The comparative description of Ostap and Andriy is intended to demonstrate two different psychological types, to make the reader think about such concepts as patriotism, fatherland and love. An essay on this topic is included in the compulsory school curriculum; starting from the 7th grade, schoolchildren write papers on the topics raised in the work.
The article will analyze the character traits of both brothers and show how beliefs and feelings influenced their fate. The analysis plan is simple, some aspect of life is taken and then both characters are examined in turn. For ease of comparison, a table can be created from the given facts.
The story “Taras Bulba” by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol, which became a classic of Russian literature, was published in 1835. Thanks to personal life experience, as well as a good knowledge of the history and traditions of the Cossacks, N.V. Gogol created lively and vivid images of the main characters in his work. The life of literary characters takes place in an environment that quite fully reflects the realities of that era.
Appearance
Portrait of Ostap: Bulba’s eldest son is a strongly built young man. The author describes his face with such epithets as “severe” and “strong.” At the beginning of the story, Ostap's age is 22 years old.
The son of Taras is a full-fledged member of the Cossack military brotherhood, with all his appearance he reveals himself to be a brave warrior. Wore an Oseledets on his head.
The youngest son Andriy also has good health, is tall and handsome. He wore a mustache and forelock, like most Cossacks, and his hair color was black. He is about 20 years old.
Upon returning from Bursa, he was dressed in a red caftan, baggy trousers with a gilded belt and red boots with silver horseshoes.
The appearance of both characters undergoes some changes as the story progresses. If at the beginning we are told about two young guys who have just recently started to have fluff on their cheeks, then towards the end, stern Cossacks, one of the best warriors of that era, appear before the reader’s eyes.
Ostap Bulba
Ostap is the eldest son of Tarasa Bulba, he is 22 years old. Just like the father is a landowner. Due to his age, he is an ardent and impetuous person. From the age of twelve he was sent to study at the Kyiv Academy. At first, the young man was “wild”; he did not recognize his training and ran away at first. I often buried my textbooks and didn’t want to study. For him, his father was an authoritative person, so after his guidance he began to study and was very successful in this.
Ostap is very proud, Taras himself notes this quality in the very first chapter, when the young man does not even allow his father to laugh at him. He even went to execution without fear in his eyes, but with a degree of pride. Perhaps, if not death, then he would have made a good Cossack and future chieftain, he could have become a worthy replacement for his father. The old chieftain himself assumed that his son’s colonel would be even more talented than Taras Bulba himself.
Taras Bulba’s plans in relation to his eldest son are objective, because Ostap and Andriy were always the first, but the eldest was more drawn to the way of life of the Cossacks and held his own well in hand-to-hand combat. The brothers stood out among the Cossacks for their prowess; they could swim across the Dnieper against the current, which also indicates their physical development. There is a moment in the work where Ostap fights against six and wins.
Ostap and Andriy are not spoiled by their father. The chieftain has wealth, but once a year when the holidays began, the brothers walked home. This was explained by the fact that schoolchildren were not allowed to ride horses. Zherebtsov was given to them by their father when the brothers finished their studies.
The eldest son is distinguished by his concentration and ability to think clearly in difficult situations and soberly assess his strengths. These qualities and natural flexibility were clearly manifested in Ostap’s battles, confirming his makings as a leader for the Cossacks. Ostap is a loyal and honest person, which is manifested in his ability to make friends. He never gave up on his comrades, accepted the rod, but remained true to himself.
Ostap sometimes resembles Taras Bulba, but at a younger age. These heroes have a lot in common: strong character, military life, love of freedom and wild parties. By the standards of that time, the young man was kind and straightforward with his peers. He is a capable young man for military affairs. Being the youngest of all the Cossacks, he was appointed commander of a battalion of Cossacks (kuren ataman). The Cossacks noted that Ostap led his army the same way his father did.
Ostap has a strong personality, but Gogol does not forget to show the reader that he is an ordinary person through simple things. For example, the writer points out his snoring. Gogol writes that the young man “snored all over the field,” “the grass moved from the force of his snoring.”
Ostap is a courageous man, as evidenced by the moment of execution, because under torture he did not utter more than one groan or cry while the Poles were breaking his body.
Before arriving in the Zaporizhzhya Sich, Ostap is presented as a strong young man, tall, with “fluff” on his face, it is clear that he has not yet begun to shave. The forelock is still long, which indicates the youth of the Cossack. The clothes are good quality and new, for example, morocco boots with silver horseshoes, trousers tied with a gold belt.
Ostap matured in a month, his facial features became menacing and strong, his body exuded strength, it was as if he had acquired the “broad strength of a lion.”
Seminary studies
The brothers were born into a wealthy family. Their mother was quite rich; according to Andria, even her husband did not know about everything she owned. Taras occupied one of the highest levels in the hierarchy of the Cossack army and was an ataman. So they found money to send their sons to study at a Polish seminary.
Ostap's studies started poorly, which cannot be said about his brother, whose academic performance was excellent. Bulba's eldest son ran away from the seminary and disrupted order in the educational institution. He accepted punishments for his antics steadfastly, endured blows and did not betray his friends. Having learned about his behavior, Taras scolded him and threatened him with a monastery, after which Ostap began to treat his studies as appropriate and successfully completed his studies.
Andriy showed interest in science, studied easily, without stress. In the company of friends he liked to lead. This is where his cunning and adaptability came into play. He skillfully avoided responsibility for his pranks.
Taras Bulba
Taras Bulba is the main character of the work. It is known about Taras Bulba’s appearance that he is a healthy-looking person. A fat, large and strong Cossack with gray hair and eyebrows, scars on his face and body, like all Cossacks had a mustache and forelock.
Gogol shows him to the reader in the image of an elderly Zaporozhye Cossack. Taras Bulba is a respected person, in his declining years he is a wealthy gentleman, a nobleman. It was the situation in society that became the reason to send their sons to study at the Academy (Ostap and Andriy). However, Bulba received respect for his military merits. The old Cossack is a talented commander. The outpost for him was the meaning of life, where the place was only for campaigns and battles. The advantage of the ataman in military campaigns was not only his experience in leading his army, but also his incredible hatred of his enemies.
In the first chapter, when Bulba announces that he will take his sons to the outpost, his wife is afraid of not seeing her sons again. She recalls that her husband often left to fight; a Cossack could be at home for several days a year or disappear for several years.
The characteristics of Taras Bulba include his approach to raising his sons. He does not recognize concessions for them, because in his sons he sees Cossacks and future men, ready to defend their people and their Motherland. Bulba wants to see in them a continuation of his work; for him, it is not so much the noble training of his sons that is important, but their masculinity and honor, which is why in the first chapter he encourages a “fight” with his eldest son. After all, Ostap defended his honor, he did not even allow his father to laugh at him. But the younger one disappoints his father from the very first pages with his “effeminacy,” because Andriy has become closer to the nobility than to the free Cossacks. The old Cossack himself recognizes a simple life in the steppe. Zaporozhye Sich is what is important.
Since the events in the story take place during the period of confrontation between Ukraine and Poland, it is not surprising that some heroes and society began to adopt Polish customs. For example, they began to acquire servants, hold dinners, courtyards, and buy hunters and falcons. Since the main character hated his enemies and did not accept such a way of life, he called the supporters of the Warsaw way of life “slaves of the Polish lords.” It is worth noting that the chieftain himself has his own farms and servants.
It is also worth noting that although Taras Bulba is a very educated person, he shows himself to be simple and understandable to others. The unusualness of the mind can also be noted by the fact that during moments of festivities the Cossack does not relax, he remembers important matters and controls those around him.
While defending his people, the ataman also protects Orthodoxy, saying that one can fight against the Poles and Tatars for Christianity. He is an Orthodox Christian, for example, he observes the custom of “squatting in front of the road.”
Taras Bulba has a strong character and stubborn disposition (Gogol often writes about this), he is not able to sit idle, he is restless and lively. This is a straightforward, hot-tempered and rather rude person: he insults and beats his wife. At the same time, he has no equal in valor and inflexibility. He treats his enemies with particular ruthlessness and hatred, ferocity and cruelty. Gogol writes that “only fire and the gallows were determined by a gray head.” Bulba not only killed his enemies, he exterminated them, urging them not to spare the Poles. All these qualities include his vindictiveness. The image of an experienced Cossack, leader and fearless warrior is complemented by his horse, to which Gogol gives the nickname Devil.
Despite the negative qualities of Taras Bulba, he fights for the freedom of his Motherland and people, putting a free future above his life and the lives of loved ones. One of the most powerful defeats for Bulba is the betrayal of Andriy, who betrays the Cossacks. But even here the chieftain shows his inexorability, because even a son who clings to his enemies has no chance of forgiveness. The old chieftain personally kills the traitor, showing his inexorability towards the enemies of the Motherland. The characteristics of the old Cossack highlight his steadfastness and inner strength, which attracted people to him.
In many literary works and historical reports there are great commanders and strong people, but there are only a few such strong personalities as Taras Bulba. Let's consider the moment with the execution of Ostap.
You can say the beloved son of Taras Bulba. The one who lived up to expectations. Ostap is executed, the execution is very demonstrative, he is tortured. And just before his death, Ostap rejoices that there are no relatives among the people. The young Cossack does not want to hear lamentations. He needs the support of a real Cossack. It is important that his father sees his resilience and supports him before his death.
Ostap shouts: “Father! Where are you? Do you hear?
This is the most intense moment. The people stand in silence, watching the execution. Ostap's question is perceived as the last jerk, perhaps even a cry of despair, but... Everyone shudders when one single word reaches their ears.
- “I hear.”
Taras Bulba is a strong hero not only in body, but also in spirit. He came to his son’s execution to support him and see him off on his last journey. Not just as a son, but as a man, as a war, as a defender of the Motherland and his people.
Taras Bulba himself was burned alive by the Poles. He was tied with chains to a tree and set on fire. But it’s not for nothing that Gogol previously showed the ataman as a strong personality. Even when dying, he thought only about his people, he instructed them, warned them of danger, directing them to move towards the river.
Taras Bulba is an incredible hero, a unique personality.
Attitude towards comrades
On the pages of the work we see how Ostap was imbued with the spirit of Cossack camaraderie. Along with his father, he believed that betrayal is the most vile act that can be committed. In his attitude towards friends and brothers in arms, Ostap shows us an example of a real Cossack. He does not seek to lead or manipulate other people, and is straightforward and honest in his statements.
Andriy was impulsive, often embarking on adventures with his comrades, but sometimes, on the contrary, he tried to isolate himself from them and be alone. In his life, sensual love for women began to acquire much greater importance. As a result, he betrays his comrades, his homeland and his father because of his love for a Polish aristocrat.
Taras Bulba's wife
Gogol also does not tell us the name of the ataman’s wife. But the image itself is very significant. This is the image of women who sent their husbands and children to war, the image of a strong woman. This image is full of grief and compassion, anticipation and suffering. A woman in a simple society of that time did not have the right to vote and freedom of her opinion. Her role is to be quiet and submissive.
Bulba's wife is a kind woman who madly loves her sons. There is a moment in the story where Andriy talks about his mother, that she brought her horses to his father’s herd, and that she has three farms. This indicates that the woman is from a wealthy family. Previously, she was beautiful and married the chieftain for love. In her youth, she and her husband lived well, but after that he began to increasingly go to battle. There were times when she could see her husband several days a year, or not see her for years. The woman’s appearance indicates her unhappy life: pale and thin, sunken cheeks, face with deep wrinkles, tears in her eyes. Bulba sometimes beat his wife and called her old.
The image of the wife is also notable because from the first pages of the poem the heroine predicts the future of her children. She sits for a long time at the head of the sleeping children, afraid to let them go to the Zaporozhye Sich, sensing that this will end their childhood and adult life will begin. She understands that now her children may not return.
If the image of Taras Bulba is the image of men who fought. The man is decisive and always at the forefront, he knows everything and directs the actions himself. The image of his wife is the image of women who cannot influence events; their destiny remains to wait.
Behavior of brothers in battle
The difference in character is also clearly evident on the battlefield. Ostap behaves like an experienced warrior, he has every chance of becoming the next chieftain of the Cossacks. He is reasonable, acts calmly and deliberately, and is able to find a way out in a critical situation.
His brother is a completely different matter. Andriy is intoxicated by battle, gallops ahead through the thick of his enemies (former comrades), smashing them left and right. He is driven forward by passion for his beloved and, perhaps, despair from realizing his situation. Even before his death at the hands of his father, his thoughts are there, next to her.
Love in the life of the heroes of the novel “Taras Bulba”
Ostap is indifferent to women and does not attach much importance to them. His love is directed primarily towards the people and his native land. It is the homeland that occupies the first place in his soul, and the choice between feelings and duty is a decided matter for him; such dilemmas do not arise in his life throughout the story.
Andriy felt the need for female love at the age of 18. After meeting the lady, love for her begins to crowd out other feelings from his heart, ultimately leading him to betrayal and death.
In addition, Andriy has always been more emotional, as evidenced by many of his actions. If you carefully read the story, you will notice that he clearly demonstrates the ability for compassion, which is unusual for the rest of the Cossacks.
Death of brothers
Ostap was captured by his enemies, who tortured him and then publicly executed him. Experiencing unbearable physical pain, he does not betray his brothers in arms and remains faithful to his homeland.
Before his death, he calls on his father to strengthen him with his presence.
Andriy dies at the hands of Taras, because he could not forgive his son for betrayal and wanted to wash away the shame from himself and his family.
Unlike his brother, Andriy’s torment is not physical, but moral. He accepts death with dignity, as befits a Cossack.
