The concept of Khlestakovism came to us from immortal comedy N.V. Gogol's The Inspector General, which was written in 1835. They say that the plot of the comedy was suggested to Gogol by A.S. Pushkin, telling him a comical incident that happened to some gentleman in the Novgorod province. Arriving at the county town, this gentleman began to pretend to be important official ministry and managed to rob almost all city dwellers. While working on the comedy, Gogol often wrote to Pushkin, informing him of the progress of writing. In January 1836, the play was finished and Gogol read it at the evening at the poet V.A. Zhukovsky, to which many writers were invited, among whom was A.S. Pushkin. After reading, the opinions of the writers differed, but Pushkin and Zhukovsky were delighted! Sam N.V. Gogol spoke about his comedy like this: “In The Inspector General I decided to put together everything bad in Russia ... and laugh at everything at once.” In the spring of 1836 in Petersburg, in Alexandrinsky theater, the premiere of the play took place, which was attended by Emperor Nicholas I himself. It was an explosion! Before that, there was nothing like it in Russian dramaturgy. No one goodie- some fools, liars, braggarts, bribe-takers and just useless people. The main character of the play N.V. Gogol called Khlestakov. So who is he, Ivan Alexandrovich Khlestakov, and why did his surname begin to be used as a common noun?
N.V. Gogol knew very well the class-bureaucratic orders of Nikolaev Russia and the life of petty Petersburg officials. With the insight inherent in a great artist, Gogol managed to create a collective and somewhat exaggerated image of a vulgar and worthless little man. Once passing through a district town, Khlestakov plays cards and is left penniless in his pocket. Having settled in the cheapest hotel, he thinks where to get money for lunch, because. he already owes a fair amount to the owner, and he refuses to feed him on credit. His situation is truly desperate. And at that very moment, city officials come to visit him, who mistook him for an auditor from St. Petersburg. At first, Khlestakov is surprised by such behavior of officials, but then, having entered the role, he himself begins to consider himself a "significant person". Under the influence of circumstances, he grows in his own eyes, so he lies more and more boldly. From a collegiate registrar who simply rewrites papers, in a matter of minutes he grows almost to a “field marshal”, who “goes to the palace every day” and “with Pushkin on a friendly footing”. At the reception at the mayor’s, his boasting takes on truly fantastic proportions: “thirty-five thousand one couriers” are looking for him through the streets, because there is no one else to manage the department, “soup in a saucepan came right on the ship from Paris” to him, and in his front “ counts and princes jostle." Khlestakov speaks and acts without any thought. His speech is broken and vulgar. It seems that the words fly out of his mouth completely unexpectedly. This is one of those people who are called empty, soap bubble, which swells to an incredible size, and then bursts overnight, as if it never existed. Since then, impudent, unrestrained, falsely frivolous boasting has been disparagingly called Khlestakovism.
The Khlestakovs have always been, at all times. But only after the release of The Inspector General, this phenomenon received a name, got into dictionaries. IN explanatory dictionary Russian language, edited by Ozhegov, we read: “Khlestakovism is shameless, unrestrained boasting.” So what is the essence of this vice? This phenomenon is tenacious and very many-sided. Khlestakovism is stupidity, spiritual emptiness, primitiveness, opportunism. Such people like to splurge, they want to seem more significant than they really are. These are braggarts, braggarts and fanfarons. Probably, we are all sometimes whiplash, because we so want to seem more significant, to grow in our own eyes. Gogol himself wrote: “Everyone, even for a minute ... has become or is becoming a whiplash ... In a word, rarely will anyone not be at least once in their life ...”
Comedy NV Gogol's The Inspector General had a huge impact on Russian society that time. The emperor himself, after watching, said: “Well, the play! Everyone got it, but I got it more than everyone! ” More than a century and a half has passed since then, and the Khlestakovs still exist today, this concept has not become archaic, which means that the comedy of the great writer is still relevant today.
The concept of Khlestakovism came to us from the immortal comedy by N.V. Gogol's The Inspector General, which was written in 1835. The author himself spoke of his comedy as follows: “In The Government Inspector, I decided to put together everything bad in Russia ... and laugh at everything at once.” central character plays by N.V. Gogol called Khlestakov. So who is he, Ivan Alexandrovich Khlestakov, and why did his surname begin to be used as a common noun?
N.V. Gogol managed to create a collective and somewhat exaggerated image of a vulgar and worthless little man. Once passing through a district town, Khlestakov plays cards and is left penniless in his pocket. City officials take him for an auditor from St. Petersburg. At first, Khlestakov is surprised by their behavior, but then, having entered the role, he himself begins to consider himself a "significant person." Under the influence of circumstances, he grows in his own eyes, so he lies more and more boldly (the author uses the grotesque technique when creating the image of the hero). From a collegiate registrar who simply rewrites papers, in a matter of minutes he grows almost to a "field marshal", who "goes to the palace every day" and "on a friendly footing with Pushkin." At the reception at the mayor’s, his boasting takes on truly fantastic proportions: “thirty-five thousand one couriers” are looking for him through the streets, because there is no one else to manage the department, “soup in a saucepan came straight from Paris right on the ship”, and in the front he has “ counts and princes jostle." Khlestakov speaks and acts without any thought. His speech is broken and vulgar.
It seems that the words fly out of his mouth completely unexpectedly. This is one of those people who are called empty, a soap bubble that inflates to an incredible size, and then bursts overnight, as if it never existed. (This is how the author himself characterizes Khlestakov “for the gentlemen of the actors”).Since then, impudent, unrestrained, falsely frivolous boasting has been disparagingly called Khlestakovism. The Khlestakovs have always been, at all times. But only after the release of The Inspector General, this phenomenon received a name, got into dictionaries. In the Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language, edited by Ozhegov, we read: “Khlestakovism is shameless, unbridled boasting.” So what is the essence of this vice? This phenomenon is tenacious and very many-sided. Khlestakovism is stupidity, spiritual emptiness, primitiveness, opportunism. Such people like to splurge, they want to seem more significant than they really are. These are braggarts, braggarts and fanfarons. Probably, we are all sometimes whiplash, because we so want to seem more significant, to grow in our own eyes. Gogol wrote: “Everyone, even for a minute ... has become or is becoming a whiplash ... In a word, rarely will anyone not be at least once in their life ...”
Comedy NV Gogol's The Inspector General had a huge impact on Russian society of that time. More than a century and a half has passed since then, and the Khlestakovs still exist today, this concept has not become archaic, which means that the comedy of the great writer is still relevant today.
The comedy "Inspector General" in 1836 made a lot of noise in society. The spring of that year gave the audience a true masterpiece. Despite the fact that almost 170 years have passed since that time, comedy has not lost its sharpness and relevance today.
Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol noted that Khlestakov is the most complex character plays. In remarks to the actor who played this role, Gogol carefully reveals the character of this character. Khlestakov found himself in the role of auditor absolutely by accident and does all his accomplishments in the county town unintentionally. Khlestakov played his part superbly, and only towards the middle fourth act he realized that he was mistaken for several " statesman', but he was not at all surprised or puzzled.
Khlestakov's behavior amazes all county officials. He seems to them very crafty and sneaky. It is not surprising that it didn’t even occur to anyone that Khlestakov was just a hopeless deceiver, he played so brilliantly in these situations. You can imagine how hard it was theater actor, who first played the role of Khlestakov.
Khlestakov is inherently not so cruel and evil person. In itself, he is harmless, and those around him can make anything out of him: even incognito from St. Petersburg, traveling with a secret order, even a miserable city official. Khlestakov hardly thinks about the past or the future, he is only concerned about the present minute. He is a great actor, so he easily reincarnates, changing his denunciations. This character makes an indelible impression. The arrival of the inspector of district officials, on the one hand, frightened, on the other, delighted. Khlestakov, in their opinion, was not like a man who could ruthlessly punish the guilty ^
N.V. Gogol was well versed in the life of petty Petersburg officials, which allowed him to give in the image of Khlestakov a clear hyperbolic and collective type of a superficially educated braggart. Khlestakov is somewhat stupid and, as they say, without a king in his head. He speaks and acts without any consideration. He cannot stop his attention on any thought, so his speech is jerky and spontaneous. Khlestakov with delight uses ill-understood French words for the beauty of the syllable. S.P. Zalygin gave a description of this character: “Khlestakov is both stupid and pitiful at the same time, and crafty and naive at the same time, and perhaps this is the most important thing - he is both hyperbolic and real, even everyday.”
The comedy "Inspector General" seriously influenced Russian society. The surname Khlestakov began to be used as a common noun. And Khlestakovism began to be called any shameless, unbridled boasting. Gogol managed to get into the depths of the Russian national character, pulling out the image of a false auditor from there.
Gogol wrote: "Everyone, even for a minute, if not for several minutes, was or is being made by Khlestakov." The eradication of Khlestakovism in each of us is one of the main ways of self-improvement.
Rereading the classics
The comedy of Nikolai Vasilyevich was presented to the public in the distant 1836. Almost two centuries have passed since then, and several historical eras. But the situation and the characters depicted in this work have not gone away. As such a phenomenon as Khlestakovism, this is something phenomenal when a nonentity feels gifted to him by fate finest hour. And enjoys unexpected happiness. Gogol's comedy is still relevant. And not only because every year schoolchildren are offered to write essays on the topic of Khlestakovism?" The Inspector General contains the answer to this question. But simple try re-read this well-known school curriculum the work inevitably leads to the question of whether anything has changed in Russia over the years, except for the names of the positions of officials? Of course it has. The class of Russian bureaucracy has increased many times over, and its well-being has noticeably improved. Officials have become more confident in their complete impunity. And today they take bribes not only with greyhound puppies.
How was this comedy created?
It is generally accepted that the idea of this work was suggested to Gogol by Pushkin. But in the very plot of the comedy "The Government Inspector" there is nothing special. Such plot constructions based on the fact that a person is mistaken for what he really is not, there are more than enough in the world literature. But being transferred to reality Russian Empire, such an intrigue simply could not but affect the foundations of the state foundations existing in it. Contemporaries testify that the idea of "Inspector General" arose from Pushkin when he traveled around the Orenburg province, collecting materials about the uprising of Emelyan Pugachev. Some county officials mistook the poet for an inspector from the capital, traveling solely to collect information compromising them. Pushkin was in no hurry to dissuade them from this error.
With the highest approval
Everyone who was involved in the creation of this comedy could not help but understand that her stage fate would not be easy. Since it was impossible not to notice the fact that the Khlestakovism displayed in it is, among other things, also a dashing mockery of the state bureaucratic machine. The staging of this play on the stage became possible only after the personal appeal of Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky to the Sovereign Emperor. The poet managed to convince that the comedy is not directed against the foundations of the state, but only ridicules the stealing provincial officials. The sovereign allowed himself to be convinced that such a satire could not bring administrative system nothing but benefit. But before the audience, the work appeared in an abbreviated form.
Main character
Ivan Alexandrovich Khlestakov, an official from St. Petersburg, by chance turned out to be a very significant person. Of course, in the depths of his soul, he guesses that something is wrong here, and he, most likely, was confused with someone ... But what does it matter when everyone around him froze in front of him with a sense of sacred horror and awe? And the petty clerk from the capital's office swells like a soap bubble to incredible proportions. As a result, the reader and the viewer are presented with a clear answer to the question of what Khlestakovism is. This is a narcissistic nonentity who has reached the pinnacle of greatness in his understanding. But Ivan Alexandrovich is carried by a wave of inspiration, and he enters the role of an important person to such an extent that he himself believes that he was at the top not by chance. What is Khlestakovism? This is a phenomenon of loss of shores and detachment from reality. But at the same time, it is also a willingness to perceive any insolent rogue as an important state person.
Monologue
Most vividly in comedy, he tells about himself main character. He does it with self-denial and inspiration. To such an extent that he himself believes in the nonsense that frightened officials carry. Insignificance felt its power over the audience and in its monologue is revealed with maximum frankness. Khlestakov is not at all mediocre when he broadcasts about the imaginary significance and greatness of his person. So, among other things, Khlestakovism is also a poetic inspiration. Without this kind of drive and courage, the adventurer would simply not have taken place. The whole plot intrigue of Gogol's comedy is based on the fact that in a narrow place the inspired nonentity and the public interested in him converged. And they found a complete understanding.
Inhabitants of the county town
But no less than Ivan Alexandrovich Khlestakov, the officials of the provincial town endowed with power are also interesting. All of them, figuratively speaking, have a "stigma in a cannon." They all have good reason to be afraid of appearing in their jurisdiction. locality the mysterious "auditor". No answer to the question of what Khlestakovism is is impossible without this stealing bureaucracy. Without them, this phenomenon simply could not take place, and petty nonentities would never have been able to rise above them to the pinnacle of glory and success. The city authorities and the merchants, bearing bribes and offerings to him, are no less ridiculous than the "auditor" himself. With special expressiveness, the wife and daughter of the mayor are presented in the comedy. Anna Andreevna and Marya Antonovna compete for the attention of a visiting rogue. They do not need to be deceived, they themselves are happy to be deceived.
"The mayor is stupid, like a gray gelding..."
Homerically funny and at the same time a pitiful figure is the first administrative person of the county town Anton Antonovich Svoznik-Dmukhanovsky. This is despite the fact that it simply does not turn out to be stupid to call it stupid. On the contrary, he is very smart and calculated everything in advance. He has everything under control, intelligence and counterintelligence are correctly built up, he is notified of the approach of the incognito auditor to the city long before the visit, and he has the opportunity to prepare for this event. He made a mistake, like a sapper, only once. And with this mistake he provided several generations Russian schoolchildren exam papers on the topics "Inspector, Khlestakov and Khlestakovism". It is enough that in Anton Antonovich some provincial governors saw a hint of themselves and in every possible way prevented the production of Gogol's comedy "The Inspector General" in their cities. They had every reason to do so. Everything turned out to be very similar, down to small household details and a random coincidence of names and surnames.
silent scene
The scene, deafening in expressiveness, completes Gogol's Khlestakov and the Khlestakov region celebrated the victory, and the entire district authorities remained in complete fools. It seems that it could not be otherwise. But everything would have been as usual, if the mayor had not been mistaken about an incomprehensible guest in a city hotel. Where did the system crash occur? Is it random or regular? How did it happen that such an insignificant creature celebrated a triumph and departed with rich trophies in an unknown direction, and large group influential corrupt officials froze in a daze, unable to comprehend the scale of the catastrophe that has befallen them? These questions remain unanswered. One can only be sure that Ivan Alexandrovich Khlestakov will remember this with delight until the end of his days. strange adventure, and that small town where fate accidentally brought him. These were by far the best moments of his life.
Summing up
What did Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol want to convey to us with his comedy? Khlestakov and Khlestakovism as a phenomenon deserve a separate reflection on the background of the events described by the writer. How does it happen that such a quantity, at first glance, is completely stupid people falls under the influence of perfect insignificance? Khlestakovism is exclusively Russian phenomenon? Or did it flourish so brightly on Russian soil because of favorable circumstances for it? But a simple glance at the modern political sphere makes it clear that Khlestakovism is often at the basis of the success of many political leaders and lesser functionaries. To verify this, just turn on the TV. And more fun than in politics, things are only in what is called the vague definition of "show business". Gogol's Khlestakov would certainly have made a brilliant career in it.
What is Khlestakovism? (According to N. V. Gogol's comedy "The Inspector General") The appearance of the comedy "The Inspector General" in 1836 evoked an elevated, exciting feeling in society. This spring gave the audience a meeting with a real masterpiece. More than 160 years have passed since then, but the comedy "The Government Inspector" has not lost its relevance and its sound today. You don't have to look far for examples. Let's remember bad guys popular "police" serials than not the heroes of Gogol, who only became more cold-blooded and cruel Gogol himself noted that Khlestakov is the most difficult image in the play. In the recommendations for the actor who played this role, Gogol quite deeply reveals the nature of this character. Khlestakov accomplished all his exploits in the county town absolutely unintentionally. Khlestakov can be compared with a ballet dancer moving through the space of the play, he enlivens the course of the whole action, acts as a real engine plot development comedy. Khlestakov brilliantly played the role of an auditor in front of county officials, only by the middle of the fourth act did he begin to realize that he was being mistaken for a somewhat "statesman". What the false auditor feels at the same time It seems nothing. Khlestakov's behavior amazes all the officials of the county town. In their opinion, the auditor is very cunning and dodgy and you need to keep your eyes open with him. It is characteristic that it never occurred to anyone that Khlestakov was just a desperate liar. In each of the created situations, he behaves like a brilliant actor. One can imagine how difficult it was for the theater actor, who for the first time played the role of Khlestakov, the actor playing the auditor. Khlestakov should not be regarded as evil or cruel man. By itself, he is completely harmless, and those around him can make anything out of him, even incognito from St. Petersburg, and even with a secret order, even an insignificant metropolitan official. The originality of the character, more precisely, the lack of Khlestakov's character lies in the fact that he has practically no memory of the past and reflection on the future. Khlestakov is focused on the present minute, and within this minute he is able to achieve the highest artistry. He changes his appearance with ease and even some grace. Among county officials completely written off from life, this one is absolutely fictional character makes an unforgettable impression. Probably, one can say that for county officials such terrible event, like the arrival of an auditor from the capital, it was like a kind of holiday, eerie, but interesting. Khlestakov is terrible to them and arouses their admiration by the fact that he does not at all look like a person capable of cruelly punishing the guilty. Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol was well aware of the life of the petty Petersburg officials, "which allowed him to give in the image of Khlestakov an exaggerated and collective type of superficially educated fanfaron. Khlestakov gladly uses for the beauty of the syllable French words picked up from someone and misunderstood, clichés of the then fiction. At the same time, vulgar expressions are also found in Khlestakov's speech. Gogol made Khlestakov's remarks abrupt, this character is spiritually poor and completely incapable of stopping his attention on anything. Gogol's contemporary Apollon Grigoriev characterized this character "Khlestakov, like a soap bubble, inflates under the influence of favorable circumstances, grows in his own eyes and in the eyes of officials, becomes bolder and bolder in boasting ..." The influence of the comedy "Inspector General" on Russian society was enormous . The surname Khlestakov began to be used as a common noun. And Khlestakovism began to be called any unbridled phrase-mongering, lies, shameless boasting, combined with extreme frivolity. Gogol managed to penetrate into the very depths of the Russian national character, extracting from there the image of the false auditor Khlestakov. According to the author of the immortal comedy, every Russian person, even for a minute, becomes Khlestakov, regardless of his social position, age, education and so on.
