Style and themes inherited and transformed in Lu Xun's "Diary of a Madman" compared with Gogol's "Diary of a Madman"

After reading Lu Xun and Gogol's "Diary of a Madman", it is apparent that the writing style and the choice of themes treated in Lu Xun's "Diary of a Madman" are influenced by Gogol's "Diary of a Madman", but Lu Xun presents the story in a more penetrating and elaborate way to accentuate the themes. Before revealing how Lu Xun incorporates Gogol's ideas into his work, we first examine the contacts between Lu Xun and …

… he realizes he can only place his hope on the new generation who has not been poisoned by Confucianism to remedy the ingrained tradition and liberate people's minds. Comparing these two works, we can find some traces of Gogol's influence in Lu Xun's story. Yet, Lu Xun exhibited his creativity and infused new elements into the story to make it not merely an imitation but a pioneering piece of writing in Chinese literary history.