<p>The major functions of eukaryotic cells can be significantly affected by mechanical stimuli. A common limitation of approaches to the study of cell mechanics is the lack of consideration of the microscopic structural features of the cytoskeleton which, among other things, influence the inelastic behavior. In this paper we develop a statistically based thermodynamic description of the cytoskeleton to simulate finite deformation of the cell. It is proposed statistical-thermodynamic approach to use order parameters to describe the orientation of microfilaments and the sliding of the actin bundles of the cell cytoskeleton. A form of the free energy is obtained as a function of these parameters, temperature and shear stress. Besides, there was found the dependence on the free energy on the structural parameter playing the role of the “effective temperature” and characterizing the structural susceptibility of the cytoskeleton. Following the complete system of objective constitutive relations of the cytoskeleton, the cell shear deformation was studied. The “critical” dynamics was ascertained in characteristic ranges of the structural parameter as a form of the orientation and microshear collective modes.</p>