Research work “Mystical images in the works of Russian and foreign writers and their impact on the minds of adolescents. Gogol's mysticism
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The work of many writers is permeated with fantasy and mysticism. But the most surprising thing is that mysticism often breaks into the life of the authors themselves. Prophetic dreams, visions, predictions - what happens to the "engineers of human souls"!
IMPRESSIVE NATURE
The famous playwright Alexander Sergeevich Griboyedov was a lively, receptive person.
A close friend of the writer, historian Stepan Nikitich Begichev, told the following about Griboyedov: “In April 1823 he was my best man at my wedding and stood next to me. Before the service began, the priest decided to give us a speech.
The witty Griboyedov, with his usual gaiety in his youth, commented on this speech in my ear, and I forcibly refrained from laughing. Then he fell silent, but when he was holding the crown over me, I noticed that his hands were shaking, and I, looking back, saw him pale with tears in my eyes.
At the end of the service, to my question: "What happened to you?" - he replied: "Stupidity, it seemed to me that I was being sung and buried." And before his last trip to Tehran, he was unusually sad and said that he felt that he would never return from there. And so it happened.
Everyone noted the melancholy, daydreaming and increased nervous excitability of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. Once he was walking along Nikitsky Boulevard in the direction of Tverskaya. Even from a distance he noticed a man walking towards him. It seemed to Gogol that he saw him somewhere, but could not remember who he was, what his name was, when and where he met him.
The stranger was delighted with him, greeted him cordially and took him home. At dinner a conversation began. Gogol felt that he had not experienced such peace of mind for a long time. The stranger took him by the hand and led him to the icon: “Let's pray together. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit ... "
Suddenly Gogol clearly heard someone call his father by name: "Vasily Afanasyevich ..." But who said that? ..
Then they sat side by side, prayed in front of the icon of the Mother of God and cried. The stranger accompanied Gogol to the door and took from him a promise to return the next day.
Gogol did not remember how he found himself at home. It was there that the insight came to him that this stranger had been sent to him from his long-dead father and that he would hardly ever find himself in his house, if only because he would not find him in the intricacies of the alleys and streets of Moscow.
Since then, the image of this man haunted Gogol, he often said that he would not live long, because they "came" for him.
DOUBTING THOMAS
Famous poet Pyotr Andreevich Vyazemsky was an unbeliever in his youth and was constantly refined in ridicule of religion.
But one incident forced him to change his beliefs. This was around 1823. Late in the evening Vyazemsky returned to his apartment on Nevsky Prospekt, near Anichkov Bridge.
To his surprise, the poet noticed that the windows of his study were brightly lit. Running upstairs, he asked the valet who was in the office. He replied that he locked the office with a key and handed it over to the prince.
Opening the door, Pyotr Andreyevich saw that in the back of the room a man was sitting with his back to him and, bending over the writing table, was writing something. Vyazemsky went up to him and read what had been written over his shoulder. What was there remained a secret forever, but only Vyazemsky screamed loudly, grabbed his chest and fell unconscious.
When he woke up, the stranger had already disappeared, and the candles were extinguished. The poet told everyone that he saw himself, only did not admit what he had read. Since then, Vyazemsky has become a deeply religious person.
A WHITE MAN
After graduating from the Lyceum, Pushkin turned to his sister Olga with a request to tell fortunes by the palm of her hand (she was fond of palmistry).
Olga became obstinate, not wanting to bewitch her brother. And when she yielded to his request, she suddenly burst into tears and said: “Why, Alexander, are you forcing me to say what I’m afraid to say? You are threatened with a violent death, and not yet in old age. "
While in Odessa, the poet met a famous fortuneteller from Greece, who took him to moonlit night in field. There, having uttered an incantation, he made a terrible prophecy that Alexander would die from a horse or a white-haired man in white on a white horse.
Subsequently, Pushkin confessed to his friends that after this meeting with the Greek magician, each time he put his foot in the stirrup with disgust. The Greek was not mistaken: Pushkin's killer Dantes was blond, wore a white uniform and rode a white horse ...
Premature death seemed to have been prepared for him by fate. Known throughout Europe, the German fortune teller Kirchhoff arrived in St. Petersburg in the winter of 1817, and the capital ladies' men went to her to find out their fate. Among them is Pushkin, to whom she was the last to guess. Seeing Pushkin, Kirchhoff exclaimed that he would become famous. The witch also warned him that he would be exiled twice.
The last prophecy sounded like this: "Perhaps you will live a long time, but in the thirty-seventh year, beware of the white horse, white head or white man." Consequently, a different fate could await Pushkin, listen to the soothsayers and be careful.
Pushkin, however, tried with all his might to avoid an evil fate. Having joined the Freemasons and learned about the involvement of a man in the lodge, whose name means "white head", he moved away from them.
He also refused to travel to Poland as a military man when he heard that one of the leaders of the uprising, with whom he would have to fight, was named Weisskopf ("white head"). But he managed to save himself from one misfortune. Alexander Sergeevich was in exile in the village of Mikhailovskoye when the news of the death of Emperor Alexander I reached him.
He decided to immediately go to Petersburg and stay with a friend - the poet Ryleev. Pushkin ordered to prepare the carriage for the journey and went to say goodbye to the neighbors. But then a hare crossed his path, and on the way back another (in those days it was bad sign). The ominous signs did not end there. The servant suddenly collapsed in a fever, and when the harnessed cart finally started from the porch, the priest blocked her way.
A sudden meeting with a minister of the church was also considered bad luck... And then the superstitious Pushkin decided to cancel the trip. And as if looking into the water! In the house where he was going to go, gathered those who would later be called the Decembrists. Many of them will be hanged after the uprising on Senate Square, while others will be sent to Siberia for trying to destroy the tsar.
LETTER FROM NEW ZEALAND
The writer Yevgeny Petrov, one of the authors of The Twelve Chairs and The Golden Calf, had a strange and rare hobby: collecting envelopes from his own letters. He wrote a letter to some country at a fictitious address, and after a while the letter was returned to him with a bunch of different stamps and an indication: "The addressee was not found."
In April 1939, Petrov decided to send a letter to New Zealand to the fictional city of Hydebirdville, to the fictional 7 Wrightbeach Street, in the name of Merrill Ogin Weisley.
His letter read: “Dear Merrill! Please accept our sincere condolences on the passing of Uncle Pete. Be strong, old man. Forgive me for not writing for a long time. Hope Ingrid is okay. Kiss my daughter for me. She's probably already quite big. Your Eugene. "
Two months passed, but the letter with the corresponding mark was not returned. The writer decided that it was lost, and began to forget about it, when suddenly he received ... an answer. The envelope read: 7 New Zealand, Hydebirdville, Wrightbeach, Merrill Ogin Weisley.
A person unknown to him wrote: “Dear Eugene! Thanks for the condolences. Uncle Pete's ridiculous death unsettled us for six months. I hope you will forgive the delay in the letter. Ingrid and I often remember those two days that you were with us. Gloria is very big and will go to the 2nd grade in the fall. She still keeps the bear that you brought her from Russia. "
Petrov never traveled to New Zealand and did not know a single New Zealander. And from the picture a man was looking at him strong build... On back side the photo was dated October 9, 1938.
Since then, the writer abandoned his hobby, became withdrawn and unhappy. He wanted to send a letter back to New Zealand, but the Second World War, Petrov began to work as a war correspondent. In 1942, the satirist flew by plane from Sevastopol to Moscow, in Rostov region the plane was shot down by the Germans.
On the same day, a letter came to the writer from New Zealand. In it, Merrill Weisley admired Soviet soldiers and worried about Petrov's life. Among other things, the letter contained the following lines: “Remember, Evgeny, I got scared when you began to swim in the lake. The water was very cold. But you said you were destined to crash on a plane, not drown. Please, be careful - fly as little as possible. "
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
For my work, I chose the topic "Mysticism in Literature, as a Display of the World of the Human Soul". At the heart of human psychology there is a lively interest in everything mysterious, inexplicable, and I am no exception. This topic has aroused my interest since childhood. I have read a number of literary works containing elements of mysticism, I already have some reading experience behind me, which is enough for a comparative analysis.
In my work, I want to pay special attention to the work of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. The choice of the author is not accidental, since he is the most bright representative mystical trends in Russian literature. His life and work are inextricably linked with everything mysterious and inexplicable. In my work, I pay special attention to such works of his as "Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka", "Viy", "Nose", "Overcoat", "Portrait".
The main goal of my work is to determine the place mystical literature, its functions and significance for humans.
The tasks that I set myself: the study of literary works of mystical orientation, both Russian and foreign authors; search for common distinguishing features of mysticism; identification of the sources of mysticism and its functions.
I. MYSTICISM AND ITS ORIGINS
The purpose of my work is not to study mysticism from a philosophical, scientific and theological point of view. Therefore, I do not consider the definitions of mysticism given by philosophers, scientists and religious leaders... Moreover, the dispute about the nature and essence of mysticism is still going on in these areas.
From the point of view of literature, mysticism (from the Greek mystikos - mysterious) is:
something incomprehensible, inexplicable, mysterious (source: dictionary by T. F. Efremova);
doctrine, conviction, concept or inclination to mysterious interpretation and ritualism (source: V. Dahl's dictionary);
something mysterious, incomprehensible, inexplicable (source: D. N. Ushakov's dictionary);
belief in existence supernatural powers with whom a person is mysteriously connected and able to communicate (source: www.wikipedia.ru);
something that is beyond human understanding, but carries a special hidden meaning (source: www.onlinedics.ru).
The mystics contrast "reality" and "appearance". The word "reality" has not logical but emotional meaning (source: www.onlinedics.ru).
All these definitions highlight the main features of mysticism. First of all, it is an appeal to the world of supernatural forces, the nature of which lies beyond the boundaries of the human mind and which are perceived by a person at the level of mental sensations.
Humanity has always shown interest in mysticism, including painting, sculpture, music, alchemy, and literature. But if we see a picture, hear music, then what is described in words we can only mentally imagine, understand with our mind; it is important to perceive mystical literature not only with the five basic senses, but also with the sixth - the soul.
Mysticism takes its origin in the national ethnos and religion. From there, he borrows the theme, characters, symbols, and a way of conveying sensations, feelings and emotions.
The main theme is the eternal conflict between good and evil and a person's personal choice.
A striking example is Johann Goethe's tragedy "Faust". The main character, Doctor Faust, is a man who has lived a long life, his mind is jaded. He tries to know the world, but all attempts are fruitless. For a long time, Faust lived as a recluse in his office, and he wants to taste the delights of life. His mind is strong, but his soul is weak, empty and helpless, as evidenced by disappointment in science, to which he gave all his life, an attempt at suicide and consent to a deal with Mephistopheles. The weakness of the soul of Faust is opposed by the strength of the soul of Margarita, who is able to forgive and beg forgiveness for him.
"Portrait of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde has similarities with the tragedy of Goethe, he is sometimes called "the new Faust". The main character Dorian, a young talented youth, succumbs to the influence of Lord Henry. One by one, he commits terrible deeds, destroys loved ones. Dorian is most afraid of aging, losing her extraordinary beauty. When his artist friend draws his portrait, the young man says: "Oh, if it could have been the other way around! If the portrait was getting old, and I remained young forever!" And his wish comes true. The portrait not only takes away "extra" years, but also takes on all the sins and misdeeds of Dorian. Sometimes the hero tries to improve, but his thoughts are guided only by vanity. His soul is as weak as the soul of Faust. She is unable to make her own choice and fight for it.
In Vasily Zhukovsky's ballads "Lyudmila" and "Svetlana", the heroes also face a moral choice. The main characters of both ballads are waiting for the return of their beloved ones. One comes with terrible news, and the second has a disturbing dream. Lyudmila begins to murmur against God: "No, the creator is unmerciful; forgive everything; everything." And in return she gets what she asks - the girl is taken by her dead groom: "Your creator heard the groan; your hour was beating, the end has come." Svetlana is submissive to fate, she asks God to help her: "I pray and shed tears! Soothe my sorrow, angel-comforter." And her sweet, lively and still loving one comes to her. "Our best friend in life is this faith in providence."
The struggle between good and evil is clearly shown in the story "Black Dick" by Nikolai Gumilyov. The main character is the embodiment of evil, he does extremely low deeds. The pastor is trying to fight him, to guide the people around him on the right path. But then the priest realizes that it is impossible to fight with violence with violence and that he should not have gone against Dick and awaken the evil hidden in him: knowledgeable people, willfully interfere in the work of Divine Providence. "In the end, Black Dick, who took on his true guise, turns into a terrible beast and dies. But evil is defeated at the cost of the life of an innocent girl, who is the embodiment of good in the story.
Many characters and symbols came to mysticism from ethnicity and religion. Not only fantastic, but also real creatures endowed with unusual properties were borrowed from there.
The black crow is found in many works. The bird symbolizes evil, death, desolation on the one hand, and longevity and wisdom on the other. "The raven croaks: sadness!" - says the ballad "Svetlana". In his poem "The Raven", Edgar Poe calls the bird "the proud Raven of the old days", "a terrible spirit", "fearless prophet", "prophetic".
The dove is opposed to the crow - a symbol of peace, love, purity, hope. In the ballad "Svetlana" he is shown as a protector. In the same work, another bird is mentioned - a rooster, a symbol of the sun, dawn.
Not only living beings, but even stones are a kind of sign, symbolize the cult of fire, as in the story "Black Dick". In the same work, other symbols are also mentioned: caves, as a way of penetrating into another world in Celtic mythology; black stones are a sign of the presence of ancient dark forces, etc. The ballad "Svetlana" speaks of another symbol - a mirror in which the heroine looks during fortune-telling. The mirror is a symbol of eternity, spiritual purity, a reflection of supernatural intelligence.
The themes of mysticism are often addressed to biblical stories, and the heroes of the works are Jesus Christ and Satan in different guises. Vivid examples are the tragedy "Faust" by Johann Goethe and the novel "The Master and Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov.
Mysticism, following the folk ethnos and religion, has own ways transmission of sensations, feelings and emotions, reflecting the world in which the reader should plunge. First of all, it is borderline state consciousness of a person when his mind is dull, and sensory sensations come to the fore. These are the state of sleep, immersion in detachment, the state of drug and alcohol intoxication. At these moments, a person is deprived of the ability to adequately perceive reality and can go beyond reality.
This technique is used in the ballad "Svetlana". On the night before Epiphany, the heroine has a disturbing dream. Dreams dreamed on this night are considered prophetic. Svetlana overcomes all obstacles and dangers in her sleep, after which she wakes up, and in reality everything turns out to be good. "Here unhappiness is a false dream; happiness is awakening."
In the short story "Ligeia" the hero is under the influence of opium, trying at least for a while to get rid of the mental anguish caused by the death of his beloved wife. He is so immersed in himself and his visions that when his second wife, a living person, dies in his arms, the hero is not so worried about her, he sees ghosts, the image of Ligeia appears in front of him.
In the story "The Black Cat" by Edgar Poe, the hero gets drunk and slowly begins to lose himself. His behavior changes into the worst side, he hurts those he loves, in a fit of anger kills his wife: "My soul, it seemed, suddenly left my body; and anger, fiercely devilish, inflamed by gin, instantly seized my whole being." He is haunted by terrible visions caused by remorse.
The technique of referring to the past is also often used. The stories "Black Dick" by Nikolai Gumilev and "Metzengerstein" by Edgar Poe tell about the events of the past, turned into legends. According to the authors, these events cannot happen now, which their contemporary would hardly believe in them.
In the story "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Poe, the hero describes the past in a song: "Where angels fluttered across the grass of their native valleys, the proud giant castle illuminated with glitter." The joyful beginning of the song is contrasted with its ending: "The abode of black troubles; sinister laughter hovers in the darkness, there are no more smiles", as well as the whole atmosphere of the story, in which the narration is about the moment of the present. The author is looking for that good in the past, that light that he does not see in the present. The future oppresses him, it seems terrible, fatal and irreversible.
Another interesting way is to conduct rituals. The ballad Svetlana describes Christmas fortune-telling. In "Faust" the hero appeals to the spirits, wishing to comprehend the secrets of nature. Magic rituals as if they are a means of connecting a person with the world of supernatural forces, an opportunity to cognize it.
The main function of the national ethnos and religion is educational, as well as the need to preserve the names of heroes and their exploits in history, which could serve as an example for future generations.
II. DISTINCTIVE FEATURES OF MYSTICISM. FUNCTIONS
Mysticism not only absorbs all these functions, but also goes further, acquiring its own distinctive features. The educational function is gradually losing its importance. Other goals come first:
exploration of the world of supernatural forces beyond the control of human consciousness;
attempts to determine the place and capabilities of a person in a world beyond his understanding;
disclosure eternal conflict good and evil;
the perception of the world by the reader by the soul, and not by the mind;
a veiled description of reality using fantastic characters and phenomena;
creating a background, special color;
attracting readers' interest.
III. THE WORKS OF NIKOLAY VASILIEVICH GOGOL
Now I want to turn directly to the work of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. I did not choose this author by chance. His mystical works is a whole world, multifaceted, bright and colorful.
The writer's entire life, creativity, death and even the reburial of his remains are associated with many inexplicable facts. The author's personal attitude to mysticism is peculiar. Throughout his life and career, he turns less and less to mysticism, as if frightened of its influence on his destiny. But the more diligently Gogol leaves mysticism in his work, the more it manifests itself in the fate of the writer. We will never know the content of the second volume " Dead souls"And the reasons for its burning. However, it can be assumed that the answer lies in the same mysticism.
The reason for the contradictory views of Gogol, both real world and the world of supernatural forces, mental anxiety, in my opinion, should be sought in the childhood of the author.
His mother, Maria Ivanovna, was deeply religious. However, her fate was not easy. She was orphaned early, married early, lost many of her children. Nikolai was the only surviving son and first child. Her care and support for her son was special. She put her whole soul into him and conveyed religiosity as she perceived herself. Faith for this woman was associated, first of all, with the fear of sin and the inevitability of punishment. Therefore, following her, Gogol does not find in faith the boundless love, happiness and joy that his soul needs. And the soul tries to find solace in pictures native nature, juicy, colorful, in folk color - legends, rituals and, finally, in mysticism. By the writer's own admission, scary tales very much interested and excited him. The attractiveness of the images of heroines, which are associated with the world of supernatural forces, is not accidental. What a sad and beautiful image of a drowned woman is portrayed by Gogol in his story "May Night, or the Drowned Woman". Depicting the witch-lady from Viy, the author writes: “Before him lay a beauty that had ever been on earth. It seemed that never before had the features been formed in such a sharp and at the same time harmonious beauty. She lay as if alive. "
But mysticism cannot substitute for faith. Gogol does not find peace of mind nothing, and this internal conflict is reflected in his works.
The collection "Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka" was published in 1831-1832. This is the time when in public and political life the country manifested the ideas of populism, and appeals to the themes and characters of the folk ethnos were very popular in culture. However, in my opinion, Gogol does not follow fashion, but takes a topic that is interesting to him, is not fully understood and studied. All the complexities of his perception of folk ethnos and mysticism are reflected in a bright kaleidoscope of stories.
With all the differences in plots, a person's personal choice comes to the fore in determining the eternal issues of good and evil, which he makes with his heart and soul.
"Sorochinskaya Fair", "The Lost Letter" and "The Enchanted Place" are funny, comic stories, where the heroes of the works are funny, reckless, and sometimes just stupid people. They are afraid of evil spirits, but at the same time they enter into an argument with it and turn out to be stronger. In "Sorochinskaya Yarmarka" there is no devil himself, there is only a legend about him, belief in which leads, on the contrary, to a kind and happy outcome. And in the other two works, evil spirits can only do small dirty tricks.
In the other two stories, "May Night, or the Drowned Woman" and "The Night Before Christmas," evil spirits are directly involved in the fate of the main characters. The drowned lady helps the lovers Levko and Ganna find happiness. Like the devil, he ultimately helps Vakula, the hero of the story "The Night Before Christmas." Vakula is a real Ukrainian boy who works and lives honestly, his love for Oksana is pure and real. He was not afraid to go on a dangerous journey, to appear before the empress, to fight the devil. Vakula punished the devil, and did not sell his human soul to the evil. Therefore, he acquired the happiness that he deserved.
Another choice is made by the heroes of "Terrible revenge" and "Night before Ivan Kupala".
In the first case, the main character- hereditary sorcerer, whose ancestor treacherously killed his best friend together with his son, he himself is the embodiment of evil and destroys people close to him. There are and biblical motives, since the children also bear the payment for the sins of the fathers. Evil is defeated in the end, but at a very high price - at the cost of the lives of innocent people.
In the second case, the desire to marry a beloved girl and a thirst for profit, on a slander, the witches push the main character Petrus to kill a child - his own brother. But the desired, obtained in this way, does not bring happiness. Petrus goes crazy, turns into a handful of ashes, and money - into broken shards.
The second collection "Mirgorod" includes the story "Viy".
In my opinion, Viy is Gogol's brightest mystical work. The ominous action takes place against the background of vivid nature, calm and measured life of the Ukrainian village, then against the background of nature inspiring mystical horror. Gogol creates these mise-en-scenes for a reason. The light and quiet world is easy to destroy, it turns out to be fragile. Only a truly strong and bright person is able to challenge the dark forces and protect his world. But is this what Homa Brutus turns out to be? Khoma is a darling of fate, he is a pragmatist and fatalist, in addition, he is phlegmatic and lazy. This is the main principle of life: "what is to be, that is inevitable." Wild booze, hearty food, fun in women's society- everything that the habitual life of Khoma is filled with are sins that make his soul weaker and weaker. The meeting with the lady, the performance of the memorial ceremony over her is a test for his faith and soul. Did the main character survive? There is no definite answer to this. Having defeated the dark forces, he dies himself. The reader has only the hope that his soul was saved, he atoned for his sins.
In describing the three nights when Khoma sings the funeral service for the deceased lady, Gogol uses a technique traditional for the mystics. The state of the protagonist is close to hallucinations or to sleep, when everything around is perceived by the soul, and not by the mind.
It is impossible not to mention the images of the lady and Viy.
Pannochka is a cruel, cunning witch, capable of taking the form of animals. She tortures people, drinks their blood. However, the image of the lady, created by the author, is not devoid of not only mystery, but also a certain attractiveness. Compassion arises in the soul of the reader. What made the little girl become a witch? The author does not give an answer, allowing him to make his own choice.
The image of Wii originated from ancient folk beliefs. An old invincible evil lurks in the bowels of the earth, and people with their unreasonable behavior can always awaken it.
In his later works from the collection "Petersburg Stories" the writer in last time addresses the theme of mysticism. But only now these heroes are close to the reader and are ordinary inhabitants, the action of the works has been transferred from the Ukrainian hinterland to St. Petersburg. Heroes are far from the people, but they have the same weaknesses and vices.
In the story "The Nose," the hero loses his nose on the night from Thursday to Friday, when folk beliefs dark forces rule, therefore dreams turn out to be prophetic. Also, according to dream books, a nose, especially a large one, means significance in society, well-being and success. Thus, Gogol gives a characterization to his character. His soul is empty, it does not strive for a high goal. All the efforts of the protagonist are aimed at creating his own social status, which, apart from a certain name, does not have any meaning. The hero is punished with his own nose, because his absence deprives his life of all meaning.
Of course, the image of the collegiate assessor Kovalev is comical, the essence of the work is to reveal the flaws public conscience not only of that era, but, unfortunately, of subsequent generations. At the same time, the methods and methods of mystical literature are ideal in this case for creating images of heroes.
The story "Portrait" is not like other mystical works of Gogol, here the philosophical and religious aspects come to the fore. The choice of the artist and creator. Firstly, is it worthy of a true creator to engage in art for enrichment and, secondly, how to avoid dark side talent and resist the temptation to create images that have demonic power.
The heroes of both the first and second parts of the work succumbed to temptation, although for different reasons. Their souls took the side of evil, and evil manifested itself and reflected on the destinies of many people.
In his further creativity Gogol refuses to turn to mysticism, although the fate of his heroes realistic works conduction influences in one way or another. And the title of the novel " Dead Souls"Is a response to mysticism.
I repeat that we do not know the content of the second volume of the novel, but perhaps the author still decided to return to the topic of supernatural forces. What was written became for him the most terrible revelation, which he considered necessary to destroy. The world of supernatural forces and its possibilities to influence the fate of man remained unsolved for Gogol. Originally the basis of the writer's mental contradictions, mysticism became a test and punishment for him.
Perhaps that is why the mysticism in Gogol's work is so unique, inventive and multifaceted. The images created by him still attract and excite the reader. And this is obvious. A person will always be interested in what is beyond the limits of his mind. There will always be a lively desire of a person to feel and feel the most mysterious and inexplicable world. But I want to believe that, perceiving someone else's experience, the human soul will improve and turn to the world of light and kindness, to a world where love and harmony prevail.
LIST OF LITERARY WORKS
Johann Goethe "Faust"
Oscar Wilde "Portrait of Dorian Gray"
Edgar Poe "The Raven", "Ligeia", "The Black Cat", "Metzengerstein", "The Fall of the House of Usher"
Vasily Zhukovsky "Lyudmila", "Svetlana"
Nikolay Gumilyov "Black Dick"
Mikhail Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita"
Nikolay Gogol "Evenings on a farm near Dikanka", "Viy", "Nose", "Portrait", "Dead Souls"
LITERATURE
www.wikipedia.ru
www.onlinedics.ru
www.gogol.biografy.ru
dictionary T.F.Efremova
V. Dahl's dictionary
dictionary by D.N.Ushakov
"The Tragedy of Goethe" Faust ". Faust's image. Analysis of the work "And V. Kabanov
Mysticism in the works of famous Russian writers
Fifteenth century
The first literary works, which contained elements of the terrible and mystical, appeared as early as the 15th century. These include old Russian story"About Dracula the voivode", which was published in the 80s of this century. As noted: the legend of the vampire penetrated into Western Europe not directly from Romania, but through the Old Russian "" (80s of the 15th century)
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“There was a voivode in the Muntian land, a Christian of the Greek faith, his name in Wallachian is Dracula, and in our language is the Devil. He was so cruel and wise that, whatever the name was, such was his life. "
"The Legend of Dracula the Voivode"
Now the genre of literature associated with mysticism is called horror. In literature, the genre is associated with the supernatural in the truest sense of the word; has a limited set of thematic characters, usually borrowed from grassroots mythology different nations: vampires, zombies, werewolves, ghosts, demons, etc.
19th century
The first in Russian literature fantastic story"" Written in 1825 was quite distinctive. It was based on popular beliefs about people's connections with otherworldly forces, which give wealth and power, but lead to the death of a person. However, he is ironic.
- Father! this is grandmother's black cat, - answered Masha, forgetting herself and pointing at the guest, who in a strange way turned his head and looked at her affectionately, almost completely shutting his eyes.
- You're out of your mind! - cried Onufrich with annoyance. - What cat? This is Mr. Titular Counselor Aristarkh Faleleich Murlykin, who does you honor and asks for your hand.
A. Pogorelsky, "Lafertovskaya Makovnitsa".
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The collection of works "", published in the autumn of 1831, acquired an important role in the development of the genre. Of the works included in the book, the work "" most fully reflects the genre of horror.
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"- Witch? The old women invented that from that time on, all the drowned women went out on a moonlit night to the master's garden to bask for a month; and the centurion's daughter became the chief over them. One night she saw her stepmother near the pond, attacked her and, with a cry, dragged her into the water. But the witch was found here too: she turned under the water into one of the drowned women and through that left the lash of green reeds, with which the drowned women wanted to beat her. Trust the women! They also say that the little girl gathers the drowned women every night and looks one by one in the face of each, trying to find out which of them is the witch; but still did not know. "
N.V. Gogol "May Night, or the Drowned Woman"
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“Everything was visible, and even one could notice how a sorcerer swept past them in a whirlwind, sitting in a pot; like the stars, gathered in a heap, played blind man's buff; how a swarm of spirits swirled aside like a cloud; how the devil who danced during the month took off his cap when he saw a blacksmith galloping on horseback; how the broom was flying back, on which, apparently, the witch had just gone where she needed ... they met a lot of other rubbish. "
N.V. Gogol "The Night before Christmas"
“Suddenly ... in the midst of the silence ... the iron lid of the coffin burst with a crash and a dead man rose. He was even more terrible than the first time. His teeth struck terribly row by row, his lips twitched in convulsions, and spells rushed, screeching wildly. The whirlwind rose through the church, icons fell to the ground, and broken glass of windows flew from top to bottom. The doors fell off their hinges, and the myriad power of monsters flew into church of god... A terrible noise from the wings and from the scratching of claws filled the whole church. Everything flew and ran, looking everywhere for the philosopher. "
N.V. Gogol "Viy"
"Undertaker"- the story of A.S. Pushkin from the cycle "Tales of the late Ivan Petrovich Belkin", written in 1830 and published in 1831. Reading this story, we can make sure that mysticism was not alien to Pushkin.
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“The room was full of dead people. The moon through the windows illuminated their yellow and blue faces, sunken mouths, dull, half-closed eyes and protruding noses ... rain. All of them, ladies and men, surrounded the undertaker with bows and greetings, except for one poor man, recently buried by the gift, who, ashamed and ashamed of his rags, did not approach and stood humbly in the corner. The others were all decently dressed: the deceased in caps and ribbons, the dead officials in uniforms, but with unshaven beards, merchants in holiday caftans. "
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- Yes, she certainly was Sugrobina several years ago, but now she is nothing but the most vile ghoul who is just waiting for an opportunity to get enough of human blood. See how she looks at this poor girl; it is her own granddaughter... Listen to what the old woman says: she praises her and persuades her to come to her dacha for two weeks, to the very dacha you are talking about; but I assure you that in less than three days the poor thing dies. Doctors will tell you it is a fever or inflammation in the lungs; but don't believe them!
A.K. Tolstoy "Ghoul"
« Ghoul family"- a Gothic short story by 21-year-old Count A. K. Tolstoy, written by him in 1839 on French, is also mystical. It was first published in Russian in 1884 in the Russian Bulletin magazine. The story has a subtitle: "Unpublished excerpt from the notes of the unknown."
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- Ghouls are like an infection, - the hermit continued and crossed himself, - how many families in the village have suffered, how many have died out before the last person, and you obey me and spend the night in the monastery, otherwise, even if you are not eaten in the village by ghouls, you will still suffer such fear from them that you will turn gray before I ring for matins. I, ”he continued,“ are only a poor monk, but the travelers themselves, out of their bounty, give so much that I can take care of them. I have excellent cheese, such raisins that you will salivate to look at it, and a few bottles of Tokay cheese are no worse than what the Holy Patriarch himself will drink.
A.K. Tolstoy "The family of the ghoul"
"Ghosts"- the story of I.S. Turgenev, conceived by the writer in 1855, completed in 1863 and published in 1864.
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“Yes, it was she, mine night guest... As I approached her, the moon shone again. She seemed to be all as if woven from a translucent, milky mist - through her face I could see a branch, quietly swaying in the wind - only her hair and eyes were a little black, and on one of the fingers of her folded hands a narrow ring gleamed with pale gold. I stopped in front of her and wanted to speak; but the voice died in my chest, although I no longer felt the actual fear. Her eyes turned to me: their gaze expressed not sorrow or joy, but a kind of lifeless attention. I waited to see if she would utter a word, but she remained motionless and speechless and kept looking at me with her deathly gaze. I felt creepy again. "
I.S.Turgenev "Ghosts"
socialist realism removed the supernatural from the arsenal literary means, and the first violations of this prohibition date back to the 60s, when the canon began to blur. At the same time, "" was first published. Some examples of the "terrible" are found in Soviet science fiction.
"The Master and Margarita"- a novel by M.A. Bulgakov, work on which began in the late 1920s and continued until the writer's death. The first complete edition of the book in Russian was published in 1969.
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The behavior of the cat amazed Ivan so much that he froze in immobility at the grocery store on the corner and here, for the second time, but much more strongly, he was struck by the behavior of the conductor. She, as soon as she saw the cat climbing into the tram, with anger, from which she even shook, shouted:
– Cats are not allowed! Cats are not allowed! Scatter! Get off, or I'll call the police!
Neither the conductor nor the passengers were struck by the very essence of the matter: not that the cat climbs into the tram, which would have been half the trouble, but that he was going to pay!
M. Bulgakov, "The Master and Margarita".
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Plunge into the interesting world of the book, on its pages you may encounter the strange, unknown, mystical and even terrible, but breathtaking. Discover these works, expand the list of authors and works that interested you in mysticism.
PROFESSOR OF IMMORTALITY
Mystical works of Russian writers
ALEXEY NIKOLAEVICH APUKHTIN 1840-1893
Famous Russian poet. Author of a number of popular romances. From the old noble family... As a child, I received a wonderful home education... He began writing poetry at the age of ten. All his life he admired the poetry of A.S. Pushkin. In 1852 he entered the Imperial School of Jurisprudence. He studied brilliantly. He began to appear in print since 1854, that is, from the age of 14. After graduating from the College, he served first in the Ministry of Justice, and then in the Ministry of the Interior. Last years was very sick.
Apukhtin began to write prose only at the end of his life - in the early 90s of the XIX century. Moreover, he did not make any attempts to publish his stories, although both "The Diary of Pavlik Dolsky" and "From the archive of Countess D." are distinguished by their undoubted literary merits and are of great interest in our time.
The story "Between Death and Life" was written in 1892. main idea the story - “there is no death, there is one endless life,” and the human soul, repeatedly returning to the earth, by divine will, is infused into a new body, chosen by the Lord God Himself.
Alexey Apukhtin
BETWEEN DEATH AND LIFE
C'est un samedi, a six
heures du matin, que je suis mort.
It was eight o'clock in the evening when the doctor put his ear to my heart, brought a small mirror to my lips and, turning to my wife, said solemnly and quietly:
- Everything is over.
From these words, I guessed that I was dead.
As a matter of fact, I died much earlier. For more than a thousand hours I lay motionless and could not utter a word, but occasionally I still continued to breathe. Throughout my illness, it seemed to me that I was chained with innumerable chains to some blank wall that tormented me. Little by little, the wall let go of me, the suffering lessened, the chains loosened and fell apart. For two last days I was held by some kind of narrow ribbon; now it was cut short, and I felt such a lightness that I had never experienced in my life.
An unimaginable commotion began around me. My large office, into which I was transferred from the onset of the illness, was filled with people who all whispered, spoke, and sobbed at once. The old housekeeper Yudishna even began to shout in a voice that was not her own. My wife fell on my chest with a loud cry; she cried so much during my illness that I wondered where her tears still came from. Out of all the voices, the senile, rattling voice of my valet Savely stood out. Even in my childhood he was assigned to me by my uncle and did not leave me all my life, but now he was already so old that he lived almost without occupation. In the morning he handed me a dressing gown and shoes, and then all day he drank birch tree "for health" and quarreled with the rest of the servants. My death did not so much grieve him as embittered him, and at the same time gave him unprecedented importance. I heard how he ordered someone to go after my brother, reproached someone and ordered something.
The eyes were closed, but I saw everything and heard what was happening around me.
My brother came in, focused and haughty as always. My wife could not stand him, but she threw herself on his neck, and her sobs doubled.
- Enough, Zoya, stop, because tears will not help you, - said the brother in a dispassionate and as if memorized tone, - take care of yourself for the children, believe that he is better there.
With difficulty he freed himself from her embrace and sat her down on the sofa.
- We need to make some orders now ... Will you let me help you, Zoya?
- Ah, Andre, for God's sake, dispose of everything ... How can I think of anything?
She began to cry again, and her brother sat down at the writing-table and called the young, efficient barman Semyon to him.
“You will send this announcement to Novoye Vremya, and then send for the undertaker; yes, we must ask him if he knows a good psalmist?
- Your Excellency, - Semyon answered, bending down, - there is nothing to send for the undertaker, there are four of them here in the morning jostling at the entrance. We drove them, drove them - they don't go, and that's all. Will you order them to be called here?
- No, I'll go out on the stairs.
And the brother read aloud the announcement he had written:
- “Princess Zoya Borisovna Trubchevskaya announces with sincere sorrow the death of her husband, Prince Dmitry Alexandrovich Trubchevsky, which followed on February 20, at 8 pm, after a serious and prolonged illness. Memorial services at 2 pm and 9 pm. " Do you need anything else, Zoya?
- Yes, of course, nothing. But why did you write this awful word: "sorrow"? Je ne puis pas souffrir ce mot. Mettez: With deep sorrow.
My brother corrected it.
- I send to "New time". Is that enough?
- Yes, of course, that's enough. You can also go to the Journal de S.-Pe (ters-bourg).
- Okay, I'll write in French.
- All the same, they will be transferred there.
The brother went out. My wife came up to me, sank into a chair near the bed, and looked at me for a long time with a kind of pleading, questioning look. In this silent look, I read much more love and grief than in sobs and cries. She remembered our common life, in which there were a lot of all sorts of troubles and storms. Now she blamed herself for everything and thought about what she should have done then. She was so lost in thought that she did not notice my brother, who returned with the undertaker and had already stood beside her for several minutes, not wanting to disturb her thoughts. Seeing the undertaker, she screamed wildly and fainted. They carried her into the bedroom.
“Be calm, your Excellency,” the undertaker said, taking measurements from me as unceremoniously as the tailors once did, “we have everything in store: both the cover and the chandeliers. After an hour, they can be transferred to the hall. And about the coffin, do not be so kind as to doubt: the deceased coffin will be such that even a living person can lie down in it.
The cabinet began to fill up again. The governess brought the children.
Sonya threw herself at me and cried like a mother, but little Kolya rested, never wanted to come up to me and roared with fear. Nastasya, the beloved maid of his wife, who had married last year to the barman Semyon and was in the last period pregnancy. She made the sign of the cross, she wanted to kneel down, but her stomach was in the way, and she sobbed lazily.
- Listen, Nastya, - Semyon told her quietly, - don't bend over, no matter how something happens. You better go to your place: you have prayed, and that's enough.
- But how can I not pray for him? - answered Nastasya in a slightly singsong voice and deliberately loudly so that everyone could hear her. - It was not a man, but an angel of God. Even today, just before my death, he remembered me and ordered that Sofya Frantsevna should be with me all the time.
Among the geniuses of Russian literature, there are those whose names all readers associate with something otherworldly and inexplicable, leading to awe an ordinary person... Such writers undoubtedly include N.V. Gogol, whose life story is undoubtedly intriguing. This is a unique personality; as a legacy from him, mankind received an invaluable gift of works, where he appears either as a subtle satirist, revealing the ulcers of our time, or as a mystic, making goosebumps run on his skin. Gogol is a riddle of Russian literature that has never been fully solved by anyone. Gogol's mysticism continues to intrigue its readers at the present time.
A lot of mysterious things are connected both with the work and with the life of the great writer. Our contemporaries, philologists and historians, trying to give answers to numerous questions related to his fate, can only guess about how everything really happened and build numerous theories.
Gogol: the story of life
The appearance of the family of Nikolai Vasilievich was preceded by a rather interesting story... It is known that his father, as a boy, had a dream in which the Mother of God showed him his betrothed. After some time, he recognized in the neighbor's daughter the features of the bride intended for him. The girl at that time was only seven months old. Thirteen years later, Vasily Afanasevich proposed to the girl, and the wedding took place.
Many misunderstandings and rumors are associated with the date of birth of Gogol. Exact date became known to the general public only after the writer's funeral.
His father was an indecisive and rather suspicious, but undoubtedly gifted person. He tried his hand at writing poems, comedies, took part in the production of home performances.
Nikolai Vasilyevich's mother, Maria Ivanovna, was a deeply religious person, but at the same time she was interested in various predictions and omens. She managed to instill in her son a fear of God and a belief in premonitions. This influenced the child, and he grew up, from childhood having an interest in everything mysterious and inexplicable. These hobbies were fully embodied in his work. Perhaps that is why many superstitious researchers of the writer's life had doubts whether Gogol's mother was a witch.
Thus, having absorbed the features of both his parents, Gogol was a quiet and pensive child with an irrepressible passion for everything otherworldly and a rich imagination, which sometimes played cruel jokes with him.
The story of the black cat
So, there is a known case with a black cat, which shook him to the core. His parents left him at home alone, the boy was going about his business and suddenly noticed a black cat that was sneaking up on him. An inexplicable terror attacked him, but he overcame his fear, grabbed her and threw her into the pond. After that, he did not leave the feeling that this cat was a converted person. This story was embodied in the story "May Night, or the Drowned Woman", where the witch had the gift of transforming into a black cat and doing evil in this guise.
Burning of "Hans Kuchelgarten"
While studying at the gymnasium, Gogol simply raved about Petersburg, he dreamed of living in this city and doing great things for the good of mankind. But the move to St. Petersburg did not live up to his expectations. The city was gray, dull and cruel to the bureaucratic class. Nikolai Vasilievich creates the poem "Hans Kuchelgarten", but publishes it under a pseudonym. The poem was defeated by critics, and the writer, unable to bear this disappointment, buys out the entire circulation of the book and sets it on fire.
Mystical "Evenings on a farm near Dikanka"
After the first failure, Gogol turns to a topic close to him. He decides to create a cycle of stories about his native Ukraine. Petersburg puts pressure on him, his mental state is aggravated by poverty, which seems to have no end. Nikolai writes letters to his mother, in which he asks her to tell in detail about the beliefs, customs of Ukrainians, some lines of these messages are blurred by his tears. He starts work after receiving information from his mother. The result of long work was the cycle "Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka". This work simply breathes Gogol's mysticism, in most of the stories of this cycle people are faced with evil spirits... It is surprising how colorful and lively the author's description of various evil spirits turned out, mysticism and otherworldly forces rule their ball here. Everything down to the smallest detail makes the reader feel involved in what is happening on the pages. This collection brings popularity to Gogol, the mysticism in his works attracts readers.
"Viy"
One of the most famous works of Gogol is the story "Viy", which was included in the collection "Mirgorod", published by Gogol in 1835. The works included in it were enthusiastically received by critics. As a basis for the story "Viy", Gogol takes old folk legends about a terrifying and powerful leader of evil spirits. It is surprising that researchers of his work have not yet been able to find a single legend similar to the plot of Viy by Gogol. The plot of the story is simple. Three students go to work as a tutor, but, getting lost, ask to stay with the old woman. She reluctantly lets them in. At night, she sneaks up to one of the guys, Home Brutus, and, having saddled him, begins to rise with him into the air. Khoma starts to pray and it helps. The witch weakens, and the hero begins to beat her with a log, but suddenly notices that before him lies not an old woman, but a young and beautiful girl. He, seized with inexpressible horror, flees to Kiev. But the witch's hands reach even there. They come for Khoma to take him to the funeral service deceased daughter centurion. It turns out that this is the witch he killed. And now the student must spend three nights in the church in front of her coffin, reading the waste.
The first night made Brutus turn gray, as the lady got up and tried to catch him, but he outlined himself in a circle, and she did not succeed. The witch flew around him in her coffin. On the second night, the guy tried to escape, but he was caught and brought back to the temple. This night became fatal. Pannochka called all the evil spirits for help and demanded to bring Viy. When the philosopher saw the lord of the dwarfs, he shuddered with horror. And after Viyu raised the eyelids of his servants, he saw Homa and pointed at him to ghouls and ghouls, the unfortunate Homa Brut died on the spot from fear.
In this story, Gogol portrayed the clash of religion and evil spirits, but, unlike "Evenings", demonic forces won here.
Based on this story, a film of the same name was shot. It is tacitly referred to the list of the so-called "damned" films. Gogol's mysticism and his works took with them many people who took part in the creation of this film.
Loneliness of Gogol
Despite his great popularity, Nikolai Vasilyevich was not happy in matters of the heart. He never found a life partner. There were periodic falls in love, which rarely grew into something serious. It was rumored that he once asked for the hand of Countess of Villegorskaya. But he was refused because of social inequality.
Gogol decided that his whole life would be devoted to literature, and romantic hobbies eventually came to naught.
Genius or Crazy?
1839 Gogol travels. During a visit to Rome, trouble happened to him, he caught serious illness, which was called "swamp fever". The illness was very difficult and threatened the writer with death. He managed to survive, but the disease affected his brain. The consequence of this was mental and physical disorder. Frequent fainting, voices and visions that visited the consciousness of Nikolai Vasilyevich inflamed with encephalitis tormented him. He strove to find peace somewhere for his restless soul. Gogol wanted a true blessing. In 1841, his dream came true, there was a meeting with the preacher Innocent, about which he had long dreamed of. The preacher presented Gogol with an icon of the Savior and blessed him to travel to Jerusalem. But the trip did not bring him the desired comfort. The deterioration of health progresses, creative inspiration is depleting itself. The work is given to the writer more and more difficult. Increasingly, he says that evil spirits affect him. Mysticism has always taken its place in Gogol's life.
The death of a close friend, E. M. Khomyakova, knocked down the writer completely. He sees this as a terrible omen for himself. Gogol more and more often thinks that his death is close, and he is very afraid of her. His condition is aggravated by the priest Matthew Konstantinovsky, who frightens Nikolai Vasilyevich with terrible death throes. He blames him for his creativity and lifestyle, bringing the already shattered psyche to a breakdown.
The writer's phobias are incredibly exacerbated. It is known that more than anything in the world he was afraid of falling into a lethargic sleep and being buried alive. To avoid this, in his will, he asked to be buried only after all the signs of death became obvious and decay began. He was so afraid of this that he slept exclusively sitting in armchairs. Fear mysterious death constantly pursued him.
Death is like a dream
On the night of 11:00 an event occurred that still worries the minds of many of Gogol's biographers. Visiting Count A. Tolstoy, Nikolai Vasilyevich felt extremely anxious that night. He could not find a place for himself. And so, as if deciding on something, he took out a pack of sheets from his portfolio and threw it into the fire. According to some versions, this was the second volume of Dead Souls, but there is also an opinion that the manuscript survived, and other papers were burned. From that moment on, Gogol's illness progressed with relentless speed. Increasingly, he was haunted by visions and voices, he refused to eat. Doctors called by his friends tried to treat him, but they were in vain.
Gogol left this world on February 21, 1852. Doctor Tarasenkov stated the death of Nikolai Vasilyevich. He was only 43 years old. The age at which Gogol died was a great shock for his family and friends. Russian culture has lost a great man. There was some kind of mysticism in Gogol's death, in its suddenness and impetuosity.
The writer's funeral was held with a huge crowd of people in the cemetery of St. Danilov Monastery, a massive tombstone was erected from a single piece of black granite. I would like to think that he found eternal peace there, but fate decreed completely differently.
Posthumous "life" and the mysticism of Gogol
St. Daniel's cemetery did not become the last resting place of N. V. Gogol. 79 years after his burial, it was decided to liquidate the monastery and place a receiver for street children on its territory. The tomb of the great writer stood in the way of the rapidly developing Soviet Moscow. It was decided to reburial Gogol at Novodevichy cemetery... But everything happened in the spirit of Gogol's mysticism.
A whole commission was invited to carry out the exhumation, which drew up a corresponding act. It is strange that almost no details were indicated in it, only information that the writer's body was recovered from the grave on May 31, 1931. There was no information about the position of the body and the conclusion of a medical examination.
But the oddities don't end there. When they began to dig, it turned out that the grave was much deeper than usual, and the coffin was placed in a brick crypt. The remains of the writer were removed when dusk fell. And here the spirit of Gogol played a kind of joke on the participants in this event. The exhumation was attended by about 30 people, including eminent writers of the time. As it turned out later, the memories of most of them contradicted each other very strongly.
Some argued that there were no remains in the grave, it turned out to be empty. Others claimed that the writer was lying on his side with outstretched arms, which testified in favor of the version about lethargic sleep... But most of those present claimed that the body was in the usual position, but the head was missing.
Such different testimonies and the very figure of Gogol, disposed to fantastic fictions, gave rise to many rumors about the mysterious death of Gogol, the scratched lid of the coffin.
What happened next can hardly be called exhumation. It was more like the blasphemous plundering of the grave of the great writer. Those present decided to take "souvenirs from Gogol" as a souvenir. Someone took a rib, someone a piece of foil from the coffin, and the director of the cemetery Arakcheev pulled off the boots of the deceased. This blasphemy did not go unpunished. All participants paid dearly for their actions. Almost all of them joined the writer for a short time, leaving the world of living people. Arakcheev was persecuted in which Gogol appeared to him and demanded to give back his boots. Being on the verge of insanity, the unfortunate director of the cemetery listened to the advice of the old lady-witch and buried his boots near the new one. After this, the visions stopped, but clear consciousness never returned to him.
The mystery of the missing skull
Interesting mystical facts about Gogol include the still unsolved mystery of his missing head. There is a version that it was stolen for the famous collector of rarities and unique things, A. Bakhrushin. This happened during the restoration of the grave, timed to coincide with the centenary of the writer.
This man collected the most unusual and creepy collection. There is a theory that he carried the stolen skull with him in a suitcase with medical instruments. Later government Soviet Union in the person of Lenin, V.I. proposed to Bakhrushin to open his own museum. This place still exists today and has thousands of the most unusual exhibits. There are also three skulls among them. But it is not known for certain who they belonged to.
The circumstances of Gogol's death, the scratched coffin lid, the stolen skull - all this gave a huge impetus to human imagination and fantasy. So, an incredible version appeared about the skull of Nikolai Vasilyevich and the mysterious express train. It suggests that after Bakhrushin the skull fell into the hands of Gogol's grand-nephew, who decided to hand it over to the Russian consul in Italy, so that part of Gogol would rest in the land of his second homeland. But the skull fell into the hands young man, the captain's son long voyage... He decided to scare and amuse his friends and took the skull with him on a train journey. After the express, on which the young people were traveling, entered the tunnel, it disappeared, no one could explain where the huge train with passengers disappeared. And there are still rumors that sometimes different people in different parts of the world they see this ghost train, which carries Gogol's skull across the borders of the worlds. The version is fantastic, but it has a right to exist.
Nikolai Vasilievich was a man of genius. As a writer, he fully succeeded, but as a man, he did not find his happiness. Even a small circle of close friends could not unravel his soul and penetrate into his thoughts. It so happened that the story of Gogol's life was not very happy, it is filled with loneliness and fear.
He left his mark, one of the brightest, in the history of world literature. Such talents are very rare. Mysticism in Gogol's life was a kind of sister of his talent. But, unfortunately, the great writer left us, his descendants, more questions than answers. Reading the most famous works Gogol, everyone finds something important for themselves. He is like good teacher continues to teach us its lessons through the ages.