to the tragedy. Pechorin, knowing about the conspiracy, is trying to give Grushnitsky an opportunity to justify himself and retreat from his plan.

What is the tragedy of Lermontov's hero

Historical reality dooms all Pechorin’s attempts to find at least some useful use for himself. Even in love he could not find a place for himself. This hero is completely alone; it is difficult for him to get close to people, to open up to them, to let them into his life. Sucking melancholy, loneliness and the desire to find a place for oneself in the world - these are the characteristics of Pechorin. “A Hero of Our Time” has become a novel that personifies the greatest tragedy of man - the inability to find oneself.

Pechorin is endowed with nobility and honor, which was demonstrated during the duel with Grushnitsky, but at the same time, selfishness and indifference dominate in him. Throughout the entire narrative, the hero remains static - he does not evolve, nothing can change him. Lermontov seems to be trying to show by this that Pechorin is practically half a corpse. His fate is sealed; he is no longer alive, although he is not completely dead yet. This is why the main character does not care about his safety; he fearlessly rushes forward because he has nothing to lose.

Pechorin's tragedy lies not only in the social situation, which did not allow him to find a use for himself, but also in his inability to simply live. Introspection and constant attempts to comprehend what is happening around us led to wandering, constant doubts and uncertainty.

Conclusion

The characterization of Pechorin is interesting, ambiguous and very contradictory. “A Hero of Our Time” became Lermontov’s iconic work precisely because of such a complex hero. Having absorbed the features of romanticism, social changes of the Nicholas era and philosophical problems, Pechorin’s personality turned out to be timeless. His thoughts and problems are close to today’s youth.

Why Pechorin is a “hero of our time”

The novel “A Hero of Our Time” was written by Mikhail Lermontov in the 30s of the 19th century. This was the time of the Nikolaev reaction, which came after the dispersal of the Decembrist uprising in 1825. Many young, educated people did not see a goal in life at that time, did not know what to apply their strength to, how to serve for the benefit of people and the Fatherland. That is why such restless characters as Grigory Aleksandrovich Pechorin arose. The characterization of Pechorin in the novel “A Hero of Our Time” is, in fact, a characteristic of the entire generation contemporary to the author. Boredom is his characteristic feature. “The Hero of Our Time, my dear sirs, is definitely a portrait, but not of one person: it is a portrait made up of the vices of our entire generation, in their full development,” writes Mikhail Lermontov in the preface. “Are all the young people there really like that?” – asks one of the characters in the novel, Maxim Maksimych, who knew Pechorin closely. And the author, who plays the role of a traveler in the work, answers him that “there are many people who say the same thing” and that “nowadays those who... are bored, try to hide this misfortune as a vice.”

We can say that all of Pechorin’s actions are motivated by boredom. We begin to be convinced of this almost from the first lines of the novel. It should be noted that compositionally it is built in such a way that the reader can see as best as possible all the character traits of the hero, from different sides. The chronology of events here fades into the background, or rather, it is not here at all. Pieces have been snatched from Pechorin’s life that are connected only by the logic of his image.

Characteristics of Pechorin

Actions

We first learn about this man from Maxim Maksimych, who served with him in the Caucasian fortress. He tells the story of Bel. Pechorin, for the sake of entertainment, persuaded her brother to kidnap a girl - a beautiful young Circassian. While Bela is cold with him, he is interested in her. But as soon as he achieves her love, he immediately cools off. Pechorin doesn’t care that destinies are tragically ruined because of his whim. Bela's father is killed, and then she herself. Somewhere in the depths of his soul he feels sorry for this girl, any memory of her causes him bitterness, but he does not repent of his action. Even before her death, he confesses to a friend: “If you want, I still love her, I am grateful to her for a few rather sweet minutes, I would give my life for her, but I’m bored with her...”. The love of a savage turned out to be little better for him than the love of a noble lady. This psychological experiment, like all the previous ones, did not bring him happiness and satisfaction with life, but left him with disappointment.

In the same way, for the sake of idle interest, he intervened in the life of “honest smugglers” (chapter “Taman”), as a result of which the unfortunate old woman and the blind boy found themselves without a livelihood.

Another amusement for him was Princess Mary, whose feelings he shamelessly played with, giving her hope, and then admitting that he did not love her (chapter “Princess Mary”).

We learn about the last two cases from Pechorin himself, from the journal that he kept with great enthusiasm at one time, wanting to understand himself and... kill boredom. Then he lost interest in this activity too. And his notes - a suitcase of notebooks - remained with Maksim Maksimych. In vain he carried them around with him, wanting to hand them over to the owner on occasion. When such an opportunity presented itself, Pechorin did not need them. Consequently, he kept his diary not for the sake of fame, not for the sake of publication. This is the special value of his notes. The hero describes himself without worrying at all about how he will look in the eyes of others. He does not need to prevaricate, he is sincere with himself - and thanks to this, we can learn about the true reasons for his actions and understand him.

Appearance

The traveling author turned out to be a witness to Maxim Maksimych’s meeting with Pechorin. And from him we learn what Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin looked like. There was a sense of contradiction in his entire appearance. At first glance, he was no more than 23 years old, but the next minute it seemed that he was 30. His gait was careless and lazy, but he did not swing his arms, which usually indicates a secretive character. When he sat down on the bench, his straight waist bent and went limp, as if there was not a single bone left in his body. There were traces of wrinkles on this young man's forehead. But the author was especially struck by his eyes: they did not laugh when he laughed.

Character Traits

The external characteristics of Pechorin in “A Hero of Our Time” reflect his internal state. “I have long lived not with my heart, but with my head,” he says about himself. Indeed, all his actions are characterized by cold rationality, but feelings no, no, break through. He fearlessly goes alone to hunt a wild boar, but shudders at the sound of shutters, can spend the whole day hunting on a rainy day and is terrified of a draft.

Pechorin forbade himself to feel, because his real impulses of the soul did not find a response in those around him: “Everyone read on my face signs of bad feelings that did not exist; but they were anticipated - and they were born. I was modest - I was accused of guile: I became secretive. I felt good and evil deeply; no one caressed me, everyone insulted me: I became vindictive; I was gloomy, - other children were cheerful and talkative; I felt superior to them - they put me lower. I became envious. I was ready to love the whole world, but no one understood me: and I learned to hate.”

He rushes about, not finding his calling, his purpose in life. “It’s true that I had a high purpose, because I feel immense strength within myself.” Secular entertainment, novels are a passed stage. They brought him nothing but inner emptiness. In the study of science, which he took up in a desire to benefit, he also did not find any meaning, since he realized that the key to success is in dexterity, and not in knowledge. Boredom overwhelmed Pechorin, and he hoped that at least the Chechen bullets whistling overhead would save him from it. But during the Caucasian War he was again disappointed: “After a month, I got so used to their buzzing and the proximity of death that, really, I paid more attention to mosquitoes - and I became more bored than before.” What could he do with his unspent energy? The consequence of his lack of demand was, on the one hand, unjustified and illogical actions, and on the other, painful vulnerability and deep inner sadness.

Attitude towards love

The fact that Pechorin has not lost the ability to feel is also evidenced by his love for Vera. This is the only woman who understood him completely and accepted him as he is. He does not need to embellish himself in front of her or, conversely, appear unapproachable. He fulfills all the conditions just to be able to see her, and when she leaves, he drives his horse to death in an effort to catch up with his beloved.

He treats other women who meet on his way completely differently. There is no place for emotions here - only calculation. For him, they are just a way to relieve boredom, while at the same time demonstrating his selfish power over them. He studies their behavior like guinea pigs, coming up with new twists in the game. But this doesn’t save him either - he often knows in advance how his victim will behave, and he becomes even sadder.

Attitude towards death

Another important point in Pechorin’s character in the novel “A Hero of Our Time” is his attitude towards death. It is demonstrated in its entirety in the chapter “Fatalist”. Although Pechorin recognizes the predetermination of fate, he believes that this should not deprive a person of his will. We must boldly move forward, “after all, nothing worse than death will happen - and you cannot escape death.” This is where we see what noble actions Pechorin is capable of if his energy is directed in the right direction. He bravely throws himself out the window in an effort to neutralize the Cossack killer. His innate desire to act, to help people, finally finds at least some application.

My attitude towards Pechorin

What kind of attitude does this person deserve? Condemnation or sympathy? The author named his novel this way with some irony. “A hero of our time” is, of course, not a role model. But he is a typical representative of his generation, forced to waste their best years aimlessly. “Am I a fool or a villain, I don’t know; but it is true that I am also very worthy of regret,” Pechorin says about himself and gives the reason: “My soul is spoiled by light.” He sees his last consolation in travel and hopes: “Maybe I’ll die somewhere along the way.” You can treat it differently. One thing is certain: this is an unhappy person who has never found his place in life. If contemporary society had been structured differently, he would have shown himself completely differently.

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