. ' / 'I Don't Know (live)'Released: 1981. ' / 'I Don't Know (live)'Released: 1982 (Europe only)Diary of a Madman is the second solo studio album by British vocalist. It was released on 7 November 1981, and re-issued on CD on 22 August 1995. This is the last Osbourne studio album to feature guitarist and drummer. An altered version appeared in 2002 with the original bass and drum parts removed and re-recorded.

1. Diary Of A Mad Black Woman
2. Ozzy Osbourne Music Videos

In 2011, a Deluxe 30th Anniversary Edition was released with all original parts restored. To date, the album has sold over 3 million copies worldwide. Osbourne performing during the Diary of a Madman tour, 1982Diary of a Madman is the final album recorded with late guitarist Randy Rhoads. Although bassist and drummer are credited in the liner notes and pictured on the inner sleeve for the American vinyl and cassette release and later CD re-issues, it was bassist and drummer Lee Kerslake who performed all bass and drum parts on the original release. Aldridge has stated of the album, 'I think it's pretty obvious that it's not my drumming on that album. I have never taken credit for that recording and have always given Lee Kerslake, whenever asked or interviewed, the credit he rightly deserves.'

Daisley provided significant contributions to the album's songwriting, having written some of the music and most of the lyrics. Kerslake claims to have also had a hand in the writing of the album, even performing lead vocals on some of the original demo recordings. 'Flying High Again' was one of my ideas, 'Over the Mountain' was another.

The basic (demo) tracks were just Bob's words, my vocals—though some of the words I wrote—and Randy's playing. It was unreal. And then we got to come in and do the keyboards', he stated in 2009. Kerslake says he used a piano in the studio to write many of the songs with guitarist. Daisley and Kerslake were not given credit for their performance or songwriting contributions, a situation which resulted in a later lawsuit.During the album's recording, Kerslake says the band members were given no money to live on, prompting them to approach management. Shortly after, both Kerslake and Daisley were fired.

'Everything was working fine,' said Kerslake. 'It was only when came in that we had a problem. When she started managing—taking over—she wasn't the manager until Diary of a Madman. Before that was her brother, David. He didn't really want to handle it.

He had too much to do for in the office. So she came in and it started to get edgy. But we never suspected a thing until we went away on holiday.

Next minute, they're rehearsing with Tommy Aldridge and Rudy Sarzo, and going to America.' Although Don Airey is credited as keyboardist on the album, it was in fact a musician named Johnny Cook (who had worked with Daisley in in the 1970s) who actually recorded the keyboard parts. Airey was on tour as a member of at the time of recording and was thus unavailable. Cover art The album's cover art features Osbourne's son Louis to his side, with Osbourne himself posing in theatrical make-up.

Reception Professional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingReception of the album has been generally positive. In particular, the guitar work of Randy Rhoads has received much praise. Steve Huey of stated that 'it's not uncommon to find fans who prefer Diary to, since it sets an even more mystical, eerie mood, and since ' playing is progressing to an even higher level'. Referred to the album as 'a classic rock record in every way', 'lifted out of the ordinary by the legendary rock axe god, Randy Rhoads'. Canadian journalist called Diary of a Madman 'a lasting classic that stands as the definitive showcase for Randy Rhoads.' Though the album is regarded quite favorably today, reviews upon its 1981 release were often less than enthusiastic. Of, for example, opined upon the album's original release that 'the songs here are little more than riffs with a vocal line pasted on top' and referred to Rhoads as 'a junior-league – bustling with chops but somewhat short on imagination'.

The magazine, however, would change its tune and later rank the album 15th on its 2017 list of '100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time'. Re-issues The 2002 re-issue controversy The 2002 Diary of a Madman reissue was derided by fans due to the removal of Daisley and Kerslake's original bass and drum tracks. The re-issue featured re-recorded bass and drum tracks contributed by Osbourne's then-bassist and drummer and, respectively.

The move was suspected of being retaliatory in nature, as Daisley and Kerslake had successfully sued Osbourne and his wife/manager Sharon in court, winning songwriting credits and royalties for their contributions to Diary of a Madman.Sharon later stated that Ozzy and not herself was responsible for the decision to re-record the parts, stating 'because of Daisley and Kerslake's abusive and unjust behavior, Ozzy wanted to remove them from these recordings. We turned a negative into a positive by adding a fresh sound to the original albums.' However, Osbourne contradicted this claim in his 2009, stating that the decision to re-record the original bass and drum parts was strictly Sharon's decision, and that 'I didn't have anything to do with that decision.' He said his wife 'just snapped' and had it done without his knowledge. He also stated that 'a sticker was put on the covers telling everyone about it', though in fact the sticker was not initially placed on the re-issue and was only placed on the covers at a later date due to fan outcry over the altered recordings.Deluxe 30th Anniversary Edition In May 2011, released its Deluxe 30th Anniversary Editions of Diary of a Madman and with the original bass and drum tracks restored. These releases also featured bonus tracks and previously unreleased live material featuring guitarist Rhoads – Diary of a Madman features a second CD entitled Ozzy Live, featuring previously-unreleased concert performances from the Blizzard of Ozz 1981 US tour. A box set was also released which included the remastered editions of both albums on CD as well as vinyl, and a DVD documentary entitled Thirty Years After The Blizzard.Ozzy Live was also separately released as a double 180g vinyl exclusively on 2012.Track listing All songs by, and, except where noted.Side oneNo.TitleWriter(s)Length1.'

You Can't Kill Rock and Roll'. Released21 April 2012Recorded1981,Length61: 24Disc 2 of the 2011 Legacy Edition of Diary of a Madman was also released as a limited edition standalone double-180g vinyl entitled 'Ozzy Live'. Sides one, two, and three contained the live material released on the Diary of a Madman Legacy Edition, while side four contained two bonus tracks that had been previously released on the 2011 reissue of. The vinyl was released exclusively for 2012, and also released was a 7' vinyl reissue of the song 'Believer'.Side oneNo.TitleWriter(s)Length1.'

I Don't Know'. Osbourne. Rhoads. Daisley5:4213.' RR (Outtake from 'Blizzard of Ozz' Sessions)'Rhoads1:13Personnel. – lead & backing vocals, production.

– guitars, production. – bass (uncredited). – drums, percussion (uncredited)Additional Personnel. Johnny Cook – keyboards (uncredited).

– on 'Diary of a Madman'. – bass on 2002 reissue. – drums on 2002 reissue. – credited on original release but does not appear; bass on 2011 reissue's live disc. – credited on original release but does not appear; drums on 2011 reissue's live discProduction. – producer,.

– mastering. Brian Lee with – (1995 reissue)Charts. 18 March 2011. Archived from on 16 June 2016.

Retrieved 14 February 2018. ^.

Archived from on 26 June 2007. Retrieved 22 January 2012. 22 January 2005. Retrieved 29 October 2015.

Krannila, Ville; Tattari, Kimmo (December 2009). Downing Steel Mill.net.

Archived from on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 29 October 2015. Seely, Todd (20 May 2002). Bob Daisley.com. Archived from on 21 October 2014.

Retrieved 29 October 2015. Price, Beth (9 September 2005). Archived from on 4 December 2005. Retrieved 29 October 2015.

(JPG). Retrieved 29 October 2015. ^ Huey, Steve.

Retrieved 29 October 2015. ^ (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties., Canada:. ^ (4 February 1982). Archived from on 5 February 2007. Retrieved 29 August 2009.

(20 May 2011). Retrieved 25 October 2015. Groom, Helen (2007). Retrieved 29 October 2015. Grow, Kory (21 June 2017). Wenner Media LLC.

Retrieved 22 June 2017. Begrand, Adrien (25 June 2002). Retrieved 24 October 2015. ^ Osbourne, Ozzy (2011).

Retrieved 24 May 2013. Barbrick, Greg (28 May 2011). Retrieved 29 October 2015. ^.

7 November 2017. Retrieved 1 June 2018. ^. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2015. Saulnier, Jason (2013).

Music Legends.ca. Retrieved 29 October 2015. Retrieved 25 October 2015. ^. Retrieved 28 October 2015. 16 January 1982.

Retrieved 29 October 2015. Retrieved 29 October 2015. ^. Retrieved 25 October 2015. 16 January 1982.

Archived from on 14 February 2018. Retrieved 29 October 2015. Retrieved 25 October 2015.

Hailed by Nabokov as 'the greatest artist that Russia has yet produced,' Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852) left his mark as a playwright, novelist, and writer of short stories. Gogol's works remain popular with both writers and readers, who prize his originality, imaginative gifts, and sheer exuberance.This collection offers an excellent introduction to the author's works. O Hailed by Nabokov as 'the greatest artist that Russia has yet produced,' Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852) left his mark as a playwright, novelist, and writer of short stories. Gogol's works remain popular with both writers and readers, who prize his originality, imaginative gifts, and sheer exuberance.This collection offers an excellent introduction to the author's works. Opening a door to his bizarre world of broad comedy, fantasy, and social commentary, the title story portrays a petty official's mental disintegration as he struggles for the attention of the woman he loves. Set during the repressive rule of Nicholas I, it satirizes the bureaucratic excesses of the era.

Additional tales include 'The Nevski Prospect,' a portrayal of the feverish pace of St. Petersburg street life, and 'The Portrait,' a gripping depiction of a soul's perdition. If you are a reader of taste and discernment, a reader who values their time, you could do worse than pick up this little volume of tales by Nikolai Gogol. How many books of a merely 231 pages can offer you four masterpieces (three short stories, one novella) and one delightful, expertly crafted short story that might convince you it was a masterpiece too if you had discovered it almost anywhere except in this august company?From the first, Gogol was an outsider. Ukrainian-born but dIf you are a reader of taste and discernment, a reader who values their time, you could do worse than pick up this little volume of tales by Nikolai Gogol. How many books of a merely 231 pages can offer you four masterpieces (three short stories, one novella) and one delightful, expertly crafted short story that might convince you it was a masterpiece too if you had discovered it almost anywhere except in this august company?From the first, Gogol was an outsider.

Ukrainian-born but descended from Cossacks; a gentleman but of the lesser gentry; fiercely ambitious, but moody and solitary, his schoolmates called him “our mysterious dwarf.” His early work was a series of Ukrainian stories, but his mother had to help him research the details, for he had only a little knowledge of his own history. His later tales are set in St. Petersburg, the governmental capital of Russia, from whose closely regulated social hierarchy he felt alienated, and which he held in great contempt. Still an outsider, he was a Ukrainian in a Russian world. Fortunately, though, St. Petersburg recognized great work when they saw it: Pushkin admired him, his play The Government Inspector was a success, and Gogol was welcomed into the literary world.The tale of Gogol’s life grows darker from then on, but all the works in this small volume are taken from this early period.

Taras Bulba is a romantic epic in miniature, an account of the Cossack people at war with the Poles, filled with savagery and heroism. The other masterpieces here are all taken from his “St. Petersburg Tales,” ironic depictions of petty men obsessed with their position in a bureaucratic hierarchy: in the ghostly tale “The Overcoat”—perhaps the greatest of the works here—a bureaucrat seeks (and loses) a new coat to uphold his declining status; in the surrealistic work “The Nose,” a bureaucrat’s own nose abandons him, and goes off to seek social status on its own; and in wildly funny and pathetic “The Diary of a Madman,” a bureaucratic clerk obsessively in love with his employer’s daughter disintegrates into increasingly delusions. (The other tale, the comically anti-climactic “The Carriage,” though it is set in a little town where the cavalry is stationed and features a local landowner and former cavalryman, is filled with same concerns for social status as “The St.

Petersburg Tales.”)The translation here is a good one, and flows easily. I didn’t find the afterward by Priscilla Meyer all that helpful. But at least it is mercifully brief.

When you look back to the Golden Era of Russian Literature, Nikolai Gogol is like the odd man out. You have the romanticism of Pushkin, the philosophical depth found in Dostoyevsky, complex examinations of Russian society in Tolstoy, the realist style of Turgenev and then you have the satirical and farcical works of Gogol. It’s funny because Gogol’s stories fit ever so comfortably amongst the twentieth century Russian literature, where satirical stories were rampant due to Soviet censors.It’s e When you look back to the Golden Era of Russian Literature, Nikolai Gogol is like the odd man out. You have the romanticism of Pushkin, the philosophical depth found in Dostoyevsky, complex examinations of Russian society in Tolstoy, the realist style of Turgenev and then you have the satirical and farcical works of Gogol. It’s funny because Gogol’s stories fit ever so comfortably amongst the twentieth century Russian literature, where satirical stories were rampant due to Soviet censors.It’s ever so comfortable because you don’t need to consciously place your mind in nineteenth century Russia to read Gogol. Somehow he places it for you, without any extended visual sequences needed.

You are just there, in amongst the surrealism, the farce, the political satire, the absurdism, the quirkiness, the sadness, the self-awareness. Gogol effortlessly transports you on a literary odyssey like no other literature from that era. It’s all these qualities that keeps Gogol’s stories so fresh, timeless and hilarious. It’s understandable that without Gogol we would have no Dostoyevsky, Kafka, Bulgakov, Platonov and so many other different writers. Soviet writers of the early twentieth century, especially during Stalin’s regime, can only thank Gogol for writing socially and politically charged satires and managing to get away with them. Let’s not forget that there were strict censors even during the nineteenth century, especially during Gogol’s lifetime.“I confess I felt deeply troubled when I considered how unusually delicate and insubstantial the moon is.

The moon, as everyone knows, is usually made in Hamburg, and they make a complete hash of it. I’m surprised that the English don’t do something about it. The moon is manufactured by a lame cooper, and it’s obvious the idiot has no idea what it should be made of. The materials he uses are tarred rope and linseed oil. That’s why there’s such a terrible stink all over the earth, which makes us stop our noses up. And it also explains why the moon is such a delicate sphere, and why people can’t live there — only noses.

For this reason we can’t see our own noses any more, as they’re all on the moon.” Gogol, Diary of a MadmanDiary of a Madman, The Nose and The Overcoat are probably his very best short stories, and all stylistically very different from one another. Utilising the diary format, the protagonist, Poprishchin, in Diary of a Madman challenges governmental bureaucracy and upper society in a hilarious and somewhat sad satire of a delusional man simply wanting to be noticed in the world, echoing the world we live in today. Some of literature’s funniest lines can be found in Diary of a Madman. The Nose is a complete farce, an almost proto-Kafkaesque and self-aware journey of a man whose nose has mysteriously fallen off his face, and his travels around St Petersburg to find it. The Overcoat completely changes tone into a gloomy, atmospheric tale of perception and troubled consciences, all revolving around an overcoat.

Still, Gogol retains his trademark absurdism and structured prose, in an all-round fantastic collection of his short stories. Gogol is simply one of Russia’s greatest writers.

The Diary of a Madman and Other Stories is my first foray into the writing of Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol, an early 19th century Russian writer of Ukrainian origin. This collection contains six short stories and a novella.

The stories are not all equally robust but a couple are excellent. Dominant themes revolve around men seeking escape from their poverty or hankering after marriage to maidens beyond their reach or a future to which they aspire, and almost always their regretful recourse to other worldl The Diary of a Madman and Other Stories is my first foray into the writing of Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol, an early 19th century Russian writer of Ukrainian origin. This collection contains six short stories and a novella.

The stories are not all equally robust but a couple are excellent. Dominant themes revolve around men seeking escape from their poverty or hankering after marriage to maidens beyond their reach or a future to which they aspire, and almost always their regretful recourse to other worldly powers. The world Gogol crafted is suffused with the magical as well as the grotesque. The best way to enjoy his stories is to suspend judgment and allow oneself to be immersed in the surreal interactions of man, nature, and supernatural forces.Below are two stories that stood out for me.The Diary of a MadmanThis story is one of Gogol’s best known works. The protagonist is Mr. Ivanovotch, a disgruntled pen mender who has lost his mind.

We hear his thoughts that are initially benign and almost comic surrounding dissatisfaction with his colleagues and infatuation with his director’s daughter. Gogol skillfully showed how Ivanovitch’s mind unravels. He hears dogs speak. He becomes increasingly detached from reality. One day, Ivanovitch makes a startling discovery: ‘The year 2000. Today is a day of splendid triumph. Spain has a king, he has been found and I am he.

I discovered it today, all of a sudden it came upon me like a flash of lightning.’ His fragmented mind is reflected in how the calendar is no longer recognizable (e.g., ‘Marchember 86’). Sad tale.The Mysterious PortraitThis is the story I thought most remarkable in this slim volume. It is a mesmerizing story about the fate that befalls an artist on account of a strange portrait that he acquired from the last twenty kopeks in his purse. Part I describes the portrait’s lifelike, unnerving and piercing eyes on the face of an Asiatic old man in flowing robes. This portrait drastically changes not only the fortune of a penurious artist but also his artistic soul.

This tale explores the travails of the artist as he seeks to balance faithfulness to his vocation, the veracity of his talent that hard work and devotion coaxes into refinement against the economic realities of survival and the temptation to sacrifice art to popular opinion and consumerism. Part II picks up the back story to the mysterious portrait and its hidden power. The telling of this tale cannot but cause us to think about the role of art and its incredible power for good and evil. The artist can be a conveyor of all that is beautiful and divine, but he can also become an instrument of harm if he betrays his talent and his heart is not in the right place. The story has an enigmatic ending that leaves a disquieting feel as if those eyes are still searching for their next unsuspecting soul to destroy.The Diary of a Madman and Other Stories is captivating mostly on account of its strangeness. The novella ( Evenings in Little Russia) and two stories ( An Evening in May, A Mid-Simmer Evening) are bizarre tales about how thwarted courting couples enlist the help of the supernatural to be together.

After a while, I learn that mystic powers can be invested in a red svitka (a coat), that old women are often witches in disguise, and that a lovelorn person should never sell his or her soul to the devil. Read The Diary of a Madman and Other Stories for a taste of Gogol’s fantastical writing. It's great to know Nabokov at least appreciated one other Russian writer!

And I'm sure he himself would have been proud of writing these stories. Full of dark humor, turmoil, tragedy, and farce, this strange and lively collection contains some of the finest short stories from any Russian writer.

Sometimes nodding towards Bulgakov, sometimes towards Kafka, Gogol stands out as one of the greats, and was way ahead of his time. The other stories were good, but The Diary of a Madman was the best.

It' It's great to know Nabokov at least appreciated one other Russian writer! And I'm sure he himself would have been proud of writing these stories.

Full of dark humor, turmoil, tragedy, and farce, this strange and lively collection contains some of the finest short stories from any Russian writer. Sometimes nodding towards Bulgakov, sometimes towards Kafka, Gogol stands out as one of the greats, and was way ahead of his time. The other stories were good, but The Diary of a Madman was the best.

It's quite simply nuts! But also genius in the way it carries a deeper message on isolation and bureaucracy. Great to read again and again!

“To-day is a day of the greatest rejoicing. Spain has a King. He has been discovered. I am that King.

It was only to-day I found it out. The revelation came to me like a flash of lightning.”For a madman the world is what is in his head And Nikolai Gogol puts into the head of his madman many ridiculous things that will delight any reader.“But men are unfair, with this way of reckoning in weeks. The Jews invented it because it’s their Rabbi’s washing time And all those fathers, holders of “To-day is a day of the greatest rejoicing.

Spain has a King. He has been discovered. I am that King. It was only to-day I found it out. The revelation came to me like a flash of lightning.”For a madman the world is what is in his head And Nikolai Gogol puts into the head of his madman many ridiculous things that will delight any reader.“But men are unfair, with this way of reckoning in weeks.

The Jews invented it because it’s their Rabbi’s washing time And all those fathers, holders of office, all that set of theirs who fawn on everyone and push their way to court, and call themselves patriots and what not,—it’s bonuses, bonuses, all these patriots want! They’d sell their father and mother and God for money,—ambitious snobs, Judases!

All this is caused by ambition, and ambition is caused by a little vessel situated under the tongue, and in the vessel there is a small worm no bigger than a pin’s head, and all this is made by a barber who lives in Gorokhovaya Street. I forget his name, but I know for a fact that in concert with a certain midwife he is trying to spread Mahomedanism all over the world, and I am told that in France the majority of the people have already adopted the religion of Mahomet.”Nikolai Gogol literally turns all the pharisaic ambitions and fears into the madman’s grotesque thoughts.The Nevski Prospect is a rather sinister and ironic tale of some amorous adventures.The Portrait is a bizarre and flowery Gothic story.All three tales are written in that unique style that only Nikolai Gogol could use. The Diary of a MadmanThis is the notes taken by a man suffering from increasing dementia.I like how the madness builds up from rampant angst to screaming dementia. And how it culminates in the hero firmly asserting his being the king of Spain:) Amusing and disturbingly convincing.The PortraitThe story is about a young destitute, unsuccessful painter tempted by the opportunity of wealth and fame. Instant, effortless, staggering riches. Only it comes at a ghastly price.The 'dream/The The Diary of a MadmanThis is the notes taken by a man suffering from increasing dementia.I like how the madness builds up from rampant angst to screaming dementia. And how it culminates in the hero firmly asserting his being the king of Spain:) Amusing and disturbingly convincing.The PortraitThe story is about a young destitute, unsuccessful painter tempted by the opportunity of wealth and fame.

Instant, effortless, staggering riches. Only it comes at a ghastly price.The 'dream withing a dream' trope in The Portrait is carried out masterfully and I couldn't help feeling ill at ease and vaguely theatened, in spite of my reading it in the text like a slug!Matching Soundtrack:Becoming Insane - Infected Mushroom. I never really thought of myself as a 'Russian Literature' kind of guy. But this was another one of those books that my father bought me, during my university years, when he was, I assume, trying to improve me (I have since realised that this was a regular enough occurrence to create a shelf, to immortalise the collection). Obviously, my university years are behind me now by some way, so I figure I've put reading this one off for long enough.I came to 's I never really thought of myself as a 'Russian Literature' kind of guy. But this was another one of those books that my father bought me, during my university years, when he was, I assume, trying to improve me (I have since realised that this was a regular enough occurrence to create a shelf, to immortalise the collection). Obviously, my university years are behind me now by some way, so I figure I've put reading this one off for long enough.I came to 's with absolutely no idea what to expect.

In fact, I hadn't even really considered that the title implied a short-story collection rather than a novel until I picked the book up to read it. I had however assumed that Russian meant heavy, dense writing, but instead I was in for a shock. The stories were simple, everyday ideas, almost folksy; given a witty narration and light on heaviness.

The style felt almost British to me (like we're the only nation who do wit). Maybe the translator, brings more to the stories than he gets credit for?The collection comprises five shorter stories, and it opens with the good stuff. Diary of a Madman is definitely the story that brings the five stars for this book. It is told through the diary entries of a lowly civil servant as he descends into madness and over-imagination – he falls in love with his boss's daughter; reads letters written by her dog; and realises that he's next in line to the recently vacated throne of Spain. Again, my test of any awesome book is that I need to read bits out to people nearby (in a moment of serendipity this time it was my father) and while the later stories didn't quite pass that test, Diary of a Madman did in spades.The collection continues with The Nose the story of a man who wakes up one morning missing his nose. As something of a cocksman, his nose is suggested to be a metaphor for his more sensitive area, but it seemed more to me to be a deliberately ridiculous and pointless story, one that he could use to cock a snoot at the censors of the day, suggesting that there is nothing left worth writing about if all literature is to be censored. The Overcoat is another one of Gogol's more famous stories, and is the tale of an inconsequential civil servant who saves for a new overcoat.

While mocked for the old overcoat, the new one makes him popular. The story seemed a little too long in the build up, although I wondered if that was deliberate to drag out the tension. The last two stories, How Ivan Ivanovich Quarrelled with Ivan Nikiforovich and Ivan Fyodorovich Shponka and His Aunt were amusing, but didn't feel up to the standards of the first three. Maybe Gogol's more at home with stories of nobody civil servants that he is with more middle-class landowners.All the stories are of everyday folk and strange personalities. Gogol seems to have something of a preoccupation with civil servants, noses, geese and overcoats, as each of these items feature in multiple stories.

Also, all the stories feature some narration which breaks the fourth wall. Gogol is telling us the story, but it's also a conversation with us as well. The Diary of a Madman is a short story about a man's descent into madness. The hero, Poprishchin, is a middle aged minor civil servant obsessed with Sophie, the young and beautiful daughter of his boss, a senior official who stands on a much higher rank of the social ladder. As he begins to slide into insanity, the hero believes that he can hear a conversation between Madgie, Sophie's dog, and another dog and later steals letters written by Madgie to the other dog. The extracts from these letter The Diary of a Madman is a short story about a man's descent into madness.

The hero, Poprishchin, is a middle aged minor civil servant obsessed with Sophie, the young and beautiful daughter of his boss, a senior official who stands on a much higher rank of the social ladder. As he begins to slide into insanity, the hero believes that he can hear a conversation between Madgie, Sophie's dog, and another dog and later steals letters written by Madgie to the other dog.

Three extremely interesting stories of the great Russian writer, in which he displays different aspects of his vast literary talent. The first two, The Diary of a Madman and Nevski Prospect, are two hilarious stories through which the author satires without mercy. Everything from politics and the way of life of the bourgeoisie to the romantic novels. The last ote, The Portrait, is a Gothic story that revolves around a strange portrait that has a mysterious effect on those who own it, a story Three extremely interesting stories of the great Russian writer, in which he displays different aspects of his vast literary talent. The first two, The Diary of a Madman and Nevski Prospect, are two hilarious stories through which the author satires without mercy.

Everything from politics and the way of life of the bourgeoisie to the romantic novels. The last ote, The Portrait, is a Gothic story that revolves around a strange portrait that has a mysterious effect on those who own it, a story that reminds me of similar stories of western writers and more specifically of.

Of course, I can say something similar about the first two stories, although certainly all three are somewhat more of a Russian character and this is obvious in the end of the last story. I picked this up because I read a parody of Gogol's 'The Nose' by (in her version, a guy wakes up to find his dick missing, looking like a Ken doll, and some poor schmuck of a woman finds the lost appendage in her hotdog bun). Anyway, I wanted to re-read not just 'The Nose,' but all of Gogol, who I haven't read in many years, and who blurred in my mind with his later acolytes, Bulgakov and Kafka. But Gogol is weirder than both. Despite all the strangeness and abrupt shifts in Kafka's s I picked this up because I read a parody of Gogol's 'The Nose' by (in her version, a guy wakes up to find his dick missing, looking like a Ken doll, and some poor schmuck of a woman finds the lost appendage in her hotdog bun). Anyway, I wanted to re-read not just 'The Nose,' but all of Gogol, who I haven't read in many years, and who blurred in my mind with his later acolytes, Bulgakov and Kafka.

But Gogol is weirder than both. Despite all the strangeness and abrupt shifts in Kafka's stories, they all seem to have an internal dream logic. But Gogol is schizophrenic. He borders on bad children's fantasy. That is, weird shit just happens, and then again, and then again, and then back to humdrum reality. And then another story is just flat out reality, albeit violent and intense. At the same time the stories hum of a political allegory whose tones I'm too deaf to pick up, and maybe whisper of a religious allegory which I just don't care about.But more important than any of that: Gogol is funny.

Even funnier than Kafka.So some quick notes for now:'Diary of a Madman'Hilarious and weird. A middle aged mid-level bureaucrat becomes convinced he's the King of Spain. The diary entries get progressively weirder until they're just gobbledygook. His reinterpretation of reality to fit his own take on the world is distressing. I kept thinking, oh shit, I haven't been that delusional, but maybe a little.' The Nose'Whoa. A guy wakes up to find someone's nose in his bread.

Another guy wakes up to find his nose missing and a smooth space in its place. The story switches logics and scenes and ideas so quickly that it seems like a exploding kaleidoscope. Now the nose is an officer who is wearing a uniform of a high rank and talking and walking and taking carriages, and now the nose is just a chunk of meat, and now. The Carriage'You know that dream where you are in your underwear and you're in the high school auditorium and everyone is laughing at you AND you're late to the test that will allow you to graduate and, oh shit, you MISSED the test.

And now they're laughing even more. This story is that.' The Overcoat'Gogol nailed Kafka's evil and banal bureaucracy well before Kafka did. Except his hero is a Bartleby-like figure who actually likes his work and is just endlessly shit upon until he finally, due to luck, makes a change. The change changes his life and his status and all is good and bright and then: POW!

Fucked by life. And then the story gets REALLY WEIRD. I would use this as a Dungeons and Dragons plot if I still played Dungeons and Dragons.' Taras Bulba'This novella is relentlessly bad ass.

Violent action noir where everyone is splattered with blood and everyone dies. (Also racist and uncompromising.). I'm trying to start with Gogol's 'Dead Souls' but can only get to 70 pages before putting it off. It has happened twice now. But maybe next time; after all third time's the charm (fingers crossed).

During the second time of my procrastination saga, I switched to some of his well known short stories. Out of which, I completed 'Diary of a Madman' in a breeze. This definitely inspired me to chase Gogol with renewed zeal (in the foreseeable future). There comes a period of dormancy in everyone's lif I'm trying to start with Gogol's 'Dead Souls' but can only get to 70 pages before putting it off.

Diary Of A Mad Black Woman

It has happened twice now. But maybe next time; after all third time's the charm (fingers crossed). During the second time of my procrastination saga, I switched to some of his well known short stories. Out of which, I completed 'Diary of a Madman' in a breeze.

This definitely inspired me to chase Gogol with renewed zeal (in the foreseeable future). There comes a period of dormancy in everyone's life at some stage (semester exams, in my case) when everyone becomes an existentialist. Some of these novice existentialists wish to quit their routine and sink deep into their existentialism. This story doesn't explore that.

It explores an ordinary man's descent into the other side of sanity because he has let the fire of his existentialism incinerate the need to carry on the facade of being 'sane and normal'. It is true that, sometimes, we are walking along the edge of sanity but this story illuminates the lives of those who have already stumbled into insanity.

Though sanity is a very 'relative' concept, this short piece of literature is 'absolute' brilliance. It is funny with its incoherent musings (some of which are truly cynical and even honest, at times) and tragic with the pernicious caprice of authorities playing with people whom society deems to be unworthy of living in its community.'

No, I have no longer power to endure. What are they going to do with me? They pour cold water on my head. They take no notice of me, and seem neither to see nor hear. Why do they torture me? What do they want from one so wretched as myself? What can I give them?

I possess nothing. I cannot bear all their tortures; my head aches as though everything were turning round in a circle. Carry me away! Give me three steeds swift as the wind! Mount your seat, coachman, ring bells, gallop horses, and carry me straight out of this world. Farther, ever farther, till nothing more is to be seen!' 'The Overcoat' is one of the most beautiful Russian stories of all time, or so I believe anyway.

Akaky Akakych still haunts me, and whenever I think of him it's like every sympathetic, maternal bone in my body just spasms. He was so adorably insulated and sweet and pathetic, with the enjoyment he took from copying. He would get home from work as a copyer, just to delight in copying some more for leisure. That alone was touching in that sad kind of way, and made me feel sort of protective over 'The Overcoat' is one of the most beautiful Russian stories of all time, or so I believe anyway. Akaky Akakych still haunts me, and whenever I think of him it's like every sympathetic, maternal bone in my body just spasms. He was so adorably insulated and sweet and pathetic, with the enjoyment he took from copying.

He would get home from work as a copyer, just to delight in copying some more for leisure. That alone was touching in that sad kind of way, and made me feel sort of protective over him. His love for his life and his copying and his routine and solitude was especially poignant and cutting when he locked eyes with the colleague who taunted him, and just was so exasperated, and so tired of being picked on, and just said 'why do you torment me'. But of course the saddest was the excitement he felt on donning his brand new coat. Never mind that the party wasn't much fun, and it wasn't important about his new-found respectful status among his co-workers.

He was just so proud of that jacket and as swept away in it as he'd been in his copying. The pathetic figure of him, hunched over on the pavement, having had the coat stolen, is just one of the most powerful, evocative things I've ever read. I don't know why; I read books about wars and suicides and I feel nothing, besides an impersonal sort of interest for the sake of the story, but I read this and I can't get it out of my head two years on. I guess Gogol was a genius writer, is the best explanation. Such a beautiful, terrible story.

'Gogol is Russia's first Kafka, her supreme chronicler of bureaucracies and the insecurities of social life as it registers on the shy and the neurotic', Caryl Emerson observed. I absolutely agree with this description of this baffling author.This book contains a selection of short stories set in Gogol's native Ukraine and in St. Petersburg, the city which had an obsessive effect on him, and later, on Dostoevsky.In these short stories we find expressed the essential absurdity of life 'Gogol is Russia's first Kafka, her supreme chronicler of bureaucracies and the insecurities of social life as it registers on the shy and the neurotic', Caryl Emerson observed. I absolutely agree with this description of this baffling author.This book contains a selection of short stories set in Gogol's native Ukraine and in St.

Petersburg, the city which had an obsessive effect on him, and later, on Dostoevsky.In these short stories we find expressed the essential absurdity of life, stories where dream and reality are confused so that we have no way of distinguishing what is true from the illusory, what has value from what is worthless.St. Petersburg is a place of utter alienation for Gogol. His characters are grotesque caricatures who live in this bewildering city where individuals seem to lose all identity. Tragedy comes from the magnification of trivial and banal causes, his downtrodden, insignificant clerks struggle unsuccessfully with the bureaucratic machine. Gogol has a strange way of telling tragical stories and yet, you find a lot of comedy in them.What I find astonishing is that the reader can relate to Gogol's puppet-like characters although they don't even seem real nor do they have any psychological depth at all. Yet, his poor, snivelling clerks, mocked and scorned by all, are so unforgettable as endearing.Gogol is a must read if you enjoy Russian literature in general, and Dostoevsky in particular.

NG's works apart from absurd tragi-comedy themes blatantly mock ostentatious propriety driven materialistic debaucheries which have become a huge part of what it is to live in the world today. I had this idea that 200 years ago the myriads were not too prone of such ways as they weren't exposed to media/advertisements which has lead our generation into chasing unnecessary things while trying to create a social image which only contribute to our hubris. These stories suggest that these indeed are NG's works apart from absurd tragi-comedy themes blatantly mock ostentatious propriety driven materialistic debaucheries which have become a huge part of what it is to live in the world today.

I had this idea that 200 years ago the myriads were not too prone of such ways as they weren't exposed to media/advertisements which has lead our generation into chasing unnecessary things while trying to create a social image which only contribute to our hubris. These stories suggest that these indeed are innate traits. So is this what really makes us human?In Diary Of A Madman our protagonist clerk who lives a clumsy life in solitude falls for his directors daughter. Its nebulous if his madness makes him love her or her love makes him mad.

Eventually he imagines himself to be the King Of Spain who is being tortured by the English. In The Overcoat too a similar clerk protagonist living a reclusive life gets himself a new cloak, which gives new direction to his life, this cloak becomes to him the dearest & is the reason for his happiness.In both stories these clerks living a futile life search for a purpose to atone their existence. Isn't this, what we all are really doing?The Nose just left me enveloped in a veil of mist as to WTF was happening? But then the world is just nonsensical doodle-squat.Great intro to Gogol.

Ozzy Osbourne Music Videos

Looking forward to read more of his works. This reading does not correspond to a concrete published book, but to six independent Gogol stories I have downloaded from the Gutenberg project, the university of Adelaida, and similar Internet places. They are Spanish and English translations. The six stories are:Diary of a madmanThe overcoatNevsky ProspectA May night; or the drowned maidenThe noseThe portraitAll of them except the last are quite funny, each one in its own way, although they can also b This reading does not correspond to a concrete published book, but to six independent Gogol stories I have downloaded from the Gutenberg project, the university of Adelaida, and similar Internet places. They are Spanish and English translations.

The six stories are:Diary of a madmanThe overcoatNevsky ProspectA May night; or the drowned maidenThe noseThe portraitAll of them except the last are quite funny, each one in its own way, although they can also be very sad and full of feeling at the same time. I found this book to be by far one of the best practices of symbolism, reading about talking dogs and a walking nose may sound super crazy but that’s exactly what you’d expect from a book with such a title. It is after all the thoughts of a “madman”. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀The themes portrayed in this book are all about loneliness, imprisonment, oppression and identity crisis. The stories are only simple on the surface, they do contain a lot of satire, realism and moral seriousness so reading t I found this book to be by far one of the best practices of symbolism, reading about talking dogs and a walking nose may sound super crazy but that’s exactly what you’d expect from a book with such a title. It is after all the thoughts of a “madman”. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀The themes portrayed in this book are all about loneliness, imprisonment, oppression and identity crisis.

The stories are only simple on the surface, they do contain a lot of satire, realism and moral seriousness so reading them will make you wonder a lot. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Another thing to mention here is the language and the style. While every story in this book is tragic in a way or another, the writing style is hugely comical.

Also, the language is very simple and given that we are talking about a 19th century book, it would be impossible not to observe the narrative method. On the whole, this was a very quick and easy read. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Now a little bit about my favorite short story from this book which is The Overcoat; -no details- it is a simple written story that unfolds on so few pages, but it makes you feel intense emotions. You actually feel something of what the character is experiencing, plus the ending was really hard-hitting so it elevated the whole story for me. I loved every word of these stories! My main complaint is that I wish there were more words! For example, I feel as though the short story Diary of a Madman could have been developed in much more depth.

I would have enjoyed seeing the main characters' bizarre spiral into madness progress a little more slowly and subtly, Crime and Punishment style (but maybe not THAT slowly). Also, after the final sentence in Ivan Fyodorovich Shponka and His Aunt I said out loud 'what?oh' as it was a comicall I loved every word of these stories! My main complaint is that I wish there were more words! For example, I feel as though the short story Diary of a Madman could have been developed in much more depth. I would have enjoyed seeing the main characters' bizarre spiral into madness progress a little more slowly and subtly, Crime and Punishment style (but maybe not THAT slowly). Also, after the final sentence in Ivan Fyodorovich Shponka and His Aunt I said out loud 'what?oh' as it was a comically unsatisfying ending - although I suppose that really is perfectly fitting for the story.Apparently I did not actually read this addition, as my version included:-Diary of a Madman-The Nose-The Overcoat-How Ivan Ivanovich Quarrelled with Ivan Nikiforovich-Ivan Fyodorovich Shponka and his AuntI had previously read The Overcoat and The Nose in a separate collection. And I do find they belong in a book of their own as they sit on a much more extreme level of absurdity than the other stories.

But I would recommend this compilation as an enchanting display of Gogol's unique style(s)! My first book from Gogol. It is a short story in the form of a diary written by the protagonist Poprishchin. It is very funny and kinda sad story of a delusional man who thinks of all the things he is not as he is and also makes crazy interpretation and assessment of the world he lives in.

Though the man is evidently crazy, it’s only a hyper-conscious version of the people in this society.The prose is very neat and well structured and it is so easy to read and has a flow to it. You k My first book from Gogol. It is a short story in the form of a diary written by the protagonist Poprishchin. It is very funny and kinda sad story of a delusional man who thinks of all the things he is not as he is and also makes crazy interpretation and assessment of the world he lives in. Though the man is evidently crazy, it’s only a hyper-conscious version of the people in this society.The prose is very neat and well structured and it is so easy to read and has a flow to it. You know it when you read it.

I am going to read many of Gogol in the upcoming times:)I recommend this quick read:).