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''The Lower Depths'' (russian: На дне, translit=Na dne, literally: ''At the bottom'') is a play by Russian dramatist
Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в;  – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and social ...
written in 1902 and produced by the Moscow Arts Theatre on December 18, 1902 under the direction of
Konstantin Stanislavski Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavski ( Alekseyev; russian: Константин Сергеевич Станиславский, p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin sʲɪrˈgʲejɪvʲɪtɕ stənʲɪˈslafskʲɪj; 7 August 1938) was a seminal Soviet Russian th ...
. It became his first major success, and a hallmark of Russian
social realism Social realism is the term used for work produced by painters, printmakers, photographers, writers and filmmakers that aims to draw attention to the real socio-political conditions of the working class as a means to critique the power structure ...
. The play depicts a group of impoverished Russians living in a shelter near the
Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchm ...
. When it first appeared, ''The Lower Depths'' was criticized for its pessimism and ambiguous ethical message. The presentation of the lower classes was viewed as overly dark and unredemptive, and Gorky was clearly more interested in creating memorable characters than in advancing a formal plot. However, in this respect, the play is generally regarded as a masterwork. The theme of harsh truth versus the comforting lie pervades the play from start to finish, as most of the characters choose to deceive themselves over the bleak reality of their condition.


Characters

* Mikhail Ivanov Kostylyov - keeper of a night lodging * Vasilisa Karpovna - his wife * Natasha - her sister * Medvedev - her uncle, a policeman * Vaska Pepel - a young thief * Andrei Mitritch Kleshtсh - a locksmith * Anna - his wife * Nastya - a street-walker * Kvashnya - a vendor of meat-pies * Bubnov - a cap-maker * The Baron * Satine * The Actor * Luka - a pilgrim * Alyoshka - a shoemaker * The Tatar * Krivoi Zob


Plot

In the cellar of a small boarding house, thin boards partition off the room of Vaska, a young thief. In the kitchen live Kvashnya (Dough), a vendor of meat pies, the decrepit Baron, and the streetwalker Nastya. Other lodgers sleep in bunks in the same room. Nastya is reading a novel titled ''Fatal Love''. The Baron, who lives largely on Nastya's earnings, seizes the book and mocks Nastya. Satin rises from his bunk, knowing only that he took a beating the night before, and the others tell him he had been caught cheating at cards. The Actor wakes in his bed on top of the stove. He predicts that some day Satin will be beaten to death. The Actor reminds the Baron to sweep the floor to satisfy the strict landlady. The Baron and Kvashnya leave to go shopping. The Actor claims a doctor has told him he has an organ poisoned by alcohol, and sweeping the floor would be bad for his health. Anna, who is dying of consumption, lies in her bunk while her husband, Kleshtch (Tick), works at his bench, fitting old keys and locks. Anna offers him the dumplings that Kvashnya has left for her in the pot. Kleshtch agrees that there is no use feeding a dying woman, and eats the dumplings. The Actor helps Anna down from her bed and into the hall. As they go through the door, the landlord, Kostylyov, enters, nearly knocking them down. He looks around the dirty cellar and tells Kleshtch that he is taking up too much room that henceforth the rent will be increased. Then Kostylyov asks Vaska furtively if his wife has been in; he suspects that his wife, Vasilisa, is sleeping with Vaska. The thief comes out of his room and denounces the landlord for not paying his debts, saying that Kostylyov still owes seven roubles for a watch he had bought. Ordering Kostylyov to produce the money immediately, Vaska sends him out of the room. The others admire Vaska for his courage and urge him to kill Kostylyov and marry Vasilisa, so he can be landlord. Vaska decides that he is too softhearted to be a landlord, especially as he is thinking of discarding Vasilisa for her sister, Natasha. Satin asks Vaska for twenty kopecks, which he gives him. Natasha comes in with the tramp Luka, who is put in the kitchen to sleep with the three already there. Luka begins to sing, but the others object. When Vasilisa comes in, she gives orders for an immediate sweeping of the floor. She asks to see Luka's passport, but he has none, making him more readily accepted by the others. Medvedev, who is a policeman and Vasilisa's uncle, enters the cellar and begins to question Luka, but when the tramp calls him sergeant, Medvedev leaves him alone. That night, Anna lies in her bunk while a noisy card game goes on. Luka talks gently to her, and Kleshtch comes occasionally to check on her. Luka remarks that her death will be hard on her husband, but Anna accuses Kleshtch of causing her death, and says that she looks forward to rest and peace after her death. The card players become louder and Satin is accused of cheating. Luka quietens them down. He tells Vaska that he will be able to reform in Siberia, and he assures the Actor that at a sanatorium he could be cured of alcoholism. Vasilisa comes in, and offers Vaska three hundred roubles to kill Kostylyov. Vaska knows he would be free to marry Natasha, who is recovering from a beating given to her by her jealous sister, but he is about to refuse when Kostylyov enters; Vaska pushes him out of the cellar. Luka has overheard everything and warns Vaska not to have anything to do with Vasilisa. Luka sees that Anna is dead and Kleshtch is brought to look at her body, which he agrees to take outside. The Actor begins to cavort in joy, saying he has made up his mind to go to the sanatorium. Luka has told him that he can even be cured at state expense. In the backyard that night, as Natasha is telling romantic stories to the crowd, Kostylyov comes out and orders her back to work. As she goes in, Vasilisa pours boiling water on Natasha's feet. Vaska attempts to rescue her and knocks Kostylyov down, and in the ensuing brawl Kostylyov is killed. Vasilisa immediately accuses Vaska of murder. Natasha thinks that Vaska has murdered Kostylyov for the sake of Vasilisa. Sensing trouble, Luka disappears. Vaska escapes a police search, and Natasha is taken to the hospital, while the rest of the down-and-outers continue as before. Satin cheats at cards, and the Baron tries to convince the others of his former affluence. They all agree that Luka was a liar. During a bitter quarrel with Nastya, the Baron steps outside. Satin and the others begin singing, but they break off when the Baron bursts in with the news of Actor's suicide, to which Satin retorts: "You spoiled the song, you idiot".


Production history

The characters of ''The Lower Depths'' are said to have been inspired by the denizens of the Bugrov Homeless Shelter (russian: Бугровская ночлежка, ''Bugrovskaya nochlezhka'') in
Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ), colloquially shortened to Nizhny, from the 13th to the 17th century Novgorod of the Lower Land, formerly known as Gork ...
, which had been built in 1880–83 by the
Old Believer Old Believers or Old Ritualists, ''starovery'' or ''staroobryadtsy'' are Eastern Orthodox Christians who maintain the liturgical and ritual practices of the Russian Orthodox Church as they were before the reforms of Patriarch Nikon of Moscow be ...
grain merchant The grain trade refers to the local and international trade in cereals and other food grains such as wheat, barley, maize, and rice. Grain is an important trade item because it is easily stored and transported with limited spoilage, unlike ...
and
philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
Nikolai Alexandrovich Bugrov (russian: Николай Александрович Бугров) in memory of his father, A. P. Bugrov. When the actors of the Moscow Arts Theatre were preparing the play for its first run in 1902, Maxim Gorky supplied them with photographs of the Nizhny Novgorod underclass taken by the famous local photographer, Maxim Dmitriev (Максим Дмитриев), to help with the realism of the acting and costumes.


Film versions

* 1921:
Japanese film The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world; as of 2021, it was the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. In 2011 Japan produced 411 feature films that e ...
: Minoru Murata directed a silent film called '' Souls on the Road'' (Rojō no Reikon), based on this play. * 1936: French film director Jean Renoir made a 1936 film of the same name as the play. * 1946:
Indian film The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, K ...
producer-director Chetan Anand began his career as a film director with ''
Neecha Nagar ''Neecha Nagar'' () is a 1946 Indian Hindi-language film, directed by Chetan Anand, written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Hayatullah Ansari, and produced by Rashid Anwar and A.Halim. It was a pioneering effort in social realism in Indian cinema an ...
'' (''Lowly City''), which was a
Hindi film Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
adaptation in an
India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
n setting. ''Neecha Nagar'' won the
Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...
(Best Film Award, then known as the 'Grand Prix'), at the first Cannes Film Festival in 1946, becoming the first Indian independent film to get international recognition. *1947: The Chinese film, '' Night Inn'' (夜店) by director Huang Zuolin, is based on Ke Ling's Chinese theatrical adaptation of ''The Lower Depths''. The film stars Shanghai songstress
Zhou Xuan Zhou Xuan (; born Su Pu (); August 1, 1920 – September 22, 1957), also romanized as Chow Hsuan, was an iconic Chinese singer and film actress. By the 1940s, she had become one of China's Seven Great Singing Stars. She was the best known ...
. *1952: The Moscow Art Theatre production of the play was filmed by Soviet director A. Frolov in conjunction with
Mosfilm Mosfilm (russian: Мосфильм, ''Mosfil’m'' ) is a film studio which is among the largest and oldest in the Russian Federation and in Europe. Founded in 1924 in the USSR as a production unit of that nation's film monopoly, its output inclu ...
studio and released as a feature film in the
USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
. * 1957:
Japanese film The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world; as of 2021, it was the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. In 2011 Japan produced 411 feature films that e ...
director
Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dy ...
, adapted the story into the film '' Donzoko'' (''The Lower Depths''), starring
Toshiro Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in over 150 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration (1948–1965) with Akira Kurosawa in such works as '' Rashomon'', '' Seven Samurai'', '' The Hidden Fortress'', '' Throne of Blood'', a ...
, in which the characters have been moved to
Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional ''daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was character ...
Japan. * 1966: Finnish director
Mikko Niskanen Mikko Johannes Niskanen (31 January 1929 – 25 November 1990) was a Finnish film director, actor, producer and screenwriter. He directed more than 40 films between 1956 and 1988. His most acclaimed films include ''The Boys'' (1962), ''Under ...
shot the play as a
telefilm A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
in Finnish but retained the original setting.


Influences

Gorky's play has been recognized as an important influence on Eugene O'Neill's 1946 drama ''
The Iceman Cometh ''The Iceman Cometh'' is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1946, the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on October 9, 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling, where it ran for 136 perf ...
''. In the 1955 animated film ''
Lady and the Tramp ''Lady and the Tramp'' is a 1955 American animated musical romance film produced by Walt Disney and released by Buena Vista Film Distribution. The 15th Disney animated feature film, it was directed by Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Ha ...
s dog pound scene, the incarcerated and homeless Russian Wolfhound Boris quotes a passage from the play: "Miserable being must find more miserable being. Then is happy."


References


External links

*
Full text of ''Lower Depths'' in the original Russian
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lower Depths, The 1902 plays Plays by Maxim Gorky Plays set in the Russian Empire