Essay “Symbolic images and their meaning in the poem “The Twelve.” Essay “Symbolic images and their meaning in the poem “The Twelve” Symbols: role and their meaning

Symbolic images and their meaning. A. Blok is a wonderful, greatest poet who was destined to live and create at a turning point, at the turn of two eras. He admitted that his life and creative path ran “among revolutions,” but the poet perceived the events of October much deeper and more organically than 1905.

Perhaps this happened due to the fact that A. Blok, having left the framework of symbolism, which had previously limited his work, came to the understanding that the old “terrible world” had outlived its usefulness, and the sensitive heart of the poet rushed in search of a new one. “With all your body, with all your heart, with all your consciousness - listen to the Revolution,” called A. Blok. He knew how to listen, and we, living 85 years after the revolution, can hear it if we carefully read A. Blok’s poem “The Twelve.” This poem contains everything: the instability of the bourgeois world in the face of new forces, and the fear of the unknown, and the spontaneity underlying the revolution, and the expectation of future difficulties, and faith in victory.
Striving to describe the realities of that time as comprehensively and objectively as possible, Blok in his poem creates a number of bright and polysemantic images-symbols that allow him to convey his feelings even more fully, and for us to hear the “music of the revolution.”
One of the main symbols of the spontaneity, uncontrollability and all-embracingness of the revolution is the wind.
Wind, wind!
The man is not standing on his feet.
Wind, wind -
All over God's world!
This reflects both the cosmic nature of the coming transformations and the inability of man to resist these changes. No one remains indifferent, nothing is untouched:
The wind is cheerful
Both angry and happy.
Twists the hems,
Passers-by are mowed down...
Revolution requires sacrifices, often innocent ones. Katka dies. We don't know much about her, but we still feel sorry for her. Elemental forces also attract soldiers, former robbers, who indulge “on the quiet” in ruthless robberies and robberies.
Eh, eh!
It's not a sin to have fun!
Lock the floors
There will be robberies today!
Unlock the cellars -
The bastard is on the loose these days!
It’s all the wind, and it’s not for nothing that in the end it develops into a terrible blizzard, which hinders even the Bolshevik detachment of twelve people, shielding people from each other.
The image of the old, dying world appears before us in the form of a sick, homeless, hungry dog that cannot be driven away, it is so annoying. Either he huddles from fear and cold to the knees of the bourgeoisie, or he runs after the fighters of the revolution.
- Get off, you scoundrel,
I'll tickle you with a bayonet!
The old world is like a mangy dog,
If you fail, I'll beat you up!
The contrasting color images that permeate the poem are also symbolic:
Black evening.
White snow.
The color black here has many meanings. This is a symbol of the dark, evil principle, and chaos, and the raging elements - both in the world and within a person. That is why darkness looms before the fighters for a new world, and above them there is a “black, black sky.” But the snow that constantly accompanies the detachment is white. It seems to cleanse the grief and sacrifices that the revolution requires, awaken spirituality, and bring it to the light. It’s not for nothing that at the end of the poem the main, brightest and most unexpected image appears, which has always been a symbol of purity and holiness:
With a gentle tread above the storm,
Snow scattering of pearls,
In a white corolla of roses -
Ahead is Jesus Christ.
This is A. Blok’s poem “The Twelve” - a unique, truthful and unforgettable chronicle of the 1917 revolution.

The poem “The Twelve” is one of A. Blok’s best works. Blok based the poem on the events of the Russian Revolution of 1917. The author shows us the collapse of the old and the advent of the new world. The entire poem is thoroughly imbued with symbolism, and although A. Blok used symbolism in many of his works, a completely new type of artistic work appears before us. The principle of dissonance is present directly throughout the poem.
The images of the poem are complex and contradictory. A. Blok portrays the revolution as an uncontrollable element. For example, images of a blizzard, wind:

Black evening
Warm snow.
Wind, wind!
The man is not standing on his feet.
Wind, wind -
All over God's world!

In the poem, Blok contrasts the old world with the new, and the black with white. The wreckage of the old world: the bourgeoisie, the comrade priest, the lady in karakul - is replaced by the collective image of twelve Red Guards, representatives of the new world.
Twelve is the key number of the poem. Many associations can be associated with this number. First of all, it is twelve hours - midnight, twelve months - the end of the year. The result is some kind of borderline number, since the end of the old year, or day, and the beginning of a new one is the predetermination of a kind of milestone. For Blok, this milestone was the fall of the old world.
Another numerical association is the twelve apostles. This is indirectly indicated by the names of two of them - Andryukha and Petrukha.
In the revolution, A. Blok saw not only positive, but also negative features. The revolutionaries did anything, even robbery and murder:

Light up the floors
There will be robberies today!
Unlock the cellars -
The bastard is on the loose these days!

The only event in the poem - the murder of Katka - speaks of the same thing. Everything happens as a spontaneous act.
At the end of the poem, twelve Red Guards walk through a snowstorm. Behind them trudges a “hungry dog,” personifying the old world, and in front is Jesus Christ with a “bloody flag.”
“Bloody Flag” is associated not only with the color of the revolutionary banners, but also with Katka’s blood shed in the poem.
The image of Jesus Christ is very complex. This image is almost impossible to reveal. Even Blok himself could not explain why he placed this image at the end of the poem.
Thanks to the symbolism, the short poem turned out to be very capacious.
Blok captured the essence of the revolution in his poem and did it with great skill. He subtly portrayed the revolutionary era.
I cannot say definitively whether Blok supported the revolution, but I believe that the critics who said that Blok glorified the revolution were wrong.

“Revolution, like a thunderstorm, like a snowstorm, always brings something new and unexpected; she cruelly deceives many; she easily cripples the worthy in her whirlpool; she often brings the unworthy to land unharmed; but this does not change the general direction...

In the history of Russian culture at the beginning of the 20th century, the work of A. A. Blok, an artist who walked the path “among revolutions”, who sensitively grasped both the contradictions and the greatness of his era, is a phenomenon of enormous social and artistic significance. The whirlwind of the October Revolution...

The poem depicts Petrograd in early January 1918, that is, in those days when the work was written. A blizzard is raging - a symbol of revolution. The image of wind, storm, cold is Blok’s favorite image, which he usually resorted to when he tried to convey...

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Poem by A.A. Blok “Twelve” can be considered the culmination of his entire work. The motive of the author’s irony in relation to the modern “uterine” world and its “inhabitants” permeates the entire work. The modern bourgeois, whose interests are concentrated only...

A. Blok's poem "The Twelve" was written in 1918. It was a terrible time: behind four years of war, the feeling of freedom in the days of the February Revolution, the October Revolution and the Bolsheviks coming to power, finally the dispersal of the Constituent Assembly, the first...

The revolutionary unrest of the early twentieth century in Russia evoked responses from many writers. The events of 1917 and the Civil War inspired the creation of works by both contemporaries and writers of later periods, right up to the present day. Among the poets who were inspired by this period of Russian history was A.A. Block. The poem “The Twelve” reflected the author’s ambiguous perception of the coup, the meaning of which is still being wondered about. The rich symbolism of the work has a large number of interpretations.

Symbols: role and their meaning

What does a symbol mean to a poet? It’s the same as a term for a scientist, that is, with the help of it you can express a thought more succinctly, without unnecessary words. And Blok actively took advantage of this opportunity in his work.

Colors. The first thing the reader encounters in the poem is the antithesis of colors - black and white. In world culture, these shades have dozens of meanings, but for this particular poem, white is renewal, the desire for the future, black is the darkness of the old world, the suffering of the soul caused by sin. In addition, the text contains red, expressing resistance and desire for change.
Wind is a sign of storm and revolution. He is trying to stir up the snow to bring in everything that is old and experienced.
12 is a number with a special meaning. The number of Red Army soldiers in the poem is comparable to the many apostles at the Last Supper. There are many hypotheses about what author’s position is hidden behind the Gospel symbolism. Perhaps for Blok the events of the 17th year are comparable in significance in the history of mankind to Holy Week.

Images

It is important to emphasize the role and image of the author in “The Twelve”. Blok realized that he was present at an epoch-making event; he intuitively sensed the coming changes in the country, which is why in this work “The Writer is a Vitia”, and the poem itself is associated more with a chronicle. Here the poet plays the role of Pimen or Nestor, whose goal is to capture what is happening.
Let us turn to the image of the twelve Red Guards. Not everyone is named by name, but it is no coincidence that the characters named in the poem coincide with the apostles. Such a mention makes it possible to attach to the characters the largest number of associations evoked in the reader. Ivan, Andrey, Peter - these names are both sacred and social at the same time.
For example, Petrukha repents of killing out of jealousy, but this hero would not be so significant for the poem if his name were not an allusion to Peter, who renounced Christ. In both cases, crime is not a reason to leave the path, but stimulates you to move on with even greater zeal. Both for Blok’s Peter and for the Evangelical Peter there was no time to regret what they had done: they needed to move forward to realize the common idea.
The most discussed image in the poem is Christ (an essay on his role in the work is available). It is interesting to see how it appears in the poem. At the beginning of the poem there is wind, in the 12th chapter a red flag appears in this element, the same attribute in the hands of Christ. It can be assumed that the Savior is present in the poem from the first lines, but in the form of a spirit, a breath, and finds its embodiment only at the end of the work. What does this image mean for the poem? It is unfair to consider that this is a sign of the author's approval of the events of 1917. Blok realized the inevitability of revolution, the impossibility of returning to the old order. The world has become different, the old world is a thing of the past, the country is on the threshold of a new era. The previous one began with Christ and the apostles. And they didn’t disappear anywhere: the scenery changed, but the main characters remained.

The revolution of 1917 left an indelible mark on the history of our state. After it, a lot has changed, a lot has been rethought. In the poem "" Blok gives his assessment and analysis of the events that occurred.

Analyzing this work, it should be noted that the author created a system of images and symbols that show us the full scale of revolutionary events.

One of the first symbolic images that we encounter on the pages of the poem is the wind. Being a spontaneous natural phenomenon, the wind becomes a symbol of the spontaneous and destructive nature of the revolution. The revolution, like the wind, sweeps away everything in its path and no one can hide from it.

The next symbol in the poem “The Twelve” is the “world fire,” which reflects the global scale of revolutionary events. Blok compared the revolution to a “snowstorm.” The author said that the revolution could spread throughout the whole world, that is, turn into a “world cyclone.”

The driving force behind this “world cyclone” was supposed to be twelve. Twelve are simple Russian soldiers who walked the streets of revolutionary Petrograd. They are the twelve apostles of the revolution who pave the way and bring revolutionary ideas to the masses. Their road is saturated with blood and pain, twelve are ready to kill and deal with everyone. Blok did not condemn the actions of the twelve, because he believed that the path to a bright future lies through blood and destruction.

The old woman, who does not understand revolutionary slogans, becomes the symbol of the old bourgeois society. The priest and the bourgeois must now fear for their lives, because they know that there will be no place for them in the “new world”.

The old “rootless” dog becomes a symbol of the “old world”. He trails behind the twelve in the hope of pardon and leniency.

An important place in the poem “The Twelve” is occupied by the image of Christ. Christ here becomes a symbol of a harmonious and bright future. He walks ahead of the twelve, as if showing them the way to the “new world.” On the other hand, Blok wanted to show us that Christ, like many centuries ago, again descended to earth to help humanity overcome dirt and destruction.

The revolutionary city becomes a symbol of a huge country that is engulfed in revolutionary struggle. In general, the struggle between the “old” and “new” worlds becomes the main theme of the work. Blok shows this struggle through the struggle of color. Thus, “black sky” is opposed to “white snow”; The red flag, on the one hand, becomes a symbol of victory, and on the other, a symbol of the bloody present.

With the help of the poem “The Twelve,” Blok wanted to show us how a new person is born in dirt and blood. This is precisely what the author saw as the main purpose of the revolution.

According to the explanatory dictionary of the Russian language, Symbol - (from the Greek symbolon - conventional sign), an object or word that conventionally expresses the essence of a phenomenon.

A symbol for symbolists is not a generally understood sign. It differs from the realistic image in that it conveys not the objective essence of the phenomenon, but the poet’s own individual idea of the world, most often vague and indefinite.

Symbolism is a collection of any symbols.

A symbol is a special communication model that integrates individual consciousnesses into a single semantic space of culture. Its function is associated with the “integration of collective consciousness within a single semantic space” and with the “ultimate individualization of semantic “worlds””. The dialogic structure of the symbol performs integrative and individualizing functions. A symbol is one of the central concepts of philosophy, aesthetics, and philology; without it it is impossible to build either a theory of language or a theory of knowledge. Despite the illusion of general intelligibility, the concept of a symbol is one of the most vague and contradictory. The symbol has a more than two-thousand-year history of interpretation (“The symbol is as ancient as human consciousness in general,” it has received diverse interpretations, but there is still no holistic understanding of it.

In philology, the concept of symbol is often replaced by the concept of concept, which is a modification of the symbol that, in its balanced unity, brings forward cultural-collective meanings, and relegates individual shades of meaning to the “periphery.” Whereas a symbol is a dialectical unity of the individual and the universal, in which the most transcendental experience is the most universal. Terminological confusion in concept theory can be eliminated by relying on symbol theory.

We can also refer to the book by L.I. Timofeev for a definition of a symbol. You can quote: “A symbol is an objective or verbal sign that conventionally expresses the essence of a phenomenon from a certain point of view, which determines the very character and quality of the symbol (revolutionary, reactionary, religious, etc.).” “Basically, a symbol always has a figurative meaning. Taken in verbal expression, it is a trope. There is always a hidden comparison in a symbol, one or another connection with everyday phenomena, with historical phenomena, with historical legends, beliefs, etc.” “In art, the symbol has always (and still has) a particularly important meaning. This is due to the nature of the image, the main category of art. For to one degree or another, every image is conditional and symbolic simply because it embodies the general in the individual. In fiction, a certain symbolism is hidden in any comparison, metaphor, parallel, even sometimes epithet. Personification in fables, allegorical nature of fairy tales, allegory in general are essentially types of symbolism.”

Goethe defined symbol as the unity of diagram and allegory. For example, a symbol such as the dove of peace is both a dove and a sign of peace (going back to the Christian tradition). In understanding a symbol, it is impossible to separate the schematic from the allegorical; it is this inseparability that distinguishes a symbol from a sign or trope.

Pavel Florensky: “A symbol is a kind of being whose energy is co-dissolved with the energy of another, higher being, therefore it can be argued - although this might seem paradoxical - that a symbol is a reality that is greater than itself. A symbol is such a reality which, being akin to another from the inside, according to the force that produces it, from the outside is only similar to this other, but is not identical with it. symbolism is not invented by anyone, does not arise through conditioning, but is revealed by the spirit in the depths of our being, in the center of all forces of life and from here it is exhausted, embodied in a series of successive, layered shells on top of each other, in order to finally be born from a contemplator who has cognized and allowed it to be embodied. It only depends on us - to study or not to study the language of symbols, to deepen our study, or to stop, finally - study it primarily in one direction or another. The basis of symbolism is reality itself."

The symbolism of the images of Alexander Blok’s poem “The Twelve”

“The artist’s job, the artist’s duty, is to see what is intended,” “Arrange so that everything becomes new; so that our deceitful, dirty, boring, ugly life becomes a fair, clean, cheerful and beautiful life,” “Listen to the Revolution with your whole body, with all your heart, with all your consciousness,” wrote Alexander Blok in the article “Intellectuals and the Revolution.” These words truly and truly guide us to a correct understanding of the content and idea of his poem “The Twelve”

The poem “The Twelve” (1918) is a sharply innovative work. Here a technique based on the contrast effect is consistently applied. The petty and pitiful are combined with the big and majestic, the sinful with the holy, the base with the sublime, satire with romance, grotesque with heroism. Caricatured shadows of the old world with cosmic vortices, a rollicking ditty with a solemn march, a “mangy dog” with Jesus Christ. The integrity of the poem lies in the indissoluble unity of these intersecting plans. It’s not for nothing that after finishing the poem, Blok wrote in his diary: “Today I am a genius.”

Having analyzed Alexander Blok’s poem “The Twelve,” we found the following symbols, which, like the poem itself, are allegorically opposed to each other:

Number "Twelve". The most symbolic thing in the poem "The Twelve" is its title. This number, like different states of aggregation of the same substance, appears before the reader in a wide variety of guises. The first thing that catches your eye in connection with the number “twelve” is the twelve parts of the poem, each of which differs in rhythm, style and content from all previous and subsequent ones, and, although the poem is a sequential presentation of events, each of the parts carries a completely independent semantic and emotional load. Also, the number “twelve” is midnight, a certain border, the line of completion and beginning, the death of the old and the birth of the new. The symbol of the cyclical nature of all processes and the inevitability of change is also contained in the number of months in a year, of which there are also twelve. However, the most important symbol in the poem, directly related to its title, are the twelve Red Guards. The very first mention of their number makes the reader think about the meaning of this number. Something missionary reigns in all their actions, words, in their very existence:

And they go without the name of a saint

All twelve - into the distance.

Ready for anything

I don't regret anything.

These twelve walkers are subordinated to a single goal. They firmly believe in the righteousness of the idea they serve. They, like crusaders, instill faith in a bright communist future “with fire and sword.”

The number “Twelve” personifies collective heroes - guys from the urban lower classes, from the “working people”, who voluntarily joined the Red Guard and are ready, if something happens, to “violently lay down their heads” for the bright ideas of the revolution. The author also emphasizes that they are reckless “nads”, ready for robbery, stabbing, and all sorts of revelry. They do not skimp on irresponsible cries: “Today there will be robberies!”, “I’ll drink the blood!” At the same time they repeat: “Comrade, keep your eyes open!”, “Keep your revolutionary step!”, “Forward, forward, working people!” That is, in the souls of the twelve, both daring prowess and a sense of revolutionary duty are mixed.

On the other hand, “Twelve” is an apostolic number: that is how many of the first companions were chosen by Jesus Christ, the twelve apostles - members of the Christian Creed. Gospel motifs in the poem are not limited to the final image of Christ. The very number of those walking “into the distance,” “without a cross,” “without the name of a saint,” shooting at the vision “in a white crown of roses,” corresponds to the twelve disciples of Christ. It seems to me that the comparison of the revolutionary patrol with the apostles of Christian teaching was ambiguous for the author himself, like any other symbol.

I believe that Blok, with the help of the image of this small detachment, reveals in the poem the terrible truth of the “cleansing power of the revolution”: inhumanity, general bitterness, the manifestation of baseness and vices in a person. From all this follows the loss of pure human feelings and the “name of the saint,” hatred and blood

The symbol of “World Fire” in fiction, in a figurative sense, is always associated with great upheavals, cataclysms in this case with revolution - a radical revolution in the entire socio-economic structure of society, leading to a transition from one historically established social system to another.

The names of the characters in the poem are used in an everyday colloquial style with an understated lexical meaning. Vanka, Petka, Andryukha are reckless “bastards”, ready for robbery, stabbing, and all sorts of revelry. And in biblical stories, John is the first beloved disciple of Christ, to whom he entrusted the care of his mother after his crucifixion. Peter is the founder of the Church of Christ, the supreme apostle standing at the gates of heaven with the keys, Andrew - St. Andrew the First-Called - was called by Jesus to serve first, one of the most revered apostles in Rus'.

A very striking symbol is the female image, embodied in the image of Katka, as well as in the “white corolla of roses” on the head of Jesus Christ. It is no coincidence that Blok introduces the female image into the revolutionary poem. Thus, he emphasizes that the revolution taking place in society concerns all spheres of life, including the sphere of “Eternal Femininity,” that is, love and its ideal. Katka is the beloved of one of the main characters, a girl of easy virtue, walking with an officer - the enemy of the “working people” who voluntarily joined the Red Guard, and on the other hand, Catherine - (from the Greek “pure”) - a great martyr, executed by order of the Roman emperor Maximian, who unsuccessfully offered her the royal throne instead of a martyr's crown, is one of the most revered saints in Christianity: the monastery with her relics on Mount Sinai is a favorite place of pilgrimage.

The symbols of the revolution are, first of all, “wind”, “blizzard”, “blizzard”, “blizzard”. Logically the poem can be divided into two parts. In the first part of the poem (before the episode of the chase and subsequent murder), it is the wind that is present: “The wind is curling a white snowball,” “The wind is biting! The frost is not far behind!”, “The wind is blowing, the snow is fluttering.” The image of a blizzard shows not only a vague, incomprehensible time, but also the forced physical blindness of the heroes, which as a result is evidence of spiritual blindness:

“And the blizzard throws dust in their eyes

Days and nights long"

An incredible wind sweeps the entire world, knocking passers-by off their feet. The fact is that the image of the raging elements always played a special, significant, one might say, enormous role in Blok’s poetry. Wind, storm, blizzard - all these are familiar concepts of a romantic worldview for him. In this context, the wind symbolizes both change and chaos reigning in the world. But the natural phenomenon not only creates the background of the action, the blizzard becomes, as it were, an active character. It seems to me that the blizzard, first of all, personifies the revolution. In the midst of the wind and snow, the poet hears the “music of revolution,” which is contrasted with what is most terrible for the author - philistine peace and comfort, the possibility of returning to the old order.

Black and white. The black and white background present in the poem (black wind, white snow) personifies the struggle between light and dark forces, the struggle between good and evil.

Black evening.

White snow.

Black, black sky.

These two opposite colors have always been considered symbols of good and evil, truth and lies, spirituality and evil. Here they also symbolize the opposing sides, but the reader decides who should be painted in what color. Black evening, black sky and “black, black anger in the chest” - these symbols help us to vividly imagine what kind of anger has accumulated in those twelve who are walking down the street. The color black also tells us about the cruelty of the plans of these people, who are ready to do anything because of their hatred. The souls of the twelve are black, empty and cold.

And white snow is a symbol of new life, purification. And what attracts attention is that it falls from the black sky, from black clouds. This is also deeply symbolic. The poet wants to say that new life will come from the darkest depths. From those depths of spiritual emptiness there are twelve who “don’t feel sorry for anything.” The color white is used by Blok to express his thoughts about the ability of the revolution to cleanse the old world of everything dirty - the poet sincerely believed in this.

The block also shows the duality of the actions of the twelve. On the one hand, they are moving towards a new life, towards a fair reprisal against the “mangy dog”, on the other hand, their hands are washed with the blood of a real person. The senseless murder of Katka is another confirmation of complete spiritual devastation. “What darkness!” - says one of them. Darkness is also a symbol, a symbol of the darkness of unbelief. No wonder they joyfully chant: “Freedom, eh, eh, without a cross!” What kind of freedom is this?

The color red appears along with twelve Red Guards:

The wind is blowing, the snow is fluttering.

Twelve people are walking.

There’s a cigar in his teeth, he’s wearing a cap,

You should have an ace of diamonds on your back!

This red card suit symbolizes bondage; this is the sign of prisoners. These twelve people voluntarily shackled themselves in the shackles of the idea of revolution, and now they sacredly belong to their common cause, their cherished goal, which justifies any means. Moreover, white and red are antagonistic colors, because red is a symbol of revolution, and white is a symbol of monarchy. And it is precisely them that Blok connects in the image of the leader of the twelve coming, Jesus Christ:

Ahead - with a bloody flag,

In a white corolla of roses -

Ahead is Jesus Christ.

The red flag in the hands of the twelve is a red flag attached to the staff - a symbol of struggle, the blood of soldiers who died for the revolution.

Cross and crown of thorns. The red flag is contrasted with the cross and crown of thorns on the hands of Jesus Christ. The cross is a symbol and object of Christian cult, because Christ was crucified on such a cross. A crown is a headdress, a crown as a symbol of the power and glory of the monarch.

At the end of the poem, Jesus Christ appears - God the Redeemer, the preacher of high moral truths, the leader of the unfortunate, outcast, hungry, dark and sinful, who is the embodiment of holiness, purity, humanity, justice. This image marks a spontaneous, rebellious-democratic, liberating beginning and the triumph of a new world-historical idea. This symbol of the poem is the most complex. Gumilyov, discussing this topic with Blok, expressed the opinion that this place in the poem seemed to him “artificially pasted on.” Blok responded to this: “I don’t like the ending either. When I finished, I myself was surprised: why Christ. But the more I looked, the more clearly I saw Christ.” Some associate the presence of this symbol in the poem with Blok’s justification of the revolution, others, on the contrary, argue that he wanted to warn about its terrible destructive power. Be that as it may, Alexander Blok, with the help of the symbol of Christ - God and the messenger of God, reminds us of eternal values - goodness, beauty, love. They should not be forgotten by people in favor of even the most just social actions.

put this work by Blok among the most striking and truthful works devoted to this topic.

And the Antichrist is the main opponent of Christ, who must appear before the end of the world.

A rootless dog Symbols are the main means of representation in the poem. They are diverse and different, and all have deep meaning. For example, Blok compares the old world to a rootless dog:

The bourgeois stands there like a hungry dog,

It stands silent, like a question.

And the old world is like a rootless dog,

Stands behind him with his tail between his legs.

The old world is represented in the poem by several more symbolic images: a lady in karakul, an old woman, a sad “comrade priest”, “a writer, a hero”.

Conclusion.

An unconventional reading of the images of the poem allows us to understand the significance and meaning of Blok’s interpretation, which allowed the poet to write in his diary: “Today I am a genius.” And the main meaning of the poem is that the entire Russian culture is Christ-centric, and to understand your culture outside of its spiritual basis is to join the ranks of the Ivans, who do not remember their kinship. Throughout the 12 parts of the poem, all twelve New Apostles are blind, not limited in their actions by either law or morality, they trample almost every one of the 10 Christian commandments, they could not discern their leading enemy of the human race - the Antichrist.

The role of symbols in Blok’s poem “The Twelve” is very great. If we summarize them, we will penetrate deeper into the meaning of the poem - this is not only the struggle of the new with the old, but also more broadly - the confrontation between light and darkness, good and evil.