person
Marya Osipovna
also: Марья Осиповна
An acquaintance for whom Ivan Ivanych must fetch sprats and marmalade from Tyutryumov's shop; he curses her under his breath, wishing the devils in the next world would pull out her tongue.
Reading notes
- One of Many §15 may the devils in the next world pull her tongue out for her
"Чтоб у нее на том свете черти язык вытянули" is a stock Russian folk curse-formula (devils tormenting the damned in the afterlife by pulling out the offending body part) aimed here at Marya Osipovna simply for adding to Ivan Ivanych's errand list; it is exaggerated comic venting typical of the monologue's register, not a serious wish for anyone's damnation, and the translation keeps its full folk-curse color rather than softening it into a milder English idiom.