The poem "Railway" was written by Nekrasov in 1864 and published in the Sovremennik magazine. The Nikolaev railway was built from 1942 to 1952. and made it possible to make a journey, which used to take a whole week, in a day. Nicholas I issued a decree on the construction of the first Moscow-Petersburg railway in a peculiar way: he drew a road on the map under the ruler, through forests and swamps. The price of such a project is human sacrifice and work in impossible conditions.
Construction was led by Kleinmichel, who by the time the poem was written had been removed from his post for cruelty. The topic of building a railway was also relevant in 1964, under Alexander II, who built railways with the help of workers and peasants liberated from serfdom in 1861.
Literary direction, genre
Nekrasov is considered a singer of civil lyrics, a poet of a realistic direction. In general, the poem is accusatory in nature and is indeed a model of civil lyrics. But its first part is a beautiful lyric poem.
Theme, main idea and composition
The poem consists of 4 parts. They are united by the plot, the image of the lyrical hero-narrator and his neighbors in the car: the general with his son Vanya, whose dialogue about the road builder is an epigraph.
The first part is a description of the autumn Russian nature, which the narrator sees from the train window. There is no ugliness in nature, it is perfect.
The second part contrasts with the first. This is a monologue of the narrator, showing the imperfection of society. Vanya draws a picture of the suffering of the builders of the railway - the Russian people. The narrator describes the host of poor people who died during the construction, so that the impressionable boy even becomes shy. The main idea is contained in the last three stanzas: you need to respect the hardworking people, because they endured a lot and thanks to this endurance they will come to a happy future. Nekrasov accurately notices the mentality of the people, capable of enduring suffering for centuries. Today, the phrase “It’s only a pity that you won’t have to live at this beautiful time - neither me nor you” has acquired the ironic meaning “never”, which Nekrasov did not put into his poems.
The third part is the objections of the father-general. In his opinion, a people prone to drunkenness is not capable of creating anything great, but can only destroy. Dad offers to show Vanya the bright side.
In the fourth part, the narrator informs Vanya that after the construction of the road, the workers were rewarded with a barrel of wine and forgiveness of the arrears, which were counted by cunning contractors for everyone.
Size and rhyme
The poem is written in four-foot dactyl in the first part, which in other parts alternates with three-foot with a shortened last foot. This rhythm best conveys the sound of train wheels. The alternation of female and masculine rhymes in the first stanza describing nature, it is replaced by an alternation of dactylic and masculine in some stanzas and feminine and masculine in others. The rhyme in the poem is cross.
Paths and images
The first part is written in the best traditions of landscape lyrics. Nature is characterized by epithets glorious autumn, healthy, vigorous air, fragile ice, icy river, clear, quiet days. Nekrasov uses vivid comparisons: ice is like melting sugar, you can sleep in the leaves like in bed.
Nekrasov uses personification to describe hunger as the root cause of people's misfortunes. Words with diminutive suffixes contrast with the terrible picture of death: path, posts, Vanechka - and Russian bones. True skill was shown by Nekrasov, describing the portraits of the unfortunate. It is impossible to forget the tall, sick Belarusian. Such a detail is especially touching: even after death, the ghost of a Belarusian mechanically hammers the frozen ground with a shovel. The habit of work has been brought among the people to automatism. The second part ends with a symbolic image of a wide clear road and a beautiful time.
In the third part, the general's monologue, there are almost no tropes. The general's speech is clear, unambiguous and devoid of images; logic prevails in it. Only an epithet bright side vague, which the narrator is in a hurry to take advantage of.
In the fourth part, keeping the short and logical style of the general, the lyrical hero describes the "bright future" of the workers.
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Nekrasov Railway analysis of the poem
Plan
1.History of creation
2.Genre
3. Main idea
4.Composition
5.Size
6. Expressive means
7. Main idea
1.History of creation. The work "Railway" was written by the poet in 1864 and is dedicated to the construction of the first Nikolaev railway in Russia (1842-1852). Nicholas I, not taking into account the peculiarities of the area, simply drew a line on the map along the line. This monstrous carelessness turned into a huge number of dead workers during construction in impenetrable swamps and forests.
2.Genre of the poem- beloved and perfected by the poet civil lyrics.
3. Main idea poems - the plight of the common people, forced to pay with their lives for progress in Russia. The king and his entourage did not at all consider the price for a grandiose project. Driven from all parts of Russia, the peasants worked in inhuman conditions, covering the vast expanses of their land with their bones. It is no coincidence that the first part of the poem lovingly describes the beautiful landscape, which was destined to become a huge mass grave. In sharp contrast to this description is the picture of heavy physical labor that arose in the imagination of the narrator. The souls of all those who perished in the construction are passing before us. They did not understand the significance of their great cause. The peasants were forced to work by the earthly king and the invisible king - hunger. The general's monologue reveals the cynical attitude of high society towards the workers. The lot of serfs is drunkenness and theft, and therefore there is nothing to pity them. This shows the absolute illiteracy and stupidity of the general, who does not understand that all the achievements and successes of the state are based on the overwhelming mass of the downtrodden and humiliated peasantry. The “bright” picture that completes the work is the settlement with the workers. Exhausted peasants, heroes of labor, receive a reward - ... a barrel of vodka. And the manifestation of the “immeasurable generosity” of the authorities is the forgiveness of all arrears and absenteeism. The country is making a huge step forward, the chiefs are triumphant, but the people, as always, turn out to be fools.
4.Composition. The poem "Railroad" consists of four parts. The first is a lyrical description of the Russian landscape passing by travelers. The second is a terrible picture of overwork. The third part describes the general's primitive thoughts and opinion. The final part is a "joyful" picture, the result of the work.
5. Poem size- alternation of four- and three-foot dactyl with cross rhyme.
6.Expressive means. Nekrasov widely uses epithets in describing nature (“glorious”, “vigorous”, “cold”) and the suffering of workers (“huge”, “terrible”, “barren”). The first part is rich in comparisons: “like melting sugar”, “like in a soft bed”, “like a carpet”. Hunger is described with vivid personifications: “the king is merciless”, he “drives”, “drives”, “walks”. In general, the first parts are built in sharp contrast with each other. The third and fourth parts are written extremely short language without much use means of expression. Significantly closer to reality live Speaking chief "... something ... well done! .. well done! ...".
7. The basic idea works - the suffering of the common people is incalculable. He has to bear the civilizational development of Russia on his shoulders. At the end of the second part, Nekrasov makes the main statement that the Russian people will endure everything and come to a happy future. But this is still very far away, the “wonderful time” in the foggy obscurity.
Often in literature lessons the question is: “How relevant is this work today?”. Genres and forms of literature change to varying degrees, but human nature remains unchanged. The laws of human society remain unshakable: the troubles and joys of peoples are the same at all times. N. Nekrasov's poem "Railway" tells not only about a revolutionary breakthrough in the transport system of the state, but also about the other side - thousands of ruined lives, about workers, on whose bones all world progress stands.
There is a legend that when designing the St. Petersburg-Moscow railway, Nicholas I drew a straight line on the map without going around swamps, swamps, ravines. Construction was extremely difficult, and workers had to work in constant cold, hunger, enduring illness and poverty:
We tore ourselves under the heat, under the cold,
With an eternally bent back,
Lived in dugouts, fought hunger,
Were cold and wet, sick with scurvy.
The road was built by simple serfs, who not so long ago received freedom after the abolition of serfdom, but did not know what to do with this will. Since the Russian Empire was still considered a backward agrarian country, the construction of the railway acquired a fundamental strategic importance. It was supposed to be a large-scale breakthrough to industrial and technical progress. Russia would become an even more serious player on the world stage. And so thousands of peasants, working tirelessly in the most difficult conditions, died there, on the construction of the railway, which was intended to become a symbol of the greatness and development of the state. To this mute, to all forgotten feat Nekrasov's poem "Railway" of 1864 is dedicated to ordinary hard workers.
Genre, direction and size
Many literary scholars are inclined to believe that "Railway" is a poem that combines drama, satire and even a ballad. In its form, this is a conversation of fellow travelers (the general and his son Vanya) with the lyrical hero himself.
Nekrasov chose four-foot dactyl and cross-rhyme as a measure to create an atmosphere of narration, a gradual but intense conversation. In terms of sound, this technique can even be compared with the sound of wheels on a railway - a kind of sound writing creates this indescribable atmosphere of a ballad.
Composition
It is important to note that the poem is easily divided into 3 semantic parts.
- The first is Nekrasov's description of nature, the beauty of his native lands. The poet confesses his sincere love for the Russian land, and this creates a strong and effective contrast for the following parts.
- The second part is the most epic, here Nekrasov writes how the dead peasants wake up to sing about their hard lot. The poet tells the real story of the construction of the road with all the troubles of slave labor.
- In the third part, Vanya's son tells his father about a strange dream in which he had this story. The general laughs and replies that the people are a bunch of drunkards, and truly beautiful and important things in the world are created by individuals - geniuses, not the people, and then encourages the lyrical hero not to intimidate his son, but to tell the truth. The poet agrees and talks about the completion of construction, when a barrel of wine was rolled for the peasants and the "debts" that came from nowhere were forgiven. The people were deceived again, but the railway was built, and now the chiefs will celebrate.
- Firstly, these are bright epithets in the description of nature: glorious autumn, vigorous air, icy river;
- Secondly, metaphors and comparisons: “The ice is not strong on the icy river, as if it lies like melting sugar”, “Pit my chest”;
- Here is an inversion (a noble habit of work);
- Alliteration (leaves fade ... did not have time);
- Assonance (everywhere I recognize my dear Russia).
Images and symbols
In "Railway" Nekrasov creates several very vivid and masterfully crafted images. The first of them is Russia and the Russian people. The poet calls the peasants God's warriors, peaceful children of labor, brothers, admiring the simplicity and strength of their characters.
The martyred Belarusian became a vivid image, which became a symbol of everyone and everyone who was starved to death by slave labor:
Lips bloodless, eyelids fallen,
Ulcers on skinny arms
Forever knee-deep in water
The legs are swollen; tangle in hair.
Another vivid image is the general with whom the lyrical hero is talking. Not much is said about him, but a few bright details make it possible to recreate the portrait of a proud man with ease. For example, a coat with a red lining immediately betrays a general in him, and arrogant words about the worthlessness of the people (and of any country and nationality) also draw him as a arrogant, proud, pompous person. The general lists the world curiosities of architecture, obviously knowing a lot about them, but at the same time he does not understand to whom he owes both the position and the coat with a red lining. At the same time, he dressed his son Vanya in a coachman's coat to emphasize his closeness to the people. Thanks to these three details, the poet masterfully painted for readers a portrait of a typical "boss" from any field.
The image of a lyrical hero is a collective image of a real citizen who is aware of his duty to the people. He, not afraid of the wrath of the general, speaks the truth, which pricks the eyes of the gentlemen. This is a conscientious, conscientious and fair person who insists on fair criticism of every initiative. Yes, the road is certainly important, but not at such a price.
Topics and issues
Nekrasov achieves the reader's emotional empathy with the help of bright contrasts and oppositions, on which the poem is built. Marvelous Russian landscapes are replaced by terrible pictures:
Straight path: the mounds are narrow,
Poles, rails, bridges.
And on the sides, all the bones are Russian ...
How many of them! Vanya, do you know?
Just as quickly, the poet takes the reader away from the hardships of construction to a lonely unfortunate Belarusian, from him to a pompous general, and again to the tired faces of the peasants. Constantly creating contrasting situations, Nekrasov creates a tense atmosphere that completely absorbs attention.
The role of the topics raised in the poem is also important here. In addition to the fate of the peasantry, first tortured by the yoke of serfdom, and then left without help, Nekrasov draws attention to the fate of Russia. Here are two prominent representatives of the country: the general, who talks about aesthetics and feigns patriotism, and the people themselves, who will never see this imaginary care and symbolism in Vanya's attire. How can one talk about progress and entering the world of industrial powers, when those for whom, it would seem, the state machine should work, die unknown thousands from slave labor?
The author also raises the problem of the indifference of the masters to the fate of ordinary people. The general considers the people a bunch of drunkards, which is not worthy of his attention and pity. That's why the peasant was created, to work to death, he can't do anything else. But this hero does not even understand that he lives at the expense of all these people. Without them, he would not have been able to provide for himself. The money that generously supported the military ranks was taken from the treasury, and who fills it? Not the king and not his retinue, but the working people who produce what is sold. Therefore, we can single out another problem - social injustice, due to which hundreds of people are forced to provide for one such general who does not strike a finger all his life, since he inherited the rank.
Main idea
The whole tragedy of the era and the meaning of the poem Nekrasov compressed to 4 lines that play the role of an epigraph:
Vanya (in a coachman's coat):
"Daddy! who built this road?
Dad (in a coat with a red lining):
"Count Pyotr Andreevich Kleinmikhel, darling!"
Count Kleinmichel and all the bureaucratic world, which received laurels, recognition and considerable remuneration, did not build the road. These rails lie on the bones of peasants tortured by hunger, disease, injustice and poverty. This idea, satirically outlined in the epigraph, the poet proves in his poem, and the stronger and larger the universal problem appears: the common people, who build, fight, plow at the cost of their lives, will never receive their well-deserved gratitude. Never and in no country in the world. The general impudently asks the lyrical hero a question:
I was recently in the walls of the Vatican,
I wandered around the Colosseum for two nights,
I saw Saint Stephen in Vienna,
Well… did the people create all this?
Yes people. But only the name of the architect and the king will be left to the descendants, and those who create beauty, who feed, carry, protect their countries, the descendants will not remember. This is a great human tragedy not only for Russia, but for the whole world. This is the main idea of the work.
Means of artistic expression
Nekrasov manages to achieve such a large-scale and expressive picture of the life and work of the peasant people with the help of a system of artistic means.
Nekrasov's poem is based on real events- construction of a railway between St. Petersburg and Moscow. This topic was relevant for the second half of the 19th century. The appearance of the railway in Russia opened up unlimited possibilities. But did people really think about who paid what price for Russia to become a developed European power?
The railway was built by former serfs, who, having received freedom, simply did not know how to dispose of it. Hunger drove them to the construction site of the century. Several thousand people died during the construction, and Nekrasov really wanted to tell his readers about this. The whole poem is a revelation of the meaning of the epigraph (a dialogue accidentally heard in the carriage). To his son’s question, “daddy replies that the railway between St. Petersburg and Moscow was built by Count Klein-Mikhel, head of the department of communications under Nicholas 1. The epigraph is full of sarcasm, and the whole work serves as a passionate refutation of it.
The main theme of the poem is reflections on the tragic fate of the Russian people, on their role in the creation of spiritual and material values. Many researchers call "Railway" a poem that synthesizes elements of various genre forms: dramas, satires, songs and ballads. The compositional structure of the work is complex - it is built in the form of a conversation between passengers. The conditional companion is the author himself. The poem is divided into 4 chapters.
The first chapter begins with a landscape sketch of “glorious autumn”, the lyrical hero admires the beauty of nature and remarks: “There is no ugliness in nature!” So the author prepared the reader for the perception of various oppositions, on the basis of which the entire poem is built. Nature, in which everything is reasonable and harmonious, he opposes the outrages that occur in human society.
The second chapter is the beginning and development of the action. The lyrical hero tells "smart Vanya" the truth about the construction of the railway - about the hard labor of the people driven by hunger to build. This picture is especially contrasting against the background of the image of harmony in nature, which is given in the first chapter.
The poet paints a fantastic picture: from the bitter song of the dead we learn about their unfortunate fate. Nekrasov singles out the “Belarusian” from the general crowd: and, using the example of his fate, tells the tragic story of the construction of the railway. Here the lyrical hero indicates his position. The poet expresses great respect for the workers.
Nekrasov's people are shown both as a patient slave and as a great worker who deserves admiration. The lyrical hero believes in the strength of the Russian people, in their special destiny, in a bright future. The image of the road acquires a metaphorical meaning - this is a special path of the Russian people, long-suffering Russia.
The third chapter is opposed to the second. The transition from Vanya's dream to reality is abrupt. The awakening of the boy is unexpected - he is awakened by a deafening whistle. The whistle destroyed the dream, the general's laughter destroyed the poetry. Here there is a dispute between the lyrical hero and the general. Vanya's father, a general, expresses his attitude towards the peasant - he despises the mob. He accuses not even the people, but the peoples. The general advises Vanya to show the "bright side" of construction.
The fourth chapter is a household sketch. This is a kind of disconnect. With bitter irony, the lyrical hero paints a picture of the end of his labors. All that the peasants have earned by hard labor is a forgiven arrears and a barrel of wine. But this is not the most bitter - instead of the expected, it would seem, discontent and indignation. The “bright side” turns out to be even more hopeless and hopeless.
There are many different lyrical intonations in the poem: narrative, colloquial, declamatory; the scene with the image of the dead brings the work closer to the ballad genre. But the whole work is painted with the traditional song tonality for Nekrasov.
Vocabulary for creating a poem is neutral. One can note the most diverse means of artistic expression used by the author: epithets (glorious autumn; barren wilds, bloodless lips); comparison (ice as melting sugar); anaphora (Contractor goes / Goes to see his work); inversion (noble work habit); alliteration (leaves fade ... did not have time); assonance (everywhere I recognize my dear Russia).
Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov was an outstanding writer. He became famous for his numerous works, which are popular to this day. Many of his works are taken as a basis in theatrical and cinematographic activities.The poet was the founder of a new, democratic trend that developed a civic position. Along with many famous writers, including Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Ivan Turgenev, he published in the Sovremennik magazine, of which he was the editor.
In this article, we will consider one of the author's works called "Railway", which was written in 1864, at a time when citizenship was taking on more and more pronounced forms of revolutionary and democratic orientation.
The construction of the railway took place during the period of serfdom, when peasants, regardless of their desire, were driven to construction. But even after the abolition of serfdom, unfortunate people did not have a worthy place in society. As a result of the past reforms, many farms became unprofitable and simply closed. Now the master drove people to the construction site and not patriotism, but hunger. To feed themselves, many were forced to sell their labor for a penny.
Without embellishment, Nekrasov was able to describe the whole reality in his poem.
This work is recognized as one of the most dramatic of those times. It begins with a description of everyday days, and everything sounds colorful, this can be understood from such expressions: “the ice is not strong”, “the river is icy”. At the beginning of the lines, one might think that this is a lyrical work, because the author reveals everything gradually, as if enhancing the effect and preparing the reader.
So, according to the story, a little son with his father, a general, set off on a journey by rail. Here the son begins to ask his father who built such a huge railway with trains. The general without hesitation for a long time names the name of the builder, Count Pyotr Andreevich Kleinmichel. Then the son falls asleep from motion sickness on the road and he has a dream that was more of a horror. In this dream, the child saw the whole truth about the construction of this road.
The work was very hard, which they agreed to out of hopelessness. The name of this hopelessness was hunger. I had to live in dugouts, there was practically no rest as such. They had to work for at least twelve hours in damp and frozen conditions, while there were strict limits, and observers recorded every mistake of the builders.
Builders were fined so often that sometimes they did not have enough salaries. Some were given a barrel of wine as a salary. If a person had something against, argued with the main ones, then he was simply notched with rods to death. Many died from various diseases or exhaustion, such people were buried on the same road. From this we can conclude that the road was built on human bones.
Straight path: the mounds are narrow,
Poles, rails, bridges.
And on the sides, all the bones are Russian ...
How many of them! Vanya, do you know?
Of course, the construction site was officially given special significance, as the construction site of the century. The road, which was built for twelve years, reduced the time spent on the road during the journey, between the cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg, by seven times. In addition, this construction had a political connotation. The All-Russian Emperor Nicholas I wanted to declare his state in Europe as progressive and developed. Money was allocated for the creation of infrastructure of the appropriate level, good specialists, including foreign ones, were attracted. That's just about their own people, who were cheap labor, few people thought.
The whole history of the construction of the railway was true and told about how the people actually lived and what they had to endure. Then the emperor highly appreciated the work of the organizers of the construction. The Commander-in-Chief of Communications, Count Pyotr Andreevich Kleinmikhel, was awarded an award for services to the Fatherland. Indeed, the speed of construction was at its best, and the death rate of ordinary hard workers was considered as a cost of production.
Analysis of the poem
The railway was called Nikolayevskaya and was built from 1842 to 1855. Only 12 years later, Nekrasov had this poem. The work itself seems to give an answer to the question, but will the descendants of the unfortunate workers who gave their lives to strengthen the state as a progressive state, and for the convenience of the upper stratum of the population, remember.
We tore ourselves under the heat, under the cold,
With an eternally bent back,
Lived in dugouts, fought hunger,
Were cold and wet, sick with scurvy.
We were robbed by literate foremen,
The bosses were crushed, the need was crushing ...
We have endured everything, God's warriors,
Peaceful children of labor!
Brothers! You are reaping our fruits!
We are destined to rot in the earth ...
Do you all remember us, the poor, with kindness
Or have you forgotten a long time ago?
The poem itself consists of four parts. All of them are united by one plot and the image of a lyrical hero. The narrator and the neighbors in the carriage, where there is a boy and his father are generals. The dialogue is about the railway, about how it was built, this is the epigraph.
The first part of the story describes nature, where the surroundings are very colorfully displayed, which can be seen from the train window. It is very perfect and, as it were, there is no such ugliness that is present in people's lives. The second part is already shown in the form of a monologue of the narrator himself, where the life of society is shown. It shows the life of the builders of this highway, all their sufferings and misfortunes.
The main meaning is in the last three stanzas. Where it is described that the Russian people must be respected, that with their diligence and sacrifices they are moving towards a brighter future. The writer also very accurately describes the mentality of the people, who have endured many sufferings and humiliations for centuries. With just one statement, Nekrasov described the whole life of the people of those times:
"It's a pity - I won't have to live in this beautiful time - neither me nor you"
In the fourth part, the discussion continues. Now the author has dug even deeper. The reader is even more immersed in the problems of society. It becomes clear that the different positions that already divide society are an insurmountable abyss. And small people, from the point of view of the upper class, are simply consumables. A material that, if necessary, can be sacrificed indefinitely.
But the narrator believes that a "bright future" will come, because the Russian people deserve a better life. In a different way, Nekrasov could not finish the poem. He put all his pain into every line. That is why his words echo in the hearts of his contemporaries.
