The article is focused on the problem of the classical literary heritage influence, in particular that of N. V. Gogol and F. M. Dostoevsky, on the short story by contemporary prose writer Yu. V. Buyda “Karl the Dwarf”, which is in line with the research trends of literary science. These factors explain the relevance of the work. The article firstly identifies the similarities of the heroes of classical and modern works through semantics of the name and some biographical facts; secondly, semantic transformations of symbols (clock with a pendulum, dance), which, referring to literary primary sources, determine the ideological and artistic depth of the story by Yu. V. Buyda, developing the idea of salvation; thirdly, the image of the boot / shoe as the personification of happiness; fourthly, the relationship of the dog image with motive of the movement of the soul. Identified link between N. V. Gogol, F. M. Dostoevsky and Yu. V. Buyda plays an important part in determining the essence of the conflict between person and the world, as well as the ethical-philosophical concept of the story, in the center of which stands the house as the repository of family values, a reflection of the ideal and happiness. In the image of Karl, whose name refers to N. V. Gogol, the writer’s dark mystery is replaced by the strangeness of the Yu. V. Buyda’s hero, who perceives hard reality as quite a happy one. In contrast to the self-reflection-immersed hero of the “Notes from the Underground” by F. M. Dostoevsky, who feels humiliated, Buyda’s hero does not seek to comprehend life, but accepts it. Using the motive of dance Yu. V. Buyda somewhat narrows his semantics, denoting dance as part of the microworld of the Gomozkov family, while N. V. Gogol’s dance grows to the size of the Universe. Shoes in the story, sacred, on the one hand, correspond to the protagonist of Gogol’s “The Overcoat”, who viewed the overcoat as part of himself; on the other hand, there is a parallel with the works by F. M. Dostoevsky, where the shoes personified both the equipped and the unfinished but alien world, turned out to be a symbol of self-humiliation, unlike in the story by Yu. V. Buyda, where shoes, playing a plot-forming part, serve to express the idea of happiness. In addition, modern writer creates a triad of shoes - the church - the bride, which becomes the key element, symbolizing spiritual transformation. In the finale of “Karl the Dwarf” a clear parallel appears with the final episode of the poem by N. V. Gogol “Dead Souls”, depicting the rapid movement into the unknown of troika as symbol of Russia. Unlike the classic, Yu. V. Buyda confirms the idea of being able to experience the happiness of being through ordinary everyday trifles.