The history of the creation of Gogol’s work “The Overcoat”
Gogol, according to the Russian philosopher N. Berdyaev, is “the most mysterious figure in Russian literature.” To this day, the writer’s works cause controversy. One of these works is the story “The Overcoat”.
In the mid-30s. Gogol heard a joke about an official who lost his gun. It sounded like this: there lived one poor official who was a passionate hunter. He saved for a long time for a gun, which he had long dreamed of. His dream came true, but, sailing on Gulf of Finland, he lost it. Returning home, the official died of frustration.
The first draft of the story was called “The Tale of an Official Stealing an Overcoat.” In this version, some anecdotal motives and comic effects were visible. The official's last name was Tishkevich. In 1842, Gogol completed the story and changed the hero's surname. The story is published, completing the cycle “ Petersburg stories" This cycle includes the stories: “Nevsky Prospekt”, “The Nose”, “Portrait”, “The Stroller”, “Notes of a Madman” and “The Overcoat”. The writer worked on the cycle between 1835 and 1842. The stories are united based on a common place of events - St. Petersburg. Petersburg, however, is not only the place of action, but also a kind of hero of these stories, in which Gogol depicts life in its various manifestations. Typically, writers, when talking about St. Petersburg life, illuminated the life and characters of the capital's society. Gogol was attracted to petty officials, artisans, and poor artists—“little people.” It was no coincidence that St. Petersburg was chosen by the writer; it was this stone city that was especially indifferent and merciless to “ little man" This topic was first opened by A.S. Pushkin. She becomes the leader in the work of N.V. Gogol.
Genre, genre, creative method
Analysis of the work shows that in the story “The Overcoat” one can see the influence hagiographic literature. It is known that Gogol was an extremely religious person. Of course, he was well acquainted with this genre of church literature. Many researchers have written about the influence of the life of St. Akaki of Sinai on the story “The Overcoat,” including famous names: V.B. Shklovsky and G.L. Makogonenko. Moreover, in addition to the striking external similarity of the destinies of St. Akaki and the hero Gogol were traced to the main general points plot development: obedience, stoic patience, the ability to endure various kinds of humiliation, then death from injustice and - life after death.
The genre of “The Overcoat” is defined as a story, although its volume does not exceed twenty pages. It received its specific name - a story - not so much for its volume, but for its enormous semantic richness, which is not found in every novel. The meaning of the work is revealed only by compositional and stylistic techniques with the extreme simplicity of the plot. A simple story about a poor official who invested all his money and soul into a new overcoat, after the theft of which he dies, under the pen of Gogol found a mystical denouement and turned into a colorful parable with enormous philosophical overtones. “The Overcoat” is not just an accusatory satirical story, it is a wonderful work of art that reveals the eternal problems of existence that will not be translated either in life or in literature as long as humanity exists.
Sharply criticizing the dominant system of life, its internal falsehood and hypocrisy, Gogol’s work suggested the need for a different life, a different social structure. The great writer’s “Petersburg Tales,” which include “The Overcoat,” are usually attributed to the realistic period of his work. Nevertheless, they can hardly be called realistic. The sad story of the stolen overcoat, according to Gogol, “unexpectedly takes on a fantastic ending.” The ghost, in whom the deceased Akaki Akakievich was recognized, tore off everyone’s greatcoat, “without discerning rank and title.” Thus, the ending of the story turned it into a phantasmagoria.
Subject of the analyzed work
The story raises social, ethical, religious and aesthetic problems. Public interpretation emphasized the social side of “The Overcoat.” Akakiy Akakievich was viewed as a typical “little man”, a victim of the bureaucratic system and indifference. Emphasizing the typicality of the “little man’s” fate, Gogol says that death did not change anything in the department; Bashmachkin’s place was simply taken by another official. Thus, the theme of man - a victim of the social system - is brought to its logical conclusion.
The ethical or humanistic interpretation was built on the pitiful moments of “The Overcoat”, the call for generosity and equality, which was heard in Akaki Akakievich’s weak protest against office jokes: “Leave me alone, why are you offending me?” - and in these penetrating words other words rang: “I am your brother.” Finally, the aesthetic principle, which came to the fore in the works of the 20th century, focused mainly on the form of the story as the focus of its artistic value.
The idea of the story "The Overcoat"
“Why depict poverty... and the imperfections of our life, digging people out of life, from the remote corners of the state? ...no, there is a time when it is otherwise impossible to direct society and even a generation towards the beautiful until you show the full depth of its real abomination,” wrote N.V. Gogol, and in his words lies the key to understanding the story.
The author showed the “depth of abomination” of society through the fate of the main character of the story - Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin. His image has two sides. The first is spiritual and physical squalor, which Gogol deliberately emphasizes and brings to the fore. The second is the arbitrariness and heartlessness of those around him in relation to the main character of the story. The relationship between the first and second determines the humanistic pathos of the work: even a person like Akaki Akakievich has the right to exist and be treated fairly. Gogol sympathizes with the fate of his hero. And it makes the reader involuntarily think about the attitude towards the entire world around him, and first of all about the sense of dignity and respect that every person should arouse towards himself, regardless of his social and financial situation, but only taking into account his personal qualities and merits.
Nature of the conflict
The idea is based on N.V. Gogol lies in the conflict between the “little man” and society, a conflict leading to rebellion, to the uprising of the humble. The story “The Overcoat” describes not only an incident from the hero’s life. The whole life of a person appears before us: we are present at his birth, the naming of his name, we learn how he served, why he needed an overcoat and, finally, how he died. The life story of the “little man”, his inner world, his feelings and experiences, depicted by Gogol not only in “The Overcoat”, but also in other stories of the “Petersburg Tales” series, firmly entered into Russian literature of the 19th century century.
The main characters of the story “The Overcoat”
The hero of the story is Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin, a petty official of one of the St. Petersburg departments, a humiliated and powerless man “of short stature, somewhat pockmarked, somewhat reddish, somewhat blind in appearance, with a small bald spot on his forehead, with wrinkles on both sides of his cheeks.” The hero of Gogol's story is offended by fate in everything, but he does not complain: he is already over fifty, he has not gone beyond copying papers, has not risen to a rank higher than a titular councilor (a civil servant of the 9th class, who has no right to acquire personal nobility - unless he born a nobleman) - and yet humble, meek, devoid of ambitious dreams. Bashmachkin has neither family nor friends, he does not go to the theater or to visit. All his “spiritual” needs are satisfied by copying papers: “It is not enough to say: he served zealously, - no, he served with love.” Nobody considers him to be a person. “The young officials laughed and made jokes at him, as much as their clerical wit was enough...” Bashmachkin did not answer a single word to his offenders, did not even stop working and did not make mistakes in the letter. All his life Akaki Akakievich serves in the same place, in the same position; His salary is meager - 400 rubles. per year, the uniform has long been no longer green, but a reddish flour color; Colleagues call an overcoat worn to holes a hood.
Gogol does not hide the limitations, scarcity of interests of his hero, and tongue-tiedness. But something else comes to the fore: his meekness, uncomplaining patience. Even the hero’s name carries this meaning: Akaki is humble, gentle, does no evil, innocent. The appearance of the overcoat reveals the hero’s spiritual world; for the first time, the hero’s emotions are depicted, although Gogol does not give the character’s direct speech - only a retelling. Akaki Akakievich remains speechless even at the critical moment of his life. The drama of this situation lies in the fact that no one helped Bashmachkin.
An interesting vision of the main character from the famous researcher B.M. Eikhenbaum. He saw in Bashmachkin an image that “served with love”; in the rewriting, “he saw some kind of varied and pleasant world of his own,” he did not think at all about his dress or anything else practical, he ate without noticing the taste, he did not indulge in any entertainment, in a word, he lived in some kind of ghostly and strange world, far from reality, he was a dreamer in uniform. And it’s not for nothing that his spirit, freed from this uniform, so freely and boldly develops its revenge - this is prepared by the whole story, here is its whole essence, its whole whole.
Along with Bashmachkin in the story important role plays the image of an overcoat. It is also fully correlated with the broad concept of “uniform honor”, which characterized essential element noble and officer ethics, to the norms of which the authorities under Nicholas I tried to introduce commoners and all officials in general.
The loss of his overcoat turns out to be not only a material, but also a moral loss for Akaki Akakievich. Indeed, thanks to the new overcoat, Bashmachkin felt like a human being for the first time in a departmental environment. The new overcoat can save him from frost and illness, but, most importantly, it serves as protection for him from ridicule and humiliation from his colleagues. With the loss of his overcoat, Akaki Akakievich lost the meaning of life.
Plot and composition
“The plot of “The Overcoat” is extremely simple. The poor little official makes an important decision and orders a new overcoat. While she is being sewn, she turns into the dream of his life. The very first evening he puts it on, his overcoat is taken off by thieves on a dark street. The official dies of grief, and his ghost haunts the city. That’s the whole plot, but, of course, the real plot (as always with Gogol) is in the style, in the internal structure of this... anecdote,” this is how V.V. retold the plot of Gogol’s story. Nabokov.
Hopeless need surrounds Akaki Akakievich, but he does not see the tragedy of his situation, since he is busy with business. Bashmachkin is not burdened by his poverty because he does not know any other life. And when he has a dream - a new overcoat, he is ready to endure any hardships, just to bring the realization of his plans closer. The overcoat becomes a kind of symbol of a happy future, a beloved brainchild, for which Akaki Akakievich is ready to work tirelessly. The author is quite serious when he describes his hero’s delight at realizing his dream: the overcoat is sewn! Bashmachkin was completely happy. However, with the loss of his new overcoat, Bashmachkin is overtaken by real grief. And only after death is justice done. Bashmachkin's soul finds peace when he returns his lost item.
The image of the overcoat is very important in the development of the plot of the work. The plot of the story revolves around the idea of sewing a new overcoat or repairing an old one. The development of the action is Bashmachkin’s trips to the tailor Petrovich, an ascetic existence and dreams of a future overcoat, the purchase of a new dress and a visit to the name day, on which Akaki Akakievich’s overcoat must be “washed.” The action culminates in the theft of a new overcoat. And finally, the denouement lies in Bashmachkin’s unsuccessful attempts to return the overcoat; the death of a hero who caught a cold without his overcoat and yearns for it. The story ends with an epilogue - a fantastic story about the ghost of an official who is looking for his overcoat.
The story about the “posthumous existence” of Akaki Akakievich is full of horror and comedy at the same time. In the deathly silence of the St. Petersburg night, he tears off the greatcoats from officials, not recognizing the bureaucratic difference in ranks and operating both behind the Kalinkin Bridge (that is, in the poor part of the capital) and in the rich part of the city. Only having overtaken the direct culprit of his death, “one significant person”, who, after a friendly official party, goes to “a certain lady Karolina Ivanovna”, and having torn off his general’s overcoat, the “spirit” of the dead Akaki Akakievich calms down and disappears from St. Petersburg squares and streets. Apparently, “the general’s overcoat suited him perfectly.”
Artistic originality
“Gogol’s composition is not determined by the plot - his plot is always poor, rather, there is no plot at all, but only one comic (and sometimes not even comic in itself at all) situation is taken, which serves, as it were, only as an impetus or reason for the development comic techniques. This story is especially interesting for this kind of analysis, because in it a pure comic tale, with all the techniques of language play characteristic of Gogol, is combined with pathetic declamation, forming, as it were, a second layer. to his acting persons in “The Overcoat,” Gogol does not allow much to be said, and, as always with him, their speech is formed in a special way, so that, despite individual differences, it never gives the impression of everyday speech,” wrote B.M. Eikhenbaum in the article “How Gogol’s “Overcoat” was Made.”
The narration in “The Overcoat” is told in the first person. The narrator knows the life of officials well and expresses his attitude to what is happening in the story through numerous remarks. “What to do! the St. Petersburg climate is to blame,” he notes regarding the hero’s deplorable appearance. The climate forces Akakiy Akakievich to go to great lengths to buy a new overcoat, that is, in principle, directly contributes to his death. We can say that this frost is an allegory of Gogol’s Petersburg.
All artistic media that Gogol uses in the story: a portrait, an image of the details of the situation in which the hero lives, the plot of the story - all this shows the inevitability of Bashmachkin’s transformation into a “little man”.
The style of storytelling itself, when a pure comic tale, built on wordplay, puns, and deliberate tongue-tiedness, is combined with sublime, pathetic declamation, is an effective artistic means.
Meaning of the work
The great Russian critic V.G. Belinsky said that the task of poetry is “to extract the poetry of life from the prose of life and to shake souls with a faithful portrayal of this life.” N.V. is precisely such a writer, a writer who shakes the soul by depicting the most insignificant pictures of human existence in the world. Gogol. According to Belinsky, the story “The Overcoat” is “one of Gogol’s most profound creations.” Herzen called “The Overcoat” “a colossal work.” The enormous influence of the story on the entire development of Russian literature is evidenced by the phrase recorded by the French writer Eugene de Vogüe from the words of “one Russian writer” (as is commonly believed, F.M. Dostoevsky): “We all came out of Gogol’s “The Overcoat.”
Gogol's works have been repeatedly staged and filmed. One of the last theatrical productions“The Overcoat” was undertaken at the Moscow Sovremennik. On the new stage of the theater, called “Another Stage”, intended primarily for staging experimental performances, “The Overcoat” was staged by director Valery Fokin.
“Staging Gogol’s “The Overcoat” has been my long-time dream. In general, I believe that there are three main works by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol - these are “The Inspector General”, “ Dead souls" and "Overcoat," said Fokin. — I had already staged the first two and dreamed about “The Overcoat,” but I couldn’t start rehearsing because I didn’t see the performer leading role... It always seemed to me that Bashmachkin is an unusual creature, neither feminine nor masculine, and someone here had to play this unusual, and really an actor or actress,” says the director. Fokin's choice fell on Marina Neelova. “During the rehearsal and in what happened during the work on the play, I realized that Neelova was the only actress who could do what I had in mind,” says the director. The play premiered on October 5, 2004. The set design of the story and the performing skills of actress M. Neyolova were highly appreciated by the audience and the press.
“And here is Gogol again. Sovremennik again. Once upon a time, Marina Neelova said that she sometimes imagines herself as a white sheet of paper, on which every director is free to depict whatever he wants - even a hieroglyph, even a drawing, even a long, tricky phrase. Maybe someone will imprison a blot in the heat of the moment. A viewer who looks at “The Overcoat” may imagine that there is no woman named Marina Mstislavovna Neyolova in the world, that she was completely erased from the drawing paper of the universe with a soft eraser and a completely different creature was drawn in her place. Gray-haired, thin-haired, evoking in everyone who looks at him both disgusting disgust and magnetic attraction.”
(Newspaper, October 6, 2004)
“In this series, Fokine’s “The Overcoat”, which opened a new stage, looks like just an academic repertoire line. But only at first glance. Going to a performance, you can safely forget about your previous ideas. For Valery Fokin, “The Overcoat” is not at all where all humanistic Russian literature with its eternal pity for the little man came from. His “Overcoat” belongs to a completely different, fantastic world. His Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin is not an eternal titular adviser, not a wretched copyist, unable to change verbs from the first person to the third, he is not even a man, but some strange creature of the neuter gender. To create such a fantastic image, the director needed an actor who was incredibly flexible and flexible, not only physically, but also psychologically. The director found such a versatile actor, or rather actress, in Marina Neelova. When this gnarled, angular creature with sparse tangled tufts of hair on his bald head appears on stage, the audience unsuccessfully tries to guess in him at least some familiar features of the brilliant prima “Contemporary”. In vain. Marina Neelova is not here. It seems that she has physically transformed, melted into her hero. Somnambulistic, cautious and at the same time awkward old man’s movements and a thin, plaintive, rattling voice. Since there is almost no text in the play (Bashmachkin’s few phrases, consisting mainly of prepositions, adverbs and other particles that absolutely do not have any meaning, serve rather as a speech or even sound characteristic of the character), the role of Marina Neyolova practically turns into a pantomime. But the pantomime is truly fascinating. Her Bashmachkin settled comfortably in his old giant overcoat, as if in a house: he fumbles around there with a flashlight, relieves himself, settles down for the night.”
(Kommersant, October 6, 2004)
This is interesting
“As part of the Chekhov Festival, on the Small Stage of the Pushkin Theater, where puppet productions often tour and the audience can accommodate only 50 people, the Chilean Theater of Miracles played Gogol’s “The Overcoat.” We don’t know anything about the puppet theater in Chile, so we could have expected something quite exotic, but in fact it turned out that there was nothing specifically foreign in it - it was just a good little performance, made sincerely, with love and without any special ambitions. What was funny was that the characters here are called exclusively by their patronymics and all these “Buenos Dias, Akakievich” and “Por Favor, Petrovich” sounded comical.
The Milagros Theater is a sociable affair. It was created in 2005 by the famous Chilean TV presenter Alina Kuppernheim together with her classmates. Young women say that they fell in love with “The Overcoat,” which is not very well known in Chile (it turns out that “The Nose” is much more famous there), while still studying, and they all studied to be actresses drama theater. Having decided to make a puppet theater, we spent two whole years composing everything together, adapting the story ourselves, coming up with a set design, and making puppets.
The portal of the Milagros Theater, a plywood house that barely accommodates four puppeteers, was placed in the middle of the Pushkinsky stage and a small curtain-screen was closed. The performance itself is performed in a “black room” (puppeteers dressed in black almost disappear against the backdrop of a black velvet backdrop), but the action began with a video on the screen. First there is a white silhouette animation - little Akakievich is growing up, he gets all the bumps, and he wanders - long, thin, big-nosed, hunched over more and more against the background of the conventional Petersburg. The animation gives way to a torn video - the crackling and noise of the office, flocks of typewriters flying across the screen (several eras are deliberately mixed here). And then, through the screen, in a spot of light, the red-haired man with deep bald patches gradually appears, Akakievich, at a table with papers that are kept being brought to him and brought to him.
In essence, the most important thing in the Chilean performance is the skinny Akakievich with long and awkward arms and legs. It is led by several puppeteers at once, some are responsible for the hands, some for the legs, but the audience does not notice this, they just see how the doll becomes alive. Here he scratches himself, rubs his eyes, groans, with pleasure straightens his stiff limbs, kneading every bone, now he carefully examines the network of holes in his old overcoat, ruffled, stomps around in the cold and rubs his frozen hands. It is a great art to work so harmoniously with a puppet, few people master it; Just recently at the Golden Mask we saw a production by one of our best puppet directors who knows how such miracles are made - Evgeniy Ibragimov, who staged Gogol's The Players in Tallinn.
There are other characters in the play: colleagues and superiors looking out from the doors and windows of the stage, the little red-nosed fat man Petrovich, the gray-haired Significant Person sitting at the table on a dais - all of them are also expressive, but cannot be compared with Akakievich. With how he humiliatingly and timidly huddles in Petrovich’s house, and how later, having received his lingonberry-colored overcoat, he giggles embarrassedly, turns his head, calling himself handsome, like an elephant on parade. And it seems that the wooden doll even smiles. This transition from jubilation to terrible grief, which is so difficult for “live” actors, comes out very naturally for the doll.
During the festive party that colleagues threw to “sprinkle” the hero’s new overcoat, a sparkling carousel was spinning on the stage and small flat dolls made from cut out old photographs were spinning in a dance. Akakievich, who was previously worried that he did not know how to dance, returns from the party, full of happy impressions, as if from a disco, continuing to dance and sing: “boom-boom - tudu-tudu.” This is a long, funny and touching episode. And then unknown hands beat him and take off his overcoat. Further, a lot will happen with running around the authorities: the Chileans expanded several Gogol lines into a whole anti-bureaucratic video episode with a map of the city, which shows how officials drive from one to another a poor hero trying to return his overcoat.
Only the voices of Akakievich and those who are trying to get rid of him are heard: “You should contact Gomez on this issue. - Please Gomez. — Do you want Pedro or Pablo? - Should I Pedro or Pablo? - Julio! - Please Julio Gomez. “You need to go to another department.”
But no matter how inventive all these scenes may be, the meaning is still in the red-haired sad hero who returns home, lies down in bed and, pulling the blanket, for a long time, sick and tormented by sad thoughts, tosses and turns and tries to nestle comfortably. Completely alive and desperately alone.”
(“Vremya Novostey” 06.24.2009)
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MannYu. Gogol's poetics. M., 1996.
Markovich V.M. Petersburg stories by N.V. Gogol. L., 1989.
Mochulsky KV. Gogol. Soloviev. Dostoevsky. M., 1995.
Nabokov V.V. Lectures on Russian literature. M., 1998.
Nikolaev D. Gogol's satire. M., 1984.
Shklovsky V.B. Notes on the prose of Russian classics. M., 1955.
Eikhenbaum BM. About prose. L., 1969.
Drawing by B. Kustodiev “Akaki Akakievich returns from the evening”
The story that happened to Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin begins with a story about his birth and his bizarre name and moves on to the story of his service as a titular adviser.
Many young officials, laughing, bother him, shower him with papers, push him on the arm, and only when he is completely unbearable, he says: “Leave me alone, why are you offending me?” - in a voice bowing to pity. Akakiy Akakievich, whose service consists of copying papers, performs it with love and, even having come from the presence and hastily sipped his food, takes out a jar of ink and copies the papers brought to the house, and if there are none, then he deliberately makes a copy for himself. some document with an intricate address. Entertainment and the pleasure of friendship do not exist for him, “having written to his heart’s content, he went to bed,” smilingly anticipating tomorrow’s rewriting.
However, this regularity of life is disrupted by an unforeseen incident. One morning, after repeated suggestions made by the St. Petersburg frost, Akaki Akakievich, having examined his overcoat (so lost in appearance that the department had long called it a hood), notices that it is completely see-through on the shoulders and back. He decides to take her to the tailor Petrovich, whose habits and biography are briefly, but not without detail, outlined. Petrovich examines the hood and declares that nothing can be fixed, but he will have to make a new overcoat. Shocked by the price Petrovich named, Akakiy Akakievich decides that he chose the wrong time and comes when, according to calculations, Petrovich is hungover and therefore more accommodating. But Petrovich stands his ground. Seeing that it is impossible to do without a new overcoat, Akaki Akakievich is looking for how to get those eighty rubles, for which, in his opinion, Petrovich will get down to business. He decides to reduce “ordinary expenses”: not drink tea in the evenings, not light candles, walk on tiptoes so as not to wear out the soles prematurely, give the laundry to the laundress less often, and to avoid getting worn out, stay at home in just a robe.
His life changes completely: the dream of an overcoat accompanies him like a pleasant friend of life. Every month he visits Petrovich to talk about the overcoat. The expected reward for the holiday, contrary to expectation, turns out to be twenty rubles more, and one day Akaki Akakievich and Petrovich go to the shops. And the cloth, and the calico for the lining, and the cat for the collar, and Petrovich’s work - everything turns out to be beyond praise, and, in view of the frosts that have begun, Akaki Akakievich one day goes to the department in a new overcoat. This event does not go unnoticed, everyone praises the overcoat and demands that Akaki Akakievich set the evening on this occasion, and only the intervention of a certain official (as if on purpose the birthday boy), who invited everyone to tea, saves the embarrassed Akaki Akakievich.
After the day, which was like a big solemn holiday for him, Akakiy Akakievich returns home, has a cheerful dinner and, having sat around doing nothing, goes to the official in far part cities. Again everyone praises his overcoat, but soon turns to whist, dinner, champagne. Forced to do the same, Akaki Akakievich feels unusual joy, but, remembering the late hour, he slowly goes home. Excited at first, he even rushes after some lady (“whose every part of her body was filled with extraordinary movement”), but the deserted streets that soon stretch out inspire him with involuntary fear. In the middle of a huge deserted square, some people with mustaches stop him and take off his overcoat.
The misadventures of Akaki Akakievich begin. He finds no help from a private bailiff. In the presence where he comes a day later in his old hood, they feel sorry for him and even think of making a contribution, but, having collected a mere trifle, they give advice to go to a significant person, who may contribute to a more successful search for the overcoat. The following describes the techniques and customs of a significant person who has become significant only recently, and therefore is preoccupied with how to give himself greater significance: “Severity, severity and - severity,” he usually said. Wanting to impress his friend, whom he had not seen for many years, he cruelly scolds Akaki Akakievich, who, in his opinion, addressed him inappropriately. Without feeling his feet, he reaches home and collapses with a strong fever. A few days of unconsciousness and delirium - and Akaki Akakievich dies, which the department learns about only on the fourth day after the funeral. It soon becomes known that at night a dead man appears near the Kalinkin Bridge, tearing off everyone's greatcoat, without regard to rank or rank. Someone recognizes him as Akaki Akakievich. The efforts made by the police to catch the dead man are in vain.
At that time, one significant person, who is not alien to compassion, having learned that Bashmachkin died suddenly, remains terribly shocked by this and, in order to have some fun, goes to a friend’s party, from where he goes not home, but to a familiar lady, Karolina Ivanovna, and, amid terrible bad weather, he suddenly feels that someone grabbed him by the collar. In horror, he recognizes Akaki Akakievich, who triumphantly pulls off his greatcoat. Pale and frightened, the significant person returns home and henceforth no longer scolds his subordinates with severity. The appearance of the dead official has since completely ceased, and the ghost that the Kolomna guard met a little later was already much taller and wore an enormous mustache.
Retold
Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol
In the department... but it’s better not to say in which department. There is nothing angrier than all kinds of departments, regiments, offices and, in a word, all kinds of official classes. Now everyone private person considers the whole society insulted in his own person. They say that quite recently a request was received from one police captain, I don’t remember any city, in which he clearly states that state regulations are perishing and that his sacred name is being pronounced in vain. And as proof, he attached to the request a huge volume of some romantic work, where every ten pages the police captain appears, sometimes even completely drunk. So, in order to avoid any troubles, it is better to call the department in question one department. So, in one department served one official ; the official cannot be said to be very remarkable, short in stature, somewhat pockmarked, somewhat reddish, even somewhat blind in appearance, with a small bald spot on his forehead, with wrinkles on both sides of his cheeks and a complexion that is called hemorrhoidal... What to do! The St. Petersburg climate is to blame. As for the rank (for with us, first of all, it is necessary to declare the rank), he was what is called an eternal titular councilor, over whom, as you know, various writers mocked and made jokes, having the commendable habit of leaning on those who cannot bite . The official's last name was Bashmachkin. Already from the name itself it is clear that it once came from a shoe; but when, at what time and how it came from the shoe, none of this is known. And father, and grandfather, and even brother-in-law, and all the completely Bashmachkins, walked in boots, changing the soles only three times a year. His name was Akaki Akakievich. Perhaps it will seem somewhat strange and searched out to the reader, but we can assure that they were not looking for it in any way, but that such circumstances happened of their own accord that it was impossible to give another name, and this is exactly how it happened. Akaki Akakievich was born against the night, if memory serves, on March 23rd. The deceased mother, an official and a very good woman, arranged to properly baptize the child. Mother was still lying on the bed opposite the door, and on her right hand stood her godfather, a most excellent man, Ivan Ivanovich Eroshkin, who served as the head of the Senate, and the godfather, the wife of a quarterly officer, a woman of rare virtues, Arina Semyonovna Belobryushkova. The mother in labor was given a choice of any of the three, which one she wanted to choose: Mokkia, Sossia, or name the child in the name of the martyr Khozdazat. “No,” thought the deceased: “the names are all like that.” To please her, they turned the calendar in a different place; Three names came out again: Triphilius, Dula and Varakhasiy. “This is the punishment,” said the old woman: “what are all the names; I really have never heard of anything like that. Let it be Varadat or Varukh, or else Triphilius and Varakhasiy.” They turned the page again and out came: Pavsikakhy and Vakhtisy. “Well, I already see,” said the old woman, “that, apparently, this is his fate. If so, it would be better for him to be called like his father. The father was Akaki, so let the son be Akaki.” This is how Akaki Akakievich came to be. The child was christened, and he began to cry and made such a grimace, as if he had a presentiment that there would be a titular councilor. So this is how all this happened. We brought this up so that the reader can see for himself that this happened entirely out of necessity and it was impossible to give another name. When and at what time he entered the department and who assigned him, no one could remember. No matter how many directors and various bosses changed, everyone saw him in the same place, in the same position, in the same position, as the same official for writing, so that later they were convinced that he was apparently born into the world already completely ready, in uniform and with a bald spot on his head. The department showed him no respect. The guards not only did not get up from their seats when he passed, but did not even look at him, as if a simple fly had flown through the reception area. The bosses treated him somehow coldly and despotically. Some assistant to the clerk would directly shove papers under his nose, without even saying “copy it,” or “here’s an interesting, pretty little thing,” or anything pleasant, as is used in well-bred services. And he took it, looking only at the paper, without looking at who gave it to him and whether he had the right to do so. He took it and immediately set about writing it. The young officials laughed and made jokes at him, as much as their clerical wit was sufficient, and immediately told him various stories compiled about him; they said about his owner, a seventy-year-old old woman, that she was beating him, they asked when their wedding would take place, they threw pieces of paper on his head, calling it snow. But Akaki Akakievich did not answer a single word to this, as if no one was in front of him; it didn’t even have an impact on his studies: among all these worries, he didn’t make a single mistake in writing. Only if the joke was too unbearable, when they pushed him by the arm, preventing him from going about his business, he said: “Leave me alone, why are you offending me?” And there was something strange in the words and in the voice with which they were spoken. There was something in him that was so inclining to pity that one young man, who had recently made up his mind, who, following the example of others, had allowed himself to laugh at him, suddenly stopped, as if pierced, and from then on it was as if everything had changed before him and appeared in a different form. Some unnatural force pushed him away from the comrades with whom he met, mistaking them for decent, secular people. And for a long time later, in the midst of the most cheerful moments, a low official with a bald spot on his forehead appeared to him, with his penetrating words: “Leave me alone, why are you offending me? - and in these penetrating words there were other words: “I am your brother.” And the poor young man covered himself with his hand, and many times later in his life he shuddered, seeing how much inhumanity there is in man, how much ferocious rudeness is hidden in refined, educated secularism, and, God! even in that person whom the world recognizes as noble and honest...
It is unlikely that anywhere one could find a person who would live like this in his position. It is not enough to say: he served zealously - no, he served with love. There, in this copying, he saw his own diverse and pleasant world. Pleasure was expressed on his face; He had some favorite letters, which if he got to, he was not himself: he laughed, and winked, and helped with his lips, so that in his face, it seemed, one could read every letter that his pen wrote. If rewards were given to him in proportion to his zeal, he, to his amazement, might even end up as a state councilor; but he, as his wits put it, earned a buckle in his buttonhole and acquired hemorrhoids in his lower back. However, it cannot be said that there was no attention to him. One director, being kind person and wanting to reward him for his long service, he ordered that he be given something more important than ordinary copying; It was precisely from the already completed case that he was ordered to make some kind of connection to another public place; the only thing was to change the title title and change here and there the verbs from the first person to the third. This gave him such work that he became completely sweaty, rubbed his forehead and finally said: “No, better let me rewrite something.” Since then they left it to be rewritten forever. Outside of this rewriting, it seemed that nothing existed for him. He didn’t think at all about his dress: his uniform was not green, but some kind of reddish flour color. The collar on him was narrow, low, so that his neck, despite the fact that it was not long, coming out of the collar, seemed unusually long, like those of those plaster kittens, dangling their heads, which are carried on the heads of dozens of Russian foreigners. And there was always something stuck to his uniform: either a piece of hay, or some kind of thread; Moreover, he had a special art, while walking down the street, of running under the window at the very time when all sorts of rubbish was being thrown out of it, and therefore he was always carrying watermelon and melon rinds and similar nonsense on his hat. Not once in his life did he pay attention to what was going on and happening every day on the street, which, as you know, his brother, a young official, who extends the insight of his glib gaze to such an extent that he even notices who on the other side of the sidewalk, the stirrup of his trousers was torn off at the bottom, which always brings a sly smile to his face.
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At the beginning of the story, a story is given about the choice of the bizarre name of the main character, Bashmachkin Akakiy Akakievich, the titular adviser.
A fair number of young people with ranks above his rank laughed at him, showered him with papers, and pushed him with their elbows. And only when he was completely unable to endure, not understanding such cruelty, he asked to leave him, in a voice that evoked compassion. Akaki's service consisted of copying papers, but he performed it with love and saw it in his work special world. And while at home, he could not escape from his favorite activity. Having written to his heart's content, he went to bed, expecting a new rewrite the next day.
But even such a measured life can be changed by a sudden event. One day, which was always accompanied by the St. Petersburg frost, Akaki Akakievich, looking at his old overcoat (it was even nicknamed the hood), realizes that it has become thin on the shoulders and back. At first, he decides to have it mended by Petrovich, the tailor, but he claims that nothing can be done with it, but that a new overcoat should be made. The price seems too high to Akaki, but Petrovich cannot be persuaded to accept a lower price. Having convinced himself that a new overcoat is necessary, Bashmachkin begins to limit himself in many ways in order to accumulate the eighty rubles named by Petrovich.
His whole life is transformed: he lives with the dream of a new overcoat, asking Petrovich about it every month. However, the cost has increased to one hundred rubles, but finally they and Petrovich go to the market. Everything: the cloth, the calico for lining the overcoat, the collar, and the work itself - it turned out top quality. Due to the new cold weather, the titular adviser dresses up in a brand new overcoat. This causes a storm of emotions in the department: everyone praises the purchase, forcing Akaki to organize an evening in this honor. Luckily for him, one of the employees, being a birthday boy, invited everyone to have tea.
After the day, which has become a huge event for him, Akaki Akakievich dines with pleasure at home and, having rested and lazed, goes to see a familiar official. And again his overcoat is admired, but soon a game of cards begins, and then dinner and champagne. Having fun with all his might, Bashmachkov realizes that the hour is late and goes home. All excited, he even tries to catch up with a lady unknown to him, but after some time the empty streets involuntarily begin to frighten him. In the middle of the empty square, several mustachioed people stopped him and stole the overcoat that was so dear to Akaki.
Worried by grief, Akaki Akakievich does not receive help from a private bailiff. In the department, where he could be seen again a day later in an old coat-hood, everyone began to feel sorry for Akaki and, sincerely trying to help, even tried to chip in. But, in the end, having gained practically nothing, they advise you to visit a significant person. A person whose system was based on severity reprimands Bashmachkin for treating, as it seemed to him, not in accordance with the regulations. After this, Akaki falls down with a terrible fever and dies some time later. Rumors begin to circulate about a dead man who takes everyone's greatcoats from the bridge at night.
Suspicion falls on Bashmachkin, but it is impossible to catch the dead man. A significant person for whom sympathy was not far away, hearing about the death of Akaki, was terribly worried about this and went to unwind. But during the journey, he was suddenly grabbed by the collar. It was none other than Akaki, taking off his overcoat. This event makes him stop bothering everyone with his severity. The dead man stopped appearing. Only later did I encounter a taller ghost with a huge mustache.
During the activity of N.V. Gogol, the world was presented large number works that are filled with exceptional meaning and exquisite charm. After reading such stories, the reader begins to understand what a true classic of the genre is. The story called “The Overcoat” is considered one of the immortal works.After a little analysis of this creation, you can understand that the writer has real talent and describes the images used as accurately as possible. The work “The Overcoat” was created back in 1842 and immediately gained popularity among critics of the time.
Initial plot of the story
The plot of N.V. Gogol's work tells about a man with a fancy name. His name was Bashmachkin Akaki Akakievich. The story describes the peculiarities of his birth, as well as the reasons for such a bizarre name. In the future, the narrative smoothly transitions to his years of service as an advisor with a high title.Everyone around him constantly jokes about the main character. They make fun of him at work and constantly interfere with his normal activities. Either they will lull him with pieces of paper, or they will say unpleasant words, or they will push him under the arm. All this is very annoying to the adviser and he, when it becomes completely unbearable, asks those around him to leave him alone in a plaintive voice.
The main goal of the hero of the picture is the constant rewriting of papers. Bashmachkin takes his work responsibly and performs his duties with love. He does work not only in the office department, but also at home. Arriving home, after eating cabbage soup, he immediately takes up the jar of ink.
Akaki does not know friendship, since he has no friends, he does not prefer entertainment and constantly sits at home. For him, such foundations simply do not exist. Even when he lies down to rest, he thinks about how to write more documents tomorrow.
Unexpected incident
The main character of the work lives in constancy and routine. He does the same thing every day and he likes it. Everything would be fine, but at a certain moment an unexpected incident happens to him. One day, waking up in the morning after interesting dreams, looking outside and seeing the frosty weather, Akaki Akakievich decided to look at his overcoat, in which he had been walking for a long time. He sees that she has already lost her original external characteristics; looking closer, the hero realizes that she is already showing through in many places. That is why Bashmachkin decides to go to his friend the tailor, whose name is Petrovich. The tailor examines the overcoat brought by Akaki and makes a statement that it is no longer possible to fix it and will have to make a new one, and throw away this coat. Petrovich named the price of the work, which turned out to be a real shock for the main character.
Akaki Akakievich decides that he came at the wrong time and, perhaps, the tailor is simply inflating the cost of the service. He decides to come to the master another time, when he is drunk. In his opinion, it is in this state that Petrovich will be the most accommodating and will name a completely different price that will be acceptable. But Petrovich is not inclined, and the price can only increase, but not decrease.
Bashmachkin's dream
The main character understands that he cannot do without a new overcoat. Now his thoughts are constantly about where he can get the 80 rubles that the tailor wanted for his work. Only for this amount Petrovich is ready to make new clothes. Bashmachkin decides to save money. He develops a plan on how to cut costs - not to light candles in the evening, not to drink tea after work, and to walk only on tiptoes so as not to wear out his soles ahead of time. He also decides to save money on washing clothes, and in order to avoid the need for laundry services, he decides to walk around the house only in a robe.
Dream and reality
Now real life the main character changes significantly. He constantly thinks about a new overcoat, waiting for it as his faithful friend. Akaki goes to the tailor every month and inquires about his future overcoat, saving on almost everything.And then, at one fine moment, the hero receives an award at a discount, which turned out to be 20 rubles more than he expected. Now Bashmachkin and his tailor can safely go to the store to choose a decent material for their future overcoat. The hero will also need to buy a lining, cloth and a cat that will be used on the collar.
Petrovich makes a high-quality overcoat, and Akakiy likes it very much. And now comes the moment when main character puts it on and goes to work in the department. This event is noticed by many of those around him. Almost every employee comes up to the hero and praises his new clothes, they ask to hold a gala evening in honor of the new acquisition, but Bashmachkin simply does not have the money to hold it. He is saved by one official who invites everyone to drink tea on the occasion of his name day.
Lost overcoat
Further in the work the dramatic events are described. As soon as the working day, which for the hero was perceived as a holiday, ended, the adviser went home with pleasant thoughts. He has lunch and goes to another part of the city to see that official. Who invited him to visit him at work today.
Arriving at the indicated address, he also hears praise from many about the overcoat. The celebration includes champagne, vista, and a delicious dinner - everything that helps you have a pleasant evening. Having looked at the time, and it was already late, Akaki decides to go home and tries to leave the guests unnoticed.
He sets off through the deserted streets for a lady who is described by Gogol as best as possible. beautiful woman. The dark and gloomy streets inspire fear in Akaki. And so, some people swoop down on him and take off his overcoat.
Bashmachkin's misadventure
Akaki Akakievich experiences very bad feelings from what happened. He goes to a private bailiff for help, but does not receive support from him and the search remains fruitless. Wearing an old overcoat, the main character goes to work. Upon arrival, colleagues feel sorry for Bashmachkin and the first thing they decide to do is start making a new overcoat. But the funds turn out to be too little and not even close to enough for a new overcoat. Then the colleagues decide to help the main character in a different way - they advise him to turn to a very influential person who is able to solve the problem.
In the next part storyline the characteristics of the person to whom Bashmachkin was sent by his colleagues are described. This person is dressed very strictly and has a strong-willed character. This image immediately strikes the main character and harshly scolds him for the fact that Akaki addressed him inappropriately. Bashmachkin never received help and went home with nothing. Then the main character becomes ill and develops a fever.
Death of the main character
Akaki Akakievich lies delirious and unconscious for several days. As a result, the adviser dies. This becomes known at his work only after four days since Bashmachkin was buried. Rumors are starting to circulate around town that dead chief the hero appears from time to time on the Kalinkin Bridge and takes the overcoats from all passers-by. Despite the ranks and titles of the victims. Some people see this ghost as a deceased protagonist. All efforts made by the police to catch them become in vain and do not bring any results.Revenge of Akaki Akakievich
Further in the plot of the work “The Overcoat,” N.V. Gogol describes the person to whom the main character previously turned for help. The incident that Bashmachkin died led to a strong shock for this man. A situation is described when this person goes to a party to have a pleasant evening. After such an event, he goes to his friend and on the way he feels that someone is grabbing him by the collar. He looks at the face of the man who did this, and in him he sees his acquaintance - Akaki Akakievich. It is he who pulls off the overcoat. The official, pale and frightened by what he saw, goes home and decides that he will never again treat his subordinates strictly. It is from this moment that there are no more mentions of the dead man; he does not walk the streets and does not scare various passers-by.
