The essence of the “silent stage”

The dreams of St. Petersburg that washed over the officials and the general fascination with the “eminent guest” instantly dissipated after the news that shocked everyone and especially the mayor, who already saw himself as a St. Petersburg nobleman, about the mistake that had occurred. The words of the postmaster sounded like thunder: “An amazing thing, gentlemen! The official whom we mistook for an auditor was not an auditor.” However, real thunder fell on the heads of those present in the mayor’s house at the moment the gendarme appeared, announcing the arrival of a real auditor. Moreover, he appeared before them as if scary ghost, for everyone dies when he appears.

The very figure of the gendarme in the finale of the play is far from accidental. According to Gogol (this was discussed in the draft edition of “Theatrical Travel”), the silent scene expresses the idea of ​​the law, upon the advent of which “everything turned pale and shook.” And in the final text of “Theatrical Travel,” the “second lover of the arts,” who is closest to the author in his views, says that the denouement should remind us of the law, of the government’s protection of justice. Here Gogol was quite sincere. However, notes I. Vinnitsky, “the idea of ​​the triumph of legality in The Inspector General was given as a hint, as an idea of ​​what was due and desired, but not real and realized.”

In a silent scene characters struck by a single feeling of fear that fell upon them with the news of the arrival of a real auditor. But, based on the “Decoupling of the Inspector General”, Gogol ultimately acts not as the embodiment of state legality, but as a kind of supra-mundane force, the greatness of which makes all living things petrify. Therefore, the physiognomies and poses of each character bear the stamp of a special—higher—fear, and the “living picture” of general petrification evokes an association with Last Judgment, “experienced, according to the remark of S. Schultz, in a completely medieval way - in the moment of here, earthly life - in absentia, but in sacred horror from the sudden conjugation of times, the conjugation of one’s “here” and one’s “there.” Stepanov N.L. N.V. Gogol. Creative path. - M., 1983. - P.13

At the same time, with the appearance of a real auditor, each of the characters finds himself face to face with his own conscience, which reveals to them their true appearance. Thus, according to the author, personal conscience becomes an auditor of a person’s life. From all of the above, it is clearly clear that the comedy “The Inspector General” goes V the plane of moral and religious reflections of its creator, which will begin to occupy an increasing place in Gogol’s consciousness over time.

The silent scene gave rise to a wide variety of opinions in the literature about Gogol. Belinsky, without going into a detailed analysis of the scene, emphasized its organic nature for general plan: it “excellently closes the whole of the play.”

In academic literary criticism, the emphasis has been on the political subtext of the silent scene. For N. Kotlyarevsky, for example, this is “an apology for government vigilant power.” “The non-commissioned officer who forces the chief of the city and everyone senior officials to petrify and turn into idols is a clear indicator of the author’s good thoughts.”

According to V. Gippius, the silent scene also expresses the idea of ​​power and law, but interpreted in a unique way: “To realistically typified images local authorities... he [Gogol] opposed the bare abstract idea of ​​power, which involuntarily led to even greater generalization, to the idea of ​​retribution."

A. Voroneni, relying on the conclusions of Andrei Bely (in the book “Gogol’s Mastery”) about the gradual “killing of gesture” of Gogol’s heroes, considers the silent scene a symbolic expression of this killing: “All this happened because the living people of “Evenings”, cheerful boys, girls... gave way to mannequins and puppets, “living corpses.”

According to M. Khrapchenko, the appearance of the gendarme and the silent scene represent an “external denouement.” “The true denouement of the comedy is contained in the mayor’s monologue, in his angry statements addressed to himself, to the clickers, paper scribblers, in his sarcastic words: “Why are you laughing? Are you laughing at yourself!..”

B. Ermilov, on the contrary, is convinced of the organic ending of the comedy. The “psychological” reason for the stupefaction of the characters at the end of the comedy is understandable: having experienced so much excitement and trouble, we must start all over again, but new auditor may just turn out to be a specially authorized person; and he will probably become aware of the scandalous story with the false auditor. But this, of course, is not the meaning of the amazing finale. Before us is a parade of carved meanness and vulgarity, frozen in amazement at the abyss of its own stupidity that has shocked it.”

It would be possible to enlarge the summary of various statements about the silent stage. But basically they all come down to the points of view mentioned above.

How did Gogol himself interpret the silent scene? We do not know what he said about this before the presentation of The Inspector General. After the performance, the writer emphasized many times that the silent scene expresses the idea of ​​the “law,” upon the advent of which everything “turned pale and shook.” In “Theatrical Travel,” the “second lover of the arts,” who is closest to Gogol in his views (he, for example, wrote statements about Aristophanes, about “social comedy”), says that the denouement of the play should remind of justice, of the duty of the government: “Give God, so that the government always and everywhere hears its calling - to be the representative of providence on earth...”

We have no reason to doubt Gogol’s sincerity, that is, that the idea of ​​the law, of the government protecting justice, was actually associated by him with the ending of the comedy. G. A. Gukovsky is inaccurate, believing that the author's commentary on the silent scene arose in the 40s, when the writer “slipped... into reaction.” The sketch of “Theatrical Travel” was made in the spring of 1836, shortly after the premiere of the comedy, and meanwhile Gogol’s interpretation of the ending is mainly expressed here. Shklovsky V.B. Notes on the prose of Russian classics. - M.: Sov. writer, 1965. - P. 83

But the whole point is that this is nothing more than a conceptual formulation of one idea. This is the so-called “key”, which is usually used to replace a complete reading of an artistic work. But Gogol, in the second edition of The Inspector General’s Denouement, puts the following remark into the mouth of the first comedian: “The author didn't give me the key... The comedy would then have strayed into allegory” (134). The silent scene is not an allegory. This is an element of the figurative thought of “The Inspector General,” and as such it gives an outlet to the writer’s complex and holistic artistic perception of the world. In short, the task is to read the ending of The Inspector General aesthetically.

Some hints of such a reading are outlined in the above explanations of the silent scene. Gippius’s remark is fair that the “idea of ​​power” is expressed in the finale abstractly, as opposed to the full-blooded concreteness - everyday, psychological, social - of the entire play. More precisely, Gogol outlines some specificity, but brings it to a certain point. The writer’s work on the gendarme’s final remark is subordinated to the task of clarification. In the first draft: “The arriving official demands the mayor and all officials to come to him.” In the final version: “Arrived on personal command from St. Petersburg the official demands you this very hour to to yourself." The features of some mystery in the new auditor are removed, the authorities that sent him are clearly defined: Petersburg and the Tsar. A hint is given of the urgency of the matter and, perhaps, the anger of the arriving auditor. But Gogol does not go further. There is no information about what the auditor will do and what the officials will face. Stepanov N.L. N.V. Gogol. Creative path. - M., 1983. - P. 23

This kind of reticence is a characteristic feature of Gogol’s artistic thought. “Depict for us our honest, straightforward man,” Gogol urged in “The Petersburg Stage” and he himself attempted this task more than once. But until the second volume " Dead souls“He portrayed “our honest, straightforward man” (in modern times) only on the threshold - whether on the threshold of an honest deed, like a certain “very modestly dressed man” in “Theater Travel,” or even on the threshold of conscious life: “She is now like child, - Chichikov thinks about the governor’s daughter... - From her everything can be done she could be a miracle, or she could turn out to be rubbish and it will be rubbish!” Gogol also interrupted mid-sentence the idea of ​​the triumph of legality in The Inspector General. It is given as a hint, as an idea of ​​what is due and desired, but not real and realized.

But this is not the main thing. I have already said that Russian comedy before Gogol was distinguished not so much by the triumph of justice in the finale as by the heterogeneity of two worlds: the one exposed and the one that was implied behind the stage. A happy ending followed from the existence of " big world" It might not have happened within the scope of the stage action (for example, in “Yabed” the punishment of vice is incomplete: Pravolov was captured and imprisoned; the officials have not yet been convicted), but the viewer was still instilled with the belief that it would come.

Gogol does not have an ideally implied world. The intervention of a higher, just, punitive force does not follow from the heterogeneity of the worlds. It comes from outside, suddenly and at once overtakes all the characters.

Let's take a closer look at the main details of the silent scene.

In “Notes...” Gogol draws attention to the integrity and instantaneity of the characters’ actions in a silent scene. "The last word spoken should produce an electric shock at everyone at once, suddenly. All the group must change position to one moment. A sound of amazement must escape everyone women together, as if from one breast. If these notes are not observed, the entire effect may disappear” (10).

Let us further note that the circle of characters expands to the limit at the end of the play. A lot of people gathered at the Mayor’s house - the extraordinary events that culminated in Khlestakov’s “matchmaking” probably aroused from their places those who, to use an expression from “Dead Souls,” had long been “impossible to lure out of the house...”. And then they were all struck by the terrible news about the arrival of a real auditor.

However, no matter how large the group of characters in the final scenes is, there is no “merchant” and “citizenship” here. The real motivation for this is simple: they are no match for the Governor. Only the highest circles of the city gathered. In the graphic outline of the silent scene (which was thought out to detail by Gogol) there is also a “hierarchical shade”: in the middle is the Mayor, next to him, on the right, his family; then on both sides - officials and honorable persons in the city; “other guests” - at the very edge of the stage and in the background.

In short, the silent stage graphically represents the top of the pyramid " prefabricated city" The blow hit her highest point, and, losing somewhat in its strength, spread to the lower “layers of the pyramid.” The pose of each character in the silent scene plastically conveys the degree of shock and the force of the blow received. There are many shades here - from the mayor frozen “in the form of a pillar with outstretched arms and his head thrown back” to the other guests who “remain just pillars.” (The character’s character and behavior during the action were also reflected in his pose; it is natural, for example, that Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky froze “with rushing hand movements to each other with gaping mouths and bulging on top of each other eyes.")

But on the faces of the three ladies, the hosts, only “the most satirical facial expression” was reflected at the address of the “mayor’s family.” Somehow to you will it happen now, my dears? - their pose seems to speak. In general, among the guests trying (in a silent scene) to “look into the mayor’s face,” there were probably also those who personally had nothing to fear. But also They froze at the terrible news.

Here we come to the most important “paint” final scene, to the fact that it expresses petrification, and general petrification. In “Excerpt from a Letter...” Gogol wrote: “... the last scene will not be successful until they understand that it’s just silent picture, that all this should represent one petrified group that here the drama ends and replaces it numb facial expressions... that all this must take place under the same conditions as required by the so-called living pictures." Petrification had a long-standing, more or less stable meaning in Gogol’s poetics. In the “Sorochinskaya Fair”, when a “terrible pig’s face” appears in the window, “horror shackled everyone in the house. The godfather with his mouth open turned into stone; his eyes bulged as if they wanted to shoot...” - that is, what follows is the earliest sketch of a silent scene. In “The Night Before Christmas,” when in the bag, instead of the expected palyanitsa, sausage, etc., a clerk was found, “the godfather’s wife, dumbfounded, she let go of her leg, by which she began to pull the clerk out of the bag.” In both cases, petrification expresses a special, higher form of fear caused by some strange, incomprehensible event.

In “Portrait” (edition of “Arabesques”) Gogol defined this feeling as follows: “Some kind of wild feeling, not fear, but that inexplicable sensation that we feel when oddities, representing disorder of nature, or better yet, some the madness of nature...". Along with the main meaning of “petrification,” there are also additional ones (for example, a “silent scene” during a quarrel between two Ivans), but with a clear, sometimes parodic dependence on the first.

So, petrification and fear (in its special, highest form) are connected in Gogol's artistic thinking. This sheds light on the genesis of the silent scene of The Inspector General.

It is quite possible that with a silent scene the playwright wanted to lead to the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bretribution, the triumph of state justice. This is evidenced not only by the author’s commentary on the ending, but also by the well-known concretization of the very image of a real auditor. But he expressed this idea, so to speak, through the means of fear and petrification.

No, the silent scene is not an additional denouement, not an addition to the comedy. This is the last chord of the work, completing the development of its theme.

In a silent scene, the universality of the characters' experiences receives plastic expression. The degree of shock varies - it increases along with the “guilt” of the characters, that is, their position on the hierarchical ladder. Their poses are varied - they convey all sorts of shades of character and personal properties. But a single feeling shackled everyone. This feeling is fear. Just as during the action of the play fear colored the most varied experiences of the characters, so now the stamp of a new, higher fear fell on the physiognomy and posture of each character, regardless of whether he was burdened with personal “guilt” or had the opportunity to look “satirically” "on the Governor, that is, on the deeds and misdeeds of another. Gus M.S. Gogol and Nikolaev Russia. - M.: Goslitizdat, 1987. - P. 76

Because, despite all the fragmentation and separation of people, humanity, Gogol believes, is united by a single destiny, a single “face of time.”

And here I must again draw attention to those lines with which we began our analysis of “The Inspector General” - to Gogol’s review of “ Last day Pompeii". Saying that Bryullov’s painting “selects strong crises felt by the whole mass,” the writer explains: “This the whole group stopped at the moment of impact and expressed thousands of different feelings...“He has all this so powerfully, so boldly, so harmoniously combined into one thing, as only it could have arisen in the head of a universal genius.” But isn’t it also true that the silent scene of “The Inspector General” captured “the entire group” of its heroes, “stopped at the moment of impact”? Isn’t this petrification (as, according to Gogol, the petrification of Bryullov’s heroes - a kind of silent scene) a plastic expression of the “strong crisis” felt by modern humanity?

Gogol was sensitive to the tremors that shook the nineteenth century. He felt the alogism, illusoryness, “miracle” of contemporary life, which made the existence of mankind unstable, subject to sudden crises and catastrophes. And the silent stage formalized and condensed these sensations.

What terrible irony is hidden in the silent scene! Gogol gave it at a moment when even the community of people that the “auditor’s situation” caused was threatening to disintegrate. With her last effort she had to hold on to this community - and she did, but instead of people, she had lifeless corpses in her power.

Gogol gave a silent scene as a hint of the triumph of justice and the establishment of harmony. And as a result, the feeling of disharmony, anxiety, and fear from this scene increased many times over. In “The Inspector General’s Denouement,” Gogol states: “The very appearance of the gendarme, who, like some kind of executioner, appears at the door, is petrification, which his words suggest to everyone, announcing the arrival of a real inspector who must exterminate them all, wipe them off the face of the earth, completely destroy them - All of this is somehow inexplicably scary!”.

Could it be expected that a play that began with comic details like the Gorodnichy’s story about two rats of “unnatural size” would end with general stupor?.. The silent scene broke with the long-standing traditions of constructing comedy, consecrated by the authority of Aristotle: it ended the comedic action with a tragic chord.

In the literature about the “Inspector General,” the question is often raised: what will the Governor and others do with the advent of a new auditor? It is said that with the arrival of the gendarme everything fell into place and returned to its original position, that the Governor will conduct the arriving inspector, as he conducted them before, and that everything will remain unchanged.

It is true in these remarks that the result of Gogol's comedy is not idealization, but the exposure of the foundations public life and that, therefore, the new revision (like the previous ones) would not change anything. But still artistic thought Gogol is deeper. There is no doubt that the Mayor would have deceived if he had retained the ability to deceive. But the ending does not throw the heroes back to their original positions, but - having led them through a chain of shocks - plunges them into something new. psychological state. It is too obvious that in the finale they are completely thrown out of the rut of their usual life, amazed forever, and the duration of the silent scene: “almost a minute and a half”, which Gogol insists on (in “Excerpt from a Letter” even “two or three minutes”) - symbolically expresses this finality. There is nothing more to say about the characters in the comedy; they have exhausted themselves in the “mirage life”, and at the moment when this becomes extremely clear, the curtain falls over the entire frozen, lifeless group.

What role does the “silent scene” play in comedy?
Gogol himself gave the “silent scene” great value. Actors in the first productions of The Inspector General rarely fulfilled the content of the stage directions relating to last scene, the curtain almost always fell immediately, and the audience could not see the petrified characters. Therefore, Gogol wrote and spoke about the last scene more than once. Here are a few of his comments, in addition to the large remark in the text of the play itself.

“The last scene of The Government Inspector should be especially cleverly played. The situation of many people is almost tragic.” And further about the mayor: “To be deceived so rudely to one who knew how to carry out smart people and even skilled rogues! The announcement of the arrival at last of a real auditor is a thunderclap for him. He was petrified. His outstretched arms and thrown back head remained motionless, around him the entire active group formed in an instant a petrified group in different positions. The picture should be set almost like this: in the middle is the mayor, completely numb and dumbfounded... The curtain should not fall for two or three minutes...

The last scene will not succeed until it is understood that this is just a silent picture representing a petrified group... The fright of each hero is not similar to the fright of the other, just as the degree of fear and fear of each is dissimilar.”

Explain why Gogol wrote so many additional materials that accompany this play. This includes “Theatrical travel after the presentation of a new comedy,” and a number of other materials: “An excerpt from a letter written by the author shortly after the presentation of “The Inspector General” to a writer,” “A warning for those who would like to play “The Inspector General” properly.”
The first performance of the comedy “The Inspector General” at the Alexandrinsky Theater on April 16, 1836 did not please Gogol, but caused resentment at the lack of understanding of his play and the deafness of the audience and actors. The comedy was perceived as a funny adventure of an imaginary auditor, the characters were funny, funny, pleasant, and no one comprehended the horror of the “silent stage”. Khlestakov, in the grip of the actor Duras, appeared before the audience as a funny liar. “The Inspector General” has been played, - wrote Gogol, - but my soul is so vague, so strange... Main role disappeared... Dur didn’t understand by a hair’s breadth what Khlestakov was... He became just an ordinary liar...”

And Gogol felt the need to reveal to the actors and those who would stage the play his understanding of the roles he created. Hence a lot of materials dedicated to “The Inspector General”.

Gogol wrote that actors must first of all “try to understand the universal expression of the role, they must consider why this role is called upon.” And he reveals in detail in his articles what Khlestakov is, points out his typicality (it is no coincidence that the hero’s phrase is given: “I am everywhere, everywhere”). Gogol notes in “Excerpt from a Letter...”: “Everyone, at least for a minute, if not for a few minutes, was or is becoming Khlestakov... And a clever guards officer will sometimes turn out to be Khlestakov, and a statesman will sometimes turn out to be Khlestakov, and our brother, the sinful writer, will sometimes turn out to be Khlestakov. In short, it’s rare that someone won’t be one at least once in their life...”

Gogol was not particularly bothered by the role of the mayor: the actors Sosnovsky ( Alexandrinsky Theater) and Shchepkin (Maly Theater) completely satisfied him; the comments concerned only the transition of the mayor’s feelings in the last act. Gogol paid attention to how Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky should be played. But his main concern is Khlestakov and the “silent stage”. He saw that the “Notes for Gentlemen Actors” and the lengthy stage directions for the “silent scene” were not enough.

In “Theater Road Trip...” Gogol addresses positive hero comedy - laughter.

As you can see, Gogol was very concerned about the performance of roles in his comedy - he wanted the actors to “grab the soul of the role, not the dress,” so that the directors would understand ideological plan comedy and the author's position.

In “The Inspector General,” Gogol later recalled, I decided to collect in one pile everything bad in Russia that I knew then, all the injustices that are done in those places and in those cases where justice is most required from a person, and behind one ...

They stood in the same poses, In silent strange silence. Their feelings cannot be described in lines, Their thoughts are somewhere in the depths. Everyone has their own thoughts. But everyone is afraid of one thing - That their insidious deeds can no longer be hidden for anything. Skvoznik-Dmukhanovsky laments: “A fraudster...

The mayor is depicted by the author in the comedy as a serious person, smart in his own way, cunning, and experienced in life’s circumstances. True, his idea of ​​an intelligent person is very unique; it is connected with the justification of bribery (from Chmykhov’s letter: “you...

In 1839, in an article about “Woe from Wit,” having condemned Griboedov’s comedy “from an artistic point of view” (which, as he wrote in a letter to V.P. Botkin dated December 11, 1840, was the hardest thing for him to remember), Belinsky enthusiastically greeted the "Inspector". His...

The comedy "The Inspector General" is one of the most famous works Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol. The author managed to show true face 19th century Russia in this play. Gogol through various means artistic expression, the speeches of the heroes, “speaking” names, ridiculed human vices, namely greed, hypocrisy, deceit, irresponsibility, stupidity. An important role in the above-mentioned exposure was played by such a device as the “silent” scene at the end of the play. What is her ideological meaning? Let's try to figure this out.

Before answering the question posed, it is worth mentioning a little about the plot of the comedy. In the city of N, where there is unrest, where everyone is chasing profit and not fulfilling their duties, an auditor must come. Mistaking him for another person, the cunning Khlestakov, officials look after him as best they can, “loan” him money, just to leave a good impression of themselves.

At the end of the play, the characters learn that it was not the inspector and that the real one will come soon. It was this news that caused the “Silent” scene. The most unpleasant news literally “paralyzed” the heroes. They realized that Khlestakov was still “flowers”, they would soon have to relive everything again, only for real. The mayor spread his arms and threw his head up, as if asking the sky: “for what?!” His wife and daughter rushed to him, seeking protection. Strawberry tilted his head to the side, listening to something. This cunning man, as it turns out, never succumbs to crazy panic. On the contrary, he is thinking about how he can get away with it in at the moment. Lyapkin-Tyapkin made a movement with his lips, as if he wanted to say: “here’s Yury’s day for you, grandma.” He was very scared. Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky rushed to each other, counting on support.

The ideological meaning of the “silent” scene is to show without replicas the whole essence of the characters, their vices, fears, character. After all, it is in an extreme situation that a person takes off his mask and reveals his true face. Gogol succeeded in this. Moreover, he managed to expand the boundaries of comedy, transform it from social to moral and philosophical. So, with the help of a small element, Gogol reminded everyone that sooner or later they would still have to answer for their actions.

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Updated: 2017-10-16

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Same room.

Phenomenon I

Gorodnichy, Anna Andreevna and Marya Antonovna.

Mayor. What, Anna Andreevna? A? Have you thought anything about this? What a rich prize, channel! Well, admit it frankly: you never dreamed of just some mayor’s wife and suddenly... wow, you rascal!.. what a devil you became related to! Anna Andreevna. Not at all; I've known this for a long time. This is strange to you, because you are a simple person, you have never seen decent people. Mayor. I myself, mother, am a decent person. However, really, just think about it, Anna Andreevna, what kind of birds you and I have become now! huh, Anna Andreevna? High flying, damn it! Wait, now I’ll give all these hunters a reason to submit requests and denunciations. Hey, who's there?

The quarterly enters.

Oh, it's you, Ivan Karpovich! Call the merchants here, brother. Here I am, channel them! So complain about me? Look, you damned Jewish people! Wait, my dears! Before, I only fed you up to your mustache, but now I’ll feed you up to your beard. Write down everyone who just came to attack me, and most of all these scribblers, the scribblers who twisted their requests. Yes, announce to everyone so that they know: what, what honor has God sent to the mayor, that he is marrying off his daughter, not just to some common man, and for something that has never happened in the world, that can do everything, everything, everything, everything! Announce it to everyone so everyone knows. Shout to all the people, ring the bells, damn it! When it's a celebration, it's a celebration!

The quarterly leaves.

So that’s how it is, Anna Andreevna, huh? What will we do now, where will we live? here or in St. Petersburg?

Anna Andreevna. Naturally, in St. Petersburg. How can you stay here! Mayor. Well, in St. Petersburg it’s like that in St. Petersburg; but it would be good here too. Well, I think, to hell with mayorism then, huh, Anna Andreevna? Anna Andreevna. Naturally, what kind of urbanism! Mayor. After all, as you think, Anna Andreevna, now you can achieve a great rank, because he is friends with all the ministers and goes to the palace, so he can do such a thing that in time you will become a general. What do you think, Anna Andreevna: is it possible to become a general? Anna Andreevna. Of course! Of course you can. Mayor. Damn it, it's nice to be a general! The cavalry will be hung over your shoulder. Which cavalry is better, Anna Andreevna: red or blue? Anna Andreevna. Of course, blue is better. Mayor. Eh? look what you wanted! good and red. After all, why do you want to be a general? because, it happens, you will go somewhere couriers and adjutants will gallop ahead everywhere: “Horses!” And there at the stations they won’t give it to anyone, everything is waiting: all these titular officers, captains, mayors, but you don’t even give a damn. You're having lunch somewhere with the governor, and there - stop, mayor! Heh, heh, heh! (Breaks out and dies with laughter.) That's what, channelism, tempting! Anna Andreevna. You like everything so rough. You must remember that your life needs to be completely changed, that your acquaintances will not be like some dog breeder judge with whom you go to poison hares, or Strawberry; on the contrary, your acquaintances will have the most subtle address: counts and all secular... Only I, really, am afraid for you: sometimes you will utter such a word that you will never hear in good society. Mayor. Well? after all, the word does not harm. Anna Andreevna. Yes, it was good when you were a mayor. But life there is completely different. Mayor. Yes, they say there are two fish there: vendace and smelt, such that your mouth will start to flow as soon as you start eating. Anna Andreevna. All he wants is fish! I really want our house to be the first in the capital and for my room to have such an aroma that you can’t enter and you just have to close your eyes this way. (Closes his eyes and sniffs.) Oh, how good!

Phenomenon II

The same are merchants.

Mayor. A! Hello, falcons! Merchants (bowing). We wish you good health, father! Mayor. Well, my dears, how are you? How is your item going? What, samovar makers, arshinniks, should complain? Archpluts, proto-beasts, worldly swindlers! complain? What, did you take a lot? So, they think, that’s how they’ll put him in prison!.. Do you know, seven devils and one witch are in your teeth, that... Anna Andreevna. Oh, my God, what words you let out, Antosha! Mayor (with displeasure). Ah, no time for words now! Do you know that the very official to whom you complained is now marrying my daughter? What? A? what do you say now? Now I... you!.. are deceiving the people... Will you make a deal with the treasury, cheat it out of a hundred thousand by supplying rotten cloth, and then donate twenty arshins, and give you another reward for this? Yes, if they knew, so would you... And his belly thrusts forward: he is a merchant; don't touch him. “We, he says, will not yield to the nobles.” Yes, a nobleman... oh, you mug! a nobleman studies science: even though he is flogged at school, he gets to work so that he knows something useful. What about you? you start with tricks, the owner beats you because you don’t know how to deceive. Even as a boy, you don’t know “Our Father”, let alone measure it; and as soon as he opens your belly and fills your pocket, he becomes so self-important! Wow, what an incredible thing! Because you blow sixteen samovars a day, that’s why you’re putting on airs? Yes, I don’t care about your head and your importance! Merchants (bowing). Blame, Anton Antonovich! Mayor. Complain? And who helped you cheat when you built a bridge and painted wood worth twenty thousand, when there wasn’t even one worth a hundred rubles? I helped you, goat beard! Have you forgotten it? Having shown this to you, I could also send you to Siberia. What do you say? A? One of the merchants. Blame God, Anton Antonovich! The evil one has misled me. And let's stop complaining. Whatever satisfaction you want, just don’t get angry! Mayor. Don't be angry! Now you are lying at my feet. Why? because mine took; but if I were even a little on your side, you, the rascal, would trample me into the very mud, and even pile me up with a log on top. Merchants (bow at their feet). Don't destroy me, Anton Antonovich! Mayor. Don't destroy it! Now: don’t destroy it! And before that? I would... (Waving his hand.) Well, God forgive me! full! I am not memory-bearing; just keep your eyes open now! I’m not marrying my daughter off to some simple nobleman: so that there would be congratulations... you understand? It’s not like you should be afraid of some kind of balychk or a head of sugar... Well, go with God!

The merchants are leaving.

Scene III

The same, Ammos Fedorovich, Artemy Filippovich, then Rastakovsky.

Ammos Fedorovich (still at the door). Should we believe the rumors, Anton Antonovich? Has extraordinary happiness come to you? Artemy Filippovich. I have the honor to congratulate you on your extraordinary happiness. I was heartbroken when I heard. Anna Andreevna! (Approaching Marya Antonovna’s hand.) Marya Antonovna! Rastakovsky (enters). Congratulations to Anton Antonovich. May God prolong the life of you and the new couple and give you numerous offspring, grandchildren and great-grandchildren! Anna Andreevna! (Approaches Anna Andreevna’s hand.) Marya Antonovna! (Approaches Marya Antonovna’s hand.)

Phenomenon IV

The same ones, Korobkin and his wife, Lyulyukov.

Korobkin. I have the honor to congratulate Anton Antonovich! Anna Andreevna! (Approaches Anna Andreevna’s hand.) Marya Antonovna! (Approaches her hand.) Korobkin's wife. I sincerely congratulate you, Anna Andreevna, on your new happiness. Lyulyukov. I have the honor to congratulate you, Anna Andreevna! (He approaches the pen and then, turning to the audience, clicks his tongue with an air of daring.) Marya Antonovna! I have the honor to congratulate you. (He approaches her hand and addresses the audience with the same daring.)

Phenomenon V

Many guests in frock coats and tailcoats, they first approach Anna Andreevna’s hand, saying: “Anna Andreevna!” then to Marya Antonovna, saying: “Marya Antonovna!”

Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky push through.

Bobchinsky. I have the honor to congratulate you! Dobchinsky. Anton Antonovich! I have the honor to congratulate you! Bobchinsky. Happy accident! Dobchinsky. Anna Andreevna! Bobchinsky. Anna Andreevna!

Both come up at the same time and bump heads.

Dobchinsky. Marya Antonovna! (Approaches the handle.) I have the honor to congratulate you. You will be in great, great happiness, walking around in a golden dress and eating various delicate soups; You will have a very fun time. Bobchinsky (interrupting). Marya Antonovna, I have the honor to congratulate you! May God give you all the wealth, chervonets and a son like this little one over there (shows with his hand), so that you can put it on your palm, yes, sir! The boy will all shout: wow! wow! wow!..

Scene VI

A few more guests, approaching the hands, Luka Lukich and his wife.

Luka Lukic. I have the honor... Luka Lukic's wife(runs forward). Congratulations, Anna Andreevna!

They kiss.

And I was really happy. They tell me: “Anna Andreevna is giving away her daughter.” “Oh, my God!” I think to myself, and I was so happy that I said to my husband: “Listen, Lukanchik, this is Anna Andreevna’s happiness!” “Well, I think to myself, thank God!” And I tell him: “I am so delighted that I am burning with impatience to express it personally to Anna Andreevna...” “Oh, my God! “I think to myself, “Anna Andreevna was precisely expecting a good match for her daughter, but now this is fate: it happened exactly as she wanted,” and, truly, she was so happy that she could not speak. I cry, I cry, I just sob. Already Luka Lukich says: “Why are you crying, Nastenka?” “Lukanchik, I say, I don’t even know myself, the tears are flowing like a river.”

Mayor. I humbly ask you to sit down, gentlemen! Hey, Mishka, bring more chairs here.

The guests sit down.

Scene VII

The same, private bailiff and quarterly.

Private bailiff. I have the honor to congratulate you, your honor, and wish you prosperity for many years to come! Mayor. Thank you, thank you! Please sit down, gentlemen!

The guests are seated.

Ammos Fedorovich. But please tell me, Anton Antonovich, how it all started, the gradual progress of everything, that is, the case. Mayor. The course of the matter is extraordinary: he deigned to personally make an offer. Anna Andreevna. Very respectfully and in the most subtle way. Everything was extremely well spoken. He says: “I, Anna Andreevna, out of sheer respect for your merits...” And so beautiful, well-mannered person, the most noble rules! “Believe me, Anna Andreevna, my life is a penny; I do it only because I respect your rare qualities.” Marya Antonovna. Ah, mummy! after all, it was he who told me. Anna Andreevna. Stop it, you don’t know anything and don’t interfere in your own business! “I, Anna Andreevna, am amazed...” He poured out such flattering words... And when I wanted to say: “We don’t dare hope for such an honor,” he suddenly fell to his knees and in the most noble way: “Anna Andreevna, don’t make me miserable! agree to respond to my feelings, otherwise I will end my life with death.” Marya Antonovna. Really, mama, he said that about me. Anna Andreevna. Yes, of course... it was about you too, I don’t deny any of that. Mayor. And he even scared me: he said that he would shoot himself. “I’ll shoot myself, I’ll shoot myself!” says. Many of the guests. Tell me please! Ammos Fedorovich. What a thing! Luka Lukic. Truly, fate had it that way. Artemy Filippovich. Not fate, father, fate turkey: merit led to this. (To the side.) Such a pig always has happiness in his mouth! Ammos Fedorovich. I, perhaps, Anton Antonovich, will sell you the male dog that was traded. Mayor. No, I have no time for male dogs now. Ammos Fedorovich. Well, if you don’t want to, we’ll settle for another dog. Korobkin's wife. Oh, how, Anna Andreevna, I am glad for your happiness! you can't imagine. Korobkin. Where now, may I ask, is the eminent guest? I heard that he left for some reason. Mayor. Yes, he went for one day on a very important matter. Anna Andreevna. To his uncle to ask for blessings. Mayor. Ask for blessings; but tomorrow... (Sneezes.)

Congratulations merge into one roar.

Much appreciated! But tomorrow and back... (Sneezes.)

Private bailiff. We wish you good health, your honor! Bobchinsky. One hundred years and a sack of chervonets! Dobchinsky. God extend it for forty forty! Artemy Filippovich. May you disappear! Korobkin's wives. Damn you! Mayor. Thank you most humbly! I wish the same for you. Anna Andreevna. We now intend to live in St. Petersburg. And here, I admit, such an air... too rustic!.. I confess, it’s a big nuisance... Here is my husband... he will receive the rank of general there. Mayor. Yes, I confess, gentlemen, I, damn it, really want to be a general. Luka Lukic. And God forbid you get it! Rastakovsky. From man it is impossible, but from God everything is possible. Ammos Fedorovich. big ship great swimming. Artemy Filippovich. According to merit and honor. Ammos Fedorovich (to the side). He'll do something crazy when he actually becomes a general! That's who the generalship is like a saddle for a cow! Well, brother, no, the song is still far from that. There are better people here than you, but they are still not generals. Artemy Filippovich(to the side). Eka, damn it, he’s already trying to become a general! What good, maybe he will become a general. After all, he has importance, the evil one would not take him, enough. (Turning to him.) Then, Anton Antonovich, don’t forget us either. Ammos Fedorovich. And if something happens, for example, some kind of business need, don’t leave your patronage! Korobkin. Next year I will take my son to the capital for the benefit of the state, so do me a favor, show him your protection, take the orphan’s place as a father. Mayor. I am ready for my part, ready to try. Anna Andreevna. You, Antosha, are always ready to promise. First of all, you won't have time to think about it. And how and why should one burden oneself with such promises? Mayor. Why, my soul? sometimes you can. Anna Andreevna. You can, of course, but not every small fry can be patronized. Korobkin's wife. Have you heard how she interprets us? Guest. Yes, she has always been like this; I know her: sit her down at the table, she and her legs...

Scene VIII

The same postmaster in a hurry, with a printed letter in his hand.

Postmaster. Amazing thing, gentlemen! The official whom we took for an auditor was not an auditor. All . Why not an auditor? Postmaster. Not an auditor at all, I learned this from the letter... Mayor. What do you? what do you? from which letter? Postmaster. Yes, from his own letter. They bring me a letter in the mail. I looked at the address and saw: “To Pochtamtskaya Street.” I was so dumbfounded. “Well, I think to myself, that’s right, I found a disturbance in the post office and notified the authorities.” I took it and printed it out. Mayor. How are you?.. Postmaster. I don’t know, it was an unnatural force that prompted me. He had already called for a courier in order to send him with the baton, but curiosity overcame him such as he had never felt before. I can't, I can't! I hear that I can’t! It’s pulling, it’s pulling! In one ear I hear: “Hey, don’t print it out! you will disappear like a chicken"; and in another, it’s as if some demon is whispering: “Print, print, print!” And how the sealing wax was pressed through the veins by the fire, and sealed open by the frost, by God it was frost. And my hands are shaking, and everything is blurred. Mayor. How dare you print a letter from such an authorized person? Postmaster. That's the thing, he's not authorized and not a person! Mayor. What do you think he is? Postmaster. Neither this nor that; God knows what it is! Mayor (passionately). No matter what? How dare you call him neither this nor that, and God knows what? I'll put you under arrest... Postmaster. Who? You? Mayor. Yes, me! Postmaster. Short arms! Mayor. Do you know that he will marry my daughter, that I myself will be a nobleman, that I will caulk all the way to Siberia? Postmaster. Eh, Anton Antonovich! what about Siberia? Siberia is far away. It’s better if I read it to you. Gentlemen! let me read the letter! All . Read, read! Postmaster (reads). “I hasten to notify you, soul Tryapichkin, what miracles are happening to me. On the road, an infantry captain robbed me all around, so that the innkeeper was about to throw me in prison; when suddenly, judging by my St. Petersburg physiognomy and suit, the whole city took me for the governor general. And now I live with the mayor, I chew, I drag myself recklessly after his wife and daughter; I just haven’t decided where to start, I think, first with my mother, because it seems that she is now ready for all services. Do you remember how you and I were in poverty, dined on our rim, and how once the pastry chef grabbed me by the collar about the pies we had eaten at the expense of the income of the King of England? Now it's a completely different turn. Everyone lends me as much as they want. The originals are terrible. You'd die laughing. You, I know, write articles: put them in your literature. First of all: the mayor is as stupid as a gray gelding...” Mayor. Can't be! It's not there. Postmaster (shows letter). Read for yourself. Mayor (reads). “Like a gray gelding.” Can't be! you wrote it yourself. Postmaster. How would I start writing? Artemy Filippovich. Read! Luka Lukic. Read! Postmaster (continuing reading). “The mayor is as stupid as a gray gelding...” Mayor. Oh my gosh! needs to be repeated! as if it wasn’t even there anyway. Postmaster (continuing reading). Hmm... hmm... hmm... hmm... “gray gelding. Postmaster too kind person...» (Leaving to read.) Well, here he also spoke indecently about me. Mayor. No, read it! Postmaster. Why?.. Mayor. No, damn it, when you have to read, read! Read everything! Artemy Filippovich. Let me read it. (Puts on glasses and reads.)“The postmaster is exactly the departmental watchman Mikheev; The scoundrel must also be drinking bitter.” Postmaster (to the audience). Well, he's a bad boy who needs to be whipped; nothing more! Artemy Filippovich (continuing reading). “Overseer of a godly institution...and...and...and...” (Stutters.) Korobkin. Why did you stop? Artemy Filippovich. Yes, a fuzzy pen... however, it is clear that he is a scoundrel. Korobkin. Give it to me! I think I have better eyes. (Takes the letter.) Artemy Filippovich (without giving a letter). No, you can skip this part, but the rest is legible. Korobkin. Yes, let me, I already know. Artemy Filippovich. I’ll read it myself; further, really, everything is legible. Postmaster. No, read everything! after all, everything has been read before. All . Give me back, Artemy Filippovich, give me the letter! (To Korobkin.) Read! Artemy Filippovich. Now. (Gives the letter.) Here, let me... (Closes it with his finger.) Read it from here.

Everyone starts to join him.

Postmaster. Read, read! nonsense, read everything! Korobkin (reading). “The overseer of the charitable establishment, Strawberry, is a perfect pig in a yarmulke.” Artemy Filippovich(to the audience). And not witty! Pig in a yarmulke! where does a pig wear a yarmulke? Korobkin (continuing reading). “The superintendent of the schools is rotten through with onions.” Luka Lukic (to the audience). By God, I never put onion in my mouth. Ammos Fedorovich (to the side). Thank God, at least not about me! Korobkin (reading). "Judge..." Ammos Fedorovich. Here you go! (Aloud.) Gentlemen, I think the letter is long. And what the hell is it: reading such rubbish. Luka Lukic. No! Postmaster. No, read it! Artemy Filippovich. No, read it! Korobkin (continues). “Judge Lyapkin-Tyapkin is extremely bad manners...” (Stops.) Must be a French word. Ammos Fedorovich. And the devil knows what it means! It’s still good if he’s just a fraudster, and maybe even worse. Korobkin (continuing reading). “However, the people are hospitable and good-natured. Goodbye, soul Tryapichkin. I myself, following your example, want to take up literature. It’s boring, brother, to live like this; Do you finally want food for the soul? I see that I definitely need to do something high. Write to me in the Saratov province, and from there to the village of Podkatilovka. (Turns the letter over and reads the address.) To his nobility, gracious sovereign, Ivan Vasilyevich Tryapichkin, in St. Petersburg, on Pochtamtskaya street, in the house at number ninety-seven, turning into the courtyard, on the third floor to the right.” One of the ladies. What an unexpected reprimand! Mayor. That's when he stabbed him, he stabbed him like that! Killed, killed, completely killed! I don't see anything. I see some pig snouts instead of faces, but nothing else... Turn it back, turn it back! (Waves his hand.) Postmaster. Where to turn! As if on purpose, I ordered the caretaker to give me the best three; The devil has managed to give an order ahead. Korobkin's wife. That's for sure, what an unprecedented embarrassment! Ammos Fedorovich. However, damn it, gentlemen! he borrowed three hundred rubles from me. Artemy Filippovich. I also have three hundred rubles. Postmaster (sighs). Oh! and I have three hundred rubles. Bobchinsky. Pyotr Ivanovich and I have sixty-five in banknotes, yes, yes. Ammos Fedorovich (Spreads his hands in bewilderment). How is this, gentlemen? How did we really make such a mistake? Mayor (hits himself on the forehead). How am I no, how am I, old fool? Survived, stupid sheep, out of your mind!.. I’ve been in the service for thirty years; no merchant or contractor could carry out; He deceived swindlers upon swindlers, swindlers and rogues such that they are ready to rob the whole world, he cheated on them. He deceived three governors!.. What a governor! (waved his hand) there’s nothing to say about governors... Anna Andreevna. But this cannot be, Antosha: he got engaged to Mashenka... Mayor (in hearts). Got engaged! Kukish with butter now you are engaged! He's getting into my eyes with a betrothal!.. (In a frenzy.) Look, look, the whole world, all of Christianity, everyone, look how the mayor has been fooled! Fool him, fool him, the old scoundrel! (Threatens himself with his fist.) Oh, you fat nose! Mistaken an icicle or a rag for important person! There he is now singing bells all over the road! Will spread the story around the world. Not only will you become a laughing stock, but there will be a clicker, a paper maker, who will put you in the comedy. That's what's offensive! Rank and title will not be spared, and everyone will bare their teeth and clap their hands. Why are you laughing? Laughing at yourself!.. Eh, you!.. (Knocks his feet on the floor in anger.) I would scribble all these papers! Oh, clickers, damned liberals! damn seed! I would tie you all up in a knot, I would grind you all into flour and the hell out of you! put it in his hat!.. (Shoves his fist and hits the floor with his heel. After some silence.) I still can’t come to my senses. Now, truly, if God wants to punish, he will first take away the mind. Well, what was there in this helipad that looked like an auditor? There was nothing! It’s just that there wasn’t even a half-little finger like it and suddenly that’s it: an auditor! auditor! Well, who was the first to say that he was an auditor? Answer! Artemy Filippovich (spreading his arms). For the life of me, I cannot explain how this happened. It was as if some kind of fog had stunned me, the devil had confused me. Ammos Fedorovich. Who released it? That’s who released it: these guys are great! (Points to Dobchinsky and Bobchinsky.) Bobchinsky. Hey, not me! I didn't even think... Dobchinsky. I'm nothing, nothing at all... Artemy Filippovich. Of course you are. Luka Lukic. Of course. They came running like crazy from the tavern: “He’s here, he’s here, and he’s not spending any money...” They found an important bird! Mayor. Naturally, you! city ​​gossips, damned liars! Artemy Filippovich. Damn you and your auditor and your stories! Mayor. You just roam around the city and confuse everyone, you damned rattles! Sow gossip, short-tailed magpies! Ammos Fedorovich. Damn bastards! Artemy Filippovich. Short-bellied morels!

Everyone surrounds them.

Bobchinsky. By God, it’s not me, it’s Pyotr Ivanovich. Dobchinsky. Eh, no, Pyotr Ivanovich, you are the first... Bobchinsky. But no; you were the first.

The last phenomenon

Same with the gendarme.

Gendarme. An official who arrived by personal order from St. Petersburg demands you to come to him this very hour. He stayed at a hotel.

The spoken words strike everyone like thunder. The sound of amazement unanimously emanates from the ladies' lips; the whole group, having suddenly changed their position, remains petrified.

Silent scene

The mayor is in the middle in the form of a pillar, with outstretched arms and his head thrown back. By right side his wife and daughter with the movement of their whole body rushing towards him; behind them is the postmaster, who has turned into question mark, addressed to the audience; behind him is Luka Lukic, lost in the most innocent way; behind him, at the very edge of the stage, are three ladies, guests, leaning against one another with the most satirical expression on their faces, directly related to the mayor’s family. By left side mayor: Strawberry, tilting his head slightly to one side, as if listening to something; behind him is a judge with outstretched arms, crouching almost to the ground and making a movement with his lips, as if he wanted to whistle or say: “Here’s St. George’s Day for you, grandma!” Behind him is Korobkin, who addressed the audience with a narrowed eye and a caustic allusion to the mayor; behind him, at the very edge of the stage, Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky with their hands moving towards each other, their mouths agape and their eyes bulging at each other. The other guests remain just pillars. For almost a minute and a half, the petrified group maintains this position. The curtain falls.

This work has entered the public domain. The work was written by an author who died more than seventy years ago, and was published during his lifetime or posthumously, but more than seventy years have also passed since publication. It may be freely used by anyone without anyone's consent or permission and without payment of royalties.

/ / / The meaning of the silent scene in Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General”

An exciting comedy by N.V. Gogol's "" opens and exposes for the first time social problems, without affecting at all love relationship. Using comedic techniques, the author laughs at the surrounding officials and people who are simply overcome with fear of being punished and losing their ranks. But this laughter is so bitter, because it reveals to the reader the truth of life in those days.

The main character, , was mistaken by residents of city N for an auditor. But, at the end of the comedy, when all the circumstances have become clear, we are introduced to the episode with a silent scene.

The news about the fake auditor shook and excited all the residents of the city of N. Against the backdrop of these events, all the heroes completely forgot that the real auditor should also arrive. And so, this event happened. From this news, the heroes simply turn to stone and turn into silent pillars. They are overcome by a feeling of indescribable horror, not only from the inspection, but also from the fact that all these actions need to be experienced again, with a new auditor. Residents of the city are completely unprepared to meet the inspector.

At the center of unexpected events is the mayor, because he was the main swindler and thief in the city. He threw his head up and seemed to be turning to the sky with questions: “Why did all this fall on his shoulders?”

The silent scene episode is very important, because it is in it that we can get acquainted with true characters main characters. Without replicas or verbal expressions, the reader observes the behavior of officials and residents of the city. Lukich Luka looked simply lost, Zemlyankin tried to tilt his head to the side. He wanted to hear at least one idea on how to get out of this situation. Lyapkin-Tyapkin, the chief judge of the city, sat down closer to the ground. He was very frightened, because he had many sins behind him. The characters of Dobchinsky and Bobchinsky were portrayed quite funny and absurdly by N.V. Gogol. They opened their mouths and bulged their eyes. Their figures froze in horror at such news. Each of the heroes of the comedy “The Inspector General” had their own sins, and they were afraid to reveal them to everyone.

It is the silent scene that allows us, the readers, to understand the horror into which the characters of the city of N have fallen. At the very end of the comedy, it gives each of us the opportunity to finish the work according to our own conjectures, because nothing is known about the results of the test. Perhaps all the thieves and villains are getting their well-deserved punishment, or maybe the audit will go quietly and smoothly. The author does not write anything about this. I believe that the very thought of punishment, which so excited the city, is a good shake-up for all the heroes.