Article menu:
Gogol's poem Dead Souls is not devoid of a significant number of characters. All heroes, according to their importance and time interval of action in the poem, can be divided into three categories: main, secondary and tertiary.
The main characters of Dead Souls
As a rule, in poems, the number of main characters is small. The same trend is observed in the work of Gogol.
Chichikov
The image of Chichikov is undoubtedly the key in the poem. It is thanks to this image that the episodes of the narrative are connected.
Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov is distinguished by his dishonesty and hypocrisy. His desire to get rich fraudulently is discouraged.
On the one hand, the reasons for this behavior can be explained by the pressure of society and the priorities acting in it - a rich and dishonest person is held in higher esteem than an honest and decent poor person. Since no one wants to drag out their existence in poverty, the financial issue and the problem of improving their material resources is always relevant and often borders on the norms of morality and decency, which many are ready to cross.
The same situation happened with Chichikov. He, being a simple person by birth, was actually deprived of the opportunity to put together his fortune in an honest way, so he solved the problem with the help of ingenuity, ingenuity and deception. The covetousness of "dead souls" as an idea is a hymn to his mind, but at the same time denounces the dishonorable nature of the hero.
Manilov
Manilov became the first landowner to whom Chichikov came to buy showers. The image of this landowner is ambiguous. On the one hand, he creates a pleasant impression - Manilov is a pleasant and well-mannered person, but we immediately note that he is apathetic and lazy.
Manilov is a person who always adjusts to circumstances and never expresses his real opinion on this or that occasion - Manilov takes the most advantageous side.
Box
The image of this landowner, perhaps, is perceived as a whole as positive and pleasant. The box does not differ in intelligence, she is a stupid and, to some extent, uneducated woman, but at the same time she was able to successfully realize herself as a landowner, which significantly elevates her perception in general.
Korobochka is too simple - to some extent her habits and habits resemble the lifestyle of peasants, which does not impress Chichikov, who strives for aristocrats and life in high society, but allows Korobochka to live quite happily and develop his economy quite successfully.
Nozdrev
Nozdryov, to whom Chichikov comes, after Korobochka, is perceived quite differently. And this is not surprising: it seems that Nozdryov could not fully realize himself in any area of \u200b\u200bactivity. Nozdryov is a bad father who neglects communication with children and their upbringing. He is a bad landowner - Nozdryov does not take care of his estate, but only drains all the means. The life of Nozdryov is the life of a person who prefers drinking, walking, cards, women and dogs.
Sobakevich
This landowner is controversial. On the one hand, he is a rude, peasant person, but on the other hand, this simplicity allows him to live quite successfully - all the buildings in his estate, including the houses of the peasants, are made conscientiously - you will not find something leaky anywhere, his peasants are well fed and quite satisfied ... Sobakevich himself often works together with the peasants on an equal footing and does not see anything unusual in this.
Plyushkin
The image of this landowner, perhaps, is perceived as the most negative - he is a mean and evil old man. Plyushkin outwardly looks like a beggar, since his clothes are incredibly leaky, his house looks like ruins, as well as the houses of his peasants.
Plyushkin lives unusually economically, but he does it not because there is a need for it, but because of a feeling of greed - he is ready to throw away the spoiled thing, but only not to use it for good. That is why fabric and food rot in his warehouses, but at the same time his serfs go head and torn.
Secondary heroes
There are not many secondary characters in Gogol's story either. In fact, all of them can be characterized as significant figures of the county, whose activities are not associated with landowners.
Governor and his family
This is perhaps one of the most important people in the county. In theory, he should be shrewd, smart and judicious. However, in practice, everything turned out to be not quite so. The governor was a kind and pleasant man, but he was not distinguished by foresight.
His wife was also a sweet woman, but her excessive coquetry spoiled the whole picture. The governor's daughter was a typical cutesy girl, although she was outwardly very different from the generally accepted standard - the girl was not plump, as was customary, but was slender and sweet.
That is true, due to her age, she was too naive and trusting.
The prosecutor
The image of the prosecutor defies much description. According to Sobakevich, he was the only decent person, although, to be completely honest, he was still a “pig”. Sobakevich does not explain this characteristic in any way, which makes it difficult to understand his image. In addition, we know that the prosecutor was a very impressionable person - when Chichikov's deception was revealed, due to excessive excitement, he dies.
President of the Chamber
Ivan Grigorievich, who was the chairman of the chamber, was a nice and well-mannered man.
Chichikov noted that he was very educated, unlike most of the important people in the district. However, his education does not always make a person wise and far-sighted.
This happened in the case of the chairman of the chamber, who could easily quote works of literature, but at the same time could not discern Chichikov's deception and even helped him to issue documents for dead souls.
Chief of Police
Alexei Ivanovich, who served as chief of police, seemed to have merged with his work. Gogol says that he was ideally able to comprehend all the subtleties of work and it was already difficult to imagine him in any other position. Alexey Ivanovich comes to any shop as to his home and can take whatever his heart desires. Despite such impudent behavior, he did not arouse indignation among the townspeople - Alexey Ivanovich knows how to successfully get out of the situation and smooth out the unpleasant impression of extortions. So, for example, he invites to visit for tea, play checkers or watch a trotter.
We propose to follow in the poem of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol "Dead Souls".
Such proposals are not made by the chief of police spontaneously - Alexey Ivanovich knows how to find a weak spot in a person and uses this knowledge. So, for example, having learned that the merchant has a passion for card games, he immediately invites the merchant to play.
Episodic and tertiary heroes of the poem
Selifan
Selifan is Chichikov's coachman. Like most ordinary people, he is uneducated and stupid. Selifan devotedly serves his master. Typical of all serfs, he likes to drink and is often absent-minded.
Parsley
Petrushka is the second serf subordinate to Chichikov. He serves as a footman. Petrushka loves to read books, however, he does not understand much from what he read, but this does not prevent him from enjoying the process itself. Parsley often neglects the rules of hygiene and therefore it emanates an incomprehensible smell.
Mizuev
Mizhuev is Nozdryov's son-in-law. Mizuev is not distinguished by prudence. In essence, he is a harmless person, but he loves to drink very much, which significantly spoils his image.
Feodulia Ivanovna
Feodulia Ivanovna - Sobakevich's wife. She is a simple woman and with her habits she resembles a peasant woman. Although, it cannot be said that the behavior of aristocrats is completely alien to her - some elements are still present in her arsenal.
We invite you to familiarize yourself with in Nikolai Gogol's poem "Dead Souls"
Thus, in the poem, Gogol presents the reader with a wide system of images. And, although most of them are collective images and in their structure are images of characteristic types of individuals in society, they still arouse the interest of the reader.
To the reader from the writer
Whoever you are, my reader, no matter where you stand, no matter what rank you are in, whether you are honored by the highest rank or a person of a simple class, but if God taught you to read and write and my book has already fallen into your hands, I ask help me. The book in front of you, which you have probably already read in its first edition, depicts a person taken from our own state. He travels across our Russian land, meets people of all classes, from noble to simple. It is taken more in order to show the shortcomings and vices of the Russian person, and not his merits and virtues, and all the people who surround him are also taken in order to show our weaknesses and shortcomings; the best people and characters will be in other parts. In this book, much is described incorrectly, not the way it is and how it really happens in the Russian land, because I could not learn everything: a person's life is not enough to learn one and a hundredth part of what is happening in our land. Moreover, from my own oversight, immaturity and haste there have been many all sorts of mistakes and blunders, so that on every page there is something to correct: I ask you, reader, to correct me. Do not neglect such a matter. No matter how high education and high life you are, and no matter how insignificant my book may seem in your eyes, and no matter how minor it seems to you to correct it and write comments on it, I ask you to do it. And you, a reader of low education and a simple rank, do not consider yourself so ignorant that you cannot teach me anything. Anyone who has lived and seen the light and met people has noticed something that another has not noticed, and has learned something that others do not know. Therefore, do not deprive me of your remarks: it cannot be that you will not find something to say in some place in the whole book, if you only read it carefully. How nice, for example, it would be if at least one of those who are rich in experience and knowledge of life and know the circle of those people whom I have described, took notes all over the book, without missing a single sheet of it, and began to read it is nothing other than taking a pen in my hands and putting a sheet of letter paper in front of me, and after reading several pages, I would remember my whole life and all the people I met, and all the incidents that happened before his eyes, and everything that I saw himself or what he heard from others similar to what is depicted in my book, or the opposite, he would describe all this in the exact form in which it appeared to his memory, and would send every sheet to me as he is finished until the whole book is read to them in this way. What a big deal he would do me! There is nothing to worry about the syllable or the beauty of the expressions; the thing is business and in the truth deeds, not syllables. He also has nothing to do in front of me if he wanted to reproach me, or scold me, or point out to me the harm that I have done in place of benefit by a thoughtless and incorrect depiction of anything. For everything I will be grateful to him. It would also be nice if someone was found from the upper class, distant by everything and life itself and education from the circle of people that is depicted in my book, but who knows the life of the class in which he lives, and would decide to read again in the same way my book and mentally recall to myself all the people of the upper class, whom I have met in my entire life, and consider carefully whether there is any kind of rapprochement between these classes and is not the same thing sometimes repeated in the higher circle that is done in the lower? and everything that comes to his mind about this, that is, any event of the upper circle serving to confirm or refute this, would describe how it happened before his eyes, not letting in any people with their morals, inclinations and habits, nor the soulless things that surround them, from clothes to furniture and the walls of the houses in which they live. I need to know this class, which is the color of the people. I cannot give out the last volumes of my work until I somehow know Russian life from all its sides, although to the extent that I need to know it for my work. It is also not bad if someone who is endowed with the ability to imagine or vividly imagine different situations of people and pursue them mentally in different fields - in a word, who is able to delve into the thought of every author he reads or develop it, would closely follow every face deduced in my book, and would tell me how it should act in such and such cases, what, judging by the beginning, should happen to him further, what new circumstances may appear to him, and what would be good to add to what is already I described; All this I would like to take into consideration by the time when a new publication of this book follows, in a different and better form. One thing I ask strongly of the one who would like to endow me with his comments: not to think at this time how he will write, that he writes them for a person equal to him in education, who has the same tastes and thoughts and can already realize a lot himself no explanation; but instead of imagining that in front of him stands a man incomparably inferior in his education, having hardly learned anything. Better even if, instead of me, he imagines some village savage, whom his whole life has passed in the wilderness, with whom he must enter into a detailed explanation of every circumstance and be simple in speech, as with a child, fearing every minute so as not to use expressions from above him concepts. If this is constantly borne in mind by someone who begins to make comments on my book, then his comments will come out more significant and curious than he himself thinks, and they will bring true benefit to me. So, if it happened that my heartfelt request would be respected by my readers and there would be really such kind souls among them who would want to do everything the way I want, then this is how they can send their comments: having made a package first to my name, then wrap it up in another bag, or in the name of the rector of St. Petersburg University, His Excellency Pyotr Alexandrovich Pletnev, addressing directly to St. Petersburg University, or in the name of the professor of Moscow University, his honor Stepan Petrovich Shevyrev, addressing Moscow University, depending on which city is closer to whom. And to all, both journalists and writers in general, thanks sincerely for all their previous reviews about my book, which, despite some immoderation and hobbies inherent in man, have brought, however, great benefits to both my head and my soul, please do not leave me with your remarks this time. I assure you sincerely that whatever they say to my admonition or my teaching will be accepted by me with gratitude.February 24, 1852 Nikolay Gogol burned the second, final edition of the second volume of Dead Souls, the main work in his life (he also destroyed the first edition seven years earlier). It was Great Lent, the writer practically did not eat anything, and the only person to whom he gave his manuscript to read, called the novel "harmful" and advised to destroy a number of chapters from there. The author threw the entire manuscript into the fire at once. And the next morning, realizing what he had done, he regretted his impulse, but it was too late.
But the first few chapters from the second volume are still familiar to readers. A couple of months after Gogol's death, his draft manuscripts were discovered, including four chapters to the second book of Dead Souls. AiF.ru tells the story of both volumes of one of the most famous Russian books.
The title page of the first edition of 1842 and the title page of the second edition of Dead Souls in 1846, based on a sketch by Nikolai Gogol. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
Thanks to Alexander Sergeevich!
In fact, the plot of "Dead Souls" does not belong to Gogol at all: he suggested an interesting idea to his "pen colleague" Alexander Pushkin... During his exile in Chisinau, the poet heard a “strange” story: it turned out that in one place on the Dniester, judging by the official documents, no one had died for several years. There was no mysticism in this: the names of the dead were simply assigned to fugitive peasants who, in search of a better life, ended up on the Dniester. So it turned out that the city received an influx of new labor, the peasants had a chance for a new life (and the police could not even figure out the fugitives), and statistics showed no deaths.
Having slightly modified this plot, Pushkin told it to Gogol - it happened, most likely, in the fall of 1831. And four years later, on October 7, 1835, Nikolai Vasilievich sent a letter to Alexander Sergeevich with the following words: “He began writing Dead Souls. The plot stretched out into a pre-long romance and, it seems, will be very funny. " The main character of Gogol was an adventurer who pretends to be a landowner and buys up dead peasants who are still listed as living in the census. And he puts the received “souls” in a pawnshop, trying to get rich.
Three circles of Chichikov
Gogol decided to make his poem (and this is how the author defined the genre of "Dead Souls") in three parts - in this the work resembles "Divine Comedy" Dante Alighieri... In Dante's medieval poem, the hero travels through the afterlife: he goes through all the circles of hell, passes purgatory and in the end, enlightened, goes to heaven. Gogol's plot and structure are conceived in a similar way: the main character, Chichikov, travels around Russia, observing the vices of the landowners, and gradually changes himself. If in the first volume Chichikov appears as a clever schemer who is able to get into the trust of any person, then in the second he gets caught in a scam with another's inheritance and almost goes to jail. Most likely, the author assumed that in the final part of his character he would end up in Siberia along with several more characters, and, having gone through a series of trials, all together they would become honest people, role models.
But Gogol did not begin to write the third volume, and the content of the second can be guessed only from the four surviving chapters. Moreover, these records are working and incomplete, and the characters "differ" in names and ages.
"Sacred Testament" of Pushkin
In total, Gogol wrote the first volume of Dead Souls (the same one that we know so well now) for six years. The work began at home, then continued abroad (the writer "drove off" there in the summer of 1836) - by the way, the writer read the first chapters to his "inspirer" Pushkin just before leaving. The author worked on the poem in Switzerland, France and Italy. Then, in short "raids" he returned to Russia, read excerpts from the manuscript at secular evenings in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and again went abroad. In 1837, Gogol was struck by the news that shocked him: Pushkin was killed in a duel. The writer considered that now it was his duty to finish Dead Souls: by doing so, he would fulfill the poet's “sacred testament”, and he set to work even harder.
By the summer of 1841, the book was finished. The author came to Moscow planning to publish the work, but faced serious difficulties. The Moscow censorship did not want to let Dead Souls through and was going to ban the poem for publication. Apparently, the censor, who "got" the manuscript, helped Gogol and warned him about the problem, so that the writer managed to transport Dead Souls through Vissarion Belinsky (literary critic and publicist) from Moscow to the capital - St. Petersburg. At the same time, the author asked Belinsky and several of his influential friends in the capital to help pass the censorship. And the plan succeeded: the book was allowed. In 1842, the work finally came out - then it was called "The Adventures of Chichikov, or Dead Souls, a poem by N. Gogol."
Illustration by Pyotr Sokolov for Nikolai Gogol's poem "Dead Souls". "Arrival of Chichikov to Plyushkin." 1952 year. Reproduction. Photo: RIA Novosti / Ozersky
First edition of the second volume
It is impossible to say for sure exactly when the author started writing the second volume - presumably, it happened in 1840, even before the first part was published. It is known that Gogol worked on the manuscript again in Europe, and in 1845, during a mental crisis, he threw all the sheets into the oven - this was the first time he destroyed the manuscript of the second volume. Then the author decided that his calling was to serve God in the literary field, and came to the conclusion that he was chosen in order to create a great masterpiece. As Gogol wrote to his friends while working on Dead Souls: “... a sin, a grave sin, a grave sin to distract me! Only one unbelieving words of mine and inaccessible thoughts of the lofty are allowed to do this. My labor is great, my feat is salutary. I have died now for everything petty. "
According to the author himself, after the burning of the manuscript of the second volume, an inspiration came to him. He understood what the content of the book really should be: more sublime and "enlightened". And the inspired Gogol proceeded to the second edition.
| Character illustrations that have become classic | |||
| Works by Alexander Agin for the first volume | |||
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Nozdryov | Sobakevich | Plyushkin | Ladies |
| Works by Pyotr Boklevsky for the first volume | |||
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Nozdryov | Sobakevich | Plyushkin | Manilov |
| Works by Pyotr Boklevsky and I. Mankovsky for the second volume | |||
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Peter the Rooster |
Tentetnikov |
General Betrishchev |
Alexander Petrovich |
"Now everything is gone." Second edition of the second volume
When the next, already the second manuscript of the second volume was ready, the writer persuaded his spiritual teacher, archpriest Matthew Konstantinovsky read it - the priest was just visiting at that time in Moscow, in the house of his friend Gogol. At first, Matthew refused, but after reading the editorial board, he advised to delete several chapters from the book and never publish them. A few days later, the archpriest left, and the writer practically stopped eating - and this happened 5 days before the beginning of Lent.
Portrait of Nikolai Gogol for his mother, painted by Fyodor Moller in 1841, in Rome.
According to legend, on the night of February 23-24, Gogol woke up his servant of Semyon, told him to open the stove valves and bring the briefcase in which the manuscripts were kept. The writer answered the pleas of the frightened servant: “It's none of your business! Pray! " - and set fire to his notebooks in the fireplace. No one living today can know what then moved the author: dissatisfaction with the second volume, disappointment or psychological stress. As the writer himself later explained, he destroyed the book by mistake: “I wanted to burn some things that had been prepared long ago, but I burned everything. How the evil one is strong - that's what he pushed me to! And I was there, I figured out a lot and expounded ... I thought of sending it to friends from a notebook: let them do what they wanted. Now everything is gone. "
After that fateful night, the classic lived for nine days. He died in a state of severe exhaustion and exhaustion, but to the last he refused to take food. Sorting through his archives, a couple of Gogol's friends, in the presence of the Moscow civil governor, found the draft chapters of the second volume a couple of months later. He did not even have time to start the third one ... Now, 162 years later, Dead Souls are still read, and the work is considered a classic not only of Russian, but of all world literature.
"Dead Souls" in ten quotes
“Rus, where are you rushing? Give an answer. Doesn't give an answer. "
"And what Russian doesn't like driving fast?"
“There is only one decent person there: the prosecutor; and that, if you tell the truth, is a pig. "
"Love us black, and everyone will love us white."
“Eh, Russian people! Doesn't like to die a natural death! "
"There are people who have a passion to spoil their neighbor, sometimes for no reason at all."
"Often tears invisible to the world flow through the laughter visible to the world."
“Nozdryov was in some respects a historical person. Not a single meeting he attended was complete without history. "
"It is very dangerous to look deeper into the hearts of women."
"Fear is more sticky than the plague."
Illustration by Pyotr Sokolov for Nikolai Gogol's poem "Dead Souls". "Chichikov at Plyushkin's." 1952 year. Reproduction. Photo: RIA Novosti / Ozersky
We can say that the poem "Dead Souls" was the work of the life of N. V. Gogol. Indeed, out of twenty-three years of his writing biography, he devoted seventeen years to work on this work.
The history of the creation of "Dead Souls" is inextricably linked with the name of Pushkin. In The Author's Confession, Gogol recalled that Alexander Sergeevich had repeatedly pushed him to write a large, large-scale work. The poet's story about the incident he heard in Chisinau during his exile was decisive. He always remembered about him, but he told Nikolai Vasilyevich only a decade and a half after what happened. So, the history of the creation of "Dead Souls" is based on the real adventures of an adventurer who bought up long-dead serfs from landowners in order to lay them, as if alive, in the Board of Trustees to receive a considerable loan.
In fact, in real life, the invention of the main character of Chichikov's poem was not so rare. In those years, this kind of fraud was even widespread. It is quite possible that in the Mirgorod district itself there was a case with the purchase of the dead. One thing is clear: the history of the creation of "Dead Souls" is connected not with one such event, but with several, which the writer skillfully summarized.
Chichikov's adventure is the core of the story. The slightest details of it look reliable, as they are taken from real life. The possibility of such adventures was due to the fact that until the beginning of the 18th century, peasants were considered in the country not without exception, but by households. And only in 1718 a decree was issued to conduct a poll census, as a result of which all male serfs, starting with babies, began to be taxed. Their number was recounted every fifteen years. If some peasants died, fled, or were recruited, the landowner had to pay taxes for them until the next census, or divide them among the remaining workers. Naturally, any owner dreamed of getting rid of the so-called dead souls and easily fell into the net of an adventurer.
These were the real prerequisites for writing the work.
The history of the creation of the poem "Dead Souls" on paper begins in 1835. Gogol began work on it a little earlier than on The Inspector General. However, at first he was not too carried away by it, because after writing three chapters, he returned to comedy. And only after finishing it and returning from abroad, Nikolai Vasilyevich took up Dead Souls seriously.
With each step, with each written word, the new work seemed to him more grandiose and more ambitious. Gogol remakes the first chapters anew and, in general, rewrites the finished pages many times. For three years in Rome, he leads the life of a recluse, allowing himself only to undergo treatment in Germany and a little rest in Paris or Geneva. In 1839, Gogol was forced to leave Italy for eight long months, and with it, work on the poem. Upon returning to Rome, he continued to work on it and completed it within a year. The only thing left for the writer is to polish the composition. Gogol took Dead Souls to Russia in 1841 with the intention of printing them there.
In Moscow, the result of his six years of work was taken up by a censorship committee, whose members showed hostility towards him. Then Gogol took his manuscript and turned to Belinsky, who was just visiting Moscow, asking him to take the work with him to Petersburg and help him get through the censorship. The critic agreed to help.
Censorship in St. Petersburg was less strict and, after long delays, still allowed the book to be published. True, with some conditions: to amend the title of the poem, the "Tale of Captain Kopeikin" and thirty-six more dubious passages.
The long-suffering work finally came out of print in the spring of 1842. This is a brief history of the creation of Dead Souls.
In the poem "Dead Souls" Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol was able to depict the numerous vices of his contemporary. He raised questions that retained their relevance still. After reviewing the summary of the poem, the main character, the reader will be able to find out the plot and the main idea, as well as how many volumes the author managed to write.
In contact with
The author's intention
In 1835, Gogol began work on the poem Dead Souls. In the annotation to the poem, the author states that storyline of the future masterpiece was donated by A.S. Pushkin. The idea of \u200b\u200bNikolai Vasilyevich was huge, it was planned to create a three-part poem.
- The first volume was supposed to be made mainly accusatory in order to reveal the painful places of Russian life, to study them, to explain the reasons for their occurrence. In other words, Gogol portrays the souls of the heroes and names the cause of their spiritual death.
- In the second volume, the author intended to continue creating a gallery of "dead souls" and, first of all, to draw attention to the problems of consciousness of the heroes who begin to understand the full extent of their fall and grope for ways out of the state of necrosis.
- It was decided to devote the third volume to the depiction of the difficult process of spiritual resurrection.
The concept of the first volume of the poem was fully implemented.
The third volume has not even begun, but researchers can judge its content from the book "Selected Passages from Correspondence with Friends", dedicated to intimate thoughts about the ways of transforming Russia and the resurrection of human souls.
Traditionally, the first volume of Dead Souls is studied at school as an independent work.
Genre of the work
Gogol, as you know, in the annotation to the book called Dead Souls a poem, although in the process of work he defined the genre of the work in different ways. For a genius writer, adherence to genre canons is not an end in itself, the author's creative thought should not be constrained by no framesand, and soar freely.
Moreover, artistic genius always goes beyond the genre and creates something original. A letter has survived, where in one sentence Gogol three times defines the genre of the work on which he is working, calling it in turn a novel, a story and, finally, a poem.
The specificity of the genre is associated with the author's lyrical digressions and the desire to show the national element of Russian life. Contemporaries have repeatedly compared Gogol's work with Homer's Iliad.
The plot of the poem
We offer summary by chapter... First comes the annotation to the poem, where, with some irony, the author wrote an appeal to the readers: to read the work as carefully as possible, and then send your comments and questions.
Chapter 1
The action of the poem develops in small county townwhere the main character, Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, arrives.
He travels accompanied by his servants Petrushka and Selifan, who will play an important role in the story.
Upon arrival at the hotel, Chichikov went to the tavern to find out information about the most important people in the city, here he makes acquaintance with Manilov and Sobakevich.
After lunch, Pavel Ivanovich walks around the city and makes several important visits: he meets the governor, the vice-governor, the prosecutor, the chief of police. A new acquaintance disposes of everyone, therefore he receives many invitations to social events and home evenings.
Chapter 2
The second chapter details servants of Chichikov... Parsley is distinguished by a silent disposition, a peculiar smell and a passion for superficial reading. He looked through the books without delving into their content. The coachman Chichikova Selifan, according to the author, did not deserve a separate story, since he had a very low origin.
Further events develop as follows. Chichikov goes out of town to visit the landowner Manilov. With difficulty he finds his estate. The first impression that formed when looking at the owner of Manilovka, almost everyone was positive... At first it seemed that he was a nice and kind person, but then it became obvious that he had no character, his own tastes and interests. This undoubtedly had a repulsive effect on others. There was a feeling that in Manilov's house time had stopped, flowing languidly and slowly. The wife was a match for her husband: she was not interested in the economy, considering this business not mandatory.
The guest announces the true purpose of his visit, asks a new acquaintance to sell him peasants who have died, but are listed as alive according to the papers. Manilov is discouraged by his request, but agrees to the deal.
Chapter 3
On the way to Sobakevich, the main character's carriage goes astray. To wait out the bad weatherthat is, Chichikov asks for the night to the landowner Korobochka, who opened the door only after she heard that the guest has a title of nobility. Nastasya Filippovna was very thrifty and thrifty, one of those who would not do anything for nothing. Our hero had to conduct a long conversation with her about the sale of dead souls. The hostess did not agree for a long time, but eventually gave up. Pavel Ivanovich was greatly relieved that the conversation with Korobochka was over, and continued on his way.
Chapter 4
On the way, he comes across a tavern, and Chichikov decides to dine there, the hero is famous for his excellent appetite. Here a meeting with an old acquaintance Nozdryov took place. He was a noisy and scandalous person, constantly getting into unpleasant stories because of characteristics of their character: constantly lied and cheated. But since Nozdryov is of great interest for the case, Pavel Ivanovich accepts the invitation to visit the estate.
While visiting his noisy comrade, Chichikov starts a conversation about dead souls. Nozdryov is stubborn, but agrees to sell papers for dead peasants along with a dog or a horse.
The next morning, Nozdryov offers to play checkers for dead souls, but both heroes try to deceive each other, so the game ends in a scandal. At that moment, the police chief came to Nozdryov to inform him that a case was opened against him for beating. Chichikov, taking advantage of the moment, hides from the estate.
Chapter 5
On the way to Sobakevich, Pavel Ivanovich's carriage falls into a small traffic accident, the image of a girl from a carriage moving towards him sinks into his heart.
Sobakevich's house is striking in its resemblance to the owner. All interior items are huge and ridiculous.
The image of the owner in the poem is very interesting. The landowner begins to bargain, trying to bail out more for the dead peasants. After this visit, Chichikov has an unpleasant aftertaste. This chapter characterizes the image of Sobakevich in the poem.
Chapter 6
From this chapter, the reader will learn the name of the landowner Plyushkin, since the next person Pavel Ivanovich visits was he. The landlord's village could well live richly, if not for the huge avarice of the owner. He gave a strange impression: at first glance, it was difficult to determine even the gender of this creature in rags. Plyushkin sells a large number of showers to an enterprising guest, and he returns to the hotel, satisfied.
Chapter 7
Having already about four hundred souls, Pavel Ivanovich is in high spirits and seeks to finish business in this city as soon as possible. Goes with Manilov to the Court of Justice to finally certify his acquisitions. In court, the consideration of the case drags on very slowly, they extort a bribe from Chichikov in order to speed up the process. Sobakevich appears, who helps to convince everyone of the legitimacy of the plaintiff.
Chapter 8
A large number of souls acquired from landowners give the main character a huge weight in society. Everyone starts to please him, some ladies imagine themselves in love with him, one sends him a love message.
At the Governor's Reception Chichikov is introduced to his daughter, in whom he recognizes the very girl who captured him during the accident. Nozdryov is also present at the ball, who tells everyone about the sale of dead souls. Pavel Ivanovich begins to worry and quickly leaves, which arouses suspicion among the guests. The landowner Korobochka, who comes to the city to find out about the value of the dead peasants, also adds problems.
Chapters 9-10
Rumors are crawling around the city that Chichikov not clean on hand and, allegedly, is preparing the kidnapping of the governor's daughter.
Rumors are overgrown with new speculations. As a result, Pavel Ivanovich is no longer accepted in decent houses.
The high society of the city is discussing the question of who Chichikov is. All gather at the chief of police. A story emerges about Captain Kopeikin, who lost an arm and a leg on the battlefield in 1812, but never received a pension from the state.
Kopeikin became the leader of the robbers. Nozdryov confirms the fears of the townspeople, calling the recent universal favorite a counterfeiter and a spy. This news shocks the prosecutor so much that he dies.
The main character is hastily going to escape from the city.
Chapter 11
This chapter gives a short answer to the question why Chichikov bought dead souls. Here the author tells about the life of Pavel Ivanovich. Noble origin was the hero's only privilege. Realizing that in this world wealth does not come by itself, from an early age he worked hard, learned to lie and cheat. After another fall, he starts all over again and decides to submit information about the deceased serfs as living in order to receive financial payments. That is why Pavel Ivanovich so diligently bought up papers from the landlords. How Chichikov's adventures ended is not completely clear, because the hero is hiding from the city.
The poem ends with a wonderful lyrical digression about the bird-three, which symbolizes the image of Russia in N.V. Gogol's "Dead Souls". We will try to summarize its content. The author asks himself where Russia is flying, where is she in a hurryleaving everything and everyone behind.
Dead Souls - summary, retelling, analysis of the poem
Output
Numerous reviews of Gogol's contemporaries define the genre of the work, like a poem, thanks to lyrical digressions.
Gogol's creation became an immortal and wonderful contribution to the treasury of the great works of Russian literature. And many questions related to it still await answers.
