The conflict between fathers and sons of generations of family ideology. The main conflict of the novel "Fathers and Sons" by Turgenev I.S.

The title of Turgenev's novel "Fathers and Sons" very accurately reflects the main conflict of the work. The writer raises a layer of cultural, family, romantic, platonic and friendly themes, but the relationship between two generations - the older and the younger - comes to the fore. The dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov is a vivid example of this confrontation. The historical backdrop for ideological conflicts was the mid-19th century, the time before the abolition of serfdom in the Russian Empire. At the same time, liberals and revolutionary democrats clashed head-on. Let's look at the details and outcome of the controversy using the example of our heroes.

The central conflict of the novel “Fathers and Sons” is the dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov

It is a mistake to believe that the essence of the work “Fathers and Sons” comes down to just a change in the ideology of generations, which has socio-political implications. Turgenev endowed this novel with deep psychologism and a multi-layered plot. With a superficial reading, the reader’s focus is only on the conflict between the aristocracy and commoners. The dispute helps to identify the views held by Bazarov and Kirsanov. The table below shows the essence of these contradictions. And if we dig deeper, we can notice that there is an idyll of family happiness, and intrigue, and emancipation, and grotesqueness, and the eternity of nature, and reflections on the future.

Evgeny Bazarov finds himself in the midst of a conflict between fathers and sons when he agrees to come and visit Maryino with his university friend Arkady. The atmosphere in my friend’s house did not immediately go well. Manners, appearance, difference of views - all this provokes mutual antipathy with Uncle Arkady. The further dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov flares up due to many topics: art, politics, philosophy, the Russian people.

Portrait of Evgeny Bazarov

Evgeny Bazarov is a representative of the generation of “children” in the novel. He is a young student with progressive views, but at the same time prone to nihilism, which the “fathers” condemn. Turgenev seemed to deliberately dress the hero absurdly and carelessly. The details of his portrait emphasize the rudeness and spontaneity of the young man: wide forehead, red hands, self-confident behavior. Bazarov, in principle, is outwardly unattractive, but has a deep mind.

The dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov is aggravated by the fact that the former does not recognize any dogmas or authorities. Evgeniy is convinced that any truth begins with doubt. The hero also believes that everything can be verified experimentally, and does not take judgments on faith. The situation is aggravated by Bazarov’s intolerance towards opposing opinions. He is deliberately harsh in his statements.

Portrait of Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov

Pavel Kirsanov is a typical nobleman, a representative of the “fathers” generation. He is a pampered aristocrat and a staunch conservative who adheres to liberal political views. He dresses elegantly and neatly, wears formal suits in the English style and starches his collars. Bazarov's opponent is very well-groomed in appearance and elegant in manners. He shows his “breed” with all his appearance.

From his point of view, established traditions and principles must remain unshakable. The dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov is reinforced by the fact that Pavel Petrovich perceives everything new negatively and even hostilely. Here innate conservatism makes itself felt. Kirsanov bows to the old authorities, only they are true for him.

Dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov: table of disagreements

The most important problem has already been voiced by Turgenev in the title of the novel - the generation difference. The line of argument between the main characters can be traced from this table.

Who are nihilists

The ideas of nihilism are clearly manifested in the confrontation between opponents, who are Pavel Kirsanov and Bazarov. The dispute reveals the rebellious spirit of Yevgeny Bazarov. He does not bow to authority, and this unites him with the revolutionary democrats. The hero questions and denies everything he sees in society. This is precisely the trait that nihilists have.

Storyline outcome

In general, Bazarov belongs to the category of people of action. He does not accept conventions and feigned aristocratic etiquette. The hero is in a daily search for truth. One of such searches is the dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov. The table clearly shows the contradictions between them.

Kirsanov is good at polemics, but things don’t go beyond talking. He talks about the life of the common people, but only the ashtray in the shape of a bast shoe on his desktop speaks of his true connection with them. Pavel Petrovich talks with pathos about serving for the good of the Motherland, while he himself lives a well-fed and calm life.

Because of the uncompromising nature of the heroes, the truth is not born in the novel "Fathers and Sons." The dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov ends in a duel, which demonstrates the emptiness of noble knighthood. The collapse of the ideas of nihilism is identified with the death of Eugene from blood poisoning. And the passivity of the liberals is confirmed by Pavel Petrovich, since he remains to live in Dresden, although life away from his homeland is difficult for him.

The main conflict of the novel by I. S. Turgenev is the contradiction between “fathers” and “children”. The title of the novel is often understood in a very simplified way: a contradiction between generations, a conflict between aristocrats and commoners. But the content of the novel goes much beyond the problems outlined above. Philosophical and psychological problems are also important for the author.

The conflict of generations is given by Turgenev as a confrontation between Nikolai Petrovich Kirsanov and Arkady, Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov and Bazarov.

The dispute between Arkady and his father is more peaceful. Nikolai Petrovich is a family man; it is impossible to imagine him outside the family circle. He is a father who strives to fulfill his fatherly duty to the best of his ability. It is he, according to Turgenev, who should bear responsibility for the connection between generations. In the name of his father's love, Nikolai Petrovich is ready to sacrifice a lot. Nikolai Petrovich is distinguished by sensitivity, patience, and wisdom. It is these qualities that prevent a rift between father and son.

Pavel Petrovich, on the contrary, is arrogant and proud. Bazarov is also not inferior to Kirsanov - he is also a strong personality. Both heroes are capable of subjugating others, but they themselves do not fall under the influence of others. Their biographies are somewhat similar: each had unrequited, unhappy love in their lives. Both of them are single, they have no heirs. Both heroes cannot hear others.

Bazarov is critical of the older generation and denies much about it, not because it is old in age, but because it is old in spirit, in its life principles and worldview.

The heroes are engaged in a debate, which begins with light skirmishes, then develops into an argument, and then the confrontation of the heroes leads them to the barrier. Very often, participants in a dispute are driven not by the desire for truth, but by mutual intolerance and irritation. Therefore, they cannot fairly evaluate their opponent and understand his point of view.

Bazarov defends the theory of “nihilism”: “... we act by virtue of what we recognize as useful... At the present time, denial is most useful - we deny.” Bazarov denies everything: art (“A decent chemist is twenty times more useful than any poet,” “Raphael is not worth a penny”), nature as an object of admiration (“nature is not a temple, but a workshop, and man is a worker in it”), love , and even... Pavel Petrovich is trying to clarify how far Mr. Nihilist went in his denials. And Bazarov horrifies both senior Kirsanovs with his answer:

We deny.

How? Not only art, poetry... but also... scary to say...

That’s it,” Bazarov repeated with inexpressible calm.

The reader can only guess what stands behind this categorical “everything”; this includes religion, faith, and even death.

Despite the categorical judgments of the hero (Bazarov), one cannot help but notice Turgenev’s interest and sympathy for his hero. He, of course, does not share Bazarov’s positions, but humanly, some of Bazarov’s misconceptions evoke Turgenev’s sympathy rather than condemnation.

For his part, Kirsanov speaks of the need to follow authorities and believe in them. Pavel Petrovich is sure that only immoral people can live without “principles.” By principles he himself understands, firstly, the constitution, progress, secondly, aristocracy in the English style, and thirdly, Pavel Petrovich openly hates materialistic ideas, sharing the point of view of aesthetes and idealists.

In his novel, the author tries to resolve the eternal conflict between two generations. On the one hand, this conflict arises due to a misunderstanding of the worldview of one generation by another. On the other hand, the heroes simply lack human wisdom, patience and kindness, as well as attention and openness. Turgenev himself claims that life is stronger than any theory; no theory can determine the course of life. And finally, the author is trying to find a way out of the confrontation that has arisen: the writer’s ideal is a life that goes continuously from the past to the future through the present. The most important value in life is the love of fathers for their children. The younger generation inherits the best from the older, and the older is more tolerant of the heirs. Only in this case is a dialogue between generations possible.

The very title of the work suggests that it will resolve the eternal question - the relationship between generations. To some extent this is fair. But the author’s main attention is drawn to the conflict of different worldviews - liberals and revolutionary democrats, called nihilists. Turgenev created the image of a new man, a commoner by origin, a democrat by political views. The contrast between the views of commoners and nobles, democrats and liberals is the basis of the novel’s conflict.

Among the heroes of the novel, the most active representatives of irreconcilable worldviews are Evgeny Bazarov and “aristocrat to the core” Pavel Kirsanov. Pavel Petrovich was a typical representative of his era and environment. He followed the “principles” everywhere and in everything, even continuing to live in the village as before. He kept his habits unchanged, although from a practical point of view it was inconvenient. But for the nihilist Bazarov it looked simply ridiculous.

Pavel Petrovich is about forty-five years old, he is always shaven, wears a strict English suit, the collar of his shirt is always white and starched. “The whole appearance of Pavel Petrovich, elegant and thoroughbred, retained youthful harmony and that desire upward, away from the earth, which for the most part disappears after the twenties.” In appearance and by conviction, Pavel Petrovich is an aristocrat. True, as Pi-sarev notes, “he... has no convictions, but he has habits that he values ​​very much,” and he “out of habit proves in disputes the need for “principles.” What are these “principles”? First of all, this is a view of the state structure. A nobleman and aristocrat himself, he holds the same views as most nobles of that time. Pavel Petrovich is for the established order, he is a monarchist.

Pavel Petrovich cannot tolerate dissent and fiercely defends doctrines that “his actions constantly contradicted.” He loves to talk about Russian peasants, but when he meets them, he “wrinkles and sniffs cologne.” Kirsanov talks about Russia, about the “Russian idea,” but uses a huge number of foreign words. He speaks with pathos about the public good, about serving the fatherland, but he himself sits with folded hands, satisfied with a well-fed and calm life.

But, seeing that he cannot defeat the nihilist in a dispute, cannot shake his moral foundations, or rather, the lack of them, Pavel Petrovich resorts to the last resort of resolving conflicts of this kind. This is a duel. Evgeniy accepts the challenge, although he considers this the trick of a crazy “aristocrat”. They shoot, and Evgeniy wounds Kirsanov. The duel did not help solve their problems. With the help of a partly satirical depiction of these events, the author emphasized the absurdity of Pavel Petrovich’s behavior, because it is ridiculous and even senseless to believe that you can force the younger generation to think the same way as the generation of “fathers”. They part, but each of them remains unconvinced. Bazarov only managed to upset Pavel Petrovich’s mental balance,

For young people, nihilism is a definite political and life position. Many perceive it as a fashionable fad (Sitnikov, Kukshina, Arkady). Deny everything: authorities, science, art, the experience of previous generations and not listen to anything - that’s their motto. But sooner or later they will all grow up, start families and remember their beliefs as the mistakes of their youth. And now they are only vulgarizing the ideas that Bazarov preaches.

However, the main character is aware of his thoughts and is firm in his convictions. He is interested in natural sciences and intends to continue the work of his father, a retired doctor, who does not abandon his practice of medicine even in the wilderness of the village.

Evgeny scoffs at Pavel Petrovich’s “principles”, considering them unnecessary and simply frivolous. Bazarov finds that it is better to deny, and he denies. To Pavel Petrovich’s exclamation: “But we need to build!”, he replies: “This is no longer our business.” Evgeniy speaks sarcastically about romantics, but, having met love, he realizes the romance in himself. Life treated Bazarov cruelly. Not believing in love, he fell in love, but his love was rejected.

Looking at the album of Saxon Switzerland, Bazarov tells Odintsova: “You don’t assume artistic sense in me - yes, I really don’t have any, but these views could interest me from a geological point of view.” Bazarov tries to debunk ineffective “principles” and does not accept illusory dreaminess. But at the same time, he rejects the great achievements of culture (“Raphael is not worth a penny”) and perceives nature in a utilitarian way.

Bazarov dies with the words: “Russia needs me... No, apparently he doesn’t need me. And who needs a wife?” This is the tragic result of the life of Eugene.

The author's attitude towards his characters is not at all simple. The writer himself belongs to the generation raised in German universities, he is a nobleman and a liberal. But he remarkably managed to show the change in forms of consciousness, as well as the inevitable tragedy of people who are the first to take a step forward towards a new world order.

Humanity is in constant motion, developing, generations after generations accumulate experience, knowledge and strive to pass on everything accumulated to those who follow, since all this will not only allow us to survive in reality, but also achieve success and happiness. New times give birth to a new generation, which already looks at the world differently and sets other goals for itself. Much of the experience of our ancestors indeed becomes unacceptable in the new reality, but a huge part should serve as support for further development.

What to leave behind and what to take with you on the journey of life for the new generation? This is the eternal problem of two generations: the older one, striving to pass on all knowledge, all experience, and the new one, sweeping away everything in its path. Naturally, such a problem could not help but worry writers and poets of different eras. In the novel “Fathers and Sons” by I. S. Turgenev, the characters of representatives of the 40s and 60s of the 19th century collide. He includes Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov in the camp of the 40s – “fathers”, and Evgeniy Bazarov belongs to the camp of the 60s – “children”. Both of them are completely opposite people in character. Each of them was brought up in their own era and therefore has their own views on life.

At the very first meeting, the future enemies felt hostility towards each other: Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov was amazed at Bazarov’s outfit with long tassels, as well as his arrogance; Bazarov didn’t even bother to greet this aristocrat.

Soon, the already tense situation became even more tense, and an argument ensued between them. It reveals the characters and ideological positions of these people.

Pavel Petrovich, who “was only waiting for an excuse to attack the enemy,” misunderstands Bazarov’s statement about aristocrats. He regards the words “rubbish and aristocratic” as an insult to the aristocrats and begins to defend their rights. He himself tries to imitate English aristocrats in everything: he dresses fashionably, he always smells of cologne.

In the 18th century, an ideological movement called the “Enlightenment” spread across Europe. It was imbued with the spirit of struggle against all manifestations of feudalism. Enlightenment people put forward and defended the ideas of social progress, equality, and free development of the individual.

In Russia, this historical period is marked by the appearance in the 19th century of “new people” - commoners - educated intellectuals who talk about the need to change life in the country. I.S. Turgenev noticed the beginning of the conflict in the disagreements between society and commoners. This prompted the writer to create the novel “Fathers and Sons,” in which the socio-political conflict between representatives of the nobility and commoners is the main one.

One of the representatives of the raznochintsy is the main character of the novel, Evgeny Vasilyevich Bazarov, who has amazing willpower, solid character, deep intelligence, and rare hard work. But at the same time, the shortcomings of the generation of “children” include a demonstrative indifference to art, aesthetics, music and poetry. Also, indifference to romance and love does not decorate the younger generation.

Bazarov personifies the generation of democrats. He accepts only what is useful, rejects principles and authorities. Continuous work for the benefit of society is the content of his life.

Pavel Petrovich represents the generation of liberal nobility. He claims that “... only immoral or empty people can live without principles in our time”; recognizes the old social order, not seeing any flaws in it, fearing its destruction.

The characters argue about poetry, art, philosophy. Bazarov amazes and irritates Kirsanov with his cold-blooded thoughts about the denial of personality and everything spiritual. Pavel Petrovich, on the contrary, admires nature and loves art.

The disputes between Bazarov and P.P. Kirsanov play a huge role in revealing the main contradictions of the eras. They have many directions and issues on which representatives of the younger and older generations do not agree.

Bazarov also has a conflict situation with Arkady Kirsanov. In “nihilism” he is attracted by opportunities that are usually valuable for a young person entering life - a sense of freedom, independence from traditions and authorities, the right to self-confidence and audacity. All this is combined with other properties of youth, far from “nihilistic” ideas and principles: Arkady is good-natured, ingenuously simple and attached to the poetry of traditional life, to the values ​​of “his” culture. Therefore, Turgenev refers to his generation as “fathers”, since Kirsanov’s passion for the latest teaching is quite superficial.

Part of the conflict in the novel is the relationship between Bazarov and his parents. The scene of the arrival home is even more touching than the meeting between father and son Kirsanov. You can immediately notice the boundless love of the parents for Evgeniy. Here he is remembered as a man with all his weaknesses. For them, Bazarov is little Enyushenka. But the stern nihilist hides and masks his feelings towards his parents. First of all, in front of Arkady. After all, for him, the joy of meeting on the part of the Kirsanov parents was a sign of aristocratic softness. In turn, Vasily Ivanovich and Arina Vlasyevna are afraid to “scare off” their rarely visiting son, do not interfere with him, and do not talk about their feelings.

The conflict between the main characters of Turgenev's novel is the clearest example of disputes between generations of the 60s of the 19th century. But the problem of “fathers and sons” is still relevant today. It is acutely relevant to people who belong to different generations. The generation of “fathers” tries to preserve everything that they believed in, what they lived with all their lives, sometimes not accepting the new beliefs of the young, strives to leave everything in their place, strives for peace. “Children” are more progressive, always on the move, they want to rebuild and change everything, they do not understand the passivity of their elders. The problem of “fathers and sons” arises in almost all forms of organization of human life: in the family, in the work team, in society as a whole.

This problem

It will be possible to solve it if the older generation is more tolerant of the younger generation, somewhere, perhaps, agreeing with them, and the generation of “children” will show more respect for their elders.