Gogol's The Overcoat has an unnamed narrator who relates the story of a lowly Russian government clerk named Akakiy Akakievitch. Day in and day out Akakiy labours away, copying documents at his government office in St. Petersburg. It's tedious work, but Akakiy enjoys it and has no desire to do anything else. Indeed, when a superior attempts to reward him for his dedicated service by giving him more interesting and challenging tasks, Akakiy gets stressed out and asks to go back to his copying. He would be perfectly contented with his lot except for a couple of things, one being his treatment at the hands of the other government employees; no one respects him. His superiors barely notice him, except to hand him documents which they need copied. The other clerks regard him as a figure of fun, with his shabby clothes, diffident manner, and lack of interest in anything except flawlessly copying the papers he's given. They tease and mock Akakiy, though he generally ignores their jibes until they start trying to cause him to make mistakes in his work, by tossing bits of paper onto his head, saying it's snowing, or by jostling his arm. At which point he's goaded into imploring, "Leave me alone! Why do you insult me?" This makes little impression on his tormentors, except for one young fellow who is struck with remorse for his behaviour and leaves off his teasing. The other thing which worries Akakiy is the state of his coat. As winter approaches, he is very cold and achy and realises this is because his cloak has become so old and threadbare that it is no longer protecting him from the elements. He goes to see the tailor- Petrovich- who he usually has mend his clothes. After examining the cloak, Petrovich tells him bluntly that there's not enough of it left to repair anymore and he must have a new overcoat made. Akakiy is dismayed because there is no way he can afford a new coat on his meagre salary. And yet, he must have an overcoat. Doing some calculations, he thinks that he can save up the money needed if he keeps to a very strict budget, forgoes eating an evening meal, and burns no candles. As he spends every night cold, hungry, and in the dark, Akakiy consoles himself with thoughts of the beautiful overcoat Petrovich will make him. And, as he works toward his goal, Akakiy becomes a firmer, more determined man, driven by thoughts of the wonderful new coat, which in his mind he almost regards as a living thing. The anticipated day comes even sooner than Akakiy could have hoped when he receives an unexpectedly large holiday bonus at work. Added to what he has saved, it's enough to pay the tailor. He excitedly goes to see Petrovich, who is just as enthusiastic and gets to work right away on the new overcoat. When it is finished, the new overcoat is beautiful: warm, well-cut, and with a fur collar (cat, because any other fur was too expensive). Akakiy is ecstatic, and for the first time in his life conscious of his clothes; he has never before given any thought to his appearance. But walking to work in his new coat is an unexpected pleasure to him, and his arrival at the office causes a bit of a sensation as everyone is shocked to see dowdy old Akakiy in a stylish coat. As the other clerks exclaim over it and jokingly declare that he must throw a party in honour of his new overcoat, Akakiy is confused and embarrassed by all the attention, not knowing what to say. Just then one of the officials comes into the room, attracted by the commotion. Wanting to show that he is on good terms with his underlings, he volunteers to host a party at his house that evening, and all must come- especially Akakiy and his new coat. (To Be Continued...)
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