The same work that shocked the whole country, as Herzen would later say. Gogol reveals the images of landowners in the poem Dead Souls, presenting us with their portraits, drawing their characters, speaking in their words, showing their thoughts and actions.

Brief images of landowners

To show us the inhumanity of the serf-owners - the nobles of that Russia, Gogol in Dead Souls creates images of landowners. We get to know them gradually, traveling with the hero Chichikov, who planned to buy up all the dead souls of the serfs. In the created images, the landowners of the past time, which the author describes, recognized themselves. Some saw Manilov in themselves, some saw Korobochka, and some noticed similarities with other characters. Let's take a closer look at the portrait characteristics of the heroes of the poem by analyzing their images in Dead Souls and writing our essay. Since during the lesson we examined the work Dead Souls in detail, it will be easy to characterize the images. Let's start with the first hero - Manilov.

When Chichikov conceived his plan to buy dead souls, then he headed to county town in order to realize our plans. So he pays visits to local landowners. The first to come across on his way is Manilov. At first glance, he is a kind, caring and correct person. But this is just a first impression, but in reality everything is different. Only in words he is good, in reality he has no concern for either his loved ones or his serfs. Courtesy and integrity are feigned and he does this in order to find his place in the sun. All his pleasantness is nothing more than a mask behind which emptiness is hidden. All the pretentiousness is revealed not only in the image of the hero, but also in the collapsed gazebo, which he calls a temple of solitude and reflection. The entire estate is abandoned, the peasants live in poverty, and their owner, lying on the sofa, continually dreams of how he will build a bridge across the pond.

Then Chichikov meets Korobochka. Already by her last name we see that she is a narrow-minded woman. As the author will call her, club-headed. By nature, this landowner is a hoarder, because she saves and saves every now and then. Hoarding is her passion, so she is completely mired in it, as well as in petty interests in life. She is not interested in what is out there, the main thing is not to sell things short and not be deceived. So she doesn’t agree to sell the dead souls, in case they come in handy again or some other merchant offers a better price. Its limitations and narrow interests are obvious.

Following our hero Chichikov, we get to the next landowner. And here, in the image of Nozdryov, we see a wasteful person, a gambler who lies without a twinge of conscience. This is a person who has no problem cheating at cards, exchanging for anything and losing it all. A person who lives aimlessly, meaninglessly squandering his fortune. The disorder of his nature can be read not only in the image of the hero, but also in his household.

Next, the author introduces us to the image of Sobakevich in his work. Analyzing the hero, we see in Sobakevich a hoarder, whose household is well-equipped and everything else is sound. But he himself is like a bear - rude and uncouth. He doesn't trust anyone, holding the opinion that the world is a crook on a crook. While selling souls, he also praises them, because he wants to sell the goods at a higher price. This is the person whose main feature there was profit. And there were a lot of them. This passion disfigured the soul and trampled a person’s morality. The author wrote so, a man who did not have a soul, and if he did, it was not where it should be.

The image of the landowner Plyushkin in the poem is the last final image that the author creates. And here we see the complete degradation of a man who was driven to the extreme by his stinginess. This hero pulls everything into the house. He lives like a beggar, while he has plenty of reserves and savings. As a master, and as a father, he has deteriorated. The peasants are dying, many are on the run, he has no human and paternal feelings, the farm itself is in disrepair, and he keeps saving and saving.

Education

The image of landowners in the poem "Dead Souls" (table). Characteristics of landowners in the poem by N.V. Gogol

In this article we will describe the image of landowners created by Gogol in the poem “Dead Souls”. The table we have compiled will help you remember the information. We will sequentially talk about the five heroes presented by the author in this work.

The image of landowners in the poem “Dead Souls” by N.V. Gogol is briefly described in the following table.

Gogol's portrayal of landowners

In the works of Nikolai Vasilyevich, one of the main themes is the landowner class in Russia, as well as the ruling class (nobility), its role in the life of society and its fate.

The main method used by Gogol to portray various characters is satire. The process of gradual degeneration of the landowner class was reflected in the heroes created by his pen. Nikolai Vasilyevich reveals shortcomings and vices. Gogol's satire is colored by irony, which helped this writer speak directly about what was impossible to talk about openly under censorship conditions. At the same time, Nikolai Vasilyevich’s laughter seems good-natured to us, but he does not spare anyone. Each phrase has a hidden subtext, deep meaning. Irony is generally a characteristic element of Gogol's satire. It is present not only in the speech of the author himself, but also in the speech of the heroes.

Irony is one of the essential features of Gogol’s poetics; it adds greater realism to the narrative and becomes a means of analyzing the surrounding reality.

Compositional structure of the poem

Images of landowners in the poem "Dead Souls" largest work this author, are given in the most comprehensive and complete manner. It is constructed as the story of the adventures of the official Chichikov, who buys up “dead souls.” The composition of the poem allowed the author to tell about different villages and the owners living in them. Almost half of the first volume (five of eleven chapters) is devoted to characterization different types landowners in Russia. Nikolai Vasilyevich created five portraits, not similar friends on each other, however, in each of them at the same time there are features that are typical of the Russian serf owner. Acquaintance with them begins with Manilov and ends with Plyushkin. This construction is not accidental. There is a logic to this sequence: the process of impoverishment of a person’s personality deepens from one image to another, it unfolds more and more as scary picture collapse of serf society.

Video on the topic

Meeting Manilov

Manilov is the first person to represent the image of landowners in the poem "Dead Souls". The table only briefly describes it. Let us introduce you closer to this hero. The character of Manilov, which is described in the first chapter, is already manifested in the surname itself. The story about this hero begins with an image of the village of Manilovka, which is capable of “luring” few people with its location. The author describes with irony the master's courtyard, created as an imitation of an English garden with a pond, bushes and the inscription “Temple of Solitary Reflection.” External details help the writer create the image of the landowners in the poem "Dead Souls".

Manilov: character of the hero

The author, speaking about Manilov, exclaims that only God knows what kind of character this man had. By nature he is kind, courteous, polite, but all this takes on ugly, exaggerated forms in his image. This landowner is sentimental and sweet-hearted to the point of cloying. The relationships between people seem festive and idyllic to him. Various relationships, in general, are one of the details that create the image of the landowners in the poem “Dead Souls”. Manilov did not know life at all; reality was replaced by empty fantasy. This hero loved to dream and reflect, sometimes even about things useful to the peasants. However, his ideas were far from the needs of life. He did not know about the real needs of the serfs and never even thought about them. Manilov considers himself a carrier of culture. He was considered the most educated man in the army. Nikolai Vasilyevich speaks ironically about the house of this landowner, in which there was always “something missing,” as well as about his sugary relationship with his wife.

Chichikov's conversation with Manilov about buying dead souls

In an episode of a conversation about buying dead souls, Manilov is compared to an overly smart minister. Gogol's irony here intrudes, as if accidentally, into a forbidden area. Such a comparison means that the minister is not so different from Manilov, and “Manilovism” is a typical phenomenon of the vulgar bureaucratic world.

Box

Let us describe another image of landowners in the poem “Dead Souls”. The table has already briefly introduced you to Korobochka. We learn about her in the third chapter of the poem. Gogol classifies this heroine as one of the small landowners who complain about losses and crop failures and always keep their heads somewhat to one side, while collecting money little by little into bags placed in the chest of drawers. This money is obtained by selling a variety of subsistence products. Korobochka's interests and horizons are completely focused on her estate. Her entire life and economy are patriarchal in nature.

How did Korobochka react to Chichikov’s proposal?

The landowner realized that trade dead souls profitable, and agreed after much persuasion to sell them. The author, describing the image of landowners in the poem “Dead Souls” (Korobochka and other heroes), is ironic. For a long time, the “club-headed” one cannot figure out what exactly is required of her, which infuriates Chichikov. After that, she bargains with him for a long time, afraid of making a mistake.

Nozdryov

In the image of Nozdryov in the fifth chapter, Gogol depicts a completely different form of decomposition of the nobility. This hero is a man of what is called a “jack of all trades.” In his very face there was something daring, direct, open. He is also characterized by a “breadth of nature.” According to the ironic remark of Nikolai Vasilyevich, Nozdryov - " historical person", since not a single meeting that he managed to attend was never without stories. He loses a lot of money at cards with a light heart, beats a simpleton at a fair and immediately “squanders everything.” This hero is an incredible liar and a reckless braggart , a real master of “throwing bullets.” He behaves defiantly everywhere, if not aggressively. The speech of this character is replete with swear words, and at the same time he has a passion for “spoiling his neighbor in the image of Nozdryov.” Russian literature a new socio-psychological type of so-called Nozdrevism. In many ways, the image of landowners in the poem “Dead Souls” is innovative. Brief Image next heroes described below.

Sobakevich

The author’s satire in the image of Sobakevich, whom we meet in the fifth chapter, takes on a more accusatory character. This character bears little resemblance to previous landowners. This is a tight-fisted, cunning tradesman, a “kulak landowner.” He is alien to the violent extravagance of Nozdryov, the dreamy complacency of Manilov, as well as the hoarding of Korobochka. Sobakevich has an iron grip, he is taciturn, he is on his own mind. There are few people who could deceive him. Everything about this landowner is strong and durable. In all the everyday objects surrounding him, Gogol finds a reflection of the character traits of this person. Everything surprisingly resembles the hero himself in his house. Each thing, as the author notes, seemed to say that she was “also Sobakevich.”

Nikolai Vasilyevich portrays a figure that amazes with its rudeness. This man seemed to Chichikov to look like a bear. Sobakevich is a cynic who is not ashamed of moral ugliness in others or in himself. He is far from enlightened. This is a die-hard serf owner who only labor force takes care of his own peasants. It is interesting that, except for this hero, no one understood the true essence of the “scoundrel” Chichikov, but Sobakevich perfectly understood the essence of the proposal, reflecting the spirit of the times: everything can be sold and bought, the maximum benefit should be obtained. This is the generalized image of landowners in the poem “Dead Souls”. Summary the work, however, is not limited to depicting only these characters. We present to you the next landowner.

Plyushkin

The sixth chapter is dedicated to Plyushkin. On it, the characteristics of the landowners in the poem “Dead Souls” are completed. The name of this hero has become a household word, denoting moral degradation and stinginess. This image is the last degree of degeneration of the landowner class. Gogol begins his acquaintance with the character, as usual, with a description of the estate and village of the landowner. At the same time, a “particular disrepair” was noticeable on all buildings. Nikolai Vasilyevich describes a picture of the ruin of a once rich serf owner. Its cause is not idleness and extravagance, but the painful stinginess of the owner. Gogol calls this landowner “a hole in humanity.” Myself appearance Its characteristic feature is that it is a sexless creature resembling a housekeeper. This character no longer causes laughter, only bitter disappointment.

Conclusion

The image of landowners in the poem “Dead Souls” (the table is presented above) is revealed by the author in many ways. The five characters that Gogol created in the work depict the diverse state of this class. Plyushkin, Sobakevich, Nozdrev, Korobochka, Manilov - different shapes one phenomenon - spiritual, social and economic decline. The characteristics of landowners in Gogol's poem "Dead Souls" prove this.

Essays on literature: Images of landowners in N. V. Gogol’s poem Dead Souls

Dead souls... This phrase can be written without quotation marks - and then it will be

This means not only the dead peasants who were assiduously bought up by Pavel Ivanovich

Chichikov, but also the death of all the main characters of the poem, proving the death of humanity.

The composition of “Dead Souls” (the sequence of Chichikov’s meetings with landowners) reflects Gogol’s ideas about the possible degrees of human degradation. “My heroes follow one after another, one more vulgar than the other,” notes the writer. In fact, if he still retains some attractiveness, then Plyushkin, who closes the gallery of feudal landowners, has already been openly called “a hole in humanity.”

Creating the images of Manilov, Korobochka, Nozdryov, Sobakevich, Plyushkin, Gogol resorted to general techniques realistic typification - an image of a village, a manor's house, a portrait of the owner, an office, conversations about city officials and dead souls... In cases where this is necessary, the biography of the character appears before us.

The image of Manilov captures the type of idle dreamer, “romantic slacker.”

The landowner's economy is in complete decline. "The manor's house stood alone on

Yura, that is, on an eminence, open to all the winds that may blow..."

The housekeeper steals, “stupidly and uselessly cooks in the kitchen,” “the pantry is empty,” “the servants are unclean and drunkards.” And between it was erected “a gazebo with a flat green dome, wooden blue columns and the inscription: “Temple of Solitary Reflection”... Manilov’s dreams are absurd and absurd. “Sometimes... he said that

How nice it would be if suddenly there was an underground passage from the house or through a pond

Build a stone bridge..." Gogol shows that Manilov is vulgar and stupid,

He has no real spiritual interests. "In his office there was always some kind of book,

Bookmarked on page fourteen, which he had already been constantly reading

Two years." Vulgarity family life- relationship with his wife, raising Alcides and

Themistoclus, feigned sweetness of speech ("May Day", "name day of the heart") -

Confirms insight portrait characteristics characters. "First

After a minute of conversation with him, you can’t help but say: “What a pleasant and a kind person!" IN

The next minute you won’t say anything, and the third you’ll say: “The devil knows what it is!” - and move away; if you don’t leave, you will feel mortal boredom.” Gogol with amazing artistic power shows Manilov’s deadness,

The worthlessness of his life. Behind the external attractiveness lies a spiritual emptiness.

The image of the hoarder Korobochka is already devoid of those “attractive” features that distinguish Manilov. And again we have a type in front of us - “one of those mothers, small landowners who... little by little collect money in colorful bags,

Placed in dresser drawers." Korobochka's interests are entirely concentrated on

Housekeeping. “Strong-browed” and “club-headed” Nastasya Petrovna is afraid to sell herself short,

Selling Chichikov is dead souls. The “silent scene” that appears in this

Head. We find similar scenes in almost all chapters showing the conclusion

Chichikov's transactions with another landowner. This is special artistic technique, a kind of temporary stop of action: it allows us to show with particular salience the spiritual emptiness of Pavel Ivanovich and his interlocutors. At the end of the third chapter, Gogol talks about the typicality of the image of Korobochka, the insignificance of the difference between her and another aristocratic lady.

Nozdryov continues the gallery of dead souls in the poem. Like other landowners, he does not develop internally and does not change depending on age. “Nozdryov at thirty-five was exactly the same as he was at eighteen and twenty: a lover of a walk.” The portrait of a dashing reveler is satirical and sarcastic at the same time. "It was

Of average height, a very well-built fellow with full rosy cheeks... Health seemed to be dripping from his face." However, Chichikov notes that

One of Nozdrev’s sideburns was smaller and not as thick as the other (another result

Fights). Passion for lies and card game largely explains the fact that not one

The meeting where Nozdryov was present was not without history. Life of a landowner

Absolutely soulless. In the office “there were no visible traces of what happens in offices,

That is, books or paper; only a saber and two guns hung..." Of course, Nozdryov's household was in ruins. Even lunch consists of dishes that were burnt or, on the contrary, not cooked.

Chichikov's attempt to buy dead souls from Nozdryov is a fatal mistake. It was Nozdryov

He spills a secret at the governor's ball. The arrival of Korobochka in the city, who wanted to find out “how much dead souls walk for,” confirms the words of the dashing “talker.”

The image of Nozdryov is no less typical than the images of Manilov or Korobochka. Gogol writes: “Nozdryov will not be removed from the world for a long time. He is everywhere among us and, perhaps, only walks around in a different caftan; but people are frivolously undiscerning, and a person in a different

Kaftane seems like a different person to them."

The typification techniques listed above are also used by Gogol to artistically comprehend the image of Sobakevich. The description of the village and the landowner's economy indicates a certain wealth. “The yard was surrounded by a strong and excessively thick wooden lattice. The landowner, it seemed, was working a lot about strength... The village huts of the peasants were also cut down amazingly... everything was fitted tightly and properly.”

Describing Sobakevich's appearance, Gogol resorts to a zoological comparison - comparing the landowner with a bear. Sobakevich is a glutton. In his judgments about where, he rises to a kind of “gastronomic” pathos: “When I have pork, put the whole pig on the table, bring the whole lamb to the table, bring the whole goose, the whole goose!” However,

Sobakevich, and in this he differs from Plyushkin and most other landowners,

Except perhaps Korobochka, he has a certain economic streak: he doesn’t ruin

His own serfs, achieves a certain order in the economy, profitably sells dead souls to Chichikov, knows very well the business and human qualities of his peasants.

The extreme degree of human degradation was captured by Gogol in the image of the richest landowner in the province - more than a thousand serfs - Plyushkin. The character's biography allows us to trace the path from a "thrifty" owner to a half-crazy miser. “But there was a time when he... was married and a family man, and a neighbor stopped by for lunch..., two pretty daughters came out to meet him..., his son ran out... The owner himself came to the table in a frock coat... But the good housewife died; part of the keys, and with them small worries, passed to him. Plyushkin became more restless and, like all widowers, more suspicious and stingy. Soon the family completely fell apart, and unprecedented pettiness and suspicion developed in Plyushkin, “... he himself finally turned into some kind of hole in humanity.” So, not at all social conditions led the landowner to the last line of moral decline. A tragedy (precisely a tragedy!) of loneliness is playing out before us, developing into a nightmarish picture of lonely old age.

In the village of Plyushkina, Chichikov notices “some kind of special disrepair.” Entering the house, Chichikov sees a strange pile of furniture and some kind of street trash... Plyushkin is an insignificant slave of his own things. He lives worse than the last shepherd

Sobakevich". Countless riches are wasted... Involuntarily draws attention to himself

Plyushkin’s attention and beggarly appearance... Gogol’s words sound sad and warning: “And a person could descend to such insignificance, pettiness, disgusting! He could change so much!.., anything can happen to a person.”

Thus, the landowners in Dead Souls are united by many common features: idleness, vulgarity, spiritual emptiness. However, Gogol would not, it seems to me, be a great writer if he had limited himself to only a “social” explanation of the reasons for the spiritual failure of his characters. He, indeed, creates "typical

Characters in typical circumstances", but "circumstances" may also consist in

Conditions of human inner mental life. I repeat that Plyushkin’s fall did not

This is directly related to his position as a landowner. Can't the loss of a family even break

himself strong man, representative of any class or estate? In a word, realism

Gogol also includes the deepest psychologism. This is what makes the poem interesting to the modern reader.

The world of dead souls is contrasted in the poem with faith in the “mysterious” Russian people, in their inexhaustible moral potential. At the end of the poem, the image of an endless road and a trio of birds rushing forward appears. In this indomitable movement one can feel the writer’s confidence in the great destiny of Russia, in the possibility

Spiritual resurrection of humanity.

Another fate of the writer who dared

Call out... all the depths of the cold,

Fragmented, everyday characters,

With which our land is teeming... And for a long time

I am determined by the wonderful power to go hand in hand

With my strange heroes...

IMAGES
LANDSCAPE IN THE POEM N.V. GOGOL “DEAD SOULS”