"Angel" Mikhail Lermontov
An angel flew across the midnight sky,
And he sang a quiet song
And the moon, and the stars, and the clouds in a crowd
They listened to that song of the saint.He sang about the bliss of sinless spirits
Under the bushes of paradise gardens,
He sang about the great God, and praise
His was unfeigned.He carried a young soul in his arms
For a world of sorrow and tears;
And the sound of his song in the soul of a young
Remained - without words, but alive.And for a long time she languished in the world,
Full of wonderful desire,
And the sounds of heaven could not be replaced
She bored the songs of the earth.
Analysis of Lermontov's poem "Angel"
The poem "Angel" refers to the early period of Mikhail Lermontov's work. It was written in 1831, when the young poet was barely 16 years old. The basis of this work was a children's lullaby, which the author often heard from his mother. However, the poet borrowed only the size from the half-forgotten song, completely changing its content.
"Angel" is an epic and very romantic work, which consists of four quatrains. It tells about the birth of a new person, whose soul is carried by an angel to reunite it with the body even before the child is born. During this mysterious night journey, the angel sings a song of amazing beauty, in which he praises the virtues of a righteous life and promises eternal paradise to the still sinless soul of a baby. However, the realities of earthly life are very far from heavenly bliss; from childhood, a child will have to face pain and humiliation, sadness and tears. But the echo of the magic song of the angel forever remained in the soul of a person, and he carried it through his whole long life.
The poem "Angel" is distinguished by its special melody and tenderness. Mikhail Lermontov managed to achieve this effect through careful selection of words, which are dominated by soft hissing and whistling sounds. They are a great background accompaniment, creating the effect of air vibrations during the flight of an angel and emphasizing the amazing grace of the song he sings. At the same time, the reader guesses about its content only in general terms, realizing that it is a hymn to the divine world, into which only truly pure and sinless people are destined to get. It is not surprising that the soul of the person to whom this song was addressed, “languished all her life, full of wonderful premonitions”, and earthly songs seemed boring to her.
Using the opposition of heavenly and earthly life, Mikhail Lermontov managed to achieve an amazing contrast, which, nevertheless, is soft and light. However, in the poem itself, a line is very clearly drawn between the two worlds, which intersect only during the birth and death of a person. If we consider this work from a philosophical point of view, it becomes obvious that the young Lermontov is an idealist. He is convinced that a person comes into this world in order to suffer, and this purifies his own soul. Only in this case can she return to where the angel brought her from, finding eternal peace. And in order for a person to strive to live according to God's laws, in his soul, like a bewitching obsession, there remains a memory of the angel's song, which gives him a feeling of joy and the infinity of being.
It is noteworthy that the poem "Angel" begins with the word "sky", which is identified with something divine and sublime, and ends with the word "earth", symbolizing not only the frailty of existence, but also the completion of human life. At the same time, a kind of refrain in the form of the last line of each quatrain seems to remind that a person’s stay on earth in a bodily shell is only a temporary phenomenon, and death should be treated with ease, without fear and sadness. After all, the life of the soul is eternal, and no one is able to change this order of things. There is also a subtle comparison with a lullaby, the singing of which to babies is an unshakable ritual, which, with its cyclical nature, resembles the process of perfecting the soul. However, even the most exciting and tender lullaby is not able to compete in beauty with the song of an angel, being its pale copy and a reminder that paradise still exists.
2) Written in 1831, a young, 16-year-old poet dedicated a poem to the memory of his mother, Maria Mikhailovna, whom he lost at the age of three. The lullaby that the mother sang to the poet was inspired by the writing of the poem, so it is very melodious and easy to put on music. The reason for writing was the idea of the poem "Demon", the author contrasted the future poem with the image of a cherub.
3) The theme of the poem: The birth of man, loneliness and faith in God.
The soul falls into the world, a person is born, but they don’t understand him, the paradise language is alien to people. The poet’s loneliness is exile and misunderstanding by people. people, so at night the Angel brings souls, they are like messengers of God who will continue the ideas of the Angel.
Idea: to show the mission of the poet-prophet, who must carry the word of God to people, but is doomed to misunderstanding people and suffering.
Main idea: The poet can be rejected by people and doomed to misunderstanding, exile, but his words will remain forever in the hearts of people, like the memory of him, carrying a bright song.
4) The author uses colorful epithets that create a special atmosphere of what is happening, create a gentle and pure image of an Angel, a new soul that remembers the song: a quiet song, a holy song, sinless spirits, unfeigned praise, a young soul, great God, a wonderful desire, boring songs of the earth , the sounds of heaven.
Personifications enliven the soul, the natural world: the moon, stars, and clouds listened to the song; the sound of the song remained - without words, but alive; the soul languished.
The opposition of heaven and earth, the mir of people and heaven: the antithesis of heaven is earth, boring saints, the sound of the song is without words, but alive. Inversion is a violation of the order of words, the author draws attention to the main word. Anaphora, repetition of sounds "And quiet .. .And a month, And a long time, And sounds ..", the author emphasizes the infinity of the soul, the temporality of being on earth and logically completes the work.
Lermontov's romanticism is clearly expressed in this poem. The lyrical hero is cut off from the world, a fictional world and mythical characters. The soul suffers, loneliness and opposition to society are all signs of romanticism. An elegy with a sublime atmosphere of the poem.
5) The poem is written in four-foot and three-foot amphibrach. The alternation of short and medium-sized stanzas makes the work musical, melodious.
The poem consists of four quatrains, divided by meaning and continuing each other. In the first stanza - the image of heaven, the second stanza - the meaning of the song, the third - a description of the future life. The last stanza - gives sublimity and peace to the poem, logically completes the work, draws a conclusion. It contains an unsolvable problem - languishing on the ground and yearning for the sounds of heaven.
The composition of quatrains-rhyme is paired, masculine. Each stanza carries a complete meaning and complements the main idea. The development of meaning is gradual, the second follows from the first, the meaning of the stanzas is compared.
7) The image of the lyrical hero is the Guardian Angel. The angel carries faith, inspires people with a song. The author speaks of the Angel in the third person, narrating on his own behalf. The angel is opposed to the boring world of people, heaven-earth.
An angel flew across the midnight sky,
And he sang a quiet song
And the moon, and the stars, and the clouds in a crowd
They listened to that song of the saint.
He sang about the bliss of sinless spirits
Under the bushes of paradise gardens,
He sang about the great God, and praise
His was unfeigned.
He carried a young soul in his arms
For a world of sorrow and tears;
And the sound of his song in the soul of a young
Remained - without words, but alive.
And for a long time she languished in the world,
Full of wonderful desire,
And the sounds of heaven could not be replaced
She bored the songs of the earth.
Analysis of the poem "Angel" by Lermontov
The poem "Angel" (1831) refers to the youthful period of Lermontov's work. The poet based it on a children's lullaby that he heard from his mother. This is the only youthful work of Lermontov, which he subsequently submitted to print.
The poem was written at a time when the poet was completely in the grip of idealistic ideas. He has not yet encountered a harsh and ruthless world that will only cause contempt. Lermontov is very far from the motives of acute loneliness and the demonic theme. His feelings are pure and sublime.
The central image of the work is an angel flying across the sky, who sings a “quiet song”. This divine singing captures the attention of all nature. The angel glorifies God and heavenly life. He carries with him a young soul to breathe into the baby. This soul is absolutely sinless, it listens to the song of an angel and forever keeps it in its memory. The angel is sorry to leave an innocent soul in the "world of sorrow and tears", so in the song he gives her hope for a future resurrection in a better world.
The author believes that the words of this song and its specific content are not so important. Its main advantage is melody. It is enough to keep in the soul at least the sound that will again make the song primordial alive. In a slightly different form, Lermontov will subsequently develop this topic in.
The author compares human life with the endless languor of the soul, which can only be warmed by an angelic song. "The boring songs of the earth" will never replace the "sounds of heaven." This very beautiful poetic comparison means that spiritual values are paramount for any person.
The work is written in a very simple and accessible language. The repeated use of the union "and" at the beginning of lines gives it biblical solemnity.
In the poem "Angel" Lermontov does not yet use religious images as some kind of symbols. It has no secret meaning and hidden hints. The plot of the work does not go beyond the Orthodox canons. It is indeed a sincere expression of a young man's naive faith, inspired by dear childhood memories. An angel can only be associated with a loving mother who sings a lullaby to an infant before releasing it into an independent life filled with suffering and pain.
- To expand knowledge about the work of M.Yu. Lermontov, to help students understand the image of the Demon in the work of the poet, in art.
- education
Equipment:
- portraits of M.Yu. Lermontov and M.A. Vrubel;
- illustrations of paintings by M.A. Vrubel "Demon defeated", "Demon sitting";
- the text of the poem "Demon" (various editions, variants);
- poems “My Demon” (1829), “Prayer” (Do not blame me, almighty ...) (1829), “I am not for angels and paradise ...” (1831), “Angel” (1831);
- audio recording: R. Wagner "Ride of the Valkyries".
O my prophetic soul,
O heart full of anxiety!
Oh how you beat on the threshold
What a double existence!
F.I. Tyutchev
I. Introduction
– There are images in world art that have excited the minds of people for many centuries. Over time, they change, but do not disappear. More and more new generations of poets, artists, composers turn to them to unravel the mystery and have their say. The demon is one of those images.
II. Entry into the lesson
The music of Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" sounds.
- What associations does the word "demon" evoke in you? Write it down. Read aloud. Highlight the general.
- In the work of M.Yu. Lermontov, in addition to the well-known themes of the poet and poetry, Motherland, nature, love, motives of loneliness, suffering, exile, earth and sky, struggle and protest, the search for harmony in relations with the outside world appear early.
Group work
- I bring to your attention 4 poems by M.Yu. Lermontov:
“My demon” (1829), “Prayer” (Do not blame me, almighty ...) (1829), “I am not for angels and paradise ...” (1831), “Angel” (1831).
Each of them is interesting to think about. Pick one for yourself. Get into groups of those who have chosen the same poems. Write down (briefly) what you can say about the poem you have chosen. (Separate words, phrases are written out, conclusions are drawn about how they saw the lyrical hero in these poems).
Groups perform and talk about their observations. The task of the rest is to write down individual thoughts that will help express their opinion about what they heard.
For example:
"My Demon" (1829)
dull and gloomy
evil is his element, etc.
"Prayer" (Do not blame me, omnipotent ...) (1829)
all-powerful god
i am a sinner
the tightness of the world, etc.
“I am not for angels and paradise…” (1831)
I am a stranger to the world (earth) and heaven
I am an evil chosen one, etc.
"Angel" (1831)
connection of the soul with the body
disappointment of the soul on earth - sad songs, etc.
Conclusion: the image of the demon captures Lermontov so much that it passes through all his work, starting with the early poem “My Demon” (1829) and ending with the poem “The Demon”. Studying the poetry of Lermontov, we penetrate into the inner world of the poet. A world full of contradictions, suffering, the struggle between the "angelic beautiful" and the "demonic rebellious", etc.
Lesson problem: So, what did M.Yu. Lermontov want to say with the poem "Demon"?
III. Analysis of the poem
The message of the students about the poem "Demon"
1. M.Yu. Lermontov began to write a poem at the age of 14, during his stay in a boarding school. In 1829 a plot has already been outlined, the main content of which is the struggle of a demon with an angel in love with a mortal girl. This first draft contained 92 verses and a prose summary of the content. Over the next 10 years, 7 more editions of the poem were created, differing from each other both in plot and in the degree of poetic skill. Despite numerous alterations, the first line (Sad Demon - the spirit of exile), which arose in 1829, was preserved in the last, 8th, version. The basis of the plot was the myth of a fallen angel who rebelled against God.
2. It is possible that it was Pushkin's "Angel" (1827) that led Lermontov to the idea of a poem about a Demon who was disappointed in evil and reached for good. We read from Pushkin:
At the door of Eden, a gentle angel
He shone with his drooping head,
And the demon is dark and rebellious
He flew over the hellish abyss.
Spirit of Denial, Spirit of Doubt
Looked at the pure spirit
And the heat of involuntary tenderness
I was vaguely aware for the first time.
“Forgive me,” he said, “I saw you,
And it was not for nothing that you shone to me:
I didn't hate everything in the world
I didn't despise everything in the world."
3. Traditionally, they talk about the Western European roots of the "Demon". Researchers unanimously lead the “pedigree” of the hero from the biblical myth of a fallen angel who rebelled against God. Lermontov was also aware of numerous literary incarnations of this biblical story: Milton's Paradise Lost, Goethe's Faust, Byron's Cain, etc.
4. In 1837 the poet was exiled to the Caucasus, to the active army. In relation to the mountain peoples, notes of a mature assessment appeared, but admiration and fascination with the nature and customs of the Caucasus remained. They colored both the poetic narrative, and the image of the lyrical hero, and sublime tones, especially since the impression was superimposed on an interest in romanticism, on the desire to characterize the hero as an exceptional personality. Many researchers discover the "ancestors" of the Demon among the characters of Caucasian legends.
5. No less interesting and significant (but less well-known!) is the eastern component of the image of the Demon: one can find parallels between Lermontov's hero and one of the characters of the Koran - Satan (Iblis). Lermontov knew the Koran, read its Russian translation and could well use one of its plots in his work.
Work on the image of the main character
– How did you see the Demon in the poem by M.Yu. Lermontov "Demon" Find a description of the character, actions of the hero; choose all the pros and cons related to the Demon's characteristic. Fill in the table (you can offer to complete this task in pairs, groups).
- Can we say whether more positive or negative, good or evil, angelic or satanic is inherent in the character, actions of the hero?
Conclusion: at the heart of the image is a contradiction, a conflict between good and evil. The concepts of good and evil are not absolute, sometimes intersect one in the other in different circumstances.
- Prove the above idea with examples of the text.
1. The demon saw Tamara, fell in love, but this great feeling led to the death of Tamara's fiancé:
And again he comprehended the shrine
Love, kindness and beauty!...His insidious dream
The crafty Demon was indignant: ...
2. Having comprehended the melancholy of love, the Demon cries, but instead of a cleansing tear, a burning tear flows:
The anguish of love, its excitement
Achieved the Demon for the first time...Through the burnt stone is visible
Tears hot as a flame
Inhuman tear! .. and others.
- How does the Demon relate to the world, to the beauty of nature? Give examples from the text.
1. Nature's brilliance did not excite
In the exile's barren chest
No new feelings, no new forces;
And all that he saw before him
He despised or hated.2. And wild and wonderful was around
All God's world; but a proud spirit
looked contemptuously
Creation of their god.
And on his high forehead
Nothing was reflected.
Conclusion: The demon feels contempt, hatred for what he sees around.
The image of Tamara ( group work)
1 group - portrait characteristic:
And not a single king of the earth
I did not kiss such an eye ...
... fountain ... with its pearly dew
I did not wash such a camp! ...
... an earthly hand ... did not unravel such hair; ...And her wet eyes shine
From under an envious eyelash;
That will lead with a black eyebrow ... and others.
Conclusion: Tamara is the embodiment of life and beauty. In relation to the heroine, the epithet "divine" is used, which not only characterizes her charming appearance, but also contrasts the princess with the protagonist, who was expelled from paradise.
Group 2 - the fate of the heroine:
Alas! expected in the morning
Her, heiress of Gudal,
Freedom frisky child
The fate of the sad slave
Fatherland, alien to this day,
And an unknown family.And I won't be anyone's wife!
I'm dying, have pity on me!
Give to the sacred abode
His reckless daughter ... and others.
Conclusion: Tamara's future is not cloudless, she will become a wife-slave, enter a strange family, "dark bright features" expectation of bonds, captivity, loss of freedom. After the death of her fiancé, Tamara is "reckless", her mind cannot comprehend what is happening, she cries and begs her father to send her to a monastery in order to find peace there.
- There is something secretly hidden in the narrative, the author does not tell the reader everything, the reader is forced to languish with the heroine of the poem. Thus, Lermontov prepares us for a new round in the development of action.
Hero love
- Describe the state of the Demon who saw Tamara.
The demon, "chained by an invisible force", was struck by the beauty of Tamara, he "for a moment felt an inexplicable excitement in himself", "a feeling suddenly spoke in him", etc.
- Is it only the beauty, youth of Tamara that attracted the Demon? Did the hero see few beautiful girls flying over the earth? Maybe there is something in common between them? Confirm with the words of the text.
Tamara personifies youth, beauty, kindness for the hero. For a long time, the demon “outcast wandered into the deserts of the world without shelter” and now sees in Tamara a kindred soul - seeking, doubting, thirsting for knowledge.
Tamara is waiting for a meeting with the Demon, listening to his speeches addressed to her alone and no one else understands:
She often heard speech.
Under the dome of the gloomy temple
A familiar image sometimes
He glided ... Manil and he called ... but - where? ...Full of longing and trembling,
Tamara is often at the window
Sitting alone in thought...All the feelings in her boiled suddenly;
The soul tore its shackles! and etc.
– What size is the poem? Why does the meter of the poem change in the XV chapter of part I? (Based on homework).
Lermontov wrote the poem in iambic four-foot with a variety of rhymes that helps to show all the beauty of the world, and in the XV chapter of part I of the iambic he replaced the iambic with a four-foot trochee (acceleration of speech): love illuminates the days of the hero, changes everything in words, in appeals to the heroine one hears a call to change her life …
... Be to the earthly without participation
And as careless as they are!
- What does the Demon want, having fallen in love with Tamara?
The demon hopes that through love for Tamara he will be able to touch the world harmony again:
Me good and heaven
You could return with a word
Your love with a holy cover
Dressed, I would appear there
Like a new angel in a new brilliance...
The demon even makes an oath to Tamara that:
From now on, the poison of insidious flattery
Nothing disturbs the mind;
– What stylistic device does the author use to help inspire faith in the words of the Demon, to give them weight?
I swear on the first day of creation
I swear by his last day...I renounced the old revenge
I renounced proud thoughts; ...I want to reconcile with the sky
I want to love, I want to pray...
– What does the Demon promise to give Tamara in return for her love for him?
And I will give you eternity in a moment; ...
And you will be the queen of the world
My first friend...I will give you everything, everything earthly -
Love me!.. etc.
problem questions ( can be given as a creative task or to hold a discussion):
1. Can the Demon find harmony? Why?
2. Why does God forgive Tamara, and her soul goes to heaven?
1. Demon love is selfish. Instead of purifying his soul, he is ready to destroy Tamara's bush. That's not what lovers do. In love, he did not rejoice, but triumphed, experienced a sense of personal superiority. Sacrificial love is pure, but what does the Demon sacrifice?
Love me!..
………………………….
A mighty gaze gazed into her eyes!
He burned her.
………………………….
Alas! the evil spirit triumphed!
………………………….
"She is mine! - he said menacingly, - and others.
Pride, this mortal sin, which always encroaches on the shrine, is the reason for the defeat of the Demon, this is the source of his suffering. Initiation to harmony due to love for an earthly woman and at the cost of her death was not realized. The evil inclination again appeared in the Demon:
And cursed Demon defeated
Dreams are crazy...
2. Tamara's soul is carried away by a guardian angel. It is he who saves her for paradise. The soul of the deceased Tamara is still full of doubts, a “trace of misconduct” is imprinted on it, which the angel washes away with tears:
... And the sweet speech of hope
Dispelled her doubts
And a trace of misconduct and suffering
He washed away her tears.
It was God who sent a test to Tamara. Having accepted the evil inclination inspired by the Demon, the heroine sacrifices herself, protecting the eternal values: Good, Peace, Beauty, Love. Therefore, she deserves forgiveness. Forgiven, Tamara goes to heaven, where access is closed for the hero:
... And again he remained, arrogant.
Alone, as before, in the universe
Without hope and love!
Lesson summary
– What did M.Yu. want to say? Lermontov's poem "The Demon"? And why does the image of the Demon go through all the work of the author?
The demon appears in the poem as a spirit of exile, flying over the sinful earth, powerless to break away from it and approach heaven. He is expelled from paradise, thrown out of heaven and therefore sad. He sows evil, but it does not bring him pleasure. Everything he sees brings either cold envy or contempt and hatred. He was bored with everything. But he is proud, he is not able to obey the will of others, he tries to overcome himself ...
Unearthly love helps the hero fight evil within himself, and his suffering soul wants to reconcile with heaven, wants to believe in good. This conflict between good and evil is like a clash between light and darkness.
Two principles merge in him, and he appears before us, ready to turn his face to both good and evil:
That was not hell, a terrible spirit,
Vicious martyr - oh no!
It looked like a clear evening:
Neither day nor night, neither darkness nor light!
The essence of the hero is in irreconcilable contradictions, in the assertion that even such concepts as Good and Evil are not absolute. These contradictions are embedded in life itself. A person receives the ability to know and fight, and in the soul of everyone lives his own demon.
M.Yu. Lermontov is distinguished by a dual world, a tragic understanding of the abyss between earthly and heavenly, bodily and spiritual, real and ideal. The only, narrow, shaky, but indestructible bridge across this abyss remains the human soul. The soul, eternally balancing on the verge of "double being", as F.I. Tyutchev:
O my prophetic soul,
O heart full of anxiety!
Oh how you beat on the threshold
What a double existence!
Homework
Demons are close to the spiritual world of their authors. M.A. Vrubel, whose illustrations of paintings you see, like M.Yu. Lermontov, early felt his chosenness. M.A. Vrubel would never have painted his “Demon” if the image had not been part of the artist himself. What can you say about the author of the pictures? What connects the "Demon" Vrubel and Lermontov? This is the theme of your creative work.
Lermontov would like to see the world, as the romantics dreamed of, harmonious, beautiful and perfect. But life appeared to Lermontov, unlike Pushkin, devoid of harmony. Against the background of this disharmony, the poet's ideals stand out more clearly.
The poem "Angel" is one of the few in which denial, doubt and skepticism are significantly softened. The lyrical "plot" of the poem is simple and is associated not only with biographical events (memories of the mother's song), but also with Christian mythology, according to which man is a dual being: immortal (soul) and mortal (body) are merged in him; if the body belongs to the earth, dust, then the abode of the immortal soul is the sky; at birth, the soul enters the body, and the earth becomes its place of residence, and after death, when the body turns into decay, the soul returns again to heaven, to its original homeland.
Lermontov's poem reflects the first part of the myth: an angel carries a "young soul" from blessed heaven to the earthly vale. Transferred to the earth, the soul is disappointed: it hears the "boring songs of the earth", while heavenly sounds are preserved in its memory. But if the content of the "songs of the earth" is clear, then what the sounds mean is unknown. Their meaning has long been lost. In an early autograph, after the third quatrain, there was another stanza, subsequently omitted:
The soul settled in earthly creation,
But the world was alien to her. About one
She dreamed about the sounds of the saints,
I don't remember their meaning.
Leaving heaven, the soul is doomed to forget the words, their hidden meanings. Her memory only stores sounds, not meaning. Meaning, meaning have been lost, and only sounds can hint at them. But this means that the harmony between sound and word, between sound and meaning, between heaven and earth has disintegrated. The idea of sounds that make up unknown words and have lost their meaning was expressed in a number of early and mature poems by Lermontov (“Sounds”, “There are sounds - the meaning is negligible ...”, “Do I hear your voice ...”, “She sings - and the sounds melt ... ”, “Like heaven, your eyes shine ...”, “There are speeches - meaning ...”, etc.).
The theme of the inexpressibility of feelings and thoughts, typical for romantics, found in Zhukovsky, Tyutchev, Fet, finds an original interpreter in Lermontov. Pushkin was not interested in this topic, because he did not doubt the poetic possibilities of the word to express all shades of feelings and thoughts. He also did not doubt his ability to master the language so much as to make it an obedient and pliable instrument for expressing feelings and thoughts. However, Russian and European romantics thought differently. They believed that the inner world of a person, the life of the soul, cannot be conveyed by word and speech. Thought and feeling hidden in the soul and unspoken are completely different from thought and feeling expressed in words. “The thought uttered is a lie,” Tyutchev is firmly convinced. Those shades and that vibration of feelings, that atmosphere that they create and in which only the innermost truth of the soul is expressed, cannot be captured by “language” and verbal speech, - Zhukovsky claims in the poem “Inexpressible”.
With Lermontov, this romantic problematic is turned in a different direction. The poet thinks that word neither a true thought nor a true feeling can be expressed. The experience of the soul is inexpressible, but the reasons for this lie not in the limited abilities of a person who cannot become the master of word and speech, and not in the possibilities of a word or speech contained in them, but in deeper reasons on which both a person and his speech depend. .
The inner man cannot express himself in outer speech due to the disintegration of the links between man and the Universe, which is absolute and irremovable. Words generated by the earthly world or arising on its soil are usually false and not free, like poetic measured speech is false and not free (“With a measured verse and an icy word You will not convey their meaning”). Words become alive only if they consist of living sounds (“Consonance of Living Words”). Sounds are born not on earth, but in heaven, and they contain heavenly fire and heavenly light. Sounds, like words, are of unearthly origin. They express ideal in their purity, free from any extraneous (social, ideological and other) impurities, naked, naked, direct passions, feelings, thoughts and experiences. There, in the heavenly homeland, every sound is true and every sound is full of meaning, meaning. Between sound and meaning, as well as between sound and the word that carries meaning, there is no contention. “From flame and light the word was born” is the word of heaven. The Holy Scriptures are composed of such words, the Apocalypse is written with such words. However, on earth, the harmony between sound and word disappears: sounds - the keepers of the memory of their heavenly origin - lose their meaning and meaning, remaining alive and torn away from words ("And the sound of his song in the young soul Remained - without words, but alive"). The soul listens to the sound, responds to it, but, being on earth, it no longer remembers the meaning of the “sounds of the saints”, which become dark, obscure and mysterious for it. The meanings of words, having lost their heavenly sound form, are easily distorted, taking on an earthly one: vice can be called good, sin - virtue, dirt - purity. Only in the heavenly word, "born of flame and light," only in heavenly speech, sounds and meanings, sounds and meanings are in harmony. But such a word is rare on earth (“She sings - and the sounds melt, Like kisses on her lips, Looks - and the heavens play In her divine eyes ...”). More often bearing the stamp of a deity, the word "Won't meet with an answer Amidst the noise of the world." However, even if “the meaning is dark or insignificant,” heavenly feelings are recognized by the sounds (“They contain tears of parting, They contain the thrill of goodbye”). In order to indulge in high moods and feelings without looking back, you need to be attuned to an unearthly wave:
But in the temple, in the midst of the battle
And wherever I will be
Upon hearing it, I
I know everywhere.
Without finishing the prayer
I will answer that sound
And throw myself out of the fight
I am towards him.
Magical sounds in the earthly world are intelligible only to a few, but by them spiritually kindred souls unmistakably recognize each other.
So, the rational meaning in the “sounds of the earth” has disappeared, the soul on earth has “forgotten” and cannot remember the meaning of unearthly speeches, but the heavenly power, holy and possessing miraculous power, has not left the sounds, has not been exhausted in them and has not died:
There is a grace
In consonance with the words of the living
And breathes incomprehensible
Holy beauty in them.
This, according to Lermontov, is the secret of the influence of poetry. However, an earthly person can only languish in a vain desire to comprehend heavenly truth in its beauty and beauty in its authenticity, but such an understanding is not given to him. Only a poet is able to penetrate into another world and convey with sounds and verbal music not the meaning, not the meaning, not the content of unearthly songs, but his longing for the beautiful and perfect world, his yearning for it and suffering from what he cannot express in that real primordial fullness, which is inherent in the transcendent world and which he feels in his soul. Like every person, the poet is endowed with an immortal divine soul, but, in addition, he is gifted with a brilliant poetic gift, and a creative fire burns in him, akin to the divine creative fire. Thus, God, at his own will, made him his herald, endowed him with his voice (the voice of the poet is the voice of God), transferred part of his mighty creative power. But the immortal demon, the rival of God, has similar abilities. His speech is also powerful and expressive. It is no coincidence that Lermontov used the expression "holy charm." If we take into account the then usage of words, then the combination “holy charm” is a typical oxymoron, because “charm” (seduction, deceit, temptation, seduction from an evil spirit) cannot be “holy”. These meanings are opposite. Thus, poetic speech, expressed in sounds, in words, in rhythms, is an inspiring speech, possessing both powerful holy, grace-filled and no less powerful enchanting, capable of bewitching, seducing and even destroying power. So the poet of the young Lermontov doubles into the chosen one of heaven and into the demonic rival of God. Only three people can reveal the content of the inner life of a lyrical personality: the author-poet. God and the demon (“who will tell my crowd my thoughts? I - or God - or no one!”, “And often with the sound of sinful songs, I, God, do not pray to you”, “And the sound of high sensations He crushes with the voice of passions, And the muse of the meek inspiration is afraid of unearthly eyes”). In this confrontation between the sounds of "holy", angelic, and the sounds of "charming", demonic, and often in their indistinguishability, genuine suffering and genuine tragedy are contained: on the one hand, the poet confesses his anxiety, turning to God ("Prayer"), that “rarely does a stream of Your Living Speech enter the soul ...”, and on the other hand, he cannot get rid of the seductive perniciousness of the unquenchable wonderful flame, the “all-burning fire”, from which passions are born and which excites “a terrible thirst for singing”.
