The theme of the motherland in the work of Blok A.A

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Each poet portrayed his Motherland in his own way. Someone in the image of a mother, someone claimed that the native land is a mother or a beloved. Others personified her, tried to show her as a separate person who also worries, suffers, loves and endures.

Alexander Alexandrovich managed to combine several options for images. At the same time, with each new poem, a new image of the Motherland opens up in Blok's lyrics. But this does not mean that his perception of his native land is dissipating, his attitude towards it is changing. The poet understands and accepts the Motherland in all its versatility, greatness and poverty, grace and suffering.

The concept of the Motherland for the Block

The theme of the Motherland was not present in Blok's work from the very beginning. She became the summing up stage of his life. But it was he who became one of the most important in the fate of the poet.

Block did not come to this topic right away. She appeared after the long wanderings of the poet and many endured sufferings. This contributed to the complete immersion of A. Blok in the topic. And that is why he did not limit himself to the stereotyped image of the Motherland, as some kind of abstract value. Or, conversely, howa certain territory, the existence of which is limited in the space-temporal continuum.

That is, Russia does not exist for him only now, and only from one border pillar to another along the surface. It penetrates things and fates, dissipates in the air, soaks into the ground.

It is natural that with such an understanding and experience of the theme, the image of the Motherland in the work of Blok cannot have one face and the same reflection in the mirror of poetic skill.

Variants of the image of the Motherland Block

In order to accurately reflect his feelings about his native land, Blok used his poetic image in several versions. Literary scholars distinguish such options in which the Motherland is displayed in Blok's lyrics:

• fairytale - not a personified image of a magical land, with fabulous creatures, riddles, mysterious forests;
• romance - Motherland is depicted as the beloved of a young boy, tender, quivering, unique;
• historicism is a land that has a past, its own history, and they cannot be ignored;
• poverty and suffering are not so much an image of the Motherland as a generalization of its inhabitants who are going through hard times. But at the same time, they do not betray their land, but accept it as it is, but with the hope of positive changes;
• generalized image of a living being - Motherland is a living being similar to a person, but the characteristic is given only through abstract concepts, and not concretization of certain featuresappearance;
• optimism - in this vein, Blok expresses his hopes for a bright future for the country, believes in the coming favorable changes.

Fairy tale motifs in the picture

The image of Russia as a fabulous, mythical land is found in the poem "Rus". Not only the landscape described is reminiscent of the folklore characteristics of the imaginary area, but also the mention of unreal creatures such as witches, sorcerers, soothsayers, devils, and others. Elements of the environment - wilds, swamps - are also often used in mythological stories.

The colors that come to mind in this description are predominantly black, grey, dirty green, brown.

But the abrupt transition to a calm, peaceful contemplation of nature not only makes it clear that the first impression was wrong. Such a sharp contrast emphasizes the mystery of Russia - now darkness and fears, then silence and laziness (the sea lazily washes the shores, the yellow cliff, the fields).

Romanticizing the image of the Motherland

But the mythologization of the image of the Motherland is not Blok's innovation. Many of his predecessors turned to this technique. Another thing is that he presented a fairy tale and reality in sharp contrast.

As you know, mythical images are inherent in the era of romanticism. But Blok was not a romantic, because the sublime images in his poetry take on a different character than those of their predecessors. So, the poet approached the fate of the Motherland not from the philosophical, abstract side. He loved Russia as one loves a woman - selflessly, passionately.

But howAlexander Alexandrovich himself said, this is because in the world of poetry, in which he strives to be everywhere, there is no division into his own and the common. Everything in common that touches the very heart of the poet automatically becomes personal. The intimate in poetry is put on public display, in order to be heard and understood.

Motherland is a woman. Beloved, a young beauty, a wife, but not a mother, as Blok's predecessors represented her in their work. This is an unbridled, strong, alluring diva, but at the same time gentle, meek, beautiful. The poet succumbs to the image of intimization, endowing it with those features that are inherent in the Beautiful Lady sung by him.

As a decadent, he claims that only beauty is worth loving. Suffering is also a sublime feeling that everyone should accept and let through themselves, but at the same time not lose themselves. Therefore, in order to love Russia, you first need to feel compassion for it, to comprehend the depth of its sorrows.

Russia in a diachronic context

The theme of the Motherland in Blok's work is not limited only to the contemporary of the author. In order to better understand the nature of such a phenomenon, he resorted to historical digressions.

The concept of Russia, Motherland Blok identifies, and therefore the history of the country is inseparable from the life of every person inhabiting it. This is if we consider the concepts in a romantic context, too. So, we are interested in the past of the beloved, her fate, as a patriot - history beckons.

The cycle of poems "On the field of Kulikovo" is dedicated to the history of Russia. He gives a panoramicimage of the life of the country from the Mongol-Tatar yoke to the present. In addition, the poet expresses hopes for a bright future for Russia, because she is striving forward, has overcome a lot, suffered, and after this, prosperity invariably comes.

Russia is poor and long-suffering

As in the contrast of landscapes, Russia is a heterogeneous country in general prosperity. We are talking about the poverty of individual citizens, which is adjacent to the incredible we alth of others, and the fate of the country as a whole. Hardly worried about the share of his native land in difficult political and economic conditions, the poet nevertheless expresses deep confidence that everything will change.

Even in the "golden years" in Russia, "three worn-out harnesses" were frayed, and painted knitting needles were tied into loose ruts. That is, everyone tries to acquire personal material well-being, forgetting about the public. This is one of the key, according to the author, problems of Russian society.

With all the external begging, Blok focuses on the fertile soil, the we alth of the earth. The poet describes the feeling of love for the Motherland as pure, naive, virgin. It is the theme of the Motherland in Blok's poetry that echoes the motives of feelings about first love and its tears. He endures the same suffering, crystal clear, unsullied, when he thinks about the fate of the country.

Personalized image without reference to specifics

A new vision of the image of the native land gives us an analysis of the poem "Motherland". Block in its cycle gives us an understanding of the image of Russiaas well as beings personified. But at the same time there is no binding to a specific personality or a collective image.

Motherland acts as something, or rather, someone generalized. Alive yet ephemeral. She stands behind the soul of the author as his main we alth and greatest suffering.

The country breaks away from the earthly, material and appears as the highest matter. Rather, this is not the image of the Motherland itself, but love for it. This suggests Blok's partial departure from decadence. He lives in the not material world, but in the sublime, detached from earthly concerns. But he immediately admits to being attached to a real being - the Motherland.

Optimism in the image of Russia

With all the pessimistic, at first glance, image of Russia, the theme of the Motherland in Blok's poetry is still highlighted in an optimistic manner. The author hopes for a quick change in the situation. He explains this with a simple law of justice, which will surely triumph. Russia, which has undergone many revolutions, wars, devastation, poverty, simply cannot but become a super-strong rich power.

He compares her to a troika that is harnessed by dashing horses who do not know rest. Such people are not afraid of either the “loose track” or the blizzard.

So the cycle of poems was born, which at that time only Blok could write - "Motherland". Analysis of poems from the cycle gives confidence in a brighter future and hope for better times.

Means for creating the image of the Motherland

One of the most common means a poet uses ispersonification. The theme of the Motherland in Blok's work takes on a close sound, Russia itself turns either into a young girl, or into a wild and unbridled woman, or becomes a fabulous place.

The theme of the Motherland in Blok's poetry is also revealed through the development of the image. Almost all options for presenting the image are built on this, to a greater or lesser extent, which is confirmed by the analysis of the poem. "Rodina", Blok knowingly chose such a simple name for the cycle. This is the result of the poet's work, the expression on paper of all his thoughts and anxieties that have accumulated throughout his life.

Blok's innovation in the image of the Motherland

The poet's predecessors, when depicting the Motherland, also used such a tool as personification. And many of them revived the image, instilling it in a female form. But the theme of the Motherland in Blok's work acquired a new meaning - this is not a mother, as others described her, but a girlfriend, bride, wife. That is, she walks shoulder to shoulder with the lyrical hero both in grief and joy. And she does not patronize, but she herself needs protection.

It is also unusual to present the image in the form of something alive, but at the same time abstract. Russia is not a picture, an image, but an object that everyone associates with their things.