The image of Chichikov's origin is childhood. Nikolai Gogol - Chichikov's Childhood (excerpt from the poem "Dead Souls")

Article menu:

Very often in literature, the authors give only a fragmentary biography of their characters, focusing the reader's attention only on a certain moment in the life of the hero. N.V. Gogol did not follow this trend in his story Dead Souls. He describes in detail the life of his main character in the story, Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, allowing the reader to trace all the stages of the formation of this character.

Chichikov's childhood

Chichikov as a child lived in a simple hut, where the windows did not open at all, even in summer. Chichikov had no friends in childhood, which greatly aggravated an already unhappy existence. His father was ill all the time, which also significantly affected the financial condition of the family. The Chichikov family owned only one family of serfs. This did not allow them to provide a comfortable existence. In general, Chichikov himself has too few memories of his childhood.

However, the situation of Pavel Ivanovich was not hopeless - his parents had sufficient finances to send their son to study. Therefore, despite his childhood, bordering on the life of ordinary peasants, Chichikov had the opportunity to escape from poverty.

School education

As Pavel Ivanovich grew older, the main issue was to obtain a proper education and skills that allow him to take a good place in life.
Soon the decision was made, and Pavel Ivanovich became a student of one school. He lived with his distant relative. This made it possible to provide decent living conditions and at the same time save a significant part of the money.

Chichikov was not a particularly gifted student - his knowledge and talent did not allow him to stand out favorably from the crowd of students like him. In this case, Chichikov was saved by his diligence and diligence.

Over time, he learned to please the teachers, which played an important role in his education and created the illusion of a good and exemplary student. Chichikov never saw his father again. They always had a tense relationship - the father did not know how to be affectionate with his son, he always behaved towards his son strictly and harshly, leaving his home only strengthened these feelings of remoteness. Chichikov's father died at a time when Pavel Ivanovich was still a student. There was no special inheritance left from his father, so Chichikov decides to sell everything that was. After the sale, he was able to get a thousand rubles, which, of course, was a small amount, but allowed the economical Chichikov to start in life.


Pavel Ivanovich learned to treat money with care even in his youth. During training, he tried in every possible way to find an opportunity to earn money, he usually did not spend the accumulated money, which allowed Chichikov to make a small personal capital. First, Pavel Ivanovich sculpted birds from wax and painted them, then he trained a mouse and was also able to successfully sell it.

Dear readers! We offer to follow in the poem by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol "Dead Souls"

At the school, Chichikov also failed to find a friend, the reason for this was, most likely, his stinginess and greed. Pavel Ivanovich was not loved in the team.

Service Chichikov

After graduating from college, Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov begins the civil service. His first job and position were the most common and simple - with a lot of effort, he got a job as an employee in the state chamber.

However, he did not stop looking for a better place. Soon such a position was found and Chichikov began to serve, where he had the opportunity to make significant savings in a dishonest way. However, nothing lasts forever - the new bosses managed to expose Chichikov.

After this incident, Chichikov has no choice but to start all over again. He works in small, insignificant positions in different cities, until he gets the opportunity to become a customs worker, which Chichikov takes advantage of.

His service begins to take shape quite successfully and Chichikov even gets promoted to collegiate adviser. However, this did not last long.

His unpleasant story at his last job did not teach him anything - Chichikov again gets involved in a scam, this time he interacts with smugglers. This business turns out to be very profitable, and Pavel Ivanovich soon has significant savings, which is true not for long - his scam was cashed out and Chichikov again loses everything.



Left with nothing, he has no choice but to start all over again - Chichikov begins his career for the third time. This time he starts working as an attorney. At the same time, Chichikov has a plan for his next scam, which allows him to get rich from scratch - he plans to buy up "dead souls" in order to get rich by reselling them. Hoping to carry out his plan, Chichikov takes his only two servants, a chaise and all his savings - 10 thousand, and goes to the county to buy.

Chichikov's childhood from "Dead Souls" cannot be called the best period in his life. He did not have serene games, cheerful amusements, joyful memories of family holidays.

Childhood memories

In fact, little Pavlusha did not even have a real family: all he remembered was his always sick, disgruntled father, who forced his son to do literacy and calligraphy, often scolded and punished the boy. Nothing is known about Pavlusha's mother from the story, and the father did not know how or did not want to show feelings towards his son, rarely talked to him. Deprived of affection and love, the child grew up unsociable and withdrawn.

Being already quite an adult, Chichikov will never learn to feel affection for people, because he did not see this in his own family. The miserable situation in a simple house owned by an impoverished nobleman - Pavlusha's father - contributed to the formation of the same limited inner world of the boy. In Pavlusha's memoirs, an uncomfortable house, a miserable atmosphere and the alienation of the only native person- father. Briefly, Chichikov's childhood can be described as a difficult and joyless time that had a serious impact on his character.

Departure to the city and father's mandate

One day, the father took the boy to the city to enroll in a school. They stayed with a distant relative, which allowed the father to save a lot on housing, which is necessary for the duration of education. Before leaving home, he gave his son instructions for later life. It is in it that the philosophy of life of the “Chichikovs” is revealed.

It should be noted that the father did not really believe in the mind and talent of his child, therefore he directly ordered his son to please the authorities at school, and then even without special talent in the sciences, he will always be the first. Instead of tears at parting, the parent dryly stated the basic laws of life modern society: to be friends with those who are richer, not to treat others, but to behave in such a way that treats are offered to you yourself. An important point- save money, they open all doors. After that, he left and never saw his son again. He died when Pavlusha graduated from college.

Years in school

The boy studied well, although he did not achieve much success, but he understood exactly what needed to be done in order to have excellent marks. The teacher demanded silence, discipline, and the ability to sit upright without moving. Pavlusha quickly learned this skill, even when the children pinched him, he kept calm. His notebooks were neat, things were neat and clean, and all his thoughts were aimed at increasing the “capital” that his father had left him.

In order to spend time usefully in long evenings, Pavlusha trained a mouse that he caught in the house in such a way that it carried out some commands. He sold it at the school for very good money. Such ingenuity of the boy is due to his desire to earn money at all costs. He tried his hand at creativity - he sculpted a figurine of a bullfinch from wax, painted it and helped out decent money for a child for such a craft. The boy sewed up his savings in bags and hid them so as not to spend them. Distinguished by observation and enterprise, Pavlusha also earned money by noticing those classmates who were very hungry, offering them to buy a pie from him. Friends happily agreed.

The childhood of the hero taught him completely unchildish things: saving, refusing delicacies, finding ways to earn money, the ability to please, flatter, be insincere. Chichikov never learned to be friends, openness and kindness were not part of his habits, rather they even interfered. Without any relatives, without support and friendships, the boy was guided by his own principles, which became the basis of his life in adulthood. This period ended with his studies and the news of his father's death, his small inheritance became the start-up capital at the beginning adult life Pavel Ivanovich.

Artwork test

The creation of the poem "Dead Souls" fell just at the time when in Russia there was a change in the traditional, outdated foundations of society, reforms were brewing, changes in people's thinking. Even then it was clear that the nobility with its old traditions and outlook on life was slowly dying out, and a new type of person had to come to replace it. Gogol's goal is to describe the hero of his time, declare him in full voice, describe his positive and explain what his activities will lead to, as well as how it will affect the fate of other people.

The central character of the poem

Nikolai Vasilyevich Chichikov made the central character in the poem, he cannot be called the main character, but it is on him that the plot of the poem rests. The journey of Pavel Ivanovich is the framework for the entire work. It is not for nothing that the author placed the hero’s biography at the very end, the reader is not interested in Chichikov himself, he is curious about his actions, why he collects these dead souls and what it will lead to in the end. Gogol does not even try to reveal the nature of the character, but he introduces the peculiarities of his thinking, thus giving a hint where to look for the essence of this act of Chichikov. Childhood is where the roots come from, even at a tender age the hero formed his own worldview, vision of the situation and the search for ways to solve problems.

Description of Chichikov

The childhood and early years of Pavel Ivanovich are unknown to the reader at the beginning of the poem. Gogol portrayed his character faceless and voiceless: against the backdrop of bright, colorful images of landowners with their quirks, the figure of Chichikov is lost, becomes small and insignificant. He has neither his own face nor the right to vote, the hero resembles a chameleon, skillfully adapting to his interlocutor. This is an excellent actor and psychologist, he knows how to behave in a given situation, instantly determines the character of a person and does everything to win him over, says only what they want to hear from him. Chichikov skillfully plays a role, pretends, hides true feelings, tries to be his own among strangers, but he does all this for the sake of achieving the main goal - his own well-being.

The childhood of Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov

A person's worldview is formed at a young age, so many of his actions in adulthood can be explained by studying his biography well. What guided him, why he collected dead souls, what he wanted to achieve with this - all these questions are answered. The hero’s childhood cannot be called happy, he was constantly haunted by boredom and loneliness. Pavlush did not know any friends or entertainment in his youth, he did monotonous, tedious and completely uninteresting work, listened to the reproaches of his sick father. The author did not even hint about maternal affection. One conclusion can be drawn from this - Pavel Ivanovich wanted to make up for lost time, to receive all the benefits that were not available to him in childhood.

But do not think that Chichikov is a soulless cracker, thinking only about his enrichment. He was a kind, active and sensitive child, subtly perceiving the world. The fact that he often ran away from his nanny in order to explore places never seen before indicates Chichikov's curiosity. Childhood shaped his character, taught him to achieve everything on his own. Father taught Pavel Ivanovich to save money and please bosses and rich people, and he put these instructions into practice.

Chichikov's childhood and studies were gray and uninteresting, he tried in every possible way to break out into people. First, he catered to the teacher in order to become a favorite student, then he promised the boss to marry his daughter in order to get a promotion, working at customs, convinces everyone of his honesty and impartiality, and he makes a huge fortune on smuggling. But Pavel Ivanovich does all this not with malicious intent, but with the sole purpose of making his childhood dream of a big and bright house come true, caring and loving wife, a bunch of funny kids.

Chichikov's communication with the landowners

Pavel Ivanovich could find an approach to everyone, from the first minutes of communication to understand what a person is. For example, he did not stand on ceremony with Korobochka, he spoke in a patriarchal-pious and even slightly patronizing tone. With the landowner, Chichikov felt relaxed, used colloquial, rude expressions, completely adjusting to the woman. With Manilov, Pavel Ivanovich is pompous and amiable to the point of cloying. He flatters the landowner, uses flowery phrases in his speech. Refusing the proposed treat, even Plyushkin was pleased by Chichikov. "Dead Souls" very well demonstrate the changeable nature of a person, because Pavel Ivanovich adapted to the mores of almost all landowners.

What does Chichikov look like in the eyes of other people?

The activities of Pavel Ivanovich greatly frightened the city officials and landlords. At first they compared him with the romantic robber Rinald Rinaldin, then they began to look for similarities with Napoleon, thinking that he had escaped from the island of Helena. In the end, the real Antichrist was recognized in Chichikovo. Of course, such comparisons are absurd and even somewhat comical, Gogol ironically describes the fright of the narrow-minded landowners, their speculation about why Chichikov actually collects dead souls. The characterization of the character hints that the characters are no longer the same as they were before. The people could be proud, take an example from the great commanders and defenders, and now there are no such people, they were replaced by selfish Chichikovs.

The real "I" of the character

One would think that Pavel Ivanovich is an excellent psychologist and actor, since he easily adapts to the people he needs, instantly guesses their character, but is it really so? The hero was never able to adapt to Nozdryov, because arrogance, arrogance, familiarity are alien to him. But even here he is trying to adapt, because the landowner is incredibly rich, hence the appeal to “you”, the boorish tone of Chichikov. Childhood taught Pavlusha to please the right people, so he is ready to step over himself, to forget about his principles.

At the same time, Pavel Ivanovich practically does not pretend to be with Sobakevich, because they are united by serving the “penny”. And with Plyushkin, Chichikov has some similarities. The character tore off the poster from the post, having read it at home, folded it neatly and put it in a chest in which all sorts of unnecessary things were stored. This behavior is very much like Plyushkin, who is prone to hoarding various rubbish. That is, Pavel Ivanovich himself did not depart so far from the same landowners.

The main goal in the life of the hero

And once again money - it was for this that Chichikov collected dead souls. The characterization of the character indicates that he invents various frauds not just for the sake of profit, there is no stinginess and stinginess in him. Pavel Ivanovich dreams that the time will come when he will finally be able to use his savings, live a calm, prosperous life, not thinking about tomorrow.

The attitude of the author to the hero

There is an assumption that in subsequent volumes Gogol planned to re-educate Chichikov, to make him repent of his actions. Pavel Ivanovich in the poem is not opposed to the landowners or officials, he is the hero of the capitalist formation, the “primary accumulator”, who replaced the nobility. Chichikov is a skilled businessman, an entrepreneur who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. The scam with dead souls failed, but Pavel Ivanovich did not suffer any punishment either. The author hints that there are a huge number of such Chichikovs in the country, and no one wants to stop them.

The biography of the protagonist Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov was moved by the author to the end of the poem. The reader will learn about all the adventures of the landowner in the city of NN, but still does not know how such thoughts could appear in the man’s head, where did the strange idea of ​​​​buying “dead souls” come from.

Hero origin

Pavlusha Chichikov was born into the family of an impoverished nobleman. It is not known what origin the parents were: columnar nobles or personal. According to Gogol, "dark and modest" was the origin of an enterprising person. It is surprising that the classic says nothing about Pavel's mother. This has a deep meaning. It is difficult to imagine the nature of a mother who could create such a soulless and secretive creature. One can speculate why a woman could leave life so early, why she did not leave holiness and respect for the afterlife in her soul.

The father is a poor and sick man. The family does not have a noble habitual mansion. The hero lives in an old peasant house. Everything is small in it: windows, rooms (burner). The wretchedness of the interior is easy to imagine: the windows did not open either in summer or in winter. How and when did the family become poor? The closest is the image of Manilov. Idleness may have led to the loss of the estate.

Ivan Chichikov was constantly sighing, walking around the room and spitting into the sandbox that stood in the corner. There are no other descriptions of the house where Pavlush spent his childhood. The relationship between father and son was tense. The sick old man did not know how to be affectionate. He behaves strictly and harshly, perhaps the reason for this was illness, or maybe resentment at fate and lack of funds.

Years of study

As befits the nobles, at a certain age, the father sent his son to the city school. So, my father still had some finances. Pavel gets the opportunity to break out of poverty by getting an education. The father left his son with a relative and went to the village, they never saw each other again. Life with relatives, although distant, allowed the boy to learn economy and frugality.

Paul studies hard. He does not have the talent and genius of an excellent student, but there is diligence, patience and practicality. Boy's Special Skills:

  • Sitting quietly on the bench.
  • Shows no wit.
  • Skillfully maintains silence.
  • Doesn't move his eyes, doesn't move his eyebrows, even when pinched.
  • Gives three to the teacher.
  • Bows to the teacher, several times getting in the way.

Chichikov starts earning. First, he sculpts a bullfinch from wax, then sells it. Pavel trains a mouse and also sells it.

The ability to curry favor with teachers helps to successfully graduate from college.

The character of the young man could be discerned already here. When the strict teacher was kicked out, the students raised some money for him. Pavel gave a nickel of silver, which the comrades refused. The teacher, having learned about this, said the phrase:

"Puffed up, puffed up a lot ...".

It is on deception, the search for profit, that the life of the hero of the poem will be built. Pavel Chichikov receives an excellent certificate, in which it is indicated in golden letters that the student is trustworthy in behavior and exemplary in diligence. It is interesting that the young man has no friends either in his father's house or in the school. Chichikov sells the house he inherited. The proceeds of a thousand rubles became the initial capital.

Chichikov's career

Pavel's goal is to earn enough money for a decent future for his family. It goes through ups and downs:

Treasury Chamber. The position was obtained with difficulty, but these were the first steps of bureaucratic service. The chief here was an old clerk, to whom no one could find an approach. The young man moved to his house, he was able to please his daughter. The father believed and knocked out an advantageous place for the "future son-in-law". As soon as "the deal was successful", Chichikov moved out from the man whom he already called "daddy", and he did it covertly and quickly. The deceived man uttered the same phrase as the teacher:

"He blew it, he blew it, you damn son!"

"Bread Place" This is where bribery comes in. A change in boss leads to a downfall in a career.

Small positions in another city. Chichikov tries to show himself disinterested and hardworking. This attitude to the service was noticed by the authorities.

Place in customs. Chichikov receives the rank of collegiate adviser for diligence. After gaining power, he contacts a criminal group involved in smuggling. The unclean business brought an excellent income, but the result is deplorable. Chichikov loses his position and place in customs, and the money is confiscated.



After losing hundreds of thousands of rubles, Pavel Ivanovich starts his career again. He had 10 thousand rubles left, the servant Petrushka, the coachman Selifan and the britzka. New service - legal assistance on various issues. During this period, the idea of ​​buying "dead souls" visits him.

"Dark and modest origin..."

The hero of the poem "Dead Souls". He made the desire to please the basis of relationships with people. "Save a penny" - the rule of life. Pavel goes to his goal, but fate tests the young man. Shortsightedness and the desire to get rich quick lead to losses. Dishonest deeds and adventures are born in the head after every fall. The classic shows how a businessman appeared with a terrible and vile soul, capable of buying people who left the world of the living. The enterprising Chichikovs are replacing the landowners represented by the writer in the poem.


Education. A) Father's command. He was educated in the classes of the city school, where his father took him and gave the following instruction: “Look, Pavlusha, study, don’t be a fool and don’t hang out, but most of all please teachers and bosses. If you please your boss, then, even though you won’t have time in science and God didn’t give you talent, you will go all the way, you will get ahead of everyone. Don't hang out with your comrades, they won't teach you good things; and if it comes to that, then hang out with those who are richer, so that on occasion they can be useful to you. Do not treat or treat anyone, but behave better in such a way that you are treated, and most of all, take care and save a penny: this thing is the most reliable thing in the world. A comrade or friend will cheat you and in trouble will be the first to betray you, but a penny will not betray you, no matter what trouble you are in. You will do everything, you will break everything in the world with a penny.


B) Gaining your own experience. Managed to build relationships with classmates in such a way that they treated him; managed to raise money by adding them to the fifty left by his father. He used every opportunity to accumulate money: he made a bullfinch out of wax, painted it and sold it; bought edibles at the market, offered hungry classmates from those who were richer; trained a mouse, taught it to stand on its hind legs and sold it; was the most diligent and disciplined student, able to forestall any desire of the teacher.


Service. a) The beginning of the service. “He got an insignificant place, a salary of thirty or forty rubles a year ...” Thanks to an iron will, the ability to deny himself everything, while maintaining accuracy and pleasant appearance, he managed to stand out among the same “nondescript” employees. “... Chichikov represented the complete opposite in everything, both in the presence of a face, and in the friendliness of his voice, and in the complete non-use of any strong drinks.”


B) Continuing a career. For promotion, he used an already tried method - pleasing the boss, finding his "weak spot" - the daughter whom he "fell in love" with himself. From that moment on, he became a "person of note." Service in the commission "for the construction of some state-owned capital structure." He began to allow himself "some excesses": a good cook, good shirts, expensive fabric for suits, the acquisition of a pair of horses ... Soon he again lost his "warm" place. I had to change two or three places. "Got to customs." He turned out a risky operation, on which he first enriched himself, and then “burned out” and lost almost everything.


The appearance of Chichikov in the provincial town. Applying practical intelligence, courtesy and resourcefulness, Chichikov managed to charm both the provincial town and the estates. Having quickly guessed a person, he knows how to find an approach to everyone. It remains only to marvel at the inexhaustible variety of all "shades and subtleties of his appeal"


Literature. 1) y.ru/school/ucheb/literatura/elektronnye- nagljadnye-posobija-s-prilozheniem/ y.ru/school/ucheb/literatura/elektronnye-nagljadnye-posobija-s-prilozheniem/ y.ru/school/ucheb/ literatura/elektronnye- nagljadnye-posobija-s-prilozheniem/ 2) Literature in tables and diagrams/auth. Mironova Yu.S. - St. Petersburg: Trigon, - 128 p.

Up