Auditor image of the county town. Description of the city in the comedy N.V.

A short essay-reasoning on literature on the topic: County town in Gogol's play "The Government Inspector". The city and its inhabitants. The image of the city N

City N in the comedy "The Government Inspector" is far from the last place. This is a universal collective image of the county town of that time. Gogol combined in him all those vicious and annoying features that can be easily found in any provincial town of Russia so far: nepotism, embezzlement, bribery, ignorance, hypocrisy, etc. It is such a place that serves as an ideal haven for Khlestakovism.

Where is the county town N in the comedy "The Government Inspector"? Gogol even determined where the fictional abode of vices could be located. It is located somewhere in the Volga region between Penza and Saratov. We learn this by reading about the return of Khlestakov to his native places: he travels from St. Petersburg through Penza to the Saratov province.

The county town N is a small, quiet town: “But I like the local town. Of course, not so crowded - so what? It's not the capital, after all. Maybe that's why it was so easy to hide the lawlessness and arbitrariness of officials there, who were very frightened by the visit of the auditor. Because they do not keep order, these places are dirty and littered: “Oh, my God! I also forgot that near that fence heaped on forty carts of all sorts of rubbish. What a nasty city this is!

Looking together with negligent officials into all the hidden corners of the city, we understand that they have something to be afraid of: if the auditor sees such desolation, they will all have a hard time. For example, in a city prison, prisoners are not fed at all, and law enforcement officers are no different from those they persecute. We remember the story of the non-commissioned officer's widow, who was flogged just like that: “... Take it out, saints! In these two weeks, a non-commissioned officer's wife was flogged! The prisoners were not given provisions! There is a tavern on the streets, uncleanness! A shame! Worn!.. "

The city also has state institutions: a school, a hospital, a court, etc. But none of this really works, since officials do not fulfill their duties in relation to the objects entrusted to them. Therefore, life in this place is not sweet for everyone, because, as you know, the fish rots from the head: after the officials, the whole city of N has degraded and sank. It is dirty and uncomfortable, bribery, theft and deceit reign everywhere, and people have nothing to hope for, so no matter how the city rulers do not need a court or investigation to trample on any recalcitrant city dweller.

In the image of the city N, as I think, Gogol wanted to depict not only the customs and customs of the hinterland, but the whole of Russia, ruined and disgraced by dishonest officials, terribly unsettled and ignorant. However, the author, as a deeply religious person, nevertheless gave us hope for the correction of this biblical Sodom: the real auditor did come.

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Gentlemen tourists! Today, an interesting excursion awaits you, during which we will find out how a typical county town of the 19th century lived in Russia. For that, we'll fast forward to N.V. Gogol's "Inspector".

I remind you that the county town is a small provincial town, located "in the middle of nowhere." No wonder Gogol's mayor says about him: "Yes, from here, even if you ride for three years, you will not reach any state."

However, people live here too, there are institutions that “ensure” this life. The city has a court, charitable and educational institutions, a post office, a police station, hotels, and so on. Let's look at all these institutions in order.

Let's start with the county court. Be careful, please, do not stumble - in the front of the watchman "they brought geese with small caterpillars that dart under their feet." Go straight into the presence, but do not pay attention to the arp and all the rubbish laid out here. Now we will talk with the assessor, who will tell us about the work of the court. Although ... no, it seems that today he is not able to do this - “there is such a smell from him, as if he had just left the distillery.” Well... well, the work of the court fully illustrates the name of the judge Lyapkin-Tyapkin - everything here is done "bluff".

And let's better turn to charitable institutions. Now we are entering the hospital of this glorious city and on the threshold we meet the district doctor Christian Ivanovich Gibner arm in arm with Mr. Strawberry, the trustee of the charitable institutions of the city. Does the name of the doctor really symbolize the work of the hospital here too: patients mercilessly “die”, and the “sweet” and “naive” Strawberry does not want to notice anything?

Let's ask some of the simple patients. I'm sorry, what? Almost no treatment - "patients are dying like flies"?! Natural ways of healing - “a simple man: if he dies, then he will die anyway; if he recovers, then he will recover as well”?! The doctor "doesn't know a word of Russian"?!

Hmm ... let's visit educational institutions - quietly sneak into one of the classes. Oh, we were lucky, we got to the history lesson! But what is it - God, is it really a fire? Oh, no, don't worry, please, - it was the teacher who went so far as to talk about the exploits of Alexander the Great. Oh, and what kind of face does he have - “he cut such a face as I have never seen before”! It is not for nothing that the superintendent of educational institutions Khlopov (whose surname is derived from the word "khlop" - "serf", slave) is afraid that here "free-thinking thoughts are inspired by youth."

Phew, so many shocks in one day! And let's go to the post office - there should be "peace and quiet, God's grace" here. The postmaster Ivan Kuzmich Shpekin is also sitting at the table. But… what does he do? Opens letters and reads them?! And here’s one he put on his table! What is it - is not going to send it to its destination? Well ... it’s not without reason that the name of this official comes from the word “shpen” - “an obstinate person, across everyone, in the hindrance, an evil mocker.” And if you remember what role this hero played in the finale of The Inspector General, then his speaking surname will sound even louder.

Well, no less telling are the names of the "servants of order" - policemen Derzhimorda, Uvertov, Svistunov, who do not disdain to unfairly detain, beat the inhabitants of the city, give false testimony, and so on. The work of the police station in this city once again indicates the "style" of work of all officials and institutions - illegal, unfair, based on theft, fraud, corruption, injustice.

Confirmation of this is the fate of ordinary residents of the city: an unfortunate non-commissioned officer who was publicly flogged for nothing, a locksmith whose husband was unfairly "taken" into the army, merchants who were mercilessly robbed by the mayor and other officials.

Confirmation of this is the state of the city streets (you can see for yourself what kind of dirt and devastation reigns here: the buildings have not been repaired for a long time, there is not a single new building in the city, and so on). I no longer risk inviting you to a hotel where, believe me, they will offer you such rooms and such a menu that "even the saints can stand."

Well, gentlemen tourists, I think our opinion is unanimous: life in a county town of the 19th century is like hell for ordinary residents and heaven for officials. After all, they live according to the principle of maximum benefit for their personal pocket, not at all thinking about fulfilling their true duties - caring for the improvement of the city and citizens. It is especially important that there were a great many such cities in Russia, which is why Gogol did not give the name to "his" county town. And it is also important that the laws of the existence of Gogol's officials have been preserved in our time, you yourself have noticed this, haven't you?

What is the image of the city in The Inspector General? How is the pyramid of this city built (citizenship, merchants, officials, city landowners, mayor)? How is the same pyramid formed from the female half of the characters? How are the characters of this pyramid revealed?

Answer

The image of the city in the comedy is rather gloomy. This image arises on the basis of the characters' replicas, since N.V. Gogol does not provide the author's description. The so-called "charitable institutions" are a cover for fraud, the sick are not treated and hardly fed. Despite the fact that the city is small, it has both a jail and a prison, they are full, and the mayor is clearly proud of this circumstance, prisoners are also often not fed. Charlatans teach in schools, rubbish and dirt on the streets. The city was given money to build a church, but construction did not even begin.

The public pyramid of the city is formed as follows: at the very top is the mayor Skvoznik-Dmukhanovsky, then there are judge Lyapkin-Tyapkin, the trustee of charitable institutions Strawberry, the superintendent of schools Khlopov, the postmaster Shpekin, the city landowners Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky, policemen and others. Merchants have no rights, but at least they have the means to buy off their superiors. Those who do not have funds are people completely powerless. This can be seen in the scenes of complaints against the mayor and the orders of the mayor himself regarding an attempt to bring the city in order.

Women also have their own pyramid. It depends on the position of spouses or fathers. The mayor's wife, Anna Andreevna, is jealous of the youth of her daughter, Marya Antonovna, and pulls her in every possible way, showing who the mistress is. She feels it, but for her the main rivals are the daughters of Strawberry, who never appear in the play. Characters such as locksmith Poshlepkina and non-commissioned officer's widow are completely powerless.

Members of this pyramid are not satisfied with their position and seek at the first opportunity to pay attention to the shortcomings of competitors, somehow sit them down. Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky constantly bring each other to clean water, allegedly “reminding” each other of the omitted trifles, such as a torn lining in a pocket, the mayor is called a pig and a scoundrel behind his back, Strawberry informs Khlestakov on everyone, the mayor tells everyone how and what to do , reproaching sluggishness. As soon as the thought arises that the mayor will intermarry with the auditor, everyone immediately begins to please, interrupting each other and trying to attract his attention. The mayor's wife is already so hovering in high spheres that she does not hesitate to speak contemptuously of all of them as "just anyone."

Representatives of the lower classes, taking the opportunity, come to complain about the authorities. When it turns out that this did not help, the merchants humbly ask for forgiveness from the mayor, who, however, perfectly understands that this humility is feigned, which he tells the merchants maliciously. The real attitude of the characters to each other is rarely shown and, as a rule, behind the eyes. None of them has sincere sympathy for the other, they all envy each other and diligently notice all the mistakes. Until better times.

Characteristics of the county town in N.V. Gogol's comedy "The Government Inspector".

Place and time of action in Gogol's comedy.

1. 
   Mayor and county officials as bribe takers, careerists, persons violating official duty, low people.

a. The state of the municipal economy, charitable institutions, schools, postal and judicial departments by the time of the expected arrival of the auditor.

b. Grabber and bribe-taker mayor - a model for all lower ranks.

in. Measures taken by officials to hide abuses from the auditor.

d. Laughter is the only honest and noble face of comedy.

3. The typicality of the paintings depicted by Gogol.

Everyone got here, but most of all me.

Nicholas 1.
The pinnacle of Gogol's dramatic work is the comedy The Inspector General, written in 1836. This is an example of Russian social comedy, exposing the vices of the state system in Russia. The action in it takes place in one of the county towns, located on the way between the provincial cities of Penza and Saratov, from which "at least three years of galloping, you will not reach any state." The action takes place in the 30s of the last century, during the reign of Nicholas 1. During his reign, abuses among officials were monstrous. Nothing was done without a bribe. It got to the point that the Minister of Justice himself gave bribes to officials when he had litigation.

The officials of the county town, headed by the mayor Skvoznik-Dmukhanovsky, personify the power and law in the city where the action of the comedy is played out. What is going on in the city, on the eve of the arrival of the auditor? City streets do not rush about, on the sidewalks there is "tavern, uncleanness." Citizens take out the garbage to the fences. The church, for the construction of which funds were allocated, did not begin to be built: the mayor appropriated the money for himself. There is confusion in court. Judge Lyapkin-Tyapkin believes that the biblical sage Solomon himself could not have figured out the judicial papers. In the courthouse, the guards started a goose farm. And the judge, an avid hunter, uses the room to dry animal skins. The symbol of judicial justice is the arapnik, which hangs in the most prominent place. The court assessor, apparently, is a lover of alcohol, because he smells from him, as from a distillery. The judge himself considers himself an intelligent person, because he has read three books. The judge takes bribes with greyhound puppies, not even considering it an official crime. And everyone in the city gives and takes bribes. This is the norm of relations between officials and petitioners.

The trustee of charitable establishments, sweetheart, glutton Strawberry, abuses his official position. In hospitals, patients are fed only cabbage, although they need dietary food. The German doctor Gibner does not understand a word of Russian. He does not prescribe medicines to patients, relying entirely on nature: if the patient is destined to recover, he will recover even without expensive medicines. Patients in the hospital look like blacksmiths in greasy aprons than they do like patients in clean hospital gowns with white caps.

Schools care little about the upbringing of youth. And who should bring up worthy young citizens, when Khlopov, the superintendent of schools, is a timid man who does not have his own opinion?

The exhibition of officials is completed by the postmaster Shpekin, an empty man and a passionate lover of news. Shpekin prints out other people's letters out of curiosity and reads them like free interesting novels. However, when reading the letters, he checks "whether it contains any report or correspondence."

The mayor, by the nature of his service, should stop all abuses. He, on the contrary, is a swindler among all swindlers. A notorious bribe-taker, embezzler, impudent swindler and ignoramus, he appears as an example for lower-ranking officials. The mayor, of course, knows that his behavior is criminal. But he justifies himself: "Everyone does it." Indeed, an honest person in this environment is rare. The mayor is born of this environment, brought up by it. He takes large bribes: for himself - a fur coat, for his wife - a shawl. Merchants are required to bring the best provisions to his kitchen. Using the power, the mayor subjects the non-commissioned officer's wife to corporal punishment. The prisoners are not given provisions for two weeks. There is no order in the city, half-drunk policemen themselves administer justice with their fists. The mayor is not only ridiculous, but also terrible. After all, he dreams of intermarrying with the false auditor Khlestakov and becoming a general in St. Petersburg. In a general's uniform, he would have become even more terrible. Mistaking Khlestakov's "dummy" for an auditor, officials seek to hide their sins and

Pay off a city official with bribes. They are convinced that St. Petersburg officials also take bribes. The habits of auditors from St. Petersburg - imaginary and true - are known. The almighty bribe will do its job.

Officials of the county town mistook the rogue "wick" for an important person. They gave him bribes and rejoiced at the fact that they themselves would be deceived. The arrival of a real auditor strikes them like a thunderclap. Frozen in silent poses, they cause laughter. A gang of thieves and embezzlers of public funds Gogol laughingly carried out a public execution.

The ugliness depicted by Gogol were typical of Russian life. This is evidenced by the documents and statements of Gogol's contemporaries.

City N and its inhabitants.

One of the most expressive, impressive images of Gogol's comedy "The Inspector General" is, of course, the image of the city N.

The reader gets acquainted with him almost from the first pages of the famous work. From the dialogue of those frightened by the imminent arrival of an official, a small provincial town appears in all its glory: Ivan Kuzmich Shpekin, a local postmaster, who, without much remorse, opens someone else's correspondence and reads it with pleasure, seems to blow up the city authorities with his news.

We can safely say that in a small work, Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol manages to brilliantly show all sectors of society: the people, the merchants, the bureaucracy. The "Inspector" reflects the main areas of life: trade, social, spiritual.

From the very first pages of the play, we learn about the dirt that has not been removed from city streets for many years. Particular attention is paid to a huge puddle in the central square, through which it is impossible to pass in bad weather. However, the Governor is convinced that he is not to blame for the deplorable state of the city, but the same townspeople are to blame. “What a nasty city this is! just put some kind of monument somewhere or just a fence - the devil knows where they come from and they will inflict all sorts of rubbish!

It turns out that officials had identified these shortcomings before, but did not consider it necessary to put everything listed above in order. They suddenly begin to care about the comfort of the townspeople only after the news of the arrival of the auditor.

And what morals reign in this amazing town! People. who represent the state, make the life of the citizens more of a survival.

The reader is horrified to learn about the order in the local hospital. Here, patients walk in terrible gray caps, and few people actually think about curing them. In the words of Strawberry, “... the closer to nature, the better - we do not use expensive medicines. A simple man: if he dies, he will die anyway; If he recovers, then he will recover.”

The "flight of the imagination" and teaching are striking. One of the teachers “makes scary faces”, the other talks about the affairs of “bygone days” with such inspiration that the students are simply afraid of him: “He is a learned head - you can see it, and he picked up the darkness, but he only explains with such fervor that he doesn’t remembers himself. I once listened to him: well, for the time being I spoke about the Assyrians and Babylonians - still nothing, but how I got to Alexander the Great, I cannot tell you what happened to him. I thought it was a fire, by golly! He ran away from the pulpit and that there is strength to grab the chair on the floor. Of course, Alexander the Great is a hero, but why break the chairs? from this loss to the treasury.

And what is justice? This is where law and order reigns! However, from the wishes expressed by Gorodnichiy, the reader can learn that here, too, the picture is far from being the best. Bribery, indulgence in illegal actions - all this does not adorn the city of N in any way.

I even feel sorry for the inhabitants of this proud city, but, in my opinion, they are so accustomed to such a way of life that they cannot imagine their existence without such wonderful “trifles” as bribery, flattery, laziness, stupidity of the ruling bureaucracy ...

Gogol wrote this work in the first half of the 19th century, and how recognizable some of his scenes are now! Russia is certainly changing for the better, but some features of urban life, it seems to me, are far from being corrected...