The image of Korobochka in the poem 'Dead Souls' by N.V. Gogol. Dead souls characterization of the image of the box Nastasya Petrovna How Gogol emphasizes the typicality of the box

Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol created his work “Dead Souls” in 1842. In it he depicted a whole series of Russian landowners, creating their grotesque and vivid images. One of the most interesting representatives of this class described in the poem is Korobochka. The characteristics of this heroine will be discussed in this article.

Characteristics plan

The plan according to which the analysis of the landowners - the characters of the work "Dead Souls" is carried out, includes one way or another the following points:

• the first impression the hero makes;
• characteristic features of this character;
• speech and behavior;
• the hero’s attitude towards the household;
• attitude towards other people;
• goals in life;
• conclusions.

Let's try to analyze according to this plan the image of such a heroine as Korobochka ("Dead Souls"). Our characterization will begin with the first impression that the heroine made on Chichikov. The third chapter of the work is devoted to creating the image of Korobochka.

Chichikov's first impression

Korobochka Nastasya Petrovna is a landowner who is the widow of a very thrifty and thrifty woman, already elderly.

Her village is small, but everything in it is in good order, the economy is thriving, which brings in a good income. Korobochka compares favorably with Manilov: she knows the names of all the peasants who belong to her (quote from the text: “...knew almost all of them by heart”), speaks of them as diligent workers, and takes care of the farm on her own.

The behavior of this landowner, the address “father” to the guest, the desire to serve him (since Chichikov introduced himself as a nobleman), to provide the best possible accommodation for the night, to treat him - these are all features characteristic of the landowner class in the provinces. The portrait of Korobochka is not as detailed as the portraits of the other landowners. It seemed to be drawn out: first Chichikov heard the voice of the old maid (“a hoarse woman”), then another woman appeared, younger, but very similar to her, and finally, when he was escorted into the house and he had already looked around, she came in herself Lady Korobochka (“Dead Souls”).

The portrait characteristics of the heroine are as follows. The author describes her as an elderly woman, wearing a “sleeping cap, put on hastily, with a flannel around her neck.” The quotation description of Korobochka (“Dead Souls”) can be continued. Nikolai Vasilyevich emphasizes Korobochka’s old age in the image of the landowner; in the text further Chichikov calls her directly to himself - an old woman. This housewife especially does not change in the morning. Only her sleeping cap disappears from her image.

The box is just that, so the main character immediately discards the ceremony and gets down to business.

Attitude to the economy

We further describe such a character as Korobochka (“Dead Souls”). The characterization according to plan continues with the attitude of this heroine to the household. In understanding the image of a given landowner, a large role is played by the description of the decoration of the rooms in the house, as well as the estate as a whole, which is distinguished by contentment and strength.

It is clear in everything that this woman is a good housewife. The room's windows overlook the courtyard, which is filled with numerous birds and various "domestic creatures." Further on you can see vegetable gardens, fruit trees, covered with nets from birds, there are also stuffed animals on poles, on one of which there is “the cap of the mistress herself.”

The wealth of their inhabitants is also shown by the peasant huts. This is also noted by Gogol (“Dead Souls”). The characterization (the Box is an image also conveyed by external details) includes a description of not only the character himself, but also the environment associated with him. This must be remembered when conducting analysis. The economy of this landowner is clearly thriving, bringing her considerable profit. And the village itself is not small, it consists of eighty souls.

Characteristics

We continue to describe such a character as Korobochka (“Dead Souls”). The characteristics according to the plan are supplemented with the following details. Gogol includes this landowner among the small owners who complain about losses and crop failures and “hold their heads somewhat to one side,” and meanwhile collect a little money into “motley bags placed in the drawers of the chest of drawers.”

Manilov and Korobochka are antipodes in some way: the vulgarity of the first is hidden behind discussions about the Motherland, lofty phrases about its good, and Korobochka’s spiritual poverty appears in a natural, undisguised form. She doesn’t even pretend to be cultured: the whole appearance of the heroine emphasizes, first of all, the unpretentious simplicity that Korobochka has. The characterization of the hero “Dead Souls” also shows that this simplicity is found in Nastasya Petrovna in her relationships with people.

In the author's summary, it is noted that their decoration was ancient - striped old wallpaper, paintings depicting birds, small antique mirrors between the windows, framed in the form of leaves. Behind each of the mirrors was either a letter, a stocking, or an old deck of cards. The wall is decorated with a clock with flowers painted on the dial. Here are the items that are shown during Chichikov's short visit. They indicate that the people living in the rooms are more likely to look to the past than to the present.

Behavior

In the conversation about the acquisition of “dead” souls, the character and essence of Korobochka is fully revealed. At first, this woman cannot understand what the main character wants from her. When she finally understands what could be beneficial for her, bewilderment turns into a desire to get the greatest benefit from this transaction: because if someone needs the dead, therefore, they are the subject of bargaining, since they are worth something.

Attitude towards people

Dead souls become for Korobochka on a par with lard, flour, honey and hemp. She has already had to sell everything else (quite profitably, as we know), but this business seems unknown and new to her. This is where the desire not to sell things short comes into play. Gogol writes that she “began to be very afraid that this buyer would somehow cheat her.” The landowner infuriates Chichikov with her obstinacy, who was already counting on getting easy consent.

Here an epithet appears that expresses the essence of not only Korobochka, but also a whole landowner like this - “club-headed”.

Nikolai Vasilyevich explains that neither social position nor rank are the cause of this property. The phenomenon of "club-headedness" is very common. His representative may even be a state-owned, respectable person who turns out to be a “perfect Korobochka.” The author explains that the essence of this trait is that if a person has taken something into his head, there is no way to overpower him, regardless of the number of arguments, clear as day, everything bounces off him, just like a rubber ball flies off a wall .

Purpose in life

The main goal of life pursued by Korobochka (“Dead Souls”), the characteristics of which are presented in this article, is the consolidation of personal wealth, non-stop accumulation. The thriftiness inherent in Korobochka reveals at the same time her inner insignificance. Apart from the desire to benefit and acquire something, she has no other feelings. The image of this hoarder is devoid of some of the “attractive” features characteristic of Manilov. Her interests are completely focused on farming.

conclusions

At the end of the chapter about Korobochka, Gogol says that her image is typical; there is no significant difference between her and some representatives of the aristocracy. The author pays great attention to Chichikov's behavior, emphasizing that he behaves with this landowner more freely and simply than with Manilov.

This phenomenon is typical for Russian reality, Nikolai Vasilyevich proves how Prometheus turned into a fly. This is Korobochka (“Dead Souls”), which we characterized. It can be presented more clearly. To better understand the information, we suggest you familiarize yourself with the table that characterizes such a landowner as Korobochka (“Dead Souls”).

Characteristics (table) Boxes

The landowner Korobochka ("Dead Souls") was introduced to you. The characterization with quotes from this heroine can be supplemented. The passages devoted to the decoration of rooms, housekeeping, and the agreement with Chichikov seem very interesting. You can extract quotes you like from the text and supplement this characteristic with them. We only succinctly described such a heroine as Korobochka (“Dead Souls”). The characterization was briefly presented in order to make the reader want to continue it independently.

Nastasya Petrovna Korobochka is a landowner, the widow of a college secretary, a very thrifty and thrifty elderly woman. Her village is small, but everything in it is in good order, the farm is flourishing and, apparently, brings in a good income. Korobochka compares favorably with Manilov: she knows all her peasants (“... she didn’t keep any notes or lists, but knew almost everyone by heart”), speaks of them as good workers (“all are nice people, all workers.” Hereinafter quoted . according to the editor: Gogol N.V. Collected works in eight volumes. - (Library "Ogonyok": domestic classics) - T.5. "Dead Souls". Volume one. - M., 1984.), she is engaged in housekeeping - “she fixed her eyes on the housekeeper,” “little by little she moved into economic life.” Judging by the fact that, when asking Chichikov who he is, she lists those people with whom she constantly communicates: the assessor, merchants, the archpriest, her social circle is small and is associated mainly with economic affairs - trade and the payment of state taxes.

Apparently, she rarely goes to the city and does not communicate with her neighbors, because when asked about Manilov, he answers that there is no such landowner, and names old noble families that are more appropriate in a classic comedy of the 18th century - Bobrov, Kanapatiev, Pleshakov, Kharpakin. In the same row is the surname Svinin, which draws a direct parallel with Fonvizin’s comedy “The Minor” (Mitrofanushka’s mother and uncle are Svinin).

Korobochka’s behavior, her address to the guest “father”, the desire to serve (Chichikov called himself a nobleman), to treat her, to arrange for an overnight stay as best as possible - all these are characteristic features of the images of provincial landowners in the works of the 18th century. Mrs. Prostakova behaves the same way when she finds out that Starodum is a nobleman and has been accepted at court.

Korobochka, it would seem, is devout; in her speeches there are constantly sayings and expressions characteristic of a believer: “The power of the cross is with us!”, “Apparently, God sent him as a punishment,” but there is no special faith in her. When Chichikov persuades her to sell the dead peasants, promising profit, she agrees and begins to “calculate” the profit. Korobochka's confidant is the son of the archpriest, who serves in the city.

The landowner's only entertainment when she is not busy with her household is fortune-telling on cards - “I decided to make fortunes on cards at night after prayer...”. And she spends her evenings with the maid.

Korobochka's portrait is not as detailed as the portraits of other landowners and seems to be stretched out: first Chichikov hears the “hoarse woman's voice” of the old servant; then “again some woman, younger than before, but very similar to her”; when he was shown into the rooms and he had time to look around, a lady came in - “an elderly woman, in some kind of sleeping cap, put on hastily, with a flannel around her neck, ....” The author emphasizes Korobochka’s old age, then Chichikov directly calls her an old woman to himself. The housewife’s appearance in the morning does not change much - only the sleeping cap disappears: “She was dressed better than yesterday - in a dark dress ( widow!) and no longer in a sleeping cap ( but apparently there was still a cap on his head - a day cap), but there was still something tied around the neck" ( fashion of the late 18th century - fishue, i.e. a small scarf that partially covered the neckline and the ends of which were tucked into the neckline of the dress See Kirsanova R.M. Costume in Russian artistic culture of the 18th - first half of the 20th centuries: Experience of an encyclopedia / Ed. T.G. Morozova, V.D. Sinyukova. - M., 1995. - P.115).

The author's description, which follows the portrait of the hostess, on the one hand emphasizes the typicality of the character, on the other hand, gives a comprehensive description: “one of those mothers, small landowners who cry when the harvest fails ( it is with words about crop failure and bad times that the business conversation between Korobochka and Chichikov begins), losses and keep your head somewhat to one side, and meanwhile they are gradually gaining a little money in motley Motley - fabric from the remnants of yarn of various kinds, homespun fabric (Kirsanova) bags placed in dresser drawers. All the rubles are taken into one bag, fifty rubles into another, quarters into the third, although in appearance it seems as if there is nothing in the chest of drawers except underwear, night blouses, skeins of thread, and a torn salop Salop - outerwear made of fur and the rich fabrics that had gone out of fashion by 1830; the name “salopnitsa” has an additional connotation of “old-fashioned” (Kirsanova). Apparently, for this purpose, Gogol mentions the salop as an indispensable attribute of such landowners, who can then turn into a dress if the old one somehow burns out during the baking of festive cakes with all sorts of yarn. - to another, baked. or it will disappear on its own. But the dress will not burn or fray on its own; thrifty old lady..." This is exactly what Korobochka is, so Chichikov immediately does not stand on ceremony and gets down to business.

An important role in understanding the image of the landowner is played by the description of the estate and the decoration of the rooms in the house. This is one of the techniques for characterizing a character that Gogol uses in “Dead Souls”: the image of all landowners consists of the same set of descriptions and artistic details - the estate, rooms, interior details or significant objects, an indispensable feast (in one form or another - from a full dinner , like Sobakevich, before Plyushkin’s offer of Easter cake and wine), the owner’s manners and behavior during business negotiations and after them, attitude towards an unusual transaction, etc.

Korobochka's estate is distinguished by its strength and contentment; it is immediately clear that she is a good housewife. The courtyard into which the room's windows overlook is filled with birds and “all kinds of domestic creatures”; further on you can see vegetable gardens with “household vegetables”; fruit trees are covered with bird nets, and stuffed animals on poles are also visible - “one of them was wearing the cap of the mistress herself.” Peasant huts also show the wealth of their inhabitants. In a word, Korobochka’s farm is clearly thriving and generating sufficient profit. And the village itself is not small - eighty souls.

The description of the estate is divided into two parts - at night, in the rain, and during the day. The first description is scanty, motivated by the fact that Chichikov drives up in the dark, during heavy rain. But in this part of the text there is also an artistic detail, which, in our opinion, is essential for the further narrative - a mention of the external villa of the house: “stopped<бричка>in front of a small house, which was difficult to see in the darkness. Only one half of it was illuminated by the light coming from the windows; a puddle was still visible in front of the house, which was directly hit by the same light.” Chichikov is also greeted by the barking of dogs, which indicates that “the village was decent.” The windows of a house are a kind of eyes, and eyes, as we know, are the mirror of the soul. Therefore, the fact that Chichikov drives up to the house in the dark, only one window is illuminated and the light from it falls into a puddle, speaks, most likely, about the poverty of inner life, about the focus on one side of it, about the mundane aspirations of the owners of this house.

The “daytime” description, as mentioned earlier, emphasizes precisely this one-sidedness of Korobochka’s inner life - the focus only on economic activity, thrift and thrift.

The brief description of the rooms first of all notes the antiquity of their decoration: “the room was hung with old striped wallpaper; paintings with some birds; between the windows there are old small mirrors with dark frames in the shape of curled leaves; Behind every mirror there was either a letter, or an old deck of cards, or a stocking; wall clock with painted flowers on the dial...” In this description, two features clearly stand out - linguistic and artistic. Firstly, the synonyms “old”, “vintage” and “old” are used; secondly, the set of objects that catch Chichikov’s eye during a brief examination also indicates that the people living in such rooms are more drawn to the past than to the present. What is important is that flowers are mentioned several times (on the watch dial, leaves on the mirror frames) and birds. If we recall the history of the interior, we can find out that such a “design” is typical for the Rococo era, i.e. for the second half of the 18th century.

Later in the episode, the description of the room is supplemented by one more detail, which confirms the “antiqueness” of Korobochka’s life: Chichikov discovers in the morning two portraits on the wall - Kutuzov and “some old man with red cuffs on his uniform, as they were sewn on under Pavel Petrovich

In the conversation about the purchase of “dead” souls, the whole essence and character of Korobochka is revealed. At first, she cannot understand what Chichikov wants from her - dead peasants have no economic value, and therefore cannot be sold. When she realizes that the deal can be profitable for her, then bewilderment gives way to another - the desire to get the maximum benefit from the sale: after all, if someone wants to buy the dead, therefore, they are worth something and are the subject of bargaining. That is, dead souls become for her on a par with hemp, honey, flour and lard. But she has already sold everything else (as we know, quite profitably), and this is a new and unknown business for her. The desire not to undercut the price is triggered: “I started to be very afraid that this buyer would somehow cheat her,” “I was afraid at first, so as not to somehow incur a loss. Maybe you, my father, are deceiving me, but they are... they are somehow worth more”, “I’ll wait a little, maybe merchants will come, and I’ll adjust the prices”, “somehow they’ll be needed on the farm in case they’re needed...”. With her stubbornness, she infuriates Chichikov, who was counting on easy consent. This is where the epithet arises, which expresses the essence not only of Korobochka, but of the entire type of similar people - “club-headed”. The author explains that neither rank nor position in society is the reason for this property; “club-headedness” is a very common phenomenon: “someone is both respectable and even a statesman. but in reality it turns out to be a perfect Box. Once you've hacked something into your head, you can't overpower him with anything; No matter how much you present him with arguments, clear as day, everything bounces off him, like a rubber ball bounces off a wall.”

Korobochka agrees when Chichikov offers her another deal that she understands - government contracts, that is, a state supply order that paid well and was beneficial for the landowner due to its stability.

The author ends the bidding episode with a generalized discussion about the prevalence of this type of people: “Is Korobochka really standing so low on the endless ladder of human improvement? Is the abyss really that great that separates her from her sister, inaccessibly fenced by the walls of an aristocratic house with fragrant cast-iron staircases, shining copper, mahogany and carpets, yawning over an unread book in anticipation of a witty social visit, where she will have the opportunity to show off her mind and express her expressed thoughts? thoughts that, according to the laws of fashion, occupy the city for a whole week, thoughts not about what is happening in her house and on her estates, confused and upset thanks to ignorance of economic affairs, but about what political revolution is being prepared in France, what direction fashionable Catholicism has taken " The comparison of the thrifty, thrifty and practical Korobochka with the worthless society lady makes one wonder what is Korobochka’s “sin”, is it just her “club-headedness”?

Thus, we have several grounds for determining the meaning of the image of Korobochka - an indication of her “club-headedness,” i.e. getting stuck on one thought, inability and inability to consider the situation from different sides, limited thinking; comparison with the habitually established life of a society lady; the clear dominance of the past in everything related to the cultural components of human life, embodied in fashion, interior design, speech and rules of etiquette in relation to other people.

Is it a coincidence that Chichikov ends up with Korobochka after wandering along a dirty and dark road, at night, during the rain? It can be suggested that these details metaphorically reflect the nature of the image - the lack of spirituality (darkness, rare reflections of light from the window) and the aimlessness - in spiritual and moral terms - of her existence (the confusing road, by the way, the girl who accompanies Chichikov to the main road confuses right and left). Then the logical answer to the question about the landowner’s “sin” will be the absence of the life of the soul, the existence of which has collapsed to one point - the distant past, when the deceased husband was still alive, who loved to have his heels scratched before going to bed. The clock that hardly strikes the appointed hour, the flies that wake up Chichikov in the morning, the confusion of the roads to the estate, the lack of external contacts with the world - all this confirms our point of view.

Thus, Korobochka embodies a state of mind in which life is reduced to a single point and remains somewhere far behind, in the past. Therefore, the author emphasizes that Korobochka is an old woman. And no future is possible for her, therefore, it is impossible to be reborn, i.e. It is not destined to unfold life to the fullness of being.

The reason for this lies in the initially unspiritual life of a woman in Russia, in her traditional position, but not social, but psychological. The comparison with a society lady and the details about how Korobochka spends her “free time” (fortune telling on cards, housework) reflect the absence of any intellectual, cultural, spiritual life. Later in the poem, the reader will encounter an explanation of the reasons for this state of a woman and her soul in Chichikov’s monologue after meeting a beautiful stranger, when the hero discusses what happens to a pure and simple girl and how “rubbish” turns out of her.

Korobochka’s “club-headedness” also receives a precise meaning: it is not excessive practicality or commercialism, but a limited mind, which is determined by a single thought or belief and is a consequence of the general limitations of life. And it is the “club-headed” Korobochka, who never gave up the thought of a possible deception on the part of Chichikov and comes to the city to inquire “how much are dead souls these days,” becomes one of the reasons for the collapse of the hero’s adventure and his rapid flight from the city.

Why does Chichikov get to Korobochka after Manilov and before meeting Nozdryov? As was said earlier, the sequence of images of landowners is built along two lines. The first is descending: the degree of “sin” in each subsequent case becomes more severe, responsibility for the state of the soul increasingly lies with the person himself. The second is ascending: how possible is it for a character to revive his life and “resurrect” his soul?

Manilov lives quite openly - he appears in the city, is present at evenings and meetings, communicates, but his life is similar to a sentimental novel, and therefore illusory: he is very reminiscent in appearance, reasoning, and attitude towards people of the hero of sentimental and romantic works, fashionable at the beginning of the 19th century. One can guess about his past - a good education, short government service, retirement, marriage and life with his family on the estate. Manilov does not understand that his existence is not connected with reality, therefore he cannot realize that his life is not going as it should. If we draw a parallel with Dante's "Divine Comedy", then he is more reminiscent of sinners of the first circle, whose sin is that they are unbaptized infants or pagans. But the possibility of rebirth is closed to him for the same reason: his life is an illusion, and he does not realize it.

The box is too immersed in the material world. If Manilov is entirely in fantasy, then she is in the prose of life, and intellectual and spiritual life comes down to habitual prayers and the same habitual piety. The fixation on material things, on profit, the one-sidedness of her life is worse than Manilov’s fantasies.

Could Korobochka's life have turned out differently? Yes and no. The influence of the surrounding world, society, circumstances left their mark on her, making her inner world what it is. But there was still a way out - sincere faith in God. As we will see later, it is true Christian morality, from Gogol’s point of view, that is the saving force that keeps a person from spiritual fall and spiritual death. Therefore, the image of Korobochka cannot be considered a satirical image - her one-sidedness, “club-headedness” no longer evokes laughter, but sad reflections: “But why, in the midst of unthinking, cheerful, carefree minutes, will another wonderful stream suddenly rush by itself: laughter has not yet had time to completely escape from the face , and already became different among the same people, and his face was illuminated with a different light..."

A further meeting with Nozdryov - a scoundrel, a brawler and a rogue - shows that worse than the one-sidedness of life can be dishonor, a willingness to do nasty things to one’s neighbor, sometimes for no reason at all, and excessive activity that has no purpose. In this respect, Nozdryov is a kind of antipode to Korobochka: instead of one-sidedness of life - excessive scatteredness, instead of veneration of rank - contempt for any conventions, even to the point of violating the elementary norms of human relations and behavior. Gogol himself said: “...My heroes follow one after another, one more vulgar than the other.” Vulgarity is a spiritual fall, and the degree of vulgarity in life is the degree of triumph of death over life in the human soul.

So, the image of Korobochka reflects the widespread, from the author’s point of view, type of people who limit their lives to only one sphere, who “rest their foreheads” on one thing and do not see, and most importantly - do not want to see - anything that exists apart from the subject of their attention. Gogol chooses the material sphere - taking care of the household. The box reaches a level sufficient in this area for a woman, a widow, who has to manage a decent-sized estate. But her life is so concentrated on this that she does not and cannot have any other interests. Therefore, her real life remains in the past, and the present, and especially the future, is not life. but only existence.

Korobochka Nastasya Petrovna is a widow-landowner from Nikolai Gogol’s poem “Dead Souls”, the second “saleswoman” of dead souls. By nature, she is a self-interested penny-pincher who sees everyone as a potential buyer. Chichikov quickly noticed the commercial efficiency and stupidity of this landowner. Despite the fact that she skillfully manages the farm and manages to extract profit from each harvest, the idea of ​​​​buying “dead souls” did not seem strange to her. She even wanted to personally find out how much they sell dead peasants these days, so as not to sell them short. In addition, she remembers her dead peasants by heart. Nastasya Petrovna agrees to a deal with Chichikov only when he promises to buy various household products from her.

The main goal of this heroine is to accumulate and increase her small wealth. That's why she's Korobochka. She has only about eighty souls at her disposal, and she lives as if in a shell, fenced off from the rest of the world. The thrifty housewife hides all her savings in bags along her chest of drawers. Despite the obvious wealth in the house, she likes to complain about crop failure or losses. And when Chichikov asks her about neighboring landowners, including Manilov and Sobakevich, she pretends that she is hearing about them for the first time.

The poem “Dead Souls” by N.V. Gogol invites its readers to plunge into a huge variety of completely different and dissimilar heroes. One of the most striking and important characters is the landowner Korobochka; her image is revealed in the third chapter of the work.

The first meeting of the main character of the poem, Chichikov, and Korobochka occurs completely by accident, when Pavel Ivanovich loses his way to Sobakevich due to bad weather. Chichikov arrives at Korobochka’s estate, in a village off the main road, and stays with her overnight, which is how they meet.

She was an elderly woman, in shabby clothes, who completely devotes her life to the housekeeping that she runs on her estate. Despite the fact that she has only 80 peasant souls at her disposal, her estate can boast of good condition: strong and well-kept houses, strong and healthy men.

Korobochka lives by selling products produced on her estate, such as honey and hemp. She earns quite a lot from this, she tries to make a profit from everything, she has enough for a comfortable life, nevertheless, the landowner likes to complain about life, become poor and underestimate her income. The box is selfish, greedy, stingy, since it did not feed the guest on the road, distrustful and shows excessive suspicion of people. Nevertheless, Korobochka, in her wealthy household, shows hospitality when she gives Chichikov clean clothes, washes dirty ones, and sends a girl to scratch his heel and fluff his pillow.

The landowner Korobochka collects and stores rubbish, her whole life is one of continuous hoarding, and mustiness reigns in her estate. Also, the interior of her house seems quite old-fashioned to Chichikov, as if he was frozen somewhere in time. Nastasya Petrovna believes in both God and the devil, and sometimes tells fortunes with cards. When Chichikov wakes up, he sees a lot of flies, which once again emphasizes old age. Little is known about Korobochka’s family; she is a widow and has no children. In the process of communicating with the landowner, Chichikov begins to lose his temper; he wants to leave her estate as quickly as possible in order to get rid of her.

Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol calls the landowner an oakhead, because after selling dead souls to Pavel Ivanovich, she goes to the city to find out the true price in order to find out whether she was deceived.

In general, representing one of the most striking images, Nastasya Petrovna is an ordinary and simple landowner.

Option 2

The poem is presented in the form of a trip by the main character around Russia, where she is shown with all her hardships and problems. The author showed his native land with all its hardships, revealed the reason for the difficult situation of the Russian people and, with the help of satire, exposed the flaws of the existing system. We see how Chichikov, traveling through the southern provinces, wants to inexpensively buy up dead serfs in order to fraudulently get rich and not have to work.

He visits various landowners, among whom Korobochka especially stands out, who is a wealthy landowner, ready to trade with everything her heart desires, including deceased peasants.

Clueless Nastasya Petrovna thinks that she will need to dig up the dead from their graves, and this does not stop her. She intends to do everything just to get a reward. Chichikov, from the first minute, understanding the woman’s character, immediately began to talk with her more freely than with Manilov. He even shouted at her when Korobochka listened to him distractedly. After all, one thing was spinning in her thoughts, just not to give away the dead cheaply, and the rest did not bother her at all.

Korobochka is a powerful lady, she lives by subsistence farming, and at the same time understands how money is obtained. The intelligence of her development wants to leave the best. She can tell you how to protect trees with ripe fruits from birds, but she cannot explain why this had to be done. Her whole appearance suggests that she is not only stupid, but also sloppy. Moreover, it is full of superstitions. The box believes in fortune telling and all sorts of evil spirits that may appear in the house after midnight. And in her speech, various words slip through, characteristic of a religious person.

Her whole house looks like a box containing a lot of antiques. When you look at her, you are surprised at how greedy Nastasya Petrovna is. She does not have her own children, and there are no relatives to whom all affairs and property can be transferred, and who needed to be introduced to society. And still, she wants more and more capital.

Korobochka's useless hoarding is almost sinister. She saves money for its own sake, and is not even afraid to let dead people go on sale - just so as not to make a mistake. All her coins are put into different colorful bags, which she takes out and counts every day. Her range of interests is also small. Basically, she communicates only with those people with whom she consults on trading issues.

Little by little, Gogol will lead us to how the desire to get rich, the creation of capital by any means, the endless exploitation of the peasants kills the soul of the landowners. They lose their human appearance. In the image of Korobochka he showed new features of capitalist society.

Essay about landowner Korobochka

Gogol's poem can be read on a variety of levels; the author has put many different layers of meaning into his creation. If we look at Korobochka superficially, then we have a satire on stupidity and the patriarchal way of life, a parody of the limitations of the individual and excessive practicality, a heroine who surprises with her simplicity.

Gogol emphasizes the simplicity of Korobochka in her speech, which is full of simple and even primitive expressions and, as it were, naively naked. Only children or poorly educated people can speak like this without any embarrassment. The landowner is not distinguished by an exalted mind, but she has quite valuable practical knowledge, these details are also noted, for example, the nets that preserve fruit trees.

Thus, Gogol describes the figure of the down-to-earth people, the simple people without romanticization. These people, in reality, can be absurd and rude, sit and argue where the wheel will roll, know how to buy and sell more profitably. These people have no idea of ​​anything other than their own little world and are not going to get out of there, mired in the swamp of a banal and primitive existence.

If you look at Korobochka in the context of the symbolic series that the author offers, then this heroine appears as a kind of mystical figure who personifies such mystical heroes as Baba Yaga. For Chichikov, the trip to Korobochka is associated with images of death and afterlife experience. Before arriving, he falls into the ground (an image of a burial), when he wakes up, there are flies sitting on his face (like on a corpse), and if you follow the text, Gogol gives similar hints in almost every phrase.

Korobochka, like the magical old woman from Russian fairy tales, lives in the outskirts and is connected with otherworldly forces. In this reading, lamentations, signs in which she believes (making fortunes on cards, for example) and interior details (for example, fortune telling cards) receive a completely new reading and become unique attributes of the sorceress.

Korobochka is also the only female landowner and her figure stands out from the general outline of landowners, thanks to which her image becomes more interesting and unique.

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We meet Korobochka in the 3rd chapter of Gogol’s novel-poem “Dead Souls”. She is the second person Chichikov pays a visit to. In fact, Chichikov stopped by her estate by accident - the coachman got drunk, “played around,” as the author himself characterizes this event, and lost his way. Therefore, instead of Sobakevich, the main character meets the landowner Korobochka.

Let's look at the image of the Box in detail

She is a woman of respectable years, a widow, and a former “college secretary.” She lives alone on her estate and is completely absorbed in running the household. Most likely, she does not have her own children, since Gogol, in his description of the character, mentions that all her “trash” accumulated during her life will go to some great-niece.

It looks old-fashioned and a little ridiculous, “wearing a cap,” “flannel,” “something tied around the neck.”

Korobochka, unlike Manilov, successfully runs the farm herself. Through the eyes of Chichikov we see that the houses in her village are strong, the serf men are “hefty” (strong), there are many guard dogs, which indicates that this is a “decent village”. The yard is full of poultry, and behind the fence there are vegetable gardens - cabbage, beets, onions, potatoes. There are also fruit trees, carefully covered with nets from voracious magpies and sparrows. Stuffed animals were also installed for the same purpose. Gogol ironically notes that one of the stuffed animals was wearing the cap of the owner herself.

The peasants' houses were maintained and updated - Chichikov saw new planks on the roofs, gates stood straight everywhere, and there were carts in some courtyards. That is, the owner's care is visible everywhere. In total, Korobochka has 80 serfs, 18 died, which the owner greatly laments - they were good workers.

Korobochka does not allow the serfs to be lazy - Chichikov’s feather bed was expertly fluffed, in the morning, when he returns to the living room where he spent the night, everything is already tidied up; the table is full of baked goods.

The fact that the landowner has order all around and everything is under her personal control, we see from the dialogue about the purchase of dead souls - she remembers all the dead peasants by first and last names, she doesn’t even keep any records.

Despite the fact that Korobochka loves to complain about how bad things are, her estate also had surpluses that were sold to merchants and resellers. From the dialogue with Chichikov, we learn that the landowner sells honey, hemp, feathers, meat, flour, cereals, and lard. She knows how to bargain, sells a pound of honey at a very high price, as much as 12 rubles, which Chichikov is very surprised by.

Nastasya Petrovna is thrifty and even a little stingy. Despite the fact that things are going well at the estate, the furnishings in the house are very modest, the wallpaper is old, the clock is creaky. Despite polite treatment and hospitality, Korobochka did not offer the guest dinner, citing the late hour. And in the morning he offers Chichikov only tea, albeit with fruit infusion. Only after feeling the benefit - when Chichikov promised to buy “household products” from her - Korobochka decided to appease him and ordered him to bake a pie and pancakes. She also set the table with various pastries.

Gogol writes that her “dress will not burn and will not fray on its own.” Complaining about poverty and crop failures, she nevertheless puts money into “motley bags”, which she stuffs into dresser drawers. All coins are carefully sorted - “rules, fifty rubles, devils” are laid out separately in bags. The old landowner tries to find benefit in everything - noticing Chichikov’s stamped paper, she asks him to “give him a piece of paper.”

The box is pious and superstitious. During a thunderstorm, he puts a candle in front of the icon and prays; gets scared when Chichikov mentions the devil in conversation.

She is not very smart and a little suspicious, she is very afraid of making a mistake and selling herself short. She doubts the deal with Chichikov and does not want to sell him dead souls, even though she has to pay for them as if they were alive. He naively thinks that other merchants can come and offer a better price. This deal completely exhausted Chichikov, and during the negotiations he calls Korobochka mentally and out loud “strong-headed”, “club-headed”, “mongrel in the manger” and “damned old woman”.

The image of Korobochka is interesting because it is a fairly common type in Russia during the time of Gogol. Its main features - stubbornness, stupidity and narrow-mindedness, were also inherent in real individuals - some officials and civil servants. The author writes about such people that you seem to see a respectable and statesmanlike person, but in reality it turns out to be a “perfect Korobochka.” Arguments and reasons bounce off them like a rubber ball.

The description of the landowner ends with a reflection on the topic: is it possible to believe that Korobochka stands at the very bottom of the “ladder of human improvement”? Gogol compares her to an aristocratic sister living in a rich and elegant house, who reads books, attends social events, and her thoughts are occupied by “fashionable Catholicism” and political upheavals in France, and not by economic affairs. The author does not give a specific answer to this question; the reader must answer it himself.

Let us summarize the main characteristics of the image of the Box

Economic

Has business acumen

Practical

Lean

Petty

Hypocritical

Suspicious

Limited

Only cares about his own benefit

Obsessed with hoarding

Religious, but without real spirituality

Superstitious

The symbolism of the landowner's surname

Symbolism is an important artistic tool in the hands of a writer. In Gogol's poem "Dead Souls" all the names of the landowners are symbolic. Our heroine is no exception. Korobochka is a diminutive derivative of the word “box”, that is, an inanimate object. Likewise, in the image of Korobochka there are few living features, she is turned to the past, there is no real life, no development - personal, spiritual. A real "dead soul".

People store various things in the box - and Korobochka is absorbed in hoarding solely for the sake of money itself, she does not have any global goal on what this money can be spent on. She just puts them in bags.

Well, the walls of the box are solid, just like Korobochka’s mind. She is stupid and limited.

As for the diminutive suffix, the author may have wanted to show the character’s harmlessness and some comedy.