Nikolai+Gogol

Nikolai Gogol  Introduction:

 Nikolai Gogol (born March 31, 1809) was a novelist, dramatist, and short story writer of the nineteenth century, whose works labeled him as a Ukrainian-born Russian author [1]. Often called the “father of modern Russian realism,” Gogol was one of the first Russian authors to attack and criticize his nation's lifestyle [3]. He revealed the social truth and actuality of the time and reflected the cruel brutalities of life. Despite the fact that many of Gogol's works were influenced by his Ukrainian culture and childhood, he wrote in the Russian dialect; consequently, his works were recorded alongside other exceptional Russian literature. Gogol wrote five dramas, five essays, five short stories, and four short story collections in his career. In his last years he became a victim to religious madness and dishearten. Gogol died at forty-two years old from starvation [9].

 Early Years:

  Nikolai Gogol was born to Mariya Ivanovna Gogol and Vasyl Gogol-Yanovsky in Sorochintsy, Ukraine. At the age of fourteen Mariya and Vasyl had an marriage [6]. Mariya was a young child herself when expected to bring forth children of her own. Mariya bore two children, Nikolai the oldest and his brother Ivan the youngest [6]. She was a devoted and adored mother whose was greatly respected by her family and friends. Gogol’s father was an upper class Polish Ukrainian writer who inherited the family manor when they married. He continued to work on his own poems and playwrights until he passed away. Gogol's father died when Gogol was fifteen years of age [6].

 Gogol’s mother enrolled both of her sons in a school at Poltava. In 1819, when Gogol was nine years of age, Ivan passed away from an unknown incident during their summer vacation [6]. Ivan’s sudden death greatly impacted Gogol, for Gogol and Ivan were extremely close. That year Gogol’s mother sent Gogol away to Poltava boarding school [6]. She wanted him to get away from home to try and escape his grief and sadness. After boarding school he attended a school of higher art in Nezhin for seven years, from 1821 to 1828. It is here that he acquired a knowledge of the art of writing and learned to apply his talent [5]. He began to write his own literary works and joined his school dramas from stagehand to performer and director [5].

 After graduation, Gogol moved to the capital of Saint Petersburg where he hoped to start a career [5]. During his time at Nezhin he wrote a poem entitled, “Hanz Küchelgarten”, which he published at his own expense, in Saint Petersburg, only to find out that it was shunned and satirized by critics as “juvenile” [2]. He attempted to destroy all the surviving duplicates, and swore he would never write poetry again [1]. Shortly after Gogol received the negative feedback on his poem his mother informed him that she was incapable of managing the family property after the loss of his father [2]. As a result Gogol found himself without money and resources, which led to him trying to secure a position in the civil service. He worked in a few workplaces as a underpaid government personnel. His monetary status and absence of social connections made him understand that it was almost impossible to acquire a higher paying job [1]; therefore, he wrote short stories and novels during his spare time in hope to make extra money [2]. Within the capital he became friends with Aleksandr Pushkin along with other writers and editors. With such acquaintances he found it quite simple to have his works published in the Saint Petersburg periodical [2]. Once published in Saint Petersburg periodical numerous influential Russian writers began to promote his literary works, which eventually prompted his success and popularity. In 1831, Gogol resigned from the civil service in an attempt to make a name for himself elsewhere. That year he was offered a position at Saint Petersburg University, though feeling inadequately prepared and under-qualified for the occupation, he resigned after the first year and went back to writing [3]. 

  In 1835, Gogol wrote to Alexander Pushkin, requesting recommendations for a comic plot, and the poet provided him with a portrayal of how he himself had been confused for a government official during an excursion to Nizhni in 1833 [1]. From there Gogol wrote The Government Inspector, which was published in 1836. The Government Inspector was a play ridiculing the bureaucracy of provincial Russian life, by means of its investigation of greed and political corruption [9]. It focused on a small town in Russian that was dishonorable and disordered. It showed how all individuals were corrupt as well as their systems of government and way of living. Corrupt guards easily jump to conclusion that a visitor is the inspector when truly he is a desperate gambler. However the “inspector” is given a great deal of cash and praise until all truth is uncovered at last [1]. Numerous individuals were angered with Gogol mocking Russia, and he was distraught at the cruel feedback. “Contemporary reaction to The Inspector General was unfavorable. It had its premiere on April 19, 1836, at the Alexsandrinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, and the first night audience was hostile, seeing it as a tasteless critique of the civil service, directed at the government” [1]. After the failure of his work Gogol fled the country. He spend a great deal of time traveling abroad and eventually settling in Italy where he began to work on his next major work, that being Dead Souls [5].

=Death: =  In 1842, Gogol published the first part of Dead Souls. “Built on an idea given to him by Pushkin – that dead souls, or serfs, are taken as live ones – Gogol creates the character Tchitchikov, who buys dead souls to bolster his own wealth” [2]. Shortly after his publication Gogol became known as a great satirist who ridiculed the uncivilized sides of Imperial Russia [1]. During this time Gogol lived in Rome and would periodically visit Russia, while working on the second part of Dead Souls [5]. While working on the second part of his novel he became engrossed with questioning religion and morality [4]. “Gogol grew increasingly concerned with his mission as a writer. He became convinced that he had to divinely appointed role to save Russian from all the evil forces at work within it” [1]. Gogol felt as though he would complete such a mission by creating and publishing the second and third part of Dead Souls. Gogol was incapable of creating likable characters, which slowed him down and drove him made; therefore, he searched for a solution in religion [9]. 

 In his work he began to support religious and moral values as well economic well being, which called forth numerous assortment of discriminating responses. Many critics and individuals were disturbed by the second part of his novel, which greatly saddened Gogol. “It had been called forth a great variety of critical reactions: It has been praised for its critical boldness in exposing the inequalities of an unjust social order and condemned as a vicious slander on the Russian homeland” [7]. Though many felt his work was powerful he was disheartened by those who condemned it; therefore, Gogol returned to Russia and spent the remainder of his life in religious practices and mediation to find his peace and truth within [5].

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> In 1848, Gogol traveled to Jerusalem to visit friends, scholars, and in hope to find his spiritual serenity. He imposed upon himself a strict regime of prayer and <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> fasting to discover his internal identity, however it didn't help him with his confidence nor his composition. Returning home with no faith and little assurance he was inspired by the guidance of Father Matthew Konstantinovsky’s [6]. Konstantinovsky insisted that Gogol’s new work was sinful and corrupt. Konstantinovsky wished for Gogol to give up his literary career and enter the religious community. Gogol then felt a sense of wrongdoing and displayed a desire for absolution that brought him entirely under Konstantinovsky’s influence. Gogol decided to give up his literary career and follow the Lord [6]. Gogol burned and destroyed the majority of his work he created within the last few years of his life [5]. He faulted the majority of his most recent act's and self-destruction on the Devil; therefore, Gogol withdrew from the outside world and took to his bed refusing food. Due to Gogol's refusal of food he began to receive serious stomach pains. Prior to his death, which was caused by extreme fasting and exhaustion, he ordered the doctors to bleed him with half a dozen leeches to help cure these pains [9]. “The treatment he was subjected to, a vigorous purging and blood-letting, hastened the death of an organism already gravely impaired by the after effects of malnutrition” [9]. The amount of blood Gogol lost and his refusal of food and medical assistance cause him to die on March 4th, 1852 [6].

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 28pt;"> List of works:

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> Nikolai Gogol did not limit himself to one distinct genre. Gogol was a writer of fiction, producing numerous short stories, a large portion of which fall into two cycles, the Ukrainian cycle and the Petersburg cycle [1]. Many of Gogol’s early literary works are considered his Ukrainian cycle because he was living in Ukraine at the time. Not only was he living in Ukraine but his works were set there. His initial work was influenced by his Ukrainian childhood, Ukrainian society and folklore. Gogol’s later works were created when he was living in Saint Petersburg, which is considered his Petersburg cycle [1]. Although Gogol had published a great deal of fictional stories between 1829 and 1835, he did not consider himself a writer. Only after the play The Inspector General did he concentrate on a literary career [4]. He produced fiction stories that permitted him to be perceived as a new talent and was admitted to the most noteworthy literary circles [1]. Gogol greatly affected writers all over the world. Though he produced a great deal of fiction and drama, Gogol also published a small amount of poetry and numerous essays [1].

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 20pt;"> Drama:


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Decoration of Vladimir of the Third Class (published 1832)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Marriage (1835, published 1842)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">The Gamblers (1836, published 1842)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">The Government Inspector (published 1836)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Leaving the Theater (published 1836)

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 20pt;"> Essay:


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Woman// (published 1830)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Preface, to the first volume of Evenings on a Farm// (published 1831)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Preface, to the second volume of Evenings on a Farm// (published 1832)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Selected Passages from Correspondence with Friends, collection of letters and Essay// (published 1847)

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 20pt;"> Fiction:


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka//, volume 1 of short story collection (published 1831)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka//, volume two of short story collection (published 2832)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Arabesques//, short story collection (published 1835)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Mirgorod//, short story collection (published 1835)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//The Nose//, short story (published 1835-1836)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//The Carriage//, short story (published 1836)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//The Overcoat//, short story (published1842)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">//Dead Souls//, novel (published 1842)

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 20pt;"> Poems:


 * //Ode to Italy//, poem (published 1829)
 * //Hanz Küchelgarten//, poem (published 1829)

=<span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 24px; vertical-align: top;"> Nikolai Gogol Biography (1809-1852) =

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**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 20pt;">References: ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"> 1. Hansan, Zia. "Nikolai Gogol Critical Survey of Drama." Literary Reference Center. 1 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Apr. 2003. Web. 1 Apr. 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">2. May, Charles. "Nikolai Gogol Dictionary of World Biography: The 19th <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Century." Literary Reference Center. 1 Jan. 2000. Web. 1 Apr. 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">3. "Nikolai Gogol. Censorship." Literary Reference Center. 1 Apr. 1997. Web. 1 Apr. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">4. Mahony, Mary. "Nikolai Gogol Cyclopedia of World Authors." Literary Reference <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Center. 1 Jan. 2003. Web. 1 Apr. 2015.1

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">5. Terras, Victor. "Nikolai Gogol Critical Survey of Long Fiction." Literary <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Reference Center. 1 Jan. 2010. Web. 1 Apr. 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">6. Lee, Magill's. "Nikolai Gogol Survey of World Literature." Literary Reference <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Center. 1 Jan. 2009. Web. 1 Apr. 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">7. Jahn. "The Rise of Prose: Nikolai Gogol." UMN. Web. 16 Apr. 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">8. Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852) and Alksandr Pushkin. 2013. Film.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">9. Nabokov, Vladimir. Nikolai Gogol. New Directions, 1961. 172. Print.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">10. "Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852)." YouTube. YouTube. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">11. Arts Equity Season. Digital image. Arts Equity. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">12. Dead Souls - Nikolai Gogol. Digital image. Feedbooks. Public Domain, 2006. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">13. File: GogolAndMatthew. Digital image. Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia, 15 Oct. 2014. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">14. The Inspector General. Digital image. Progressive Players Gateshead. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">15. Korshner, Sheldon. Nikolai Gogol's Influence On Sholem Aleichem. Digital image. Sheldon Kirshner. Sheldon Kirshner Journal, 18 Apr. 2014. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">16. M A Konstantinovsky. Digital image. File: M A Konstantinovsky. Wikimedia, 25 Dec. 2013. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">17. Nizhyn Lyceum. Digital image. Internet Encyclopedia of Ukraine. Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, 2013. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">18. The Power of Pushkin's Poetry. Digital image. Gathering Books. The MH Magazine Theme, 2011. Web. 1 May 2015.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">19. Selinsky, Ludmila. Nikolai Vassilievich Gogol. Digital image. Russian Nobility Association in America. RNA, 22 May 2014. Web. 1 May 2015.