The meaning of the lyrics of the song "The trial goes on, and now — it's coming to an end..." (Sud idyot, i vot — process konchaetsya...) the performer of the song "Vladimir Vysotsky"

The trial is on, and now it's ending,

The judge delivers his decree.

And the fat, unknown prosecutor

Is smiling craftily.

The prosecutor demanded execution,

A quiet murmur through the hall did go.

I searched for you in that white chamber,

But I could not find you there, you know.

I’m sitting in Rostov prison, my love,

Soon they’ll ship us off to the camps.

But I’ll tell you, my love,

I’m sitting here for nothing, it seems.

They’ve broken me, the guards, broken me,

Destroyed my spirit and my will.

My raven curls have turned to gray,

And I’m standing at the edge of the hill.

The chords wept mournfully,

As we walk through the scorched steppe…

And the one who took (someone) with them, proudly,

Could not show that pride, no they couldn't keep.

There, the son guards the father -

Who doesn’t know the North well! -

He must shoot at the fugitive,

He's shooting at his own brother, as well.

But they’ve broken me, the bastards, broken me,

Destroyed my spirit and my will.

My raven curls have turned to gray,

And I’m standing at the edge of the hill.

Суд идёт, и вот - процесс кончается,

И судья выносит приговор,

И чему-то хитро улыбается

Незнакомый толстый прокурор.

Прокурор потребовал расстрела,

Тихий шум по залу там прошёл.

Я тебя искал в том зале белом,

Но тебя в том зале не нашёл.

Я сижу в Ростовской, ненаглядная,

Скоро нас погонют в лагеря.

Но скажу тебе я, ненаглядная,

Что сижу я, видимо, зазря.

Приморили, ВОХРы, приморили,

Загубили волюшку мою,

Вороные кудри поседели,

И я у края пропасти стою.

Зарыдали жалобно аккорды,

А мы идём по выжженной степи...

И того, кто взял с собою, гордо

Показать ту гордость не моги.

Там сын стережёт отца -

Кто Севера плохо не знает! -

Он должен стрелять в беглеца,

Он в брата родного стреляет.

Но приморили, суки, приморили,

Загубили волюшку мою,

Вороные кудри поседели,

И я у края пропасти стою.

Vladimir Vysotsky's song "The trial is on, and so it ends..." depicts the tragic fate of a lyrical hero unjustly condemned and separated from his beloved.

The text is filled with bitterness and despair. The hero finds himself in a hopeless situation: he is sentenced to imprisonment, probably on false charges, as evidenced by the phrase "I sit, apparently, in vain." The image of a "cunningly smiling" prosecutor hints at the corruption and injustice of the judicial system.

Separation from his beloved, whom the hero searched for in vain in the courtroom, intensifies his suffering. He addresses her while already in prison ("Rostovskaya" - probably Rostov prison), anticipating an imminent dispatch to the camps.

The words "they finished me off, the guards, finished me off" point to the cruelty of law enforcement officers who broke his will ("ruined my little will"). The graying "black curls" become a symbol of innocently ruined youth.

The song sounds the motif of persecution and hopelessness. The hero finds himself "on the edge of the abyss," his life is destroyed. The image of the "scorched steppe" he walks through emphasizes the gloom and hopelessness of his situation.

The culmination of the song is a terrible scene where a son, forced to serve in the North, guards his fugitive father. This motif of fratricidal war, imposed by a cruel system, intensifies the tragedy of the work.

The repetition of the lines "they finished me off, the bastards, finished me off," "they ruined my little will," "my black curls have turned gray," "and I stand at the edge of the abyss" creates the effect of a vicious circle, illustrating the hopelessness of the lyrical hero's situation.