Overcoat - analysis of the work. Gogol, "The Overcoat": analysis of the work The Overcoat Gogol analysis of the work

Can one small work revolutionize literature? Yes, Russian literature knows such a precedent. This is the story of N.V. Gogol's "Overcoat". The work was very popular with contemporaries, caused a lot of controversy, and the Gogol trend developed among Russian writers until the middle of the 20th century. What is this great book? About this in our article.

The book is part of a cycle of works written in the 1830s-1840s. and united by a common name - "Petersburg Tales". The story of Gogol's "Overcoat" goes back to an anecdote about a poor official who had a great passion for hunting. Despite the small salary, the ardent fan set a goal for himself: by all means buy a Lepage gun, one of the best at that time. The official denied himself everything in order to save money, and finally, he bought the coveted trophy and went to the Gulf of Finland to shoot birds.

The hunter sailed away in a boat, was about to take aim - but did not find a gun. It probably fell out of the boat, but how remains a mystery. The hero of the story himself admitted that he was a kind of oblivion when he was looking forward to the treasured prey. Returning home, he fell ill with a fever. Fortunately, everything ended well. The ill official was saved by his colleagues by buying him a new gun of the same kind. This story inspired the author to create the story "The Overcoat".

Genre and direction

N.V. Gogol is one of the brightest representatives of critical realism in Russian literature. With his prose, the writer sets a special direction, sarcastically called by the critic F. Bulgarin "Natural School". This literary vector is characterized by an appeal to acute social topics relating to poverty, morality, and class relationships. Here, the image of the “little man”, which has become traditional for writers of the 19th century, is being actively developed.

A narrower direction, characteristic of Petersburg Tales, is fantastic realism. This technique allows the author to influence the reader in the most effective and original way. It is expressed in a mixture of fiction and reality: the real in the story "The Overcoat" is the social problems of tsarist Russia (poverty, crime, inequality), and the fantastic is the ghost of Akaky Akakievich, who robs passers-by. Dostoevsky, Bulgakov and many other followers of this direction turned to the mystical principle.

The genre of the story allows Gogol to concisely, but quite vividly, highlight several storylines, identify many relevant social topics, and even include the motive of the supernatural in his work.

Composition

The composition of "The Overcoat" is linear, you can designate an introduction and an epilogue.

1. The story begins with a kind of writer's discourse about the city, which is an integral part of all "Petersburg Tales". Then follows the biography of the protagonist, which is typical for the authors of the "natural school". It was believed that these data help to better reveal the image and explain the motivation for certain actions.
2. Exposition - a description of the situation and position of the hero.
3. The plot occurs at the moment when Akaki Akakievich decides to acquire a new overcoat, this intention continues to move the plot until the climax - a happy acquisition.
4. The second part is devoted to the search for the overcoat and the exposure of senior officials.
5. The epilogue, where the ghost appears, loops this part: first, the thieves go after Bashmachkin, then the policeman goes after the ghost. Or perhaps a thief?

About what?

One poor official Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin, in view of the severe frosts, finally dares to buy himself a new overcoat. The hero denies himself everything, saves on food, tries to walk more carefully on the pavement so as not to change the soles once again. By the right time, he manages to accumulate the required amount, soon the desired overcoat is ready.

But the joy of possession does not last long: on the same evening, when Bashmachkin was returning home after a gala dinner, the robbers took away the object of his happiness from the poor official. The hero tries to fight for his overcoat, he goes through several instances: from a private person to a significant person, but no one cares about his loss, no one is going to look for robbers. After a visit to the general, who turned out to be a rude and arrogant person, Akaky Akakievich fell ill with a fever and soon died.

But the story "accepts a fantastic ending." The spirit of Akaky Akakievich wanders around St. Petersburg, who wants to take revenge on his offenders, and, mainly, he is looking for a significant person. One evening, the ghost catches the arrogant general and takes his overcoat from him, on which he calms down.

Main characters and their characteristics

• The protagonist of the story - Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin. From the moment of birth, it was clear that a difficult, unhappy life awaited him. This was predicted by the midwife, and the baby himself, when he was born, “cried and made such a grimace, as if he had a presentiment that there would be a titular adviser.” This is the so-called "little man", but his character is contradictory and goes through certain stages of development.
• The image of the overcoat works to reveal the potential of this, at first glance, a modest character. A new thing dear to the heart makes the hero obsessed, like an idol, she controls him. The little official shows such perseverance and activity that he never showed during his lifetime, and after his death he decides on revenge and keeps Petersburg in fear.
• The role of the overcoat in Gogol's story is difficult to overestimate. Her image develops in parallel with the main character: a holey overcoat is a modest person, a new one is an enterprising and happy Bashmachkin, a general's is an almighty spirit, terrifying.
• Petersburg image presented in a completely different way. This is not a pompous capital with smart carriages and flourishing front doors, but a cruel city with its fierce winters, unhealthy climate, dirty stairs and dark alleys.

Themes

• The life of a little man is the main theme of the story "The Overcoat", so it is presented quite vividly. Bashmachkin does not have a strong character or special talents; higher-ranking officials allow themselves to be manipulated, ignored, or scolded. And the poor hero only wants to regain what is his by right, but significant people and the big world are not up to the problems of a small person.
• The opposition of the real and the fantastic makes it possible to show the versatility of Bashmachkin's image. In harsh reality, he will never reach out to the selfish and cruel hearts of those in power, but becoming a powerful spirit, he can at least avenge his offense.
• The theme of the story is immorality. People are valued not for their skill, but for their rank, a significant person is by no means an exemplary family man, he is cold towards his children and is looking for entertainment on the side. He allows himself to be an arrogant tyrant, forcing those who are lower in rank to grovel.
• The satirical nature of the story and the absurdity of the situations allow Gogol to most expressively point out social vices. For example, no one is going to look for the missing overcoat, but there is a decree to catch the ghost. This is how the author denounces the inactivity of the St. Petersburg police.

Issues

The problematics of the story "The Overcoat" is very wide. Here Gogol raises questions concerning both society and the inner world of man.

• The main problem of the story is humanism, or rather, its absence. All the characters in the story are cowardly and selfish, they are not capable of empathy. Even Akaky Akakievich has no spiritual purpose in life, does not seek to read or be interested in art. They are driven only by the material component of being. Bashmachkin does not recognize himself as a victim in the Christian sense. He has completely adapted to his miserable existence, the character does not know forgiveness and is only capable of revenge. The hero cannot even find peace after death until he fulfills his base plan.
• Indifference. Colleagues are indifferent to Bashmachkin's grief, and a significant person is trying by all means known to him to drown out all manifestations of humanity in himself.
• The problem of poverty is touched upon by Gogol. A man who performs his duties exemplarily and diligently does not have the opportunity to update his wardrobe as needed, while careless flatterers and dandies are successfully promoted, dine luxuriously and arrange evenings.
• The problem of social inequality is covered in the story. The general treats the titular councilor like a flea that he can crush. Bashmachkin becomes shy in front of him, loses the power of speech, and a significant person, not wanting to lose his appearance in the eyes of his colleagues, humiliates the poor petitioner in every possible way. Thus, he shows his power and superiority.

What is the meaning of the story?

The idea of ​​Gogol's "Overcoat" is to point out the acute social problems that are relevant in Imperial Russia. With the help of a fantastic component, the author shows the hopelessness of the situation: a small man is weak in front of the powerful of this world, they will never respond to his request, and even kick him out of his office. Gogol, of course, does not approve of revenge, but in the story "The Overcoat" is the only way to reach the stone hearts of high-ranking officials. It seems to them that only the spirit is higher than them, and they will agree to listen only to those who surpass them. Having become a ghost, Bashmachkin occupies just this necessary position, so he manages to influence the arrogant tyrants. This is the main idea of ​​the work.

The meaning of Gogol's "Overcoat" is in the search for justice, but the situation seems hopeless, because justice is possible only when referring to the supernatural.

What does it teach?

Gogol's "Overcoat" was written almost two centuries ago, but remains relevant to this day. The author makes you think not only about social inequality, the problem of poverty, but also about your own spiritual qualities. The story "The Overcoat" teaches empathy, the writer urges not to turn away from a person who is in a difficult situation and asks for help.

To achieve his authorial goals, Gogol changes the ending of the original anecdote, which became the basis for the work. If in that story the colleagues collected the amount sufficient to buy a new gun, then Bashmachkin's colleagues practically did nothing to help a comrade in trouble. He himself died fighting for his rights.

Criticism

In Russian literature, the story "The Overcoat" played a huge role: thanks to this work, a whole trend arose - the "natural school". This work became a symbol of the new art, and this was confirmed by the journal "Physiology of Petersburg", where many young writers came up with their own versions of the image of a poor official.

Critics recognized Gogol's skill, and "The Overcoat" was considered a worthy work, but the controversy was mainly conducted around the Gogol direction, opened by this particular story. For example, V.G. Belinsky called the book "one of Gogol's deepest creations", but he considered the "natural school" to be a hopeless direction, and K. Aksakov refused Dostoevsky (who also started with the "natural school"), the author of "Poor People", the title of artist.

Not only Russian critics were aware of the role of the "Overcoat" in literature. The French reviewer E. Vogüe owns the well-known statement "We all came out of Gogol's greatcoat." In 1885, he wrote an article about Dostoevsky, where he spoke about the origins of the writer's work.

Later, Chernyshevsky accused Gogol of excessive sentimentality, deliberate pity for Bashmachkin. Apollon Grigoriev, in his criticism, contrasted Gogol's method of satirical depiction of reality with true art.

The story made a great impression not only on the writer's contemporaries. V. Nabokov in the article "The Apotheosis of the Face" analyzes Gogol's creative method, its features, advantages and disadvantages. Nabokov believes that "The Overcoat" was created for "a reader with a creative imagination", and for the most complete understanding of the work, it is necessary to get acquainted with it in the original language, because Gogol's work is "a phenomenon of language, not ideas."

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Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol, who left a mystical mark in Russian literature, became the ancestor of many writers of the 19th century critical realism. It is no coincidence that Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky's catchphrase in an interview with a French journalist became a catchphrase: "We all came out of their Gogol overcoat." The writer meant the attitude towards the “little man”, which manifested itself very clearly in the story. Later, this type of hero will become the main one in Russian literature.

The "Overcoat", which was included in the cycle of "Petersburg Tales", in the initial editions was of a humorous nature, because it appeared thanks to an anecdote. Gogol, according to the memoirs of P. V. Annenkov, "listened to the comments, descriptions, anecdotes ... and, it happened, used them."

One day he heard a clerical anecdote about a poor official who was a passionate hunter and saved up enough money to buy a good gun, saving on everything and working hard in his position. When he first went hunting for ducks on a boat, the gun caught on thick reeds and drowned. He could not find him and, returning home, came down with a fever. Comrades, having learned about this, bought him a new gun, which brought him back to life, but later he recalled this incident with a deathly pallor on his face. Everyone laughed at the anecdote, but Gogol left in thought: it was on that evening that the idea of ​​a future story was born in his head.

Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, the main character of the story "The Overcoat", from birth, when his mother, rejecting all the names on the calendar as too exotic, gave him the name of his father, and at baptism he cried and made such a grimace, “as if he felt that there would be a titular adviser”, and all my life, dutifully enduring the coldly despotic treatment of superiors, bullying colleagues and poverty, "knew how to be satisfied with his lot". No change in his order of life was already possible.

Suddenly, fate gives a chance to change your life - to sew a new overcoat. So the central event of the story is the acquisition and loss of the overcoat. At first, a conversation with an angry tailor, who claims that it is impossible to repair an old overcoat, plunges Akaky Akakievich into complete confusion. In order to raise money for a new coat, Bashmachkin has to not drink tea in the evenings, not light candles, and walk almost on tiptoe to keep his soles. All these restrictions cause terrible inconvenience at first.

But as soon as the hero imagined a new overcoat, he became a different person. Changes are striking: Bashmachkin "become more alive, firmer in character, like a man who has set himself a goal". The irony of the author is understandable: the goal, because of which the official has changed, is too insignificant.

The appearance of the long-awaited overcoat - "most solemn day" in the life of a hero. Bashmachkin is embarrassed by the general attention of his colleagues, but still accepts the offer to celebrate the new thing. The habitual way of life is broken, the behavior of the hero changes. It turns out that he is able to laugh merrily and not write any papers after dinner.

Since Bashmachkin has not left the house in the evenings for a long time, Petersburg seems beautiful to him. This city is fantastic already because it appeared "from the darkness of the forests, from the swamp of blat", but it was Gogol who turned it into a phantasmagoric city - a place where something out of the ordinary is possible. The hero of The Overcoat, lost in the night Petersburg, becomes a victim of a robbery. A shock for him is the appeal to the police authorities, the attempts of colleagues to arrange a clubbing, but the most serious test is the meeting with "significant person", after which Bashmachkin dies.

The author emphasizes how terrible and tragic the helplessness of the "little man" in St. Petersburg is. Retribution, reinforced by the intervention of evil spirits, becomes just as terrible. The ghost that appeared after the death of Bashmachkin in the wasteland, reminiscent of a former titular adviser, tore "from all shoulders, without disassembling the rank and title of all overcoats". This went on until "significant person" did not end up in the ill-fated wasteland and the dead man did not grab him. That's when the ghost said: “... I need your overcoat! ... You didn’t bother about mine - now give yours!”

This incident changed the once important official: he became less arrogant. And the appearance of the dead official stopped: “It can be seen that the general’s overcoat fell on his shoulders”. For Gogol, it is not the appearance of a ghost that becomes fantastic, but the manifestation of conscience even in such a person as "significant person".

"The Overcoat" develops the theme of the "little man", outlined by Karamzin in "Poor Lisa" and revealed by Pushkin in. But Gogol sees the cause of evil not in people, but in the structure of life, where not everyone has privileges.

• "The Overcoat", a summary of Gogol's story
• "Portrait", analysis of Gogol's story, composition

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Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol, who left a mystical mark in Russian literature, is "the most mysterious figure in Russian literature." To this day, the writer's works cause controversy.

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The "Overcoat", which was included in the cycle of "Petersburg Tales", in the initial editions was of a humorous nature, because it appeared thanks to an anecdote.

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Once Gogol heard a joke about a poor official: he was a passionate hunter and saved up enough money to buy a good gun, saving on everything and working hard in his position. When he first went hunting for ducks on a boat, the gun caught on thick reeds and drowned. He could not find him and, returning home, came down with a fever. Comrades, having learned about this, bought him a new gun, which brought him back to life, but later he recalled this incident with a deathly pallor on his face. Everyone laughed at the anecdote, but Gogol left in thought: it was on that evening that the idea of ​​a future story was born in his head.

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The first draft of the story was called "The Tale of the Official Stealing the Overcoat." The official bore the surname Tishkevich. In 1842, Gogol completes the story, changes the name of the hero. It is being printed, completing the cycle of "Petersburg Tales". This cycle includes the stories: "Nevsky Prospekt", "The Nose", "Portrait", "Carriage", "Notes of a Madman" and "Overcoat".

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The writer works on the cycle between 1835 and 1842. The stories are united according to the common place of events - Petersburg. Gogol was attracted by petty officials, artisans, impoverished artists - "little people". Petersburg was not chosen by the writer by chance, it was this stone city that was especially indifferent and ruthless to the “little man”.

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Genre, creative method The genre of "The Overcoat" is defined as a story, although its volume does not exceed twenty pages. It received its specific name not so much for its volume, but for its enormous semantic richness, which you will not find in any novel. The meaning of the work is revealed only by compositional and stylistic devices with the extreme simplicity of the plot. A simple story about a poor official who invested all his money and soul in a new overcoat, after stealing which he dies, under Gogol's pen found a mystical denouement, turned into a colorful parable with enormous philosophical overtones. "The Overcoat" is a wonderful work of art, revealing the eternal problems of being, which will not be translated either in life or in literature as long as humanity exists.

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It can hardly be called a realistic story: the story of the stolen overcoat, according to Gogol, "suddenly takes on a fantastic ending." The ghost, in which the deceased Akaky Akakievich was recognized, ripped off everyone's overcoat, "without disassembling the rank and title." Thus, the ending of the story turned it into a phantasmagoria.

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Themes The story raises social, ethical, religious and aesthetic problems. Public interpretation emphasized the social side of the "Overcoat". An ethical or humanistic interpretation was based on the pitiful moments of The Overcoat, a call for generosity and equality, which was heard in Akaky Akakievich’s weak protest against clerical jokes: “Leave me, why are you offending me?” - in these penetrating words, other words rang out: "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.

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The idea “Why portray the poverty and imperfections of our life, digging people out of life, remote nooks and crannies of the state? ... no, there is a time when otherwise it is impossible to direct society and even a generation to 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.

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The author showed the "depth of abomination" of society through the fate of the main character of the story - Akaky 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 others in relation to the main character of the story. The ratio of the first and second determines the humanistic pathos of the work: even such a person as Akaky 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 to the whole world around, and first of all about the sense of dignity and respect that every person should arouse for himself, regardless of his social and financial situation, but only taking into account his personal qualities and merits.

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The nature of the conflict N.V. Gogol lies 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 life of the hero. The whole life of a person appears before us: we are present at his birth, naming him, find out how he served, why he needed an overcoat and, finally, how he died. The story of the life 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 cycle, firmly entered Russian literature of the 19th century.

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The main characters The hero of the story is Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, a petty official of one of the St. Petersburg departments, a humiliated and disenfranchised man "short, somewhat pockmarked, somewhat reddish, somewhat even blind-sighted, with a slight 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 grumble: he is already over fifty, he has not gone beyond the correspondence of papers, he has not risen above the titular rank. Bashmachkin has neither family nor friends, he does not go to the theater or visit. All his "spiritual" needs are satisfied by rewriting papers. No one considers him a person. 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 Akaky Akakievich has served in the same place, in the same position; his salary is meager - 400 rubles. a year, the uniform has long been no longer green, but a reddish-flour color; co-workers call an overcoat worn to holes a hood.

The problem of the "little man" in the work of the writers of the 1840s was not a new phenomenon for Russian literature in general.

Domestic writers of the 18th - early 19th centuries could not ignore the suffering of people who were small in their social status and significance in a huge hierarchical state, those who were sometimes undeservedly humiliated and offended. The theme of the “poor official” (later developed into the theme "little man "in the traditional sense)

"Overcoat". At the heart of Gogol's idea is the conflict between "little man" and society, conflict leading to rebellion, to the rebellion of the humble. The story "The Overcoat" describes not only an incident from the life of the hero.

The story in "The Overcoat" is told in the first person. We notice that the narrator knows the life of officials well. The hero of the story is Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, a small official of one of the St. Petersburg departments, a disenfranchised and humiliated person. Gogol describes the appearance of the protagonist of the story as follows: "short, somewhat pockmarked, somewhat reddish, somewhat even blind-sighted, with a slight bald spot on his forehead, with wrinkles on both sides of his cheeks."

Colleagues treat him with disrespect. Even the watchmen in the department look at Bashmachkin as if he were an empty place, "as if a simple fly had flown through the reception room." And young officials laugh at Akaky Akakievich. He's really a ridiculous, funny man who only knows how to copy papers. And in response to insults, he says only one thing: “Leave me, why are you offending me?” The narrative in The Overcoat is constructed in such a way that the comic image of Bashmachkin gradually becomes tragic. He walks in an old overcoat, which can no longer be repaired. In order to save up money for a new overcoat on the tailor's advice, he saves money: he doesn't light candles in the evenings, he doesn't drink tea. Akaky Akakievich walks the streets very carefully, “almost on tiptoe”, so as not to “wear out the soles” ahead of time, rarely gives his laundry to the laundress. “At first it was somewhat difficult for him to get used to such restrictions, but then he somehow got used to it and went smoothly; even he was perfectly accustomed to fasting in the evenings; but on the other hand, he ate spiritually, carrying in his thoughts the eternal idea of ​​a future greatcoat, ”writes Gogol. The new overcoat becomes the dream and meaning of the life of the protagonist of the story.

And now Bashmachkin's overcoat is ready. On this occasion, officials arrange a banquet. Happy Akaki Akakievich does not even notice that they are mocking him. At night, when Bashmachkin was returning from a banquet, the robbers took off his overcoat. This man's happiness lasted only one day. “The next day he appeared all pale and in his old hood, which became even more deplorable.” He turns to the police for help, but they don't even want to talk to him. Then Akaky Akakievich goes to the "significant person", but he kicks him out. These troubles had such a strong effect on the protagonist of the story that he could not survive them. He fell ill and died soon after. “A creature disappeared and disappeared, protected by no one, dear to no one, not interesting to anyone ... but for which all the same, although just before the very end of life, a bright guest flashed in the form of an overcoat, reviving a poor life for a moment,” - writes Gogol.

Emphasizing the typical fate of the "little man", Gogol says that his death did not change anything in the department, Bashmachkin's place was simply taken by another official.

The story "The Overcoat", despite its realism, ends fantastically. After the death of Akaky Akakievich, a ghost began to appear on the streets of St. Petersburg, who removed the overcoats from passers-by. Some saw in him a resemblance to Eashmachkin, others did not notice anything in common between the robber and the timid official. One night, the ghost met a "significant person" and tore off his overcoat, frightening the official to the point that he "even began to fear about some kind of painful attack." After this incident, the "significant person" began to treat people better.

This end of the story emphasizes the author's intention. Gogol sympathizes with the fate of the "little man". He calls on us to be attentive to each other, and, as it were, warns that a person will have to answer in the future for the insults inflicted on his neighbor.

"Little Man" Rebellion becomes the main theme of the story The story of the poor official is written in such detail and authenticity that the reader involuntarily enters the world of the hero's interests and begins to sympathize with him. But Gogol is a master of artistic generalization. He deliberately emphasizes: “one official served in one department ...” This is how the generalized image of a “little man” appears in the story, a quiet, modest person whose life is unremarkable, but who, however, also has his own dignity and has the right to his own world . Perhaps that is why we finally pity not Akaky Akakievich, but “poor mankind.” And probably, that is why our anger is provoked not by a robber, but by a “significant person” who failed to pity the unfortunate official.

And at the end of the story, we come to a terrible conclusion: the subject of the narration is by no means the story of how the hero's overcoat is stolen, but about how a person's life was stolen . Akaki Akakievich, in fact, did not live. He never thought about high ideals, did not set any tasks for himself, did not dream of anything. And the insignificance of the incident underlying the plot characterizes Gogol's world itself. Gogol makes the tone of the story comical. The text shows a constant irony over Bashmachkin, even his daring dreams turn out to be nothing more than a desire to put marten fur on his collar without fail. The reader must not only enter the world of Akaky Akakievich, but also feel the rejection of this world.

In the story of N.V. Gogol "The Overcoat" two aspects of the author's condemnation of the world are clearly traced. On the one hand, the writer is with sharp criticism of that society , which turns a person into Akaky Akakievich, protesting against the peace of those whose salary does not exceed four hundred rubles a year. But on the other hand, much more, in my opinion, is essential Gogol's appeal to all mankind with a passionate appeal to pay attention to the "little people" who live next to us.

The story "The Overcoat" is one of the best in Gogol's work. In it, the writer appears before us as a master of detail, a satirist and a humanist. Narrating the life of a petty official, Gogol was able to create an unforgettable vivid image "little man" with their joys and troubles, difficulties and worries. Hopeless need surrounds Akaky Akakievich, but he does not see the tragedy of his situation, as he is busy with business. Bashmachkin is not burdened by his poverty, because he does not know another life. And when he has a dream - a new overcoat, he is ready to endure any hardships, if only to bring the implementation of his plans closer. The author is quite serious when he describes the delight of his hero about the realization of a dream: the overcoat is sewn! Bashmachkin is completely happy. But for how long?

"Little Man" not destined to be happy in this unfair world. And only after death is justice done. Bashmachkin's "soul" finds peace when he returns his lost thing.

Gogol in his "Overcoat" showed not only the life of the "little man", but also his protest against the injustice of life. Let this "rebellion" be timid, almost fantastic, but the hero nevertheless stands up for his rights, against the foundations of the existing order.

The experiences of the poor official were familiar to Gogol from the first years of his Petersburg life.

Written at the time of the highest flowering of Gogol's creative genius, "The Overcoat" in terms of its vital saturation, in terms of the power of mastery, is one of the most perfect and remarkable works of the great artist. Adjacent in its problematics to the St. Petersburg stories, "The Overcoat" develops the theme of a humiliated person.

The mother of Akaky Akakievich did not just choose a name for her son - she chose his fate. Although there was nothing to choose from: out of nine difficult-to-pronounce names, she does not find a single suitable one, therefore she has to name her son by her husband Akakiy, a name that means “humble” in Russian calendars - he is “the humblest”, because he is Akakiy “in the square” .

The story of Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, the "eternal titular adviser" is the story of the distortion and death of a person under the power of social circumstances. Bureaucratic - bureaucratic Petersburg brings the hero to complete stupefaction.

Thus, the theme of man as a victim of the social system is brought to its logical end by Gogol. Gogol resorts to fantasy, but it is emphatically conditional, it is designed to reveal the protesting, rebellious principle lurking in the timid and intimidated hero, a representative of the "lower class" of society.

The well-known phrase of the French critic E. Vogüe that a whole galaxy of writers grew out of Gogol's "The Overcoat" is quite true. The image of the "little man", which became popular thanks to Charlie Chaplin, in a sense, is also from there, from her. In the thirties and forties, descriptions of the great feats of outstanding personalities not only became boring to the reader, but they wanted something else, something unusual. At this time, Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol wrote "The Overcoat". The analysis of this work was carried out repeatedly, both before the revolution and after it. In it they found either dreams of universal equality and fraternity, or even calls for the overthrow of the autocracy. Today, having re-read the story through the eyes of a contemporary, we can safely say that none of this is there.

Main character, A. A. Bashmachkin

To establish the opinion that the story lacks not only revolutionary motives, but also a social idea in general, it is enough to understand about whom N.V. Gogol wrote "The Overcoat". Analysis of the main character's personality leads to the search for modern analogies. The notorious "middle managers", contemptuously also called "office plankton", who carry out routine assignments, come to mind. Workers, according to one literary character, are divided into two main categories: the majority are not capable of anything, and only a few can practically everything. Judging by the description of Akaky Akakievich and his relationship with the team, he does not belong to the all-powerful minority. But Gogol would not be himself if he did not see in him certain virtues, which he also writes about with a fair amount of irony. Bashmachkin, a typical "eternal titular" (such in the Soviet Army were called fifteen-year-old captains, according to the term of service in a junior officer rank), loves his work, he is diligent and submissive to the point of humility. To the jokes of his comrades, sometimes angry, he reacts gently and peacefully. He has no friends, besides beautiful calligraphic letters, and he doesn’t need to.

In order to assess the financial situation of Bashmachkin, the modern reader needs to delve into the literature and understand what and how much it cost then. This job requires diligence and patience. The prices for many things were completely different, just as the assortment of a modern supermarket differs from the choice of goods in the shops and stores of that era in which Gogol wrote The Overcoat. Purchasing power analysis can be done approximately.

It is absolutely impossible to compare the prices of the middle of the 19th century with today's prices. Now there are many goods that do not fit into the then consumer basket (mobile phones, computers, etc.). In addition, the choice of clothes has become very wide (from cheap consumer goods sewn by our Chinese friends to offers from super-prestigious boutiques). It is more expedient to make a comparison with salaries in the relatively recent Soviet past.

Calculation of the financial capabilities of the protagonist

The hero's salary is known - 800 rubles a year. By the standards of that time, not so little, you won’t die of hunger. Judging by indirect signs and based on the text of the story, we can conclude that the scale of prices approximately corresponded to the capabilities of an ordinary engineer of the late Soviet era (70s or 80s), who received 120 rubles of salary. It is also known how much the new overcoat cost Akaky Akakievich. The story was written in 1842, there was no shortage of food and there were no queues, but getting to know the right people mattered even then. “According to the pull”, a certain Petrovich, a tailor, is ready to make the right thing for only 80. It was impossible to buy a decent coat in the USSR for that kind of money, and in order to collect for a new thing, an ordinary worker needed to save several months.

So Akaki Akakievich cut his budget in order to sew a new overcoat for himself. His problems were exclusively economic in nature, and, in general, were completely solvable.

What happened?

The plot of Gogol was inspired by a story about the same poor and ordinary official, who saved up for a long time for a gun and lost it on his first hunt. One had to be a genius to see in such an unfunny anecdote the plot of a future work and develop it to a tragicomedy, which is rightfully considered the story "The Overcoat". Its main characters are also officials, and for the most part they receive as much as Bashmachkin, or more, but not much. Seeing a new thing, they jokingly demand to “splash” (today they often use the verbs “wash” or “put down”). Colleagues know that Bashmachkin does not have money for excesses, and if he had, then, obviously, he would not be in a hurry to part with them either - for many years they studied his character. Help came from the assistant clerk (judging by the title of the position, he is also not a great rich man), who offers refreshments and invites to visit him. And after the banquet, Akaky Akakievich was robbed and stripped, taking away his new overcoat. The summary of the scene of a friendly drinking clearly shows how spirited the humble official soared, having bought, in general, an ordinary thing. He even shows interest in a certain lady, however, not for long.

And then such a collapse.

The image of the boss

Of course, Nikolai Vasilyevich tells us not just a story about how an unknown official found and lost his overcoat. The story, like all outstanding literary works, is about relationships between people. A person is known by gaining power. Some people just need to get a job...

So the new boss, who recently took up his post, poses in front of a friend, scolding Akaky Akakievich on a far-fetched pretext of mistreatment, and in general, anxiety of the highest authority on such a petty issue as some kind of overcoat. The summary of the angry tirade of the Significant Person (as it is designated by the author) comes down to a reminder of who Bashmachkin is talking to, to whom he is standing, and a rhetorical question about how he dares. At the same time, the general has his own problems, he was recently appointed, and does not know how to behave at all, which is why he spreads fear on everyone. In his heart, he was a kind, decent, good comrade, and even not stupid (in many respects).

Having received such an affront, the poor official came home, fell ill, and died, it is not clear whether it was from a cold or due to severe stress.

What the author wanted to say

The tragic ending is also characteristic of other Russian writers of the 19th and 20th centuries, who “grew up” from the same outerwear mentioned. A.P. Chekhov (“The Death of an Official”) “kills” (only without subsequent mysticism) his main character in the same way as N.V. Gogol (“The Overcoat”). An analysis of these two works, their comparison suggests the spiritual relationship of the masters of the pen and their general rejection of fear of anyone. The declaration of inner freedom became the main leitmotif of both works created on the basis of the antithesis technique. The classics seem to be telling us: “Don’t be Akaky Akakiyevich! Live boldly, do not be afraid! All problems are solved!

How strange that in the intervening decades and centuries so few have taken this call to heart.