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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
clever and funny... I laughed out loud so many times while reading. some passages are also so beautifully written, especially the one describing Plyushkin's garden and house.
Interesting notes: an underlying devil theme (chichikov as a devil? Plyushkin's estate as Hell, etc.), parallels to Dante's "Inferno" (apparently but I haven't read this), reading as a society tale, character representations of the deadly sins
I'm quite sad that Gogol didn't finish writing the entire story and burned part 2 but I appreciate what does exist
(I read half of the Guerney translation and half Maguire translation. enjoyed the Guerney translation way more; it reads more easily...Maguire has long continuous paragraphs)
Interesting notes: an underlying devil theme (chichikov as a devil? Plyushkin's estate as Hell, etc.), parallels to Dante's "Inferno" (apparently but I haven't read this), reading as a society tale, character representations of the deadly sins
I'm quite sad that Gogol didn't finish writing the entire story and burned part 2 but I appreciate what does exist
(I read half of the Guerney translation and half Maguire translation. enjoyed the Guerney translation way more; it reads more easily...Maguire has long continuous paragraphs)
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Russia. 1800s. Right after Napoleon tried to take the place over and failed. There’s this guy named Chichikov who’s going around to various landowners and asking to buy their dead serfs.
See at this time rich people in Russia basically owned their serfs like property so they could be bought and sold. And the number of serfs you owned dictated the amount of tax you’d have to pay. During this time, the census wasn’t done all that often so rich people whose serfs died between census-takings had to still pay taxes on even the dead ones. So, it would seem like a no-brainer to sell them off. But the author here wants to paint a picture of Russian decadence which means everybody with some dead souls to sell are greedy scumbags. So Chichipants has to haggle with them every time and it’s exhausting. Turns out, his intention is to move himself up the social ladder in the way that only possessing dead serfs on paper can. Ah-ha!
That’s basically it. The book ends mid sentence because the Gogol died. It’s poetically written and a semi-masterpiece of plotless description. I suppose it’s revered because of it’s commentary on the society who’s ill would lead to a commie take over. But in the end it was just kind of long and incomplete.
See at this time rich people in Russia basically owned their serfs like property so they could be bought and sold. And the number of serfs you owned dictated the amount of tax you’d have to pay. During this time, the census wasn’t done all that often so rich people whose serfs died between census-takings had to still pay taxes on even the dead ones. So, it would seem like a no-brainer to sell them off. But the author here wants to paint a picture of Russian decadence which means everybody with some dead souls to sell are greedy scumbags. So Chichipants has to haggle with them every time and it’s exhausting. Turns out, his intention is to move himself up the social ladder in the way that only possessing dead serfs on paper can. Ah-ha!
That’s basically it. The book ends mid sentence because the Gogol died. It’s poetically written and a semi-masterpiece of plotless description. I suppose it’s revered because of it’s commentary on the society who’s ill would lead to a commie take over. But in the end it was just kind of long and incomplete.
medium-paced
Fenomenalna knjiga, jedino šteta što nije dovršena...Odličan humor, odličan stil...pokazuje da su ljudi svugdje i svagda isti...Zaista užitak za čitati.
I love this book it just wasn’t one of my favourites. However Gogol’s sentences are probably some of the best I’ve read from Russian literature so far. Chichikov if I spelt right is a great character and I liked how Gogol puts his own voice into the mix to clarify him as a hero even though he might not be the typical hero in the standard form of the word. The book besides being fun to read also has some great characters and it’s geniunely a funny book. The scene where the cart fell over, the guy telling a long ass story that doesn’t even apply. I didn’t read part 2 and that may have changed my opinion for the worse off of what was said but most people said not to read it. Overall tho I think it really was about greed and the pursuit of wealth and the kind of ways that people grow around that. I definitely would like to read it again. His writing and ideas really are top tier and I can see how he was an inspiration for many. Overall, it was fire tho.
Sorry Chichikov. I just couldn't get through this book. It was a very interesting idea, and written rather nicely apart from Gogols perhaps too often interjections. I also enjoyed the satirical side of the novel and larger that life characters such as Nabokov. However, I never felt an urge to read on. To find out what happens next. It was just a struggle from chapter to chapter, until I gave up. Perhaps I'll come back and give it another go one day...
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love this book it just wasn’t one of my favourites. However Gogol’s sentences are probably some of the best I’ve read from Russian literature so far. Chichikov if I spelt right is a great character and I liked how Gogol puts his own voice into the mix to clarify him as a hero even though he might not be the typical hero in the standard form of the word. The book besides being fun to read also has some great characters and it’s geniunely a funny book. The scene where the cart fell over, the guy telling a long ass story that doesn’t even apply. I didn’t read part 2 and that may have changed my opinion for the worse off of what was said but most people said not to read it. Overall tho I think it really was about greed and the pursuit of wealth and the kind of ways that people grow around that. I definitely would like to read it again. His writing and ideas really are top tier and I can see how he was an inspiration for many. Overall, it was fire tho.