Pitfalls Of Plyushkin In Gogol's Chichikov

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By focusing on description rather than plot, Gogol emphasizes Plyushkin’s possession and satirizes the character’s need to hoard it, which only reveals the pitfalls in putting one’s own possessions on a pedestal. Despite being the wealthiest landowner Chichikov deals with, Plyushkin is also the most tragic. His peasants live in tragic conditions; Plyushkin has a reputation as being “the one who feeds his people so badly” (Gogol 108) which ultimately leads to him having the largest number of dead souls in addition to being the only landowner who mentions having “runaway souls” (Gogol 128). Once a man to be respected, where his estate was run with efficiency, Plyushkin becomes a man who neglects his serfs to the point where their only option