What is composition? The meaning of the word "composition"

Poem " Dead Souls"is one of the most wonderful works Russian literature. The great realist writer N.V. Gogol showed the whole of modern Russia, satirically depicting landed nobility and provincial bureaucracy. But in the poem there is also absolutely new hero in Russian literature, a representative of the emerging class of “acquirers”. In the image of Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, Gogol brought to public attention the features of the “knight of a penny.”

At first glance, Chichikov gives the impression of a slippery, many-sided person. This is emphasized by his appearance: “In the chaise sat a gentleman, not handsome, but not bad-looking, neither too fat nor too thin, one cannot say that he is old, but not that he is too young.”

Chichikov, like a chameleon, is constantly changing. He is able to give his face the necessary expression to seem like a pleasant interlocutor. Speaking with officials, the hero of the poem “very skillfully knew how to flatter everyone.” Therefore, he quickly gains the necessary reputation in the city. Mutual language Chichikov also finds the landowners from whom he buys dead peasants. With Manilov, he looks like a particularly amiable and courteous person, which charms the owner. At Korobochka, Noz-drevo, Sobakevich and Plyushkin, Chichikov behaves in accordance with the situation and knows how to find an approach to everyone. Only he did not catch Nozdryov in his net. But this was Chichikov’s only failure.

He uses all his ability to charm a person to achieve results. But he has one goal - wealth, and for this Pavel Ivanovich is ready to be a hypocrite, practicing for hours in front of the mirror. The main thing for him is money. The hero of the poem needs them not in themselves, but as a means of further accumulation. Even as a child, Chichikov well learned his father’s orders to please his bosses, be friends “with those who are richer” and save “a penny.” His father’s words sank into the boy’s soul: “You will do everything and ruin everything in the world with a penny.”

Possessing a great mind “from the practical side,” Chichikov began saving money at school, profiting from his comrades and being particularly stingy. Already in those years the soul of this “acquirer” was revealed. Chichikov made his way through deception and sycophancy, stopping at nothing. He is cunning, steals from the state, and “cheats” his colleagues. Accuracy becomes his element.

Gradually, Chichikov’s scams became increasingly widespread. From a modest police officer to a customs official, Gogol traces the path of his hero. He strives to increase his fortune by any means. The hero immediately grabs the idea of ​​buying " dead souls" Chichikov's entrepreneurial talent is not consistent with moral standards. There are no moral principles for him. Chichikov concludes with joy: “And now the time is convenient, not long ago there was an epidemic, a lot of people died out, thank God, a lot.” He builds his well-being on human grief, on the deaths of others.

Chichikov is the same creature of time as Onegin or Pechorin. Belinsky wrote about this, noting that “Chichikov, as an acquirer, is no less, if not more than Pechorin, a hero of our time.” Gogol shows this hero with all the power of his skill in the wonderful poem “Dead Souls,” which became an example of accusatory satire. The image of Chichikov should serve as a warning to those who are trying to get rich in any way, turning into a ruthless predator

Brief description of Chichikov?

  1. The characteristics of Chichikov are given by the author in the first chapter. His portrait is given very vaguely: not handsome, but not bad-looking, neither too fat nor too thin; One cannot say that he is old, but not that he is too young. Gogol pays more attention to his manners: he made an excellent impression on all the guests at the governor’s party, showed himself to be an experienced socialite, maintaining a conversation on the most different topics, skillfully flattered the governor, police chief, and officials and formed the most flattering opinion of himself. Gogol himself tells us that he did not take him as a hero virtuous person, immediately stipulates that his hero is a scoundrel.
    The origins of our hero are dark and humble. The author tells us that his parents were nobles, but whether they were nobles or private - God knows. Chichikov's face did not resemble his parents. As a child, he had neither a friend nor a comrade. His father was ill, the windows of the little house were not open either in winter or summer. Gogol says about Chichikov: At the beginning, life looked at him somehow sourly and unpleasantly, through some muddy, snow-covered window
  2. Chichikov was very neatly dressed and knew how to behave well in everything. He spoke neither loudly nor quietly, but absolutely as he should. In a word, no matter where you turn, he was a very decent person. All officials were pleased with the arrival of a new person. The governor explained about him that he was a well-intentioned person, the prosecutor said that he was a practical person, the gendarmerie colonel said that he learned man, chairman of the chamber - what is he knowledgeable person, the police chief - that he is a respectable and kind person, the police chief's wife - that he is the most kind and courteous person. Even Sobakevich, who spoke harshly of someone in a positive light, called Chichikov a pleasant person.
    The officials of the city of N were bureaucrats, bribe takers, idlers, selfish and selfish people with a bad conscience, but they had an opinion of Chichikov as a decent person. And these assessments are given by people of very different character.

    2)
    Relationships with others... Chichikov has studied people perfectly, knows how to find benefits in any situation, always says what they would like to hear from him. So, with Manilov, Chichikov is pompous, amiable and flattering. He talks to Korobochka without any special ceremony, and his vocabulary is in tune with the style of the hostess. Communication with the arrogant liar Nozdryov is not easy, since Pavel Ivanovich does not tolerate familiar treatment, unless the person is of too high a rank. However, hoping for a profitable deal, he does not leave Nozdryov’s estate until the last and tries to become like him: he turns to you, adopts a boorish tone, and behaves familiarly. The image of Sobakevich, personifying the thoroughness of a landowner's life, immediately prompts Pavel Ivanovich to conduct as thorough a conversation as possible about dead souls. Chichikov manages to win over the hole in the human body Plyushkin, who has long lost contact with the outside world and forgotten the norms of politeness. To do this, it was enough for him to play the role of a spendthrift, ready, at a loss to himself, to save a casual acquaintance from the need to pay taxes for dead peasants.

    3) How Khlestakov, passing through the provincial town, allowed Gogol to expose and show the agitated anthill of the district bureaucracy. So circling noble estates Chichikov gave the opportunity to paint a picture of the provincial-landlord life of serf Russia: everyday life typical representatives the class of landowners, the range of their mental and moral interests.
    Korobochka is a poor, tiny landowner, the owner of eighty serf souls, who lives, as if in a shell, separately from the rest of the world. She lives in contentment, but at the same time she always cries over crop failures, the death of peasants and losses. Korobochka is thrifty and knows how to collect little by little money, rubles, fifty rubles, quarters, and hide them in bags on chests of drawers (in fact, that’s why she is Korobochka). Gogol emphasizes the typicality of this image, simultaneously giving a characterization of Nastasya Petrovna, from which we learn about her exorbitant self-interest and greed.
    What follows is the interior of the rooms, which appear to the reader as modest and quite old, but with a large number of paintings with some kind of birds. Old striped wallpaper, wheezing and hissing clocks, mirrors with dark frames - all this bears the imprint of the character of the housewife herself, who cherishes and collects everything.
    But the landscape of the estate’s courtyard represents an abundance of birds and other domestic creatures, as Chichikov noted. The huts, which, although they were built scattered and not enclosed in regular streets, showed the visitor the contentment of the inhabitants and the fact that her (Korobochka’s) village was not small. The housewife sells honey, hemp, flour, and bird feathers. Treating the buyer Chichikov, Korobochka treats him to such dishes of patriarchal village cuisine that one cannot doubt his well-being

  3. The start is right.
  4. Thank you
  5. Thank you
  6. The main character of the poem Gogol's Dead soul is Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, an adventurer who carries out a brilliant scam on the pages of the work. The author introduces us to his hero in detail only in the eleventh head of the dead shower. Before this, Gogol depicts the environment in which the hero operates; reveals the essence of his business, for the sake of which Chichikov travels all over Rus'; presents him as the hero of phantasmagoristic rumors (as if Chichikov is Rinaldi, Napoleon, and even the Antichrist himself).
  7. thank you
  8. not that.

// The image of Chichikov in Gogol’s poem “Dead Souls”

He worked on his grandiose poem “” for about seventeen years. Of course, over such a long period, the meaning and parts of the poem have changed several times. But the essence of the work remained untouched. Great author decided to create a poem in which he would characterize the life around him, describe the picture of the modern Russia, which is filled with different, absolutely not similar people. In the text of the poem we meet many heroes and learn a lot of interesting things about their fates. But, nevertheless, the person of the main character, Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, attracts attention.

He was a new class of entrepreneur, of which there were not many in those days. This hero has a double characteristic of the author himself. On the one hand, he is a vile person, in whose head terrible thoughts are born. On the other hand, he is quite inventive and bright character, who was able to come up with a cunning plan to profit from dead peasants.

Chichikov buys the dead souls of peasants from other landowners, thereby receiving profit and income. In those days, audits of peasants were rarely carried out, therefore, according to the documents, all those people were actually alive. Main character doesn't break the law. He simply takes advantage of such a mess in the documentation and puts his plan into action.

Getting to know all the landowners, he finds an approach to each of them. Chichikov establishes connections with both men and women. He evokes sympathy and friendly relations. Thanks to the ability to adapt to environment, he gains confidence in to the right people, and then uses them for his own purposes.

With the landowner he is polite like a woman, but firm. He is gentle and kind. Pavel Ivanovich communicates with the landowner carefully. He is trying with all his might to bring down the price for dead souls set by the vigilant owner.

Chichikov's personality is distinguished by extraordinary ingenuity. The hero tries with all his might to bring his plan to life. He wants to gain his wealth by any means, going to complete shamelessness, and far from noble deeds. Although, for such perseverance and demonstrated willpower, he must be given credit. Pavel Ivanovich, through difficulties and obstacles, moved forward in order to carry out his plans and collect dead souls.

Such endurance and accumulative character traits have been formed in the main character since childhood. Pavel's family lived poorly, so the boy had to invent various ways receiving money. He himself made a bullfinch from wax, painted it and sold it. Pavlusha decided to train the mouse and then sell it. And the most interesting thing is that, as a child, he did not spend money, but carefully collected every penny, refusing everything. Pavel Ivanovich's father left him a will with parting words. He ordered his son to study, obey teachers, collect and save a penny. And how this should be done - nothing is said. So Chichikov decided that in life a penny is much more valuable than friendship and friends.

Of course, we cannot call the main character a completely immoral person. He felt both regret and sympathy. But for this he demanded quite a decent amount. Definitely, I can call Chichikov’s personality quite talented and inventive. It’s a pity that his skills were not useful, but only led to such a dirty scam. This idea of ​​buying “dead souls” did not make the hero rich and successful. After all, how can you profit from such a soulless idea?


The main character of the poem “Dead Souls” is Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov. The complex character of literature opened the eyes to the events of the past, showed many hidden problems.

The image and characterization of Chichikov in the poem “Dead Souls” will allow you to understand yourself and find the traits that you need to get rid of so as not to become his likeness.

Hero's appearance

The main character, Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, does not have an exact indication of his age. You can do mathematical calculations, distributing the periods of his life marked by ups and downs. The author says that this is a middle-aged man, there is an even more precise indication:

“...decent middle years...”


Other appearance features:
  • full figure;
  • roundness of shapes;
  • pleasant appearance.
Chichikov is pleasant in appearance, but no one calls him handsome. Fullness is in those sizes that it can no longer be thicker. In addition to his appearance, the hero has a pleasant voice. That is why all his meetings are based on negotiations. He easily talks to any character. The landowner is attentive to himself, he carefully chooses clothes, uses cologne. Chichikov admires himself, he likes his appearance. The most attractive thing for him is the chin. Chichikov is sure that this part of the face is expressive and beautiful. The man, having studied himself, found a way to charm. He knows how to evoke sympathy, his techniques bring a charming smile. The interlocutors do not understand what secret is hidden inside ordinary person. The secret is the ability to please. Ladies call him a charming creature, they even look for things in him that are hidden from view.

Hero's personality

Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov has a fairly high rank. He is a collegiate advisor. For man

“...without tribe and clan...”

Such an achievement proves that the hero is very persistent and purposeful. From childhood, a boy develops the ability to deny himself pleasure if it gets in the way big things. For getting high rank Pavel received an education, and he studied diligently and taught himself to get what he wanted by all means: by cunning, toady, and patience. Pavel is strong in mathematical sciences, which means he has logical thinking and practicality. Chichikov is a cautious person. He can talk about various phenomena in life, noticing what will help achieve desired result. The hero travels a lot and is not afraid of meeting new people. But the restraint of his personality does not allow him to conduct long stories about the past. The hero is an excellent expert in psychology. He easily finds his way and common topics conversation with different people. Moreover, Chichikov’s behavior changes. He, like a chameleon, easily changes his appearance, demeanor, and style of speech. The author emphasizes how unusual the twists of his mind are. He knows his own worth and penetrates into the depths of the subconscious of his interlocutors.

Positive character traits of Pavel Ivanovich

The character has a lot of traits that do not allow us to treat him only as negative character. His desire to buy up dead souls is frightening, but until the last pages the reader is at a loss as to why the landowner needs dead peasants, what Chichikov has in mind. One more question: how did you come up with this method of enriching yourself and increasing your status in society?
  • protects his health, he does not smoke and monitors the amount of wine he drinks.
  • doesn't play gambling: cards.
  • a believer, before starting an important conversation, a man crosses himself in Russian.
  • takes pity on the poor and gives alms (but this quality cannot be called compassion; it does not manifest itself to everyone and not always).
  • slyness allows the hero to hide his true face.
  • neat and thrifty: things and objects that help to remember important events, stored in a box.
Chichikov brought up in himself a strong character. The firmness and conviction that one is right is somewhat surprising, but also captivating. The landowner is not afraid to do what should make him richer. He is firm in his convictions. Many people need such strength, but most get lost, doubt and go astray from a difficult path.

Negative traits of a hero

The character has negative qualities. They explain why the image was perceived by society, how a real man, similarities with him were found in any environment.
  • never dances, although he attends balls with zeal.
  • loves to eat, especially at someone else's expense.
  • hypocritical: he can cry, lie, pretend to be upset.
  • deceiver and bribe-taker: in speech there are statements of honesty, but in reality everything says the opposite.
  • composure: politely, but without feelings, Pavel Ivanovich conducts business that makes his interlocutors shrink inside with fear.
Chichikov does not feel the right feeling for women - love. He considers them as an object capable of giving him offspring. He even evaluates the lady he likes without tenderness: “nice grandma.” The “acquirer” seeks to create wealth that will go to his children. On the one hand, this positive trait, the meanness with which he approaches this is negative and dangerous.

It is impossible to accurately describe the character of Pavel Ivanovich, to say that this positive character or bad guy. A real person taken from life is both good and bad at the same time. Combined into one character different personalities, but one can only envy his desire to achieve his goal. The classic helps young people to stop the traits of Chichikov in themselves, a man for whom life becomes a matter of profit, the value of existence, the mystery of the afterlife are lost.