Nikolay Gogol. Summary: "Missing Certificate"

"Missing reading and writing" or as Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol called it, "Byel, told by the sexton ..." is a story written by a classic in the late 1920s and early 30s of the 19th century.

Included in the famous Gogolian cycle "Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka". It is one of the most popular works (along with the Sorochinskaya Fair, May Night, or the Drowned Woman, etc.), written by Nikolai Gogol. A brief summary ("Missing Certificate" though a small work, but perhaps not everyone has time to read the original) will help you get acquainted with the story in just 5 minutes!

History of the creation of the work:

The very first drafts of the work, which are usually taken as drafts, were written on four large sheets (given the turnover) with a rather small handwriting, with a large number of corrections and various kinds of blots. The title for the draft version is missing.

Everyone knows a certain mysticism, mystery, ambiguity, which was brought into each of his works by Nikolai Gogol. The summary ("The missing letter" in terms of the atmosphere of secrecy does not break out of the general series), we hope, will allow to feel it to the full.

The differences of the original version from the final

It is worth noting that the volume of the original version of the work "Missing Certificate" was much larger. According to historians who are engaged in the study of draft versions of the story, in the current story there are not only some descriptions, but also whole fragments, because of which sometimes even discrepancies arise.

For example, the final content was not included: an episode with pots that inflated the cheeks, some details relating to the description of the old man's journey from the heat, during which he saddled the lame man.

The ability to determine the exact date of writing the story "Lost Letter" has not yet been possible. The fact is that the autograph of the work has little to say about: it is impossible to determine from it neither the place nor the time of writing.

In what years was the work written?

Almost all literary critics are convinced that the story was started by Gogol in 1828. This is evidenced by his letter to his mother, dating from May 1829. In it, Nikolai Vasilyevich asks in detail to describe to him various card games that were popular at that time in Ukraine.

Proof that the "Lost Letter" was completed not later than the spring of 1831, can serve as the fact that it was first published in the first book "Evenings ...", and a censorship permit for its publication was received on May 26, 1831, Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol.

Summary

The "lost literacy" is written in the form of a story on behalf of a certain Foma Grigorievich, who tells his listeners, who constantly ask him for a "yak-something insurance kazochku", such stories that those, in his own words, "all night then tremble under the blanket" .

He begins to talk about one interesting case, allegedly occurred with his own grandfather, who once the hetman instructed the assignment to deliver a letter to the queen.

Saying goodbye to the family, the grandfather set out on his journey. The next morning he was at the Konotop fair. At that time the Tsar's certificate was in a safe, secure place - it was sewn into a hat. Not afraid of losing it, the main character of the story decided to get "flint and tobacco" here.

Walking along the fair, he made friends with a certain Cossack reveler. Together with him and another Cossack, who was following his friends, Grandfather went on.

During the conversation, Zaporozhets tells many interesting strange stories from his life. Convinced by the conversation, he tells his friends that he sold the soul to the devil, and the date of reckoning will come very soon (at night of that day). Our hero, to help the Cossacks, gives him the promise not to sleep at night. Friends decide to have a rest at the nearest pub.

New friends of the grandfather quickly fall asleep, and for this reason he has to be on guard alone. However much the protagonist tried, the dream eventually overcomes him, and the grandfather falls asleep.

The next morning, waking up, he discovers that there is not a new comrade-Cossack next to him, who sold the soul to the devil, neither horses, nor hats with a letter embroidered in it.

Being in a similar, not the best position, the grandfather decides to ask advice from the Chumak, who at that time were also in the tire. One of them told the hero about where you can find the devil.

The next night, following the instructions of the shnikar, the grandfather goes to the forest, where he, passing through various obstacles, finds a fire with "terrible faces" around him.

Immediately after the hero told them about his situation and paid, he was in a "hell" at the table, behind which sat various monsters, creatures and evil witches.

One of the witches sitting at the table suggested to my grandfather to play the card game "fool" three times: if he wins, he will be given a cap with a letter, and if he loses, he will remain forever here.

Two times in a row the main character loses, but for the third time, resorting to cunning, he still wins. After the plan has worked, the lost diploma has returned back to the hands of the grandfather, the hero decides to get out of the "heat".

He woke up on the roof of his own house, covered in blood. Almost immediately, he immediately sent with a letter to the queen.

Having seen various "wild things", the main character temporarily forgets about what happened, but now "a different devilry" begins to occur in his house once a year: for example, the wife started dancing against her will.

Screening

The story was screened twice: in 1945 and in 1972. The first screen version was a cartoon film of the same name, which in the lightened version retold the plot of the work.

The second was a full-length film. He repeated the plot of the work, but unlike the original, in the movie "Lost Letter" the characters were slightly different: for example, the main character was not a grandfather, but as a Cossack Vasil. Also, minor deviations from the plot were noticed.

Here is a mystical work, quite in its own way, wrote Nikolai Gogol. The summary ("The missing letter" is one of the lesser-known stories of the cycle), of course, does not fully convey the charm of Gogol's language, but will give an idea of this tale.