The Minor

Interesting Facts

• The play is one of the first works of Russian classicism to mock the vices of the nobility and serfdom.
• The main character, Mitrofanushka, has become a byword for an ignorant and lazy young man.
• Mitrofanushka's phrase «I don't want to study, I want to marry» has become a catchphrase in the Russian language.
• The work was written in 1782 and immediately gained wide recognition and popularity.
• The play raises important social issues of its time, such as upbringing, education, and the moral decay of the nobility.
• Characters like Prostakova and Skotinin have become symbols of cruelty and ignorance.