The novel in verse “Eugene Onegin” is one of the most famous and significant works of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. Tatyana Larina is the central female character of the work, very bright and recognizable. Her image is the ideal woman that the poet imagined: noble and faithful, pure and intelligent, capable of experiencing ardent feelings and never stopping dreaming. A quotation from Tatiana will help reveal the image more accurately.
Image of a girl
Tatyana Larina’s quotation describes a young county lady who is brought up by her beloved nanny and romantic books. The girl stands out among other heroines of Russian literature: “Wild, sad, silent, / Like a forest deer, fearful...”
One of the chapters of the novel tells that Tatyana grew up in an unremarkable village. Day after day I saw the same landscape, did the same thing. She was bored and her native lands seemed alien, because the girl spent almost all her time on the estate. Soon she began to replace the constant lavish receptions and balls with quiet reading of a novel.
She didn’t want to play with her peers and embroider, in general, do what young ladies of her age usually do: “Her pampered fingers / Didn’t know needles...”
Naturally, in the Larin family, where no one attaches much importance to serious and deep experiences, no one really listened to the heroine or wanted to understand. Tatyana's own father cannot understand what his daughter finds in books, sitting for hours reading them. And her mother understood her and did not interfere, because she also used to adore romantic works. But after marriage, she stopped getting involved in this, although sometimes she listens to her cousin’s stories about the works of various writers, and loves them from a distance.
In general, the family did not understand the girl, although her parents tried to devote more time to raising her. The following can be said about Tatyana:
- silent;
- modest;
- sad;
- amorous;
- strange;
- thoughtful;
- unsociable.
The text says that Tanya’s appearance is completely different from the appearance of her sister - fair-haired, blue-eyed, laughing Olga: “Tatyana’s pale beauties...” The younger sister looked like the heroine of a romance novel, so many gentlemen wanted to meet her. But Larina Jr. already had a fiancé - Vladimir Lensky.
Description of Tatyana in the novel “Eugene Onegin”
What was she like, Tatyana, Russian at heart? How do we see her when reading the novel in verse by Pushkin “Eugene Onegin”? The entire description of her actions indicates a melancholic temperament.
Thoughtfulness, her friend From the most lullaby days, The flow of rural leisure adorned her with dreams.
The following epithets also indicate a tendency towards melancholy: sad, silent, immersed in despondency, tender dreamer.
Pushkin does not mention her appearance anywhere - he does not talk about the color of her eyes, or the shape of her lips, and does not draw a portrait. The whole description comes down to the inner, spiritual world of Tatyana and her actions. The only thing that catches your eye is that Tatyana was the complete opposite of her energetic and carefree sister. And if Olga was a fair-haired, round-faced young lady, then Tatyana, most likely, was a brown-haired woman with delicate features, an always pale face and brown eyes.
And he remembered dear Tatiana And her pale color and sad appearance;
Why brown eyes?
And, paler than the morning moon and more trembling than a persecuted doe, She does not raise her darkening eyes:
It is unlikely that Pushkin would have called blue or green eyes darkening.
Tatyana lived in the world of her dreams, avoided communication with neighbors, preferring them to empty conversations and games with children, walks in the forest or field.
Dick, sad, silent. Like a forest deer is timid.
Like most noble children, she did not know Russian well. At night I read French novels and imagined myself as the heroine of what I read. But, despite this, she was a Russian soul, loved winter, believed in fortune telling and omens.
At the time of the development of the plot, Tatyana was 13 years old. This is mentioned twice in the poem. True, there is an opinion among literary critics that Tatyana was 17 years old. But let’s leave this point of view to the conscience of the critics themselves, because if Tatyana were 17, the girl’s relatives would be diligently looking for a groom for her, and Pushkin would hardly have remembered the dolls.
Character of the heroine
Tatyana's characterization is based on the stories and folk legends of the nanny. The girl may think for a while, but at other moments she can become serious and strict. From a young age, she preferred reading various books to games: “She liked novels early on; / They replaced everything for her..."
I like to wander around the forest edge and listen to the chirping of birds. She sits at the window for a long time, watching nature and inhaling fresh, clean air: “often all day long, alone / I sat silently at the window...” She is not interested in entertainment, and she does not care about her appearance: “And there were children’s pranks, / They were alien to her...”
She did not know the Russian language perfectly, French was closer to her: “...She didn’t know Russian well...” However, Pushkin speaks of her as a Russian woman with a true Russian soul: “Tatyana (Russian in soul, / Without knowing why) ... »
Tatyana reads a lot, mainly novels about love, which shaped the girl’s ideas about what love should be. But the reality is completely different from the stories written in books. Moreover, men from these works are not so often encountered in life.
Larina does not live in this world, but in her own, separate, imaginary one. No one will be able to get into this world and destroy the castles in the air that Tanya built with such trepidation. In reality, she is not interested in talking about fashion, entertainment, games and much more.
Tatiana imagines an ideal world where every man is like a prince on a white horse, where mutual love exists and there are no sorrows or troubles. Therefore, the main character feels like a character in the works of the writer Rousseau and Richardson.
The characterization with quotes from Tatyana Larina describes her as a romantic and naive girl who has no skills in love affairs and has not yet been disappointed by this cruel world. Tanya is not one of those young ladies who skillfully flirt and flirt with the opposite sex. The girl takes the person she has feelings for seriously, wanting to build a strong and happy family with him.
Have Tatyana's life principles changed?
Is it fair to assume that if significant changes have occurred in Tatyana’s character, then the heroine’s life principles have also changed significantly? If we interpret Tatyana’s behavior in this way, then in this we will follow Eugene Onegin, who was inflamed with passion for this unapproachable goddess. Tatyana accepted the rules of this game that was alien to her, but her sincerity, moral purity, inquisitiveness of mind, directness, understanding of duty and justice, and the ability to courageously and with dignity to face and overcome difficulties that arose along the way did not disappear.
The girl responds to Onegin’s confession that she loves him, but is given to another, and will be faithful to him forever. These are simple words, but how much resentment, bitterness, mental pain, and suffering they contain! The image of Tatyana in the novel is vital and convincing. He evokes admiration and sincere sympathy.
Tatyana’s depth, height, and spirituality allowed Belinsky to call her a “genius.” Pushkin himself admired this image, created so skillfully. In Tatyana Larina, he embodied the ideal of a Russian woman.
We looked at this complex and interesting image. Tatiana Onegina was not in the novel, and could not have been, according to Pushkin. The heroes' attitudes to life were too different.
Lonely, “she seemed like a stranger to the girl,” she didn’t like children’s games and could sit silently all day by the window, immersed in dreams. But outwardly motionless and cold, Tatyana lived a strong inner life. “The Nanny's Scary Stories” made her a dreamer, a child “out of this world.”
Shunning naive village entertainment, round dances and games, Tatyana devoted herself wholeheartedly to folk mysticism, her penchant for fantasy directly attracted her to this:
Tatyana believed the legends of the common people: And dreams, and card fortune-telling, And predictions of the moon. She was worried about signs. Mysteriously, all objects proclaimed something to her, Premonitions pressed in her chest.
Suddenly seeing the young two-horned face of the moon in the sky on the left side, She trembled and turned pale. Well? The charm found the secret And in the horror itself: This is how nature created you, inclined you to contradiction.
From her nanny's fairy tales, Tatyana switched early to novels.
They replaced everything for her, She fell in love with the novels of Richardson and Rousseau...
From a dreamer girl, Tatyana Larina became a “dreamy girl” who lived in her own special world: she surrounded herself with the heroes of her favorite novels and was alien to village reality.
For a long time her imagination, burning with bliss and melancholy, hungered for fatal food. For a long time, heartache had been oppressing her young chest. The soul was waiting for someone.
Tatyana Larina. Artist M. Klodt, 1886
Tatyana Larina is an image that captures all the best ideas about a woman in Russia. Quiet, sad, silent, dim, alien. This is how Tatyana appears at the beginning of the novel. The absolute opposite of his sister Olga. Olga is a cheerful, frivolous girl. No wonder Pushkin, describing her flaxen curls and blue eyes, said that you would find a similar portrait in any novel. Olga is a cheerful, slightly spoiled, typical young lady of her age.
Tatyana is not like that. The common fun of girls of her age is alien to her. She is very uncommunicative
And too timid. Favorite activities: listening to grandma's scary stories, watching the moon rise in the sky, or reading. Books were her passion. Only these books were French novels that excited her girlish heart. Completely alien to her environment, Tatyana was waiting for something different. In books she found things that were not in her reality.
Perhaps this is why Tatyana fell in love with Evgeniy Onegin, not even Onegin himself, but the image that she invented for herself. After all, he was completely different from those whom she was used to meeting in her environment. With his coldness towards others, his aloofness, his intelligence, Onegin
He attracted her attention and unwittingly became the object of her hopeless love.
The letter she wrote in a fit of feeling and despair is a masterpiece of literary art, fully reflecting everything that Tatyana lived with and that filled her soul so much. It’s all here: shame, recognition, fear of being rejected, understanding the difference between them, and a wild imagination. Onegin was for her a long-awaited prince, a savior, the meaning of life.
But the reality is simpler and harsher. Of course, Onegin was touched by Tatyana’s confessions. But he did not feel ready to take responsibility for someone else's fate. He declares this to Tatyana, also teaching her a life lesson.
The lesson did not go without a trace. With an incredible effort of will, having coped with mental pain, Tatyana learned to live according to the rules of the “high society”. But this does not mean that from a beautiful, pure girl she turned into a typical lady. No! She managed not to lose her spiritual purity, but life forced her to hide her true feelings deep inside. Now she is the general's wife. And she will never disgrace her honor and her husband’s, even for the sake of love for Onegin. “But I was given to another. And I will be faithful to him forever!”
Yes, after so much time, Tatyana continued to love Evgeniy, but now she will not accept his feelings. And this is not so much resentment or mistrust, but rather moral principles and honesty towards the current spouse.
The image of Tatiana, the sweet, beloved heroine of the great Pushkin, will not lose its significance in society as long as honesty, sincerity, duty, and loyalty are held in high esteem.
Lyubov Larina
Having met Evgeniy in her house, Tatiana’s bright, loving feelings flared up for him, which were also fueled by the heroine’s dreams from reading novels. Now, when reading the work, the girl began to imagine herself and Onegin in the place of the main characters. In her castle of love they were like a prince and princess, and from this her feelings became stronger and stronger.
In Tatyana’s ideas, a man was either an angel or a demon, but was never described as an ordinary person. The girl is fascinated by Onegin, but Tatyana independently invented his image for herself, making him an ideal lover in every way. Her soul trembles every time his name is mentioned. After their meeting, Tanya realized that her hero was different from the others:
- smart;
- mysterious;
- looks beautiful;
- perfect manners.
Having begun to develop feelings for him, the heroine becomes more vulnerable. Tatyana believes her heart, and does not want to pretend and be a hypocrite: “Tatiana loves in earnest...”
The author shows the reader what a trusting girl she is, who has not known betrayal and pain. The girl could no longer contain this love within herself and decided to tell Onegin through a letter. Tatyana trusts her future to Evgeniy, not wanting to think about condemnation and punishment from her parents.
The girl, when she began writing the letter, did not lie and did not hide anything from Onegin’s gaze, she wrote from the bottom of her heart, did not intrigue or deceive. Tatyana confessed to Evgeniy her sincere and faithful love. The heroine thinks that this letter can completely change her life: for the worse or for the better. Larina's love is too romantic, pure, innocent, sublime. And the image of Eugene that she imagined in her imagination does not correspond to reality at all.
The girl’s letter touched the main character to the depths of his soul, but the man does not want to connect his life as a bachelor and ladies’ man with Tanya. Onegin tells her personally that he is not ready for family life when he comes to the estate again. At the same time, he acts like a true gentleman, without telling her parents about the confession and meeting. The man decides to keep this secret.
Larina is very worried about Onegin’s answer, and for several days in a row she tries to come to her senses. But now the girl begins to understand Onegin’s personality.
After the murder of Vladimir, Evgeniy decides to leave the village and no longer remember what is happening. This hurts Tatyana, but she does not despair. One day, having reached the man’s house, she decides to go to the library and read what Onegin had recently read. The heroine understands that these are not works about love, but about more mundane things. And he soon realizes that the main character is just a parody, a collective image.
Soon the parents take the girl to Moscow, because the neighbors begin to whisper that it’s time for her to get married: “The neighbors whisper among themselves: It’s time, it’s time for her to get married!..”
In the provinces, Tatyana is considered strange, but attractive. Then she marries a rich general and becomes a society lady. Conscience does not allow the heroine to be a bad wife and treats her husband with disrespect. Larina is trying to be on an equal footing with her husband and not disgrace him. The relationship between them is rather friendly.
Five years later, the main characters meet again in St. Petersburg. The man does not immediately recognize Tatyana in this proud and cold woman. Indeed, she was not that gullible girl, but an adult and stately lady from high society.
Of course, Tatyana’s feelings have not disappeared anywhere, but she is trying to drown them out, not to let them break out. Even after Onegin confesses his love for her, she does not show it and makes it clear that everything is over.
The characterization of Tatyana Larina with quotes after her marriage reveals the heroine from a new side to the reader: she is a strong and majestic lady who knows how to “control herself.” She no longer listens to her feelings, hides her anger and love, forcing her to subside. She does not stop being faithful to her husband, because she gave her word and is going to keep it. She grew up and only then Evgeni realized what a terrible mistake he had made.
The main character of the novel
Eugene Onegin never sought the great and all-consuming love that writers so colorfully describe in their works. The man is bored with social life. Tanya seems to him quite funny and unusual. He is even surprised when he finds out that Vladimir chose Olga as his bride: an ordinary and stupid girl.
When a man rejects Tatyana’s feelings, but does not feel sympathy and does not feel sorry for the poor girl. He says directly and without emotion that even if they get married, the girl may soon tire of him: “Marriage will be torture for us. / No matter how much I love you, / Having gotten used to it, I will immediately stop loving you...” Several character traits of Onegin can be identified:
- cold;
- gallant;
- cynical;
- selfish.
His cynicism is also shown in the episode where, wanting to anger Vladimir according to his plan, Onegin shows signs of attention to Olga , thereby provoking a duel. The man does not think about how Tatyana feels at that moment. After all, he was flirting with his younger sister right before her eyes, but he refused her. And Larina the eldest was very hurt and offended.
Even after their long separation, Onegin could not see in this stately, cold and emotionless woman the same Tatyana: young, soft and kind. I am sure that marriage changed her, hardened Tatiana’s heart: “But an indifferent princess, / But an unapproachable goddess...”
Author's position
Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin is the very first writer who depicted an ordinary Russian woman in the quotation characterization of Tatyana from Eugene Onegin. It is from her portrait that many Russian works begin to describe beautiful and sophisticated young ladies with Russian character and willpower.
The author, through the image of the heroine, described his thoughts and ideas about the ideal woman. At the same time, her character embodied the worldview of Pushkin himself. The writer wanted to show Tanya’s inner beauty, because according to external data, the girl was not a beauty at all.
Conclusion
In A. S. Pushkin’s novel “Eugene Onegin,” Tatyana Larina occupies a central place. This is a complex, deep, multifaceted female image that is in continuous development throughout the entire work. Pushkin's attitude towards Tatyana is obvious: he admires his heroine, sympathizes with her, and supports her. It becomes obvious that Tatiana is the author’s sweet ideal.
The role of the hero is to demonstrate in contrast the moral qualities of the main character of the novel, Eugene Onegin, and to emphasize the depth of the gulf between them. A quotation from Tatyana Larina will allow you to better prepare for a literature lesson, briefly describe a character, or write an essay or report on a given topic.
The collected material, which includes quotes from the text, allows you to independently characterize the character according to plan, help you compose a detailed written work or write an essay on a given topic.
