On 12 February 2024, the Private Slavic Gymnasium in Bratislava hosted the literary event "A. N. Ostrovsky and his work 'Without a dowry'". The event was organized by the European Fund for Slavic Literature and Culture in cooperation with the gymnasium's Russian language teachers as part of the educational project "The Golden Age of Russian Culture. A. N. Ostrovsky".
The event was dedicated to exploring the creative legacy of A. N. Ostrovsky, familiarizing with the historical environment and social life of the 19th century, which formed the basis of his plays.
Students learned about the playwright’s biography and his most famous plays, such as "Stay in your own sled", "Poverty is No Vice" or "Without a Dowry". They also learned how working in the court helped him in his writing.
The students were shown an interactive presentation with excerpts from E. Riazanov's film "Cruel Romance" based on the play "Without a Dowry". This is one of the latest and very important works of this playwright. The students actively discussed the relationships between the characters, immersed themselves in the plot and the psychological level of the work.
During the final scene, a major discussion arose. The correct answer was confirmed by the students with the text from the play, which they read emotionally and enthusiastically. One student represented one role in the play. To really strengthen their knowledge, they created and later presented their group projects.
This work is surprisingly relevant and will remain relevant for a long time to come. It forces people think about their social and moral values.
We thank all those who actively participated in the literary event and hope that the tradition of such events will take hold and the students will be able to show their talents many more times.
