Akaky was literally invisible before with his old coat, but once he has a new coat, he was accepted by those around him. What is Gogol trying to say about the relationship between one's appearance and social standing?
At the very start, when Gogol is describing Akakievich's reaction to the teasing doled out by his peers, he describes the reaction of a particular young man who is touched by Akaky's reaction.
What is the purpose of mentioning this character? Does he appear later? Also, what is the significance of his hearing those other words, "I am your brother," along with the words that were actually said: "Leave me alone! Why do you insult me?"
The narrator describes the changes in Akaky when he gets his new coat (becoming more assertive). The narrator also describes how the "important person" began to behave differently when he became the general (becoming more pompous). How are the phenomena similar, and what is Gogol's message about how society is able to transform one's self perceptions and vice versa?
Is the phantom with the enormous mustache at the end of the story related to the mustached thieves? Is there a significance to the mustache? Could the thieves have been phantoms from the start?
Akaky Akakievich becomes a phantom because he desperately yearns for the overcoat, and he only moves onto the afterlife when he steals the important person's. Could the thieves from before have been wronged in a similar way? What about the phantom at the end of the story?
Overcoats represent social status, and a man without an overcoat represents man as he is outside the social hierarchy (or the "natural man"). Akaky went up socially, but was then forced back down and couldn't accept it. He tried to rely on other people with status to give him status... but it didn't work and one man went so far as to kill the "natural man" inside of him in order to demonstrate the level of status he had.
If an overcoat is just a representation of social status, and the message is that we should seek to be natural equals, maybe Akaky's fancy overcoat was a bad thing.
By feigning ignorance or being somewhat ignorant, how does the narrative voice accentuate the oxymoronic texture of the relation between one's social standing and moral character?
The narrator presents the story in a very reserved manner, leaving out details, remaining secretive about people and places, using a sarcastic tone, unreliable at times etc. In doing so, what important historical and social implications does Gogol reveal about Russia at the time?
In the beginning, Akaky is an invisible cog in the machine that drives society forward. He chooses to be silent unless provoked, simply asking to be left alone so he can work. How do his actions and choices represent the lower class of Russia?
At the introduction of the pivotal character Petrovich, Gogol remarks "there exists a rule that the character of every person in a story be well delineated" (p400, middle). However, the Important Person, who leads to Akaky's demise, lacks an introduction. Why would Gogol do so? -Tristan
Does the narrator, a 3rd person, but not omniscient one, help further the theme of identity crisis or detract from it?
ReplyDelete--Jesse Chang
Can Akaky's first overcoat be a symbol of the Russian lower class? If so, what is the meaning of the new overcoat and the importance of its loss?
ReplyDeleteAkaky was literally invisible before with his old coat, but once he has a new coat, he was accepted by those around him. What is Gogol trying to say about the relationship between one's appearance and social standing?
ReplyDeleteAt the very start, when Gogol is describing Akakievich's reaction to the teasing doled out by his peers, he describes the reaction of a particular young man who is touched by Akaky's reaction.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the purpose of mentioning this character? Does he appear later? Also, what is the significance of his hearing those other words, "I am your brother," along with the words that were actually said: "Leave me alone! Why do you insult me?"
The narrator describes the changes in Akaky when he gets his new coat (becoming more assertive). The narrator also describes how the "important person" began to behave differently when he became the general (becoming more pompous). How are the phenomena similar, and what is Gogol's message about how society is able to transform one's self perceptions and vice versa?
ReplyDelete-Fanny Du
What is the coat a symbol of and how may it be a representation of the people of Russia at that time?
ReplyDeleteIs the phantom with the enormous mustache at the end of the story related to the mustached thieves? Is there a significance to the mustache? Could the thieves have been phantoms from the start?
ReplyDeleteAkaky Akakievich becomes a phantom because he desperately yearns for the overcoat, and he only moves onto the afterlife when he steals the important person's. Could the thieves from before have been wronged in a similar way? What about the phantom at the end of the story?
ReplyDeleteIs the theft of Akikay's overcoat good or bad?
ReplyDeleteOvercoats represent social status, and a man without an overcoat represents man as he is outside the social hierarchy (or the "natural man"). Akaky went up socially, but was then forced back down and couldn't accept it. He tried to rely on other people with status to give him status... but it didn't work and one man went so far as to kill the "natural man" inside of him in order to demonstrate the level of status he had.
If an overcoat is just a representation of social status, and the message is that we should seek to be natural equals, maybe Akaky's fancy overcoat was a bad thing.
By feigning ignorance or being somewhat ignorant, how does the narrative voice accentuate the oxymoronic texture of the relation between one's social standing and moral character?
ReplyDeleteThe narrator presents the story in a very reserved manner, leaving out details, remaining secretive about people and places, using a sarcastic tone, unreliable at times etc. In doing so, what important historical and social implications does Gogol reveal about Russia at the time?
ReplyDeleteDoes Akaky attribute all of the changes and new interactions in his life to this new overcoat? I unsure of its significance.
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning, Akaky is an invisible cog in the machine that drives society forward. He chooses to be silent unless provoked, simply asking to be left alone so he can work. How do his actions and choices represent the lower class of Russia?
ReplyDeleteAt the introduction of the pivotal character Petrovich, Gogol remarks "there exists a rule that the character of every person in a story be well delineated" (p400, middle). However, the Important Person, who leads to Akaky's demise, lacks an introduction. Why would Gogol do so?
ReplyDelete-Tristan