Essays on literary works - 2023

Gulnar - a characteristic of a literary hero
Lord George Gordon Byron

GULNAR (eng. Gulnare) is the heroine of the oriental poem (“tale”) by G. G. Byron “The Corsair” (1814). The image of G. refutes the well-known statement by A.S. Pushkin that Byron “created only one character (women have no character, they have passions in their youth; that is why it is so easy to portray them)”. G. is a character (if this concept is generally applicable to romantic literature) in the sense that Byron is endowed with conflicting psychological impulses and, throughout the course of the poem, undergoes a complex evolution from a timid girl, a slave of Seyid Pasha's harem, to a triumphant avenger for outraged feelings. Love for the corsair Konrad, who protected her from sea robbers, transforms tender G. Trying to delay the execution of her lover at first by cunning, she eventually takes up arms and kills Seid Pasha, who captured Konrad,

G. in Byron is the embodiment of unfeminine courage, which gives her the right to stand next to a man in battle. And at the same time, G. makes the greatest self-sacrifice that a woman is capable of for the sake of her beloved. Knowing that Conrad's heart belongs to the beautiful Medora, she returns his freedom at the cost of peace of mind and bliss beyond the grave.