Through the wavy mists
The moon creeps in
To the sad meadows
She sheds a sad light.On the winter, boring road
Three greyhounds are running,
Single bell
It rattles tiresomely.Something sounds familiar
In the coachman's long songs:
That reckless revelry
That's heartbreak...No fire, no black house...
Wilderness and snow... Towards me
Only miles are striped
They come across one.Bored, sad... Tomorrow, Nina,
Tomorrow, returning to my dear,
I'll forget myself by the fireplace,
I'll take a look without looking at it.The hour hand sounds loud
He will make his measuring circle,
And, removing the annoying ones,
Midnight will not separate us.It’s sad, Nina: my path is boring,
My driver fell silent from his doze,
The bell is monotonous,
The moon's face is clouded.
Date of creation: November-December 1826
Analysis of Pushkin's poem "Winter Road"
Alexander Pushkin is one of the few Russian poets who, in his works, managed to masterfully convey his own feelings and thoughts, drawing a surprisingly subtle parallel with the surrounding nature. An example of this is the poem “Winter Road,” written in 1826 and, according to many researchers of the poet’s work, dedicated to his distant relative, Sofia Fedorovna Pushkina.
This poem has a rather sad backstory.. Few people know that the poet was connected with Sofia Pushkina not only by family ties, but also by a very romantic relationship. In the winter of 1826, he proposed to her, but was refused. Therefore, it is likely that in the poem “Winter Road” the mysterious stranger Nina, to whom the poet addresses, is the prototype of his beloved. The journey itself described in this work is nothing more than Pushkin’s visit to his chosen one in order to resolve the issue of marriage.
From the first lines of the poem “Winter Road” it becomes clear that the poet is by no means in a rosy mood. Life seems to him dull and hopeless, like the “sad meadows” through which a carriage drawn by three horses rushes on a winter night. The gloominess of the surrounding landscape is consonant with the feelings experienced by Alexander Pushkin. The dark night, the silence, occasionally broken by the ringing of a bell and the dull song of the coachman, the absence of villages and the eternal companion of wanderings - striped mileposts - all this makes the poet fall into a kind of melancholy. It is likely that the author anticipates the collapse of his matrimonial hopes in advance, but does not want to admit it to himself. For him the image of a beloved is a happy release from a tedious and boring journey. “Tomorrow, when I return to my sweetheart, I will forget myself by the fireplace,” the poet dreams hopefully, hoping that the final goal will more than justify the long night journey and will allow him to fully enjoy peace, comfort and love.
The poem “Winter Road” also has a certain hidden meaning. Describing his journey, Alexander Pushkin compares it with his own life, which, in his opinion, is just as boring, dull and joyless. Only a few events bring variety to it, like the way the coachman’s songs, daring and sad, burst into the silence of the night. However, these are only short moments that are not capable of changing life as a whole, giving it sharpness and fullness of sensations.
We should also not forget that by 1826 Pushkin was already an accomplished, mature poet, but his literary ambitions were not fully satisfied. He dreamed of great fame, but in the end, high society actually turned away from him not only because of freethinking, but also due to his unbridled love of gambling. It is known that by this time the poet had managed to squander the rather modest fortune he had inherited from his father, and hoped to improve his financial affairs through marriage. It is possible that Sofya Feodorovna still had warm and tender feelings for her distant relative, but the fear of ending her days in poverty forced the girl and her family to reject the poet’s offer.
Probably, the upcoming matchmaking and the expectation of refusal became the reason for such a gloomy mood in which Alexander Pushkin was during the trip and created one of the most romantic and sad poems, “Winter Road,” filled with sadness and hopelessness. And also the belief that perhaps he will be able to break out of the vicious circle and change his life for the better.
Epithets, metaphors, personifications
The text contains the following means of artistic expression:
- personifications - “the moon makes its way, shedding light”, “removing the boring (annoying, unnecessary) ones, midnight ... will not separate”, “sad meadows” - allow the author to “construct” the interlocutor during a long boring journey, giving the text liveliness and imagery;
- epithets - “greyhound (frisky) troika”, “daring revelry”, “heartfelt melancholy”, “striped miles”, “measured circle”, “lunar face” - create a unique content and orient the reader to a special emotional perception;
- metaphors - “light is pouring”, “the face is foggy” - vividly create an indefinite atmosphere of a moonlit evening;
- Numerous examples of inversion - “the moon is making its way, pouring ... its light”, “something familiar is heard”, “miles are striped”, “hour hand”, “my path is boring”, “my circle”, “the coachman fell silent” - allow you to build rhyme and focus on the final word;
- catachresis (a combination of words that are incompatible in meaning, but form a semantic whole) “pours sadly” confirms that everything in the poem is permeated with sadness, even the light;
- polyunion - “now revelry, now melancholy...”, “no fire, no... hut” - reflect the contradictory mood of the lyrical hero, his ardent desire for human communication;
- lexical repetition - “Tomorrow, Nina, tomorrow to my dear...” - reflects the poet’s impatience;
- antonyms - “revelry - melancholy”;
- Numerous omissions - “wilderness and snow...”, “... only miles and miles are found...”, “Boring, sad...” speak of the despair that gripped the lonely traveler, his search for consolation and sympathy.
- The oxymoron - “I’ll just stare at it” - reflects the strength of the lyrical hero’s feelings.
The phrase “striped versts” denotes mileposts, which were painted striped to stand out among the snowdrifts.
The text contains a sign of high style - the word “face”. The overall painful atmosphere is created by numerous repetitions - “she sheds a sad light on the sad meadows,” “longing,” “boring, sad...”, “sad, ... my path is boring.” The lonely traveler's dreams of warmth, comfort, the crackle of a fireplace and pleasant company are interrupted by the same ringing of the hated bell.
Through the wavy mists
The moon creeps in
To the sad meadows
She sheds a sad light.
On the winter, boring road
Three greyhounds are running,
Single bell
It rattles tiresomely.
Something sounds familiar
In the coachman's long songs:
That reckless revelry
That's heartbreak...
No fire, no black house...
Wilderness and snow... Towards me
Only miles are striped
They come across one.
Bored, sad... Tomorrow, Nina,
Tomorrow, returning to my dear,
I'll forget myself by the fireplace,
I'll take a look without looking at it.
The hour hand sounds loud
He will make his measuring circle,
And, removing the annoying ones,
Midnight will not separate us.
It’s sad, Nina: my path is boring,
My driver fell silent from his doze,
The bell is monotonous,
The moon's face is clouded.
Reading Pushkin’s poem “Winter Road”, you feel the sadness that gripped the poet. And not out of nowhere. The work was written in 1826, during a difficult period in the life of Alexander Sergeevich. More recently, there was a Decembrist uprising, after which many were arrested. There wasn't enough money either. By that time he had spent the modest inheritance left from his father. Also, one of the reasons for creating the poem may have been an unhappy love for Sophia, a distant relative. Pushkin wooed her, but to no avail. We see an echo of this event in this work. The hero thinks about his beloved named Nina, but has a presentiment of the impossibility of happiness with her. The poem reflected the general mood of depression and melancholy.
The predominant meter in the poem “Winter Road” is trochaic tetrameter with cross rhyme.
Through the wavy mists
The moon creeps in
To the sad meadows
She sheds a sad light.
On the winter, boring road
Three greyhounds are running,
Single bell
It rattles tiresomely.
Something sounds familiar
In the coachman's long songs:
That reckless revelry
That's heartbreak...
No fire, no black house,
Wilderness and snow... Towards me
Only miles are striped
They come across one...
Bored, sad... Tomorrow, Nina,
Returning to my dear tomorrow,
I'll forget myself by the fireplace,
I'll take a look without looking at it.
The hour hand sounds loud
He will make his measuring circle,
And, removing the annoying ones,
Midnight will not separate us.
It’s sad, Nina: my path is boring,
My driver fell silent from his doze,
The bell is monotonous,
The moon's face is clouded.
Analysis of the poem “Winter Road” by Pushkin
A. S. Pushkin was one of the first among Russian poets to successfully combine landscape lyrics with personal feelings and experiences in his works. An example of this is the famous poem “Winter Road”. It was written by the poet during a trip to the Pskov province (late 1826).
The poet was recently released from exile, so he is in a sad mood. Many former acquaintances turned their backs on him; his freedom-loving poems are not popular in society. In addition, Pushkin is experiencing significant financial difficulties. The nature surrounding the poet is also depressing. The author is not at all happy about the winter trip, even the usually cheerful and encouraging “bell... rattles tiresomely.” The coachman's mournful songs exacerbate the poet's sadness. They represent a purely Russian original combination of “daring revelry” with “heartfelt melancholy.”
The endless Russian versts, marked by wayposts, are tiresomely monotonous. It seems that they can last a lifetime. The poet feels the immensity of his country, but this does not bring him joy. A weak light seems to be the only salvation in the impenetrable darkness.
The author indulges in dreams of the end of the journey. The image of the mysterious Nina appears, to whom he goes. Researchers have not come to a consensus on who Pushkin means. Some believe that this is a distant acquaintance of the poet S. Pushkin, with whom he had a love relationship. In any case, the author is warmed by the memories of the woman. He imagines a hot fireplace, an intimate setting and privacy with his beloved.
Returning to reality, the poet sadly notes that the boring road tired even the coachman, who fell asleep and left his master completely alone.
In a sense, Pushkin’s “winter road” can be compared with his own fate. The poet acutely felt his loneliness; he found practically no support or sympathy for his views. The desire for high ideals is an eternal movement across the vast Russian expanses. Temporary stops along the way can be considered numerous love stories of Pushkin. They were never long, and the poet was forced to continue his tedious journey in search of the ideal.
In a broader sense, the poem symbolizes the general historical path of Russia. The Russian troika is a traditional image of Russian literature. Many poets and writers, following Pushkin, used it as a symbol of national destiny.
Few poets managed to harmoniously intertwine personal feelings and thoughts with descriptions of nature. If you read the poem “Winter Road” by Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin thoughtfully, you can understand that the melancholy notes are associated not only with the author’s personal experiences.
The poem was written in 1826. A year has passed since the Decembrist uprising. Among the revolutionaries there were many friends of Alexander Sergeevich. Many of them were executed, some were exiled to the mines. Around this time, the poet wooed his distant relative, S.P. Pushkina, but is refused.
This lyrical work, which is taught in a literature lesson in the fourth grade, can be called philosophical. From the first lines it is clear that the author is by no means in a rosy mood. Pushkin loved winter, but the road he has to travel now is bleak. The sad moon illuminates the sad meadows with its dim light. The lyrical hero does not notice the beauty of sleeping nature; the dead winter silence seems ominous to him. Nothing pleases him, the sound of the bell seems dull, and in the coachman’s song one can hear melancholy, consonant with the traveler’s gloomy mood.
Despite the sad motives, the text of Pushkin’s poem “Winter Road” cannot be called completely melancholic. According to researchers of the poet’s work, Nina, to whom the lyrical hero mentally addresses himself, is the chosen one of Alexander Sergeevich’s heart, Sofya Pushkin. Despite her refusal, the poet in love does not lose hope. After all, Sofia Pavlovna’s refusal was associated only with fear of a miserable existence. The desire to see his beloved, to sit next to her by the fireplace gives the hero strength to continue his joyless journey. Passing the “striped miles” that remind him of the fickleness of fate, he hopes that his life will soon change for the better.
It is very easy to learn the poem. You can download it or read it online on our website.
Through the wavy mists
The moon creeps in
To the sad meadows
She sheds a sad light.
On the winter, boring road
Three greyhounds are running,
Single bell
It rattles tiresomely.
Something sounds familiar
In the coachman's long songs:
That reckless revelry
That's heartbreak...
No fire, no black house...
Wilderness and snow... Towards me
Only miles are striped
They come across one.
Bored, sad... Tomorrow, Nina,
Tomorrow, returning to my dear,
I'll forget myself by the fireplace,
I'll take a look without looking at it.
The hour hand sounds loud
He will make his measuring circle,
And, removing the annoying ones,
Midnight will not separate us.
It’s sad, Nina: my path is boring,
My driver fell silent from his doze,
The bell is monotonous,
The moon's face is clouded.