The City and Its Curious Public

The Nose

This flow traces how curiosity binds citizens together around the alleged sightings while dividing them over belief and skepticism.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Shared Story A Shared Story from "The Nose". A Shared Story News Becomes Conversation The city hears reports of Kovaloff’s wandering nose, and the event becomes common talk.

A Shared Story from "The Nose". A Shared Story News Becomes Conversation The city hears reports of Kovaloff’s wandering nose, and the event becomes common talk.

A Shared Story News Becomes Conversation The city hears reports of Kovaloff’s wandering nose, and the event becomes common talk. People who do not know the Major share an interest in his misfortune. Collective Curiosity Rumor creates a temporary bond among strangers. The public approaches the nose as an object of wonder rather than as a personal loss.

Spectators Gather Spectators Gather from "The Nose". Spectators Gather A Crowd at the Shop People converge on a reported sighting, hoping to witness the extraordinary figure.

Spectators Gather from "The Nose". Spectators Gather A Crowd at the Shop People converge on a reported sighting, hoping to witness the extraordinary figure.

Spectators Gather A Crowd at the Shop People converge on a reported sighting, hoping to witness the extraordinary figure. Their shared attention turns a rumor into a public event. Curiosity Sold A speculator charges visitors to stand on benches and look. The crowd’s desire to see is converted into a small commercial relationship.

The Disappointed Observer The Disappointed Observer from "The Nose". The Disappointed Observer Expectation Defeated A colonel pushes through the crowd but finds ordinary displays in the window.

The Disappointed Observer from "The Nose". The Disappointed Observer Expectation Defeated A colonel pushes through the crowd but finds ordinary displays in the window.

The Disappointed Observer Expectation Defeated A colonel pushes through the crowd but finds ordinary displays in the window. The promised marvel is absent from the place where curiosity has concentrated. Contempt for the Crowd He angrily condemns those stirred by the rumor. Shared fascination thus produces a counter-bond among skeptics who define themselves against the credulous.

A Lesson Requested A Lesson Requested from "The Nose". A Lesson Requested Children as Audience A high-born woman asks that her children be shown the supposed phenomenon and given suitable instruction.

A Lesson Requested from "The Nose". A Lesson Requested Children as Audience A high-born woman asks that her children be shown the supposed phenomenon and given suitable instruction.

A Lesson Requested Children as Audience A high-born woman asks that her children be shown the supposed phenomenon and given suitable instruction. Curiosity is framed as an educational opportunity. Wonder Made Respectable The request gives a fantastic rumor a domestic and pedagogical purpose. Adults try to turn collective fascination into knowledge for the next generation.

Wits and Moralizers Wits and Moralizers from "The Nose". Wits and Moralizers Entertainment and Alarm Town wits collect the reports as amusing material, while serious citizens object to their circulation.

Wits and Moralizers from "The Nose". Wits and Moralizers Entertainment and Alarm Town wits collect the reports as amusing material, while serious citizens object to their circulation.

Wits and Moralizers Entertainment and Alarm Town wits collect the reports as amusing material, while serious citizens object to their circulation. The same rumor produces pleasure and civic anxiety. Competing Public Bonds Some people bond through jokes, others through indignation or demands for government action. The city’s response becomes a social drama of its own.

Days after 25 March

Several days after 25 March

During the shopfront gathering

After the shopfront rumor

Near the end of the rumor episode