Consider the image of Pugachev in Yesenin's poem "Pugachev". This poem addresses a difficult period in the history of Russia. Sergei Yesenin did not immediately accept the October Revolution. He saw in it not only a step forward, to a new world, but also death, hunger, devastation. The poet was tormented by this contradiction. In addition, he realized that in the villages there was an extinction of life.
Sergey Alexandrovich expressed his thoughts, doubts, his poetic rebellion in a poem entitled "Pugachev". Quite a few details of the peasant war make up its content. Yesenin ("Pugachev" - a work that was published in 1921) did not set itself the task of reconstructing history. Note that in the action of this poem, Sergei Alexandrovich reflected more of the realities of his modernity than inherent in the time in which Emelian lived.
This work for Esenin became a turning point. The theme of the people's struggle began for him precisely from him, from the spiritual strain depicted in him. This poem is epic, consisting of lyrical monologues.
Why did the poet turn to the image of Emelyan Pugachev?
The image of Pugachev in Yesenin's poem "Pugachev" is central. Why did the poet need to turn to him? Yesenin hoped that the October Revolution would exalt Russia , that it would make our country strong. Sergei Alexandrovich dreamed of Inonia - a peasant paradise. However, he did not advance, and meanwhile, the question of where the rock events were bringing us all worried Yesenin more and more. Inonia turned into an unattainable dream. Therefore, he turned, anxious for the future of peasant Russia, to such a historical character as Emelyan Pugachev, Yesenin. After all, it was Emelyan who tried to build this peasant paradise by force.
The image of Pugachev in Yesenin: the main features
The poem was created by the author from March to August 1921. In the same year, her reading took place at the Meyerhold Theater. However, the statement did not materialize.
Yesenin's image of Pugachev is romanticized. Sergei Alexandrovich does not complicate his poem with other characters, even insignificant. Only the image of Pugachev in Yesenin's poem "Pugachev" is shown in development. According to the author, except for Yemelyan, almost no one should be repeated in tragedy. New faces should be in every scene. This puts forward the main role of Pugachev and gives more movement.
Emelyan is the person whom the people were waiting for. Yesenin shows his hero both when the rebellion was just brewing, and after the main character announced that he was king. The image of Pugachev in Yesenin's poem "Pugachev" is quite complicated. Emelyan is shown controversially. In his image, cruelty is combined with gullibility. One gets the impression, based on the attitude of this hero to his subordinates, that they are his servants, obliged to carry out his orders.
Khlopusha, an Ural convict who was sent to Yemelyan in order to kill him, but came to him as a friend, speaks of his chosenness and significance. Like the protagonist of the work, Khlopusha believes that the war must be waged wisely, it is necessary to pour in the mind, and not just anger.
Reflection of the author’s position and attitude in the image of Yemelyan
Continuing to describe the image of Pugachev by Yesenin, we note that Emelyan is not a supporter of a ruthless and spontaneous rebellion. His dreams are dreams of a new world, which Yesenin himself shared. In the final dramatic tension, we see a hero betrayed by his comrades-in-arms. And we feel more than ever his tragedy and loneliness.
The final monologue of the protagonist Sergei Alexandrovich read to Maxim Gorky, worrying the latter to a spasm in his throat. The state of the poet himself is reflected in his anguish. Yesenin did not take root in the city, but already became a stranger in the village. He felt his loneliness especially strongly when he returned from a trip abroad.
Evaluation of the poem by critics
The reaction to this poem by contemporaries was mixed. N. Osinsky, for example, believed that the poet depicted the "pathos of the rebellious elements", its course from Emelyan Pugachev to the present day. The poem was generally considered unsuccessful.
The work reflected the style peculiarities characteristic of imagism, which at that time Sergey Alexandrovich was fond of. An unusual system of images, a mixture of different layers of vocabulary, causing metaphors - all this is typical for this work. The author was reproached for the fact that Pugachev’s speech was subjected to imagination. It was noted by some critics that the work has brilliant monologues. Therefore, they called him a heroic drama in verse.
Esenin's Artistic Innovation
Yesenin, saying that rebellion is doomed, relies in his opinion that the Russian peasants are inert. They are not able to act decisively. The poet does not try to recreate the details of history, to show the confrontation of the camps, although he thoroughly studied historical materials. For Esenin, the main question remains whether the peasants can accept the revolution. The poet, not through facts, but through lyrical perception, gives history, and this is his artistic innovation.