The Russian names (patronymics included), the common Russian expressions, the Russian humor that only other Russians find funny, and the Russian emphasis of social status featured in Nikolai Gogol’s “The Nose” made me feel like I was in high school all over again. 
I imagined myself in the hallways of Staten Island Technical High School surrounded by a plethora of Russians whose conversation, although easily translatable, was still not understandable. Jumping from the English to the Russian text of Gogol’s work, I attempted to place myself in the shoes of one of those Russians in the hallway. I pretended I was an insider who understood the ambiguous dialogue and the strange wittiness. I humored myself into believing that because I could semi-comprehend the Russian dialogue I knew all there was to know about the story.
All the women in “The Nose”
(Dverin)
For the entirety of the short story I believed the talking nose beheld the physical stature of a giant nose dressed in a trench coat sporting a pair of conspicuous black-rimmed glasses – the ideal disguise for anyone, or thing, incognito. Albeit, I deducted this was not really a tale of a man losing his nose, I still could not create a human image for the said nose in question. On the other hand, I was immediately able to create Russian guises for the other characters. Ivan, the barber, was a tall, skinny, black haired Russian geezer who did not speak Russian or English, but a mumbled combination of the two. His conversational skills were limited; yet because of his hair-cutting mastery he was able to maintain a healthy status in the Russian hierarchy.
Just two of the ten
(Russian Police)
Kovalev, the unfortunate man who loses his pimpled nose, was the uniformed Danny Zuko of Russians pre-losing his nose, and a combination of Michael Jackson and Lord Voldermort post-losing his nose. Concerned with his appearance, Kovalev walked around with a handkerchief in order to hide his missing sense. The police officers were drunken fools; the female characters all babushkas. I lump these two groups together because there seemed to be no disparities between the different police officers, or any disparities between the different women roles.
The man without a nose was by far my favorite character because he epitomized Russian culture. So concerned with his high-ranking status, Kovalev’s nose is even socially aware. “Judging by the buttons on your uniform,” the nose proclaims to Kovalev, “there can’t be any close relations between us.” This reveals that in Russia in the 1830s, class was everything. It defined relationships and decided who was “in” and who was “out”. Those of different social distinctions did not speak, nor interact. Not being able to know your own nose because he’s in a different department serves as a clear indicator of the rigidity of the 1830s Russian social hierarchy.
Luckily, the conclusion of the short story ends on a happy note. Kovalev becomes Danny Zuko again. Although he opts not to have his prized, high-ranking Sandy, he instead chooses to invite a local shirt-vender who’s “a real beauty” to come over to his house. Proving yet again, the high (ranking) always get what they want, and the low are just happy to obey.
Works Cited
Dverin, Anatoly. Babushka. N.d. Pastel on paper. From Russia with Art Gallery.Fromrussiawithart.org. 2012. Web. 9 Oct. 2013.
“Russian Police.” Russia In Pictures. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2013.
“Sign – Parking for Russians Only – Splash of Pride.” Sign – Parking for Russians Only – Splash of Pride. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2013.
As a fellow Staten Island Techie, I can relate to how you felt there was a large amount of Russian context in the story. When I saw the Russian alphabet listed out in the libretto, I actually took out a piece of paper to test myself if I still remember all 33 letters and unfortunately, I failed. However, I don’t think the point the story establishes is “just a Russian thing” because every society has social status and we are all impacted by it whether big or small. In fact, I think social status is a big thing in today’s society with people competing for jobs and job promotions. Although the rigidness of society status has changed and the emphasis is less than that of the 1800s in Russia, social status still plays a pretty big part in our lives and there are definitely people who worry about it.
I really liked your thorough descriptions of your image of the nose, Ivan, and Kovaloff. Kovaloff was also my favorite character, mostly because of the humor he provides in the story from being too obsessed with his social status and lady friends.
I also attended a Tech high school (Brooklyn Tech) so I know exactly what you mean when you say that this story evoked familiar feelings. I completely agree when you say that the jumbled russian dialogue threw you right back into the confines of a tech hallway, or 19th century Russia. I think that it is really interesting that we had such similar feelings toward the story.
The way you depicted the various characters was also very similar to my depiction. I could not help but visualize the nose as an actual nose throughout the entire story and I think that it’s really funny that you had the same problem. Constantly I would imagine a 6 ft nose with a nice little jacket concealing his nostrils. I would add that overall I think you did a great job combining the stories meaning with all your sensory experiences and I enjoyed reading your mood diary.