Essay “Review of the works of N. Gogol. Analysis of the play “The Inspector General” (N.V. Gogol) Gogol’s creative activity

First published Gogol's work- the poem "Hanz Küchelgarten" - was written in the spirit of romanticism and was clearly imitative in nature. But already in his second book, the collection “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka,” created on rich Ukrainian ethnographic material, Gogol’s characteristic mixture of romantic and realistic colors appeared. This collection reflected the writer’s romantic dream of beauty, of the simple, natural and free life of a person who is not oppressed by anyone, happy, and overcomes any obstacles. At the same time, the author managed to avoid an idyllically beautiful image of Ukraine: in his “Evenings” a restless and conflict-ridden world appeared, in which the motives of personal alienation, crimes against compatriots, and the severance of human and natural ties were heard.

In the next two collections of stories, “Mirgorod” and “Arabesques,” the center of gravity of the artistic image was transferred to the small-scale and bureaucratic environment, full of petty worries and troubles daily life ordinary people, to a reality fraught with disasters, in the face of which sublime dreams, heroic impulses and idyllic ideas fail. Romantic themes and conflicts were translated here into a realistic plane, which entailed a restructuring of all levels of poetics. One of Gogol’s highest artistic achievements of this period was the story “The Overcoat,” in which the theme of the “little man” received a deep artistic and humanistic development, which became one of the leading ones in Russian literature.

A new stage in the writer’s creative development was marked by the appearance of the comedies “The Inspector General” and “Marriage,” in which his revealing and satirical talent and innovative approaches to constructing a dramatic work were fully demonstrated.

Gogol's work was of great importance for the development of Russian literature. The writer's immediate followers saw him as the founder "natural school" , for which the principles of realistic poetics, social criticism, national and social generalizations, and the affirmation of humanistic values that he developed were of primary importance. Material from the site

In general, the work of N.V. Gogol developed in the direction from romanticism to realism, but this development was not schematic: romantic and realistic tendencies closely interacted with each other at all stages of his mature literary activity. Gogol's first published work - the poem "Hanz Küchelgarten" - was written in the spirit of romanticism and was clearly imitative in nature. But already in his second book, the collection “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka,” created on rich Ukrainian ethnographic material, Gogol’s characteristic mixture of romantic and realistic colors appeared. This collection reflected the writer’s romantic dream of beauty, of the simple, natural and free life of a person who is not oppressed by anyone, happy, and overcomes any obstacles. At the same time, the author managed to avoid an idyllically beautiful image of Ukraine: in his “Evenings” a restless and conflict-ridden world appeared, in which the motives of personal alienation, crimes against compatriots, and the dissolution of human and natural ties were heard. In the next two collections of stories, “Mirgorod” and “Arabesques” ", the center of gravity of the artistic image was transferred to the small-scale and bureaucratic environment, to the everyday life of ordinary people, full of petty worries and troubles, to a reality fraught with disasters, in the face of which sublime dreams, heroic impulses and idyllic ideas fail. Romantic themes and conflicts were translated here into a realistic plane, which entailed a restructuring of all levels of poetics. One of Gogol’s highest artistic achievements of this period was the story “The Overcoat”, in which the theme of the “little man” received a deep artistic and humanistic development, which became one of the leading ones in Russian literature. A new stage in the creative development of the writer was marked by the appearance of the comedy “The Inspector General” and “Marriage”, in which his revealing and satirical talent and innovative approaches to constructing a dramatic work were fully demonstrated. The poem “ Dead Souls", which is a monumental panoramic canvas of the life of landowner-bureaucratic Russia. The main emphasis in this work was placed on the national side of reality, which corresponded to the writer’s desire to illuminate both the “higher” and “lower” properties of the Russian soul. At the same time, Gogol here achieved large-scale universal generalizations, thanks to which the depth of social parasitism, selfishness, acquisitiveness, and spiritual “death” of a society blinded by possessive instincts was revealed. Satirically depicting contemporary Russia as “hell”, inhabited by various sinners and moral monsters, the writer at the same time, in his lyrical digressions, expressed hope for the resurrection of the Russian soul and the great historical future of the Russian people. Gogol’s work was of great importance for the development of Russian literature. The writer’s immediate followers saw him as the founder of the “natural school”*, for which the principles of realistic poetics, social criticism, national and social generalizations, and the affirmation of humanistic values that he developed were of primary importance.

The work of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol is a literary heritage that can be compared to a large and multifaceted diamond, shimmering with all the colors of the rainbow.

Despite the fact that Nikolai Vasilyevich’s life was short-lived (1809-1852), and in the last ten years he did not finish a single work, the writer made an invaluable contribution to Russian classical literature.

Gogol was looked upon as a hoaxer, a satirist, a romantic and simply a wonderful storyteller. Such versatility was attractive as a phenomenon even during the writer’s lifetime. Incredible situations were attributed to him, and sometimes ridiculous rumors were spread. But Nikolai Vasilyevich did not refute them. He understood that over time all this would turn into legends.

The writer's literary destiny is enviable. Not every author can boast that all of his works were published during his lifetime, and each work attracted the attention of critics.

Start

The fact that real talent had come to literature became clear after the story “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka.” But this is not the author's first work. The first thing the writer created was the romantic poem “Hanz Küchelgarten”.

It is difficult to say what prompted young Nikolai to write such a strange work, probably a passion for German romanticism. But the poem was not a success. And as soon as the first negative reviews appeared, the young author, together with his servant Yakim, bought all the remaining copies and simply burned them.

This act became something of a ring-shaped composition in creativity. Nikolai Vasilyevich began his literary journey with the burning of his works and ended it with the burning. Yes, Gogol treated his works cruelly when he felt some kind of failure.

But then a second work came out, which was mixed with Ukrainian folklore and ancient Russian literature - “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka.” The author managed to laugh at evil spirits, above the devil himself, to combine the past and the present, reality and fiction, and paint it all in cheerful colors.

All the stories described in the two volumes were received with delight. Pushkin, who was an authority for Nikolai Vasilyevich, wrote: “What poetry!.. All this is so unusual in our current literature.” Belinsky also put his “quality mark”. It was a success.

Genius

If the first two books, which included eight stories, showed that talent had entered literature, then the new cycle, under the general title “Mirgorod,” revealed a genius.

Mirgorod- these are only four stories. But each work is a true masterpiece.

A story about two old men who live in their estate. Nothing happens in their life. At the end of the story they die.

This story can be approached in different ways. What was the author trying to achieve: sympathy, pity, compassion? Maybe this is how the writer sees the idyll of the twilight part of a person’s life?

A very young Gogol (he was only 26 years old at the time of working on the story) decided to show true, genuine love. He moved away from generally accepted stereotypes: romance between young people, wild passions, betrayals, confessions.

Two old men, Afanasy Ivanovich and Pulcheria Ivanovna, do not show any special love for each other, there is no talk of carnal needs, and there are no anxious worries. Their life is caring for each other, the desire to predict, not yet voiced desires, to play a joke.

But their affection for each other is so great that after the death of Pulcheria Ivanovna, Afanasy Ivanovich simply cannot live without her. Afanasy Ivanovich is weakening, dilapidating, like the old estate, and before his death he asks: “Put me near Pulcheria Ivanovna.”

This is a daily, deep feeling.

The story of Taras Bulba

Here the author touches on a historical topic. The war that Taras Bulba is waging against the Poles is a war for the purity of faith, for Orthodoxy, against “Catholic mistrust.”

And although Nikolai Vasilyevich did not have reliable historical facts about Ukraine, content with folk legends, scanty chronicle data, Ukrainian folk songs, and sometimes simply turning to mythology and his own imagination, he perfectly managed to show the heroism of the Cossacks. The story was literally stretched out catchphrases, which remain relevant even now: “I gave birth to you, I will kill you!”, “Be patient, Cossack, and you will be an ataman!”, “Is there still gunpowder in the flasks?!”

The mystical basis of the work, where evil spirits and evil spirits, united against the main character, form the basis of the plot of perhaps the most incredible Gogol story.

The main action takes place in the temple. Here the author allowed himself to fall into doubt: can evil spirits be defeated? Is faith capable of resisting this demonic revelry, when neither the word of God nor the performance of special sacraments helps?

Even the name of the main character, Khoma Brut, was chosen with deep meaning. Homa is a religious principle (that was the name of one of Christ’s disciples, Thomas), and Brutus, as you know, is the killer of Caesar and an apostate.

Bursak Brutus had to spend three nights in the church reading prayers. But the fear of the lady who had risen from the grave forced him to turn to non-God-pleasing protection.

Gogol's character fights the lady with two methods. On the one hand, with the help of prayers, on the other hand, with the help of pagan rituals, drawing a circle and spells. His behavior is explained philosophical views on life and doubts about the existence of God.

As a result, Home Brutus did not have enough faith. He rejected the inner voice telling him: “Don’t look at Viy.” But in magic he turned out to be weak compared to the surrounding entities, and lost this battle. He was a few minutes short of the last rooster crow. Salvation was so close, but the student did not take advantage of it. But the church remained desolate, desecrated by evil spirits.

The story of how Ivan Ivanovich quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich

A story about the enmity of former friends who quarreled over a trifle and devoted the rest of their lives to sorting things out.

A sinful passion for hatred and strife - this is the vice the author points out. Gogol laughs at the petty tricks and intrigues that the main characters plot against each other. This enmity makes their whole life petty and vulgar.

The story is full of satire, grotesque, irony. And when the author says with admiration that both Ivan Ivanovich and Ivan Nikiforovich are both wonderful people, the reader understands all the baseness and vulgarity of the main characters. Out of boredom, landowners look for reasons to litigate and this becomes their meaning of life. And it’s sad because these gentlemen have no other goal.

Petersburg stories

The search for a way to overcome evil was continued by Gogol in those works that the writer did not combine into a specific cycle. It’s just that the writers decided to call them St. Petersburg, after the place of action. Here again the author ridicules human vices. The play “Marriage”, the stories “Notes of a Madman”, “Portrait”, “Nevsky Prospekt”, the comedies “Litigation”, “Excerpt”, “Players” deserved particular popularity.

Some works should be described in more detail.

The most significant of these St. Petersburg works is considered to be the story “The Overcoat”. No wonder Dostoevsky once said: “We all came out of Gogol’s Overcoat.” Yes, this is a key work for Russian writers.

“The Overcoat” shows the classic image of a little man. The reader is presented with a downtrodden titular adviser, insignificant in the service, whom anyone can offend.

Here Gogol made another discovery - the little man is interesting to everyone. After all, problems of the state level, heroic deeds, violent or sentimental feelings, vivid passions, and strong characters were considered worthy depictions in the literature of the early 19th century.

And so, against the backdrop of prominent characters, Nikolai Vasilyevich “releases into the public” a petty official who should be completely uninteresting. There is neither state secrets, no struggle for the glory of the Fatherland. There is no place for sentimentality and sighs into the starry sky. And the most courageous thoughts in Akaki Akakievich’s head: “Shouldn’t we put a marten on the collar of our overcoat?”

The writer showed an insignificant person whose meaning in life is his overcoat. His goals are very small. Bashmachkin first dreams of an overcoat, then saves money for it, and when it is stolen, he simply dies. And readers sympathize with the unfortunate adviser, considering the issue of social injustice.

Gogol definitely wanted to show the stupidity, inconsistency and mediocrity of Akaki Akakievich, who can only deal with copying papers. But it is compassion for this insignificant person that gives rise to a warm feeling in the reader.

It is impossible to ignore this masterpiece. The play has always been a success, including because the author gives the actors a good basis for creativity. The play's first release was a triumph. It is known that the example of “The Inspector General” was Emperor Nicholas I himself, who perceived the production favorably and assessed it as a criticism of bureaucracy. This is exactly how everyone else saw the comedy.

But Gogol did not rejoice. His work was not understood! We can say that Nikolai Vasilyevich took up self-flagellation. It is with “The Inspector General” that the writer begins to evaluate his work more harshly, raising the literary bar higher and higher after any of his publications.

As for “The Inspector General,” the author had long hoped that he would be understood. But this did not happen even ten years later. Then the writer created the work “Dénouement to The Inspector General,” in which he explains to the reader and viewer how to correctly understand this comedy.

First of all, the author states that he is not criticizing anything. And a city where all the officials are freaks cannot exist in Russia: “Even if there are two or three, there will be decent ones.” And the city shown in the play is a spiritual city that sits inside everyone.

It turns out that Gogol showed the soul of a person in his comedy, and called on people to understand their apostasy and repent. The author put all his efforts into the epigraph: “There is no point in blaming the mirror if your face is crooked.” And after he was not understood, he turned this phrase against himself.

But the poem was also perceived as a criticism of landowner Russia. They also saw a call to fight serfdom, although, in fact, Gogol was not an opponent of serfdom.

In the second volume of Dead Souls the writer wanted to show positive examples. For example, he painted the image of the landowner Kostanzhoglo as so decent, hardworking and fair that the men of the neighboring landowner come to him and ask him to buy them.

All the author’s ideas were brilliant, but he himself believed that everything was going wrong. Not everyone knows that Gogol burned the second volume of Dead Souls for the first time back in 1845. This is not an aesthetic failure. The surviving rough works show that Gogol's talent has not at all dried up, as some critics try to claim. The burning of the second volume reveals the author's demands, not his insanity.

But rumors about Nikolai Vasilyevich’s mild insanity quickly spread. Even the writer’s inner circle, people who were far from stupid, could not understand what the writer wanted from life. All this gave rise to additional fictions.

But there was also an idea for the third volume, where the heroes from the first two volumes were supposed to meet. One can only guess what the author deprived us of by destroying his manuscripts.

Nikolai Vasilyevich admitted that at the beginning of his life, while still in adolescence, he was not easily worried about the question of good and evil. The boy wanted to find a way to fight evil. The search for an answer to this question redefined his calling.

The method was found - satire and humor. Anything that seems unattractive, unsightly or ugly should be made funny. Gogol said: “Even those who are not afraid of anything are afraid of laughter.”

The writer has so developed the ability to turn a situation around with a funny side that his humor has acquired a special, subtle basis. The laughter visible to the world hid in itself tears, disappointment, and grief, something that cannot amuse, but, on the contrary, leads to sad thoughts.

For example, in a very funny story, “The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich,” after a funny story about irreconcilable neighbors, the author concludes: “It’s boring in this world, gentlemen!” The goal has been achieved. The reader is sad because the situation played out is not funny at all. The same effect occurs after reading the story “Notes of a Madman,” where a whole tragedy is played out, although it is presented from a comedic perspective.

And if early work is distinguished by true cheerfulness, for example, “Evenings on a farm near Dikanka”, then with age the author wants deeper investigations, and calls on the reader and viewer to this.

Nikolai Vasilyevich understood that laughter could be dangerous and resorted to various tricks to circumvent censorship. For example, the stage fate of The Inspector General might not have worked out at all if Zhukovsky had not convinced the emperor himself that there was nothing unreliable in mocking untrustworthy officials.

Like many, Gogol’s road to Orthodoxy was not easy. He painfully, making mistakes and doubting, searched for his path to the truth. But it was not enough for him to find this road himself. He wanted to point it out to others. He wanted to cleanse himself of everything bad and suggested that everyone do this.

From a young age, the boy studied both Orthodoxy and Catholicism, comparing religions, noting similarities and differences. And this search for truth was reflected in many of his works. Gogol not only read the Gospel, he made extracts.

Having become famous as a great mystifier, he was not understood in his last unfinished work, “Selected Passages from Correspondence with Friends.” And the church reacted negatively to “Selected Places,” believing that it was unacceptable for the author of “Dead Souls” to read sermons.

The Christian book itself was truly instructive. The author explains what happens at the liturgy. What symbolic meaning does this or that action have? But this work was not completed. At all, last years The life of a writer is a turn from external to internal.

Nikolai Vasilyevich travels a lot to monasteries, especially often visiting the Vvedenskaya Optina Hermitage, where he has a spiritual mentor, Elder Macarius. In 1949, Gogol met a priest, Father Matvey Konstantinovsky.

Disputes often occur between the writer and Archpriest Matvey. Moreover, Nikolai’s humility and piety are not enough for the priest; he demands: “Renounce Pushkin.”

And although Gogol did not commit any renunciation, the opinion of his spiritual mentor hovered over him as an undeniable authority. The writer persuades the archpriest to read the second volume of “Dead Souls” in its final version. And although the priest initially refused, he later decided to give his assessment of the work.

Archpriest Matthew is the only lifetime reader of the Gogol manuscript of the 2nd part. Returning the clean original to the author, the priest did not easily give negative rating prose poem, he advised its destruction. In fact, this is who influenced the fate of the work of the great classic.

The conviction of Konstantinovsky, and a number of other circumstances, prompted the writer to abandon his work. Gogol begins to analyze his works. He almost refused food. Dark thoughts overcome him more and more.

Since everything was happening in the house of Count Tolstoy, Gogol asked him to hand over the manuscripts to Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow. With the best of intentions, the count refused to fulfill such a request. Then, late at night, Nikolai Vasilyevich woke up Semyon’s servant so that he would open the stove valves and burn all his manuscripts.

It seems that it was this event that predetermined the imminent death of the writer. He continued to fast and rejected any help from friends and doctors. It was as if he was purifying himself, preparing for death.

It must be said that Nikolai Vasilyevich was not abandoned. The literary community sent the best doctors to the patient's bedside. A whole council of professors was assembled. But, apparently, the decision to begin compulsory treatment was belated. Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol died.

It is not surprising that the writer, who wrote so much about evil spirits, delved into faith. Everyone on earth has their own path.

Russian literature has given the world a constellation of brilliant names. One of them was Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. An entire era separates us from the writer, but his work amazes and delights us to this day.

Gogol's artistic word is figurative, expressive and original. He did not copy life, but inspired it with his own idea. The depth and accuracy of the realistic sketches and the humorous portrayal of the characters fascinate the reader.

In 1835 it was published >. A book consisting of two parts, and which the author himself considered as a kind of continuation >. > occupies a special place here.

The main idea of the work is the exposure of the provincial landowner-noble society, the revelation of its spiritual and moral emptiness: > Two respectable people in the eyes of the entire Mirgorod turned out to be ordinary smokers!

The plot > is quite simple. The content unfolds in just seven chapters. But the composition of the work is quite interesting. It plays an important role, as it connects the content and language of the story into one whole.

The main compositional techniques are repetition, antithesis, comparison and hyperbole.

Moreover, repetition is based on the principles of parallelism. And this is what I will try to prove in this work.

The story begins with a huge number of repetitions and exclamations:

Ivan Ivanovich has a nice bekesha! excellent! And what smiles! Oh wow, what a joke! A wonderful person, Ivan Ivanovich! What a house he has in Mirgorod! What apple and pear trees he has right next to his windows! A wonderful person, Ivan Ivanovich!

Ivan Ivanovich is also a very good person. His yard is near the yard

Ivan Ivanovich.

Here's another repeat example:

Ivan Ivanovich has an extraordinary gift of speaking extremely pleasantly. Ivan Ivanovich, on the contrary, is more silent, but if he slaps a word, then just hold on: he will shave it off better than any razor. Ivan Ivanovich is thin and tall; Ivan Nikiforovich is a little lower, but extends in thickness. Ivan Ivanovich's head looks like a radish with its tail down; Ivan Nikiforovich's head on a radish with his tail up.

If in the first example we see a simple repetition, then in the second case the repetition is built on the principles of parallelism. His goal is to compare the heroes, but this comparison gives rise to an antithesis.

Let's take another example:

Ivan Ivanovich gets very angry if a fly gets into his borscht: then he loses his temper and throws the plate, and the owner gets it. Ivan Nikiforovich is extremely fond of swimming and, when he sits up to his neck in water, he orders that a table and a samovar also be placed in the water, and he really loves drinking tea in such coolness. Ivan Ivanovich is of a somewhat timid nature. Ivan Nikiforovich, on the contrary, has trousers with such wide folds that if they were inflated, the entire yard with barns and buildings could be placed in them.

As we see, the structure of the text sets up a comparison (cf. on the contrary), but in terms of meaning it diverges. IN in this case comparison is meaningless, which is precisely why it gives rise to irony. In addition, Gogol masterfully uses hyperbole techniques here.

If Ivan Ivanovich treats you with tobacco, he will always lick the lid of the snuff box with his tongue first, then click on it with his finger and, holding it up, will say, if you know him: >, if you don’t know him, then > Ivan Nikiforovich gives you his horn directly into your hands and will only add:

>. Both Ivan Ivanovich and Ivan Nikiforovich really dislike fleas.

However, despite some differences, both Ivan Ivanovich and Ivan Nikiforovich are wonderful people.

Compositional parallel repetition permeates the entire text of the story. For example, the entire fourth chapter is built on it: Ivan Ivanovich’s coming to court with a claim (call) - the judge’s extreme surprise - reading the petition - amazement of the entire court; the same thing with Ivan Nikiforovich - coming to court with a claim - extreme surprise of the judge - reading the petition - amazement of the entire court.

“I, Demyan Demyanovich,” said Ivan Ivanovich, finishing his last sip, “I have necessary business with you: I am calling you.”

Who is this for?

At these words the judge almost fell out of his chair.

After filing the lawsuit, Ivan Ivanovich left, >.

What destinies! What and how? How is your health, Ivan Nikiforovich?

With a request. - Ivan Nikiforovich could only say.

With a request? With which one?

With a call.

Here the shortness of breath made a long pause:

Oh!. with a call to the scammer. Ivan Ivanovich Pererepenkin.

The judge crossed himself.

After reading the request, Ivan Nikiforovich crawled through the door, closed it behind him, >.

The story of two Ivans ends with a parallel repetition:

Ivan Nikiforovich. said:

Don't worry, I have good news that the matter will be resolved next week, and in my favor.

Ivan Ivanovich turned to me with a cheerful smile. said:

Shall I notify you of good news?

What news? - I asked.

Tomorrow my case will certainly be decided. The House said probably.

Throughout > the tone of the story changes. If at the beginning there was joy, then at the end one feels melancholy. The antithesis of the two outwardly dissimilar Ivanovs is removed: it gives way to the dull internal monotony of the two sky-smokers.

In the mid-1830s, Gogol's popularity grew rapidly. After the publication of the two-volume collection “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka,” Nikolai Vasilyevich pleased readers with several more collections, each of which also consisted of two volumes.

The appearance of an unusual book

The first one was called "Mirgorod". It included the stories “Viy”, “Old World Landowners”, “Taras Bulba”, “The Story of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich”. And then another book comes out, a very unusual one. It's called "Arabesque". And it includes not only works of art, but articles and essays by Gogol. This is something like a collection of motley chapters, to paraphrase a quote from Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin.

It was in this collection that three stories were published, which in criticism were called Petersburg (after the place of action storylines). Nikolai Vasilyevich himself did not call them that. However, this phrase has stuck for many decades, and it is still relevant today.

Stories included in the collected works

When analyzing Gogol's "Petersburg Tales", it is necessary to note the works "Nevsky Prospekt", "Portrait" and "Notes of a Madman". Although this cycle of stories is perceived somewhat differently, since today’s reader is more accustomed to including several more of Nikolai Vasilyevich’s creations.

This is the work "The Nose", which was first published in Pushkin's magazine "Sovremennik". Also “The Overcoat,” which came to the public already in 1842, when the author was preparing to publish the first cycle of his lifetime works. Analyzing the story “Viy” by Gogol, “Portrait” and other works of Nikolai Vasilyevich, all reading Russia already knew and understood that this writer was Pushkin’s successor. He is exactly the writer who should take the baton from Alexander Sergeevich.

Analysis of Gogol's "Petersburg Tales"

Nikolai Vasilyevich is a man and writer of three cultures: Little Russian, Russian and Italian. And when he comes from his Poltava region to St. Petersburg, he looks at this world of the Russian capital through the eyes of a guest and an outsider. That is why the name “Petersburg” in this cycle of stories means something more than just a place of action.

All the events described in these wonderful works are very simple; there are many everyday sketches. However, when analyzing Gogol's "Petersburg Tales", we see that the author consciously went to simplify the plot and texture. He attached great importance to this.

According to the writer himself, the more ordinary the object, the more talent and imagination you need to have in order to make something extraordinary out of it, but at the same time not devoid of truth. And this was precisely what was an important task for Nikolai Vasilyevich - to give the reader not only pleasure when reading his books, but also to bring him as close as possible to this truth.

Famous description of the historical part of the city

St. Petersburg is a place where opposites collide, good and evil are mixed in the most bizarre way. When analyzing Gogol's story "Nevsky Prospekt", the reader first of all sees the most vivid, famous description of this part of the city. It is easy to compare it with the lyrical images of the Dnieper or the Ukrainian night from the cycle of stories “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka”.

But at the very beginning of the description there is a phrase: “I know that not one of its pale and bureaucratic inhabitants...” When analyzing Gogol’s “Petersburg Tales”, it is necessary to pay attention to it. The words “pale” and “bureaucratic” indicate the fact that Nevsky Prospekt is the place where a person encounters deception.

In another part of the story, Nikolai Vasilyevich directly speaks harsh and terrible words: “Some demon crushed the whole world into many different pieces and mixed everything together uselessly.” The world of Nevsky Prospekt is an image devoid of integrity, and something demonic peeks out from behind every turn.

Plot and idea lines

What ideological lines do Gogol's Petersburg Tales contain? An analysis of the stories suggests that the motive of temptation is very clearly indicated in them. For example, in “Nevsky Prospect” one of his heroes, the artist Peskarev, following the beauty, suddenly realizes that her external charm does not mean virtue at all. Pretty tinsel does not denote inner essence.

Superficial and deep properties in a person are separated. And this is very clearly visible here, in the center of St. Petersburg, on Nevsky Prospekt, where different people walk every hour - either janitors, or high officials, or the poor. And this is the paradoxical essence of this center of the Russian capital.

The storyline of the work "The Nose"

When analyzing Gogol's story "The Nose", the reader is faced with an even more bizarre world. Here we are talking about events that are completely impossible. The nose, separated from its owner, an official who calls himself a major, begins to drive around the streets. This text is very difficult to understand.

How, for example, can we understand such a phrase as “The nose hid the chin in the collar.” This is an amazing property of Gogol’s reality, which leads to very different thoughts.

No matter how unusual the life depicted by Gogol’s “Petersburg Tales” may look to the reader, an analysis of the works suggests that almost every story in this cycle contains some kind of parable. In "The Nose", for example, this is realized through the grotesque. This word itself denotes something fantastic, comic, ugly, which is inherent in reality itself, but does not appear in obvious form.

An analysis of Gogol's story "The Nose" makes you wonder where the measure is that makes a person feel inferior. What do you need to lose in order to stop feeling like yourself - reputation, family, career? In the work “The Nose”, a character who has lost this part of the body loses his dignity and weight in the eyes of society, and it is precisely this inferiority that the author conveyed through the grotesque.

Image of a little man

After analyzing Gogol's story "The Overcoat", the reader will immediately compare the image of Akaki Akakievich with Pushkin's stationmaster. Small man- this is the core hero of Russian literature, who later appears in many works of various prose writers.

A small person is a rather complex personality. The person seems to have been turned into a thing by this big city, which is incommensurate with the needs of a particular character. He either needs sympathy, or he is a righteous person and oppressed by external reality, which is alien and cold to him.

It is this metaphor that is key to the story. Or perhaps this is just a primitive person who needs simple indulgence. In fact, he is a simple person who needs a piece of warmth and attention, like all the creatures that fill the world. And not finding her, he, unfortunately, dies.

Mysterious and majestic city

Not only the analysis of Gogol's story "Notes of a Madman" leads the reader to the idea that Nikolai Vasilyevich's Petersburg is a city where the fantastic and the real are side by side. In each of the author’s works in the “Petersburg Tales” cycle, the most unusual incidents are possible.

Here, career and money seekers coexist alongside sincere and pure people. Fever, madness and death are close to high service to art, any good qualities of a person. This reveals to the writer the true appearance of this mysterious and magnificent city.

The 1830s, when “Petersburg Tales” appeared, is the pinnacle era of Gogol’s work. Then completely different times begin. Nikolai Vasilyevich faces various difficulties, he is already perceived as a tragic figure. Namely, it was during these years that the author was perceived as Pushkin’s successor, as the main Russian writer, who represents a benchmark for all Russian literature.

“The Inspector General” is an immortal comedy by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. From the moment it was written, people did not stop reading it and performing it on stage, because the problems that the author revealed in the work will never lose their relevance and will resonate in the hearts of viewers and readers at all times.

Work on the work began in 1835. According to legend, wanting to write a comedy, but not finding a story worthy of this genre, Gogol turned to Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin for help in the hope that he would suggest a suitable plot. And so it happened, Pushkin shared an “anecdote” that happened either to himself or to an official he knew: a man who came to a certain city on his own business was mistaken by local authorities for an auditor who had arrived on a secret mission to monitor, find out, and report. Pushkin, who admired the writer’s talent, was confident that Gogol would cope with the task even better than him, he really looked forward to the release of the comedy and supported Nikolai Vasilyevich in every possible way, especially when he was thinking of abandoning the work he had started.

For the first time, the comedy was read by the author himself at an evening hosted by Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky in the presence of several acquaintances and friends (including Pushkin). In the same year, The Inspector General was staged at the Alexandrinsky Theater. The play outraged and alarmed with its “unreliability”; it could have been banned. It was only thanks to Zhukovsky’s petition and patronage that it was decided to leave the work alone.

At the same time, Gogol himself was dissatisfied with the first production. He decided that neither the actors nor the public perceived The Inspector General correctly. This was followed by several explanatory articles by the writer, giving important instructions to those who really want to delve into the essence of comedy, correctly understand the characters, and play them on stage.

Work on “The Inspector General” continued until 1842: after numerous edits were made, it acquired the form in which it has come down to us.

Genre and direction

“The Inspector General” is a comedy where the subject of the story is the life of Russian officials. This is a satire on the morals and practices established among people belonging to this circle. The author skillfully uses comic elements in his work, providing them with both plot twists and turns and a system of characters. He cruelly ridicules the current state of society, either openly ironizing about events that illustrate reality, or covertly laughing at them.

Gogol worked in the direction of realism, the main principle of which was to show “a typical hero in typical circumstances.” This, on the one hand, made it easier for the writer to choose the theme of the work: it was enough to think about what issues are pressing for society in this moment. On the other hand, this presented him with the difficult task of describing reality in such a way that the reader recognized it and himself in it, believed the word of the author, and, immersed in the atmosphere of disharmony of reality, realized the need for change.

About what?

The action takes place in county town, which naturally has no name, thereby symbolizing any city, and therefore Russia as a whole. Anton Antonovich Skvoznik-Dmukhanovsky - the mayor - receives a letter that talks about an auditor who can come to the city incognito at any moment with an inspection. The news literally puts all residents who have anything to do with the bureaucratic service on their ears. Without thinking twice, the frightened townspeople themselves find a candidate for the role of an important official from St. Petersburg and try in every possible way to flatter him, to please the high-ranking official so that he will be lenient towards their sins. The comedy of the situation is added by the fact that Ivan Aleksandrovich Khlestakov, who made such an impression on those around him, does not realize until the last minute why everyone is behaving so courteously towards him, and only at the very end begins to suspect that he was mistaken for someone else, all over the place. apparently an important person.

Woven into the outline of the overall narrative is a love conflict, also played out in a farcical manner and built on the fact that the young ladies participating in it, each pursuing their own benefit, try to prevent each other from achieving it, and at the same time the instigator cannot choose one of the two. I'll give.

Main characters and their characteristics

Ivan Aleksandrovich Khlestakov

This is a petty official from St. Petersburg, returning home to his parents and mired in debt. “The most difficult role is the one who is mistaken by the frightened city for an auditor,” - this is what Gogol writes about Khlestakov in one of the articles in the appendix to the play. An empty and insignificant person by nature, Khlestakov wraps a whole city of rogues and swindlers around his finger. His main assistant in this is the general fear that gripped the officials who are mired in official “sins”. They themselves create an incredible image of the all-powerful auditor from St. Petersburg - a formidable man who decides other people's destinies, the first of the first in the whole country, as well as a metropolitan thing, a star in any circle. But you need to be able to support such a legend. Khlestakov copes with this task brilliantly, turning every passage thrown in his direction into a fascinating story, so brazenly absurd that it is difficult to believe that the cunning people of the city of N could not see through his deception. The secret of the “auditor” is that his lies are pure and naive to the extreme. The hero is incredibly sincere in his lies; he practically believes what he is telling. This is probably the first time he has received such overwhelming attention. They really listen to him, listen to his every word, which makes Ivan completely delighted. He feels that this is his moment of triumph: whatever he says now will be received with admiration. His imagination takes flight. He doesn't realize what's really going on here. Stupidity and bragging do not allow him to objectively assess the real state of affairs and realize that these mutual delights cannot continue for long. He is ready to linger in the city, taking advantage of the imaginary goodwill and generosity of the townspeople, not realizing that the deception will soon be revealed, and then the rage of the officials who have been fooled will know no bounds.

Being a loving young man, Khlestakov drags himself after two attractive young ladies at once, not knowing who to choose, the mayor’s daughter or his wife, and throws himself first on his knees in front of one, then in front of the other, which wins the hearts of both.

In the end, gradually beginning to guess that everyone present was mistaking him for someone else, Khlestakov, surprised by this incident, but without losing his good spirits, writes to his friend, the writer Tryapichkin, about what happened to him, and offers to make fun of his new acquaintances in the appropriate article. He joyfully describes the vices of those who graciously accepted him, those whom he managed to rob fairly (accepting exclusively on loans), those whose heads he gloriously turned with his stories.

Khlestakov is a “lying, personified deception” and at the same time this empty, insignificant character “contains a collection of many of those qualities that are not found in insignificant people,” which is why this role is all the more difficult. You can find another description of the character and image of Khlestakov in essay format.

Anton Antonovich Skvoznik-Dmukhanovsky, mayor

“Rogue of the first category” (Belinsky)

Anton Antonovich is a smart person and knows how to manage things. He could have been a good mayor if he had not cared primarily about his pocket. Having deftly settled in his place, he carefully looks at every opportunity to grab something somewhere and never misses his chance. In the city he is considered a swindler and a bad manager, but it becomes clear to the reader that he earned such fame not because he is angry or ruthless by nature (he is not at all like that), but because he put his own interests much higher than those of others. Moreover, if you find the right approach to him, you can enlist his support.

The mayor is not mistaken about himself and does not hide in private conversation that he himself knows everything about his sins. He considers himself a devout person, for he goes to church every Sunday. It can be assumed that he is not alien to some repentance, but he still puts his weaknesses above it. At the same time, he treats his wife and daughter with reverence; he cannot be reproached with indifference.

When the auditor arrives, the mayor is more frightened by the surprise than by the inspection itself. He suspects that if the city is properly prepared and the right people to meet an important guest, and also take into account the official from St. Petersburg himself, then you can successfully arrange the business and even win something for yourself here. Feeling that Khlestakov is being influenced and is in a good mood, Anton Antonovich calms down, and, of course, there is no limit to his joy, pride and the flight of his imagination when the opportunity arises to become related to such a person. The mayor dreams of a prominent position in St. Petersburg, of a successful match for his daughter, the situation is under his control and turns out as well as possible, when suddenly it turns out that Khlestakov is just a dummy, and a real auditor has already shown up on the doorstep. It is for him that this blow becomes the most difficult: he loses more than others, and he will receive it much more severely. You can find an essay describing the character and image of the mayor in The Inspector General.

Anna Andreevna and Maria Antonovna

The main female characters of the comedy. These ladies are the wife and daughter of the mayor. They are extremely curious, like all bored young ladies, hunters of all city gossip, as well as big flirts, they love it when others are carried away by them.

Khlestakov, who appears so unexpectedly, becomes wonderful entertainment for them. He brings news from the capital's high society, tells many amazing and entertaining stories, and most importantly, shows interest in each of them. Mother and daughter are trying in every possible way to woo the delightful dandy from St. Petersburg, and, in the end, he wooes Maria Antonovna, which her parents are very happy about. Everyone begins to make rosy plans for the future. The women do not realize that the wedding is not included in his plans, and in the end both, like all residents of the city, find themselves broke.

Osip

Khlestakov's servant is not stupid and cunning. He understands the situation much faster than his owner and, realizing that things are not going well, advises the owner to leave the city as soon as possible.

Osip understands well what his owner needs, to always take care of his well-being. Khlestakov himself clearly does not know how to do this, which means that without his servant he will be lost. Osip also understands this, so sometimes he allows himself to behave familiarly with his owner, is rude to him, and behaves independently.

Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky

They are city landowners. Both are short, round, “extremely similar to each other.” These two friends are talkers and liars, the two main town gossips. It is they who mistake Khlestakov for an auditor, thereby misleading all other officials.

Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky give the impression of being funny and good-natured gentlemen, but in reality they are stupid and, in essence, just empty talkers.

Other officials

Each official of city N is remarkable in some way, but nevertheless, they primarily constitute the overall picture of the bureaucratic world and are of interest in the aggregate. They, as we will see later, have all the vices of people occupying important positions. Moreover, they do not hide it, and sometimes they are even proud of their actions. Having an ally in the mayor, the judge, the trustee of charitable institutions, the superintendent of schools and others freely do any arbitrariness that comes to their mind, without fear of reprisal.

The announcement of the arrival of the auditor horrifies everyone, but such “sharks” of the bureaucratic world quickly recover from the first shock and easily come to the simple solution their problem is bribing a terrible, but probably just as dishonest auditor as they are. Delighted by the success of their plan, the officials lose their vigilance and composure and find themselves completely defeated at the moment when it turns out that the Khlestakov they had favored is a nobody, but a real high-ranking official from St. Petersburg is already in the city. The image of the city N is described.

Themes

Political topics: arbitrariness, nepotism and embezzlement in government structures. The author's field of view comes to the provincial town of N. The absence of a name and any territorial indications immediately suggests that this is a collective image. The reader immediately becomes acquainted with a number of officials living there, since they are the ones of interest in this work. These are all people who completely abuse power and use official duties only for their own interests. The life of the officials of the city of N has been established for a long time, everything goes on as usual, nothing violates the order they created, the foundation of which was laid by the mayor himself, until a real threat of trial and reprisal for their arbitrariness appears, which is about to fall on them in the person of the auditor. We talked about this topic in more detail.
Social topics. Along the way, the comedy touches on theme of universal human stupidity, which manifests itself differently in different representatives human race. So, the reader sees how this vice leads some of the play's heroes into various curious situations: Khlestakov, inspired by the opportunity once in his life to become what he would like to be, does not notice that his legend is written with a pitchfork on the water and he is about to be exposed ; The mayor, at first frightened to the core, and then faced with the temptation to go out into public in St. Petersburg itself, is lost in a world of fantasies about a new life and turns out to be unprepared for the denouement of this extraordinary story.

Problems

The comedy is aimed at ridiculing specific vices of people with high positions in the service. Residents of the city do not disdain either bribery or embezzlement; they deceive ordinary people and rob them. Selfishness and arbitrariness are the eternal problems of officials, so “The Inspector General” remains a relevant and topical play at all times.

Gogol touches not only on the problems of a particular class. He finds vices in every resident of the city. For example, in noble women we clearly see greed, hypocrisy, deceit, vulgarity and a tendency to betray. In ordinary townspeople, the author finds slavish dependence on masters, plebeian narrow-mindedness, a willingness to grovel and fawn for immediate gain. The reader can see all sides of the coin: where tyranny reigns, there is no less shameful slavery. People resign themselves to this attitude towards themselves; they are satisfied with such a life. This is where unjust power derives its strength.

Meaning

The meaning of the comedy is laid down by Gogol in the folk proverb he chose as the epigraph: “There is no point in blaming the mirror if your face is crooked.” In his work, the writer talks about the pressing problems of his country of the contemporary period, although more and more new readers (each in his own era) find them topical and relevant. Not everyone greets comedy with understanding, not everyone is ready to admit the existence of a problem, but they are inclined to blame the people around them, circumstances, life as such for the imperfection of the world - just not themselves. The author sees this pattern in his compatriots and, wanting to fight it using methods available to him, writes “The Inspector General” in the hope that those who read it will try to change something in themselves (and, perhaps, in the world around them) in order to prevent troubles and outrages on their own, but by all possible means to stop the triumphant path of dishonor in the professional environment.

Not in the play goodies, which can be interpreted as a literal expression of the author’s main idea: everyone is to blame for everyone. There are no people who would not take a humiliating part in riots and riots. Everyone contributes to injustice. Not only officials are to blame, but also merchants who give bribes and rob people, and ordinary people who are always drunk and live in bestial conditions on their own initiative. Not only greedy, ignorant and hypocritical men are vicious, but also deceitful, vulgar and stupid ladies. Before criticizing someone, you need to start with yourself, reducing the vicious circle by at least one link. This is the main idea of The Inspector General.

Criticism

The writing of “The Inspector General” resulted in a wide public outcry. The audience received the comedy ambiguously: reviews were both enthusiastic and indignant. Criticism took opposing positions in assessing the work.

Many of Gogol's contemporaries sought to analyze the comedy and draw some conclusion regarding its value for Russian and world literature. Some found it rude and harmful to read. So, F.V. Bulgarin, a representative of the official press and Pushkin’s personal enemy, wrote that “The Inspector General” is a slander against Russian reality, that if such morals exist, it is not in our country, that Gogol depicted a Little Russian or Belarusian city and such an ugly one that it is not clear how he can stay on the globe.

O.I. Senkovsky noted the writer’s talent and believed that Gogol had finally found his genre and should improve in it, but the comedy itself was not so well received by the critic. Senkovsky considered it to be the author’s mistake to mix in his work something good and pleasant with the amount of dirt and baseness that the reader ultimately encounters. The critic also noted that the premise on which the entire conflict rests is unconvincing: such seasoned scoundrels as the officials of the city of N could not be so gullible and allow themselves to be led into this fateful delusion.

There was a different opinion regarding Gogol's comedy. K.S. Aksakov stated that those who criticize “The Inspector General” did not understand its poetics and should read the text more carefully. Like a true artist, Gogol hid his real feelings behind ridicule and satire, but in reality his soul ached for Russia, in which all the characters in the comedy actually have a place.

It is interesting that in his article “The Inspector General” Comedy, Op. N. Gogol" P.A. Vyazemsky, in turn, noted the complete success of the stage production. Recalling accusations of implausibility against comedy, he wrote about psychological reasons phenomena described by the author as more significant, but was also ready to recognize what happened as possible from all other points of view. An important note in the article is the episode about attacks on the characters: “They say that in Gogol’s comedy not a single smart person; not true: the author is smart.”

V.G. himself Belinsky praised The Inspector General. Oddly enough, he wrote a lot about Gogol’s comedy in the article “Woe from Wit.” The critic carefully examined both the plot and some of the characters of the comedy, as well as its essence. Speaking about the genius of the author and praising his work, he admitted that everything in The Inspector General was excellent.

It is impossible not to mention critical articles about the comedy of the author himself. Gogol wrote five explanatory articles for his work, as he believed that it was misunderstood by actors, spectators, and readers. He really wanted the public to see in The Inspector General exactly what he showed, so that they would perceive him in a certain way. In his articles, the writer gave instructions to the actors on how to play their roles, revealed the essence of some episodes and scenes, as well as the general essence of the entire work. Special attention he devoted time to the silent scene, because he considered it incredibly important, the most important. I would especially like to mention the “Theatrical tour after the presentation of a new comedy.” This article is unusual in its form: it is written in the form of a play. Spectators who have just watched the performance, as well as the author of the comedy, are talking among themselves. It contains some clarifications regarding the meaning of the work, but the main thing is Gogol’s responses to criticism of his work.

Ultimately, the play became an important and integral part of Russian literature and culture.

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