Is an article needed before the words "fat oaf" in the sentence below or not?

Question

Hello! Could somebody please help to determine if an article is needed or not in the following sentence in front of the word “fat”? Many thanks in advance!

“You won’t ever understand what it means to be a Truth Seeker, at least not in this lifetime as fat oaf, Michael Jones.”

My colleague says there should be an ‘a’ before the words “fat oaf”, but I disagree. If anyone could explain which is correct and the grammatical reason why if be much obliged!

Kind regards,

Dr Evil

Answer 1

The phrase "as fat oaf, Michael Jones" is telling me that there is a fat oaf named Michael Jones. The comma after as fat oath is interpreted as explaining who the fat oath is. If it is a warning to Michael Jones, than the "a" is needed to clarify that, and separate it from Michael.

Bob