Nikolai Gogol was a Russian writer, best known for his blend of realism, satire, and the supernatural. His words had a great influence on later Russian writers, including Dostoevsky. ‘The Overcoat’ is one of the most influential short stories in European literature. The story begins in a dull and routine world—the government offices of St. Petersburg. As the story moves forward, it becomes more dramatic and supernatural as a ghost appears to take revenge and fulfill its last wish.
Akaky Akakievitch Bashmachkin is a small, ordinary man without any specialty about him. He works as a low-level clerk in a government office, surviving on a minimal yearly salary of just 400 rubles. Nobody notices him, and most people don’t remember him, but the story became so popular that famous Russian writers like Dostoevsky once said, “We all come out of Gogol’s overcoat.” Akaky’s job is to copy documents. He lives alone in a small room and barely earns enough to survive. The biggest trouble in his life is his old, worn-out overcoat that no longer protects him from the freezing Russian winter. Akaky gets a new coat from a tailor, with his hard-earned money. But it gets stolen, and his spirit is crushed. The loss affects him so much, it leads to his death.
‘The Overcoat’ is a strong social satire that shows the issues in 19th-century Russian society. At the time Gogol wrote the story, Russia was undergoing big changes. The country still followed a feudal system where serfdom controlled people’s lives, but new ideas of progress and industry were also beginning to appear. Gogol criticizes the bureaucratic system of his time. Akaky’s dull job shows how lifeless bureaucracy is. It cares more about rules and regulations than about people. When Akaky’s coat is stolen, he goes to the police and to a high-ranking official to ask for help, but nobody helps him. The police don’t care and scold him. It shows how the system has no sympathy. Akaky is at the bottom of the ladder, which makes people treat him badly. His co-workers don’t respect him. They laugh at and ignore him.
Even though Akaky suffers because of the bureaucratic system, he actually enjoys his work in it. He is happy just being a small part of the Russian government and works ‘with love’. Akaky has no life outside his job. In this way, he is similar to the other office workers in the story, who only care about staying in the system and getting approval from those above them. He doesn’t even try to make small changes in the documents—he just copies exactly what’s written. Akaky becomes a symbol of how a bureaucratic system keeps people stuck, unthinking, and powerless.
Gogol also criticizes the strict social system of 19th-century Russia. He shows how people were judged by their class, not by who they were as individuals. He uses Akaky’s overcoat as a symbol of social status and respect. When he gets a new overcoat, everything changes. His co-workers, who made fun of him, now treat him kindly and with respect. This sudden change shows how fake and shallow the social system is.
Gogol uses two main satirical techniques in The Overcoat—contrast and exaggeration. Gogol often compares characters to show how ridiculous or unfair things are. He shows the difference between how the main character lives and how others behave around him. His co-workers enjoy life after office hours, but Akaky has no life outside his work. He becomes like a machine. This sharp contrast makes us feel how dull, empty, and sad Akaky’s life really is.
Gogol also uses exaggeration to make everyday problems look huge or strange, so we can clearly see how bad things are. He stretches reality to an extreme. For example, he writes how Akaky looks extremely happy and excited just by copying certain letters. His facial expressions are described in a funny way. He laughs and winks like he’s living in a dream world while doing boring work.
Gogol also satirizes the growing materialism. He uses Akaky’s deep focus on the coat to highlight how people started to value possessions more than character. The moment Akaky gets his new overcoat, people who used to ignore or laugh at him suddenly treat him with kindness and admiration. But when the coat is stolen, Akaky is once again treated as if he is worthless. This sudden change in how people behave around him shows how materialism has taken over society.
Gogol also satirizes several other aspects, like lack of empathy, abuse of power, etc. There is a lack of empathy among people. Police, whose job is to solve issues, don’t help people. Those in power misuse their power instead of helping others.