Short Fiction · Chapter
The Death of a Government Clerk explained
Ivan Dmitritch Tchervyakov, a government clerk, sneezes on a civilian general named Brizzhalov at the theater.
What happens
Ivan Dmitritch Tchervyakov, a government clerk, sneezes on a civilian general named Brizzhalov at the theater. Despite the general's initial dismissal of the incident, Tchervyakov's anxiety drives him to repeatedly apologize, first at the theater, then at the general's office. His persistent apologies annoy the general, who eventually yells at him to leave. Overwhelmed by horror and shame, Tchervyakov returns home and dies.
Themes in this chapter
Social Class and Inequality
Tchervyakov's obsessive apologies stem from his subordinate social position relative to General Brizzhalov, highlighting the power dynamics and class anxieties of the era.
Hypocrisy and Moral Failure
The general's impatience and dismissal of Tchervyakov's genuine remorse, contrasted with Tchervyakov's own inability to accept forgiveness, exposes moral failures on both sides.
Mortality and Legacy
The story culminates in Tchervyakov's sudden death, underscoring the absurdity and tragic consequences of his trivial obsession with social propriety.
Characters to notice
- Ivan Dmitritch Tchervyakov
The protagonist, a government clerk who sneezes on a general and becomes consumed by guilt and the need to apologize.
- General Brizzhalov
A civilian general in the Department of Transport who is the recipient of Tchervyakov's sneeze and subsequent apologies.
Key passages
“One fine evening, a no less fine government clerk called Ivan Dmitritch Tchervyakov was sitting in the second row of the stalls, gazing through an opera glass at the Cloches de Corneville.”
On a pleasant evening, a similarly pleasant government clerk named Ivan Dmitritch Tchervyakov sat in the second row of the theater, watching the opera 'Cloches de Corneville' through his opera glasses.
Sets the scene and introduces the protagonist in a state of enjoyment before the incident.
“But suddenly his face puckered up, his eyes disappeared, his breathing was arrested … he took the opera glass from his eyes, bent over and … 'Aptchee!' he sneezed as you perceive.”
Suddenly, his face contorted, his eyes closed, and he stopped breathing; he lowered his opera glasses, leaned forward, and sneezed loudly.
Describes the pivotal sneeze that triggers the entire conflict.
“Reaching home mechanically, without taking off his uniform, he lay down on the sofa and died.”
He arrived home in a daze, still in his uniform, and collapsed onto the sofa, where he died.
The final, ironic outcome of Tchervyakov's obsessive apologies.