Stylistic function of the motives of hearsay and fame are studied in the plots of «Old-World Landowners», «Viy», and «The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich» by N. V. Gogol. Their role in the plot and the chronotopos of the works is considered, as well as their meaning in the space of the stories, their linkages with the motives of emergency and disclosed mystery are regarded.
