“The longer and more carefully we look at a funny story, the sadder it becomes.”
So wrote Nikolai Gogol in his novel Dead Souls, and I can think of no fitter tribute to him that his own observation. Gogol, born on this day in 1809, is considered one of the pioneers of Russian letters, who brought Surrealism and gothic horror to the nation’s literature in a way no one had before, and continues to inspire writers, composers, and readers to this day for his ability to make you laugh, cry, and squirm, all at the same time.
Gogol was born the Ukrainian village of Sorochyntsi, to parents of Polish descent. His father, who passed when Gogol was 15 was an amateur playwright, which may have given Gogol the idea to begin writing himself. He was not popular by any means as a young man (his fellow students apparently referred to him as a “mysterious dwarf”), but he came away from those years with the resolve to keep writing, and to achieve lasting fame through his works.
His wishes were very soon achieved. His short stories, which first documented life in rural Ukraine, and his poems, which were Romantic idylls by and large, met with enormous public success. Gogol had always loved history, and worked as much of his homeland’s past into his stories as possible, eventually enrolling in University at St. Petersburg to study history. He wrote several successful plays during this time, but it was after he left Russia to travel around Europe (especially Italy) that he began to produce the masterpieces for which he is remembered today. These writings, including Dead Souls, which was intended to be a re-telling of Dante’s Inferno, are deeply satirical, viciously funny, and deeply, sometimes painfully insightful.
Gogol suffered from severe depression (it is assumed that he may have suffered from manic depression or bipolar disorder), and it took an enormous toll on his person, his relationships, and his work. He burned large portions of his writing more than once–towards the end of his life, he burned the entire manuscript for the second part of Dead Souls, and later said that the Devil played a practical joke on him and made him destroy the book. Soon after this, he took to his bed and refused all food, finally dying nine days later in agony.
What he did leave us, however, is a body of work that changed Russian literature. Gogol had a unique ability to take the events, the people, and the stories of the day, and present them in the most fantastical light possible, turning the mundane into something fascinating, wonderful, and, often weirdly unsettling. Though his work fell into relative obscurity in the 19th century, he was ‘rediscovered’ after the First World War by modernists who realized just how progressive and powerful his work really was. Since then, his work has remained at the forefront of Russian–and, indeed, world literature.
So, if you’re looking for something definitely different to read this week, I can’t recommend Gogol more highly. Be sure to wish him a happy birthday as you do. I have a feeling he’d appreciate it knowing he finally achieved his goals.
Here are some suggestions to get you started:
Dead Souls: Gogol’s only surviving novel is one of the most significant–and oft-debated–works of 19th century literature. This tale follows the journeys of Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, an enigmatic traveler who calls on a number of landowners and civil servants in order to add to his collection of “dead souls”. The story, you see, is set just after the emancipation of serfs in Russia, and Gogol’s book is very much a commentary on what the practices of slavery and ownership can do to society. But for all that it is a political satire and a truly odd, picaresque novel, it is also quite readable and, in some places, genuinely funny. It might not be the easiest of reads, but it absolutely worth the effort.
The Overcoat: This is probably one of Gogol’s most accessible stories, and thus is the first introduction many students of literature have to Gogol (it certainly was for me). It is also a perfect example of his later style: satirical, utterly impatient with bureaucracy and willful ignorance, and deeply empathetic with the people who are almost always overlooked by The System. This story introduces us to one Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, an underpaid, overworked government clerk who spends his entire salary on the finest overcoat, dreaming of the day when he can stride through St. Petersburg in all his wintery glory. But tragedy strikes…and then things get really weird…..
Diary of a Madman: This is my favorite of Gogol’s works, and the story that is guaranteed to make me curl up in a corner and hum quietly to myself after reading. Trying to explain this story just doesn’t do it justice…A man who has been generally overlooked all his life gradually becomes convinced he’s secretly the King of Spain…and that he can communicate with a dog. But Gogol makes his descent into madness so subtle, so realistic, and so…normal that by the end, you’re forced to wonder who, in this story, is really the crazy one…As you read this, keep an eye on the dates in the diary. I’ll be over in the corner.
The Nose: Dmitri Shostakovich, one of the foremost composers of the Soviet Era (indeed, of the 20th century in general) used Gogol’s bizarre little story about a man whose nose runs away and has adventures all around St. Petersburg as the inspiration for a short light opera. Which is equally as bizarre, and surprisingly fun. This opera was specifically written so that Shostakovich could prove that classic literature, and the medium of opera could be entertaining for the Proletariat, and it turns out he was right. I took my Dad to see this opera once, and yes, it featured a six-foot-tall man wearing a giant nose costume dashing around the stage. He says he enjoyed it. He’s a really good sport that way.
