In the following excerpt, Driessen provides a short summary of Gogol's "The Overcoat," and alleges that the story is about "an unhappy love, through which the hero discovers himself and comes to life."

Although "The Overcoat" is amongst Gogol's best-known stories, a somewhat thorough analysis is not possible without a short summary of the course of the story, with at the same time a rough indication of its construction.

In a certain department a certain oldish, baldheaded, pock-marked little official used to sit, with a "haemorrhoidal" complexion, eternally bearing the rank of titular councillor and the name Bashmachkin. His Christian name, Akaky Akakyevich, is just as ridiculous, and Gogol relates in detail how the poor devil got it. How and when he appeared in the department no one knows any more. He is known there solely as a copyist. Since he is weak and defenseless, he is...