Dead Souls [Paperback]

Nikolai Gogol (Author), Susanne Fusso (Editor), Bernard Guilbert Guerney (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 21, 1996

Gogol's 1842 novel Dead Souls, a comic masterpiece about a mysterious con man and his grotesque victims, is one of the major works of Russian literature. It was translated into English in 1942 by Bernard Guilbert Guerney; the translation was hailed by Vladimir Nabokov as "an extraordinarily fine piece of work" and is still considered the best translation of Dead Souls ever published. Long out of print, the Guerney translation of Dead Souls is now reissued. The text has been made more faithful to Gogol's original by removing passages that Guerney inserted from earlier drafts of Dead Souls. The text is accompanied by Susanne Fusso's introduction and by appendixes that present excerpts from Guerney's translations of other drafts of Gogol's work and letters Gogol wrote around the time of the writing and publication of Dead Souls.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

A socially adept newcomer fluidly inserts himself into an unnamed Russian town, conquering first the drinkers, then the dignitaries. All find him amiable, estimable, agreeable. But what exactly is Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov up to?--something that will soon throw the town "into utter perplexity."

After more than a week of entertainment and "passing the time, as they say, very pleasantly," he gets down to business--heading off to call on some landowners. More pleasantries ensue before Chichikov reveals his bizarre plan. He'd like to buy the souls of peasants who have died since the last census. The first landowner looks carefully to see if he's mad, but spots no outward signs. In fact, the scheme is innovative but by no means bonkers. Even though Chichikov will be taxed on the supposed serfs, he will be able to count them as his property and gain the reputation of a gentleman owner. His first victim is happy to give up his souls for free--less tax burden for him. The second, however, knows Chichikov must be up to something, and the third has his servants rough him up. Nonetheless, he prospers.

Dead Souls is a feverish anatomy of Russian society (the book was first published in 1842) and human wiles. Its author tosses off thousands of sublime epigrams--including, "However stupid a fool's words may be, they are sometimes enough to confound an intelligent man," and is equally adept at yearning satire: "Where is he," Gogol interrupts the action, "who, in the native tongue of our Russian soul, could speak to us this all-powerful word: forward? who, knowing all the forces and qualities, and all the depths of our nature, could, by one magic gesture, point the Russian man towards a lofty life?" Flannery O'Connor, another writer of dark genius, declared Gogol "necessary along with the light." Though he was hardly the first to envision property as theft, his blend of comic, fantastic moralism is sui generis.--Kerry Fried

Review

Lively and funny ... Nabokov gleefully consigned all existing translations of Dead Souls to the fire, save for Guerney's. -- The New York Times Book Review, Ken Kalfus

Novel by Nikolay Gogol, published in Russian as Myortvye dushi in 1842. Considered one of the world's finest satires, this picaresque work traces the adventures of the social-climbing Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, a dismissed civil servant out to seek his fortune. It is admired not only for its enduring comic portraits but also for its sense of moral purpose. In the Russia of the novel, landowners must pay taxes on dead serfs until a new census removes them from the tax rolls. Chichikov sets off to buy dead serfs--thus relieving their owners of a tax burden--and mortgaging them to acquire funds to create his own estate. He charms his way into the homes of several influential landowners and puts forth his strange proposal, but he neglects to tell them the real purpose behind his plan. Gogol draws on broad Russian character types for his portraits of landowners. These comic descriptions make up some of the finest scenes in the novel. Eventually, rumors spread about Chichikov, and he is discovered and arrested. His crafty lawyer defends him by interweaving every scandal in the province with his client's deeds; the embarrassed officials offer to drop the entire matter if Chichikov leaves town, which he gladly does. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature

This newly revised, edited presentation of Gogol's classic 1842 novel about a mysterious con man and his victims will enjoy the attention of new audiences who will find this version a welcome, revealing alternative to most. Still important for any high school literary collection. -- Midwest Book Review

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (February 21, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300060998
• ISBN-13: 978-0300060997
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #90,550 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #61 in Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > Russian

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious social humor, with dark undercurrents, June 4, 2001

By 

"pierce_inverarity" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Souls (Paperback)

While I was reading this, I couldn't help but compare it to Laurence Sterne's "Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy." I later found out that Gogol was a fan of that book, so perhaps the parallels are intentional.

The protagonist, Chichikov, is a shaggy dog of sorts an average guy from a below-average background, who manages to use his schmoozing skills to get ahead in life, but is ultimately a bit of an insecure charlatan. (Lots of parallels to Jay Gatsby as well.) But, as in Sterne's book, we don't find out much about Chichikov until the very end of the novel -- otherwise, we only see small glimpses of Chichikov in action, and hear the mostly untrue things said about him by those he encounters. (Are these falsehoods of his own making, or of his observers' making? Or of ours, the readers' own making? Not an easy question.)

The novel takes us through various parts of Russian society, with many bits of the author's mockery obviously being things Gogol had wanted to get off his chest for quite a while. There are some excellent observations about "the Russian character," human nature, personality types, what different languages are good for, and many, many other bits of Gogolian brilliance. By the way, the financial scheme Chichikov is running is very clever, even by today's standards of financial wizardry.

The narrator does a lot of Sterne-like "stepping out of character"; in one of the more hilarious passages, he complains that his pen has suddenly become too heavy to write anything more about a certain character, and that he will take a rest. There are many comments to the effect of "So what kind of a novel were you expecting this to be, dear reader?" perhaps playing upon the shock with which the book was initially received. Also lots of teasing the reader, with back-and-forth to the effect of "should I reveal any more to you, or shouldn't I?"

Ultimately, the big question in the book becomes exactly who the "dead souls" are -- and the astute reader will realize that paradoxically, the dead serfs that are being bought and sold are the least dead of all the souls in the book.

This book is hilariously funny, and is rewarding even if read for humor alone. However, the literary and narrative experiments it undertakes, as well as its subtle social criticisms, make it even more worthwhile.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the World's Funniest Novels, September 23, 2002

By 

Andy Todes - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Souls (Paperback)

First of all, Guerney's is the only translation worth getting.

It was hailed as the finest in 1942. It is still the finest in 2002.

(Kudos to Yale University Press for printing it.)

Second, if you love the madcap humor of The Brothers Karamazov, in particular the lunacy of the father Fyodor Pavlovich, you will love Dead Souls.

Dead Souls.

Doesn't sound like a barrel of laughs does it? Doesn't sound a comic masterpiece, does it?

It is.

11 chapters full of cheats, liers, swindlers, fawners, rogues, sycophants, and above all (or below all) -- human beings.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Two separate books - a comedy and a moral piece, January 10, 2000

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Souls (Paperback)

Part One is the amusing story of Chichikov's shifty scheme to make money by obtaining legal ownership of recently dead serfs whose names are still on the census, in order to somehow mortgage this property at a profit. To understand the scheme you would have to understand the relevant laws.

To accomplish this purpose, Chichikov travels around Russia mixing with the best society and makes propositions to rich landowners. He is very good at flattery. Even so, things don't go smoothly for the scam artist.

Part Two, written many years later, brings back Chichikov as he meets a miser who allows his estate to go to pot, and a model landowner who works very hard. The question we are left with is whether Chichikov will continue to be a shifty character or will clean up his act like the model landowner. I'm sure it was meant as a question for the reader as well.