What's he to do? But there's a problem in this mundane fairy tale: Akaky's coat is falling apart. Finally the last official is so mean to Akaky that he dejectedly walks home without a coat in the harsh Russian winter. The tragic loss of his overcoat, then, once again exposes Akaky as a helpless, impoverished man. Visit BN.com to buy new and used textbooks, and check out our award-winning NOOK tablets and eReaders. Akaky gets mugged. Akaky goes from official to official trying to get someone to investigate the theft of his coat, but no one will work with him. Oh, we forgot to mention something. Now the craziness begins. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. Death of a Salesman Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Fahrenheit 451 Frankenstein The Kite Runner. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. SparkNotes is brought to you by Barnes & Noble. Suggestions Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. Once upon a time in a town called St. Petersburg, there was a low-ranking officially who was unfortunately named Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin. Something you'd get straight out of the fashion magazines. But on the way back from the party, he gets his coat stolen by Akaky's ghost. The Namesake quiz that tests what you know about [Author], and the historical events that influenced The Namesake. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. The Overcoat Summary Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Plot Summary of “The Overcoat” by Nikolai Gogol. Ah, retribution at last. He's dead. Search all of SparkNotes Search. The Namesake quizzes about important details and events in every section of the book. Patch it up and the story's over. SparkNotes is brought to you by Barnes & Noble. Akaky was a poor guy, but he loved his job. Akaky was a poor guy, but he loved his job. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from Shmoop and verify that you are over the age of 13. Winesburg, Ohio quizzes about important details and events in every section of the book. Everyone at work loves it so much that they even throw him a party. And you know what can happen to a guy with a fancy new coat in a dangerous neighborhood late at night. © 2020 Shmoop University Inc | All Rights Reserved | Privacy | Legal. This ghost steals all kinds of coats from all kinds of people, “regardless of rank or title” (420). Stories begin to circulate that the ghost of a clerk is haunting St. Petersburg, stealing overcoats to replace his own stolen coat. OTHER SEARCH RESULTS (4) The Namesake Chapter 1 And don't forget—we're talking about Russia here, so just going without a coat is definitely not an option. The Namesake quiz that tests what you know about [Author], and the historical events that influenced The Namesake. We cannot help feeling that this was fated to happen all along. Winesburg, Ohio quizzes about important details and events in every section of the book. When it's done, it's gorgeous. He leaves the shindig earlier than everyone else, but still later than he's ever gone home. The Overcoat Summary Once upon a time in a town called St. Petersburg, there was a low-ranking officially who was unfortunately named Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin. The Overcoat Summary “ The Overcoat ” tells the story of the life and death of Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, an unremarkable and indeed pathetic middle-aged titular councillor and copying clerk serving in an unnamed department of the Russian civil service. “The Overcoat ” follows the life and death of Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, a low-ranking official who works as a copyist in a nameless department in the Russian bureaucracy. The Namesake quizzes about important details and events in every section of the book. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. Search all of SparkNotes Search. Suggestions Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. Simple solution, right? The last official tries to make amends with Akaky a week later, but it's too late. Akaky's overcoat allows him to become human instead of a merely bureaucratic tool. He gets a throat infection, and two days later he dies. We'll tell you. Yep. In fact, he loved it so much that all he did when he went home every day was do more work. In fact, he loved it so much that all he did when he went home every day was do more work. A Midsummer Night's Dream Pride and Prejudice The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn The Book Thief The Great Gatsby. So even though he enjoys the party in theory, the noise, people, and drinking get to him. In order to cheer himself up, the official goes to a party. The Overcoat is a philosophical tale in the tradition of a stoic philosopher or Schopenhauer. The overcoat seemed to give Akaky a sense of purpose and value in life, and even to make him into a more complete human being, but now that has been snatched away from him. This coat is beyond repair, and a new one will cost twice Akaky's salary. JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. He scrounges by for a couple of months until he has enough money to get a coat made. Not so fast there, kiddo. An absurd order is issued to the police to “catch … OTHER SEARCH RESULTS - (4) The Namesake Chapter 1 Akaky is an awkward loner. As a poor man in 19th-century Russia, Akaky doesn't exactly live in a safe neighborhood. A Marxist reading of the text would interpret Akaky's material desire as granting him humanity. Visit BN.com to buy new and used textbooks, and check out our award-winning NOOK tablets and eReaders.