The events described in the poem take place in a city without a name. N.V. Gogol surprisingly encrypted it with two letters of obscurity: NN. The prototype of the city NN in the poem " Dead Souls'worried the scientists. They were looking for similarities real places in Russia, they unraveled the notes of the great classic, but they did not find exact data.
Characteristics of the location of the city of NN
Little is said about the location of the city visited by Chichikov: "the city was not in the wilderness, but on the contrary, not far from both capitals." That is, somewhere near Moscow and St. Petersburg. In the first lines of the poem about Moscow there is an unobtrusive mention. The men, examining the guest's britzka, are wondering if the wheel will reach Moscow. It can be assumed that she is somewhere within the range of a possible journey. The second city that the men call is Kazan. If the wheel could still reach the capital, then Kazan could not. The britchka traveled many miles around the outskirts of the city of NN, the defect came to light at the moment Pavel Ivanovich decided to leave. Literary critics suggest that Tver may be the prototype. By location, it is close to the capital and far from the second specified city. Another proof is the Volga River. It arises in Chichikov's thoughts when he reflects on the fate of the peasants that he managed to acquire. The river flows in the middle of the city and divides it into 2 parts. The Volga flowed through Tver, this, of course, is only a distant sign of similarity. There are many cities located along the banks of rivers in Rus'.
Other similarities with Tver
In addition to the river, scientists find similarities in the occupations of the peasants. Chichikov at Korobochka sees a huge amount of living creatures, among them turkeys. This bird was more common in southern and central regions countries. The same can be said about plants. Apple trees and fruit trees, watermelons are hard to imagine in cold regions. The city of NN is located among the grain fields. Plyushkin's grain is rotting, the luggage and barns are covered with flour. "Dead souls" had different specialties during their lifetime: blacksmiths, weavers, carriage workers, carpenters, shoemakers.Linguists studied the speech of the characters. Part of the dialects helped them identify the area. In the Tver region, the words of the city NN were common: beetroot, kurnik, mykalnik, lagoon, spindly.
The dialects of the Russian people are close to each other, so it is difficult to recognize the conclusions of scientists as accurate. These same words were used in other parts of Rus'.
Description of the city NN
In the city where Pavel Ivanovich entered, there were many buildings. There is a hotel, a cathedral, an almshouse.Chichikov visits the governor's house, meets with officials in government offices. At the entrance, the reader sees a guardhouse. There is a Church of St. Nicholas in the city. Such a description can be given to any provincial town. All common buildings:
- a hotel with an abundance of cockroaches;
- brick gray houses;
- taverns in the form of large Russian huts.
Typicality of the city
NN is not very remarkable. More precisely, there are no special buildings, unusual buildings or monuments in it. The author wanted to make it easy to see any city in Russia in his image. Life flows measuredly and calmly. As if someone from above launched his rhythm and does not allow him to be distracted. There are no events that change the course of life. Even funerals are held as usual, without mourning, rallies and outbursts of emotions. Every day begins with the usual events: visits to officials. Also, the day goes slowly towards evening. The author does not distinguish residents by description:- cabbies;
- soldiers;
- workers;
- ladies in red hats.
Rumors spread quickly in the city. Not only women love to gossip, but also men. Gossip scatter with instant speed, acquiring new information. No one is surprised at the stories, on the contrary, they make their own corrections, not embarrassed by lies and slander against a stranger or little known person.
Great classic managed to show Russian cities under the image of one settlement. You can look for allusions to one city, but it makes no sense. The purpose of the author was different. But it is clear that it is interesting who became the prototype of the place visited by Chichikov. Most scientists tend to Tver, but every reader can think and look for new data.
2 Description of the city.
3 Officials of the provincial city NN.
Description of the mores of the provincial town NN. It is known that A. S. Pushkin was highly valued by N. V. Gogol. Moreover, the writer often perceived the poet as an adviser or even a teacher. It is Pushkin who is indebted in many respects to lovers of Russian literature in the appearance of such immortal works writer, like "The Government Inspector" and "Dead Souls".
In the first case, the poet simply suggested a simple plot to the satirist, but in the second he made him seriously think about how small work an entire era. Alexander Sergeevich was sure that his younger friend will certainly cope with the task: “He always told me that not a single writer had this gift to expose the vulgarity of life so vividly, to outline the vulgarity in such force vulgar person so that all that little thing that escapes the eye, would flash large in the eyes of everyone. As a result, the satirist managed not to disappoint the great poet. Gogol quickly determined the concept of his new work - "Dead Souls", based on a fairly common type of fraud in the purchase of serfs. This action was already filled with more significant meaning, being one of the main characteristics of everything social order Russia under the reign of Nicholas.
The writer thought for a long time about what his work is. Pretty soon, he came to the conclusion that "Dead Souls" is an epic poem, since it "embraces not some features, but the entire era of time, among which the hero acted with the way of thinking, beliefs and even knowledge that humanity did at that time ". The concept of the poetic is not limited in the work only to lyricism and author's digressions. Nikolai Vasilyevich set his sights on more: on the volume and breadth of the idea as a whole, on its universality. The action of the poem takes place approximately in the middle of the reign of Alexander I, after the victory in Patriotic war 1812. That is, the writer returns to the events of twenty years ago, which gives the poem the status of a historical work.
Already on the first pages of the book, the reader gets acquainted with the main character - Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, who, according to personal affairs I drove into the provincial city of NN, which is no different from other similar cities. The guest noticed that “the yellow paint on the stone houses was very striking and the gray on the wooden houses was modestly dark. The houses were one, two and one and a half stories high with an eternal mezzanine, very beautiful, according to provincial architects. In places, these houses seemed lost among the wide, field-like streets and endless wooden fences; in some places they crowded together, and here there was noticeably more movement of the people and liveliness. All the time emphasizing the mediocrity of this place and its similarity with many other provincial cities, the author hinted that the life of these settlements, probably also differed little. So, the city began to acquire a completely generalizing character. And now, in the imagination of readers, Chichikov no longer finds himself in a specific place, but in some collective image cities of the Nikolaev era: “In some places, just on the street there were tables with nuts, soap and gingerbread, similar to soap ... Most often, darkened double-headed state eagles were noticeable, which have now been replaced by a laconic inscription: “Drinking House”. The pavement was bad everywhere.”
Even in the description of the city, the author emphasizes the hypocrisy and deceitfulness of the inhabitants of the city, or rather, its managers. So, Chichikov looks into the city garden, consisting of thin trees that have not taken root well, but the newspapers said that “our city was decorated, thanks to the care of the civil ruler, with a garden consisting of shady, broad-branched trees, giving coolness on a hot day.”
Governor of the city of NN. like Chichikov, he was "not fat or thin, had Anna around his neck, and it was even said that he was introduced to the star, however, he was a big good man and sometimes even embroidered on tulle." Pavel Ivanovich on the very first day of his stay in the city visited all secular society, and everywhere he managed to find mutual language with new acquaintances. Of course, Chichikov's ability to flatter and narrow-mindedness played a significant role in this. local officials: “The governor will be hinted somehow in passing that you enter his province, like in paradise, the roads are velvet everywhere ... He said something very flattering about the city guards to the police chief; and in conversations with the vice-governor and the chairman of the chamber, who were still only state councilors, he even said by mistake twice: “your excellency”, which they liked very much. This was enough for everyone to recognize the newcomer as a completely pleasant and decent person and invite him to the governor's party, where the "cream" of the local society gathered.
The writer ironically compared the guests of this event with squadrons of flies that rush in the midst of July summer on white refined sugar. Chichikov did not lose face here either, but behaved in such a way that soon all officials and landowners recognized him as a decent and most pleasant person. Moreover, this opinion was dictated not by any good deeds of the guest, but solely by his ability to flatter everyone. Already given fact eloquently testified to the development and customs of the inhabitants of the city of NN. Describing the ball, the author divided the men into two categories: “... some are thin, who all hung around the ladies; some of them were of such a kind that it was difficult to distinguish them from St. ". The writer immediately concluded: "... thick people know how to do their business better in this world than thin ones."
Moreover, many representatives of high society were not without education. So, the chairman of the chamber recited V. A. Zhukovsky’s “Lyudmila” by heart, the police chief was a wit, others also read N. M. Karamzin, some “Moskovskie Vedomosti”. In other words, good level education officials was questionable. However, this did not at all prevent them from managing the city, if necessary, jointly defending their interests. That is, a special class was formed in a class society. Allegedly freed from prejudice, officials perverted the laws in their own way. In the city of N.N. as in other similar cities, they enjoyed unlimited power. It was enough for the chief of police to blink, passing by the fish row, and food was brought to his house for preparing a sumptuous dinner. It was the customs and not too strict customs of this place that allowed Pavel Ivanovich to achieve his goals so quickly. Very soon main character became the owner of four hundred dead souls. The landowners, without hesitation and caring for their own benefit, willingly ceded their goods to him, and at the lowest price: dead serfs peasants are not needed in the economy. Chichikov did not even need to make an effort to make deals with them. The officials also did not ignore the most pleasant guest and even offered him their help for the safe delivery of the peasants to the place. Pavel Ivanovich made only one serious miscalculation, which led to trouble, he outraged the local ladies with his indifference to their persons and increased attention to the young beauty. However, this does not change the opinion of local officials about the guest. Only when Nozdryov blabbed in front of the governor that a new person was trying to buy dead souls from him, high society thought about it. But even here he was not in charge common sense, and gossip that grows like a snowball. That is why Chichikov began to be credited with the kidnapping of the governor's daughter, and the organization of the peasants' revolt, and the manufacture of counterfeit coins. Only now officials have begun to feel such anxiety about Pavel Ivanovich that many of them have even lost weight. As a result, society comes to an absurd conclusion in general: Chichikov is Napoleon in disguise. The inhabitants of the city wanted to arrest the main character, but they were very afraid of him. This dilemma led the prosecutor to his death. All these unrest unfold behind the back of the guest, because he is sick and does not leave the house for three days. And it never occurs to any of his new friends to just talk to Chichikov. Having learned about the current situation, the main character ordered to pack his things and left the city. As completely and vividly as possible, Gogol in his poem showed the vulgarity and meanness of the mores of the provincial cities of that time. The ignorant people who were in power in such places set the tone for the entire local society. Instead of managing the province well, they held balls and parties, solving their personal problems at public expense.
Internal disgrace is very common and
very skillfully covered by the outer
good looks.
M. Gorky
The image of the city in the poem is made up of a description of the streets, houses, interiors of hotels, taverns and a description of the customs, characters, lifestyle of the characters in a literary work.
Many learned about the city from talking about it, by comparing it with other cities, and most importantly, by the people who inhabit it.
The poem (its composition) is built in such a way that it begins with the arrival in the city of N of a new person, a certain Chichikov. The name of the city is deliberately not specified. This gives the writer the possibility of a deeper development of the idea of typicality of all the provincial cities of Russia at that time.
Life in such cities flows according to a predetermined schedule. Every day begins with visits to officials: "in the morning even earlier than the time appointed in the city of N for visits ...". Evenings were also held according to already established traditions. However, as Gogol notes: “In the lanes and back streets, inseparable from this time in all cities, where there are many soldiers, cabbies, workers and a special kind of creatures in the form of ladies in red hats and shoes without stockings, who, like the bats, darting around intersections.
As for the conversations in the alleys, these were "... those words that will suddenly pour over, like a pitcher, some dreamy twenty-year-old youth." As is customary in provincial cities, the hotels in the city of N were full of cockroaches, the brick houses were all painted gray, the taverns resembled "Russian huts in several larger size". Oddly enough, in taverns there were images on the shelves, behind which lay gilded porcelain testicles. However, it is also in the order of things that “the mirror shows four eyes instead of two, and some kind of cake instead of a face.” The first understanding, an idea of the city, we get precisely from Chichikov's impressions of it.
Nor did the city remain indifferent to Chichikov. As you know, rumors and gossip spread very quickly. In addition, residents of such towns like to discuss any news for a long time, because in a county town they happen so rarely: “in a word, rumors went, rumors, and the whole city was talking about dead souls and the governor's daughter, about Chichikov and dead souls, about the governor's daughter. daughter and Chichikov, and everything rose, like a whirlwind, it seemed like a dormant city! In addition, "many explanations and corrections were added to all this, as rumors finally penetrated into the most back streets."
What else has not been mentioned about the main characteristics of such a county town?
The attitude of the inhabitants of this city to Muscovites and Petersburgers. From the questions of residents about the capitals, it is clear what they have about them little performance. One gets the impression that in the understanding of the inhabitants of the city N, St. Petersburg and Moscow are "fabulous" cities.
A very important fact in the understanding, representation of the city is the description of its officials. This small county town contained all the "types" of officials. False virtues, and lovers of jokes, and squanderers of the treasury, and rude people have gathered here. Ho all of them are united by one common quality. All of them perform one "important" function of the city government apparatus. They are called officials. This is their main duty. For this kind of high-ranking people of that time, the way of life was determined by playing cards, gaining money and a wide circle of acquaintances. Their alleged actions in the area of their bureaucratic duties - service for the good of the state - were for their minds something distant and unreasonable.
The amazing mastery of the author is manifested in the poem "Dead Souls". The author does an excellent job of expressing the false life of towns N in a few sentences, aptly emphasizing the fact that the often collapsed apparatus of the urban system and the ordinary life of this city are covered by the image of a small, cozy and charming county town presented by its inhabitants.
provincial city in the poem "Dead Souls" is named NN. This indicates to us that it can be any city in Russia. Everything in the city is “of a certain kind”, “the same”, as elsewhere, completely ordinary and familiar - the “eternal mezzanine”, the common room in the hotel, which everyone knows, yellow paint on every house. All this speaks of the unremarkable city, its similarity with other cities in the country. The description of the city is permeated with irony, here is a hotel with a dead room and cockroaches “peeping out like prunes from all corners”, and a shop with the inscription “Foreigner Vasily Fedorov”, and a miserable alley lined with trees “not taller than a reed”, which is praised in newspapers - all this is Gogol's mockery of the pomp, false culture of the city and its inhabitants.
As for these very inhabitants - officials, Gogol just as ruthlessly uses irony in their description: "Others were also more or less enlightened people: some read Karamzin, some Moskovskie Vedomosti, some even read nothing at all."
When Chichikov gets into the presence, “a large three-story stone house, all white as chalk, probably to depict the purity of the souls of the posts located in it,” does not do without mentioning Themis, the goddess of justice. So Gogol emphasizes the moral uncleanliness of officials, the complete lack of honesty and decency just among those from whom these qualities are required in the first place. In addition, officials do not have the most important thing - the soul, Gogol shows us this, depicting employees as "nape heads, tailcoats, frock coats", who rewrite documents, put signatures.
Officials in NN are divided into thick and thin, which Gogol speaks of in his first digression. Fat people, such as, for example, the chairman and the prosecutor, are firmly on their feet, have enormous power and use it unlimitedly. The subtle ones do not have a specific goal in life, “their existence is somehow too easy, airy and completely unreliable”, they “leak all their father’s goodness” and the only thing they strive for is entertainment.
The most striking characteristic is given to the chief of police. He went to the shops of merchants as if to his home, collected fees from the population, but at the same time he knew how to arrange it in such a way that they said about him “even though it will take, it will not betray you in any way.”
Everything that Gogol says about ladies concerns exclusively external manifestations: “about their characters, apparently, it is necessary to leave it to the one who has livelier colors and more of them on the palette, but we only have to say a couple of words about appearance and about what is more superficial.” Ladies dressed with great taste, drove around the city in carriages, “as the latest fashion prescribed”, a sacred thing for them was considered business card. “They never said: “I blew my nose”, “I sweated”, “I spat”, but they said “I relieved my nose”, “I managed with a handkerchief”. Not a single word is dedicated to them inner world. Gogol writes ironically about their morality, pointing to carefully concealed betrayals, calling them "other or third." Ladies are only interested in fashion and rich suitors, they, of course, are infinitely happy with the unspoken additions of their fat husbands (it is much more difficult for thin husbands to start a family!), because with this money they can buy fabrics for themselves, so that later they can sew lurid dresses decorated with "completely scalloped".
In general, the city of NN is full of false, soulless empty shells, for whom the main thing is money, power. Officials are “dead souls”, but they, like all people, have hope for a revival, because Gogol wrote about the death of the prosecutor: “They sent for a doctor to bleed, but they saw that the prosecutor was already one soulless body. Then only with condolences did they find out that the deceased, for sure, had a soul, although, due to his modesty, he never showed it.
In "Dead Souls" N.V. Gogol presented before the eyes of readers a panorama of Russian reality. In the work, the author raises many issues relevant to Russia of that period. Not last place in the poem takes and urban theme.
The story begins with the fact that the main character Pavel Chichikov arrives in NN - one of the provincial cities. Judging by the description, we immediately understand that this is a provincial town: “the pavement was rather poor everywhere”, there were many “drinking houses”, an inferior city park, which “consisted of thin trees, badly received, with props below, in the form of triangles, very beautifully painted green oil paint».
Gogol very easily notices ridiculous absurdities that are quite familiar to the local population, but visitors are very amused. What is the name of the store of caps and caps "Foreigner Vasily Fedorov" worth.
During his stay in this city, Chichikov devoted visits to high-ranking officials. For each of them, he found words of praise, saying that they are doing well with the city affairs entrusted to them. But Sobakevich, on the contrary, speaks of them very unflatteringly: “I know them all: they are all scammers, the whole city is like that: a scammer sits on a scammer and drives a scammer.” So where is the truth? The writer will help to understand this issue. Here is what he says about the bureaucracy of NN, in particular about the police chief: “The police chief was in a way a father and benefactor in the city. He was among the citizens just as in native family, and in shops and in gostiny dvor visited, as in his own pantry ... ". Yes, Gogol is ironic. And this irony hides his whole attitude towards officials as to an estate: they are “more or less enlightened: some have read Karamzin, some have read Moskovskie Vedomosti, some have even read nothing at all.”
The behavior of the ladies in this city is also quite remarkable. They tried to imitate the representatives of the Petersburg aristocracy and behaved very carefully and decently. Instead of saying "I blew my nose," they said, "I relieved my nose."
Gogol in Dead Souls, in fact, as in The Inspector General, showed the empty and worthless life of the provincial officials of that time. Having the opportunity and power to improve the state of affairs in society, they spend their time on card games, banquets at public expense, gossip and intrigue. They shamelessly steal and take bribes. And how could it be otherwise, if the chief of police, who is the guardian of law and order, steals himself ... I think that officials, as well as landowners, can reasonably be "attached" to the class of "dead souls" of Russian reality.
