“By and large he lorded it like a real gentleman, as they say in the provinces, married a pretty girl with a dowry of two hundred serfs and several thousand in cash. These funds were immediately lavished on a team of six truly excellent horses, gilt locks for the doors, a tame monkey for theContinue reading “RKS Literature: Lording it Like a Real Gentleman (Gogol)”
Tag Archives: Nikolai Gogol
RKS Literature: Did I Really Lose My Nose (Gogol)
“My God, my God. What have I done to deserve this? If I’d lost an arm or a leg it wouldn’t be so bad. Even without ears things wouldn’t be pleasant, but it wouldn’t be the end of the world. A man without a nose, though, is God knows what, neither fish nor fowl. JustContinue reading “RKS Literature: Did I Really Lose My Nose (Gogol)”
RKS Literature: The Waging of the Russian Holy War: The Russian Jihad (Nikolai Gogol)
“It is common knowledge how a war for the faith is waged on Russian soil-no earthly power is stronger than the power of faith. It is insurmountable and ferocious, like a rock rising from the depths of a stormy ocean, fashioned from a single unshatterable mass of stone, towering into the skies, seen from vastContinue reading “RKS Literature: The Waging of the Russian Holy War: The Russian Jihad (Nikolai Gogol)”
RKS Literature: A New Russian Czar Will Spring Forth! (Nikolai Gogol)
“So you thought you caught us, you damn Poles. Do you think there is a single thing in this world that will frighten a Cossack? Just wait, the time will come when you will understand the meaning of the Russian Orthodox faith. Word has already spread through every nation. A Russian Czar will spring forthContinue reading “RKS Literature: A New Russian Czar Will Spring Forth! (Nikolai Gogol)”
RKS Literature: Execution by the Poles of Cossacks: Entertainment (Nikolai Gogol)
“The square on which the execution was to take place was not hard to find: the whole town was streaming there from all directions. In that grim bygone era an execution was considered one of the most engaging spectacles, not only for the masses but also for the aristocracy. Devout old women, matrons and timidContinue reading “RKS Literature: Execution by the Poles of Cossacks: Entertainment (Nikolai Gogol)”
RKS Literature: Tarus Bulba on Women and Vodka (Nikolai Gogol)
“Enough! Enough whining, old woman. Cossacks aren’t Cossacks so they can hobnob with women! Given half a chance you’d hide them under your skirt and sit on them like a hen. Off with you, quick, and get the table ready. Lay out everything we have. No need for fritters and poppyseed cakes, or any otherContinue reading “RKS Literature: Tarus Bulba on Women and Vodka (Nikolai Gogol)”
RKS Literature: Tarus Bulba’s Thoughts on a Seminary Education (Nikolai Gogol)
“You’re a milksop, I see!” Bulba said. “Don’t listen to your mother, my boy. She’s a woman, she knows nothing! What do you need sweetness for? An open field and a good horse, that’s all the sweetness that you need. You see this saber. This saber is your mother! They’ve been filling your heads withContinue reading “RKS Literature: Tarus Bulba’s Thoughts on a Seminary Education (Nikolai Gogol)”
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