The system of characters in the novel «Erenger» by Mari writer M. Shketan

Belyaeva Tatyana Nikolaevna PhD in Philology Associate Professor of the Department of Foreign Language Speech Communication, Mari State University 424039, Russia, Republic of Mari El, Yoshkar-Ola, Druzhby str., 77, block 113 beljaeva1978@rambler.ru Other publications by this author

Guseva Nadezhda Vasilevna PhD in Philology Associate Professor of the Department of Finno-Ugric and Comparative Philology, Mari State University 425221, Russia, Republic of Mari El, village Znamensky, Cherepanova str., 6a, sq. 84 ovechkinanadezhda@rambler.ru

A characteristic feature of the Mari literature of the 1930s is the rapid growth of prose genres. Essays, novellas and short stories are becoming an effective means of displaying modernity. Small and medium-sized genres, which briefly and accurately reflected observations on all aspects of life, become peculiar laboratories of artistic and journalistic skill of national classics. A peculiar chronicle of historical events at the beginning of the XX century consists of the works of M. Shketan: the stories "Yumyn yazykshe" ("God's sin"), "Chodyr lohashte" ("In the wilderness"), "Karpush", the essay "Me toshtym seena" ("We will defeat the old"), etc. The novel "Ehrenger" was a measure of the writer's maturity. In it, as in other novels by Mari writers published in this period in the national literature: ("Vurs mardezh" = "Steel Wind" ^[3], "Savik" ^[2] by N. Ignatiev, "Elnet" by S. Chavain ^[12], "Udyramash korno" = "A woman's share"Shabdara Osypa ^[13], "Kuchedalme tulesh" = "In the fire of struggle" by A. Erykan ^[15], etc.) the social and political life of the people in all its typical manifestations was fully reflected. All the previous work of the writer prepared for the writing of this genre. M. Shketan began work on the novel simultaneously with another classic N. Ignatiev in 1930-1932. Parts of it were published in the magazine U Viy in 1931, but the novel was not published in full until 1933. In vivid realistic images, the author revealed the most significant aspects of the life of the Mari people before the October Revolution, outlined the socio-economic necessity of the transition to collectivization. The novel shows with great vividness and artistic force the living conditions of the people in the first decade of Soviet power, the struggle of capitalist and socialist elements during the NEP period, changes in consciousness and everyday life of ordinary people. A wide coverage of socio-political and social problems and in-depth coverage of life processes in all their complexity and versatility, a vivid system of characters determined the artistic significance of the work.

The title of the novel "Eranger" consists of two parts: er (which means morning) and er (which means river). In this sense, the socialist construction depicted in the work acquires a symbolic meaning. "M. Shketan depicts the morning of socialism in the Mari territory. The novel is an innovative creation, a kind of encyclopedia of folk life, realistically depicting the contribution of the Mari people to the socialist structure of the village" ^{[4, p. 201]}. Unfortunately, the writer managed to show only how the Nep village was gradually turning into a socialist one, and the idea of displaying collective farm construction was not realized due to his premature death. "During the campaign against the "Trotskyists", "bourgeois nationalists", M. Shketan (he was called "a writer, ideologically alien to us", "anti-Soviet and counter-revolutionary" ^{[4, p. 206]}) was also threatened with arrest, which undermined his already weak health" ^{[8, p. 678]}.

The novel shows the creation of the first consumer cooperatives, a mutual assistance committee, credit and reclamation partnerships. Of course, changes in the sphere of politics and economics also affected the restructuring of the life of the peasants, increasing their culture, which, in turn, naturally aggravated the class struggle between the kulaks and the poor, the old and the new intelligentsia. This is how typical images of different social groups appear. But each Shketanov hero is endowed with individual character traits.

Through the image of the main character, Evai Petyr, the ideological and intellectual growth of a man from the masses in the process of fruitful organizational work of the Communist Party and the proletariat is shown. This is one of the first images in national literature of a communist, an active organizer, a fighter for the socialist transformation of the Mari village, and, subsequently, as the central guiding and guiding force of Soviet society. Typical of him is his indissoluble connection with the people, his selfless dedication to the party's cause. The writer skillfully reproduces the process of the birth and formation of a new Soviet man. The ideological and political growth of the hero took place on the fronts of the civil war in the ranks of the Red Army, at the Ural plant: "That's Radaman yal ilysh plant ilysh dene nigunamat kelshen ogesh kert. Yal ilyshym vashtaltash, yalymat zavodysh savyrash kulesh", – manyn, Potyr shonalten" ^{[14, p. 33]} ("The old village way of life cannot be compared with life at the factory. It is necessary to change the way of life in the village, it is necessary to turn the village into a factory," Petyr reflected") (Here and further our translation from Mari). Such "re-education", the spiritual rebirth of a personality in the conditions of the socialist revolution is characteristic of most Soviet writers: "The fate of the hero of the Mari classic Evai Peter, who fought for freedom and the future of the Mari people on the fronts of the civil war, where his character was rebuilt, resembles the heroes of the books by A. Serafimovich "Iron Stream" ^[9], D. Furmanov "Chapaev" ^[11], A. Fadeeva "Defeat" ^[10]" ^{[5, pp. 141-142]}. The Gorky tradition (there is a similarity with the images of Pavel Vlasov, Andrei Nakhodka, Stepan Kutuzov), for example, "manifests itself in the fact that a communist reveals himself as a wonderful human personality, whose life can and should serve as an example and role model for others" ^{[6, p. 114]}. In addition, the propaganda and glorification of the working class in the reconstruction of life unites M. Shketan's novel with M. Gorky's novel "Mother" ^[1]. The narrative in both works begins with a description of the picture of the factory, but the focus of the Mari classic is on life in the Nep village, class division, hatred of the possessive aspirations of individual peasants and the need to redo small–scale psychology.

There is also an autobiographical element in the fate of the hero of the novel: at the beginning of 1917, M. Shketan was mobilized into the tsarist army. After three months of training, he was sent to the southwestern front for six months. He met the Great October Revolution in the trenches, so he was a direct witness of the stubborn struggle of the Bolsheviks against the provisional government, the Socialist Revolutionaries, and the Mensheviks. "In his autobiography, he wrote that he returned from the army, having learned the Bolshevik way" ^{[7, p. 56]}.

The transformation of the main character of the novel is revealed through internal monologues and dialogues, his memories, using the technique of retrospection: "Ynde tudym factory tunykten. Yalishte ilymizh godym tudo shkat yyysen koshtsho kresanykla achazh dene kelshen ogyl, tudyn toshto radamzhe dech toshto shot denak utlash tochen, yal gych kurzhyn. Toshto yal olmesh u yalym yytash tyrshime dech Potyr shylyn" ^{[14, p. 33]}. ("Now the factory taught him. Living in the village, he did not agree with his eternally whining father, so he ran away from the old way of life, left the village. Instead of building a new way of life in the old village").

In the novel, much attention is paid to the speech characteristics of the characters, reflecting the typical and individual characteristics of the characters. Peter's speech manner (businesslike, concreteness, use of political terminology) indicates his leadership position: "Yoltash-vlak! – Potyryn yuksho shergyltesh. – Saveliev ynde shyltalyshda, tudyn titakshym tuzhvak luktyn onchyktyshda. We're going to go to the oil pool. Moktanash-orlash manme yunzhe lii: vigak kalasash – Savelyevyn titakshe pesh shuko ulo. Tudo shke pashashtyzhe partiyn tu? kornyzhym kuchen moshen ogyl, yal ilyshyshte yorlo den poynom oyrkalen ogyl" ^{[14, p. 143]} ("Comrades! Peter's voice rang out. Saveliev was scolded, pointing out his guilt. I will also speak out. Do not think that I am bragging, I am speaking bluntly – Saveliev is largely to blame. He did not adhere to the party line, did not separate the poor and the rich"). But Peter is not alone in his work. After returning home, he unites communists (Shamray, Sakar, Shimai Egor, secretary of the party's cancom), young people, and begins active socio-political activities. In his image, the writer emphasized the versatility of the life of a Soviet man, his diverse interests: he is well versed in politics, literature and art. His main difference from other idealized heroes of works written in the 1920s is that he makes mistakes, but is always honest with his soul and faithful to his idea. Therefore, the son of a wealthy peasant (Peter) with proletarian training stands much higher than Kadyrgan Sakar, a rural farmhand, a former convict (he was imprisoned for the murder of a kulak, whose son mocked his beloved girlfriend), although a member of the party, who failed to completely suppress the spontaneous rebel. Now he works as a manager at the mill where he used to be a farmhand. His past sufferings give him strength in the fight against the kulaks. In this sense, the novel, like most works of the 1930s, "glorifies" the Communist Party in the struggle for the renewal of people's lives. In this sense, the finale of the work is also very symbolic: the peasants came out in an organized manner to drain the swamp. "With this, the author emphasizes how socialist labor will inevitably replace the old, individual labor" ^{[6, p. 115]}.

Along with the true Bolsheviks, M. Shketan portrayed "degenerate communists who perversely interpreted the new economic policy of the party, rude administrators": secretary of the Erenger party cell Vanka Saveliev, senior officials of the canton Mamaev and Kolbin ^{[4, p. 205]}.

Deep psychologism in the depiction of the inner world, the experiences and reflections of all the main characters of the work, the combination of dramatic and lyrical is a characteristic feature of M. Shketan's novel. Expressive images of female characters are evidence of this. So, Veruk, Peter's beloved girlfriend, absorbed the best national features of the Mari woman: simplicity, spiritual charm, intelligence, insight. Through personal mistakes, she comes to a clear understanding of her role in public and family life and becomes Peter's faithful assistant.

The image of the beautiful rural girl Orina, who boldly challenged the old worldly ideas, is peculiar: "Orina, kok kidshige shegekige vashten, kapka mege vokten komdykla eerten, ozhym ovarten shogalyn, shke dekige uzhmyla moray shogen. Orza tusan, korgo tul dene yulysho shinchazhym Potyryn shinchashkizhe tusaren onchen. <...> Kyzyt Potyr onchylno sharlalt shusho osh lokama peledysh guy churian, stanesh pordymo guy yandar kapan udyr liyyn shogalyn" ^{[14, p. 26]} ("Orina, crossing both arms behind her back, leaning back against the gate, lifting her chest, sings, as if calling to herself. From inside, she stared intently into Peter's eyes with shining blue eyes. <...> Now a girl appeared in front of Peter with a face blooming like a white rosehip flower and a slender figure that seemed to be chiseled"). A beautiful, attractive girl, who was attracted to Peter for a while, in fact, turned out to be a real predator. She managed to deceive the seller of the village store to commit embezzlement. Ardently in love with Pagul, a man with an ill-formed character, having "figured out" her intentions late, committed suicide. At the same time, Orina, wanting the villagers to quickly forget her shameful behavior, lures the hut and prepares to leave with him to the city to study as an artist. According to most of her fellow villagers, she is only capable of bringing misfortune to those who will have to face her on the path of life.

M. Shketan in the novel managed to show the restructuring of the consciousness of the "old" Mari intelligentsia through the image of the teacher Yandyshev: "Yandyshev guy sho'go Mari teacher yallashte yatir ulo. Nuno shke ilyshyshtlan ogyt opkele, nigunamat vuyym ogyt shiy. Mom kushtat – yytat." ^{[14, p. 59]} ("There are many elderly teachers like Yandyshev in the villages. They do not regret the life they have passed, they never complain about fate. What they ask, they will do"). After much hesitation and reflection, he also joins in the active construction of a new life. "Mardezh pochesh my ilem, mardezh vashtares kajet gyn, pugyrnas kulesh, mardezh pochesh my pugyrnyde oshkylam. Oshkylam gina – om kurzh. Those kurzhyda, kornydamat ogyda already" ^{[14, p. 62]} ("I walk in the wind. When you walk against the wind, you have to bend down, and I walk in the wind without bending down. I'm just walking, not running. And you're running, you can't even see the road"). A new intelligentsia formed from the masses of the people in the person of teacher Claudia Algaeva, an aspiring writer and izbach Shamray Shumat, hydraulic engineering Vachai has progressive views: they propose to redevelop a village grove for pagan prayers into a garden, build a rural house of culture, a nursery, drain a swamp. These are the people who, in the author's opinion, have the future behind them, those who subjugate nature, lead the people and serve their interests.

It should be noted that the images of fists are not schematic, not poster-like. The motives of the actions of the cruel hereditary Yakush Vedyr, who is trying in every possible way to adapt to a new environment; the money-grubber Kuri Mikal, who has become more cunning, cautious, are deeply thought out and explained. All their efforts (anti-propaganda of Soviet power among the rural population, an attempt on the life of the most active communists in the village, raising grain prices, etc.) directed against the Bolsheviks are in vain.

The main feature in the depiction of the characters of the novel is that their lives are shown in a creative relationship: influencing each other, changing the social system, the way of life, they change themselves.

Thus, the basis of the novel was a large factual material about the life of the village, collected by the writer over the years in the editorial offices of magazines and newspapers, in the land fund, in the audit commission, etc. It is not surprising that many of the characters in the novel have real prototypes. At the same time, any of the characters in the novel is distinctive, individual, his character is revealed through various types and types of monologues, dialogues, actions, through his attitude to family and work. The writer always strives to psychologically subtly outline the inner world, thoughts and experiences of his hero. The main (Evai Peter, Vanka Saveliev, Verush) and secondary (Orina, Shamray Shumat, Claudia Algaeva, Yakush Vedyr, the Zhmakov Brothers, etc.) characters not only form the plot, but also develop the action, reveal the idea and problems of the work, influence other characters, which creates dynamics and tension in the work. Each group of characters typifies a social stratum of the population: Evai Peter, Shamray, Sakar, Shimai Egor - communists, Shamray Shumat, Claudia Algaeva, Vachai, Yandyshev – rural intelligentsia, Yakush Vedyr, Kuri Mikal, Karantai Miklay, Karantai Kare, Sardai Sergey, German Vedyr, Zhmakov brothers – Kulakov and merchants Okshak Mikita, Lyrivon Kuzma, Shayyk Semon, Mikitan Voma, Poris Krgori – poor peasants who were the first to support the Soviet government, etc. Revealing the fate of the heroes, the writer tells about the life of an entire nation.

The novel "Erenger" by M. Shketan is a large artistic canvas that reflects the history, way of life, culture of the Mari people of the early 20th century; the spiritual appearance and character of the Soviet people.

The writer has always been in the thick of life and promptly responded to all the most important socio-political events of his contemporary reality. The novel "Ehrenger" is not only evidence of writing skills, the ability to see the leading trends and prospects for the development of society, but also proof that Mari literature has not only strengthened, but also moved to a new, higher level of its development.