The Problem with Akaky

After reading The Overcoat, I don’t necessarily think that this was a story of sadness. Rather, I took this story as a lesson to not place all your significance. One of the problems with Akaky is that he has a tendency to let only one thing to completely consume his life. In the beginning of the story, his life has only one purpose: to copy papers. He doesn't talk to his peers, he doesn't make plans after work, and he doesn't even take pleasure in eating because he eats the same thing everyday. Even after work, when his peers are out enjoying themselves, he sits at home and continues his work for the day. This is obviously unhealthy because his work is the only thing he finds significant. Later, he develops a new obsession when he finds that he needs a new coat. He makes his life more miserable than it already is by not drinking tea at night, or using the light from his landlady's candle, all for the sake of saving money for his new coat. In addition, he continuously visits fabric stores and talks to Petrovitch about how he will make the coat. He doesn’t matter if his current life is miserable, because all he can think about is his new coat. As seen in the text, this new obsession has completely taken over his old one. Before the coat, the text elaborates greatly on his work as a copier, but after he receives the coat, the text only speaks of his work as a copier superficially. When he finally receives his coat, he is finally receives contentment, the same feeling of contentment he used to get when he was copying papers. But when his coat is stolen, his life shatters. If a normal person got robbed, they would be shaken, but they would be able to get back on their feet. But because Akaky turned the coat into the only significant thing in his life, he is devastated when it is taken from him. The problem isn’t with the coat, it is with Akady. He probably would have been similarly devastated if he lost his copying job, which was previously the only thing he found significant. If he were able to find joy in other things, he would have been able to compose himself after he was robbed. Although we are probably not as extreme as Akaky, I think that many of us do the same thing as Akaky did. We only place our significance in a few things, whether it is getting good grades, relationships, or money. If one of these things were taken away from us, we would be shattered. Gogol’s message is to place your significance in many things so if one of these things happened to not work out, we would still have other interests to fall back on.