Nikolai Gogol

Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol was a Russian novelist, short story writer and playwright of Ukrainian origin.Gogol was one of the first to use the techniques of surrealism and the grotesque in his works. According to Viktor Shklovsky, Gogol's strange style of writing resembles the "ostranenie" technique. His early works, such as Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka, were influenced by his Ukrainian upbringing, Ukrainian culture and folklore. His later writing satirised political corruption in the Russian Empire. The novel Taras Bulba and the play Marriage, along with the short stories "Diary of a Madman", "The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich", "The Portrait" and "The Carriage", are also among his best-known works.

Many writers and critics have recognized Gogol's huge influence on Russian and world literature.