Gogol's comedy "The Inspector General" is an innovative work. For the first time in Russian literature, a play was created in which social conflict, rather than love conflict, came first. In The Inspector General, the playwright exposed the vices Russian society, laughed at all his heroes, but it was a bitter laugh, “laughter through tears.”
The depravity of the officials of the city of N., their fear for their places, made these people blind - they mistook Khlestakov for an auditor. At the end of the play, everything seems to fall into place - Khlestakov is exposed, the officials are punished. But the real finale is yet to come - this is the last act and the famous silent comedy scene.
Excited by the news about the imaginary auditor, the officials are told that... the real auditor has arrived. In the “heat of events,” everyone had already forgotten that the real one should come, if Khlestakov was just a deceiver. And then, like a bolt from the blue, the news: “The official who arrived by personal order from St. Petersburg demands you to come to him this very hour.”
This message literally paralyzes all the heroes, they petrify: “The mayor is in the middle in the form of a pillar, with outstretched arms and his head thrown back,” “The other guests remain just pillars,” “For almost a minute and a half, the petrified group maintains this position.”
We understand that it is at this moment that all officials experience real horror. The fear that they experienced under Khlestakov increased tenfold also because they need to relive everything again. And if the heroes managed to somehow prepare for the arrival of the imaginary auditor, then here complete surprise turned officials into stone statues.
In the middle, as the head of the city, the main “thief and swindler,” stands the mayor. The author indicates that he spread his arms and threw his head up. It seems as if Anton Antonovich is asking the sky: “For what? Why?" This hero considers himself no more sinful than others - after all, everyone lives the way he does. Skvoznik-Dmukhanovsky’s wife and daughter rushed to the mayor, as if seeking his protection as the head of the family.
In a silent scene, in my opinion, Gogol, without the help of the characters’ replicas, was able to express their character, the essence of each character. So, meek and cowardly caretaker educational institutions Luka Lukich was “lost” “in the most innocent way,” and the trustee of charitable institutions, Strawberry, tilted his head to the side, listening to something. This cunning man does not lose his head, but “listens” to events, ponders how he can “get out of the water unscathed.” But Judge Lyapkin-Tyapkin looks the most comical from the outside. He “with his arms outstretched, crouched almost to the ground and made a movement with his lips, as if he wanted to whistle or say: “Here’s to you, grandma, and St. George’s Day!” We understand that the judge was very frightened, because he knows very well that he has many sins behind him.
The figures of Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky are comical, their eyes bulging, their mouths open and, it seems, they rushed into each other’s arms, and even petrified halfway there. However, like all the remaining guests. Gogol shows us that each of them has a dirty conscience and each of them is afraid of punishment.
It is in the silent scene that the boundaries of comedy are pushed. And it develops from social into moral, philosophical. The author reminds us that sooner or later all people will have to answer for their actions, like officials in a comedy. Gogol appeals to each of us - we need to live according to our conscience, always remember our responsibility to ourselves, God, and people.
Thus, the famous “silent scene” affects the interests of all the characters in the play: in the finale, Gogol brings all the characters onto the stage, forcing them to become “petrified” within a few minutes. This technique allows the playwright to focus the viewer’s attention on the action itself, to more deeply feel the horror that the characters experienced upon learning of the arrival of the real auditor.
In addition, a silent scene allows for a variable interpretation of the comedy's ending. A real auditor has arrived, and will the city receive its well-deserved retribution? Or maybe someone has arrived who the residents associate with heavenly punishment, which everyone fears? Or maybe it was not an auditor who arrived, but an important official traveling accompanied by a gendarme? And even if a real auditor arrived, maybe the audit will go smoothly and everything, as always, will end happily?
The author himself does not give a direct answer, because the ending, in fact, is not that important. The very idea of inevitable punishment, of judgment, which everyone knows about and which everyone is afraid of, is important. Or maybe it’s worth living in such a way as not to be afraid of answering before God?
Municipal budgetary educational institution
"Arlyuk Secondary School"
Prepared by:
teacher and literature
Lesson topic: Final lesson on the comedy “The Inspector General”.
Analysis of the “silent” comedy scene
Lesson objectives:
Help students understand the philosophical significance of not only the ending, but the entire comedy as a whole through a comprehensive consideration of this scene. Development of analytical skills of students. Formation of positive moral orientations.
Equipment: portrait, “Inspector General” poster,
illustration of a “silent” scene,
slides, ICT, screen
Methods and forms of work:
Problem-based learning methods
Teacher-led method of work
Type of lesson: lesson on consolidating knowledge, skills and abilities
Type: eureka lesson
Key words: Bureaucratic system
Providence
Allegory
Lesson progress
Motivational beginning of the lesson:
So, the work “The Inspector General” has been read, the vital basis of the comedy has been revealed; the circumstances that attracted officials to their fatal mistake have been revealed; an idea of the character of the “imaginary” auditor Khlestakov has been obtained.
This is the final lesson. It includes analysis final scene, the so-called “silent” stage; revelation of the epigraph of the comedy and literary game on a work using ICT.
The purpose of the lesson follows from the topic: to reveal the role of the finale, to help you, students, understand the philosophical significance of the “silent” scene and comedy in general.
At home, preparing for today's lesson, you looked at the playbill for the comedy again, thought about the meaning of the epigraph and read the last scene of Act V. On your desks are sheets of paper with an illustration of a “silent” scene.
Teacher's word:
The idea of completing the play (the “silent” scene) was born to Gogol immediately after he began working on “The Inspector General” and did not change during the process of creating the comedy. Gogol believed that this scene should make a strong impression on the audience, and insisted that the “silent scene” last at least 2-3 minutes. Only at the insistence of the director and actors of the Alexandrinsky Theater, who at the rehearsals of “The Inspector General” by the end of the play were so exhausted and exhausted that they could not withstand the tension last scene and fainted, its duration was reduced to one and a half minutes.
Conclusion: Thus, we see that for Gogol the final scene was no less important than all the previous actions of the comedy.
Why did Gogol insist that this scene be so long?
(Students make different assumptions.)
Gogol sought the effect of universal understanding: the reader (viewer) must understand that one of the heroes standing on stage is, to some extent, himself.
“Silent scene” is the mayor’s phrase, as if frozen in the petrified figures of the characters: “Why are you laughing? “You’re laughing at yourself!”
Why does Gogol introduce this scene, since with the arrival of the gendarme the comedy can be considered over and the curtain can be lowered?
But Gogol not only decides to end the comedy this way, but also describes in detail the position of each character on stage and insists on precisely this compositional structure of the finale.
Student: Starting from Act IV, the reader feels how the pathos of the play gradually changes - from comic to tragic; tragedy reaches its apogee precisely in the final “silent scene.”
(Message from a prepared student.)
From the memoirs of contemporaries about the premiere of “The Inspector General” in Alexandrinsky Theater in St. Petersburg: “Laughter from time to time still flew from one end of the hall to the other, but it was some kind of timid laughter that immediately disappeared, there was almost no applause at all; but intense attention, convulsive, intense, followed all the shades of the play, sometimes dead silence showed that what was happening on stage passionately captured the hearts of the audience.”
The very tension of the finale, caused by the appearance of the gendarme on stage through the static, picturesquely frozen position of the characters, according to Gogol, should evoke in the audience a single, but very strong feeling - fear, horror. “Despite... the comical situation of many people... in the end there remains... something monstrously gloomy, some kind of fear of our unrest. This very appearance of the gendarme, who, like some kind of executioner, appears at the door... all this is somehow inexplicably scary!
Name characteristic features"The Inspector General" posters
Student answers:
The poster represents the entire city, that is, all representatives of the system of any Russian city, and in a broader sense, the whole of Russia.
The conflict of the comedy itself is social; This is indicated by the very name of the comedy - “The Inspector General” - a government official.
In addition, the only person acting in the comedy, but not indicated in the poster, is the gendarme.
Think about why the gendarme is not included in the poster?
Students: A gendarme is a representative state power, which punishes the vices of the bureaucratic system that it itself created.
Teacher: Gogol in “Theater Travel” writes: “It’s not funny that the play cannot end without the government. It will certainly appear, like an inevitable fate in the tragedies of the ancients. “... There is nothing bad here, God grant that the government always and everywhere hears its calling to be the representative of Providence on earth and that we believe in it, as the ancients believed in the fate that overtook the crime.”
Gendarme is a messenger of Providence, a higher power more powerful than the highest ranks state system. This is what makes such a strong impression on the heroes of the comedy and gives rise to horror and fear in them (and in the audience). Gogol in “The Denouement” of “The Inspector General” wrote: “Whatever you say, the inspector who is waiting for us at the door of the coffin is terrible.”
In the minds of the author of The Inspector General, the gendarme is a somewhat mystical figure: he appears unexpectedly and out of nowhere, and the words he uttered “strike everyone like thunder; so the whole group, having suddenly changed their position, remains petrified.” And the real auditor, who sent the gendarme with the news of his arrival, becomes a mystical person; This feeling of mysticism is further enhanced by the fact that the inspector does not appear on stage: just one news about him plunges characters comedy into horror, which is transmitted to the audience.
Let us turn to the description of the position of the heroes on the stage (the mayor and the postmaster).
The student reads: “The mayor is in the middle in the form of a pillar, with outstretched arms and his head thrown back.”
Student: The mayor occupies a central place.
Teacher: Doesn’t the mayor’s figure resemble a cross, a crucifix?
Student: Yes, the mayor’s pose really does resemble a cross.
Teacher: “The Silent Scene” introduces into the comedy, firstly, motives, and secondly, the motive of death (compare “the auditor who is waiting for us at the door of the coffin”).
So social conflict comedy receives a philosophical interpretation: the sources of the vices of society are rooted in the spiritual organization of man, and not in the system itself.
Determine the location of the postmaster on the stage.
Student: This character, “turned into question mark", addressed to the audience, stands behind the mayor.
Try to formulate the question that Gogol addresses to the audience and which receives such embodiment on stage?
Teacher: The heroes on stage are frozen, petrified, but in this fossil there is movement - not external, internal - spiritual world people. Gogol believes that social vices are a kind of projection of the shortcomings of a person’s spiritual world. Therefore, man must first change. Cleansing inner world, according to Gogol, is possible only through tragedy: shock forces a person to be spiritually reborn.
(Students offer their own versions of questions.)
Teacher: In our opinion, the most accurately reflecting the meaning of the final scene may be the question: “How will you, the viewer (reader), meet the day of judgment?”
Do you think the real auditor is similar to Khlestakov or is he the complete opposite of this “official from St. Petersburg”?
Students answer.
Teacher: Who is the auditor who sent the gendarme - Khlestakov No. 2 or higher power, providence?
(Students' answers are heard.)
Teacher: There is no definite answer. Firstly, the auditor himself does not appear on stage. Secondly, the gendarme - the auditor's messenger - is not stated in the poster. Thirdly, the ending of the comedy is open.
I propose to conduct an experiment. Let's say a real auditor appears on stage. An auditor similar to Khlestakov.
Student: After the “silent scene” the action will be repeated from the beginning: again anxiety, fears, the need to again look for ways to establish contacts.
Teacher: What if the auditor is providence itself (as the analysis of the “silent scene” indicates)?
Student: The development of the play after the “silent scene” will then be unpredictable. The finale is a symbol of the day of judgment in the life of the city.
Thus, if we accept the first interpretation of the image of the auditor as correct, then the comedy loses its satirical significance; vices cannot be eradicated, they only change. Then the “silent scene” loses its relevance; it can be neglected without prejudice to the idea of comedy.
What interpretation of the image of an auditor is significant for Gogol? Justify your opinion.
Student: The second interpretation is undoubtedly significant for the playwright. The heroes of the comedy are shocked, they are plunged into something new state of mind. It is clear that in the finale they are completely thrown out of the rut of their usual life, amazed forever. Nothing is reported about what the real auditor will do and what the officials will face. It is quite possible that with the “silent scene” Gogol wanted to lead to the idea of \u200b\u200bretribution, the triumph of state power.
Teacher: Read the epigraph to the comedy and explain its meaning.
Student: The proverb “You can’t blame the mirror if you have a crooked face” appeared before the text of the comedy only in 1842, when Gogol finished his work on the finishing of “The Inspector General.” This epigraph was the playwright’s response to the indignation of the bureaucratic public regarding the staging of his play on the stages of St. Petersburg and Moscow. Gogol was accused of maliciously distorting reality, of wanting to discredit Russian life.
Teacher: Why are those who accused Gogol of slander wrong?
Student: Having read the memoirs of contemporaries, we saw that in the pictures of the life of the city where the events of “The Inspector General” took place, the same facts took place, the reality that was observed in different cities of Russia. Therefore, it can be argued that the indignation against Gogol was caused not by “slander,” but by the truth of life that the first viewers of the comedy felt.
Gogol answered with his epigraph to those who reproached him for slandering Russian reality: you cannot be angry with a mirror if you see a true reflection in it; life itself is bad and unfair, not its image.
Summing up the lesson.
Teacher: What discoveries did you make in class today?
Students: “Silent scene” has a broad symbolic meaning.
Comedy has a philosophical interpretation.
An important idea in The Inspector General is the idea of inevitable spiritual retribution.
The “silent scene” has a very important compositional role.
The development of the play after the “silent scene” is unpredictable if
the real auditor is providence, a higher power.
The ending of the comedy becomes a symbol of the last - judgment -
days of the city's life.
Literary quiz
Use these illustrations to identify the characters in the comedy.
/ / / 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.
N. V. Gogol's comedy “The Inspector General” at one time became one of the most innovative works of dramatic art. Many of the techniques used by the author have never been used by playwrights before and have not been embodied in theater stage. Such innovative techniques include the aforementioned “silent scene”, which ends the final part of the comedy “The Inspector General”. What did the author want to achieve by concluding the work with a silent scene? What effect did you expect? It is believed that the silent scene that ends the comedy “The Inspector General” was introduced into the work by the writer under the impression of famous painting Russian artist Karl Bryullov “The Last Day of Pompeii”. It is this picture that strikes the person looking at it with the strength and expressiveness of frozen emotion. The image is motionless, static, but at the same time, the faces of the people depicted in the picture, their figures, the poses they take, testify to their inner state better than any words. The eloquence of static scenes, their expressiveness - these are precisely the properties that were subtly noticed by N.V. Gogol and later successfully used by the writer. After all, “The Inspector General” is far from the only work of the writer in which there is a “silent scene” (in another extremely popular work- the story “Viy” - the author also uses this technique). If we consider artistic techniques, used by N.V. Gogol, in more detail, one can notice a certain pattern: the technique of “death”, a kind of “petrification” is the basis for the depiction of many characteristic Gogol characters (for example, the same landowners in “ Dead souls""). In The Inspector General, the silent scene is climax, and he should be the most eloquent. Freezing in an expressive pose (in this case, the poses of all characters are different, which emphasizes their individual personal qualities) is a real pantomime. The mayor, members of his family, the postmaster, Strawberry, Luka Lukich - all of them become mimes for some time, actors in the “theater of facial expressions and gestures”. And words are not needed here, maybe even unnecessary. Posture and facial expression can express an incomparably greater surge of emotions than words. Moreover, the silent scene in “The Inspector General” is also a massive one - everyone stands as if struck by thunder, and this circumstance once again emphasizes how shocking and stunning the news was for all the characters that “... an official who arrived by personal order from St. Petersburg demands you to come to him this very hour.” Gogol was the first Russian playwright to use the pause technique, which was successfully used by many directors, screenwriters and writers after him. Today, the pause technique is one of the most commonly used dramatic techniques.
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 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 gets whipped 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 the 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 so self-important? 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; and if I had been even a little on your side, you, the rascal, would have trampled me into the very mud, and even piled me on top with a log. 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 boldness.)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 with 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 began, 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 admit, 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 pulls, it pulls! 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 blurry. 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 bank notes, 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
The same goes for 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 a 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.