The Overcoat

Introduction

Cover, by Igor Grabar, 1890s

"The Overcoat" (Russian: Шине́ль, translit. Shinyél’; sometimes translated as "The Cloak") is a short story by Nikolai Gogol, published in 1842. The story has had a great influence on Russian literature. Eugène-Melchior de Vogüé, discussing Russian realist writers, said: "We all came out from under Gogol's Overcoat" (a quote often misattributed to Dostoevsky). Writing in 1941, Vladimir Nabokov described "The Overcoat" as "The greatest Russian short story ever written".[1]


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