Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - Dead Souls

Dead Souls
Dead Souls
Author: Nikolai Gogol
Since its publication in 1842, Dead Souls has been celebrated as a supremely realistic portrait of provincial Russian life and as a splendidly exaggerated tale; as a paean to the Russian spirit and as a remorseless satire of imperial Russian venality, vulgarity, and pomp. As Gogol's wily antihero, Chichikov, combs the back country wheelin...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780300060997
ISBN-10: 0300060998
Publication Date: 2/21/1996
Pages: 304
Rating:
  • Currently 3.3/5 Stars.
 4

3.3 stars, based on 4 ratings
Publisher: Yale University Press
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 1
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed Dead Souls on + 67 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
"Dead souls" (1842) is a book written by an important Russian author, Nikolai Gogol, that criticizes the Russian society of his time by means of a well-told satire.

The main character of "Dead souls" is Chichikov, a man that wants to be rich, and turns into a con man in order to achieve that objective. His stratagem is simple, yet strange: he will buy "dead souls" from landowners, and then mortage them in order to earn a lot of money. That was possible because in pre 1861 Russia, landowners owned serfs ("souls") that helped to farm the land, and that could be bought, sold or mortgaged whenever the owners felt the need to do so. The "dead souls" were serfs that had already died, but that were still listed as living in property registers.

Will Chichikov be able to buy "dead souls" at a low price and then mortgage them, turning into a rich landowner? Or will his proposal seem so outlandish to others that he won't be able to convince them that he is not joking? You will find answers to those questions in this book, along with beautiful (albeit extremely long) descriptions of the Russian scenery.

A good book club book, or just a good book for some thoughtful reading, especially for insights into the Russia of that time.
Read All 3 Book Reviews of "Dead Souls"

Please Log in to Rate these Book Reviews

reviewed Dead Souls on
This edition is translated by Bernard Guilbert Guerney, not Pevear and Volokhonsky as the blurb states.
reviewed Dead Souls on + 43 more book reviews
A thoroughly delightful read. It's the first book by a Russian author that actually made me laugh.


Genres: