The Nose and The Overcoat free essay sample

The Nose by Nikolai Gogol is more a reflection of the technique of story telling than any attempt to create a narrative. This paper compares and contrasts two Gogol stories, The Nose and The Overcoat. The author critiques both and includes quotes from the actual texts. The Nose by Nikolai Gogol is more a reflection of the technique of story telling than any attempt to create a narrative. Indeed, Gogol purposely mangles form and content, breaking all conventions of good writing. The plot and more importantly, the way he presents it is a nonsensical jumble full of gaps, contradictions, interruptions and extraneous information. The piece is only unified through its attempt to betray the readers assumptions of how a story should be told. The Nose is a virtual masterpiece of dreadful writing. A reader embarking on any narrative assumes certain givens. They expect the author who establishes a conflict or mystery to follow through with a coherent resolution. We will write a custom essay sample on The Nose and The Overcoat or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page They expect their questions to be answered in a sensible manner. They expect a plot to advance along a logical path, through a sequence of often chronological events leading to a climax and finally a resolution or conclusion. All these elements comprise the rules of good story telling. The Nose breaks all these conventions, weaving a tale where the beginning, middle and conclusion are all jumbled beyond compare.