What struck me most while watching the opera was the way the commoners and peasants were  portrayed. The very first seen that we are shown shows the boyars using them, forcing them to beg for the coronation of Boris Godunov as Tsar. And even after they were forced to beg for his coronation, they accepted him wholeheartedly as the chosen one of God. The last scene then shows the way they turn against Boris, blaming him for all of their misfortune, and voice their support the false pretender. Without fail they are presented as being a mindless mass without a will of their own, to be directed for the political advances of others. The way I view it, they are presented as to being in a constant state of servitude, always looking for someone to serve under, constantly looking for someone to solve their problems. They are also extremely vicious to those unable to solve their problems, making the powers that be responsible for everything that is going wrong, even things beyond the person in power’s control. After supporting the false pretender, they all then appear as a mound of lifeless corpses as a result for their actions with the ghost of the real Dmitry pressing over them. Following the role the commoners played throughout the opera, we can see the way they are depicted as being this weak minded and easily manipulated group of people, arguably in need of a strong willed ruler. Although in some sense, the behavior of the peasants can be shifted away from them due to them living in the Times of Trouble, the opera does depict them at the very end as having this revolutionary nature buried beneath that surfaces in turbulent times. Regardless, I do think it is important to note the role of the peasantry in those times and the way they are depicted in outlets such as an opera.

When discussing the Mongol Invasion in Russian literature, there is a common and reoccurring theme of sadness and grief. The very first line of the poem “On the field of Kulikovo” mentions the river, nature itself, is grieving: “The river opens out, crawls grieving on its way.” However even in this oncoming tragedy that will result in the defeat and subjugation of the Russian lands and people, the chroniclers of history and the poets use this terrible event to create a heroic and common identity amongst the Russians. In the Tale of the Destruction of Riazan, characters are propped up against the Mongol horde who then become heroes, like the great and giant Eupaty the Fearless. Characters like Eupaty, who courageously struck back against the Mongols and an emphasis on faith and Christianity, more specifically the defense of christian lands becomes a common theme during tales of the Mongol invasion. This then cultivates a specific Russian identity of faith and fearlessness where no soldier flees the battlefield and fights on against the invaders with no foreseeable chance of success. In the Tale of the Destruction of Riazan, Emperor Batu says this of the Russian people: “[…] never have we seen such courageous heroes […]. They do not think about death and fight bravely and courageously on their horses.” In this account, the defeat of the Russians is only due to the insurmountable numbers of the Mongols.

In The Scythians, they author calls back to an ancient nomadic tribe that used to inhabit the south of Russia that were famed for their battle prowess and seems to claim them as Russian heritage, following the tradition as stated above, however the way he mentions the Mongol Invasion is confusing to me. He seems to be using the event of the invasion as a poetic device to shed the violent tradition of Russian warriors, but beyond that the passage remains unclear to me.