Goals and means in Russian literature. New Philosophical Encyclopedia - Goal and Means

Final essay on literature 2018. The topic of the final essay on literature. "Goals and Means".

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FIPI comment:“The concepts in this area are interrelated and allow us to think about a person’s life aspirations, the importance of meaningful goal-setting, the ability to correctly correlate the goal and the means of achieving it, as well as the ethical assessment of human actions. Many literary works feature characters who deliberately or mistakenly choose unsuitable means to realize their plans. And it often turns out that a good goal only serves as a cover for true (base) plans. Such characters are contrasted with heroes for whom the means of achieving a high goal are inseparable from the requirements of morality.”

Let's consider the concepts of “goal” and “means” from different sides.

1. Purpose as a fundamental part of human life. About the role and importance of having a goal in a person’s life, about its absence, about a person’s desire to reach the top, about achievements and about goals as the engine of progress, about self-realization, great discoveries possible only thanks to goals, about obstacles on the way to a set goal, about goals as a continuous process, as well as about what and who helps a person on the way to his goals.

2. Goals vary(true, false, great, base, unattainable, selfish) You can talk about the differences between goals and dreams, as well as how a person’s goals are connected to his personality. What does the pursuit of certain goals lead to?

3. Does the end justify the means? Here one can speculate about whether great goals achieved through dishonest means can be justified, about the importance of human life, about ways to achieve the goal, and about the ethical assessment of methods and means of achieving the goal.

Target- this is an imaginary peak, individual for each person, to which he strives and tries to fulfill all the necessary conditions, requirements, and responsibilities that depend on him. From a philosophical point of view, the goal is necessary condition life for both humans and other organisms.
Synonyms: intention, completion, task, task, design, plan, project, calculation, target; meta, types, end, dream, ideal, aspiration, object (of sweetest dreams), so that; end in itself, intention, ultimate dream, highest goal, landmark, intention, telos, meaning, installation, purpose, goal setting, function, mission, throw, dream-idea

Means- a technique, a method of action to achieve something. or something that serves smb. goals, necessary to achieve, implement smth.
Synonyms: way, opportunity, method; tool, device, weapon; panacea, tool, system, path, asset, resource, state, method, recipe, drug,

Quotes for the final essay 2018 in the direction of “Goals and Means”.

A person who absolutely wants something forces fate to give in. (M.Yu. Lermontov)

A person must learn to submit to himself and obey his decisions. (Cicero)

When the goal is achieved, the path is forgotten. (Osho)

The meaning of life is those goals that make you value it. (W. James)

Perfect means for unclear ends - characteristic feature our time. (A. Einstein)

High goals, even if unfulfilled, are dearer to us than low goals, even if achieved. (I. Goethe)

If you want to lead happy life, you should be attached to the goal, not to people or things. (A. Einstein)

You cannot change the direction of the wind, but you can always raise the sails to achieve your goal. (O. Wilde)

Find a goal, resources will be found. (M. Gandhi)

If you are heading towards your goal and stop along the way to throw stones at every dog ​​that barks at you, you will never reach your goal. (F.M. Dostoevsky)

About the weaker and ordinary people They are best judged by their characters, while the more intelligent and secretive ones are judged by their goals. (F. Bacon)

It's never too late to leave the crowd. Follow your dream, move towards your goal. (B. Shaw)

When it seems to you that a goal is unattainable, do not change the goal - change your action plan. (Confucius)

No goal is so high as to justify unworthy means to achieve it. (A. Einstein)

You need to set yourself tasks that are higher than your strengths: firstly, because you never know them anyway, and secondly, because strength appears as you complete an unattainable task. (B. L. Pasternak)

Ask yourself, do you crave this with all the strength of your soul? Will you survive until the evening if you don’t receive this thing? And if you are sure that you will not live, grab it and run. (R. Bradbury)

To reach your goal, you must first go. (O. de Balzac)

A person must have a goal, he cannot do without a goal, that’s why he was given reason. If he doesn’t have a goal, he invents one... (A. and B. Strugatsky)

If you want to achieve the goal of your aspiration, ask more politely about the road you have lost your way. (W. Shakespeare)

I understand HOW; I do not understand why. (J. Orwell)

If you want to achieve a goal, don't try to be subtle or smart. Use rough methods. Hit the target immediately. Go back and hit again. Then hit again, with a strong shoulder blow. (W. Churchill)

No transport will be favorable if you don’t know where to go. (E.A. Poe)

The one who strives for the stars does not turn around. (L. da Vinci)

Life goes breathless without an aim. (F. M. Dostoevsky)

There are few things in this world that are unattainable: if we had more persistence, we could find a way to almost any goal. (F. de La Rochefoucauld)

Some Jesuits argue that any means is good as long as the goal is achieved. Not true! Not true! It is unworthy to enter a clean temple with feet defiled by the mud of the road. (I.S. Turgenev)

He walks faster who walks alone. (J. London)

Life reaches its peak in those moments when all its forces are directed towards achieving the goals set for it. (J. London)

High goals, even if unfulfilled, are dearer to us than low goals, even if achieved. (Goethe)

At some second along the way, the target begins to fly towards us. The only thought: don't dodge. (M.I. Tsvetaeva)

A warrior's intention is stronger than any obstacle. (K. Castaneda)

Only those whose aspirations have faded are lost forever. (A. Rand)

It is much better to do great things, to celebrate great victories, even if there are mistakes along the way, than to join the ranks ordinary people who know neither great joy nor great misfortune, living a gray life where there are neither victories nor defeats. (T. Roosevelt)

Without some goal and striving for it, not a single person lives. Having lost purpose and hope, a person often turns into a monster out of sadness... (F.M. Dostoevsky)

A person grows as his goals grow. (I. Schiller)

If you don't have a goal, you don't do anything, and you don't do anything great if the goal is insignificant. (D. Diderot)

Seek that which is greater than what you can find. (D.I. Kharms)

Nothing calms the spirit more than finding a solid goal - a point to which our inner gaze is directed. (M. Shelley)

Happiness lies in the joy of achieving a goal and the thrill of creative effort. (F. Roosevelt)

The question of the goal and the means to achieve it has worried humanity since ancient times. Many writers, philosophers and public figures have reflected on it and have used historical, life and literary arguments to prove their point. In the Russian classics, there were also many answers and examples that, as a rule, prove the statement that the paths of achievement must correspond in everything to what needs to be achieved, otherwise it loses all meaning. In this collection, we have listed the most striking and illustrative examples from Russian literature for the final essay in the direction of “Goals and Means.”

1. In Pushkin’s novel “The Captain’s Daughter,” the main character always chose the right path to achieve goals, however, no less noble. Thanks to this, from an unintelligent nobleman, Grinev turns into a sincere officer, ready to sacrifice his life in the name of duty. Having sworn allegiance to the empress, he honestly serves, defending the fortress, and even death at the hands of rebel robbers does not frighten him. Just as honestly, he sought Masha’s favor, and achieved it. The opposite of Pyotr Grinev in the novel - Shvabrin - on the contrary, uses any means to achieve the goal, choosing the most vile of them. Having set out on the path of betrayal, he pursues personal gain, demands reciprocity from Masha, without hesitating to denigrate her in the eyes of Peter. In choosing goals and means, Alexey is driven by spiritual cowardice and self-interest, because he is devoid of ideas about honor and conscience. Mary rejects him for this reason, because a good goal cannot be achieved by deception.
2. What should it be final goal, if the means to achieve it are cruelty, deception and human lives? In the novel by M.Yu. Lermontov's "Hero of Our Time" Grigory Pechorin's goals are momentary, encapsulated in the desire for momentary victories, to achieve which he chooses complex and sometimes cruel means. Hidden in his victories is a persistent search for meaning in life, which the hero is unable to find. In this search, he destroys not only himself, but also everyone who surrounds him - Princess Mary, Bela, Grushnitsky. To revive his own soul, he plays with the feelings of others, unwittingly becoming the cause of their misfortunes. But in the game with his own life, Grigory is hopelessly losing, losing those few people who were dear to him. “I realized that chasing lost happiness is reckless,” he says, and the goal, to achieve which so much effort and other people’s grief was put into, turns out to be illusory and unattainable.
3. In the comedy A.S. Griboedov’s “Woe from Wit”, the society in which Chatsky is forced to live lives according to market laws, where everything is bought and sold, and a person is valued not by his spiritual qualities, but by the size of his wallet and career success. Nobility and duty are nothing here compared to the importance of rank and title. That is why Alexander Chatsky turns out to be misunderstood and not accepted into a circle where mercantile goals dominate, justifying any means.
   He enters into a fight with Famus society, challenges Molchalin, who resorts to deception and hypocrisy in order to get a high position. Even in love, Alexander turns out to be a loser, because he does not defile the goal with vile means, he refuses to squeeze the breadth and nobility of his heart into the narrow framework of generally accepted and vulgar concepts with which Famusov’s house is replete.
4. A person is valuable by his deeds. But his deeds, even if subordinated to a high goal, do not always turn out to be good. In the novel by F.M. Dostoevsky's “Crime and Punishment” Rodion Raskolnikov decides for himself an important question from a moral point of view: does the end justify the means? Can he, according to his theory, dispose of people's lives at his own discretion?
   The answer lies in the title of the novel: Raskolnikov’s mental anguish, after the atrocity he committed, proves that his calculation was incorrect and his theory was erroneous. A goal based on unjust and inhumane means depreciates itself and becomes a crime for which sooner or later one must be punished.
5. In the novel M.A. Sholokhov " Quiet Don“The fate of the heroes is swept away by the revolutionary elements. Grigory Melekhov, who sincerely believes in a happy and wonderful communist future, is ready to give his life for the well-being and prosperity of his native land. But in the context of life, bright revolutionary ideas turn out to be untenable and dead. Gregory understands that the struggle between whites and reds, seemingly aimed at a “beautiful tomorrow,” in fact represents violence and reprisals against the helpless and dissenters. Brilliant slogans turn out to be deception, and behind the lofty goal hides the cruelty and arbitrariness of the means. The nobility of his soul does not allow him to come to terms with the evil and injustice that he observes around him. Tormented by doubts and contradictions, Gregory is trying to find the only correct path that will allow him to live honestly. He is unable to justify the numerous murders committed in the name of a ghostly idea that he no longer believes in.
6. A. Solzhenitsyn’s novel “The Gulag Archipelago” - a study related to political history The USSR, according to Solzhenitsyn, is an “experience of artistic research”, in which the author analyzes the history of the country - a utopia, building an ideal world on the rubble human lives, numerous victims and lies disguised as humane goals. The price for the illusion of happiness and peace, in which there is no place for individuality and dissent, turns out to be too high. The problems of the novel are diverse, since they include many questions of a moral nature: is it possible to justify evil in the name of good? What unites victims and their executioners? Who is responsible for mistakes made? Supported by rich biographical and research material, the book leads the reader to the problem of ends and means, convincing him that one does not justify the other.
7. It is human nature to seek happiness as the main meaning of life, its highest goal. For her sake, he is ready to use any means, but does not understand that this is unnecessary. The main character of the story V.M. Shukshin “Boots” - to Sergei Dukhanin - manifestations of tender feelings are not at all easy, because he is not used to unjustified tenderness and is even ashamed of it. But the desire to please someone close to him, the desire for happiness, pushes him to spend a lot. The money spent on buying an expensive gift turns out to be an unnecessary sacrifice, because his wife only needed attention. Generosity and the desire to give warmth and care fill the somewhat coarsened but still sensitive soul of the hero with happiness, which, as it turns out, is not so difficult to find.
8. In the novel by V.A. Kaverin's "Two Captains" the problem of ends and means is revealed in the confrontation between two characters - Sanya and Romashka. Each of them is driven by their own goals, each of them decides what is really important to them. In search of solutions, their paths diverge, fate pits them against each other in a duel that determines the moral guidelines of each, proves the noble strength of one, and the vile baseness of the other. Sanya is driven by honest, sincere aspirations; he is ready to take a difficult but direct path to find out the truth and prove it to others. Chamomile pursues small goals, achieving them no less in small ways: lies, betrayal and hypocrisy. Each of them is experiencing the painful problem of choice, in which it is so easy to lose yourself and those you truly love.
9. A person does not always clearly understand his goal. In the Roman L.N. Tolstoy's "War and Peace" Andrei Bolkonsky is in search of himself and his place in life. His shaky life guidelines are influenced by fashion, society, and the opinions of friends and relatives. He is delirious about glory and military exploits, dreams of making a career in the service, but not just rising to high ranks, but gaining eternal glory winner and hero. He goes to war, the cruelties and horrors of which instantly showed him all the absurdity and illusory nature of his dreams. He is not ready, like Napoleon, to follow the bones of soldiers to glory. The desire to live and do wonderful life other people set new goals for Bolkonsky. Meeting Natasha instills love in his soul. However, in a moment that requires his perseverance and understanding, he gives in under the weight of circumstances and abandons his love. He is again tormented by doubts about the correctness of his own goals, and only before his death Andrei understands that the best moments of life, its great gifts are contained in love, forgiveness and compassion.
10. Character makes a person. It determines his life goals and guidelines. In “Letters about the good and the beautiful” D.S. Likhachev’s problem of the goal and the means to achieve it is considered by the author as one of the most important, forming the young reader’s concepts of honor, duty, and truth. “The end justifies the means” is a formula unacceptable to the author. On the contrary, every person should have a goal in life, but no less important are the methods that he uses to achieve what he wants. In order to be happy and in harmony with one’s own conscience, it is necessary to make a choice in favor of spiritual values, giving preference good deeds and wonderful thoughts.

FIPI commentary on “Goals and Means”:
“The concepts of this direction are interconnected and allow us to think about a person’s life aspirations, the importance of meaningful goal setting, the ability to correctly correlate the goal and the means of achieving it, as well as the ethical assessment of human actions. Many literary works feature characters who deliberately or mistakenly chose unsuitable means to realize their plans. And it often turns out that a good goal serves only as a cover for true (base) plans. Such characters are contrasted with heroes for whom the means of achieving a high goal are inseparable from the requirements of morality."

Recommendations for students:
The table presents works that reflect any concept related to the “Goals and Means” direction. You DO NOT need to read all of the works listed. You may have already read a lot. Your task is to revise your reading knowledge and, if you discover a lack of arguments within a particular direction, fill in the existing gaps. In this case you will need this information. Think of it as a landmark in a huge world literary works. Please note: the table shows only a portion of the works that contain the problems we need. This does not mean at all that you cannot make completely different arguments in your work. For convenience, each work is accompanied by small explanations (third column of the table), which will help you navigate exactly how, through which characters, you will need to rely on literary material (the second mandatory criterion when evaluating a final essay)

An approximate list of literary works and carriers of problems in the direction of "Goals and Means"

“Goals and means” is one of the topics of the final essay on literature offered to graduates of 2019 by the developer of knowledge control materials, the FIPI Institute. What can you write about in such a work?

First, you need to explain what a goal is. For example, it can be seen as a fundamental part of human life. Write how important it is to have a goal, to strive for heights, to achieve something, to realize self-realization. You can mention great discoveries, scientific or geographical - this will make the essay more interesting and give you a chance to get a higher grade. Secondly, you can give brief classification goals, because they can be different - true and false, great and selfish. Another version of the work topic is “Does the end justify the means?” Think about whether it is possible to justify a great goal achieved in an unjust way, write about the ethical assessment of the means to achieve the goal. Albert Einstein once said: “No goal is so high that it justifies unworthy means to achieve it.” Goethe also agreed with him: “High goals, even if unfulfilled, are more valuable than low goals, even if achieved.” You can agree with them or not, but in the second case you will have to try and present your convincing arguments. Write examples from literary works in which characters mistakenly or deliberately choose “bad” means to achieve a goal. You can also mention cases from life or history when a goal that is good at first glance actually serves only as a cover for base true plans. Be sure to contrast such characters with heroes who do not separate the means of achieving the goal from the requirements of morality.

Good day, dear readers! In this article we will look at the topic and essay of the Unified State Examination. At the beginning of the article I will give all kinds of arguments that can be used to complete the task, and below you will find an argumentative essay.

Arguments from literature

1. M.A. Bulgakov “The Master and Margarita”. In order to reunite with the Master, Margarita sells her soul to Woland. The feeling of endless love turns out to be stronger than fears, and to achieve your main goal the heroine is ready to take the most extreme measures. This is a positive example of complete surrender for the sake of higher feelings.
2. F.M. Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment”. Main character Raskolnikov adheres to his own theory, dividing people into “trembling creatures” and “those who have the right.” An idea arises in his head: if he can kill a person without experiencing anything, he will be special. For the sake of his goal, he is ready to commit murder, to step over himself, through nature, society and moral principles. He unprincipledly decides that he can be the arbiter of other destinies, for which he ultimately has to pay. Raskolnikov not only kills the old pawnbroker, but also a random witness. He is overcome by terrible torment and painful feelings for what he has done.
3. M.A. Bulgakov “The Master and Margarita”. Ivan Bezdomny is a famous poet of the society in which he lives. He is considered a talent, even though he is not one, although he himself is aware of this. However, this situation does not bother him at all; for the sake of his goals, he is ready to do what is profitable, even if he loses not only his talent, but also himself. Only a meeting with the Master opens his eyes. Ivan begins to see clearly, the scales fall from his eyes. He can no longer sleep peacefully, and only the Master and Margarita, coming to him at night, calm his soul.
4. M.Yu. Lermontov “Hero of Our Time”. Pechorin, in order to fulfill his desires and goals, is ready to step over other people, forgetting about moral principles. The main character meets Bela, feels sympathy for her, and in order to attract attention enters into a conspiracy with the heroine’s brother. Pechorin steals Kazbich's horse, which his brother likes so much, and he, in turn, steals the heroine. Of course, this is a vile act. In the end, he quickly becomes uninterested in Bela, and he is partly responsible for her death. For Pechorin, only his goal is important, but not other people.
5. M.A. Bulgakov “Heart of a Dog”. Professor Preobrazhensky is driven by the desire to change people’s lives for the better, to make amazing scientific discoveries. His goal is to make a real person out of a dog. For this purpose, he performs an operation to transplant the pituitary gland from a human to a dog. The experiment goes well, but over time Sharikov demands more privileges and behaves inappropriately. The professor's goal fails, while he does not kill Sharikov, but only transplants the pituitary gland back. Preobrazhensky acts very wisely and accepts that achieving his goal is not worth such means.
6. A. Dumas “The Count of Monte Cristo”. At the beginning of the story, we are told about the wanderings at sea of ​​young Edmond Dantes. The ship's captain dies, handing over the reins to young Edmond. The captain's accountant is not happy about this news, because he wanted to take this high post. For the sake of his goal, the accountant frames Dantes. The main character loses everything: his father, his home, his beloved for the sake of the accountant’s base and endlessly disgusting goal. Moreover, some time after Edmond's arrest, the accountant resigns from his position.

Goals and means: essay on the Unified State Examination

What lengths are people willing to go to achieve their goals? Many people are ready to step over not only themselves, but also others, forgetting about respect and moral principles. It’s disgusting that some “go over their heads” for the sake of something base and completely unjustified, betraying their loved ones. The problem of ends and means is very relevant in our time.

In the novel “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas, a young guy, Edmond Dantes, is the victim of a monstrous act by the ship’s captain’s accountant. After death, the captain passes the reins of power to the main character. The accountant does not like this, he wants to take this position, although young Edmond showed great promise, was always honest, and his main credo in life was respect and dignity. To achieve his goal, the accountant brutally frames Edmond, setting the police on him. He is ready to do anything to get what he wants. Of course, this is very mean and disgusting.

We can see a positive example in the work of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov “The Master and Margarita”. In a society ruled by deceit and self-interest, the story of a brilliant writer and his beloved Margarita is revealed to us. The author shows us a completely different world. A world where reigns endlessly strong feelings to each other. The main character truly loves the Master. To be with her lover, she sells her soul to Woland. Such dedication, sincerity and purity of soul truly surprise Woland, and he grants the Master and Margarita eternal peace. In this case, for the sake of her goal, the heroine is ready to sacrifice her soul.

To summarize, it is worth saying that setting and achieving goals is the path to development for everyone, without exception. People can sacrifice something: many sacrifice health, personal life, hobbies. All this can be justified if the end really justifies the means, and is completely unacceptable if this goal requires crimes through oneself and other people.

So, this article discussed the topic goals and means: arguments from literature and the Unified State Exam essay were given below. You can use these materials to prepare for the Unified State Exam. We wish you successful preparation!

Target

• A goal is the result that a person strives for in his activity, the expected result.
• This is a conscious image of an anticipated result that arose in a person’s mind and was presented by him.
• The goal in life, from a philosophical point of view, is the general guidelines that a person determines for himself, including the meaning of life, his purpose in it. To put it more highly, this is the mission that everyone sees in their birth on earth. This is the answer to the question: why do I live?
• A goal from a moral point of view is the moral principles that a person is trying to follow, this is his personal program for enriching his inner, spiritual world, the image to which he strives in his movement towards self-improvement, the answer to the question: what kind of person do I want to be.
• The goal from a social point of view is a person’s determination of his place in society, his social role, positions in literally every field. These are answers to the questions: what is my place in political life country, how I want my financial situation to be, what professional activity what I will do, what I want my family to be like, etc.
• Goals can be global, determining the direction of a person’s entire life, and specific, as the result of a particular activity. A person can set such goals for himself almost every day, drawing up a program of action for some time.
• Goals are determined by the level of development, education, upbringing of a person, the characteristics of his personal qualities. Therefore, they say that goals can be high, moral, contributing to the further formation of the best in a person, aimed at achieving the good of loved ones, people, and country. But there are also low, selfish goals, which are based on the desire to satisfy only one’s needs without taking into account whether the activity brings benefit to others or not.
• By goals one can judge a person, what he is like, how morally developed he is, how formed as a person.

Synonyms for "goal"

• result
• dream
• appointment
• idea
• mission
• installation
• ideal
• reference point

Facilities

• Means are those methods, techniques, paths that a person uses to achieve his goals.
• The specific goal determines the means that a person uses. Therefore, the means can be actions person (for example, studying the material, self-preparation for successfully passing the exam), words, supporting someone in difficult times (for example, the desire to calm a person experiencing strong emotional anxiety), finally, a remedy can be items used in a specific activity (for example, boards in a carpentry workshop)
• From a legal point of view, there are legal and illegal means. The former do not violate the order of society and do not harm others. The latter threaten peace and even people’s lives and are dangerous.
• From a moral point of view, there are means that do not violate the laws of morality, built on the principles of goodness, justice, humanity, and there are immoral means that violate the honor and dignity of people, carry evil within themselves, and go beyond all boundaries of what is permitted.
• Means, like goals, depend on what kind of person he is, how decent he is, how morally and socially formed he is.
• It is necessary to clearly think through the means of achieving the goal, so as not to harm others, not to humiliate oneself with immoral actions.
• End justifies the means. Is this statement always true? Of course not. Any seemingly noble goal achieved through low, dirty, lawless means ceases to be such, since it is achieved through the pain and suffering of other people.

Synonyms for the word "means"

• way
• method
• weapon
• resource
• opportunity

A person must set goals and strive to achieve them. But you need to clearly think through every step along the way to it, weighing your actions, words, thinking not only about yourself, but also about the people living nearby. You must always strive to remain an individual.

Material prepared by: Melnikova Vera Aleksandrovna