The play “At the Lower Depths” was conceived by Gorky as one of four plays in a cycle showing the life and worldview of people from different walks of life. This is one of the two purposes of creating a work. The deep meaning that the author put into it is an attempt to answer the main questions of human existence: what a person is and whether he will retain his personality, having sunk “to the bottom” of moral and social existence.
History of the play
The first evidence of work on the play dates back to 1900, when Gorky, in a conversation with Stanislavsky, mentioned his desire to write scenes from the life of a flophouse. Some sketches appeared at the end of 1901. In a letter to the publisher K. P. Pyatnitsky, to whom the author dedicated the work, Gorky wrote that in the planned play all the characters, the idea, the motives for the actions were clear to him, and “it will be scary.” The final version of the work was ready on July 25, 1902, published in Munich and went on sale at the end of the year.
Things were not so rosy with the production of the play on the stages of Russian theaters - it was practically banned. An exception was made only for the Moscow Art Theater; other theaters had to obtain special permission for the production.
The title of the play changed at least four times during the work, and the genre was never determined by the author - the publication read “At the Bottom of Life: Scenes.” The shortened and familiar name to everyone today first appeared on the theater poster during the first production at the Moscow Art Theater.
The first performers were the star cast of the Moscow Art Academic Theater: K. Stanislavsky played the role of Satin, V. Kachalov - Barona, I. Moskvin - Luke, O. Knipper - Nastya, M. Andreeva - Natasha.
The main plot of the work
The plot of the play is tied to the relationships of the characters and the atmosphere of general hatred that reigns in the shelter. This is the outer outline of the work. A parallel action explores the depth of a person’s fall “to the bottom,” the measure of insignificance of a socially and spiritually degraded individual.
The action of the play begins and ends with the storyline of the relationship between two characters: the thief Vaska Pepel and the wife of the owner of the rooming house Vasilisa. Ash loves her little sister Natasha. Vasilisa is jealous and constantly beats her sister. She also has another interest in her lover - she wants to free herself from her husband and pushes Ash to murder. During the course of the play, Ash actually kills Kostylev in a quarrel. In the last act of the play, the lodgers say that Vaska will have to go to hard labor, but Vasilisa will still “get out.” Thus, the action loops around the destinies of the two heroes, but is far from limited to them.
The time period of the play is several weeks of early spring. The time of year is an important component of the play. One of the first titles given by the author to the work is “Without the Sun.” Indeed, there is spring all around, a sea of sunshine, but in the shelter and in the souls of its inhabitants there is darkness. The ray of sunshine for the overnight shelters was Luka, a tramp whom Natasha brings in one day. Luke brings hope for a happy outcome to the hearts of people who have fallen and lost faith in the best. However, at the end of the play, Luka disappears from the shelter. The characters who trusted him lose faith in the best. The play ends with the suicide of one of them - the Actor.
Play Analysis
The play describes the life of a Moscow flophouse. The main characters, accordingly, were its inhabitants and the owners of the establishment. Also in it appear people related to the life of the establishment: a policeman, who is also the uncle of the hostess of the rooming house, a dumpling seller, loaders.
Satin and Luka
Schuler, the former convict Satin and the tramp, wanderer Luke are carriers of two opposing ideas: the need for compassion for a person, a saving lie out of love for him, and the need to know the truth, as proof of a person’s greatness, as a sign of trust in his strength of spirit. In order to prove the falsity of the first worldview and the truth of the second, the author built the action of the play.
Other characters
All the other characters form the background for this battle of ideas. In addition, they are designed to show and measure the depth of the fall to which a person is capable of falling. The drunkard Actor and the terminally ill Anna, people who have completely lost faith in their own strength, fall under the power of a wonderful fairy tale into which Luke takes them. They are the most dependent on it. With his departure, they physically cannot live and die. The rest of the inhabitants of the shelter perceive Luka's appearance and departure as the play of a spring sunbeam - he appeared and disappeared.
Nastya, who sells her body “on the boulevard,” believes that there is bright love, and it was in her life. Kleshch, the husband of the dying Anna, believes that he will rise from the bottom and begin to earn a living by working again. The thread that connects him with his working past remains a toolbox. At the end of the play, he is forced to sell them in order to bury his wife. Natasha hopes that Vasilisa will change and stop torturing her. After another beating, after leaving the hospital, she will no longer appear in the shelter. Vaska Pepel strives to stay with Natalya, but cannot get out of the networks of the powerful Vasilisa. The latter, in turn, expects that the death of her husband will untie her hands and give her the long-awaited freedom. The Baron lives on from his aristocratic past. The gambler Bubnov, the destroyer of “illusions,” the ideologist of misanthropy, believes that “all people are superfluous.”
The work was created in conditions when, after the economic crisis of the 90s of the 19th century, factories shut down in Russia, the population was rapidly becoming poor, many found themselves on the bottom rung of the social ladder, in the basement. Each of the characters in the play experienced a fall to the bottom, social and moral, in the past. Now they live in the memory of this, but they cannot rise “to the light”: they don’t know how, they don’t have the strength, they are ashamed of their insignificance.
Main characters
Luke became a light for some. Gorky gave Luka a “speaking” name. It refers both to the image of St. Luke and to the concept of “cunning.” It is obvious that the author seeks to show the inconsistency of Luke’s ideas about the beneficial value of Faith for man. Gorky practically reduces Luka’s compassionate humanism to the concept of betrayal - according to the plot of the play, the tramp leaves the shelter just when those who trusted him need his support.
Satin is a figure designed to voice the author’s worldview. As Gorky wrote, Satin is not quite a suitable character for this, but there is simply no other character with equally powerful charisma in the play. Satin is the ideological antipode of Luke: he does not believe in anything, he sees the ruthless essence of life and the situation in which he and the rest of the inhabitants of the shelter find themselves. Does Satin believe in Man and his power over the power of circumstances and mistakes made? The passionate monologue that he delivers, arguing in absentia with the departed Luka, leaves a strong but contradictory impression.
There is also a bearer of the “third” truth in the work - Bubnov. This hero, like Satin, “stands for the truth,” only it is somehow very scary for him. He is a misanthrope, but, in essence, a murderer. Only they die not from the knife in his hands, but from the hatred that he has for everyone.
The drama of the play increases from act to act. The connecting outline is Luke's comforting conversations with those suffering from his compassion and Satin's rare remarks, indicating that he listens attentively to the speeches of the tramp. The climax of the play is Satin’s monologue, delivered after Luke’s departure and flight. Phrases from it are often quoted because they have the appearance of aphorisms; “Everything in a person is everything for a person!”, “Lies are the religion of slaves and masters... Truth is the god of a free person!”, “Man - this sounds proud!”
Conclusion
The bitter result of the play is the triumph of the freedom of fallen man to perish, disappear, leave, leaving behind neither a trace nor memories. The inhabitants of the shelter are free from society, moral standards, family and livelihood. By and large, they are free from life.
The play “At the Lower Depths” has been around for more than a century and continues to remain one of the most powerful works of Russian classics. The play makes you think about the place of faith and love in a person’s life, about the nature of truth and lies, about a person’s ability to resist moral and social decline.
A notable phenomenon of Russian literature at the beginning of the 20th century was Gorky’s play “At the Lower Depths”. What explained its exceptional success? A strong impression on the viewer was made by the combination of an extremely realistic depiction of people who have reached the last degree of squalor, despair and lawlessness, with the glorification of Man and his truth. For the first time, a hitherto unseen world of thieves, tramps, cheaters, that is, people who had sunk to the “bottom” of life, appeared before the eyes of the public. And in it, as in an overturned mirror, was reflected the world from which these people were cast down. Gorky's play was imbued with a protest against the social unrest of capitalist society and a passionate call for a just and peaceful life. “Freedom at any cost is its spiritual essence,” this is how K. S. Stanislavsky defined the idea of the play, who staged it on the stage of the Moscow Art Theater.
The gloomy life of the Kostylevo doss house is depicted by Gorky as the embodiment of social evil. The fate of the inhabitants of the “bottom” is a formidable indictment against an unjust social system. The people living in this cave-like basement are victims of an ugly and cruel order, in which a person ceases to be a person, turning into a powerless creature, doomed to drag out a miserable existence. The inhabitants of the “bottom” are thrown out of normal life due to the wolf laws that reign in society. Man is left to his own devices. If he stumbles, gets out of line, then he faces inevitable moral, and often physical death. Lack of faith in justice forced Satin to independently take revenge on the scoundrel who killed his sister. This revenge brought him to prison, which determined his future fate. Bubnov is forced to leave home, leaving the workshop to his wife and her lover, since he did not hope for protection from representatives of the law. Of course, the people who find themselves in the Kostylev shelter are not at all ideal. They make mistakes, do stupid things, but they do not deserve to be thrown to the bottom of life by society without providing any support. Vaska Pepel, the son of a thief, born in prison, is doomed to follow in the footsteps of his parent, because no other path has been ordered for him. The hard work and perseverance of Kleshch, who did not want to accept the fate of a homeless shelter, did not help him rise from the “bottom” of life.
Turning to depicting the life of the urban lower classes, the playwright touched upon a pressing problem of our time: what is the way out of this situation, what is the salvation of the people of the “bottom”? According to Gorky himself, the main question of the play is what is better: truth or compassion? Is it necessary to use lies like Luke? Will the passive-compassionate humanism of a comforting lie be healing for the inhabitants of the shelter? Its bearer, pitying and comforting people, is the wanderer Luke in the play. He sincerely sympathizes with the victims of life, humiliated and insulted people, selflessly strives to alleviate their suffering and help them. He promises dying Anna life in paradise after death, where she will rest from earthly suffering. The old man advises Ash and Natasha to start a new life in the golden country of Siberia. He tells the actor about a free hospital for alcoholics, the address of which he has forgotten, but will definitely remember, giving this drunken person hope of returning to his former life.
Luke's position is the idea of compassion for man, the idea of sublime deception, which allows man to bear the burden of the "low truths" encountered on his thorny path. Luke himself formulates his position. Turning to Ash, he says: “...why do you really need it?.. Think about it, maybe it’s just for you.” Then he talks about the “righteous land.” Luka doesn’t believe in her, he knows that she doesn’t exist. He is too short-sighted to see this land that Satine foresees. Luke is ready to welcome any idea if it can console a person, alleviate his suffering even for a minute. He does not think about the consequences of a lie that will sooner or later be revealed. Trying to protect a person, Luka at the same time does not believe in him, for him all people are insignificant, weak, pathetic, in need of consolation: “I don’t care! I respect swindlers too, in my opinion, not a single flea is bad: they’re all black, everyone is jumping."
Thus, the main feature of Luke's ideology is the feature of slavery. And in this, Luka is similar to Kostylev, the philosophy of patience echoes the philosophy of oppression, the point of view of a slave - with the point of view of the owner, Gorky puts this thought into the mouth of Satin: “Whoever is weak in soul and who lives on other people’s juices, those need a lie... Some people need it.” supports, others hide behind her... And who is his own master, who is independent and does not take someone else’s - why does he need lies?” Luke's humanism is based on passive compassion, which, while bringing momentary relief, deepens the gap between a person's dream of happiness and his real hopeless situation. The Actor, who learned that the old man had lied and that there was no hospital, which means there was no hope for the future, could not bear this breakup. There is only one way out - suicide. Instead of the happy life in Siberia that Luka promised Ash, he ends up in hard labor for the murder of Kostylev. This means that Luke’s comforting lies only worsen the situation of the outcasts.
Luke’s lies lead the night shelters into a world of illusions, which deprives them of their last strength to fight social evil, social injustice, because of which Kostylev’s night shelters exist. The antipode of Luke - Satin verbally refutes the philosophy of comforting lies: “Lies are the religion of slaves and masters,” “Truth is the god of a free man.” He believes in a person, in his ability to withstand the truth, no matter how bitter it may be. “Man is the truth,” says the hero. Unlike Luke, Satin is demanding of people and believes that a person can do anything, since everything depends on his deeds and ideas. He does not need to be consoled by lies born of pity. To feel sorry for a person means to humiliate him by disbelief in his ability to achieve his happiness, it means to seek support in all types of deception and lies that replace the missing will to live. Under the dark and gloomy arches of the shelter, among the pitiful, unfortunate, homeless tramps, words about Man, about his calling, strength and beauty sound like a solemn hymn. "Man - this is the truth! Everything is in man, everything is for man! Only man exists, everything else is the work of his hands and brain! Man! This is magnificent! It sounds... proud!"
Man himself is the creator of his own destiny, hidden within him are the forces with the help of which he is able to overcome the most severe hardships, the treachery of fate, the injustice of the world, his own mistakes and the social ills of society. Pity and compassion are wonderful qualities that are very necessary for all of us, but only a truthful, adequate understanding of one’s mistakes and capabilities can give a person a chance to overcome his evil lot and become truly free and happy.
1 option
Compare and comment on the details in the stage directions for the first and fourth acts of A.M. Gorky’s play “At the Depths.”
Remark to the first act Remark to the fourth act
... the corner is occupied by Ash's room, partitioned off with thin partitions... between the stove and the door against the wall there is a wide bed covered with a dirty chintz curtain.
... Tick sits in front of the anvil, trying on keys to old locks.
In the middle of the shelter there is a large table, two benches, a stool, everything is unpainted and dirty.
The light comes from the viewer and, from top to bottom, from the square window on the right side.
The beginning of spring. Morning. The setting of the first act. But there is no Ash room - the bulkheads are broken.
Kleshch sits at the table, he repairs the harmony, sometimes trying out the frets. At the other end of the table are Satin, Baron and Nastya. In front of them is a bottle of vodka and three bottles of beer, a large slice of black bread.
The stage is lit by a lamp standing in the middle of the table.
Night. It's windy outside.
Name the main characters of the play.
Retell in 3-5 sentences how the storyline develops in the play “At the Bottom” (Vasilisa - Ashes). What characters does it capture?
Which of the characters in the play are the exponents of the three life philosophies (“truths”) presented in the play: truth of fact 1.___________, comforting lie 2.________, faith in Man 3._________? Establish the plays and their further fate: correspondence between the three characters
CHARACTERS
A.Actor
B. Bubnov
V.Satin
OCCUPATION
1) would like to have a free tavern
2) commits suicide
3) stands up for Luka
4) kills the owner of the shelter
What is the name in literary criticism for the author's indication of gestures, facial expressions, intonation, and movements of actors in a dramatic work?
Depicting the “bottom” of life, M. Gorky followed the traditions of the literary movement, which reached its heyday in the second half of the 19th century. Indicate its name.
Is it by chance that the wanderer bears the name of one of Christ’s apostles? Give a short, coherent, reasoned answer in 2-3 sentences.
Why doesn’t Luka try to “comfort” Bubnov and Satin? The answer is in 1-2 sentences.
Who owns the remarks that are important for the problems of “At the Bottom”?
“But the threads are rotten” ________
“What you believe is what you believe in” ______
“You can’t go far in the carriage of the past” _______
“There is no man without a name” _________
11. The Actor’s remark contains the same words: “Again... first... This is good. Nah...Again? Well, yes! I can!? After all, I can, huh?” What is this technique called that helps enhance meaning?
12. Compose a literary argument on one of the problems of the play of your choice:
1) The problem of the injustice of the social structure of society (Is it natural to divide people into rich and poor? Is society structured correctly?) 2) A person’s responsibility to himself and society as a whole for the realization of his abilities (Should a person be responsible to society for the realization of his abilities? )
Test based on M. Gorky’s play “At the Depths”
Option 2
1.When and where do the events take place in the play “At the Bottom”?
2.Name the main characters of the play.
3. Retell in 3-5 sentences how the storyline develops in the play “At the Bottom” (Natasha - Ashes). What characters does it capture?
4. Which of the characters in the play are the exponents of the three life philosophies (“truths”) presented in the play: truth of fact 1.___________, comforting lie 2.________, faith in Man 3._________? 5. Establish a correspondence between the three characters of the play and their gender classes:
CHARACTERS
A. Klesch
B. Bubnov
V.Satin
OCCUPATION
1) locksmith
2)thief
3) cardholder
4) telegraph operator
6.What are the names of heroes called in literary criticism, reflecting the characteristics of their personality and character?
7. Define the terms: monologue, polylogue, conflict, remark?
8.Give a general description of Kostylev and Vasilisa in 3-5 sentences.
9.What does Luke promise, what does he call for? Why does none of the promises benefit the inhabitants of the “bottom”? Answer in 3-5 sentences.
10.Who owns the remarks that are important for the problems of “At the Bottom”?
1) “Christ felt sorry for everyone and told us so... We need to feel sorry for people”__________
2) “Education is nonsense, the main thing is talent” _________
3) “Lies are the religion of slaves and masters...Truth is the god of a free man.” __________
4) “Make the work pleasant for me - maybe I will work. When work is a duty, life is slavery” __________
11. Explaining to Luka what applause is, the Actor resorts to an unexpected analogy (“This, brother, is like ... vodka!” Name the technique that the hero uses in his speech.
12. Here is a frame for a literary argument on one of the problems of the play. Identify the problem of this text.
Luka, a character in the play, believes that every person is a mystery, but everyone lives for the best, therefore every person must be respected: “we don’t know who he is, why he was born and what he can do... maybe he was born for our happiness ..; for our great benefit?..” Luke strives to help the hidden powers of man from secret to become apparent. His faith in people mainly corresponds to their inner aspirations and capabilities (Actor, Ash).
1) The problem of the influence of the environment on a person’s character
2) The problem of faith in man
3) The problem of the social structure of society
4) The problem of a person’s responsibility for the realization of his abilities.
Compare and comment on the details in the stage directions for the first and fourth acts of the play “At the Lower Depths.”
Remarks for the first act | Remark to the fourth act |
... the corner is occupied by Ash's room, partitioned off with thin partitions... between the stove and the door against the wall there is a wide bed covered with a dirty chintz curtain. ... Tick sits in front of the anvil, trying on keys to old locks. In the middle of the shelter there is a large table, two benches, a stool, everything is unpainted and dirty. The light is from the viewer and, from top to bottom, from the square window on the right side. The beginning of spring. Morning. | The setting of the first act. But there is no Ash room - the bulkheads are broken. Kleshch sits at the table, he repairs the harmony, sometimes trying out the frets. At the other end of the table are Satin, Baron and Nastya. In front of them is a bottle of vodka and three bottles of beer, a large slice of black bread. The stage is lit by a lamp standing in the middle of the table. Night. There is wind outside. |
What is the name in literary criticism for the author's indication of gestures, facial expressions, intonation, and movements of actors in a dramatic work? Depicting the “bottom” of life, M. Gorky followed the traditions of the literary movement, which reached its heyday in the second half of the 19th century. Indicate its name. Is it by chance that the wanderer bears the name of one of Christ’s apostles? Give a short, coherent, reasoned answer in 2-3 sentences. Why doesn’t Luka try to “comfort” Bubnov and Satin? The answer is in 1-2 sentences. Who owns the remarks that are important for the problems of “At the Bottom”? “But the threads are rotten” ________ “What you believe in is what it is” ______ “You can’t go far in the carriage of the past” _______ “There is no man without a name” _________
11. The Actor’s remark contains the same words: “Again... first... This is good. N-yes...Again? Well, yes! I can!? After all, I can, huh?” What is this technique called that helps enhance meaning?
12. Compose a literary argument on one of the problems of the play of your choice:
1) The problem of the injustice of the social structure of society (Is it natural to divide people into rich and poor? Is society structured correctly?)
2) A person’s responsibility to himself and society as a whole for the realization of his abilities (Should a person be responsible to society for the realization of his abilities?)
Test based on M. Gorky’s play “At the Depths”
Option 2
1.When and where do the events take place in the play “At the Bottom”?
2.Name the main characters of the play.
3. Retell in 3-5 sentences how the storyline develops in the play “At the Bottom” (Natasha - Ashes). What characters does it capture?
4. Which of the characters in the play are the exponents of the three life philosophies (“truths”) presented in the play: truth of fact 1.___________, comforting lie 2.________, faith in Man 3._________?
5. Establish a correspondence between the three characters of the play and their occupation:
6.What are the names of heroes called in literary criticism, reflecting the characteristics of their personality and character?
7. Define the terms: monologue, polylogue, conflict, remark?
8.Give a general description of Kostylev and Vasilisa in 3-5 sentences.
9.What does Luke promise, what does he call for? Why does none of the promises benefit the inhabitants of the “bottom”? Answer in 3-5 sentences.
10.Who owns the remarks that are important for the problems of “At the Bottom”?
1) “Christ felt sorry for everyone and told us so... We need to feel sorry for people”__________
2) “Education is nonsense, the main thing is talent” _________
3) “Lies are the religion of slaves and masters...Truth is the god of a free man.” __________
4) “Make the work pleasant for me - maybe I will work. When work is a duty, life is slavery” __________
11. Explaining to Luke what applause is, the Actor resorts to an unexpected analogy (“This, brother, is like...!” Name the technique that the hero uses in his speech.
12. Here is a frame for a literary argument on one of the problems of the play. Identify the problem of this text.
Luka, a character in the play, believes that every person is a mystery, but everyone lives for the best, therefore every person must be respected: “we don’t know who he is, why he was born and what he can do... maybe he was born on happiness to us..; for our great benefit?..” Luke strives to help the hidden powers of man from secret to become apparent. His faith in people mainly corresponds to their inner aspirations and capabilities (Actor, Ash).
1) The problem of the influence of the environment on a person’s character
2) The problem of faith in man
3) The problem of the social structure of society
4) The problem of a person’s responsibility for the realization of his abilities.
Lesson objectives.
- Follow how the storylines develop in the play “At the Bottom”.
- By analyzing the text, come to a conclusion about the artistic features of the play “At the Bottom”.
- Clarify the author's position on philosophical debates in drama;
- Compare your conclusions with the opinions of critics.
- Outline the artistic features of creating the images of Satin and Luke.
Lesson type: generalization and systematization of knowledge and methods of activity.
Two academic hours are allotted for working on the play.
Motivation.
Show the social and philosophical orientation of the play. The theme of “bottom” in the work of M. Gorky did not arise by chance. The writer has repeatedly met people thrown into the underworld by various circumstances of life, seen the horrors of the existence of disadvantaged people living on the lowest rungs of the social ladder, and encountered various groups of tramps, “former people” living in a shelter. The theme of “former people” has become persistent in the works of M. Gorky. Philosophically comprehending reality, the writer repeatedly posed the problem of truth (truth) and lies (deception), pitting bearers of a purely sober view of life against illusions. Describing the people of the “bottom,” the author relied on the tradition of depicting the urban “bottom” in Russian literature. Compositionally, the heroes are divided into four groups, depending on the place they occupy in the clash of different positions.
The lesson can be taught based on the work of creative groups and individual assignments of students working independently with the text.
The structure of the lesson for the lesson is chosen in the form of a debate, that is, elements of discussion are used in the lesson. The materials are distributed as follows: working with text (in groups), reading text in roles, creative tasks (in groups - 4 groups of characters), generalization. Each type of work is accompanied by commented reading, text analysis, and mini-creative work.
Lesson Plan
- Organizing time.
- Lesson topic.
- Setting goals and objectives for the lesson.
- Checking homework.
- Student presentations with messages.
- Analytical work with text.
- Generalization of the material.
- Homework.
1. Statement of the topic and purpose of the lesson.
M. Gorky's play “At the Bottom”. Luke's role in the lives of the inhabitants of the shelter. Genre and compositional features. Arrangement of characters and plot lines in the play.
2. Leading students to answer the question: “What is the peculiarity of the genre of the play “At the Lower Depths”?
3. Consider what dramas are played out in Kostylev’s shelter? (First act)
4. Analyze the episode of the appearance of the “strange man” Luka in the shelter. Determine what is more in Luke: kindness or hypocrisy, indifference or genuine pity for the inhabitants of the bottom. (Second, third act)
a) love triangle - Vaska Ashes - Vasilisa - Natasha;
b) Klesh and Anna; c) Baron and Nastya; d) trader Kvashnya and policeman Medvedev; e) the fate of Actor, Tatar, Satin, Bubnov.
6. Why does Satin passionately defend Luka? “Dubieu... keep quiet about the old man! The old man is not a charlatan!.. He lied... but it was out of pity for you, damn you!
Teacher's opening speech.
Today in class we will continue to study the works of M.A. Gorky. At home you read the play “At the Lower Depths”. The theme of “bottom” in the work of M. Gorky did not arise by chance. The writer has repeatedly met people thrown into the underworld by various circumstances of life, seen the horrors of the existence of disadvantaged people living on the lowest rungs of the social ladder, and encountered various groups of tramps, “former people” living in a shelter. The theme of “former people” has become persistent in the works of M. Gorky. Philosophically comprehending reality, the writer repeatedly posed the problem of truth (truth) and lies (deception), pitting bearers of a purely sober view of life against illusions.
... Something incredible happened: the fourth act turns into the main one, in it what happens for the sake of which the play was written, and all the previous acts turn out to be, as it were, preparation for it.
I.K. Kuzmichev
General information. Analytical work with text.
1. Working with text.
2. Commented reading. Relationships between characters and plot lines of the play.
3. Work in groups. Mini messages:
Luke's role in the lives of the inhabitants of the shelter.
Changes in the lives of the heroes in the fourth act.
A debate about truth and pity. Who is right?
Luka and Satin: opponents or allies?
4. Commented reading of the passage “What is the “gathering point” of orphans, unfortunates in the first act?
5. Commented reading of Satin’s monologue about man. Do you agree with all of its provisions? Is Satin right when he says: “Man pays for everything himself”? What if he has relatives, a family? Why does he mention “Napoleon and Mohammed”? Remember the theory of Raskolnikov F.M. Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment”. This theory appealed to strong personalities, embodiments of the mind and will.
6. Reading creative works-miniatures “What is Satin’s truth expressed? Does she resist Luke's “comfort”?
7. Generalization. Does the play “At the Bottom” give definitive answers to the question of truth, dreams and compassion?
So, working with the text of a dramatic work helps students develop the ability to analyze a dramatic work, make comparative characteristics of characters, feel the features of the writer’s style, develop the ability to aesthetically perceive literature, form ideas about literature as a sociocultural phenomenon, and cultivate speech culture.
Classification and terminology.
Work with text.
Individual tasks.
Schemes for analyzing a literary work.
Colorful design of handouts and didactic material.
Topic: “The role of Luke in the life of the inhabitants of the shelter. Genre and compositional features. Arrangement of characters and plot lines in M. Gorky’s play “At the Bottom”.
1. Lead students to answer the question “What is the peculiarity of the genre of the play”?
2. See the artistic originality of the play “At the Bottom”.
3. Through artistic analysis, come to the conclusion where is truth and where is fiction in the stories of the inhabitants of the shelter?
5. Does the play “At the Bottom” give a final answer to the question of truth, dreams and compassion?
Design: write the topic of the lesson on the board. “The role of Luka in the life of the inhabitants of the shelter. Genre and compositional features. Arrangement of characters and plot lines in M. Gorky’s play “At the Bottom”.
What is the “gathering point” of the orphans, the unfortunate ones in the first act?
What is unique about the genre of the play?
What attracts you to Luke’s appearance and judgment? Is Luke right about what people live for? Does Satin agree with him?
What is the “gathering point” of the orphans, the unfortunate ones in the first act?
What attracts you to Luke’s appearance and judgment?
What is more in Luke: kindness or hypocrisy, indifference or genuine pity for the inhabitants of the bottom?
What are the similarities between Luke and Satin?
Luka and Satin: antipodes or like-minded people?
During the classes
1. Report the topic of the lesson.
“Luka’s role in the lives of the inhabitants of the shelter. Genre and compositional features of the play. Arrangement of characters and plot lines in M. Gorky’s play “At the Bottom”.
2. Analytical work with text.
(Checking homework)
A selection of phrases from the text: the extended stage directions that precede the play depict a cave-like basement in which people are forced to endure an antediluvian existence.
Answer the question: “What is the “gathering point” of orphans, unfortunates, in the first act?
Group work algorithm.
1. Commented reading of the text.
2. Answer the questions asked.
3. Discuss and correct the collected information.
4. Draw conclusions.
Work in groups. Mini messages.
What are the similarities between Luke and Satin? Luka and Satin: antipodes or like-minded people?
(The main provisions are recorded in notebooks).
First group
Individual work. Mini message
What attracts you to Luke’s appearance and judgment? Is Luke right about why people live? What dramas are playing out in the Kostylevo flophouse?
The shelter is a unique model of the cruel world from which its inhabitants were thrown out. Here, too, there are “masters”, the police, and the same vices of society are manifested. Life has deprived these people gathered in this hell.
Second group
What is the “gathering point” of the orphans, the unfortunate ones in the first act?
Life has deprived the people gathered in this hell. She deprived them of the right to work (Klesch), to a family (Nastya), to a profession (Actor), to the former elite comfort (Baron), doomed them to an existence of hunger (Anna), theft (Ashes), endless drinking (Bubnova), prostitution (to Nastya) These outcasts of society, who so love and value freedom and life, were essentially deprived of this benefit.
Third group
Individual work. Mini message.
What attracts you to Luke’s appearance and judgment? What is more in Luke: kindness or hypocrisy, indifference or genuine pity for the inhabitants of the bottom?
Luke plays a significant compositional and plot role in the play: he is called upon to reveal the essence of everyone, awaken the best in him, and become “yeast” for many. According to Luke, a person lives “for what is best.” This means that hope for salvation should be strengthened and his dream supported. Luke takes the position of a comforter in the play. However, Luke expresses compassion and consolation in a unique form. He leads them to lies (but not in the everyday and reduced meaning of the word). Believing that people are afraid of the true truth of life, because it is too harsh, heavy, like a “butt,” he wants to embellish existence, bring into a fairy tale, a beautiful deception, a “golden dream.”
Fourth group
Individual work. Mini message.
What are the similarities between Luke and Satin? Luka and Satin: antipodes or like-minded people?
Satin agrees with the wanderer that “people expect better,” that the truth is connected with the idea of a person, that one must not interfere and belittle him (“Do not offend a person”). In the fourth act, Satin moves on to a polemic with the old man. It excludes pity for a person. Satin resolutely rejects lies as “the religion of slaves and masters,” but does not accept the scanty truth of Bubnov and Baron. Satin does not recognize passive humanism; refers to the internal capabilities of a person; he believes in people who are strong, brave, and proud.
Individual homework.
Reading creative works-miniatures. “What is unique about the genre of the play “At the Lower Depths”?
It contains both the tragic and the comic. We are accustomed to the fact that in dramatic works each action is divided into phenomena - the appearance of each new
character. Everything is different here: characters come and go (some forever), dialogues and monologues are combined.
The characters think and talk about their own things, intrude on other people’s complaints and worries, and unwittingly evaluate the hopes of their neighbors. What sounds is not a monologue, not a complex choir, but chaotic, unsmoothed life itself.
There are no main or secondary characters in the play; everyone is important; they become participants in the polylogue of the play. Everyone, especially in the first act, talks about his own things, does not listen to his interlocutor, but each remark is internally connected with the previous and subsequent ones.
An expressive reading of an episode from the first act at the bedside of the sick Anna.
Read the episode of the first act at Anna's sick bedside. How is Bubnov’s remark about rotten threads related to the remarks of the young people?
(At first glance, there is no connection here, but in these words there is a warning to Natasha, who hopes to connect her fate with Vasily).
Consolidation and application of knowledge.
Individual assignment for groups. Work with text.
Card No. 1
Card No. 2
Card No. 3
Summarizing.
Does the play “At the Bottom” give a final answer to the question of truth, dreams and compassion?
Do you agree with the statement of the philosopher V. Rozanov: “No person is worthy of praise. Every person is worthy only of pity”?
Do you agree with the opinion of the poet Vladislav Khodasevich about the play “At the Lower Depths,” which he evaluates as “the best of all that Gorky wrote, and undoubtedly the central one in his work”: “The positive hero “Satin” was less successful for Gorky than negative “Luke”, because he endowed the positive with his official ideology, and the negative with his living feeling of love and pity for people.”
Conclusion: Does the play “At the Bottom” give a definitive answer to the question of truth, dreams and compassion? According to Luke, a person lives “for what is best.” Gorky himself professed a related position. He wrote to Chekhov about the pitiful and boring people he met, but added: “And yet I still feel sorry for the people.” The writer endows his hero with such compassion, and in accordance with this, saturates his speech with affectionate words and friendly addresses, makes it figurative and melodious .
The author could agree with Satin on a number of points. Gorky noted, for example, in his letters: “Only man exists, everything else is opinion,” “Everything in man and everything for man is the basis of my faith.” The writer asserted: “I see the meaning of life in creativity.” And his hero objects: “Don’t do anything!” Just burden the earth!” These discrepancies also indicate the ambiguity of Satin’s position, the inconsistency of his monologues and remarks. But Gorky had no other hero who could argue with Luka and Bubnov.
Homework.
Write a creative work (answer a question in writing)
Option 2
How do the characters answer Satin’s question: “What is truth?” How does Satin himself interpret this topic?
I dreamed of light - what could this mean?
Dreams from Sunday to Monday - what awaits in reality in the near future?
Why do you dream about your ex-husband: a resumption of relationships or upcoming trials
What does the name Olesya mean? Olesya is an adult name
Why did they “open the tomb of Jesus Christ”?