What is Goncharov cliff about? "Cliff

Ivan Aleksandrovich Goncharov

Part one

Two gentlemen were sitting in a carelessly decorated apartment in St. Petersburg, on one of the big streets. One was about thirty-five and the other was about forty-five years old.

The first was Boris Pavlovich Raisky, the second was Ivan Ivanovich Ayanov.

Boris Pavlovich had a lively, extremely mobile physiognomy. At first glance, he seemed younger than his years: his large white forehead shone with freshness, his eyes changed, sometimes they lit up with thoughts, feelings, gaiety, sometimes they became thoughtful and dreamy, and then they seemed young, almost youthful. Sometimes they looked mature, tired, bored and exposed the age of their owner. Even two or three slight wrinkles gathered around the eyes, these indelible signs of time and experience. Smooth black hair fell to the back of the head and over the ears, and at the temples there were a few white hairs. The cheeks, as well as the forehead, around the eyes and mouth still retained their youthful color, but at the temples and around the chin the color was yellowish-swarthy.

In general, one could easily guess from the face that time of life when the struggle between youth and maturity had already taken place, when a person moved to the second half of life, when every lived experience, feeling, illness leaves a trace. Only his mouth retained, in the elusive play of thin lips and in his smile, a young, fresh, sometimes almost childish expression.

Raisky was dressed in a gray home coat and sat with his feet up on the sofa.

Ivan Ivanovich, on the contrary, was in a black tailcoat. White gloves and a hat lay next to him on the table. His face was distinguished by calmness or, rather, indifferent expectation to everything that might happen around him.

A smart look, intelligent lips, a dark-yellowish complexion, beautifully trimmed, heavily grayed hair on his head and sideburns, moderate movements, restrained speech and an impeccable suit - this is his outer portrait.

On his face one could read the calm self-confidence and understanding of others peeping out of his eyes. “A man has grown old, knows life and people,” an observer will say about him, and if he does not classify him as a special, superior nature, then even less so as a naive nature.

He was a representative of the majority of natives of universal St. Petersburg and at the same time what is called a secular person. He belonged to St. Petersburg and the world, and it would be difficult to imagine him anywhere in another city other than St. Petersburg, and in another sphere other than the world, that is, the well-known upper stratum of the St. Petersburg population; although he has both a job and his own affairs, you most often meet him in most living rooms, in the morning - on visits, at dinners, at evenings: at the latter he is always at cards. He is so-so: neither character, nor spinelessness, nor knowledge, nor ignorance, nor conviction, nor skepticism.

Ignorance or lack of conviction is clothed in the form of some kind of easy, superficial denial of everything: he treated everything carelessly, not sincerely bowing to anything, not deeply believing in anything and not being particularly partial to anything. A little mocking, skeptical, indifferent and even in relations with everyone, not giving anyone constant and deep friendship, but also not pursuing anyone with persistent enmity.

He was born, studied, grew up and lived to old age in St. Petersburg, without traveling further than Lakhta and Oranienbaum on one side, Toksov and Srednyaya Rogatka on the other. From this, the whole St. Petersburg world, all St. Petersburg practicality, morals, tone, nature, service were reflected in him, like the sun in a drop, - this second St. Petersburg nature, and nothing more.

He had no view of any other life, no concepts other than those given by his own and foreign newspapers. St. Petersburg passions, the St. Petersburg view, the St. Petersburg annual routine of vices and virtues, thoughts, deeds, politics and even, perhaps, poetry - this is where his life revolved, and he did not break out of this circle, finding in it complete satisfaction to his nature to the point of luxury.

He indifferently watched for forty years in a row, how with each spring crowded steamships sailed abroad, stagecoaches, and then carriages, left for the interior of Russia; how crowds of people moved “in a naive mood” to breathe different air, freshen up, seek impressions and entertainment.

He had never felt such a need, and he did not recognize it in others either, but looked at them, at these others, calmly, indifferently, with a very decent expression on his face and a look that said: “Let them be my own, but I won’t go.” "

He spoke simply, moving freely from subject to subject, and always knew about everything that was happening in the world, in the world and in the city; followed the details of the war, if there was a war, learned with indifference about changes in the English or French ministry, read last speech in parliament and in the French Chamber of Deputies, always knew about the new play and about who was stabbed to death at night on Vyborg side. Knew the genealogy, state of affairs and estates and the scandalous chronicle of each big house capital Cities; He knew every minute what was going on in the administration, about changes, promotions, awards - he also knew the city gossip - in a word, he knew his world well.

His mornings were spent wandering around the world, that is, in living rooms, partly on business and work; he often began the evening with a performance, and always ended with cards at the English Club or with friends, and everyone was familiar to him.

He played cards without making mistakes and had a reputation as a pleasant player, because he was lenient towards the mistakes of others, never got angry, and looked at a mistake with the same decency as an excellent move. Then he played both big and small, both with big players and with capricious ladies.

He completed his military service well, having spent about fifteen years in offices, in positions of executor of other people's projects. He subtly guessed the boss’s thoughts, shared his view of the matter and deftly set out various projects on paper. The boss changed, and with him the view and the project: Ayanov worked just as smartly and deftly with a new boss, on a new project - and his memos were liked by all the ministers under whom he served.

Now he was with one of them on special assignments. In the mornings he came to his office, then to his wife in the living room and actually carried out some of her instructions, and in the evenings in allotted days he would certainly form a party with whomever they asked. He had a fairly large rank and salary - and no business.

If one is allowed to penetrate into someone else's soul, then in the soul of Ivan Ivanovich there was no darkness, no secrets, nothing mysterious ahead, and Macbeth's witches themselves would have found it difficult to seduce him with some more brilliant lot or take away from him the one to which he was marching so consciously and worthy. Promote from civilian to actual civil servant, and in the end, for long-term and useful service and “indefatigable work”, both in service and in the cards, to privy councilor and drop anchor in the port, in some imperishable commission or committee , with the preservation of salaries - and there, worry about the human ocean, the century changes, the fate of peoples, kingdoms fly into the abyss - everything will fly past him until an apoplectic or other blow stops the course of his life.

Question about meaning historical movement, about the content of progress, which formed the grain of the problematics of “Ordinary History”, which illuminated many episodes of “Oblomov” with tragic doubt and a call for analysis, sounded with renewed vigor in last novel Goncharov "Break".

The novel “The Break” (1869, separate edition - 1870) was pondered by the writer for two decades, and Goncharov was ready to put aside “Oblomov” in order to turn to a simpler work, formed under the direct impression of visiting his native Volga places.

And, however, the implementation of the novel was postponed. Inner work walked over him slowly and gradually. The experience of life, reflections, and ideal aspirations of the writer over many years is reflected in the novel. At the same time, the novel also has features characteristic of late period writer's activities.

In “Ordinary History” the question about the essence of Russian progress was asked, but the answer to it not only was not presented by the writer in finished form, but it was even somewhat complicated by the “warnings” consistently pumped up in the story against single-line, unambiguous conclusions.

In “Oblomov,” Goncharov creates the term “Oblomovism” and insists on this ready-made generalization, but leaves it to readers and critic-interpreters to explain “what Oblomovism is.” At the end of the novel, he complicates the solution to this issue with a lyrical depiction of the spiritual riches discovered by man in the conditions of a passing patriarchal life.

In “The Precipice,” the writer tries to come to clear and definitely formulated assessments of the paths of Russian historical progress, its dangers and positive prospects. If in “Ordinary History” and “Oblomov” a clear, transparent composition is combined with a complicated interpretation of the problems posed, then in “The Precipice” there is a fragmented structure, which is determined by one or the other central problem, is accompanied by unambiguity and finality of fundamental decisions.

The composition of the novel was complicated by the variety of impressions that poured into it, responses to pressing issues, observations and types that “blurred” the main stream of the narrative. It should be noted, however, that Goncharov did not fall under the control of the immediate flow of creative imagination.

He “brought” outward, to the level of artistically comprehended life phenomena, the process of his own long-term adaptation to a creative idea and made it the subject of literary depiction.

The original concept of the novel was to be centered around the problem of the artist and his place in society. Along with this, obviously, the depiction of “deep” Russian life and the emerging process of its renewal was also assumed already at early stage work on the work. It was inspired by the writer’s visit to his native Simbirsk places in 1849.

According to the original plan, the novel was to be called “The Artist” and central character, around which the action was formed, was to serve as Paradise. Then the main interest of the novel shifted - and the writer planned to call it “Faith” accordingly.

Both themes are the theme of the artist and the theme of spiritual quest modern girl- were relevant in the 50s, the first of them especially occupied the minds of Russian writers during the dark seven years, during the years of reaction and government persecution of all free thought and literature in particular, the second attracted attention at the end of the decade, in in an environment of clearly defined social upsurge.

Turgenev in the novel “On the Eve” managed to organically combine both of these themes, including the type of artist (Shubin) in the system of others modern types and judging it as secondary to the type public figure, a democrat and revolutionary, more in line with the needs of society, waiting and thirsting for social change.

Goncharov developed the type of his artist in accordance with the ideas of the Sovremennik circle of the early 50s, in which both Turgenev and Goncharov played an important role. The image of the artist - poet, writer, painter - in their work is associated with the problem of the position of the noble intelligentsia, “ extra person”, originating from the nobility, but opposing himself to it.

How to maintain such a personality, especially one suffering from aggression social stereotypes modern society, how to protect it from the corrosive influence of political reaction, bullying, how to promote the realization of one’s own internal potentials, when participation in any serious business is impossible without a difficult, sometimes overwhelming struggle? These questions worried many writers in the era of the “gloomy seven years”.

Both Turgenev and Goncharov saw their solution in the inclusion of gifted and educated people To professional activity, in the service of science and art as a social task. IN different aspects the same set of problems interested Nekrasov, Tolstoy, and many other writers in the early 50s.

In 1857, in the story “Asya,” Turgenev raised the question of noble amateurism and its destructive impact on creative forces, however, already here reflections on art were pushed aside by socio-psychological issues.

In "Fathers and Sons" Turgenev showed the unpopularity of the idea of art as highest form activities in modern society and the process of transition of hegemony in the spheres theoretical thinking and practices scientific activity to the democrats, commoners. In the 60s, when Goncharov was working on “The Precipice,” the artist’s theme did not sound relevant.

Its new revival gradually began in the late 70s. as overcoming the prevailing views and sentiments among the intelligentsia, which gradually became cliches. G. Uspensky’s essay “Straightened Up” and Chekhov’s story “The House with a Mezzanine” are directed against such cliches. Naturally, therefore, it grew into the 60s. the idea of a novel about an artist into a narrative about the drama of finding one’s way in a modern “swaying” society (Vera) and about the “cliff” to which untrodden paths to the future lead.

However, the artist remained in the novel the compositional focus, the core, the connector and organizer of the narrative. At the same time, the artist performed in Goncharov’s “Precipice” not as a professional, but as an artistic person who worships beauty, an esthete. The hero of the novel, Raisky, freely moves from writing stories to working as a portrait painter and from visual arts back to trying to create literary work large form - a novel.

In an effort to express himself in art, Raisky faces the need to correlate the content of his personality - his ideals and beliefs - with reality in its various manifestations; this is how two narrative planes arise in a novel: the hero and reality, modern life in its stable, traditional manifestations and dynamics.

Characterizing reality, time, its needs and ideas, Goncharov, as in “An Ordinary History,” contrasts St. Petersburg and the province, but in “The Precipice,” the hero, unlike Aduev, experiences life not through an attempt to find his career and fortune, but through penetration into the world of beauty, through the desire to unravel in artistic image the personality of women who, in his opinion, are worthy of becoming a subject of art.

Goncharov himself believed that the hero of “The Cliff” Raisky is “the son of Oblomov”, the development of the same type in the new historical stage, at the moment of awakening of society. Indeed, Oblomov in his youth dreamed of being introduced to art, of artistic activity.

Raisky is a wealthy landowner, free from any responsibilities and from labor for the sake of existence, a creative person by nature. Accustomed to comfort and not without sybaritic traits, he at the same time cannot live without creative activities.

He is ready to transfer his estate and ancestral jewelry to his grandmother and cousins - neither elite, neither luxury, nor even prosperous family life don't attract him. However, his sybaritic enjoyment of art and life constantly prevails over life’s risk, a vested interest in the environment, on the one hand, and over selfless service to creativity, on the other. Life and art are willfully mixed in his existence.

He falls in love with the objects of his image, tries “for the sake of art” and beauty to change the character of the person whose image he wants to capture on canvas. He “gets rid of” the impressions of life, the worries and disappointments of love, the unpleasant sensations at the sight of a suffering woman, turning his experiences into stories.

Thus, freely moving from the practical sphere to art and back, he arbitrarily frees himself from moral responsibility for the act (from acting person he suddenly becomes an observer) and from persistent, exhausting work, without which the creation of truly artistic works is impossible.

Some uncertainty in the development of the novel’s plot finds its justification in the way nature is interpreted in it. artistic creativity. Raisky's life, with its twists and turns, with the chaotic nature of his quests and the arbitrariness of his actions, with the whims and delusions of a spoiled gentleman-artist, slowly unfolds before the eyes of the author.

The writer “observes” the hero year after year, but the hero, in turn, living, suffering and enjoying, collects material for the novel. This is how Goncharov turns his long work on the novel into aesthetic fact, into an element of the structure of the work.

History of Russian literature: in 4 volumes / Edited by N.I. Prutskov and others - L., 1980-1983.

The St. Petersburg day is approaching evening, and everyone who usually gathers at the card table begins to put themselves in appropriate shape by this hour. Two friends - Boris Pavlovich Raisky and Ivan Ivanovich Ayanov - are going to spend this evening again in the Pakhotin house, where the owner himself, Nikolai Vasilyevich, his two sisters, old maids Anna Vasilievna and Nadezhda Vasilievna, live, as well as a young widow, Pakhotin’s daughter, a beauty Sofya Belovodova, who is the main interest in this house for Boris Pavlovich.

Ivan Ivanovich is a simple, unpretentious man, he goes to the Pakhotins only to play cards with avid gamblers, old maids. Another thing is Paradise; he needs to stir up Sophia, his distant relative, turning her from a cold marble statue into a living woman full of passions.

Boris Pavlovich Raisky is obsessed with passions: he draws a little, writes a little, plays music, putting the strength and passion of his soul into all his activities. But this is not enough - Raisky needs to awaken the passions around him in order to constantly feel himself in the boiling of life, at that point of contact of everything with everything, which he calls Ayanov: “Life is a novel, and a novel is life.” We get to know him at the moment when “Raisky is over thirty years old, and he has not yet sowed, reaped, or walked on any of the ruts that those who come from inside Russia walk on.”

Having once arrived in St. Petersburg from family estate, Raisky, having learned a little of everything, did not find his calling in anything.

He understood only one thing: the main thing for him was art; something that particularly touches the soul, making it burn with passionate fire. In this mood, Boris Pavlovich goes on vacation to the estate, which, after the death of his parents, is managed by his great-aunt Tatyana Markovna Berezhkova, an old maid who, in time immemorial, was not allowed by her parents to marry her chosen one, Tit Nikonovich Vatutin. He remained a bachelor and he continues to visit Tatyana Markovna all his life, never forgetting gifts for her and the two girls relatives whom she raises - the orphans Verochka and Marfenka.

Malinovka, Raisky's estate, a blessed corner in which there is a place for everything pleasing to the eye. Only the terrible cliff that ends the garden frightens the inhabitants of the house: according to legend, at the bottom of it in ancient times “he killed his wife and rival for infidelity, and then he stabbed himself to death, alone jealous husband, a tailor from the city. The suicide was buried here, at the crime scene.”

Tatyana Markovna joyfully greeted her grandson who had arrived for the holidays - she tried to introduce him to the business, show him the farm, get him interested in it, but Boris Pavlovich remained indifferent to both the farm and the necessary visits. Only poetic impressions could touch his soul, and they had nothing to do with the city’s thunderstorm, Nil Andreevich, to whom his grandmother certainly wanted to introduce him, nor with the provincial coquette Polina Karpovna Kritskaya, nor with the popular popular family of old men Molochkovs, like Philemon and Baucis who had lived their lives inseparable...

The holidays flew by, and Raisky returned to St. Petersburg. Here, at the university, he became close to Leonty Kozlov, the son of a deacon, “clogged with poverty and timidity.” It is unclear what could bring such different young people together: a young man dreaming of becoming a teacher somewhere in a remote Russian corner, and a restless poet, artist, obsessed with the passions of a romantic young man. However, they became truly close to each other.

But university life ended, Leonty left for the province, and Raisky still cannot find a real job in life, continuing to be an amateur. And his white marble cousin Sophia still seems to Boris Pavlovich to be the most important goal in life: to awaken a fire in her, to make her experience what the “thunderstorm of life” is, to write a novel about her, to draw her portrait... He spends all the evenings with the Pakhotins, preaching to Sophia the truth life. On one of these evenings, Sophia’s father, Nikolai Vasilyevich, brings Count Milari, “an excellent musician and a most amiable young man,” to the house.

Returning home on that memorable evening, Boris Pavlovich cannot find a place for himself: he either peers at the portrait of Sophia he began, or rereads the essay he once started about a young woman in whom he managed to awaken passion and even lead her to a “fall” - alas , Natasha is no longer alive, and the true feeling was never captured in the pages he wrote. “The episode, turned into a memory, seemed to him like an alien event.”

Meanwhile, summer came, Raisky received a letter from Tatyana Markovna, in which she called her grandson to the blessed Malinovka, and a letter also came from Leonty Kozlov, who lived near Raisky’s family estate. “This is fate sending me...” decided Boris Pavlovich, already bored with awakening passions in Sofya Belovodova. In addition, there was a slight embarrassment - Raisky decided to show the portrait he painted of Sofia to Ayanov, and he, looking at Boris Pavlovich’s work, pronounced his verdict: “She looks like she’s drunk here.” The artist Semyon Semenovich Kirilov did not appreciate the portrait, but Sofia herself found that Raisky flattered her - she is not like that...

The first person that Raisky meets in the estate is a young charming girl who does not notice him, busy feeding poultry. Her whole appearance breathes such freshness, purity, and grace that Raisky understands that here, in Malinovka, he is destined to find the beauty in search of which he languished in cold Petersburg.

Raisky is joyfully greeted by Tatyana Markovna, Marfenka (she turned out to be that same girl), and the servants. Only cousin Vera is visiting her priest friend across the Volga. And again, the grandmother tries to captivate Raisky with household chores, which still do not interest Boris Pavlovich at all - he is ready to give the estate to Vera and Marfenka, which angers Tatyana Markovna...

In Malinovka, despite the joyful efforts associated with the arrival of Raisky, there is everyday life: the servant Savely is called upon to give an account of everything to the arriving landowner, Leonty Kozlov teaches the children.

But here's a surprise: Kozlov turned out to be married, and to whom! On Ulenka, the flirtatious daughter of “the housekeeper of some government institution in Moscow,” where they kept a table for incoming students. They were all a little in love with Ulenka then, only Kozlov did not notice her cameo profile, but it was him who she eventually married and went to the far corner of Russia, to the Volga. Various rumors are circulating about her around the city, Ulenka warns Raisky about what he might hear, and asks in advance not to believe anything - obviously in the hope that he, Boris Pavlovich, will not remain indifferent to her charms...

Returning home, Raisky finds an estate full of guests - Tit Nikonovich, Polina Karpovna, everyone has come to look at the mature owner of the estate, his grandmother's pride. And many sent congratulations on your arrival. And the usual one rolled along the well-trodden rut country life with all its charms and joys. Raisky gets to know the surrounding area and delves into the lives of people close to him. The servants sort out their relationship, and Raisky witnesses Savely’s wild jealousy towards his unfaithful wife Marina, Vera’s trusted servant. This is where true passions boil!..

And Polina Karpovna Kritskaya? Who would willingly succumb to Raisky’s sermons if it occurred to him to captivate this aging coquette! She literally goes out of her way to attract his attention, and then spread the news throughout the town that Boris Pavlovich could not resist her. But Raisky shrinks away in horror from the love-crazed lady.

Quietly, calmly the days drag on in Malinovka. Only Vera still doesn’t return from the priesthood; Boris Pavlovich does not waste time - he tries to “educate” Marfenka, slowly finding out her tastes and passions in literature and painting, in order to begin to awaken in her true life. Sometimes he goes to Kozlov’s house. And one day he meets Mark Volokhov there: “fifteenth grade, an official under police supervision, an involuntary citizen of the local city,” as he himself recommends.

Mark seems to Raisky to be a funny person - he has already heard a lot of horrors about him from his grandmother, but now, having met him, he invites him to dinner. Their impromptu dinner with the inevitable burning in Boris Pavlovich’s room awakens Tatyana Markovna, who is afraid of fires, and she is horrified by the presence in the house of this man, who has fallen asleep like a little dog - without a pillow, curled up in a ball.

Mark Volokhov also considers it his duty to awaken people - only, unlike Raisky, not a specific woman from the sleep of the soul to the storm of life, but abstract people - to worries, dangers, reading forbidden books. He does not think of hiding his simple and cynical philosophy, which almost all boils down to his personal benefit, and is even charming in his own way in such childish openness. And Raisky is carried away by Mark - his nebula, his mystery, but it is at this moment that the long-awaited Vera returns from across the Volga.

She turns out to be completely different from what Boris Pavlovich expected to see her - closed, not going to frank confessions and conversations, with their small and big secrets, riddles. Raisky understands how necessary it is for him to unravel his cousin, to know her secret life, the existence of which he does not doubt for a moment...

And gradually the wild Savely awakens in the refined Raisky: just as this servant watches his wife Marina, so Raisky “knew at every minute where she was, what she was doing. In general, his abilities, focused on one subject that occupied him, were refined to incredible subtlety, and now, in this silent observation of Vera, they reached the degree of clairvoyance.”

Meanwhile, grandmother Tatyana Markovna dreams of marrying Boris Pavlovich to the daughter of a tax farmer, so that he can settle in his native land forever. Raisky refuses such an honor - there are so many mysterious things around, things that need to be unraveled, and he suddenly falls into such prose at his grandmother’s will!.. Moreover, there are indeed a lot of events unfolding around Boris Pavlovich. A young man, Vikentyev, appears, and Raisky instantly sees the beginning of his romance with Marfenka, their mutual attraction. Vera is still killing Raisky with her indifference, Mark Volokhov has disappeared somewhere, and Boris Pavlovich goes to look for him. However, this time Mark is not able to entertain Boris Pavlovich - he keeps hinting that he knows well about Raisky’s attitude towards Vera, about her indifference and the fruitless attempts of the capital’s cousin to awaken the provincial girl. living soul. Finally, Vera herself cannot stand it: she resolutely asks Raisky not to spy on her everywhere, to leave her alone. The conversation ends as if with reconciliation: now Raisky and Vera can calmly and seriously talk about books, about people, about each of them’s understanding of life. But this is not enough for Raisky...

Tatyana Markovna Berezhkova nevertheless insisted on something, and one fine day the entire city society was invited to Malinovka for a gala dinner in honor of Boris Pavlovich. But a decent acquaintance does not work out - a scandal breaks out in the house, Boris Pavlovich openly tells the venerable Nil Andreevich Tychkov everything that he thinks about him, and Tatyana Markovna herself, unexpectedly for herself, takes the side of her grandson: “Bloated with pride, and pride is a drunken vice , brings oblivion. Sober up, stand up and bow: Tatyana Markovna Berezhkova stands before you!” Tychkov is expelled from Malinovka in disgrace, and Vera, conquered by Paradise’s honesty, kisses him for the first time. But this kiss, alas, does not mean anything, and Raisky is going to return to St. Petersburg, to his usual life, his usual surroundings.

True, neither Vera nor Mark Volokhov believe in his imminent departure, and Raisky himself cannot leave, feeling the movement of life around him, inaccessible to him. Moreover, Vera is again leaving for the Volga to visit her friend.

In her absence, Raisky tries to find out from Tatyana Markovna: what kind of person Vera is, what exactly are the hidden features of her character. And he learns that the grandmother considers herself unusually close to Vera, loves her with a deep, respectful, compassionate love, seeing in her, in a sense, her own repetition. From her, Raisky also learns about a man who does not know “how to approach, how to woo” Vera. This is the forester Ivan Ivanovich Tushin.

Not knowing how to get rid of thoughts about Vera, Boris Pavlovich allows Kritskaya to take him to her house, from there he goes to Kozlov, where Ulenka meets him with open arms. And Raisky could not resist her charms...

On a stormy night, Tushin brings Vera on his horses - finally, Raisky has the opportunity to see the man Tatyana Markovna told him about. And again he is obsessed with jealousy and is going to St. Petersburg. And again he remains, unable to leave without unraveling the mystery of Vera.

Raisky even manages to alarm Tatyana Markovna with constant thoughts and reasoning that Vera is in love, and her grandmother is planning an experiment: family reading an edifying book about Cunegonde, who fell in love against the will of her parents and ended her days in a monastery. The effect turns out to be completely unexpected: Vera remains indifferent and almost falls asleep over the book, and Marfenka and Vikentyev, thanks to the edifying novel, declare their love to the nightingale singing. The next day, Vikentyev’s mother, Marya Egorovna, arrives in Malinovka - official matchmaking and conspiracy take place. Marfenka becomes a bride.

And Vera?.. Her chosen one is Mark Volokhov. It is he who goes on dates to the cliff where a jealous suicide is buried; it is him who she dreams of calling her husband, first remaking him in her own image and likeness. Vera and Mark are separated by too much: all the concepts of morality, goodness, decency, but Vera hopes to persuade her chosen one to what is right in “ old truth" Love and honor for her are not empty words. Their love is more like a duel of two convictions, two truths, but in this duel the characters of Mark and Vera emerge more and more clearly.

Raisky still does not know who was chosen as his cousin. He is still immersed in a mystery, still looks gloomily at his surroundings. Meanwhile, the peace of the town is shaken by Ulenka’s flight from Kozlov with her teacher Monsieur Charles. Leonty's despair is boundless; Raisky and Mark are trying to bring Kozlov to his senses.

Yes, passions are truly boiling around Boris Pavlovich! A letter from Ayanov has already been received from St. Petersburg, in which an old friend talks about Sophia’s affair with Count Milari - in strict concept what happened between them was not a romance, but the world regarded Belovodova’s “false step” as compromising her, and thus the relationship between the Pakhotin house and the count ended.

A letter that could have recently offended Raisky, especially strong impression does not affect him: all the thoughts, all the feelings of Boris Pavlovich are completely occupied with Vera. The evening comes unnoticed on the eve of Marfenka's engagement. Vera again goes into the cliff, and Raisky is waiting for her on the very edge, understanding why, where and to whom his unfortunate cousin, obsessed with love, went. An orange bouquet, ordered for Marfenka for her celebration, which coincided with her birthday, is cruelly thrown out of the window by Raisky to Vera, who falls unconscious at the sight of this gift...

The next day, Vera falls ill - her horror lies in the fact that she needs to tell her grandmother about her fall, but she is unable to do this, especially since the house is full of guests, and Marfenka is being escorted to the Vikentyevs. Having revealed everything to Raisky and then to Tushin, Vera calms down for a while - Boris Pavlovich, at Vera’s request, tells Tatyana Markovna about what happened.

Day and night Tatyana Markovna nurses her misfortune - she walks non-stop around the house, in the garden, in the fields around Malinovka, and no one is able to stop her: “God visited me, I don’t walk on my own. Its strength carries - it must be endured to the end. If I fall, pick me up...” Tatyana Markovna says to her grandson. After a long vigil, Tatyana Markovna comes to Vera, who is lying in a fever.

Having left Vera, Tatyana Markovna understands how necessary it is for both of them to ease their souls: and then Vera hears her grandmother’s terrible confession about her long-standing sin. Once in her youth, an unloved man who wooed her found Tatyana Markovna in the greenhouse with Tit Nikonovich and took an oath from her never to marry...

Having once arrived in St. Petersburg from a family estate, Raisky, having learned a little of everything, did not find his calling in anything.

Malinovka, Raisky's estate, a blessed corner in which there is a place for everything pleasing to the eye. Only the terrible cliff that ends the garden frightens the inhabitants of the house: according to legend, at the bottom of it in ancient times “he killed his wife and rival for infidelity, and then he himself was stabbed to death by one jealous husband, a tailor from the city. The suicide was buried here, at the crime scene.”

But university life is over, Leonty left for the province, and Raisky still cannot find a real job in life, continuing to be an amateur. And his white marble cousin Sophia still seems to Boris Pavlovich to be the most important goal in life: to awaken a fire in her, to make her experience what the “thunderstorm of life” is, to write a novel about her, to draw her portrait... He spends all the evenings with the Pakhotins, preaching to Sophia the truth of life. On one of these evenings, Sophia’s father, Nikolai Vasilyevich, brings Count Milari, “an excellent musician and a most amiable young man,” to the house.

In Malinovka, despite the joyful worries associated with the arrival of Raisky, everyday life goes on: the servant Savely is called upon to give an account of everything to the arriving landowner, Leonty Kozlov teaches the children.

Returning home, Raisky finds an estate full of guests - Tit Nikonovich, Polina Karpovna, everyone has come to look at the mature owner of the estate, his grandmother's pride. And many sent congratulations on your arrival. And ordinary village life with all its charms and joys rolled along the well-trodden rut. Raisky gets to know the surrounding area and delves into the lives of people close to him. The servants sort out their relationship, and Raisky witnesses Savely’s wild jealousy towards his unfaithful wife Marina, Vera’s trusted servant. This is where true passions boil!..

Quietly, calmly the days drag on in Malinovka. Only Vera still doesn’t return from the priesthood; Boris Pavlovich does not waste time - he tries to “educate” Marfenka, slowly finding out her tastes and passions in literature and painting, so that he can begin to awaken true life in her. Sometimes he goes to Kozlov’s house. And one day he meets Mark Volokhov there: “fifteenth grade, an official under police supervision, an involuntary citizen of the local city,” as he himself recommends.

Mark seems to Raisky to be a funny person - he has already heard a lot of horrors about him from his grandmother, but now, having met him, he invites him to dinner. Their impromptu dinner with the inevitable burning in Boris Pavlovich’s room awakens Tatyana Markovna, who is afraid of fires, and she is horrified by the presence of this man in the house, asleep like a dog - without a pillow, curled up in a ball.

She turns out to be completely different from what Boris Pavlovich expected to see her - closed, not willing to openly confess or talk, with her own small and big secrets and riddles. Raisky understands how necessary it is for him to unravel his cousin, to know her secret life, the existence of which he does not doubt for a moment...

Meanwhile, grandmother Tatyana Markovna dreams of marrying Boris Pavlovich to the daughter of a tax farmer, so that he can settle in his native land forever. Raisky refuses such an honor - there are so many mysterious things around, things that need to be unraveled, and he suddenly falls into such prose at his grandmother’s will!.. Moreover, there are indeed a lot of events unfolding around Boris Pavlovich. A young man, Vikentyev, appears, and Raisky instantly sees the beginning of his romance with Marfenka, their mutual attraction. Vera is still killing Raisky with her indifference, Mark Volokhov has disappeared somewhere, and Boris Pavlovich goes to look for him. However, this time Mark is not able to entertain Boris Pavlovich - he keeps hinting that he knows well about Raisky’s attitude towards Vera, about her indifference and the fruitless attempts of the capital’s cousin to awaken a living soul in the provincial girl. Finally, Vera herself cannot stand it: she resolutely asks Raisky not to spy on her everywhere, to leave her alone. The conversation ends as if with reconciliation: now Raisky and Vera can calmly and seriously talk about books, about people, about each of them’s understanding of life. But this is not enough for Raisky...

Tatyana Markovna Berezhkova nevertheless insisted on something, and one fine day the entire city society was invited to Malinovka for a gala dinner in honor of Boris Pavlovich. But a decent acquaintance does not succeed - a scandal breaks out in the house, Boris Pavlovich openly tells the venerable Nil Andreevich Tychkov everything that he thinks about him, and Tatyana Markovna herself, unexpectedly for herself, takes the side of her grandson: “Inflated with pride, and pride is a drunken vice , brings oblivion. Sober up, stand up and bow: Tatyana Markovna Berezhkova stands before you!” Tychkov is expelled from Malinovka in disgrace, and Vera, conquered by Paradise’s honesty, kisses him for the first time. But this kiss, alas, does not mean anything, and Raisky is going to return to St. Petersburg, to his usual life, his usual surroundings.

Raisky even manages to alarm Tatyana Markovna with constant thoughts and reasoning that Vera is in love, and the grandmother is planning an experiment: family reading of an edifying book about Cunegonde, who fell in love against the will of her parents and ended her days in a monastery. The effect turns out to be completely unexpected: Vera remains indifferent and almost falls asleep over the book, and Marfenka and Vikentyev, thanks to the edifying novel, declare their love to the nightingale singing. The next day, Vikentyev’s mother, Marya Egorovna, arrives in Malinovka - official matchmaking and conspiracy take place. Marfenka becomes a bride.

And Vera?.. Her chosen one is Mark Volokhov. It is he who goes on dates to the cliff where a jealous suicide is buried; it is him who she dreams of calling her husband, first remaking him in her own image and likeness. Vera and Mark are separated by too much: all the concepts of morality, goodness, decency, but Vera hopes to persuade her chosen one to what is right in the “old truth.” Love and honor are not empty words for her. Their love is more like a duel of two beliefs, two truths, but in this duel the characters of Mark and Vera become more and more clearly evident.

Raisky still does not know who was chosen as his cousin. He is still immersed in a mystery, still looking gloomily at his surroundings. Meanwhile, the peace of the town is shaken by Ulenka’s flight from Kozlov with her teacher Monsieur Charles. Leonty's despair is boundless; Raisky and Mark are trying to bring Kozlov to his senses.

Yes, passions are truly boiling around Boris Pavlovich! A letter from Ayanov has already been received from St. Petersburg, in which an old friend talks about Sophia’s affair with Count Milari - in a strict sense, what happened between them is not an affair, but the world regarded a certain “false step” of Belovodova as compromising her, and thus the relationship between the Pakhotin house and the count ended.

The letter, which could have hurt Raisky quite recently, does not make a particularly strong impression on him: all of Boris Pavlovich’s thoughts, all of his feelings are completely occupied with Vera. The evening comes unnoticed on the eve of Marfenka's engagement. Vera again goes into the cliff, and Raisky is waiting for her on the very edge, understanding why, where and to whom his unfortunate, love-obsessed cousin went. An orange bouquet, ordered for Marfenka for her celebration, which coincided with her birthday, is cruelly thrown out of the window by Raisky to Vera, who falls unconscious at the sight of this gift...

Written in 1869, the novel “The Precipice” became the third part of a trilogy, which included 2 others famous works Goncharova - “Oblomov” and “ An ordinary story" “The Cliff” was first published in the journal “Bulletin of Europe” in the same year, 1869. The novel was published in 1870 separate publication.

Main character In the novel, Boris Pavlovich Raisky lives without a specific goal in life. He believes that art is his calling. At the same time, Raisky cannot answer the question to himself: what kind of art is best for him to do. The main character is interested in music, painting, and poetry. However, Boris fails to achieve particular success in any of his chosen fields: he quickly loses interest in work.

Deciding to take a break from the noisy life of St. Petersburg, Raisky goes for the summer to his Malinovka estate, which is managed by Tatyana Markovna, a distant relative of Boris. Tatyana Markovna is raising two great-nieces, Vera and Marfenka, who were left orphans at an early age. Grandmother (as Boris and his great-nieces call his relative) conscientiously fulfills her duties and wants Raisky to return to the estate forever and become the real owner of Malinovka. But Boris is not interested in village life, he wants to give the estate to his cousins. Raisky becomes interested in Marfenka, spends a lot of time with her and tries to accustom her to art.

Vera returns to Malinovka, having stayed with her friend for some time. Raisky ceases to be interested in the provincial Marfenka. Now the object of his attention becomes elder sister. Boris follows the girl and learns that his cousin is in love with Mark Volokhov, a man with a dubious reputation who is under police surveillance. Raisky witnessed a love meeting between Mark and Vera, during which the girl gave herself to her lover. Boris is disgusted with his cousin. Vera herself repents of what she has done and becomes seriously ill.

Old sins
Having learned about what happened to her great-niece, the grandmother falls into despair. When Vera comes to her senses after illness, Tatyana Markovna tells her that she herself also sinned in her youth. Wanting to atone for her guilt, the grandmother vowed not to marry and devote herself to raising orphans. Tatyana Markovna believes that Vera was punished because of her sin.

Raisky decides to leave the village. He goes to Europe. Boris is sure that he has finally found his calling: he should become a sculptor. Marfenka marries a young man named Vikenty, who lived on a neighboring estate. Tatyana Markovna and Vera want to retire and atone for their sins together.

Boris Raisky

The main character of the novel is in constant search of inspiration. Raisky takes up writing poetry and paintings, and dreams of writing a novel. However, due to his weak character, he cannot complete a single task.

Women are Raisky's main source of inspiration. Living in St. Petersburg, he takes care of a young widow and his distant relative, Sofia Belovodova. Boris considers Sophia a cold, unapproachable woman and sets himself the goal of kindling passion in her. Having failed to achieve success, Raisky goes to the village, where he shows interest first in one, then in another cousin. But here, too, Boris failed to evoke reciprocal feelings from anyone. Marfenka is too far from those sublime matters that her cousin constantly talks to her about. Vera sees Boris as a dreamer cut off from life and prefers the “realist” Mark to him.

At the end of the story, Raisky comes to the conclusion that he has finally found what he was looking for and leaves the country. However, the author makes it clear that perhaps in the near future Boris will be disappointed in his choice.

Vera Vasilievna

Tatyana Markovna's eldest grandniece is proud and independent. Vera is very secretive and does not let anyone in on her affairs. The girl’s independent, passionate character pushes her into the arms of Mark Volokhov. Vera believes that Mark is a real fighter for ideals common people. She wants to become his companion and share his life with him.

In fact, it turns out that Vera was mistaken about her lover. Volokhov is not who he is trying to pretend to be. Mark doesn't do anyone any good. All of his nihilism lies in his contempt for others and hatred of public morality. Vera’s repentance is so great that she, like Tatyana Markovna, agrees to devote her entire life to atonement for sin.

Marfenka was the first person Boris saw when he arrived in the village. At first, his cousin charms him with her simplicity and naturalness. However, very soon Raisky becomes convinced that Marfenka is a very narrow-minded and “down-to-earth” girl. When her cousin tells her about distant countries and asks if she would like to visit there, Marfa Vasilievna is perplexed: why does she need this? Marfenka considers herself part of the estate in which she lives. She is indifferent to distant countries, she is completely immersed in the economic concerns of her home.

Marfenka is pious and obedient to her grandmother, which she is very proud of. The girl claims that she will even marry the one Tatyana Markovna chooses for her. Raisky's young cousin is the complete opposite of her rebellious sister. Marfa Vasilievna knows how to be content with what she has.

Tatyana Markovna

Grandmother Tatyana Markovna is the embodiment of conservative principles in the novel. She raises her great-nieces in accordance with the traditions in which she herself was raised. Tatyana Markovna is a zealous housewife who knows how to take care of not only her own, but also other people’s property.

However, behind the external rigor and conservatism hides a completely different woman. Tatyana Markovna became a victim of moral principles, which she puts above own desires. Not having the strength to resist the feeling, while at the same time trying to live up to the moral ideal created for her, Tatyana Markovna does not find a compromise and punishes herself.

The novel got its name not by chance. Almost every hero of the work finds his own cliff, from which he falls into the abyss.

Boris Raisky, who is in search of inspiration, does not find it in any woman he meets on his way: neither in the cold Sophia, nor in the stupid provincial Marfenka, nor in the rebellious “fallen” Vera. Raisky continues his search, which is unlikely to ever be crowned with success.

Mark Volokhov, who embodies the ideas of nihilism in the novel, does not arouse the author’s sympathy. Mark considers himself progressive modern man and to prove this, he becomes a nihilist. Volokhov, like many young people of the second half of the 19th century century, joined the fashion trend to keep up with the times. However, the useless denial of traditions cannot create something new. Mark has nothing in his life but problems with the authorities. It is no coincidence that the Latin word nihil means “nothing.”

Vera also found her break, trying to link her fate with Volokhov. Vivid image rebel and fighter for better life deceived her. As a result, the girl receives only remorse. The only thing that remains for Vera is to repeat the fate of her relative. Tatyana Markovna's breakup, a mistake she made in her youth, changed her whole later life.

There are also heroes in the novel who managed to get around the cliff. These people simply go with the flow, accepting life and their place in it as they are. Sofya Belovodova managed to become happy with her unloved husband. The young widow does not regret the death of her husband, remembering only the pleasant moments of their life together. Marfenka is quite happy with the fate she has been given. Her soul does not require rebellion. Raisky's longtime friend Leonty Kozlov does not strive for dizzying career, content with the position of a teacher and a not very virtuous wife.

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