Characteristics of Khlestakov from “The Inspector General. Essay "characterization of Khlestakov in the comedy" Inspector General " Characteristics of the hero from the story "Inspector General Khlestakov"

Khlestakov is one of the most striking characters in the comedy “The Inspector General”. He is the culprit of all the events that take place, which the writer reports immediately during Osip’s story about him. However, the whole meaning of the presence of this hero in the work does not immediately become clear to the reader.

general characteristics

In the essay “The Image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General,” the student can point out the fact that this character is not at all contrasted with other heroes of the work. After all, he, just like them, belongs to the class of officials. His rank is the lowest, he is a collegiate registrar. The writer gives his hero the following description: “A young man, 23 years old, thin...”. Gogol also calls him “stupid.” This character is unable to concentrate on one thought for a long time. In addition, a certain mysticism is also associated with the image of Khlestakov. Isn’t this mistake an obsession, as a result of which an ordinary “wimp” is mistaken for a high-ranking official? Khlestakov disappears at the end of the work also mysteriously.

Events in which the character's image is revealed

While working on the essay “The Image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General,” you can briefly describe the main points of the plot of the work, which reveal the whole nature of this character. According to the plot, Khlestakov moves from the capital to the Saratov province. He is losing, he has absolutely no money. He lives on credit in a tavern in the city of N. The authorities are expecting the arrival of the auditor and mistakenly mistake Khlestakov for him. The latter mistakenly believes that the hosts’ hospitality is due to their humanity, and not a mistake. Representatives of the bureaucratic caste and merchant class begin to come to Khlestakov, who gradually becomes impudent and begins to borrow money from everyone. Only as time passes does he begin to vaguely understand that he is being mistaken for another person.

In the essay “The Image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General,” a student can emphasize that the main character is firmly accustomed to the role of an official, he feels quite comfortable. After all, it is very pleasant to be someone towards whom you have always felt envy and whom you are unlikely to become someday in your life. The main character begins to invent various fantastic images for himself and remains in the city, without any fear of being exposed.

Essay “The Image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General”: opportunism as a character trait

Khlestakov is ready to lie left and right, not even remembering what was told to them a minute ago. He is a “dummy person” who has the ability to very quickly adapt to the social situation in which he finds himself. Khlestakov is not capable of making independent decisions. This is an empty darling and a spender of money.

The worst qualities in one person

You can also use quotes in the essay “The Image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General.” For example, this is how N.V. Gogol characterizes the hero: “He has extraordinary lightness in his thoughts.” With all his actions he shows off, his main motive is vanity. He is “a liar, a scoundrel, and a coward...”. Khlestakov lacks any understanding of what good and evil are. He is ready to humiliate himself and adapt in any circumstances, easily moving from arrogance to people-pleasing, from narcissism to cowardice. Gogol writes about a man “who has become all lies, without even noticing it.” His goals and aspirations are also low - all he does is squander his father's money on cards and carousing.

Claim to intelligence

At the same time, with all his behavior, Khlestakov strives to pretend to be educated. However, he speaks without awareness and consideration, since he is not able to concentrate on his thoughts for a long time. In his lies, he gives himself enormous freedom, which demonstrates the poverty of his nature. Khlestakov is a gambling spender, a vulgar red tape and, on top of that, a bribe-taker. In his character he carries within himself everything that serfdom could instill in a person.

Attitude towards inferiors

Khlestakov communicates with other people who are lower in rank than him with obvious contempt and pride. For example, he calls Osip the most abusive words: “fool”, “rude animal”. Khlestakov also calls the tavern servant with the rude phrase “bad pig.” He calls the poor swindlers and slackers.

The paradox of the work

In the short essay “The Image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General,” the student can also emphasize the comic nature of this whole story. It is as follows: the more Khlestakov invents false information about himself, the less worthy he behaves, the more others perceive him as a real auditor. The main idea that N.V. Gogol wanted to convey in his work is the following: his character is not just a “wizard” whom people mistakenly mistook for a high-ranking official. It is a product of the bureaucratic machine, as well as the decline of the serf system.

The phenomenon of “Khlestakovism”

Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General” is one of the writer’s favorite characters. It was in him that Gogol’s passion for hyperbolism was reflected. The writer talks about a character whom you don’t feed with bread - let him play a role a little higher than what is actually intended for him. Unfortunately, many “khlestakovs” can be found in our time. Now the name of the hero Nikolai Vasilyevich has become a household name. Khlestakovism is constant lies, lies, boasting combined with a lack of profundity.

Selfless lie

In the essay “The Image of Khlestakov in Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General,” the student can note that Khlestakov turns out to be well prepared for the role that he plays with such pleasure. In the capital's offices, he accumulated the necessary stock of ideas about how a high-ranking official should behave. In the city, it was as if he was not going to deceive anyone - no, he only accepted the offerings that the residents gave him.

The deceived mayor

The mayor could not have foreseen this case. After all, the strategy that he developed was designed specifically for a real auditor. For the mayor, the situation in which cunning deals with cunning was quite familiar. However, Khlestakov, who himself forgot about his lies, bribed him with his sincerity. He turned out to be an auditor who in fact was not one, and even moreover, he did not plan to impersonate him. However, his role was successfully played.

N. V. Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General” has long been widely circulated with quotes and sharp comparisons, as they very aptly reflect human nature. This work, which the great writer wrote in 1835, is still relevant today. Because it describes with the clearest accuracy the most diverse traits of human character, in particular its main character. A coward, a braggart, a self-confident person - this is a short image of Khlestakov. In the comedy “The Inspector General” these features are revealed richly and vividly.

Hoax of the century

This work begins with the fact that in one county town they are waiting for a very important person - an auditor who is going on an important inspection. And then a gentleman arrives, very modest and businesslike. The author paints a brief image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General” with very positive colors. Ivan Vladimirovich, that’s the name of the newcomer, of a very “pleasant appearance.” It does not make a stunning impression and is not even remarkable in any way. But if you look closely at the hero, he is very worthy of attention.

The circumstances were such that Khlestakov was mistaken for an important person. And he, instead of immediately correcting the misunderstanding, instantly gets into character. This is where the most hidden qualities of his character appear.

The Loser and the Little Man

An ordinary ordinary person of that time - this is a brief image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General,” which the author draws to us at the beginning. He lives in a world that is full of various temptations and enticements. But the Northern capital refuses to accept him into its ranks. After all, Khlestakov does not have a high enough position, but he does not shine with a special mind, does not possess any sparkling talents. He can safely be classified as one of the banal losers who came to conquer St. Petersburg. But the hero clearly overestimated his strength - both financial and moral. He is an ordinary little man in a big capital.

But here fate gives you such a chance - to demonstrate that you are an outstanding person. And Khlestakov enthusiastically rushes into

County nobility

What society does the main character fall into? This is an environment of small landed nobility, whose representatives are only concerned with emphasizing their importance and greatness. Each resident of the county town tries to highlight the shortcomings of the other in order to prove that he is the best. The characters in Gogol's The Inspector General are swaggering, sometimes stupid, but consider themselves to be the local aristocracy.

And so Khlestakov, an ordinary little clerk, finds himself in such a society, as the author writes about him - “neither this nor that.”

A reasonable question arises: why didn’t the main character immediately admit that he was not who they thought he was? But the author does not answer this question - maybe he just wanted to play at being an important person?

The brief image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General” can be described as follows: he is a man who is too far from ideal, he is a player, he is a petty reveler. Khlestakov believes that comfort should dominate, and worldly pleasures should come first. He sees nothing wrong with fooling scammers. Moreover, he is sure that he is doing a “holy work.”

Gogol created a wonderful image of a braggart and a coward who does not strive for anything and simply wastes his life. He is “one of those people who are called empty-headed in the offices.”

By the way, Khlestakov’s quotes from “The Inspector General” very aptly and vividly characterize a certain circle of people. The exact characteristics given to the heroes in a few words quite accurately reflect their inner essence.

It is interesting that, in addition to the real person, there is a certain ghost in the hero who takes revenge on him with fantastic self-affirmation. He tries his best to not be who he really is, but it desperately fails. But even Khlestakov’s own lackey openly despises the master. This is how he speaks of his master: “It would be nice if there was really something worthwhile, otherwise he’s just a simple little elistrat.”

Both a braggart and a scoundrel

Khlestakov has a good pedigree. He was born into the family of an old-world landowner, in the outback of Russia. But for some reason he was unable to maintain connections with his family, people, or land. He does not remember his kinship and from this he becomes, as it were, an artificial person who jumped out of the “Petrine table of ranks.” He speaks quite disparagingly about his father: “They, the idiots, don’t even know what it means to ‘order to accept’.” Such quotes from Khlestakov from “The Inspector General” once again emphasize that the hero does not honor, and even tries to make fun of, his old father.

But this does not prevent him from taking money from his “uneducated father” and spending it at his own discretion.

Narcissistic, gambling, boastful - this is a brief image of Khlestakov in the comedy “The Inspector General”. He arrived at the hotel and immediately demanded the most delicious lunch, because he was allegedly not used to anything else. He loses all his money, but cannot stop. He insults the servant and yells at him, but at some points he warmly listens to his advice.

And what a lot of boasting! Without blinking an eye, he declares that he has an excellent command of the pen, and he personally wrote such famous works as “Robert the Devil” and “Fenella” in one evening. He doesn’t even suspect that these are not books, but operas!

And even when the mayor’s daughter catches him in a lie and remembers the real author of the work - “Yuri Miloslavsky”, Khlestakov immediately declares that he has exactly the same composition.

One can only envy such an ability to instantly adapt and not get discouraged! To impress ordinary people, he constantly spouts French words, which he knows only a few. It seems to him that this makes his speech secular, but in fact his flow of words causes laughter. He does not know how to finish his thought, so he quickly changes topics, jumping from one to another. When he needs something, he can be affectionate and polite. But as soon as Khlestakov gets his way, he immediately begins to be rude and rude.

There is no morality, there is only profit

There are no moral restrictions for Khlestakov. He is an empty and frivolous person who is concerned only with his own well-being. And when officials come to him to give him a basic bribe, he takes it for granted. At first, when they give money for the first time, he is unusually embarrassed and even drops it out of excitement. But when the postmaster comes in, Khlestakov accepts the money more confidently. At Strawberry's, he simply demands them with vigor. For now, he is confident in his soul that he is borrowing these funds and will certainly pay them back. But as soon as he realizes that he has been confused with an important person, Khlestakov instantly adapts to the situation and decides to take advantage of such a great chance.

The place of comedy in world literature

Gogol, “The Inspector General”, Khlestakov - these words have firmly entered world literature. The concept of “Khlestakovism” has become a common symbol of deception, trickery and narrow-mindedness.

The author managed to so accurately reflect the character of the main character in his work that deceitful and vicious people are still very often called in one word - Khlestakov. A rogue and a rogue, he never drew any conclusions from his situation, remaining in the vile confidence that next time he would certainly be lucky.

The works of N.V. Gogol have become the property of world literature. To this day, he remains one of the best satirical writers, who so subtly managed to portray Russian reality. This article describes the main character of Gogol's immortal comedy "The Inspector General".

Briefly about the work

The comedy takes place in a provincial town in the Russian wilderness. Local officials received news of the imminent arrival of the auditor. Mired in bribery and theft, they got pretty scared and mistook a young rake who was passing through the city for an inspector. In fact, the auditor does not appear in the comedy at all. The main character can be considered him only in an ironic sense, since he does not understand that he was mistaken for a “major official from the capital.” Khlestakov’s characterization will help you understand that he himself lies unintentionally, he simply plays the role that was imposed on him by those around him.

N.V. Gogol wrote that in the comedy “The Inspector General” he wants to collect “everything bad in Russia” and “laugh at everything.” He admitted that Khlestakov became the most difficult for him. In the recommendations for the play, the author revealed his character quite deeply: “somewhat stupid,” “speaks without any consideration,” “without a king in his head.” The hero of the play, indeed, performs all his actions completely unintentionally. Despite the fact that this character is neither a conscious deceiver nor a reasoner, he acts as a real engine of the plot.

Appearance of the main character

What is the person like who was mistaken in the town for an auditor? What are its characteristics? Khlestakov is young, “about twenty-three years old,” “thin,” with chestnut-colored hair—“more of a chantret,” “cute little nose,” “and eyes so quick.” “Unprepossessing” and short, but “not bad-looking,” one might say “pretty.” Not in service uniform, but dressed in fashion, a dress made of “Aglitsky cloth”, one tailcoat worth “one and a half hundred rubles”, a cap and a cane.

Position in society

Khlestakov loves only the best, does not deny himself anything - “death” is like “I don’t like to deny myself” and “I love good cuisine.” Already at the beginning of the comedy it is clear what kind of person he is. The servant Osip gives a characterization of Khlestakov, from his words it becomes clear that the master “wasted the money” that his father sent, and now sits “twitching his tail,” but asks to rent him a “better” room, and serve him the “best” dinner. Khlestakov is a petty official, a “simple little élistratist.” He is single, loves to go to theaters, “drives a cab,” and when he spends his money, he sends his servant to the market to sell his “new tailcoat.” Instead of working, he walks “around the preschool” and “plays cards.”

Khlestakov arrived from St. Petersburg, stayed at a hotel in a small room, lived for the second week, dined, “didn’t leave the tavern” and “didn’t pay a penny.” The innkeeper refused to serve them, Osip and Khlestakov, lunch. They don’t even have money for tobacco, “they smoked the last one on the fourth day.” Khlestakov didn’t like the town: in the shops “they don’t give you loans,” he thought about selling his pants, but decided that it was better to come home “in a St. Petersburg suit” and approach the “daughter” of some landowner.

Demeanor

The author skillfully presented Khlestakov’s characterization. In a comedy, every line of the hero reveals his manners and behavior. From the very beginning, he shows himself as an empty and frivolous person: having spent all the money, he not only does not think about the fact that he has nothing to pay with, but also demands. The servant brings him “soup and roast”, and give Khlestakov “sauce” and salmon. He eats and is picky: “this is not roast”, instead of butter “some kind of feathers”, “axe” instead of “beef”. He scolds the innkeeper: “Idlers”, they only “take off people passing by.”

Having learned that the mayor is asking him, he continues: “Best innkeeper! I’ve already complained.” He threatens: “How dare he? What am I, a merchant or an artisan? But when he sees the mayor, he shrinks and explains that they should send him money from the village. He is justified that there is nothing to pay for: the innkeeper “starved” him all day and served him “tea,” which “stinks of fish.” Seeing that the mayor was timid, Khlestakov became brave and, in order not to end up in prison, tries to intimidate him. Starting with promises to pay for lunch, he ends with threats to appeal to the minister.

The mayor takes him for an auditor, ingratiates himself, speaks with respect, calls him an “enlightened guest,” and invites him to his house. Khlestakov does not even try to find out the reason for the honors shown to him, he says “without any consideration” and begins to complain about bad conditions, the owner does not give candles when he wants to “compose something.” He immediately agrees to the mayor’s invitation to live in his house: “much more pleasant” than “in this tavern.”

Khlestakov's speech

Even a brief description of Khlestakov shows that in the image of his hero the author gives a collective and somewhat exaggerated type of superficially educated upstart. For the sake of a beautiful style, Khlestakov uses in his speech French words he does not understand, cliches from literature. And at the same time, he does not consider it shameful to insert vulgar expressions. He speaks abruptly, jumps from one thing to another, and all because he is spiritually poor and unable to pay attention to anything. He grows in his own eyes from the attention of officials, becomes bolder and no longer knows the limits of lies and boasting.

Behavior

The very first action gives an extremely clear description of Khlestakov. When officials take him to the city’s establishments, he is first of all interested in whether there are any entertainments where he can “play cards.” From which it becomes clear that a person loves to have fun. In the mayor’s house, he tries to rise in the eyes of those around him and says that he is a member of the department, once he was even “mistaken for the commander-in-chief.” He boasts that he is “known everywhere” and knows “actresses.” He often sees “writers” “on friendly terms” with Pushkin.

He claims that he wrote “Yuri Miloslavsky,” but Marya Antonovna recalls that this was the work of Zagoskin. What about the newly appointed auditor? He immediately finds an excuse by informing those present about the existence of two different books with the same title. He says that he has his “first house” in St. Petersburg and then, intoxicated with wine and success, he admits an inaccuracy: “you will run up” to your “fourth floor” and “tell the cook.” But those around him perceive this rather as a slip of the tongue and encourage him to lie, thinking that this will allow them to learn more about him.

Actions

He rejoices at the warm welcome and does not realize that he has been mistaken for another person. “Extraordinary ease of thought” - the author gave him this description. Khlestakov does not pretend to be an auditor; he simply does what those around him impose on him. This behavior further establishes him in their eyes as a high-ranking official. “Even though he lied,” he plays “with the ministers” and goes “to the palace.” Khlestakov is weaving an intrigue, but he himself does not realize it. The image of this hero is the embodiment of stupidity and emptiness.

His thoughts fussily jump from one subject to another, without lingering or stopping at anything. The author also characterizes Khlestakov in the comments. Quotes “without a king in his head”, “somewhat stupid” give a clear understanding that before us is one of those people who are called “empty”. Moreover, he instantly changes his appearance and adapts to reality. A sort of chameleon that changes its color for survival, not for fun. Thanks to this unintentionality and sincerity with which he plays the role imposed on him, Khlestakov easily gets out of any situation when he is caught in a lie.

Relationships with others

In the mayor’s house, everyone wants to know more about the “distinguished guest” and asks the servant Osip what his master likes and what he is interested in. Khlestakov brilliantly plays the auditor in front of the officials and only in the fourth act of the comedy begins to understand that he was mistaken for a “statesman.” Does he feel anything about it? Hardly. He easily transforms and plays the role that society has offered him.

In comedy, everything is based on a situation of self-deception. The author presents the reader with a person who lacks his own content. In the comedy “The Inspector General”, Khlestakov’s characterization clearly shows that he is a person without internal filling. He does not deliberately deceive as much as he misleads other participants in the comedy. It is precisely in this unintentionality that the strength of this character lies.

Khlestakov gets used to the role to such an extent that he introduces himself as the groom of the mayor's daughter. Without shame or conscience, he asks for her hand, not remembering that a minute ago he confessed his love to her mother. He kneels first in front of his daughter, then in front of his mother. As a result, he conquers them and drags himself after both, not knowing who to choose.

Comedy finale

When Khlestakov realizes that he was mistaken for the wrong person, another unseemly trait of this hero is revealed. Having an empty and insignificant character, he writes to his literary friend about what happened to him. And despite the fact that he was received kindly in this town, Khlestakov joyfully describes the vices of his new acquaintances, those whom he has already robbed, and offers to ridicule them in the newspaper. This is Khlestakov’s characterization.

Gogol's work ends with a “silent scene”: a real inspector has arrived. But this does not make him the main character of the comedy; Khlestakov is rightfully considered the main character. The author of the work publicly stated that the only positive aspect of his comedy is laughter. So Gogol warned against accusations from officials. The writer argued that regardless of age, education or social status, every Russian person becomes Khlestakov at least for a minute.

Every schoolchild knows that the theatrical play “The Inspector General” was written by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol, and this work was one of his first works created for the theater. Since one of the key characters of the comedy is Khlestakov, in this article we will talk about him - a young man who found himself among the residents of the city of N at the moment when he went from St. Petersburg to the village to visit his father. So, below is the characterization of Khlestakov from the comedy “The Inspector General”.

This is what you can immediately say about Khlestakov, and this information in a condensed form will help you if you are writing an essay on the topic “Characteristics of Khlestakov.” This man is flighty and “without a king in his head.” In other words, he acts to please himself, without thinking about the consequences and those around him, including his loved ones.

For example, Gogol describes how Khlestakov squandered the money sent by his father, moreover, simply at the card table. And he still owes money to the innkeeper, because, living in his inn together with Osip (Khlestakov’s servant), he does not pay for lodging and food. On top of everything else, this hero speaks indignantly about the fact that he is not fed for free, as if it were someone else’s responsibility. This is a brief description of Khlestakov from Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General”. Let's see what role Gogol assigned to this character in his play.

Khlestakov - the most empty person in Gogol's comedy

Reading Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General,” we see that prominent people in the city of N think of Khlestakov as an inspector. Frightened at first, the young man quickly realized that this situation could play into his hands.

There was a moment when Khlestakov was afraid of the mayor, because he, in his opinion, wanted to arrest the young man. But then it turned out that these fears were empty, and Khlestakov’s characterization for us, as readers, immediately became clear. He realized that the mayor and others were afraid of officials, and were currying favor with those who were higher in duty, and Khlestakov literally extorted money from the pockets of these people, after which he disappeared to an unknown location.

In an essay on the characterization of Khlestakov, the following conclusion will be useful to you: this character was created by Gogol to reveal the essence of officials in the city of N. All their shortcomings and unclean deeds came out. How did they begin to behave towards each other? Yes, at first they all made cute faces and stretched their faces in smiles, as if they respected each other and everything was fine with them. But after that, this “elite” of the city turned into irreconcilable enemies who insult others and are ready to plunge anyone into the mud headlong.

What does the name Khlestakov tell us in the comedy “The Inspector General”

Many people wonder whether the name of this character is connected with his actions and his role as conceived by Gogol. Let’s think about this since we are studying Khlestakov’s characterization.

In fact, his last name is certainly telling. Having “whipped” the face of each of his characters, Gogol came up with a wonderful surname for the person playing this role. Indeed, Khlestakov’s deception turned out to be a slap in the face for officials. Let us note that those around them themselves imposed this position on Khlestakov, and he simply did not miss his chance.

Here's what else needs to be taken into account in the essay, paying attention to Khlestakov's brief description:

• Khlestakov adapts to people. With a servant he pretends to be a gentleman, with officials he first behaves timidly, then plays the role of an important person.
• Special conversation about women. Khlestakov whispers pleasantries to the ladies, no matter what age they are, and tries to pretend to be a metropolitan dandy.
• Sensing danger, and in many ways helping his master Osip here, Khlestakov managed to curl up and disappear, not allowing himself to be exposed.

Is it possible to discern the features of Khlestakov, whose characteristics we are considering, as well as the behavior of officials of the city of N, in modern society? Undoubtedly! And today some people bow down to rank in order to gain a better position or gain something. And there are quite a few people who like to lie, dodge, adapt, just to stay in the win, while overstepping all the norms of morality and etiquette.

Thanks to the above, you better understand what a brief description of Khlestakov is in Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General,” and this will also help you write an essay on this topic. You may also be interested in

>Characteristics of the heroes The Inspector General

Characteristics of the hero Khlestakov

Khlestakov Ivan Aleksandrovich is the central character of N.V. Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General,” a petty official from St. Petersburg, an imaginary inspector, one of the most famous characters in Russian literature. This is a young man of about 23 years old, thin, a little stupid and unable to pay attention to any thought for a long time. In St. Petersburg, he is an official of the lowest rank, about whom no one knows anything. Nobody respects him, not even his servant Osip. Khlestakov has a faceless personality, is insignificant and poor.

On the way to the Saratov province to visit his father, he lost all the money, and now lives in a tavern on credit. When the mayor appears to him, mistaking Khlestakov for an auditor, he is seriously frightened and thinks that this is due to his arrest for non-payment of a debt. Having taken a bribe from the mayor, he believes that he is lending money out of humanity. Following the mayor, all the other officials and merchants of the city bring him money. He becomes more and more impudent and takes it all “on loan”. When Khlestakov realizes that he has been mistaken for someone else, he writes a letter to his friend Tryapkin, in which he describes each of the visitors unflatteringly. At the same time, he embellishes the letter with the most fantastic stories, including an affair with the mayor’s wife and daughter. This letter reveals the stupid, boastful and frivolous nature of the hero.

Khlestakov lives a carefree life, does not think about the future and does not remember the past. Wherever he wants, he goes, and whatever he wants, he does. Most of all, he likes to show off in front of the ladies, show off in front of officials and ordinary people. At the same time, he always mentions that he is from St. Petersburg and talks about secular manners and metropolitan life. By nature, Khlestakov is a creative person. Firstly, he is artistic, since he managed to get used to the image of an auditor so quickly. Secondly, having collected a fair amount of bribes, he wants to take up literature. Despite the fact that he had no idea that his letter would be opened and read, Khlestakov still felt the imminent exposure and left in a hurry.