Larisa Ogudalova and Katerina Kabanova: the experience of comparison

Katerina and Larissa Ogudalova are the main heroines of two famous plays by AN Ostrovsky, "The Storm" (1859) and "The Dowry" (1878). The works are separated for nineteen years, but in these dramas one can find much in common.

Two heroines - a similar fate

The action takes place in a small provincial town, in a merchant-philistine environment, secondary characters - representatives of the so-called third estate. Reconstruction of everyday life occupies a central place in the story, serving as a backdrop for the concretization and development of images of actors, and creating a sharp contrast between Larisa Ogudalova and Katerina on the one hand and the environment on the other. Characteristics of Larissa Ogudalova and comparison of the heroine with Katerina Kabanova are the subject of this review.

Common features in the characters of Larissa and Catherine

Images of heroines have much in common. Girls do not fit into the merchant-philistine world, despite the fact that they were born, grew and educated in it. Both dream of freedom and happy love and are in every way opposed to the norms, rules and regulations that are followed by their families, acquaintances and, finally, the townsfolk of the city. Both are unhappy in love: Katerina suffered in the family of Tikhon Kabanov, and Larissa's grinding with Karandyshev ended in tragedy. Did not have a relationship with the girl and Paratov: the latter, although he was not indifferent to it, found it more profitable to marry a rich bride. Both of them experienced these shocks heavily: for their sensitive, gentle and soft natures, this was too heavy a blow.

Protest heroines against the patriarchal way of life

Each in its own way protests against the patriarchal way: Larissa Ogudalova is trying with all her might to resist the efforts of the mother, Harita Ignatyevna, and it is profitable to marry her to a rich and influential groom. Katerina directly declares that she does not accept the way of life that she leads in her mother-in-law's house, Kabanova. At the same time, it should be noted that Katerina is more resolute and boldly expressing her position than Larissa: she basically can not get along in the new situation in which she found herself after her marriage. In her husband's family, everything seems alien to her, and even before her fateful meeting with Boris, she directly declares to Varvara that nothing she cared about in her husband's family. The protest of Larissa was manifested only when she seriously took an interest in Sergei Sergeevich Paratov: the girl unexpectedly shows such character traits, which, it seemed, could not be suspected in this educated young lady. However, according to the first replicas of the heroine, the reader can judge her strong temper: she speaks rather sharply about her fiance Karandyshev and directly tells him that he loses in comparison with Paratov.

Character of Larissa

Larissa Ogudalova, a homeless woman, is very proud: for example, she is ashamed of herself and her mother, for the miserable way of life that they are forced to lead, catering to rich guests who are in droves to their house to look at a beautiful but poor bride. Nevertheless, Larissa tolerates these parties, despite repeated scandals in the house, which immediately becomes known to the whole city. However, when her feelings were touched, the heroine disregarded all the conventions and fled after Paratov on the day of his departure from Bryakhimov (which incidentally, like Kalinov, is located on the bank of the Volga). After returning home, the heroine continues to live a familiar life and even agrees to marry Karandyshev - a marriage unequal in all respects. And if it were not for the re-appearance of Paratov on the stage, then most likely, Larissa would become Mrs. Karandysheva, she would go with her husband to the village and, perhaps in a while, in the bosom of nature, would find the strength to continue to lead a customary existence.

The character of Catherine

However, such a scenario is difficult to assume with reference to Katerina: it is unlikely that the latter would reconcile with such an existence. To characterize Larissa Ogudalova, it should be added that the heroine is extremely self-contained: at her first appearance on the stage she is limited to only a few cues, while Katerina from the very beginning confides with her husband's sister Varvara. She willingly shares with her childhood memories, admits how difficult it is for her in a new environment. In the light of what has been said, it makes sense to compare the images of heroines with Tatiana Larina, with whom, at first glance, one can find many things in common: all three are distinguished by the impulsiveness and immediacy of perception of the world around them. However, both Katerina and Larissa are too detached from reality: both live as if in a dream, and, it seems, are always in some inner world.

Comparison of Larissa and Catherine

Knows for good reason said that in Larisa "there is nothing ordinary", that it resembles "ether". Perhaps this is the best characteristic of Larissa Ogudalova: the girl is really constantly distracted and remains surprisingly indifferent to everything around her, and only occasionally she has broken off some notes that betray her dislike of the petty-bourgeois way of life. It's amazing that she does not express her love at all, or at least some affection for her own mother. Of course, from a moral point of view, the portrait of Harita Ignatyevna is far from ideal, but this woman, after all, cares about her daughter, is concerned about her fate and, of course, deserves some respect. Larissa gives the impression of a young lady alienated from life: her image, so to speak, is disembodied and divorced from historical and social soil. In this respect, Katerina is more realistic: she reacts vividly and sharply to what is happening around her; She lives a full-blooded, saturated, though more tragic, life. However, the image of Katerina is somewhat idealized, in spite of quite recognizable features.

Comparison of the heroines with Tatyana Larina

Tatyana Larina is not like that - she is firmly attached to her native corner in the village, which she tells Evgeny in the finale of the novel. Pushkin's heroine stands firmly on its soil, which gives it the moral strength to withstand the trials that have fallen to its lot. That's why it causes respect, and Larissa and Katerina are compassion and pity. Undoubtedly, the composition "Larissa Ogudalova" should draw a parallel between her drama, the tragedy of Katerina Kabanova and the story of Tatyana Larina.