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Gogol’s discourse on madness in his autobiographical records and works: focusing on Diary of a madman

This article attempts to reinterpret the meaning of ‘madness’ of Poprishchin, hero of Diary of Madman (1835), in light of the Gogol’s mysterious desire. Inferring the prototype of Poprishchin’s desire from Gogol’s autobiographical records, this article explains the hero’s madness as a sort of language inherent in his desire. Gogol has been an ‘unreliable narrator’ all his life, which makes it hard to grasp what he really had in mind with his calling. Correspondences with mother show how Gogol acted unexpectedly and by doing so how he brought dubious reputation upon himself. Nevertheless, for Gogol madness was an object more of an inquiry than a disgrace. Instead of refuting the charge of madness, Gogol accepts fact that there are contradictory views of him regardless of his intention. When he came back shortly after leaving for Lübeck in the Divine Will, he thought that even his hardship of approaching “the high and beautiful” was ordained by God. Consequently, in his alleged madness Gogol sees not a dreadful judgement but a clue to Providence. Gogol and Poprishchin are similar in that both are well aware of what constitutes madness. Poprishchin understands that assuming the title or assuming the someone else’s identity is an act of insanity. So his decision to declare himself as the king of Spain mirrors the reality in which no one considered him insane even though he believed himself a titular councilor. However, Poprishchin is trying to keep his desire in silence until it is realized. His ultimate goal is to demonstrate how another abnormal incident can enter the world and settle down as if nothing had happened.