The use of images of Greek and Roman mythology is one of the features of the literature of Russian classicism of the XVIII and first quarter of the XIX centuries. An understanding of ancient symbolism was mandatory for an educated person of the society of that time. Expressions like "Cupid's arrow", "Cupid", "Hymen" and the like were widely used in literature and in the spoken language. But already in the XVIII century, there is a tendency to reduce mythological images in parody literature, for example, in V. Maykov's comic poem " Elisha, or the Irritated Bacchus "(1771), highly appreciated by A. S. Pushkin. In the literary heritage of Gogol, as well as his great predecessors Derzhavin and Pushkin, characters of ancient mythology and history are often mentioned. In some cases, they appear in their original meaning as the personification of certain qualities, bad or good. For example, Zeus as the supreme god, who manages all the affairs of heaven and earth. Dryad - wood nymph, Melpomene-muse of tragedy, Hades-lord of the underworld and the realm of the dead, etc. In others - in a reduced, parodic meaning. In the early period of his work ("Hans Kuchelgarten", "The Terrible Boar"), as well as in literary and critical articles from page 3 In the collection" Arabesques " Gogol uses ancient names mainly in the direct meaning. Thus, in the famous article "Sculpture, music and painting", describing the "bright Greek world", he draws vivid images of the god of fun Bacchus, the lord of the seas Poseidon and the goddess of beauty Aphrodite with a retinue of tritons - sea deities of the lowest order (Gogol N. V. Poln. sobr. op.: In 14 volumes., 1937-1952. Vol. 6. p. 23; further-only volume and page). The inclusion of characters from ancient mythology in the text gives it color and expressiveness. The article" Al-Mamun", which was read by Gogol as a lecture for students of St. Petersburg University in the presence of Pushkin and Zhukovsky, mentions the mythological hero - the ma ... Read more