Goodness in Russian and foreign literature: examples from books. Questions of good and evil in the works of Russian writers In which works are good and evil

Good and evil... Eternal philosophical concepts that trouble the minds of people at all times. Arguing about the difference between these concepts, it can be argued that goodness, of course, brings pleasant experiences to the people close to you. Evil, on the contrary, wants to bring suffering. But, as often happens, it is difficult to distinguish good from evil. “How can this be,” another ordinary person will ask. It turns out it can. The fact is that good is often embarrassed to talk about its motives for action, and evil is embarrassed to talk about its own. Good even sometimes disguises itself as a little evil, and evil can

Do the same. But it trumpets that it is great good! Why is this happening? It’s just that a kind person, as a rule, is modest, and it is a burden for him to listen to gratitude. So he says, having done a good deed, that it didn’t cost him anything at all. Well, what about evil? Oh, this is evil... It loves to accept words of gratitude, even for non-existent benefits.

Indeed, it is difficult to figure out where the light is and where the darkness is, where the real good is and where the evil is. But as long as a person lives, he will strive for good and to tame evil. You just need to learn to understand the true motives of people’s actions and, of course, fight

With evil.

Russian literature has repeatedly addressed this problem. Valentin Rasputin did not remain indifferent to her either. In the story “French Lessons” we see the state of mind of Lydia Mikhailovna, who really wanted to help her student get rid of constant malnutrition. Her good deed was “disguised”: she played “chika” (that’s the name of the game for money) with her student for money. Yes, this is not ethical, not pedagogical. The school director, having learned about this act of Lydia Mikhailovna, fires her from her job. But the French teacher played with the student and gave in to the boy, because she wanted him to buy food for himself with the money he won, not go hungry and continue to study. This is a truly kind deed.

I would like to recall another work in which the problem of good and evil is raised. This is M.A. Bulgakov’s novel “The Master and Margarita”. It is here that the author talks about the inseparability of the existence of good and evil on earth. This is a truism. In one of the chapters, Levi Matvey calls Woland evil. To which Woland replies: “What would your good do if evil did not exist?” The writer believes that the real evil in people is that they are weak and cowardly by nature. But evil can still be defeated. To do this, it is necessary to establish the principle of justice in society, that is, exposing meanness, lies and sycophancy. The standard of goodness in the novel is Yeshua Ha-Nozri, who sees only good in all people. During interrogation by Pontius Pilate, he says that he is ready to endure any suffering for faith and goodness, and also about his intention to expose evil in all its manifestations. The hero does not give up his ideas even in the face of death. “There are no evil people in the world, there are only unhappy people,” he says to Pontius Pilate.

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Essays on topics:

1. What are good and evil? And why today does a person bring more evil to others than good? It is above these...

The confrontation between good and evil in works of Russian literature

Author of the project:

10th grade student

Daria Sayapina

Lugobolotnaya Secondary School

Problematic question

How does it happen in life: does good or evil win?

Target

find out whether in all works of Russian literature there is a confrontation between good and evil, and who wins in this battle?

Tasks

• collect historical and literary information on the problem of the confrontation between good and evil in Russian literature

• explore a number of works of classical literature containing the problem of the struggle between good and evil

• make a comparison table

• prepare abstract material on the stated topic

• develop skills in working with different sources

• make a presentation of the project at the literary lounge

• take part in a school conference

My guesses

Suppose there were no evil in the world. Then life wouldn't be interesting. Evil always accompanies good, and the struggle between them is nothing more than life. Fiction is a reflection of life, which means that in every work there is a place for the struggle between good and evil, and good probably wins.

Social results survey

"Vasilisa the Beautiful"

Good has prevailed over evil.

Stepmother and her daughters

turned into coal

and Vasilisa began to live

happily ever after

with the prince in contentment

and happiness

"Ivan the Peasant Son and the Miracle Yudo"

“Then Ivan jumped out of the forge, grabbed the snake and hit it against a stone with all his might. The snake crumbled into fine dust, and the wind scattered that dust in all directions. Since then, all the miracles and snakes in that region have disappeared - people began to live without fear.”

“The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights” by A.S. Pushkin

Evil, the poet claims, is not omnipotent, it is defeated. The evil queen-stepmother, although she “took everything with her mind,” is not confident in herself. And if the queen-mother died from the power of her love, then the queen-stepmother dies from envy and melancholy. With this, Pushkin showed the internal failure and doom of evil.

"Eugene Onegin" A.S. Pushkin

Kind, pure and sincere Tatyana deserves happiness and mutual love, but Onegin’s coldness and arrogance destroy all her dreams.

• Dunya's kindness and sensitivity, embedded in her character by her loving parents, disappears under the influence of another feeling.

• Selfishness and lies destroyed the family, made Dunya unhappy, and led to the death of Samson Vyrin.

"Mtsyri" M.Yu. Lermontov

• Obsessive goodness turns around

for Mtsyri with suffering,

grief and ultimately death

"The Inspector General" N.V. Gogol

“Thunderstorm” A. N. Ostrovsky

Everything is against Katerina, even her own concepts of good and evil. No, she will never return to her old life.

But how can death be a victory over evil?

"Dowry" A.N. Ostrovsky

• An amazing girl carries within herself

good beginnings. Unfortunately,

Larisa dies... and her death -

this is the only worthy way out,

because only then will she

will cease to be a thing

“Crime and Punishment” F.M. Dostoevsky

The main philosophical question of the novel

- boundaries of good and evil

conclusion

Project prospects

Working on the project gave me the idea:

Are there concepts of good and evil in the literature of the 20th century and in modern literature, or in modern literature there is only the concept of evil, and good has completely eradicated itself?

Social significance of the project:

Work materials can be used in literature lessons and extracurricular activities. The work requires continuation: studies of the problem of good and evil in the literature of the 20th century and in modern literature

Good and evil in the works of Russian writers were the center of attention. The writers reflected in their Works of Russian writers these moral categories by different means.

Pushkin touches on the theme of evil several times. In the poem "Anchar" the author believes that evil should balance good. Nature has set aside a place for evil at the edge of the universe. People who are driven by the thirst for power, wealth, envy (of the king) and fear (of the slave) became the spreaders of evil throughout the earth. These feelings are conductors of evil. Money can play a similar role in a person’s life. They make people lose noble knightly qualities, family ties, love (“The Stingy Knight”). They poison the creative process (“Egyptian Nights”). One of the main manifestations of evil is violence. Its use leads to tragedy. Pushkin denies it in the ode “Liberty”, in the prose works “Dubrovsky”, “The Captain’s Daughter”.
Power acquired through violence will not receive recognition from the people (“Boris Godunov”). A person who chooses the path of crime cannot be a creative person.

Genius and villainy are incompatible (“Mozart and Salieri”), Pushkin’s humanism lies in the conclusion that any Evil always punishable. He sees a good beginning in nature (“I visited again...”), in art (the image of Mozart, “The Poet”), in natural human feelings of love and friendship (“I remember a wonderful moment,” “October 19, 1827”).

Lermontov's creative heyday occurred in a darker decade than Pushkin's. Lermontov developed the theme of evil more sharply. He divides evil into two types. Evil The author respects the romantic for its strength and awareness of doom. This is revealed in the cycle of poems about Napoleon and in the poem “The Demon”. Another evil comes from society. This is the evil of the “mocking ignoramuses,” high-society philistines who persecuted Pushkin (“The Death of a Poet,” “How often, surrounded by a motley crowd...”).

Pushkin writes bitterly about the crowd that does not understand the poet. Lermontov strengthens this motive (“Prophet”). For him, people of light are the bearers of evil. Lermontov's heroes, actively pursuing life, rush between good and evil (“Hero of Our Time”). Good in creativity Lermontov is concentrated in nature, where the lyrical hero finds a response to his psychological state (“I go out alone on the road”).

Gogol has a different concept. He put everything together Evil in Russia, contrasting him with faith in the spiritual revival of his homeland. Gogol gave pictures of evil from mystical images of ancient evil (“Evenings on a farm near Dikanka”, “Viy”, “Terrible Vengeance”) to evil in contemporary society. The spirit of demonism inhabits real people and is intertwined with petty philistine evil. This is the story of the terrible portrait and the fate of the artist Chertkov, who exchanged his creative soul for money, selling himself to the devil (“Portrait”). In “The Inspector General,” “The Overcoat,” and “Dead Souls,” the writer gives an extensive description of small but numerous evils and shows their danger to society and the human soul.

At Nekrasov's Evil has a specific social origin. The real source of evil is serfdom. It allows the nobleman to live in idleness and disdain the people (“Railroad”, chapter 3). Serfdom turns a spiritually free person into a slave (“Hey, Ivan!” and chapters from the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus',” “The Last One,” “About the Faithful Jacob, the Exemplary Slave”). Good in creativity Nekrasova also has a social connotation. The poet's goodness has a connotation of sacrifice (“The Poet and the Citizen,” “On the Day of Gogol’s Death,” “N. G. Chernyshevsky,” “A Knight for an Hour”). The poet sees the moral principles of Russian life in the people's soul:

Burned in slavery
The sun is free.
Gold, gold -
People's heart.

(“Rus”, song by Grisha Dobrosklonov from the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'”)

L. Tolstoy agrees with Nekrasov in his assessment of serfdom and violence against the individual. Tolstoy views the concepts of good and evil philosophically. If a person lives in harmony with the world around him and his own nature, then he was created for good (Karataev). If people lose their national roots and try to remake their human essence in order to rise above those around them, then they fall into evil. In War and Peace such characters are Napoleon and Kuragin. They are contrasted with Bolkonsky, Kutuzov, and Rostov, who are spiritually connected with nature and the people. Tolstoy considers war to be the greatest evil.

Dostoevsky talks about good and evil passionately. He reveals the origins of evil. The social side of life is the background of the story about the struggle between God and the devil in the human soul. good and evil exist in the world in balance.

Raskolnikov (“Crime and Punishment”) suffers from social evil and chooses the most terrible form in the fight against injustice. Compulsory good, based on violence, degenerates into evil. Initially, Raskolnikov feels like a liberator of humanity from harmful bloodsuckers. But in the end it turns out that he “killed it for himself.” Sonya helps Raskolnikov make a paradoxical turn towards goodness. Sonya steps over herself for the well-being of others, keeping her soul pure. The path from evil to good lies through suffering, repentance, and purification of the soul. Raskolnikov experiences all this in the epilogue, and the light of truth is revealed to him. Dostoevsky leaves any deeply fallen person the right to repent and rise to the light from the depths of hell.

Good and evil in the works of Russian writers occupy an important place because these moral categories are decisive in the spiritual life of humanity. Classical literature sought to reveal the deadly nature of evil and protect the soul from its destructive influence.

The problem of choosing between good and evil is as old as the world, but at the same time it is still relevant today. Without awareness of the essence of good and evil, it is impossible to understand either the essence of our world or the role of each of us in this world. Without this, concepts such as conscience, honor, morality, ethics, spirituality, truth, freedom, sinfulness, righteousness, decency, holiness lose all meaning...
Rationale:
Biblical legends say that after the creation of the world and man, suffering and grief, and therefore EVIL did not exist, happiness, prosperity, and GOOD reigned everywhere. Where did EVIL come from? Who is the bearer of evil in our lives? Is it possible to eradicate it? These philosophical questions are asked by every inhabitant of the planet.
Since childhood, we, not yet able to read, listened to fairy tales told by our mother or grandmother, admired the beauty and wisdom of Vasilisa the Beautiful, who, thanks to her intelligence and ingenuity, contributed to the triumph of justice in the fight against Koshchei the Immortal. Even three frivolous little pigs were able to resist the evil and treacherous destroyer - the wolf. Friendship, mutual assistance, love and GOOD were able to defeat deceit and EVIL.
I grew up and gradually became acquainted with works of classical literature. And the words of folk wisdom involuntarily came to mind: “Whoever sows good, good is his fruit; whoever sows evil will reap evil.”
Any work of our literature basically contains these two concepts: the majestic Peter I defeats the invader Charles XII (A.S. Pushkin’s poem “Poltava”), or the charming Oksana will inspire Vakula to fearless actions (N.V. Gogol’s story “The Night Before Christmas” ). And how insightful is Dostoevsky’s novel “Crime and Punishment” in terms of the struggle between good and evil!
Reflecting on this, I came to the conclusion that almost every work contains this problem, and I wanted to plunge into the mystery.
Problematic question: How does it happen in life: does good or evil win?
Purpose of the study: to find out whether in all works of Russian literature there is a confrontation between good and evil, and who wins in this battle?
Object of study: fiction
Subject of study: the confrontation between good and evil
Research methods:
- survey,
- analysis,
- comparison,
- classification
Tasks:
Collect historical and literary information on the problem of good and evil in Russian literature.
Explore a number of works of Russian literature containing the problem of good and evil.
Conduct a classification of works in order to determine the winners in the confrontation.
Prepare abstract material on the stated topic
Develop skills in working with different sources
Make a presentation of the project at the literary lounge
Take part in a school conference
Hypothesis: Suppose there was no evil in the world. Then life wouldn't be interesting. Evil always accompanies good, and the struggle between them is nothing more than life. Fiction is a reflection of life, which means that in every work there is a place for the struggle between good and evil, and good probably wins.
Analysis of a sociological survey:
Questions Answers
What do you think came first: good or evil? Good - 18 Evil - 2
What is more in the world: good or evil? Good - 15 Evil - 5
Who is the winner in the confrontation between good and evil? Good - 10 Evil - 10
Conclusion: I interviewed 20 people. These are my classmates, school teachers, relatives and neighbors. Survey data indicate that the majority of people believe that good came first rather than evil, that there is more good in the world than evil. However, speaking about the struggle between good and evil, there is a balance.
Social significance of the project: the materials of the work can be used in literature lessons and extracurricular activities. The work requires continuation: research into the problem of good and evil in the literature of the 20th century and in modern literature.
Project implementation
Ancient legend
In one distant country there lived good wizards. And although people never saw them, they knew that wizards existed, because they often felt their presence and help.
They say that in a magical land the sun always warms, and even in winter flowers of extraordinary beauty grow. They are strewn all around, and there is no place where they do not grow, where there are no bushes with ripe juicy berries. In the forests live unusual animals that can talk and fly. Goldfish swim in the rivers, and birds sing amazing melodies.
Love and peace reign everywhere. There are no nights in this country. Only bright sunny days, like the mood of its inhabitants. Among the mountains there is a castle with many mirrors. It is through them that wizards learn about people’s lives and send them their help.
There is a legend that wizards are the same people, but only able to perform miracles. The legend says that those people who never wished harm to others, knew how to love and brought only goodness into the world, do not die, but move to a magical land, acquiring the gift of magic. The queen gives them this gift.
Everything was fine in the land of wizards until black magicians came to their land. A dark fog hung over the country, eclipsing the sun, shrouding forests and rivers. Having captured the magical land, the magicians first of all broke the mirrors and began to subjugate the wizards to their power, using their gift for their own black purposes.
They wanted to seize the earth with all its countries and cities, destroy all living things, creating their own empire. But their power was not enough. Then they began to look for people with evil thoughts and, like a sponge, they absorbed everything negative that was in a person’s thoughts, thereby replenishing their power and strengthening their power.
Magic was powerless against the magic of destruction and evil. It had no effect on the magicians. The forces were not equal, and the wizards despaired. Calling their queen, they asked for advice.
“For the black fog to dissipate, the help of people is needed,” said the queen, “without them we are powerless.”
“People,” the wizards were surprised. - What can they do when they themselves need help?
- People have kindness, compassion, love. And this is the most powerful weapon against the evil that lives in magicians. They feed on it and turn it against those who bring it. This is their only strength, because magicians live according to the boomerang law.
The wizards looked at each other.
- We do not know such a law.
- It has existed for millennia. If you think about bad things, wish harm to someone, sooner or later it will boomerang back to you and vice versa. Magicians intercept evil thoughts, and when they collect as many as they need to achieve their goal, they will have enough power to destroy people with their own help.
- But how to notify people about the danger that threatens them? How to explain that their thoughts can turn against them? After all, the magicians broke all the mirrors. Maybe send someone?
And the queen sent wonderful birds into the world of people so that with their magical singing they would save people from gloomy thoughts, and goldfish appeared in lakes and rivers to delight everyone with their beauty.
But among the people there were those who caught the birds and put them in cages, and sold the goldfish to other countries.
Then the black fog thickened even more over the wizards’ castle. And people lost their help.
The magicians laughed: “Soon the whole Earth will be ours, and you will serve us.”
“Wizards will never serve evil,” said the queen and waved her wand. All the wizards turned into a white cloud. The wind blew, and in the morning people saw a whole sea of ​​cirrus clouds in the sky.
- What a beauty! - they said admiringly, and looking at the sky, they thought about how beautiful the world is.
“Look, mommy, the clouds are smiling,” said the little girl. - How beautiful they are.
The girl waved her hand at them, and at that time a star fell from the sky.
“If you make a wish, it will definitely come true,” my mother smiled.
- Let everyone be happy and happy now.
These words sounded like a spell. The black fog cleared. The wizards returned to their country again, and the magicians, turning into black clouds, flew away into the unknown. Now they are doomed to eternal wandering, because evil has never managed to defeat good.
A legend is a fiction, but, like a fairy tale, there is a depth of knowledge in it. Good could never exist without evil.
Probably, with the advent of humanity on Earth, evil appeared second, and only after that good appeared, eradicating this evil. I believe that just as good cannot exist without evil, so evil cannot live without good. Good and evil are everywhere, and every day we encounter these two manifestations in everyday life. So Russian writers often reflected the problem of good and evil in their works and definitely wanted to show people, using the example of their heroes, what evil, self-interest and envy lead to and, of course, what gives us good. A.A. Fet also spoke about this
Two worlds have ruled for centuries,
Two equal beings:
One envelops a man,
The other is my soul and thought.

And like a little dewdrop, barely noticeable
You will recognize the whole face of the sun,
So united in the depths of the cherished
You will find the entire universe.

Young courage is not deceitful:
Bend over the fatal work -
And the world will reveal its blessings;
But being a deity is not a thought.

And even in the hour of rest.
Raising my sweaty brow,
Don't be afraid of bitter comparisons
And distinguish between good and evil.

But if on the wings of pride
You dare to know like a god,
Don’t bring shrines into the world
Your slave anxieties.

Pari, all-seeing and all-powerful,
And from unsullied heights
Good and evil are like grave dust,
He will disappear into the crowds of people.
Works of fiction, in my opinion, always reflect the reality of life. Life itself is an irreconcilable struggle between good and evil. This is evidenced by the statements of many philosophers, thinkers, and writers.
-The smart one is not the one who knows how to distinguish good from evil, but the one who knows how to choose the lesser of two evils. Arabic saying
-Do not think of good deeds, but do good. Robert Walser
-Don’t let the ingratitude of many discourage you from doing good to people; After all, besides the fact that charity in itself and without any other purpose is a noble deed, but by doing good, sometimes you meet in one person so much gratitude that it compensates for all the ingratitude of others. Francesco Guicciardini
-Kindness and modesty are two qualities that should never tire a person. Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson
-an excess of evil gives rise to good. Percy Bysshe Shelley
-Nature has arranged it in such a way that grievances are remembered longer than good deeds.
When, having done evil, a person is afraid that people will find out about it, he can still find a path to good. When, having done good, a person tries to let people know about it, he creates evil. Hong Zichen

Good and evil are united only in that in the end they always return to the person who made them. Baurzhan Toyshibekov
-If you do good, people will accuse you of hidden self-interest and selfishness. And still do good. Mother Teresa

I will begin my research with an analysis of the works of CNT.
The fairy tale has everything
There is evil and good in it,
Yes, but it didn’t happen like that,
So that evil triumphs over good.
Fairy tale... It seems that this word itself glows and rings. It rings with a silver magic ringing, like a troika bell, taking us into the wonderful world of beautiful and dangerous adventures, fantastic wonders. The poet Surikov wrote:
I'm listening to a fairy tale -
The heart just dies;
And the chimney is angry
The evil wind sings...
Why does your heart skip a beat? Yes, out of fear for the lives of fairy-tale heroes, because both the snake Gorynych and Koschey the Immortal tried to destroy them. And Baba Yaga Bone Leg is a very insidious person. However, brave, strong heroes are always ready for exploits, fighting against evil and deceit.
Russian folk tale “Ivan the Peasant Son and Miracle Yudo”
The problem of good and evil
Good in the fairy tale is represented in the image of Ivanushka. He is ready to die, but to defeat the enemy. Ivanushka is very smart and resourceful. He is generous and modest, and does not tell anyone about his exploits.
“No,” says Ivanushka, “I don’t want to stay at home and wait for you, I’ll go and fight the miracle!”
“I came to look at you, enemy force, to test your strength... I came to fight with you to the death, to save good people from you, damned one!”
But evil in this work is presented in the image of Miracle Yuda. Miracle Yudo is a monster who tried to destroy all life on earth and remain victorious.
“Suddenly the news spread throughout that kingdom-state: the vile miracle Yudo was going to attack their land, destroy all the people, burn all the cities and villages with fire...
“The miracle-judo villain ruined everyone, plundered them, and put them all to cruel death.”
“Suddenly the waters on the river became agitated, the eagles screamed in the oak trees - a miracle Yudo with nine heads was approaching.”
Representatives of the power of evil in the fairy tale are the three miracle wives of Yuda and the mother, an old snake.
“And I,” says the third, “will make them fall asleep and doze, and I myself will run ahead and turn myself into a soft carpet with silk pillows. If the brothers want to lie down and rest, then we’ll burn them with fire!”

Conclusion:
Good in this fairy tale defeated evil. Ivanushka defeated the miracle of Yudo, and everyone began to live happily ever after.
“Meanwhile, Ivan the peasant’s son got out of the ground, contrived, cut off the fiery finger of the miracle-juda and began to chop off his heads. He knocked down every single one of them, cut his body into small pieces, and threw him into the Smorodina River.”
“Then Ivan jumped out of the forge, grabbed the snake and hit it against a stone with all his might. The snake crumbled into fine dust, and the wind scattered that dust in all directions. Since then, all the miracles and snakes in that region have disappeared - people began to live without fear.”
Russian folk tale "Vasilisa the Beautiful"
The problem of good and evil
“The stepmother takes it out on Vasilisa with beatings..”
The good and evil of this tale are represented in the faces of the young princess and her stepmother. People portray a young girl as smart, inquisitive and brave. She works hard, patiently enduring all the insults that her stepmother and her daughters inflict on her.
“Vasilisa endured everything without complaint... Vasilisa herself would not eat it, but she would leave the most delicious morsel for the doll...
“It’s me, grandmother, my stepmother’s daughters sent me to you for fire.”
“My mother’s blessing helps me,”
But the stepmother is an evil character; with her actions she tried to kill her stepdaughter from the world. Her envy knew no bounds, and her main actions were loading Vasilisa with work, as well as constantly insulting the girl.
“The merchant married a widow, but was deceived and did not find in her a good mother for his Vasilisa... The stepmother and sisters were jealous of her beauty, tormented her with all kinds of work, so that she would lose weight from work, and turn black from the wind and sun; There was no life at all!”
Conclusion: Good prevailed over evil in this fairy tale. The stepmother and her daughters turned into coal, and Vasilisa began to live happily ever after with the king in contentment and happiness.
“Then the king took Vasilisa by the white hands, sat her down next to him, and there they celebrated the wedding... The old woman Vasilisa took with her, and at the end of her life she always carried the doll in her pocket.”
“You should go get the fire,” both sisters shouted. Go to Baba Yaga..."
Literary fairy tale by A.S. Pushkin “The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights”
The problem of good and evil
Admiring the richness of fiction and the high moral principles of folk tales, Pushkin enthusiastically exclaims: “What a delight these tales are! Each one is a poem!”
Magnificent Pushkin fairy tales, which combined the genius of the people and the genius of the great Russian poet, appeared in the 30s. They were not written for children, and in them, as in many other Pushkin works, bitterness and sadness, ridicule and protest, good and evil sound. They reflected the poet’s deep love for the common people, Pushkin’s inexhaustible faith in the victory of reason, goodness and justice.
The main opposition in this work runs along the lines of the young princess and her stepmother. The poet portrays the young girl as kind, meek, hardworking and defenseless. Her outer beauty matches her inner beauty. The princess has a special tact, grace, and femininity. Let us pay attention to the fact that Pushkin helps to understand the character of the princess by resorting only to verbs:
The princess walked around the house,
I put everything away in order,
I lit a candle for God,
I lit the stove hot,
Climbed onto the floor
And quietly lay down...
It is difficult for her to live in a world where there is evil, envy and deception. The queen-stepmother appears to us completely differently. She is also a beauty, but “angry”, and jealous, and envious.
And the queen laughs
And shrug your shoulders
And wink your eyes,
And click your fingers,
And spin around, arms akimbo,
Looking proudly in the mirror...
"Nothing to do. She is full of black envy..."
...the evil queen
Threatening her with a slingshot
I put it down or not live,
Or destroy the princess...
The idea that beauty is not good without goodness permeates the entire fairy tale. The young princess was loved by many. The question arises, why didn’t they save her? Yes, because only Prince Elisha loved her truly sincerely and devotedly. Only the faithful love of the prince Elisha saves the princess, awakening her from her dead sleep.
Conclusion: Evil, the poet claims, is not omnipotent, it is defeated. The evil queen-stepmother, although she “took everything with her mind,” is not confident in herself. And if the queen-mother died from the power of her love, then the queen-stepmother dies from envy and melancholy. These Pushkin showed the internal failure and doom of evil.
Literature of the 19th century. A.S. Pushkin. Novel "Eugene Onegin"
The problem of good and evil
In this work, Tatyana is the good and bright side. She is a very gentle and pure character. Her soul is open to everyone. In the depths of her soul, Tatyana remained the same Russian woman, ready at any moment to escape from the bustle of the city and go somewhere far away and devote herself to rural life.
Tatyana is that Russian woman who could go to Siberia for her beloved
Tatiana, dear Tatiana...
...I love my dear Tatyana so much!..
For... that in sweet simplicity
She knows no deception
And he believes in his chosen dream.
Because... he loves without art,
Obedient to the attraction of feelings,
Why is she so trusting?
What is gifted from heaven
With a rebellious imagination,
Alive in mind and will,
And wayward head,
And with a fiery and tender heart.
She is one of those integral poetic natures who can love only once.
Long-time heartache
Her young breasts were tight;
The soul was waiting... for someone.

Tatyana could not fall in love with any of the young people around her. But Onegin was immediately noticed and singled out by her:
You barely walked in, I instantly recognized
Everything was stupefied, on fire
And in my thoughts I said: here he is!

Pushkin sympathizes with Tatyana’s love and experiences it with her.
Tatiana, dear Tatiana!
Now I'm shedding tears with you...
Her love for Onegin is a pure, deep feeling.
Tatiana loves seriously
And he surrenders unconditionally
Love like a sweet child.
Lensky is another bright character. He is a kind and honest person, ready to give a helping hand to his comrade at any moment. This is a very spiritual and poetic young man. A. S. Pushkin talks with gentle irony about Lensky, this enthusiastic romantic who
...sang separation and sadness,
And something, and that manna is far away.
And also with some mockery he speaks about how Lensky wrote:
So he wrote, dark and sluggish
(What we call romanticism,
Although there is no romanticism here
I don't see...).
Romanticism has already passed away, just as Lensky is leaving. His death is quite logical; it symbolizes a complete abandonment of romantic ideas. Lensky does not develop over time, he is static. Differing from those people among whom he was forced to live (and in this he was similar to Onegin), Lensky was only capable of quickly flaring up and fading away. And even if Onegin had not killed him, most likely, an ordinary life awaited Lensky in the future, which would have cooled his ardor and turned him into a simple man in the street, who
I drank, ate, got bored, got fat, grew weaker
And finally in my bed
I would die among children,
Whining women and doctors.
This path, this point of view, is not viable, which is what Pushkin proves to the reader.
A completely different point of view of Onegin. It is somewhat similar to the author's point of view, and therefore at some point they become friends:
I liked his features
Involuntary devotion to dreams...
They both agree in their attitude towards the light, they both run from it.
Onegin is a skeptic and at the same time an intellectual. Onegin does not believe in love, does not believe in happiness, does not believe in anything like that. The years lived in a false world were not in vain for him. After so many years of living a lie, Evgeniy cannot truly love. His soul is satiated with passions. This explains his understanding of Tatyana. But, having received a letter from Tatyana, he shows nobility, because “... he was vividly touched” by her inexperience and sincere feeling of her love: “your sincerity is dear to me.” His rebuke to Tatyana is dictated by concern for the young girl:
But he didn't want to deceive
The gullibility of an innocent soul.

In his soul there still remained remnants of conscience, not burned by the fire of passions, surprisingly combined with selfishness. That’s why he says to Tatyana:
Whenever life around home
I wanted to limit
That's true except for you alone
I was looking for no other bride...
Once upon a time, in his early youth, Onegin probably believed in the possibility of high love for life. But his entire subsequent life, filled with passions, killed this faith - and even the hope of its return:
There is no return to dreams and years:
I will not renew my soul...
Here it is - Onegin’s main tragedy: “I will not renew my soul”! Of course, from his point of view, he is right, he acts nobly: not believing in the possibility of love, he refuses it, so as not to deceive the girl, not to expose her to shame.

No matter how much I love you,
Having gotten used to it, I immediately stop loving it;
You start crying: your tears
My heart will not be touched
And they will only infuriate him...
Why is Onegin so sure that there can be no other “family happiness”? Because he saw too many similar examples in the world:
What could be worse in the world?
Families where the poor wife
Sad about an unworthy husband
Alone both during the day and in the evenings;
Where is the boring husband, knowing her worth
(However, cursing fate),
Always frowning, silent,
Angry and coldly jealous!
The author gradually moves away from Onegin. When Onegin goes to a duel, afraid of public opinion, and kills Lensky in it, when it turns out that his point of view is not based on solid moral principles, the author completely moves away from his hero. A. S. Pushkin shows us Onegin’s point of view, for example, his attitude towards the theater:
...on stage
He looked in great absentmindedness,
Turned away and yawned
Onegin’s attitude to love:
How early could he be a hypocrite?
To harbor hope, to be jealous... -
simply has no right to exist.
Onegin, being a “genius” of the science of love, missed the opportunity for happiness for himself and turned out to be incapable of true feeling (in the beginning). When he was able to fall in love, he still did not achieve happiness; it was already too late. This is the true tragedy of Onegin. And his path turns out to be wrong, unreal.
Conclusion:
Kind, pure, sincere Tatyana evokes in us, readers, only tender and noble feelings. Girls want to be like her. We compare our actions with Tatiana’s actions. I really want this girl to be happy, and her love is mutual.
Readers' opinions about Onegin change precisely at the moment when he cold-bloodedly takes Lensky's life. Anger and arrogance drive his actions. I can’t believe that a young man could be so cruel and treacherous.
A.S. Pushkin loves his heroine, Tatyana, very much, but Onegin is the opposite. The closer Pushkin is to Tatyana, the more he moves away from Onegin, who is morally much lower than her. And only when Onegin is capable of high feelings, when he falls in love with Tatyana, will the critical assessments of A.S. Pushkin disappear.
The image of Onegin opens a gallery of portraits of “superfluous people” in Russian literature. Following him will appear Lermontov's Pechorin, Turgenev's Rudin, Goncharov's Oblomov... The fate of these heroes is also “spoiled by the light”, education, and they suffer from the fact that they cannot find a use for themselves and be useful to society. Their characters contain arrogance, coldness and anger. But this is not only their personal tragedy, it is also the tragedy of the society in which they exist.
A.S. Pushkin “Station Warden”
The problem of good and evil
The story of the story “The Station Agent” is colored with sadness and compassion. There is irony in the epigraph, in the name of the main character: the little powerless man is named after the biblical hero. According to M. Gershenzon’s definition, the heroes of the story became victims of “walking morality”, certain literary models.
“Before I had time to pay my old coachman, Dunya returned with a samovar. The little coquette noticed at second glance the impression she made on me; she lowered her big blue eyes; I began to talk to her, she answered me without any timidity, like a girl who has seen the light. I offered my father her glass of punch; I served Duna a cup of tea, and the three of us began to talk, as if we had known each other for centuries.”
“So you knew my Dunya? - he began. - Who didn’t know her? Ah, Dunya, Dunya! What a girl she was! It happened that whoever passed by, everyone would praise, no one would judge. The ladies gave it as a gift, sometimes with a handkerchief, sometimes with earrings. Gentlemen passing by deliberately stopped, as if to have lunch or dinner, but in fact only to take a closer look at her. It used to be that the master, no matter how angry he was, would calm down in her presence and talk kindly to me. Believe it, sir: the couriers and couriers talked to her for half an hour. She kept the house going: she kept up with everything, what to clean, what to cook. And I, old fool, can’t get enough of it; Didn’t I really love my Dunya, didn’t I cherish my child; Did she really have no life? No, you can’t avoid trouble; what is destined cannot be avoided"
The main character himself is endowed by the author with good human qualities:
“I see, as now, the owner himself, a man of about fifty, fresh and vigorous, and his long green frock coat with three medals on faded ribbons.”
“A real martyr”, “a trembling caretaker”, “peaceful people, helpful, inclined to live together”, “modest in their claims to honor”, ​​“not too money-loving”).
The fact that Dunya did not leave her parents’ home with a light heart is indicated by only one meager phrase: “The coachman... said that Dunya cried all the way, although it seemed that she was driving of her own accord.”
Samson Vyrin is waiting for the return of the prodigal daughter, and he is ready to accept and forgive her, but he did not wait and died. Dunya, according to the model of the parable, allows for a future return with a dissection to her home, and she returns, but it turns out that there is nowhere to return. Life is simpler and harsher than many old parables. The whole point is in this “miraculous transformation” of Dunya: it only aggravates the miserable situation of the caretaker. Yes, Dunya became a rich lady, but her father was not even allowed onto the threshold of the capital’s house, where Minsky placed Dunya. The poor man did not just remain poor; he was also insulted, his human dignity was trampled.
“It was definitely Samson Vyrin; but how he has aged. While he was getting ready to rewrite my travel document, I looked at his gray hair, at the deep wrinkles of his long-unshaven face, at his hunched back - and could not marvel at how three or four years could turn a vigorous man into a frail old man.”
And the family, female, maternal happiness of the daughter, visible to outsiders, only aggravates the grief of the old father in the eyes of the reader. But at the end of the story, she too clearly bends under the weight of belated repentance
Conclusion: Dunya’s kindness and sensitivity, embedded in her character by her loving parents, disappear under the influence of another feeling. Whatever Minsky’s feelings towards Dunya, ultimately he still personifies evil. This evil destroyed the family, this evil made Dunya unhappy, and led to the death of Samson Vyrin.
M.Yu.Lermontov “Mtsyri”
The problem of good and evil
Exiled to the Caucasus in the spring of 1837, Lermontov traveled along the Georgian Military Road. Near the Mtskheta station, near Tiflis, there once existed a monastery.
Here the poet met a decrepit old man wandering among the ruins and gravestones. It was a highlander monk. The old man told Lermontov how, as a child, he was captured by the Russians and given to be raised in this monastery. He recalled how homesick he was then, how he dreamed of returning home. But he gradually got used to his prison, was drawn into the monotonous monastic life and became a monk. The story of the old man, who in his youth was a novice in the Mtskheta monastery, or “mtsyri” in Georgian, corresponded to Lermontov’s own thoughts, which he had been nurturing for many, many years.
Eight years passed, and Lermontov embodied his old plan in a poem
"Mtsyri". Home, fatherland, freedom, life, struggle - everything is united in one radiant constellation and fills the reader’s soul with the languid longing of a dream. A hymn to high “fiery passion”, a hymn to romantic burning - this is what the poem “Mtsyri” is:
I knew only the power of thoughts,
One - but fiery passion...
Undoubtedly, in the poem “Mtsyri” the feelings of kindness and mercy are obvious. The monks took and tamed the poor sick boy, they took him out, cured him, surrounded him with attention and care, one might say, gave him life... And this is all good. However, the monks deprived Mtsyri of the most important thing - freedom, they forbade him to return to his family and friends, to find them, to find them again... The monks thought that Mtsyri was ready to give up life, but he only dreamed of life. A long time ago, he decided to run away to find his homeland, his loved ones and relatives:
Find out if the earth is beautiful
Find out for freedom or prison
We are born into this world.
In the first chapter of the poem, the tragic contradictions between the spiritual strength of the young man and the life circumstances that drove him into the tight confines of monastic life are especially visible. In a cramped dark church during an early morning service, a thin, weak boy stood, not yet quite awake, awakened from a sweet morning sleep by the deafening ringing of bells. And it seemed to him that the saints were looking at him from the walls with a gloomy and silent threat, just as the monks looked. And there, above, the sun was playing on the lattice window:
Oh, how I wanted to go there
From the darkness of the cell and prayers,
Into that wonderful world of passions and battles...
I swallowed bitter tears,
And my childish voice trembled,
When I sang praises to him
Who is on earth for me alone?
Instead of a homeland he gave me a prison...
And so, when the young man must take a vow, under the cover of darkness he disappears. He's been missing for three days. He is found emaciated and exhausted. “And his end was near; Then a monk came to him.” The dying confession begins - eleven chapters telling about three days of freedom, which contained all the tragedy and all the happiness of his life.
Mtsyri’s confession turns into a sermon, an argument with his confessor that voluntary slavery is lower than the “wonderful world of anxiety and battles” that opens up with freedom. Mtsyri does not repent of what he has done, does not talk about the sinfulness of his desires, thoughts and actions. Like a dream, the image of his father and sisters appeared before Mtsyri, and he tried to find his way home. For three days he lived and enjoyed the wild nature. He enjoyed everything he was deprived of - harmony, unity, brotherhood. The Georgian girl he meets is also part of freedom and harmony, merging with nature, but he loses his way home. On his way, Mtsyri met a leopard. The young man had already felt all the power and joy of freedom, saw the unity of nature, and entered into battle with one of her creations. It was equal competition, where every living creature defended the right to do what nature prescribed for it. Mtsyri won, receiving mortal wounds from the claws of the leopard. Found in an unconscious state. Having come to his senses, Mtsyri is not afraid of death, he is only saddened by the fact that he will be buried in his native land.
Mtsyri, who saw the beauty of life, does not regret the short duration of his stay on earth, he made an attempt to break out of his bonds, his spirit is not broken, free will lives in his dying body. M. Yu. Lermontov with this poem made it clear to us that people’s aspirations are feasible, we just need to passionately desire something and not be afraid to take a decisive step. Many, like the old man Lermontov met, do not find the strength to make an attempt to regain their freedom
Conclusion:
Unfortunately, evil wins in this work, because the man died without gaining freedom. Goodness is obvious in mercy and compassion for one's neighbor. However, this overly intrusive goodness turns into suffering, grief and ultimately death for Mtsyri. One can seek justification for the monks by delving into religious concepts and traditions, but it seems to me that the Christian religion was based on freedom and faith. And Mtsyri believed in his freedom. It turns out that the monks “wanted to do the best, but it turned out as always.”
N.A. Ostrovsky “Thunderstorm”
The problem of good and evil
Ostrovsky contrasts Katerina’s spiritually rich nature:
“Why don’t people fly! I say, why don’t people fly like birds? Sometimes I feel like I'm a bird. When you stand on a mountain, you feel the urge to fly. That’s how she would run away, raise her hands and fly” - the malicious life of a small Volga town, where some “tyrannize” and others meekly obey. The main character of the play, Katerina, is marked by a strong character; she is not used to humiliation and insults and therefore conflicts with her cruel old mother-in-law. In her mother’s house, Katerina lived freely and easily. In the Kabanov House she feels like a bird in a cage.
The images of domestic tyrants are shown in a vital and convincing way. “Cruel morals, sir, in our city, cruel! In philistinism, sir, you will see nothing but rudeness and naked poverty. And we, sir, will never escape this crust! Because honest work will never earn us more than our daily bread. And whoever has money, sir, tries to enslave the poor so that he can make even more money from his free labors. Do you know what your uncle, Savel Prokofich, answered to the mayor? The peasants came to the mayor to complain that he would not disrespect any of them. The mayor began to tell him: “Listen,” he said, “Savel Prokofich, pay the men well! They come to me with complaints every day!” Your uncle patted the mayor on the shoulder and said: “Is it worth it, your honor, for us to talk about such trifles! I have a lot of people every year; you understand: I won’t pay them a penny extra.” man, I make thousands out of this, that’s how it is; it’s good for me!” That's it, sir! And among themselves, sir, how they live! They undermine each other's trade, and not so much out of self-interest as out of envy. They are at enmity with each other; they get into their high mansions drunken clerks, such, sir, clerks, that there is no human appearance on him, the human appearance is lost "" - (Kuligin; tradesman, self-taught watchmaker, looking for a perpetuum mobile).
Kabanikha believes that the most important thing in a family is not love, but fear.
The boar eats the family in order to kill their will, any ability to resist. She supports
superstitions and prejudices, strictly observes old customs and orders:
“Why are you standing there, don’t you know the order? Order
wife - how to live without you!”
Kabanikha is a powerful, proud, willful woman, accustomed only to unquestioning submission and humiliation
others:
“Well, well, give orders! So that I can hear what you order her!”
“In the night, in the night,” he orders Tikhon.
This is not a woman, but a heartless, cruel executioner. Even at the sight of Katerina’s body pulled out of the Volga, she remains icy calm. Kabanikha understands that only fear can keep people in subjection and prolong the reign of tyrants. In response to Tikhon’s words, why should his wife be afraid of him, Kabanikha exclaims in horror:
“Why be afraid! Are you crazy, or what? He won’t be afraid of you, and even less so of me.”
She defends the law according to which the weak should fear the strong, according to which a person should not have his own will. After
Katerina’s confession, she loudly and triumphantly says to Tikhon:
“What, son! Where does the will lead? I told you, so you
I didn't want to listen. That’s what I’ve been waiting for!”
Everything arrives in ignorance, in fear of anything new. Katerina fell in love with Boris - weak-willed and weak. He is much inferior in spiritual qualities to the woman he has chosen. Sensitive and mentally pure Katerina cannot live, sinning on the sly: “I don’t know how to deceive, I can’t hide anything.” Katerina’s last words before her death are addressed to her beloved: “My friend! My joy! Goodbye!"
Ostrovsky in his play “The Thunderstorm” showed the tragic fate of a young woman who dared to have a free feeling and was alone in her quest.
Conclusions:
In this work, evil triumphs over good. It would seem that they were a young, beautiful couple. No matter what, live in love and happiness. So evil cannot see the happiness of others. Katerina dies, out of despair she throws herself into the Volga... She did not want to put up with the reality that kills human dignity, could not live without moral purity, love and harmony, and therefore got rid of suffering in the only way possible in those circumstances. “... Simply as a human being, we are glad to see Katerina’s deliverance - even through death, if there is no other way... A healthy personality breathes upon us with joyful, fresh life, finding within itself the determination to end this rotten life at any cost !..” - says N.A. Dobrolyubov. And therefore, the tragic finale of the drama - Katerina’s suicide - is not a defeat, but an affirmation of the strength of a free person, - this is a protest against Kabanov’s concepts of morality, “proclaimed under domestic torture, and over the abyss into which the poor woman threw herself,” this is “a terrible challenge to the tyrant power " And in this sense, Katerina’s suicide is her victory.
N.A. Ostrovsky “Dowry”
The problem of good and evil
Larisa is a significant name, like any name from Ostrovsky: translated from Greek - seagull. Larisa is prone to various types of art and loves everything beautiful. Women named Larisa are charming, smart, neat, and always the center of attention, especially among men. This is Ostrovsky’s Larisa. Dreamy and artistic, she does not notice the vulgar sides in people, sees them through the eyes of the heroine of a Russian romance and acts in accordance with it. For her, there is only a world of pure passions, selfless love, and charm.
This play is a clear protest against the power of money in society. Larisa is surrounded by people who are ready to either buy or sell. She grows up in an atmosphere of corruption - her mother, preoccupied with how to accommodate her daughters, shamelessly takes money from merchants, without thinking about defilement and without instilling any moral principles in her daughter. The merchants Knurov and Vozhevatov initially treat Larisa as a thing. Paratov, whom she adores, can allow himself to feel only to have fun. He ruined Larisa's life, but did not give up his goal of becoming the owner of gold mines. Dishonest man. He did not consider it necessary to abandon the cruel fun. Knurov says about her: “It’s nice to see her alone more often, without interference...” Or: “Larissa was created for luxury...”
His opinion is shared by Larisa’s longtime friend Vozhevatov: “The young lady is pretty, plays different instruments, sings, has a free manner, and that’s what pulls her off. How sensitive!” Karandyshev also does not like Larisa - it is important for him to rise above those around him by “possessing” such an enviable wife as Larisa.
The bargaining for Larisa involves all the men - the heroes of the play. A whole circle of contenders forms around her. But what are they offering her? Knurov and Vozhevatov - content. Karandyshev - the position of an honest married woman and a dull existence. Paratov wants to spend his last days of bachelorhood in style. Larisa is just a strong passion for him. Who wasn't interested? This is his philosophy.
The main thing for Larisa is love. She completely trusts her chosen one and is ready to follow him to the ends of the earth:
“Paratov. Now or never.
Larisa. Let's go.
Paratov. How do you decide to go beyond the Volga?
Larisa. Wherever you want."
In such an unbearable life situation, Larisa still retains spirituality, sincerity, and the ability to love.
The deepest disappointment for Larisa is that all people treat her like a thing. “The thing... yes, the thing! They are right, I am a thing, not a person. I’m now convinced that I’ve tested myself... I’m a thing!” She wanted something completely different: “I was looking for love and didn’t find it. They looked at me and look at me as if I was funny. No one ever tried to look into my soul, I didn’t see sympathy from anyone, I didn’t hear a warm, heartfelt word. But it’s cold to live like this..."
In a fit of despair, Larisa challenges the world of profit: “Well, if you are a thing, there is only one consolation - to be expensive, very expensive.”
Larisa herself is not capable of taking a more decisive step, but Karandyshev’s shot is perceived by her as a blessing. This is probably the only act committed not out of calculation, the only manifestation of a living feeling. Larisa dies with words of forgiveness on her lips: “My dear, what a good deed you have done for me! The gun is here, here on the table! It’s me myself... Oh, what a blessing!”
Knurov Vozhevatov Paratov
“Significant people of the city” “Brilliant gentleman”
- Yes, you can do things with money. Good for those... who have a lot of money.
- Find people who will promise you tens of thousands for nothing, and then scold me.
- If I say: eagle, then I’ll lose, eagle, of course, you. – You have to pay for pleasures, they don’t come for free...
– I know what a merchant’s word is.
- What I promised, I will fulfill: for me the word is the law, what is said is sacred.
- Every product has a price. – I am a person with rules, marriage is a sacred matter for me.
– I’m a barge hauler myself.
– What “sorry” is, I don’t know. I have nothing treasured; If I find a profit, I’ll sell everything, anything.
– I have a rule: don’t forgive anyone anything...
- After all, I almost married Larisa - I wish I could make people laugh.
– Gentlemen, I have a weakness for artists.
Conclusion:
The work ended sadly and tragically. An amazing girl carries good principles within herself: she loves her mother, sisters, she is obedient, she is attentive to people, she is noble. And only when she is driven to despair does she protest. There is something martyr-like in her image.
Unfortunately, Larisa is dying... and her death is the only worthy way out, because only in death will she cease to be a thing. That is why the heroine thanks the killer for the shot.
Dostoevsky "Crime and Punishment"
The problem of good and evil
The main philosophical question of Dostoevsky’s novel “Crime and Punishment” is the boundaries of good and evil. The writer seeks to define these concepts and show their interaction in society and in the individual. In Raskolnikov's protest, it is difficult to draw a clear line between good and evil. Raskolnikov is unusually kind and humane: he dearly loves his sister and mother; feels sorry for the Marmeladovs and helps them, gives his last money for Marmeladov’s funeral; does not remain indifferent to the fate of the drunk girl on the boulevard. Raskolnikov's dream about a horse beaten to death emphasizes the hero's humanism, his protest against evil and violence.
At the same time, he exhibits extreme selfishness, individualism, cruelty and mercilessness. Raskolnikov creates an anti-human theory of “two classes of people,” which determines in advance who will live and who will die. He justifies the “idea of ​​blood according to conscience,” when any person can be killed for the sake of higher goals and principles. Raskolnikov, who loves people and suffers for their pain, commits the villainous murder of the old pawnbroker and her sister, the meek Lizaveta. By committing murder, he tries to establish the absolute moral freedom of man, which essentially means permissiveness. This leads to the fact that the boundaries of evil cease to exist.
But Raskolnikov commits all crimes for the sake of good. A paradoxical idea arises: good is the basis of evil. Good and evil fight in Raskolnikov's soul. Evil, brought to the limit, brings him closer to Svidrigailov, good, brought to the point of self-sacrifice, brings him in common with Sonya Marmeladova.
In the novel, Raskolnikov and Sonya are the confrontation between good and evil. Sonya preaches goodness based on Christian humility, Christian love for one's neighbor and for all who suffer.
But even in Sonya’s actions, life itself blurs the line between good and evil. She takes a step full of Christian love and kindness towards her neighbor - she sells herself in order to prevent her sick stepmother and her children from starving. And she causes irreparable harm to herself, her conscience. And again, the basis of evil is good.
The interpenetration of good and evil can also be seen in Svidrigailov’s nightmare before suicide. This hero completes the chain of malicious crimes in the novel: rape, murder, child molestation. True, the author does not confirm the fact that these crimes were committed: this is mainly Luzhin’s gossip. But it is absolutely known that Svidrigailov arranged for the children of Katerina Ivanovna and helped Sonya Marmeladova. Dostoevsky shows how a complex struggle between good and evil takes place in the soul of this hero. Dostoevsky tries to draw the line between good and evil in the novel. But the human world is too complex and unfair, and the boundaries between these concepts are blurred. Therefore, Dostoevsky sees salvation and truth in faith. Christ for him is the highest criterion of morality, the bearer of true good on earth. And this is the only thing the writer does not doubt.
Conclusion: on the pages of the novel, good and evil go hand in hand. But, oddly enough, superiority is on the side of evil. Evil in the novel is, first of all, a social system that creates unbearable living conditions for people, leads to endless suffering, morally corrupts people, and distorts human nature. The writer showed the truth about humiliated people, about anger and cruelty, about social contradictions.
3. Comparison and classification table
Works of Russian literature Images personifying good Images personifying evil triumph of good Triumph of evil
Russian folk tale “Ivan the Peasant Son...” Ivan Miracle-Yudo
Snakes are the wives of the Miracle of Yud + -
Russian folk tale “Vasilisa the Beautiful” Princess Evil Stepmother + -
Literary fairy tale by A.S. Pushkin “The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights” Princess, Prince Elisha. Queen Stepmother + -
A.S. Pushkin. Novel “Eugene Onegin” Tatyana, Lensky Larin family Eugene Onegin
Capital nobility - +
A.S. Pushkin “The Station Agent” Samson Vyrin, Dunya Minsky
Social system - +
A.S. Pushkin
"Dubrovsky" Vladimir, Masha, peasants Troyekurov,
Social strata - +
A.S. Pushkin
"The Captain's Daughter" Pyotr Grinev, Masha Mironova
Captain Mironov Shvabrin
Pugachev
Catherine's era -
+ _
+
M.Yu. Lermontov “Mtsyri” Mtsyri Monks - +
M.Yu. Lermontov “Hero of Our Time” Bela
Maxim Maksimovich
Vera Azamat
Pechorin, Kazbich
"water society"
Grushnitsky - +
M.Yu.Lermontov
"A song about...
merchant Kalashnikov" Merchant Kalashnikov,
Alena Ivanovna Epoch, Ivan the Terrible,
Kiribeich - +
N.V.Gogol
“The Inspector General” Khlestakov Image of the People - +
N.V.Gogol
“Dead Souls” Ordinary people Chichikov Korobochka,
Nozdryov
Sobakevich
Plyushkin
officials _ +
I.S. Turgenev
“Fathers and Sons” by Odintsov
N.P. Kirsanov
Bazarov P.P. Kirsanov
Bazarov - +
N.A.Nekrasov
“Who Lives Well in Rus'” Grisha Dobrosklonov,
Travelers,
Matrena Timofeevna
Savely Pop
Obolt-Obolduev
Prince Utyatin
German Vogel _ +
N.A. Ostrovsky “Thunderstorm” Katerina, Kabanikha
Wild - +
N.A. Ostrovsky “Dowry” Larisa Merchants Knurov and Vozhevatov, Paratov, Karandyshev - +
A.I. Goncharov
"Oblomov" Stolz
Olga Ilyinskaya
Pshenitsina Oblomov
Zakhar - +
M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin
Fairy tales Russian people Landowners
officials - +
Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment” Sonya, Marmeladov, Katerina Ivanovna, Raskolnikov
Luzhin
Svidrigailov - +
Conclusion:
I researched about twenty works of Russian classics. All these works of the program cycle. With the exception of fairy tales, all are examples of Russian realistic prose and lyrics. They fully reflect reality. In each of the works of art we study there is a problem of good and evil. Moreover, good is in constant conflict with evil. My assumptions that in every work of classical literature there is a confrontation between two phenomena of life - good and evil - were confirmed. However, the second hypothesis I put forward regarding the victory of good over evil turned out to be refuted. In almost all the works studied, evil turned out to be at the peak of glory. The only exceptions are fairy tales. Why? Perhaps because fairy tales embody people's dreams of an eternal happy life. What about reality??? moral values, the ability to make choices in life???? be responsible for what you have done, p
Project prospects: The work made me think about whether in the literature of the 20th century and in modern literature there are concepts of good and evil, or in modern literature there is only the concept of evil, and good has completely eradicated itself?

Bibliography
1. N.I. Kravtsov History of Russian literature. Enlightenment M. - 1966
2. All works of the school curriculum (in brief) M.-1996.
3. E. Borokhov Encyclopedia of aphorisms M. - 2001.
4. History of Russian literature of the 19th century. M. Education, 1987
5. Russian classical literature comp. D. Ustyuzhanin.
M. - Enlightenment, 1969

1. Features of the interaction of good and evil in folk tales.
2. Changing the approach to the relationship between heroes and antagonists.
3. Differences in the relationship between positive and negative characters.
4. Blurring the boundaries between concepts.

Despite the apparent diversity of artistic images and characters, fundamental categories have always existed and will exist in world literature, the opposition of which, on the one hand, is the main reason for the development of the storyline, and on the other, encourages the development of moral criteria in the individual. The vast majority of heroes of world literature can easily be classified into one of two camps: defenders of Good and adherents of Evil. These abstract concepts can be embodied in visible, living images.

The significance of the categories of Good and Evil in culture and human life is undeniable. A clear definition of these concepts allows an individual to establish himself in life, evaluating his own and other people’s actions from the point of view of what should and should not be done. Many philosophical and religious systems are based on the idea of ​​opposition between two principles. So is it any wonder that characters in fairy tales and legends embody opposite traits? However, it should be noted that if the idea of ​​​​the behavior of heroes embodying the evil principle changed little over time, then the idea of ​​​​what the response to their actions by representatives of Good should be did not remain unchanged. Let us first consider how victorious heroes dealt with their evil opponents in fairy tales.

For example, the fairy tale “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” The evil stepmother, using witchcraft, tries to destroy her stepdaughter, jealous of her beauty, but all the machinations of the witch turn out to be in vain. Good triumphs. Snow White not only remains alive, but also marries Prince Charming. However, what does the victorious Good do with the losing Evil? The ending of the tale seems to have been taken from a narrative about the activities of the Inquisition: “But iron shoes had already been placed on the burning coals for her, they were brought, held with tongs, and placed in front of her. And she had to step her feet into red-hot shoes and dance in them until she finally fell, dead, to the ground.”

A similar attitude towards a defeated enemy is typical of many fairy tales. But it should be noted right away that the point here is not the increased aggressiveness and cruelty of Good, but the peculiarities of the understanding of justice in ancient times, because the plots of most fairy tales were formed a very long time ago. “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” - this is the ancient formula of retribution. Moreover, heroes who embody the traits of Good not only have the right to brutally deal with a defeated enemy, but must do so, because revenge is a duty assigned to man by the gods.

However, the concept gradually changed under the influence of Christianity. A. S. Pushkin in “The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights” used a plot almost identical to “Snow White”. And in Pushkin’s text, the evil stepmother did not escape punishment - but how is it carried out?

Then sadness took over her,
And the queen died.

Inevitable retribution does not occur as the arbitrariness of mortal victors: it is the judgment of God. In Pushkin’s fairy tale there is no medieval fanaticism, the description of which involuntarily makes the reader shiver; the humanism of the author and positive characters only emphasizes the greatness of God (even if He is not mentioned directly), the highest justice.

The “longing” that “took” the queen—isn’t it conscience, which the ancient sages called “the Eye of God in man”?

So, in the ancient, pagan understanding, representatives of Good differ from representatives of Evil in the ways of achieving their goals and the undoubted right to something that their enemies are trying to take away - but not at all by a kinder, more humane attitude towards the defeated enemy.

In the works of writers who have absorbed Christian traditions, the unconditional right of positive heroes to carry out merciless reprisals against those who could not withstand the temptation and took the side of Evil is questioned: “And count those who should live, but they are dead. Can you resurrect them? But no, don’t rush to condemn anyone to death. For even the wisest are not given to foresee everything” (D. Tolkien “The Lord of the Rings”). “Now he is fallen, but it’s not for us to judge him: who knows, maybe he will rise again,” says Frodo, the main character of Tolkien’s epic. This work raises the problem of the ambiguity of Good. Thus, representatives of the light side can be divided by mistrust and even fear; moreover, no matter how wise, courageous and kind you are, there is always the possibility that you can lose these virtues and join the camp of villains (perhaps without consciously wanting this ). A similar transformation occurs with the magician Saruman, whose original mission was to fight Evil, embodied in the person of Sauron. It threatens anyone who wishes to possess the One Ring. However, Tolkien does not even hint at Sauron's possible reformation. Although Evil is also not monolithic and ambiguous, it is, to a greater extent, an irreversible state.

The works of writers who continued the tradition of Tolkien present different views on what and which of Tolkien's characters should be considered Good and Evil. Currently, you can find works in which Sauron and his teacher Melkor, a kind of Lucifer of Middle-earth, do not act as negative heroes. Their struggle with other creators of the World is not so much a conflict of two opposite principles, but rather the result of misunderstanding and rejection of Melkor’s non-standard decisions.

In fantasy, which was formed on the basis of fairy tales and legends, clear boundaries between Good and Evil are gradually blurring. Everything is relative: Good is again not so humane (as it was in the ancient tradition), but Evil is far from black - rather, it is denigrated by enemies. The literature reflects the processes of rethinking previous values, the real embodiment of which is often far from ideal, and the tendency towards an ambiguous understanding of the multifaceted phenomena of existence. However, it should be remembered that in the worldview of every person, the categories of Good and Evil should still have a fairly clear structure. Moses, Christ and other great teachers said long ago about what is considered real Evil. Evil is the violation of the great commandments that should determine human behavior.