Lesson
Reading
Fiction
W
1
e often read fiction that takes place in
familiar settings. When we read about a
world we’re familiar with, it’s easy to relate to
what the characters are experiencing.
glimpse of other ways of living. By reading
fiction from other cultures, you might find you
have more in common with someone from
another time and place than you thought.
Reading fiction from other periods,
countries, and cultures can teach us about
ways of life different from our own. Even
if the author’s intention is not to explain his
or her culture, the thoughts, feelings, and
experiences of the characters give us a
Nikolai Gogol is a Russian writer from the
mid-nineteenth century. Rabindranath Tagore
is an Indian writer from the early twentieth
century. Let’s find out just how different or
familiar these settings are.
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Consider
What are the dangers of leaving your comfort zone?
How can you be defined by the way you treat others?
abridged from
The Cloak
by Nikolai
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
In Russian society in the 1800s, a
person’s social status depended
entirely on his or her job, and most
jobs were very bureaucratic and
impersonal. In this introduction,
the narrator explains that he’s not
going to name the department
being discussed because he does
not wish to cause any unpleasantness. Do you think the narrator is
trying to protect the department
or criticize it?
1
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
You can use context clues to help
you understand unfamiliar references to a culture. Akakiy is a
“titular councilor,” which refers to
his rank in society. Circle words in
paragraphs 2 and 4 that help you
understand his work and rank
in society.
Gogol
In the department of—but it is better not to mention the
department. There is nothing more irritable than departments,
regiments, courts of justice, and, in a word, every branch of public
service. Each individual attached to them nowadays thinks all
society insulted in his person. . . . Therefore, in order to avoid all
unpleasantness, it will be better to describe the department in
question only as a certain department.
So, in a certain department there was a certain official—not
a very high one, it must be allowed—short of stature, somewhat
pock-marked, red-haired, and short-sighted, with a bald forehead,
wrinkled cheeks, and a complexion of the kind known as sanguine. The St. Petersburg climate was responsible for this. As for
his official status, he was what is called a perpetual titular councilor1, over which, as is well known, some writers make merry, and
crack their jokes, obeying the praiseworthy custom of attacking
those who cannot bite back.
1
titular councilor the lowest rank in Tsarist Russia
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. . . His name was Akakiy Akakievitch. It may strike the reader
as rather singular and far-fetched, but he may rest assured that it
was by no means far-fetched, and that the circumstances were
such that it would have been impossible to give him any other. . . .
No respect was shown him in the department. The porter not
only did not rise from his seat when he passed, but never even
glanced at him, any more than if a fly had flown through the
reception-room. His superiors treated him in coolly despotic fashion. Some sub-chief would thrust a paper under his nose without
so much as saying, “Copy,” or “Here’s a nice interesting affair,” or
anything else agreeable, as is customary amongst well-bred officials. And he took it, looking only at the paper and not observing
who handed it to him, or whether he had the right to do so; simply
took it, and set about copying it.
5
The young officials laughed at and made fun of him, so far as
their official wit permitted; told in his presence various stories
concocted about him, and about his landlady, an old woman of
seventy; declared that she beat him; asked when the wedding was
to be; and strewed bits of paper over his head, calling them snow.
But Akakiy Akakievitch answered not a word, anymore
than if there had been no one there besides himself. It even had no effect upon his work:
amid all these annoyances he never
made a single mistake in a letter.
But if the joking became wholly
unbearable, as when they
jogged his hand and prevented his attending to his
work, he would exclaim,
“Leave me alone! Why
do you insult me?” And
there was something
strange in the words
COMPLEX CHARACTERS
The most satisfying and engaging
stories have complex characters,
which are characters with distinct
traits who often change throughout the story. What are your
impressions of Akakiy based on his
interactions with his coworkers?
INFERENCE An author usually
expects the reader to make inferences, or educated guesses, about
the text based on the details provided. What inferences can you
make about Akakiy’s coworkers?
Vocabulary Strategy
Context Clues
Use the words, phrases, and sentences before or after an unfamiliar
word to help you figure out its meaning.
despotic
resounded
malady
pretext
exalted
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THEME The theme of a story is
the message that the author is trying to communicate. As Akakiy’s
coworkers make fun of him, one of
them suddenly feels great pity for
him. Based on his intense reaction,
what do you think the theme of
this story might be?
and the voice in which they were uttered. There was in it something which moved to pity; so much that one young man, a
new-comer, who, taking pattern by the others, had permitted himself to make sport of Akakiy, suddenly stopped short, as though all
about him had undergone a transformation, and presented itself
in a different aspect. Some unseen force repelled him from the
comrades whose acquaintance he had made, on the supposition
that they were well-bred and polite men. Long afterwards, in his
gayest moments, there recurred to his mind the little official with
the bald forehead, with his heart-rending words, “Leave me alone!
Why do you insult me?” In these moving words, other words
resounded—“I am thy brother.” And the young man covered his
face with his hand; and many a time afterwards, in the course of
his life, shuddered at seeing how much inhumanity there is in
man, how much savage coarseness is concealed beneath delicate,
refined worldliness, and even, O God! in that man whom the world
acknowledges as honourable and noble.
It would be difficult to find another man who lived so entirely
for his duties. It is not enough to say that Akakiy laboured with
zeal: no, he laboured with love. In his copying, he found a varied
and agreeable employment. Enjoyment was written on his face:
some letters were even favourites with him; and when he encountered these, he smiled, winked, and worked with his lips, till it
seemed as though each letter might be read in his face, as his pen
traced it. . . .
SETTING Authors use a change
in setting, or the location in which
a story takes place, to move the
action along, to create an emotional effect, or to give the reader
a more complete picture of a character. What further information
about Akakiy’s character is
revealed through the description
of his typical activities at home?
On reaching home, he sat down at once at the table, supped his
cabbage soup up quickly, and swallowed a bit of beef with onions,
never noticing their taste, and gulping down everything with
flies and anything else which the Lord happened to send at the
moment. His stomach filled, he rose from the table, and copied
papers which he had brought home. If there happened to be none,
he took copies for himself, for his own gratification, especially if
the document was noteworthy, not on account of its style, but of its
being addressed to some
distinguished person.
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Even at the hour when the grey St. Petersburg sky had quite dispersed, and all the official world had eaten or dined, each as he
could, in accordance with the salary he received and his own
fancy; when all were resting from the departmental jar of pens,
running to and fro from their own and other people’s indispensable occupations, and from all the work that an uneasy man
makes willingly for himself, rather than what is necessary; . . . in a
word, at the hour when all officials disperse among the contracted
quarters of their friends, to play whist 2, as they sip their tea from
glasses with a kopek’s worth of sugar, smoke long pipes, relate at
times some bits of gossip which a Russian man can never, under
any circumstances, refrain from, and, when there is nothing else to
talk of, repeat eternal anecdotes about the commandant to whom
they had sent word that the tails of the horses on the Falconet
Monument had been cut off, when all strive to divert themselves,
Akakiy Akakievitch indulged in no kind of diversion. No one could
ever say that he had seen him at any kind of evening party. Having
written to his heart’s content, he lay down to sleep, smiling at the
thought of the coming day—of what God might send him to copy
on the morrow. . . .
There exists in St. Petersburg a powerful foe of all who receive a
salary of four hundred rubles a year, or thereabouts. This foe is no
other than the Northern cold, although it is said to be very healthy.
At nine o’clock in the morning, at the very hour when the streets
are filled with men bound for the various official departments, it
begins to bestow such powerful and piercing nips on all noses
impartially that the poor officials really do not know what to do
with them. At an hour when the foreheads of even those who
occupy exalted positions ache with the cold, and tears start to
their eyes, the poor titular councillors are sometimes quite unprotected. Their only salvation lies in traversing as quickly as
possible, in their thin little cloaks, five or six streets, and then
warming their feet in the porter’s room, and so thawing all their
talents and qualifications for official service, which had become
frozen on the way.
2
STRUCTURE The way an author
structures a story can greatly
impact many aspects of it, including the theme. In paragraph 8, the
author spends a lengthy paragraph
describing what most Russians are
doing, just to show Akakiy’s solitary nature. What effect does this
structure have on your understanding of the story’s theme?
POINT OF VIEW The author uses
a narrator who is not a character
in the story to describe the action
and activities of all the characters.
This is an example of third-person
point of view. First-person point of
view, on the other hand, is told by
one of the characters in the story.
How does using a third-person
point of view in paragraph 9 allow
the writer to provide information
in a manner that a first-person
point of view would not?
whist a popular card game in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries
CHECK IN Make sure you understand what you have read so far by
answering the following questions: Why does Gogol provide so much
detail? How might this be important to the plot?
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INFERENCE Authors do not
always explicitly state all of their
ideas. Instead, they provide clues
in the text for the reader to interpret. Paragraph 10 describes
Akakiy trying to figure out why his
back and shoulders are so cold.
What can you infer about Akakiy
based on this paragraph?
Akakiy Akakievitch had felt for some time that his back and
shoulders suffered with peculiar poignancy, in spite of the fact
that he tried to traverse the distance with all possible speed. He
began finally to wonder whether the fault did not lie in his cloak.
He examined it thoroughly at home, and discovered that in two
places, namely, on the back and shoulders, it had become thin
as gauze: the cloth was worn to such a degree that he could see
through it, and the lining had fallen into pieces. You must know
that Akakiy Akakievitch’s cloak served as an object of ridicule
to the officials: they even refused it the noble name of cloak,
and called it a cape. . . . Seeing how the matter stood, Akakiy
Akakievitch decided that it would be necessary to take the
cloak to Petrovitch, the tailor. . . .
Ascending the staircase which led to Petrovitch’s room . . .
Akakiy Akakievitch pondered how much Petrovitch would ask,
and mentally resolved not to give more than two rubles. . . .
“I wish you a good morning, sir,” said Petrovitch, squinting
at Akakiy Akakievitch’s hands to see what sort of booty he
had brought.
“Ah! I—to you, Petrovitch, this—” It must be known that Akakiy
Akakievitch expressed himself chiefly by prepositions, adverbs,
and scraps of phrases which had no meaning whatever. If the matter was a very difficult one, he had a habit of never completing his
sentences; so that frequently, having begun a phrase with the
words, “This, in fact, is quite—” he forgot to go on, thinking that he
had already finished it. . . .
DIALOGUE An author can reveal
a lot about a character’s traits,
personality, and motivations by
using dialogue. Dialogue helps
readers understand how a character reacts to other characters and
how he or she deals with confrontations. What does the manner in
which Akakiy speaks to Petrovitch
in paragraph 14 reveal about his
character?
10
“But I, here, this—Petrovitch—a cloak, cloth—here you see,
everywhere, in different places, it is quite strong—it is a little
dusty, and looks old, but it is new, only here in one place it is a little—on the back, and here on one of the shoulders, it is a little
worn, yes, here on this shoulder it is a little—do you see? that is all.
And a little work—”
15
. . . “No, it is impossible to mend it; it’s a wretched garment!”
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Akakiy Akakievitch’s heart sank at these words.
“Why is it impossible, Petrovitch?” he said, almost in the
pleading voice of a child; “all that ails it is that it is worn on the
shoulders. You must have some pieces—”
“No,” said Petrovitch decisively, “there is nothing to be done
with it. It’s a thoroughly bad job. . . . It is plain you must have a
new cloak.”
At the word “new,” all grew dark before Akakiy Akakievitch’s
eyes, and everything in the room began to whirl round. . . . “A
new one?” said he, as if still in a dream. “why, I have no money
for that. . . .”
20
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Writers use figurative language
to describe characters, settings,
and situations in imaginative
ways. Figurative words and
phrases have meanings beyond
their literal definitions. Circle the
figurative language the author
uses to describe Akakiy’s reaction
in paragraph 19. What is Akakiy
literally feeling?
“Well, you would have to lay out a hundred and fifty or more,”
said Petrovitch and pursed up his lips significantly. He liked to
produce powerful effects, liked to stun utterly and suddenly, and
then to glance sideways to see what face the stunned person
would put on the matter.
“A hundred and fifty rubles for a cloak!” shrieked poor Akakiy
Akakievitch, perhaps for the first time in his life, for his voice had
always been distinguished for softness. . . .
Akakiy Akakievitch was still for mending it; but Petrovitch
would not hear of it and said, “I shall certainly have to make you a
new one, and you may depend upon it that I shall do my best.”
Then Akakiy Akakievitch saw that it was impossible to get
along without a new cloak, and his spirit sank utterly. . . .
But although he knew that Petrovitch would undertake
to make a cloak for eighty rubles, still, where was he to get
the eighty rubles from? . . .
25
Akakiy Akakievitch thought and thought, and
decided that it would be necessary to curtail his ordinary expenses, for the space of one year at least, to
dispense with tea in the evening; to burn no candles,
and, if there was anything which he must do, to go
into his landlady’s room, and work by her light.
When he went into the street, he must walk as
lightly as he could, and as cautiously, upon the
stones, almost upon tiptoe, in order not to wear his
heels down in too short a time; he must give the laundress as little to wash as possible; and, in order not to
wear out his clothes, he must take them off, as soon as
he got home, and wear only his cotton dressing-gown,
which had been long and carefully saved. . . .
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SUMMARY One way to help
you understand the story is to
summarize in your own words
what you have read so far.
Summarize what happens in
paragraphs 25–27. Why does
Gogol give so much detail about
the events in these paragraphs?
TEXT EVIDENCE Writers provide
specific details for a reason. Pay
close attention to these details
and consider the overall impression they create. Study how
Akakiy’s coworkers react to his
new cloak in paragraph 28. Is their
admiration of the cloak genuine?
Circle the words and phrases that
support this inference.
The affair progressed more briskly than he had expected. Far
beyond all his hopes, the director awarded neither forty nor fortyfive rubles for Akakiy Akakievitch’s bonus, but sixty. Whether he
suspected that Akakiy Akakievitch needed a cloak or whether
it was merely chance, at all events, twenty extra rubles were by this
means provided. This circumstance hastened matters. Two or
three months more of hunger and Akakiy Akakievitch had accumulated about eighty rubles. . . .
It was—it is difficult to say precisely on what day, but probably
the most glorious one in Akakiy Akakievitch’s life, when Petrovitch
at length brought home the cloak. He brought it in the morning,
before the hour when it was necessary to start for the department.
Never did a cloak arrive so exactly in the nick of time; for the
severe cold had set in, and it seemed to threaten to increase.
Petrovitch brought the cloak himself as befits a good tailor. . . .
Taking out the cloak, he gazed proudly at it, held it up with both
hands, and flung it skilfully over the shoulders of Akakiy
Akakievitch. Then he pulled it and fitted it down behind with his
hand, and he draped it around Akakiy Akakievitch without buttoning it. Akakiy Akakievitch, like an experienced man, wished to
try the sleeves. Petrovitch helped him on with them, and it turned
out that the sleeves were satisfactory also. In short, the cloak
appeared to be perfect, and most seasonable. . . .
Meantime Akakiy Akakievitch went on in holiday mood. He
was conscious every second of the time that he had a new cloak on
his shoulders; and several times he laughed with internal satisfaction. In fact, there were two advantages: one was its warmth, the
other its beauty. He saw nothing of the road, but suddenly found
himself at the department. He took off his cloak in the ante-room,
looked it over carefully, and confided it to the especial care of the
attendant. It is impossible to say precisely how it was that every
one in the department knew at once that Akakiy Akakievitch had a
new cloak, and that the “cape” no longer existed. All rushed at the
same moment into the ante-room to inspect it. They congratulated
him and said pleasant things to him, so that he began at first to
smile and then to grow ashamed. When all surrounded him, and
said that the new cloak must be “christened,” and that he must
give a whole evening at least to this, Akakiy Akakievitch lost his
head completely, and did not know where he stood, what to
answer, or how to get out of it. . . .
CHECK IN Make sure you understand what you have read so far by
answering the following questions: How does Akakiy feel about his new
cloak? Why?
12
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At length one of the officials, a sub-chief probably, in order to
show that he was not at all proud, and on good terms with his inferiors, said, “So be it, only I will give the party instead of Akakiy
Akakievitch; I invite you all to tea with me to-night; it happens
quite a propos, as it is my name-day.” The officials naturally at
once offered the sub-chief their congratulations and accepted the
invitations with pleasure. . . .
30
He dined cheerfully, and after dinner wrote nothing, but took
his ease for a while on the bed, until it got dark. Then he dressed
himself leisurely, put on his cloak, and stepped out into the street.
. . . This much is certain, that the official lived in the best part of
the city; and therefore it must have been anything but near to
Akakiy Akakievitch’s residence. Akakiy Akakievitch was first
obliged to traverse a kind of wilderness of deserted, dimly-lighted
streets; but in proportion as he approached the official’s quarter of
the city, the streets became more lively, more populous, and more
brilliantly illuminated. Pedestrians began to appear; handsomely
dressed ladies were more frequently encountered; the men had
otter skin collars to their coats; peasant waggoners, with their
grate-like sledges stuck over with brass-headed nails, became
rarer; whilst on the other hand, more and more drivers in red velvet caps, lacquered sledges and bear-skin coats began to appear,
and carriages with rich hammer-cloths flew swiftly through the
streets, their wheels scrunching the snow. Akakiy Akakievitch
gazed upon all this as upon a novel sight. He had not been in the
streets during the evening for years. . . .
CENTRAL IDEA The central
idea is the most important idea, or
topic, of a story. In paragraph 30,
Akakiy walks from his apartment
to the home of an official from
his department. How does the
description of his walk support
the central idea of the story?
Akakiy Akakievitch at length reached the house in which the
sub-chief lodged. The sub-chief lived in fine style: the staircase
was lit by a lamp; his apartment being on the second floor. . . .
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Akakiy Akakievitch, having hung up his own cloak, entered the
inner room. Before him all at once appeared lights, officials, pipes,
and card-tables; and he was bewildered by the sound of rapid conversation rising from all the tables, and the noise of moving chairs.
He halted very awkwardly in the middle of the room, wondering
what he ought to do. But they had seen him. They received him
with a shout, and all thronged at once into the ante-room, and
there took another look at his cloak. Akakiy Akakievitch, although
somewhat confused, was frank-hearted, and could not refrain
from rejoicing when he saw how they praised his cloak. Then, of
course, they all dropped him and his cloak, and returned, as was
proper, to the tables set out for whist.
All this, the noise, the talk, and the throng of people was rather
overwhelming to Akakiy Akakievitch. He simply did not know
where he stood, or where to put his hands, his feet, and his whole
body. Finally, he sat down by the players, looked at the cards,
gazed at the face of one and another, and after a while began to
gape, and to feel that it was wearisome, the more so as the hour
was already long past when he usually went to bed. He wanted to
take leave of the host; but they would not let him go, saying that
he must not fail to drink a glass of champagne in honour of his
new garment. . . .
TONE An author’s tone is his or
her attitude toward the subject. It
can change throughout the story,
and it often affects the reader and
the plot. Based on the descriptions
of the sub-chief’s party in paragraphs 32–34, what do you think
is Gogol’s opinion of these people?
Circle words or phrases in the text
that lead you to this conclusion.
Still, he could not forget that it was twelve o’clock, and that he
should have been at home long ago. In order that the host might
not think of some excuse for detaining him, he stole out of the
room quickly, sought out, in the ante-room, his cloak, which, to his
sorrow, he found lying on the floor, brushed it, picked off every
speck upon it, put it on his shoulders, and descended the stairs to
the street.
35
DESCRIPTIVE DETAILS Authors
create vivid scenes by using sensory details, or details that appeal
to one or more of the reader’s five
senses. Gogol’s description of
Akakiy’s surroundings changes
drastically in paragraph 35 as
Akakiy gets closer to his home and
farther from the residence of the
sub-chief. How do the descriptive
details in paragraph 35 let you
know that the square seems
menacing to Akakiy?
14
In the street all was still bright. Some petty shops, those permanent clubs of servants and all sorts of folk, were open. . . . Soon
there spread before him those deserted streets, which are not
cheerful in the daytime, to say nothing of the evening. . . . He
approached the spot where the street crossed a vast square with
houses barely visible
on its farther side, a
square which seemed
a fearful desert.
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Afar, a tiny spark glimmered from some watchman’s box,
which seemed to stand on the edge of the world. Akakiy
Akakievitch’s cheerfulness diminished at this point in a marked
degree. He entered the square, not without an involuntary sensation of fear, as though his heart warned him of some evil.
He glanced back and on both sides, it was like a sea about him.
“No, it is better not to look,” he thought, and went on, closing his
eyes. When he opened them, to see whether he was near the end of
the square, he suddenly beheld, standing just before his very nose,
some bearded individuals of precisely what sort he could not make
out. All grew dark before his eyes, and his heart throbbed.
“But, of course, the cloak is mine!” said one of them in a loud
voice, seizing hold of his collar. Akakiy Akakievitch was about to
shout “watch!,” when the second man thrust a fist, about the size
of a man’s head, into his mouth, muttering, “Now scream!”
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Gogol uses figurative language, or
text that is not meant to be taken
literally, to create a particular
effect in paragraph 37. Circle the
example of figurative language in
paragraph 37, and explain how it
helps the reader visualize
the scene.
Akakiy Akakievitch felt them strip off his cloak and give him a
push with a knee: he fell headlong upon the snow, and felt no
more. In a few minutes he recovered consciousness and rose to his
feet; but no one was there. He felt that it was cold in the square,
and that his cloak was gone; he began to shout, but his voice did
not appear to reach to the outskirts of the square. . . .
40
Akakiy Akakievitch ran home in complete disorder; his hair,
which grew very thinly upon his temples and the back of his head,
wholly disordered; his body, arms, and legs covered with snow. . . .
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Early in the morning, he presented himself at the district
chief’s; but was told that this official was asleep. He went again at
ten and was again informed that he was asleep; at eleven, and they
said: “The superintendent is not at home;” at dinner time, and the
clerks in the ante-room would not admit him on any terms, and
insisted upon knowing his business. So that at last, for once in his
life, Akakiy Akakievitch felt an inclination to show some spirit,
and said curtly that he must see the chief in person; that they
ought not to presume to refuse him entrance; that he came from
the department of justice, and that when he complained of them,
they would see.
COMPLEX CHARACTERS
Authors create complex characters
by describing their traits and
actions in-depth. These characters
change as the plot progresses.
Complex characters are more
interesting and relatable than
static characters, and they move
the story along. What changes can
you see in Akakiy’s character in
paragraph 41? How does this
make his character more complex?
The clerks dared make no reply to this, and one of them went to
call the chief, who listened to the strange story of the theft of the
coat. Instead of directing his attention to the principal points of
the matter, he began to question Akakiy Akakievitch: Why was he
going home so late? Was he in the habit of doing so, or had he been
to some disorderly house? Akakiy Akakievitch got thoroughly confused and left without knowing whether the affair of his cloak was
in proper train or not.
The news of the robbery of the cloak touched many; although
there were some officials present who never lost an opportunity,
even such a one as the present, of ridiculing Akakiy Akakievitch. . . .
One of them, moved by pity, resolved to help Akakiy
Akakievitch with some good advice at least, and told him that he
ought not to go to the police. . . . The best thing for him . . . would
be to apply to a certain prominent personage; since this prominent
personage, by entering into relations with the proper persons,
could greatly expedite the matter.
CHECK IN Make sure you understand what you have read so far by
answering the following questions: What happens during Akakiy’s meeting
with the district chief? What does an official tell him to do after the meeting? Why?
THEME Most authors do not
directly state their theme. Instead,
they hint at it through the plot elements and character actions and
motivations. The narrator keeps
referring to one character as the
“prominent personage,” which
simply means “important person.”
In referring to important people in
very general ways, how does
Gogol emphasize the theme?
16
45
As there was nothing else to be done, Akakiy Akakievitch
decided to go to the prominent personage. What was the exact
official position of the prominent personage remains unknown
to this day. . . .
To this prominent personage Akakiy Akakievitch presented
himself, and this at the most unfavourable time for himself though
opportune for the prominent personage. The prominent personage was in his cabinet conversing gaily with an old acquaintance
and companion of his childhood whom he had not seen for several
years and who had just arrived when it was announced to him that
a person . . . had come. He asked abruptly, “Who is he?”—“Some
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official,” he was informed. “Ah, he
can wait! This is no time for him to
call,” said the important man. . . .
At length, having talked himself completely out, . . . he suddenly
seemed to recollect, and said to
the secretary, who stood by the
door with papers of reports, “So it
seems that there is a tchinovnik3
waiting to see me. Tell him that he
may come in.” On perceiving
Akakiy Akakievitch’s modest mien
and his worn undress uniform, he
turned abruptly to him and said,
“What do you want?” in a curt
hard voice, which he had practised
in his room in private, and before the looking-glass, for a whole
week before being raised to his present rank.
Akakiy Akakievitch, who was already imbued with a due
amount of fear, became somewhat confused: and as well as his
tongue would permit, explained, with a rather more frequent addition than usual of the word “that,” that his cloak was quite new,
and had been stolen in the most inhuman manner; that he had
applied to him in order that he might, in some way, by his intermediation—that he might enter into correspondence with the chief of
police, and find the cloak.
For some inexplicable reason this conduct seemed familiar to
the prominent personage. “What, my dear sir!” he said abruptly,
“are you not acquainted with etiquette? Where have you come
from? Don’t you know how such matters are managed . . . ?”
50
“But, your excellency,” said Akakiy Akakievitch, trying to collect his small handful of wits, and conscious at the same time that
he was perspiring terribly, “I, your excellency, presumed to trouble you because secretaries—are an untrustworthy race.”
“What, what, what!” said the important personage. “Where did
you get such courage? Where did you get such ideas? . . . Do you
know to whom you speak? Do you realize who stands before you?
Do you realize it? I ask you!” Then he stamped his foot and raised
his voice to such a pitch that it would have frightened even a different man from Akakiy Akakievitch.
3
POINT OF VIEW The point of
view in a story is the position of
the narrator in relation to the
story. Because the author uses
third-person point of view, what
information is he able to share in
paragraph 48 about Akakiy that
Akakiy would probably not share
himself?
INFERENCE Even when an
author provides information to
further the plot, the reader is often
able to infer more about the characters and society based on details
in the text. Look at paragraph 51.
What can you infer about the
prominent personage, based on
his treatment of Akakiy?
tchinovnik minor official
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Akakiy Akakievitch’s senses failed him; he staggered, trembled
in every limb, and, if the porters had not run to support him,
would have fallen to the floor. . . .
Akakiy Akakievitch could not remember how he descended the
stairs and got into the street. He felt neither his hands nor feet.
Never in his life had he been so rated by any high official, let alone
a strange one. He went staggering on through the snow-storm,
which was blowing in the streets, with his mouth wide open; the
wind, in St. Petersburg fashion, darted upon him from all quarters,
and down every cross-street. In a twinkling it had blown a quinsy 4
into his throat, and he reached home unable to utter a word. His
throat was swollen, and he lay down on his bed. So powerful is
sometimes a good scolding!
The next day a violent fever showed itself. Thanks to the
generous assistance of the St. Petersburg climate, the malady
progressed more rapidly than could have been expected: and
when the doctor arrived, he found, on feeling the sick man’s pulse,
that there was nothing to be done, except to prescribe a fomentation, so that the patient might not be left entirely without the
beneficent aid of medicine; but at the same time, he predicted his
end in thirty-six hours. After this he turned to the landlady, and
said, “And as for you, don’t waste your time on him: order his pine
coffin now, for an oak one will be too expensive for him. . . .”
SUMMARY Summarizing sections of the text can help you
keep track of complex plots and
characters. Briefly summarize
what happens in paragraphs 54
and 55. How do these paragraphs
express the theme of the story?
55
At length poor Akakiy Akakievitch breathed his last. They
sealed up neither his room nor his effects, because, in the first
place, there were no heirs, and, in the second, there was very little
to inherit beyond a bundle of goose-quills, a quire of white official
paper, three pairs of socks, two or three buttons which had burst
off his trousers, and the mantle already known to the reader. To
whom all this fell, God knows. I confess that the person who told
me this tale took no interest in the matter. They carried Akakiy
Akakievitch out and buried him. . . .
4
quinsy an abscess near the tonsils
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But who could have imagined that this was not really the end of
Akakiy Akakievitch, that he was destined to raise a commotion
after death, as if in compensation for his utterly insignificant life?
But so it happened, and our poor story unexpectedly gains a
fantastic ending.
A rumour suddenly spread through St. Petersburg that a dead
man had taken to appearing on the Kalinkin Bridge and its vicinity at night in the form of a tchinovnik seeking a stolen cloak, and
that, under the pretext of its being the stolen cloak, he dragged,
without regard to rank or calling, every one’s cloak from his shoulders, be it cat-skin, beaver, fox, bear, sable; in a word, every sort of
fur and skin which men adopted for their covering. One of the
department officials saw the dead man with his own eyes and
immediately recognised in him Akakiy Akakievitch. This, however, inspired him with such terror that he ran off with all his
might, and therefore did not scan the dead man closely, but only
saw how the latter threatened him from afar with his finger. . . .
STRUCTURE An author must
make choices about how to organize a story so that the reader will
want to continue reading. How
does the story take a new twist in
its organization, starting with the
text in paragraph 56?
But we have totally neglected that certain prominent personage
who may really be considered as the cause of the fantastic turn
taken by this true history. First of all, justice compels us to say that
after the departure of poor, annihilated Akakiy Akakievitch, he
felt something like remorse. . . . As soon as his friend had left his
cabinet, he began to think about poor Akakiy Akakievitch. And
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from that day forth, poor Akakiy Akakievitch, who could not bear
up under an official reprimand, recurred to his mind almost every
day . . . and when it was reported to him that Akakiy Akakievitch
had died suddenly of fever, he was startled, hearkened to the
reproaches of his conscience, and was out of sorts for the whole day.
Wishing to divert his mind in some way, and drive away the
disagreeable impression, he set out that evening for one of his
friends’ houses, where he found quite a large party assembled.
What was better, nearly every one was of the same rank as himself,
so that he need not feel in the least constrained. This had a marvellous effect upon his mental state. . . .
60
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Authors use figurative language to
help readers visualize the action or
characters, or to emphasize important ideas. Circle three examples
of figurative language in paragraphs 61 and 62. How does the
author’s use of figurative language
affect the story at this point?
So the important personage descended the stairs, stepped into
his sledge. . . .
Suddenly the important personage felt some one clutch him
firmly by the collar. Turning round, he perceived a man of short
stature, in an old, worn uniform, and recognised, not without
terror, Akakiy Akakievitch. The official’s face was white as snow,
and looked just like a corpse’s. But the horror of the important
personage transcended all bounds when he saw the dead man’s
mouth open, and, with a terrible odour of the grave, gave vent
to the following remarks: “Ah, here you are at last! I have you,
that—by the collar! I need your cloak; you took no trouble about
mine, but reprimanded me; so now give up your own.”
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The pallid prominent personage almost died of fright. . . . He
flung his cloak hastily from his shoulders and shouted to his
coachman in an unnatural voice, “Home at full speed . . . !”
This occurrence made a deep impression upon him. He even
began to say: “How dare you? Do you realize who stands before
you?” less frequently to the under-officials, and if he did utter the
words, it was only after having first learned the bearings of the
matter. But the most noteworthy point was, that from that day
forward, the apparition of the dead tchinovnik ceased to be seen.
Evidently, the prominent personage’s cloak just fitted his shoulders; at all events, no more instances of his dragging cloaks from
people’s shoulders were heard of. But many active and apprehensive persons could by no means reassure themselves, and asserted
that the dead tchinovnik still showed himself in distant parts of
the city.
In fact, one watchman in Kolomna saw with his own eyes the
apparition come from behind a house. But being rather weak of
body, he dared not arrest him, but followed him in the dark, until, at
length, the apparition looked round, paused, and inquired, “What
do you want?” at the same time showing a fist such as is never seen
on living men. The watchman said, “It’s of no consequence,” and
turned back instantly. But the apparition was much too tall, wore
huge moustaches, and, directing its steps apparently toward the
Obukhoff bridge, disappeared in the darkness of the night.
THEME A story’s resolution can
reveal important information
about the theme, or help clarify it.
At the end of this story, people
who were unkind to Akakiy think
they see him as a ghost. Why do
you think they see the ghost of
Akakiy, and how does this clarify
the theme of the story for you?
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Plot Devices
Authors use plot devices—such as parallel plots, pacing, foreshadowing, and
flashbacks—to create mystery, tension, suspense, or surprise. In “The Cloak,”
Gogol employs the plot device of a surprise ending, or an unexpected plot twist
at the end of the story. Here, Gogol announces that the ending is not what the
reader expected.
But who could have imagined that this was not really the end of Akakiy
Akakievitch, that he was destined to raise a commotion after death, as if in
compensation for his utterly insignificant life? But so it happened, and our
poor story unexpectedly gains a fantastic ending.
Try It
Review the story and look for examples of foreshadowing. In the graphic
organizer below, write each example from the text, the event or events it
foreshadows, and the mood it creates, such as tension or suspense.
Example of Foreshadowing
Event it Foreshadows
Mood it Creates
22
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Vocabulary Strategy
Context Clues
Consider how context clues can help you find the meaning of an unfamiliar word.
Read each sentence below. Then write a second sentence to provide additional
context that would help a reader determine the meaning of the boldface
vocabulary word from the selection.
1. That teacher is so despotic no one wants to be in her class.
2. The field resounded with the sound of fireworks.
3. My parents exalted me when I won the writing contest.
4. I still can’t go out because I can’t shake this malady.
5. I need to think up a pretext for calling her.
Comprehension Check
Answer these questions about the selection you have just read. Use details from
the selection to support your responses.
1. At the beginning of the story, Akakiy is a quiet, simple man who doesn’t stand
up for himself. How has he changed by the end of the story? What is the effect
of this change?
2. How does Akakiy help express the story’s theme?
3. What effect does the prominent personage’s experience at the end of the story
have on him?
4. How is the setting—both time and place—reflected in the story?
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Small Group
Consider
From where do you get your sense of who you are?
How much can you change while staying true to yourself?
abridged from
The Home and the World
by Rabindranath
1
TONE Describe the tone at the
beginning of this story.
STRUCTURE Why might Tagore
begin the story with Bimala giving
a description of herself? How
might this structure affect the plot
and central idea?
CONTEXT CLUES What does the
word reparation mean? Underline
the context clues you used to
determine the meaning.
TEXT EVIDENCE Highlight
the details in paragraph 3 that
demonstrate how Bimala is not
completely satisfied with her life.
Tagore
Mother, today there comes back
to mind the vermilion mark1
at the parting of your hair, the sari 2
which you used to wear, with its
wide, red border, and those
wonderful eyes of yours, full of
depth and peace. They came at
the start of my life’s journey,
like the first streak of dawn,
giving me golden provision to
carry me on my way. . . .
Everyone says that I resemble my mother. In my childhood I
used to resent this. It made me
angry with my mirror. I thought that
it was God’s unfairness which was
wrapped round my limbs—that my dark
features were not my due, but had come to me by some misunderstanding. All that remained for me to ask of my God in reparation
was, that I might grow up to be a model of what woman should be,
as one reads it in some epic poem. . . .
I was married into a Rajah’s house. When I was a child, I was
quite familiar with the description of the Prince of the fairy story.
But my husband’s face was not of a kind that one’s imagination
would place in fairyland. It was dark, even as mine was. The feeling of shrinking, which I had about my own lack of physical
beauty, was lifted a little; at the same time, a touch of regret was
left lingering in my heart.
1
vermilion mark the mark of Hindu wifehood and the symbol of all the
devotion that it implies
2
24
sari the traditional dress of a Hindu woman
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Small Group
I distinctly remember after my marriage, when, early in the
morning, I would cautiously and silently get up and take the dust
of my husband’s feet 3 without waking him, how at such moments
I could feel the vermilion mark upon my forehead shining out like
the morning star.
5
One day, he happened to awake, and smiled as he asked me:
“What is that, Bimala? What are you doing?”
I can never forget the shame of being detected by him. He
might possibly have thought that I was trying to earn merit
secretly. But no, no! That had nothing to do with merit. It was my
woman’s heart, which must worship in order to love. . . .
At that time the Prince of the fairy tale had faded, like the moon
in the morning light. I had the Prince of my real world enthroned
in my heart. I was his queen. I had my seat by his side. But my real
joy was that my true place was at his feet. . . .
POINT OF VIEW From whose
point of view is this part of the
story told? Why do you think a
male author chose to use this
narrator?
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
How does Bimala’s culture affect
her? Underline evidence on
this page that supports your
conclusion.
But my husband would not give me any opportunity for
worship. That was his greatness. They are cowards who claim
absolute devotion from their wives as their right; that is a
humiliation for both.
His love for me seemed to overflow my limits by its flood of
wealth and service. But my necessity was more for giving than for
receiving; for love is a vagabond, who can make his flowers bloom
in the wayside dust, better than in the crystal jars kept in the
drawing-room. . . .
10
My beloved, it was worthy of you that you never expected worship from me. But if you had accepted it, you would have done me
a real service. You showed your love by decorating me, by educating me, by giving me what I asked for, and what I did not. I have
seen what depth of love there was in your eyes when you gazed
at me. . . .
Such lavish devotion made me proud to think that the wealth
was all my own which drove you to my gate. But vanity such as
this only checks the flow of free surrender in a woman’s love.
When I sit on the queen’s throne and claim homage, then the
claim only goes on magnifying itself; it is never satisfied. Can
there be any real happiness for a woman in merely feeling that
she has power over a man? To surrender one’s pride in devotion
is woman’s only salvation. . . .
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
In paragraph 9, the author uses
figurative language to describe
Bimala’s feelings toward her
husband. Circle the metaphor in
this paragraph. What effect does
the use of this language have
upon the reader?
COMPLEX CHARACTERS At
this point in the story, what does
Bimala believe is the meaning of
being a woman? What does this
say about her character?
3
take the dust of my husband’s feet a formal offering of reverence, but it was
uncommon for a wife to do this
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My sister-in-law, the Bara4 Rani, was still young and had no
pretensions to saintliness. Rather, her talk and jest and laugh
inclined to be forward. The young maids with whom she surrounded herself were also impudent to a degree. But there was
none to gainsay her—for was not this the custom of the house? It
seemed to me that my good fortune in having a stainless husband
was a special eyesore to her. He, however, felt more the sorrow of
her lot than the defects of her character.
CONTEXT CLUES Look at the
word impudent in paragraph 12.
Use context clues to determine the
meaning of the word.
If one had to fill in, little by little, the gap between day and
night, it would take an eternity to do it. But the sun rises and the
darkness is dispelled—a moment is sufficient to overcome an infinite distance.
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
In paragraph 13, what figurative
language does Bimala use? What
is she describing?
One day there came the new era of Swadeshi5 in Bengal: but as
to how it happened, we had no distinct vision. There was no gradual slope connecting the past with the present. For that reason, I
imagine, the new epoch came in like a flood, breaking down the
dykes and sweeping all our prudence and fear before it. We had no
time even to think about, or understand, what had happened, or
what was about to happen.
SETTING Describe the setting.
How does it help you understand
the characters and the plot?
15
My sight and my mind, my hopes and my desires, became
red with the passion of this new age. Though, up to this time, the
walls of the home—which was the ultimate world to my mind—
remained unbroken, yet I stood looking over into the distance, and
I heard a voice from the far horizon, whose meaning was not perfectly clear to me, but whose call went straight to my heart.
As soon as the Swadeshi storm reached my blood, I said to my
husband: “I must burn all my foreign clothes.”
“Why burn them?” said he. “You need not wear them as long as
you please.”
COMPLEX CHARACTERS
How does Bimala begin to
change after she is introduced
to Swadeshi ?
“As long as I please! Not in this life . . . ”
“Very well, do not wear them for the rest of your life, then. But
why this bonfire business?”
“Would you thwart me in my resolve?”
20
“What I want to say is this: Why not try to build up something?
You should not waste even a tenth part of your energies in this
destructive excitement.”
4
Bara Senior
5
Swadeshi the Nationalist movement, which sought to encourage India-based
industries
26
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Small Group
“Such excitement will give us the energy to build.”
“That is as much as to say that you cannot light the house
unless you set fire to it.”
Then there came another trouble. When Miss Gilby first came
to our house, there was a great flutter, which afterwards calmed
down when they got used to her. Now the whole thing was stirred
up afresh. I had never bothered myself before as to whether Miss
Gilby was European or Indian, but I began to do so now. I said to
my husband, “We must get rid of Miss Gilby.” . . .
25
“I cannot,” my husband said, “look upon Miss Gilby through a
mist of abstraction, just because she is English. Cannot you get
over the barrier of her name after such a long acquaintance?
Cannot you realize that she loves you?”
I felt a little ashamed and replied with some sharpness: “Let her
remain. I am not over anxious to send her away.” And Miss Gilby
remained.
INFERENCE Why does Bimala
most likely want Miss Gilby to
leave? Circle any details that support your answer.
DIALOGUE What does the
dialogue in paragraphs 16–26
reveal about Bimala and
her husband?
But one day I was told that she had been insulted by a young
fellow on her way to church. This was a boy whom we were supporting. My husband turned him out of the house.
There was not a single soul, that day, who could
forgive my husband for that act—not even I. This
time Miss Gilby left of her own accord. She shed
tears when she came to say good-bye, but my
mood would not melt. . . .
My husband escorted Miss Gilby to the
railway station in his own carriage. I was
sure he was going too far. When exaggerated
accounts of the incident gave rise to a public
scandal, which found its way to the newspapers, I felt he had been rightly served.
I had often become anxious at my husband’s doings, but had never before been
ashamed; yet now I had to blush for him! I
did not know exactly, nor did I care, what
wrong poor Noren might, or might not,
have done to Miss Gilby, but the idea of
sitting in judgement on such a matter at
such a time! I should have refused to
damp the spirit which prompted young
Noren to defy the Englishwoman. I could
not but look upon it as a sign of cowardice
in my husband, that he should fail to
understand this simple thing. And so I
blushed for him.
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE Why
does Bimala feel unsympathetic to
Miss Gilby and ashamed of Nikhil?
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30
“I am willing,” he said, “to serve my country; but my worship I
reserve for Right which is far greater than my country. To worship
my country as a god is to bring a curse upon it.”
SUMMARY Summarize Nikhil’s
feelings about his country.
This was the time when Sandip Babu with his followers came
to our neighbourhood to preach Swadeshi.
STRUCTURE How is the
structure of this story similar to
a diary? What is the effect of this
structure?
There is to be a big meeting in our temple pavilion. We women
are sitting there, on one side, behind a screen. Triumphant shouts
of Bande Mataram come nearer: and to them I am thrilling
through and through. Suddenly, a stream of barefooted youths in
turbans, clad in ascetic ochre, rushes into the quadrangle, like a
silt-reddened freshet into a dry river-bed at the first burst of the
rains. The whole place is filled with an immense crowd, through
which Sandip Babu is borne, seated in a big chair hoisted on the
shoulders of ten or twelve of the youths.
DESCRIPTIVE DETAILS The
author includes visual details to
create an exciting, vibrant scene in
paragraph 33. Underline the
descriptive details that help the
reader visualize the scene.
PLOT DEVICES In paragraph 35,
Bimala reveals that there’s something about Sandip that she does
not like. How might this fact foreshadow future events?
And yet it was not that my husband refused to support
Swadeshi, or was in any way against the Cause. Only he had not
been able whole-heartedly to accept the spirit of Bande Mataram.6
Bande Mataram! Bande Mataram! Bande Mataram! It seems
as though the skies would be rent and scattered into a thousand
fragments.
35
I had seen Sandip Babu’s photograph before. There was something in his features which I did not quite like. . . .
When, however, Sandip Babu began to speak that afternoon,
and the hearts of the crowd swayed and surged to his words, as
though they would break all bounds, I saw him wonderfully
transformed. Especially when his features were suddenly lit up
by a shaft of light from the slowly setting sun, as it sunk below the
roof-line of the pavilion, he seemed to me to be marked out by the
gods as their messenger to mortal men and women.
From beginning to end of his speech, each one of his utterances was a stormy outburst. There was no limit to the confidence
of his assurance. I do not know how it happened, but I found I had
impatiently pushed away the screen from before me and had fixed
my gaze upon him. Yet there was none in that crowd who paid any
heed to my doings. Only once, I noticed, his eyes, like stars in fateful Orion, flashed full on my face.
6
Bande Mataram “Hail Mother,” from a song that became India’s national
anthem. Bande Mataram has been the national cry since the days of the
Swadeshi movement.
28
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Small Group
I was utterly unconscious of myself. I was no longer the lady of
the Rajah’s house, but the sole representative of Bengal’s womanhood. And he was the champion of Bengal. As the sky had shed its
light over him, so he must receive the consecration of a woman’s
benediction. . . .
It seemed clear to me that, since he had caught sight of me,
the fire in his words had flamed up more fiercely. Indra’s7 steed
refused to be reined in, and there came the roar of thunder and
the flash of lightning. I said within myself that his language had
caught fire from my eyes; for we women are not only the deities of
the household fire, but the flame of the soul itself.
40
I returned home that evening radiant with a new pride and joy.
The storm within me had shifted my whole being from one centre
to another. Like the Greek maidens of old, I fain would cut off my
long, resplendent tresses to make a bowstring for my hero. . . .
When my husband came home later, I was trembling lest he
should utter a sound out of tune with the triumphant paean which
was still ringing in my ears, lest his fanaticism for truth should
lead him to express disapproval of anything that had been said
that afternoon. . . .
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
Under Sandip’s influence, Bimala
becomes caught up in the Swadeshi
movement. How does his effect on
her move the plot forward?
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Underline examples of figurative
language in paragraphs 38–41.
What is the effect of this
language? How does it help you
understand Bimala?
CONTEXT CLUES What does
the word fanaticism mean? Circle
the context clues you used to
determine the meaning.
I somehow felt that he was spitefully silent, that he obstinately
refused to be enthusiastic. I asked how long Sandip Babu was
going to be with us. . . .
“I want to invite him to dinner and attend on him myself.” . . .
“Why not!” said he. “I will ask him myself, and if it is at all
possible, he will surely stay on for tomorrow.”
7
Indra a major god of Hindu mythology
CENTRAL IDEA Why does
Bimala want to invite Sandip to
dinner? Explain how this supports
the central idea of the story.
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45
It turned out to be quite possible. . . .
That morning I scented my flowing hair and tied it in a loose
knot, bound by a cunningly intertwined red silk ribbon. Dinner,
you see, was to be served at midday, and there was no time to dry
my hair after my bath and do it up plaited in the ordinary way. I
put on a gold-bordered white sari, and my short-sleeve muslin
jacket was also gold-bordered.
I felt that there was a certain restraint about my costume and
that nothing could well have been simpler. But my sister-in-law,
who happened to be passing by, stopped dead before me, surveyed
me from head to foot and with compressed lips smiled a meaning
smile. When I asked her the reason, “I am admiring your get-up!”
she said.
“It’s superb,” she said. “I was only thinking that one of those
low-necked English bodices would have made it perfect.” Not only
her mouth and eyes, but her whole body seemed to ripple with
suppressed laughter as she left the room.
COMPLEX CHARACTERS
Reread paragraphs 47–49.
Describe Bimala’s outfit and her
sister-in-law’s reaction. What is
the real reason why she wants to
be dressed up? What does this tell
you about her character?
I was very, very angry, and wanted to change everything and
put on my everyday clothes. But I cannot tell exactly why I could
not carry out my impulse. Women are the ornaments of society—
thus I reasoned with myself—and my husband would never like it,
if I appeared before Sandip Babu unworthily clad.
50
My idea had been to make my appearance after they had sat
down to dinner. In the bustle of looking after the serving the first
awkwardness would have passed off. But dinner was not ready in
time, and it was getting late. Meanwhile my husband had sent for
me to introduce the guest.
I was feeling horribly shy about looking Sandip Babu in the
face. However, I managed to recover myself enough to say, “I am so
sorry dinner is getting late.”
He boldly came and sat right beside me as he replied: “I get a
dinner of some kind every day, but the Goddess of Plenty keeps
behind the scenes. Now that the goddess herself has appeared, it
matters little if the dinner lags behind.”
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE Why
is Sandip’s choice of seat so significant to Bimala? What does this
reveal about their culture?
He was just as emphatic in his manners as he was in his public
speaking. He had no hesitation and seemed to be accustomed to
occupy, unchallenged, his chosen seat. He claimed the right to
intimacy so confidently, that the blame would seem to belong to
those who should dispute it.
I was in terror lest Sandip Babu should take me for a shrinking,
old-fashioned bundle of inanity. But, for the life of me, I could not
sparkle in repartees such as might charm or dazzle him. What
could have possessed me, I angrily wondered, to appear before
him in such an absurd way?
30
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Small Group
55
I was about to retire when dinner was over, but Sandip Babu, as
bold as ever, placed himself in my way.
“You must not,” he said, “think me greedy. It was not the dinner
that kept me staying on, it was your invitation. If you were to run
away now, that would not be playing fair with your guest.” . . .
. . . Sandip Babu deliberately started a discussion with my husband. He knew that his keen wit flashed to the best effect in an
argument. I have often since observed that he never lost an opportunity for a passage at arms whenever I happened to be present.
DIALOGUE Reread paragraphs
55–58. How would you describe
Sandip, based on his words
and behavior?
TEXT EVIDENCE Why does
Sandip most likely ask Bimala
to stay? Underline any details
from the text that support
your inference.
He was familiar with my husband’s views on the cult of Bande
Mataram, and began in a provoking way: “So you do not allow that
there is room for an appeal to the imagination in patriotic work?”
“It has its place, Sandip, I admit, but I do not believe in giving it
the whole place. I would know my country in its frank reality, and
for this I am both afraid and ashamed to make use of hypnotic
texts of patriotism.” . . .
60
“Look here, Nikhil, this is all merely dry logic. Can’t you recognize that there is such a thing as feeling?”
“I tell you the truth, Sandip,” my husband replied. “It is my feelings that are outraged, whenever you try to pass off injustice as a
duty, and unrighteousness as a moral ideal. The fact, that I am
incapable of stealing, is not due to my possessing logical faculties,
but to my having some feeling of respect for myself and love
for ideals.”
SUMMARY Summarize
paragraphs 58–61. How do
Sandip’s and Nikhil’s ideas about
patriotism differ?
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All of a sudden Sandip Babu turned to me with the question,
“What do you say to this?”
“I do not care about fine distinctions,” I broke out. “I will tell
you broadly what I feel. I am only human. I am covetous. I would
have good things for my country. If I am obliged, I would snatch
them and filch them. I have anger. I would be angry for my country’s sake. If necessary, I would smite and slay to avenge her
insults. I have my desire to be fascinated, and fascination must be
supplied to me in bodily shape by my country. She must have
some visible symbol casting its spell upon my mind. I would make
my country a Person, and call her Mother, Goddess, Durga—for
whom I would redden the earth with sacrificial offerings. I am
human, not divine.”
COMPLEX CHARACTERS How
has Bimala changed since the
beginning of the story?
Sandip Babu leapt to his feet with uplifted arms and shouted,
“Hurrah!”—The next moment he corrected himself and cried,
“Bande Mataram.”
65
THEME How does Sandip’s
speech in paragraph 66 help
express the theme of the story?
A shadow of pain passed over the face of my husband. He said
to me in a very gentle voice: “Neither am I divine: I am human.
And therefore I dare not permit the evil which is in me to be exaggerated into an image of my country—never, never!”
Sandip Babu cried out: “See, Nikhil, how in the heart of a
woman Truth takes flesh and blood. Woman knows how to be
cruel: her virulence is like a blind storm. It is beautifully fearful. In
man it is ugly, because it harbours in its centre the gnawing worms
of reason and thought. I tell you, Nikhil, it is our women who will
save the country. This is not the time for nice scruples. We must be
unswervingly, unreasoningly brutal. We must sin. We must give
our women red sandal paste with which to anoint and enthrone
our sin. . . . Down with that righteousness, which cannot smilingly
bring rack and ruin.”
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Small Group
When Sandip Babu, standing with his head high, insulted at a
moment’s impulse all that men have cherished as their highest, in
all countries and in all times, a shiver went right through my body.
But, with a stamp of his foot, he continued his declamation:
“I can see that you are that beautiful spirit of fire, which burns the
home to ashes and lights up the larger world with its flame. Give to
us the indomitable courage to go to the bottom of Ruin itself.
Impart grace to all that is baneful.”
It was not clear to whom Sandip Babu addressed his last
appeal. It might have been She whom he worshipped with his
Bande Mataram. It might have been the Womanhood of his country. Or it might have been its representative, the woman before
him. He would have gone further in the same strain, but my husband suddenly rose from his seat and touched him lightly on the
shoulder saying: “Sandip, Chandranath Babu is here.”
70
I started and turned round, to find an aged gentleman at the
door, calm and dignified, in doubt as to whether he should come
in or retire. His face was touched with a gentle light like that of the
setting sun.
My husband came up to me and whispered: “This is my master,
of whom I have so often told you. Make your obeisance 8 to him.”
I bent reverently and took the dust of his feet. He gave me his
blessing saying: “May God protect you always, my little mother.”
I was sorely in need of such a blessing at that moment.
THEME How is Bimala’s behavior
with Nikhil’s master different
from her behavior during dinner?
Explain how this difference relates
to the theme of the story.
I wonder what could have happened to my feeling of shame.
The fact is, I had no time to think about myself. My days and
nights were passing in a whirl, like an eddy with myself in the
centre. No gap was left for hesitation or delicacy to enter.
. . . Something within me was at work of which I was not even
conscious. I used to overdress, it is true, but more like an automaton, with no particular design. No doubt I knew which effort of
mine would prove specially pleasing to Sandip Babu, but that
required no intuition, for he would discuss it openly before
all of them.
75
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Circle the figurative language in
paragraph 73. How does this use
of language help you to understand Bimala’s state of mind?
One day he said to my husband: “Do you know, Nikhil, when I
first saw our Queen Bee, she was sitting there so demurely in her
gold-bordered sari. Her eyes were gazing inquiringly into space,
like stars which had lost their way, just as if she had been for ages
standing on the edge of some darkness, looking out for something
unknown. But when I saw her, I felt a quiver run through me. It
8
obeisance show of humble respect
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seemed to me that the gold border of her sari was her own inner
fire flaming out and twining round her. That is the flame we want,
visible fire! Look here, Queen Bee, you really must do us the favour
of dressing once more as a living flame.”
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
What is the “flame” that Sandip
describes in paragraph 75?
So long I had been like a small river at the border of a village.
My rhythm and my language were different from what they are
now. But the tide came up from the sea, and my breast heaved; my
banks gave way and the great drumbeats of the sea waves echoed
in my mad current. I could not understand the meaning of that
sound in my blood. Where was that former self of mine? Whence
came foaming into me this surging flood of glory? Sandip’s hungry
eyes burnt like the lamps of worship before my shrine. All his gaze
proclaimed that I was a wonder in beauty and power; and the
loudness of his praise, spoken and unspoken, drowned all other
voices in my world. Had the Creator created me afresh, I wondered? Did he wish to make up now for neglecting me so long? I
who before was plain had become suddenly beautiful. I who
before had been of no account now felt in myself all the splendour
of Bengal itself.
For Sandip Babu was not a mere individual. In him was the
confluence of millions of minds of the country. When he called me
the Queen Bee of the hive, I was acclaimed with a chorus of praise
by all our patriot workers. After that, the loud jests of my sister-inlaw could not touch me any longer. My relations with all the world
underwent a change. Sandip Babu made it clear how all the country was in need of me. I had no difficulty in believing this at the
time, for I felt that I had the power to do everything.
Divine strength had come to me. It was something which I had
never felt before, which was beyond myself. I had no time to question it to find out what was its nature. It seemed to belong to me,
and yet to transcend me. It comprehended the whole of Bengal.
SUMMARY Summarize what
Bimala is thinking in paragraphs
76–78.
Sandip Babu would consult me about every little thing touching the Cause. At first I felt very awkward and would hang back,
but that soon wore off. Whatever I suggested seemed to astonish
him. He would go into raptures and say: “Men can only think. You
women have a way of understanding without thinking. Woman
was created out of God’s own fancy. Man, He had to hammer
into shape.”
CENTRAL IDEA Based on what
you’ve read so far, what is the central idea of the story?
TEXT EVIDENCE Circle the
specific lines in paragraph 80 that
show that Bimala has taken a key
role in Sandip’s mission.
80
Letters used to come to Sandip Babu from all parts of the country which were submitted to me for my opinion. Occasionally, he
disagreed with me. But I would not argue with him. Then after a
day or two—as if a new light had suddenly dawned upon him—he
would send for me and say: “It was my mistake. Your suggestion
was the correct one.” He would often confess to me that wherever
he had taken steps contrary to my advice he had gone wrong.
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Thus, I gradually came to be convinced that behind whatever was
taking place was Sandip Babu, and behind Sandip Babu was the
plain common sense of a woman. The glory of a great responsibility filled my being.
My husband had no place in our counsels. Sandip Babu treated
him as a younger brother, of whom personally one may be very
fond and yet have no use for his business advice. He would tenderly and smilingly talk about my husband’s childlike innocence,
saying that his curious doctrine and perversities of mind had a
flavour of humour which made them all the more lovable. It was
seemingly this very affection for Nikhil which led Sandip Babu to
forbear from troubling him with the burden of the country.
Nature has many anodynes9 in her pharmacy, which she secretly
administers when vital relations are being insidiously severed, so
that none may know of the operation, till at last one awakes to know
what a great rent has been made. When the knife was busy with my
life’s most intimate tie, my mind was so clouded with fumes of
intoxicating gas that I was not in the least
aware of what a cruel thing was happening. Possibly this is woman’s nature.
When her passion is roused, she loses
her sensibility for all that is outside it.
When, like the river, we women keep to
our banks, we give nourishment with
all that we have: when we overflow
them, we destroy with all that we are.
9
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Explain the figurative language in
paragraph 82.
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE What
role does the setting play in this
excerpt? How would the story be
different if the time and place
were different?
anodynes painkilling drugs or medicines
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Small Group
Discussion
Discuss these questions with your group, and together write a paragraph in response to each
question. Provide evidence to support your responses.
1. Describe the cultural setting of this story. How do Bimala, Nikhil, and Sandip feel about their
culture?
2. Given what has happened so far in The Home and the World, what do you think will happen
to Bimala, Nikhil, and Sandip?
Comprehension Check
Answer these questions about the selection you have just read. Use details from the selection
to support your responses.
1. When is the first time you can see a change in Bimala’s character? Explain why Bimala may
be considered a complex character.
2. What are the differences between Nikhil’s and Sandip’s motivations? How does Tagore
develop this?
3. How does the tone at the end of the selection compare with the tone at the beginning?
4. Based on what you’ve read in the excerpt, describe some of the expectations of women in
India in the early nineteenth century. How does Bimala fit in with these expectations? How
does she defy them?
Independent Projects
On Your Own Your teacher may assign you one or both of the following performance tasks.
Investigate a historical novel about a revolution.
Apply what you have learned to analyze the plot of another story.
Inquiry
Research another historical novel
centered around a revolution. Write
an essay in which you explain the
historical context of the novel, the
author’s perspective on the revolutionary movement, and the author’s
involvement in that revolution, if
applicable.
36
Application
Read another short story with an
unexpected twist from either Russian
or French literature, such as “The Bet”
by Anton Chekov. You will be asked
to analyze the plot structure, paying
particular attention to the reader’s
expectations early in the story, and
how those expectations change as
the plot progresses.
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