The Overcoat Discussion Groups

1. Unappreciated and Unrewarded Underclass: Life was hard for the common man in 19th Century Russia. Pay for lower-class workers was meager, in part because of economic problems and in part because of a government tax policy that favored the nobility. In addition, the best jobs frequently went to persons with the best pedigrees. Lower-class citizens, regardless of their abilities, often had to settle for menial labor. Their contributions to society typically went unnoticed. Akakiy, though a devoted and highly efficient copyist, is regarded as a nobody, as the narrator of "The Cloak" points out after Akakiy dies:

And St. Petersburg was left without Akakiy Akakievitch, as though he had never lived there. A being disappeared who was protected by none, dear to none, interesting to none, and who never even attracted to himself the attention of those students of human nature who omit no opportunity of thrusting a pin through a common fly, and examining it under the microscope.

Why was a portrait of the “little man” so widely accepted and even embraced in 19th century Russia and other parts of the world? Why is it well-received today in modern society?

2. “The Cloak” is a tragicomic short story in which the author uses droll humor to satirize the oppressive bureaucracy of 19th Century czarist Russia.

Can you think of any examples of this “droll humor”? Name one satirical scene in which Gogol satirizes the “oppressive bureaucracy czarist Russia gov’t”.

3. Bureaucratic and Class Oppression of the Common Man: As an employee of a government department, Akakiy Bashmatchkin endures the petty petty cruelties and jests of his coworkers. As a crime victim, he gets nowhere with the incompetent and abusive bureaucracy. As a member of the lower classes with an income to match his status, he must constantly struggle to eke out a meager existence.

Can you think of any textual examples of this idea in the story? Is this theme transferable to the modern day person? Think of an example.

4. Many workers in czarist Russia were serfs, laborers bound to the farmland which they worked. Without permission of the landowner, they could not leave the land or get married. They were virtual slaves. In "The Cloak," Petrovitch somehow earned his way out of servitude to become a tailor. Still, he must work hard to make his way in the world. His heavy drinking and that of his family members before him suggests that alcohol has become an escape from the rigors of everyday life in an unfair government and social system. In 1861, Czar Alexander II issued an edict abolishing serfdom.

Can you name a commercial, movie or TV show that demonstrates the same idea about the “little man” of Petrovich….escapism through drinking or overcoming everyday life in an unfair gov’t or social system? 5. Bureaucratic Incompetence: In the first half of the 19th Century, the Russian government was unwieldy and ineffective, in part because it was top heavy with unqualified or ill-trained officials who had attained power on seniority rather than talent. Their incompetence resulted in a fear of making decisions. Consequently, these inept bureaucrats frequently passed the buck or postponed decisions indefinitely, as in "The Cloak." Akakiy is as much a victim of bureaucratic inaction, which robs him of justice, as he is of theft. Name two examples from the story of how Akakiy is a victim of bureaucratic inaction. Can you name two historically relevant examples of people from other cultures that have dealt with the same bureaucratic inaction?

6. Akakiy’s old cloak appears to represent a Russia whose humanity has worn thin. This Russia exposes citizens born without rank or privilege to poverty, hunger, cold, and indignity. The new cloak appears to represent warmth, acceptance, prosperity. When thieves rob Akakiy of his cloak, they rob him of all that matters in his life. And he dies.

a. Name two specific examples of “worn thin” humanity in Akakiy’s Russia. b. Based on this information, what is the message of Akakiy’s death then? c. Why do you suppose Gogol has Akakiy “reappear” to take the cloaks of others?

*Questions have been shaped based on Cummingsstudyguides.net