Marlborough Went to the War

“Marlborough Went to the War” is the tune Nozdrev’s barrel-organ plays when he presses Chichikov to buy it. Its recurrence makes the music more than an incidental demonstration: the sales pitch becomes a performance that Chichikov cannot readily escape, while the tune itself supplies a refrain for Nozdrev’s insistence.

The Tune and the Barrel-Organ

Nozdrev presents the instrument as a valuable possession, claiming it had cost fifteen hundred roubles when new and offering it for nine hundred. Chichikov rejects the purchase, saying he has no use for a barrel-organ and is not a German who would haul one along the roads to beg for coppers. Nozdrev counters that his is a real organ, made of the best wood, and urges Chichikov to inspect it.

A Repeated Performance

The demonstration becomes physical as well as verbal: Nozdrev takes Chichikov by the hand and draws him into another room. Chichikov plants his feet and repeatedly assures his host that he already knows what the instrument is like, but is forced once more to hear “Marlborough Went to the War.” The tune’s recurrence marks Nozdrev’s refusal to let Chichikov’s answer end the exchange.

Part of a Failed Bargain

When Chichikov will not pay for the organ, Nozdrev folds it into a larger proposal: he offers the instrument together with all the dead souls he owns in return for Chichikov’s britchka and three hundred roubles. Chichikov objects that this would leave him with nothing to drive in. The tune therefore accompanies an escalating negotiation in which Nozdrev keeps changing the offer, while Chichikov remains intent on refusing the organ and preserving his carriage.