# Nikolai Khripatch — The Little Demon character guide

> Nikolai Khripatch in The Little Demon by Fyodor Sologub.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Nikolai Vlasyevitch, Nikolai Vlasyevitch Khripatch, Khripatch

**First appearance:** 0006-i

## Snapshot

A provincial official and father whose respectable facade barely conceals the petty malice and status-anxiety that saturate his town's social air.

## Who they are

Khripatch belongs to the small-town bureaucracy that orbits around Peredonov's school and the gossip networks of the district. As a father, he embodies the novel's quiet indictment of domestic life reduced to routine, obedience, and appearances. His presence helps establish the stifling provincial world whose tedium and cruelty Sologub renders as both comic and tragic.

## Relationships

### [Peredonov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters/peredonov)

_professional_

Nikolai Khripatch is a fellow teacher and colleague of Peredonov, but their relationship is marked by rivalry and distrust.

### [Sasha Pilnikov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters/sasha_pilnikov)

_professional_

Khripatch is a teacher who interacts with Sasha as a student, showing a mix of concern and suspicion.

### [Peredonov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters/peredonov)

_professional_

Nikolai Khripatch is a fellow teacher and colleague of Peredonov, but their relationship is marked by rivalry and distrust.

### [Sasha Pilnikov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters/sasha_pilnikov)

_professional_

Khripatch is a teacher who interacts with Sasha as a student, showing a mix of concern and suspicion.

### [Peredonov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters/peredonov)

_professional_

Nikolai Khripatch is a fellow teacher and colleague of Peredonov, but their relationship is marked by rivalry and distrust.

### [Sasha Pilnikov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters/sasha_pilnikov)

_professional_

Khripatch is a teacher who interacts with Sasha as a student, showing a mix of concern and suspicion.

## In the story

### [XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/chapters/xiii)

The Headmaster, who dismisses Peredonov's accusation with mechanical laughter but later questions Sasha about his fatigue.

### [XIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/chapters/xix)

Worried about Peredonov's behavior, consults the school physician, and confronts Peredonov about his teaching.

### [Chapter XXIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/chapters/xxiv)

Visits with his wife; maintains a distant, formal demeanor and refuses Peredonov's Madeira.

### [XXVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/chapters/xxvii)

The Headmaster advises Peredonov to stay home and reports his mental decline to the District.

### [XXVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/chapters/xxviii)

Receives the anonymous letter; interviews Kokovkina and Sasha; struggles with how to handle the situation.

### [XXXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/chapters/xxxi)

The Headmaster who meets with Liudmilla and is swayed by her persuasive falsehoods, agreeing to keep Sasha at home until the Peredonov affair is resolved.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters/nikolai_khripatch
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_little_demon_se/characters