1. New!

   The story “Chelkash” was written by M. Gorky in the summer of 1894 and published in No. 6 of the magazine “Russian Wealth” for 1895. The work is based on a story told to the writer by a neighbor in a hospital ward in the city of Nikolaev. The story opens with a detailed...

The story begins with a description of the harbor: “The ringing of anchor chains, the dull knock of wood, the rattling of carriage carts...” Further, the author describes the appearance in the harbor of Chelkash, an old poisoned wolf, well known to the Havana people, an inveterate drunkard and dexterous, brave...

From early childhood, Maxim Gorky had a hard life “among people.” He worked in different places, which allowed him to observe people's lives and their destinies. He was interested in everything that happened in Russia. And, as far as possible, he tried to participate in everything....

2. New!

   It is worth noting that poets and writers of different times and peoples used descriptions of nature to reveal the inner world of the hero, his character, and mood. The landscape is especially important at the climax of the work, when a conflict, a problem is described...

The story “Chelkash,” written in 1894, brought the author wide fame. The story begins with a description of the harbor: “The ringing of anchor chains, the dull knock of wood, the rattling of carriage carts...” Then the author describes the appearance in the harbor of Chelkash, an old...

The main feature of Maxim Gorky's work is the exposure of bourgeois morality and individualism. His works glorify heroic deeds in the name of freedom and happiness. He realizes the idea of ​​a man-doer, a fighter, a hero. His works...

In this work, the author tried to contrast the main character with another character. This made it possible to most clearly reveal their character and show how strikingly different their views on life are. A comparative description of Chelkash and Gavrila from Maxim Gorky’s story “Chelkash” will introduce the reader to two completely different people, whose true colors were revealed in a specific situation.

Origin

Grishka Chelkash and Gavrila both come from the village. They know firsthand what hard work is. Both have been accustomed since childhood to plow from morning to night. Everyone still has a family in the village. Chelkash has a wife and child. Gavrila has an old mother and a fiancee.

Appearance

Chelkash. Gregory appears in the form of a tramp and a drunkard. An aged man. In dirty clothes. Sloppy and unkempt. The smell of a body that had not been washed for a long time hit my nose. His appearance makes a repulsive impression. Cold, gray eyes. The nose is straight and predatory. The look is sharp, piercing right through. His brown mustache was constantly quivering. Movements are abrupt and jerky.

Gavrila. A simple, country guy of about 20 years old. A Russian hero of strong build. Strong shoulders and arms. Skin tanned. Brown hair. Light blue eyes shone with kindness. The look is open and good-natured. He immediately endeared himself to his interlocutor. His image inspired confidence. He dressed modestly. All his clothes were shabby, but at the same time, he looked neat.

Attitude to freedom

At Gavrila's The concept of freedom lies in material well-being. Only if he has money can he feel like a human being. He often imagined how he would return home, fix the collapsed household, raise his sick mother to her feet, and get married. Without money, he has no choice but to become a son-in-law to his rich father-in-law, on whom he will have to live the rest of his life.

Grishka I never put money above all else. They flew away as quickly as they appeared. Freedom for him is a broader concept. He has no responsibility for the family with which he separated long ago, no dependence on social conventions. He doesn’t care where to live or how. Just looking at the sea, he felt absolutely free and happy. At these moments, he invariably felt how his soul was cleansed of filth and he himself seemed to be exalted above the entire world around him and its eternal vanity.

Character traits

Chelkash:

• Kind;
• responsive;
• generous;
• thinking;
• suffering;
• capable of deep feelings;
• romantic;
• proud;
• risky;
• desperate;
• noble.

Gavrila:

• confiding;
• good-natured;
• petty;
• greedy;
• vile;
• cowardly;
• weak;
• dependent on passions.

Common cause. The true face of every hero

Having agreed to earn some money in a dubious way, Gavrila soon regrets the hasty decision. He became cowardly and was ready to go astray without completing the work he started. Having received a small part of the amount earned, greed awakens in the guy. An uncontrollable feeling of greed made him feel weaker than his partner. He begged Chelkash to give him all the money. Unable to control his emotions, he throws a stone at him and runs away from the crime scene along with the proceeds. Fear and cowardice forced him to return to the wounded Chelkash. He asks for forgiveness, trying to atone for a low deed, but how can this cleanse the soul if it is dirty?

Chelkash is accustomed to treating his work with responsibility. Having completed the task, he receives the amount promised to him. For him, these are just pieces of paper that do not play a special role in life. When he sees that Gavrila needs them more, he easily parts with them, which speaks of his generosity and kindness. He even managed to forgive Gavrila after he found out that the guy wanted to kill him for money. Chelkash evokes admiration and respect, unlike Gavrila, who is capable of committing murder for his own benefit.

A comparative description of two heroes in a work helps the author to depict his characters more clearly and clearly. When compared, the images of heroes can be revealed from the most unexpected side. This happened with Chelkash and Gavrila from M. Gorky’s story “Chelkash”.

Chelkash is a representative of the “bottom” of a big city. He is well known to everyone working in the harbor, “an inveterate drunkard and a clever, brave thief.” The author emphasizes his resemblance to a predator - “an old poisoned wolf”, he has a mustache like a cat, and he is especially similar to a steppe hawk with his “predatory thinness” and “aiming” gait.

Gavrila came from the village to earn money, but was unsuccessful. He is good-natured, trusting and, by Chelkash’s definition, looks like a calf. Gavrila agrees to work with Chelkash because he needs money, but he does not know what kind of work we are talking about. Gavrila trusts Chelkash, especially when they are fed in a tavern on credit, this is proof for Gavrila that Chelkash is a respected person in the city.

Both heroes value freedom, but understand it differently. For Gavrila this is material well-being. Then he will be able to return home, improve his household, and get married. There is no money - you will have to become a son-in-law and depend on your father-in-law for everything, working as a laborer for him. Chelkash does not value money; for him freedom is a broader concept. He is free from property, from his family, from whom he separated long ago, from social conventions. He has no roots, he doesn’t care where to live, but he loved the sea. The author emphasizes the similarity of the sea element, the boundless and powerful, and freedom-loving nature of the hero. At sea, he felt that his soul was being cleansed “from everyday filth.” Gavrila, on the contrary, is afraid of the sea; the lack of soil under his feet instills fear in him. Chelkash knows what he is doing and is not afraid to take risks. Gavrila, realizing what he was dragged into, was scared to death. He is afraid of being caught and of the sin of ruining his soul.

Seeing Chelkash with a wad of money, Gavrila forgets about sin and agrees to steal again for money. After all, maybe “you won’t lose your soul, but you will become a man for the rest of your life.” He humiliatingly lies at Chelkash’s feet, begging for money, and at this moment the author shows Chelkash’s moral superiority: he “felt that he - a thief, a reveler, cut off from everything dear to him - would never be so greedy, so forgetful of himself.” .

His dignity and contempt for the spiritual slavery of man evoke the respect and admiration of the author. And Gavrila’s greed is such that he is ready to commit murder for money, and actually makes such an attempt. He later repents of her, but he took the money offered by Chelkash.

Therefore, when comparing these two heroes, we see that Chelkash is a prouder and freer person, and the author’s sympathies are on his side.

Most of M. Gorky's works are written in the style of realism, but his early stories have a romantic spirit. The main characters of these stories live in close connection with nature. The writer identifies nature and man. In his works, he gives preference to people who are free from the laws of society. These heroes have interesting views and behavior. The main character always has an antagonist - a hero who has an opposite view of the world. A conflict arises between these characters, which forms the basis of the work; it reveals the plot of the work.

Like most of Gorky's stories, "Chelkash" tells about human relationships; the work depicts nature and its relationship with the mental state of the characters.

The events that Gorky talks about in Chelkash took place on the seashore, in a port city. The main characters are Chelkash and Gavrila. These characters are opposed to each other. Chelkash is a rather middle-aged thief and drunkard who does not have his own home. Gavrila is a young peasant who came to these places after a failed attempt to find a job to earn money.

Grishka Chelkash is known to everyone in the port as an avid drunkard and a clever thief. His appearance was similar to other “tramp figures” encountered in the port, but he was surprising in his resemblance to the “steppe hawk”. He was a “long, bony, slightly stooped” man, “with a humpbacked predatory nose and cold gray eyes.” He had a thick and long brown mustache that “twitched every now and then”; he kept his hands clasped behind his back and constantly rubbed them, nervously twisting his long, crooked and tenacious fingers. At first glance, his gait was calm, but vigilant, like the flight of a bird, which Chelkash’s entire appearance was reminiscent of.

Chelkash lived in the port as a theft, sometimes his deals were successful and then he had money, which he immediately drank away.

Chelkash and Gavrila met when Chelkash was walking along the harbor and thinking about how he could carry out the “task” that lay ahead that night. His partner broke his leg, which greatly complicated the whole matter. Chelkash was very annoyed.

Gavrila was returning home after a failed attempt to earn some money in the Kuban. He also had reason to be upset - after the death of his father, he could only get out of poverty in one way - “to become a son-in-law in a good house,” which meant becoming a farm laborer.

Chelkash quite by chance saw a young, strong guy, dressed in a tattered red cap, shod in bast shoes and sitting right next to the sidewalk.

Chelkash touched the guy, got into conversation with him and unexpectedly decided to take him with him to the “case”.

The meeting of the heroes is described by Gorky in detail. We hear the conversation, inner experiences and thoughts of each character. The author pays special attention to Chelkash, noticing every detail, the slightest change in the behavior of his character. These are reflections about his former life, about the peasant boy Gavril, who, by the will of fate, found himself in his “wolf’s paws.” Either he feels dominance over someone, while feeling proud of himself, then his mood changes, and he wants to scold or hit Gavrila, then suddenly he wants to feel sorry for him. He once had a house, a wife, and parents, but then he turned into a thief and an inveterate drunkard. However, to the reader he does not seem to be a complete person. We see in him a proud and strong nature. Despite the fact that he has an unpresentable appearance, the hero has an extraordinary personality. Chelkash can find an approach to everyone, can come to an agreement with everyone. It has its own special relationship to the sea and nature. Being a thief, Chelkash loves the sea. The author even compares his inner world to the sea: “a seething nervous nature,” he was greedy for impressions, looking at the sea, he experienced a “broad warm feeling” that covered his entire soul and cleansed it of everyday filth. Among the water and air, Chelkash felt the best, there his thoughts about life, and, indeed, life itself lost value and poignancy.

We see Gavrila completely differently. First, we are presented with a “downtrodden”, distrustful village guy, and then a slave, scared to death. After the successful completion of the “case,” when Gavrila saw big money for the first time in his life, it seemed to “break through” him. The author describes the feelings overwhelming Gavrila very vividly. Undisguised greed becomes visible to us. Immediately, compassion and pity for the village boy disappeared. When, falling to his knees, Gavrila began to beg Chelkash to give him all the money, the reader saw a completely different person - a “vile slave” who had forgotten about everything, wanting only to beg more money from his master. Feeling acute pity and hatred for this greedy slave, Chelkash throws all the money at him. At this moment he feels like a hero. He is sure that he will never become like that, despite the fact that he is a thief and a drunkard.

However, after Gavrila’s words that he wanted to kill Chelkash and throw him into the sea, he experiences burning rage. Chelkash takes the money, turns his back to Gavrila and leaves.

Gavrila could not survive this; he grabbed a stone and threw it at Chelkash’s head. Seeing what he had done, he again began to beg for forgiveness.

And in this situation Chelkash was superior. He realized that Gavrila had a mean and petty soul, and threw the money right in his face. Gavrila at first looked after Chelkash, who was staggering and holding his head, but then he sighed, as if freed, crossed himself, hid the money and headed in the opposite direction.