Sybolism Of The Overcoat Essay - 564 Words

nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Symbolism- a literary device used frequently to contribute to the complexity of a work. In â€Å"The Overcoat†, by Nikolay Gogol, uses symbolism throughout this entire work. He uses the old dressing gown to represent his old life, and the new overcoat to represent his new life. The symbols affect the plot and the characters. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The old dressing gown represents his old life. It is plain as is Akaky Akakievich. He never does anything even halfway exciting. Most of the time he sits around copying things to practice for his job, which is by coincidence being a copier. The old coat is boring and so is Akaky Akakievich. His agenda is normally get up and go to work and then come back home and†¦show more content†¦nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The symbols affect the plot and some of the characters of this story. Plot is affected because at the beginning of the story it is about a boring, unpopular, lump of unattractiveness. This plot then quickly shifts to a story about a well-respected and fun loving man. This is a complete transformation of themes in a matter of pages. The two characters that are affected the most by symbolism are Petrovich and Akaky Akakievich. Petrovich, the cloth man who make Akaky Akakievich’s new overcoat shows much of the strongest symbolism in this parti cular story. As Akaky Akakievich walks up the stairs to Petrovich’s home he sees sewage and other grotesque things that leave him wondering who would appear at the door. When he is invited in Petrovich is sitting at his work table â€Å"drunk as a skunk† yelling at his needle to work. This symbolizes that Petrovich my not be the greatest person for Akaky Akakievich to discuss the making of his new overcoat to however, he goes on. Akaky Akakievich, being the main character, is probably affected the most out of the two. The symbols make him a much more exciting character. We as readers are left to guess what is going to happen next in Akaky Akakievich’s life. Whether he is going to get married or murdered is not known till the very last paragraph. Symbolism is apparent throughout all