Historical reality and fiction of the story Taras Bulba. Historical basis of the story "Taras Bulba"

Aras was equally proud of Ostap and Andriy, and predicted a great future for them and the glory of real Cossacks. This continued until Andriy learned that in a city besieged by the Cossacks, a beautiful girl about whom he had been dreaming for two years was dying of hunger. Unfortunately, his beloved turned out to be Polish. The hero made a choice - he betrayed the Cossacks, father and brother and went over to the side of the Poles..
N.V. Gogol was deeply interested in the history of Little Russia, although the attitude towards the political and cultural role of Ukrainians was ambiguous in different periods of his work: from admiration and great hopes to pessimism, attributing all achievements and merits to the depths of time.

Brilliant intuition, combined with excellent knowledge of the national character, allowed Gogol to create multifaceted and expressive images of the Zaporozhye Cossacks, a real legend of the turbulent, wartime, heroic time.

Two brothers Ostap and Andriy, who grew up and were brought up in the same conditions, represent polar opposite human types. Ostap is what is called an impeccable fighter, a reliable comrade. He is silent, calm, reasonable. Ostap continues and honors the traditions of his fathers and grandfathers. For him there is never a problem of choice, moral duality, fluctuations between feelings and duty. He is an amazingly whole person. Ostap unconditionally accepts Zaporizhian life, ideals and principles of his older comrades. His respect never turns into servility; he is ready to take the initiative, but respects the opinions of other Cossacks. At the same time, he will never be interested in the opinions, views of “outsiders” - people of other faiths, foreigners. Ostap sees the world as harsh and simple. There are enemies and friends, our own and others. He is not interested in politics, he is a straightforward, brave, loyal and stern warrior. Ostap seems to have been carved out of a single piece of stone, his character is given ready-made at its core, and his development is a straight line, ending in death at the highest point of his feat.

Andriy is the complete opposite of his brother. Gogol showed differences not only human, but also historical. Ostap and Andriy are almost the same age, but these are types belonging to different historical times. Ostap from the heroic and primitive era, Andriy is internally close to the later time of developed and sophisticated culture and civilization, when politics and trade take the place of war and robbery. Andriy is softer, more refined, more flexible than his brother. He is endowed with great sensitivity to someone else’s, “other”, greater sensitivity. Andriy Gogol noted the beginnings of subtle taste and a sense of beauty. However, one cannot call him weaker. He is characterized by courage in battle and a much more important quality - the courage to make an independent choice. Passion brings him into the camp of the enemy, but there is more behind it. Andriy now wants to fight for what is his, what he himself found and called his own, and did not receive by inheritance, by tradition.

Two brothers must become enemies. Both die, one at the hands of enemies, the other at the hand of their father. You cannot call one good and the other bad. Gogol gave a national character in development, showed people who by nature belong to different historical eras.

The main feature of a work of art on a historical theme is that the author organically combines a story about events that actually took place with the author’s fiction. In this regard, N.V. Gogol’s story “Taras Bulba” is somewhat unusual: the historical events in it are not specified; moreover, when reading, it is sometimes quite difficult to determine at what time the actions take place - in the 15th, 16th or 17th centuries. In addition, none of the heroes is a historical figure, including Taras himself. Despite this, from the moment the work appeared, it has been classified as an epic story, sometimes called a novel. What is the strength and scale of “Taras Bulba”?

The history of the story

The writer’s appeal to the topic of the Cossacks was not accidental. A native of the Poltava province, since childhood he had heard a lot about the heroic feat of the people during the fight against numerous external invaders. Later, when Gogol began to write, he was particularly interested in such brave and devoted people as Taras Bulba. There were many of them in the Sich. Often former serfs became Cossacks - they found a home and comrades here.

N.V. Gogol studied many sources on this issue, including manuscripts of Ukrainian chronicles, historical studies by Boplan and Myshetsky. Not satisfied with what he read (in his opinion, they contained meager information, which was not enough to understand the soul of the people), Gogol turned to folklore. and the Dumas dedicated to them talked about the peculiarities of the characters, morals and life of the Cossacks. They gave the writer excellent “living” material, which became an excellent addition to scientific sources, and some storylines were included in the story in a revised form.

Historical basis of the story

“Taras Bulba” is a book about free people who inhabited the territory of the Dnieper region in the 16th and 17th centuries. Their center was the Zaporozhye Sich - its name is due to the fact that it was fortified on all sides with a fence of fallen trees - abatis. It had its own way of life and management. Subject to frequent attacks from Poles, Turks, and Lithuanians, the Cossacks had a very strong, well-trained army. They spent most of their time in battles and military campaigns, and the trophies they obtained became their main means of livelihood. It is no coincidence that the light rooms in the house where his wife lived alone include numerous signs of the owner’s camp life.

The year 1596 became fatal for the Ukrainian people, who were at that time under the rule of the Lithuanians and Poles. adopted a union on the unification under the authority of the Pope of Rome of two Christian religions: Orthodox and Catholic. The decision made further complicated the difficult relations between the Poles and the Cossacks, which resulted in open military confrontations. Gogol dedicated his story to this period.

Image of the Zaporozhye Sich

The main school for educating persistent, courageous warriors was a special way of life and management, and the teachers were experienced Cossacks who had repeatedly shown their valor in battle. One of them was Colonel Taras Bulba. His biography is a story about the formation of a true patriot, for whom the interests and freedom of the fatherland are above all.

It resembled a large republic based on the principles of humanism and equality. Koshevoy was chosen by a general decision, usually from among the most worthy. During the battle, the Cossacks had to obey him unconditionally, but in peacetime it was his responsibility to take care of the Cossacks.

In the Sich, everything was arranged to ensure the everyday life and military campaigns of its inhabitants: all kinds of workshops and forges worked, and cattle were raised. Ostap and Andriy will see all this when Taras Bulba brings them here.

The history of the short existence of the Zaporozhye Republic showed a new way of organizing people's lives, based on brotherhood, unity and freedom, and not on the oppression of the weak by the strong.

The main school for the Cossack is the military brotherhood

How the formation of young warriors took place can be judged by the example of the sons of Taras, Ostap and Andriy. They completed their studies at Bursa, after which their path lay in Zaporozhye. The father greets his sons after a long separation not with hugs and kisses, but with a fist test of their strength and dexterity.

The life of Taras Bulba was unpretentious, as evidenced by the feast in honor of the arrival of his sons (“bring... the whole ram, the goat... and more burners” - these are the words the old Cossack addresses to his wife) and sleep in the open air.

Ostap and Andriy had not even been at home for a day before they set off for the Sich, where the best comradeship in the world and glorious exploits for their homeland and religion awaited them. Their father was convinced that the only real school for them could be participation in combat battles.

Cossacks

Approaching the Sich, Taras and his sons saw a Cossack picturesquely sleeping in the middle of the road. He spread out like a lion and attracted everyone's admiration. Wide trousers like the sea, a proudly thrown forelock (it was certainly left on a shaved head), a good horse - this is what a real Cossack looked like. It is no coincidence that the main character of the story appeals to his sons with a call to immediately change their “demonic” clothes (they came from Bursa in them) to something worthy of a Cossack. And they really were immediately transformed in morocco boots, wide trousers, scarlet Cossacks and lambskin hats. The image was completed with a Turkish pistol and a sharp saber. The young men riding on the glorious stallions evoked admiration and pride from their father.

The historical basis of the story “Taras Bulba” obliged the author to treat the Cossacks impartially. With all due respect to them and their valor, Gogol also truthfully says that at times their behavior caused condemnation and misunderstanding. This referred to the riotous and drunken life that they led in between battles, excessive cruelty (for the murder of a criminal they were buried in a grave with the victim alive) and a low cultural level.

The Power of Camaraderie

The main advantage of the Cossacks was that in a moment of danger they could quickly mobilize and act as a single army against the enemy. Their dedication, patriotism, courage and devotion to the common cause knew no bounds. In the story, this was proven more than once by Taras Bulba himself. The biography of other prominent warriors, including experienced Tovkach, Kukubenko, Pavel Gubenko, Mosiy Shilo and young Ostap, also emphasizes this.

Bulba said well about the unity and main purpose of the Cossacks in his speech on the eve of the decisive battle: “There are no bonds more holy than comradeship!” His speech is an expression of great wisdom and holy faith that he and his brethren are defending a just cause. At a difficult moment, Taras’s words encourage the Cossacks, remind them of their sacred duty to protect their comrades, always remember the Orthodox faith and devotion to their homeland. The worst thing for a Cossack was betrayal: this was not forgiven to anyone. Taras kills his own son after learning that because of his love for a beautiful Polish woman, he chose personal interests over public ones. So the bonds of brotherhood turned out to be more important than blood. The fact that this fact corresponded to reality is evidenced by the historical basis of the story.

Taras Bulba - the best representative of the Cossacks

A colonel with a stern character who has gone through a glorious battle path. A glorious chieftain and comrade who could support with an encouraging word and give good advice in difficult times. He possessed a burning hatred for the enemy who encroached on the Orthodox faith, and did not spare his own life for the sake of saving his homeland and his brothers in arms. Accustomed to a free life, he was content with an open field and was absolutely unpretentious in everyday life. This is how Gogol portrays the main character. He spent his whole life in battles and always found himself in the most dangerous place. Weapons, a smoking pipe and the glorious horse of Taras Bulba constituted his main wealth. At the same time, he could joke and joke around, he was happy with life.

The hero, disappointed in his youngest son, felt great pride in Ostap. Risking his life, Bulba came to the place of execution to see him for the last time. And when Ostap, who had steadfastly endured the mortal torment, called him at the last minute, he, in one word, which made the entire square tremble, expressed his pride, approval and support not only to his son, but to his spiritual comrade and comrade-in-arms. Until the end of his life, Taras will grieve for his son and take revenge for his death. The experience will add to his cruelty and hatred of the enemy, but will not break his will and fortitude.

The story does not contain the usual description of Taras Bulba for the hero, since this is not so important. The main thing is that he has the qualities that made it possible to survive during that cruel time.

Hyperbolization of Taras in the execution scene

The characterization of the hero is complemented by the description of his death, which is largely absurd. The hero is captured because he bends down to pick up a fallen pipe - he doesn’t even want to give it to the damned enemy. Here Taras resembles a folk hero: about three dozen people were able to defeat him with difficulty.

In the last scene, the author describes not the pain from the fire that the hero experienced, but his anxiety for the fate of his brothers floating down the river. At the moment of death, he behaves with dignity, remaining true to the main principles of partnership. The main thing is that he was sure that he had not lived his life in vain. This is exactly what a real Cossack was like.

The significance of the work today

The historical basis of the story “Taras Bulba” is the liberation struggle of the people against the invaders who encroached on their country and faith. Thanks to such strong-willed people as Taras Bulba, his son and comrades, they managed to defend independence and freedom more than once.

The work of N.V. Gogol and his heroes have become a model of masculinity and patriotism for many, so it will never lose its relevance and significance.

A man inclined to idealize Little Russian historical antiquity, Gogol probably wrote the story “Taras Bulba” with special love. Modern life in Ukraine seemed gray and boring to him, there was no room for the scope of his imagination, there were no people “interesting” in the romantic taste. Gogol apparently saw no one here except “existents” vegetating in an unconscious life. This shortcoming (people’s lack of goals in life, their lack of understanding of its meaning) always particularly outraged Gogol. That is why he was more interested in the past of Little Russia, the time when it lived a turbulent historical life, when the life of every Cossack was full of “meaning,” when there were no vulgarities that he hated, but there were “fighters” for the homeland, for the faith. That is why, while composing his “Taras Bulba,” Gogol probably rested his soul; the gray reality of the surrounding life did not slow down his imagination, and it freely created heroic images and paintings that elevate the soul. Thanks to this, Gogol managed to create a historical “epic of the Cossacks” in his story. In fact, the scope of his creativity in this story is purely epic; he managed to embody an entire era of folk history in the grandiose appearance of Taras; in the person of his hero he managed to capture the bright national features of his people. In some parts of this story (descriptions, comparisons) Gogol rises to the techniques of epic creativity.

However, E. A. Kotlyarevsky, assessing Gogol’s “Taras Bulba” from this point of view, calls the author “not a historian, but a compiler of a new epic, from which he sometimes even borrows phrases.”

Taras Bulba with his sons Ostap and Andriy. Illustration by S. Ovcharenko for Gogol's story

But this remark is hardly entirely true: being a poet-artist who was inspired by folk legends and songs and from there gained insight into the spirit of the people, into their forces and heroes, Gogol, of course, at the same time, was also a historian. Interest in history of Little Russia He had something organic: among his youthful experiences we already encounter the beginning of a story from the life of the Cossacks; these Cossacks constantly appear in his “Evenings”, sometimes rising to the heroic image of Pan Danila (in the story “Terrible Revenge”), then descending to the comic outlines of Chub in “The Night Before Christmas”, etc. Like a true historian, Gogol peered into the reasons who created the Cossacks, and tried to evaluate the consequences that inevitably flowed from this complex phenomenon. We know that Gogol even intended to write an extensive history of Little Russia; in his “Arabesques,” characterizing “Little Russian songs,” he talks a lot about the historical conditions that created the heroic scope of the Russian soul, expressed in the formation of the Zaporozhye Sich. And in the story “Taras Bulba” more than once Gogol deviates towards history, explaining many facts from the life of his heroes to the conditions of life at that time. As a historian, Gogol conscientiously studied the past of Ukraine using scientific works, sources, folk works, and notes from his contemporaries. If, however, he misunderstood a lot about the past of Little Russia, if he introduced a bit of fiction into “Taras Bulba,” then this is still a small fault; given the then state of science, even the history of Great Rus' had not yet been interpreted in any satisfactory way.

Gogol's main mistake as a historian was that he introduced a romantic coloring into the historical life of Ukraine: he presented such “colonels” as Bulba as some kind of feudal knights who have their own “regiments” and decide issues of war and peace themselves. Here the shade of literary fiction is noted most of all - forgivable, however, for a fiction writer. At that time, colonels were “elected” and did not have the power over their regiments that landowners later acquired over their serfs. Thus, Gogol transferred the attitude of masters towards serfs into the history of the 15th century, arbitrarily giving these relations a feudal character, which was a mistake. It is obvious that romantic literature, with its castles, feudal lords and autocratic medieval barons, had, in this regard, an undue influence on Gogol and distorted the historical fidelity of his story. The same tendency to give the Cossacks the character of a knightly order is evident in the depiction of the life of the Zaporozhye Sich.

Romanticism prevented Gogol from correctly representing the psychology of some of the characters. If Taras and his son Ostap are impeccably drawn, then Andriy is completely falsely presented. The Cossack of the rough 15th century is represented as some kind of “romantic lover”, with the most subtle moods of an elegant, sensitive soul. But the historical value of the story, despite the presence of a share of literary fiction, is still great. IN

The general contradictory concept of the novel, the heterogeneity of its individual parts, undoubtedly made themselves felt as work on the novel unfolded. At the same time, insufficient knowledge of the era was clearly reflected. All this together, in all likelihood, was the reason that Gogol stopped working on the novel “Hetman”; however, he did not give up the idea of ​​writing a work dedicated to the events that were touched upon in the novel. There are undoubted similarities between “Taras Bulba” and “Hetman”; individual images and scenes of “Hetman” are, as it were, sketches for “Taras Bulba”. In addition to the already noted connection between the image of Pudko’s mother and Taras Bulba’s wife, one can point to the well-known overlap between the image of Ostranitsa and the image of Andriy. The scene of Ostranitsa’s meeting with Pudko is the basis for the scene of Taras Bulba’s meeting with his comrades in arms, in which the dead friends are remembered. In "Taras Bulba" Ostranitsa is also mentioned - the Cossack hetman, to whose troops the regiment led by Taras Bulba belongs. For all that, the epic is a work with immeasurably higher ideological and artistic qualities than Hetman. The source of the fundamental difference between Taras Bulba and the first experiments on historical themes is its deep penetration into the era, into the historical past. Gogol approached the historical epic when his realistic method was more clearly defined. Before this, not only “Old World Landowners” and the story of a quarrel were created, but also the scenes of “Vladimir of the Third Degree” and the first edition of “Marriage”. The idea has often been expressed that the main source that fed Gogol when creating Taras Bulba was oral folk poetry. In this case, the writer’s real knowledge of historical material is called into question in the same way. This kind of view incorrectly illuminates both the very process of Gogol’s creative work and its results. As is known, in the second half of 1833 and 1834, Gogol intensively studied the history of Ukraine, intending to write a scientific work. In order to collect unpublished materials as widely as possible, he published the “Announcement on the publication of the history of Little Russia,” in which he addressed the general public with a request to send him unpublished chronicles, recordings, songs, business papers, etc. in copies or originals. All sources that managed to collect it, Gogol carefully studied it. He did not have to write a scientific work on the history of Ukraine, but materials related primarily to the history of the Cossacks were used by him in his creative work on the epic. But neither the consolidated works nor the individual chronicles completely satisfied Gogol. Not only were there contradictions in the annals and chronicles, but the material itself was often very meager and gave little food to the artist’s imagination. “I have lost interest in our chronicles, trying in vain to find in them what I would like to find,” the writer declared. And here he received invaluable help from folk art and folk songs, which he studied starting from the Nizhyn period of his life. The writer gave a sketch of this general picture in the article “A Look at the Compilation of Little Russia.” Describing the origin of the Cossacks, Gogol wrote there about the southern Russian steppes: “... this defenseless, open land was the land of Devastation and raids, a place where three warring nations collided, It was a land of fear; and therefore only a warlike people, strong in their unity, a desperate people, whose whole life was entwined and nurtured by war, could be formed in it. And so the immigrants, free or involuntary, homeless, those who had nothing to lose, for whom life is a penny, whose violent will could not tolerate laws and authorities, who were threatened with the gallows everywhere, settled down and chose the most dangerous place in view of the Asian conquerors - the Tatars and Turks . This crowd, having grown and increased, constituted a whole people, which cast a different character and, one might say, flavor over the whole of Ukraine...” With great insight, Gogol pointed out the origins of the formation of the Cossacks. Fleeing from serfdom, peasants fled to the southern outskirts, to the steppes, where they found themselves outside the power of the feudal lords and became free people. The desire for freedom, escape from the oppression of law and power - this is what he saw as the most important reason for the emergence of the Cossacks and the Zaporozhye Sich. The breadth of Gogol's historical views becomes especially clear if we compare his statements with the views on this problem that existed at that time. D. N. Bantysh-Kamensky wrote in “The History of Little Russia”: “The Cossacks, one must think, moved across the Dnieper from the Caucasus, where the Circassians now live, a warlike people practicing robbery. One name, a lonely disposition, a lonely tendency to raids confirm this guess. Either they were expelled from their homeland by internecine warfare, common among Asian peoples, or, having devastated adjacent lands, they chose a new home for themselves in places watered by the majestic Dnieper.” In the historical concept of “Taras Bulba”, its other constituent elements are also very significant. For Gogol, the Cossacks are the force that played the largest role in protecting the Russian land from external enemies. “He was knocked out of the people's chest by the flint of troubles. Instead of the former fiefs, small towns filled with huntsmen and hunters, instead of petty princes warring and trading in cities, formidable villages, kurens and outskirts arose, connected by a common danger and hatred against non-Christian predators. Everyone already knows from history how their eternal struggle and restless life saved Europe from these indomitable aspirations that threatened to overturn it.” Gogol contrasts the Cossacks’ devotion to their homeland, its fearless defense from attacks from without, with the selfish, petty enmity in which the princes were, neglecting the interests of their native land. The writer deeply and correctly shows the importance of the Cossacks in the defense of the country from foreign enemies. The Cossacks formed on its outskirts defended the Russian land in severe battles from the devastating raids of steppe nomads, Crimean Tatars, and Turks. The Ukrainian people responded to the ever-increasing social and national oppression with a stormy liberation movement. In the early 90s of the 16th century, a major uprising took place under the leadership of Kosinski. Before the Polish magnates had time to cope with it, a new uprising broke out in 1594, even wider in scope, led by Nalivaiko, who initially won a number of serious victories. At the end of the 20s of the 17th century, a major uprising was led by Taras Tryasilo, then in the 30s, uprisings led by Pavlyuk, Guni, and Ostryanin followed one after another. In 1648, the great historical struggle of the Ukrainian people for their liberation began, led by Bohdan Khmelnytsky, a struggle that led to the reunification of two fraternal peoples - Ukrainian and Russian.