1809 - 1852

Great Russian writer, whose plays, stories, and novels are among the great masterpieces of 19th-century Russian realist literature. Ranked with such Russian literary giants as the novelists Leo Tolstoy, Ivan Turgenev, and Fyodor Dostoyevsky and the poet Aleksandr Pushkin. Recognized for his great ability for accurate and sympathetic character portrayal as well as his rollicking satire and extraordinary humor. His works contain a large number of brilliantly depicted Russian provincial types. Many of Gogol's witty sayings have become Russian maxims.

Born March 20, 1809, in Sorochintsy, Mirgorod, Poltava Province (now Ukraine), of cossack parents. In 1828 went to St. Petersburg, where eventually secured employment in the civil service and became known in literary circles. From 1826 to 1848 lived mostly in Rome. In 1843 made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and on his return a priest persuaded him that his fictional work was sinful. Gogol thereupon destroyed a number of his unpublished manuscripts. Died March 4, 1852, in Moscow.

Best known for his magnificent novel "Mertvye dushi" ("Dead Souls", also known as "Chichikov's Journey"), comedy "Revizor" ("The Inspector General"), novel "Taras Bulba", volumes of short stories "Vechera na khutore bliz Dikan'ki" ("Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka") and "Mirgorod" as well as stories "Nos" ("The Nose") and "Shinel" ("The Overcoat").

Lived in St. Petersburg, often visited Odessa.

Nikolai Gogol Page
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Nikolai Gogol Page
Nikolai Gogol Club
Biography of Nikolai Gogol

Selected novels and stories in Russian
Selected letters in Russian