Literature. Grade 11
Lessons No. 3-4
Lesson topic: The world of army relations in A.I. Kuprin’s story “The Duel.” The moral confrontation between the hero and the environment in the story.
How is the atmosphere of army life depicted in the story?
The general atmosphere of cruelty and impunity that reigned among officers creates the preconditions for a conflict to arise.
“The non-commissioned officers brutally beat their soldiers for an insignificant mistake in literature, for a lost leg while marching...” Violence in the story is an integral attribute of the spirit of the army: military subordination and discipline rest on it, the entire army was created by violence.
Kuprin writes about the recruits: “They stood in the regimental yard, huddled together, in the rain, like a herd of frightened and submissive animals, looking incredulously, from under their brows.” Once in the army, these young boys quickly lose their individuality: “They danced, but in this dancing, as in the singing, there was something wooden, dead, that made you want to cry.” They themselves begin to beat the soldiers: “They beat him (Khlebnikov) every day, laugh at him, mock him...”
What are regiment officers like? How do they feel about the service and their subordinates? What do they do with their leisure time?
Kuprin raised in his story a painful, acute problem of the Russian army of the early 1900s. Alienation, mute misunderstanding between officers and soldiers, narrow-mindedness, caste isolation, and the poverty of the educational level of Russian officers are outlined by Kuprin harshly, but accurately.
The more murder weapons are improved, the more important the question becomes about the state of morality of those who hold these weapons in their hands. Reading Kuprin’s story, we discover that among officers there is the following concept about army life: “Today we get drunk, tomorrow we go to the company once, twice, left, right. We’ll drink again in the evening, and the day after tomorrow we’ll join the company.” Is this really what life is all about?
But nothing else was offered. The officers and their wives had to be content with this routine. How wretched are their entertainments and hobbies: “In the regiment, a rather naive, boyish game was common among young officers: teaching orderlies various outlandish, unusual things.” And a person, cut off from his environment, often lost his face and succumbed to the general army “decay.” Most officers are on a low moral level. Their conversations are dirty and vulgar. They are not interested in lofty matters. I completely agree with Nazansky’s opinion: “They laugh: ha-ha-ha, this is all philosophy!.. It’s funny, and wild, and impermissible for an army infantry officer to think about sublime matters. This is philosophy, damn it, and therefore nonsense, idle and absurd chatter.”
The creators of the army machine are deliberately lowering the moral level of officers. And this is not surprising. In order to force a person to kill his own kind, it is necessary to destroy his ideas about good and evil, about justice. But the officers are the core of the army. Consequently, the entire army was subjected to moral decay.
What episodes of army life appear as culminating episodes in the story? (Looking and drunken brawl.)
How does Romashov feel in the army environment? Why does it serve? What does he dream about at the beginning of the story? How does Romashov feel about soldiers?
What is revealed in the hero through his comparison with the soldier Khlebnikov and through his attitude towards this unfortunate man?
The plot of the work is everyday tragic: Second Lieutenant Romashov dies as a result of a duel with Lieutenant Nikolaev. A city intellectual in the uniform of a second lieutenant, Romashov suffers from the vulgarity and meaninglessness of life, “monotonous like a fence and gray like a soldier’s cloth.”
Romashov experiences “a surge of warm, selfless, endless compassion” for the hunted soldier Khlebnikov. The author does not idealize young Romashov and does not at all make him a fighter against the way of army life. Romashov is only capable of timid disagreement, of hesitant attempts to convince that decent people should not attack an unarmed man with a saber: “It’s dishonest to beat a soldier. That's shameful".
How does the theme of a duel arise and develop in the work? What is an officer's court of honor?
How do Romashov’s colleagues understand officer’s honor?
What happens in Romashov’s soul after the social collapse? How does he cope with his shame? How does one re-evaluate oneself, a person in general? How does he see his future life?
What brings Romashov together with Nazansky and what sets them against each other?
How does Romashov behave before the “court of honor”?
The atmosphere of contemptuous alienation strengthens Lieutenant Romashov. By the end of the story, he reveals firmness and strength of character. The fight becomes inevitable. His love for a married woman, Shurochka Nikolaeva, who was not ashamed to conclude a cynical deal with a man in love with her, in which his life was the stake, accelerated the denouement.
Romashov still found the strength to break with the army, although he was unable to complete his break due to his death in a duel. Romashov did not allow the army machine to erase his personal “I”. The main character of the story does not see or feel the meaning in the very existence of the army.
Why does Romashov die? Who and what is pushing him to death? What details of the story grow into symbols of the hero’s fate?
Kuprin warned humanity about the danger lurking in the army.
The prophecy and undoubted talent of Kuprin is that he saw in the military’s hatred of the “shpaks” the beginning of a future civil war. His book, bearing the truthful word, containing such a brilliant prophecy, is immortal.
“The Duel” was published during the days of the defeat of the Russian fleet at Tsushima. The cruel, shameful reality of the Russian-Japanese War of 1904-1905 confirmed the pathos of the story and Kuprin’s diagnosis. “The Duel” became a literary and social sensation in 1905, the first months of the first Russian Revolution. The story was highly appreciated by Gorky, Stasov, Repin.
In 1918, Kuprin wrote with anger and sorrow about the collapse of the front of the First World War: “We had a wonderful army that amazed the whole world. She melted, leaving behind dirty traces..."
What heroes of the Russian classics of the 19th century is Kuprin’s hero similar to?
Homework: pp. 95 -100

Topic: Problems and images of Kuprin’s story “The Duel”

Purpose: 1) to acquaint students with the problems and figurative system of the work;

2) reveal the moral character of the officers in the story; 3) develop a feeling

aesthetic pleasure from reading Kuprin's works.

During the classes:

I Organizational moment

II Checking homework

Paperwork.

III Work on the topic of the lesson.

1 The teacher's word.

Military service gave Kuprin a wealth of material for creativity. The writer was able to see from the inside all the ins and outs of the officers. He saw that the officers were decaying before his eyes, that the overwhelming majority of officers were not interested in anything, but spent their lives in card games, carousing, and debauchery.

2 Work on the text.

Reading the beginning of the story.

(The oppressive atmosphere of provincial life, the drill, which makes it impossible for the soldiers to suffer, and depressing for the officers)

Who is the main character of the story?

What impression does Romashov make on you?

The main character traits of Romashov are daydreaming and lack of will, which we see in the scene of the formation of troops on the parade ground.

How does this passage characterize the hero?

In the story, along with Romashov, a no less vivid image of Nazansky appears.

What are his views on life and officer service?

What can you say about Alexandra Petrovna?

How does the love relationship between Romashov and Sashenka develop?

Why did Romashov’s love for Alexandra turn out to be dramatic for him?

What role does Sashenka play in this situation?

The work depicts images of ordinary soldiers with deep sympathy. In the image of the driven and downtrodden Khlebnikov, the plight of the soldier, the unfortunate, suffering creature, is clearly revealed.

What is remarkable about the conversation scene between Khlebnikov and Romashov?

How did she enrich the hero’s idea of ​​ordinary soldiers?

The title of the story is symbolic; the story became a duel between Kuprin himself and the tsarist army, autocratic orders that were destroying people. This is a duel with lies, immorality, injustice. The decline of morality, the apology for war, robbery, and violence are especially hateful to the humanist writer.

Kuprin shows the path the main character of the story, Romashov, takes in search of the truth. When the hero begins to see clearly and comes to the conclusion about the intrinsic value of the “I,” he recognizes the right to respect for human dignity not only in relation to himself, but also extends it to the soldiers. Before our eyes, Romashov is becoming morally mature: “Beating a soldier is dishonorable. You cannot hit a person who cannot answer you and does not have the right to raise his hand to his face to protect himself from a blow. He doesn’t even dare to tilt his head. That's shameful!" Romashov, who asserts: “The Khlebnikovs are my brothers,” and who is aware of the spiritual kinship with the people, takes a huge step forward in his development. This is a completely different person: not the young dreamer we meet at the beginning of the story. However, Romashov dies. The author brought his hero to such a point that, if he had remained alive, it would have been necessary to open up some clear prospect for his future. And this did not seem clear to Kuprin himself.

IV Homework.

Essay – miniature “My attitude towards Romashov”

> Materials for the lesson based on the story by A.I. Kuprina Duel

G. Rebel

Materials for the lesson based on the story by A.I. Kuprin "Duel"

Lesson topic: Lieutenant Romashov: character, personality, fate.

Questions for the lesson:

1. How is the atmosphere of army life depicted in the story? What are regiment officers like? How do they feel about the service and their subordinates? What do they do with their leisure time? What episodes of army life appear as culminating episodes in the story? (A look and a drunken brawl.) How does the theme of a duel arise and develop in the work? What is an officer's court of honor? How do Romashov’s colleagues understand officer’s honor?

(These questions allow you to briefly repeat and summarize the content of the previous lesson, if there was one, or, if there was none, they help you “get into the material” and approach the main topic of the conversation.)

2. What role does his portrait characteristic play in creating the image of the main character, Lieutenant Romashov? On whose behalf is it presented, what does it reveal in Romochka’s character? Why - “Romochka”? How does the hero's name relate to his appearance?
3. How does Romashov feel in the army environment? Why does it serve? What does he dream about at the beginning of the story?
4. How does Romashov feel about the soldiers?
5. How do you characterize the hero’s relationship with Raisa Peterson? What made him break this connection? How did he do it?
6. Why did Romashov disgrace himself during the review? Is this an accident or a pattern?
7. What is revealed in the hero through his comparison with the soldier Khlebnikov and through his attitude towards this unfortunate man?
8. What happens in Romashov’s soul after the social collapse? How does he cope with his shame? How does one re-evaluate oneself, a person in general? How does he see his future life?
9. How does Romashov love? Does Shurochka reciprocate his feelings?
10. Why doesn’t Romashov refuse to participate in a drunken brawl? How does he behave, unlike his colleagues, in this situation? (Note his confrontation with Bek-Agamalov in the brothel.)
11. What brings Romashov together with Nazansky and what contrasts them to each other?
12. How does Romashov behave before the “court of honor”?
13. Why does Romashov die? Who and what is pushing him to death? What details of the story grow into symbols of the hero’s fate?
14. Why is the death of Romashov told in the dry language of protocol? (Pay attention to whose signature is on the document. Is this a coincidence?)
15. Explain the meaning of the title of the story.
16. How do you evaluate the tragic ending - as a statement of the hero’s weakness or strength, his defeat or victory?
17. What heroes of the Russian classics of the 19th century is Kuprin’s hero similar to?

Literary and critical assessments of the hero Kuprin
(they are not offered for unequivocal acceptance,
and as information for thought, points of repulsion)

“Romashov is by no means a hero, he is an average, ordinary person.”

V. Afanasyev. A. I. Kuprin. M.: IHL, 1972. P. 60.

“The inevitability of a tragic outcome arises here from deep social reasons. It is due to the separation of the Romashov-type intelligentsia from the people's soil. The hero of the story is not able to exist in the whirlpool of an inhumane society and is not able to find a place for himself among the people, to draw strength for a new life from its midst. This is what makes Romashov’s image tragic.”

A. Volkov. Creativity of A. I. Kuprin. M.: “Fiction”, 1981. P.60.

Character and personality

Personality is the inner side of character, while character is the outer side of personality.
According to S. Averintsev’s definition, character is “a personality understood objectively, someone else’s “I”, observed and described as a thing.” Personality is conceivable only “subjectively”, only as a certain “I” - a subject of self-determination: when trying to comprehend someone else’s personality, it is necessary to treat the other as oneself, “lyrically” recognizing oneself in the other. And, on the contrary, in order to comprehend your character, you have to treat yourself “epicly”: see yourself as different for others. “Character,” wrote Prishvin, “is not myself, but the appearance of myself to people.”
Personality in both historical and psychological terms is a product of responsible self-actualization of the human “I”. Character is formed during the social adaptation of the individual to external circumstances and norms, to the people around him.

V. I. Tyupa. The artistry of Chekhov's story. M.: 1989. P.33.

As material for comparison you can use:

I. Goncharov. “Oblomov” (the hero’s lifestyle, the place and condition of the books in his house, the discrepancy between dreams and reality);
L.N. Tolstoy. “War and Peace” (Bolkonsky’s dreams of heroism, of glory, the self-criticism of Tolstoy’s heroes, their attitude towards people from the people);
Yu. Polyakov. “One hundred days before the order”;
L. Yzerman. Hangover // “Banner”, 2002, No. 2 (letters from students).

Lessons No. 3-4

Lesson topic: The world of army relations in the story “The Duel.” The moral confrontation between the hero and the environment in the story.

1. How is the atmosphere of army life depicted in the story?

The general atmosphere of cruelty and impunity that reigned among officers creates the preconditions for a conflict to arise.

“The non-commissioned officers brutally beat their soldiers for an insignificant mistake in literature, for a lost leg while marching...” Violence in the story is an integral attribute of the spirit of the army: military subordination and discipline rest on it, the entire army was created by violence.

Kuprin writes about the recruits: “They stood in the regimental yard, huddled together, in the rain, like a herd of frightened and submissive animals, looking incredulously, from under their brows.” Once in the army, these young boys quickly lose their individuality: “They danced, but in this dancing, as in the singing, there was something wooden, dead, that made you want to cry.” They themselves begin to beat the soldiers: “They beat him (Khlebnikov) every day, laugh at him, mock him...”

2. What are regiment officers like? How do they feel about the service and their subordinates? What do they do with their leisure time?

Kuprin raised in his story a painful, acute problem of the Russian army of the early 1900s. Alienation, mute misunderstanding between officers and soldiers, narrow-mindedness, caste isolation, and the poverty of the educational level of Russian officers are outlined by Kuprin harshly, but accurately.

The more murder weapons are improved, the more important the question becomes about the state of morality of those who hold these weapons in their hands. Reading Kuprin’s story, we discover that among officers there is the following concept about army life: “Today we get drunk, tomorrow we go to the company - one, two, left, right. We’ll drink again in the evening, and the day after tomorrow we’ll join the company.” Is this really what life is all about?

But nothing else was offered. The officers and their wives had to be content with this routine. How wretched are their entertainments and hobbies: “In the regiment, a rather naive, boyish game was common among young officers: teaching orderlies various outlandish, unusual things.” And a person, cut off from his environment, often lost his face and succumbed to the general army “decay.” Most officers are on a low moral level. Their conversations are dirty and vulgar. They are not interested in lofty matters. I completely agree with Nazansky’s opinion: “They laugh: ha-ha-ha, this is all philosophy!.. It’s funny, and wild, and impermissible for an army infantry officer to think about sublime matters. This is philosophy, damn it, therefore it is nonsense, idle and absurd chatter.”

The creators of the army machine are deliberately lowering the moral level of officers. And this is not surprising. In order to force a person to kill his own kind, it is necessary to destroy his ideas about good and evil, about justice. But the officers are the core of the army. Consequently, the entire army was subjected to moral decay.

3. What episodes of army life appear as culminating episodes in the story? (Looking and drunken brawl.)

4. How does Romashov feel in the army environment? Why does it serve? What does he dream about at the beginning of the story? How does Romashov feel about soldiers?

5. What is revealed in the hero through his comparison with the soldier Khlebnikov and through his attitude towards this unfortunate man?

The plot of the work is everyday tragic: Second Lieutenant Romashov dies as a result of a duel with Lieutenant Nikolaev. A city intellectual in the uniform of a second lieutenant, Romashov suffers from the vulgarity and meaninglessness of life, “monotonous like a fence and gray like a soldier’s cloth.”

Romashov experiences “a surge of warm, selfless, endless compassion” for the hunted soldier Khlebnikov. The author does not idealize young Romashov and does not at all make him a fighter against the way of army life. Romashov is only capable of timid disagreement, of hesitant attempts to convince that decent people should not attack an unarmed man with a saber: “It’s dishonest to beat a soldier. That's shameful".

6. How does the theme of a duel arise and develop in the work? What is an officer's court of honor?

7. How do Romashov’s colleagues understand officer’s honor?

8. What happens in Romashov’s soul after the social collapse? How does he cope with his shame? How does one re-evaluate oneself, a person in general? How does he see his future life?

9. What brings Romashov together with Nazansky and what sets them against each other?

10. How does Romashov behave before the “court of honor”?

The atmosphere of contemptuous alienation strengthens Lieutenant Romashov. By the end of the story, he reveals firmness and strength of character. The fight becomes inevitable. His love for a married woman, Shurochka Nikolaeva, who was not ashamed to conclude a cynical deal with a man in love with her, in which his life was the stake, accelerated the denouement.

Romashov still found the strength to break with the army, although he was unable to complete his break due to his death in a duel. Romashov did not allow the army machine to erase his personal “I”. The main character of the story does not see or feel the meaning in the very existence of the army.

11. Why does Romashov die? Who and what is pushing him to death? What details of the story grow into symbols of the hero’s fate?

Kuprin warned humanity about the danger lurking in the army.

The prophecy and undoubted talent of Kuprin is that he saw in the military’s hatred of the “shpaks” the beginning of a future civil war. His book, bearing the truthful word, containing such a brilliant prophecy, is immortal.

“The Duel” was published during the days of the defeat of the Russian fleet at Tsushima. The cruel, shameful reality of the Russian-Japanese War confirmed the pathos of the story and Kuprin's diagnosis. “The Duel” became a literary and social sensation in 1905, the first months of the first Russian Revolution. The story was highly appreciated by Gorky, Stasov, Repin.

In 1918, Kuprin wrote with anger and sorrow about the collapse of the front of the First World War: “We had a wonderful army that amazed the whole world. She melted, leaving behind dirty traces..."

12. Which heroes of Russian classics X I Does Kuprin's hero look like the 10th century?

Homework: p.

We present to your attention a video lesson on the topic “A.I. Kuprin. "Duel"". The teacher emphasizes that “Duel” by A.I. Kuprin is a famous work by a Russian classic, in which he describes colorful images of Russian officers, philosophical reflections on man and the great intensity of passions. Kuprin’s story “The Duel,” written during the Russo-Japanese War, reveals painful problems that have arisen in the Russian military environment. A.I. Kuprin in this story gives a deep psychological analysis of the romantic image of the young officer Romashov, surrounded by drunkenness, debauchery and dull army life.

Topic: Russian literature of the late XIX - early XX centuries

Lesson: A.I. Kuprin: "Duel"

The story “The Duel” by A.I. Kuprin is a famous work by a Russian classic, in which he describes colorful images of Russian officers, philosophical reflections on man and the great intensity of passions. Kuprin’s story “The Duel,” written during the Russo-Japanese War, reveals painful problems that have arisen in the Russian military environment.

In 1905, the story “The Duel,” dedicated to M. Gorky, was published in the collection “Knowledge” (No. 6). It was published during the Tsushima tragedy and immediately became a significant social and literary event. The hero of the story, Second Lieutenant Romashov, to whom Kuprin gave autobiographical features, also tried to write a novel about the military: “He was drawn to write a story or a great novel, the outline of which would be the horror and boredom of military life.”

An artistic story (and at the same time a document) about a stupid and rotten officer caste to the core, about an army that rested only on the fear and humiliation of soldiers, was welcomed by the best part of the officer corps. Kuprin received grateful reviews from different parts of the country. However, most of the officers, typical heroes of the Duel, were outraged.

The story has several thematic lines: the officer environment, the combat and barracks life of soldiers, personal relationships between people. “In terms of their... purely human qualities, the officers of Kuprin’s story are very different people... almost each of the officers has the necessary minimum of “good feelings”, bizarrely mixed with cruelty, rudeness, and indifference,” O.N. spoke about the story. Mikhailov. Colonel Shulgovich, Captain Sliva, Captain Osadchy are different people, but they are all retrogrades of army education and training. Young officers, besides Romashov, are represented by Vetkin, Bobetinsky, Olizar, Lobov, Bek-Agamalov. As the embodiment of everything rude and inhuman among the officers of the regiment, Captain Osadchy stands out. A man of wild passions, cruel, full of hatred for everything, a supporter of cane discipline, he is opposed to the main character of the story, Second Lieutenant Romashov.

Rice. 3. Dubinsky D.A. Illustration for the story “The Duel” by A. I. Kuprin (1959-60) ().

The image of the main character of the story is given in dynamics. Romashov, being at first in the circle of book ideas, in the world of romantic heroics and ambitious aspirations, gradually begins to see the light. This image most fully embodied the features of Kuprin’s hero - a man with a sense of self-worth and justice, he is easily wounded, and often defenseless. Among the officers, Romashov does not find like-minded people, everyone is strangers to him, with the exception of Nazansky, in conversations with whom he takes his soul away. The painful emptiness of army life pushed Romashov into a relationship with the regimental “seductress,” Captain Peterson’s wife Raisa. Of course, this soon becomes unbearable for him.

In contrast to other officers, Romashov treats soldiers humanely. He shows concern for Khlebnikov, who is constantly humiliated and downtrodden; he may, contrary to the regulations, tell the senior officer about another injustice, but he is powerless to change anything in this system. Service oppresses him. Romashov comes to the idea of ​​denying the war: “Let’s say, tomorrow, let’s say, this very second this thought came to the minds of everyone: the Russians, the Germans, the British, the Japanese... and now there is no more war, no more officers and soldiers, everything went home." The army depersonalizes people. “What are all these cunning, folded buildings of military craft? Nothing..,” Romashov reflects during his arrest.

Romashov is a type of passive dreamer; his dream serves not as a source of inspiration, not as a stimulus for direct action, but as a means of escape, escape from reality. The attractiveness of this hero lies in his sincerity.

Romashov loves to dream and is lucky in them. But the reality is different. Romashov does not accept violence. He is bored and scared, but he is attached to this regiment. The hero reflects on what is important in life. Both money and rank are ghosts invented by people. Civilization is governed by fictions, things to which we ourselves give this power. Why does the carnage continue?

Romashov is in love with the wife of his fellow soldier. Against the background of degraded, rude officers and their wives, immersed in “cupids” and “gossip,” Alexandra Petrovna Nikolaeva, Shurochka, seems unusual. For Romashov she is ideal. Shurochka is one of Kuprin’s most successful female images. She is attractive, smart, emotional, but also reasonable and pragmatic. Shurochka seems to be truthful by nature, but lies when her interests require it. She preferred Nikolaev to Kazansky, whom she loved, but who could not take her away from the outback. “Dear Romochka,” who is close to her in his spiritual structure, who loves her ardently and unselfishly, captivates her, but also turns out to be an unsuitable match.

One of the impetus that drives this tragic story is a break with a previous lover, thereby making the hero his worst enemy (vulgar letters arrive).

Having experienced a mental crisis, he enters into a kind of duel with this world.

Rice. 5. Dubinsky D.A. Illustration for the story by A.I. Kuprin "Duel" (1959-60) ().

Preparing for the show, Romashov ends up in a debriefing session. Everyone is upset because the show is a failure. Romashov is lonely. He is tormented, wandering around the city. He is tossing around. Meets Khlebnikov (an unlucky soldier of his company). Romashov sees the beaten Klebnikov and understands how he (the soldier) is suffering. Romashov saves a soldier from committing suicide. Romashov began to think about people, he wants to change their lives. This step is scary for him because he doesn’t know how to do anything. The officers drink, walk, sing, but the song turns into a funeral service. Romashov then breaks down.

The duel with the hapless Nikolaev, which ends the story, becomes a particular expression of Romashov’s irreconcilable conflict with reality. However, simple, ordinary, “natural” Romashov, who stands out from his environment, with tragic inevitability turns out to be too weak and lonely to gain the upper hand.

Rice. 6. D. Dubinsky. Duel. Illustration for A. Kuprin's story "The Duel"

Violence, boredom, lack of life - all this must end someday. Contrasting the strong and the weak, destroying old ideas. A time will come where there will be no envy. People lack inner dignity and respect for each other.

Devoted to his beloved, charming in her own way, cheerful, but selfishly calculating Shurochka (persuades Romashov to take part in the duel), Romashov dies.

Life deals with Romashov in its own way. Reality wins. The story reveals the confrontation between man and civilization. The army that was created was created on violence and humiliation. Such an army will not win.

In 1905, Kuprin witnessed the execution of rebel sailors on the cruiser Ochakov and helped hide several survivors from the cruiser. These events were reflected in his essay “Events in Sevastopol”, after the publication of which a lawsuit was opened against Kuprin - he was forced to leave Sevastopol within 24 hours.