1. Poems are the soul of a poet.
2. General information about Blok's work.
3. A symbol is a deep and accurate image of reality.
4. Symbolism of color.
5. Revolutionary image winds (storms, blizzards).
6. Symbolism of the number “twelve”.
7. The image of Christ in the poem.
In the poems that he creates a real poet, all his thoughts and even his very soul are reflected. When reading a poem, it immediately becomes clear what the person’s state was at the time of writing the Poetic creation. Poems are like a diary of the poet's life. Not everyone will be able to express in words, let alone on paper, their state of mind, their feelings and experiences. Each time you re-read the poet’s books, you begin to understand him more and more as a person. Although, on the other hand, it seems that he is the same as us, and in no way differs from us: the same thoughts, the same desires. And yet he is able to express his feelings somehow differently, differently, with some special specificity, probably more hidden and, of course, through poems. A person who has been given such a gift to express his thoughts and feelings through poetry cannot do otherwise.
A wonderful Russian poet of the early 20th century, A. A. Blok, was born in November 1880 in St. Petersburg. Mine creative path A. A. Blok began studying at St. Petersburg University in 1904 Faculty of Philology. This is how “Poems about a Beautiful Lady” (1904), the cycles of poems “Crossroads” (1902-1904), “Fed”, “ Unexpected joy", "Snow Mask" (1905-1907). After graduating from university in 1906, the writer continued literary activity: in 1907 the poetic cycle “On the Kulikovo Field”, “Motherland” (1907-1916) appeared, then the poems “The Twelve”, “Scythians” (1918).
For quite a long time, Blok’s poem “The Twelve” was perceived as a work that only describes events October revolution, and no one saw what was hidden under these symbols, no one understood those important questions, which are behind all the images. In order to put deep and deep into simple and ordinary concepts multifaceted meaning, many writers, both Russian and foreign, use various symbols. For example, for one writer, a flower means Beautiful Lady, a majestic woman, and the bird is the soul. Knowing all these nuances literary creativity, the reader is already beginning to perceive the poet’s lyrics in a completely different way.
In the poem “The Twelve” A. A. Blok very often uses various symbols, images - these are colors and nature, numbers and names. In his poem, he uses various contrasts to enhance the effect of the impending revolution. In the very first chapter, the color contrast is obvious at the very beginning: black wind and White snow.
Black evening.
White snow.
Wind, wind!
The black and white colors of the landscape run through Blok’s entire poem “The Twelve”: black sky, black anger, white roses. And gradually, as events unfold, this color scheme is diluted with a red-bloody color: the red guard and a red flag suddenly appear.
...They walk into the distance with a mighty step...
- Who else is there? Come out!
This is the wind with a red flag
Played out ahead...
Bright red colors are colors that symbolize blood, and this suggests that bloodshed is sure to happen and is very close. Soon, soon the wind of revolution will rise over the world. Special place The poem is occupied by the image of the wind, which is also associated with an anxious premonition of the inevitable revolution. The wind is a symbol of rapid progress into the future. This image runs through the entire poem; it fills all the poet’s thoughts during the days of the revolution. Wind trembling poster "All power Constituent Assembly", knocks people off their feet, people who make up old world(starting from the priest and ending with a girl of easy virtue). What is shown here is not just the wind, but the elemental wind, the wind global changes. It is this wind that will take away everything old and save us from the “old world,” which is too stuffy and inhuman. The revolutionary wind of change will bring with it something new, something new, best system. And people are waiting for him, waiting for changes in their lives.
The man is not standing on his feet.
Wind, wind -
On everything God's light!
When Blok was working on the poem “The Twelve,” he repeatedly used the image of the wind in his notebook: “In the evening there is a hurricane (the constant companion of translations)” - January 3, “In the evening there is a cyclone” - January 6, “The wind is raging (a cyclone again?) - January 14.” The wind itself in the poem is perceived in the same way as direct image reality, since in January 1918 in Petrograd there was just such windy and blizzard weather. The image of the wind was accompanied by images of a storm, cold, and blizzard. These images are among the poet’s favorite ones, and the poet resorted to them when he wanted to convey a feeling of the fullness of life, people’s expectation of great changes and excitement at the impending revolution.
Something like a blizzard has played out,
Oh, blizzard, oh blizzard,
Can't see each other at all
In four steps!
This night, gloomy, cold blizzard, snow storm is contrasted with lights, bright, light, warm lights.
The wind is blowing, the snow is fluttering.
Twelve people are walking.
Rifles have black belts.
All around - lights, lights, lights...
Blok himself spoke about his work on the poem: “During and after the end of The Twelve, for several days I felt physically, auditorily, a great noise around - a continuous noise (probably the noise from the collapse of the old world) ... the poem was written in that historical period and always for a short time when a passing revolutionary cyclone produces a storm in all seas - nature, life and art."
The number “twelve” occupies a special place in the poem. Both the revolution and the title of the poem itself are very symbolic, and this magical combination of numbers can be seen everywhere. The work itself consists of twelve chapters, creating the feeling of a cycle - twelve months a year. Main characters- twelve people marching in a detachment, rampant debauchery, potential murderers and convicts. On the other hand, these are the twelve apostles, among whom the names Peter and Andrew are symbolic. The symbol of twelve is also used in the sacred number highest point light and darkness. This is noon and midnight.
Towards the end of the poem, Blok tries to find a symbol that would mean the beginning new era and thus Christ appears. The poet's Jesus Christ is not a specific image; he is revealed to the reader as some kind of invisible symbol. Christ is not accessible to any earthly influences, he cannot be seen:
And invisible behind the blizzard,
The bullet note is unharmed,
One can only follow this silhouette; he, as the highest moral authority, leads twelve people behind him.
In a white corolla of roses
Ahead is Jesus Christ.
A large number of symbols and images in the poem “The Twelve” makes us think about every word and sign, because we want to understand what is hidden behind them, what is the meaning. It is not for nothing that the poet takes his place next to the great symbolists, and the poem “The Twelve” illustrates this well.
The poem “The Twelve” was written by A Blok in January 1918, when October events were already behind us, but not enough time had passed to comprehend them and give an objective historical assessment. The revolution of 1917 swept through like a storm, like a hurricane, and it was difficult to say unequivocally what good and what bad it brought with it. It was under such a spontaneous impression that the poem “The Twelve” was written.
Vivid, multi-valued images and symbols play important role in A. Blok's poem, their semantic load is great; this allows us to more vividly imagine revolutionary St. Petersburg, revolutionary Russia, understand the author’s perception of the revolution, his thoughts and hopes. One of the main symbols of the revolution in the poem “The Twelve” is the wind, like it, it blows away everything in its path.
Wind, wind! The man is not standing on his feet.
Wind, wind - All over God's world! The wind curls white snow.
There is ice under the snow.
Slippery, hard, Every walker Slides - oh, poor thing! In this part of the poem, A. Blok sought to convey to the reader the atmosphere of the time when anyone can “slip” on the “ice” of the revolution, caught by surprise by the hurricane of change.
The poem contains another vivid symbol - “world fire”. In the article “Intellectuals and Revolution” Blok wrote that revolution is like a spontaneous phenomenon, “a thunderstorm”, “a snowstorm”; for him, “the scope of the Russian revolution, which wants to embrace the whole world, is this: it cherishes the hope of raising a world cyclone...”. This idea is reflected in the poem “The Twelve,” where the author talks about a “world fire” - a symbol of the universal revolution. And twelve Red Army soldiers promise to fan this “fire”: We will fan the world fire to the grief of all bourgeois, The world fire is in the blood - God bless! These twelve Red Army soldiers personify the twelve apostles of the revolutionary idea. They are entrusted with a great task - to defend the revolution, although their path lies through blood, violence, cruelty. With the help of the image of twelve Red Army soldiers, Blok reveals the theme of shed blood, violence during the period of great historical changes, and the theme of permissiveness. The “apostles of the revolution” turn out to be capable of killing, robbing, and violating Christ’s commandments, but without this, in the author’s opinion, it is impossible to achieve the goals of the revolution. Blok believed that the path to a harmonious future lies through chaos and blood.
In this sense, the image of Petrukha, one of the twelve Red Army soldiers who killed Katka out of jealousy, is important. On the one hand, A. Blok shows that his villainy is quickly forgotten and justified by an even greater future villainy. On the other hand, through the images of Petrukha and Katka, Blok wants to convey that, despite the important events that are happening historical events, love, jealousy, passion - eternal feelings that guide human actions.
Also important in the poem “The Twelve” are the images of an old woman, a priest, a bourgeois - they are representatives of the old, outdated world. For example, the old woman is far from the revolution, from political affairs, she does not understand the meaning of the poster “All power to the Constituent Assembly!”, She does not accept the Bolsheviks (“Oh, the Bolsheviks will drive them into the coffin!”), but the old woman believes in the Mother of God, “the intercessor mother " Important to her pressing problems, not revolution: On the rope there is a poster: “All power to the Constituent Assembly!” The old woman is killing herself - she’s crying, she won’t understand what it means, what is such a poster for, such a huge flap? How many foot wraps would there be for the guys...
The priest and the bourgeois are afraid of the consequences of the revolution, they fear for their fate, for failure later life: The wind is biting! The frost isn't far behind! And the bourgeois at the crossroads hid his nose in his collar.
And there’s the long-skirted one - To the side - behind the snowdrift...
Why are you sad these days, Comrade Pop? The old, obsolete, unnecessary world in the poem is also presented as a “rootless”, “cold” dog, which barely trails behind twelve Red Army soldiers: ... Bares its teeth - a hungry wolf - Tail tucked - does not lag behind - Cold dog - rootless dog... .
Ahead is Jesus Christ.
The image of Christ in the poem personifies Blok’s faith in overcoming bloody sin, in the outcome from the bloody present to a harmonious future. His image symbolizes not only the author’s faith in the holiness of the tasks of the revolution, not only the justification of the “holy malice” of the revolutionary people, but also the idea of Christ’s acceptance of yet another human sin, the idea of forgiveness and the hope that people will come to His covenants, to the ideals of love, to eternal values . Jesus walks ahead of the twelve Red Army soldiers who go from freedom “without a cross” to freedom with Christ.
Revolutionary Petersburg, in which the “universal elements” are played out, personifies the entire revolutionary Russia. A. Blok depicted it as a world split in two, as a confrontation between black and white. The symbolism of color plays an important role in the poem “The Twelve”: on the one hand, black wind, black sky, black anger, black rifle belts, and on the other, white snow, Christ in a white crown of roses. The black, evil present is contrasted with the white, bright, harmonious future. The symbolism of red color expresses the motive of the bloody crime. The red flag, on the one hand, is a symbol of a victorious end, on the other hand, a symbol of the bloody present. The colors are associated with the image of time: a black past, a bloody present and a white future.
Thanks to the system of images and symbolism in the poem “The Twelve,” Blok was able to show that in the bloody present there is a formation of a new person and a transition from chaos to harmony. This is, according to the poet, true meaning revolution.
Bibliography
To prepare this work, materials were used from the site http://www.coolsoch.ru/
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1. Poems are the soul of a poet.
2. General information about Blok’s work.
3. A symbol is a deep and accurate image of reality.
4. Symbolism of color.
5. Revolutionary image of the wind (storm, blizzard).
6. Symbolism of the number “twelve”.
7. The image of Christ in the poem.
The poems that a real poet creates reflect all his thoughts and even his very soul. When reading a poem, it immediately becomes clear what the person’s state was at the time of writing the Poetic creation. Poems are like a diary of the poet's life. Not everyone will be able to express in words, let alone on paper, their state of mind, their feelings and experiences. Each time you re-read the poet’s books, you begin to understand him more and more as a person. Although, on the other hand, it seems that he is the same as us, and in no way differs from us: the same thoughts, the same desires. And yet he is able to express his feelings somehow differently, differently, with some special specificity, probably more hidden and, of course, through poems. A person who has been given such a gift to express his thoughts and feelings through poetry cannot do otherwise.
A wonderful Russian poet of the early 20th century, A. A. Blok, was born in November 1880 in St. Petersburg. A. A. Blok began his creative path in 1904 while studying at St. Petersburg University at the Faculty of Philology. This is how “Poems about a Beautiful Lady” (1904), the cycles of poems “Crossroads” (1902-1904), “Fed”, “Unexpected Joy”, “Snow Mask” (1905-1907) appeared. After graduating from university in 1906, the writer continued his literary activity: in 1907 the poetic cycle “On the Kulikovo Field”, “Motherland” (1907-1916) appeared, then the poems “The Twelve”, “Scythians” (1918).
For quite a long time, Blok’s poem “The Twelve” was perceived as a work that described only the events of the October Revolution, and no one saw what was hidden under these symbols, no one understood the important questions that lie behind all the images. In order to impart deep and multifaceted meaning into simple and ordinary concepts, many writers, both Russian and foreign, use various symbols. For example, for one writer, a flower represents a Beautiful Lady, a majestic woman, and a bird represents the soul. Knowing all these nuances of literary creativity, the reader begins to perceive the poet’s lyrics in a completely different way.
In the poem “The Twelve” A. A. Blok very often uses various symbols, images - these are colors and nature, numbers and names. In his poem, he uses various contrasts to enhance the effect of the impending revolution. In the very first chapter, the color contrast is obvious at the very beginning: black wind and white snow.
Black evening.
White snow.
Wind, wind!
The black and white colors of the landscape run through Blok’s entire poem “The Twelve”: black sky, black anger, white roses. And gradually, as events unfold, this color scheme is diluted with a red-bloody color: the red guard and a red flag suddenly appear.
...They walk into the distance with a mighty step...
- Who else is there? Come out!
This is the wind with a red flag
Played out ahead...
Bright red colors are colors that symbolize blood, and this suggests that bloodshed is sure to happen and is very close. Soon, soon the wind of revolution will rise over the world. A special place in the poem is occupied by the image of the wind, which is also associated with an alarming premonition of the inevitable revolution. The wind is a symbol of rapid progress into the future. This image runs through the entire poem; it fills all the poet’s thoughts during the days of the revolution. The wind trembles the poster “All power to the Constituent Assembly”, knocks people off their feet, people who make up the old world (from the priest to the girl of easy virtue). What is shown here is not just the wind, but the elemental wind, the wind of global change. It is this wind that will take away everything old and save us from the “old world,” which is too stuffy and inhuman. The revolutionary wind of change will bring with it something new, some new, better system. And people are waiting for him, waiting for changes in their lives.
The man is not standing on his feet.
Wind, wind -
All over God's world!
When Blok was working on the poem “The Twelve,” he repeatedly used the image of the wind in his notebook: “In the evening, a hurricane (the constant companion of translations)” - January 3, “In the evening - a cyclone” - January 6, “The wind is raging (cyclone again? ) - January 14." The wind itself in the poem is perceived in the same way as a direct depiction of reality, since in January 1918 in Petrograd there was just such windy and blizzard weather. The image of the wind was accompanied by images of a storm, cold, and blizzard. These images are among the poet’s favorite ones, and the poet resorted to them when he wanted to convey a feeling of the fullness of life, people’s expectation of great changes and excitement at the impending revolution.
Something like a blizzard has played out,
Oh, blizzard, oh blizzard,
Can't see each other at all
In four steps!
This night, gloomy, cold blizzard, snow storm is contrasted with lights, bright, light, warm lights.
The wind is blowing, the snow is fluttering.
Twelve people are walking.
Rifles have black belts.
All around - lights, lights, lights...
Blok himself spoke about his work on the poem: “During and after the end of The Twelve, for several days I felt physically, auditorily, a great noise around - a continuous noise (probably the noise from the collapse of the old world) ... the poem was written in that historical period and always a short time when a passing revolutionary cyclone produces a storm in all seas - nature, life and art."
The number “twelve” occupies a special place in the poem. Both the revolution and the title of the poem itself are very symbolic, and this magical combination of numbers can be seen everywhere. The work itself consists of twelve chapters, creating the feeling of a cycle - twelve months a year. The main characters are twelve people marching in a detachment, rampant debauchery, potential murderers and convicts. On the other hand, these are the twelve apostles, among whom the names Peter and Andrew are symbolic. The symbol of twelve is also used in the sacred number of the highest point of light and darkness. This is noon and midnight.
Towards the end of the poem, Blok is trying to find a symbol that would mean the beginning of a new era and thus is Christ. The poet's Jesus Christ is not a specific image; he is revealed to the reader as some kind of invisible symbol. Christ is not accessible to any earthly influences, he cannot be seen:
And invisible behind the blizzard,
The bullet note is unharmed,
One can only follow this silhouette; he, as the highest moral authority, leads twelve people behind him.
In a white corolla of roses
Ahead is Jesus Christ.
A large number of symbols and images in the poem “The Twelve” makes us think about every word and sign, because we want to understand what is hidden behind them, what is the meaning. It is not for nothing that the poet takes his place next to the great symbolists, and the poem “The Twelve” illustrates this well.
Analysis of A. A. Blok’s poem “The Twelve”
Symbolism of color and symbolism of images in the poem (the twelve and Jesus Christ)
Alexander Alexandrovich Blok is one of the most talented and greatest poets Russia, who tried in his work to reflect the complex, harsh and turning point time at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries. Being a symbolist poet, Blok was able to convey grandiose events and predict the future in vivid and polysemantic images. Blok heard the mysterious music of time, poured it into his poems, thanks to which this melody sounds for us, his descendants.
Reading the poem “The Twelve,” we hear the excited speech of the author - an eyewitness and participant in that great event. The poem “The Twelve” is a unique and truthful chronicle of the Bolshevik revolution. Blok tried to capture his time for posterity in an original and imaginative way, to “stop the moment” at least in his work.
The wind curls
White snow.
There is ice under the snow.
Slippery, hard
Every walker
Slipping - oh, poor thing!
Bright, polysemantic images and symbols play an important role in A. Blok’s poem, their semantic load is great; this allows you to more vividly imagine revolutionary St. Petersburg, revolutionary Russia, and understand the author’s perception of the revolution, his thoughts and hopes.
The symbolism of color plays an important role in the poem “The Twelve”: on the one hand, black wind, black sky, black anger, black rifle belts, and on the other, white snow, Christ in a white crown of roses. The black, evil present is contrasted with the white, bright, harmonious future.
The symbolism of red color expresses the motive of the bloody crime. The red flag, on the one hand, is a symbol of a victorious end, on the other hand, a symbol of the bloody present. The colors are associated with the image of time: a black past, a bloody present and a white future.
But the colors predominate in the poem: black and white. All events take place in the evening or at night. Why does Blok choose this time of day?
Late evening.
The street is empty.
One tramp
Slouching,
Let the wind whistle...
Not very plausible things are happening in revolutionary Petrograd, which is probably why evening and night are the most suitable time of day for them.
Moreover, the wind is raging, knocking you off your feet. This a natural phenomenon and a symbol of cleansing power, demolishing everything unnecessary, artificial, alien. The wind is cheerful “Both angry and glad. Twists his hems, mows down passers-by, tears, crumples and carries a large poster: “All power to the Constituent Assembly”... In a spontaneous revolt, the poet shows not only destructive, but also creative power. It is not for nothing that Jesus Christ is ahead of the revolutionary patrol. Blok only outlined the future; it will appear brightly and visibly in his other works. Here, “holding on” tightly, trying to keep up with the present, the ghost of the old world is a hungry dog. It is impossible to drive it away, just as it is impossible to shake off the burden of the past in a single moment; it relentlessly follows on the heels of everyone.
Get off, you scoundrel.
I'll tickle you with a bayonet!
The old world is like a mangy dog,
If you fail, I'll beat you up! ...
Bares his teeth - a hungry wolf -
Tail tucked - not far behind -
A hungry dog is a rootless dog...
How mercilessly and truthfully Blok shows the dying familiar world! He belongs to it too. But this is reality, and the author cannot lie. At times, joyful excitement can be clearly heard in the poem lyrical hero, he welcomes the wind of change. And the poet, what does Blok himself expect from the future? Most likely, he foresees his death along with the old, familiar and hated world, but it is impossible to resist this, just as it is unthinkable to stop the elements. The poem contains another vivid symbol - “world fire”. In the article “Intellectuals and Revolution” Blok wrote that revolution is like a spontaneous phenomenon, “a thunderstorm”, “a snowstorm”; for him, “the scope of the Russian revolution, which wants to embrace the whole world, is this: it cherishes the hope of raising a world cyclone...”. This idea is reflected in the poem “The Twelve,” where the author speaks of a “world fire” - a symbol of the universal revolution. And twelve Red Army soldiers promise to fan this “fire”:
We are at the mercy of all bourgeoisie
Let's fan the world fire,
World fire in blood -
God bless!
These twelve Red Army soldiers personify the twelve apostles of the revolutionary idea. They are entrusted with a great task - to defend the revolution, although their path lies through blood, violence, cruelty. With the help of the image of twelve Red Army soldiers, Blok reveals the theme of shed blood, violence during the period of great historical changes, and the theme of permissiveness. The “apostles of the revolution” turn out to be capable of killing, robbing, and violating Christ’s commandments.
It is the poet’s great merit that he not only managed to hear time, but captured it in his poem.
Fuck-fuck-fuck! --
And only echo
Responsible in homes...
Only a blizzard of long laughter
Covered in snow...
And they go without the name of a saint
All twelve - into the distance.
Ready for anything
I don't regret anything.
Here they are, the defenders of the revolution! Cruel, rude, soulless convicts and criminals. But at the end of the poem the most mysterious image appears, which “ennobles” the whole gang:
With a gentle tread above the storm,
Snow scattering of pearls,
In a white corolla of roses -
Ahead is Jesus Christ.
He, judging by the context, leads a detachment of Red Guards. It can be assumed that by this the author gave the former criminals an aura of holiness, and now they are no longer “golotba”, but a new, revolutionary people. Some researchers of the poet’s work have proposed interpreting this idea more broadly. The twelve are the apostles, led by Peter. But on what basis is this idea based? Only by their number, similar to the number of apostles? Or because among them only one is singled out - Peter? Or maybe because in the finale they are led by Jesus Christ? Yes, that's why. But they are apostles of a new time, a new era, who prefer struggle instead of humility.
But Blok himself warned against hasty conclusions: one should not underestimate the political motives in the poem “12”; it is more symbolic than it might seem at first glance. Let us deal with the main, most mysterious image of the poem - the image of Christ.
The image of Christ that concludes the poem seemed random and inappropriate to many critics and literary scholars. And the author himself was skeptical about this image. The image of Christ in the poem “The Twelve” is multifaceted: Christ as a symbol of a revolutionary, Christ as a symbol of the future, pagan Christ, Old Believer burning Christ, Christ the superman, Christ as the embodiment of the Eternal Femininity, Christ the artist and even Christ the Antichrist. It seems that all these ingenious assumptions lead away from the main thing. The main thing is that the image of Christ allows the poet to justify the revolution from the point of view of the highest justice. But this cannot be understood one-sidedly: those same twelve walking down the street and creating lawlessness, killing ordinary people are also associated with Christ, and then the image of Christ cannot become holy and one cannot talk about the justification of the revolution. But the image of Jesus Christ appears in Blok not on empty space: already in the poet’s lyrics he occupied a very important place. For example, in the poem “Here He is - Christ - in chains and roses...” and in rhythm
Here He is - Christ - in chains and roses
Behind the bars of my prison.
Here is the Meek Lamb in white robes
He came and looked out the prison window.
and in mood (“One, bright...”), the image of Jesus Christ is multifaceted (as in the poem).
Literary scholars have offered many interpretations of this image, and debate on this issue continues to this day. V. Orlov viewed Christ as the leader of the oppressed and offended, the defender of the poor and disadvantaged. L. Dolgopolov assumed that the image of Jesus symbolizes the beginning of a new era, the future of Russia is bright and spiritual. No less interesting are other points of view, opposite to those indicated above. Let's look at the most interesting ones.
V. B. Shklovsky wrote: “So, Alexander Blok could not solve his “Twelve”. My formula of Blok: “canonization of the forms of gypsy romance” was recognized or not challenged by him.
In "12" Blok came from coupletists and street talk. And, having finished the thing, he attributed Christ to it.
Christ is unacceptable for many of us, but for Blok it was a word with content.
He himself was somewhat surprised at the end of this poem, but always insisted that this was exactly how it happened. The thing has, as it were, an epigraph at the back; it is unraveled at the end unexpectedly. Blok said: “I also don’t like the end of “12.” I would like this ending to be different. When I finished, I myself was surprised: why Christ? Is it really Christ? But the more I looked, the more I saw Christ. And then I wrote down to myself: unfortunately, Christ. Unfortunately, it is Christ.”
Is this an ideological Christ?
Here is an excerpt from A. Blok’s letter to Yuri Annenkov:
“About Christ: He is not like that at all: small, bent over like a dog from behind, carefully carrying the flag and leaving “Christ with the flag” - this is, after all, “and so and not so.” Do you know (for me all my life) that when the flag beats in the wind (in rain or snow, and most importantly - in darkness of the night), then under him one imagines someone huge, somehow related to him (not holding, not carrying, but I can’t say how).”
This means that such an understanding of the theme of Christ is possible: the wind. The wind tears the banners. The wind calls up a flag, and the flag calls up someone huge related to it, and Christ appears.
Of course, he is “precisely Christ” according to the poet’s stock of images, but he is caused by the composition of images - the wind and the flag.”
M. Voloshin proposed a very original idea. In his opinion, Christ does not lead the detachment, but runs away from it, saving his life. Maybe he is even taken to be shot, executed, or to Golgotha. And the “bloody” flag in his hands is not a sign of the revolution and its victory, it is the blood of Christ on a white flag - a symbol of reconciliation and surrender. The second point of view - the point of view of P. Florensky, in my opinion, is the most successful. His idea is based on a typo made by Blok in the name of Christ - Jesus (one letter “and” is missing). It’s difficult to call it accidental or necessary. What did the author mean by this? It may be that the detachment was led not by the son of God, but by the real Antichrist. It is he who is ahead of the Red Guards and the entire revolution as a whole. He, like God, can be “...and invisible behind the blizzard” and “unharmed by a bullet.” A very reasonable theory.
Boris Solovyov understood the image of Christ this way: “Christ in Blok’s poem is the intercessor of all the oppressed and disadvantaged, all who were once “driven and beaten”, carrying with him “not peace, but a sword” and who came to punish their oppressors and oppressors. This is Christ - the embodiment of justice itself, which finds its highest expression in the revolutionary aspirations and deeds of the people - no matter how harsh and even cruel they may look in the eyes of another sentimental person. This is the Christ with whom, without knowing it, the Red Guards, the heroes of Blok’s poem, walk. Of course, this interpretation of moral issues is caused by the poet’s idealistic prejudices, but they should also be taken into account if we want to understand the image that completes his poem.”
Those who accept violence and terror, who are driven only by cruelty and malice, cannot be led by the pure and bright. Such people cannot be called either apostles or saints. Of course, points of view are put forward by people. Each person, according to his own life positions, beliefs and priorities, sees what he wants to see. Thus, ardent supporters of the revolution - A. Gorelov, V. Orlov, L. Dolgopolov - preferred to see in this image a symbol of the bright future of Russia. Florensky, for example, was forced to leave Russia, or rather, he was “thrown out” of it on a “philosophical ship.” That's why the point of view is the opposite.
The evolutionary path of development is always more effective than the revolutionary one. You shouldn’t, like twelve, destroy everything old without creating anything in its place. It is much better to adopt the achievements of the past and, on their basis, improve what caused dissatisfaction.
The poem “The Twelve” was written by A Blok in January 1918, when the October events were already behind us, but not enough time had passed to comprehend them and give an objective historical assessment. The revolution of 1917 swept through like a storm, like a hurricane, and it was difficult to say unequivocally what good and what bad it brought with it. It was under such a spontaneous impression that the poem “The Twelve” was written.
Bright, polysemantic images and symbols play an important role in A. Blok’s poem, their semantic load is great; this allows you to more vividly imagine revolutionary St. Petersburg, revolutionary Russia, and understand the author’s perception of the revolution, his thoughts and hopes. One of the main symbols of the revolution in the poem “The Twelve” is the wind, like it, it blows away everything in its path.
Wind, wind!
The man is not standing on his feet.
Wind, wind -
All over God's world!
The wind curls
White snow.
There is ice under the snow.
Slippery, hard
Every walker
Slips - oh, poor thing!
In this part of the poem, A. Blok sought to convey to the reader the atmosphere of the time when anyone can “slip” on the “ice” of the revolution, caught by surprise by the hurricane of change.
The poem contains another vivid symbol - “world fire”. In the article “Intellectuals and Revolution” Blok wrote that revolution is like a spontaneous phenomenon, “a thunderstorm”, “a snowstorm”; for him, “the scope of the Russian revolution, which wants to embrace the whole world, is this: it cherishes the hope of raising a world cyclone...”. This idea is reflected in the poem “The Twelve,” where the author talks about a “world fire” - a symbol of the universal revolution. And twelve Red Army soldiers promise to fan this “fire”:
We are at the mercy of all bourgeoisie
Let's fan the world fire,
World fire in blood -
God bless!
These twelve Red Army soldiers personify the twelve apostles of the revolutionary idea. They are entrusted with a great task - to defend the revolution, although their path lies through blood, violence, cruelty. With the help of the image of twelve Red Army soldiers, Blok reveals the theme of shed blood, violence during the period of great historical changes, and the theme of permissiveness. The “apostles of the revolution” turn out to be capable of killing, robbing, and violating Christ’s commandments, but without this, in the author’s opinion, it is impossible to achieve the goals of the revolution. Blok believed that the path to a harmonious future lies through chaos and blood.
In this sense, the image of Petrukha, one of the twelve Red Army soldiers who killed Katka out of jealousy, is important. On the one hand, A. Blok shows that his villainy is quickly forgotten and justified by an even greater future villainy. On the other hand, through the images of Petrukha and Katka, Blok wants to convey that, despite the important historical events taking place, love, jealousy, passion are eternal feelings that guide human actions.
Also important in the poem “The Twelve” are the images of an old woman, a priest, a bourgeois - they are representatives of the old, outdated world. For example, the old woman is far from the revolution, from political affairs, she does not understand the meaning of the poster “All power to the Constituent Assembly!”, She does not accept the Bolsheviks (“Oh, the Bolsheviks will drive them into the coffin!”), but the old woman believes in the Mother of God, “the intercessor mother " For her, pressing problems are important, not revolution:
On the rope - poster:
“All power to the Constituent Assembly!”
The old woman is killing herself - crying,
He won't understand what it means
What is this poster for?
Such a huge flap?
How many foot wraps would there be for the guys...
The priest and the bourgeois are afraid of the consequences of the revolution, they fear for their fate, for the failure of their future life:
The wind is biting!
The frost isn't far behind!
And the bourgeois at the crossroads
He hid his nose in his collar.
And there's the long one -
To the side - behind the snowdrift...
Why is it sad now?
Comrade pop?
The old, obsolete, unnecessary world in the poem is also presented as a “rootless”, “cold” dog that barely trails behind twelve Red Army soldiers:
... Bares his teeth - hungry wolf -
Tail tucked - not far behind -
A cold dog is a rootless dog...
Ahead is Jesus Christ.
The image of Christ in the poem personifies Blok’s faith in overcoming bloody sin, in the outcome from the bloody present to a harmonious future. His image symbolizes not only the author’s faith in the holiness of the tasks of the revolution, not only the justification of the “holy malice” of the revolutionary people, but also the idea of Christ’s acceptance of yet another human sin, the idea of forgiveness and the hope that people will come to His covenants, to the ideals of love, to eternal values . Jesus walks ahead of the twelve Red Army soldiers who go from freedom “without a cross” to freedom with Christ.
Revolutionary Petersburg, in which the “universal elements” are played out, personifies the entire revolutionary Russia. A. Blok depicted it as a world split in two, as a confrontation between black and white. The symbolism of color plays an important role in the poem “The Twelve”: on the one hand, black wind, black sky, black anger, black rifle belts, and on the other, white snow, Christ in a white crown of roses. The black, evil present is contrasted with the white, bright, harmonious future. The symbolism of red color expresses the motive of the bloody crime. The red flag, on the one hand, is a symbol of a victorious end, on the other hand, a symbol of the bloody present. The colors are associated with the image of time: a black past, a bloody present and a white future.
Thanks to the system of images and symbolism in the poem “The Twelve,” Blok was able to show that in the bloody present there is a formation of a new person and a transition from chaos to harmony. This, according to the poet, is the true meaning of the revolution.
