Information about the author:

Abstract:

This article examines the printing history of “Mirgorod” in 1835, which has not yet received a logical and exhaustive explanation. Not all copies of the print run of the second part of the book are identical: one, at least, differs insofar as “The Story of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarrelled with Ivan Nikiforovich” is preceded by a “Preface” that is absent in all the other copies, while “Viy” lacks its well-known ending, concluding with the death of Khoma; another copy differs from this one and the others by the place where the author placed a note entitled “Error”. While the sequence of the author’s actions during the printing of “Mirgorod” and their causal relationships have interested many researchers, there are still more questions than answers. The article critically examines the discussion about the reasons and causes of the changes made to the printed book by Gogol, who was both author and publisher, and poses new important and unsolved questions, whose answers are directly related to textual, historical, literary, censorial and printing issues discussed by the commentators of these stories.