A lowly government clerk, Akay Akakiyevich, must scrimp and save to purchase a new coat for the cold, Russian winter in "The Overcoat." But after one night of basking in the warmth of his new coat and the respect of his colleagues, Akaky's one-of-a-kind overcoat is stolen from him. In his pursuit of justice, Akaky receives no help and is consumed by the loss of his prized possession. In "The Viy" Gogol recounts a popular folk story in which a monstrous creature, known by the population of Little Russia as the king of gnomes, helps a witch get revenge on a young student who escaped from her trap years before.