June 24 2010

Filled with picturesque contrasts, the coloring of the "Gyaur" also distinguishes the next Byron of the "eastern" cycle - the more extensive poem "The Corsair", written in heroic couplets. In a brief prose introduction to the poem, dedicated to the author's fellow writer and like-minded Thomas Moore, he warns against the characteristic, in his opinion, vice of modern criticism - the wrongful identification of the main characters, whether it be Giaur or anyone else, that has haunted him since the time of "Childe" with the creator of the works. At the same time, the epigraph to the new poem - a line from Tasso's "Jerusalem Delivered" - emphasizes the internal duality as the most important emotional leitmotif of the narrative.

The action of the "Corsair" is deployed in the south of the Peloponnesian Peninsula, in the port of Koroni and the Pirate Island, lost in the expanses of the Mediterranean. The time of action is not exactly indicated, but it is easy to conclude that the reader is faced with the same era of the enslavement of Greece Ottoman Empire entered the crisis phase. The figurative and speech means that characterize the characters and what is happening are close to those familiar from "Gyaur", however, the new poem is more compact in composition, its plot is developed in more detail (especially with regard to the adventurous "background"), and the development of events and their sequence - more orderly.

The first canto opens with a passionate speech, depicting the romance of the pirate lot filled with risk and anxiety. The filibusters, soldered by a sense of camaraderie, idolize their fearless ataman Konrad. And now, a fast brig under a pirate flag that terrifies the entire district brought encouraging news: the Greek gunner said that in the coming days a raid on the city and palace of the Turkish governor Seyid could be carried out. Accustomed to the strangeness of the character of the commander, the pirates become shy when they find him immersed in deep thought. Several stanzas follow with a detailed description of Conrad (“Mysterious and eternally lonely, / It seemed that he could not smile”), inspiring admiration for heroism and fear - for the unpredictable impulsiveness of the one who had gone into himself, disbelieved in illusions (“He is among people the most difficult of schools - / The path disappointment - passed") - in a word, bearing the most typical features of a romantic rebel-individualist, whose heart is warmed by one indomitable passion - love for Medora.

Conrad's lover reciprocates; and one of the most heartfelt pages in the poem is Medora's love song and the scene of the farewell of the heroes before the campaign. Left alone, she finds no place for herself, as always worrying about him, and he, on the deck of the brig, gives orders to the team, full of readiness to carry out a daring attack - and win.

The second song takes us to the banquet hall in Seyid's palace. The Turks, for their part, have long been planning to finally clear the sea from pirates and divide the rich booty in advance. Pasha's attention is attracted by a mysterious dervish in tatters, who appeared at the feast from nowhere. He tells that he was taken prisoner by the infidels and managed to escape from the kidnappers, but he flatly refuses to taste luxurious dishes, referring to a vow made to the prophet. Suspecting him as a scout, Seyid orders to seize him, and then the stranger is instantly transformed: under the humble guise of a wanderer, a warrior in armor and with a sword that smashes on the spot was hiding. The hall and approaches to it in the blink of an eye are overflowing with Conrad's associates; a furious battle boils up: "The palace is on fire, the minaret is on fire."

The merciless pirate who crushed the resistance of the Turks, however, shows genuine chivalry when the flames that engulfed the palace spread to the female half. He forbids his brothers-in-arms to resort to violence against the Pasha's slaves, and he himself carries the most beautiful of them, the black-eyed Gulnar, out of the fire. Meanwhile, Seid, who escaped from the pirate's blade in the confusion of the battle, organizes his numerous Guards in a counterattack, and Konrad has to entrust Gulnar and her friends, unfortunately, to the cares of a simple Turkish house, and himself to enter into an unequal confrontation. All around, one by one, his slain comrades fall; he, having cut down an uncountable multitude of enemies, is hardly alive captured.

Deciding to torture Conrad and terrible execution, the bloodthirsty Seid orders to place him in a cramped casemate. The hero is not afraid of the coming trials; in the face of death, only one thought worries him: “How will Medora’s message, the evil news, meet?” He falls asleep on a stone bed, and when he wakes up, he finds in his dungeon the black-eyed Gulnar, who has secretly made her way into the prison, completely captivated by his courage and nobility. Promising to persuade the pasha to delay the impending execution, she offers to help the corsair escape. He hesitates: cowardly running away from the enemy is not in his habits. But Medora... After listening to his passionate confession, Gulnar sighs: “Alas! To love is only given to the free!”

Canto 3 opens with the author's poetic declaration of love for Greece ("Beautiful city of Athena! Whoever saw the sunset / Your wondrous one will come back ..."), which is replaced by a picture of the Pirate Island, where Conrad waits in vain for Medora. A boat approaches the shore with the remnants of his detachment, bringing terrible news, their leader is wounded and captured, the filibusters unanimously decide to rescue Conrad from captivity at any cost.

Meanwhile, Gulnar's persuasion to postpone the painful execution of "Gyaur" produces an unexpected effect on Seid: he suspects that his beloved slave is not indifferent to the prisoner and is plotting treason. Showering the girl with threats, he kicks her out of the chambers.

Three days later, Gulnar once again enters the dungeon where Konrad is languishing. Insulted by the tyrant, she offers the prisoner freedom and revenge: he must stab the pasha in the silence of the night. The pirate recoils; the woman's excited confession follows: “Do not call revenge on the despot villainy! / Your despicable enemy must fall in blood! / Did you start? Yes, I want to become different: / Pushed away, offended - I take revenge! / I am undeservedly accused: / Though a slave, I was faithful!

"A sword - but not a secret knife!" is Conrad's counterargument. Gulnar disappears to appear at dawn: she herself took revenge on the tyrant and bribed the guards; a boat and a boatman are waiting for them off the coast to take them to the coveted island.

The hero is confused: in his soul there is an irreconcilable conflict. By the will of circumstances, he owes his life to a woman in love with him, and he himself still loves Medora. Gulnar is also depressed: in the silence of Konrad, she reads the condemnation of the crime she committed. Only a fleeting hug and a friendly kiss from the prisoner she saved bring her to her senses.

On the island, the pirates joyfully greet the leader who has returned to them. But the price set by providence for the miraculous deliverance of the hero is incredible: only one window does not shine in the castle tower - the window of Medora. Tormented by a terrible premonition, he climbs the stairs... Medora is dead.

Conrad's grief is inescapable. In seclusion, he mourns his girlfriend, and then disappears without a trace: “<…>A succession of days passes, / No Conrad, he disappeared forever, / And not a single hint announced, / Where he suffered, where he buried the flour! / He was only mourned by his gang; / His girlfriend was received by the mausoleum ... / He will live in the traditions of families / With one love, with a thousand crimes.

The finale of The Corsair, like the Giaura, leaves the reader alone with the feeling of an unsolved riddle surrounding the entire existence of the protagonist.

Act I
Painting 1
The kidnapping of Medora
Eastern Market Square. The beauties of the slaves appointed for sale are sitting waiting for buyers, while Turks, Greeks, Armenians are crowding here, examining the goods brought from all over the world.
Corsairs appear on the square under the leadership of Conrad. He was attracted to the market, apparently, by a secret plan he had conceived to see a certain charming stranger.

Medora, a pupil of the owner of the market, Isaac Lanquedem, appears on the balcony of her teacher's house. Seeing Konrad, she quickly makes villages * from the flowers she has at hand and throws it to Konrad. He, having read the villages, is convinced with delight that the beautiful Medora loves him.
Isaac and Medora appear in the square. While Isaac is examining the slaves, Medora and Conrad exchange passionate and meaningful glances.

A wealthy buyer, Seyid Pasha, appears on the square with his retinue. Merchants surround him, showing various slaves, but none of them pleases the Pasha. Seid Pasha notices Medora. He decides to buy her at all costs, but Isaac refuses to sell his pupil to him, obsequiously explaining to the pasha that she is not for sale, and offering a couple of other slaves in return.

Pasha still insists on buying Medora. His offers are so profitable and tempting that Isaac, tempted, agrees to the deal. Pasha gives the order to deliver the new slave he bought to the harem and leaves, threatening Isaac with punishment if Medora is not immediately delivered to his harem. Conrad calms Medora by promising that the corsairs will kidnap her.

At a sign from Konrad, the corsairs begin a merry dance with the slave girls, in which Medora takes an active part, much to the delight of all present. But suddenly, at the signal given by Konrad, the corsairs kidnap the slaves dancing with them along with Medora. Isaac runs after Medora and wants to take her away from the corsairs; then Konrad orders them to take with them a very frightened Isaac.

Picture 2
conspirators
The home of the corsairs. Corsairs with rich booty and captured slaves return to their shelter, and Isaac, trembling with fear, is brought there. Medora, saddened by the fate of her companions, asks Konrad to release them, and he relents. Birbanto and the other pirates protest, claiming they too have a right to women, and rebel against their leader. Konrad, reflecting the blow directed at him, makes Birbanto bow before him; then he calms the frightened Medora, and, carefully guarding her, goes with her into the tent.

Isaac, taking advantage of the general turmoil, decides to quietly run away. However, Birbanto and the remaining corsairs, noticing this, taunt him, and, taking all the money from him, offer to participate in a conspiracy to take Medora back. Taking a flower from a bouquet, Birbanto sprays it with sleeping pills from a vial, then gives it to Isaac and orders him to bring it to Conrad.
Conrad appears and gives the order to serve supper. While the corsairs are having dinner, Medora is dancing for Konrad, who swears eternal love to her.

Gradually, the corsairs disperse, only Birbanto and a few of his supporters are watching Conrad and Medora. At this time, Isaac appears with a young slave; pointing to Medora, orders a flower to be given. Medora presses the flower to her chest and hands it to Conrad, adding that the flowers will explain all her love for him. Conrad lovingly presses the flower to his lips, but the intoxicating smell instantly plunges him into a deep sleep and, despite his incredible efforts to free himself from the action drug he falls asleep. Birbanto gives the sign to the conspirators to take action.

Medora is startled by Conrad's sudden sleep. Appeared corsairs surround her with threats. Trying to defend herself, Medora wounds Birbanto's hand and tries to run, but, having lost consciousness, falls into the hands of her captors.
Having sent the conspirators away, Birbanto is ready to deal with Conrad, but at that moment he wakes up. Upon learning that Medora has been kidnapped, Conrad and the corsairs set off in pursuit.

Act II
Scene 3
Captivity of a corsair
Palace of Seid Pasha. Bored odalisques start different games. Zulma demands that the odalisques be respectful to her, but Gulnara and her friends mock the haughty sultana.

Is Seid Pasha. Odalisques must bow before their master, but the recalcitrant Gulnara taunts him too. Seid Pasha, carried away by her youth and beauty, throws her a handkerchief, but Gulnara throws the handkerchief to her friends, finally the handkerchief, passing from hand to hand, reaches the old black woman, who, taking it, begins to pursue the pasha with her caresses. Pasha can hardly contain his anger.

To please the pasha, the caretaker of the harem brings forward three odalisques.
Zulma tries to attract the pasha's attention, but at that moment he is informed of the arrival of the slave seller.

Seeing Isaac, who brought Medora, the pasha becomes delighted. Medora begs the pasha to give her freedom, but seeing that he remains inexorable, she complains about the cruel treatment of her by her tutor; Seid orders the eunuch to escort the Jew out of the palace. Gulnara approaches Medora and expresses her sympathy, taking an ardent part in her. Pasha offers Medora various jewels, but she resolutely refuses them, much to Gulnara's joy and Pasha's displeasure.

The leader of the dervishes appears and asks for lodging for the night. Pasha allows the caravan to take up residence in the garden. Having fun with the embarrassment of the dervishes at the sight of young seductive slaves, he promises to acquaint them with all the delights of the harem and orders them to start dancing.
Among the dancing beauties, Konrad (he is disguised as the leader of the dervishes) recognizes his beloved.

At the end of the festival, Seid orders to take Medora to the inner chambers of the palace. The corsairs, throwing off the clothes of dervishes, threaten the pasha with daggers; Conrad hugs Medora again.

The corsairs are carried away by the plundering of the pasha's palace. Gulnara runs in, pursued by Birbanto, she rushes to Medora and asks for her protection. Konrad stands up for Gulnara, while Medora, peering at Birbanto, recognizes him as her kidnapper and informs Konrad of his treacherous act. Birbanto laughingly refutes her accusations; in support of her words, Medora points out to Konrad the wound on Birbanto's arm inflicted by her. Konrad is ready to shoot the traitor, but Medora and Gulnara hold him back, and Birbanto runs away with threats.

Tired Medora is ready to lose her senses from weakness and unrest, but with the help of Gulnara and Konrad she comes to her senses and, at their request, wants to follow them, when suddenly the Pasha's guard bursts into the hall. The corsairs are defeated, Konrad is disarmed and sentenced to death. Pasha is jubilant.

Act III
Scene 4
Pasha's wedding
Chambers in the palace. Pasha orders to prepare for the celebration of his marriage with Medora. Medora indignantly rejects his proposal. The chained Conrad is led to his execution. Medora, seeing the terrible situation her lover is in, begs Seid to spare him. Pasha promises to pardon Konrad on the condition that she voluntarily agree to belong to him, Pasha. Medora does not know what to decide on, and in desperation accepts the pasha's condition.

Left alone with Medora, Konrad rushes to her, and she announces to him on what conditions Seyid Pasha agreed to pardon him. Corsair rejects this shameful condition, and they decide to die together. Gulnara, who has been watching them, proposes her plan to them; the lovers agree to it and thank her heartily.

Pasha returns. Medora announces that she agrees to do his will. Pasha is delighted - he gives the order to immediately release Konrad and prepare everything for the wedding ceremony.

The wedding procession is approaching, the bride is covered with a veil. Upon completion of the marriage ceremony, the Pasha gives his hand to the odalisque and puts a wedding ring on her finger. Dancing odalisques crown the wedding celebration.

Left alone with the pasha, Medora tries to seduce him with her dances, but everything shows that she is looking forward to the desired hour of release. She expresses horror at the sight of the gun in Seid's belt and asks to put it away as soon as possible. Pasha takes out a pistol and hands it to Medora. But her fear only grows at the sight of the dagger in the Pasha's belt; in order to finally calm her down, Seid takes out the daggers and gives them to her, then wants to gently hug her, but she eludes him. Seyid falls at her feet, begs her to love him and gives her a handkerchief. She, as if jokingly, ties his hands with them, and he, pleased, laughs at her prank. Midnight strikes, Conrad appears. Pasha is horrified to see how Medora gives the dagger to Konrad. He wants to call for help, but Medora aims her gun at him and threatens to kill him at the slightest cry. Seid, in horror, does not dare to utter a word, and Medora, together with Konrad, quickly disappear.

Pasha is trying to free himself. Gulnara runs in and, in feigned horror, unties his hands. Pasha convenes the guard and orders to pursue the fugitives. Three cannon shots herald the departure of the ship of corsairs. Seid is furious: his beloved wife has been kidnapped. “I am your wife,” says Gulnara, “here is your ring!”
Seid is in a daze.

Scene 5
Storm and shipwreck
Sea. Clear and quiet night on the deck of a ship. Corsairs celebrate liberation. One unfortunate Birbanto, chained, does not take part in the fun. Medora sees his miserable situation and asks Conrad to forgive Birbanto, who joins her in her pleas. After some hesitation, Konrad forgives Birbanto, and he joyfully asks for permission to bring a barrel of wine and treat his comrades.

The weather changes quickly, a storm begins. Taking advantage of the turmoil on the ship, Birbanto again outrages the corsairs, but Conrad throws him overboard. The storm intensifies: thunder rumbles, lightning flashes, the sea rages. There is a crash, the ship crashes against a rock.

The wind gradually subsides, and the turbulent sea calms down again. The moon appears and with its silvery light illuminates two figures: these are Medora and Conrad, who miraculously escaped death. They reach the rock, climb it, and thank God for their salvation.

Selam* - a bouquet in which each flower has a special meaning. The language of flowers and communication using the "flower cipher" was very popular in Europe at the end of the 18th and in the 19th century.

print

Canto One

Pirates feast on the island. Their kingdom is "above the foamy, endless wave." Their joy is a storm, a fight. They do not know fear, they are bored with death, because the death of pirates is quick, “souls break their connection with us instantly,” as the pirate song says. The leader of the pirates is Konrad.

He is stingy in speech - he only knows the order,
The hand is firm, sharp and vigilant eye;
He does not give their feasts fun.

Conrad behaves like a righteous man - he refrains from luxurious food, "the enemy of the sensual - he is severe and simple." Conrad enjoys unquestioned authority among the pirates, not a single person dares not only to challenge the orders of the Corsair, but also to disturb him without a good reason.

In the distance, the pirates spot a ship. It soon turns out that this is theirs, a pirate brig under a blood-red flag. The arrivals brought good news. Corsair's long-time spy, the Greek, writes that there is a golden opportunity to rob the Turkish Pasha's fleet. After reading the message of the Greek, Conrad decides to immediately set out on the road. He orders to check and prepare his weapons for battle. No one dares to argue with the Leader.

He is secretly separated from everyone,
In curiosity and his sigh and laughter,
And the name "Conrad" turns into chalk
The tan of anyone who is fierce and bold.
Ruler of souls, most skillful strategist,
He, terrifying, delights those
Who is terrible - glorifying him ...
Brilliance of skill - luck - success, -
And, imperious, he is strong by the lack of will of all.
He dictates - and the exploits of their hands
Everyone reveres around him among his merits.

Conrad was not always a merciless pirate. In the past lies the cause of his present anger at the whole world.

He was wise, but the world considered him stupid
And spoiled with his training;
I was too proud to drag out life, resigned,
And too hard to fall before the strong in the mud ...
Inspiring fear, slandered from a young age,
Became a friend of Malice, but no Humility ...
He hated - but to those hearts,
Where is hatred with servility in half;
Him, from everyone standing far away,
And friendship and contempt bypassed:
Marveling at him, they were afraid of his deeds,
No one dared to humiliate him.
However, Conrad is subject to one sincere passion - Love. Konrad happily and mutually loves Medora, does not pay attention to the beautiful captives, of which there are many on the island of pirates. Now, before a dangerous campaign, Conrad is going to say goodbye to his beloved, goes to her castle. Approaching Medora's room, Conrad hears the sounds of a sad song. The girl sings about her love for him, about a love that knows no rest, because lovers must constantly part, and Medora lives in eternal fear for Conrad's life. Medora dreams of the day when "peace will lead us into a peaceful home." Medora wonders why her gentle lover is so cruel to people. Conrad announces to Medora that he "must again go on a short journey." Medora gets upset, she invites Conrad to at least share with her the festive meal she prepared, hoping that he will come to her. Ho Conrad can't stay. He hears the signal of the gun: it's time to act. Konrad leaves, "touching his forehead with a kiss." Left alone, Medora lets her tears flow.

George Gordon Byron

"Corsair"

The coloring of the Gyaur, full of picturesque contrasts, also distinguishes Byron’s next work of the “eastern” cycle - the more extensive poem The Corsair, written in heroic couplets. In a short prose introduction to the poem, dedicated to the author's fellow writer and like-minded Thomas Moore, the author warns against the characteristic, in his opinion, vice of modern criticism - which has haunted him since the time of Childe Harold, the illegal identification of the main characters - whether it is Giaur or anyone the other is with the creator of the works. At the same time, the epigraph to the new poem - a line from Tasso's "Jerusalem Delivered" - emphasizes the hero's internal duality as the most important emotional leitmotif of the narrative.

The action of the "Corsair" takes place in the south of the Peloponnesian Peninsula, in the port of Koroni and the Pirate Island, lost in the expanses of the Mediterranean. The time of action is not exactly indicated, but it is not difficult to conclude that the reader is faced with the same era of the enslavement of Greece by the Ottoman Empire, which has entered a phase of crisis. The figurative and speech means that characterize the characters and what is happening are close to those familiar from "Gyaur", however, the new poem is more compact in composition, its plot is developed in more detail (especially with regard to the adventurous "background"), and the development of events and their sequence are more orderly.

The first canto opens with a passionate speech, depicting the romance of the pirate lot filled with risk and anxiety. The filibusters, soldered by a sense of camaraderie, idolize their fearless ataman Konrad. And now, a fast brig under a pirate flag that terrifies the whole district brought encouraging news: the Greek gunner said that in the coming days a raid on the city and palace of the Turkish governor Seyid could be carried out. Accustomed to the strangeness of the character of the commander, the pirates become shy when they find him immersed in deep thought. Several stanzas follow with a detailed characterization of Conrad (“Mysterious and eternally alone, / It seemed that he could not smile”), inspiring admiration for heroism and fear - for the unpredictable impulsiveness of the one who had gone into himself, disbelieved in illusions (“He is among people the most difficult of schools - / The Way disappointment - passed") - in a word, bearing the most typical features of a romantic rebel-individualist, whose heart is warmed by one indomitable passion - love for Medora.

Conrad's lover reciprocates; and one of the most heartfelt pages in the poem is Medora's love song and the farewell scene of the heroes before the campaign. Left alone, she finds no place for herself, as always worrying about his life, and on the deck of the brig he gives orders to the team, ready to carry out a daring attack - and win.

The second song takes us to the banquet hall in Seyid's palace. The Turks, for their part, have long been planning to finally clear the sea from pirates and divide the rich booty in advance. Pasha's attention is attracted by a mysterious dervish in tatters, who appeared at the feast from nowhere. He tells that he was taken prisoner by the infidels and managed to escape from the kidnappers, but he flatly refuses to taste luxurious dishes, referring to a vow made to the prophet. Suspecting him as a scout, Seyid orders to seize him, and then the stranger is instantly transformed: under the humble guise of a wanderer, a warrior in armor and with a sword that smashes on the spot was hiding. The hall and approaches to it in the blink of an eye are overflowing with Conrad's associates; a furious battle boils up: "The palace is on fire, the minaret is on fire."

The merciless pirate who crushed the resistance of the Turks, however, shows genuine chivalry when the flames that engulfed the palace spread to the female half. He forbids his brothers-in-arms to resort to violence against the Pasha's slaves, and he himself carries the most beautiful of them, the black-eyed Gulnar, out of the fire. Meanwhile, Seid, who escaped from the pirate's blade in the confusion of the battle, organizes his numerous guards in a counterattack, and Konrad has to entrust Gulnar and her friends, unfortunately, to the cares of a simple Turkish house, and himself to enter into an unequal confrontation. All around, one after another, his slain comrades fall; he, having cut down an uncountable multitude of enemies, is hardly alive captured.

Deciding to subject Konrad to torture and a terrible execution, the bloodthirsty Seid orders him to be placed in a cramped casemate. The hero is not afraid of the coming trials; in the face of death, only one thought worries him: “How will Medora’s message, the evil news, meet?” He falls asleep on a stone bed, and when he wakes up, he finds in his dungeon the black-eyed Gulnar, who has secretly made her way into the prison, completely captivated by his courage and nobility. Promising to persuade the pasha to delay the impending execution, she offers to help the corsair escape. He hesitates: cowardly running away from the enemy is not in his habits. But Medora... After listening to his passionate confession, Gulnar sighs: “Alas! To love is only given to the free!”

Canto Three opens with the author's poetic declaration of love for Greece (“Beautiful city of Athens! Whoever saw the sunset / Your wondrous one will come back ...”), which is replaced by a picture of the Pirate Island, where Conrad waits in vain for Medora. A boat approaches the shore with the remnants of his detachment, bringing terrible news, their leader is wounded and captured, the filibusters unanimously decide to rescue Conrad from captivity at any cost.

Meanwhile, Gulnar's persuasion to postpone the painful execution of "Gyaur" produces an unexpected effect on Seid: he suspects that his beloved slave is not indifferent to the prisoner and is plotting treason. Showering the girl with threats, he kicks her out of the chambers.

Three days later, Gulnar once again enters the dungeon, where Konrad is languishing. Insulted by the tyrant, she offers the prisoner freedom and revenge: he must stab the pasha in the silence of the night. The pirate recoils; the woman's excited confession follows: “Do not call revenge on the despot villainy! / Your despicable enemy must fall in blood! / Did you start? Yes, I want to become different: / Pushed away, offended - I take revenge! / I am undeservedly accused: / Though a slave, I was faithful!

"A sword - but not a secret knife!" is Conrad's counterargument. Gulnar disappears to appear at dawn: she herself took revenge on the tyrant and bribed the guards; a boat and a boatman are waiting for them off the coast to deliver them to the coveted island.

The hero is confused: in his soul there is an irreconcilable conflict. By the will of circumstances, he owes his life to a woman in love with him, and he himself still loves Medora. Gulnar is also depressed: in Konrad's silence, she reads the condemnation of the crime she committed. Only a fleeting hug and a friendly kiss of the prisoner she saved bring her to her senses.

On the island, the pirates joyfully greet the leader who has returned to them. But the price set by providence for the miraculous deliverance of the hero is incredible: only one window does not shine in the castle tower - the window of Medora. Tormented by a terrible premonition, he climbs the stairs... Medora is dead.

Conrad's grief is inescapable. In solitude, he mourns his girlfriend, and then disappears without a trace: “A series of days passes, / Conrad is gone, he disappeared forever, / And did not announce a single hint, / Where he suffered, where he buried the flour! / He was only mourned by his gang; / His girlfriend was received by the mausoleum ... / He will live in the traditions of families / With one love, with a thousand villains. The finale of The Corsair, like the Giaura, leaves the reader alone with the feeling of an unsolved riddle surrounding the entire existence of the protagonist.

The action of Byron's poem "The Corsair" takes place in the port of Koroni and on a pirate island during the enslavement of Greece by the Turks. The first song tells of a pirate life, Byron describes a pirate brig under the command of the filibuster Conrad. In this part of the poem, the captain learns from a Greek spy that now the best time to attack the palace of the Turkish governor Seid. The pirate captain is an image of a typical romantic rebel, a mysterious individualist hero, whose heart is warmed by an indomitable love for the girl Medora. The beloved of the captain of the corsairs reciprocates. Her love song is one of the brightest pages of the poem, as is the heartfelt scene of the parting of lovers before a pirate raid.

The second song of the poem presents to our eyes the banquet hall of Seid. The Turkish command plans to clear the sea of ​​pirate filth. The attention of the viceroy is attracted by a mysterious monk who somehow made his way to the feast. The dervish says that he was captured by the infidels and managed to escape, but he chastely refuses luxurious dishes, motivating this by a vow given to the prophet. The shrewd governor suspects the monk of espionage and orders him to be captured. However, the dervish is transformed into a well-armed warrior, clad in plate armor. Companions of Konrad begin an attack on the palace, a fierce battle begins.

A quick and sudden attack sweeps away the resistance of the Turks, but the stern corsair is a real nobility when the fire that engulfed the palace spreads to the female half of the building. He forbids the pirates to show cruelty towards Seyid's captive concubines and himself saves the slave Gulnar from the fire. However, the Turks gather their strength, and organizes a powerful counterattack that sweeps away the pirates - Conrad's comrades die, he, exhausted, is captured.

The Turkish viceroy sentences the captain of the pirates to torture and execution, before deciding to wear out the filibuster in the casemates. Conrad is not afraid of death, he is only afraid of how his beloved Medora will perceive the news of his death. At night, the rescued Gulnar comes to him and offers to help the pirate escape. A brave sailor hesitates with a decision, because running away from the enemy is not in his habit.

Meanwhile, Gulnar's attempt to delay the execution fails, Seid decides that his beloved concubine is not indifferent to the prisoner and accuses her of treason. The offended Gulnar again comes to Konrad and asks him to run away, urging him to secretly kill the despot Seyid. But even this time, the noble corsair does not want to cowardly, in a dream, kill his opponent. The concubine frees the pirate and personally kills the viceroy. The captives flee the palace and return to the pirate island.

However, returning home does not bring joy to Konrad, because his beloved Medora does not meet him. He is looking for his beloved in her chambers and does not find it... The unfortunate Medora committed suicide after learning about the impending execution of her beloved captain. Unbearable grief falls on the shoulders of Conrad. Alone, he mourns for his friend of the heart, and then leaves without leaving a trace. The finale of the play "The Corsair" gives the reader the opportunity to unravel the mystery of the protagonist's feelings.

George Gordon Byron

Tale

I suoi pensieri in lui dormir non ponno.

Tasso. Gerusalemme Liberata, canto X.

THOMAS MOORE, ESQ

Dear Moore, I dedicate to you this work, the last one with which I will burden the patience of the public and your indulgence, falling silent for several years. Believe me, I delightedly take the opportunity to embellish my pages with a name so famous both for the firmness of the political principles of its bearer and for the universally recognized manifold talents of it. Since Ireland counts you among her most trusted patriots, and honors you, unquestionably, as the first of her bards, and Britain repeats and confirms this appraisal, let him who regards the years preceding your acquaintance as wasted add a modest but sincere testimony of friendship to the voice of several peoples. This will at least prove to you that I have not forgotten the joy of your association, and have not given up the hope of resuming it when your leisure and your desire induce you to reward your friends for being too long away from you. Your friends say - and I am sure of this - that you are busy writing a poem which takes place in the East; no one could do it better than you. There you must find the misfortunes of your country, the fiery and magnificent imagination of her sons, the beauty and sensitivity of her daughters; when Collins called his Irish eclogues "Eastern", he himself did not know how true, at least in part, his comparison was. Your fantasy creates a hotter sun, a less hazy sky; but you have a spontaneity, tenderness and originality that justify your claims to an oriental origin, which you alone prove more convincingly than all the archaeologists of your country.

Could I add a few words about the subject, which, as everyone thinks, is usually spoken at length and boringly - about yourself? I have written a great deal and printed enough to justify a longer silence than I have; in any case, I intend for the next few years not to test the patience of "gods, people, magazine columns." For this work, I have chosen not the most difficult, but perhaps the most characteristic of our language, meter - our beautiful old, now neglected, heroic couplet. Spencer's stanza is perhaps too slow and solemn to be told, although, I must confess, it is the most pleasing to my ears. Scott is the only one in our generation who has been able to completely triumph over the fatal lightness of eight-syllable verse, and this is far from an unimportant victory for his prolific and powerful talent. In the realm of blank verse, Milton, Thomson, and our playwrights shine like beacons above the abyss, but they also convince us of the existence of barren and dangerous rocks; upon which they are erected. The heroic couplet, of course, is not a very popular stanza, but since I have never chosen this or that size to please the tastes of the reader, I have the right now to refuse any of them without any unnecessary explanations and once again experiment with the verse that I so far I have not written anything, except for works, the publication of which I do not cease and will not cease to regret.

As for this story itself and my stories in general, I would be glad if I could portray my characters more perfect and attractive, because criticism was expressed mainly about their characters and made me responsible for their deeds and properties, as if the latter were mine. personal. Well - let it be: if I fell into a gloomy vanity and began to "depict myself", then the image, apparently, is correct, since it is unattractive; if not, let those who know me judge affinity; and I do not consider it necessary to dissuade those who do not know. I have no particular desire that anyone, with the exception of my acquaintances, consider the author better than the creations of his imagination. But still, I must confess, I was slightly surprised and even amused by the very strange attitude of criticism towards me, since I see that many poets (undoubtedly more worthy than I) enjoy an excellent reputation and are not suspected by anyone of being close to the mistakes of their heroes, who are often no more moral than my Gyaur, or else ... but no: I must admit that Childe Harold is in the highest degree repulsive personality; As for his prototype, let whoever wants to amuse himself by looking for any person for him. If, nevertheless, there was a point in making a good impression, then the man who delights both his readers and his friends, that poet who is recognized by all circles and is the idol of his own, would do me a great service - if he would allow me here and everywhere to subscribe

his most faithful

grateful

and humble servant

Byron.

SONG ONE

…nessun maggior dolore,

Che ricordarsi dei tempo felice

Nella miseria…

Dante. Inferno, v. 121.

"Our free spirit makes its free flight
Over the joyful expanse of blue waters:
Wherever the winds lead the foam shaft,
Our possessions, our home and shelter.
Here is our kingdom, it has no boundaries;
Our flag - our scepter - prostrates all.
Leisure and work, changing in a riot of days,
They give us their joy.
Oh who will understand? Is it not a slave of miserable negs,
Who is trembling all over, seeing the waves run?
Is it not a parasite whose depraved spirit
Are you full of peace and deaf to the call of happiness?
Who but the brave, whose soul sings
And the heart dances over the expanse of waters,
Will understand the delight and drunken pulse of tramps,
What do they carry their flag in the seas without roads?
That feeling seeks fight and struggle:
For us - ecstasy, where the slaves tremble;
We like where the coward is, half-dead,
Loses mind, and wonderful fullness
Then body and soul live in us,
Breathe hope and courage.
What is death? peace, though deeper sleep and darkness,
Is it scary if the enemy dies nearby?
Ready for her life life we take
And there is only one death - in illness or under the sword;
Let those who are used to suffering crawl
From year to year clinging to the bed;
Half dead, let your head drop;
Our deathbed is green grass;
After a sigh, sigh, let their life go out;
We have a blow, and there is no earthly torment;
Let the pride of the dead be the luxury of urns and slabs,
Let the slanderer of the tombstone gild,
And a friendly camp will honor us with a tear,
Our shroud is the waves, our coffin is the ocean;
And on a binge the memory is repaid
We will have a mug of red wine;
Friends, having finished boarding with victory,
Dividing the booty, they will remember our appearance
And they will say, with a gloomy shadow at their eyes:
“How the dead would rejoice now!”