A.P. Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard": description, characters, analysis of the play. Analysis of the play "The Cherry Orchard" and its composition Questions for analyzing the play The Cherry Orchard
The play " The Cherry Orchard“is the last dramatic work in which Anton Pavlovich Chekhov pays tribute to his time, nobles and such a broad concept as “estate”, so valued by the author at all times.
The genre of “The Cherry Orchard” has always served as a reason for controversy and gossip. Chekhov himself wished to classify the play as a comedy genre, thereby going against the critics and connoisseurs of literature, who loudly convinced everyone that the work belonged to tragicomedy and drama. Thus, Anton Pavlovich gave readers the opportunity to judge his creation for themselves, to observe and experience the variety of genres presented on the pages of the book.
The leitmotif of all scenes in the play is the cherry orchard, because it is not just a backdrop against which a number of events take place, but also a symbol of the course of life in the estate. Throughout his career, the author gravitated toward symbolism, and did not sacrifice it in this play. It is against the backdrop of the cherry orchard that both external and internal conflicts develop.
The reader (or viewer) sees the owners of the house replacing each other, as well as the sale of the estate for debts. Upon a quick reading, it is noticeable that all the opposing forces are represented in the play: youth, noble Russia and aspiring entrepreneurs. Of course, social confrontation, often taken as the main line of conflict, is obvious. However, more attentive readers may notice that the key reason for the clash is not social confrontation at all, but the conflict of key characters with their environment and reality.
The “underwater” current of the play is no less interesting than its main plot. Chekhov builds his narrative on halftones, where, among unambiguous and indisputable events, perceived as fact and for granted, existential questions appear from time to time, emerging throughout the play. “Who am I and what do I want?” Firs, Epikhodov, Charlotte Ivanovna and many other heroes ask themselves. Thus, it becomes obvious that the leading motive of “The Cherry Orchard” is not at all the confrontation of social strata, but the loneliness that haunts each hero throughout his life.
Teffi described “The Cherry Orchard” with only one saying: “Laughter through tears,” analyzing this immortal work. It’s both funny and sad to read it, realizing that both conflicts raised by the author are relevant to this day.
In addition to the analysis of the play “The Cherry Orchard,” there are other works:
- Analysis of the story by A.P. Chekhov's "Ionych"
- “Tosca”, analysis of Chekhov’s work, essay
- “The Death of an Official,” analysis of Chekhov’s story, essay
- “Thick and Thin”, analysis of Chekhov’s story
The work of Anton Pavlovich Chekhov “The Cherry Orchard” was created more than a century ago in 1903. But until now this play has not lost its relevance. It is read with pleasure and performed on the stages of the most famous theaters. It reflects the problems of the noble class of pre-revolutionary Russia and the aspirations of ordinary people of that time.
I must say that this is one of the last works of the great writer. A year after it was written, Chekhov died of illness.
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Characters of the play
Supporting characters
The play takes place on the estate of Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya. She returns to her homeland from France, where she lived for a long time with her young daughter Anya. They are met by relatives and friends, including Gaev, the owner’s brother, and her adopted daughter Varya. They lived on the estate all this time, trying to maintain order in it.
Ranevskaya herself is not distinguished by her ability to ensure her comfortable existence. During travel and an idle life, the family’s fortune has melted like snow, and something needs to be decided in order to pay off debts and find money for future life.
The merchant Lopakhin understands this very well, who offers her to sell the estate in order to cut down the garden and build it up with houses for summer residents. This option could save the landowner and bring big profits to Lopakhin himself.
But Lyubov Andreevna is very attached to why home. After all, it was here that her childhood and teenage years passed, and her beloved Grisha, her son, died. The brother and adopted daughter are trying to save the situation by any means, but nothing comes of it.
In parallel with this action The play develops a philosophical and love line:
In the third act, Gaev and Lopakhin go to the auction, and dances are held on the estate. In the midst of the fun, Gaev returns and announces the sale of the estate to Lopakhin. The merchant, of course, is beside himself with happiness and demands cheerful music from the musicians. He doesn’t feel sorry for the ruined owners at all.
In the finale, Ranevskaya and her family leave the sold estate to start new life. Lopakhin triumphs, and only the old footman Firs pronounces his sad monologue to the sound of an ax - they are cutting down a cherry orchard.
Critics' reaction
After the publication of “The Cherry Orchard,” it was noted that the work reflected the state of the noble class at the beginning of the last century. Almost before our eyes, the death of an entire class is happening. It is this, and not the economic issue, that is the main concern of readers. Ranevskaya understands that her life is over and is not trying to benefit from what is happening.
Artistic basis
The play was conceived as a comedy, but after reading it to the end, you begin to understand that it is more of a tragicomedy or even a drama.
The main feature of the work is symbolism, which is unique to Chekhov. Even the dialogue in the play is unusual, since the lines in most cases are not an answer to the questions that are asked. Chekhov tried to write and show that the characters simply do not try to understand each other. They don't hear anyone but themselves.
The garden itself is the central “hero” here, symbolizing the collapse of the noble life of Russia.
That's how brief retelling play "The Cherry Orchard", the plan of which consists of four acts. The full version of the work can be read online or by ordering a printed version of the book.
By the beginning of the 3rd act, the ideological and moral positions of the heroes have been determined, a feeling of a global “undercurrent” has been created: through empty chatter, conversations about nothing or everyone about their own, through the seeming eventlessness, a growing internal boiling begins to be clearly felt.
Lopakhin is trying to revive again the dead practical streak of Ranevskaya and Gaev, but they live in another dimension, are not able to understand Lopakhin, they only sensitively sense the approaching disaster.
Petya Trofimov solemnly convinces Anya that they are “above love,” above this particular garden, they need to “bypass the petty and ghostly...”, that “all of Russia is our garden,” that we need to work to “redeem our past.” Anya, seemingly perceiving Petya’s calls, is nevertheless thoughtful and sad, her farewell to the garden is very ambiguous: the joy of moving towards the new life promised by Trofimov is combined with the bitterness of the loss of a tender attachment to the past, and simply love for her mother, who is now unwell.
The act takes place in the living room. A Jewish orchestra is playing, for which there is no one to pay, everyone is dancing (a kind of feast during the plague). Varya quarrels with Trofimov, Charlotte shows Pishchik tricks on cards. Varya is again being wooed by Lopakhin. Epikhodov broke a billiard ball. The ordinariness of what is happening with the simultaneous increase in internal tension is striking.
Ranevskaya’s soul is getting worse and worse. At first, she acts and speaks as if mechanically, absent-mindedly, only complaining several times that there is no news from Lopakhin from the auction. Then she suddenly explodes in a conversation with Petya, revealing her emotional heaviness from saying goodbye to her life in her home. So she flared up, bringing down all her indignation on poor Petya’s head.
Music plays, the characters quarrel, make up, and the tension of painful anticipation hangs in the air. Ranevskaya's heaviness intensifies even more with the appearance of Firs, who reminds her of the past. Varya drives Epikhodov away with a stick, and at this moment - the culmination of the action - Lopakhin, who was mistakenly treated to Varya's stick, enters with the main message. Perhaps the tragicomic nature of this decisive situation forced Chekhov to define the play as a comedy?
It is curious that, unlike the entire play (there are 38 famous Chekhov pauses in four acts in total), in the 3rd act there is only one pause - after Lopakhin’s words: “I bought it.” Everything was mixed up. Gaev's crying is replaced by a desire to eat and play billiards (defensive reaction). Ranevskaya's convulsive anticipation turns into tears and loss of speech (she remains silent). Lopakhin's unbridled and indelicately plebeian triumph is intertwined with Ranevskaya's reproach and sympathy for her. The orchestra is no longer playing cheerfully, but quietly. In Anya’s consoling speech, words of love for her mother coming from the depths of her soul are heard, interspersed with pompous words about the “new garden” learned from Petya.
Act 3 is the climax of the play. Everything important happened. The garden was bought, but it was still bought by his own “predator”, and not by someone else’s Deriganov. All that remains is the scene of farewell and departure, when no one else the right house they will forget the equally unnecessary Firs, and the whole play will end with the symbolic sounds of a broken string and the sound of an ax on the still living cherry trees.
“The Cherry Orchard” is the pinnacle of Russian drama of the early 20th century, a lyrical comedy, a play that marked the beginning of a new era in the development of Russian theater.
The main theme of the play is autobiographical - a bankrupt family of nobles sells their family estate at auction. The author, as a person who has gone through a similar life situation, with subtle psychologism describes the mental state of people who will soon be forced to leave their home. The innovation of the play is the absence of division of heroes into positive and negative, into main and secondary ones. They are all divided into three categories:
- people of the past - noble aristocrats (Ranevskaya, Gaev and their lackey Firs);
- people of the present - their bright representative, the merchant-entrepreneur Lopakhin;
- people of the future - the progressive youth of that time (Petr Trofimov and Anya).
History of creation
Chekhov began work on the play in 1901. Due to serious health problems, the writing process was quite difficult, but nevertheless, in 1903 the work was completed. First theatrical performance The play took place a year later on the stage of the Moscow Art Theater, becoming the pinnacle of Chekhov's work as a playwright and a textbook classic of the theatrical repertoire.
Play Analysis
Description of the work
The action takes place on the family estate of landowner Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya, who returned from France with her young daughter Anya. On railway station they are met by Gaev (Ranevskaya's brother) and Varya (her adopted daughter).
The financial situation of the Ranevsky family is nearing complete collapse. Entrepreneur Lopakhin offers his version of a solution to the problem - break land plot on shares and give them to summer residents for use for a certain fee. The lady is burdened by this proposal, because for this she will have to say goodbye to her beloved cherry orchard, with which many warm memories of her youth are associated. Adding to the tragedy is the fact that her beloved son Grisha died in this garden. Gaev, imbued with his sister’s feelings, reassures her with a promise that their family estate will not be put up for sale.
The action of the second part takes place on the street, in the courtyard of the estate. Lopakhin, with his characteristic pragmatism, continues to insist on his plan to save the estate, but no one pays attention to him. Everyone turns to the teacher Pyotr Trofimov who has appeared. He delivers an excited speech dedicated to the fate of Russia, its future and touches on the topic of happiness in a philosophical context. The materialist Lopakhin is skeptical about the young teacher, and it turns out that only Anya is capable of being imbued with his lofty ideas.
The third act begins with Ranevskaya using her last money to invite an orchestra and organize a dance evening. Gaev and Lopakhin are absent at the same time - they went to the city for an auction, where the Ranevsky estate should go under the hammer. After a tedious wait, Lyubov Andreevna learns that her estate was bought at auction by Lopakhin, who does not hide his joy at his acquisition. The Ranevsky family is in despair.
The finale is entirely dedicated to the departure of the Ranevsky family from their home. The parting scene is shown with all the deep psychologism inherent in Chekhov. The play ends with a surprisingly deep monologue by Firs, whom the owners in a hurry forgot on the estate. The final chord is the sound of an axe. The cherry orchard is being cut down.
Main characters
A sentimental person, the owner of the estate. Having lived abroad for several years, she got used to a luxurious life and, by inertia, continues to allow herself many things, which, given the deplorable state of her finances, logically common sense should be inaccessible to her. Being a frivolous person, very helpless in everyday matters, Ranevskaya does not want to change anything about herself, while she is fully aware of her weaknesses and shortcomings.
A successful merchant, he owes a lot to the Ranevsky family. His image is ambiguous - he combines hard work, prudence, enterprise and rudeness, a “peasant” beginning. At the end of the play, Lopakhin does not share Ranevskaya’s feelings; he is happy that, despite his peasant origins, he was able to afford to buy the estate of his late father’s owners.
Like his sister, he is very sensitive and sentimental. Being an idealist and romantic, to console Ranevskaya, he comes up with fantastic plans to save the family estate. He is emotional, verbose, but at the same time completely inactive.
Petya Trofimov
An eternal student, a nihilist, an eloquent representative of the Russian intelligentsia, advocating for the development of Russia only in words. In pursuit of the “highest truth,” he denies love, considering it a petty and illusory feeling, which immensely upsets Ranevskaya’s daughter Anya, who is in love with him.
A romantic 17-year-old young lady who fell under the influence of the populist Peter Trofimov. Recklessly believing in better life After the sale of her parents' estate, Anya is ready for any difficulties for the sake of shared happiness next to her lover.
An 87-year-old man, a footman in the Ranevskys' house. The type of servant of old times, surrounds his masters with fatherly care. He remained to serve his masters even after the abolition of serfdom.
A young lackey who treats Russia with contempt and dreams of going abroad. A cynical and cruel man, he is rude to old Firs and even treats his own mother with disrespect.
Structure of the work
The structure of the play is quite simple - 4 acts without dividing into separate scenes. The duration of action is several months, from late spring to mid-autumn. In the first act there is exposition and plotting, in the second there is an increase in tension, in the third there is a climax (the sale of the estate), in the fourth there is a denouement. A characteristic feature of the play is the absence of genuine external conflict, dynamism, and unpredictable turns. storyline. The author's remarks, monologues, pauses and some understatement give the play a unique atmosphere of exquisite lyricism. The artistic realism of the play is achieved through the alternation of dramatic and comic scenes.
(Scene from a modern production)
The development of the emotional and psychological plane dominates in the play; the main driver of the action is the internal experiences of the characters. The author expands the artistic space of the work using input large quantity characters who never appear on stage. Also, the effect of expanding spatial boundaries is given by the symmetrically emerging theme of France, giving an arched form to the play.
Final conclusion
Chekhov's last play, one might say, is his “swan song.” The novelty of her dramatic language is a direct expression of Chekhov’s special concept of life, which is characterized by extraordinary attention to small, seemingly insignificant details, and a focus on the inner experiences of the characters.
In the play “The Cherry Orchard,” the author captured the state of critical disunity of Russian society of his time; this sad factor is often present in scenes where the characters hear only themselves, creating only the appearance of interaction.
The theme of the past, present and future of Russia. The theme of the past is associated with the images of Ranevskaya, Gaev, Simeonov-Pishchik, Firs. They are burdened by the legacy of serfdom, under which they grew up and under which they were brought up. Their parasitism is inevitable, as is the slavery of Firs, who cannot imagine life without masters. The path of atonement for the sins of the past - righteous work - proposed by Petya Trofimov (Petya's monologue from Act 2) is unacceptable for them, and moreover, it seems absurd. The theme of the present is connected with the image of Lopakhin, in which two principles coexist. On the one hand, Lopakhin is a man of action, a tireless worker; his ideal is to make the earth rich and happy. On the other hand, there is no spiritual principle in him; he is overcome by the thirst for profit. The theme of the future is associated with the images of Anya, who breaks with her past, and Petya, the so-called “democratic intellectual”. Both of them are obsessed with the idea of creative work, although they have little idea of what exactly this work will consist of for both of them.
The nature of the conflict and features of stage action
In the article “On the Question of the Principles of Construction of A. P. Chekhov’s Plays,” A. P. Skaftymov pointed out the unstaged and drawn-out nature of the play, the weakness of the plot, and the lack of action. In contrast to this point of view, other researchers, and in particular, K. S. Stanislavsky and V. D. Nemirovich-Danchenko, noted the unusualness of the dramatic conflict and the presence in Chekhov’s play of “undercurrents - intimate lyrical flows that are felt behind the external everyday details” .The genre of “The Cherry Orchard” is considered to be a comedy, although the satirical pathos of the play is greatly weakened. Chekhov continued the traditions of Ostrovsky (depiction of everyday life in plays). However, for Ostrovsky, everyday life is the background, the basis for the actual dramatic events. In Chekhov, events only externally organize the plot. Every hero experiences drama - Ranevskaya, Gaev, Varya, and Charlotte. Moreover, the drama lies not in the loss of the cherry orchard, but in everyday life itself. The characters experience a conflict “between what is given and what is desired” - between vanity and the dream of a person’s true purpose. In the souls of most heroes, the conflict is not resolved.The meaning of "undercurrents"
The meaning of individual characters' remarks is in no way connected with the events taking place. These remarks are important only in the context of understanding the conflict between the given and the desired (Ranevskaya: “I’m still waiting for something, as if the house was about to collapse above us,” Gaev’s “billiard” remarks, etc.).The role of details
For Chekhov, detail is the most important visual means in conveying the psychology of heroes, conflict, and other things.Replicas of heroes
a) Replies from the heroes, which do not help in the development of the plot, but illustrate the fragmentation of consciousness, the alienation of the heroes from each other, their inorganicity with the world around them. “Everyone is sitting, thinking. Suddenly a distant sound is heard, as if from the sky, the sound of a broken string, fading, sad.Lyubov Andreevna. What's this?
L o pakhin. Don't know. Somewhere far away in the mines a tub fell off. But somewhere very far away.
G aev. Or maybe some kind of bird... Like a heron.
Trofimov. Or an owl...
Lyubov Andreevna (shudders). It's unpleasant for some reason. (Pause.)
F and r s. It was the same before the disaster. And the owl screamed, and the samovar hummed endlessly.
Gaev. Before what misfortune?
F and r s. Before the will. (Pause).
Lyubov Andreevna. You know, friends, let's go, it's already getting dark. (But not). There are tears in your eyes... What are you doing, girl? (Hugs her.)
Anya. That's right, mom. Nothing".
Sound effects
The sound of a broken string (“voiced melancholy”). The sound of an ax cutting down a cherry orchard.Scenery
“Lyubov Andreevna (looks out the window at the garden). Oh my childhood, my purity! I slept in this nursery, looked at the garden from here, happiness woke up with me every morning, and then he was exactly the same, nothing has changed. (Laughs with joy.) All, all white! O my garden! After a dark, stormy autumn and cold winter, you are young again, full of happiness, the heavenly angels have not abandoned you... If only I could take the heavy stone off my chest and shoulders, if only I could forget my past!Gaev. Yes. And the garden will be sold for debts, oddly enough...
Lyubov Andreevna. Look, the deceased mother is walking through the garden... in a white dress! (Laughs with joy.) It’s her.
Gaev. Where?
Varya. The Lord is with you, mommy.
Lyubov Andreevna. Nobody here. It seemed to me. To the right, at the turn towards the gazebo, a white tree bent over, looking like a woman.”
Situation
The closet to which either Ranevskaya or Gaev address their speech.Author's remarks
Yasha always speaks, barely holding back laughter. Lopakhin always addresses Varya mockingly.Features of the conflict in the play.
“The Cherry Orchard” is one of the most famous plays in the world repertoire, and the fact that the theater constantly turns to it, and the possibilities of different readings, and the constant discovery of new meanings - all this is due to the new dramatic language that Chekhov created. What is unique about The Cherry Orchard? This can be seen when analyzing the main elements of the play: the nature of the dramatic conflict, the structure of the character system, speech characters, genre features. From the point of view of classical, pre-Chekhov drama, the course of dramatic action is unusual. All its elements are present in the play. At the very beginning of the first act, a plot is given - the possibility of a dramatic unfolding of events: this is the upcoming sale of Ranevskaya's estate for debts. The climax - the sale of the estate - occurs in the fourth act, in the denouement - all the inhabitants of the estate leave it, go in different directions. But where are the actions and events that develop and connect these main nodes of the dramatic plot? There is none of them. There is no external intrigue that exists in any play; the action develops according to some other, internal laws. From the very beginning of the play, a theme is set that organizes the conflict, the theme of the cherry orchard. Throughout the play, no one talks about the loss of the estate (the old Ranevsky house reminds of itself only in the first act - in Lyubov Andreevna’s exclamation about her nursery, in Gaev’s address to the hundred-year-old closet) - there are disputes about the cherry orchard between Ranevskaya, Lopakhin and Petya, the cherry Lopakhin buys the garden. In the last act, an ax will hit the cherry trees, signaling the end of the established way of life. It, associated with the life of several generations, will become a symbol of the cross-cutting theme of the play - the theme of man and time, man and history. The absence of a consistently developing external action is caused by the special nature of the conflict in Chekhov's play. Typically, a conflict is associated with a clash of opposing forces, the struggle of interests of different people, the desire to achieve a goal or avoid a danger that is determined in the beginning. There is no such conflict in The Cherry Orchard. The situation, traditional for Russian literature, of a clash between a wasteful and unadapted nobleman-landowner and a predatory and aggressive merchant (compare with the relationship between Gurmyzhskaya and Vosmibratov in Ostrovsky’s “The Forest”) is not even mentioned here. Moreover, there is no real threat of ruin for Gaev and Ranevskaya.In the initial situation of the first act, Lopakhin explains to them how they could maintain and even increase the income from the estate: by breaking it into parts, renting out the land to summer residents. As if by the way, Lopakhin says that in this case the cherry orchard, old and no longer bearing fruit, must of course be cut down. This is what Ranevskaya and Gaev cannot do; they are hampered by the special feelings they experience for the cherry orchard. It is this area of feelings that becomes the subject of conflict. Conflict in pre-Chekhov drama necessarily presupposes a clash between the suffering hero and someone who acts against him and represents the source of his suffering. Suffering is not necessarily of a material nature (cf. the role of money in Ostrovsky’s comedy), it can be caused by ideological reasons. “A million torments” are experienced by Griboedov’s hero, and his “torments” are connected with people, antagonists - the entire Famus circle appearing in the play.
In The Cherry Orchard there is no source of external suffering, no evil will and no actions directed against the heroes. They are divided by their attitude to the fate of the cherry orchard, but are united by a common dissatisfaction with existing life and a passionate desire to change it. This is one line of dynamic development of action. There is also a second one. Chekhov gives the feelings of each of the heroes in a double light - from the inside and from the outside, in the perception and understanding of other people. This becomes a source of dramatic drama. Lopakhin does not share the feelings of Gaev and Ranevskaya: for him they are strange and surprising; he does not understand why his reasonable arguments about the structure of the estate do not work on them. And for Petya these feelings are alien. What Ranevskaya loves and is afraid to lose is subject to destruction for him; what she sees in her happy past, childhood and youth, is for him a reminder of the unfair structure of life, of the people tortured here. Lopakhin's feelings and truth are understandable and dear only to himself. Neither Ranevskaya nor Petya understands or accepts them. Petya Trofimov has his own feelings and ideas (“All of Russia is our garden”), but they are funny for Lopakhin and incomprehensible to Ranevskaya.
The problems of “The Cherry Orchard” and the character system
This the most important topic misunderstanding and divergence of people, their isolation in their own feelings and their own suffering is enhanced in the play by the role of minor persons. Each of them has peace own experiences, and each among the others is alone and misunderstood. Charlotte, homeless and lonely, makes others laugh and is not taken seriously by anyone. Petya Trofimov and Lopakhin make fun of Varya, immersed in her own world. Simeonov-Pishchik is immersed in his own circle of worries - he is constantly looking for money and just as constantly thinks about his daughter Dashenka, causing mocking irritation from those around him. Epikhodov is funny to everyone in his “misfortunes”, no one takes Dunyasha’s experiences seriously... The comic side is indeed strongly expressed in these characters, but in Chekhov’s play there is nothing absolutely funny, absolutely tragic or absolutely lyrical. Their complex mixture is carried out in each character.The main content of “The Cherry Orchard”, which is that all its characters equally suffer from the disorder of life and at the same time they are all locked in this lonely suffering, inaccessible to others, is also reflected in the nature of the dramatic dialogue; many statements in the play are not connected with the general line conversation, not addressed to anyone. In the third act, Charlotte keeps everyone busy with her magic tricks. Everyone applauds. Ranevskaya reflects on her own thoughts: “But Leonid is still not there. I don’t understand what he’s been doing in the city for so long.” Charlotte's words about her loneliness at the beginning of the second act are not addressed to anyone, although she is among other people. Varya gives Ranevskaya a telegram. Ranevskaya: “This is from Paris... Paris is over...” Gaev’s next remark: “Do you know, Lyuba, how old is this wardrobe?”
Even more significant in this situation of not listening to others are cases when the heroes seem to be responding to a cue, but the connection turns out to be mechanical - they are again immersed in their own thoughts. Trofimov says that he and Anya are “above love.” Ranevskaya: “But I must be below love... (In great anxiety.) Why is Leonid not there? Just to know: was the estate sold or not?”
