The problem of relationships between generations is very acute. Almost every schoolchild, if asked about this, will say that in his family there is some kind of misunderstanding between adults and children. It’s good when mothers and fathers try to respect the child’s opinion, and the child himself does not once again provoke adults into a scandal. But there are often cases when pride on both sides forces members of the same family to enter into serious conflict with each other. Parents do not hear their children, children do not want to understand their parents. What are the causes of conflict between representatives of different generations?
There are many reasons why the problem of “fathers and sons” arises. I believe that the main one is different views on life. Indeed, each generation has its own principles and ideals. This is understandable. Each era leaves its mark on those living in this particular time. Therefore, those fashion trends that were observed fifty years ago will be ridiculous in the eyes of the current generation. Many books have even been written about this. Among them, a special place is occupied by the novel by I.S. Turgenev "Fathers and Sons".
It is in this work that there is a conflict between fathers and children based on different judgments about the world and views on life. and his friend Arkady Kirsanov are representatives of the younger generation. They pursue the ideas of nihilism, a popular trend among the youth of Turgenev's era. Nihilism implies the denial of higher values: love, friendship, art, the power of nature, the sense of beauty. Of course, the older generation, represented by the aristocrats, the Kirsanov brothers, cannot understand these newfangled ideas of the youth. Conflict is inevitable, as each of the heroes defends their point of view and view of the world.
A similar situation is observed in the comedy by A.S. Griboyedov "Woe from Wit". Here the reader gets acquainted with the past century, that is, with the Famusov society, led by the unenlightened Famusov, and the present century, with a young and educated man. The older generation is raised in such a way that their highest values are moving up the career ladder, getting a good rank, and accumulating wealth. The most interesting thing is that everyone from the Famusov society sees this as the goal of life, but does not want to seriously work on it. They are not interested in books and education, and the work itself is not interesting.
They prefer to discard the book as an unnecessary thing and avoid work as much as possible. Chatsky is a supporter of other ideas and rules. He is happy to serve, but does not want to do it in the way that is customary for the older generation. Chatsky is educated, not stupid, and continues to develop further, finding great value in this. Different views of the world and place in it play out the conflict between representatives of different generations. But Chatsky is alone against the whole society. He will not win this battle of opinions.
Thus, the main reason for the conflict between fathers and children is different views on life and values. Each generation has its own reasoning, thoughts and opinions. It is because of this that the conflict between elders and younger ones is inevitable and will be repeated with each new generation.
In the novel “Fathers and Sons” by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev, it is written about the conflict of different generations.
The main character Evgeny Bazarov is a very hardworking person. He likes exact sciences, he conducts research and experiments. Bazarov tries in every possible way to benefit his homeland and society as a whole. He doesn't like to talk about feelings and denies any expression of them. For him, creativity and poetry have absolutely no meaning.
Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov becomes his opponent - it is he who enters into an argument with Bazarov. Kirsanov Sr. does not understand why the young man Evgeniy treats art with such disdain.
Every day these two treat each other more and more with hatred and anger. It comes to the point that they start a secret duel in which Bazarov wins. Evgeniy’s victory is just a lucky chance and it could also have turned up against Pavel Petrovich.
After the duel, passions in the Kirsanovs' house, where Bazarov was invited, subsided a little. However, they did not treat each other any better.
Arkady, who invites his friend to stay at his parents' house, also notices that Bazarov is not such a good person and in fact they do not have as much in common as he previously thought. Arkady and Evgeniy considered themselves to be members of the nihilistic society.
The Kirsanovs are wealthy nobles, they have their own estate, a little dilapidated, but large. Kirsanov Sr. has a good education and is a very intelligent and well-mannered person. Arkady Kirsanov was receiving his education and met Evgeny Bazarov. It was Bazarov who led Arkady to the nihilists. Evgeniy has very few friends, or rather, practically none. All his friends and acquaintances at first eagerly accepted his ideas of nihilism, but then everyone quickly dispersed. Everyone went their separate ways, some got married and took care of their families, and some found things more interesting.
Arkady was very sympathetic to Bazarov and tried to support him in everything. Over time, Kirsanov realizes that it is better for them to stop communicating with Bazarov. Kirsanov has a loving family - father and uncle. A little time will pass and Arkady will marry a wonderful girl, Katerina, whom he fell in love with very much. Kirsanov believes that he should put his family at the head and abandon Bazarov’s obsessions.
Evgeny Bazarov has none of this. His parents, of course, love him madly, but they cannot show their feelings fully so as not to frighten their son. Evgeniy does not love anyone and believes that all people are no match for him. In order to satisfy his physiological needs, he does not need to love anyone. It is enough for the girl to be pretty. The only person he considered his equal was Anna Sergeevna Odintsova’s girl. Bazarov fell in love for the first time and wanted to own this woman. Anna Sergeevna refused him.
Bazarov will die trying to prove to everyone that he is right and that the manifestation of feelings is complete nonsense. He did not want to choose a family home and a loving family. I couldn’t even convey my knowledge of nihilism to Bazarov. Evgeny Bazarov died alone.
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The main problem in the novel by I.S. Turgenev's "Fathers and Sons" is the problem of the contradiction of generations, the relationship between fathers and children. Turgenev examines this contradiction from two sides: from the social side (the conflict between aristocrats and nihilists) and from the philosophical side (the direct conflict between fathers and children).
Social conflict lies in the confrontation between different layers of society: the noble class, which defends the existing order, and the followers of the theory of nihilism, who deny authorities, principles and values. Turgenev reveals this confrontation with the help of the images of Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov, a representative of the aristocracy, and Yevgeny Vasilyevich Bazarov, a typical nihilist.
Pavel Petrovich is a nobleman, a former brilliant officer who enjoyed enormous success in society. His tragic love for Princess R. changed everything.
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After her death, he lost hopes of happiness and moved to his brother in Maryino, where he retained “all the habits of a socialite” and aristocratic manners, not typical for rural areas: reading English, the habit of dressing in the latest fashion, careful care of appearance, etc. For Pavel Petrovich, aristocracy, the principles and foundations of the last century, culture - what was valuable to his ancestors - are of great value.
Evgeny Bazarov is the absolute opposite of Pavel Petrovich. He is smart, educated, interested in natural sciences; has a thirst for activity, strives to accomplish something great in his life, and is capable of development. But at the same time, Evgeny is a materialist, proud, arrogant, cynical, disdainful of people, selfish, and immoral. Denial of past experience, reduction of human relationships to physiological instincts, unprincipledness (in accordance with the theory of nihilism) emphasizes Bazarov’s disadvantages and aggravates them. Everything spiritual that has always been important for humanity: art, love, friendship, goodness, has no meaning for him.
It is precisely because of differences in worldviews, values, and ideas that clashes between these characters, and therefore between aristocrats and nihilists, occur. What is considered by aristocrats to be the basis of life is rejected by nihilists as outdated, no longer true and hindering progress.
By philosophical conflict, Turgenev directly means the conflict of generations, older and younger. In the relationship between Arkady and his father, Nikolai Petrovich Kirsanov, there are almost no significant contradictions; there is mutual understanding and warmth between them. Although at the beginning of the novel Arkady is presented as a like-minded person of Bazarov, as events develop we see that he is much more like his father in his way of thinking, and his commitment to nihilism is nothing more than an attempt to appear more mature, confident and independent. Just like for Nikolai Petrovich, love, family, friendship are important for Arkady - what makes a person happy.
Bazarov's relationship with his parents is much more complicated: on the one hand, Evgeny loves them, although he does not often show his feelings; on the other hand, Bazarov is bored with them, he cannot understand and accept their way of life. Both Bazarov’s father and mother adhere to a traditional way of life. Eugene wanted the people closest to him to share his views and thoughts, and they really tried to do this, although unsuccessfully. This is where the problem of generations misunderstanding each other arose.
Thus, Turgenev, who himself belongs to the generation of “fathers,” nevertheless stands on the side of Bazarov. “Turgenev did not like merciless denial, and yet the personality of a merciless denier emerges as a strong personality, and inspires involuntary respect in every reader,” said D. Pisarev.
Updated: 2017-08-09
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One of the problems of society, which is relevant at any time, is the conflict between different generations. A striking example of a work of art that reveals this problem is Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons.”
The key character of the work is Evgeny Bazarov, a representative of a new generation that preaches a nihilistic ideology. He is presented as a bright follower of this trend; his friend Arkady Kirsanov, on the contrary, tries to imitate the nihilists, but ultimately abandons this philosophy. In the novel, they are contrasted with representatives of the older generation: these are Arkady's father and uncle, who hold liberal views, as well as Evgeny's more conservative parents.
The basis of the protagonist’s worldview is a rejection of generally accepted ideals: he does not like to share someone’s point of view (“I don’t share anyone’s opinions; I have my own”); he denies the past (“You can’t turn back the past...”) and does not tolerate delays (“There is no need to hesitate; only fools and smart people hesitate”). His ideology is aimed at destroying the existing system, since he is extremely dissatisfied with it, but at the same time, Bazarov offers practically nothing in return for the destroyed ideals.
The Kirsanov brothers, on the contrary, are actively promoting the ideas of preserving the current system. They are also not satisfied with the current situation, but this is due to the presence of young nihilists, who, in their opinion, talk a lot (“The young people were delighted. And in fact, before they were just idiots, but now they have suddenly become nihilists”). So, Nikolai Petrovich does not give up on himself after the death of his wife, but continues to seek his happiness in love for Fenechka.
The main character's parents are presented as calmer and more conservative people; their worldview is more related to religion. Their images are closely associated with both the common people (superstition, simplicity) and the upper class (medical education from Vasily Ivanovich, serf souls in the possession of Arina Vlasyevna).
Turgenev pays special attention to contrasts in the novel: they manifest themselves not only in the contrast between the ideas of Bazarov the younger and the older generation, but also in the descriptions of the characters themselves. So, the tall and gloomy Evgeny argues with the short, cheerful Nikolai Petrovich; the basis of the description of Bazarov is his inner world, the Kirsanovs - his appearance. There is also a contrast within the nihilists themselves: Anna Odintsova, with whom Evgeniy falls in love, rejects him and love in general, while Arkady Kirsanov rejects nihilism itself due to his innocence and love of poetry.
At the same time, one cannot help but note the similarities between the characters. Bazarov and the Kirsanov brothers are ardent defenders of their ideas (although in the end Odintsova turns out to be the main defender of nihilism). The Bazarov family, despite the obvious differences in approaches to life, builds relationships on love, which is confirmed by Evgeny himself.
The final images of all the characters, except Bazarov, turn out to be clearly defined: they either retreat from their previous ideas (Arkady) or continue to follow their line (the elder Kirsanovs, Odintsova). Bazarov, on the contrary, finds himself captive of his philosophy: he denies love, but at the same time is unable to resist his feelings for Odintsova. It is symbolic that the main character is the only one who dies in the work: he alone failed to find his place in society due to internal contradictions.
The conflict between fathers and children in Turgenev's novel of the same name ends with the victory of the ideology of the older generation. Nevertheless, it is in such a struggle of interests that a person is formed as an individual, since it is not always important to be absolutely right in a dispute - it is important to be able to listen to others and, if necessary, use other people’s experience.