“The Noble Nest” is a story written by the great writer I. S. Turgenev in 1858. In this novel, nobility is shown at all levels: from the inhabitants of a small estate to the very top of elite society. With this story I. Trugenev wanted to depict processes such as:
- the fate of the best of the nobility, their difference from other “typical” nobles and the reasons for the preservation of morality;
- displaying the life of the people, the interaction of the nobility and the peasantry;
- the problem of love and self-sacrifice in its name.
The story itself begins with the reader's acquaintance with Fyodor Lavretsky. He arrived from Paris, where he had to experience terrible shame. His wife Varvara Pavlovna cheated on him, which earned herself a rather loud and dubious reputation. It is this story that becomes the main rumor in society. In the Kalitin house, it also becomes known about the return of the nobleman. Then it tells about Fedor himself, who, as it turns out, is the son of a noble nobleman and a simple peasant woman.
Little Fedor had to go through a lot. He was separated from his own mother, assigned to his aunt, and over the years his father began to instill in his son hatred of women. Because of this, it was difficult for young Fedor to get along with people, but otherwise he received a first-class education and was the rightful heir to the Lavretsky family. A few years after the death of his father, Fyodor met the beautiful Varvara Pavlovna, whom he later married.
The Lavretsky couple ended up in Paris at the insistence of doctors, who advised the couple to change their situation. The fact is that their child died, and both needed to start a new life. Everything was going great in Paris until Fyodor found out about his wife’s infidelity. Unable to bear such disappointment, he leaves Varvara and returns home. Lavretsky arrived in Vasilyevskoye, where he settled on the family estate. He lives a calm life when not everything is so calm in the Kalitin family.
Lisa tries to attract Fyodor's attention when Marya Dmitrievna wants to marry her daughter to the chamber cadet Panshin. It seems that their grandmother Marfa Timofeevna is against this idea. But all possible disputes are interrupted by the news - Lavretsky wants to visit the Kalitins. Lisa and Fedor begin to trust each other. The girl does not understand why Lavretsky’s marriage broke up. You need to be submissive and forgiving, this is what she tells the man.
Mikhalevich, a lover of writing poetry, also comes to the Kalitins. Fyodor thinks more and more about Lisa, but convinces him that his feelings for her are purely friendly. The next day, Lavretsky learns that his wife suddenly died. This news hurts him greatly. Confiding in Lisa, he talks about the incident. She also asks him for advice: Panshin asked for her hand in marriage. Succumbing to vague anxiety, Fyodor advises not to rush and marry only for love.
Lisa begins to avoid Lavretsky, worried about her feelings. Lavretsky himself never received confirmation of Varvara’s death. Tension is growing all around. One evening an argument ensues between Lavretsky and Panshin. A secular official does not have a high opinion of the Motherland when Lavretsky defends his native land in every possible way. Lisa is completely on Fedora's side. Afterwards they meet, and Lavretsky realizes that he loves this girl. Lisa notices how similar they are, but she is depressing that Fyodor does not believe in God.
When the lovers decided for a minute that their feelings were destined to live, when suddenly Varvara arrives. She begs Lavretsky to forgive her for the sake of their daughter. Fedor still does not forgive the traitor, but allows her to live in Lavriki. There will be no renewal of relations. Varvara Pavlovna goes to the Kalitins and talks with Lisa. Lisa herself begins to think that God himself does not want her love with Fyodor. She tells Lavretsky about this and asks him to fulfill his duty to his wife, and she will fulfill her duty to her family and God.
Lavretsky makes peace with his wife, but their relationship never improves. Liza, unable to fall in love with Panshin, goes to a monastery. Fyodor’s attempt to talk to the newly minted nun does not work out. Varvarva Pavlovna cannot stand life on the estate, leaves her husband, and goes to Paris, where she immediately has a worthy admirer. Time passes, almost eight years. Lavretsky arrives at the Kalitins' house, noticing that life there has changed. Lisa’s younger sister, Lena, has already grown up there and will soon get married. Lavretsky is consumed by nostalgia; he realizes that he can no longer think about his own happiness. There has been a huge change in him that will not make him the same.
One of the most famous Russian novels about love, which contrasted idealism with satire and consolidated the archetype of Turgenev’s girl in culture.
comments: Kirill Zubkov
What is this book about?
“The Noble Nest,” like many of Turgenev’s novels, is built around unhappy love - the two main characters, Fyodor Lavretsky, who survived an unsuccessful marriage, and young Liza Kalitina, meet, have strong feelings for each other, but are forced to separate: it turns out that Lavretsky’s wife Varvara Pavlovna is not died. Shocked by her return, Lisa goes to a monastery, but Lavretsky does not want to live with his wife and spends the rest of her life farming on his estate. At the same time, the novel organically includes a narrative about the life of the Russian nobility, which has developed over the past several hundred years, a description of relations between different classes, between Russia and the West, debates about the paths of possible reforms in Russia, philosophical discussions about the nature of duty, self-denial and moral responsibility.
Ivan Turgenev. Daguerreotype of O. Bisson. Paris, 1847–1850
When was it written?
Turgenev conceived a new “story” (the writer did not always consistently distinguish between stories and novels) shortly after finishing work on “Rudin,” his first novel, published in 1856. The idea was not realized immediately: Turgenev, contrary to his custom, worked on a new large work for several years. The main work was done in 1858, and already at the beginning of 1859 “The Noble Nest” was published in Nekrasov "Contemporary" .
Title page of the manuscript of the novel “The Noble Nest”. 1858
How is it written?
Now Turgenev's prose may not seem as impressive as the works of many of his contemporaries. This effect is caused by the special place of Turgenev's novel in literature. For example, paying attention to the detailed internal monologues of Tolstoy’s heroes or to the originality of Tolstoy’s composition, which is characterized by many central characters, the reader proceeds from the idea of a kind of “normal” novel, where there is a central character who is often shown “from the side” rather than from the inside. It is Turgenev’s novel that now acts as such a “reference point”, very convenient for assessing the literature of the 19th century.
“Here you are, back to Russia, what do you intend to do?”
Ivan Turgenev
“To plow the land,” answered Lavretsky, “and try to plow it as best as possible.”
Contemporaries, however, perceived Turgenev's novel as a very unique step in the development of Russian prose, standing out sharply against the background of typical fiction of its time. Turgenev’s prose seemed a brilliant example of literary “idealism”: it was contrasted with the satirical essay tradition, which went back to Saltykov-Shchedrin and painted in dark colors how serfdom, bureaucratic corruption and social conditions in general destroy people’s lives and cripple the psyche of the oppressed and the oppressors alike. Turgenev does not try to avoid these topics, but presents them in a completely different spirit: the writer is primarily interested not in the formation of a person under the influence of circumstances, but rather in his understanding of these circumstances and reaction to them.
At the same time, even Shchedrin himself, far from being a soft critic and not prone to idealism, wrote in a letter to Annenkov admired Turgenev's lyricism and recognized its social benefits:
Now I have read “The Noble Nest,” dear Pavel Vasilyevich, and I would like to tell you my opinion about this thing. But I absolutely cannot.<…>And what can be said about all of Turgenev’s works? Is it that after reading them it’s easy to breathe, easy to believe, and feels warm? What do you clearly feel, how your moral level rises, what do you mentally bless and love the author? But these will only be commonplaces, and this, this is the impression that these transparent images, as if woven from air, leave behind, this is the beginning of love and light, flowing in every line with a living spring and, however, still disappearing in empty space . But in order to express these commonplaces decently, you need to be a poet yourself and fall into lyricism.
Alexander Druzhinin. 1856 Photo by Sergei Levitsky. Druzhinin is a friend of Turgenev and his colleague at the Sovremennik magazine
Pavel Annenkov. 1887 Engraving by Yuri Baranovsky from a photograph by Sergei Levitsky. Annenkov was friends with Turgenev, and was also the first biographer and researcher of Pushkin’s work
“The Noble Nest” became Turgenev’s last great work, published in "Contemporary" Literary magazine (1836-1866), founded by Pushkin. Since 1847, Sovremennik was led by Nekrasov and Panaev, later Chernyshevsky and Dobrolyubov joined the editorial staff. In the 60s, an ideological split occurred in Sovremennik: the editors came to understand the need for a peasant revolution, while many of the magazine’s authors (Turgenev, Tolstoy, Goncharov, Druzhinin) advocated slower and more gradual reforms. Five years after the abolition of serfdom, Sovremennik closed by personal order of Alexander II. . Unlike many novels of this time, it was entirely contained in one issue - readers did not have to wait for a sequel. Turgenev’s next novel, “On the Eve”, will be published in the magazine Mikhail Katkov Mikhail Nikiforovich Katkov (1818-1887) - publisher and editor of the literary magazine "Russian Bulletin" and the newspaper "Moskovskie Vedomosti". In his youth, Katkov was known as a liberal and a Westerner, and was friends with Belinsky. With the beginning of the reforms of Alexander II, Katkov's views became noticeably more conservative. In the 1880s, he actively supported the counter-reforms of Alexander III, waged a campaign against ministers of non-titular nationality and generally became an influential political figure - and his newspaper was read by the emperor himself. "Russian Messenger" Literary and political magazine (1856-1906), founded by Mikhail Katkov. At the end of the 50s, the editors took a moderately liberal position; from the beginning of the 60s, Russian Messenger became more and more conservative and even reactionary. Over the years, the magazine published the central works of Russian classics: “Anna Karenina” and “War and Peace” by Tolstoy, “Crime and Punishment” and “The Brothers Karamazov” by Dostoevsky, “On the Eve” and “Fathers and Sons” by Turgenev, “Soborians” Leskova. , which was economically a competitor to Sovremennik, and politically and literary a principled opponent.
Turgenev’s break with Sovremennik and his fundamental conflict with his old friend Nekrasov (who, however, many biographers of both writers tend to overdramatize) are apparently connected with Turgenev’s reluctance to have anything in common with the “nihilists” Dobrolyubov and Chernyshevsky, who published on the pages of Sovremennik. Although both radical critics never spoke badly about The Noble Nest, the reasons for the breakup are generally clear from the text of Turgenev’s novel. Turgenev generally believed that it was aesthetic qualities that made literature a means of public education, while his opponents rather saw art as an instrument of direct propaganda, which could just as easily be carried out directly, without resorting to any artistic techniques. In addition, Chernyshevsky hardly liked that Turgenev again turned to the image of a nobleman hero disappointed in life. In the article “Russian man at rendez-vous” dedicated to the story “Asya”, Chernyshevsky already explained that he considers the social and cultural role of such heroes to be completely exhausted, and they themselves deserve only condescending pity.
The first edition of "The Noble Nest". Publishing house of bookseller A. I. Glazunov, 1859
Sovremennik magazine for 1859, where the novel “The Noble Nest” was first published
What influenced her?
It is generally accepted that Turgenev was primarily influenced by the works of Pushkin. The plot of “The Noble Nest” has been repeatedly compared with history. In both works, a Europeanized nobleman who arrived in the province encounters an original and independent girl, whose upbringing was influenced by both noble and common culture (by the way, both Pushkin’s Tatyana and Turgenev’s Liza encounter peasant culture through communication with their nanny). In both, love feelings arise between the characters, but due to a combination of circumstances they are not destined to stay together.
It is easier to understand the meaning of these parallels in a literary context. Critics of the 1850s were inclined to contrast the “Gogol” and “Pushkin” trends in Russian literature with each other. The legacy of Pushkin and Gogol became especially relevant in this era, given that in the mid-1850s, thanks to softened censorship, it became possible to publish fairly complete editions of the works of both authors, which included many works previously unknown to contemporaries. On Gogol’s side in this confrontation was, among others, Chernyshevsky, who saw in the author primarily a satirist who exposed social vices, and in Belinsky the best interpreter of his work. Accordingly, such writers as Saltykov-Shchedrin and his numerous imitators were considered to be part of the “Gogol” movement. Supporters of the “Pushkin” trend were much closer to Turgenev: it is no coincidence that Pushkin’s collected works were published by Annenkov Pavel Vasilievich Annenkov (1813-1887) - literary critic and publicist, the first biographer and researcher of Pushkin, the founder of Pushkin studies. He became friends with Belinsky, in the presence of Annenkov, Belinsky wrote his actual will - “Letter to Gogol”, and under Gogol’s dictation Annenkov rewrote “Dead Souls”. Author of memoirs about the literary and political life of the 1840s and its heroes: Herzen, Stankevich, Bakunin. One of Turgenev’s close friends, the writer sent all his latest works to Annenkov before publication. , a friend of Turgenev, and the most famous review of this publication was written by Alexander Druzhinin Alexander Vasilyevich Druzhinin (1824-1864) - critic, writer, translator. Since 1847, he published stories, novels, feuilletons, and translations in Sovremennik; his debut was the story “Polinka Sax.” From 1856 to 1860, Druzhinin was the editor of the Library for Reading. In 1859 he organized a Society to benefit needy writers and scientists. Druzhinin criticized the ideological approach to art and advocated “pure art”, free from any didacticism. - another author who left Sovremennik, who was on good terms with Turgenev. During this period, Turgenev clearly orients his prose precisely towards the “Pushkin” principle, as the criticism of that time understood it: literature should not directly address socio-political problems, but gradually influence the public, which is formed and educated under the influence of aesthetic impressions and ultimately becomes capable of responsible and worthy actions in a variety of spheres, including socio-political. The job of literature is to promote, as Schiller would say, “aesthetic education.”
"Noble Nest". Director Andrei Konchalovsky. 1969
How was she received?
Most writers and critics were delighted with Turgenev's novel, which combined poetic beginnings and social relevance. Annenkov began his review of the novel like this: “It is difficult to say, starting an analysis of Mr. Turgenev’s new work, which is more worthy of attention: whether it itself with all its merits, or the extraordinary success that met it in all layers of our society. In any case, it is worth seriously thinking about the reasons for that unique sympathy and approval, that delight and passion that were caused by the appearance of the “Noble Nest”. On the author's new novel, people of opposite parties agreed on one common verdict; representatives of disparate systems and views shook hands with each other and expressed the same opinion.” The reaction of the poet and critic was especially impressive Apollo Grigoriev , who dedicated a series of articles to Turgenev’s novel and admired the writer’s desire in the person of the main character to portray “attachment to the soil” and “humility before the people’s truth.”
However, some contemporaries had different opinions. For example, according to the memoirs of the writer Nikolai Luzhenovsky, Alexander Ostrovsky noted: “The Noble Nest,” for example, is a very good thing, but Lisa is unbearable for me: this girl definitely suffers from scrofula driven inside.”
Apollo Grigoriev. Second half of the 19th century. Grigoriev devoted a whole series of complimentary articles to Turgenev’s novel
Alexander Ostrovsky. Around 1870. Ostrovsky praised The Noble Nest, but found the heroine Lisa “unbearable”
In an interesting way, Turgenev’s novel quite quickly ceased to be perceived as a topical and relevant work and was then often assessed as an example of “pure art.” Perhaps this was influenced by those that caused a much greater resonance, thanks to which the image of the “nihilist” entered Russian literature, becoming the subject of heated debate and various literary interpretations for several decades. Nevertheless, the novel was a success: an authorized French translation was published already in 1861, a German translation in 1862, and an English translation in 1869. Thanks to this, Turgenev’s novel was one of the most discussed works of Russian literature abroad until the end of the 19th century. Researchers have written about its influence on, for example, Henry James and Joseph Conrad.
Why was The Noble Nest such a relevant novel?
The time of publication of “The Noble Nest” was an exceptional period for Imperial Russia, which Fyodor Tyutchev (long before Khrushchev’s times) called the “thaw.” The first years of the reign of Alexander II, who ascended the throne at the end of 1855, were accompanied by a rise in “glasnost” (another expression now associated with a completely different era) that amazed his contemporaries. The defeat in the Crimean War was perceived both among government officials and in educated society as a symptom of the deepest crisis engulfing the country. The definitions of the Russian people and empire adopted in the Nicholas years, based on the well-known doctrine of “official nationality,” seemed completely inadequate. The new era required a reinterpretation of the nation and the state.
Many contemporaries were confident that literature could help with this, actually contributing to the reforms initiated by the government. It is no coincidence that in these years the government invited writers, for example, to participate in compiling the repertoire of state theaters or to compile a statistical and ethnographic description of the Volga region. Although The Noble Nest takes place in the 1840s, the novel reflected the current issues of the era of its creation. For example, in Lavretsky’s dispute with Panshin, the main character of the novel proves “the impossibility of leaps and arrogant alterations from the heights of bureaucratic self-awareness - alterations that are not justified either by knowledge of the native land or by real faith in an ideal, even a negative one” - obviously, these words refer to plans government reforms. The preparations for the abolition of serfdom made the topic of relations between classes very relevant, which largely determines the background of Lavretsky and Lisa: Turgenev is trying to present to the public a novel about how a person can comprehend and experience his place in Russian society and history. As in his other works, “the story gets inside the character and works from within. Its properties are generated by a given historical situation, and outside of this they have no meaning" 1 Ginzburg L. Ya. About psychological prose. Ed. 2nd. L., 1976. P. 295. .
"Noble Nest". Director Andrei Konchalovsky. 1969 In the role of Lavretsky - Leonid Kulagin
Piano by Konrad Graf. Austria, around 1838. The piano in the “Noble Nest” is an important symbol: acquaintances are made around it, disputes are waged, love is born, and a long-awaited masterpiece is created. Musicality and attitude to music are an important feature of Turgenev’s heroes
Who and why accused Turgenev of plagiarism?
At the end of work on the novel, Turgenev read it to some of his friends and took advantage of their comments, finalizing his work for Sovremennik, and especially valued the opinion of Annenkov (who, according to the recollections of Ivan Goncharov, who was present at this reading, recommended Turgenev to include in the story the background story of the main character Lisa Kalitina, explaining the origins of her religious beliefs. Researchers actually discovered that the corresponding chapter was written into the manuscript later).
Ivan Goncharov was not delighted with Turgenev’s novel. A few years earlier, he told the author of “The Noble Nest” about the idea of his own work, dedicated to an amateur artist who finds himself in the Russian outback. Having heard “The Noble Nest” in the author’s reading, Goncharov was furious: Turgenev’s Panshin (among other things, an amateur artist), as it seemed to him, was “borrowed” from the “program” of his future novel “The Precipice”, and besides, his image was distorted ; the chapter about the ancestors of the main character also seemed to him the result of literary theft, as did the image of the strict old lady Marfa Timofeevna. After these accusations, Turgenev made some changes to the manuscript, in particular changing the dialogue between Marfa Timofeevna and Lisa, which takes place after the night meeting between Lisa and Lavretsky. Goncharov seemed to be satisfied, but in Turgenev’s next great work, the novel “On the Eve,” he again discovered the image of an amateur artist. The conflict between Goncharov and Turgenev led to a big scandal in literary circles. Gathered for its resolution "Areopagus" A government body in Ancient Athens, which consisted of representatives of the family aristocracy. In a figurative meaning - a meeting of authoritative persons to resolve an important issue. of the authoritative writers and critics acquitted Turgenev, but for several decades Goncharov suspected the author of “The Noble Nest” of plagiarism. “The Precipice” was published only in 1869 and was not as successful as the first novels of Goncharov, who blamed Turgenev for this. Gradually, Goncharov’s conviction of Turgenev’s dishonesty turned into a real mania: the writer, for example, was sure that Turgenev’s agents were copying his drafts and passing them on to Gustave Flaubert, who made a name for himself thanks to Goncharov’s works.
Spasskoye-Lutovinovo, Turgenev's family estate. Engraving by M. Rashevsky based on a photograph by William Carrick. Originally published in Niva magazine in 1883
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
What do the heroes of Turgenev's novels and stories have in common?
Famous philologist Lev Pumpyansky Lev Vasilyevich Pumpyansky (1891-1940) - literary critic, musicologist. After the revolution he lived in Nevel, together with Mikhail Bakhtin and Matvey Kagan he formed the Nevel Philosophical Circle. In the 1920s he taught at the Tenishevsky School and was a member of the Free Philosophical Association. He taught Russian literature at Leningrad University. Author of classic works on Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Gogol and Turgenev. wrote that the first four Turgenev novels (“Rudin”, “The Noble Nest”, “On the Eve” and) represent an example of a “test novel”: their plot is built around a historically established type of hero who is tested for suitability for the role of a historical figure. To test the hero, not only, for example, ideological disputes with opponents or social activities, but also love relationships serve. Pumpyansky, according to modern researchers, exaggerated in many ways, but in general his definition is apparently correct. Indeed, the main character is at the center of the novel, and the events that happen to this hero make it possible to decide whether he can be called a worthy person. In “The Noble Nest” this is expressed literally: Marfa Timofeevna demands that Lavretsky confirm that he is an “honest man” out of fear for Lisa’s fate - and Lavretsky proves that he is incapable of doing anything dishonest.
She felt bitter in her soul; She didn't deserve such humiliation. Love did not express itself to her with gaiety: for the second time she cried since yesterday evening.
Ivan Turgenev
The themes of happiness, self-denial and love, perceived as the most important qualities of a person, were already raised by Turgenev in his stories of the 1850s. For example, in the story “Faust” (1856), the main character is literally killed by the awakening of a love feeling, which she herself interprets as a sin. The interpretation of love as an irrational, incomprehensible, almost supernatural force, which often threatens human dignity or at least the ability to follow one’s convictions, is characteristic, for example, of the stories “Correspondence” (1856) and “First Love” (1860). In “The Noble Nest,” the relationships of almost all the characters, except Liza and Lavretsky, are characterized in exactly this way—suffice it to recall the characteristics of the relationship between Panshin and Lavretsky’s wife: “Varvara Pavlovna enslaved him, she enslaved him: in no other word can one express its unlimited, irrevocable, unrequited power over him."
Finally, the backstory of Lavretsky, the son of a nobleman and a peasant woman, is reminiscent of the main character of the story “Asya” (1858). Within the framework of the novel genre, Turgenev was able to connect these themes with socio-historical issues.
"Noble Nest". Director Andrei Konchalovsky. 1969
Vladimir Panov. Illustration for the novel “The Noble Nest”. 1988
Where are the references to Cervantes in The Noble Nest?
One of the important Turgenev types in “The Noble Nest” is represented by the hero Mikhalevich - “an enthusiast and poet” who “still adhered to the phraseology of the thirties.” This hero in the novel is presented with a fair amount of irony; it is enough to recall the description of his endless nightly argument with Lavretsky, when Mikhalevich tries to define his friend and every hour rejects his own formulations: “you are not a skeptic, not disappointed, not a Voltairian, you are bobak Steppe marmot. In a figurative sense - a clumsy, lazy person. , and you are a malicious bobak, a bobak with consciousness, not a naive bobak.” In the dispute between Lavretsky and Mikhalevich, a topical issue is especially evident: the novel was written during a period that contemporaries assessed as a transitional era in history.
And when, where did people decide to screw around? - he shouted at four o’clock in the morning, but in a somewhat hoarse voice. - We have! Now! in Russia! when each individual has a duty, a great responsibility before God, before the people, before himself! We are sleeping and time is running out; we are sleeping…
The funny thing is that Lavretsky considers the main goal of a modern nobleman to be a completely practical matter - to learn to “plow the land”, while Mikhalevich, who reproaches him for laziness, could not find anything to do on his own.
You joked with me in vain; my great-grandfather hung men by the ribs, and my grandfather himself was a man
Ivan Turgenev
This type, a representative of the generation of idealists of the 1830-40s, a man whose greatest talent was the ability to understand current philosophical and social ideas, sincerely sympathize with them and convey them to others, was brought out by Turgenev back in the novel “Rudin”. Like Rudin, Mikhalevich is an eternal wanderer, clearly reminiscent of the “knight of the sad image”: “Even sitting in the tarantass, where they carried out his flat, yellow, strangely light suitcase, he still spoke; wrapped in some kind of Spanish cloak with a reddish collar and lion paws instead of fasteners, he was still developing his views on the fate of Russia and moved his dark hand through the air, as if scattering the seeds of future prosperity.” For the author, Mikhalevich is the beautiful and naive Don Quixote (Turgenev’s famous speech “Hamlet and Don Quixote” was written shortly after “The Noble Nest”). Mikhalevich “fell in love endlessly and wrote poems about all his lovers; He sang especially passionately about one mysterious black-haired “lady,” who, apparently, was a woman of easy virtue. The analogy with Don Quixote’s passion for the peasant woman Dulcinea is obvious: Cervantes’s hero is similarly incapable of understanding that his beloved does not correspond to his ideal. However, this time it is not a naive idealist who is placed at the center of the novel, but a completely different hero.
Why does Lavretsky sympathize so much with the peasant?
The father of the novel's protagonist is a Europeanized gentleman who raised his son according to his own “system,” apparently borrowed from the works of Rousseau; his mother is a simple peasant woman. The result is quite unusual. The reader finds himself faced with an educated Russian nobleman who knows how to behave decently and with dignity in society (Lavretsky’s manners are constantly poorly assessed by Marya Dmitrievna, but the author constantly hints that she herself does not know how to behave in a truly good society). He reads magazines in different languages, but at the same time is closely connected with Russian life, especially the common people. In this regard, his two love interests are remarkable: the Parisian “lioness” Varvara Pavlovna and the deeply religious Liza Kalitina, raised by a simple Russian nanny. It is no coincidence that Turgenev’s hero aroused delight Apollo Grigoriev Apollo Aleksandrovich Grigoriev (1822-1864) - poet, literary critic, translator. Since 1845, he began to study literature: he published a book of poems, translated Shakespeare and Byron, and wrote literary reviews for Otechestvennye Zapiski. Since the late 1950s, Grigoriev wrote for Moskvityanin and headed its circle of young authors. After the magazine closed, he worked at Library for Reading, Russian Word, and Vremya. Due to alcohol addiction, Grigoriev gradually lost his influence and practically stopped publishing. , one of the creators pochvennichestvo Social and philosophical trends in Russia in the 1860s. The basic principles of pochvennichestvo were formulated by employees of the magazines “Time” and “Epoch”: Apollo Grigoriev, Nikolai Strakhov and the Dostoevsky brothers. The Pochvenniki occupied a kind of middle position between the camps of Westerners and Slavophiles. Fyodor Dostoevsky, in “Announcement of subscription to the magazine “Time” for 1861,” considered the manifesto of pochvennichestvo, wrote: “The Russian idea, perhaps, will be a synthesis of all those ideas that Europe is developing with such tenacity, with such courage in its individual nationalities ; that, perhaps, everything hostile in these ideas will find its reconciliation and further development in the Russian people.” : Lavretsky is really able to sincerely sympathize with a peasant who has lost his son, and when he himself suffers the collapse of all his hopes, he is consoled by the fact that the ordinary people around him suffer no less. In general, Lavretsky’s connection with the “common people” and the old, non-Europeanized nobility is constantly emphasized in the novel. Having learned that his wife, who lives according to the latest French fashions, is cheating on him, he experiences something other than secular rage: “he felt that at that moment he was able to torment her, beat her half to death, like a peasant, strangle her with his own hands.” In a conversation with his wife, he indignantly says: “You joked with me in vain; My great-grandfather hung men by the ribs, and my grandfather himself was a man.” Unlike the previous central characters of Turgenev’s prose, Lavretsky has a “healthy nature”, he is a good owner, a man who is literally destined to live at home and take care of his family and household.
Andrey Rakovich. Interior. 1845 Private collection
What is the meaning of the political dispute between Lavretsky and Panshin?
The main character's beliefs correspond to his background. In a conflict with the capital official Panshin, Lavretsky opposes the reform project, according to which European public “institutions” (in modern language - “institutions”) are capable of transforming people’s life itself. Lavretsky “demanded, first of all, recognition of the people’s truth and humility before it - that humility without which courage against lies is impossible; “Finally, he did not deviate from the well-deserved, in his opinion, reproach for frivolous waste of time and effort.” The author of the novel clearly sympathizes with Lavretsky: Turgenev, of course, himself had a high opinion of Western “institutions,” but, judging by “The Nest of Nobles,” he did not have such a good opinion of the domestic officials who were trying to introduce these “institutions.”
"Noble Nest". Director Andrei Konchalovsky. 1969
Coach. 1838 The carriage is one of the attributes of secular European life, which Varvara Pavlovna indulges in with pleasure
The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum, London
How does the characters' family history influence their fate?
Of all Turgenev's heroes, Lavretsky has the most detailed pedigree: the reader learns not only about his parents, but also about the entire Lavretsky family, starting with his great-grandfather. Of course, this digression is intended to show the hero’s rootedness in history, his living connection with the past. At the same time, this “past” turns out to be very dark and cruel for Turgenev - in fact, this is the history of Russia and the noble class. Literally the entire history of the Lavretsky family is built on violence. The wife of his great-grandfather Andrei is directly compared to a bird of prey (for Turgenev this is always a significant comparison - just remember the ending of the story “Spring Waters”), and the reader literally learns nothing about their relationship, except that the spouses were always at war with each other friend: “Goggle-eyed, with a hawk nose, with a round yellow face, a gypsy by birth, hot-tempered and vindictive, she was in no way inferior to her husband, who almost killed her and whom she did not survive, although she was always squabbling with him.” The wife of their son Pyotr Andreich, a “humble woman,” was subordinate to her husband: “She loved to ride trotters, was ready to play cards from morning to evening, and always used to cover with her hand the penny winnings written on her when her husband approached the gambling table; and she gave all her dowry, all her money, to him at his unrequited disposal.” Lavretsky’s father Ivan fell in love with the serf girl Malanya, a “modest woman” who obeyed her husband and his relatives in everything and was completely excluded by them from raising her son, which led to her death:
Ivan Petrovich’s poor wife did not endure this blow, did not endure the secondary separation: without a murmur, she died away within a few days. Throughout her life, she did not know how to resist anything, and she did not fight the disease. She could no longer speak, the shadows of the grave were already falling on her face, but her features still expressed patient bewilderment and constant meekness of humility.
Pyotr Andreich, who learned about his son’s love affair, is also compared to a bird of prey: “He descended on his son like a hawk, reproaching him for immorality, godlessness, pretense...” It was this terrible past that was reflected in the life of the protagonist, only now Lavretsky himself found himself in the power of his wife. Firstly, Lavretsky is a product of his father’s specific upbringing, because of which he, a naturally intelligent, far from naive person, got married without completely understanding what kind of person his wife was. Secondly, the very topic of family inequality connects Turgenev’s hero and his ancestors. The hero got married because his family past did not let him go - in the future his wife will become part of this past, which at a fateful moment will return and destroy his relationship with Lisa. The fate of Lavretsky, who is not destined to find his native corner, is connected with the curse of his aunt Glafira, expelled by the will of Lavretsky’s wife: “I know who is driving me away from here, from my ancestral nest. Just remember my words, nephew: you won’t build a nest anywhere, you’ll wander forever.” At the end of the novel, Lavretsky thinks of himself that he is a “lonely, homeless wanderer.” In the everyday sense, this is inaccurate: before us are the thoughts of a wealthy landowner - however, internal loneliness and the inability to find happiness in life turn out to be a logical conclusion from the history of the Lavretsky family.
The head is all gray, and when he opens his mouth, he lies or gossips. And also a state councilor!
Ivan Turgenev
The parallels with Lisa's backstory are interesting here. Her father was also a cruel, “predatory” man who subjugated her mother. There is also a direct influence of folk ethics in its past. At the same time, Liza feels her responsibility for the past more acutely than Lavretsky. Liza’s readiness for humility and suffering is connected not with some kind of internal weakness or sacrifice, but with a conscious, thoughtful desire to atone for sins, not only her own, but also those of others: “Happiness did not come to me; even when I had hopes of happiness, my heart still ached. I know everything, both my sins and those of others, and how daddy acquired our wealth; I know everything. All this must be prayed away, it must be prayed away.”
Pages from the collection “Symbols and Emblems”, published in Amsterdam in 1705 and in St. Petersburg in 1719
The collection consisted of 840 engravings with symbols and allegories. This mysterious book was the only reading for the impressionable and pale child Fedya Lavretsky. The Lavretskys had one of the re-editions of the early 19th century revised by Nestor Maksimovich-Ambodik: Turgenev himself read this book as a child
What is a noble nest?
Turgenev himself wrote in an elegiac tone about “noble nests” in the story “My Neighbor Radilov”: “When choosing a place to live, our great-grandfathers certainly took out two tithes of good land for an orchard with linden alleys. Fifty, many seventy years later, these estates, “noble nests,” gradually disappeared from the face of the earth, the houses rotted or were sold for removal, the stone outbuildings turned into piles of ruins, the apple trees died out and were used for firewood, fences and wattles were destroyed. Some linden trees were still growing to their glory and now, surrounded by plowed fields, they speak to our windy tribe about “the fathers and brothers who died before.” Parallels with “The Noble Nest” are easy to notice: on the one hand, the reader is not presented with Oblomovka, but with the image of a cultural, Europeanized estate, where alleys are planted and music is listened to; on the other hand, this estate is doomed to gradual destruction and oblivion. In “The Noble Nest,” apparently, this is precisely the fate destined for the Lavretsky estate, whose family line will end with the main character (his daughter, judging by the epilogue of the novel, will not live long).
The village of Shablykino, where Turgenev often hunted. Lithograph by Rudolf Zhukovsky based on his own drawing. 1840 State Memorial and Natural Museum-Reserve of I. S. Turgenev “Spasskoye-Lutovinovo”
Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images
Does Lisa Kalitina resemble the stereotype of the “Turgenev girl”?
Lisa Kalitina is probably now one of the most famous Turgenev images. They have repeatedly tried to explain the unusualness of this heroine by the existence of some special prototype - here they also pointed to the Countess Elizabeth Lambert Elizaveta Egorovna Lambert (née Kankrina; 1821-1883) - maid of honor of the imperial court. Daughter of the Minister of Finance Count Yegor Kankrin. In 1843 she married Count Joseph Lambert. She was friends with Tyutchev and had a long correspondence with Turgenev. According to the memoirs of contemporaries, she was deeply religious. From Turgenev’s letter to Lambert dated April 29, 1867: “Of all the doors into which I, a bad Christian, but following the gospel rule, pushed, your doors opened easier and more often than others.” , a secular acquaintance of Turgenev and the addressee of his numerous letters filled with philosophical reasoning, and on Varvara Sokovnin Varvara Mikhailovna Sokovnina (monastic Seraphim; 1779-1845) - nun. Sokovnina was born into a wealthy noble family, at the age of 20 she left home for the Sevsky Trinity Monastery, took monastic vows, and then the schema (the highest monastic level, requiring the performance of severe asceticism). She lived in seclusion for 22 years. In 1821, she was elevated to the rank of abbess of the Oryol nunnery, and ruled it until her death. In 1837, Abbess Seraphim was visited by Alexandra Feodorovna, the wife of Emperor Nicholas I. (in the monasticism of Seraphim), whose fate is very similar to the story of Lisa.
Probably, first of all, the stereotypical image of the “Turgenev girl” is built around Lisa, which is usually written about in popular publications and which is often discussed at school. At the same time, this stereotype hardly corresponds to Turgenev’s text. Lisa can hardly be called a particularly refined person or a lofty idealist. She is shown as a person of exceptionally strong will, decisive, independent and internally independent. In this sense, her image was rather influenced not by Turgenev’s desire to create the image of an ideal young lady, but by the writer’s ideas about the need for emancipation and the desire to show an internally free girl so that this internal freedom would not deprive her of poetry. A night date with Lavretsky in the garden for a girl of that time was completely indecent behavior - the fact that Lisa decided on it shows her complete internal independence from the opinions of others. The “poetic” effect of her image is given by a very unique manner of description. The narrator usually reports about Lisa’s feelings in rhythmic prose, very metaphorical, sometimes even using sound repetitions: “No one knows, no one has seen and will never see how, from bath to life and flourishing, pours and in sight no zer but in the womb ze mli." The analogy between the love growing in the heroine’s heart and a natural process is not intended to explain some psychological properties of the heroine, but rather to hint at something that is beyond the capabilities of ordinary language. It is no coincidence that Lisa herself says that she “doesn’t have her own words” - in the same way, for example, at the end of the novel the narrator refuses to talk about her and Lavretsky’s experiences: “What did they think, what did they both feel? Who will know? Who's to say? There are such moments in life, such feelings... You can only point to them and pass by.”
"Noble Nest". Director Andrei Konchalovsky. 1969
Vladimir Panov. Illustration for the novel “The Noble Nest”. 1988
Why do Turgenev's heroes suffer all the time?
Violence and aggression permeate Turgenev’s entire life; a living being cannot help but suffer, it seems. In Turgenev’s story “The Diary of an Extra Man” (1850), the hero was opposed to nature, because he was endowed with self-awareness and acutely felt approaching death. In “The Noble Nest,” however, the desire for destruction and self-destruction is shown as characteristic not only of people, but of all nature. Marfa Timofeevna tells Lavretsky that no happiness for a living creature is possible in principle: “Why, I used to envy the flies: look, I thought, who has a good life in the world; Yes, one night I heard a fly whining in the spider’s legs - no, I think there’s a thunderstorm on them too.” At his own, simpler level, Lavretsky’s old servant Anton, who knew his aunt Glafira, who cursed him, speaks about self-destruction: “He told Lavretsky how Glafira Petrovna bit herself on the hand before her death,” and, after a pause, said with a sigh: “Every person, master-father, he is devoured to himself.” Turgenev's heroes live in a terrible and indifferent world, and here, unlike historical circumstances, it will probably not be possible to improve anything.
Schopenhauer Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) - German philosopher. According to his main work, “The World as Will and Representation,” the world is perceived by the mind, and therefore is a subjective representation. The objective reality and organizing principle in man is will. But this will is blind and irrational, therefore it turns life into a series of suffering, and the world in which we live into “the worst of worlds.”—and researchers drew attention to some parallels between the novel and the main book of the German thinker, “The World as Will and Representation.” Indeed, both natural and historical life in Turgenev’s novel are full of violence and destruction, while the world of art turns out to be much more ambivalent: music carries both the power of passion and a kind of liberation from the power of the real world.Andrey Rakovich. Interior. 1839 Private collection
Why does Turgenev talk so much about happiness and duty?
The key debate between Lisa and Lavretsky is about the human right to happiness and the need for humility and renunciation. For the heroes of the novel, the theme of religion is of exceptional importance: the non-believer Lavretsky refuses to agree with Lisa. Turgenev does not try to decide which of them is right, but he shows that duty and humility are necessary not only for a religious person - duty is also significant for public life, especially for people with such a historical background as Turgenev’s heroes: the Russian nobility is not depicted in the novel only as a bearer of high culture, but also as a class whose representatives for centuries oppressed each other and the people around them. The conclusions from the disputes, however, are ambiguous. On the one hand, the new generation, free from the heavy burden of the past, easily achieves happiness - it is possible, however, that this succeeds due to a more successful combination of historical circumstances. At the end of the novel, Lavretsky addresses the younger generation with a mental monologue: “Play, have fun, grow, young strength... you have life ahead of you, and it will be easier for you to live: you won’t have to, like us, find your way, fight, fall and get up in the midst of darkness; we were trying to figure out how to survive - and how many of us didn’t survive! “But you need to do something, work, and the blessing of our brother, the old man, will be with you.” On the other hand, Lavretsky himself renounces claims to happiness and largely agrees with Lisa. If we consider that tragedy, according to Turgenev, is generally inherent in human life, the fun and joy of “new people” turn out to be in many ways a sign of their naivety, and the experience of misfortune that Lavretsky went through can be no less valuable for the reader.
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- Batyuto A.I. Turgenev-novelist. L.: Nauka, 1972.
- Ginzburg L. Ya. About psychological prose. L.: Hood. lit., 1976. P. 295.
- Gippius V.V. On the composition of Turgenev’s novels // Wreath to Turgenev. 1818–1918. Digest of articles. Odessa: Book publishing house A. A. Ivasenko, 1918. pp. 25–55.
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Full list of references
In the provincial town of O... lives a wealthy fifty-year-old widow, Marya Dmitrievna Kalitina. Her aunt Marfa Timofeevna, as well as two daughters, Elena and Elizaveta, live with her. The son is being raised in St. Petersburg. On a spring evening in 1842, Marya Dmitrievna and Marfa Timofeevna are sitting by the open window. The servant announces the arrival of Gedeonovsky, who was friends with Kalitina’s late husband.
Gedeonovsky says that Kalitina’s relative Fyodor Ivanovich Lavretsky came to the city. The young man lived abroad for a long time. Eleven-year-old Lena Kalitina runs into the living room from the garden and enthusiastically reports that Vladimir Nikolaevich Panshin is coming to them on a new horse.
Immediately a young handsome rider on a hot horse appears in front of the window. Panshin boasts of his acquisition and deftly tames the stallion so Lena can pet him. Then he drives up to the porch and appears in the living room. At the same time, a beautiful black-haired girl Lisa, Kalitina’s eldest daughter, enters from the garden.
Panshin is a favorite of the governor and the whole society, a brilliant St. Petersburg official temporarily fulfilling an assignment in the provinces. He has long become part of Kalitina’s house. Nikolai has composed a romance and offers to listen to it. During the performance, an old German, music teacher Lemm, enters the living room. He came to give Lena a lesson.
Lemm was born into a family of poor musicians and became an orphan at the age of ten. He wandered around the world a lot, wrote music, but did not become famous. Fleeing from poverty, Lemm accepted the offer of a Russian gentleman to lead the orchestra. So he ended up in Russia, where he settled for many years. Lately, Lemm has been living with an old cook in a tiny house and earning extra money by teaching music lessons.
Panshin and Lisa sat down to learn a Beethoven sonata, but Nikolai is doing poorly. He begins to paint the landscape. Lemme comes out, having finished the lesson. The German refuses to stay for tea, and Lisa comes out to see him off. Near the gate she meets a tall, broad-shouldered stranger.
The new guest turns out to be Fyodor Lavretsky. Lisa takes the man into the house, where he is joyfully greeted by Marya Dmitrievna and Marfa Timofeevna. Fyodor talks about his desire to live in the small village of Vasilyevskoye, where he plans to go tomorrow morning. Late in the evening Panshin tries to explain himself to Lisa and tells her about his feelings.
The story of the birth of Fyodor Lavretsky is noteworthy. His father Ivan was brought up in the rich house of Princess Kubenskaya and was considered her heir. But unexpectedly the old woman married a French teacher and transferred her entire fortune to her husband. Ivan was forced to return home to the village, where he fell in love with the yard girl Malanya. To spite his father, he married his beloved and went to live with his aunt, Marfa Timofeevna. The princess helped him obtain a diplomatic position. Ivan learned about the birth of his son Fyodor in London.
Ivan's mother soon fell ill and fell ill. Before her death, she wanted to see her grandson and daughter-in-law. The husband did not dare to contradict, and Malanya again crossed the threshold of the house, but no longer as a servant, but as a lady. The sight of his one-year-old grandson touched the old man. He allowed Malanya to stay with the child. For the sake of his grandson, Ivan, who returned from abroad after the death of his father, was also forgiven. Malanya had also died by that time, and Fyodor was already twelve years old.
Ivan's return home changed little on the estate. He drove out the army of parasites, changed the furniture and liveries of the lackeys. Other guests began to visit the house. But otherwise, nothing has changed: the master did not take care of the housework; his older sister Glafira, a hunchbacked old maid, still ran the house.
But Ivan took up raising his son. The child was woken up at four in the morning, doused with cold water and forced to run. The boy ate once a day and only one dish, rode horseback, shot with a crossbow and practiced gymnastics. Fedor studied international law, natural sciences, mathematics and carpentry. My father called his method “Spartan education.” He died when Fedor was twenty-three years old.
The knowledge that Fedor received at home seemed to him unsystematic and insufficient. Therefore, Lavretsky went to Moscow and entered the university there. Fyodor grew up as a reserved person and had almost no contact with his peers, but at the university he became friends with a student named Mikhalevich. He introduced Lavretsky to Varvara Korobyina, the daughter of a retired general.
The general did not have significant funds, so after his resignation he was forced to settle not in the capital, but in cheaper Moscow. Varvara graduated from the Institute of Noble Maidens as the best student, played the piano beautifully and adored the theater, where Fyodor first saw her.
Lavretsky, in love, went to the general’s house for six months, and then proposed to Varvara. The girl accepted him. The Korobins knew very well that Fyodor had two thousand souls as serfs, and considered him a good match for their daughter.
At the insistence of his wife's relatives, Lavretsky dropped out of the university and returned to the estate. Soon Varvara very cleverly survived Glafira, whose place was taken by the general. The young people left for St. Petersburg, where Varvara began to shine in the world. After the death of their newborn son, the couple went abroad. There Fedor again plunged into self-education, and his wife continued to shine.
Having accidentally entered his wife’s office, Lavretsky discovered a note from her lover on the floor. From that moment on, he no longer wanted to see his wife. Fyodor assigned her a small annual allowance and ordered the general to be removed from managing the estate. Lavretsky received the news of the birth of his daughter with indifference. Four years later, he fully recovered from the blow and returned to Russia.
Lavretsky comes to the Kalitins to say goodbye before leaving. On the porch, he meets Lisa, who is about to go to church, and asks the girl to pray for him. Then Fyodor says goodbye to Marya Dmitrievna and his aunt. Kalitina hopes for Lisa's quick marriage to the brilliant Panshin. Marfa Timofeevna, on the contrary, is very dissatisfied with Nikolai.
Fedor arrives in Vasilyevskoye. There is desolation in the yard and in the house. Only one gray-haired footman comes out to meet you. Almost everything here has remained unchanged since the death of Aunt Glafira.
Lavretsky feels uncomfortable in a small and old, but still strong house. The garden is completely abandoned. The servants are perplexed why the master decided to settle here if he has a rich Lavriki estate. But Fyodor cannot live where everything reminds him of his wife.
Lavretsky plunges into sleepy vegetation. All day long he sits motionless near the window and looks detachedly at the slow flow of village life. The pain gradually leaves his soul.
Fedor begins to put Vasilievskoe in order. He lives as a hermit and is interested in the history of his native land and ancient traditions. Three weeks after his return, Lavretsky visits the Kalitins and meets Lemm. He likes the old man extremely, and Fyodor invites the German to stay at Vasilyevskoye.
On the way to the village, Lavretsky and Lemm talk about music. Fyodor invites the old man to compose an opera. But Lemm claims that he is too old for this, he can only handle romance. True, for a romance you need good poetry, something about pure stars. These words remind Fyodor of Lisa; he thinks about the girl for a long time.
Lemm settles in Vasilievsky. Over tea, Lavretsky discusses with him the upcoming marriage of Lisa and Panshin. The old German is angry. He believes that Panshin is not a match for such an honest, innocent and talented girl. Fyodor offers to invite Liza with her mother and aunt to Vasilyevskoye. Lemm demands that Panshin not come with them.
Lavretsky goes to the city to invite the ladies to visit. He finds Lisa in the living room and starts a sincere conversation with her. The girl wonders why Fedor left his wife? Lisa believes that you need to be able to forgive even betrayal. Fyodor tries to explain to her that Varvara is a fallen woman and is not worthy of her intercession. Then Marya Dmitrievna enters, and Lavretsky is forced to break off the conversation. Everyone except Auntie agrees to go to the village.
Fedor returns home, where Mikhalevich is waiting for him. An old friend found out that Lavretsky had arrived from abroad and decided to visit a friend. Fedor communicates with the guest until the third rooster. The next day Mikhalevich leaves.
Two days later, the Kalitins arrive in the village. Lemm unsuccessfully composed a romance and was very upset about it. After lunch, everyone goes to catch crucian carp in the pond. Lavretsky and Lisa sit next to each other and talk a lot.
In the evening, Marya Dmitrievna is getting ready to go home. Lavretsky volunteers to accompany the guests halfway up the road. All this time he talks with Lisa, the young people part as friends. The next evening, while reading a French magazine, Fyodor accidentally discovered a note about the death of his wife.
Lemme is going home. It's time for him to get back to his lessons. Fyodor goes with him and takes a magazine with an article. Having said goodbye to Lemm in the city, he pays a visit to Kalitin. Guests have gathered there, but Lavretsky finds an opportune moment and hands Lisa a magazine with a note. He whispers to the girl that he will come tomorrow.
Lavretsky again comes to the Kalitins. Marya Dmitrievna is dissatisfied with his visit. She doesn’t like Fedor, and Panshin speaks badly of him. Lavretsky goes out into the garden where Liza and Lena are walking. The older sister quietly returns the magazine and asks how Fyodor took the terrible news. Lavretsky was practically not upset, and Lisa was outraged by this answer. She admits that she received an offer from Panshin. Lavretsky begs Lisa not to make a hasty decision.
In the evening, Fyodor again goes to the Kalitins’ house. He is unable to wait for news until tomorrow. Lisa tells Lavretsky that she did not give a definite answer and promised to think again.
Lavretsky returns to Vasilyevskoye and does not appear in the city for four days. All this time he finds no place for himself. Fedor is waiting for official news of his wife’s death. He clearly understands that he is in love with Lisa, but does not hope for reciprocity. When Lavretsky arrives again, Lisa scolds him for his long absence and invites him to a church service on Sunday to pray together for the repose of Varvara’s soul. The young man comes, but does not pray, but looks at Lisa all the time.
Fyodor waits every day for news from his beloved, but they do not come. The girl is thoughtful, she tries not to be alone with Lavretsky. Fedor does not understand what is happening and suffers greatly from uncertainty. He finds the priest in the house. It turns out that Lisa ordered a prayer service.
At the Kalitins' house, Lavretsky enters into an argument with Panshin about the paths of Russia's development. Panshin scolds the backwardness of Russian thought and life, claims that his compatriots “are not even capable of inventing mousetraps” and therefore should learn from more developed Europeans. Lavretsky destroys all his opponent’s arguments.
Liza completely agrees with Lavretsky, but Panshin’s reasoning frightens her. The guests leave, but Fyodor doesn’t want to go home. He goes out into the field and wanders among the grass for a long time. A narrow path leads Lavretsky to a gate that is not locked. Fyodor enters the garden and is surprised to discover that it is the Kalitins' garden. Lisa leaves the house; she can’t sleep. An explanation takes place between the lovers. Happy Lavretsky walks along the streets of the city, a melody of extraordinary beauty reaches him. This is old man Lemm playing his composition.
Lisa was 10 years old when her father died. He, like Marya Dmitrievna, was not involved in raising his daughter. The stupid French governess devoted more time to cards and sweets than to her pupil. The main influence on the girl was the nanny Agafya.
This woman's fate was difficult. Agafya grew up in prosperity in the family of an elder. The master noticed the beautiful, lively peasant woman and fell in love with her. Agafya was taken to the house where she lived in luxury and idleness until the death of her benefactor. Then the lady married Agafya to a cattleman, but after a couple of years she returned her to the estate and even appointed her as a housekeeper, and her husband as a footman. But he started drinking and began stealing. Agafya fell out of favor again. Soon the husband passed away, and then Agafya’s children died. A lonely, religious woman was assigned to Lisa. From her the girl learned humility, forgiveness, and love for God. Agafya could not get along with Marfa Timofeevna. When she appeared in the house, Agafya went to the schismatic monastery.
After an explanation with Liza, Lavretsky comes to the Kalitins, but is not accepted. Liza is not at home, and Marya Dmitrievna has a headache. Two hours later, Fedor was refused again. In the evening, Lavretsky returns to his city house and unexpectedly finds Varvara Pavlovna and his daughter Ada there. Varvara throws herself at his feet and asks for forgiveness. Taking advantage of the rumor of her death, she dropped everything and hurried to return to Russia. Varvara repents of her bad actions, but Lavretsky does not believe her.
Completely confused, Fyodor wanders the streets for half the night and stops at Lemma’s house. Lavretsky asks the old man to take a note to Liza in the morning, in which he reports the sudden “resurrection” of his wife. Lisa replies that they won’t be able to see each other today. Lavretsky returns home. Having difficulty withstanding a conversation with his wife, he goes to Vasilyevskoye.
On the day when Lavretsky’s wife returned, Lisa had a meeting with Panshin. He came to get an answer to his proposal. Liza refuses Panshin, after which she listens to many unpleasant words from Marya Dmitrievna. She accuses Lisa of ingratitude. Marfa Timofeevna tells Lisa that she was seen at night in the garden with Fyodor. Lisa has a hard time justifying herself.
Varvara Pavlovna goes to the Kalitins. Marya Dmitrievna accepts her out of curiosity, but the cunning lady charms the provincial girl with stories about Paris, and then bribes her with a fashionable bottle of perfume. Varvara is an excellent musician, her talent surpasses Lisa’s abilities. The girl can hardly force herself to spend lunch in the company of Fyodor’s wife. She immediately understands this woman's deceitful game. Marfa Timofeevna doesn’t like Varvara either. The old woman takes Lisa to her place and cries for a long time, kissing her hands.
Panshin arrives for dinner and is instantly charmed by Varvara. Marya Dmitrievna promises that she will try to reconcile her with Fyodor. Lavretsky’s wife behaves quite freely and even tries her charms on the old man Gedeonovsky. She completely overshadows Lisa in the eyes of provincial society.
Meanwhile, Lavretsky does not find a place for himself in the village. He understands that everything is over and happiness, slightly beckoning, has left him again. You should humble yourself and pull yourself together. Fedor goes to the city.
Here Lavretsky learns that his wife is with the Kalitins. Fyodor hurries there, but does not enter the living room, but climbs the back stairs to Marfa Timofeevna. The old woman brings Lisa and leaves the lovers alone. The girl asks Lavretsky to make peace with his wife for the sake of her daughter. She leaves him a handkerchief as a souvenir. The footman conveys to Fyodor Marya Dmitrievna’s request to come see her.
Kalitin learned that Lavretsky had returned. Gedeonovsky reported this.
Fifty-year-old Maria Dmitrievna, the widow of the former provincial prosecutor, is not indifferent to him. She is well preserved for her age, and her home is considered one of the most desirable in the city. But due to Gedeolinsky’s tendency to lie and his talkativeness, Marfa Timofeevna Pestova, Maria’s aunt, does not like him.
Marfa Timofeevna is not easy to please. She even dislikes Vladimir Nikolaevich Panshin, who is considered one of the best suitors.
He has many advantages: he is educated, plays the piano, writes romances, draws, and by position he is a St. Petersburg official who arrived in the city of O on special assignments.
Panshin likes Lisa, the daughter of Maria Dmitrievna, but Marfa Timofeevna does not want to see him next to a nineteen-year-old girl.
A notable event for the city was the return of Fyodor Ivanovich Lavretsky from abroad. Rumor has it that his wife cheated on him in Paris, so he returned back to his homeland. But other than fatigue, there were no signs of disappointment in him. His father was the pupil of an admirer of Rousseau. But no matter how much his aunt insisted on adopting any French manners, Ivan was not to his liking.
He liked the young maid Malanya. His persistence in courting her caused him to be disinherited. Against the wishes of his parents, he married her. After this, Ivan had to leave Malanya with the Pestov relatives and go abroad himself. After the birth of their son Fyodor, Malanya comes to the Lavretskys, who are forced to recognize her.
After 12 years, Ivan returns to Russia. Fyodor was raised by his aunt Glafira, whom he feared because of her anger and envy. After his father’s return, Fedor studied mathematics, natural sciences, heraldry, carpentry, international law, and studied under a very harsh regime. Having buried his father, Fyodor goes to Moscow and enters the university. During this period, his harsh upbringing made itself felt, where he was unable to find friends and start a relationship with a woman. But he had a friend Mikhalevich, who introduced him to the Korobin family. He really liked Varvara Pavlovna, they got married. While staying in St. Petersburg, they had a son, but he died. On the advice of doctors, they go to France, where Varvara’s social appearances have become more frequent. Soon Fyodor caught her in treason and left for Italy. Four years later he returns to the city of O.
While staying at the Kalitins' house, he took a liking to Lisa, where, with constant communication, he told her about his wife. Lisa offered to forgive her. Besides, she believed in God. Unexpectedly, Mikhalevich appears at the Lavretskys’ place, which prompts the friends to have long conversations. Fyodor receives news of his wife's death. He comes to Lisa and breaks the news. But she says that Panshin proposed to her. Lisa, at Fyodor’s request, is in no hurry to answer. During a conversation between Panshin and Lavretsky about the politics of Russia and Europe, Lisa gives preference to Fedor because of the identity of her views, except for her belief in God. Fyodor and Lisa declare their love. But Fyodor’s wife unexpectedly arrives with their daughter Ada, where she persuades him to forgive and resume married life. But Lavretsky refused. Varvara turns to Maria Dmitrievna for help.
Lisa was also aware of the arrival of Fedor's wife. But before that, she explained herself to Panshin. But soon Lisa herself suggested not to break off relations with her wife, where Fyodor gave in. Lisa goes to a monastery. Fyodor visits, but she did not look at him. Varvara leaves her husband again, leaving for Paris.
The famous Russian writer I. S. Turgenev wrote many wonderful works, “The Noble Nest” is one of the best.
In the novel “The Noble Nest,” Turgenev describes the morals and customs of life of the Russian nobility, their interests and hobbies.
The main character of the work - nobleman Fyodor Ivanovich Lavretsky - was brought up in the family of his aunt Glafira. Fyodor's mother, a former maid, died when the boy was very young. My father lived abroad. When Fyodor was twelve years old, his father returned home and raised his son himself.
The novel “The Noble Nest” and a brief summary of the work give us the opportunity to find out what kind of home education and upbringing children in noble families received. Fedor was taught many sciences. His upbringing was harsh: he was woken up early in the morning, fed once a day, taught to ride a horse and shoot. When his father died, Lavretsky left to study in Moscow. He was then 23 years old.
The novel “The Noble Nest”, a brief summary of this work will allow us to learn about the hobbies and passions of the young nobles of Russia. During one of his visits to the theater, Fyodor saw a beautiful girl in the box - Varvara Pavlovna Korobyina. A friend introduces him to the beauty’s family. Varenka was smart, sweet, educated.
Studying at the university was abandoned due to Fyodor's marriage to Varvara. The young couple move to St. Petersburg. There their son is born and soon dies. On the advice of a doctor, the Lavretskys go to live in Paris. Soon, enterprising Varvara becomes the owner of a popular salon and starts an affair with one of her visitors. Having learned about accidentally reading a love note from her chosen one, Lavretsky breaks off all relations with her and returns to his estate.
One day he visited his cousin, Kalitina Maria Dmitrievna, who lived with two daughters - Liza and Lena. The eldest - the pious Lisa - interested Fyodor, and he soon realized that his feelings for this girl were serious. Lisa had an admirer, a certain Panshin, whom she did not love, but on her mother’s advice she did not push away.
In one of the French magazines, Lavretsky read that his wife had died. Fyodor declares his love to Lisa and learns that his love is mutual.
The young man's happiness knew no bounds. Finally, he met the girl of his dreams: gentle, charming and also serious. But when he returned home, Varvara was waiting for him in the foyer, alive and unharmed. She tearfully begged her husband to forgive her, at least for the sake of their daughter Ada. Notorious in Paris, the beautiful Varenka was in dire need of money, since her salon no longer provided her with the income she needed for a luxurious life.
Lavretsky assigns her an annual allowance and allows her to settle on his estate, but refuses to live with her. Smart and resourceful Varvara talked to Lisa and convinced the pious and meek girl to give up Fyodor. Lisa convinces Lavretsky not to leave his family. He settles his family on his estate, and he himself leaves for Moscow.
Deeply disappointed in her unfulfilled hopes, Lisa breaks off all relations with the secular world and goes to a monastery to find the meaning of life in suffering and prayer. Lavretsky visits her in the monastery, but the girl did not even look at him. Her feelings were revealed only by her fluttering eyelashes.
And Varenka again left for St. Petersburg, and then to Paris to continue her cheerful and carefree life there. “The Noble Nest”, the summary of the novel reminds us how much space in a person’s soul is occupied by his feelings, especially love.
Eight years later, Lavretsky visits the house where he once met Lisa. Fyodor again plunged into the atmosphere of the past - the same garden outside the window, the same piano in the living room. After returning home, he lived for a long time with sad memories of his failed love.
“The Noble Nest”, a brief summary of the work, allowed us to touch on some of the features of the lifestyle and customs of the Russian nobility of the 19th century.