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TheDiary of aMadman, The Government Inspector, and Selecte d Stories (Penguin Classics) Publisher: Penguin Classics
Paperback
Published January 1, 2005
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About the author
Nikolai Gogol
1,997 books5,645 followersPeople consider that Russian writer Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol (Николай Васильевич Гоголь) founded realism in Russian literature. His works include
The Overcoat
(1842) and
Dead Souls
(1842).
Ukrainian birth, heritage, and upbringing of Gogol influenced many of his written works among the most beloved in the tradition of Russian-language literature. Most critics see Gogol as the first Russian realist. His biting satire, comic realism, and descriptions of Russian provincials and petty bureaucrats influenced later Russian masters Leo Tolstoy, Ivan Turgenev, and especially Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Gogol wittily said many later Russian maxims.
Gogol first used the techniques of surrealism and the grotesque in his works The Nose , Viy , The Overcoat , and Nevsky Prospekt . Ukrainian upbringing, culture, and folklore influenced his early works, such as Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka .
His later writing satirized political corruption in the Russian empire in Dead Souls .
Ukrainian birth, heritage, and upbringing of Gogol influenced many of his written works among the most beloved in the tradition of Russian-language literature. Most critics see Gogol as the first Russian realist. His biting satire, comic realism, and descriptions of Russian provincials and petty bureaucrats influenced later Russian masters Leo Tolstoy, Ivan Turgenev, and especially Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Gogol wittily said many later Russian maxims.
Gogol first used the techniques of surrealism and the grotesque in his works The Nose , Viy , The Overcoat , and Nevsky Prospekt . Ukrainian upbringing, culture, and folklore influenced his early works, such as Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka .
His later writing satirized political corruption in the Russian empire in Dead Souls .
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
November 25, 2024
Simply outstanding, satirical, comical, weird, descriptive, enjoyable, thought-provoking moments of brilliance. These are the emotions attached to the stories in this collection. The ones that stand out are:
The Overcoat - goes out of the way to get/buy something, and it is taken away in an instant! ah! the agony! The turmoil not just at its lose but also at the days waiting for it. Perfect!
The Nose - funny. A man loses his nose and sees it wandering the street, unable to get it back, he is hopeless and embarrassed without it. What can he do to have it back?
The Government Inspector - Simply the best of the lot. A swindler enters town and people mistake him for a government official of high status. He plays along and takes the town on a ride of emotions, guilt, bribery, complains, flattery. Act 5 discloses the mischief, and voila! the town is left dumbfounded with their own stupidity. Perfectly written for a play!
The Nevsky Prospect, How Ivan Ivanovich fought with Ivan Nikiforovich, The Diary of Madman - all worthy of a mention.
The life, the setting, the people, the city or provincial landscape, the scene is simply described in the calmest of way. Within few paragraphs, we, the reader, have a clear imagination of the scene taking place. Too simple, with humour, satire, subtle digs, and irony of the characters and life. An artist worth reading indeed!
The Overcoat - goes out of the way to get/buy something, and it is taken away in an instant! ah! the agony! The turmoil not just at its lose but also at the days waiting for it. Perfect!
The Nose - funny. A man loses his nose and sees it wandering the street, unable to get it back, he is hopeless and embarrassed without it. What can he do to have it back?
The Government Inspector - Simply the best of the lot. A swindler enters town and people mistake him for a government official of high status. He plays along and takes the town on a ride of emotions, guilt, bribery, complains, flattery. Act 5 discloses the mischief, and voila! the town is left dumbfounded with their own stupidity. Perfectly written for a play!
The Nevsky Prospect, How Ivan Ivanovich fought with Ivan Nikiforovich, The Diary of Madman - all worthy of a mention.
The life, the setting, the people, the city or provincial landscape, the scene is simply described in the calmest of way. Within few paragraphs, we, the reader, have a clear imagination of the scene taking place. Too simple, with humour, satire, subtle digs, and irony of the characters and life. An artist worth reading indeed!
Displaying 1 of 1 review