The image of Christ in The Twelve is also connected with Blok's fascination with historical parallels, more precisely, with erroneous historical views, similar in form to those already mentioned in connection with the Scythians. Blok reasoned something like this: with victory...

Blok greeted the revolution enthusiastically and intoxicated. In the article "The Intelligentsia and the Revolution," published shortly after October, Blok exclaimed: "What, then, is conceived? Remake everything... With all your body, with all your heart, with all your mind, listen to the Revolution.” In January 1918...

"Twelve" is a poem of revolution. Not only and not so much a poem describing general atmosphere reigning in perishing, after October coup, country, how much the poem is a revolution in the perishing soul of the poet himself. This poem is a mockery of the "revolution", Blok...

Alexander Alexandrovich Blok, who glorified patriotic feelings and moods with his poetry, created the most delightful image of the Beautiful Lady, received grandiose recognition during his lifetime and had a resounding success with the fairer sex, who ...

"Cursed days" - this is how I.A., who lived in exile, described the events of 1918. Bunin. Alexander Blok had a different opinion. In the revolution, he saw a turning point in the life of Russia, which entails the collapse of the old moral ...

1. New!

   A.A. Blok really wanted to connect with the revolution, this fateful event for the country, the possibility of renewing the whole world, its spiritual purification. Sincere faith in the salvation of the "world fire" of the revolution was reflected, first of all, in the poem "The Twelve"....

A poem by A.A. Block "The Twelve" can be seen as the culmination of all his work. The motive of the author's irony in relation to the modern "uterine" world and its "inhabitants" permeates the entire work. The modern bourgeois, whose interests are centered only around profit, was so hated by Blok that, by his own admission, he reached "some kind of pathological disgust." And in the revolution, the poet saw a purifying force capable of giving the world a new breath, freeing it from the power of people who are far from spiritual aspirations, from the ideals of justice and humanity, who live only by a thirst for material wealth and guided by their petty passions. This attitude directly echoes the gospel parable of the rich man who cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

The first chapter is an exposition of the poem, which shows the background of the city, its motley population. Blok, in the spirit of a folk joke, describes the inhabitants of Petrograd who do not understand what is happening:

An old lady like a chicken

Somehow rewound through the snowdrift.

- Oh, Mother Protector!

- Oh, the Bolsheviks will drive into the coffin!

The fact that the figures of the "old world" have not human, but animal characteristics, gives rise not only to the heroes of the poem, but also to the readers, an attitude of pity.

The wind is biting!

The frost is not far behind!

And bourgeois at the crossroads

He hid his nose in the collar.

The mask has been torn off the eloquent writer by the October whirlwind, and the author, not recognizing, asks: “Who is this?” The image of the "terrible accuser" is pathetic, he mutters threats that cause not horror, but laughter. The sublime "vitia" turns into an angry, contemptuous, derogatory nickname. Precise, biting words branded all those who, behind empty chatter, tried to hide their empty life, disgust in relation to people's sorrows.

And there is the long-haired one -

Side for - snowdrift ...

What is unhappy today

Comrade pop?

Do you remember how it used to be

Belly walked forward

And the cross shone

Belly on the people? ..

There is a lady in doodle

Turned up to the other:

We were crying, we were crying...

slipped

And - bam - stretched out!

Mockingly sympathetically sounds after an almost lubok, cheerful paradise picture

Pull up!

Along with the satire on the "old world", caused by its inconsistency, narrowness and primitive outlook of its representatives, the author also brings a more serious accusation of cruelty to this world. By the "terrible world" Petka's beloved was taken away, and he takes revenge for this. If you look objectively at the actions of the twelve Red Guards, then, apart from the murder of Katya, they do not perform any other actions throughout the entire time of the poem. Nowhere is it said about any lofty goal that would move them. Gradually, the author's intention is revealed: love is a concept that is more understandable and close to a person than any other concept. political idea. Therefore, the whole horror of the "old world" lies in the fact that love is being killed in it, it is not worth anything here.

It is even more terrible that the symbol of the "old world" for the heroes-"comrades" is "Holy Russia", endowed with "bodily" attributes ("fat-assed"). The "old world" in the poem is also likened to a "beggar", "hungry" and "cold" dog. Sometimes researchers point to the image of the "dog" in the poem as the personification of the forces of evil (remember Goethe's poodle-Mephistopheles). But why is the “poor”, “hungry” and “rootless” dog for revolutionary “badness” in the neighborhood with the rejected class alien “bourgeois”? Perhaps because he, like the "old world", which is not yet ready to give up, is a threat:

... Bares his teeth - the wolf is hungry -

The tail is tucked in - does not lag behind -

A cold dog - a rootless dog ...

- Hey, answer, who's coming?

Already in the first chapter, before the mention of the “twelve”, against the background of the caricature figures of an old woman, a bourgeois, a whiting writer, a priest, the call sounds: “Comrade! Look / Both! In the second chapter, the image of the “restless enemy” appears for the first time (“The restless enemy does not sleep!”), And again an appeal to the “comrade” is heard: “Hold the rifle, don’t be afraid!” In the sixth chapter, the formula “The restless enemy does not sleep” is repeated, and in the tenth it sounds menacingly: “The restless enemy is near!” The motive of anxiety and fear is most strongly manifested in the eleventh chapter of the poem. In a snowstorm, the Red Army soldiers are blind, the red flag obscures their eyes, the image of the “enemy” is mentioned twice:

Their rifles are steel

To the invisible enemy...

In the alleys are deaf,

Where one dusty blizzard ...

Yes, in downy snowdrifts -

Don't take off your boots...

It beats in the eyes

Red flag.

And although fragments of revolutionary songs, the anthem "Varshavyanka" sound, the expectation of danger does not leave the heroes:

Is distributed

Measure step.

Here - wake up

Fierce enemy...

And the blizzard dusts them in the eyes

Days and nights

All the way…

Go-go,

Working people!

However, do the heroes really see their enemy in the "old world"? The fear of the Red Army before this unknown enemy grows throughout the poem. But at the same time, the characters are shown full of courage, they have "malice seething in their chests", they are ready to mock the "old world" ("Eh, eh! / It's not a sin to have fun!"). And the characters of the "old world" are represented by the victims ("I'm already with a knife / Strip, strip"). That is, it is obvious that they cannot act as an enemy. On the contrary, retribution scary world comes from those whom he himself has begotten.

Blok accepted the revolution, but not from a Marxist position (as a struggle between the oppressors and the oppressed), but from a religious and philosophical one, believing that the world was mired in sin and deserved retribution. The main revolution, according to Blok, must take place not outside, but within people. “World fire in the blood” is a symbol of spiritual rebirth. From this point of view, the revolution is the Apocalypse, the Last Judgment, accompanied by the second coming of Christ. And the black deed of the “twelve”, their revenge on the bourgeoisie, the settling of personal scores is a tool in the hands of Divine justice. And they themselves will be buried under the rubble of this "old world".

A. A. Blok's poem "The Twelve" can be regarded as the culmination of all his work. The motive of the author's irony in relation to the modern "uterine" world and its "inhabitants" permeates the entire work. The modern bourgeois, whose interests are centered only around profit, was so hated by Blok that, by his own admission, he reached "some kind of pathological disgust." And in the revolution, the poet saw a purifying force capable of giving the world a new breath, freeing it from the power of people who are far from spiritual aspirations, from the ideals of justice and humanity, who live only by the thirst for material wealth and are guided by their petty passions. This attitude directly echoes the gospel parable of the rich man who cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
The first chapter is an exposition of the poem, which shows the background of the city, its motley population. Blok, in the spirit of a folk joke, describes the inhabitants of Petrograd who do not understand what is happening:

An old lady like a chicken
Somehow rewound through the snowdrift.
- Oh, Mother Protector!
- Oh, the Bolsheviks will drive into the coffin!

That. that the figures of the "old world" have not human, but animal characteristics, gives rise not only to the heroes of the poem, but also to the readers, an attitude of pity.

Next is the hero, the author's attitude towards which is more rigid, this is felt by the emphasized harsh images of nature that accompany him:

The wind is biting!
The frost is not far behind!
And bourgeois at the crossroads
He hid his nose in the collar.

The mask has been torn off the eloquent writer by the October whirlwind, and the author, not recognizing, asks: “Who is this?” The image of the "terrible accuser" is pathetic, he mutters threats that cause not horror, but laughter. The sublime "vitia" turns into an angry, contemptuous, derogatory nickname. Precise, biting words branded all those who, behind empty chatter, tried to hide their empty life, disgust in relation to people's sorrows.

And there is the long-haired one -
Side for - snowdrift ..
What is unhappy today
Comrade pop?
Do you remember how it used to be
Belly walked forward
And the cross shone
Belly on the people? ..
There is a lady in doodle
Turned up to the other:
We've been crying, crying...
slipped
And - bam - stretched out!

Mockingly sympathetically sounds after an almost lubok, cheerful paradise picture

Hey, hey!
Pull up!

Along with the satire of the "old world", caused by its inconsistency, narrowness and primitive outlook of its representatives, the author also brings a more serious accusation of cruelty to this world. By the "terrible world" Petka's beloved was taken away, and he takes revenge for this. If you look objectively at the actions of the twelve Red Guards, then, apart from the murder of Katya, they do not perform any other actions throughout the entire time of the poem. Nowhere is it said about any lofty goal that would move them. Gradually, the author's intention is revealed: love is a concept that is more understandable and close to a person than any political idea. Therefore, the whole horror of the "old world" lies in the fact that love is being killed in it, it is not worth anything here.

It is even more terrible that the symbol of the “old world” for the heroes-“comrades” is “Holy Russia”, endowed with “corporeal” attributes (“fat-assed”), the “Old World” in the poem is also likened to “beggar”, “hungry” and “cold » psu. Sometimes researchers point to the image of the "dog" in the poem as the personification of the forces of evil (remember Goethe's poodle-Mephistopheles). But why is the “poor”, “hungry” and “rootless” dog for revolutionary “badness” in the neighborhood with the rejected class alien “bourgeois”? Perhaps because he, like the "old world", which is not yet ready to give up, is a threat:

.. .Bars teeth - the wolf is hungry -
The tail is tucked in - does not lag behind -
A cold dog is a rootless dog...
- Hey, come on, who's coming?

Already in the first chapter, before the mention of the “twelve”, against the background of the caricature figures of an old woman, a bourgeois, a whiting writer, a priest, the call sounds: “Comrade! Look / Both! In the second chapter, the image of the “restless enemy” appears for the first time (“The restless enemy does not sleep!”) And again an appeal to the “comrade” is heard: “Hold the rifle, do not be afraid!” In the sixth chapter, the formula “The restless enemy does not sleep” is repeated, and in the tenth it sounds menacingly: “The restless enemy is near!” The motive of anxiety and fear is most strongly manifested in the eleventh chapter of the poem. In a snowstorm, the Red Army soldiers are blind, the red flag obscures their eyes, the image of the “enemy” is mentioned twice:

Their rifles are steel
On the invisible enemy,
In the alleys are deaf,
Where one dusty blizzard, ..
Yes, in downy snowdrifts -
Don't take off your boots...
It beats in the eyes
Red flag.

And although fragments of revolutionary songs, the anthem "Varshavyanka" sound, the expectation of danger does not leave the heroes:

Is distributed
Measure step.
Here - wake up
Fierce enemy...
And the blizzard "dusts in their eyes
Days and nights
All the way...
Go-go,
Working people!

However, do the heroes really see their enemy in the "old world"? The fear of the Red Army before this unknown enemy grows throughout the poem. But at the same time, the characters are shown full of courage, they have "malice seething in their chests", they are ready to mock the "old world" ("Eh, eh! / It's not a sin to have fun!"). And the characters of the "old world" are represented by the victims ("I'm already with a knife / Strip, strip"). That is, it is obvious that they cannot act as an enemy. On the contrary, retribution to the "terrible world" comes from those whom he himself gave birth to.

Blok accepted the revolution, but not from a Marxist position (as a struggle between the oppressors and the oppressed), but from a religious and philosophical one, believing that the world was mired in sin and deserved retribution. The main revolution, according to Blok, must take place not from outside, but within people. "World fire in the blood" - a symbol of spiritual rebirth. From this point of view, the revolution is the Apocalypse, the Last Judgment, followed by the second coming of Christ. And the black deed of the “twelve”, their revenge on the bourgeoisie, the settling of personal scores is a tool in the hands of Divine justice. And they themselves will be buried under the rubble of this "old world".

Blok's poem "The Twelve" fully reflects the attitude of the poet to the revolution of 1917. In this work, in the best traditions of symbolism, he describes his, largely objective, vision revolutionary era, represented by two opposing worlds - the old and the new. AND new world must always win.

The poet introduces us to the old world in the first chapter of the poem, which is a kind of prologue. Blok brings an old woman on stage, scolding the Bolsheviks. In her opinion, they spent great amount fabric, from which many footcloths for undressed and undressed would come out, on a useless poster: “All power to the constituent assembly!”. And why does she need this poster with the slogan, because she still won’t understand it.
Further, after the old woman, a “bourgeois at the crossroads” appears, hiding his nose in his collar from the cold. Then we hear someone "speaking in an undertone":

- Traitors!
- Russia is dead!

Then “comrade pop” appears, for some reason “cheerless”. Then a “lady in karakul”, talking to another, prostitutes discussing at their meeting how much to take from whom ... And, finally, a tramp asking for bread. In fact, this is where the description of the old world ends, but only externally, because behind the simple enumeration of the heroes, firstly, there is a deep ideological meaning, and secondly, echoes of the same old world will be heard throughout the poem.

So, the poet does not give us an extensive, lengthy description of the old world and its representatives due to the limited scope of the narrative, due to the poetic genre. But, at the same time, the extreme conciseness of the images allows him to emphasize the main idea - the old world no longer exists as a whole, its time has passed, only its individual representatives are located on the "ruins of civilization", and even those are not the brightest. The poet highlights this thought with the author's remarks: “And who is this?”, “And here is the long-awaited ...”, “There is a lady in a karakul”.

Blok introduces features of irony into the narrative about the representatives of the old world, using reduced colloquial vocabulary: “belly”, “bang - stretched out”, “chicken”. The poet laughs at a society that is rotten to the ground, because he is sure that there is no future for him. The symbol of the old world in the prologue is the black color, which is opposed to the color white - the symbol of the new world.

Already in the second chapter of the poem there is a mention of Katya and Vanka - two more representatives of the old world. And the girl was not such initially. Katka was the beloved of the Red Army soldier Petrukha, but, succumbing to the temptations of bourgeois society, she became a fallen woman. We learn about this from the fifth chapter, when Petruha, jealous and angry, talks about her fornication with officers, cadets, and then with ordinary soldiers.

The soldier Vanka is a representative of a dying bourgeois society, a demon-tempter for Katya. But again, this is not the best representative of the old world. His physiognomy (not even his face) is “stupid”, he is “shouldered” and “spoken”, and this indicates his development. Petruha understands this, and therefore his resentment towards Katya because she did not see this leads to a tragic denouement of the love story line.

So, we can conclude that the old world in the poem, despite the fact that it is dying, brings people striving for a better life, great suffering. And although these people do not yet see where to strive, they realize quite clearly that the old world must first be overcome. This idea of ​​the struggle of the new against the old is constantly traced in the refrain:

Revolutionary keep step!
The restless enemy does not sleep!

Holy Russia is an image of an old society that is becoming obsolete. The following lines are filled with calls to fight against him:

Comrade, hold the rifle, don't be afraid!
Let's fire a bullet at Holy Russia -
In the condo
Into the hut
Into the fat ass!

And here again the poet uses reduced vocabulary to emphasize the fall of the former authority of "Holy Russia".
In the ninth chapter, the image of the old world is finally debunked:

The bourgeois stands like a hungry dog,
It stands silent, like a question,
And the old world, like a rootless dog,
Stands behind it, tail between its legs.

If in the first chapter the old society was represented by human images, now the image of the bourgeois is completely replaced by the image of a rootless, beaten dog, which, as we will see in the twelfth chapter - the epilogue, trails behind the twelve Red Army soldiers - representatives of the new world. Such a denouement, according to Blok, was inevitable, because in front of the apostles of the new world appeared "in a white halo of roses" Jesus Christ - a symbol of harmony, purity, renewal. This is an image of that bright life, to which, even if only subconsciously, people strive. That is why the old world will inevitably sooner or later outlive itself, like a “hungry dog”.

... In January 1918, I last time surrendered to the elements. During and after the end of The Twelve, for several days I felt physically, with hearing, a lot of noise around - the noise is merged (probably the noise from the collapse of the old world)

A.A. Block from Notes on the Twelve.

The poem "The Twelve" was published in 1918, according to Blok, it was written in two days. The work has become new in every sense: after all, before this Blok was known as a writer who writes with beautiful, radiant, light, gentle words.

In the poem, he does not skimp on abuse, obscene language. People who had previously revered Blok became his opponents, and those who did not love him at first, suddenly felt unusually warm feelings for him.

"Twelve" - ​​can be called the best work Blok. A work inspired by the October Revolution, which inspired him as an artist. Blok, usually mercilessly strict with himself, said after the end of the poem: "Today I'm a genius."

The poem reflected Blok's view of the revolution: for him, it is a destructive element, the "Dionysian principle", which replaced the dilapidated culture. Revolution in Blok's understanding is retribution to the old world.

The poem "The Twelve" is composed almost entirely of symbols. Moreover, the meaning of some is clear to us, but over the meaning of others we have to pretty rack our brains. The explanation is simple: many of the symbols in the poem "The Twelve" have a double meaning. For example, the lines:

black evening,
White snow.

They carry not only a color conflict, but also personifies the conflict between the old and the new world. And it is this conflict that can be called the main one in the poem.

The struggle of two "worlds": the old, obsolete, and the new, which came with the victory of the revolution, is shown through the interaction, interweaving of numerous images in the poem. With their help, we see that the old world, doomed to perish, is still alive and fighting.

Due to the fact that Blok skillfully mastered the word, we ourselves, perhaps not wanting it, become direct participants in all events. And at this moment, on a black evening, we hear the howling of the wind, the whistle of a blizzard, we feel the approach of something grandiose that will turn this whole pre-established world upside down, something that will change the further course of history. We understand that this is something - this is a revolution. On this black evening the old world will collapse...

In the howling, whistling of a blizzard, wind, snowstorm, the poet hears the "music of the revolution", in which he sees the possibility of reviving Russia. The main character of the new world in the first chapter is the wind. Perhaps it is he who will carry away with him the prejudices, customs of the world and purify the light for a new and improved world.

Black evening.
White snow.

In my opinion, this comparison prepares us in advance, says that the new world will conquer. "White snow", as a symbol of the new, clean world, stands out most clearly against the background of the black sky, a symbol of an evil, hostile world. If day reigned in nature, then the snow would dissolve, become less expressive against its background. And in the evening, the snow almost without difficulty, only fighting a little with the wind, lays down and covers the whole earth. In this revelry of the elements, through the howling of the wind and blizzards, Blok heard the music of the revolution and, most importantly, what he noted in it was polyphony. In the poem, everything is subject to the elements - struggle, love, the morals of people.

• a bourgeois who stands like a hungry dog;
• an old woman who is an echo of a terrible and hungry world;
• the writer Vitiy, who did not believe in the future of Russia;
• long butt;
• a lady in karakul, who slipped and fell.

What can I say, almost all the participants in the poem are part of the old world. Only the twelve Red Army men, who become the center of the second chapter of the story, cannot be attributed to their number.

Blok laughs at the representatives of the old world.

He has a bourgeois at the crossroads
He hid his nose in the collar.

Maybe he is afraid of change and seeks protection by hiding with his nose in his collar. To ridicule these people, Blok uses not just humor, but black satire.

Do you remember how it used to be
Belly walked forward
And the cross shone
Belly on the people? ..

Before the eyes immediately appears the image of a fat priest, who ate for other people's money and offerings. But before he had everything, and now there is nothing ...

Even a hungry, rootless, mangy dog ​​is an echo of the old world. At the end, we see that the half-dead dog is clinging to the guards. This fragment suggests that the old world is still alive, it is somewhere nearby, it is trying to adapt and hide, but it does not have long to live. After all, absolutely everything, including the rhythm of the verse, changes with the advent of twelve Red Army soldiers.

All representatives of the evil world disappear, except for the dog, and this reminds the Red Army soldiers that the vile, old side of life has not gone anywhere: it follows on their heels, breathes cold breath into the back of the head:

And the old world is like a bald dog
Standing behind him with his tail between his legs...
... Get off you, mangy,
I'll tickle with a bayonet!
The old world is like a bald dog
Fail - I'll beat you!

The eternal problem, conflict - the struggle of the old and the new world. This motif is present in many works, and in the poem "The Twelve" the conflict turns into a revolution. Here we see a clear line between winners and losers. The old world, although it still clings to life, is doomed to perish. The conflict of light and darkness, new and old is eternal, like history itself.