The image and characteristics of Mrs. Prostakova in the comedy “The Minor” by Fonvizin, a description of the character. Portrait description of Prostakova in the comedy “Minor. Mrs. Prostakova’s attitude to education

>Characteristics of heroes Minor

Characteristics of the hero Prostakov

Prostakova is one of the main characters and the driving force in D. I. Fonvizin’s play “The Minor.” She is the mother of Mitrofanushka and the sister of Taras Skotinin. Prostakova participates in almost all the events of the play, since the action takes place in the house where she is the mistress. She is a noblewoman by status, has serfs and is a typical example of a Russian landowner of the mid-18th century. She is characterized by unscrupulousness, ignorance, illiteracy and a desire to control everything. The heroine's husband does not dare to contradict her. Concepts such as conscience and honor are alien to her. To achieve her goals, she is ready to use any tricks, including meanness and deception. All she cares about is her personal well-being and the well-being of her son. For the sake of Mitrofanushka, she is ready to do anything. So, for example, having learned about the rich dowry of the pupil Sophia, she immediately decides to marry her son to her, despite the fact that it was initially decided to marry her to the brother of the landowner Taras Skotinin and, despite the protests of Sophia herself. Even when her plans collapse, she still tries to secretly marry the newlyweds.

The play shows Prostakova's boundless and stupid love for her son, who is her only joy. Being illiterate herself, she tries to give him a decent education so as not to look worse than other landowners. To do this, she hires a German teacher. However, this is not done so that the son can be educated, but for the sake of metropolitan fashion. Also, in an attempt to eliminate her brother from Mitrofanushka’s path, she simply grabs him by the throat. The author clearly shows the reasons for Prostakova’s behavior. First of all, this is due to her internal ignorance and lack of education. The second reason has a social connotation and lies in the decree of Catherine II “On the freedom of the nobles.” Thanks to this decree, the nobles of that time received full power over the serfs and were free to do whatever they wanted. By showing the collapse of Prostakova and her plans at the end of the play, the author also emphasizes the collapse of the entire system.

I liked Fonvizin’s comedy “The Minor.” The main topic This work is “the evil of the serf owners.” With the first scene of the comedy, I saw a world in which some people own other people. The main figure of this world is Prostakova. Prostakova was uneducated and uneducated. She, like all ignoramuses, was rude to everyone from whom she did not meet resistance. Fonvizin calls Prostakova a “despicable fury.” She extends her despotic power not only to the serfs, but also to her husband, Sophia, Skotinin.

One day, when Prostakova called her husband, he did not come. Then she said to Mitrofan: “Then go and get him out if you don’t get any good.”

In this remark I saw Prstakova’s rude and dismissive attitude towards her husband. But despite this attitude towards Prostakov, she never scolded her son. Mitrofan was spoiled because his mother allowed him everything, protected him even when he was wrong. Prostakova loved her son dearly and did not allow teachers to bother Mitrofan. By this act, she deprived her son of the opportunity to receive an education. Prostakova did not think about raising her son, under Mitrovan she scolded the serfs, and as a result, her beloved son left her.

At the end of the comedy, the Prostakovs receive a well-deserved punishment - the authorities order to take custody of the estate. The final scene, in which even Mitrovan leaves Prostakova, indicates that a vicious person is preparing a well-deserved punishment for himself through his actions. Prostakova is presented as a domineering, uneducated Russian woman. She is very greedy and in order to grab more of someone else’s things, she often flatters and “puts on” a mask of nobility, but from under the mask every now and then an animalistic grin peeks out, which looks funny and absurd. Prostakova’s speech: rude in addressing the servants (“fraudster”, “cattle”, “thief’s mug” - tailor Trishka; “beast”, “scum” - nanny Ermeevna), caring and affectionate in conversation with her son Mitrofanushka (“live forever, learn forever, my dear friend,” “darling”). But at the same time, she is not at all worried about raising her son (“It’s very nice to me that Mitrofanushka doesn’t like to step forward...

He's lying, my dear friend. I found the money - don't share it with anyone. Take everything for yourself, Mitrofanushka.

Don't learn this stupid science! "). It is not surprising that Mitrofanushka grew up so spoiled and uncouth. There is another negative character in the play - Prostakova's brother - Skotin. He, like his sister, is cruel and narcissistic.

Self-confidence is heard in every remark of Skotin, who is devoid of any merits. (“You can’t beat your betrothed with a horse, darling! It’s a sin to blame for your own happiness. You will live happily with me. Ten thousand of your income! What happiness has come; yes, I have never seen so many since I was born; yes, I will buy all the pigs from the world with them “Yes, you hear me, I will do that, so that everyone will blow the trumpet: in this neighborhood there are only pigs to live.”) The ignorance and bestiality of Skotin and Prostakova make their vices obvious.

These people are clearly visible, they have nothing to cover up their animality, and they don’t even consider it necessary to do so. Their world wants to subjugate all life, to assign the right to unlimited power over both serfs and noble people. Fonvizin's comedy "The Minor" is the first socio-political comedy in the history of Russian drama. The author exposes in it the vices of his contemporary society.

The heroes of the comedy are representatives of different social strata: statesmen, nobles, servants, self-proclaimed teachers. Central character plays - Mrs. Prostakova. She manages the household, beats her husband, keeps the servants in terror, and raises her son Mitrofan.

“Now I scold, now I fight, and that’s how the house holds together.” No one dares to resist her power: “Am I not powerful in my people.” Speech characterization is the main way to create Prostakova’s character.

The heroine's language changes depending on who she is addressing. Mrs. Prostakova calls her servants “thieves”, “rascals”, “beast”, “dog’s daughter”. He addresses Mitrofan: “my dear friend,” “dulyenka.” He greets guests with respect: “I recommend you a dear guest,” “you are welcome.” There are also tragic elements in the image of Prostakova. This ignorant and self-interested “despicable fury” loves and sincerely cares about her son.

At the end of the play, rejected by Mitrofan, she becomes humiliated and pitiful:

• - You are the only one left with me.
• - Let it go...
• - I don’t have a son...

The image of Mitrofan in the play is associated with the idea of ​​education, which is very important for educational literature. Mitrofan is an ignoramus, a slacker, his mother's favorite. He inherited arrogance and rudeness from his mother. He addresses Eremeevna, who is sacredly devoted to him: “old Khrychovka.” Mitrofan's upbringing and education corresponds to the "fashion" of the time and the understanding of his parents. French language he is taught by the German Vralman, the exact sciences by the retired sergeant Tsyfirkin, who “shows little in the way of arithmetic,” and grammar by the seminarian Kuteikin, who was dismissed from “all teaching.” Mitrofanushka’s “knowledge” in grammar, his desire not to study, but to get married, are ridiculous. But his attitude towards Eremeevna. the readiness to “take on people”, the betrayal of the mother evokes different feelings. Mitrofanushka becomes an ignorant and cruel despot. Wonderful surnames characters. “Talking” surnames immediately establish the reader’s and viewer’s attitude towards their owners. Psychologically, he already becomes a participant in the action. The opportunity to evaluate the heroes and their actions was taken away from him. From the very beginning, from the names of the characters, the reader was told where the negative characters were and where the positive ones were. And the reader’s role comes down to seeing and remembering the ideal to which one must strive. The language of comedy is interesting. Negative characters and their servants are inherent in the common people spoken language. The Skotinins' vocabulary consists mainly of words used in the barnyard. This is well shown by the speech of Skotinin - Uncle Migrofan. It is all filled with words: pig, piglets, barn. The idea of ​​life also begins and ends with the barnyard. He compares his life with the life of his pigs, for example. “I want to have my own piglets.” “If I have... a special barn for each pig, then I’ll find a little light for my wife.” And he is proud of it: “Well, if I were a pig’s son. If...” The vocabulary of his sister Mrs. Prostakova is a little more diverse due to the fact that her husband is “a fool beyond counting” and she has to do everything herself. But Skotinin’s roots also appear in her speech. Favorite curse word: "cattle". To show that Prostakova is not far behind her brother in development, Fonvizin sometimes denies her basic logic. For example, such phrases: “Since we took away everything that the peasants had, we can’t rip off anything anymore,” “So is it really necessary to be like a tailor in order to be able to sew a caftan well?” And, drawing conclusions from what has been said, Prostakova ends the phrase: “What a bestial reasoning.” Regarding her husband, one can only say that he is laconic and does not open his mouth without his wife’s instructions. But this characterizes him as “a fool beyond counting.” , a weak-willed husband who fell under the thumb of his wife. Mitrofanushka is also a man of few words, although, unlike his father, he has freedom of speech, which manifests itself in his ingenuity of curses, “old bastard”, “garrison rat”. in their speech, characteristic signs of the classes and parts of society to which they belong. Eremeevna’s speech is constant excuses and desires to please. Teachers Tsyfirkin is a retired sergeant, Kuteikin is a sexton from Pokrov. And with their speech they show their belonging: one to the military, the other. - to church ministers. The author introduces a number of positive characters - Starodum, Pravdin, Sophia, Milon. These heroes openly express the views of an “honest” person on noble morality. family relationships and even civil structure. This dramatic technique truly caused a revolution in Russian educational literature, from criticism of the negative aspects of reality to the search for ways to change the existing system. Speech goodies no difference in brightness. This is bookish speech, the speech of educated people of that time, which practically does not express emotions. You understand the meaning of what is said from the direct meaning of the words. For the rest of the characters, the meaning can be grasped in the very dynamics of speech. Milon's speech is almost impossible to distinguish from Pravdin's speech. It is also very difficult to tell anything about Sophia based on her speech. An educated, well-behaved young lady, as Starodum would call her, sensitive to the advice and instructions of her beloved uncle. Starodum's speech is completely determined by the fact that the author put his moral program into the mouth of this hero: rules, principles, moral laws by which a “pious person” should live. Starodum’s monologues are structured in this way: Starodum first tells a story from his life, and then the conclusion

Composition

In the comedy Nedorosl Fonvizin depicts the vices of his contemporary society. His heroes are representatives of different social strata: statesmen, nobles, servants, self-proclaimed teachers. This is the first socio-political comedy in the history of Russian drama.

The central character of the play is Mrs. Prostakova. She manages the household, beats her husband, keeps the servants in terror, and raises her son Mitrofan. Now I scold, now I fight, and that’s how the house holds together. No one dares to resist her power: Am I not powerful in my people. But there are also tragic elements in the image of Prostakova. This ignorant and selfish overripe fury loves and sincerely cares for her son. At the end of the play, rejected by Mitrofan, she becomes humiliated and pitiful:

You are the only one left with me.

Let go...

I don't have a son...

The main way to create Prostakova’s character is speech characterization. The heroine's language changes depending on who she is addressing. Mrs. Prostakova calls her servants thieves, scoundrels, beasts, and a dog's daughter. Addresses Mitrofan: my dear friend, darling. Greets guests with respect: I recommend you, dear guest, you are welcome.

The image of Mitrofan in the play is associated with the idea of ​​education, which is very important for educational literature. Mitrofan is an ignoramus, a slacker, his mother’s favorite. He inherited arrogance and rudeness from his mother. He addresses Eremeevna, who is sacredly devoted to him: old Khrychovka. Mitrofan's upbringing and education corresponds to the fashion of the time and the understanding of his parents. He is taught French by the German Vralman, exact sciences by retired sergeant Tsyfirkin, who has a little knowledge of arithmetic, and grammar by seminarian Kuteikin, dismissed from all teaching. Mitrofanushka's knowledge of grammar and his desire not to study, but to get married are ridiculous. But his attitude towards Eremeevna, his willingness to accept people, his betrayal of his mother evokes different feelings. Mitrofanushka becomes an ignorant and cruel despot.

The main technique for creating satirical characters in a play is zoologization. Getting ready to get married, Skotinin declares that he wants to have his own piglets. It seems to Vralman that, living with the Prostakovs, he lived like a fairy with little horses. Thus, the author emphasizes the idea of ​​​​the animal lowlands of the surrounding world.

Despite the fact that the genre of the play Nedorosl is a comedy, Fonvizin is not limited only to exposing social vices and creating satirical characters. The author draws a number of positive characters Starodum, Pravdin, Sophia, Milon. These heroes openly express the views of an honest person on noble morality, family relationships and even the civil order. This dramatic technique truly signifies a revolution in Russian educational literature from. criticism of the negative aspects of reality to the search for ways to change the existing system.

Reflecting current problems of his time, Fonvizin was a talented psychologist, thinker, and artist. His comedy has universal significance, it lives on for centuries and never leaves the stage. modern theaters.

The action takes place on the Prostakov estate. The unlimited hostess is Mrs. Prostakova. It is interesting to note that in the list of characters, only she is given the title “Madam”; the rest of the characters are named only by last name or first name. She really dominates the world under her control, she dominates brazenly, despotically, with complete confidence in her impunity. Taking advantage of Sophia's orphanhood, Prostakova takes possession of her estate. Without asking the girl’s consent, he decides to marry her off. However, the full nature of this “fury” is revealed in its treatment of serfs. Prostakova is deeply convinced of her right to insult, rob and punish peasants, whom she views as beings of a different, lower Breed.

Prostakova’s well-being rests on the shameless robbery of serfs. “Since then,” she complains to Skotinin, “we have taken away everything that the peasants had, and we can no longer rip off anything.” Order in the house is restored through abuse and beatings. “From morning to evening, Prostakova complains again, it’s like being hanged by the tongue, I don’t give up: I scold, then I fight.” Eremeevna, when asked how much salary she is entitled to, replies with tears: “Five rubles a year, up to five slaps a day.”

Prostakova's primitive nature is clearly revealed in sharp transitions from arrogance to cowardice, from complacency to servility. She is rude to Sophia while she feels her power over her, but upon learning of Starodum’s return, she instantly changes her tone and behavior. When Pravdin announces the decision to put Prostakova on trial for inhumane treatment of the peasants, she humiliatingly lies at his feet. But, having begged for forgiveness, he immediately hurries to deal with the sluggish servants who let Sophia go: “I forgive you! Ah, father! Well! Now I will give the dawn to my people. Now I’ll take them all one by one.” Prostakova's brother Skotinin is related to her not only by blood, but also by spirit. He exactly repeats the serfdom practice of his sister. “If I weren’t Taras Skotinin,” he declares, “if I’m not guilty of every fault. In this, sister, I have the same custom as you... and any loss... I will rip off my own peasants, and the ends will be in the water.”

The presence of Skotinin in the play emphasizes widespread nobles like Prostakova give her a typical character. It is not for nothing that at the end of the play Pravdin advises to warn the other Skotinins about what happened on the Prostakov estate. Many nobles are so low in mental and civic development that they can only be likened to animals. Cattle possessing people—this is the painful problem that was posed with great courage by D.I. Fonvizin.

He gave the characters distinctly Russian names, surrounded them with familiar surroundings, and preserved Russian customs on stage. Mrs. Prostakova nee Skotinina is always compared to a dog, Skotinin to pigs. They themselves persistently call themselves cattle, animals. “Have you ever heard of a bitch giving away her puppies?” asks Prostakova. “Oh me, a dog’s daughter!” she states elsewhere. Skotinin’s base spiritual appearance is revealed in his passion for “pigs.” “I love pigs... he admits, and in our neighborhood there are such large pigs that there is not a single one of them that, standing on its hind legs, would not be taller than each of us by a whole head.” “No, sister,” he declares to Prostakova, I want to have my own piglets.” And Mitrofan, according to his mother, “was raised by the same hunter before pigs... Sometimes, when he saw a pig, he would tremble with joy.” “I am cattle,” Mitrofan reads from the Book of Hours, not a man.”

Fonvizin made a real revolution in the field of comedy language. The speech of many of his characters is pre-determined. digital image. In “The Minor,” the speeches of Prostakova, Skotinin, and Eremeevna are especially colorful. Fonvizin retains all the irregularities in the language of his ignorant heroes: “pervo-et” instead of the first one, “robenka” instead of a child, “golovushka” instead of little head, “kotoro” instead of which. Proverbs and sayings were successfully used. Prostakova’s rude, dissolute nature is well revealed by the vulgarisms she uses: “And you, beast, were dumbfounded, but you didn’t bite your brother’s mug, and you didn’t tear his snout over his ears.” Swear words never leave Prostakova’s tongue: cattle, mug, rascal, old witch. The news of the illness of the yard girl Palashka infuriates her: “Oh, she’s a beast! Lying down. As if noble!”

Throughout the comedy, the Skotinins and Prostakovs emphasize that they are unusually smart, especially Mitrofanushka. In fact, Prostakova, her husband and her brother do not even know how to read. Moreover, they are deeply convinced of the uselessness and unnecessaryness of knowledge. “People live and have lived without science,” Prostakova confidently declares. Their social ideas are just as wild. High positions exist, in their deep conviction, only for enrichment. According to Prostakova, her father “was a commander for fifteen years... did not know how to read and write, but he knew how to make a living.” They see the advantages of the “noble” class in the opportunity to insult and rob people dependent on them. The cause of “evil morality” can also be bad mentors. Mitrofan's training is entrusted to the half-educated seminarian Kuteikin, the retired soldier Tsyfirkin and the former coachman, the German Vralman. Mitrofan is one of the main characters in the comedy. Using techniques of speech characterization, D.I. Fonvizin portrayed Mitrofan as the greatest lazy person. But it’s not just the teachers; Mitrofan’s character and behavior are a natural result of the living examples with which he is surrounded in his parents’ house. The most destructive influence was on Mitrofan Prostakov. After all, his name, translated from Greek, means “like a mother,” that is, “representing a mother.” From Prostakova, Mitrofan adopted rudeness, greed, and contempt for work and knowledge. The upbringing that the mother wanted to give her son was a bestial upbringing, an upbringing of animal needs.

Slavery corrupts masters and landowners, depriving them of their human traits. They turned their peasants into cattle, but they themselves became cattle, losing honor and conscience, forgetting about human and family attachments. Fonvizin managed to create truly typical images that became household names and survived their time. The names of Mitrofanushka, Skotinin, and Prostakova became immortal.

Other works on this work

Fonvizin’s comedy “The Minor” is one of the classic works, without which it is impossible to consider the traditions of social comedy and satire in Russian literature in general. The author skillfully portrays typical characters outback, ossified, rude, uneducated, but bearing important titles and proud of their own nobility.

An important role in reflection author's position and the whole idea of ​​the work is played by such a characteristic character as Mrs. Prostakova. A tough landowner, she is quite typical of the Russian reality of that time. Under her “wing” there is a dearly beloved son, as well as a not very loving husband who simply does not dare to object to his domineering wife. She is actually a narrow-minded, but very purposeful woman who is completely focused on raising her own son and the financial and social prosperity of her family. She obviously lacks both education and banal upbringing and tact, however, this character is not devoid of strong feelings, and is not at all as clear-cut as it might seem.

Characteristics of the hero

The main features of the character are not so difficult to understand; they are described by Fonvizin quite clearly, since Prostakova herself is neither a mysterious person nor a lady too deep in her inner content. On the one hand, she is cruel and merciless, she is ready to do anything to achieve her own goals. On the other hand, she is so filled with love for her son that she does not want to notice his obvious shortcomings. This contradiction does not allow the reader to perceive her solely as a negative character.

The main features of the heroine also include bad temper, hot temper, and intolerance. She is not very happy, so she is always dissatisfied with what is happening around her. This applies to both her relationship with her husband and the social structure, even politics and economics to the extent that she is able to understand them at all.

Another important feature of this hero is her dislike for science in all its manifestations. For her, the absence of any development is the key to stability and well-being. She is very straightforward, so she takes any exercises and lessons literally. In many scenes with the teacher, her greed is also revealed: simple mathematical problems plunge her into real shock, forcing her to completely protect her child from these harmful sciences.

That's exactly how she is psychological portrait: the typical consciousness of an imperious landowner over the years literally “killed” everything human in her. Only the thirst for power drives her, and even good feelings turn into something negative: love for her husband turns into command, tenderness for her son into overprotection. The author draws out small but significant features through details, for example, giving a link to an unsightly maiden name. The former Skotina, Prostakova received an equally meaningful surname after her marriage.

The image of the hero in the work

Prostakova is the central image in the comedy, around which several revolve at once. storylines. However, what is much more important is that she embodies all the old landowners, which Fonvizin ridicules. The ending, in which Prostakova again plays a central role, shows the author’s main idea precisely through the social death of this “malicious fury.” It inevitably came to an end, as did the entire structure of bourgeois society. Throughout Prostakov’s comedy, there is the embodiment of bourgeois customs and remnants.

Through the image of Prostakova, the author of the comedy draws out all the features that he so hates in his contemporary society. The lady does not consider her serfs to be people; for her they are only soulless and not very smart machines for carrying out orders. They are obliged to endure any punishment from her, with or without reason. In her eyes, such people simply cannot have good intentions and need to be “tight-handed.”

She does not consider the interests and feelings of other people as something important. Without deception and cunning, this woman will not be able to arrange her future, and this is a dead-end path of development, which is why it leads to such a tragic ending. Prostakova’s deprivation of her village at the end is a direct reference from the author to the sad end of the entire philistinism, which must lose all property for its crimes. At the same time, the future of the state, according to Fonvizin, remains with such characters and classes as Sophia and Milan.