Introduction

Mikhail Koshevoy in the novel “Quiet Don” is initially a minor character. But gradually his image comes to the fore. It is this, at first insignificant character, who plays a decisive role in the fate of a number of central characters in the work.

Description of Mikhail Koshevoy

In the first part of “Quiet Don” Mishka Koshevoy appears before us as an ordinary farm boy with a naive, even somewhat childish, expression and laughing eyes. It is the hero’s eyes that Sholokhov draws the reader’s attention to. Dark in the first book, they suddenly become “unsmiling”, “blue and cold as ice” in the third.

During the war years, “Mikhail’s face matured and seemed to fade.” The hero becomes bitter, frowns and often clenches his teeth. Koshevoy “jerked up his eyes, and they looked straight into the enemy’s pupils, pierced into them.” His dull eyes briefly perk up only when he looks at Mishatka and Dunyashka. “The lights of admiration and affection flashed in them for a moment and went out.”

Characteristics of Mikhail Koshevoy

In peacetime, Koshevoy behaves like his peers. He lives by caring for the household and takes part in the entertainment of the farm youth. Participation in Shtokman's circle changes his outlook on life. Mishka is imbued with the ideas of the visiting member of the RSDLP and unconditionally sides with the Soviet government. Unlike Grigory Melekhov, Koshevoy does not doubt for a minute whose side he is on. His devotion to the ideas of the party gradually reaches the point of fanaticism, and the hero becomes completely embittered. The feeling of class hatred displaces everything universal from his soul. The final rebirth of Koshevoy occurs after he learns of the death of his comrades. “After the murder of Shtokman, after Mishka heard rumors about the death of Ivan Alekseevich and the Elan communists, Mishka’s heart was clothed with burning hatred for the Cossacks. He no longer hesitated, did not listen to the hated voice of pity when a captured Cossack rebel fell into his hands.” He kills, burns houses. Particularly indicative are the scenes of Koshevoy’s participation in the punitive expedition to the village of Karginskaya, where he personally allowed the “red kochet” into 150 houses.

Mikhail was not cruel by nature. He says that, unlike other Cossacks, he cannot even slaughter a pig. But for him, opponents of the new government are no longer people. In his opinion, they live in vain in the world; Koshevoy has a “steady hand” on them. It is characteristic that the word “enemy” constantly appears in the hero’s speech. He sees enemies everywhere. He is even ready to throw Dunyasha, the person closest to him, out of his life just because she spoke unflatteringly about the communists. “If you say that again – you and I can’t live together, you know that!

Your words are the enemy’s…” says Koshevoy.

Koshevoy and Melekhov

Koshevoy’s relationship in “Quiet Don” with the Melekhov family is complicated. He personally shoots the captive Peter, kills the Melekhovs' matchmaker, Grishaka Korshunov's grandfather, and sets fire to his house, insists on the arrest of his former comrade Grigory. Despite all this, he does not feel guilty for what he did. For him, they are all not fellow villagers with whom he lived side by side for so many years, but class enemies. Mishka says to Ilyinichna, who reproaches him for killing his grandfather: “I can’t kill an animal... but I can kill a dirty trick like this matchmaker of yours or some other enemy as much as I like!” To the accusations of killing Peter, he replies that Peter would have done the same to him if they had switched places.

It is interesting that it is Koshevoy, who brought so much grief to the Melekhovs, who undertakes to improve her life. He, having come to Ilyinichna’s house as Dunya’s fiancé, puts up a fence, repairs the longboat, and helps with the mowing. But, despite these seemingly positive aspects, in his soul he is not able to understand and accept someone else’s position. He considers Dunyasha’s mother, who calls him a “murderer,” to be “an enraged old woman.” Mishka also hates Gregory, who, even after everything that happened, opens his arms to him, considering Koshevoy his own.

If in the first three books Mishka still shows uncertainty, sometimes even confusion, then they completely disappear in the fourth book, when Koshevoy becomes chairman of the farm revolutionary committee. The only feeling he feels for his fellow villagers is anger because they do not want to unconditionally accept the new government, as he himself did.

Conclusion

Is Koshevoy a positive or negative character? From a political point of view, of course, yes. After all, it’s hard to imagine a more dedicated fighter for a brighter future. But, if you look at the hero from a universal human perspective, it becomes scary. What bright future can a fanatic build who has neither understanding nor compassion in his soul?

Work test

A true master of words, Mikhail Sholokhov, created the great work “Quiet Don”. It is considered a truly folk epic in the style of Pushkin, Tolstoy, and Dostoevsky. The outstanding author showed many destinies, characters, and worldviews in his novel. The formation of the characters' characters is shown in the turning points of history - revolution, civil war. Mikhail Koshevoy occupies a special place in Sholokhov’s system of characters, among complex, multifaceted, contradictory people. The characteristics of this man of that era will help you understand his complex but vibrant personality.

The beginning of turbulent events in the epic novel

The history of the Cossacks in the turbulent years from 1912 to 1922 is shown by Sholokhov in the epic "Quiet Don". This work reflects everything from the peculiar Cossack way of life to their culture, traditions, and morals. The novel is filled with events in socio-political life that greatly influenced the fate of the Don Cossacks.

The author endowed the main characters of the novel with bright individual characters. In the vicissitudes of strong passions, they face difficult destinies. Grigory Melekhov occupies a central place in the novel. Sholokhov shows his difficult life path and the formation of his moral character. The reader observes the traditions of the Cossacks and universal moral values. To better reveal the characters' characters, the author uses the beautiful landscapes of the Don land.

At the beginning of the novel, the life and customs of the Cossack village before the First World War are depicted. At first, the Tatarsky farm lived a calm, peaceful life. Sholokhov shows the connection between original and bright personalities - Grigory Melekhov and Aksinya Astakhova. But their personal lives are complicated by the turmoil that came with the revolution and civil war. Grigory had a friend Mikhail Koshevoy, whose image is given by the author a little secondary. But it is he who is the complete counterweight to Grigory Melekhov. With the onset of Soviet power, Grigory was tormented by doubts and hesitations, and Koshevoy was completely imbued with the idea of ​​equality, justice and brotherhood. While still working as a flock keeper in the village, Mishka reflects on the fact that somewhere people decide other people’s destinies, and he is simply grazing mares. And he completely decided to devote himself to communist ideas.

Koshevoy's appearance

At the beginning of the novel, the reader sees Mishka Koshevoy as an ordinary farm guy. He has a naive and even slightly childish expression on his face, and laughing eyes. Sholokhov paid special attention to the hero’s eyes. In the first book he showed them dark, and in the second they turned blue and cold. And this is not without reason. Mikhail underwent strong internal changes. He even stopped smiling.

The war made Mishka’s face mature and, as it were, “faded.” The hero became cruel, frowning, sternly knitting his eyebrows and clenching his teeth. He pierced the enemy with his pupils so much that they had no place under his feet. At the end of the novel, a small warm light flashed in his eyes when he looked at Dunyashka and Mishatka (Grigory’s children). A small piece of warmth and affection flared up and then faded away.

The origin of Mikhail Koshevoy’s views in the novel “Quiet Don”

Even in the first book, Sholokhov introduces readers to Mishka Koshev. This is an ordinary guy, no different from other Cossacks. He and the farm youth have fun in the evenings and look after the household. At first it seems that the author inserted this character only as an extra. But soon he began to participate in Shtokman's circle. The visiting member of the RSDLP was able to completely convince the guy that the Soviet government was right, and he takes its side. He had no doubts about the correctness of communist ideas. His confidence in his rightness leads the hero to fanatical actions, very cruel.

Post-revolutionary changes in the hero

After some time, class hatred completely took possession of Mikhail and displaced all universal human qualities from his heart. After he learned about the death of his friends at the gathering, a final rebirth occurred in him. After the murder of Shtokman and the Elan communists, a burning hatred for the Cossacks settled in Mishka’s heart. Pity had ceased to be his advisor; he treated any captured Cossack cruelly. Having joined the ranks of the Red Army, he killed and burned houses. The most revealing scene of Koshevoy’s cruelty is considered to be the punitive expedition to the village of Kargynskaya, where he personally set fire to 150 houses.

Where did such cruelty come from, since the guy had never been like this before? In his youth, he couldn’t even kill a pig. But Mikhail did not consider the opponents of the new government to be people. He easily raised his hand against such people, because they had no idea. The hero constantly calls such people enemies, and he sees them everywhere. Even Dunyasha, the person closest to him, should not speak badly about the communists, otherwise he will throw her out of his life without a second thought.

Koshevoy in the Melekhovs' house

For several years Koshevoy fought in the civil war in the Red Army. Upon his return, he comes to the house of his beloved Duna Melekhova. How does the Melikhov family greet the guest? There was no reason for them to love him. At one time, Mikhail killed Dunya's brother Peter, as well as their matchmaker. Dunyasha's mother, Ilyinichna, greeted Koshevoy rudely and unfriendly, even with hatred. But Mikhail persistently takes advantage of the fact that Dunya loves him. He turned out to be not only Dunya’s chosen one, but also the enemy of her family. Hatred and love merge into a single tragic episode. Dunya still loves the old Misha, but not the real killer. After all, he did not even hesitate to give the order for the arrest of his former friend Grigory, Dunya’s brother.

Be that as it may, guilt does not torment Mikhail’s soul. In all the Cossacks who do not support the Soviet regime, he sees not his fellow countrymen, but class enemies. He does not torment himself for killing Peter, because he believes that he would have done the same in his place. In the end, Grigory nevertheless overcame himself and opened his arms to Mikhail for a hug, but he remained unshaken. Hatred completely took possession of him. In the fourth book, Koshevoy was appointed chairman of the revolutionary committee on the farm, which made him even colder. His eyes became icy.

Mikhail's actions and human traits

The revolution that swept Russia turned Koshevoy's heart into a blazing fire. He became a faithful soldier of new times. On the way to a bright future for all the oppressed, he is ready to take the lives of his fellow villagers. He doesn’t feel sorry for his friends or the elderly. He hates people who do not support communism.

Only something a little human awakens in him when he marries Dunyasha and helps Ilyinichna with the housework. Being a kind person at heart, he shows hard work. Mikhail firmly believes that mercilessness in the struggle for a new life will certainly bring good results. Is this really the case?

Mishka Kosheva is the complete opposite of Grigory Melekhov. He first served in the regular troops of the tsarist army, then defected to the Red Army, then was in the ranks of the volunteer and rebel army. After all his wanderings, he became a member of Fomin’s detachment. People gathered there who found themselves in robbery and led a hectic lifestyle with murders and robberies. Thus, the civil war gave birth to robbers who were not guided by the moral principles “Thou shalt not steal” and “Thou shalt not kill.”

Gregory's tossing between the Reds and the Whites led him to an asocial environment. He knows how to fight, but doesn't want to. He wants to plow the land, raise children, live with his beloved, but they don’t let him. This is where Sholokhov shows the tragedy of the Cossacks of that time.

Unlike Gregory, Mikhail does not want to plow the land and work on it. He got a good job as a boss. At the end of the novel, Gregory ends his war, returns home, he has no desire to hide and fight. But his fate is in the hands of the authorities, that is, Mikhail Koshevoy. The ending of the novel remained open. The reader does not know whether Gregory was able to find a little warmth next to his son.

Is Kosheva a positive character?

If we consider Koshevoy from a political point of view, he took the positive side. He became a dedicated fighter for a brighter future. But it’s scary to even think about his universal human positions. Can a fanatic without soul and compassion build something bright? So, rather, this is a negative character.

What did Sholokhov want to show with the image of Koshevoy?

Depicting the fates of Mikhail Koshevoy, Grigory Melekhov, as well as other heroes, Sholokhov wanted to show the pricelessness of human life. Even the noblest idea has no right to take someone's life. The author of the novel focuses on the fact that the meaning of human life lies only in work, care for children, and love. These are the values ​​that a real Cossack should have, and not those like Mikhail Koshevoy.

The epic novel “The Quiet Don” by M. A. Sholokhov is a grandiose work about the life and everyday life of the Don Cossacks. The cataclysms of the cruel twentieth century disrupted the peaceful flow of people's life, life on the Don went wrong.

One of the striking episodes confirming the tragedy of what is happening on the Don is the episode of Mikhail Koshevoy’s visit to the Melekhovs’ house.

Ilyinichna was exhausted waiting for her son. She has already become weak and old. Numerous losses and losses broke her, and her age made itself felt. Every day she remembered Gregory, waited for him every minute, did not let anyone doubt his return for a moment, kept warm food for him, hung his clothes in the front corner as a pleasant memory. And now, instead of Gregory, her first enemy appears in her house, Mishka Koshevoy, the killer of her son Peter. Ilyinichna finds no room for indignation. She hates the bear. Koshevoy came to the Melekhovs immediately the next morning after returning. He missed Dunyashka, and Ilyinichna’s harsh reception did not bother him at all. Ilyinichna began to shame him and drive him out of her house. Mishka did not pay any attention to her words. He understood the mistress of the Melekhov house perfectly well, but he also had no intention of retreating from his own. Dunyashka had the hardest time in this situation, who, as soon as she heard Mikhail’s voice, could not find a place for herself. On her face, “a thick blush flashed, then pallor covered her cheeks so that the thin hump of her nose showed

longitudinal white stripes." At the sight of Dunyashka, who still could not stand it and left the room, Koshevoy’s dull eyes perked up. Love for her is the only thing left in his life, and Ilya had to come to terms with this.

She starts a difficult conversation with Mikhail. But he was waiting for this conversation. He knew that Melekhova would call him a murderer, he knew that he would have to look into the eyes of the mother whose son he had personally taken the life of. Koshevoy explains his action by the war. “And if Petro caught me, what would he do?” - he exclaims angrily, arguing with the old woman. War is inhumane. Civil - doubly so. Brother went against brother, neighbor against neighbor, and Mishka Ilyinichna had to explain this. Koshevoy tells the old woman about his spiritual sensitivity, that he never raised a hand against an animal, that the war forced him to be as cruel as everyone else was. Unpredictable fate decreed that Mikhail’s heart burned with love specifically for Duna Melekhova, that her brother ended up in an enemy camp, that the Melekhovs’ in-laws, the Korshunovs, were also on the other side of the barricades. Their fate is tragic, but Koshevoy, who remained completely alone, is no happier than them. War, according to Sholokhov, corrupts the souls of people, kills the humanity in them.

Arguing with Mishka for a long time, Ilyinichna begins to understand that it is not so easy to get him away from their house. Koshevoy was characterized by bullish tenacity, the offensive antics of the “enraged old woman” did not touch him and, most importantly, he knew that Dunyashka loved him too, therefore, there was a point in pursuing her.

At a certain moment, Dunyashka cannot stand it and rebels against her mother’s prohibitions. Her love is stronger than fear of her mother, stronger than respect for her. Despite all the cruelty of the war, natural human feelings remained just as strong, exhausted people still continued to love, because life went on.

Ilyinichna did not resist for long. The old woman, who had always lived by the universal human idea of ​​home and maternal duty, was unable to live in a new way, to live with the idea of ​​hatred. Mikhail soon began helping them with the housework. It was difficult to contradict him: without a man’s hand, everything at the Melekhovs had long ago fallen into disrepair. Seeing how thin the “murderer” has become, Ilyinichna feels sorry for him, obeying the eternal unbidden feeling - “aching maternal pity.” As a result, unable to bear it, Ilyinichna calls Mikhail for dinner, practically recognizing him as a member of the family. At dinner, she watches him closely and it is at this moment that she unexpectedly becomes imbued with a different feeling for him. The writer explains this paradoxical phenomenon - pity for the murderer of his son - by the strength of character of a simple Russian woman. The people suffered many losses, the Melekhovs suffered, but life went on, and somehow it was necessary to come to terms with its new circumstances.

The novel “Quiet Don” is the writer’s passionate appeal to people to preserve universal human values ​​and renounce wars and violence.

Mishka Koshevoy is a Cossack from the village of Tatarskaya, who went over to the side of the Bolsheviks. He has an impetuous character and is characterized by great emotionality and maximalism. The hero takes the position of the “reds” and completely devotes himself to the fight against the whites, whom he considers enemies of the people. Koshevoy now does not see the people he lived next to all his life as fellow countrymen, neighbors, or friends. He now divides people into “his” and “enemies”.

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Koshevoy is fanatical about his work. He mercilessly kills people, and drowns out the pangs of conscience with the phrase “We are all murderers.” Koshevoy’s revenge and anger extends to the families of the warring parties, and does not spare the elderly and children. He brutally kills grandfather Grishaka, burns many houses of his enemies: he set fire to about one and a half hundred households of the village of Karginskaya along with three of his comrades.

Koshevoy takes care of Dunyashka, the sister of Grigory Melekhov. She agrees to marry him, even though he killed Peter, her older brother.

Updated: 2012-12-16

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LVI The prisoners were driven to Tatarsky at five o'clock in the afternoon. The fleeting spring twilight was already close, the sun was already setting towards sunset, touching with a flaming disk the edge of a shaggy gray cloud spread in the west. His monstrously swollen head, with hair stuck together in dry blood, was as tall as a bucket standing up. The skin on his forehead was swollen and cracked, his cheeks were shiny purple, and on the very top of his head, covered with a gelatinous mess, lay woolen gloves. He apparently put them on his head, trying to cover the continuous wound from the stinging rays of the sun, from the flies and midges swarming in the air. The gloves had dried to the wound and remained on his head... He looked around hauntedly, looking for and afraid to look at his wife or his little son, he wanted to turn to someone with a request to take them away from here, if they were here. He already realized that he would not get further than Tatarsky, that he would die here, and he did not want his relatives to see his death, and he waited for death itself with ever-increasing greedy impatience. Slouching, slowly and difficultly turning his head, he looked around at the familiar faces of the farmers and did not read regret or sympathy in a single glance - the glances of the Cossacks and women were sullen and fierce. And in the silence, the answer sounded somewhat muffled, but firmly: “Great, godfather Daria.” The recoil made her sway sharply, the sound of the shot was deafening, but through the narrowed slits of her eyes she saw how instantly - terribly and irreparably - Ivan Alekseevich’s trembling face changed, how he spread and folded his hands, as if about to jump from a great height into the water, and then fell on his back, and with feverish speed his head twitched, the fingers of his outstretched hands moved, carefully scraped the ground... Daria threw the rifle, still not giving herself a clear account of what she had just done, turned her back to the fallen man and unnatural in her With an ordinary simplicity, she straightened her head scarf and picked up her stray hair. The village was quiet and deserted. The dark cotton wool night covered the surrounding hillocks, the Trans-Don region, the murmuring poplars and ash trees... Grigory drove into the base and entered the kuren. There was no fire. Mosquitoes buzzed in the thick darkness, and the icons in the front corner glittered with dull gold. Inhaling the familiar, exciting smell of his native home from childhood, Grigory asked: “Is anyone home there?” Mommy! Dunyashka!