The Government Inspector: in lies, we trust The Government Inspector by Nikolai Gogol is a satirical work set in Russia in the nineteenth century. In the Government Inspector, the mayor, representing the city as a whole, and the pseudo-inspector have created harmonious and fantastic facades to deceive each other. The multitude of facades leads to a further weakening of morality. Ultimately, the deprivation of morality that not only damages a person's psyche to the point of blasphemy, but forces the character to find and amend himself. In a picturesque town located in 19th century Russia, the mayor, otherwise known as Anton Antonvich receives a disturbing letter that an inspector belonging to a higher social status will be traveling through the town, incognito. This strikes fear in Antonvich's heart as he recognizes that he is guilty of unjust practices, such as corruption, and that he is an incompetent mayor who does not uphold the responsibilities that his position entails. After receiving the letter, the school superintendent asks why their town was the subject of an undercover investigation and the mayor states, “Why! It's clear why. Destiny! (sighs) so far they have snooped in other cities. Now it's our turn." (Gogol 56). The wording of “destiny” is crucial to show the mayor's consciousness of guilt; he considers the inspector's arrival stressful due to the fast which has failed to keep the city in excellent condition and which now comes back to haunt him and remind him of his lack of morals. Upon the arrival of the pseudo-inspector named Khlestakov, a chain of facades was set in motion, both by citizens and ... middle of paper ...... motives, but ultimately getting lost along the process and forcing them to reflect on what is and is not right. Gogol's, The Government Inspector, was in fact a cosmetic battle fought in harmony; the fronts created by the characters were compatible with each other and only led to the development of the facades. Somewhere along this process the lack of moral responsibility and ultimately the loss of perseverance was abused. Jose Ortega Y Gasset once said: “It is precisely the essence of man... that he can lose himself in the jungle of his existence, within himself, and thanks to his sensation of being he can react by energetically putting himself to work to find new self." Human nature has the ability to lose itself in many circumstances, but this is the only time it can propagate and discover the true meaning of what it means to be human..