Mikhail Lermontov "Hero of Our Time". Summary and plot

Certainly, one of the most prominent writers of the nineteenth century is Mikhail Lermontov. "Hero of Our Time," whose brief content differs from the inconsistency of the plot of plot actions, is considered to be one of his most significant works. And there are reasons for that. The novel expresses the main thoughts that Lermontov feels towards the generation of his contemporaries. "Hero of Our Time", the brief content of which is compositionally constructed in such a way as to fully reveal the character of the protagonist, has acquired integrity and completeness precisely thanks to this arrangement of the parts of the work.

In the plot, that is chronological order of the story should be arranged as follows: first, "Taman", then "Princess Mary", followed by "Fatalist", then "Bela", followed by "Maxim Maksimych," and finally " Preface to Pechorin's magazine. " But the author preferred to change the order of the narrative in order to facilitate the reader's understanding of his thoughts. Such a distorted order was not accidentally chosen for this work, because the genre of the psychological novel is intended to show us the hero's soul. A suitable form for this was chosen by Lermontov. "The hero of our time," the analysis of which was repeatedly undertaken by many critics, even in our century is considered one of the deepest psychological novels.

So, the narrative begins with the chapter "Bela", in which the narrator on the way to Tiflis meets a fellow traveler, Maxim Maksimych, who told the story of his joint service with Grigory Pechorin in the Chechen fortress. The center of his memories is the story of how Pechorin, a young ensign, laid eyes on the daughter of a local prince and stealthily stole it with the help of her younger brother named Azamat. By "taming" the beauty and falling in love with her, the officer soon becomes tired of the relationship with her. Maxim Maksimych already foresees a misfortune. And in fact - Belu kidnaps Kazbich, left by Pechorin without a horse during an adventure, after which he kills a girl.

Then follows the chapter "Maxim Maksimych." The narrator witnesses the meeting of Grigory Pechorin with the captain, during which he compiles a psychological portrait of the young man. Maksim Maksimych, angered by Gregory for his coldness, gives the storyteller Pechorin's travel notes, which constitute the greater part of the novel.

In the chapter "Taman" in the role of the narrator, Grigory himself already appears, who arrives in the eponymous city and demonstrates his inclination to adventures, tracing the nocturnal routes of the blind boy, who lives "on the wind". Because of this, the hero almost dies in a fight with a girl - an assistant smuggler.

The chapter "Princess Mary" illustrates Pechorin's passion for experiments and analysis of his actions. Grigory from stubbornness decides to win the heart of an intelligent girl named Mary, in order to hurt the pride of his friend Grushnitsky. Eventually a duel took place between them, at which the latter dies. In this chapter, we can most clearly observe the hero's obstinacy and his propensity for meditation, which he endowed his character with Lermontov. "Hero of Our Time", the brief content of which will help us understand the causes of the character's actions, gradually reveals the world of his soul before us.

In the last novel, Fatalist, the author expresses his hope that his generation has not yet lost everything: Pechorin commits the capture of a Cossack killer. This concludes the novel, which Lermontov wrote, "The Hero of Our Time." The summary of this psychological work should clarify the thoughts that the author has invested in him.