Ball in Famusov’s house - analysis and role of the episode in the comedy “Woe from Wit”

Episode Analysis

The elite of Moscow society comes to visit Famusov. All the newcomers were opponents of something new, and they were also very interested in wealth and the place that a person occupied in society, that is, rank.

Plan for essay or analysis:

• Why didn’t they want to see Chatsky in the Famusovs’ house?
• Description of the ball.
• A premonition of Alexander Andreevich’s break with Famusov’s society.
• Characteristics of Famusov's guests at the ball (portrait sketches of the guests).
• Chatsky's impudent laughter at the ball.
• Rumor of madness.
• Anger, ignorance, objections from Famus society.
• Loneliness.

Literature, 9th grade

The elite of Moscow society comes to visit Famusov. All visitors were opponents of something new; they were very interested in wealth and the place that a person occupied in society, that is, rank. Chatsky’s conflict with Moscow society was most clearly manifested at Famusov’s ball. The ball scene is the culmination of Griboedov's comedy. At the ball, Chatsky manages to quarrel with the guests, be branded crazy and be condemned by everyone gathered at the ball. The ball scene is typical for Moscow of Griboyedov's time. And Famusov’s guests are the most ordinary people of Moscow society of the early 19th century. Some go to balls out of boredom, others to make acquaintances with the right people, and others to arrange the destinies of their children. People of the same circle gather here; there are no strangers here. And the established rules of behavior are the law. Chatsky, with his truth and critical outlook on life, simply could not become one of these people. The first people Chatsky meets at the ball are the Gorichi spouses. Platon Gorich is an old acquaintance of Chatsky. Chatsky is sincerely upset by the change that has happened to his old friend. Although he makes fun of Gorich, he does so with obvious sympathy. And here are the princes Tugoukhovsky with their family. The first thing the princess is interested in is whether Chatsky is married. Her interest quickly disappears, because she finds out that the candidate for groom is not rich. And here are Countess Khryumina: grandmother and granddaughter. The granddaughter is an evil old maid. Chatsky compares her to French milliners. Chatsky is outraged that Moscow society condemns scoundrels like Zagoretsky, but does not close the door to him. Griboyedov himself speaks through the mouth of Chatsky, and he speaks, of course, the truth, one that representatives of Famus society are not ready to listen to and accept. Therefore, Chatsky, with his truthfulness, causes rejection in this society. That is why the rumor about Chatsky’s madness, invented by Sophia, was so easily accepted as truth by Famusov’s guests. At the ball, the confrontation between Chatsky and Famus society reaches its highest intensity - the culmination of the social storyline occurs. All the guests joyfully pick up the gossip about Chatsky's madness and defiantly turn away from him at the end of the third act. The episode “Ball in Famusov’s House” is extremely important for the entire comedy, since in this episode the plot reaches special tension, the main idea of ​​the play begins to clearly sound: the confrontation between the “present century” and the “past century.” (333 words)

Brief description of the ball in Woe from Wit

The ball is an important event that is of great importance; all representatives of high society, so to speak, the “cream of society,” gathered at it.

Chatsky had not been to Moscow for three years and arrived without an invitation, so no one was really expecting him there. He returned to Moscow with one goal - to marry Sophia, Famusov's daughter. But suddenly she finds out that during his absence she fell in love with someone else. Her new lover was Molchalin, this greatly surprised Chatsky. And the very peak of his indignation comes at the ball.

But as soon as guests began to arrive at Famusov’s house, where the action will take place, Chatsky actively began to communicate with everyone and looked at it all from the outside, he immediately noticed the stupidity and hypocrisy of those invited. Flattery and compliments were literally swirling in the air, everyone was trying to please each other, but at the same time they were laughing at each other.

The conflict with society could have been foreseen, because Chatsky is a man of the “present century” , he was against everything old, believed that it was necessary to serve not people, but the cause, and also did not like sycophancy and flattery. Over time, spent in Famus’s society, Chatsky realized that he had nothing in common with them, because the guests had a different vision, and they also did not like the hero’s behavior, and it was impossible to avoid conflict.

At the ball, Chatsky meets his friend Platon Mikhailovich, who after a while has changed a lot and not for the better. After his wedding with Natalya Dmitrievna, he became henpecked, she constantly controls him. Platon Mikhailovich understands everything, but does not try to change anything.

Then the Tugoukhovsky family arrives with their daughters, who are in search of suitors, but upon learning that Chatsky is not rich, they stop communicating with him. The next guest was Khryumina. She was angry with the whole world and always dissatisfied because she could not find herself a betrothed. She behaved arrogantly, showed interest in everything foreign, and not just in some outfits, because she considered it fashionable, and Chatsky ridiculed it. And they don’t like Zagoretskovo at all because of his fraud and lies, but he has a special gift that allows him to be in society.

Also present at the ball was Skalozub, a military man who was a careerist. He was rich and believed that everything should be according to the old order. Because of his condition, he became the most welcome guest, because Famusov saw him as a possible groom for his daughter.

There was also Khlestova, a cruel old lady who took a dog and a blackaa girl with her to the ball. The only woman who was indifferent to everything foreign. She always has her own point of view and knows what it is worth.

And Repetilov is the last guest to arrive at the ball. He is an unreliable and empty person, he does everything only for his own benefit. For example, his marriage was with the expectation that his father-in-law would help him in his career, but this did not happen.

While at the ball, Alexander Andreevich did nothing but ridicule everyone and joke about them, which all the guests did not like. Their discontent contributed to the fact that they began to consider him crazy.

Towards evening, at the ball, there was a rumor about Chatsky’s madness, which was started by Sophia. Most likely, she did this unconsciously, perhaps she meant that Alexander Andreevich had gone crazy with love and was not far behind her, and some guest heard this and began to tell others, this preceded such a rapid spread of rumors. Sophia knew that she was misunderstood , but did not explain her words; she wanted to avenge Molchalin. Later, everyone began to find out the cause of the madness and came to the conclusion that studying was to blame. This is where the love conflict in the comedy ended.

Famus society was quite evil and had its own fear. People were against any innovations; they adhered only to old traditions. The fear of society was that they were afraid of education and science, so they wanted to destroy all the books. This shows the fragment “Collect all the books and burn them” from the words of Famusov.

From the very beginning, the guests did not welcome Chatsky with open arms, because they considered themselves smart and “higher class,” and he only laughed at them. A tense atmosphere reigned in Famusov’s house all evening. It also seemed to Alexander Andreevich that he was at some kind of exhibition due to the fact that the guests were constantly bragging about something, for example, rank or wealth.

The Famus society decided that it was much easier to recognize Chatsky as crazy than to say that he was right. It was at the ball that he learned Sophia’s real attitude towards him. Chatsky was left completely alone, even his friend Repetilov was convinced that Alesandr Andreevich was crazy. He feels out of place at the ball and leaves in the morning in a carriage.

Analysis of the episode “Ball in the Famusov House” from the comedy by A.S. Griboyedov "Woe from Wit"

Comedy A.S. Griboyedov's "Woe from Wit" made a lot of noise in Russian drama. This is a wonderful work with sharp, aphoristic language. In his play, Griboyedov touched on many issues and problems of Russian society in the 20s of the 19th century. The main problem of the work can be called the confrontation between the “present century” and the “past century”. In my opinion, this was revealed especially clearly in act 3 of the comedy, in the ball scene.

Chatsky is a clear representative of the generation of the future, he is eager to see changes in the country, he has an active social and political position. He is openly opposed to Famusov. But Famusov is certainly not the only representative of adherents of old traditions. The entire Famus society is conservative, afraid of everything new and unknown. We see this society in its entirety in Act 3, in the ball scene. In this episode, the disagreements between Chatsky and Famusov’s Moscow are especially clearly visible.

Before this episode, we saw, one might say, only two representatives of the conservative camp - Famusov and Skalozub. But here other characters come onto the scene - the Moscow nobility. All these people are united by common views and positions, but, nevertheless, the author briefly but vividly describes each of them to us. Zagoretsky is an informer and card sharper; the Khryumins are contentious and grumpy, two-faced. We see that the Tugoukhovskys recognize in people only nobility, wealth and rank, like many in this society. That’s why everyone is so respectful of the domineering, rude, despotic Khlestova. The weak character of Platon Mikhailovich Gorich, who is scolded by his wife in front of everyone, evokes hostility. Messrs. N and D are inveterate gossips; it is they who, with great gloating, will spread the rumor about Chatsky’s madness.

But not all noble Moscow appears before our eyes. There are still a lot of people left somewhere behind the scenes. We learn about them from conversations. These are Kuzma Petrovich, Foma Fomich, Tatyana Yuryevna, Marya Alekseevna and others. All the guests, led by the owner of the house, are the very embodiment of hypocrisy, moral ugliness, and vulgarity. Chatsky says about these people:

In the love of traitors, the tireless enmity,

Indomitable storytellers,

Clumsy smart people, crafty simpletons,

Sinister old women, old men,

Decrepit over inventions and nonsense.

Such a society does not forgive intelligence, free-thinking, or expressing one’s own ideas. Chatsky is independent, he is morally superior to this crowd. This cannot be forgiven here. Famus society persecutes the hero with special hatred. And everyone picks up the rumor about Chatsky’s madness with great readiness. It is noteworthy that it is Sophia who spreads this gossip. Thus, she betrays the hero. If until this moment the reader could hesitate in which camp to classify the girl, then after this act she became a full member of Famus society. After such meanness, Sophia ceased to differ from the crowd of hypocrites, scoundrels and fools.

But Chatsky is unbending. He despises ignorance, inertia, and groveling. Here I would like to recall his famous monologue about the “Frenchman from Bordeaux,” where the hero denounces “empty, slavish, blind imitation” of everything foreign:

I arrived and found that there was no end to the caresses;

Not a Russian sound, not a Russian face

I didn’t meet him: as if in the fatherland, with friends;

Its own province.

Also in this monologue, Chatsky is indignant about the “alien power of fashion” and is fighting for the dignity of the Russian people:

Will we ever be resurrected from the alien power of fashion?

So that our smart, cheerful people

Although, based on our language, he didn’t consider us Germans.

This episode is also notable for the fact that we understand: Chatsky is not alone. There are people similar to him in the country. This, for example, is Skalozub’s cousin, who, due to some “new rules”: “... suddenly left his service and began reading books in the village.” This is the nephew of Princess Tugoukhovskaya - “chemist and botanist.” These are the professors of the Pedagogical Institute, about whom Princess Tugoukhovskaya indignantly says that they “practice in schisms and lack of faith.”

Chatsky is not liked by Famus’ circle, which is why the rumor about his madness spreads with such speed and acquires the most incredible details. Someone suddenly reports that the hero was shot in the head, and in the end it turns out that the young man is a fugitive criminal. The entire Moscow society sees the cause of madness in science, in enlightenment. Famusov speaks about it this way:

Learning is the plague, learning is the reason,

What is worse now than then?

There were crazy people, deeds, and opinions.

In fact, there is nothing strange about the birth of this rumor. After all, for Famus society, Chatsky is a crazy, insane person who dared to freely express his opinion, allowing himself not to honor ranks and secular nobility.

Thus, this episode is of great importance for the entire work. Here the confrontation between Chatsky and Famus society is especially clearly emphasized. In addition, it is in the third act that a rumor spreads about Chatsky’s madness, because of which the hero is forced to flee Moscow.

Place of the ball scene in the plot of the comedy

This scene is important in comedy, because it is the climax; it is at the ball that two conflicts occur: love and social. Also, this episode is not only the climax, but also the denouement for some storylines. Conflict description table:

The social conflict in this comedy is insoluble. But we can say that Chatsky did not win these two disputes, because he left Moscow lonely and disappointed. His feelings are destroyed, he has no hope left that he will be understood in this society.

Meanwhile, Famus society did not even understand what had happened. They didn’t even understand Chatsky’s jokes and, by saying that he was crazy, they made things worse for themselves. Even now, similar companies do not like those who talk a lot and pretend to be too smart. It’s more comfortable and calm without them. Both Pechorin and Onegin had a similar fate; they were also united by the fact that they were all unable to be in society.

Griboedov's comedy "Woe from Wit" has not lost its value even now. On the contrary, now you can very often hear quotes from this work.

What role in the comedy by A.S. Griboyedov's "Woe from Wit" plays the ball scene?

Almost the entire third act (from 4 to 22 scenes) is devoted to the ball scene in A. S. Griboedov’s comedy “Woe from Wit.” In this scene, all the plot lines of the comedy reach their climax, and some of them reach their denouement.

It begins with the arrival of guests at Famusov's house. All of them are representatives of his, Famusov’s, world. The guests fully share his philosophy of life: when you need to “serve,” be able to bend over backwards.

The ball scene is a separate comedy with many characters. Each group of characters, given a full outline of their characters, manages to play out a complete action in a few words. The Gorichi act out a complete comedy. The husband, recently still a cheerful and lively man, is now a degraded man, clothed, as in a robe, in Moscow life, a gentleman. According to Chatsky’s apt remark, this “husband-boy, husband-servant, ideal of Moscow husbands” is under the shoe of his wife, a sugary and cutesy lady.

With the help of these characters, Griboyedov shows the peculiarities of the life of Moscow nobles. These are the six princesses of the Tugoukhovskys, “brought out for display” (the subtext is clearly felt: this is not their first ball and certainly not their last), and Countess Khlestova with a pug and a little arap girl, as well as many others, whose names are sometimes are not named. All of them are introduced into the narrative with one purpose: to show how, in the conditions of a serf-dominated society, every independent thought, every living passion, every sincere feeling is doomed to persecution.

The main character of the comedy, Chatsky, is a man whose grief stems from the mind, the mind in the broad sense of the word. In Griboyedov’s time, “mind” was also understood as intelligence, enlightenment, and culture in general. It is Chatsky’s “mind” that places him outside the circle of the Famusovs, Molchalins, and Skalozubs, outside the norms and rules of social behavior that are familiar to them. This is precisely what the conflict in comedy is based on, and it is in the ball scene that this conflict is resolved.

Chatsky’s best human qualities make him, in the minds of those around him, first an “eccentric”, a “strange person”, and then simply a madman. The ball scene is preceded by a very emotionally powerful monologue of the hero, “Who are the judges?” And it is in the ball scene that we understand that Chatsky’s question addressed to Famusov: “Where, tell us, are the fathers of the fatherland whom we should take as models?” is, in essence, rhetorical. Famusov’s guests make it clear that as long as they exist, there can be no talk of any progress in society. After all, their dream is to “take all the books and burn them.”

Chatsky's personal drama, his unrequited love for Sophia, is naturally included in the main theme of the comedy. Sophia, for all her spiritual inclinations, still belongs entirely to Famus’s world. She cannot fall in love with Chatsky, who opposes this world with all his mind and soul.

At the ball, Chatsky realizes that Sophia, whom he loved, is no longer the same as before, that the people around him in Famusov’s house are entirely hypocrites and fools. It is Sophia who spreads gossip about Chatsky’s madness only in order to take revenge on him for Molchalin. Thus, the heroine places herself on the other side of Chatsky and completely joins Famusov’s camp.

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It is in the ball scene that Chatsky bitterly realizes that he cannot achieve the truth here, he has nothing to do here. Therefore, at the end of the play he exclaims:

...I’ll go search around the world,

Where there is a corner for the offended feeling.

Carriage for me, carriage!

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