The young novice Mtsyri, living in a monastery in one of the Georgian valleys, is the main character of the romantic poem of the same name by M.Yu. Lermontov.
Disappointment in the surrounding reality and the absence of strong-willed people, Lermontov creates his own ideal, capable of real actions in non-standard life situations. He wanted to describe a strong and courageous man with clear life principles and a goal to which he goes despite all obstacles and is ready to give his life for it.
Characteristics of the main character-monk
The teenager ends up in the monastery as a child; here he is left behind by a passing Russian general, who took him prisoner in a distant mountain village. The boy is frightened and shy of everything, is in a very weakened physical state, but even then he is distinguished by a strong will and enormous inner dignity. The monks left him and he stayed to live with them, but his existence here was full of melancholy and pain, he was not happy. He considered the monastery walls a prison and just an annoying obstacle to the realization of his goal - to return to his homeland, to the country of his ancestors.
In the dead of night he escapes, a few days later the monks find him wounded, exhausted, almost dying. And although they make a lot of efforts to bring him back to life, recovery does not occur and the young man gradually fades away. It seems to everyone that he has lost something so important and valuable that he simply sees no point in living further. Before his death, he opens his soul to his mentor and his inner world opens before the reader, which helps to get to know the young man better and understand the reasons for his escape.
Having a wild and unbridled disposition, Mtsyri “child of the mountains” passionately desired a life “full of anxiety”; for him it was the embodiment of freedom, unity with the world around him, a way to test his abilities and character strengths. Endowed with a heightened sense of self-esteem, proud, like all the sons of the Caucasian people, the poor fellow dreamed of going to his homeland to become an independent and respected member of society there, and not an orphan without family and tribe.
Every step, every action in this new life outside of him brought the young man only happiness and pleasure, even if they were not always simple and joyful. And wild delight, and boundless admiration, and bitter disappointment - all of them were equally valuable and memorable for the inexperienced mountaineer, because he had never experienced anything like it.
His path was not simple and strewn with roses, he was haunted by fatigue, hunger and despair, but the strength of spirit and the desire to achieve his goal helped him overcome all difficulties and even defeat the ferocious mountain leopard. Exhausted by hunger and exhausted by difficulties, Mtsyri, thanks to the fearlessness and hot blood of his ancestors, managed to kill a well-fed and strong predator. Poisoned by the spirit of slavery, the courageous and brave young man returns to the place of his imprisonment and dies with thoughts of his distant and so desired Homeland.
The image of the main character in the work
The image of the main character Mtsyri is one of Mikhail Lermontov’s favorites; in those lines where he is described, one can feel sincere admiration and admiration for him; the author is close and understandable to his strong and persistent moral spirit, proud and independent character. Lermontov sympathizes with the fate of the main character, regrets that he cannot return to his father’s house.
For Mtsyri, the days he spent behind the monastery walls were the best in his life; he felt the taste of freedom and unity with nature. Then he could only count on himself, he was part of the huge world that he had so longed to see all his life. Finally, he became himself and found that part of himself that he thought he had lost forever. He finally stopped being a slave and felt like a free man, having a past and becoming the master of his future.
By creating the image of Mtsyri, Lermontov thus responds to the current state of affairs at that time, when in society all thoughts about freedom were suppressed and destroyed, people were afraid and they gradually degraded. Using the example of this work, the author shows us, on the one hand, a strong and courageous fighter, and on the other, the whole danger of such a position in society, which at any moment could lead to his death.
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Poem by M.Yu. Lermontov's "Mtsyri" is a romantic work. Let's start with the fact that the main theme of the poem - personal freedom - is characteristic of the works of the romantics. In addition, the hero, novice Mtsyri, is characterized by exceptional qualities - love of freedom,...
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"Mtsyri" is a lyrical poem. It primarily depicts the complex experiences of the hero, rather than external events. Lermontov chooses the form of a confessional poem, since the story on behalf of the hero made it possible to most deeply and truthfully reveal his spiritual...
One of the peaks of M. Yu Lermontov’s artistic heritage is the poem “Mtsyri” - the fruit of active and intense creative work. Even at an early age, the image of a young man arose in the poet’s imagination, uttering an angry, protesting cry on the threshold of death...
M.Yu. Lermontov’s poem “Mtsyri” is a romantic work, and, as in any work of this direction, the landscape occupies one of the main places in it. Thus, the author expresses his views on the relationship between the natural world and the human world. On the one hand, and...
I really love M. Yu. Lermontov’s poem “Mtsyri”. Mtsyri is my favorite literary hero. He loved freedom very much and strived; To her. He was brought to the monastery very young: * He seemed to be about six years old; * Like a chamois of the mountains, timid and wild...
Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov in the poem "Mtsyri" talks about a man who passionately loves his Motherland and people, but suffers greatly far from them, without the opportunity and hope of returning to his native land. Within the gloomy walls of the monastery, the young man is all...
Mtsyri is the main character of the poem “Mtsyri” by Lermontov, which the poet wrote in 1839. The name itself already contains a hint of the future fate of the hero, because “Mtsyri” from Georgian can be translated in two different ways. In the first case it will be “monk, novice”, in the second case it will be “stranger, foreigner”. Between these two poles Mtsyri’s life passes.
His story begins in childhood, when a Russian conquering general passing by a Georgian monastery leaves a small child for the monks to raise. Mtsyri was taken from his native village as a prisoner, and the reader can only guess about the fate of his relatives. Apparently, his loved ones died in the war, and Mtsyri was left an orphan. Unable to bear the separation from his family and the hardships of the journey, he fell ill, refused food and was already close to death, “dying quietly, proudly.” By luck, Mtsyri was lucky: one of the monks became attached to him, managed to go out and raise him. The young man grew up within the walls of the monastery, learned the language and was preparing for tonsure. It seems that this is a common story, one of many others like it created by the war: a savage mountaineer assimilated into a cultural environment, accepted Christianity and began to live a new life. But Lermontov would not have been a great poet if he had not turned this story completely differently, and on the eve of his tonsure, on a terrible stormy night, when humble monks do not dare take their eyes off the icons, Mtsyri runs away!
Of course, they are looking for Mtsyri, but for three whole days all searches turn out to be in vain. And when they are almost about to stop, having decided that the young man has reached his native place, he is still found in the steppe, “without feelings,” terribly pale and thin. Mtsyri is sick, and, as in childhood, again refuses food and any explanations. Realizing that his hour of death is approaching, the same elderly monk who raised him is sent to him: perhaps he will be able to exhort Mtsyri to confess and ease his soul. And the hero pronounces his confession, but not a repentant one, but a proud and passionate one, in which the main character traits of Mtsyri are revealed.
Mtsyri escapes because, as he says, he never considered life in the monastery to be life. Yes, the monk saved him from death, but, Mtsyri asks him, “Why?..”. This question already clearly expresses the personality of Mtsyri, who prefers death to captivity. He grew up in captivity, his mother did not sing lullabies over him, and his peers did not invite him to play. It was a lonely childhood, and so Mtsyri turned out to be “a child at heart, a monk by destiny.” The young man is tormented by the dream of seeing his homeland and, at least for a moment, touching everything that he was deprived of. He decides to escape, clearly realizing that he is risking everything, because no one is waiting for him outside the monastery. And yet, finding himself free, Mtsyri enjoys life as best he can. He views with delight the world he was deprived of. The gloomy and silent novice suddenly transforms. We see that the main character of “Mtsyri” is not only a rebel, he is also a romantic, a poet, but this trait of his character can only be revealed in the conditions of the beautiful Caucasian nature. High mountains, vast forests, stormy streams and the blue sky spreading everywhere - everything in this landscape suggests the absence of any prohibitions, about complete freedom, so natural for humans. Mtsyri listens to the voices of rivers and grasses, admires the stormy night, and then the silence of midday. Even when he is dying, he does not forget the beauty of the world, enthusiastically telling the monk about everything he saw. Nature became closer to Mtsyri than the people around him. It is thanks to unity with her that he can realize himself as a free person. This is how the poem realizes the image of a romantic hero who turned out to be more receptive to beauty than the “enlightenment” monks who raised him.
However, Mtsyri’s admiration for nature is not just passive admiration. Having experienced the first joy of escape, he begins to plan his further path. A daring idea appears in his head: to get to the Caucasus, visible in the distance! Does Mtsyri understand that no one is waiting for him in his homeland, and even his home was destroyed by the war? Most likely, he understands, but Mtsyri (and this was especially important for Lermontov) is a hero of action. Mtsyri’s description also carried another idea: to reproach Lermontov’s contemporaries, the generation of the 1830s, for complete passivity, failure to develop spiritually and change the world around them. The poet more than once touched upon the idea of the inactivity of his generation in his work (remember “Borodino”). Mtsyri, the main character of Lermontov’s poem, clearly indicates what, in his opinion, should be done. Mtsyri struggles with fate and life's adversities, not paying attention to any obstacles.
Three tests await him, each of which can lead Mtsyri astray. At first, the hero meets a girl, a beautiful daughter of the East, who came to the source for water. A light wind sways her veil, and the “darkness of her eyes” makes the young man forget about everything. The first love arises in his soul, requiring fulfillment. Everything works out in Mtsyri’s favor: the beauty lives nearby. He sees her approaching her quiet house, watching “how the door quietly opened... / And closed again! .." Mtsyri could have entered this door after the girl, and who knows how his life would have turned out... But the desire to return to his homeland turns out to be stronger. Mtsyri admits that the memories of those minutes are precious to him, and wishes that they would die with him. And yet he is driven by one thing:
“I have one goal -
Go to your home country -
Had it in my soul and overcame it
Suffering from hunger as best I could"
Mtsyri continues to move forward, but nature itself, personified in the image of a leopard, stands in his way. A well-fed, powerful beast and a man exhausted by endless fasts and the air of captivity - the forces seem unequal. And yet Mtsyri, picking up a branch from the ground, managed to defeat the predator. In a bloody battle, he proves his right to return to his homeland.
The last obstacle separating the hero from the desired Caucasus is the dark forest in which Mtsyri got lost. He continues to move forward to the last, but what is his despair when he realizes that he has been walking in circles all this time!
“Then I fell to the ground;
And he sobbed in a frenzy,
And gnawed the damp breast of the earth,
And tears, tears flowed
Into her with flammable dew..."
Mtsyri's strength leaves him, but his spirit remains invincible. The last form of protest available to him is death, and Mtsyri dies. In death he will be able to find liberation, unavailable on earth, and his soul will return to the Caucasus. And, although he does not think about it, his life and his feat, incomprehensible to the monks, will not be forgotten. Mtsyri, the hero of Lermontov’s poem, will forever remain for subsequent readers a symbol of unbending will and courage, thanks to which a person can fulfill his dream, not paying attention to anything.
A description of the personality of the main character and the main character traits of Mtsyri can be used by 8th grade students when writing an essay on the topic “The main character of Lermontov’s poem “Mtsyri””
Work test
M.Yu. Lermontov loved the theme of the Caucasus. He was delighted by the views and beauty of these lands. He tried to put and convey his love for these places into the work, and the romantic element added a special flavor to the poem. The image and characterization of Mtsyri is key and plot-forming. The protagonist's loneliness and longing for his native place push him to escape. Risking his life, he leaves the walls of the monastery with the sole purpose of returning home. Mtsyri is the embodiment of human dignity. An example of true courage and selfless courage.
Image and characteristics
It was not of his own free will that Mtsyri ended up in the monastery. He was captured as a small child. At that time he was only 6 years old. The Russian general decided that he would be better off here, without even realizing what a tragedy his, as he believed, noble deed would turn out to be.
Child of the mountains Mtsyri was born in the Caucasus. He lived with his family in the village until he was six years old.
The image of my father remains in my memory to this day. It is known that the man fought.
"My father? He appeared to me as if alive in his combat clothes, and I remembered the ringing of chain mail and the shine of the gun...”
Patient. Proud. As a child, he showed willpower and tenacity of character. He endured the pain when he was sick without making a sound.
“Even a weak groan did not come out of the child’s lips; he rejected food with a sign and died quietly, proudly.”
The will beckoned, exciting the imagination. Monastic life is akin to captivity. The soul was torn from captivity. This life is not for him. He would give everything in the world for a couple of minutes spent with his family.
“I lived little, and lived in captivity. These are two lives for one, but I would only exchange one full of anxiety if I could...”
Loves nature. The days spent in freedom will be remembered forever. They are the happiest. He admired nature. I caught sounds, understood them, felt beauty and harmony. He failed to do this among human society. Communication with her helped to drown out the longing for my native village. The element is a kindred spirit for him.
“As a brother, I would be glad to embrace the storm.”
Purposeful. The dream of escaping from captivity has been brewing for a long time.
“A long time ago I decided to look at the distant fields. Find out if the earth is beautiful. Find out whether we are born into this world for freedom or prison.”
The young man was waiting for the right opportunity. This incident was the day when a terrible storm began. For the sake of freedom, he is ready to do anything: overcome difficulties, fight the elements, endure hunger, thirst, scorching heat. Even the girl he met at the pond could not disrupt his plans, although the hero clearly felt sympathy for her. The light of the saklya where she lived beckoned him, but Mtsyri threw away the thought of looking inside, remembering what purpose he was pursuing and for what. He chose the long-awaited freedom over love. Faced with a choice, I did not give in to temptation.
Fearless. In a mortal battle with a predator, he proved himself to be a real hero. Knowing that the forces were unequal, he entered into a fight with the wild beast. The wounds received in battle could not stop the young man. He moved forward steadily. I didn’t know the way, I was exhausted.
“He rushed at my chest, but I managed to stick my gun into my throat and turn my gun twice... He howled.”
Lonely. I'm gloomy in life. Life in lockdown has made him so unsociable. He is unaccustomed to communication. People were strangers to him.
“I myself, like an animal, was alien to people.” “Gloomy and lonely, a leaf torn off by a thunderstorm...”
Thirst for self-knowledge. Mtsyri longed to know himself. I managed to implement my plans once I was free.
“Do you want to know what I did when I was free? I lived - and my life without these three blissful days would have been sadder and gloomier than your powerless old age.”
Mtsyri was unable to hug her family. On his deathbed, he did not at all repent of his committed act. The young man was absolutely sure that he acted correctly. Please bury your last words in the garden, away from the hated walls. This confirms that he did not intend to change his beliefs and his principles.
“I will drink in the radiance of a blue day for the last time. The Caucasus is visible from there! Perhaps he will send me farewell greetings from his heights, send them with a cool breeze...”
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The poem “Mtsyri” was one of M.Yu.’s favorite works. Lermontov, according to the memoirs of his contemporaries, the poet loved to read the text of the poem in public and knew it all by heart.
Basis of the poem
Poem by M.Yu. Lermontov's Mtsyri is based on a true story about a young monk who spent his entire life in a country foreign to him.
While in exile in the Caucasus, Lermontov meets a young monk living in Mtskheta. The monk told Mikhail Yuryevich his difficult fate: his little one was taken away from his native land and he was forced to spend his whole life in a part foreign to him.
Lermontov’s first ideas for implementing the theme of monasticism in the literary field arose back in 1831. The poet wanted to embody what he heard in the monk’s notes. Later, this idea, under the influence of the story of a monk from Mtskheta, was embodied in the poem “Mtsyri”.
Elements of autobiography
Many researchers of Lermontov’s literary heritage, in particular his poem “Mtsyri,” note a certain similarity between the young monk of the poem and M.Yu. Lermontov.
Belinsky argued that the poem exposes the author himself. The destinies of the author and the monk, despite their apparent differences, have a common basis. Loneliness and isolation from family are what these individuals have in common. Like Mtsyri, Lermontov grew up far from his relatives (the grandmother who raised him did her best to prevent him from communicating with relatives, in particular his father). This state of affairs became the cause of despondency both in the life of Lermontov and in the life of Mtsyri. In addition, they are also related by the Caucasus: for both Mtsyri and Lermontov, it became the embodiment of freedom.
Life path of Mtsyri
When Mtsyri was 6 years old, a tragedy happened in his life - a certain Russian general took the boy prisoner - thus, Mtsyri forever left his home, his family and the village dear to his heart - the village. On the way, the boy falls ill - separation from loved ones and a difficult long road provoked this condition. One of the monks took pity on the child and took him to the monastery: “out of pity, one monk looked after the sick man, and he remained within the guardian walls, saved by friendly art.”
Despite the disappointing forecasts, Mtsyri survived and soon turned into a handsome young man. He learned the unfamiliar language that was spoken in this area, learned about the customs and peculiarities of life in this region, but he never managed to get rid of longing for his family and his home.
Languishing in despondency, Mtsyri makes attempts to escape and find his native village, but his intentions were not destined to come true.
Lermontov describes in detail Mtsyri's last escape - during a thunderstorm, the young man leaves the walls of the monastery - for three days he wanders along the paths in the hope of finding the right path home, but fate is extremely unkind to him - such a promising path becomes a tragedy - after a fight with a leopard, the young man's strength has noticeably decreased, This was facilitated by the wounds received in the battle; in the end, the path leads Mtsyri to the same monastery. Realizing all the hopelessness, the young man dies under the influence of his wounds and general despondency.
Characteristics of personal qualities
Mtsyri became a monk by coincidence. Until the age of six, he was not filled with the desire to devote his life to serving God, and in particular, he knew nothing about Christianity. Only after he entered the monastery was he baptized.
Like all romantic heroes, Mtsyri has a special relationship with nature, in particular with the Caucasus mountains.
Life in a monastery, enclosed by bare, cold walls, has a depressing effect on him. Lermontov does not talk in detail about the attitude of other monks towards Mtsyri, but, based on their general mood, it can be assumed that it did not go beyond the bounds of decency - the monks were kind to the stranger who grew up within the walls of their monastery, but they were not able to understand his spiritual groaning .
Mtsyri belongs by origin to the mountain peoples and, like his father, he was very proud in childhood: “He refused food, and died quietly, proudly,” and did not lose this characteristic in his youth: “And, having listened proudly, the sick man stood up, having gathered the rest of my strength."
Mtsyri's life is full of sad longing and the desire to find lost happiness: “I wandered silently, alone, looked, sighing, to the east, tormented by an unclear longing for my native land.”
He was always a kind person and “did no harm to anyone.” He is a pure-hearted person, like a “child.” However, life in a monastery far from his homeland weighs heavily on him. The monks are not able to understand such melancholy of a young monk, since they themselves have never experienced it. Monks are alien to attachment to nature and freedom, they are afraid of thunderstorms, considering it the creation of God, while Mtsyri has no fear of this natural phenomenon at all - he is a child of nature and a thunderstorm, like any natural phenomenon, is something close and natural for him , therefore, within the walls of the monastery Mtsyri “was forever alien to them, like a steppe beast.”
All Mtsyri’s dreams and desires came true around gaining freedom and happiness. He wants to live freely, like in childhood. For this purpose, he escapes from the monastery. Since Mtsyri has never traveled, he goes at random, guided by the view of the mountains. An unexpected meeting with a leopard began to ruin his plans. The young man had no choice but to engage in battle with a wild beast. During the fight, Mtsyri was brave and strong. He would make an excellent warrior. He defeats the leopard: “He rushed to my chest; but I managed to stick my weapon into my throat and turn my weapon twice.”
Dear readers! We invite you to follow the story “Hero of Our Time” by Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov.
The wounded Mtsyri moves further and further away from the mountains and soon comes to the outskirts of the monastery. Discouraged, he loses consciousness, the monks who find him take him to the walls of the monastery, which for many years was a prison for Mtsyri. The young man realizes that his cherished dream will never come true - he will die on a foreign land: “Only one thing saddens me: my corpse is cold and dumb and will not smolder in my native land.”
Thus, in the poem “Mtsyri” by M.Yu. Lermontov portrayed the image of a man who was not able to withstand the difficulties of life and find happiness. Mtsyri always had a childish, pure soul, he was a kind person, although at the same time, gloomy and unsociable, but the reason for such gloominess was his mental anguish from separation from his natural environment and home.
