Cousin of the puffer. The image and characteristics of the puffer in the comedy Woe from Wit Griboedov essay

Next to Famusov in the comedy is Skalozub - "And the golden bag and aims at the generals." Colonel Skalozub is a typical representative of the Arakcheev army environment. There is nothing caricature in his appearance: historically he is quite truthful. Like Famusov, Colonel Skalozub is guided in his life by "philosophy" and the ideal of the "past century", only in an even more rude and frank form. He sees the purpose of his service not in protecting the fatherland from the encroachment of the enemy, but in achieving wealth and nobility, which, in his opinion, is more accessible to the military. Chatsky characterizes him like this:

Hoarse, strangled, bassoon, Constellation of maneuvers and mazurkas!

According to Sophia, Skalozub only says that "about the front and the ranks." The source of Skalozub's "military wisdom" is the Prussian-Pavlovian school in the Russian army, so hated by the free-thinking officers of that time, brought up on the precepts of Suvorov and Kutuzov. In one of the early editions of the comedy, in a conversation with Repetilov, Skalozub directly states:

I am the Friedrich school, the grenadiers are in the team, the Feldwebel are my Voltaires.

Skalozub began to make his career from the moment when the heroes of 1812 began to be replaced by stupid and slavishly devoted to the autocracy martinet, led by Arakcheev. Then “at every step there were pufferfish not only in the army, but also in the guards, for whom it was not clear that it was possible to straighten a good soldier out of a Russian person without breaking several cartloads of sticks on his back,” notes the Decembrist Yakushkin. It was people like Skalozub who, less than a year after the end of Woe from Wit, shot the Decembrists from cannons on Senate Square in St. Petersburg. His image was of great political importance for exposing the military-feudal reaction of that time.

Characteristically, Griboyedov contrasts Skalozub with his cousin, a representative of a different environment in the Russian army, that freedom-loving part of the officer corps, from which many military Decembrists came out. After the end of the war of 1812-1814. Skalozub's cousin, having resigned, went to the village to "read books". The Decembrist P. Kakhovsky testifies to the veracity of this image. “In our country, with all the meager means, they are engaged more than anywhere else,” he writes, “many of them have retired and in their secluded rural houses study and arrange the welfare and enlightenment of the farmers, the fate of their care entrusted ... How many will you meet now seventeen-year-old young people, about whom we can safely say that they read old books. The resignation of many advanced officers who distinguished themselves in the wars of 1812-1814 was also associated with the strengthening of the Arakcheev regime in the army - the persecution of any free thought, the imposition of stupid military drill and servile subordination. This is precisely what explains his resignation in 1817, the Decembrist V. Raevsky: “The influence of Arakcheev has already become tangible. The service became hard and offensive. What was required was not noble service, but servile subordination. Many officers have retired." This was one form of protest against reaction. And it was not without reason that the Famusovs looked very askance at the non-serving young nobles.

Skalozub Sergei Sergeyevich - in his image the “ideal” Moscow groom is bred - rude, uneducated, not very smart, but rich and pleased with himself. Famusov reads S. as her daughter's husband, but she considers him "not the hero of her novel." At the time of his first visit to Famusov's house, S. talks about himself. He participated in the war of 1812, but he received the order "on the neck" not for military exploits, but on the occasion of military celebrations. S. "aims at the generals." The hero despises bookish wisdom. He speaks derogatoryly of his cousin who reads books in the countryside. S. tries to embellish himself externally and internally. He dresses in army fashion, "tightening" with straps so that his chest is a wheel. Having understood nothing in Chatsky's accusatory monologues, he, nevertheless, joins his opinion, saying all sorts of nonsense and nonsense.

Skalozub - a character in the comedy A.S. Griboyedov "Woe from Wit" (1824). If we look for classical and, through them, ancient prototypes in the characters of the play, then S. corresponds to the “boastful warrior”, a popular mask of Roman comedies, embodied in the famous “winning tower city” Pirgopolinik, the hero of Plautus. The bully warrior was traditionally portrayed not only as a braggart, but also as a narcissistic person. S., if removed from the poetic context, is somewhat similar to his distant ancestor. It should be noted that many characters in Griboyedov's work wear comedy masks, but the "mask" is only the top layer of its voluminous plot. In the course of the action, S. is transformed into an individual comedic character. Colonel Sergey Sergeevich S. is at the very center of the play's events. Already in the first act, Liza mentions him as Sophia's almost official fiance ("and a golden bag and aims to be a general"), in contrast to the "unwanted" Chatsky and the "secret" Molchalin. Perhaps, for the sake of S., in order to introduce him to the circle of relatives, Famusov starts a ball, where he represents S. Khlestova, who does not like him because of his lack of servility and too high growth. All the facts of S.'s biography in the eyes of Famusov favorably distinguish him from Chatsky. S. is rich, a military man, quickly and thoughtfully making a career, arguing little, speaking out in a straightforward and lapidary way. S.'s manner of not adjusting to the tone of secular courtesy does not harm him in the opinion of others (like Chatsky), because in the main S. is Famusovsky, his own: “You won’t fool me with learning!” What his military career is based on becomes clear pretty soon: “here the elders will be turned off by others, others, you see, are killed.” It would be a mistake to underestimate the influence of S. in the "Moscow" environment: he is recognized and supported by society. At the climax of the discussion about the harm brought by books and education, S. announces the good news for everyone that it was decided to reform lyceums, schools and gymnasiums according to the barracks model: “They will only teach in our way: one, two; And the books will be kept like this: for big occasions. (Which, however, does not quite suit Famusov, who knows a surer way to restore order: “I would like to take all the books and burn them.”) S. is a collective character in which Griboedov’s contemporaries recognized many: from divisional colonel Frolov to the Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich, the future Emperor Nicholas I. In the extensive stage history of “Woe from Wit”, no such solution to this image has yet been found, which would be free from the “masque”, equally emphasized by the actors with the most different directorial decisions in style. The image of S. is based on the technique of the grotesque, but not caricature or caricature. Such an image requires an interpretation akin to the poetics of the play as a whole, which Griboyedov called "the poetics of an excellent poem."

Sergei Sergeevich Skalozub is a minor character in Griboyedov's comedy Woe from Wit. An uninitiated colonel who wants to become a general.

Pavel Afanasyevich refers Skalozub to the category of enviable Moscow suitors. According to Famusov, a wealthy officer who has weight and status in society is a good match for his daughter. Sophia herself did not like him.

In the work, the image of Skalozub is collected in separate phrases. Sergey Sergeevich joins Chatsky's speech with absurd reasoning. They betray his ignorance and lack of education.

Characteristics of the Skalozub

Skalozub entered the army, as was customary, at the age of 15. He connected his career and life with military affairs. In ten years he rose to the rank of colonel. Despite the great opportunities for career growth during the war years, he did not show much initiative, which is why he was awarded only one award. The authorities noted Skalozub for his exploits, but on the occasion of military celebrations.

Outwardly, the colonel is a tall and noticeable man with a hoarse voice. Neither young nor old, he is unpretentious in everyday life and is thinking about marriage. The presence of funds allows him to lead a secular lifestyle, play cards and appear at balls.

Sergey Sergeevich is scrupulous about his appearance. It is tied with belts to emphasize the chest, but at the same time wears simple things. He shows obvious dissatisfaction with the guardsmen in uniforms embroidered with gold. Negative feelings in him are evoked not so much by clothes as by the literacy and free-thinking of the representatives of the guard. It is to such young people that young ladies of that time gravitate.

The uneducated Skalozub contemptuously treats the literate and well-read, openly mocks his relative, who is fond of books. Talking and ranting a lot about military affairs and rejoicing at the prospect of organizing educational institutions on the principle of barracks, he is not an obvious defender of his homeland. A vivid evidence of this is the service in the musketeer regiment, which did not belong to the advanced ones.

Satisfied with himself, but not quick-witted and slow Skalozub, Famusov's daughter does not like it.

The image of the hero in the work

In the comedy "Woe from Wit", the image of Skalozub, Griboedov, demonstrated the mores of the 19th century and the confrontation between the nobility of the old way and the new progressive views, which were actively promoted by young people, characteristic of that period.

The Colonel is a classic representative of an old principle of thought. By the same standards, he is an enviable groom who has a rank and money. The younger generation does not consider these ideals as such. This is shown in Sophia's response, calling the colonel too stupid to make her a party.

In the image of Skalozub, the writer ridiculed the entire Arakcheev army, which demanded unquestioning obedience and despised any free thought.

Another characteristic point is the promotion that does not require effort and cost. It is obtained not by devoted service to the Motherland, but by the connections and "channels" that the colonel has.

The relative tragedy of the image lies in the fact that it is not a caricature of a soldier's life. This is a real description of a representative of the officer corps of that time.

In contrast to such characters, the writer introduced his brother Sergey Sergeevich into the work. Also having in the past related to military affairs, he left the service. Being progressive-minded, he could not stand the oppression of such as the colonel, and went to read books in the village. Similarly, while arranging a quiet life in the village, those who did not want to fawn over the authorities, who did not understand the coming changes, continued to live.

* Hoarse, strangled, bassoon,

* Constellation of maneuvers and mazurkas!

* I am the school of Friedrich, in the team are grenadiers,

* Feldwebel - my Voltaires.

Az it was of great political importance for exposing the military-feudal reaction of that time.

* (“And most importantly, come on, serve ...”).

The world of the Famusovs consists not only of feudal aces like Famusov and Skalozub, but also of the sycophantic officials serving them - silent ones.

Sergei Sergeevich Skalozub is a military man (colonel), an experienced serviceman who does not care about anything but military affairs and career growth in the service (“And a golden bag, and aims for generals”). He is completely mentally undeveloped, even, roughly speaking, stupid (Sofya about Skalozub: "he never uttered a word of wisdom"). That is why he does not suit Sophia as a groom, despite how much her father craves it. Famusov, on the other hand, treats Skalozub with reverence, as he considers him the best match for his daughter.

Skalozub can only talk about the service, so he mentions it everywhere (“I don’t know, sir, it’s my fault; we didn’t serve together with her”) or tries to reduce the conversation to this topic. He ended up in high society solely due to his rank and good earnings, because otherwise no one would communicate with him. As you already understood, Skalozub is an opponent of any education and enlightenment, he considers this a completely unnecessary occupation, does not want to study himself and advises others to do the same (“You won’t fool me with learning”).

Updated: 2017-08-17

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