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Act 1
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Government Inspector, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Corruption and Bureaucracy
Greed, Selfishness, and Pleasure
External Validation
Self-Deception
Summary
Analysis
Scene 1. In a room at the inn, Khlestakov’s servant Osip lies in bed and grumbles about how hungry he is. Khlestakov—who is nobody but a minor clerk—has spent all his money irresponsibly on the road, and now they’re stranded without funds. Osip reminisces happily about life in St. Petersburg, where people are polite and always call him “sir.” He complains that Khlestakov wastes money taking cabs around the city and playing cards instead of doing honest work.
Khlestakov—who is notably not a government inspector—represents the inefficacy of the Russian Empire’s bureaucracy. Khlestakov has a rank and government position in St. Petersburg, but his only importance lies in his title. He wields no actual power, and he hardly possesses any sense of diligence or duty. Instead, motivated entirely by pleasure, Khlestakov spends all his time chasing easy excitement and comfort from gambling, entertainment, and good food. Osip is more responsible and practical than Khlestakov, but even Osip appreciates the pleasure of being treated as a gentleman in St. Petersburg. Although they both wish to enjoy luxuries usually reserved for much higher-ranking people, Osip is only a servant and Khlestakov a petty official.
Themes
Scene 2. Khlestakov enters and rebukes Osip for lying in bed. Then he begs Osip to ask the landlord for lunch. Osip refuses, reminding Khlestakov that the landlord has sworn not to give them any more food. Khlestakov has been charging expenses to his account rather than paying upfront, and now the landlord suspects they won’t ever pay their bill. The landlord has threatened to get them thrown in jail. Khlestakov angrily sends Osip to fetch the landlord anyway.
Khlestakov’s petulant demands for a meal show how important food is to him. For Khlestakov, food represents the pleasure he constantly, self-indulgently seeks. So, lacking food doesn’t just mean that Khlestakov is hungry—it also means that his life is currently missing all the kinds of pleasure he craves. However, Khlestakov knows he can’t pay, yet he still thinks he’s entitled to good food. His desire for pleasure leads him to try to cheat people to satisfy his wants, and he rudely bosses other people around until he gets what he doesn’t actually deserve. By taking advantage of what little authority he has, Khlestakov tries to fulfill his own pleasure selfishly at other people’s expense.
Themes
Scene 3. Alone and starving, Khlestakov regrets losing all his money to an infantry captain in a game of cards, but he wishes he could play a second game.
Khlestakov is still eager to pursue pleasure, even though pleasure-seeking is the reason why he’s out of money, stranded, and famished in the first place. Focusing on self-gratification makes Khlestakov short-sighted and foolish.
Themes
Scene 4. Osip returns with a waiter. Khlestakov demands to have lunch so he can return to his important business. The waiter says the landlord has refused to serve Khlestakov anymore and plans to complain to the mayor about him. Khlestakov insists the waiter should try to change the landlord’s mind. The waiter acquiesces and leaves.
By claiming to have important business, Khlestakov tries to portray himself as more distinguished than he actually is. He wants to reap the benefits of seeming like a hardworking person of high status even though he’s a nobody and often avoids hard work. Khlestakov’s dishonesty emphasizes how undignified his situation really is.
Themes
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Scene 5. Khlestakov wonders if he might have to sell some of his clothes. He fantasizes about driving home in a carriage and causing a commotion as people speculate about who he must be. He imagines being formally announced by a footman and wooing someone’s daughter.
That Khlestakov would rather contemplate selling his possessions for money than be more responsible with his finances demonstrates Khlestakov’s lightmindedness. Also, Khlestakov’s daydream conveys that in addition to pleasure, Khlestakov strongly desires external validation. He wants other people to admire him, and he longs for the respect and attention that his society affords to important, high-ranking men.
Themes
Scene 6. Osip and the waiter return with a small lunch. Between mouthfuls, Khlestakov protests that the food is too meager and disgusting; nevertheless, he finishes it quickly. He asks for more food but is denied.
Khlestakov continues to act arrogantly, as if he were a prestigious person. However, his imperious attitude is comically undermined by the fact that he eats all the food anyway and even asks for more. This meal signifies that Khlestakov is greedy for the highest pleasures and will insult people who refuse him his desires, but he won’t deny simpler pleasures either.
Themes
Scene 7. Osip informs Khlestakov that the mayor is inquiring about him downstairs. Khlestakov panics, thinking that the mayor will throw him in jail. To gather his courage, he tells himself that he’s not a common workman and simply won’t go to jail.
Khlestakov decides that if he asserts himself as a powerful authority figure, he’ll be able to stand up to the mayor and avoid punishment for cheating the innkeeper. By trying to put on airs, Khlestakov emphasizes how loath he is to be perceived as an ordinary, low-ranking person. He desperately wants others to treat him as an important person, even though he isn’t one, so he can pursue pleasures as he desires without facing negative consequences.
Themes
Scene 8. The mayor and Khlestakov stare at each other in mutual terror. Finally, the mayor, believing that Khlestakov is the government inspector, greets Khlestakov and offers him different accommodations. Upset, Khlestakov promises to pay his bill and refuses to go to jail. The frightened mayor suddenly admits to taking bribes but claims that other charges against him are slander. Khlestakov is confused and truthfully confesses he has no money, but the mayor assumes Khlestakov is lying to cover up his identity as the inspector. The mayor gives Khlestakov money.
Khlestakov’s mistaken identity has humorous repercussions. First, it leads the mayor to confess some of his guilt as a corrupt official while simultaneously trying to protect his image. As a result, the mayor only appears more foolish and crooked than before. Second, the mayor bribes Khlestakov, which comically undermines his claims to be an honest government official. The mayor’s readiness to buy Khlestakov’s favor proves his corruption and preoccupation with self-preservation. Crucially, Khlestakov isn’t aware that the mayor thinks he’s a government inspector. Yet his blustering inadvertently convinces the mayor further that he is the inspector. Even when Khlestakov tells the truth, the mayor doesn’t believe him and continues to think Khlestakov is the inspector.
Themes
Reassured by the mayor’s “loan” and vows of generosity, Khlestakov speaks with the mayor readily and honestly. However, the mayor is convinced Khlestakov is a wily liar. The mayor offers to host Khlestakov in his own house. Delighted, Khlestakov accepts, thanks the mayor for being sincere and cordial, and says all he asks for in life is “devotion and respect, respect and devotion.”
By being suspicious of Khlestakov and doubling down on his belief that Khlestakov is the inspector, the mayor thinks he’s being clever and discerning. However, in actuality, the mayor is foolishly ignoring reality at his own expense. Even when faced with the truth, the mayor refuses to reconsider his assumptions about Khlestakov. Meanwhile, Khlestakov rejoices that he’s found both pleasure and external validation in the mayor’s generosity. He’s enlivened by the mayor’s money, hospitality, and eagerness to flatter and please. Ironically, he appreciates the mayor’s sincerity, when in fact Khlestakov is the only honest person in this situation.
Themes
Scene 9. Khlestakov calls the waiter so he can pay his bill, but the mayor promises that the payment will be taken care of for him.
The mayor seeks to win Khlestakov’s favor by being generous and forgiving so that he won’t get into trouble with the supposed government inspector. The mayor is only kind when it benefits him, demonstrating his selfishness and twisted morals.
Themes
Scene 10. The mayor invites Khlestakov to inspect the local institutions. Khlestakov doesn’t understand why but accepts. On Khlestakov’s dining bill, the mayor hastily writes a message for his wife and gives the note to Dobchinsky to deliver. Meanwhile, the mayor plans to get Khlestakov drunk so he can learn what Khlestakov must be hiding. Suddenly, the door crashes to the floor and Bobchinsky, who was hiding and eavesdropping, falls to the ground. The mayor tells Osip to bring Khlestakov’s luggage to the mayor’s house and scolds Bobchinsky.
The mayor’s underhanded scheme to gain power over the supposed government inspector showcases the mayor’s immorality. Moreover, his shamelessness about tricking Khlestakov demonstrates that he doesn’t see his actions as wrong. If the mayor appears at all cunning, the slapstick comedy of Bobchinsky’s fall undercuts any sense of the mayor’s or his acquaintances’ intelligence. By having to chide Bobchinsky, the mayor is once again portrayed in a foolish light.
Themes
