The Nose

By Nikolai Gogol

"The Nose" is a satirical short story by Nikolai Gogol. Written between 1835 and 1836, it tells of a St. Petersburg official whose nose leaves his face and develops a life of its own.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Booklassic
• Release date: Jun 10, 2015
• ISBN: 9789635223121

Nikolai Gogol

Nikolai Gogol was a Russian novelist and playwright born in what is now considered part of the modern Ukraine. By the time he was 15, Gogol worked as an amateur writer for both Russian and Ukrainian scripts, and then turned his attention and talent to prose. His short-story collections were immediately successful and his first novel, The Government Inspector, was well-received. Gogol went on to publish numerous acclaimed works, including Dead Souls, The Portrait, Marriage, and a revision of Taras Bulba. He died in 1852 while working on the second part of Dead Souls.

Book preview

978-963-522-312-1

Chapter 1

ON 25 March an unusually strange event occurred in St. Petersburg. For that morning Barber Ivan Yakovlevitch, a dweller on the Vozkresensky Prospekt (his name is lost now—it no longer figures on a signboard bearing a portrait of a gentleman with a soaped cheek, and the words: Also, Blood Let Here)—for that morning Barber Ivan Yakovlevitch awoke early, and caught the smell of newly baked bread. Raising himself a little, he perceived his wife (a most respectable dame, and one especially fond of coffee) to be just in the act of drawing newly baked rolls from the oven.

Prascovia Osipovna, he said, I would rather not have any coffee for breakfast, but, instead, a hot roll and an onion,—the truth being that he wanted both but knew it to be useless to ask for two things at once, as Prascovia Osipovna did not fancy such tricks.

Oh, the fool shall have his bread, the dame reflected. So much the better for me then, as I shall be able to drink a second lot of coffee.

And duly she threw on to the table a roll.

Ivan Yakovlevitch donned a jacket over his shirt for politeness' sake, and, seating himself at the table, poured out salt, got a couple of onions ready, took a knife into his hand, assumed an air of importance, and cut the roll asunder. Then he glanced into the roll's middle. To his intense surprise he saw something glimmering there. He probed it cautiously with the knife—then poked at it with a finger.

Quite solid it is! he muttered. What in the world is it likely to be?

He thrust in, this time, all his fingers, and pulled forth—a nose! His hands dropped to his sides for a moment. Then he rubbed his eyes hard. Then again he probed the thing. A nose! Sheerly a nose! Yes, and one familiar to him, somehow! Oh, horror spread upon his feature! Yet that horror was a trifle compared with his spouse's overmastering wrath.

You brute! she shouted frantically. Where have you cut off that nose? You villain, you! You drunkard! Why, I'll go and report you to the police myself. The brigand, you! Three customers have told me already about your pulling at their noses as you shaved them till they could hardly stand it.

But Ivan Yakovlevitch was neither alive nor dead. This was the more the case because, sure enough, he had recognised the nose. It was the nose of Collegiate Assessor Kovalev—no less: it was the nose of a gentleman whom he was accustomed to shave twice weekly, on each Wednesday and each Sunday!

Stop, Prascovia Osipovna! at length he said. I'll wrap the thing in a clout, and lay it aside awhile, and take it away altogether later.

"But I won't hear of such a thing being done! As if I'm going to have a cut-off nose kicking about my room! Oh, you old stick! Maybe you can just strop a razor still; but soon you'll

Reviews for The Nose

[la2bkk · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Amusing short story, with moments of true hilarity. I was surprised that Gogol had such a sense of humor. On the other hand, the story lacks any real depth and Gogol makes no attempt whatsoever to explain the absurd happenings.A recommended read, but do not expect to take away anything of significance.

[bookomaniac-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

De barbier iwan Jakowlewitsj ontdekt bij zijn ontbijt een neus in het brood, afkomstig van de college-assessor Kowaljow. Die ziet pas bij het ontwaken dat zijn neus weg is en is in alle staten (want erg ijdel). Plots ziet hij zijn eigen neus in de straat opduiken, gekleed in uniform, hij spreekt hem aan maar de ander ontkent. K. probeert een advertentie te plaatsen, maar dat stuit op ongeloof en hilariteit bij ambtenaren en functionarissen. Uiteindelijk komt een politie-inspecteur hem de neus terugbrengen, maar hij krijgt hem er niet meer op. Allerlei geruchten en toeloop. 14d dagen later zit de neus weer op zijn plaats. Een vreemd verhaal!

[amerynth · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Nikolai Gogol's short story "The Nose" is a pretty quick and amusing read. There doesn't appear to be anything too deep about it (which may be the point as compared to most Russian literature.) I'm not a fan of magical realism generally, but when they're this short, I guess it's all right.

[tess_w · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A short story of 45 pages. It is absurd and it is supposed to be. It's a commentary on how people say and do very silly things. Meh

[deltaqueen50 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a strange little story The Nose by Nikolai Gogol turned out to be. This is a satirical short story about a St. Petersburg official called Kovalyov, whose nose leaves his face and develops a life of its own. Apparently Gogol himself had an oddly shaped nose and was often teased about this. The sheer absurdity of this story relies on humor and social commentary to draw the reader in.Highlighting the desire for social ranking, in this story, the Nose actually surpasses the position of the owner causing him much embarrassment and although the nose apparently can change in size, it is always clearly identified as belonging to Kovalyov which spearheads that characters feelings of inferiority and jealousy. It is never explained fully how the nose made it’s escape or how it came to be re-attached but instead leaves that up to the imagination of the reader. Using this type of magical realism highlights the surreal nature of the story but the author definitely included plenty of social references about Russia and human nature in general. Personally I found The Nose to be both hilarious and insightful.

[tess_schoolmarm · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A short story of 45 pages. It is absurd and it is supposed to be. It's a commentary on how people say and do very silly things. Meh

[fpdc_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A delightful short story about a man that wakes and finds out his nose has gone and it is walking in town disguised as a State Counselor!...