Dynamics of Spiritual and Moral Degradation of the Characters of Wu Jingzi’s Novel An Unofficial History of the Confucians and N. V. Gogol’s Poem Dead Souls

The article analyzes the dynamics of spiritual and moral degradation of the characters in the narratives by Wu Jingzi and N. V. Gogol, two representatives of Chinese and Russian classical literature. The author considers the variants of negative dynamics representation: full or partial biography, author’s minor remarks, descriptions of material and social environment. The article suggests that the dynamics of spiritual and moral degradation in the works of Wu Jingzi and N. V. Gogol is a way to identify and criticize individual vices that lead to the degradation of society. While the attitudes to social vices in Chinese and Russian cultures have much in common, the ways of their representation differ.