Carriage (Symbol)
The carriage symbolizes the whole society (probably, Russia, in particular). First this symbol appears at the dinner. Chertokrutskiy tells a Colonel about the carriage. He praises it and intentionally amplifies its quality. But at the end of the story the Colonel sees that this carriage is not actually something worth of attention, as well as Russian society, which is rot inside.
Also the carriage may symbolize a man’s soul. A man always tries to show the best sides of his personality, but when the soul’s “core” isn’t so good, as it is shown, and when this fact risks coming out to others, the man hides inside of himself, hoping that his truth will also hide with him in such a way.
Cavalry (Allegory)
A cavalry, that came to the town B. and changed a lot of things there, represents the military events in Russia, formation of imperialism there. While the cavalry “revitalized” the town, Imperialism, the rule of Alexandr I breathed life into Russia after the rule of Peter I and Pavel I.
Mare (Symbol)
The mare presents Russia, its essence for the author. It’s symbolically named Agrafiona Ivanovna, while nobody else has the Russian name: the protagonist is Pifagor Pifagorovich, the other characters don’t have names at all. In such way the author emphasizes its Russianness. “The mare was called Agrippina Ivanovna; strong and wild as a southern belle, she burst her hooves in wooden porch and suddenly stopped.” Here the author shows the character of the mare (the “character” of Russia), shows that she is full of power and energy, but some circumstances make her stop her movement (probably, development).
