Characteristics of Kabanikha, the central heroine of Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm.
Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova is one of the main characters in the play "The Thunderstorm". An elderly rich merchant woman, a widow, focuses all her attention on the children, dominates and commands in the house. She was born and lived in a house-building environment, she likes this way of life and is implanted in the family.
It is the younger generation of Kabanovs who suffer first of all from such reactionary systems: daughter Varvara and son Tikhon with his wife Katerina. Kabanikha believes that fear should dominate in relationships between people and tries to instill it.
“...He won’t be afraid of you, and even less so of me. What kind of order will there be in the house?..”
She constantly finds fault with Tikhon for his softness and love for his wife. In her opinion, a wife should fear and respect her husband, and not love him. Love is an empty and even shameful feeling:
“Why are you hanging around your neck, shameless thing! You are not saying goodbye to your lover! He is your husband - the head! Don't you know the order? Bow at your feet!"
She does not know the feeling of love even in relation to children. The most important thing is that the children obey and respect her in everything, follow traditions, and do not go out from under their mother’s will. The wild boar strangles any disobedience in the bud, “eats” the family, killing in them the desire to resist and live by their own mind.
This upbringing made Tikhon a weak-willed and downtrodden man who cannot not only defend himself, but also abandons his wife to be “eaten up” by his mother. He leaves her alone with Kabanikha, without even trying to stand up for her:
"...I, it seems, mummy, don't take a step out of your will..."
To survive in such an environment, you need to be able to deceive, which is what Varvara does:
"...you remember where you live! Our whole house rests on this. And I was not a liar, but I learned when it became necessary..."
The boar is religious: she prays a lot, gives alms to the poor:
"...Well, I'm going to go pray to God; don't bother me..."
She sees sin everywhere and constantly threatens everyone with the torments of hell for their sins. Kabanikha is ignorant and an ardent opponent of progress, she is frightened and frightened by everything new and unknown, she believes the absurd inventions of the wanderer Feklushi.
The stuffy, musty atmosphere destroys the family: Katerina dies, Varvara runs away from home, even Tikhon dares to blame his mother for his wife’s death. Kabanikha's world is falling apart, despite her efforts. After all, she simply conducted business as her parents and then her husband taught her. She, too, always obeyed and did as she was told.
"...Don't judge your older self! They know more than you. Old people have clues for everything. An old person won't say a word to the wind..."
But then her husband died, the huge farm and family fell on Kabanikha’s shoulders, and she conducted business strictly, sternly, according to the behests of her ancestors. And everything collapsed, life no longer fit into the old framework, and Kabanikha found herself helpless.
Kabanikha is very rich. This can be judged because her trade affairs extend beyond Kalinov (on her instructions, Tikhon traveled to Moscow), and that Dikoy respects her. But the affairs of Kabanikha are of little interest to the playwright: she is assigned a different role in the play. If Dikiy shows the brute force of tyranny, then Kabanikha is the exponent of the ideas and principles of the “dark kingdom”. She understands that money alone does not give the authorities, another indispensable condition is the obedience of those who do not have money. And she sees her main concern in suppressing any possibility of disobedience. She “eats” her family in order to kill their will, any ability to resist. With Jesuitical sophistication, she drains the soul out of them, insults their human dignity with unfounded suspicions. She skillfully uses various techniques to assert her will.
Kabanikha can speak in a friendly and instructive way (“I know, I know that you don’t like my words, but what can I do, I’m not a stranger to you, my heart aches for you”), and hypocritically become poor (“Mother is old , stupid; well, you, young people, smart, should not exact from us, fools), and command imperiously (“Look, remember! Cut your nose!”, “Bow at your feet!”). Kabanikha is trying to show her religiosity. Words: “Oh, a grave sin! How long will it take to sin!”, “Only one sin!” - constantly accompany her speech. She supports superstitions and prejudices and strictly observes ancient customs. It is not known whether Kabanikha believes in Feklushi’s absurd fairy tales and the signs of the townspeople; she herself says nothing of the kind. But it resolutely suppresses any manifestations of free thought. She condemns Kuligin’s statements against prejudices and superstitions, and she supports the superstitious prophecies of the townspeople that “this storm will not pass in vain” and edifyingly tells her son: “Don’t judge your older self! They know more than you. Old people have signs for everything. An old man won’t say a word to the wind.” She sees both religion and ancient customs as the main goal: to push a person away, to keep him in eternal fear. She understands that only fear can keep people in subjection and prolong the shaky reign of tyrants. In response to Tikhon’s words, why should his wife be afraid of him, Kabanova exclaims in horror: “Why, why be afraid! How, why be afraid! Are you crazy, or what? He won’t be afraid of you, and he won’t be afraid of me either. What kind of order will there be in the house? After all, you, tea, live with her in law. Ali, do you think the law means nothing?” She defends the law according to which the weak should fear the strong, according to which a person should not have his own will. As a faithful guardian of this order, she teaches her household in full view of the crowd of townspeople. After Katerina’s confession, she loudly and triumphantly says to Tikhon: “What, son! Where will the will lead? I spoke, but you didn’t want to listen. That’s what I’ve been waiting for!”
In Kabanikha’s son, Tikhon, we see the living embodiment of the goal that the rulers of the “dark kingdom” strive for. They would be completely calm if they could make all people just as downtrodden and weak-willed. Thanks to the efforts of “mama,” Tikhon is so saturated with fear and humility that he does not even dare to think about living with his own mind and his own will. “Yes, Mama, I don’t want to live by my own will. Where can I live by my own will!” - he assures his mother.
But Tikhon is by nature a good person. He is kind, sympathetic, sincerely loves and pities Katerina, and is alien to any selfish aspirations. But everything human is suppressed in him by the despotism of his mother, he becomes a submissive executor of her will. However, Katerina’s tragedy forces even the submissive Tikhon to raise his voice of protest. If Tikhon’s first words in the play are: “How can I, Mama, disobey you!”, then at the end of it he desperately throws a passionate, angry accusation into his mother’s face: “You ruined her! You! You!"
The unbearable life under the yoke of Kabanikha, the longing for freedom, the desire for love and devotion - all this, which did not find a response in Tikhon, was the reason for the emergence of Katerina’s feelings for Boris. Boris is not like the other inhabitants of Kalinov. He is educated and seems to be from another world. Like Katerina, he is also oppressed, and this gives the young woman hope of finding in him a kindred spirit who can respond to her ardent feelings. But Katerina was bitterly deceived in Boris. Boris only outwardly seems better than Tikhon, but in reality he is worse than him. Like Tikhon, Boris does not have his own will and obeys without complaint.
Kabanova Marfa Ignatievna (Kabanikha) - the central heroine of the play, mother of Tikhon and Varvara, mother-in-law of Katerina. The list of characters says about her: a rich merchant's wife, a widow. In the system of characters in the play, he is the antagonist of the main character, Katerina, a contrasting comparison with whom is of decisive importance for understanding the meaning of the play. The similarity of the heroines can be seen both in their belonging to the world of patriarchal ideas and values, and in the scale and strength of their characters. Both of them are maximalists, they will never come to terms with human weaknesses, they do not allow the possibility of any compromise. The religiosity of both also has one similar feature: they both do not believe in forgiveness and do not remember mercy. However, this is where the similarities end, creating the basis for comparison and emphasizing the essentially significant antagonism of the heroines. They represent, as it were, two poles of the patriarchal world. Katerina - his poetry, spirituality, impulse, dreaminess, the spirit of the patriarchal way of life in its ideal meaning. Kabanikha is all chained to the earth and earthly affairs and interests, she is a guardian of order and form, defends the way of life in all its petty manifestations, demanding strict execution of ritual and order, not caring in the least about the inner essence of human relations (see her rude response to Katerina’s words about how her mother-in-law is like her own mother; all the teachings to her son).
K. in the play is characterized not only by her own speeches and actions, but is also discussed by other characters. For the first time, the wanderer Feklusha speaks about her: “I’m so happy, so, mother, happy, up to my neck! For our failure to leave them even more bounties, and especially to the Kabanovs’ house.” Before this remark is Kuligin’s judgment: “Prudence, sir! He gives money to the poor, but completely eats up his family.” Soon after these preliminary characteristics, K. appears, emerging from vespers, accompanied by her family, whom she constantly nags, finding fault with her son’s imaginary cooling towards her, showing jealous hostility towards his young wife and distrust of her sincere words (“For me, mamma, It’s all the same as your own mother, as you are, and Tikhon loves you”). From this conversation we learn that, in K.’s opinion, proper family order and household structure are based on the fear of the younger ones before the elders; she tells Tikhon about his relationship with his wife: “He won’t be afraid of you, and even less so of me. What kind of order will there be in the house?” Thus, if the key words in Katerina’s ideas about a happy and prosperous life in the house are “love” and “will” (see her story about life as a girl), then in K.’s ideas they are fear and order. This is especially clearly visible in the scene of Tikhon’s departure, when K. forces his son to strictly follow the rules and “order his wife” how to live without him.
K. has no doubts about the moral correctness of the hierarchical relations of patriarchal life, but he no longer has confidence in their inviolability. On the contrary, she feels almost like the last guardian of the correct world order (“This is how the old times come to be... What will happen, how the elders will die, how the light will stand, I don’t know”), and the expectation that with her death chaos will come, gives tragedy to her figure. She does not consider herself a rapist either: “After all, out of love your parents are strict with you, out of love they scold you, everyone thinks to teach you good.”
If Katerina already feels in a new way, not like Kalinov, but is not aware of this, then K., on the contrary, still feels quite in the old way, but clearly sees that her world is dying. Of course, this awareness is clothed in completely “Kalinovsky”, medieval forms of common people’s philosophizing, mainly in apocalyptic expectations. All this is revealed by her dialogue with Feklusha, the peculiarity of which is that it characterizes, first of all, K.’s worldview, although Feklusha “pronounces” these thoughts, and K. strengthens herself, wants to assure her interlocutor that they really have “paradise and silence” in their city ", but at the end of the scene her true thoughts are fully revealed in the last two remarks, as if sanctioning Feklusha’s apocalyptic reasoning: “And it will be worse than this, dear,” and in response to the words of the wanderer: “We just wouldn’t live to see this” - K. throws out weightily: “Maybe we’ll live.”
One cannot accept the very common definition of K. as “tyrant.” Tyranny is not the order of the patriarchal world, but the rampant self-will of a powerful person, who also in his own way violates the correct order and ritual. K. condemns his godfather Dikiy, a real tyrant (unlike K. herself, who strictly adheres to orders and rules), and treats with contempt his violence and complaints about his family as a sign of weakness. Those around him do not doubt K.’s strength of character (“If our mistress were to look after him, she would soon stop him,” notes the maid Glasha in response to Boris, who complains about Dikiy’s rampage). K. herself, no matter how much she punishes the children for disrespect and disobedience, would never even think of complaining to strangers about the disorder in her home. And therefore, for her, Katerina’s public recognition is a terrible blow, which will soon be joined by her son’s open rebellion in public, not to mention the escape of her daughter Varvara from home. Therefore, in the finale of “The Thunderstorm” there is not only the death of Katerina, but also the downfall of K. Of course, the antagonist of the tragic heroine does not evoke sympathy.
Kabanikha in the play "The Thunderstorm" is the antagonist of the main character, Katerina. The contrast of characters in a work is of decisive importance, revealing its meaning. The heroines are representatives of opposite poles of the patriarchal world. If Katerina is spirituality, poetry, kindness, mercy, then Marfa Ignatievna is earthiness, love of money, pettiness.
The heroine's relationship with her family
An ignorant person, rude, superstitious, a guardian of old laws, despotic, loves to teach and keep everyone in fear - this is a brief description of Kabanikha. This is a rich merchant's wife, widow, mother of Varvara and Tikhon, mother-in-law of Katerina. A woman appears to her family, her relatives, she constantly nags, lectures, tries to preserve the old ways at home and gets angry when young people do not listen to her. Kabanova Marfa Ignatievna firmly believes that order can only be restored if you keep everyone in fear.
The characterization of Kabanikha allows the reader to understand the attitude of the Old Believers to the new world. The merchant's wife raised her children in fear, and she wants to extend her power to her daughter-in-law. She constantly lectures her son, forces him to punish his wife, to keep her on a short leash. When Tikhon wonders why it is necessary to make Katerina afraid of him, because she loves him, his mother shouts at him. After all, if the daughter-in-law is not afraid of her husband, then she will not be afraid of her mother-in-law.
The merchant's relationship with others
Kabanikha regularly goes to church, surrounds herself with cliques, and regularly gives alms to the poor. The merchant's wife speaks with her godfather Dikiy as equals. Although these two belong to the same world and support the old order, Kabanikha’s characterization shows that the woman still treats the landowner’s tyranny with contempt. Marfa Ignatieva does keep her family in fear, but she does this to maintain order in the house, and not because of her violent nature. In addition, the merchant’s wife will never complain in public about problems in her family, as Dikiy does.
The last guardian of order
The image of Kabanikha is the embodiment of Old Belief, some medieval foundations. The merchant's wife suffers from the fact that her world is slowly collapsing. She sees that young people do not support her, do not respect old laws, and think in new ways. The woman is filled with some kind of apocalyptic expectations; she does not understand what will happen when all the old-timers die out, and there is no one to resist everything modern. The Kabanov House is almost the last stronghold where the dogmas of antiquity are revered.
The characterization of Kabanikha does not evoke pity for this heroine, although at the end of the play not only Katerina, but also her mother-in-law suffered. For the merchant's wife, the public confession of her daughter-in-law, her son's rebellion and her daughter's escape from home were a terrible blow. But this woman did not understand that by her non-acceptance of the modern world she led to the death of Katerina, ruined Varvara’s life and pushed Tikhon to drunkenness. No one got better from Kabanikha’s rule. But she doesn’t understand this, because the merchant’s wife, even after so many misfortunes, continues to insist on her own.
Kabanikha, aka Marfa Ignatievna Kabanova, is the central heroine of Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm,” a rich merchant’s wife, widow, mother of Tikhon and Varvara, mother-in-law of Katerina.
Kabanikha is a very strong and powerful person. She is religious, but does not believe in forgiveness and mercy. This heroine is completely immersed in earthly affairs and practical interests. First of all, she is interested in strict adherence to the patriarchal order. From those around her, she requires the obligatory fulfillment of rituals and rites. Kabanikha is not interested in people’s feelings and the emotional side of the issue.
Kabanikha is dissatisfied with her family, especially her son and daughter-in-law.
She constantly nags them, interferes in their affairs, and makes harsh remarks. It seems to her that her son has recently lost interest in her, and her daughter-in-law does not inspire confidence with her behavior. Kabanikha is sure that the correct family structure is based on the younger generation’s fear of the elder, and the wife’s fear of her husband. She believes that fear and orders are the main elements of family life, so she does not feel like a tyrant, because parents must be strict with their children in order to teach them goodness. However, Kabanikha feels that there are fewer and fewer guardians of the old way of life, the patriarchal system is gradually being destroyed, and new changes in life are coming.
For Kabanikha this is a tragedy. She is not a tyrant at all and even condemns her godfather Diky for his temper. Kabanikha considers such willful behavior and endless complaints about family members to be a manifestation of weakness of character. She herself never complains to others about her family. Kabanikha faithfully honors the traditions of her ancestors, without thinking about whether they are good or bad. She is convinced that one must live as the fathers bequeathed, this will help maintain peace and order on earth. At the end of the play, Kabanikha experiences a personal tragedy: the daughter-in-law publicly confesses her sin, the son publicly rebels against his mother, and the daughter runs away from home. Kabanikha’s world collapses, and she dies with him.
It is interesting that the play clearly shows a contrasting comparison between Kabanikha and the main character Katerina. They have similar traits: both belong to the patriarchal world with its ideas and life values, both have extraordinary strength in character and are maximalists. The heroines do not allow the possibility of compromise; they do not believe in forgiveness and mercy, although both are religious. This is where their similarities end, emphasizing the contrast of the heroines and creating the possibility of comparing them. Katerina and Kabanikha are two opposite poles of the patriarchal world. The boar is chained to the ground, she monitors the implementation of order and compliance with the way of life in all its petty manifestations. She cares little about the inner essence of human relationships. Katerina, on the contrary, embodies poetry, dreaminess, spirituality, impulse and spirit of the patriarchal way of life in its ideal manifestation.
In the play, Kabanikha is characterized not only through her own statements and actions, but also through discussions of her by other characters. The reader first learns about Kabanikha from the beggar wanderer Feklushi, who thanks the merchant’s wife for her generosity. Kuligin’s remark is immediately heard that Kabanikha is only kind to the poor, and is completely fed up with her family. And only after these introductory characteristics, Kabanikha herself appears, surrounded by her family. The reader is convinced that Kuligin’s words have a truthful basis. The merchant's wife nags her relatives and finds fault with them over trifles. Despite the meekness and sincerity of the daughter-in-law, she shows zealous hostility towards her and reproaches her son for indifference towards his mother. At the same time, Kabanikha, confident that she is right, feels that the patriarchal world is collapsing. Her apocalyptic expectations are revealed during the dialogue with Feklusha. At first, Kabanikha is still cheerful and convinces the wanderer that there is still peace and order in Kalinov. But at the end of the conversation, having listened to Feklusha’s exciting stories, she is no longer sure that this order will last long.
Kabanikha is a powerful and cruel woman, completely confident that she is right. She believes that maintaining the ancient order and way of life is a guarantee of protecting the home from external chaos. Therefore, she manages her household harshly and firmly, abandoning unnecessary emotions, not knowing mercy and doing without forgiveness. She strives to completely eradicate any hint of insubordination on the part of her family, and punishes every offense severely and coldly. While humiliating and insulting her loved ones, she treats strangers with piety and respect.
The image of Kabanikha is monumental; he is the living embodiment of “cruel morals”. The heroine is revealed in the work as an honest and terrible, in her strict consistency, keeper of the graceless “law”, not enlightened by Christian love. She does not evoke pity, but it is also difficult to condemn her. Causing pain and suffering to loved ones, she is sincerely convinced that her behavior is absolutely correct and it is impossible to live differently.