philoSophie

A delightful collection of short stories, full of misery and depravity. It felt amazing that all of the stories had one thing in common, Nevsky Prospect was present in each of them.

Nevsky Prospect
Nevsky prospect is, as shown by the title, the protagonist of the short story, full of "deception, dreams", where nothing is what it seems. We follow two characters, the artist Piskarev and lieutenant Pirogov, as they become entangled in adventures passing by the avenue. Both stories revolve around romantic feelings; they catch a glimpse of a beautiful lady and the proceed to win her love. With humor, caustic comments on writers and journalists, along with many stereotypes of nationalities, Gogol creates an imaginary story both tragic and humorous at the same time.

The Nose
This is a nonsensical story about a man that loses his nose. Extremely far-fetched it's a hilarious short story that always makes me giggle.

The Overcoat
The overcoat is essentially about an overcoat that Akaky Akakievich buys laboriously, the cost of a new overcoat is beyond Akaky's meager salary. This overcoat gets stolen, and all hell breaks loose. This particular story is considered to have had a great influence on Russian literature , and is an extremely layered work. It can be read as a satire and as a sharp criticism of a petty society that creates and reproduces contracts oppressing its members.

Diary of a Madman
Written in the format of a diary, the story centers on the life of Poprishchin, a low-ranking civil servant and titular counsellor who desires to be noticed by the daughter of the Director, his senior official. The diary records show his slow descent into insanity. It is an exceptionally grotesque story that is definitely worth a read.