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anding as a writer of the first class. This play, a great favorite still, contains many presentations of old Russian customs. It was the first from which the author received a regular royalty, ranging from one-twentieth to two-thirds of the profits. After many more comedies, all more or less noted, all more or less objected to by the censor, for various reasons, and hostility and bad treatment on the part of the theatrical authorities, Ostrovsky attained the zenith of his literary fame with his masterpiece, "Groza" ("The Thunderstorm"). It was not until 1856, in his comedy "A Drunken Headache from Another Man's Banquet" (meaning, "to bear another's trouble"), that Ostrovsky invented the words which have passed into the language, _samodur_ and _samodurstvo_ (which mean, literally, "self-fool" and "the state of being a self-fool"). The original "self-fool" is "Tit Tititch Bruskoff" (provincially pronounced "Kit Kititch" in the play), but no better example of the pig-headed, obstinate, self-complacent, vociferous, intolerable tyrant which constitutes the "self-fool" can be desired than that offered in "The Thunderstorm" by Marfa Ignatievna Kabanoff, the rich merchant's widow. She rules her son, Tikhon, and his wife, Katerina, with a rod of iron. Her daughter, Varvara, gets along with her by consistent deceitfulness, and meets her lover, Kudryash, whenever she pleases. Tikhon goes off for a short time on business, and anxious to enjoy a little freedom, he persistently refuses to take his wife with him, despite her urgent entreaties. She makes the request because she feels that she is falling in love with Boris. After his departure, Varvara takes charge of her fate and persuades her to indulge her affection and to see Boris. Katerina eventually yields to Varvara's representations. A half-mad old lady, who wanders about attended by a couple of lackeys, has previously frightened the sensitive Katerina (who was reared amid family affection, and cannot understand or endure the tyranny of her mother-in-law) by vague predictions and threats of hell; and when a thunderstorm suddenly breaks over the assembled family, after her husband's return, and the weird old lady again makes her appearance, Katerina is fairly crazed. She thinks the terrible punishment for her wayward affections has arrived; she confesses to her husband and mother-in-law that she loves Boris. Spurned by the latter--though the husband is not inclined to attach
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